She hesitated. “If we broke it, yes. But, as with the doorway I wove into the stone circle within this building, the creator would only sense it if he or she happened to be looking for it.”
I glanced at Azriel. “It’s worth a shot. If the gate we’re searching for is down there, at least you could get in.”
He nodded, and looked at Rozelle. “If I take you back to the Brindle, would you be able to make the necessary arrangements for this?”
She nodded. “We could be back here in an hour.”
“That would be brilliant,” I said.
She smiled. “Trust me, it is my pleasure. It is a rare opportunity to practice what I have been taught.”
Azriel glanced at me. “Will you stay here, or return home?”
I hesitated, then said, “Home.”
“I shall meet you back there, then.”
With that, he took Rozelle’s hand, then the two of them disappeared. I grabbed the shifter’s wallet, then became Aedh and returned home. The apartment was dark and silent. Tao still wasn’t here. I bit back the instinctive urge to ring and check if he was safe, knowing there was little I could do if he wasn’t, and walked into my bedroom. I’d left the door open and the acrid smell of smoke was stronger this time. My nose twitched and I briefly wondered if we’d ever be able to rid the place of it. Or if, indeed, we’d even bother rebuilding it. Especially if the worst happened with Tao…
I slumped wearily onto my bed and rubbed my forehead, half wishing for coffee but not having the energy to actually walk down to McDonald’s to grab one.
“Which is why I did,” Azriel said, as he reappeared. He handed me not only a coffee, but a double Quarter Pounder.
I raised my eyebrows. “And just where did you get the money for these?”
“One does not need money when one can simply arrange for them to be given.”
“You stole them?”
“If they are gifted, they are hardly stolen.”
I grinned. “So if I feel the sudden need for diamonds, you could arrange for them to be ‘gifted’?”
He raised an eyebrow. “Diamonds are hardly necessary for your health.”
“You obviously have no understanding of women and diamonds.”
Amusement creased the corners of his bright eyes. “I think we can take that as a given. Eat.”
I did. Once I’d finished the burger, I took a sip of the coffee and said, “So what do we do now?”
“Until the Raziq or your father comes through with some way of finding either of our sorcerers, I do not know.” He paused. “I would suggest sleeping, but I already know the answer to that.”
“Yeah.” I grimaced. “It just feels wrong to sleep when the clock is ticking for Mirri. But I could go see Uncle Quinn.”
Surprise flitted across Azriel’s expression. “Why?”
“Because, as you noted earlier, if there’s one person in this world of mine who might know how to stop these bastards in their tracks, it would be Uncle Quinn.”
And not just the Raziq, but my father and, hell, maybe even Hunter. They had to be stopped, all of them. And while I knew I was going to have hell’s chance of stopping Quinn from subsequently joining any battle, it was a risk I might have to take.
Because I was beginning to think it could be the only way anyone was going to get out of this… the thought froze as my phone rang. The tone told me it was Uncle Rhoan, and I fought back an odd mix of trepidation and grief. Because I knew he’d be ringing about Jak. And that he’d be madder than hell.>My foot had barely touched the bottom step when I heard it. A low rumbly sound that had the hair on the back of my neck rising.
I paused, listening. The sound was not repeated, but something definitely was down here.
Amaya?
Magic ahead.