One Year Later

 

It had been a relaxed day, quiet enough that Omri and Cole had finally sat down to read the newly updated chapter of the story Marnie had been posting online.

She spent most days working on it in the shop, especially now that she was well ahead in her schoolwork. At that moment, she sat at a nearby table writing while Killjoy gossiped with the crows overhead.

Omri had been completely absorbed in the latest update. He was shocked when a clue connected to the gruesome murders of three teenage girls suggested that the funny, endearing partner cop, a firm fan favourite, might have known all three victims.

Omri groaned when he reached the end of the chapter.

He was about to discuss it with Cole when he looked up and saw two men entering the shop.

His heart skipped a beat at the sight of their auras.

He knew immediately that both of them had killed people.

Dangerous.

Dangerous.

Dangerous.

The hair along Omri’s arms stood on end. He quickly sent a probing, questioning intent toward Willow, asking whether allowing the men inside had been deliberate.

Willow responded with calm reassurance.

Omri relaxed slightly, then felt guilty for his first impression. He blamed Marnie’s story for leaving him unusually alert to murderers and hidden motives as he studied the newcomers more closely.

One man’s aura was blackened gold streaked with oxidised red layered over ash, the aura of someone who had stood close to death many times and carried a great deal of blood on his hands.

He was tall and so heavily muscled that he rivalled any Dawnbreaker. Every visible stretch of skin from his neck downward was covered in faded tattoos. He looked to be in his forties, but the sheer vitality radiating from him was difficult to ignore.

The man under his arm beside him appeared softer by comparison. He wore a woollen coat in muted colours, and a beautiful pair of diamond earrings dangled from his ears, catching the light whenever he moved. A constellation of freckles scattered across his admittedly beautiful face.

Beside the first man, he looked almost gentle.

His aura said otherwise.

It was a stark, ashen white surrounding a centre of absolute black, as though he had burned through terror and every ordinary emotion beyond it, then somehow survived something no one else could have.

Omri was fascinated.

Especially when he noticed that both men carried a vivid pink mark within their auras, strongly suggesting that they were bonded.

Humans.

Bonded humans.

Were they bonded to each other? Or to other supernatural beings?

Omri had never seen either of them before.

He glanced at Cole, flicking his gaze toward the pair and then back in silent question.

Cole looked over once, then turned back and shrugged.

He did not know them either. 

Both men looked up at the crows perched overhead, then exchanged a glance. The softer-looking man gave a small shrug, as though to say it was fine.

The taller man ran his fingers over the back of the others head before leaning down to kiss his temple. Then he released him to find a table, which happened to be near Omri and Cole.

The softer man pulled a laptop from his bag and began settling in while his companion approached the counter to order from Willow. He gave Willow’s appearance only a brief once-over. His aura shifted with suspicion, but he placed the order anyway before joining his partner.

They settled into companionable silence, their legs touching beneath the table. While one typed, the other worked through messages on his phone, occasionally glancing up whenever the crows burst into laughter over some outrageous piece of gossip.

Omri suspected he could understand them but simply did not want to engage.

Omri ate another teacake and tried very hard not to be curious. Instead, he forced his attention back to discussing Marnie’s story with Cole.

Thankfully, Cole did not believe the fan-favourite cop was responsible for the murders.

That gave Omri hope.

A short while later, Willow approached and set the strangers’ tea on the table. Both cups had been prepared with milk and honey and, from the scent alone, Omri recognised a blend intended to ease overstimulation.

The softer man looked up with a gentle smile, his diamond earrings flashing in the light.

“Thank you.”

His gaze followed Willow only briefly as they walked away.

Then he raised one brow and gave his companion a faint smirk.

The taller man rolled his eyes.

Omri desperately wanted to know what had just passed between them.

He sighed.

He had been spending far too much time around crows. His appetite for gossip was getting out of hand.

The pair continued enjoying the atmosphere, drinking their tea in comfortable silence, until a pretty, middle-aged woman approached their table.

“Ashley Summers?”

Both men looked up, but she was staring at the taller one.

So his name was Ashley.

The crows above immediately began chattering about the name. Ashley appeared to suppress a sigh of resignation, while his companion looked more interested in the woman herself.

Ashley studied her with a faint frown.

“It’s me,” she said. “Marilyn. I know, I hardly recognised you either. It’s been more than twenty years, hasn’t it?”

Ashley blinked, recognition slowly crossing his face.

Beside him, his companion looked between them as though he had just realised something. Then he leaned back in his chair with a small, knowing smirk and took a sip of tea.

Ashley glanced at him and gave him a faint smile before turning back to the woman.

“It has been a while, Marilyn.”

She smiled.

“You’re looking well. I haven’t seen or heard from you in so long. The last I heard, you’d left the military. My husband and I tried to find you afterward, but it was almost impossible.”

Ashley gave a short laugh.

“And how is your husband? Dead, I’d hope.”

Marilyn looked as though he had struck her.

“You’re still angry?” she asked. “It’s been more than twenty years.”

The crows overhead fell completely silent.

Premium gossip had just been served beside the tea.

By then, Omri and Cole were entirely invested.

They could hardly be blamed for listening now.

Ashley sighed, took a sip of his tea, and said, “No. I’m not angry.”

Marilyn relaxed, though only slightly.

“Well, yes. He passed away two years ago. A heart attack.”

Ashley hummed and nodded.

Then Marilyn added, as though hoping to draw some sympathy from him, “It’s just me and my son now. He’s twenty. He really wants to meet his brother.”

Summers gave a short, incredulous laugh.

Omri’s attention sharpened. So did that of every crow overhead. Even Marnie was struggling not to look too interested.

“I don’t know what delusion you’re under,” Summers said, sounding almost amused, “but he isn’t my brother.”

Marilyn bristled.

“John raised you for twenty years. His son is your brother. John always wanted to have both of his sons with him before he died.”

Summers’s companion concealed an amused cough behind his cup.

Summers folded his arms and looked Marilyn up and down with one brow raised. He flicked a quick glance toward the crows, then shook his head.

“He stopped being my father the moment he cheated on my mother with my fiancée.”

Omri’s mouth fell open.

So did several of the crows’ beaks.

Marnie began taking notes.

Marilyn stiffened.

“Oh, please.” Her gaze moved pointedly between Summers and his companion. “As though you wouldn’t have trapped me in a marriage to a gay man.”

Summers and his companion looked at one another.

Then they both burst out laughing.

“Ash isn’t gay,” his companion said.

Marilyn frowned and huffed.

“Please. I saw the way you two were interacting and he lets you call him by his first name? That's a big clue right there.”

The softer man’s expression sharpened.

“Regardless of the nature of our relationship, that does not negate the fact that you cheated on him with his stepfather. Perhaps you should stop using his supposed sexuality as a defence for your own actions.”

Omri sipped his tea, utterly invested, along with the entire rest of the shop.

He could not believe he had thought it was going to be a slow day.

Marilyn sighed and turned back to Summers.

“I am sorry. Truly. I was young at the time, and I was in love. Besides, John and I had a wonderful marriage until the end.”

“Good for you,” Summers said. “Whatever marriage you had has nothing to do with me.”

She hesitated.

“Are you certain you don’t want to meet your brother? He always loved the photographs your father kept of you in the army.”

Summers took another sip of tea.

“I don’t have a brother.”

Marilyn sighed.

A sharp rhythm of clicking heels approached the table.

Omri’s gaze dropped first to a pair of impossibly high-heeled, thigh-high black boots.

Then a slender hand curled possessively around Summers’s shoulder.

A soft feminine voice spoke close to his ear.

“Who is this, my love?”

Omri could not help staring.

Neither could anyone else in the shop.

The woman was tiny.

Beautiful.

And terrifyingly severe.

A Noctourni.

Omri found the source of the men’s bond almost immediately.

The new woman belonged to the same bloodline as Leah and Quentin.

Magnus.

Her pale slate hair was pulled into a high ponytail, and her eyes were a vivid imperial jade green.

Summers immediately drew her into his lap.

“Just someone I used to know,” he said.

She raised one brow, then looked toward his companion.

“This is the former fiancée,” he explained. He took another sip of tea. “She has already violated Ash’s clearly stated boundary by insisting that her late husband and son are still his family. Implying her son wants a relationship with Ash.”

The Noctourni woman turned toward Marilyn.

Marilyn visibly flinched beneath her sharp gaze.

Then the woman rose, held out her hand, and said, “Julia Magnus.”

Marilyn was left with little choice but to shake it.

“Marilyn,” she replied uneasily. Her eyes moved between Julia and Summers. “You know Ashley?”

“I do,” Julia said. “He is my beloved.”

Marilyn frowned slightly.

“Isn’t he a little old for you?” She gave Summers a pointed look. “And you thought I was too young for John.”

Summers smirked.

His companion laughed into his cup.

Julia’s smile sharpened.

“Do not be misled by my appearance. Ash is younger than I am.” She tilted her head. “Incidentally, how are you managing the aftermath of your husband’s repeated tax and insurance fraud?”

Marilyn’s eyes widened.

Julia took out her phone and began tapping across the screen.

“I have high-level government access,” she continued conversationally. “Retrieving the relevant files is no trouble at all. There are also several other unsavoury details. Your own dubious investment losses, for example, incurred in partnership with a man who appears to have been your son’s music teacher.”

Marilyn went pale.

“What are you saying?”

Julia continued tapping.

“Since you repeatedly violated an established boundary, I thought I would retaliate by sending your son the evidence of both your affairs and your deceased husband’s financial crimes.” She glanced up. “That way, he can form a properly informed opinion of who his parents were before deciding whether to pursue Ash.”

Marilyn began to tremble.

“You can’t do that.”

Julia held up her phone and tapped the screen once.

“I just did.”

Omri had never been more grateful to have House Magnus on his side.

They were terrifying when they turned their administrative prowess against someone.

Marilyn lurched forward.

Summers immediately moved to pull Julia behind him, but before Marilyn could take another step, an unseen force swept her from the shop.

The door slammed shut behind her, leaving everyone staring after her in stunned silence.

Willow approached with perfect composure.

“More tea?”

Julia looked from Willow to the door.

“Yes, thank you.”

Summers and his companion both nodded.

Willow turned and returned to the counter.

The softer man began snickering.

Summers rolled his eyes, sat back down, and muttered, “Fucking supernatural bullshit.”

Julia affectionately ran a hand through his hair before taking the seat beside his companion who wrapped an arm around her.

“How is the tea, princess?”

“It’s lovely,” he said. “I’m glad I came.”

Julia smiled and kissed his cheek.