Page 108 of The Demon's Fire
“You know where I’m aiming next?”
“You okay?” Rein asked Kole. “I’ve never known a demon to survive iron.”
He figured he’d share the secret with his Firebrands. “Years ago, I made a deal with a pissed off warlock who owed me. He created a spell so I could fight off iron poisoning. But he had a warped sense of humor. The sonofabitch threw in a zinger. Custom job. Just for me, he said.” A grinning Kole glanced at Skyler whose lilac-blue eyes iced over. “His cure is unique but not unpleasant.”
****
Alarikglanced away from his computer when the door burst open. An animated Echo, his chief historian, rushed into his office with Zora hot on the heels of her soft-soled witch boots.
“This wand waggler zapped me.” His office manager tugged on her already short lavender leather skirt. “I should suck the lifeforce right out of her.” Zora stretched out an arm to touch Echo.
The purple-eyed witch spun to face her accuser. “Hold it, succubus. Lay one of those fingers with the Gahya-awful cobalt-blue polish on me and I’ll spell you again. You won’t like it any better the second time than you did the first. I’ve got an important lead the director needs to hear about now. And on another note, we do not use wands. Never did. Never will.”
Alarik held his hand up to send a calming spell to Zora. “What is it, Echo?”
“It might be the break we’ve been searching for. I told you Allias was poring over some dusty old volume when he found an obscure reference to an ancient society. This group was tasked with safeguarding important mages of certain ancient bloodlines.”
“Go on.”
“He found another reference to this society in a private library. You know Allias can be a bloodhound when he has a fact to trace. He created a spell to uncover texts which alluded to this ancient group. He said he had a ‘gut feeling about it.’ I know to trust his gut.”
“I’m still not seeing how this helps us.”
“The founding members of this society came together not many years after the Karmic Schism. They were all Blood Coven offspring, diluted of course with human DNA. They formed a society to maintain their genealogy records and to keep an eye on their own kin.”
“What! Why didn’t we know about this group before?”
“They were a very hush-hush society. Buried deep on Earth. We don’t even know if they still exist, but we do know they kept track of each other for centuries.”
Alarik rubbed his chin with his thumb and index finger. “This is good news, but how do we find out if they’re still active? And where are their records?”
“No idea yet.”
“Who are they?”
“Ah. I can tell you who they were. They were calledCustodes Templii. If we can find them and if they still perform their original tasks, we can unearth the modern-day descendants of the Blood Coven.”
“Do you think they are still active?”
“Allias uncovered a reference from the late nineteenth century about a society led by Alistar Wheatley, calling itselfCustodes Templii. Unfortunately, the group does not seem to be the original one mentioned in various ancient texts.”
“Unless,” proposed Alarik, “they created a false description of themselves to hide their real purpose. Much as the Alliance does.”
“It’s possible.”
“Any current evidence of the society?”
“None we can find yet. We know for certain the originalCustodes Templiikept records of Blood Coven lines. Even if they no longer exist, we should search for their ancient documents. Those reports might give us a starting point for locating living descendants.”
“Excellent work, Echo. Commend Allias for me. Zora, I think you can let this slight go unavenged, don’t you?”
The succubus’s eyes narrowed to a squint. “Yes, but listen carefully, witch. Use a spell to bypass me again and I won’t be so kind.” Zora flipped her hair and turned on a heel, stomping out of the office.
Alarik called Rein, but since his son was on a mission, he left a message with Bounty.
ChapterTwenty-Six
Survivebecame her mantra. Whenever she thought she would lose it, she heard the word.Survive. Whenever he put hands on her, she heard the word.Survive. Whenever his dick…Survive.
