Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 90897 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 364(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90897 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 364(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)
The others seemed to take this news on the chin. Niamh and Kiyo, of course, already knew about Echo’s mum.
“Margaret,” Niamh murmured sympathetically.
Sick of the strangeness between them, Elijah gave into his instincts and placed a comforting hand on Echo’s thigh. She reached under the table, and for a horrible second, Elijah thought she’d reject him. Instead, she entwined her fingers through his and held tight as she asked Fionn, “Did Bran say who was with him?”
“He’s alone.” Fionn grinned ferally.
“He always was an arrogant ass.” Echo nodded. “This is good. We know what kind of security William has on her. We can disable The Garm security easily enough. They’re not the strongest of William’s supernaturals. But the digital security is a different story. He has her work and apartment bugged and under surveillance.”
“Bran can take care of that,” Fionn said confidently.
“This Bran sounds interesting.” Echo tightened her grip on Elijah. “If we take out the security, perhaps loop the feed to my moth—Margaret’s—apartment, then we can get her to a safe house while we lie in wait at her place. Can you mask this many scents from William?”
Niamh nodded. “All the fae sitting at this table are capable of masking all of us.”
“Can you mask my wolf scent?” Thea asked.
“Sure.”
“Then I’ll pretend to be Margaret. Mask my scent but nothing else. William needs to think there’s a human woman in that apartment with a heartbeat and all.”
Rose shrugged casually. “Sounds like a plan. I know he’s pretty old, but between us all, we should be able to take him down.”
“I want the kill,” Echo echoed Niamh’s words from earlier. “He took everything from me.”
It was Elijah’s turn to tighten his grip on her. “Not everything, love,” he reminded her gently.
She didn’t look at him as she whispered, “Maybe not everything. But he took enough.”
“Works for me.” Kiyo leaned back in his chair.
All the supernaturals at the table agreed, and Echo relaxed slightly.
“Does anyone have a laptop?” she queried.
Conall nodded. “Of course.”
Echo answered the question in his tone. “I can hack William’s personal computer system. Track his travel itinerary so we know exactly when he’ll be arriving in London.”
The alpha stood abruptly. “I’ll be right back with the computer.”
25
It turned out they had more time to prepare than Echo thought.
According to William’s itinerary, he was traveling to Barcelona first before flying on to London. Having to avoid daylight meant they had several days to plan and get to the English capital.
They were leaving for England the next afternoon.
Unfortunately, Echo knew only one reason William would stop in Barcelona first.
“The coven there owes him a debt,” Echo had informed her companions.
Fionn had squeezed the bridge of his nose. “Please tell me you’re not referring to the Catalan Abella Coven.”
“Hate to disappoint, but the very one.”
Catalonia’s most powerful coven also happened to be one of the world’s most powerful covens. They made the Blackwoods look like children playing with spells. Thankfully, they usually kept to themselves. Not thankfully, many years ago William had done some kindness for them that had incurred a great debt. He wouldn’t tell Echo the details, but she knew her adoptive father had held on to the debt, saying he’d cash it in when he needed it most. Curious, Echo had done some research into what kind of magic might tempt a vampire.
“They can make him faster, stronger, and damn near impossible to kill.”
“He knows.” Kiyo bit out a curse. “He’s aware we’ve assembled. He’s also aware you know about Margaret. And he knows you know that’s who he’d target. William is relying on us attacking him. We should change the plan.”
“No.” Fionn disagreed. “They’ll cast the spell whenever he needs it most, so it doesn’t matter when we do this. The spell might make him stronger, but it can’t win against a fae … when she or he unleashes pure daylight.”
Echo sensed Elijah’s confusion. She couldn’t help this time because she was pretty baffled by that sentence too.
Thea gave Fionn a rueful look before turning to Echo and Elijah. “When I thought Eirik was killing Conall, this power, these rays of pure sunlight, burst out of me and killed Eirik. All of the vamps.”
Echo gaped in wonder. “That’s how you did it? William thought the fight must have gone on so long they were caught off guard and killed by the rising sun.”
“Nope. Me. And …” Her gaze darted to Niamh.
The Irish fae nodded. “I did it too when Kiyo was in trouble.”
Fionn looked at Elijah. “If you were motivated enough, I think you’re the best bet for taking William out. Now that Echo is a Daywalker, it’s no longer a risk to do it in her presence.”
Elijah had stared stonily back at the large fae male. Echo sensed his concern, his fear. He didn’t know if he could do it. He’d spent so long keeping his powers secret that he wasn’t sure what he was capable of. His gaze flicked to hers. She knew he wanted to protect her no matter what. Her chest ached.