“The center of the village circle,” Luz replied with a shrug. “This is where the elders conduct business. Sort of home base, if you get my drift.”
And Naya was inside.
It hadn’t been as difficult as he’d thought to track her. With even a minuscule amount of his blood in her system, he’d been able to sense her. It had taken a fair amount of concentration, but then, a few blocks from the house, their tether flared and he was acutely aware of her presence. Luz had noticed it in an instant, too, and Ronan marveled at these witches and their innate attunement to magical energy. Naya was finally conscious. And if she was anything less than 100 percent, whoever had harmed her was going to pay.
Ronan leapt from the car before Luz could bring it to a complete stop. His steps didn’t even falter when she called out to him, “Hey! Slow your roll, bloodsucker!” Whatever danger he might face inside, Ronan would meet it head-on. Nothing mattered to him but Naya, and he had to assure himself that she was safe.
The front door splintered on the hinges as Ronan barged through. He rushed past the foyer and smashed straight into Naya. Before she could fall, he wrapped her in his arms and spun to settle both of their footing. She let out a desperate cry, holding him to her with a fierceness that struck him like a punch to the gut. “I felt you,” she said through panting breaths. “Everything was still and quiet and then I knew you were here before I even heard the music of the tether. Oh my gods, Ronan, I was so worried! I thought that Paul or Joaquin had gotten to you!”
“Naya.” Her name was a prayer of thanks whispered into her hair. Ronan cradled her against him as he tried to slow his racing heart and control the shaking in his limbs. A rumble of anger vibrated in his chest. “What happened? What did they do to you?”
“I can’t remember.” The fear that permeated her words caused his gut to tighten with worry. “I was lying in bed with you and then I woke up here. Everything in between is a blank.”
“You left the house to meet with Paul,” Ronan said. “You told me you’d be back by sundown, but you never showed up.”
“I did?” Her brow furrowed and a ripple of anxiety reached out to him through their tether. “I don’t remember any of that. I don’t remember talking to Paul. When I woke up, the house was empty.”
A fresh wave of rage clouded Ronan’s vision. “We’re going to find Chelle, and then we’re out of here.” He kept Naya tucked under his arm as he steered them back toward the door where Luz stood, one hand placed on her cocked hip.
“Girl, you scared the shit outta me!” she all but shouted at Naya. “There is some seriously shady shit going on here.”
Understatement of the century. It wasn’t a coincidence that Naya was experiencing the same type of memory loss that he was. Her own people—the family that was supposed to love and care for her—had done something to her. The betrayal wouldn’t go unpunished, either.
“I’m not leaving until I get answers, Ronan.” Her determination was admirable, but for safety’s sake he wanted to put this town behind them as quickly as possible. “I felt the presence of foreign magic in my body when I came to. Someone put it there just like they put it in you. I need to know who. And why. If I don’t, I might not ever be able to banish it from your body.”
He had to admit, not dying would be good. And unless they got rid of whatever was currently squatting in his body, he was as good as fucked. Protecting Naya was his number-one priority, however. Tonight’s events proved to him that her supposed haven was no longer safe.
“This is too dangerous. Too many variables.”
From the doorway Luz snorted, and Ronan cut her a look. “The knight in shining armor routine is cute. Do you use it on all the females?”
“Don’t start.” She had a smart mouth, that was for sure. It was a wonder the feisty younger witch hadn’t taken control of the pod long ago. She didn’t strike him as the sort that took orders from anyone. She and Naya were certainly cut from the same cloth. “We need to get the hell out of here before someone notices she’s missing.”
What Ronan really wanted to do was to wait for the fuckers to come back so that he could show those cat-shifting bastards what it felt like to tangle with a truly formidable male.
Naya paused and regarded the door that hung on its hinges before turning to Ronan and quirking an amused brow. “Overzealous?”
He hugged her tight and flashed a confident smile. “When it comes to you, love? Never.”
Luz hustled down the stairs ahead of them and down the driveway to her car. She stood with the door open, her brow furrowed as she chewed on her bottom lip. “Naya, magia alimenta de magia. Es peligroso. If you’ve both been infected—”