The elevator came to a stop at the thirty-second floor and the doors opened silently. Mom stepped out, but the rest of us hesitated, looking at one another. Then, by some unspoken agreement, Rafe exited first, his hand hovering over the knife he wore sheathed on his belt. I followed him, with Evan and Alexandra close behind while Philip helped Kain.
Mom led us down a carpeted hallway to a wide room empty of furniture. To our left was a row of glass windows, treating us to a breathtaking view of the city. On a normal day (ha, like there was such things as normal days in my life) I would have rushed over and pressed my nose against the glass, drinking in the sight, but today I kept my eyes glued to Mom’s back, wondering how a person I’d thought I’d known so well could be so different.
“You can use the break room to treat his injuries,” Mom said to Philip, opening up a door to a small room adjacent to the room with all the windows. “I’ll have someone bring you a first aid kit and a clean shirt.” She met my eye, indicating that I should follow her, but I pretended like I didn’t see and eventually she gave up and walked away.
As Rafe spoke quietly with Evan and Alexandra, I hovered in the doorway of the break room, watching Philip help Kain sit down on a long, blue sofa. Philip’s face was raw with emotion as he fussed over his boyfriend. The two of them never publicly flaunted their relationship—although Kain loved to tease Philip about it—but at this moment, their love for one another was very obvious. I wondered, briefly, if that was how Rafe and I appeared to others. I hoped so.
“Come on, let’s get this shirt off,” Philip was saying to Kain as he tugged at the fabric. Kain was leaning against Philip, his face taut with pain as he lifted his arms and allowed Philip to remove his shirt. The gash ran across his chest, about two to three inches long, but it had stopped bleeding. “It doesn’t seem too deep. You’re lucky.”
“Yes, quite.” Kain noticed me in the doorway. “Gabiella. As I’m not dead or in the process of dying, I won’t be needing your assistance today.”
So he hadn’t noticed my failed attempt to heal him in the elevator. Still, I hesitated. Maybe I hadn’t tried hard enough. “Are you sure? Because you know I’ll—”
Kain smiled warmly. “I do know. Thank you. But it’s like Philip said, the cut isn’t deep. A few bandages, maybe some stitches, and I’ll be right as rain. And you can’t do much for this bump on my head.” He nudged Philip’s shoulder with his chin. “Besides, your brother has already succeeded in undressing me halfway, and we’re sitting on this great big couch, so naturally, you know what will happen next—”
Philip shoved his hand over Kain’s mouth. “Shut up, you idiot!”
I laughed. Man, it felt good to laugh. Things may have been crazy, but at least we could count on Kain to say something ridiculous. “I’m really glad you’re not dead, Kain.”
“Me too.”
“What happened in there?” I asked.
Kain shook his head, which caused him to wince. “I was packing up some of Philip’s things when I sensed… something. It’s hard to explain, but the pure evilness of it was enough to make me realize I needed to leave as soon as possible. I called Philip to warn him, and that’s when all hell broke loose.” He gave me an apologetic smile. “I’m afraid I don’t remember the rest. There was an explosion, and the next thing I knew I was outside, witnessing that wanker trying to hurt my Philip with magic.”
Philip, who had been quiet while Kain spoke, looked happy at being referred to as Kain’s. But when he noticed me watching him, he scowled and turned his head away. Kain chuckled softly, wrapping an arm around Philip’s waist and pulling him closer to his side, and I took that as my cue to leave.
Before I could leave the break room and rejoin Rafe and the others, a sorcerer—not one of the ones we’d battled in the street—brushed past me with the promised first aid kit and extra shirt in hand. She all but threw it at Philip before backing out of the break room, a sour expression on her face. Facing the rest of us, she said, “Morgan asked me to bring you to the meeting room.”
Meeting room? I entered the room with all the windows and exchanged glances with the others. “Sorry, but we’re going to wait for my brother and his boyfriend before going anywhere,” I told her.
The sorcerer looked like she had a problem with that, but Alexandra gave her a pointed look and she scurried away, no doubt telling on us to Mom.
“This is nuts,” I said to no one in particular.
“So did you know your mom was the leader of a group of sorcerers?” Evan asked cheerfully. When I glared at him, he smirked. “I’ll take that as a no.”
I crossed the room and leaned against the glass window, hugging myself tightly as my gaze drifted to the street below. The traffic of cars and pedestrians never stopped, despite what had happened blocks away at HQ. Did they know about the bombing? Did they care? I wondered how it was going to be explained. A gas leak, maybe?
“Hey.” Rafe placed a hand on my shoulder, startling me from my thoughts. “What are you thinking about?”
I let out a nervous laugh. “Where do I even start? How about the fact that my mom blew up HQ today? Or that she’s apparently the leader of your mortal enemies and wants to kill all the hunters?”
His eyes were troubled as he regarded my questions. “I’m… I’m not sure any of that’s actually true, though. Why would she go through the trouble of blowing up HQ, only to save Kain from the blast? That doesn’t sound like someone who wants to ‘kill all the hunters.’”
Maybe not, but… “Do you See it, on her?” I asked.
Rafe frowned. “See what?”
“The stain, the shadow, whatever it is.” I waved my hands in the air. “Whatever it was that Charles Saw that day, that made him think she’d summoned a demon.”
Rafe shook his head. “I wouldn’t be able to See something like that. Did you two See anything?”
“Nope,” Alexandra said at the same time Evan shook his head.
I felt a tiny glimmer of hope. “So that means—”
“Just because we can’t See it doesn’t mean it’s not there,” Evan said. “She’s strong, your mom. She could be hiding it with some carefully placed spells.” He must have seen my crushed expression because he shoved his hands in his pockets and lowered his head. “Sorry, that’s probably not the answer you wanted to hear. Honestly, Gabs, we should wait to hear all of the facts before coming to a conclusion.”
Alexandra punched him on the shoulder. “Look at you, acting all wise.”
Too late, she realized her mistake. Stalking to the other side of the room, Alexandra stared out of the window and completely ignored us.
Evan sighed heavily, absently massaging his shoulder.
I gave him a weird look. “What is going on with you two?”
He laughed darkly. “Hell if I know. One minute she’s ignoring me, the next, she’s talking to me and then immediately regretting it.” Evan ran his hands through his golden hair. “I thought after I got her back, things would be the way they used to be, but…”
“You have to give her time. She’s obviously not as pissed off as she used to be, right? I mean, she’s talking to you.”
“And hitting you,” Rafe offered. He grinned when I shot him a skeptical, “you’re not helping” look. “No, seriously, Gabi. She used to hit us all the time.”
“Hmm, I guess I can believe that. She did smack you in the face yesterday.”
“Yep, that’s just how she is.”
“I never knew Evan was into that sort of thing,” I said.
Evan responded by leaning over and flicking my earlobe.
“Hey! Jerk! Stop it!”
Philip reentered the room, with Kain following him slowly and stiffly, a hand pressed against his chest. He was wearing the new shirt and his dark hair was damp and no longer matted with blood. Philip’s face was grave and pale, causing my stomach to drop. “What is it?” I couldn’t take any more bad news. I really couldn’t.
He tapped his pocket.
“I just got off the phone with Dad. Jonathan’s dead.”
Chapter Twenty-two
“What?” I breathed.
Rafe cursed under his breath while Evan stared at Philip in amazement.
“Dead?” I remembered watching the EMTs work on him and I squeezed my eyes shut. Could I have saved him?
The room suddenly felt too small, the air too shallow. I gasped, my heart racing as my skin turned cold and clammy.
“Gabi, no,” Rafe said, noticing my distress. “This isn’t your fault.”
“But I could have helped him!” I managed to get out as I fought to breathe.
“No, Rafe’s right, Gabi.” Philip’s eyes were shining with concern. “It was probably too late. He probably died from the explosion. There was nothing you could do—”
“You don’t know that!”
Philip pressed his lips together. “You’re right, I don’t. But what I do know is his death isn’t your fault. You didn’t set off the explosion.”
My friends nodded in agreement.
I struggled to control myself. I knew what they were saying was true, but it still sucked. What was the point in having this power if I couldn’t use it to help people?
“Gabi,” Rafe said quietly, “you can’t save everyone.”
I stared at him in shock. Although, should I really be that amazed that he knew exactly what I was thinking? He’d always been able to read me correctly. Sometimes, I swore he knew me better than I knew myself.
Leaning my head against his shoulder, I said, “You’re right, Rafe. But I’m still…”
Sad. Upset. Angry. Incredibly pissed off.
“I know,” he said, correctly interrupting my feelings. “Me too.”
Mom reappeared, her footsteps muffled against the carpet. For once, she was alone, and for some reason that relieved me. If I didn’t see her surrounded by her adoring sorcerers, I was able to pretend for a little bit that she was still my mom.
“The supplies in the first aid kit were sufficient?” Mom asked Philip.
My brother nodded and mumbled something under his breath as he refused to make eye contact with her.
She watched him, the disappointment plain on her face. But what did she expect? Mom was a complete stranger to Philip.
“You said you wanted to talk?” I asked weakly, still trying to get over the shock of Jonathan’s death. Talking with Mom would be a welcome distraction.
“Yes, but not here. Follow me.” Mom led us through the hallways again, taking us to a large conference room with wrap-around windows. As we settled into the chairs, Jared appeared with plastic bags bulging with food and drinks. He set them on the table, keeping a careful distance from Kain. I caught Philip’s eye and he smirked.
“Thank you, Jared,” Mom said, dismissing him with a wave of her hand. Her blond lackey hesitated, looking unhappy about leaving Mom alone with a bunch of hunters. Noticing he was still standing there, Mom frowned. “You can go.”
Jared scowled but left the room without complaining.
“Who wants what?” Mom said, pulling sandwiches out of the bag. “I’ve got ham, roast beef…” Somehow, I’d forgotten until that moment how Mom had always tried to feed everyone. She was never satisfied unless there was food on the table. Knowing it was useless to resist, I asked for a ham and cheese sandwich, and my friends followed suit. We each poured ourselves a cup of soda and then sat back in our chairs as we waited for Mom to speak.
She stared at me first, and then Philip, who sat to my left. “I can’t believe how grown up you are. And that we’re all sitting here, in the same room. I never thought I’d have this chance.”
Philip gripped the edge of the table, his knuckles turning white. “Guess it’s a good thing you decided to blow up HQ today when we were both in town.”
“That wasn’t me,” Mom said with a shake of her head. “I didn’t blow up HQ.”
My brother raised his eyebrows. “Sure you didn’t.”
Kain, meanwhile, was gazing at Mom curiously. “If it wasn’t you, then who was it?”
“And why were you there in the first place?” Rafe added.
“I was there for Gabi.” Mom’s eyes never left my face. “I’m trying to save my daughter from Silver Moon. They know about you, and it’s only a matter of time before they come for you.”
Even though she wasn’t saying anything I didn’t already know, her words still scared me. “You’re talking about what happened back in December? Charles promised he wouldn’t say anything, and I trust—” I cut myself off. Did I still trust him, after what he revealed yesterday? Sure, he didn’t actually kill Mom like he thought he did, but he had hidden the truth from both me and Philip.
What else is he hiding from us?
“Charles.” Mom’s eyes flashed dangerously. “He’s the reason this whole mess started.”
“Actually,” Kain said, pointing a finger in Evan’s direction, “he’s the reason—”
“Do you want another hole in your head?” Evan snapped, lifting a hand.
Ignoring them, Mom said, “Charles may have backed off, but his actions didn’t go unnoticed. The problem was, I didn’t know who knew about you, nor did I know how much they knew. I wanted to visit HQ much earlier, but considering they believe I’m dead, I allowed some of my colleagues to go in my place.”
I desperately wanted to interrupt and ask Mom how she managed to fool Silver Moon—and Charles—into thinking she was dead, but instead I let her continue with her story.
“Did you hear about that incident? It occurred a few weeks ago.” Mom looked first at Philip, and then at Kain. “My colleagues never returned.”
“Are you saying a bunch of sorcerers entered HQ and were killed?” Philip asked skeptically. “Because no, we never heard about that. And considering I live there and my dad is the director, I think I would have heard about it, don’t you?”
“Um, Charles likes to lie to you,” Evan pointed out.
“Maybe Charles didn’t know about it either,” I said.
Evan waved his hands. “Hello? Charles is a freaking liar—”
“I think Gabi’s right,” Mom interrupted. She was frowning, and there was a line between her brows that hadn’t been there seven years ago. Even though she wasn’t forty yet, Mom looked weary, older, like she’d been through a lot since I’d last seen her.
Yeah? Well, me too.
“So Silver Moon is covering things up?” Kain’s eyes slid to Rafe. “That wouldn’t be the first time.”
I tapped a finger against the table. “So let me get this straight. You heard about Silver Moon’s interest in me, so you sent people to investigate. They didn’t return, so today you, what, went looking for them?”
“Not for them.” Mom’s eyes shut briefly. “They would have escaped if they’d been able to. They weren’t novices; they knew what they were doing. Whoever caught them killed them.” She said it matter-of-factly, but I could see how much that statement hurt her. “I infiltrated HQ for the same reason they did: to find out who knew what when it came to you and your powers.”
“And did you find something out before you blew up the building?” I asked, my mouth dry.
“I told you, that wasn’t me!” Mom banged a hand against the table, rattling our soda cups. “I was searching the building, floor by floor, when I sensed something. Something…wrong.”
Which was exactly what Kain had said. His face was pensive, but he remained quiet.
“I decided to investigate, and that’s when I walked in on a hunter using demon magic.”
My friends were shocked into silence. Evan had gone deathly pale, and he shifted his chair over so he was closer to Alexandra. Surprisingly, she didn’t protest his sudden nearness. I wondered if they were thinking about Davenport, and how his dabbles with demon magic had nearly cost them everything.
But Davenport was dead. Which meant… “Collins,” I blurted out.
“But he was outside, with us,” Rafe said as a bead of sweat rolled do
wn the side of his face.
“What do you know about Collins?” Mom demanded. “Has he approached you, Gabi?”
“What? No!” Should I tell her about Rafe’s parents? Now didn’t seem like the right time, and really, that was up to Rafe. Maybe he didn’t want me telling other people. Mom was a virtual stranger to him. “I saw him today for the first time. He blamed the explosion on sorcerers.”
“And with the animosity that’s always existed between hunters and sorcerers, you believed him,” Mom said. “But Collins was lying to you. He was the one I saw. I knew him from when I was younger, and with…” She trailed off, looking at Philip. “When I was with Charles.” Philip squirmed in his chair, but said nothing. “Collins was the one who was casting demon magic, and he was the one who set off the explosion. He saw me—although I don’t think he got a good look at my face, or else he would have recognized me—and he tried to cover his tracks by killing me.”
I covered my mouth, sickened. If that was true, then everything we’d suspected about Collins was true.
He killed Rafe’s parents, and he tried to kill my mom, even if it meant other hunters would be caught in the crossfire. Jonathan must have been nearby when the explosion went off. And Kain— He’d been trying to leave. How close had he been? What stopped him from ending up like Jonathan?
My brother was staring at Kain, a horrified look on his face. Covering Philip’s hand with his, Kain gave him a reassuring squeeze. “I’m fine, Philip. Your mum saved me.” Philip blew out a long, shaky breath and nodded. To Mom, Kain said, “And I owe you my eternal gratitude for that.”
“You were in the hallway. I nearly tripped over you in my hurry to get out. There was smoke, and flames, and I couldn’t—” Mom broke off, shaking her head. “I couldn’t just leave you to die.”
“Thank you,” Philip whispered. He was staring at the table, still unable to look Mom in the eye, but his voice throbbing with emotion was enough to let us know exactly how he felt.
Chapter Twenty-three
“So,” I said, breaking the silence that had descended on us after Mom’s revelation about Collins. “According to Charles, Collins wasn’t the only one to summon a demon…”
The Shadow Stealer Page 13
