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“No,” Leon said firmly, when I read the headline aloud. “That man was too self-righteous to ever end it himself. His killers just knew how to cover their tracks.”
We stopped at Inaya’s apartment first to pick up Cheesecake. He purred in my arms, rubbing against my chin as Inaya leaned against her doorframe and said worriedly, “I haven’t been able to get a hold of Victoria at all. Jeremiah said she went to stay with her grandparents, and I know I should just give her time, but…” She chewed at a pink-polished nail. “It’s just so awful, Rae. I never thought Kent was struggling like that. His poor family.”
My natural inclination was to agree with her. But Kent being dead meant he wasn’t trying to kill me. So while I put on a sympathetic face as I hugged her good-bye, all I could really think was,Thank God he’s dead—thank whatever God is on my side.
The cabin was cold when we walked in. After just a few days without a human inhabiting it, the place already felt a little less friendly. It was strange, after spending so much time in old abandoned places, I knew the feel of them, the scent of them, the way the air felt stiller in them. It hadn’t taken long at all for the cabin to start feeling like that.
I turned on all the lights, despite the gloomy daylight outside, lit a few candles, and watered my window of neglected succulent plants. Leon sat on the couch with Cheesecake—who couldn’t seem to leave him alone—scratching the kitty’s head as his brows knit tighter and tighter with some unspoken question growing in his mind.
“It still doesn’t feel right, does it?” I said, having run out of useless tasks to keep me occupied.
He shook his head. “The danger isn’t over, Rae. Kent was an obvious threat, but the God still lives. It still has its servants. This isn’t over.”
My hands knotted at the edge of my sweater, my nails digging into my palms even through the fabric. “Let’s go to the store. I need stress snacks.”
The grocery market was just off Main Street, its flickering neonFood Martsign dwarfed by the pines around it. Leon parked near the door, and gripped my arm before I could hop out of the truck, taking a long, slow look around the parking lot. Satisfied, he released his grip and said, “I’ll keep an eye on the door. You’ll be safe.”
His protectiveness made the fear knotted in my gut begin to unravel. I leaned across the seat, knotting my fingers into his blond hair as I kissed him—his lips first soft with surprise, then vicious as he dragged me over to him, his tongue pressing into my mouth with possessive hunger. The tender piercings he’d given me pressed against his chest and I whimpered into his mouth, his grip tightening and his claws digging into me at my noise.
“Don’t tempt me to bend you over the truck bed and fuck you,” he growled, smirking at me as I caught my breath.
“I’m already tempting you,” I said, a chill of excitement going up my back when his eyes flashed gold.
“You’d better get your ass in there,” he growled. “Or the only snack you’re getting is my cum down your throat.”
As much as I wanted that, I did really want snacks too. He smacked my ass as I crawled over him and out of the truck, and I was still smiling as I walked inside, the bells on the glass door jingling behind me.
“Welcome to Food Mart,” the checker called, boredom on his face as he glanced up briefly from his phone. I think I shared a class with him, but I probably shared a class with most twenty-somethings in this town. I grabbed a basket and headed straight for the chip aisle, grabbing Fritos and a can of bean dip before heading to the cookies. Chocolate chip or peanut butter...chocolate chip or…
In my peripheral vision, I could see that someone was standing at the far end of the aisle. Not walking closer, not talking with anyone, just...standing there.
I glanced up, right as he finally walked away. A young guy, yet another person I probably shared class with. Our eyes met as he headed to the next aisle, but his phone was in his hand and he’d probably just been standing there to answer a text.
I was way too paranoid. Leon was right outside in the truck. I didn’t have anything to fear. I grabbed the peanut butter cookies, then headed back toward the freezers for ice cream. So many options, how the hell was I supposed to choose? I opened the freezer door, the glass fogging immediately.
It was only after a minute of standing there with the cold air blasting me, that I realized someone was standing on the other side of the fogged glass door.
I glanced down, my hand tightening on the freezer handle. I could see clean white sneakers beneath the door, standing close, facing me.
I let the door close, taking a quick step back. Jeremiah stood there, hands in the pockets of his letterman jacket, smiling.
“Hey, Rae.” He smiled cheerfully. “Missed you at school on Monday, and at the Halloween party too. Did you bail out early on me?”
I gulped. Surely, Leon would have seen him come in here. Surely. “Oh, uh...yeah...yeah I left early. Didn’t feel good.”
He nodded. “I’d imagine not after that little treat I slipped in your drink. We could’ve had so much fun.” He took a step forward, and I took a quick step back, which made him laugh. Was he serious? He was going to admit to drugging me that easily? “But instead of a night wrecking your drugged-out ass, I ended up in police interviews for six hours, trying to explain everything I know about whydear old Dadkilled himself.” He put big air quotes around that last bit. Shit. This was bad. My eyes darted toward the door at the far end of the market, ready to make a run for it.
But the guy I’d seen staring at me from the end of the aisle stepped into my path.
Shit. Shit, shit, shit.
“I suppose I should thank you and that traitorous demon of yours,” Jeremiah said. “For finally getting my father out of the way. Spending every waking moment trying to convince your own dad not to choose you as his human sacrifice will really fuck with your head.” He shrugged. “But in the end, Rae, I have to admit that I’m still pretty pissed off about it. All the fuckingcondolencesand theI’m-so-sorry-for-your-lossbullshit. It gets so old pretending I’m in mourning.”
He thought Leon had killed Kent. He thoughtIwas somehow responsible for his father’s death. I darted forward, trying to dodge around them, but Jeremiah and his buddy blocked me easily.
“Aw, Rae, not trying to run away from me again, are you?” Jeremiah chuckled, circling me. My back was to the freezers, and I still had hope that I could slip around them. Until Jeremiah yelled, “Lock it up, Tommy!”
I threw my basket toward him and bolted for the door. A loud metallic clattering jolted adrenaline through my chest, but I couldn’t stop, I had to make it to the door.
