David got off his stool and pressed his chest against my back. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to push you. You don’t have to make any decisions now. In fact, let’s use this weekend to try to distance ourselves from all of this as much as possible.”
“While we go to Chapel Hill to talk to your colleague about a sword that kills demons,” I said dryly as I spun around to face him.
“Point taken.” He kissed my forehead but then drew back. “There’s something I need to tell you.”
My gaze lifted to study his face, my stomach knotting. “Conversations that start with ‘there’s something I need to tell you’ never lead to anything good. Should I be worried?”
A soft smile spread across his face. “Ellie, how can you doubt that I love you? I know I haven’t said it since—”
Since he had told me several times without any reciprocation. “Stop.” I put my fingers on his lips. “You don’t have to say it. It’s just that I’m not the easiest person to live with. If you decided—”
“Ellie, I love you. I promised you that I’m not going anywhere, and I meant it. Please rid yourself of any worry to the contrary.”
“Okay.” I gave him a gentle kiss. “So what did you want to tell me?”
“About some research I’ve dug up. As I mentioned last week, I expanded my search to include possible fringe group interest in recent supernatural activity.”
“You mean the crazy conspiracy theory people?” I asked skeptically.
“Yeah, the people who aren’t afraid to think outside the box.”
“And I take it you found something?”
“Maybe.” He paused. “There’s a group called the Guardians. They say they’ve been around for hundreds of years. They’ve been preparing for a surge of demons to be released upon the earth.”
“You mean the apocalypse.”
“Think about it—the breaking of the curse could be seen as the apocalypse by a lot of people.”
“If you ignore the fact that half the people on the earth didn’t disappear in the rapture.”
“Many fundamentalist Christians estimate that only a quarter of the population would be raptured.”
My eyes narrowed. “The fact that you can spout that without blinking an eye scares me more than a little bit.”
“It’s on their website. And this group doesn’t believe in the rapture anyway. Not all Christians do, you know.”
I’d spent a fair amount of time in church growing up, and we’d never been told anything about the rapture, but demon attacks hadn’t come up either. “You must think there’s something there if you’re mentioning this group.”
“I had to do a lot of digging, but I finally found out where they’re from.” His eyes turned serious. “Ellie, they’re based in Charlotte.” Just like the stash of antiquities that might be the Ricardo Estate.
I felt like I’d been kicked in the gut as I backed into the counter behind me. “That can’t be a coincidence.”
“I agree. There’s been an upsurge in online activity for the group. As well as mention of new interesting developments in the last month or so.” He paused. “I’d like to stay for a couple extra days. I want to go to Charlotte on Monday to look into this some more. Do you think Becky will be okay with taking point at the inn while we’re gone?”
I nodded, my stomach churning. “Yeah.”
“Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
His words reminded me of Claire, which in turn made me think of my text to Collin. Guilt quickly replaced my shock. “This is good. It’s our first solid lead on who’s in possession of the Ricardo Estate.” I shook my head. “I don’t know why I’m so upset.”
“It’s understandable. After all, we think there’s a tie between the people behind the Ricardo Estate and your mother’s death.” He gripped my shoulders and lowered his gaze to my eyes. “Word of warning, love: the closer we get to the truth, the more difficult this is going to get, emotionally and otherwise.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” I smiled up at him. “I’m fine. I promise.”
“How about you let Becky do the rest of the work today? You could use some time to relax. I’ll be back by three. If you’re ready to go when I get back, we’ll have plenty of time to get to my house before dark so you can mark the doors.”
“Oh.” I hadn’t considered that. Sloppy on my part.
He gently kissed my lips, his tenderness catching me by surprise. “I think I’ll take off for work now and get an early start. Come out to the site if you’d like. Text me first and I’ll meet you at the entrance.”
“Thanks. I’ll think about it.”
“And don’t forget to call Myra. I know her behavior has been upsetting, but she’s probably just distracted by all the changes in her life. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled to see you.” My eyebrows lifted in surprise and he shot me a grin. “Like I told you, I know you by now. Call her.”
As I watched him go, I thought about his parting words. He was right about Myra. I decided to give her a call and leave her a message if she didn’t answer. A small part of me hoped she wouldn’t. It would hurt too much if she rejected me.
Myra answered on the third ring. “Ellie, what a surprise.” While she didn’t sound like herself, she didn’t sound as cold as she had recently.