Esha nodded, still staring at the woman and puzzling over the mystery. But Aerten was right. Abducting living mortals to an afterworld, especially mortals who didn’t believe in said afterworld, was hugely against the rules. The university would have to get involved.
With a last look at the woman, they walked out of the infirmary and out under the covered porte cochere at the front of the building.
“I appreciate your help with this. And I’m glad you’ll be joining us,” Aerten said. She smiled, then disappeared to return to Otherworld.
***
Warren looked out at the rain. Esha had made a magical umbrella over his head on the walk here. It made his chest feel warm, which worried him. With good feelings came bad. He’d heard a saying once that the bad things in life allowed you to appreciate the good things. For him, it was the opposite. The good things reminded him how bad things were, both in his past and in his soulless future.
Esha was becoming a good thing in his life, as complicated as she was. A soulceress, for gods’ sake. Of all the species to feel something for, he’d chosen the type who had gotten him into his soulless state, which he despised. He was no longer mortal, but neither was he Mythean, and he despised it.
He should leave now. Staying around Esha was bad for his sanity. He’d never before seen her so frequently or in such proximity, and the contact was only heightening his fascination with her. His past wariness and avoidance of her species had been wise. Now, it was impossible.
She’d crept into his dreams these last days, slipping away as the sun rose, leaving him hot, hard, and disgusted with himself. Yet he couldn’t get his stupid mind off her. He bit the inside of his cheek hard and focused on the pain and the present.
“Thank you for agreeing to this arrangement,” he said to her. “It’s a very good move for the Praesidium. We’ve been underutilizing you by having you work solo. I’ll call on you when I need you for something.”
She nodded, then said, “Hey, what about the portal in the underground? This isn’t a coincidence. Have you put any more thought toward telling the reincarnate? I know you said it’s dangerous, but this is just too much to ignore.”
He stifled a frustrated groan. “You’ve got to trust me, Esha. It’s a dangerous idea. I called her guardian and warned him. Maybe once she remembers who she was, we can suggest the portal to her. Maybe. Until then, our meddling will only make things worse.”
“I really think it would help,” she said. “This has to be it.”
“Nay.” His voice was hard and she flinched. He almost apologized, but didn’t want to soften the warning. “I’m serious. It would be bad to tell her anything before she remembers who she is. Tell me you won’t.”
She shot him a suspicious look and nodded.
Hell, that could go either way.
Chapter 19
“Watch out, lassie.”
Cadan’s warning came soon enough for Diana to dodge a puddle in the damp grass that stretched between the tumbling ruins. He’d upheld the agreement he’d made last night to take her to Verulamium, and they now walked amongst the stone walls.
He’d called his colleague Esha on the phone last night to ask if she could make a portal for them to travel through. Diana could tell he’d been surprised when Esha had agreed. Apparently she was a type of Mythean who could only perform her magic when she had enough power stocked up. The portal spell was a big one, so big that she rarely had that kind of juice.
Fortunately for Diana, this morning she had. Esha was able to create the portal without coming to Cadan’s house. Diana and Cadan had stepped through it in Cadan’s kitchen and out into Verulamium a second later. They had eight hours in which to get back through. This world got weirder with every day she spent in it.
“Be quick, Diana. It’s no’ safe for you here,” he said from behind her as they wove their way around collapsed stone walls and piles of rock.
“I’ll be fine. Quit being so overprotective and keep an eye out for anything unusual.” She glanced around at the ruins that looked like an old fortress with broken-down walls.
She shivered when the chill morning air cut through her thin jacket. Or perhaps it was the creepy feeling of the ruins that had her shivering. A fine English drizzle turned the sky into a gray, dreary backdrop for their adventure. With the soft grass beneath their feet, even footsteps couldn’t be heard in the silence.
Cadan followed close behind her, so near that she could almost feel the heat of him. She’d felt his eyes on her since they’d stepped out of the portal. Even when he scanned their surroundings, he was always sure to have her in his line of sight.
“Nothing to be found here, lassie. It’s been four hours.”
No, damn it. She would find something here. Except that she was starting to fear that the secrets of this place weren’t on the surface. Perhaps they were underground, but she was a historian, not an archaeologist.