“No. He was hiding behind the wall at the back of the yard. I heard him moving around and he started to run. I wanted to know what he had done and decided it was a good opportunity.” Adjusting her shirt, Ree looked down the alley before letting her gaze turn back to Paden. “Look, I know it wasn’t the smartest move. I should have just told you what I was thinking.”
“Yeah, you should have. We’re a team, Ree. You can trust us. You can trust me.” Reaching out, Paden grabbed her hand and ran his thumb over her knuckles.
“You’re right. I’m sorry.”
“That figures.” Paden smiled at her when she looked at him questioningly. “No one here to hear you say that.”
She punched him in the arm and watched as he rubbed his bicep in surprise. His eyebrows drew together and his eyes looked her up and down. She could see the wheels spinning behind his eyes, but he didn’t say anything.
“I think it’s time to head back to the house. I don’t see any cop cars.” Ree peeked out of the alley and looked up and down the street. “I feel like we need to get to the island. The cops have got to decide Melanie’s house would be a likely hideout.”
“You’re right. Of course, I think Ellie’s warding is helping keep them distracted. And don’t forget there are members of the community working to keep us hidden.” Paden rubbed his jaw and looked at the bed and breakfast across the street.
“I don’t like depending on other people to keep us hidden. We’re the ones that are supposed to be taking care of them.” Ree narrowed her eyes. It was her job, and she was ready to accept the responsibility. “No more hiding, no more running. It’s time to make a plan.”
Paden didn’t say anything, just grabbed her hand and nodded. After another quick check, they left their alley and crossed the street. As they neared the surrounding gate, Ree turned toward Paden to ask if the wards had been replaced, but didn’t have the chance to form the words.
Lightning seemed to erupt from the house, the power of the explosion knocking Ree and Paden off of their feet. Gravel and brick rained down on the street like fiery bombs. Paden rolled over Ree and covered their heads with his arms. His body was tense and Ree could feel the rubble that landed on him as he sheltered her. After the initial shock, Ree threw a shield over where they lay on the ground. Paden scrambled off of her and they both stared at the bed and breakfast in shock. As the air cleared and they were able to see a little better, Ree dropped the shield and they ran for the house. Smoke filled the street, turning the bright sunny day into a malevolent dusk. Dust still littered down on the area and the sound of screams and panicked voices began to drift to Ree’s ears.
Jumping the tattered remains of the fence, Ree threw herself into the smoldering remnants and called for her friends. Pulling at plaster and chunks of wood, Ree shifted through the debris, trying to get into the damaged house. The main portion seemed to still be standing, thankfully.
“Paden!” Roland’s hoarse voice cut through the odd silence and Ree darted toward the staircase. The Dark One was pulling chunks of plaster and wood off Ellie, making soothing noises when she grunted. “Get your ass over here, godling.”
Paden jumped over some of the furniture blocking his way as Ree scrambled behind him. She watched as Paden let his gaze run over the older woman, his hand going to Roland’s arm when the Dark One went to lift Ellie. He murmured something that made Ree’s heart stop.
“Don’t.” Paden frowned. “Her back is broken.” Kneeling down, he let his hands move gently over the woman’s body. “Ellie, this is going to hurt some. The vertebrae in your back are moved and cracked. You’re going to feel it when they shift back into place.”
The sound of things being thrown around toward the back of the house drew Ree’s attention away from the small group on the stairs. Knowing Ellie was in good hands, she left to help the others. Melanie was making her way through the rubble, blood dripping down her face. Taking a running jump, Ree leaped onto the debris and threw her hand out to help Mel.
“Are you okay?” Ree pulled her friend over the upturned furniture and trash.
“I’m okay. Where’s my mom?” Melanie looked around the front of the house. “Oh my God. Gran.” Melanie jumped over the fallen chandelier and grabbed her grandmothers’ hand.
“She’s okay, Mel.” Paden didn’t look up at his friend. Instead he kept his eyes on Ellie’s face as he worked over her body with his hands.
“I’m fine, girlie. Where’s your mama?” Ellie’s voice was faint and it made Ree’s jaw clench. She hated hearing such a vibrant woman’s voice reduced to a hoarse whisper.
“I’ll find her, Melanie. Stay here with your Gran.” Roland stood and closed his eyes for a moment. Taking a deep breath, he turned and looked up the stairs. As if gravity had no hold on him, he leapt onto the landing above Ellie. Wanting to find the others, Ree headed for the back of the house.
Juliette and Bryce were on the tattered back porch. Bright red blood covered his shirt and ran down along his arms. Juliette lifted his shirt and checked him for injuries, while he looked at her cheek that was covered with a large purple bruise, already in the stages of healing.
“Are you guys okay?” Ree waved a hand in front of her face. There was a lot more smoke in the back yard. Turning to look at the destruction of the yard, she could understand why. What was left of the carriage house was engulfed in flames.
“We’re fine.” Bryce grabbed Juliette’s hands and looked her in the eyes. “I’m fine, Jules.” Nodding her head, she slid his shirt down and back into place. Wiping a hand across her forehead, Jules turned in Ree’s direction and frowned.
“Are you okay?” Jules didn’t meet Ree’s eyes, instead squinted at the blazing fire.
“I’m fine.” Ree looked at Bryce and then back to Juliette, who still wouldn’t make eye contact. Her friend was upset with Ree and she knew there wasn’t much she could do about it at the moment. “Do you guys know where Weylin is?”
“No. We were out in the backyard, watching for you.” Bryce gave her a sad smile. “I thought he was out front.”
As they turned around, another explosion slashed through the air, knocking them all back to their knees and sending another plume of angry smoke through the yard. Coughing, Ree squeezed her eyes shut against the dust that assaulted them. The roar of flames made her scramble to her feet in fear. Bryce’s hand closed on her shoulder, his fingers digging into her skin, and dragged her into the house and toward the front yard.
“Everyone okay?” Bryce’s voice demanded a response.
“Ree? Is Ree with you?” Paden’s form materialized out of the smoke. His hands reached out to cup her cheek while his eyes traveled over her face.
“I’m fine.” Coughing, Ree squinted as moisture gathered in her eyes. “We’ve got to get out of here.”
“Let’s go.” Paden tugged Ree away from Bryce and headed for the front door.
Outside, the sound of sirens was unmistakable, which didn’t really surprise Ree. There was no way the humans could have missed the destruction and fire.
“What do we do?” Ree sought Paden’s eyes.
“We run. Now.” Paden turned to look at their bedraggled gang of immortals. Melanie was supporting Ellie, who looked much better than she had on the staircase. Roland was holding Melanie’s mother in his arms like a child. She seemed to be unconscious. Ree hoped it wasn’t anything serious. They couldn’t take the time to let Paden heal her right now.
“Weylin?” Ree’s eyes searched the yard for her friend.
“Last I saw him, he was heading out to look for you.” Paden shook his head. “Don’t worry, Ree. We will find him, but right now we have to go.”
Their ragged friends followed them into the alley that Paden and Ree had recently used and headed away from the square. Ree realized Paden was taking their group toward one of the safe houses nearby. They needed to regroup and decide how to move from there. It was apparent to Ree they needed to get to the Island. She wasn’t sure what had caused the explosion, but it was obvious they couldn’t stay in the city.
Chapter Four
The golem, that they met just the day before, sat at the front counter, his expression neutral. Despite the dirt they shed as they shuffled through the door, despite the two human women that were half carried up the stairs, the creature barely acknowledged their entrance. He merely grunted as they hobbled up the steps to the door at the top.
Paden took the lead, as usual, carefully opening the door and giving the area a quick scan before motioning for everyone to enter. Roland immediately set Melanie’s mother down on the small bed. She gave a painful cough and grimaced. Paden went to her quickly and ran his hands over the older woman’s head. His hands glowed gently as he worked to heal whatever was causing the woman discomfort.
Roland moved away from the bed, taking a place near Ree as Paden worked. Melanie sat on the edge of the bed frowning, her eyes on her mother’s face. Ree looked away from the scene in front of her and met Roland’s weary gaze. It bothered her to see his eyes clouded, his expression so somber. Gone was his normal smirk and teasing eyes. The weight of his years seemed to be sitting on his shoulders, the loss of his longtime friend eating at his frame of mind. But there seemed to be something deeper, something confused and forlorn in his expression as he stared back at Ree.
Clearing her throat, Ree looked back at Paden, and Melanie’s mother. “Where did you find her?”
“She was trapped under a large armoire. She was unconscious and I suspect she suffers from a concussion. There was also a great deal of smoke upstairs. She probably breathed in too much of it.” Roland tilted his head down to speak quietly in Ree’s ear. She could tell from his voice he didn’t want to upset Ellie or Melanie with the details. “I could hear her heartbeat, but could also tell her breathing was labored. Something happened in the initial blast that caused a fire in the upstairs area. The flames were devouring the old walls and flooring.” He took a deep breath, and in an uncharacteristic show of frustration, shoved a hand through his hair causing it to spike in odd directions.
“What’s bothering you Roland?” Ree leaned closer to him, worried at his show of vulnerability.
“Those flames were not normal flames, little Ree. Those were the green and blue flames of the gods. Something is very wrong that they would attack a place of safety.” A deep note of anger crept into his voice. “Even worse is the fact that those who should be keeping us safe should have noticed something was wrong. Where were they, Ree?”
“The bed and breakfast wasn’t really a safe house, though, was it?” Ree lowered her voice so it wouldn’t carry to those around her.
“Perhaps not in the sense of it being sanctioned by the gods, but Ellie’s magic protected us from the Dark Ones just as well. It’s the lack of protection from our supposed allies that have me worried.” Roland shook his head and looked back to where Melanie and her mother sat on the bed. Paden was still checking for injuries, his attention on the woman in front of him.
“If we go to the island, will we be safe?” Ree searched Roland’s eyes. “If we are on sanctioned land, it would be harder for the gods to miss something that happens to us.”
“Honestly, I don’t know why they didn’t act this time. I would have thought Brigid or Hecate would have responded on our behalf. And the way Athena was eyeing you last night, I’m surprised she didn’t show up either.” Squinting at Ree, he titled his head to the side. “What was she looking for, little Ree? She didn’t show up until Sophie had died. Not until after…” His eyes widened fractionally. “Not until after you received Sophie’s Death Gift.”
Ree kept her gaze locked on his and hoped her heart didn’t speed up. Had he guessed what was bouncing around in her head? Was it even possible for what Ree suspected to happen? It seemed crazy, and yet, he’d obviously had the same thought. She could see it written on his face. Maybe Sophie had passed on her Immortality too.
“I’m not really sure what she wanted.” Keeping her voice bland, Ree looked at Roland and shrugged.
“Not sure, or don’t want to say?” Roland’s eyes bored into hers, making her want to squirm.
“What are you two talking about?” Juliette had slipped next to Ree without notice.
“Honestly? I don’t really know.” Turning away from Roland’s penetrating stare, she tried to not think about how well he seemed to be able to read her. She’d rather face Juliette and her anger than Roland’s thoughtful assessment. Or maybe not.
Juliette had her arms crossed and a frown on her face. She was pissed and Ree could tell it was going to take a lot to calm her down. There was only one thing that would make Juliette this upset.
“I’m sorry Bryce got hurt. Is he okay?”
“Uh-huh.” Juliette narrowed her eyes at Ree and uncrossed her arms. “You’re real sorry. You know, he was out in the back yard looking for you, Ree. If you hadn’t been out there gallivanting around, he wouldn’t have been nearly killed by flying debris.” Juliette poked Ree in the chest.
Frowning, Ree rubbed the spot Juliette had touched. “I’m sorry, Jules. I’m really sorry Bryce got hurt.”
“You know, this stuff doesn’t affect just you. We’re all caught up in this mess, too. Bryce could’ve been killed, Paden could have been caught by the police while he was out looking for you. And who knows what’s happened to Weylin. All because you freaked out and tried to run away?” Juliette moved closer to Ree and poked her again.
“What?” Ree felt a surge of anger. “I didn’t run away, Juliette. I was chasing a darkling. And if I hadn’t chased him, then I would be dead. I was sitting right under the tree next to the carriage house.”
“You should have called one of us. It isn’t like you could keep up with the darkling anyway.” Juliette poked her one more time and Ree snapped.
“My puny human legs somehow managed to keep up, thank you very much. Not only that, but I managed to remove the Dark One taint from him too.” Without thinking, Ree reached out and pushed Juliette’s shoulder, only to watch her stumble back a step.
Roland sucked in air somewhere behind Ree and Juliette looked at her with large eyes. “How—“
Ree leaned toward Juliette, her shoulders tense and her spine stiff. “I’m sorry Bryce got hurt. I’m sorry all of you have been dragged into this mess, but don’t you dare accuse me of running away. I might’ve had a freak out or two. I might have been scared out of my mind, but not once have I tried to duck my responsibility.” Ree took a deep breath and looked away from Juliette. “Not once, Jules.”