Page 46 of Burn for the Devil

“Where have you been?” he asked Ammar.

The man hadn’t moved a muscle since he stopped in front of us while Ramone had seemed like a coiled snake, ready to strike if the opportunity presented itself. He was stiff but guarded in his small movements, slowly approaching Ammar. He took another small step closer to the man, leaving me feeling more exposed than I would’ve liked. I had no idea what to do if this confrontation ended poorly, or if others came for us.

“Don’t concern yourself with that. You should be more worried about how you’re destroying everything and with what happens next.” Ammar leaned against the stone wall and crossed one leg against the other, folding his arms together.

I stepped off the stairs and hurried behind Ramone, placing my hand on his arm. He twitched as if he’d forgotten I was there but didn’t look at me.

“We’re leaving,” he announced. He reached back, grabbing for me and snagging my arm roughly.

Ammar muttered, “Nice clothes.”

Ramone ignored the intended insult as a smirk crossed the man’s face and he pulled me past him, leading us out the same way we’d entered. It was a struggle to keep up with his long strides and I almost stumbled when I cast a look over my shoulder. Ammar stared at us, his eyes glowing a golden shade as we hurried away.

Pulling my arm back when we arrived near the table with the crystal ball I asked, “How did that man know I touched this?”

He took a deep breath. “It only works if someone has magic. This building is encased with magic. You touching it was equivalent to a motion sensor alarm.”

“I don’t have magic.”

“You wouldn’t have the shop you do if that was true; or be here right now.” Ramone adjusted his grip on the bottle, glancing down at it.

My shoe scraped against the stone beneath it. “Who would come after us?” I expected Ramone would keep me safe, but what if too many pursued us?

He lifted his gaze. “Don’t worry about it. I suspect he’s bluffing.”

“You just said I set off some type of alarm.”

“Yes, but Ammar is the only one who came. Lucian and Victor, who would celebrate my demise, are gone.”

My eyes flicked toward the hall. The other man didn’t seem to be following us and everything was quiet and still. “I thought this would be a bit different than it turned out to be,” I said, meaning our excursion to the castle. I’d pictured exploring as if it were a national park, not whatever was going on, now.

“Don’t touch that again,” he warned.

Stopping, I stared at the ball of glass. The impulse to smooth a finger along its surface was overwhelming. I wanted nothing more than to gaze into its depths. “Why not?”

Ramone moved behind me, wrapping his arms around mine. “It's not a good idea right now.”

“What will happen?” Even though what I’d seen was terrifying, I was still curious in case I viewed something different the next time I touched it.

“I don’t know, for sure. No one at all should’ve showed up.” He let go of me after directing me toward the door we’d exited through and then looked at the bottle he held, turning it under the meager light.

While I waited for him to lead us back to the room with the platform, he kept glancing between the crystal ball and the filigree-covered bottle he held. “I need you to do something for me,” Ramone said. “I need you to carry this. Do not open it, just hold it.” He held the bottle toward me and I accepted it.

“What are you doing?” I couldn’t decide if he was stealing it or not, remaining in a state of confusion over this alternateworld. Was it stealing if this place was only real for some people? How could things come from a dream world? Could someone from here come looking for the ball? If everyone was dead or disappeared, as that man Ammar had said, perhaps it didn’t matter what happened to the item.

26

Ramone

At a loss for what to do and having made a last-minute decision, I guided Samantha away from the castle. We were back in the woods as quickly as I could get us there, forcing her to nearly run. All I could think about was the spell I’d performed was somehow weakened and that the curse must be responsible.

I wanted to take Samantha away from everything, provide her with safe haven, but there was nowhere left in which to do so with absolute confidence. There were no guarantees she’d be unmolested, and if that was the result of my having claimed her, I’d be the only one to do any molesting.

It was clear a million questions ran through her head; however, I didn’t have the answers she sought. She stayed quiet as we traced our path under the dying trees, and I would’ve given anything to be able to get inside her head as many of my kind were able to do with others.

That was one gift I did not possess, reading others’ thoughts—I could only send impressions to compel them to do my bidding. Reading would’ve come in handy, but I had to rely oninstincts and observation. A lot could be revealed through auras, but not enough.

“You told Ammar he was dead.” Samantha broke the silence.