Page 59 of Rescued By the Beast
I stop myself before I can control myself and rub my face against his neck, as if asking him to be careful. Which is ridiculous, because he must be used to dealing with much worse things, but...
I've grown to like him a little, and besides, I don't want him to die.
Who will take such good care of me if he dies?
"Are you sure, boss?" The map disappears from the screen, and Ted appears with a crease in his forehead. "I sent five trackers, we can wait and see if they find anything."
"Yes, my nose is better than theirs. And I want this resolved immediately." He stands up and gently puts me back on thefloor. "Viklaus, you come with me, in case something goes wrong and I need to erase some memories."
"Understood." The vampire nods.
Mark hurries upstairs and, when he returns, he is already dressed. He puts some meat treats in my bowl and says goodbye with a pat behind my ears.
I can do nothing but watch the man, who is now all I have, walk out the door towards danger.
If I lose him too...
I will lose everything.
Chapter 20
Mark
The air in Salem is charged with electricity and something else.
Something wrong.
I breathe deeply, letting the scent permeate every cell of my being.
The smell of evil energy is not a common scent. It vibrates inside me, as if my skin were itching from the inside.
Sulphur, rot, and a metallic sensation that makes me tense.
"It's getting stronger," I murmur, both to Viklaus, who is behind me, his presence rigid and alert, and to Ted, who is listening. "We are at the centre of the explosion perimeter, crossing theBlackmoorneighbourhood and th[5] ."
My nostrils flare as a thicker scent beckons me, and we press on, entering a street of old houses. My eyes settle on the abandoned house in front of us. Time seems to have taken its toll on the structure, but something about it doesn't make sense.
"Illusion," I murmur, feeling the magic throb. "The façade is deteriorated, but the actual structure is still standing."
Viklaus stops beside me, his red eyes hidden behind his eyelids, and he tilts his head, straining his ears.
"I don't hear any heartbeat, it's empty," he says, but the tension in his posture remains.
I push the door, which creaks, and a whirlwind of smells assaults my senses. My eyes burn, and before I can help it, a sneeze escapes, shaking my entire body. It's a pandemonium of smells. Creatures, humans, monsters, blood, magic... All mixed together. Deciphering a single trail is impossible. Whoever is responsible for this knows how to hide.
"This isn't going to be easy," I murmur, stepping inside the house.
The living room is empty, but the kitchen... My stomach churns. The smell of freshly cut meat mixes with rare spices. The sink is a mess of coagulated blood. There is a ceramic cauldron, which still looks new from its shine, on acooktop,and it has remnants of a dark liquid with a bitter aroma inside. On the counter, a microwave makes me raise my eyebrows.
"Nutella wizard," Viklaus mutters, amused, but there is an undertone of discomfort in his voice.
I scan the shelves and feel my jaw lock. Lined-up jars contain pickled limbs — eyes that seem to follow us, hearts of different sizes, teeth too sharp to be human. Bottles of blood, scattered runes, and artefacts that vibrate with a dark, pulsing energy.
The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
Something calls to us. A pulsing energy, like a dead heart still trying to beat.
The door at the back of the kitchen leads to the basement.
