He was loyal, if concerned about being trapped on the mortal plane. Gabe dropped his hand.
"Go here on assignment. You are authorized to kill any threats to the woman you're protecting. Demons are after her. Send the dealer you replace directly to me," Gabe ordered. He held out his fist. The assassin bumped fists with his, and Gabe conveyed the location of Deidre's apartment.
The death-dealer obeyed. He called a portal and strode away.
Gabe waited a few minutes for the assassin being replaced to appear. The small woman was one Gabe had known for years.
"Mind check, Cora," he said.
She, too, bowed her head without hesitation. A quick search yielded nothing, except similar worry to the first man. His death-dealers didn't doubt him, but they weren't exactly convinced they'd see their home again.
"Keep this quiet, okay?" he said. "Any issues with your ward?"
"No, Gabriel. You could've warned me," Cora said, grinning. "I almost ran when I saw her."
"Yeah. That happens to me every time I see her."
"She's been exploring the area today. She hasn't gone far. No demons, a couple of Immortals. I take it Rhyn has an eye on her?"
"He does. Does she seem … well?"
"Distraught mostly."
Gabe nodded, uncertain if he should be relieved she wasn't rejoicing to be away from him or worried that she was unhappy. She needed to be unhappy, he reminded himself. He'd done what little he was willing to do to his own mate to keep her upset. And out of his reach, because he was unable to keep the distance between them without her spearheading the effort.
Gabriel was no closer to figuring what to do about the woman meant for him than when he was when he saw her mating tattoo at the bungalow.
"Soul radar?" he asked.
"Broken."
"Alright. Take up guard here," he said, moving away. Mind on Deidre and the fact he still didn't know how to undo what Wynn had done, Gabe went onto the next death-dealer at the lake then the next.
The fifth death-dealer hesitated to submit. Gabe gave him no chance to run or fight but snatched his neck. The man resisted, but Gabe pried his mind open and found part of what he sought: a deal with Darkyn. The death-dealer before him was newer, with less than a few decades in the service of Death. While not surprised past-Death had taken this man to her bed as well, Gabe was surprised he'd folded so quickly to Darkyn's offer of spying in return for a guaranteed trip to the underworld. He had a handler who passed messages from the demons to him. Unfortunately, the man didn't know who his handler was.