Sweet Reckoning

by Higgins, Wendy

  When I slowed near the door, Marek bumped me from behind and I let out a little screech, turning on him. He kept his hands on my back to steady himself, and I had to shove him away with an elbow.

  “My apologies,” he said, all innocence. He slipped his hands into his pockets and nodded down at the paper outside someone’s hotel-room door. The caption was about a huge pawnshop robbery in Atlanta. “The headline caught my attention.”

  Not knowing whether or not to believe him, I pulled the bag around from my back to my chest as I pushed through the doors. I felt the shape of the hilt through the bottom of the bag and breathed a sigh of relief.

  Outside it was dark, but the air still held the heaviness of the day’s heat and humidity. I didn’t walk to my car, opting instead to stand in a patch of grass at the side of the hotel, away from prying eyes. I faced them with my stance wide, sliding the book bag onto both shoulders in case I had to fight, which I prayed I wouldn’t.

  “Strange things are happening,” crooned Caterina. “Would you not agree?”

  I kept my hands loose at my sides, prepared. “You have one more chance to tell me why you’re here before I leave.”

  She narrowed her beady dark eyes at me, and Marek stepped forward to speak.

  “We have a few questions, daughter of Belial. That is all.”

  “Questions from you? Or questions someone sent you to ask?”

  I was losing patience, feeling overly anxious.

  “Are you a virgin?” Caterina blurted.

  Great.

  “Okay, so something you’ve been sent to ask,” I said.

  She smiled, a malicious show of teeth. Dread pooled in my belly.

  Marek glowered down at Caterina.

  “I’m not answering your questions,” I said. “I don’t trust you.”

  Her smile was one of genuine amusement this time. “It’s true—you don’t trust me. But evading questions is almost always a sign of guilt.”

  “Almost,” Marek pointed out, speaking to Caterina. “But not always. You’ve cornered her like an animal, and she obviously feels threatened.”

  “If you can do better, do it yourself!”

  The look she gave him was frightening. He had over a foot of height on her, but she stared at him as if she could take him down one-handed.

  “Forget it!” I yelled. “It’s bad enough I have to deal with whisperers following me around. I’m not dealing with a couple of Neph, too. I’m out of here.”

  I turned for the parking lot, walking fast.

  “We are not finished!” Caterina spat.

  Marek said something to her in a different language, using a scolding tone, and she responded in kind. I heard them following me, and I was shaking by the time I got to my car. I reached into the stretchy side pouch of my bag for the keys.

  They were gone.

  A jingle sounded behind me. In a flash I dug my knife out of my pocket, slid it open, and turned, jutting it out.

  Marek and Caterina were five feet away, at the back of my car. He dangled my keys in front of him, a pleading look on his face. How the heck had he taken them?

  Caterina’s eyes widened at the sight of my knife.

  “Give them to me,” I said.

  Marek spoke calmly. “I will, but I had to be sure you would speak to us before you left.”

  “Throw them to me,” I demanded.

  Caterina crossed her arms. “Not until you answer our questions. If you prefer not to speak with us, I’m certain the sons of Thamuz would be more than happy to pay you a visit.”

  The mention of the sons of Thamuz made me dizzy with fear. Thamuz was the Duke of Murder, and I knew their methods of extracting information. They’d broken sweet Marna when she was still just a child, hurting her in unthinkable ways until she opened herself to seeing the demon whisperers.

  A knowing smile lit up Caterina’s face. “I see you know of them. Do you know what they do for a living, daughter of Belial? They assist in kidnapping-for-ransom heists in South America.”

  I had to shut her up before she said another word about those two psychos.

  “I don’t appreciate you showing up unannounced. I don’t answer to you or any other Neph. I do what my father tells me. He’s not the kind of Duke you want to cross, so I suggest you give me my keys and leave me alone.”

  Caterina began to laugh, but quickly stopped when she saw Marek toss the keys to my free hand. She gave him a disbelieving look.

  “She hasn’t answered our questions!”

  “And she won’t now that you’ve treated her as our enemy.”

  I pitied Marek. I’d hate to have to deal with the enraged mini-vamp girl.

  I hit the Unlock button, opened the door, and threw my bag in.

  “Good luck,” I said to Marek before I quickly slipped in, locked the doors, and cranked the engine on.

  “Wait!” he yelled, grabbing the door handle. His face looked panicked. “Don’t leave yet!”

  What did he expect when he threw me the keys? Caterina made a run for the front of the car to block me, but I hit the accelerator and she jumped back as I sped away. They’d have hell to pay with the Dukes for letting me go.

  At the first stoplight I opened the bag and felt around until the hilt was in my hand, then I breathed a sigh of relief. I texted Dad with my information code: A411. I tried to keep my hearing around the two Neph, but they were both silent, and I wasn’t great at following sounds of cars when other cars were around. Just to be safe, I kept driving for the next three hours until my body demanded rest.

  I pulled into the back of a supermart’s parking lot and used my backpack as a pillow. I never heard back from Dad. That night, I fell asleep haunted by the look of regret in Marek’s eyes as I sped away. What did he regret, exactly? Was he an ally or a foe? I didn’t know, but I intended to find out.

  UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

  HarperCollins Publishers

  ..................................................................

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  JAY’S FUTURE

  I was certifiably grumpy when I woke in the car the next morning. If those restless moments of dozing could be considered sleeping.

  I texted Patti first thing. U ok?

  Yes. You?

  Fine, I texted back.

  We said nothing more, and I deleted the conversation from my phone, wishing it was safe to tell her I loved her. I would have given anything to sit out on our balcony with her this morning, sipping coffee like we used to, discussing college plans and other normal things.

  I texted Dad again.

  He never responded, which made me antsier. I felt stuck in limbo and I didn’t know what my next move should be. I decided to swing by our apartment in Cartersville to check the mail. It probably wasn’t the smartest move, but I tried to be careful. I stopped as I neared the neighborhood and did surveillance. No strange cars or people. I pushed my hearing into the apartment. The place was silent, but I wouldn’t be going in. I got the mail and left as quickly as I could.

  I drove to Jay’s house and sorted through the envelopes as I sat parked in his driveway. I was glad I’d gotten the mail, because there were things from Virginia—information about checking into campus housing at Virginia Tech, and letters from the bank and realtor about Patti’s new house in the small town of Riner. I shoved everything into my backpack, slung it over one shoulder with a quick glance for whisperers, and walked into Jay’s house.

  His parents were at work, and in his room I could hear clicking on a keyboard. The door was open, so I knocked and peeked in.

  “Hey,” I said.

  He tried to smile, but he looked stressed. “I think I found something, but I don’t really know what I’m doing. I—”

  I put a finger to my lips and motioned toward a pen on his desk. He picked it up and wrote in messy handwriting, There’s a church in Atlanta that needs a night janitor and they offer lodging.

  Janitor? I wrote.

 
; He shrugged, seeming so much more unsure of himself than usual. He bent over the page and scratched out another message. I’ll have to give up DJ stuff at nights, but I don’t know what else to do. I can get one of those carrier things for when I’m sweeping and stuff.

  I underlined carrier things and put a question mark.

  He pointed at the computer screen full of different baby carriers, and tears of surprise sprang into my eyes.

  “Aw, come on,” he said softly. “Don’t do that.”

  I wiped my eyes dry. So many things ran through my mind that I wanted to say: How proud I was of him. How awful this situation was, and how sorry I was that it was happening. But none of that was necessary with Jay. Though a navy blue stream of sadness and gray worry ran steadily through the underbelly of his aura, the rest was a pastel swirl of pink love.

  Jay was going to be a daddy. Despite his trepidations, he was being proactive about it. The thought of anything happening to him scared me to death. It wasn’t safe for him or the baby to be in Atlanta, but I hated asking him to leave the place he’d always known as home.

  I took the pen. Would you consider moving to a place where there are no Dukes?

  He didn’t immediately refuse, like I thought he might.

  You mean Virginia, with you?

  Hm, there was a thought, but I shook my head. I have to live on my own, but maybe you could be nearby? A lightbulb went off, and I wrote faster. Maybe you could live with Patti! Or near her. You could help each other, and you’d only be a town away from me.

  The idea grew on me as I stood there thinking about it, and a grin spread across Jay’s face.

  Patti’s awesome. I’m okay with it if you think she’ll agree.

  I’m sure she will! She needed someone to mother, and she hated being alone.

  We both smiled. Maybe this could work. I leaned over to write more.

  She and I are leaving soon, but you wouldn’t have to come right away. You have some time before . . .

  Our smiles vanished and we both looked down. One thought hovered over us.

  Marna.

  Jay’s jaw tensed as he slowly wrote. I swear I had no idea. If I knew what could happen—

  I took the pen from his hand. I know. We all know.

  Not her sister. She hates me.

  I shook my head. It has nothing to do with you. She doesn’t think she can live without Marna.

  My heart twisted every time I thought about the broken look on Ginger’s face when the truth sank in. Ginger, who’d always been so strong.

  Everything was changing.

  It was time for me to leave. I’m going to give you Patti’s number and I want you to get in touch with her. Things are starting to happen. I’m under investigation, and they’re determined to incriminate me this time. I don’t want to put you guys in danger, so I’m going to keep my distance.

  He looked worried as he wrote, I wish there was something I could do.

  Knowing Patti has you to lean on will be helping me more than you know. I gave him a hug, and was about to leave when his phone went off.

  He showed me the screen, which said Marna.

  I zoomed my hearing toward the earpiece as he answered.

  “Jay?” Marna’s voice held a thinly veiled panic. “Have you seen my sister?”

  His eyes darted to me as he shook his head. “No.”

  I held my hand out and he said, “Here, talk to Anna real quick.”

  “What’s going on?” I asked her.

  “She wasn’t here in New York when I arrived, and she missed our flight back to England, so I made an excuse to miss it, too. Now we’re both on probation with the airline. But I can’t find her!” Marna sniffled.

  Crap. We shouldn’t even be having this conversation over the phone. I felt certain that creepy Caterina had left the area, but anyone could be listening. Even coming to see Jay one last time wasn’t smart.

  “Okay, don’t panic. She couldn’t have gone far. She wouldn’t leave you.”

  “D’you think she was taken? Oh, God—” She let out a sob.

  “No . . . I don’t think that.” My mind went straight to the one person in the world Ginger cared for other than Marna. “What about . . . ?”

  California. Blake.

  Marna got quiet. “That would be royally stupid.”

  Now we were both quiet. It would be dangerous for Ginger to abandon work to see Blake, especially when he was right in the middle of one of his biggest assignments—planning a grand-scale wedding with the gorgeous Michelle to provoke the envy of many.

  “Oh, no.” Marna whispered my exact thoughts.

  That was exactly where Ginger had gone.

  “I have to go get her!” Marna said.

  “No,” I told her. “You get back to work. She probably just needs a day or two to get past this and she’ll come back.”

  “What if she doesn’t?” she whispered.

  “Then we’ll have to intervene. But I think between the two of them they have enough sense of self-preservation to work it out.”

  Blake wouldn’t let her stay long. We had to trust them to be smart. I’d get ahold of Kai and ask him to drag Ginger away if I had to, although I really didn’t want him involved.

  We hung up and Jay bear-hugged me. As we released, a dark blotch appeared on his wall and slowly grew. I felt paralyzed as the dark spirit flew into the room, an ugly face I didn’t recognize. It looked back and forth between us. Jay’s angel moved between him and the spirit.

  A million thoughts ran through my head—the notes we’d written to each other were sitting right on the desk, and there were freaking baby carriers on his computer. Thankfully Jay was blocking it, but I needed to get the whisperer away. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a wad of cash, handing it to Jay.

  “Use this toward the keg,” I told him.

  His eyebrows went together and I smiled big.

  “Uh, yeah. Sure.” Bless him for playing along.

  “See you at the party!” I said, before turning to leave. Just as I’d hoped, the spirit followed me into the hall, and I was so relieved I winked at the ugly thing. It gave me a suspicious look before flying ahead of me, gruesome wings spanning through the walls of the hallway, until it was out of sight.

  At the car I texted Jay. Destroy notes. Delete msg. Get P and go. Stuff in mailbox.

  Hopefully he’d have a chance to say good-bye to his parents, though I had no clue how he’d explain such a sudden move. He’d figure it out. Poor Jay. I deleted the message from my phone’s memory and pulled Patti’s new housing information from the backpack. With a quick scan of the skies, I stuffed the fat envelope into Jay’s mailbox, then got into my car, kicking up gravel as I got the heck out of town.

  When you start to live outside yourself,

  it’s all dangerous.

  —Ernest Hemingway, The Garden of Eden

  UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

  HarperCollins Publishers

  ..................................................................

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  TAKING THE INITIATIVE

  I drove up the interstate feeling tired of hiding and evading—tired of doing nothing.

  Dad was nowhere to be found. The fact that he hadn’t responded or shown his face was bad news. He could be chained in hell for all I knew—a thought that made all my confidence and hope threaten to slip away.

  I’d always relied on his advice. His inside knowledge. Now I just felt useless and timid. So, what would Dad want me to do if he were here?

  It was time to take the initiative. The first thing that came to mind was Marek, the son of Shax. Was he or was he not an ally? With a sense of resolve, I decided it was time to find out.

  He could still be in the U.S., or he could be back in Europe. Was I willing to fly to the Czech Republic to find him?

  Yes.

  What I needed was more information. An address or phone number to reach him. Who had Neph or Duke contacts that I co
uld trust?

  Kopano. His brothers still lived in Africa with Duke Alocer. Maybe they could get their hands on some information for me.

  I pulled into a rest area in North Carolina, parking as far as possible from the other people—families traveling on their summer vacations.

  Dad had warned me over and over that phone lines weren’t safe, despite his military-grade equipment and all the fancy technology he used. At moments like this, I just had to trust in the precautions he’d made for us, and hope for the best.

  I dialed Kope. He answered quickly, sounding worried, probably because I hadn’t called him in ages.

  “Are you all right?” It was good to hear his soothing voice.

  “Yes. But I need some help.” I took a deep breath and rehashed the story of Marek and Caterina’s visit, and how I wanted to track him down.

  “Let me make a call. I will be in touch.”

  I hung up, loving his willingness to jump right in without argument. I got back on the road, not wanting to stop for too long. He called back half an hour later.

  “I have his number. I will text it to you.”

  I smiled. “You freaking rock, Kope.”

  “I am flying down to accompany you.”

  Oh, no.

  “You don’t have to do that. I know after last time you said . . .” He’d said he couldn’t travel on missions with me anymore after what happened between us that winter, and the subsequent jealous rage from Kaidan. But saying it out loud felt too uncomfortable.

  “That was a long time ago, Anna. Much has changed.”

  “I’m not afraid of Marek. He didn’t seem very threatening—”

  “He is with the sons of Thamuz. And the daughter of Jezebet.”

  “Oh.” Icy fear slithered up my spine. That changed things. “Do you know where they are?”

  “Moving north, as are you, according to the last whisperer who spotted you.”

  Creepy-crawly sensations pricked my skin.

  “How do you know all this?”