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“I’ve been called worse.” He glanced at me with a gleam in his eye.
I looked away, choosing to remain focused on the countdown. When it got to three minutes, I began to mentally prepare myself for what might be waiting for us.
At one, I turned to face the door.
When the metallic lock fell out of place and we could leave, Ciaran was the first to start walking in that direction. One by one we followed him, keeping a safe distance when he opened the door.
He stepped outside, motioning for us to follow a second later.
“Which way do we go?” I asked once I was on the sidewalk. The temperature had gotten a little lower, and it was still dark. On the plus side, there wasn’t any sign of the men in masks. The city had gone quiet again.
That didn’t mean much, though. I knew they’d be watching from wherever their hideouts were.
“Map has us going left, again,” Maverick said, easing behind me to head that direction.
We all started walking, more cautious than we’d been thus far, moving from the sidewalk to the center of the street. Thinking of all that had occurred in what I now knew was less than twenty-four hours, I slowed so I could be beside Selena. She’d been relatively quiet through all of this, inside her own pretty little head.
“Who is the guy your moms supposed to marry?” I asked quietly.
“That’s what has me so out of sorts about this. I have never met this man more than once, and I can tell ya he ain’t no rose. I didn’t know the guy had any kids until the crazy chick showed up at our house to introduce herself.
“There wasn’t no mention of brothers, either,” she replied quietly, perceptive enough to know I was trying to be discreet.
“And his name?”
“Kyle. I don’t know his surname. Ma wouldn’t give it to me. Is there something I need to know?”
“No…or, maybe. If I figure anything out, I’ll let you know.”
“Likewise,” she said, offering a smile.
“What are you two whispering about?” Charon asked, dropping back to walk on Selena’s other side.
“If that was to be known, they wouldn’t have been whispering,” Mel answered for us.
“Chill out. You don’t gotta be so hostile, babe,” Maverick laughed.
She flipped him off without bothering to look his way.
“Care to share, sis?” Charon wrapped an arm around Selena’s shoulders.
“Quit it.” She tried to shove him off.
“You know, I’ve always wanted another sister. I didn’t think she’d look as good as you do, though.”
“If I’m your sister, you can’t talk like that. It’s wrong and disgusting.”
“Actually…” he trailed off and leaned in, whispering something in her ear that earned him an elbow to the stomach.
“Sick fuck,” she growled, marching away from him.
“Guess you’re my buddy now,” he said, moving closer to me with a friendly smile painted on his pretty face. These guys seriously didn’t let anything phase them.
“Lucky me,” I replied absentmindedly, making note of how close Gracelyn and Kyrous were walking to one another.
“That, my new friend, is Ky making his move.”
I side-eyed him. “He makes his moves in silence?”
“Sometimes the silence is all you need.”
His tone implied there was a deeper meaning behind his words.
“What time do you think it is?” I changed the subject.
“One, maybe two in the morning. Why? You got somewhere to be?”
“Anywhere but here,” I muttered.
“There’s a sign,” Margo proudly exclaimed.
Sure enough, at the end of road was a sign with yet another arrow, this one pointing right for once. The road curved so we wouldn’t be able to see what we were approaching until we were around the bend.
“Come walk with me, puppet,” Ciaran said, slowing so I could catch up.
Not up for going back and forth, I moved up and fell in step beside him, cognizant of the shift that had occurred between us on all spectrums.
We rounded the corner together, his arm coming out to hold me back when the sign for Beleth Pass came into view.
It was a sweet gesture, but I didn’t need him to protect me. Besides, this wasn’t a building. The sign was attached to a gateway covered in moss and vines. The passage beyond was narrow and looked as if it led to a damn swamp.
“Do we really have to go down there?” Abby whined.
Knowing he was going to say something entirely unnecessary; I grabbed his hand in hope of keeping the peace. It worked. He glanced down, then over at me with obscurity cloaking his features.
“We’ll go first,” he announced, threading his fingers through mine. “Pair up if possible.”
Normally I would not be the first one going any damn where so ominous, but I wasn’t going to argue this decision.
If I went first, that meant Mel or Grace couldn’t, and if one of those masked degenerates was waiting for us, Ciaran and I would be on the frontline.
