Daphne paused. “It’s just⁠—”

“It’s just nothing. I got it. Stay away from the wolf shifter. But you need to remove that spell from me, on the off chance that everything that’s happened is because I’m his fated mate and you jammed up the whole system with it.”

“Emma, stop. I had a dream.”

“Well, if it was about me, then it wasn’t anything but that. You know visions about those you are close to don’t have a heck of a lot of accuracy.”

“Not unless they are super important.”

“Like the time you had the vision Shiori was going to choke to death on pistachio ice cream?”

“Yeah, well.”

“Daphne, you’re not a seer.”

“Shiori spilled pea soup on her blouse at that big lawyer luncheon and she wanted to die.”

Emma let it lie there. She took a breath. “What is it, then?”

“I dreamt you were stuck in a fire.”

Emma’s breath caught in her chest.

“What? Does that mean something to you?”

“No.” She definitely wasn’t bringing up Flint’s dreams. Or asking Daphne if she would help take his powers away now. “I need to get going.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to come out and spend a few days with me? Or Shiori? I’m sure Jack would drive you. Or I could come get you.”

“I know he would. But I’m fine. I just need to spend a little time by myself. I’ll call you tomorrow. And then you need to remove that spell!”

“Yes. I love you, Emma. Call me first thing.”

“I will.” Emma put her phone on her lap.

Getting in Mirabel’s car had happened on impulse. Flint had confused Emma with his you belong to me alphaness. He didn’t mean it was permanent, but maybe Daphne was right. Even if she was his fated mate, he had no control over his magic. Maybe she should steer clear of it all before he blew up? Because eventually he would. Then there was his request to take his magic away. She couldn’t do it. He’d be happy at first, but what about later? When he changed his mind?

Emma stared out at the road. A few cars drove up and down the hill. Water dripped off the roof, plopping next to her. The wind picked up again. She sniffed Flint’s shirt and stood. The sky had turned grayer now. Snow or maybe freezing rain? She’d have to give Jack a call before he left for the day and ask for a ride to pick up her car.

Emma opened the door to her townhouse. She never locked it—no need to. She had wards up one side and down the other. But she was two steps into her living room when she realized the wards were gone. She’d been so distracted by talking to Daphne. Goddess. Her heart thudded. Wait, was it the giant cement dragon in her kitchen that had torn the wards to shreds?

She took a deep breath and waved up a new patch of wards. I’m fine, was the last thing she thought before she landed on the floor, staring at the legs of her sofa. Her missing television remote lying underneath the couch was the last thing she saw.

30

Oak had done the right amount of gawking at Jack’s storybook-inspired mini houses. They were far more than playhouses. Rapunzel’s tower had running water.

Jack had loaned them his office before going back to work, pulling the door shut and silencing the machines as he did.

“You don’t think it was better to have those guys out there?” Flint pointed in the general direction of the parking lot.

“No. Reviewing the satellite detail, there’s been three separate instances of a lone male lurking around the building. He’s experienced enough to avoid the closed-circuit cameras on the firehouse and the rent-a-cops. The inferior cameras the fools installed around the school too. This guy is a pro. But what he wants, I don’t have a clue.” Oak took off his leather jacket, his black T-shirt beneath two sizes too small. He pulled out a laptop in a crash case.

Oak turned the case to Flint. A video played of a car pulling up along the road. A male dressed in black hustled out of the car and through the woods to the building, disappearing under the eaves. Snow covered the ground.

“The first time at the school?” Flint asked.

“Yes. The next two aren’t as clear,” Oak nodded.

The angle was wrong for the fire station’s camera, and the school hadn’t had a camera installed at the time of the video. “Holy heck, that’s . . . some surveillance footage. Is that even legal?” Flint scrubbed his hand over his beard. He didn’t care if it was legal. He wanted the ass who’d done this caught. He hadn’t realized how much he cared about it until he realized he didn’t care what laws Oak broke or how he got his intel.

“Don’t ask questions you don’t want the answers to, Flint. My boss has connections.” Oak’s boss was a century-old dragon shifter who had made headlines for blowing up a park in Boston a few years ago.

Flint nodded. “Can you make anything out?”

“No, but I’ve been running analysis and even sent some of it to my lab back in New York. Carter has hired Stone Security, not just me. More of the team will be arriving later today.”

“Oh. I didn’t know.”

“It happened on the plane on the way in. When my brother, Bragon, read the lab report, the higher-ups got involved. Mr. Williams bought the all-inclusive package. We’re going to get this fucker.”

Rational Flint wanted to be happy about the prospect of Oak’s employer taking over the contract. But from what he’d gathered, most—if not all—the employees at Stone Security were shifters, and the idea of more shifters around Emma made him squirm. “Right.” Her safety came first.

“Don’t get too excited. I had to convince both my brothers and my boss that this wasn’t some sort of overzealous human overreacting. We’re a little overworked with cases now, and honestly, the only reason they agreed was because I wanted to use my vacation time to do it. And I told them they couldn’t stop me and make me take vacation elsewhere.”

“I see.” Flint nodded. “And then what happened?”

“Jasper and Bragon forced me to take vacation time, stupid older brothers. Said I was working too hard but that, if I was all in, they were too. I should have told them from the start. But again, they made me take vacation. So here I am, vacationing.”

Flint had never met Oak’s brothers, but he’d heard plenty of stories. The older North brothers had both served in the Marines. Oak had said more than once in college that he’d skipped the Marines and gone into criminology to be contrary to his brothers, although they all ended up doing the same thing.

Oak pointed to the screen. “He leaves through the woods right here. I wanted to watch it again before we went out to test the area.” Oak focused on the screen and backed it up. Flint studied which trees the male slalomed through. “Back to your original question. The humans weren’t doing anything but keeping this guy at bay. Better that he comes at the building again. We can track him.”

“You think it has something to do with Williams’s attempted buyout of ShifterChat?”

“Absolutely.” Oak played the clip backwards.

Flint grunted. A sharp pain twisted in his side.

“Whoa. You okay?”

“Yeah.” Flint closed his eyes. Ever since Emma had left, he’d felt woozy. Flint reached back and grabbed the chair next to Jack’s desk.

“Sit down. You don’t look so great.” Oak crouched down next to him. “You going to be okay?”

Flint pinched his nose and held his head. “Yeah, I’m just feeling a little lightheaded.” His magic zipped up and down his arms. The blue flames skirted around Oak’s hand and flung themselves back at Flint.

Oak’s phone rang. He stared at the screen. “I’ve got to take this. Don’t get up.” Oak backed away, his hands out in front of him.