AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Darien put the earmuffs on, aimed at the farthest target, and fired.
Bull’s-fucking-eye.
Darien slammed the front door. “What the hell was that all about?” he barked, turning to face the group gathered in the foyer. The Shadowmasters had just left, the gate closing behind their jeep. “Who let them in?”
Every pair of eyes in the room went to Paxton and Eugene, who stood farthest from the group.
Paxton’s shoulders curled forward, and he tugged on the sleeves of his baggie sweatshirt. “They followed us here.”
“And you led them right to the goddamn house?” Darien worked at controlling his voice and failed.
“Eugene,” Kylar growled, jaw clenching. “Explain.”
“We didn’t notice they were following us until we were at the gates. We had nowhere else to go, and it was too late.”
Darien dragged a hand down his face. “So you let them in.”
“You don’t get it.” Paxton’s voice was a ragged whisper. “That was Blaine and Larina. They answer to my dad. If we didn’t let them in, they would’ve taken us to the House of Black.” The fear choking every word told Darien that being taken to the House of Black wasn’t what they were afraid of; it was what would’ve happened once they got there.
Ivy stepped up to Paxton and slid an arm around his shoulders. When she spoke, she spoke to Darien. “They don’t know about Loren. Tanner hid her and Joyce with spells in your room.” Darien breathed a sigh of relief. No heartbeat, no breathing, no auras detected.
Darien glanced at Tanner. “Thank you.”
He merely nodded.
“Did you show them the house?” Kylar asked, his throat bobbing with a swallow. Sweat shone on his temples.
“They asked for a tour,” Ivy said. “But that was right before you guys walked in.” When her steel eyes flicked to Darien’s, she frowned. “Good thing Larina was so distracted by Darien.”
“Yeah,” Darien said flatly, “good thing.”
Jack ran a hand—scraped and still filthy from all the shit that’d happened earlier—through his hair. “Roman is going to be pissed.”
Yeah, he was. Darien knew Roman wouldn’t have minded that they were staying here, but they’d gone and exposed the one safe place he’d kept for himself, untouched by the corruptive hands of his dad.
His haven was gone now. Whenever he finally got back to the city, he wouldn’t have a home to go to anymore.
39
Angelthene Optometry
ANGELTHENE, STATE OF WITHEREDGE
They’d made it to Angelthene Optometry with minutes to spare.
Travis waited at the front of his car with Lace and Jewels as Tamika Isley finished her shift. He could see her aura flitting around in there, grabbing her bags and shutting off lights.
What a surprise she’d be getting.
In the parking stall next to his, Logan cut the engine of his pickup truck—a vintage classic, that peppermint-and-oil smell that new cars just couldn’t replicate lingering in the leather seats. While a hellseher’s sense of smell certainly had its drawbacks, the perks often outweighed them.
Travis credited Roman for his appreciation of old vehicles. He wondered if his brother still took the time to restore them. While Roman kept some of the models to add to his growing collection, he resold the ones that weren’t his favorites for a pretty penny.
Logan and Sabrine got out of the truck and joined their group, the shutting of their doors gusting more of that smell Travis’s way.
The brawny male wolf said, “You sure she’s working today?”
“I can see her in there,” Travis said.
