Page 35 of Possess Me at Midnight (Doomsday Brethren #4)

Dejected, I return to Sterling’s estate, Shock’s mocking laughter still echoing in my ears.

The adrenaline that carried me through our confrontation has drained away, leaving behind a bone-deep exhaustion.

My legs feel leaden as I climb the stairs, each step a monumental effort.

The bitter December air clings to my skin like a reminder of failure—another dead end while Ice suffers in Mathias’s hands.

Weeks ago, Shock told Bram that his frequent absences and refusal to come when called were merely keeping up appearances for Mathias’s sake. But as soon as the other warriors openly doubted his loyalties, Shock’s attitude became less clandestine double agent and more “fuck off.”

I was a fool for hoping the leather-clad bastard is secretly doing his part to assist the Doomsday Brethren.

Trying to block out my hopelessness, I push open the door to the room I tucked Bram into shortly after arriving, the one beside mine.

The warmth hits me immediately—a sharp contrast to the bitter cold that’s settled in my chest. Inky night oozes through the windows as Olivia sits next to him, perched on the edge of the bed.

Sydney lounges in a nearby wing chair, a phone pressed to her ear.

“You’re back! Thank god. What happened?” Olivia tosses her dark hair over her shoulders, violet eyes bright with concern.

I simply shake my head. “Dead end. How is my brother?”

But a glance at his graying skin tells me Bram’s health has slipped another notch. The black smoke around him pulses. It’s thicker, more aggressive, as if sensing its victory is near. I fear my brother is dying, and it’s ripping out my heart.

Is there anything that will cure him? I don’t know, and I hate that all I can do now is perform a few spells to keep his body hydrated and functioning. When will this nightmare end?

“Has she been able to locate the mysterious Emma yet?” I ask Olivia, tipping my chin in Sydney’s direction.

The redhead rings off and sets the phone down with a sharp clatter that echoes in the sudden silence.

The sound feels final, like a door slamming shut on another avenue of hope.

“Well, I spoke with Aquarius, my former assistant. Your brother’s missing mate is, apparently, an old school chum of hers.

Aquarius received the Doomsday Diary from Emma shortly before she gave it to me.

All Aquarius knows about Emma’s whereabouts is that, after uni, she moved to Manchester.

They lost touch. Then Emma turned up one night, very nervous.

Afraid. She shoved what she called a magical diary into Aquarius’s hands and said she should hide it.

She was convinced it had something to do with the series of articles I was writing for Out of this Realm . But Emma refused to say more.”

“Lovely history lesson,” I grate out. “How do I find the woman? Bram might recover if I could locate her.”

“Aquarius has been looking since the first time I called. She tried tracking down Emma’s previous flatmates, her professors—anyone who might know where she’d run.

Bram’s mate used to work for a human who dealt in rare antiquities.

But Aquarius’s attempts to reach him have been unsuccessful.

She peeked into the store’s windows and saw only clutter and chaos.

I fear Mathias found him whilst looking for the book. ”

Entirely possible. Probable even, since Mathias has been hunting for the magical book.

Could Emma have died inside the shop? No, Bram’s magical signature would reflect his loss, and so far, hints of Emma’s personality shine in earthy greens and shimmering yellows inside the bold slashes of Bram’s magical aura.

The woman is alive somewhere. I have to find her.

“Has Aquarius tried to call Emma?”

“At least a hundred times. Number’s been disconnected. It’s like the woman deliberately erased herself from existence.”

If Mathias is hunting her, I can hardly blame Emma for going to ground. But I must find her soon. Bram will die without her.

Reality hits me square in the chest like a battering ram, stealing my breath. The room suddenly feels too small, the air too thick. Each second that passes feels like an eternity. Everything happening now… It’s too much.

Ice—my brave, protective wizard—bleeding in some dungeon cell because he saved me. Bram dying by inches while his mate remains lost. Mathias gaining Council power while I stand here helpless, watching everything I love slip through my fingers like smoke.

If, by some miracle, I manage to save everyone who matters to me, I will hunt him down with every bit of my determination. Then I’ll make him suffer the way he’s made all of us suffer. I’ll strip away everything he values before I end him.

“It’s all right.” Olivia curls an arm around my shoulders, her warmth seeping through my jumper. The human comfort should soothe me, but it only emphasizes how cold I feel inside—as if Ice’s absence has frozen something vital in my chest.

My throat burns with the effort of holding back sobs that want to tear free. It’s only then I realize I’m crying—not the controlled tears of earlier, but the raw, desperate weeping of someone whose world is disintegrating.

The tears come hot and fast then, scalding my cheeks.

I can’t afford them, so I swipe at my tears with the back of my hand, the gesture sharp and angry.

My body rebels—exhausted muscles demanding rest while my mind races, desperately planning.

Coffee won’t fix this bone-deep weariness, but maybe caffeine can fuel me through whatever comes next.

“Sorry for my outburst. I can’t spare the time to wallow in self-pity. I have to keep searching, hoping, trying…”

“Don’t apologize. You need sleep. It’s nearly midnight.”

There’s no way I’ll sleep, knowing that Ice is enduring hell—if he’s even still alive.

“I’m all right. I need coffee, and I need to talk to Duke. Are they still belowstairs?”

Olivia looks as if she wants to argue but nods. “I’ll stay with your brother. He was a good friend to me when I first moved to London. I miss his smart-ass remarks.”

I miss them too, even though they usually made me want to throttle him. “Find me if there’s any change in his condition.”

Sydney squeezes my hand. “And I’ll keep trying to reach Emma. Someone, somewhere, knows where she is.”

Yes. I just hope that someone isn’t Mathias and that I find her before it’s too late to save everyone I love.