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“If I know and I’m not telling you, it’s because he asked me not to. You should know by now where my loyalty lies.”
“Do you know why he left?”
Josie’s silence answered that question.
“Fine. Will you tell him I called, and that I’d really like to see him?”
“I wouldn’t hold your breath,” the vampire said.
“Bite me.” I hung up the phone, fighting a surge of emotions. It wasn’t as though I lied to him about my identity. He knew I was hiding a secret, and now that he knew what that secret was, how could he not understand why I had to keep it from him? My identity posed a threat to everyone around me. I came to Fairhaven to live a quiet life where nobody cared that I was a goddess reborn. Where I was simply Lorelei Clay, an introvert with a fondness for renovation projects and cheap beer.
My mistake had been getting too close to other residents. I shouldn’t have helped Steven and Ashley. I should’ve ordered Nana Pratt and Ray to cross over along with the other spirits. They’d grown comfortable at the Castle and even worse, they’d grown attached to me. Alicia too. Her mother was right to tell me off. I had no business inserting myself in that girl’s life.
The ward activated, and I dragged myself to the window. There was no one there. Odd.
I opened the door to see a note stuck to it.
You’ve made a dangerous enemy.
“At least it isn’t a horse’s head.” I crumpled the note in my hand.
“Is that from the mobster?” Ray asked, appearing on the porch.
“He didn’t sign it, but all signs point to yes.” I carried the wad of paper to the kitchen and tossed it in the trashcan.
“You’re not worried?” Ray asked. “I’d be shaking in my boots after a warning like that.”
“I’ll be fine, Ray. I’ve got on my big girl pants and everything. No need to worry about me.”
“You might want to invest in an extra one of those magic wards, just to be on the safe side.”
“You’re right.”
Ray gave me a fatherly smile. “I’m always right, Lorelei. When will you accept my nuggets of wisdom?”
“How about I start tomorrow? I’m still beat.”
“Sleep well,” Ray said. “You’ve earned it.”
“Is that your way of thanking me for helping Renee?”
He wrapped his arms around me, and I felt the light pressure of his ghostly arms. “Thank you,” he whispered.
I climbed the staircase, acutely aware of the sound of my heart raging in my chest. I counted each step as I made my way to my bedroom in an effort to stay grounded and not give in to the discomfort slowly building inside me. Ray was right about the ward—I’d have to find the money for a stronger one, or barter with Phaedra Bridger. An alert was no longer sufficient.
I stripped off my clothes and tossed them into the laundry basket. Like the victims of the baku, I was still bone tired after ten hours of sleep, which didn’t happen very often. The death match and its aftermath were finally catching up with me. Ray was right about that, too.
I turned on the hot water in the shower and let the steam penetrate my skin. I couldn’t wait to scrub myself clean of the last week. Try as I might to act calm and collected, I knew in my gut Ray was wrong about one thing—Magnarella’s note wasn’t a warning.
It was a promise.
* * *
