Page 20 of Demon Unleashed

Cinead looked at her, already shaking his head, when their gazes connected. “Oh well, why not? You’re probably better at this than I am.”

They made their way upstairs and entered the great room, a large room that served as kitchen, dining, and living room.

“There should be some bandages in the top drawer of that cabinet over there,” Cinead said, and pointed to one of the kitchen cabinets. “Jay, why don’t you get them?”

While Jay walked into the kitchen, Cinead sat on the sofa, and Enya took a seat next to him.

“You’re here to pick up the toy for Winter?” he asked in a low voice.

Enya nodded and replied just as quietly, “Yes, but that’s not all. I need to bring something to your attention. It’s important.”

Cinead raised an eyebrow.

“It’s not in here,” Jay called from the kitchen.

Cinead turned his head. “Oh, I must have put it somewhere else. You know, I think after the move I decided to put bandages into the bathroom. Upstairs, second door. Would you be so kind, Jay?”

“No problem.”

The moment Jay left the room, Cinead said, “That should give us a few minutes. He’ll never find them, ’cause they’re in the downstairs powder room.”

Enya chuckled. “You’re terrible.”

“Resourceful. Now, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?”

“The demons. Over the past few weeks, they’ve been too quiet. There have been no run-ins with them in Baltimore, not even any sightings. As if they’ve disappeared. That’s not normal. Baltimore is a hotbed for them. So why would they suddenly all disappear? Something is up.”

“You had Aiden speak to Barclay about it, didn’t you? Primus brought it up with the council.”

“And?”

Cinead shrugged. “The lack of demons isn’t evidence enough that they’re planning something big. We’ve had no worrisome reports from other compounds. It’s an anomaly for sure, but at this point there’s nothing we can do, even if they are planning something. Just remain vigilant.”

“But—”

He put his hand on her forearm. “You’re a good warrior, Enya. I commend you for your diligence. But sometimes a lull in the action is just that: a lull. Use it to recharge your batteries. And live a little.” He rose. “Now let me get the toy I found.” He walked to a mahogany armoire and opened its doors.

Enya approached. Inside the armoire were stacks of papers, small trinkets, and other items that most likely only had sentimental value.

“I haven’t put everything back on the shelves yet,” Cinead said, turning, his eyes displaying a telltale sheen. Dealing with old memories was hard for him.

He held an old rag doll in one hand, a small framed painting in the other. Enya glanced at the painting. It was that of a naked baby lying on its stomach. She’d seen it several times. Cinead and his wife had it painted a few weeks before Angus’s abduction. She reached for the doll. The colors had faded, but she could still make out that it had been a knight.

“My wife made it for him, while she was pregnant. She knew we’d have a boy.”

“She was very talented.” Enya put the toy into the same pocket as the dagger. “I’ll give it to Winter the minute I return to Baltimore.”

“Thank you.” He didn’t look at her. He looked at the picture of his son.

“One day, I hope you’ll find him,” Enya said, though she knew there was little hope of ever finding out what happened to the baby, let alone finding him alive.