Elle loved my house.

For some reason, that thought was extremely satisfying.

I owned many houses, but this one was the closest thing to a home I had, after losing Toby.

The darkness born of guilt and power and anger reared its ugly head. My magic licked its lips, eager to ravage and destroy.

Elle sighed behind me, drawing me out of the pit of shadows. I lead the way through the house to the guest bedrooms. I chose the one overlooking the backyard and the cliff. I had a feeling she would enjoy the view.

It would also make it more difficult for her to sneak out.

I eased the door open and stepped aside. She walked past me. I took a deep breath. Her scent lingered in my nose.

That lollipop in her mouth was driving me insane.

She scanned the room. Her eyes fell on the fireplace and glittered like polished gems. She touched a hesitant hand to it. I leaned against the doorframe and crossed my arms.

"Bathroom and closet," I told her when she glanced at the door next to her.

She dropped her hand and walked to the French doors. The ocean's salty air drifted in when she opened them, tickling her short hair. Standing against the backdrop of the green garden and the blue deep beyond it, she looked small and vulnerable. It was very easy to forget she had held her own against a group of immortals.

"Where are the bars?" she asked.

"Funny," I deadpanned, even though my lips twitched up. She just had to say something.

She strolled back in, closing the door against the sound of waves, and touched the bed. "Thanks. I try. Whose house is this?"

"Mine."

The look in her eyes was immensely amusing. Panic. Her heart rate picked up. She took the lollipop out of her mouth. "What do you mean, yours? And why am I staying here if this is your house? I can stay somewhere else!"

"Calm down. My living quarters are on the third floor. Don't you want to share living arrangements with me?"

"I don't want to share anything with you." She scowled and stuck the lollipop in her mouth again. Damn candy.

I let my gaze drift over her body, deliberately slow. She was armed to the teeth, her boots were worn out, and she obviously dressed for comfort and flexibility. She was far from being typically seducing. Yet with that defiant look in her eyes, her violence-splattered clothes and her short, golden hair, she looked incredibly alluring.

I grinned, loading it with a promise of sensuality. "Really? I think there are many, many things we could share."

She removed the candy from her mouth and chuckled, yet there was nothing amused about the sound. "Right. No. Not happening."

And she was serious. "Why not?"

She rolled her eyes. "Arthur, I'm sure you're not lacking in female company."

"What if I am?"

"Then I'm sure there's someone out there who'll take pity on you."

Someone who'd take pity... She really did not have the slightest sense of self-preservation. She was on my island, in my house, with nothing to stand between her and my magic, and still she was mouthing off. She was an absolute delight to have around.

I strolled inside and closed the distance between us. I could see the urge to back away from me written in every line of her body. She stood her ground. Her courage was commendable. "What about you?"

"Not happening." She pointed that damn candy at me, her lips glistening with its bright cherry color.

I grinned and snatched the lollipop into my mouth. It was either that or taste something else. But I wasn't particularly fond of being stabbed. So the lollipop would do. For now.

I turned and left her behind with a look of pure disbelief and shock. The candy tasted of the sweetness and bite of berries and an indescribable taste. I wasn't partial to the artificial taste, yet I kept it in my mouth for that indescribable taste.

"Hey!" She called out after me, indignation clear in her voice, her footsteps light on the wooden floor as she trailed behind.

In the kitchen, I opened the fridge and took what I needed. She sat down by the island. I was painfully aware of her presence. My magic followed her every move, every breath, very closely.

Her simple presence was a distraction. More than that. It was a rope that pulled me out of the dark well of my past. It was as if next to her, there was no room for darkness and coldness. Her warm fire banished it all.

"That's my candy," she said.

I glanced over my shoulder. "You want it back?"

She gagged. "Gross. You can have it."

As expected. I smiled and turned back to my task. Silver wounds did not heal easily for immortals. Proper nutrition and care helped, unlike what many immortals thought. I went about making a fruit blend, Elle's gaze a physical caress against my senses.

I ditched the candy, the taste I craved on it was all gone, and gave Elle the drink. "Drink. It's good for silver wounds."

She stiffened. "Don't jump to conclusions."

What a stubborn woman. She simply would not admit what we both knew was the truth. I leaned against the counter. "Elle, don't insult my intelligence. I've been alive for more time than you can imagine. I know you're not human. Let's drop the pretense."

Her heart jumped and a tremor shook her hands. "You're just assuming."

I often enjoyed putting fear in people's hearts. It kept most of them in line- except the idiotic and suicidal- and kept security issues in my territory at a minimum.

I did not find a shred of satisfaction in the look of fear on Elle's delicate features. It twisted something in my magic, making it rebel against the Darkness' need to destroy... everything.

And that was novel.

The Darkness had been with me for ages. As centuries went by, I lost people and with them, inevitably, pieces of myself. In the vacancy left behind, a seed of darkness sprouted. It was born of all my anger and guilt and grief, it was a need for chaos and ruin, and beneath it all, the need to simply cease the sufferance of existence, to end the pain of eternity.

The Darkness had always been an unshakable part of me, a shadow that my magic had embraced and fed on. But I was its ultimate master, and I controlled it with chains of unbroken steel.

Then I killed my son.

Toby's loss had brought the Darkness to the surface and put a crack in those chains.

Elle's simple proximity made my magic seek light rather than shadows. It tamed the Darkness.

Hmm...

A thought popped into my head, for the reason I felt this unexpected attraction to Elle, for the reason my magic delighted in her presence. But that was unheard of. For one of the Five to have... impossible.

I forced my thoughts on the subject at hand. "I may not know what you are, yet, but I know you're not human. There are ways through which someone's aura could be cloaked. I'm always doing it, as I'm sure you've noticed. But I don't completely erase my presence as to be left with a human aura. That's difficult to keep on a regular basis.

"I do know there is a way to achieve that, however. It's called a sealing spell. Few people know about it, even fewer can perform it on others."

Right on the spot. Mentioning the sealing spell made her heart drum in her pulse. Maybe I should push some more, and see what came out.

"You're not a vampire. I would know. And you're not a shapeshifter, because shapeshifters can't completely seal away their animal sides; they would go crazy. Hmm... I would wager you're either a witch or a fae. Which one are you? I'm very curious."

"Stop," she said.

"Immortals births are very rare, so children are precious to us. Especially female births. I cannot see why anyone would give up a baby," I continued. "What are you? Twenty four. Twenty five? If I look into our records two decades ago, I can find out with a good degree of certainty who gave birth to a white female with blonde hair and green eyes."

"Stop!" She shot to her feet, her chest rose with panicked breaths. Maybe I'd pushed too far?

"If you're so hell bent on finding out what I am, I'm going to leave."

Her words triggered something wild and dangerous in me. She would not leave. I straightened.

"You tried," I said, keeping the extent of my reaction from my voice. "It didn't exactly work out, did it?"

She leaned forward, and for a split second, I could see a glimpse of blue fire in her eyes. I blinked, and her eyes were a brilliant green again.

Did I imagine it?

"This time, I'm going to slaughter anyone coming after me without a second thought. And if I can't do that, then I'll die trying. Leave. My secrets. Alone."

I doubted she would hurt someone else without proper reason, her actions earlier attested to that much. So she might very well end up harming herself.

How far would I go to keep her here? There was no need to find out yet.

"Fair enough," I conceded.

"Promise. Give me your word. You're not going to dig anymore, and you won't tell anyone else of your suspicions," she said, displaying an understanding of immortal morals no human was capable of. A word was an immortal's most prized possession.

Was I ready to concede that much? I rubbed my jaw. She wouldn't budge. But maybe I could get something out of her before giving my word.

"That's asking a lot," I said. "How about you tell me exactly what you are, and I'll give you my word no one else will come looking into your business."

She immediately shook her head. "I can't do that."

What was she so afraid of?

"Elle, Elle, Elle...very well. You have my word: I will not dig into your matters without your knowledge, and I will not share my suspicions with anyone else. Until this case is solved."

Her shoulder relaxed. She sank into her seat and controlled her panic. My magic settled down as she did.

She took a sip of the drink, then gulped it down. I waited until she paused her drink before speaking.

"So where did you live in the first sixteen years of your life?"

"You just promised!" She said. If looks could kill...

I held up my hands. "Nothing in my promise states that I cannot discuss the matter with you."

This would teach her to pay attention to any promise she got from immortals.

She looked like she wanted to curse. It was better than the fear and panic of a few moments ago. I would take her anger over that. She looked endearing when she was angry.

"Don't you have anything important to do? Go... lift some tree trunks or something."

I grinned. "Right now, I'm more interested in you."

"Well, just... don't" She hit her palm on the island, her cheeks flushed from frustration.

I chuckled. "You're adorable."

"You're an asshole."

Ah. Her sweet words.

Amanda and Harvey were at the door. They entered, no doubt hearing the last part of our conversation. "I agree!" Amanda chirped, gliding into the kitchen. "He is an asshole."

Elle looked over her shoulder and froze, her lips falling open.

Amanda's beauty was almost unmatched in the immortal world. It wasn't just the physical aspect. Her spirit and heart shone through her eyes and her every action.

Anyone could forge physical beauty, but not anyone could be beautiful.

"Are you real?" Elle said.

Amanda laughed. Harvey lingered in the living room, no doubt letting Amanda get a sense of the new human. He trusted his mate's instincts when it came to people. And I had to admit, I did, as well.

Harvey pushed his magic, letting it drench the kitchen as he slowly strolled inside. His reservation about Elle was understandable.

"Oh, I like her already, Arthur," Amanda said.

"You're really pretty," Elle said, her eyes wide with wonder.

"Thank you. You're such a sweetheart."

"Don't go giving her any more compliments. She hears more than enough every day," Harvey said, coming inside. Elle looked over her shoulder, her back stiffening at the sight of Harvey. She had good instincts when it came to danger. Harvey might like donning the persona of a civilized, urbane male, but he was ruthless.

He shook Elle's hand, cementing his magic's hold, and stood next to Amanda.

"Amanda, Harvey, meet Elle Sanders."

"Ah. Elle, the human. A pleasure to finally meet you," Harvey said. "I heard many things about you."

Elle smiled. "Me, too."

"You've heard about me?" Harvey asked.

I frowned I had not spoken about Harvey, had I? Perhaps she'd heard from someone-

"No, I've heard many things about me, too."

I laughed, joining Amanda's tinkling amusement. She just had to have a word.

Harvey unleashed his magic. I didn't know what he was doing. His illusion magic allowed him many tricks, and right now the target of that magic was Elle.

Elle's eyes narrowed on the cabinet behind Harvey's head. It would be interesting to see how it affected her. Perhaps it would draw out her magic?

After several seconds, she leaned back and gave Harvey a smile. His magic faltered and melted. "Useful," she said. "You should work a little on the eyes. Red is a little cliché."

Amanda perked up. "Oh, I do love her, Arthur."

"Of course you do," Harvey mumbled. "It seems the rumors about you are true, Miss Sanders."

"She's interesting, you're little human," Harvey said through our telepathic link.

I glanced at him. "Your reservations about her seem to have diminished."

He nodded, looking at Elle as she chugged down the rest of her juice. "Amanda likes her. I trust Amanda's judgment when it comes to people more than I do mine."

Irene and Charles joined us. Charles was disgruntled. The little fox seemed to have an unsettling effect on him. He had always been more grown up than his age, even as a child. It was time for someone to ruffle his feathers and make him a little less reasonable.

I glanced at Elle. She was accepting a chocolate bar from Irene. Did she have the same effect on me?

Other than the positive influence she seemed to have on my magic, which was unexpected in itself, I did enjoy having her around. She was a breath of fresh air for someone as jaded and bored with life as I was.

But was that all? My earlier suspicions about her place in my life could not be confirmed, only time would tell. That was why she would have to stay here for as long as I deemed it necessary.

"This space is open to everyone," I said. "My people come and go as they please. So you'll often have company."

She ripped open the chocolate wrapper. "You mean guards."

What a stubborn, suspicious woman. "No, I mean company. Elle, do you really want to live in the city on your own when that demon could appear at any moment and snatch you up?"

"He could appear at any moment here."

"No, he can't. The island is warded, no one gets in or out without my knowledge."

"I can take care of him, you know," she said.

It was said so easily I paused to think. Where did that confidence come from? Her fighting skills were admirable. But that would not do much against a demon who could teleport and who probably had more magic tricks up their sleeve.

The only way to have a chance was if she had magic of her own. Powerful magic.

"Alone?" Amanda asked.

She hesitated. "Maybe we could use this to our advantage, use me as bait to catch him."

"We'll discuss that later. Irene, take the room across from Elle. We'll meet in the war room in twenty minutes."

As they left, Harvey turned to me. "She has a point. Using her as bait is a viable solution."

My instincts recoiled against the idea.

I pushed the unreasonable reaction aside and considered Harvey's words. Currently, the demon killer wanted Elle. The demon had displayed obsessive tendencies so far, so it was a safe bet it wouldn't take another victim. It would be fixated on Elle.

So using Elle as bait to lure it to a space where we would have an advantage was a reasonable course of action.

However, we didn't know the demon's true abilities. It could, and would, have several tricks up its sleeve. Powerful demons often did. There was a chance, no matter how small, that it would succeed in getting its hand on Elle and kidnap her.

It would take her away...

"No," I told Harvey, the word low and threatening. The Darkness inside swelled and lashed out, zeroing in on the threat to Elle's existence.

No. That was not going to happen. No one was taking her away.

Harvey and Amanda paled a little. Charles straightened away from the wall and lowered his eyes. My magic was leaking.

I took a deep breath and cracked my neck, wrapping up my power in its usual cloak. The last thing I wanted was for her to get a sense of what I was beyond the cloak and attempt to escape. She was not ready for that yet.

Would she ever be ready? Even people who'd known me for centuries were still wary when I dropped the cloak. It wasn't fear or distrust as much as it was a survival instinct.

But that would come later. And I had to keep her safe and here for it to even matter.

Harvey opened his mouth. Amanda put a hand on his chest, cutting him off. "Let's leave at that. Why don't you guys go up. I'll stay here and wait for the girls."

Right then, Kat and Jesse walked in. The siblings paused at the entrance of the kitchen, looking uncertainly around.

"Alright!" Amanda clapped once, diffusing the tension. "Let's go. To the war room. We'll join you in a minute."

"Kat, stay here," I said. "Take a look at Elle, see if you can sense anything."

"Ah, so it's the human's smell," Jesse said, sniffing the air. "Smells nice."

"Enough," I said, making my way to the stairs. Harvey, Jesse and Charles followed.

The war room had never been used for its namesake purpose. The last time we'd fought a proper war as immortals was a long time ago, and it was better things stayed that way.

The world could not handle the devastation a true immortal war would unleash. Subtle power games, some espionage and political warfare was the extent of animosity in the immortal world, and it should remain thus.

Once we settled down, Charles brought Jesse and Harvey up to speed about the case, going over all the important details and findings.

I stood by the floor to ceiling window and stared out at the island. The greenery stretched out to the water beyond, an endless sheet of blue.

Elle's mystery prickled at my mind. She was either fae or witch. My money was on the former. There was just something about her, something I couldn't yet place, that felt very... elemental. She seemed very much in tune with the Earth.

The true question was not even how, it was why. Why would a fae hide her existence? The fae were notoriously private and had a sense of superiority. The current fae king would never allow one of his own to be out and about in the world like a rogue. If there was something wrong with Elle, something that required sealing off her magic, then the current fae king would've simply chosen the quickest, surest method in dealing with her: Death.

Perhaps that was it. Perhaps there was, indeed, something horribly wrong with her. Something with which she could not live as fae. What could it possibly be...

"Sire."

I glanced at Charles. He stood next to me, his face set in grim lines. "Yes?"

"About the human..."

My senses perked up at the mention of Elle. "What about her?"

"Are you sure she's safe to stay here?" He asked. "This is the heart of your territory. There are children on