Page 97 of Sight of Fate

Macklin sends a text to let us all know he’s on his way back with news.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

MACKLIN

“Hank hasn’t been to his home in Columbia for at least two months. Nobody knows where he’s gone. A neighbor said several black SUVs picked him up one night, and she hasn’t seen him since. Is there anywhere else he would go?”

Charli pales and shakes her head. “I wouldn’t know. The last time I saw him in person was at the trial when I was sixteen. But I did see him in a vision before I came here.” She goes on to explain how quickly he found her last time and how odd it was. “He pinpointed my exact location. In record time. Usually, I have a couple of days to move before he arrives.”

Teague frowns. “How do you know when he’s coming?”

She nervously traces her hair and shoulders. “I dream of that night.”

“Every single time?” Andros asks, his voice catching. “How close was it this last time?”

She nods. “Too close. I saw him in my rearview mirror when I was getting on the interstate.”

Andros speculates. “Hank sent monthly checks to the Human Rights Coalition or HRC, which is the same organization experimenting on Mavros, Ramiro, Raine, and probably countless others. What if he found a way to force one of the supes to help him?”

“That’s terrifying,” Charli whispers. “But it wouldn’t surprise me.”

Teague looks at me, already thinking along the same lines. “We need to check in with the other Vales. Find out exactly who’s missing and alert them to a potential security breach.”

“I’ll send word and get them to pull together a list,” I assure him.

Charli frowns. “What about Mavros? Does he know where Raine is? I’m worried I haven’t heard from her. She said a few days, but it’s been over two weeks, and I’m getting this prickly feeling between my shoulders.”

I shake my head. “Ames says he pretty much stays in his dragon form. Let me call him and see what we can do.”

“I’m going to fly the perimeter and make sure it’s secure,” Teague says, and Charli’s eyes widen. He halts and turns toward her. “Do you want to see me take off? I’ll mostly be in this form, except for my wings.”

She slowly nods, then tilts her head and studies me. Knowing she’s putting two and two together, I walk off, phone to my ear, trying not to think of the past.

Ames picks up on the first ring. “I told you I’d call if there was any change.”

I quickly explain we’re running out of time. “What if we gave him a sedative? Kept him calm enough for us to ask him some questions?”

“Might work, but we need to figure out a way to get him to shift,” he drawls in a tired voice. “He’s been in his dragon form for three days and shows no inclination to change.”

“Let me make a few calls. Figure something out,” I reply, running a hand down my face. “Clarissa might be able to create a potion or spell. I’ll have to check.”

“We only trust MacKenzie.”

Well, that’s interesting, but I guess it makes sense. MacKenzie’s a shifter too. A pure white unicorn. About as mystical as you can get.

“Got it. Call you back,” I tell him, hanging up.

Charli comes back in, her eyes full of wonder. “Everyone here seems so normal; I sometimes forget Greystone is full of supernaturals. That was incredible. Teague’s wings are huge, and he took off like a rocket.”

Phantom pain rips down my back, bringing the memories with it, and Charli’s stricken face stares at me in horror as some of it seeps through our connection.

“I’m so sorry. I should have realized. The scars on your back, they’re in the exact same spot as Teague’s wings,” she murmurs, walking toward me.

I flinch at the sorrow in her eyes.

I clear my throat, preparing to explain, but she shakes her head. “You don’t have to tell me. Not today, not a thousand years from now. Not unless you want to talk about it. Believe me, I’m the last person who will press you for the details.”

“It’s fine.” A derisive laugh escapes, its harsh exhalation jarring in the quiet evening. “I don’t talk about it. One, because it’s too damn painful, and two, because Teague feels so damn guilty.”