"Feel that?" Shadow whispered. "All yours. And once we get that ruby, nothing will be able to part me from you."
Gray barely caught his breath, but he pushed his hips back, wanting to stay joined for as long as possible. His head rolled back over Shadow’s chest, and the smooth, gentle hand tilted his jaw ever-so-slightly for a kiss full of love and satisfaction.
He’d rather die than lose Shadow.
Chapter 26
It was eerily quiet.
With the sun slowly approaching the horizon, the light had a soft, warm quality to it, yet the farther away they were from the local road, the more uneasy Gray felt. There used to be a byway leading to the abandoned house, but years of neglect had obscured its existence so efficiently it had taken them over an hour to locate the point of entry, despite the use of aerial photography and asking locals numerous questions.
The house had quite the reputation around there, and they’d been strongly discouraged from trying to find it, but Gray, Shadow, Knight, and Elliot weren’t there to make a silly video for YouTube or to squat at an abandoned property. After eventually finding their way, it turned out the path was no longer suitable for their motorcycles, so they ended up hiding their vehicles and continuing on foot.
The slight lowering of the ground was the only trace left of the route that had last been in regular use in the eighties, before the owner of the house reportedly died. The woods had staked their claim on it, and while the former byway had less growth than the terrain on either side of it, they still had to avoid young trees and bushes.
“Is that a pentagram?” Elliot asked, pointing to one of the older trunks growing by the former road. The white paint had faded, but the five-armed star and some other symbols were still discernible.
Knight grinned, putting his arm across Elliot’s shoulders. “Don’t worry, no one’s gonna sacrifice you to Satan as long as I’m around.”
Elliot snorted and made a point of leading the way through the tall grass. “I’m not scared. I heard they only sacrifice virgins.” He winked at Knight. “Besides, that ghost will start shitting its invisible pants when it sees your hands.”
Knight pulled off his gloves right away, revealing the burn scars that Baal had marked him with. So far, Knight had only used their power twice—to put an end to the lingering souls of William Fane and their former prez, King, but if there was a menacing ghost guarding the ruby, Knight was the man to have on their side.
“You’ll confuse him, and I’m going to strike,” Knight told Elliot as they passed the marked tree. Gray noted that candles and other items lay scattered in the grass, but he wasn’t sure what to make of it.
Farther on, there were few signs of human presence to be found—a rusty notice warning potential trespassers they were about to enter private property, and then an open gate standing in the woods with no fence to lead through. On one of its concrete pillars, someone wrote in red spray paint, Go back while you still can.
“Someone was braver than the Satanists,” Knight said, leading the way through the rusty entryway
Behind him, Gray squeezed Shadow’s hand and looked at him softly. “You’re quiet.”
Shadow leaned down for a quick kiss. “Do Satanists really only sacrifice virgins? Are we safe?”
Gray stopped himself from chuckling and bumped their foreheads before continuing the brisk walk. “I have no idea. But if there were any after us, I’m sure you’d know how to protect everyone, right?”
“Absolutely. I just… I keep wondering if we should really do this.”
Knight started clucking, and Elliot laughed, but the ‘chicken’ joke was lost on Shadow.
“Why not?” Gray asked, instinctively pulling Shadow to the middle of the overgrown road when he spotted red fur in the grass. He’d expected to see swarming maggots, but there were none to be seen—just a blackened fox skeleton emerging from a pile of fluff.
Shadow frowned at Knight and Elliot. “If all other people Magpie sent couldn’t retrieve this ruby, then maybe it’s too risky.”
Elliot approached the skeleton and poked it with his cane. “He didn’t say they all died. Just that they didn’t manage to get it. There’s a difference.”
Gray’s heart swelled, and he didn’t even notice when his hand clutched Shadow’s. “It’s more risky if we can’t find a ruby for you. You said you wanted to stay,” he whispered.
“I do. But not at a terrible cost to you. If things get really bad, please promise me we will go back. Even if just to come up with a better plan. It’s not even May yet.”
“No. I will not go back. Why do you keep discouraging me? Don’t you care if we’re together or not?” Gray asked, lowering his head and trying to breathe more deeply when his lungs constricted.