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* * *
The trees blurred by outside the passenger side window as the light of the day faded. The search for Marcus had not been as fruitful as we hoped. Barrett and the others had spent countless hours combing through the city, but the river was huge, and this unknown building could have been anywhere. I only knew what I saw, and while I thought it was just on the outskirts of the city, it could have been farther than I assumed, could have been anywhere.
Damien had insisted that I stay behind at the house, but I refused. I would be damned if I didn’t have a chance to see Marcus meet his end with my own eyes. Damien couldn’t deny that I was the only one to see the building firsthand. I knew exactly what it looked like. Without me, they couldn’t be certain they’d found the right place.
His hand gripped mine as he drove down the winding road. He’d been a mess of nerves all day, and he wouldn’t know peace until he sank his blade into Marcus' chest. “We should be closing in on them. The river is long, but there are only so many buildings within ear’s distance of it.”
A part of me was eager to find Marcus, but another part of me was afraid to. Would I be able to face him? I knew from experience how skilled he was at manipulating a person’s mind, how good he was at tearing them down. While I’d developed my own skills since beginning my training, I doubted my abilities when it came to facing him.
My eyes fluttered, and I realized I was nodding off when my head dipped to the side. The sun barely peeked over the tops of the mountains as it set, marking nearly forty-eight hours since I’d gotten any sleep. For fear of Marcus attacking me again I’d been left with no choice but to stay awake, helping Damien and the others in their search. It was becoming difficult to keep my eyes open, though, and I feared that if I sat still for too long, I would succumb to the exhaustion. Would he be there waiting for me in my dreams?
Damien’s phone startled me when it rang. He grabbed it and pressed it to his ear. “Did you find anything?”
I sat in eager silence, listening to them talk on the phone. The person on the other line spoke quickly, their distant words unrecognizable to me.
“I’m headed there now.” Damien hung up, tossing his phone into the center console. “Hang on,mea luna.”
He released my hand, grabbing the handle of the emergency break and jerking it up as he turned the steering wheel in a fluid motion. The car spun around on the road, drifting to face the direction we had just come from before he pushed the handle back down. The engine roared as he floored the gas.
“Did they find them?” I asked as I gripped the handle above the door.
Damien’s eyes didn’t stray from the road, a dark fire lighting them. “Sounds like it, and it’s about fucking time.”
* * *
My eyes surveyed the building as we crouched in the nearby brush. The yard was dark, the woods surrounding us an inky pitch that I couldn’t see through. The only source of light was a single lamp above the only door in sight.
Vincent crouched next to me. “Is this the right place, Cas?”
I nodded, rubbing my eyes. “Yes, this is the place I saw.”
A single man resided outside the door, sitting in a folding chair. I recognized him immediately. He had been the first of Marcus’ men I saw when I awoke in the cell. He had sat and watched a time or two, had even assisted with controlling the tension and release of the chains that held me. Something rose in my chest at the sight of him. I couldn’t tell if it was fear or hate.
“How many of Marcus' men have you seen?” Damien asked Vincent, not taking his eyes off our surroundings as he scouted the place.
“Just the one by the door. I haven’t seen anyone come or go since I got here, though, so I don’t know if Marcus is here or not.”
“Stay here, Cas.”
“The fuck I will,” I barked, looking up at him. I wasn’t going to just watch from afar. I was no longer the helpless girl Marcus had manipulated and tormented. While I wasn’t as skilled as they were, surely, I could assist them in some way with my abilities now.
“You don’t know what’s in there, Damien. I could try and see if I can learn what the guard knows, maybe get us an idea of the layout of the building. How many of Marcus' men may be inside, whether Marcus is here or not.”
“She’s got a point,” Thalia said, crouched beside me. I slid her a quick smile of thanks.
Damien contemplated a moment, his eyes locking with mine. I saw the fear of what might happen if he brought me in there within his gaze. “I just… Don’t leave my side. Stay with me.”
I cupped his face in my hands. “I’ll be right there,mea sol. Every step of the wa—”
“Damien, look.” Zephyr’s voice cut across our conversation.
We all looked in time to see the door open. It was another one of Marcus’ guys, talking with the guard. Their words were inaudible from the distance between us.
“How are we gonna get in there?” Barrett whispered. He was clearly juiced for a fight, but he was more serious than I imagined he would be.
“If I take us through the shadows there’s no telling where we might come out, or how many of his men we’ll find. I don’t want to risk it with Cas here. We go in the old-fashioned way,” Damien said.
Barrett rolled his neck, and he grinned as he turned his gaze to Damien and me. “Good. I’ve been dying to pay them back for laying a hand on one of our own.”
