Page 77 of Bent Out of Shade
19
I was on a tropical beach,swinging in a hammock. I didn’t know how long I’d been there, but time had stopped mattering. The ocean was infinite, but some idiot was banging their surfboard against a rock or something. I didn’t know much about surfing or how this was helpful, but it was damn irritating. I was on my way to tell them off, when I fell out of the hammock, realized it was actually a sofa, got tangled in a heavy body, and figured out that the knocking (still real) was coming from Laurent’s front door.
Muted sunlight slanted through the frosted front windows of the hotel. Was it late enough for any powerful vamp to be awake?
I spat hair out of my mouth and shook Laurent. “Go see who it is,” I whispered.
Boo mewled angrily from the cushions.
The loud knocks continued.
The shifter rolled over, pulling the blanket over his head. “It’s Harry,” he mumbled.
I poked his shoulder. “Shouldn’t you answer it anyway? What if something’s happened?” Gasping, I jumped up and ran for the kitchen where I’d left my phone. I’d turned it off last night but what if Sadie had tried to contact me?
While Laurent greeted the gargoyle, I muttered at my phone to hurry and boot up. At the flurry of texts that pinged, I mashed my finger against the screen to open the app and flew through the messages.
I only pried my hand off the counter’s edge once I’d determined Sadie was fine, but she was wondering where I was because she was home from school. I’d swear I’d only been asleep for twenty minutes, not hours. I phoned her to say I’d crashed at Laurent’s since work ran late and told her to finish painting the living room. She wasn’t happy that I wouldn’t let her boyfriend keep her company, but she agreed. Not like she had a choice.
By the time I returned to the main room, Harry, the stocky gargoyle, sat on the sofa, twisting a cap between his broad fingers. His manbun was half-unraveled with his stubby horns peeking out, while his misbuttoned shirt exposed gray stone skin. The second he saw me, he shot to his feet. “Something’s up with Nora.”
Laurent was forcefully reshelving his perfectly ordered books. Was he upset about Nora as well? He didn’t know the raven shifter, did he?
“What happened?” I glanced warily between them.
The man who’d held me all night stared at me with his lips pressed into a thin line. “You stole Giulia’s ring? Is that why you asked me about it?”
My heart dropped into my toes. “Not exactly.” I rolled onto the outsides of my feet. “She gave it to me.”
“Brilliant. My mistake. Don’t care.” Harry gave a defeated sigh and I sat down next to him, while Laurent turned back to his task like it was the most fascinating thing in the world.
“I gave it back safe and sound,” I said.
Laurent glanced at me, his lips pressed tightly together, and shook his head, but didn’t reply.
The gargoyle gripped my shoulders, his fingers biting into my flesh. “What did you ask Nora to do?”
I struggled in his grasp, my heart racing. “You’re hurting me.”
Laurent smacked two books together, his canines elongated, and Harry released me, scrubbing a hand over his wide face.
“I’m sorry, luv, but Nora’s in a state. She called the Bear’s Den because your phone was off, mumbling about an amulet.” He tugged on one of his large ears. “If something magic’s got her in its grip, we have to help her.”
His teeth normal again, Laurent stilled, a fat hardcover in his hand. “What amulet?”
I clasped my hands behind my back, not up to dealing with him getting any pissier. “Short version? These whack jobs kidnapped Emmett when we were in Vegas, wanting me to answer some summons. They had an amulet and I think it’s tied to the Ascendant. I asked Nora, who is a raven shifter friend of Harry’s, to look into it.”
“Oh well, if that’s all.” He slammed the book onto the shelf.
“Laurent!” Harry snapped.
The shifter shot him a contrite look. “Sorry, mon ami.”
“Hey.” I caught Harry’s arm. “Nora called and then what?”
“She wasn’t making much sense.” He shook his head, his expression pinched tight. “I went to her place to sort it out, but she wouldn’t let me in.”
“Could the amulet be enchanted?” Laurent said.
