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His smile was devastating. A dimple was on his left cheek, and his eyes glittered nearly gold.
“Yeah,” he chuckled. “I didn’t fit in.”
“I know how that feels,” I sighed. “‘S not very nice, not fitting in.”
“No, it’s not, sweetheart,” he agreed. “Now go to bed.”
“Okay,” I breathed, and let myself fall into blissful sleep.
8
GOODBYES
Aria
The following day, I woke to an empty room.
I did my business in the bathroom and pretended not to hear Sariel and Johnny in the living room. I searched the room for something other than Johnny’s oversized clothing to wear, but came up empty, except for a frilly pink robe that I refused to touch.
I told myself that I wasn’t avoiding Sariel, even as I held my breath whenever footsteps drew closer to my door.
I told myself that I wasn’t embarrassed, that I didn’t feel like I’d splayed myself wide open for a man who intensely disliked at least fifty percent of what I was. Between that and my stupid admission in my sleepy daze, I was suddenly in desperate need of my sister.
And as the thought crossed my mind, I realized my sister must be worried sick about me. She’s who Ishouldhave run to in the first place. Instead, I’d stupidly trusted a random stranger who was not only related to the man who might be after me, but might as well be the root of my current problem.
And then I froze. I’d lost two sets of parents. One I hadn’t been old enough to know, and the other had been murdered while I’d been hiding in the backseat of my car in the garage.
I’d heard the men who had murdered them ask for me. I’d spent my adopted father’s last moments with him, listened to him beg me to hide and stay safe.
It made sense now. Obviously, important people would look for me if my existence was discovered. And since being half-blood was considered so taboo, people would have been sent after me in the first place. It wasn’t a stretch to believe those people would kill anyone attempting to thwart whatever evil plans they’d concocted for me.
Which meant that Rebecca was in danger.
Urgency had me scrambling to get my phone for another reason. I left the room in a whirlwind. I remembered leaving the little black bag I’d left home with yesterday somewhere in the living room and made a beeline for it.
“Good morning, sugar,” Johnny greeted.
“Where’s my bag?” I asked as I passed them both standing in the kitchen, drinking coffee.
“Uh, it’s on the coffee table,” Johnny answered.
I pulled it open, unsurprised to find forty texts from Rebecca, four from Harry, and a total of one hundred and eighteen missed calls. Just as I unlocked it to call her, the phone rang, and her name flashed on the screen.
“Hello?”
“Aria Penelope Gribald,” Rebecca started, and I could hear the tremor in her words. Guilt swamped me. She must have been out of her mind with worry.
“Rebecca,” I breathed.
“Where the fuck have you been?” she asked, her voice wavering even more. “Are you in trouble? I’ll come get you right now, Aria. Tell me where you are.”
I sat on the couch, my phone clutched to my ear, and my knees were drawn up to my chest.
I wanted to tell her so bad. I was aching, but I bit my tongue.
I couldn’t get her involved in this. I knew I should have told her the truth about our parent’s death long ago, but… it wasn’t too late now. And maybe it could get her to stay away if she understood the severity of the situation.
“I can’t, Rebecca,” I said, tears filling my eyes. I ignored the retreating steps of Sariel and Johnny. “Do you remember when you found me? After mom and dad… died?”
