She opened the door. “Keep me apprised. By the way, you are forbidden to hare off after this woman if she contacts you. She’s got mages with her and these humans too. You can best her magic, but a bullet can kill you either way. Don’t risk yourself. You have more important things in your future.”

Well. Okay then.

TOM answered the phone at the house when she called to check in on Dominic.

She smiled though it was a phone call and he couldn’t see it anyway. “Hey there. You settling in all right?”

“Yes, thanks. I’m making dinner. Pot roast okay with you?”

“Is that a trick question?”

He laughed. “Good to know you like it. If you’re looking for Dominic, he went over to Heart of Darkness to handle deliveries.”

She frowned. “He was all right to do that?”

“He’s a strong man, Meriel. A strong witch. He needs to do this. He’s been attacked twice in his business. That’s his ground. He has to claim it.”

Boys.

“All right. I have to run. I just wanted to check in. Do you need me to bring anything home? Does Ernie need food?” Tom brought the cat with him.

“Nah, we’re good. I brought some along. I don’t know how long I’ll be here. It’s just … my gut said to come and after that call about Dominic last night, I knew it’s what I needed to do.”

She breathed out. “I’m going to be a happy camper when this is over and I can go back to my normal level of insanity. I’ll see you in a while.”

* * *

DOMINIC walked all over Heart of Darkness. Both floors of the human club, up and over the catwalk. Down and through the back. Behind the bar. Under tables, over the stage. Down the back hall and through his office and Simon’s. The walk-in coolers and the supply room. Even through the kitchen and out back on the loading dock and the lot back there.

Everything was exactly the way it should have been. The place was locked down tight against any magick but his, Meriel’s and Nell’s. Nell had done some sort of limiting spell for other kinds of magick; apparently it was whatever this club in Las Vegas had done and from what Dominic could see, it would work just fine. Nell had explained it was the same sort of spell Arel and the people from Rodas used in their cells to keep the witches and mages they had in custody from using any magick or magic at all. Not to escape or try to harm anyone. A sort of nullification spell. She’d promised to show him how to use it when all this mess had ended.

He set up in the center of the club. Placing everything he’d need carefully nearby so he’d get to it easily when he needed it. On his knees in the circle he’d invoked, he began the rite. Purification of soul and of heart. Purification of this place. He needed to make it his again. He’d gone through the archives available online and thanked the folks down in research for being so good at their jobs.

The magick flowed through him as he worked and he felt each part of Heart of Darkness respond to him. This wasn’t just his place of business, this was his future and a big middle finger to his past. This was his place and no one was going to take it from him.

When he stood and blew out the candle he felt a connection to the physical space around him that he hadn’t before. The magick of the club, all the energy it was filled with nightly was a sort of lifeblood and it responded to Dominic’s magick and his will.

By the time he finished up and started home, he felt not only better but completely in charge again.

Tom had of course cooked an amazing meal. The smell when he opened the front door made his stomach growl immediately.

TOM peeked around the corner, a book in his hand. “It’s you. I was wondering who’d get home first.”

“Meriel’s not back yet?” He looked at his watch.

“She said she’d be home a little after six. Dinner’ll be ready at seven or so. I figured that’d give everyone a chance to get home and clean up.”

“She’s a machine. I’ll call her.”

She was all right. One of the things he liked best about the bond was that he could feel it when she was upset or very angry or scared. Right now things were calm. She got caught up in a meeting of one type or another, he was sure.

He dialed her number.

“I just stopped to pick up a bottle of wine. I’m on my way home right now,” she said as she answered. “I know. I know. I had to mediate something. It’s fine. I’ll see you in a few.”

He smiled. Of course she knew he would call to check in on her.

“Excuse me,” he heard her say. “Sir. Hey!”

The phone hit the ground. Dominic heard the clatter and he was moving to the door before he’d even thought about it.

“Meriel? Meriel?”

“Let’s go.” Tom was next to him and they hurried out, the phone still pressed to Dominic’s ear.

Dominic continued to listen, his heart pounding so hard he was light-headed.

“I have a message from your mother-in-law.”

“You should let go.”

“Witch, you have no power over me.”

“You’re so wrong there.”

“Ouch! Here, she wanted you to …” A snarl and a loud cry of alarm.

“Yeah? Tell her that’s from me.” Meriel picked up her phone and spoke to Dominic again. “I’m here.”

“What is going on?” he demanded.

“Just a little messenger. I took care of it.”

“Where are you?”

“An alley at 2nd and Bell. I’m not that far. I’ll be back shortly. I’m all right.”

He cursed the slow elevator and headed for the stairs instead, talking them three at a time. “Stay here, Tom. I’ll call if there’s a problem,” he called back over his shoulder.

By the time he hit the sidewalk outside she was already making her way up the block.

She waved to him like it was totally normal to scare the shit out of him on a daily basis.

“I told you I’d be home soon.”

Her skirt was dirty, an oily smudge along her thigh, and her blouse was ripped.

Rage bubbled through him.

“Who did this to you?”

She looked up at him. “It was a friend of Gloria’s. A human one. He’s a lot more fragile than he thought he was. I punched him in the nose and my hand hurts. I hate punching. And I kicked him in the junk too.” She had the audacity to look proud of this.

He started to move past her and she grabbed his arm. “No. He’s gone and I want to go home.”

“Why are you smiling?” Annoyed, he turned away and escorted her home.

“Because you’re ridiculously hot when you get protective.”

“It’s not a joke.”

“No, it isn’t. She sent a human, Dominic. She knew I’d flay her or any mages alive, so she sent him knowing I most likely wouldn’t kill him. But this messenger of hers told me she wanted to meet me and gave me a piece of paper with an address on it.”

“He gave you something of himself?” If that was the case, he clearly knew nothing of witchcraft or he’d be shitting himself. A strong witch could use that paper to trace the item back to its owner.

She shrugged. “I don’t trust it. Doesn’t matter anyway. When I popped him in the balls, I also managed to attach a fun little homing spell of my own. Also, Nell called when I was getting the wine too. We have a location for Gloria.”

So fucking smart. He wanted to haul her up and kiss her silly, but he wasn’t sure how hurt she was and so he put an arm around her and steered them into the building.

Tom was waiting near the elevator and when he saw Meriel, his face darkened. It made Dominic feel a lot better to see it.

“Come inside.”

“I’ll be right back. I need to clean up.” She tried to move past him, but Dominic put an arm around her.

“We’ll be right back. I want to check you over so don’t argue with me. Where’s the paper?”

Meriel handed it to him. “I disabled a homing charm.”

He grinned. “Despite how you’re destined to kill me by the time I turn forty with all this business, you sure are smart.”