Page 9 of Endless Terrors
“I’ll be back in ten minutes,” Gil repeated.
I closed my mouth and gave him a small, worried smile. “Okay.”
Once my bags were packed full and zipped shut, I texted Savannah to ask for witch-related help. Lucifer would be coming back, or one of his followers, or many. Some of them might be able to do tracking spells. Savannah spent most of her time in the Unseelie Court, though. What if she didn’t see my message for hours, or days?
Nothing I could do about it now. Letting out a breath, I put my phone away and picked up the bags. I hadn’t been able to find Hello, so I’d have to leave without saying goodbye to my fierce kitten. It was just one more reason to make sure Lucifer actually died a long, slow, painful death. See you soon, wild girl, I thought, looking toward every dark spot in the room. The small, fuzzy animal didn’t appear, and I finally walked out.
Damon only woke Matthew up once the cars were loaded and running in the driveway. All the headlights beamed into the darkness. Little pieces of snow floated through the brightness, like dust motes in a sun-dappled attic. Damon emerged into the cold holding the boy in his arms. Emma and I had just said our goodbyes, and I could still feel her palm against my cheek, the press of her lips to my forehead. Now Emma sat in her vehicle, a light turned on overhead so she could see the map she held. She wore a thoughtful frown.
Cyrus, Nym, Lyari, and Damon faced me in the driveway. Matthew had already fallen asleep again. I swallowed and met their gazes, one at a time. “I will fix this,” I said quietly. “I will find a way to kill him and bring us all back home. I promise.”
They knew. All of them knew I didn’t take promises lightly. I watched them react, each with varying degrees of emotion.
Surprisingly, Cyrus was the one to respond. “We know.”
I paused, debating whether or not to hug him. My friend solved the dilemma for me by reaching over and giving my shoulders an awkward, brief squeeze.
“My cat—” I started as I hugged him back.
Cyrus’s voice was firm. “I’ll find her.”
Before I could say anything else, he walked to his truck and whistled for Stanley. The dog leaped off the porch and bounded after his owner, his long ears swinging.
“Until next time, my lady,” Nym said, giving me one of his sad, crooked smiles. A moment later, he sifted out of sight, probably back to the Unseelie Court or wherever else his bloodline lived.
You’re stalling, Fortuna.
The thought belonged to me, but it sounded like Collith. Somehow he’d become the voice in my head, always urging me to be strong or good. I turned to Damon, and my stomach felt like a fist. I didn’t want to do this, I thought suddenly. I didn’t want to be standing here right now. We should’ve been upstairs, all of us in our beds, warm and dreaming. Nothing on the horizon but breakfast and routine. Lucifer had ruined that for us. I hated him. I hated him.
“I’ll see you soon,” I said firmly, ignoring the way Damon’s face had gone blurry at the edges.
He shifted and put one of his arms around me, briefly pulling me to him. I felt his lips brush the side of my head. “I’ll text you when we get to the first checkpoint, Tuna Fish. Be safe, okay? Don’t try to be a hero.”
I nodded jerkily and fixed my gaze on Matthew, fighting to keep tears at bay. My nephew’s eyelashes were dark fringes, and he pressed a small fist against his cheek as he slept. He was a miniature version of my brother. I didn’t want to risk waking him again, not when he looked content and good dreams were so rare. I leaned close, my eyes sliding shut as I imagined kissing his head. I forced myself to step back and meet Damon’s gaze. “Call me if you need anything,” I said thickly.
He nodded, his long face lined and solemn. “You, too.”
A minute later, I watched Emma’s SUV drive toward the road. The red taillights faded. The night crowded in close. I lingered, my breath clouding in the air. All I could think was, I did this. I did this to us. My newfound family was breaking apart and scattering to the wind, and it wouldn’t be happening if I didn’t exist.
“Fortuna?” Another figure materialized in the driveway. A tension inside me eased, and I knew, without looking, that it was Gil. He took one look at me and said, “What do you need?”
To say goodbye, I thought. Out loud I told him, “I just want to make sure Damon locked up. Be right back.”
I ducked my head and returned to the barn, where I slipped into the shadowed garage and up the stairwell. Damon had locked up, so I used the spare key, avoiding the sight of the stained floor as I went in.
We hadn’t even left yet, but already the loft had an abandoned feel to it. Every light was off, which was an anomaly in itself—there was always a light to guide the way, or greet us when we walked through the door. I hovered in the doorway and cast a final look around the room that had become so dear to me, every part of it filled with memories. The couch where Emma and I often watched Netflix. The island where our strange family ate breakfast together. The corner where Collith kissed me the day we ate pancakes and made love for hours on end. It was all I’d ever wanted for so long. A family. A home. My grip tightened on the edge of the frame, going white at the knuckles.
Then I turned away, pulling the door shut firmly behind me.
CHAPTER THREE
Collith and I had been standing there for so long that my fingers were numb. The VACANCY sign flickered again, and the quiet sound it made jarred me. I blinked the memory away, and a fresh surge of urgency went through my body. If I’d had any doubts about running again, remembering the encounter with Lucifer had washed them away like a tide smoothing the sand.
With hardened resolve, I refocused on Collith. I knew he could sense the fear swelling in my throat, but I still tried to hide it behind a wall of anger.
“We’re leaving,” I said tightly. “Do not follow us. Do not look for us. Go home, or back to the Unseelie Court, or whatever you’d be doing if you weren’t standing in this parking lot. I don’t want you here and I don’t need saving. If you came for answers, you have them now.”
I paused, waiting for his response. I expected Collith to snarl or snap, continuing our heated back-and-forth as he so often did. But the furious stranger that had yanked me from the car was gone, and Collith’s expression was calm, almost thoughtful. Maybe it was learning the truth about why I’d left, or seeing how terrified I truly was. Whatever the reason, my ex wasn’t nearly scared enough at the revelation the devil himself was after us. After another moment, all he said was “Are you finished?”
