Chapter 167

Ten miles away, Josef strode through a wooded hillside, his waziri senses guiding him unerringly toward the place where his vampire pets had been destroyed. He had received two more rides in his journey south, including one that took him from just south of Springfield all the way to Hartford. He had walked the rest of the way, in the rain for the last day and a half. He did not mind at all. Indeed, he scarcely noticed that the rain had just stopped.

He was almost there, he knew, so he slowed his pace, not wanting to miss anything. If there was any trace of magic in the area, he would know it.

Finally, he found what he had been seeking—two piles of soggy black ashes, pounded almost flat by the rain, scattered on the ground about twenty feet from each other. Josef stopped and focused on everything his senses could tell him.

The first thing he sensed was vampires, many of them. He sorted through the vibrations and counted five, including his two pets. The pil