Forget About Midnight (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #9)

Willow was reluctant, but the quaking werewolf at my side convinced him. “I’ll be waiting in my usual spot.”


With a reassuring smile, Willow took Izzy by the hand and led her down the hall toward the agents approaching from the rear. She shot me a questioning look, wondering perhaps if it was safe to go with the demon she’d just watched lose his mind all over another. I didn’t doubt that he would get through the agents without issue. I sure could’ve used Falon’s help right then, but I couldn’t fault Willow for doing what he’d done.

I turned to face the oncoming agents as they swarmed around the corner into the hall. Briggs was leading the pack. He held up a hand to bring everyone to a halt. A dozen Feds stood there with weapons held ready. Most of them were tranquilizer guns but not all of them. With a snap of my finger, a protective energy barrier surrounded me.

Briggs consulted his watch. “Almost six hours before you broke out. I’ve got to admit, I underestimated you. But I wasn’t expecting an angel to help you get out.”

So he saw the video feed. Oh goody. “Did you really expect me to sit there and wait for you to figure out what you wanted to do with me?” I dropped the keys and swipe card I still held, letting them clatter to the floor beside me.

From a fair distance away, several shouts echoed. Then all was quiet. Willow must have met and subdued the agents coming from the other side. Briggs didn’t react. His expression was hard set, the lines in his forehead furrowed in thought.

“I never planned for this,” he said, indicating that the plan had changed. “Unfortunately, now you know things I don’t want you to know, and you’re proving to be much too difficult to contain.”

“What did you do with my sister?” I cut right to the chase, choosing not to play his game of words and threats.

Briggs smiled, just a little, just enough to make me think he’d done something terrible to Juliet. “We’ll talk. I trust we can do this without any violence. I won’t even cuff you. But I do need you to accompany me upstairs. I’d like to show you something.”

Of course I was suspicious. I was also going to play along for now. I needed to know where Juliet was. Briggs knew something, and I was going to get it out of him.

“All right. Let’s go.” I walked toward him at a normal, human-like pace, hands held palms out to show him I wasn’t going to try anything. As I approached, I dropped my barrier, confident I could defend myself against them should I need to.

Once again his minions surrounded me and herded me along like a rabid animal that needed prodding. This time I caught the telltale tingle of power among them. There was a witch in this crew of agents.

We followed the hall, branching off the main corridor and curving around through a series of halls back to the elevator the agents used. The place was a fucking maze. I doubted many escapees made it far before being caught. It had to have been designed that way on purpose.

“It’s going to snow soon,” Briggs announced, as if this was normal conversation for us. “It seems like winter may come early this year.”

I frowned and crossed my arms, leaning against the wall of the elevator as it took us up to the top floor. Why did I get the feeling I was walking willingly to my demise?

“Time to get the winter tires on before the mad rush.” The agent next to me joined in the mindless conversation.

Briggs caught my eye. “How does your car do in the winter? That rear wheel drive must be a pain in the ass. They come in all wheel drive, don’t they?”

My frown deepened, and I sighed. “It’s a muscle car. All wheel drive on a car like that is blasphemy. It fish tails like a bitch on snow and ice, but I didn’t buy it to be practical. I bought it for the power.”

“Of course you did.”

Agent Briggs, with his easygoing nature and casual chatter, heightened my distrust. This jackass was proving what I’d always suspected about him. He was a power monger, harboring a grudge for anyone who had more than he did. He was more like Shya than I think he knew.

The elevator door opened into the admin area on the top floor. I’d been up there once before, when I’d come for Kale the first time and found him being tortured. Briggs led the way, and I fell into step beside him, refusing to walk behind.

A wry smile crossed his face. I could reach out and snap his neck in seconds. We both knew it. Yet he trusted that I wouldn’t do it. Killing him would be satisfying, but taking on every Fed in the building would be difficult. Not worth the risk.

We strode down a hall with blinding fluorescent light guiding our way. I’d been here before. He was taking me to the security room. Sure enough, he opened a door and led me into the room filled with screens and a panel filled with tech stuff that was foreign to me.

A man with wild, unruly hair and large, black glasses glanced up at our entry. The room was too small to fit every agent accompanying us, but half a dozen crammed in behind us with weapons ready.