Page 89 of Ruled By Wizard

She was still taking in the damage when Wizard walked around from behind the van.

“Did you—” She knew before she could finish that Wizard hadn’t done it. “Did you see who did this?”

“No.” Shaking his head, he came to stand beside her. “Whoever did it is long gone. The paint is almost dry.”

“They did this because of the video, didn’t they?” she asked starkly.

Wizard’s gaze shifted to the van. “I can’t say for sure. When I find them, I’ll make sure to ask why.”

CHAPTER 36

SPILLED WINE

The vandalism pissed him the fuck off. Restraining himself from shouting at her for not having an outdoor camera, he scanned the nearby homes to see if any of them did.

Of course they didn’t. Why make life simpler for him?

The snide thought had him taking his frustration out on an already abused tire. Kicking it didn’t make him feel better, but it kept him from shaking Natalia.

“Why don’t you have an outdoor camera?”

“I meant to get one. I’ve just been so busy that I kept putting it off. My neighborhood is really safe …”

“Every neighborhood is safe until it isn’t.”

He couldn’t hold back the snarky comment any longer. He’d already been pissed as fuck at having to leave her warm bed. Then, as the cherry on top of his shit sundae, he’d discovered his woman’s vehicle covered in graffiti, its tires slashed, and its headlights and taillights smashed.

If Natalia’s bedroom hadn’t been at the rear of the house, he might have heard the fucker.

Natalia didn’t bother making excuses as she reached for her cell phone.

“Who are you calling?” he asked irritably.

“A tow truck, then the police.”

“Don’t bother. Someone’s already on the way to take the van, and fuck the police.”

“I’m calling them. I’m not going to let whoever did this get away with destroying my van.”

“I’ll take care of the motherfucker, and I don’t want any paperwork giving the cops a motive to look at me.”

“I don’t want anyone hurt.”

Wizard grinned. “Then you’re going to be very unhappy with me,” he told her unapologetically. “I’m going to hurt the motherfuckers so badly they’ll wish Reaper had gotten to them before I did.”

“You can’t hurt them so badly that they wish for death. They only damaged my van. They didn’t kill anyone.”

It took him a moment to realize she thought he meant the Grim Reaper rather than Viper’s brother, Reaper. Then he considered it more carefully. They could be the same person. One walked underground while the other walked above, but both had inventive ways of taking the souls of those who deserved it.

“Do you realize how dangerous this could have been if you’d come outside and caught them?”

The thought had plagued him since he’d first seen the hate-filled destruction.

Her complexion paled, and her lips began to tremble before she firmed them. “I would have been okay. You were still here.”

Her words eased some of the sting of her asking him to leave. He was still pissed as hell, though. He had promised himself that the next time they had sex, he wouldn’t fuck her until she’d begged him for a solid hour.

He reduced the time by half at her confidence that he would have kept her safe.