Oh, no.
I thrust the stack of folders at the nearest person and sprinted back into the building, ignoring the demands to stop. I raced along the corridor and back to Antonia’s office. The curator’s shoes were visible from behind the desk.
No, no, no.
I rushed around the desk. Blood streaked down her neck and through her hair.
“Antonia?” I crouched beside her, my heart pounding. Her wide eyes stared back at me, unblinking.
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered.
If the alarm was a ruse, what did they want? No one knew why I was coming here except Mack and even he didn’t know the full story. Besides, there was no way he violated my trust. That meant someone had been following me and likely eavesdropped on our conversation.
Maeron was the obvious choice, but only because he’d sent spies after me before. But why would he order his goon to kill Antonia?
I looked at the items scattered on the floor beside her and then at the contents on the desk. No doubt about it.
The book was gone.
14
Unsurprisingly, the guard I met in the corridor was nowhere to be found. He’d likely knocked out Reginald and then killed Antonia. I turned invisible and fled the scene before the authorities arrived. If they identified me later and wanted to interview me—I’d cross that bridge if and when I came to it. Right now I couldn’t afford to be waylaid. I sent a text to Mack to tell him the sad news. I hoped he didn’t blame me.
Why kill Antonia and steal the book? To silence her? Did the killer have the transcendence stone or know its location? If only I’d had more time to read the book before the alarm sounded. At least I had a new lead, although the price had been steep and Antonia had been the one to pay it.
I thought of the elemental stone hidden in my flat and my shoulders grew tense. The situation was so much bigger and more dangerous than I realized. I wasn’t sure it made sense to keep the stone in my flat anymore. My ward was tough, but somebody could simply destroy the building if they wanted access badly enough. On the other hand, where else would the stone be safe?
Nowhere.
I’d have to keep it for now until I came up with a better plan.
I walked at a hurried pace in an effort to put distance between myself and the museum. I couldn’t return to pack headquarters with my discovery. It was safer to keep the knowledge to myself for now.
If the killer trailed me to the museum and listened to the conversation, then he knew I was aware of the book and the information it contained. If it was one of Maeron’s henchmen, why kill Antonia but not me? Wasn’t the knowledge I possessed just as dangerous?
Wasn’t I just as dangerous?
I mulled over the effects of a transcendence stone. Its influence was likely the reason I was able to transform into multiple versions of myself in The Crown. But why? What kind of magic was that? Yes, it was transformational, but still. There had to be more to it.
As I continued walking, the back of my neck grew cold and an involuntary shiver rattled my body. Slowly I twisted to look behind me and that’s when I spotted them.
Two butterflies streaked through the air behind me.
My palms started to sweat and I jerked my head forward, pretending not to notice them. Between my weapons and my magic, I could take two without help, although I’d like to know why they were following me. More assassins?
I picked up the pace and rounded the corner. I wouldn’t be able to lose them, but if I could get to a busier location, they might be less tempted to take their vampire forms.
I spared a glance over my shoulder and two butterflies had become four.
Terrific.
Four butterflies meant they were vampires trying not to draw attention to themselves. They obviously didn’t know about my detection skill.
I hurried through a busy intersection, knocking shoulders and jostling elbows. The crowd slowed me down and the butterflies managed to get ahead of me.
If they wanted to kill me, wouldn’t it have made more sense to do it in Antonia’s office?
I was relieved to have noticed them before they followed me all the way home. Of course I had the ward in place, but I worried about the menagerie.
I sensed a familiar presence and instinctively looked up to see Barnaby circling above. Good. I needed an airborne ally.
I continued to move through the crowd, my mind calculating my options and their associated risks. A fight in an area like this risked casualties. I couldn’t give the butterflies a chance to take shape. On the roof of the building, I spotted a row of pigeons like clothing on a line. I focused on them, sending a mental signal for assistance. Pigeons were easy to convert. Their brains were malleable and they had no ingrained loyalty to a specific species. A small push and I was able to claim them as mine.
One by one the pigeons dove from the edge of the roof. Before the butterflies realized what was happening, they were entangled in an aerial battle with a plague of pigeons.
I sprinted ahead to get past them and lose them in the crowd. Even one butterfly on my tail was one too many. One could always signal for reinforcements and the gods knew there was no shortage of vampires in the city.
A tunnel entrance appeared on my right. Not ideal but it would have to do. The butterflies wouldn’t expect me to flee danger by courting more danger. Little did they realize I’d take the monsters below over the monsters above any day of the week. Underground monsters didn’t care that I was a dhampir. They only cared if they could eat me.
I hustled down the steps two at a time and then used the railing as a slide until I reached the floor. I crouched at the base of the broken escalator and waited. If they came after me, there was a good chance they’d fly straight over my head and keep going. Vampires didn’t retain their sharp senses in butterfly form. Small mercies.
I maintained my hunched position for a few minutes and ran through a series of possible defensive moves should the vampires make an appearance. I was so distracted by my mental preparation that I failed to sense the creature encroaching on my hiding spot until it was too late.
I twisted to see two golden eyes with flecks of green glowing in the darkness. From my crouched position, they were slightly above head level. The creature stepped forward to reveal short, ragged black fur and paws larger than my hand with sharp claws extending from their tips. He reminded me of Trio albeit with one head.
“Hey, buddy.”
It was hard to tear my gaze away from those captivating eyes. I’d never seen anything like them.
I tried to reach out with my mind to connect with the creature’s, but I kept getting distracted by the golden eyes.
As the hellhound crept closer, the eyes grew larger. I remained in a crouched position, transfixed. Every time I attempted to feel for the creature’s mind, I got lost in his two pools of golden liquid. If I wasn’t careful, I thought I might drown in them.