Darkness Unmasked (Dark Angels 5)

I laughed softly and stepped back. His hand slipped from my waist, and my hormones mourned the loss. “Where are we?”

“At the Aboriginal Culture Centre.”

I turned around. The building was modern in style, all concrete and glass, and painted in colors that reminded me of the outback—reds, gold, pinks, and browns. I frowned. “This really doesn’t look like a museum.”

“That is something we cannot be sure of until we go inside.”

“True.” I half shrugged and headed for the entrance, paying the fee for both of us but refusing the guided tour. It was interesting to look around, but there was nothing in this place for us.

“Well,” I said, once we were back out. “That was a waste of time.”

“At least there is one less option on the list.” He pressed warm fingers against my spine, gently guiding me away from the cultural center. “What do you wish to do now?”

I pulled out my phone and glanced at my list. “Let’s try the Aviation Museum. That’s probably the next least likely.”

“Done.” He wrapped his arms around my waist again and took us there. The museum, it turned out, was a big tin shed.

“It is also not open,” he commented

It certainly looked that way. The huge sliding doors that ran almost the entire length of the building were closed, and the tarmac forecourt was empty. I grabbed my phone, brought up the files I’d transferred, and checked the opening time. “What sort of museum is open only on weekends and public holidays?”

“This one, obviously.”

There was amusement in his voice. I smiled and lightly nudged him with my elbow. “That was a rhetorical question, not one that wanted an answer.”

I scanned the outside of the building. Though I couldn’t see any physical guards, there were plenty of cameras on the outside and no doubt plenty of security measures on the inside. “I might just take Aedh form and have a quick look around.”

“If the second key is in there, you will not sense it in Aedh form.”

“I know, but at least we’ll know if the place has any sort of military weapons on display.”

“Presuming it is a military dagger.”

“Yeah.” Given the cryptic nature of the clues, who actually knew?

I called to the Aedh, and she swept through me in an instant. In energy form, I made my way through the fence, across the tarmac, and through the small gap underneath the massive doors. The shed was huge and filled to the brim with all sorts of old-looking airplanes—some single wing, some double wing, some with propellers and others without. I didn’t know much about planes overall, but I had a feeling this collection was pretty impressive. There were also engines, various machine parts, and tools. But nothing that resembled an actual dagger. I turned around and headed out.

“Nothing?” Azriel said, as I became flesh again.

“Not as far as I can tell.” I rubbed my arms against the chill in the air. “I guess we should try the Eureka Centre next. If the dagger isn’t there, then we’re left with Sovereign Hill being the most likely location.”

“And yet you do not think it is there.”

“No, but I’ve been known to be wrong before.”

“I think it best I not say anything about that particular point.”

I grinned and wrapped my arms loosely around his neck. “Wise man.”

He smiled as his hand came around my waist again, but he didn’t say anything, just swept us across to the Eureka Centre. Which was also closed—for renovations, this time.

“Well, shit,” I said, staring at the sign on the door.

“Which leaves us with Sovereign Hill, I believe.”

“And that’s too big to check right now.” I briefly glanced at my watch. “We’ve got only an hour and a half before we have to be at Hallowed Ground.”

“Then what do you wish to do?”