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I dropped back into the chair. “This is insane. She can’t go to jail or die for him. We can explain he was saving her life. We can get him off.”

The door burst open and Pandora appeared, eyes wide. “You must leave. Now.” She grabbed me by the arm and zoomed us down the stairs and out the door so fast I nearly vomited when she finally let me go. “Sorry.”

“What the fuck?” I demanded, but she was already back at the top of the stairs, shutting the door and cutting off access to my father.

I turned, but the Vamp Mobile was gone. Surely Julian hadn’t left me here. What was going on?

As though in answer, one of my sister’s portals opened in front of me, and Zoe reached through to drag me across, closing it—along with access to our father—behind us.

Chapter Seven

Whiplash

“What the hell?” I snapped and immediately regretted it when I saw Zoe’s expression. My sister didn’t rattle easily, and certainly not visibly. But she looked as though she was about to faint.

“What’s happening?” I amended, glancing around at Mama, who held Em protectively against her chest, and Hazel, seated on the top of the couch with her feet on the cushions, stroking Karma’s shiny feathers as he sat upon her shoulder in raven form.

“We got a message from your vampire,” Zoe said, tugging me over to join her on the sofa near Hazel’s feet.

“What? How? I was away from him for no more than twenty minutes.” My mind spun, and I pressed fingertips to my temples in an effort to ground myself.

Zoe wagged her phone in front of my face. “It’s not magic. It’s texting. But he erased it not ten seconds after it was read.”

“What did it say?” I asked. A cold fist squeezed my heart when I saw their worried expressions.

“Get Charlotte out. Stay away from the estate. Life or death.”

I turned the words over in my mind. What had he found in his investigation of the liaison’s office? Why wouldn’t he have grabbed me himself? And if it was dangerous, what about Dad? I couldn’t leave him there.

“I have to go back,” I said, standing.

Zoe grabbed my wrist as everyone else practically pounced on me with a chorus of “no’s”.

“Julian will be okay,” Mama said, misunderstanding. “He can take care of himself.”

“He’s not there anymore either,” I said, unable to keep the bitterness out of my voice. “His car was gone. And Pandora seemed to know whatever the hell was happening because she kicked me to the curb. If he’d had time to tell her, then why not me?”

“If the situation was that dire, why would you immediately go exactly where he said not to?” Hazel asked, posed as a legitimate question rather than sarcastic comment.

I drew a breath, glad someone was willing to hear me out. “Because there’s someone there I don’t want in danger. Mama, you need to stay calm.”

“What’s wrong, Char?” Mama soothed, taking my hand and sitting when Hazel swung her feet out of the way.

A glance at Em told me she knew what was happening, which unnerved me even more. Exactly how psychic was she?

Time to rip off the Band-Aid.

“Dad’s there.”

Silence rang. It was the eye of the hurricane and I braced myself for the storm.

Mama’s grip grew slack, her eyes glazed over, and her smile stretched wider like a creepy Halloween clown. Zoe stood and turned to stare at me over Mama’s shoulder, gaze filled with hurt and accusation. The silent why didn’t you tell us felt like a spear to the heart.

“I just found out,” I said, desperate to get past this part. “Julian saw him yesterday while we were getting Em from the base. He didn’t know how to tell me, and I didn’t know how Dad would be or what kind of situation we’d be walking into over there.”

“So you just decided for us? You know, like you’re always annoyed Julian does for you?” Zoe demanded, hand on hip, hazel eyes flashing.

“You spoke to him?” Mama asked. Our attention fell to her.