"Spread out," Rhydric said quietly. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried weight enough to make Theo and Eryx nod without argument. "Check every room."
The group split, Theo swept through the lower rooms, the study, the dining hall, the back lounge, every was empty. Even the rooms downstairs.
Ian checked the back hallway and the kitchen, the metallic tang in the air making his skin crawl. "Nothing," he called out softly.
Then came Eryx.
He moved upstairs, but then his step slowed when he sensed something, each step echoing like a pulse.
The door to Azrael's room stood half-open.
A faint mist curled from inside.
Eryx's chest tightened. "Azrael?" he called, voice low. No answer.
He tried again, softer this time. "Azrael, you in there?"
Still nothing.
His stomach dropped.
Every instinct screamed at him not to move forward, but he did anyway. He moved before his brain could say otherwise.
