Page 49 of Touched By Destiny
Nothing happened. There wasn’t a single person cruising around. Pissed, Gabriel rolled his shoulders and marched up to the street. His eyes narrowed as something on the ground caught his eye. It was a pile of cigarette butts. There had been someone in the passenger seat of the car smoking.
Inspirits gained nothing from nicotine. Gabriel had tested the theory himself in the military. All he’d gained from cigaretteswas bad breath and a dry throat. The magic in necromancer blood also stifled the ability to benefit from many human drugs. But many necros, like Maribeth, were diluted hybrids. The culprits were human or very weak necros.
Exempting inspirits and strong necros did little to narrow down his suspects. The pile of uncrushed cigarette butts was disturbing. Whoever had parked there had likely sat there for some time. What did they want? Would they return? Grateful that Eric’s room was at the back of the house, Gabriel sighed. There was no point in calling the police. All he had was a small pile of litter and a vague description of a dark sedan.
Gabriel called Maribeth’s driver to let her know it was safe to bring her home. Then he carefully circled the house on foot, keeping an eye on windows and doors. The alarm hadn’t tripped, but no security system was foolproof, and theirs wouldn’t keep someone from peeping in through the glass.
By the time Gabriel was satisfied no one had ventured close to the mansion and his heart rate had leveled, Maribeth arrived home. To be on the safe side, Gabriel rushed up to escort her inside.
“Is everything okay?” Maribeth asked, slipping out of the vehicle with her shoes in her hand.
“Yes, it’s fine.”
“You have a gun in your hand.”
“I know, let’s go inside.”
Gabriel didn’t exactly hustle her into the mansion, but his stride was swift, and thankfully, she matched it. After disengaging the alarm, he unlocked the door, holstered his weapon, and guided her in. He waved her driver off and secured the front door. With the push of a button, the house was once again fully alarmed.
“I’m going upstairs to let everyone out of the vault,” Gabriel said. “Do you need anything?”
“The vault?” Maribeth asked, her eyes wide in the bright foyer lights.
“Just a precaution. Someone was parked outside.”
“You’re scaring me. Can I come up with you?”
“Of course. I’m sorry I frightened you; everything is fine. I promise.”
Maribeth didn’t look convinced, but she didn’t respond. As Gabriel loped up the main staircase, she stayed on his heels. He laid a hand on a fake panel in the hallway and pushed. It gave way to reveal a skinny hallway with recessed lights along the floor and ceiling. They were dim and, like the system supplying air to the vault, were on a separate fuse box from the rest of the house.
Two different generators were connected as backup sources of power and were routinely tested to ensure they stayed in top form. Gabriel punched in a code to get through the first door, then walked another three feet up to the vault. The entrance was a sleek, matte black, and three inches of steel, copper, and ballistic-proof materials ensured no fire or common thief could get inside.
The door pushed inward, and Gabriel’s gaze swept across the small room until he locked eyes with the destiny-touched necromancer huddled close to his brother.
“Eric, are you okay?” Gabriel asked.
“I’m fine,” Eric assured him.
“Who was out there?” Clark demanded.
Although Gabriel wanted to tug Eric into his arms, he forced himself to focus on the man’s father and explain what little he knew about their early morning visitors.
“We’ll leave the floodlights on outside the front of the mansion,” Gabriel said. “I don’t want anyone loitering around the house.”
“Good idea,” Rosalind replied. “I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m not going to be able to fall asleep. I’ll make some coffee. Gabriel, will you stay and have some? Or you could take a nap in the guest room if you prefer. I’d feel safer if you stayed in the house until it gets light out.”
“I’ll take the coffee,” Gabriel answered.
“Come on,” Richard insisted, encouraging his brother to stand and taking his hand. “Mari can tell us all about her fun date, and we’ll forget all about these assholes parking in front of our house.”
Maribeth’s face was still concerned, but she smiled. “It was fabulous. She had two roommates. No soulmate though.”
“I’m surprised you made it home so early then,” Rosalind replied with a chuckle and swung her arm through David’s. “I’m sorry none of them turned out to be your soulmate.”
Maribeth sighed. “Me too, but I’ll find her someday.”
David laid a hand on Rosalind’s. “Maybe some waffles with our coffee?”