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Rasmus blinked in surprise several times before speaking. “So the artifact in your body is a sentient entity in its own right.”

“Specifically, he said he and his two comatose friends were light beings.”

My guardian arched an eyebrow. “To live within the void, he would have to have evolved beyond his physical human form. I spent some time there but found I missed the stimulation of being physical. That’s why I opted to take on guardian duties. I prefer having some sort of physical form.”

“My head hurts as bad as my shoulder now. I’m going back to sleep.” I closed my eyes only to pop them open again. “Wait... did ya find the bowman?”

Rasmus nodded once with no expression at all. “He will no longer be a problem for you.”

“Why not?” I asked, wincing as I twisted my shoulder, trying to turn toward him better.

“I called my brethren to help. He was one of the manmade guardians. A faction of the military sent him to neutralize you. The attack on Ben was related to the attack on you. They know Ben’s secret.”

I laughed, even though it hurt. “Say it like it is, guardian. The bowman came to kill me because the military knows I ruined their experiment. I knew I should have killed those scientists and all those soldiers they experimented on. I knew someone would retaliate if I didn’t. We’re not talking about a dark coven. Ben’s part of the military believes they can erase anyone they consider a threat.”

Rasmus made a face. “Your bowman was not one of those you faced during your monster battle. He had nothing to do with that incident. He was elsewhere at the time doing other things.”

I frowned at his statement. “Maybe he wasn’t directly involved, Rasmus, but ya can bet whoever sent him to shoot me was. Whoever that is doesn’t fear me, and it would serve me better if they did. I bet the manmade guardian was watching us and waiting for someone to take out our wards so he could catch me off-guard. Talk about strange coincidences.”

“One of his comrades stole Ben’s talisman. It was a lucky guess on their part that you would rescue Ben and deal with his issue. They didn’t know about Ben’s witch wife, but they probably do now. If Felicity hadn’t broken your wards, the arrow might not have gotten to you.”

“How many of them were there?”

He ducked his head. “Must I give you a number? They are no longer relevant.”

“I know ya didn’t kill them, Rasmus. How many of them were there? I want to know what I was up against.”

“Three hundred sixty-seven. We gave them all amnesia. They will remember who they once were but not the last five years of their lives. It will cause chaos for many of them. The risks of not doing something were too large. The guardians value your health above their neutrality. Congratulations, Aran. My people care more about you than about the general welfare of humanity.”

“So ya didn’t neutralize them just because it was important to stop them,” I concluded.

“No. But saving you indirectly brought about that effect.”

She didn’t have any frustrated sighs left in her. Rasmus still didn’t get it. He didn’t understand the difference between good and evil humans. At least he understood the concept of protecting the people ya cared about. I guess I should be grateful for that, at least.

“Thanks for going after the bowman. Were all of them man-made guardians?”

“Less than twenty of their number had been weaponized with genetic changes. The others were mostly soldiers trained to fight paranormal creatures. Since I had the most experience, I altered the man-made guardians and changed them back into humans. They may retain more memories than their full human peers.”

I nodded against the pillow. “Hopefully, we can postpone setting new wards until I’m healed.”

Rasmus lifted my hand and held it in his. “Ben’s wife laid some basic magickal protection of hers around the property. Her power should hold most threats at bay. Felicity said shecouldn’t leave your home unprotected after you protected her husband. She feels terrible about how she handled things.”

“That was nice of her. I want to like her because Ben loves her.”

Rasmus inclined his head in agreement. “You should rest now and heal. I don’t like watching you come so close to dying.”

“I don’t like it either. That’s as close to death as I’ve ever been,” I said, smiling when he laughed. “Thanks for going after the bad guys, Rasmus. Ya saved me the trouble of doing so. I hope yer amnesia plan works.”

“My brethren were thorough in carrying out the task.”

I sighed heavily, suddenly exhausted. “If ya haven’t already, tell Ben what ya did. He needs to be aware of the danger. It’s that I don’t trust his wife, but Mulan and I want to make sure his property has the same level of warded protection as ours.”

Chapter Five

Despite Mulan’s efforts to keep them blood-free, the covers and sheets got ruined. The next day, Rasmus carried me into the bathroom to soak in the tub.

While I was getting clean, Henry's people swiftly removed the bloody bedclothes and replaced them. By mid-morning, I felt nearly strong enough to get up and walk around but decided not to chance it. I was too tired to protest when Rasmus told me I needed more rest. And he was right.