“Liam, Pamela! The big lizard has buried himself in the fields, under the dirt as if he is hiding.”

I’m not hiding; I’m being inconspicuous.

“Whatever, lizard.”

Blaz didn’t answer and so, that was that. Though what he had to be inconspicuous about was beyond him.

Eve flapped her wings, drawing his eyes to her.

“There is something,” she said in a lowered voice and her words were hitched. “Dead in the barn. Please tell me it is not Dox and the others.”

“No, it isn’t Dox.” One of these days, he would have to ask Rylee about that, about where the bodies of the supernaturals went. Because as far as he’d been able to tell, they just vanished.

“You’re right, though, there is something dead in there,” Liam said, reaching up to put a hand on her ruffled feathers. The Harpy shook her head, a flash of silver and gold flickering off her. That was different.

“New jewelry?” He’d never thought to see anything like that on the Harpy, yet the dangling earrings suited her.

“Gifts from the unicorns, to show they mean to honor the old ways.” She fluffed her wings. “I will leave soon. I have to convince the other Harpies to stand with us.”

A chill swept through Liam. “You’ve said they’d kill you.”

She lifted her head. “I will take the chance, as we all do each day. I must try.”

His wolf puffed up with pride. His pack was strong and loyal to the core, even if they were from all walks of the supernatural world. “Be safe, Eve, and come back to us.”

Her luminous eyes flicked over them, then strode to where Frank stood, shaking. “Who is this?”

“Frank, meet Eve. Eve, Frank is a necromancer. He’s going to help us with the dead guy.” Without any more introductions, he headed toward the barn.

Eve reeled back as if she’d been struck. “Frank must come with me.”

Liam’s feet froze. “What?”

“He must come with me.”

Frank stammered out, “I … can’t, I have to help Liam.”

Eve shook her head. “No. You will fly with me to the Harpies and help me convince them. That is all there is to that, Death Walker.”

Liam’s wolf nodded his approval.

The prophecies come true in strange ways. For the moment, he ignored the voice inside his head, even if he did svenook A agree with it. Though he knew no prophecy that dealt with a Harpy and a necromancer, that didn’t mean it wasn’t important.

“First, we need Frank’s help with Agent Valley. Then he can go with you.”

While Frank stammered and stuttered his way to the barn, the others didn’t question Liam’s decision. About fucking time they saw it was his job to run the show.

The barn door pulled open easily, but the scent of rot was not so easy to take. One of the few times Liam actually cursed his sensitive sense of smell. “Fuck, that is nasty.” Though the light was dim, he saw clearly. But he wasn’t so sure the others could. Reaching to the right, he flicked on the switch for the overhead lights.

The view was, unfortunately, no better than the smell.

Behind him, the two witches gagged and wretched, and a glance back showed him they were not coming any further into the barn.

Milly pointed at the house. “We’ll wait inside.”

Frank followed Liam into the barn. “It’s not that bad, you know. I’ve smelled worse.”

Liam couldn’t help the way his eyebrows shot up. “Worse?”

Frank shrugged. “Probably just part of being a necromancer.”

Agent Valley shuffled toward them, one eye sagging out of its socket. Liam planted his feet firmly, determined not to back down.

“O’Sheaaaaaaa … Ingers is tied … Black Coveeeeeeeeen.” Agent Valley gasped for breath, feet stalling as he wobbled from side to side.

“Frank, can you find out more information? Details, places and names?”

“It will drain what is left of him. I don’t want to do that,” Frank whispered, backing away. Liam lunged toward him and grabbed the kid by the arms.

“He’s already dead, Frank. But he can still help us if you can pull your shit together. Do you understand? This isn’t a game. It’s life or death, and your uncle died to protect you, trying to protect all of us.”

Frank’s eyes filled with tears. “He was the closest thing to a father I had.”

This was not the moment for Liam to soften, and he knew it. “Then make him proud, Frank. Do what you have to do.”

Frank sniffled loudly, and then slowly nodded. “You have the questions, so you ask him. You need to touch him.”

This was not what he was expecting. “How?”

The kid walked forward and put his hands on Valley’s head, thumbs above the eye sockets, fingers wrapped around his head. “Press in hard, hard enough to feel … past the bone. I’ll open the connection between you two.”

Oh shit, this was not what he’d been thinking at all. But there was no way he’d back down now that he’d shamed the kid into it.

Two steps and he was face-to-face with his old boss. He lifted his hands and placed them where Frank had, the feel of dead flesh under his fingers making his own skin crawl. He couldn’t stop the low growl that built in his chest. Bearing down, his fingers pushed through the dying tissue that had once been Agent Valley. Breathing shallowly, he thought for a moment that he was going to lose it, his gorge rose and he had to fight not to jerk away.

Then his fingers touched the soft resistance of Agent Valley’s brain, and everything shifted.

“O’Shea. This was not how I expected to speak to you after our last visit.”

Liam closed his eyes and concentrated on the voice in his head. Kind of like Blaz’s, only this felt more distant. Almost like he heard the words outside his head at the same time they echoed inside his head.

“Yeah, me neither, boss.”

“Did you find where the guns are being made?”

“Yes. Grabbed a few for myself.”

Good man. But that is only the start. Ingers had connections within the Army, and if she can prove the supernatural world exists …” Agent Valley didn’t have to say anything more, Liam knew.

If the Army felt threatened, then it really would be an all out war with the humans.