Low and hushed she whispered, “I’ll do everything I can to make sure they don’t hurt him anymore, Lexi. I promise.”
The emotion I’d carefully concealed in front of Briggs erupted like a volcano. “Don’t call me Lexi. That’s what my sister called me. You are not my sister.”
I shoved past the agents with Shaz at my side. Without a backward glance I added, “Tell Briggs that if he has a problem with the dead agents you’ll find out front, he can take it up with me. Nobody else.”
I walked away to the sound of agents on cell phones, calling for back up. Useless. Arys was long gone. I couldn’t sense him anywhere. By the time Shaz and I reached the car, I was fighting back tears, screams and maniacal laughter. This had not gone as I’d anticipated.
Jez and Brogan sat on the hood talking in low tones. Three dead agents lay sprawled near the car. Thankfully, both ladies were unharmed.
“I don’t know about you, but we had a blast,” Jez greeted us sarcastically. “Your vampire is long gone, by the way.”
“Are you two ok? Did anyone try to hurt you?”
“Nah. Arys went after them. I thought he may try for us, too, but he didn’t stick around long once they were dead. What the hell happened inside? Where’s Kale?”
“Let’s get out of here, and I’ll fill you in.”
I reached out to Arys, flinging open that mental door between us. ‘Have you lost your mind? Where are you?’
He felt distant. His thoughts were scattered and rushed. He resisted my presence in his head. ‘Go home, Alexa.’
He shoved me out with an abruptness that left me feeling dizzy. I was never letting Arys near that old hospital again. This did not sit well with me.
The drive back to The Wicked Kiss wasn’t a happy one. My sister was now my enemy. The FPA was a menace I didn’t feel would go away after one transaction. I needed to stay alive for the next three days if I wanted to see Kale again, but to do that I had to successfully bind a demon during the full moon.
I was so screwed.
Chapter Twenty-Two
I paced the length of Arys’s house like a caged animal. From the kitchen, through the living room and down the hall, and then back again.
After exchanging a few words with Brogan regarding the possibility of Veryl’s files being magically secured, I had parted ways with my companions. Shaz had strongly insisted on coming back to Arys’s with me. My insistence that he go home to Coby had been stronger.
The clock ticked down the minutes until dawn. It wasn’t far off now. Where was my vampire?
I spent a restless half hour at my new laptop fighting with the locked files. I made a few backup copies, which I stored online before copying them to a flash drive. I also emailed a copy to Brogan who had promised to take a look at them. Handing the files over to the FPA may come back to bite me in the ass, so I had to find out what was on them, preferably before they did.
I didn’t have the patience to stare at the computer screen. The closer sunrise drew, the more uneasy I became. Arys was more than capable of taking care of himself, but I was still worried.
To stop myself from pacing an indent in the carpet, I occupied myself with a shower. I stood beneath the hot spray for a long time. It was so hard to relax lately. I was wound tight and fearful of when I would break.
The sound of my phone had me rushing to turn the water off and grab a towel without slipping. With my hair dripping, I clutched the towel to my chest and reached my phone seconds before it went to voicemail.
“I can’t stop thinking about you.” The sound of Shaz’s voice coaxed a sigh from me. “Has Arys shown up?”
“Not yet.” Securing my towel in place above my br**sts, I returned to the living room and peered out the window. “That place did something bad to him. I’ve never seen him like that.”
“Is he going to be dangerous when he turns up? Should I come over?” The hopefulness in his tone was crushing.
I understood his desperation to make things right with us. If only it were that simple.
“It’s alright. I can handle him. Stay home and get some rest. I think we both need it.”
I could sense his disappointment on the other end. I was disappointed, too. I kept waiting for a chance to mourn the destruction of the good thing we had once shared. Already, our relationship was in shambles, and we were left to pick up the pieces. Still, I felt we could salvage something eventually.
“Thank you, Shaz, for being with me tonight. You were there when Arys failed me. When I would have failed myself.”
There was silence on the line as he gathered himself. When he spoke, it was thick with emotion. “It confirmed what you both said about me. The role I play. I’m starting to understand how we all fit together.”
“I’m glad. I’m still trying to do that myself.” The towel began to slip as I made my way down the hall to get dressed. I almost fumbled my phone when I grabbed for it.