Chapter 10

They all left the space and made their way to the common room that they had breakfast in it was only then that Aggie realized they had been in the security room for hours and she was feeling a bit hungry. That must have been the guy's intention because when they arrived a full buffet was laid out again and Aggie’s mouth watered.

“If this is how every meal is going to go, then I’m going to need bigger pants.” Aggie wasn’t a big eater, but she did love her snacks. If she wasn’t getting her snacks here, this was going to have to be the next best thing. Her eyes roved over the food, everything from deli sandwiches to full steak and every side in between. “What happens to the leftovers?” Aggie’s thought came from nowhere, but it was a viable question.

“Leftover what?” Liel looked at her with confusion painted on his face. He reminded her of a robot or a dog with his head cocked to the side and though his facial features were relatively blank. Aggie feared that she would never figure out who he was through this stony exterior. Surely, he had some sort of personality and he was just not showing it. Aggie wondered what it would take to find the real Liel.

“The food, of course. I know we aren’t going to eat all the food. It seems a bit excessive. What do they do with the leftover food?” Her arms were spread wide to encompass the space, that now taking in all of it in this context, she realized covered three of the four walls of the room. “Who in their right mind thought we could eat all this food or would even consider it?

At that Ren started laughing and Aggie shot him a look of daggers, stopping him instantly. Clearing his throat to regain his composure, “It’s not real.”

“That’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. We ate it this morning.” She walked over and picked up a bread roll and promptly threw it at his head, which of course he dodged making her even more upset at him. She did hear a couple snickers at the exchange though so she felt better that they thought it was funny she was attacking Ren. “Well had that hit you I suppose it might have knocked some sense into your dense head. They are real enough to bounce off the floor, the way it should have bounced off your head.”

Gryson appeared beside her and the closeness was nearly enough to feel him, but he didn’t touch her. “What he means is this food is magic. There is a demon skilled in creating the image of food. Her spell, for lack of a better word, is designed to be a figment or an idea of what is available and upon touching it then it completes the design and it becomes just as real as it looks. So, there are no leftovers, as you called it. This food isn’t really here.”

Aggie took a moment to consider this. For everything she had seen this wasn’t too much of a stretch of her imagination. It was more of a story brought to life. She reached down slowly, not quite touching an avocado. It could have been her brain compensating for what it knew, but she could feel the weight of it against her fingers and the slight chill from the refrigerator that it may or may not have been sitting in prior to being set out for display. It was unreal. On instinct, she pressed forward to touch it and the sensations only increased upon actual contact.

“How is that possible, I can feel it before I actually touch it, as though it is real. I’m not saying I don’t believe you, I’m just trying to wrap my head around this as my brain is overpowering my senses.

“Allow me to demonstrate.” Eldon surprised her as she didn’t hear him step over or notice his approach. “Please close your eyes.”

“Close my eyes? What are you planning to do, shove this avocado in my face?” As expected, Ren chuckled at her question.

“No, I’m merely attempting to draw a correlation between the magic and your natural instincts in your body. So, if you will bear with me and close your eyes, I believe you will understand in just a moment.” With a sigh, Aggie complied, and before she knew it she felt a pressure between her eyes pressing on her head. It was on the edge of bringing on a headache.

Unable to control herself, Aggie pulled away from the weight, “What are you doing?” Her eyes flew open and there stood Eldon with his finger held in front of her face hovering right between her eyes. “I don’t understand.”

“Your subconscious felt the pressure of my finger just by bringing it close to your face. Never once did I have to touch you in order for you to feel it’s impression. Some of that is from the shadows crossing your closed eyes. While you can’t see them, the light in the room changes and you ‘feel’ my finger. The same is true for the food. You can feel it’s presence just because subliminally you know what it should feel like. Even something you might have never encountered would feel of some substance, merely because you know it should feel like something.” Aggie was thankful that Eldon was the one who performed that demonstration. If anyone else had done it, she would have been more concerned she would have ended up pranked. Also, if Liel had done it he would have been so caught up in the scientific explanation that she would have been more than lost.

“Can we please get back to business or are we going to spend the entire day coddling this girl?” Of course, it had to be Mitchell who ended the magic lesson. Aggie didn’t grace him with an indignant look.

“Yes, how did your trail sniffing go, today?” Aggie wasn’t in the mood for Mitchell’s personal brand of jerk. Instead she wouldn’t let him be in control of this situation. If he wanted to be an ass then no one was going to stop her from retaliating or at least holding her own. His lip curled up and a deep growl rolled out of him from the pit of his stomach. “Easy, Fido, with that lip curl I’m going to think you are The King, but not in the Alpha sense.” Aggie was throwing her A game.

Ren didn’t hold back he burst out laughing at their antics. “Would you two just make-out already?” As funny as this tension is between you, I don’t think we are going to get much accomplished until you figure out how to get past it.”

“I believe we already tried that or something close. While it was a great distraction, it did nothing for the lasting effect of, well, him as a whole.” Aggie wasn’t going to hold back. This was her moment and while she didn’t know them all well enough yet, they might as well realize she wasn’t going to hold back just because it was the polite thing to do.

“Enough, I’m not discussing this anymore. Our sniffing, as you so ineloquently worded it, wasn’t very effective. While we got a few traces of familiar scents the trails were, as expected, cold. I think we are going to have to compare a more recent space.” Mitchell wasn’t growling anymore, but he wasn’t happy either. Answering her questions was more of a duty than something he wanted to do. That much was obvious to Aggie.

“Are you saying you want another kid to be kidnapped, so we can take advantage of the new-found evidence?” Aggie was appalled at the thought of this and her opinion wasn’t going to go unnoticed. “You can’t possibly want to wish this pain on another family or ruin another child’s life. It is bad enough they are taking children to begin with, but now what you are suggesting is inhumane.”

“It’s a good thing we aren’t human then.” Mitchell’s words were flat and unemotional.

“As much as you might dislike it, Mitchell’s words are very valid. It would be better for us to catalog the children who have powers that seem to be of interest to the people responsible for the heinous actions. Then perhaps we can better predict their next moves. If we are already on top of that front, perhaps they won’t have the upper hand after all.” Liel the robotic voice of reason. For some reason Aggie wasn’t as upset with his thought process. She didn’t know if it was because he was thinking practically or the fact that he didn’t have an actual emotional reaction in any way. So, it wasn’t like it was strangely absent in this case.

“Ok let’s table this for now, Xavier what did you guys dig up?” Aggie couldn’t process what was happening. Perhaps it was her human side blocking her from seeing their side of things. It went against everything she knew. The only thing that she thought of as an option, would be to move on.

“The townspeople are scared.” Xavier smiled and Aggie was surprised because his demeanor was always one of sophisticated suave but not friendly. His affinity for suits didn’t help in that either. He wasn’t very approachable and for that she was thankful that Kyrel had gone along for the ride. Since she was sure Liel wasn’t of much help outside of reading people.

“Kyrel do you have any words of wisdom that will make your trip seem a bit less useless, like the Bobbsey Twins?” Aggie was growing tired of the runaround.

“I found a nice maiden who was very forthcoming. She spoke of hidden corridors and secret meetings with cloaked figures. Hushed voices carrying on an echo into mere murmurs.” His words were like a caress on her skin. His powers were overwhelming and it took all of Aggie’s focus and willpower to not give into it.

“Did you leave this girl in the same condition you found her?” Aggie wasn’t worried about the girl’s life but she needed to know he hadn’t harmed her with any of his wiles.

“Now what kind of demon doesn’t reciprocate when a female is so helpful? Of course, I relieved her of her tension. As you recall, I’m quite skilled in that department.” The timbre of his voice dropped an octave and he was speaking lower for her ears only. Unfortunately for Aggie, most of the men in the room had nearly superhuman hearing, among other special skills. While none voiced any concern or discomfort at the shift in conversation. She heard a few groans and shifting of feet. Aggie thought a few were sounds of desperation rather than that of displeasure.

“I’ll have Mathius recall the findings of our little escapade and then we can regroup with all that we know.” Aggie turned to have Mathius take over and she noticed his stance had drastically changed and she wondered if the shuffling of feet was the men adjusting their stances so they were more comfortable after Kyrel’s passing words.

It didn’t take but a moment for Mathius to take the proverbial torch and run with it. He quickly regaled the tale of their calls and the concerns about Yavari and her mystery caller. Quickly, the group pulled in tight to hear all the details. It was obvious that only one of their paths had resulted in juicy information and the men were acting as though they were getting some hot piece of gossip.

“I bet you guys are the biggest talkers in all of your realms. You probably sit around gabbing like a bunch of hens.” Aggie’s words were actually heard that time and Liel looked at her with his typical confused face.

“Chickens don’t talk in your world.” The way he said those words make Aggie wonder if they did elsewhere, but before she could clarify someone beat her to the punch.

“She means telling stories and spreading rumors.” To her surprise it was Mitchell who responded. Now Aggie wore a matching face to Liel.

“How did you know that?” Aggie’s eyes were as wide as saucers. She had spent most of her time, so it felt, explaining slang and human phrases to these men and Mitchell is, in some way, just playing stupid. This makes no sense to her at all.

“The shifters are required to spend five years of our early adult life on earth, before we can take our rightful place in the pack. It helps the animal in us tame a bit so they realize they have to share their time with our human selves. Since the children can’t go alone, we wait until they are the human adult age to take this journey. After that we can rejoin the pack or stay in the human realm if we so choose.” It was Mitchell’s mirror, Ren who responded and for once not in a joking way, for that Aggie was grateful.

“So, you two actually have experience with human terms and basic language outside of textbook communication. The ins and outs have been practiced and not just observed.” Aggie was overjoyed. That gave her help in explaining to the others as well as two fewer to teach.

“Of course, we do.” Mitchell’s lip curled at his snarl and he sounded offended. As though it was absurd for her to think otherwise.

“No offense, to any of you,” Aggie looked around the room at each guy, “but how was I supposed to know? It seems the rest of these guys were born in the dark ages with their concept of modern human language. I have been struggling from the very beginning.” The guys all shared a look and everyone, including Liel, started to laugh. The look of a smile on his face was the best thing she had ever seen. His face practically glowed and the tips of his ears turned slightly pink with the exertion of the emotion. “Did I miss the joke?” Aggie hesitated, but after a second realized what was happening. “Wait! Are you saying you were all playing me the entire time? Every time you questioned my words or choice of phrasing, you were just trying to see how long you could keep it up?” Aggie would be upset except it was rather perfect. Something she would have had fun doing herself if the situation had shown itself. Quickly, she joined them in the laugh and she was thankful that it meant they all had a terrific sense of humor.

Their amusement settled into a low murmur and the group grew quiet. “Now that we have that sorted, Eldon and I have a mission to prep for. Mathius have you sent word with the girl that was here before, Delia, wasn’t that her name?” Aggie scanned the room looking for Mathius. She found him leaning against the far wall looking more like a bad ass biker than anything else. If she had seen him on the street looking like this, she wouldn’t have had any doubt of what he was capable of, even if the demon bit would still be hard to swallow.

“Yes, Delia. I sent word to her when we arrived to eat. She will be here shortly to get an exact message. I didn’t want to risk anyone intercepting the message and throwing a kink in our plans before we get started.” Mathius’s use of a modern phrase, made Aggie smile. Allowing the extra reinforcement to sink into her brain and wash away any doubt that this might have been the actual joke. Knowing she could speak to them normally made this a little less stressful and a bit more exciting.

“Good plan, I’d hate for her to get into any trouble because of something we caused. Now for the plan, I don’t like the idea of baiting children but if we plan to protect any others from meeting the same fate, then I suppose we should know who we are protecting. Since I’m new here, who would like to or be best at doing this job? I’m still learning your strengths.” Aggie didn’t care that no one had formally put her in charge. It seemed that since they weren’t complete without her, then her role is likely to be the middle ground. If she can lead them and be the neutral party, then perhaps she would best serve her ultimate purpose. Not to mention, none of the guys were complaining at her choice to take command of the situation. Though she wouldn’t allow them to bench her through the process.

“That would be Liel and Mathius, in this situation. Mostly because Liel has an eye for detail and Mathius knows the community. He can get the records and help filter them best by age and skill level.” Eldon’s lyrical voice startled Aggie slightly as he came up silently behind her. Would she ever tire of hearing him speak?

Catching herself as she began to lean into the sound of Eldon’s words, “Mathius, then after you get word to Delia on what we need, can you and Liel get to work on that list for us?” She wasn’t one to dictate. So even as a self-imposed leader of this little misfit brigade, Aggie would be sure everyone was happy in their individual role before setting it in stone.

“I don’t like leaving you to your meeting alone without being available.” Mathius wasn’t going to let it go.

“We’ve discussed this. I don’t want you to get all bent out of shape. By your request, I’m taking Eldon with me and if anything goes awry, it’s not like there aren’t five other guys who could jump in to help. Isn’t there some kind of demonic or magical earpiece I could wear? Something that would allow us all to communicate or at least for someone or all of you to hear if something goes wrong. We have that technology in the human realm, surely you have something.” Aggie was grasping at straws but hoped she was on the right track.

Mathius looked confused, but just as Aggie had hoped, there was an alternative. “I believe I can put together something, but I’d have to spell us all and it wouldn’t last for a long time, but it should be long enough to get through the meeting.” Gryson was deep in thought with his thumb and forefinger caressing his chin and jaw. He wasn’t speaking to anyone in particular and went silent soon after, as he backed away from the group. Aggie assumed he was putting his plan together.

“As long as whatever it is will be undetectable to the demons.” Mathius was adding stipulations because he was still reluctant to give in easily.

“I can cast it on you last to see if you can detect it even knowing that we are using it.” Gryson didn’t sound as though he was happy with Mathius’s level of trust in his magical abilities.” Aggie could only picture these two talking about football plays or racing cars. She was slightly distracted with that visual and missed Mathius’s response. Ren’s quick movement caught her eye as he moved between Mathius and Gryson when they each took a fast step closer together.

“Now, now boys, I think we can be adults and trust that if someone says they can do something, then likely they will be able to safely pull it off. I would imagine that if Gryson wasn’t fully confident in his abilities, then he would speak up before we all put one hundred percent of our faith in him. I would expect that from any of you and not just because of this insane importance you have placed on my shoulders, but in order to protect each other as well. You have been a brotherhood longer than I’ve been in this picture. I expect you to continue to trust each other and not question that unless someone gives you cause.” Aggie wasn’t going to let them turn on each other. She couldn’t figure out how they possibly got along without her, before now.

Mathius and Gryson grunted their agreement, Aggie didn’t let it stop there. She moved and her line of vision met each of the men individually, even though that was extra difficult when she connected to Kyrel, “Do you have any way of toning that down, even just a little bit?”

Kyrel’s eyes lit up at her question, all the guys had nodded their acknowledgment to her request, but Kyrel still hadn’t. Now she had thrown him a bone and wondered if she was suffering from a lady boner due to the aftershocks from Kyrel’s powerful gaze. “That’s a loaded question. The best thing I can do is tell you that there are times of the month that I am more, shall we say, potent, than others. Also, my soul mate will be more affected by me than others but over time you will build up a level of immunity by exposure. Similar to a drug that isn’t as effective from prolonged use.”

Fighting an eyeroll, Aggie gritted her teeth and decided she didn’t care what anyone else thought or Kyrel’s feelings. “So, you are saying you have demon PMS? Not to mention, you are my personal drug of choice, if what you all have been telling me is true, that is. Is there a way to speed up the immunity effects?”

Kyrel’s face scrunched up at her description, but Eldon and Ren shared a laugh over the sentiment. She didn’t mean to be crass but there was no other way for her to explain it so precisely. Reality sucks but sometimes the truth just needed to be said regardless.

“I’m not sure that is how I would have phrased it, but I supposed you’re fairly accurate in your description. I’m not sure there is an accelerant outside of perhaps a bond-mate. Though it has been many years since one has perused that course of action, it could be the answer.” Kyrel’s eyes lit with hope at his own words. She didn’t know if he was hoping for her to agree or for that to be the solution to their seeming problem.

Aggie groaned at his timing and choice of words, “Here we go again. You guys are trying to force my hand. Slow down and let me make my choices as they come to be. I don’t want to make any decisions without having proper time to consider my options.” She wasn’t too upset but more put out that all of their conversations seemed to run full circle back to this point. “Now back on track, again. Eldon, you and I have to get ready for our little excursion this evening and Gryson you have a spell or whatever to prepare for as well.” She waved her hand around as though she were swishing a magic wand. She hadn’t seen him do so but given her limited knowledge of magic that was the best hand signal she could come up with on short notice. His potential offense was little to be concerned with at the moment.

A knock sounded on the door, Mathius was closest and greeted their guest. In walked Delia with a pleasant smile on her face. “I was told you needed to see me.”

“Yes, we were hoping you could tell us who Yavari’s handmaiden is if it isn’t too much trouble.” Mathius’s words were spoken roughly, but with a high level of respect. Aggie appreciated that he didn’t speak down to her even a little, given their difference in position levels.

“That is an easy question to answer, that would be me. I’ve only become useful in other things since my services aren’t as required for Yavari’s needs given she is so frequently away from the castle.” Delia spoke her words clearly, but Aggie noticed a hint of sadness in her tone. She wondered what could have caused that.

“We would love to speak to you at length about that but this isn’t the time nor the place.” Mathius stood with his arms crossed behind his back and Delia stayed right in front of him.

“I agree, how about this evening. I would say later after the servants have gone to bed. They tend to talk, you know and security traipsing the halls would lead to suspicion. I’m not sure what you wish to speak of but I’d rather do it in private. Also, could you not send everyone? That much traffic even after hours is due to cause alarm.” She was direct and to the point. Aggie appreciated that trait and knew they would get along great.

“Actually, we only planned to send two of our crew, Eldon and Aggie, our newest addition to the team.” A swell of pride filled Aggie’s heart at Mathius’s words. That was the first time she had been included outside of a meeting or two. This felt more of an official context. Nodding Delia turned and left, not needing to stay any longer to attract any unwanted attention.

After a quick bite to eat, they all made their way out of the dining room and on to their own individual tasks. Eldon trailed along with Aggie and they made their way back to the bedroom wing. Aggie stopped in front of her white door. White, the color of purity, and reminded her of a snowy day, not unlike the storm that had passed through this village. Washing away all the dirt and grime, or at least erasing it from view. Was this color symbolic to her role and what she would embark on as the final link of the Brotherhood of Guardians? Would she be washing clean her life before and starting new and fresh like the pure white door in front of her?

The clearing of a throat broke her from her wandering thoughts. Eldon stood with his hands behind his back waiting patiently for her to open the door. “Oh, I’m sorry I was lost there for a moment. So much has happened since my Gran’s passing I’m not sure how to sort it all out in my head. If I stay silent too long and allow my mind to wander, it all comes to a head in an attempt to find a proper place to file itself away. Unfortunately, there are no categories that fit any of this outside of fiction.” Reaching for her handle without pause, she didn’t wait for Eldon to respond. As though it wasn’t locked, the door clicked open and allowed them entry.

“Wait,” Eldon’s word gave her pause and she turned to face him not sparing her room a second glance. Without another word, his liquid blue eyes began to change. They were almost without color forcing Aggie to look closer to see that they were actually iridescent like the imaginary wings of a fairy. They shimmered and almost looked as though the color actually moved. Just as she began to speak to convey their beauty, his hands which were folded began to glow. Her attention was now captivated by this new image before her. As he separated his hands ever so slowly, Aggie could see lush green like the leaves of a plant. The glowing subsided and he lowered the hand, that kept this green item covered, to reveal three red roses. Glancing quickly back at his eyes, Eldon’s blue had returned as though it had never actually left. That gave Aggie pause, she glanced around the hallway and without much effort they landed on Eldon’s chamber door. A perfect match to his eye color, Eldon’s door stood closed and Aggie had a new appreciation for what she was seeing. The magic that displayed itself so clearly in each of their eyes, while she hadn’t seen them all perform their own skills, she guessed each would match the color that was imbued on their bedrooms.

“These are beautiful, but why are you giving me flowers?” Aggie had hoped it didn’t mean he was apologizing for something he’d done or in advance of something he was about to do.

“I wanted to cheer you up. While I’m not sure what it would be like to be in your shoes and so unaware of the many worlds that have surrounded you your entire life, I want you to know I’m willing to try and understand.” Aggie wasn’t sure but that might have been the kindest thing any of the guys had said to her yet. Eldon was quickly becoming a fan favorite in her eyes. He seemed quiet at first and she couldn’t get a read on him, but now things were changing and while she didn’t know when or why, it was for the better.

“Thank you, that was a wonderful idea. Let me get these inside and in water. Then I will need to find a spot for them where I can see them almost anywhere in the room.” With a smile of pure happiness Aggie turned and pushed the door open wider so they could both enter and quickly gasped dropping the flowers where she stood. Instead of the exceptional space that had been here when she left that morning, Aggie now stood facing a disaster beyond compare. The room was more than trashed, it was destroyed. The curtains were ripped from the windows and the rods were snapped in two. The table that held her snack and tea when she first arrived was scorched and still smoldering, the heat radiating from the smoke as though this was all still quite fresh. Her bed was snapped in two and the covers were torn and sat beside the burning table, or that is what Aggie assumed they were as they were nearly unrecognizable. This was horrific but when Aggie reached the far side of the room she screamed as she saw the words INTRUDER were burned into the wood of the wall panel above the closet and her clothes were still on fire. “How did this happen and how did we not smell the smoke outside? We could have prevented this or slowed the progression if someone had smelled the fire.” Aggie touched her face and her fingers came back wet. The trials of the past few days were catching up with her. Not only had she lost her Gran but now a space that was once her own, even if only for a short time, it was devastating.

Eldon wrapped his arms around her and turned her to face him. With his one fingers he gingerly wiped away the tears causing the butterflies to zing to life around her faster than ever, as though she was wrapped in a tornado. Aggie didn’t care though. This closeness was just what she needed and was going to take all she could get. Leaning into his touch, Aggie let Eldon take the burden of supporting her, if only for a moment. Eldon began to shake and Aggie glanced up at him with concern. His face was taught with concentration boarding on painful.

“What are you doing?” Aggie reached up and placed her hand gently on his cheek and his trembling ceased, though he didn’t open his eyes even a crack. She chose not to move her hand instead believing she was helping him in some way.

“I’m reaching out to the twins.” His reply was rushed and through clenched teeth. Aggie’s heart broke for him and kept her hand fixed in its place but brought her other hand up to mirror the first on the opposite side. She didn’t know what he was talking about but let him finish before pelting him with questions.

Since they were wrapped around each other, she felt when his body relaxed and his face went back to normal. Looking up to meet his eyes, she saw they were still their brilliant blue, “Did you just use part of your magic? I’ve no idea what all you are capable of even and now I can’t help but be curious. Though my first priority is to be sure you’re okay.”

Eldon placed his finger over her lips to silence her. “Be still, I’m perfectly fine. That is just one of my powers that I don’t use very often because it takes so much out of me. Unfortunately, this was one of the times I decided the alternative was much less pleasant. I couldn’t bear to leave you alone and I didn’t think it would be wise to leave this room to anyone else who would seek to destroy it further, or you for that matter.” Embracing her tighter, he placed his chin on top of her head.

Aggie absorbed what he was saying before having a dawning moment, “Are you saying Gryson doesn’t need to put his spell together and you could just talk to the guys in your head if something were to go wrong?”

Eldon chuckled softly and she felt the vibration from his throat pressed against her skull. “No, I can’t call on that power so easily. As you saw I don’t exactly hide it as well as Gryson’s spell will. If we were standing in a hallway and I started to shake like that, I would think it would draw some unwanted attention. That is why I didn’t say anything about it before. It wasn’t the best course of action at the time.” Aggie thought about this and nodded quietly. “You are the one who said we should trust our strengths and if someone says they can handle something we should believe in them. I knew Gryson was the best one for the job and I allowed him to be in charge of that situation. I on the other hand have another job to do and that is to keep you as safe as I can while we get any information we can. I can’t do that by drawing attention to us and taking mine off of you.”

With that there was a commotion in the hallway and Aggie’s hackles rose and she grew stiff in Eldon’s grasp, then in ran Mitchell and Ren. Aggie visibly relaxed in Eldon’s arms and she audibly sighed. The twins stopped as quickly as they ran in and took in the space. “What the hell happened in here? Did you leave a curling iron on?” Ren’s hands were on his hips and though his words were full of humor it didn’t reach his eyes. Aggie realized immediately he was trying to defuse the situation with his usual comedic relief and for that she was grateful for him.

“This is a bit more damage than my tiny haircare products would have resulted in, but thank you for assuming my incompetence. I haven’t set anything on fire before in my life.” Aggie wasn’t angry but it took her mind off of the horror that was her room by playing along.

“Well, you’re what, twenty-two? You’ve got time. I can work with you one on one and we can up your game. There is always time to learn a new skill. We can even talk to Gryson or Mathius and get them in on it. They have fire wielding skills. You could screw up one of their spells and best-case scenario blow something up.” With a wink, he joined his brother who was already working his way around the room. They took in every aspect of the disaster and Aggie wasn’t sure what all they were doing since Mitchell said they were more than just sniffers. Aggie silently observed as they made quick work of the space.

“Looks like the majority of the wreckage is concentrated in the closet area.” Mitchell pointed at the angry message on the wall. “Not just because that is written up there either. I’m sure that is what you were thinking, but it is actually the darkest part of the burn pattern as though they used an accelerant of some kind. Anyone with any magic at all would have circumvented that and just cast or used their powers on this and it would have been much more efficient.” Mitchell squinted his eyes at the smoldering clothes still inside the closet. “Looks like someone has a bone to pick with you.” Pointing his finger at the words that Aggie imagined were also once blazing on her wall.

“How would anyone have a problem with me? I haven’t spoken to anyone with the exception of the eight of you. Who would have done this?” Aggie was grateful for Eldon’s supportive hand still placed protectively on her lower back. She could almost close her eyes and imagine better circumstances for him having felt the need to place his hands on her. Instead, life was getting in the way with yet another problem. Would she ever have a calm moment in her life again? First, it was missing children, then weather attacks and now personal attacks on Aggie herself. Squaring her shoulders, she silently resolved to get through this as unscathed as possible.

“Well, based on what I can pick up, your attacker was female. So, she is likely threatened by your presence. Perhaps she once fancied herself at one of our sides and is now disappointed by your appearance among us. It is no secret how the Brotherhood of Guardians mate. For us, it is all or nothing and we take that oath upon accepting the role laid before us.” Aggie had never heard them voice this to such an extent which got her thinking.

“How old were each of you when you were asked to accept your role?” She almost didn’t want to hear the answer.

“It was a different age for each of us. Our cultures are different and society standards vary. Me, for example,” Eldon had pulled her attention away from the twins as they went back to searching the room for clues. “I was a prodigy and I knew I was next in line for the guardian succession. I was only eleven at the time of my choice to accept my destiny.”

“ELEVEN?” Aggie practically screeched her question. “You’re saying that you weren’t even fighting your voice change and learning about who you were and you were expected to make a life-changing choice that you wouldn’t be able to change back?”

“I wouldn’t change a thing. My waiting to settle down until I met my one true equal was the best choice of my life!” Eldon’s chest puffed out to show his honorable choice and how he truly believed he was doing the right thing.

“Are you saying you’ve never…” Aggie didn’t finish her thought because even though they all swear they are in this as a group the idea of talking about sex in mixed company still bothered her.

Figuring out her train of thought Eldon proceeded to answer her, “I assure you I’m no virgin. I have had my share of women.” The thought of any of them with another woman successfully burned painfully inside her chest. She had no rights to feel anything about them before she met them, but that didn’t change her reaction. Eldon reached down and took her clenched fist in his hands. Slowly he released each finger one by one. “There is something you should know about us. When we accept our roles in the Brotherhood, we agree to have a spell cast upon us. We aren’t required to be celibate, but we are unable to procreate.”

“That is your safety precaution, a magical condom?” Aggie was trying to put his words in a way she could actually understand.

“No, this is more than a condom,” Ren joined their conversation. Aggie was so caught up in this she didn’t even care anymore that they were openly discussing sexual relations with each other as a group. “The spell isn’t broken until we are bonded to our one true mate. In our case, we all know who that is intended to be so it isn’t a guessing game or even a game of Where’s Waldo, or Wendy, in this case. So, if we have sex to scratch an itch then we aren’t worried about possible ties to her when it is all said and done.”

“What if you were to fall in love with one of these placeholders, in the meantime?” Aggie didn’t want to hear the answer but that was becoming a reoccurring trend. Steeling herself she prepared for the answer that was bound to crush her.

“While that hasn’t been an issue, if it were to have happened, then we could have chosen to live out our life sterile and give up our place in the Brotherhood.” Mitchell decided to add his two cents worth and Aggie was thankful it was him who answered that. While she didn’t hate him, they weren’t anywhere as close as any of the other guys. They had shared one very sexually charged kiss earlier, but that didn’t mean she was ready to stake her claim and give up the fact that they hadn’t seen eye to eye from the get-go. He always had a comment or some sort of attitude for everything she said or did. That wasn’t any way to start a relationship if they were ever going to do so. They would have to find some common ground. This conversation wasn’t her favorite one and if anyone was going to deliver bad news it should come from her least favorite guy.

“I can respect that. I’ll admit this conversation leaves me feeling raw and frustrated, but it is better to know you all weren’t forced to give up happiness in a crap shoot of whether some girl accepts her role as your Ninth and one true mate. As we’ve established it hasn’t exactly been a short wait for you.” She nodded in Mitchell’s direction and placed a hand on each Ren and Eldon’s arms. For the moment, she was thankful the storm had brought on cooler temps and they were wearing long sleeves. No mixed sensations to mess with her already blurred feelings.

“Actually, time in the other realms runs differently than on Earth. As you can see, we are all not much older than you. While your Grandmother has known us for many years on Earth, it hasn’t been but a few months in our separate times.” A jolt of panic ran through Aggie as she realized what Ren was saying.

“Are you saying years will have passed before we get back to my house? I’m the last living relative. If the house is presumed to be empty won’t someone try and buy it or take it from me?” That was a reasonable question since the world she knew was always out for something that someone else had or the next big thing.

“There is nothing to worry about. The rest of the world thinks that you have taken an extended vacation and the Brownies are keeping the house in a suspended state. No one will think anything or be the wiser.” Eldon spoke softly to calm her panic for that she was grateful yet again.