“Yep. They got her.”
“Nice.” He reached out for a fist bump from where he lay. “See. Nothing to worry about.”
“Flynn is missing.”
He sat straight up. “What happened?”
“I don’t know. He thought he was being watched or followed, and then . . .”
“It’s all right. Don’t get upset.” He reached for my hand. “Come on. Let’s get something to eat and we’ll talk.”
I was too jittery at the diner Blake took us to, so we ended up getting our food to go and keeping low-key at Kai’s apartment. We watched television and played video games but I couldn’t stop peeking at my phone, becoming antsier with each passing hour.
The call finally came.
“Hello?” I said.
“Everyone is safely on a plane,” came Dad’s voice. “The summit is over. I’m in Reno again. Some of the Dukes are heading home and some are staying in Vegas longer.”
“Flynn’s okay?” I asked.
“He’s fine.”
I took a deep breath and let it out. “What happened?”
“Two humans found him acting suspiciously and wanted to turn him in. He had to fight them to get away and lost his phone in the scuffle. He lay low after that, but he made his way back to Damascus and the airport without any more incidents.”
All I could do was breathe.
“They’ll be in L.A. tomorrow afternoon,” he said. “You’ll need to get Z settled at the convent and then head back to Georgia. I’m going back to Vegas to keep an eye on Sonellion until he leaves. I wanna make sure he buys the story of Z’s purchase by an unknown buyer. You okay there?”
“Yeah,” I whispered. “I’m okay now. I’m with Blake.”
“All right. I’ll be in touch tomorrow.”
I ended the call with a grin of relief. Blake’d obviously been listening because his pierced brow bobbed up and down.
“Wanna go clubbin’ again?” he asked.
“No freaking way!” I laughed. He was crazy.
“Okay then. Play me in the dance game?”
I groaned. “I suck at all these games. It can’t possibly be fun for you to play against me.”
“Why not? That means I always get to win. I love winning.”
I laughed again. “Fine. I’ll play whatever you want.”
The next morning. I got a text from Dad:
Something’s going on. Mammon has summoned Flynn to Vegas.
My gut twisted. I thought about how Mammon had acted toward his son in Australia and texted back: Maybe he just wants his company?
Maybe. Maybe not.
Stay alert.
That afternoon we waited in the car outside the arrival gates until Zania, Kope, and Kai exited the airport.
Zania let out a sob and ran to me.
“It’ll all be okay now,” I whispered.
She clung to me. My eyes darted around the skies, paranoid about stray spirits who might’ve left the Dukes for whatever reason.
I reached up with my free hand and stroked Kaidan’s smooth face, glad to see his blue eyes again while he drank me in. I sent a smile to the somber Kope as we made our way to the car. Everyone was okay. It would all be fine now. The more I thought about it, the more I was certain Mammon called Flynn to Vegas for entertainment purposes. He liked to show off his son, and Flynn provided him protection as well. Dad was just being cautious. That had to be it.
When I climbed into the backseat with Zania, Blake called shotgun. Kope and I sat by the windows, with Zania between us.
“Where to?” Kaidan asked.
“The convent,” I told him.
Zania pressed herself close to me and whispered in a shaky voice, “I need a drink. Just one. Please. It will help.”
Her plea sent a pang of empathy through me, but I didn’t answer. Kaidan gave me a look of warning over his shoulder. I had a feeling this wasn’t the first time she’d asked. When she let out a weak groan, I put my arms around her. She slumped into my lap and cried, trembling.
Kopano watched a moment, sadness in his eyes, before turning to stare out his window.
I ran my fingers through her hair, just as Patti did to mine when I was hurting. I hoped the women at the convent would know how to handle this.
We were nearly there when my phone rang. Dad.
“Hello?”
“Are they back?” He sounded on edge.
“Yeah, they’re here.”
“I need all of you to get out of L.A. Get as far away as you can right now. Understand?”
All three guys turned to me with wide eyes.
“Okay,” I told him, my heart rate quickening.
“A few of the Dukes are headed to LAX in Pharzuph’s jet with some women they picked up in Vegas. Mammon and Flynn are with them. Everyone scattered before I could get any straight answers. At best, they’re just gonna play around in Hollywood for a day or two, but I want you out of there. Text me your location and I’ll send someone to let you know when it’s clear to return.”
“Yes, sir.”
He disconnected, and the air in the car thickened with worry. Zania sat up.
“Where can we go?” I asked everyone.