I nod, because what else is there to say or do?
“We’ll find my sister.” She says it with so much confidence it makes me believe her.
From the moment I told her about her sister, Locklyn has worked tirelessly to try to locate her. I can still remember the look of awed disbelief on her face when she learned that her human family might still be alive. The assumption had been that her parents and sister were killed when she was kidnapped and taken to the creature world. They’d vanished completely, so it never even crossed her mind that they might still be alive. But now that she knows they might be out there somewhere, she’s thrown herself into finding them with single-minded focus.
She usually goes with us on these missions, but she stayed behind this time because she hadn’t slept in over two days. She had discovered the lead but was wise enough to know she wasn’t in good shape to go with us in case we did run across the demon.
I’m glad she didn’t come with us. The memory of the slaughtered girl will stay with me for the rest of my life. She doesn’t need that image rolling around in her head, imagining that it’s her sister.
Talon comes up behind her, laying a hand on her lower back. Probably without even realizing it, she leans into his touch.
“Want to go grab a quick bite with us?” he asks.
I raise my eyebrows. We left the West Coast late, and between the flight time and time change, it’s a little after four a.m. in New York.
“Now?”
He shrugs. “Empire is open all night. My sleep schedule is all screwed up anyway. I feel like dinner, then I want to get a few hours of sleep.”
“You should come,” Locklyn says just as her hand lands on my arm.
I flinch before I can stop myself. She drops her hand at once, her frown carrying a flicker of hurt that sends a familiar ache through my chest. I want to erase that look, to tell her it’s not her fault. But I hold my tongue.
We’ve both been trying to pretend things are the same as they used to be. We both want to stay in each other’s lives. But to do that we have to figure out a new normal for us. We’re just not there yet.
“Naw, you guys go ahead,” I say, adding a forced lightness to my tone. “I’m beat. I need to check on Cassian anyway.”
Locklyn visibly shudders when I mention the Vampire King by name. She hasn’t warmed to the two-thousand-year-old vampire yet. I don’t blame her. He’s a weird dude, to say the least.
He knew about Locklyn’s sister and the demon’s intentions because being trapped in Shadow Striker with it made him privy to its secrets. On top of that, he has a very particular type of magic: the ability to make portals between the worlds. He’s the only creature in existence, that we know of, who can do that. Without him, I never would have gotten back to the human world.
The one stipulation for his help was that I take him with me, and so I did. But then I somehow became his unofficial caretaker as well. We’ve been holed up in the same tiny apartment that Kade secured for us since we arrived.
For the most part, it’s easy. Still recovering from his ordeal, he rarely leaves his room. It’s like living with a shut-in, or that weird roommate who gives all your friends the creeps. I try to cut the guy some slack though and at least make sure he’s eating and taken care of.
“You sure?” Talon asks, giving me a look that makes me think he sees right through my flimsy excuse. But I nod and force a smile that feels brittle.
Hopefully it looks more convincing than it feels.
With a wave, I head out, letting the smile slip from my face the moment my back is turned to them.
Exhaustion pulls at my limbs, but even so, I’m not going to get rest anytime soon. The urgency that’s causing the knot in my chest won’t let me.
There won’t be another murdered girl. Not if I can stop it. I just need to dig deeper. I need to find Locklyn’s sister and make sure she’s safe.
Then, maybe when I’ve helped save her life, I’ll be able to move on with my own.
Two
HAVEN
“You have to come with us,” Tate says, her big blue eyes in full puppy dog mode, holding her Evil Queen costume in front of me for her to see.
I sigh, not because I’m annoyed with her, but because as far as I’m concerned life isn’t fair. Because I really do want to go to that party.
“I have a really important econ test I need to study for,” I lie, and her face falls.
“The one for Professor McCann?” Kendra asks, gliding into the room. Her braids are twisted on the top of her head in one of my favorite hairstyles on her, making her look like the queen she is.
