32. Lucien

I toss and turn the entire day, and by the time I leave my bed a few hours before nightfall, I have hardly slept at all.

I have not received another message from Kieran. Or a call. There was a moment this afternoon when I woke in surprise, a troubling sense of dread nagging at me, but I cannot see past the shutters during the day, and besides, I was certain there was nothing out there.

By the time night has truly fallen, I am restless. I call down to the lobby, but the human attendant on duty has been there all day and informs me no one has been by to speak with me.

Perhaps Kieran is not back yet? Anything could have happened—and that does not necessarily mean anything bad. At first glance, his message seemed to say we would be able to deal with Tristan tonight, but that may not necessarily be the case.

I rub my chest, trying to soothe the restless ache of our mating bond, and call Elle. Her flat is only a few doors down from mine.

"What's going on?" She sounds alert, no doubt ready to head out and help the wolves.

"I got a message from Kieran last night." I swallow hard at her silence. "He said he was coming back, that it is nearly over, but he is not… He is not here."

"Do you think he should be? We don't know where he went. Could take a while."

I try to pull on that inner part of myself. Is he here? I am fairly certain he is back in the city.

Elle sighs at my silence. "I'm coming. I'll call Adam."

She ends the call and I sit quietly, trying to examine that strange feeling that, since last night, I have known is Kieran's and my mating bond. It almost seems to slip through my fingers at first, but then I feel something—surprise, maybe? I frown.

Elle and Adam arrive, and Adam looks as concerned as I feel.

"I tried to call Sam," he says. "It went straight to voicemail."

I frown. "Is that strange?"

"He's always answered straight away when I've…" Adam shakes his head, flushing slightly. "I dunno. I guess it's not weird if Kieran's back. Sam's probably yelling at him."

For a moment, I can picture that. That would explain why Kieran is not here—I am certain he knows he needs to apologise to Sam, and that it will take some time for Sam to forgive him.

As we all enter the living room, my phone rings. Kieran's name appears on the screen.

Elle shakes her head. "The timing on that one," she mutters and stalks into the kitchen.

I answer it, but the voice I hear is not Kieran's. Not even close.

"You know, I really thought you'd be here by now, chieftain."

My blood runs cold. "Tristan."

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Elle is back in the doorway. She gestures and I take the phone from my ear, putting it on speaker.

Tristan's chuckle rings around the room. "Yeah, it's me."

"Why do you—What are you—"

"Why do I have your boyfriend's phone? I'll let you guess."

Kieran is not dead. I am certain of that. I would know if he were.

"You have Kieran."

"Look at you, Lucien. No denial, even if he ran off with his tail tucked between his legs and left you down here to deal with me. No guessing who's more invested in this relationship, hmm? Then again, you've always had a weakness for humans."

I bite back a growl. "What do you want, Tristan?"

"I'm going to kill him," Tristan says bluntly. "I was just wondering if you'd like to be here when I do."

I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. Adam is pale, clinging to the back of the armchair as though it is the only thing keeping him upright. Elle is the one to move, striding forward and snatching my phone from my hand.

"Tristan," she growls, and for once, Tristan is silent. "You really should think carefully about this. You won't escape again."

Her voice is low, and the undercurrent of threat in it has all the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end.

"Fuck you," Tristan spits. "You wanna see him again, Lucien? You'd better get here. You don't have long."

I swallow. I cannot—

"Don't you fucking dare,Lucien!" Kieran's voice is further away than Tristan's, but that does nothing to temper the anger in it. The bond between us snaps tight, thrumming with a desire to bring us closer together. I press a hand to my chest as Tristan cackles.

"Tick-tock," he says, and the line goes dead.

My next breath is uneven. I can feel—not everything, but Kieran's fear is there, his worry, and just as I have ever expected, none of it is for himself.

Elle meets my gaze.

"I have to go," I say.

"Tristan's going to try to kill you, too."

"I cannot let him—" I cut myself off. I cannot let Kieran die.

"Okay. Where do you think they are?"

"At home," I say, and Adam nods like he can feel it, too.

"Fine," Elle mutters. "Come on. I'll call Vasile when we get there."

We arrive outside Kieran's building and as Elle paces away to make her call, Adam grabs my arm. I frown at him.

"Adam? I have to—"

"The wards are wrong."

"What?"

Adam's eyes are wide. "The wards are wrong. They're not Sam's."

My stomach twists. Something is happening in there. I am certain. Kieran's feelings are all fury and desperation, and I do not know how to pull my own back so as not to distract him with how I feel.

"How do we…?" I do not know another magic user—or at least, not one who could deal with this.

Adam examines the building. It is large enough to stand alone, and he traces a path to the corner with his gaze. "I think I can…" He squeezes my arm. "I think I can remove it. It doesn't feel as strong."

"You are certain?"

"Not even a little."

I follow him anyway. Elle watches us go, but she is still talking to Vasile, and I know she has heard us.

"Sam ties his to the building," Adam explains in a low voice. "He feeds a little power in every day, but otherwise, they kind of work on their own."

"Did the mage remove them?"

He shakes his head. "I don't think so. I think he did."

"Why would he let her in?"

Adam pins me with an unreadable look.

Kieran. The mage used Kieran as bait.

"The mage might be powering the wards from up there, but that would have her distracted. It's likely she tied them to something, too."

He stops at the corner of the building. We're a few feet away—I assume at the boundary of these new wards—and he eyes the brick, letting out a relieved sigh when he sees nothing out of the ordinary.

"Look for something on the ground," he says. "Something out of place. She'll have to have attached her magic to an object. It's like tossing a net over the building."

I frown, looking about myself. I am not certain what I am looking for, but then I see a flat, white stone over by the wall, and I point it out.

"That?"

Adam's eyes widen. He nods. We approach it slowly, and I grab Adam's arm when he reaches out to touch it.

"What if—"

"I've got to try, Lucien."

I almost say that I should be the one trying, but I have no ability to sense magic; hopefully, Adam can at least drop it, should the stone be cursed.

He flips it over and snatches his hand back. There is a symbol on the other side, painted on in what looks like haste.

I bite the inside of my cheek when I feel a sudden pain in my side. I know what is happening even without looking at the bond too deeply. Kieran is fighting. He hopes to win, but—

"What do you need to do to bring down the wards?"

Adam picks up the stone. Apparently, it is not infused with magic, outside that which is keeping the wards up.

"Just have to get rid of this, I think." He licks his thumb and runs it over the paint, smearing it. When he turns to look at the building again, I follow his gaze.

"Quick," he says. "We need to find the others."