“The potion’s done,” Marcus replied. “Ava was waiting for you to arrive before she told us what she found.”
“Imeantwhat’s going on with you?” I said. Ava and Kallie were still whispering across the Lair, so I didn’t think they’d heard.
“Me? Nothing,” Marcus replied.
“Clearly,” I stated flatly. “Trouble with your soulmate?”
Marcus scoffed. “You’re one to talk. Ava had to send Oberi to get you. Couldn’t even go get you herself.”
I frowned. Yeah, I’d noticed.
“We all know Ava and I are screwed up,” I said. “That’s nothing new.”
Marcus shifted on the couch. “Fine, you want to know what’s new? Kallie’s dating awoman.”
I gaped. “But Kallie’s bonded to you.”
“Doesn’t mean she can’t screw someone else on the side,” Marcus grumbled. “Ivy told me he saw her leave The Devil’s Playground with Scarlet.”
“Scarlet?” My jaw dropped. “If they left together, I can only imagine—”
“Please don’t put those images in my head,” Marcus begged. “Kallie’s giving Avaallthe details, I’m sure. I’m trying not to listen.”
I sighed. “Man, I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault.”
Yeah, it’s yours, I thought. If Marcus and Kallie just got together already, they wouldn’t have this problem. I knew he liked her, but he didn’t have the courage to be with her.
But I guess I couldn’t talk…
“It’ssonice to not be single anymore,” Kallie told Ava loudly, obviously rubbing her newest relationship in Marcus’s face. “Scarlet and Ihadso much fun together last night.”
Marcus bristled beside me.
“Charlie,” Ava’s voice broke through the Lair. “I’m glad you’re here. We can finally get started.”
Her voice was different— strained, in a way. Something was strange between us, and it wasn’t the usual bullshit we struggled with. I picked up on it right away.
“Make it quick,” Marcus said. “I have to check in with the Dead Men before class.”
“I can try,” Ava offered. “But what I found… this isn’t going to be a quick conversation.”
Oberi walked over to me and sat at my feet, his fur brushing against my ankle. I sighed. “We might as well get it over with. I don’t think anything will surprise us.”
Something tapped, like a pen against a clipboard. Ava cleared her throat. “I thought we were looking for something like noxite— native to earth, but supernaturally enhanced. But the results show that this crystal doesn’t even come from earth.”
My eyebrows shot up. I hadn’t been expectingthat.
“How would you even measure that?” Kallie asked.
“Isotope ratios,” Ava said. “It’s the same way scientists analyze rocks from space and know when they’re looking at a meteorite.”
“You think this crystal could be made from space material?” Marcus asked.
“It’sonepossibility, but that wouldn’t explain its supernatural properties,” Ava pointed out. “My best guess is that these crystals came from another spiritual realm.”
“You’re talking about hell,” I stated.
