Page 95 of The Guardian's Curse

Alistair nodded. “Thank you.”

“Julian was with Eduardo,” Paris said. “He has business, but told me to update him if he can help. Obviously, the Shroud is at our disposal. Violette’s checking Shoshanna’s credit card for any recent transactions.” His eyes narrowed. “What happened?”

“We had a falling out last night. I…” He lowered his head. “I broke her trust.”

“What did you do?” Paris said sharply.

“She was hurting herself to break Lucia’s curse,” he blurted. “Her vision is failing, and she will turn to stone just as Lucia did. Because she and I are...soulmates. And she is cursed because of me.”

“Soulmates?” Nikko said incredulously. “There’s no such thing.”

“You know there is,” Alistair said. “How else can you explain Kova or Julian?”

“Guilt and grief,” Nikko snapped. “It is nothing so poetic.”

“Are you serious?” Paris said to Alistair. Then he shook his head emphatically. “It doesn’t matter. What does that have to do with her leaving?”

“I told her that I destroyed her work,” he said. “I drove her away.”

“You did what?” Paris spluttered. He gestured to Lucia. “The witch did it, you fucking idiot. And you destroyed our only chance at ridding ourselves of this nightmare?”

“I didn’t destroy it,” he snapped. “I’m not a monster. I simply hid it to delay her for a few days while she rested. I feared that she would hurt herself trying to fix Lucia. But I may have doomed her. And worst of all, she was right.” He gestured broadly. “She said she could do it, and she did.”

“How did she do it?” Nikko said. One hand absently skimmed over the marks on his arm, his mind clearly on his own curse.

“I don’t know,” Alistair said. “She’s been working at it for weeks. She’s brilliant. As smart as she is beautiful. And I’ve ruined her.”

Paris clapped him on the back. “For once in your bloody life, you’re not going to wallow in self-pity.” Despite the sharp tone, there was a gentleness in his eyes. “Because we will find her. Dominic told her it couldn’t be done, and I’d love to see the look on his face when he has to eat his words.”

“I heard that,” Dominic said mildly from the living room.

“I wasn’t being secretive,” Paris responded.

“What can we do?” Nikko asked. His wonder at Lucia’s transformation had dissolved, leaving behind his shrewd, incisive nature. This was the Nikko that they needed on the hunt. “Do you think she was taken, or did she leave intentionally?”

“I think she intended to leave,” he said, with a pang of sorrow piercing through him. He gestured to the plastic carrier. “But something happened before she left. She adores that foolish creature, and it was caged when I woke up. She would never leave it locked up without food. And there was a text from her friend saying she had arrived.”

“Which friend?”

“Ruby,” Alistair said. “She’s a—”

“Ruby Wang. Green witch, thirty-one, works at the Jade Breeze health shop in Midtown. Part of the Wang family network of practitioners,” Nikko interrupted. “I know who she is.”

He stared at Nikko. “And you know this how?”

“We all have our jobs,” Nikko said with a shrug. “Before she ever set foot near Eduardo, I compiled a file on Shoshanna and her known contacts.”

“We need that file,” Paris said. “Is it in your office?”

Nikko snorted in derision. “It’s the twenty-first century, Phillippe,” he said derisively. Paris scowled at the use of his real name. “It’s all in the cloud.” He pulled out his phone and typed rapidly. “I shared it with you. Check your email.”

“Do you think this could be the Casteron?” Alistair said. “Elliott McAvoy was after her, which is why she was staying here.”

“It’s possible,” Nikko said. “We’ve been keeping tabs on him but he hasn’t yet made a move that warrants action by the Shroud. Ruby is our most concrete lead. We start there and then move on, yes?”

Alistair nodded. Paris nodded and flicked his eyes to Alistair. “Let’s go. Nikko, you go to the shop and see what you can find. We’ll go to Ruby’s address and see if Shoshanna’s with her. If not, we’ll find that little Casteron fuck and twist his nutsack off if we must.”

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