The alarm from my phone went off, and Fitz’s discussion halted.
Shit.I needed to get back to Aurora.
Just another glorious day on the job.
The one thing getting me through the next shitty hour of my life was mulling over what I’d do the next time I was alone with the new intriguing addition to Starry Night Lane. Someone close to our most recent victim, Hazel Brooks.
Chapter9
Oakley
As soon as Aspen had finished feeding and I’d learned the call wasn’t Hazel-related, I left the house, beelining for Luna’s. I needed a few moments to think by myself, not within arm’s length of Atlas’s overly immersive touch.
Since Aspen’s birth, I had been able to keep my distance for the most part, figuring it would be easier once we moved away. But with him here, my resolve was wavering with every memory of us together he could reproduce and every word that alluded to wanting us to be together as a family.
But I couldn’t tell him what I knew.
Atlas didn’t subscribe to premonitions. He would refuse to accept that if we stayed together, he’d seal his fate. A fate that ended with his blood on my hands.
I shook away the image before it wandered back into my mind.
The autumn wind whipped into me, the scent of withered leaves, pine, and sage tickling my nose. Looking around the neighborhood, I noticed how quiet it got here in the afternoon. It was basically a ghost town, aside from our elderly next-door neighbor who sat outside knitting a bright-mustard sweater.
Pulling out my phone, I called the Artemis Police Department and left them a voice message to get an update on the case. Then I sat on the bench next to the coffee truck, trying to collect my thoughts.
I took a deep breath, reminding myself that Atlas was here to help and to see his son. He just happened to be here during the full moon. That didn’t mean he expected to win me back, even if only for a night.
…Did it?
Shit.
To recharge my gift would mean using it beneath the full moon’s light, its swelling radiance refueling my depleted stores. What that entailed was slightly different for each witch, depending on their gift. But with my Desire, it felt especially nerve-wracking with Atlas here, whether I involved him in itsuseor not.
Beyond that, while I missed my magic, I wasn’t even sure I wanted my moon-blessed ability back—
The sound of a throat clearing grabbed my attention. A black cardboard cup was poised in front of me, the smell of cinnamon wafting in the steam seeping from its lid.
“You okay, Midnight?”
I trailed my gaze up toward that deep voice, drinking in the fitted navy thermal with rich brown skin peeking out at the chest, along with part of a tattoo. A constellation, maybe? I wondered what the rest of it looked like.
“I’m fine,” I lied.
He passed the cup in his hand to me. “It’s not your usual, but it’s more comforting. Apple pie latte. Looked like you could use it.”
“Thanks.”
I reached for my wristlet to take out some money, but Saros moved his hand to stop me, hovering it over mine. “It’s on the house.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
His mouth snagged into a frown for a split second. “I know.”
“Thanks,” I said and inhaled the spices coming from the warm cup clutched between my hands. “What’s in it?”
“It’s the Starry Night Weekly Special. Just a bunch of apple pie spices and brown sugar with bourbon maple syrup thrown in, but don’t tell anyone—it’s supposed to be a secret family recipe,” he said, the corner of his mouth lifting up in a smirk, exposing a sliver of pearly white teeth.
Blowing on the steam and staring back at the house, I took a small sip, enjoying its warmth surging down my throat. I missed Hazel so much. Hopefully, I was just overreacting, but at least now Atlas and Lynx were helping me, and neither of them had made me feel ridiculous for worrying.
