With a frustrated grunt, he rises to his feet and turns to me. I can’t decide if I should be thanking him or running from him, but when his green eyes lock with mine, they pin me in place. In silence, his gaze drifts over me, tracing every detail from the top of my auburn hair down to my size seven Chucks before sliding back up to my face. When he does, his body goes rigid, and his expression flickers with something between disbelief and barely concealed fear.
I can’t quite read it, but the way he looks at me is almost like he’s seeing a ghost. Then he gives his head a quick shake, and the expression vanishes.
I’m still in shock as the blond pulls a phone from his pocket and punches in some numbers. Someone picks up on the other end of the line.
“Hey, it’s me,” he says, and then half-turns away.
The person on the other end responds, and normally my hearing would be sharp enough to catch every word, but a buzzing in my ears makes it impossible to focus on their conversation.
In a daze, my gaze moves to the dead body only feet in front of me. I wonder in a detached way who he was. Who were his parents? Did he have a girlfriend or a wife?
What if he had a dog?
Whether he has a pet shouldn’t matter, but I find myself fixating on it anyway, on the thought that there’s a dog out there somewhere that will never know what happened to its owner.
“I found her,” the guy says, snapping me out of my trance.
The muffled male voice on the other end of his line responds, “Are you sure it’s her?”
The guy glances over at me, and the intensity in his eyes sends heat rising to my cheeks.
“It’s her. I’m positive.”
Five
BECKS
I’ve never been more positive of anything in my entire life.
I combed through the university’s student directory before I ever set foot in West Virginia, going through every name and face. The moment I saw Haven’s photo, there was no question she was Locklyn’s twin.
“Get her and get out of there,” Talon says. “Find somewhere safe to stay for a few days and don’t reach out to anyone, including us.”
Something’s wrong.
“Why?”
Talon pauses before saying, “Another girl was murdered.”
The blood drains from my face and I sneak another sidelong glance at Haven, making sure she hasn’t bolted as Talon goes on to say, “We think there’s a leak somewhere in the Order and that’s why we’ve always been too late.”
Haven looks so much like Locklyn, it’s messing with me. Turning away from her, I lower my voice so she can’t hear me say, “There’s someone in the Order actually working with the demon?”
“We’re not sure of anything at this point, but it’s not worth taking any chances. After you get her out of the city, text me the location of her parents. Locklyn and I will take care of them. Then get rid of your phone. Get rid of hers too, just in case. Find a burner phone and reach out to us in a couple days. If I don’t pick up, don’t leave a message.”
“Is that really—?” I start to ask when she bolts.
I hang up on Talon and take off after her, my long legs eating up the distance quickly.
“Wait,” I call, just as she’s about to break through the trees and enter the neighborhood. But she just picks up speed.
I reach her just as she passes the last tree. Grabbing her from behind, I wrap an arm around her and yank her back into my chest, sliding a hand over her mouth so she can’t scream.
I can’t have her waking the whole neighborhood. I don’t have time to deal with something like that.
The guy I fought was obviously possessed, so I think our theory about the demon being semi-corporeal is wrong and it’s using human vessels instead. It knows who she is now and probably where she lives. If the demon can inhabit bodies, it might find a new host and come back. I have to get her away from here before that happens.
She thrashes against me as I pull her back into the wooded area. I barely manage to keep my grip on her as she uses defensive techniques to break free. It makes me grateful that Locklyn dragged me to Pete’s Gym so many times, because practicing with her taught me how to anticipate Haven’s moves. But even so, she frees an arm and elbows me square in the nose.
