Mike winced as the mention of his friend reminded him that Doug’s body was stashed in the trunk. Doug deserved so much better, but Mike couldn’t give it to him yet. “He was,” Mike agreed.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes.”
His clipped answers made it clear he didn’t want to talk about it.Please don’t blame me, she silently pleaded. It washerDoug died defending; she wouldn’t blame Mike if he resented her for what happened.
Swinging her gaze out the window, she stared at the trees passing by in a blur. She tried not to think about Doug, the island, and this whole mess, but then a disturbing realization settled over her.
“The vampires on the island, they have our info,” Mollie murmured. “They took our IDs from us, and I’m sure they went through my car.”
Mike didn’t have his real ID on him when he left home, he wasn’t sure he stillhadan ID for the real him, and he didn’t have one with his real info on it.
“None of those fuckers will make it off that island alive,” he assured her.
“Some of them may have already left the island if they realized things were going wrong and they had escapees who might want revenge,” she whispered. “They may not know exactly who got away yet, but it won’t take them long to figure out if they kept all our info, which I’m sure they did.”
Mike glanced over at her. In the dim glow of the dashboard lights, her skin was ashen. “I’ll get you both new IDs, and Iwillkeep you safe. They’ll never find you.”
“But we can never go home again, can we?” she whispered.
Mike reached over and took her hand when her fingers dug into her thigh. “It would be safer if you didn’t,” he said.
“My mom’s ashes are there and all our things. Aida is supposed to start college in the fall, and…” Mollie broke off and shook her head. She blinked away the tears filling her eyes as she recalled all the things and memories filling her home. She would never see them again, but it could be far worse. “We’re alive, that’s what matters.”
“I will figure out a way to retrieve your mother’s ashes and anything else of importance to you. With fake IDs and our ability to change and manipulate memories, we can get Aida into another college. I wouldn’t recommend her attending the same one she planned to go to, but we’ll figure it out. Most of the Byrne kids are good with computers, but Julian is a computer genius. He’ll be able to get it all situated; he can probably get her into Harvard.”
“I’d flunk out of there in a month,” Aida muttered. “I like school, but I also like to have fun, and I don’t think they get much playtime at Harvard. I’ll find another college. Besides, I think I might like a little time off from learning after this. I’ll start next spring, and maybe I’ll take some online classes until then.”
Mollie wanted her sister to go to college, it was what their mother had dreamed of, but she couldn’t argue with Aida about it after everything she’d endured. Aida needed time to process everything and heal before returning to normal life. However, neither of their lives would ever be normal again given everything they now knew about the world.
“Where will we live?Howwill we live?” Mollie asked. “We have money left over from our mom’s life insurance policy, but I don’t know how I’ll get it without any ID or my bank cards.”
“We will figure out a way to get the money, and both of you can stay with my family and me.” He glanced at Mollie as she turned in the seat to look at him. “We’ll protect you, and I want you with me forever, if you agree to it.”
Aida’s breath sucked in loudly, and Mike glanced at her in the rearview mirror.
“If not forever, at least until you’re safe,” Mike said to ease some of Aida’s fear, but she still looked as if her eyes were going to pop out of her head.
“And who are the members of your family?” Aida asked.
“My friend Liam and his wife Sera have ten children, and some of them also have children. Liam and Sera’s children are my adopted nieces and nephews. They’re the Byrne kids, or the Byrne clan is more like it,” Mike said. “Liam is like my brother—I’ve known him since we were kids—and my friends, David, Jack, and… and Doug, all live on the same land together. It’s a massive property with multiple houses and plenty of room for more.”
“Are they all vampires?”
“They are, but they’d never harm you or Mollie.”
“So, they’re more like you than those freaks on the island?”
“Yes.”
“And you wantusto live with them?”
A trickle of unease slid through Mike. It was a lot to ask of a young girl who’d been severely abused at the hands of vampires, but if Aida refused to stay with him, then Mollie would too, and he needed her somewhere she would be safe.
“You’ll be safest there,” he said.
Aida didn’t respond as she sat back in her seat and turned to gaze out the window. Mollie squeezed Mike’s hand. He didn’t seem to resent her for Doug’s death, but they still had so many hurdles to leap. One of them being her sister.
