would get past the lock Iulian’s blood put on finding the book.
The book was magic, and magic left a trail. Those who wielded magic were sensitive to that trail. She thought it was a great idea Iulian had had. His scent would successfully drown out the others, but that didn’t mean the magic inside those bloodstained pages would remain there. Over time, the entrails could leak out and once again call to Sergey or Anatolie.
Julija? Isai prompted, looking for an answer.
It would be so much better if the book was destroyed, she said carefully.
She felt Isai’s sudden weariness. She wanted to reach out and touch him to comfort him. In the body of the owl, she couldn’t do that, so she stroked a caress in his mind.
Do you know how it can be destroyed?
No. But I haven’t thought much beyond trying to catch up with Iulian and make certain he wasn’t using the book to get something for himself.
Such as?
Bringing his lifemate back.
Isai’s owl pushed into her, turning her toward the west. They began quartering the area, looking for backpackers, campsites, any place an enemy might be.
I will admit I had not thought of that, he said. It makes no sense.
Of course it does, Isai. He waited a thousand years for that one woman and she’s dying when he finds her. Why wouldn’t he think he could bring her back?
Carpathians do not think like that.
You don’t think that way, Isai, she corrected. You do not know how he thought. She detested pointing that out to him, but it was the truth. Still, she didn’t believe Iulian had betrayed his people for selfish reasons. It wasn’t in him any more than it was in Isai.
I want to explore the theory that he took his life, spilling his blood to hide the book. He was alone, and he believed his lineage had ended. How would anyone find that book?
The obvious answer is accidentally. But there are a few other ways, magic being the most evident. What’s that below us?
The male owl broke away from the female and circled the area below. It appeared devoid of all life, just flowers and shrubs clinging to rocks, living out the last of their cycle before winter set in fully.
I do not see anything.
Look in the shadows. Inside the female owl’s body, she shivered.
The male made another lazy circuit. Sharp eyes inspected the deeper shadows thrown by large boulders in the silvery moon and multitude of stars.
Let’s go, she whispered. Right now, Isai.
As the owl passed over the largest boulder, a streak of gray shot from a crevasse in the granite and hooked savage claws into its body. The cat was that fast. Its weight pulled them both to the rock as it sank razor-sharp teeth into the bird.
As the bird fell from the sky into the hungry cat’s jaws, a steady stream of what appeared like fog rose back into the sky as Isai escaped into the air.
Do not panic, little mage. I am perfectly fine. This cat is starving. He is one of your brothers’ cats, and he’s very hungry.
The shadow cat was enormous, the size of a large panther. The animal was very thin, and its hair was patchy, as if nutrition had been an ongoing problem. A second cat crawled up over the top of the large boulder, slinking toward the feeding cat. The larger cat lifted his head, looked around suspiciously and then backed off its kill. As the female approached, the male made a soft chuffing sound and took another step back.
Clearly, he’s starving, yet he gives up his food to his hunting partner, Julija said. See why I wanted so much to help them? They’re mostly good to one another. It isn’t their fault that my brothers use them to harm people.
Those two look far more vicious than the two we have, Isai stated, circling the shadow cats.
The female crouched down and began to eat. Her eyes had been glowing red, but that vivid color receded, and she looked around her with jeweled amber. Her fur was more black than gray, and the wind ruffled it slightly.
Those two are called Comet and Phaedra. They are the biggest and most dangerous of his cats. I couldn’t get near them. The female in particular would have taken my head off if she could have.
She looks docile enough now.
Julija’s breath caught in her throat. He wasn’t going to listen to her. Isai, please, let’s just get out of here. Anatolie can lay