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“We think she got it from Innocente. Plus, I’m Irish you know. Could be from my side, too. ” Cynthia regained control of her voice, but she was obviously scared. “I should have listened to her. ”
“Cynthia, you can’t blame yourself. Ethan is very, very good at his job. Trust me. I’ve heard what he is capable of. I want you to make sure to call me if you hear from Sergio. Okay?”
“Okay. . . okay. . . I trust you,” Cynthia whispered. “And call me if you hear anything. ”
“I will, Cynthia. I promise. ”
There was a soft click when she hung up.
“Shit!”
“What are we going to do?” Samantha asked, her face pale and her lips trembling.
“Get to the shop, organize, and plan. We’ve got four hours before Cian and Amaliya are awake. We’re on our own,” Jeff answered.
“Do you think he really just wants The Summoner’s ashes?”
“Maybe. But for what?” Jeff hurried to Samantha’s bedroom and began to gather his clothes.
“Maybe he really does have the cure for Amaliya?” Samantha’s voice was full of doubt, but he could see she was struggling not to be terrified by the turn of events.
“I doubt that he was hired to save Amaliya. It’s just a convenient lie. One that Pete, Sergio and Innocente all fell for. ” Jerking on his clothes, Jeff struggled not to be ragingly pissed at Sergio and Innocente for not contacting him. Love made fools out of everyone.
On the other side of the room Samantha dressed in black jeans, cowboy boots and a silky black tank. Tugging her hair back into a short ponytail, she glanced over at him when she realized he was watching her.
“What?”
“You look amazing,” he said bashfully.
“This is my badass outfit,” she informed him, holding out her arms and rotating. “If I am this phasmagnus thing, then I’m going to look uber-cool kicking bad guy butt. ”
Catching her about the waist, Jeff drew her to him and kissed her ardently. The love he felt for her was overwhelming and he couldn’t endure the thought of anything bad happening to her. When his lips reluctantly left hers, Samantha’s eyelashes fluttered as she moaned.
“Dammit! I want more sex!”
“Later,” Jeff promised, grabbing her hand and rushing her out the door. He hoped there would be a later.
* * *
The long highway weaving through the hills was nearly empty of traffic. The sun had burned away all the lush greenery of the spring, leaving a dry, yet lovely tapestry of the Texas Hill Country.
Pete took a long sip of the lukewarm soda he’d bought at a small gas station when they had filled up the gas tank again and wondered how much longer they had to drive. Sergio’s huge navy-blue Ford truck sped along in front of them, the shadowy outlines of the big guy and the diminutive old woman barely visible through the tinted rear window.
Ethan had lapsed into silence. The tall man wasn’t particularly talkative when driving. He didn’t even like to listen to music while they traveled, so Pete listened to music on his phone by streaming it through his Bluetooth. Johnny Cash was his fallback when he was nervous and the Man in Black was crooning in his ear. He still remembered Amaliya as a child dancing in her backyard to her little radio as it played her favorite Johnny Cash song, singing along loudly as the sun played in her blond hair.
Rubbing his goatee, Pete wondered if Amaliya would return to her golden locks once she was mortal again. He kind of missed them, but he didn’t really care in the end. As long as he could ask for her forgiveness and start again. His heart longed for her and he couldn’t wait to hold her in his arms again. She had to forgive him. He would find a way to make it up to her. Never again would he reject her or hurt her. He had been a fool to spurn her.
A strange beeping noise sounded in the console. Ethan flipped it open to retract a rather large phone with a long antenna sticking out of the side.
“Hello,” Ethan said briskly, inclining his head slightly in Pete’s direction.
Pete pretended to look out the side window, ignoring Ethan. He made a bit of a show tapping his fingers on his knee to the music. His cellphone didn’t have any bars at all and he wondered if the phone Ethan was using was one of the special ones that had access to satellites.
“Yes, I have located the master vampire. Apparently he was killed in a small ghost town called Fenton. Sergio Guerra and his grandmother are taking me there now. By tonight I should have all the ingredients for the ritual to restore Amaliya. So, yes, everything is fine. Nothing to worry about. ” Ethan’s voice was calm, measured, and a somehow reassuring. “Okay. Talk to you later. ” Once the phone was stored away, Ethan said to Pete, “That was my employer. They’re pleased with how things are progressing. If not for you, I’m not sure I could have gotten this far. ”
“I want to help Amaliya,” Pete answered. “Who does your employer want to help?”
Ethan cast a shadow of a smile in Pete’s direction. “Believe it or not. . . Amaliya. ”
