Yutani frowned. “If the pattern holds true, the next victim should surface tomorrow night. So we have one day before another murder takes place.”
“Unless something breaks the pattern, but I’m not holding out hope.” Herne glanced up at the clock. “It’s a quarter after six. Time to call it a day. See you all bright and early tomorrow morning at eight.”
“You were going to have my car and things here?” Angel asked.
Herne slapped his forehead. “Damn it, I knew I was forgetting something. All right, Viktor and I will take care of things tonight. I promise, your car will be here tomorrow morning.”
“Great. I really could use it.” Angel stopped as her phone rang. She pulled it out, frowning as she looked at the Caller ID. “It’s my landlord.” She answered, speaking in low tones before she let out a loud yelp.
“What? You’ve got to be kidding me! No… No, he wasn’t home.” She paused, then said, “To the ground? Why didn’t you call me earlier?” A moment later she let out a long, shuddering breath. “No, I understand. I’m away from home right now so I can’t make it over there. I’ll talk to the police.” As she hung up, she started to shake.
“What’s wrong?” I took a step toward her.
Angel sank down into a chair again. “My house… It burned to the ground this afternoon. And my car was trashed. Everything I own is gone. The landlord just called me. He’s hopping mad, wanted to know what the hell I was doing. At least he calmed down when I told him I was away from home.” She looked up at Herne. “If DJ and I had been there…”
“Viktor and I’ll go over there right now, but I guarantee you this has a Light Fae signature on it. Retaliation for their men, probably planned out before your name filtered through as being on the protected list. We’ll look for anything that can be salvaged. In the meantime, you and Ember be careful. Word needs to circulate that you’re under our protection.”
As Angel and I left, Viktor escorted us to my car, checking it over before he allowed us to get in. He leaned in at the driver’s window, and I rolled it down.
“If you need me, for anything at all, just call. Herne, too. We’ll watch out for you girls until this is all settled.”
And with that, he headed back toward his car and I turned on the ignition, easing out of the parking garage. As we headed home, all I could think about was how our lives had changed within the past twenty-four hours. And if it had changed this much in so little time, what would it be like within a couple more months?
ANGEL GLANCED IN my cupboard, shaking her head. “Do you realize the only food we have here is the food that we brought from my place? Don’t you ever eat, woman?”
“I told you, I don’t cook. I can make boxed macaroni and cheese, I can open a can, and I’m pretty good with frozen dinners. Sandwiches are my forte. But you know as well as I do that I’ve never been good in the kitchen.” As a matter of fact, I hated to cook.
Loved to eat, hated to cook. They’d write that in my obituary.
“I’m surprised you managed to get this far living on what you do. What do you want for dinner? We have some ground beef, cheese, chips. I can make either patty melts or we can have nachos.”
“Nachos sound fine with me. You know I’m not that picky. As long as I get my caffeine, whatever food you put in front of me I usually eat.” I pulled out my laptop, firing it up on the table so I could talk to her while I was doing my research. The cat began winding around the keyboard until I gave him a good petting and set him down on the floor.
“What are you looking up?” She pulled out a pan and a spatula.
“Ghost hunting groups in the area.” Even though Talia was going to be doing some research, the connection had piqued my interest. I just wanted to see how many groups were out there.
“You should leave the office at the office,” Angel said, but she didn’t sound all that convincing. “Remember, no investigating without permission.”
“Don’t you talk. I know you’re thinking about her too. The girl with the pendant. Besides, I’m just looking up stuff on the internet. I’m not talking to anybody.” I glanced over at her, where she had started chopping tomatoes and peppers.
Angel set down the knife. “Yeah, I am. I just can’t get the fear and pain out of my head. Whatever was after her is terrifyingly huge. I’m not sure if I mean in stature, but big and powerful and violent. And it’s so hungry, and everybody looks like food.” Angel leaned against the counter, staring at her knife. “Everything I own is gone, Ember. My brother, my home, my car, my things… It’s as though my entire life has been ripped away and I feel like I’m in freefall.” The bravado of the day vanished and she burst into tears, leaning over to rest her elbows on the counter as she cried into the pile of tomatoes.
I pushed back the laptop, uncertain of what to say. We had always been there for each other. When my mother and father were killed, Angel and Mama J. kept me going. They had been my anchors and rocks. Now, Angel was the one who was adrift. DJ might still be alive, but he wasn’t around. And though Angel didn’t own anything worth a great deal, what she did have represented home to her and a connection to a mother who had cherished and valued her.
I wrapped my arms around her shaking shoulders. There wasn’t anything I could say to make it better, but I could feed her my strength, remind her that I would always be at her side.
After a few moments, the tears slowed and she let out a long sigh. I handed her a tissue, and then another, and she wiped her eyes and blew her nose. Then, washing her hands, she turned back to the vegetables.
“Thanks. I just needed…” Her voice drifted off as she stared at the cutting board.
“I know. I understand.”
“I hope you don’t mind a little extra salt in the food.” She attempted a smile, and I laughed.
“You know me, the saltier the better. Maybe Herne and Viktor will find something left.” I wasn’t one for holding out false hope, but right now, she needed something to cling to.
“Maybe they will. Anyway, at least I’ve got a job now that I like. That’s something. And DJ—I meant it when I said he’d be better off where he’s at. He’ll have a good role model. Cooper had such an even, steady energy. I hope to get to know him better. I don’t want to intrude on his life, but I’d like to learn more about the person who’s taking care of my brother.”
She began chopping vegetables again and, following her lead, I began rinsing the dishes as she finished using them.
I was setting the table when the doorbell rang. As I glanced out the peephole, I saw Herne standing there, holding a large bag. I opened the door.
“I told Viktor to go home, but I thought I’d bring these things over now. There wasn’t much left, I’m afraid, but they should make Angel feel better.” He paused, staring down into my eyes. “You two have a friendship that I envy. I have a lot of friends, but I don’t have anyone I can call my best friend.”
Taken aback by his admission, I sought for words. “I think sometimes the word ‘friend’ is overused. I don’t have many friends, but the few that I do have, I cherish.”
Standing so near him made me weak-kneed. He smelled like cinnamon and honey, smoke and musk, all yummy things rolled together. His hair flowed down his shoulders, out of the braid he had worn it in this morning. I noticed how broad his shoulders were, and how straight, and his jaw was firm but he held it soft, as though he didn’t need to prove anything to anybody.
Suddenly realizing that I had been standing there staring at him, I stuttered, reaching for the bag. “I can take this, unless you want to come in and tell her what you saw. Maybe that would be good.” The rush of words sprayed out of my mouth, like a garden hose gone wild.
“That would be nice, but you’re standing in the way.” He moved closer, staring down at me with a questioning look in his eyes. “Ember?”
“Yes?” I could barely breathe.
Angel peeked around the corner. “Who is it?”