Nancy was out running around, doing God knows what, and Kat . . . she wanted to go home and see her mom.
Hell.
I got why she did, and the last thing I wanted to do was break her heart by telling her there was no way we could risk doing that right now. The smart thing for us to do would be to get our butts back to the base and let the Arum do their thing, especially since Nancy was MIA.
That didn’t sit well, though, settling like expired milk in my gut. Heading back to the base took the control right out of my hands, and it also meant I was leaving Dee to . . . well, to whatever fate was heading her way, which very well could be in the form of a thousand hungry Arum.
God, I didn’t know if I could do that.
But how could I search her down? Doing so would mean heading straight into the heart of the danger zone, and that was more than just a risk. That was a straight-up death wish. And hell, how could I even suggest doing that when I didn’t want Kat going back to Petersburg?
Hell in a handbasket.
I stirred as the Explorer slowed, turning down a narrow entryway that was nearly invisible from the road. I took notice as we eased up a long driveway and a sprawling house came into view.
Hunter’s Porsche was parked out in front of the garage. There was a huge front porch covered with potted plants and hanging flowers.
Huh.
The house was a monstrosity in terms of size but surprisingly welcoming. I had been expecting something cold, rundown—in other words, a shitty place. This was far from that.
Kat sat up, pushing her hair back as Archer killed the engine. Her mouth dropped when she peered out the window. Obviously she hadn’t been expecting something as nice as this, either.
I dropped my arm over her shoulders as we climbed the porch stairs. The whole place smelled like one giant flower. Color me shocked some more.
The door opened before we reached it, revealing Lore. He squinted, and I realized it was from the faint rays of sun streaking across the porch. “Come on in.”
There was hesitation, as I was about to experience another first to add to going deep into the Arum’s lair, teaming up with them, and now staying at an Arum’s house that looked like it belonged on the front of Better Homes and Gardens.
I’d given up trying to figure anything out at this point.
Archer stepped in first, and then I ushered Kat inside. Lore closed the door behind us and padded down the foyer in his bare feet, into a living room with the blinds drawn.
Serena was standing in the middle of the room, staring at a piece of paper. “Is this all we need to get?”
Lore scanned the paper and nodded. “Looks good to me.”
“We’ll run out to get some food,” Serena announced, smiling. “Lore is in the mood to cook, and trust me, you want to eat what he makes.”
I arched a brow. “He . . . cooks?”
He strolled past us, tossing the keys to Hunter, who had appeared out of freaking nowhere, it seemed. “I also bake. I’m like a culinary master chef—you know, when I’m not out there killing innocent Luxen babies.”
I had no idea what to say in response to all that sarcasm.
Serena inched closer, and I was aware of Hunter also drifting toward us, as if he didn’t trust us near his woman. The role reversal was . . . odd. “There’re two bathrooms on the second level that no one uses. I laid out some shampoo, soap, and fresh towels in them.”
“Thank you,” Kat said, smiling. She glanced at Lore and then Hunter. “Thank you for letting us come here, and for everything else.”
Lore shrugged.
Hunter shrugged.
Everyone was shrugging.
Serena smiled brightly. “It’s okay. I’m just glad we could help in some way. And it’s about time all of us started working together.”
Hunter stared at the ceiling.
Lore started messing with a giant potted palm tree–looking thing.
“Well, all righty then.” Serena clapped her hands as the silence grew to an awkward level. “We’ll head out.”
“It should take us no longer than an hour,” Lore said, and for some reason that came across as a warning. Like what would we do? Run around and rearrange the numerous plants and flowers he seemed to have growing out of the walls?
They skipped on out the doors, leaving the three of us in the house. Archer was the first to say what we probably all were thinking.
“I can’t believe they left us here,” he said, brows raised.
I grinned. “I feel like we should start rearranging rooms or something.” I cast a long look over the skillfully decorated living room and adjoining den. “I think Lore would really appreciate that.”
“Don’t,” Kat said, narrowing her eyes at me. “I know Arum and Luxen are BEFs, but seriously, they are being super cool by letting us stay here.”
“BEFs?” I frowned.
“Best Enemies Forever,” she replied, shrugging one shoulder. “Anyway, let’s all play nice with one another. It would be a good change of pace.”
“Yeah, especially if one of them doesn’t end up kissing you,” Archer said.
Pulling her hair back from her face in a low ponytail, she swung an arch look at him as heat blew off me. “Did you really need to remind me of that?”
He flashed a quick grin, and I wanted to punch off his face. The reminder got me all primed to do violence, and the damn Origin appeared completely shameless.
“I’m going to go get our bags,” he offered.
I glared at him. “Yeah, you do that.”
As he turned and left the room, Kat walked over to me. Without saying a word, she placed her hands on my chest, stretched up, and kissed me softly. That flipped my raging aggression into something a lot more fun.
I swept an arm around her, fitting our bodies as close as we could get while standing. My other hand delved deep in her hair, and I took the kiss to a whole different level. The taste of her never failed to blow my mind, and so did the soft sound she made as I nipped at her lower lip.
Archer cleared his throat. “Seriously guys?”
Slowly, I lifted my mouth from Kat’s and narrowed my eyes as she pressed her face against my chest. “Can’t you go somewhere?”
“Oh, I don’t know. What about you all? How about one of those bedrooms upstairs that have doors and stuff? Hey! That would be a good—”
I felt it the same moment Archer had. My senses sharpened as awareness settled over me like a too-warm cloak. I eased Kat back, swearing under my breath.
“What?” she demanded.
Archer turned toward the doorway he’d just come through, dropping our bags. “There are Luxen here.”
“No,” she said, dragging in a deep breath. “Do you think they’ll be friendly, not wanting to—?”
The large picture window in the living room exploded. Pieces of plastic and glass turned into nasty little projectiles. Kat ducked down, throwing her arms up to shield her face as I stepped forward, summoning the Source and using it to push back the explosion of sharp and painful things.
They fell to the floor inches from where the three of us stood.
“I think that’s your answer, Kitten.”
She rose, hands balling into fists. “Dammit. All I want to do is shower and take a nap and eat some bacon!”
Archer slid a look at her. “Well, I think that will—”
A Luxen came through the window, a blur of bright light, and I shot forward, colliding with it as I shifted. We hit some antique-looking chair. The legs gave under our sudden weight. We tore right through the back. Stuffing flew into the air. The palm tree ended up as a drive-by casualty.
Landing hard on the floor, I reared back and slammed my hand down on the Luxen’s chest, letting go of the Source and sending a steady shot right into the heart of the bastard, frying him from the inside out.
The light dulled as I pushed myself up, whirling around. How many?
I don’t know. Kat was heading for the archway that led to the foyer.
Switching back into my human form, I joined her and Archer at the archway a second before the front door literally blew off its hinges and winged across the entryway, embedding deep into the opposite wall.
I knew before I even looked.
I felt it in my bones; in every cell that was me, I knew before I looked.
My sister stood in the doorway in her human form, and as her gaze swept over us, she smiled in a way that was so wrong for her.
“Gotcha,” she said.