Page 30 of Barron

“The drawings on the note were the opening salvo meant to scare you. He basically confirmed what you explained earlier with a little more context. The circles are cosmograms used in one of the religions you mentioned.”

Yoanni’s lovely golden skin lost color. “Wh-which one?”

“He used two names. Palo…something.”

“Palo Mayombe?”

“That’s it.”

Ghostly pale, Yoanni jumped to her feet. Startled, Caesarwhined.

“This isn’t good.” She moved from the table. “Barron, I can’t stay with you. Whoever is after me is evil. They’ll hurt you.”

Going after her, Barron grasped her arms and pulled her close. Her eyes were full of tears. “Yoanni, stop this.”

“No. You don’t understand. If I’m here, they’ll come after you. I have to leave.”

“And go where?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know. Miami? To my parents’?”

“And you’d leave me just like that?” he thundered.

“I… I don’t want to,” she sobbed.

He pulled her into his arms. “Baby, listen to me. This person knows your culture and how to push your buttons with this bullshit. The manipulation is amazing. But that’s all it is: manipulation. He or she knows how to frighten you with the right props, and you’re falling for it. Magic, sorcery, and evil spirits don’t exist. That’s superstition and old wives’ tales.”

“I agree,” she murmured, looking up. Her face shone with tears. “But I’m scared for you. Don’t you understand?”

“Think again, baby,” he murmured, wiping her tears away. “Look around this place. Do you see weird papers or threatening objects anywhere? No, right?”

She glanced around, then shook her head. Lifting her chin, he dropped gentle kisses on her salty lips.

“Come on, give me a smile,” he crooned. “I won’t let anyone harm you. Blade called for a meeting tomorrow. In church, I’ll explain to my brothers how someone’s trying to hurt my baby girl. That’s a call to arms, sweetheart. We protect our ol’ ladies. It’s Devils’ Spawn law. We have your back.”

It was close to one a.m., and Barron was still awake. He’d managed to calm Yoanni enough to put her to bed. The events of the day had emotionally drained her. As soon as he tucked the sheets around her, she fell asleep almost immediately. Even Caesar, much as his pup tried to keep him company, had conked out on his doggy bed.

Not Barron. He’d given her a good show of optimism, but he was worried. This magical mumbo-jumbo shit was way too alien for him. He existed in the material world, where people and objects could be touched and grabbed. Enemies gunned down when all else failed.

If Shifter had found information, so could he. He’d spent the past four hours searching the net and reading articles. Most of the information corroborated Yoanni’s explanation. On the flip side, he’d found plenty of conflicting viewpoints. Now it made sense to him how a religion shrouded in mystery throughout the centuries had turned into a twisted belief that claimed spirits and the dead could be used as weapons.

The research hadn’t explained the heart of the matter. The real problem for him.

Who was coming after Yoanni, and why?

Envy?

Jealousy?

Revenge?

But for what?

He’d gone around and around and couldn’t figure out a single idea that made sense. He discarded her parents right away. Why threaten her in Garden City when her family lived in Miami?

She didn’t deserve this. His baby girl had the liveliest personality he’d ever known. Plus, she was a loyal friend. Her remembered the fiasco at the Dirt Road Saloon. Even though she didn’t approve of Emily’s risky visit to the MC hangout, Yoanni went with her anyway and even stood up to a dangerous biker until heand Cutter had intervened. Before they broke up, she’d entertained him with her antics and made him laugh day and night. He loved her contradictions, her sass, stubbornness, fiery temper, and generous heart…

A shadow moved on the periphery of his vision. He gasped, then squinted, attempting to see better. Out in the night sky, a cloud moved away from the moon, allowing more light into his office.

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