Couldn’t have asked for a better opening for letting him know about what else
was going epically wrong in our lives. “I’m afraid not. That’s kind of why I called
you to begin with. I’m really sorry—again—that I’m not calling with good news, but
Sara and I aren’t safe yet. There are still people after us, and we’re going out of
town to lay low for a while.”
“Can’t say I’m surprised considering all of the people who are after you. I suppose
it’s better you two are somewhere safe until all this blows over. Where are you guys
going, and for how long? Someplace I can visit?”
“We’re going to Los Angeles until Royce settles things here. We’re staying with some
vampire Royce knows, so it probably wouldn’t be a good idea for you to swing by unless
we can meet somewhere other than the vamp’s house.”
Arnold didn’t reply right away, waiting just long enough for the silence to grow ominous
before he spoke. “Whatever you do, stay away from the werewolves out there. There
are two primary packs that will pose a great deal of danger to you if they even get
a whiff of your scent. The Amberguard pack might just kill you, but the Goliaths will
kill and eat you. Not necessarily in that order.”
That was . . . good to know.
Particularly considering that Analie had mentioned her pack name at one point. Gavin,
the werewolf I was supposed to deliver the package to, was a Goliath.
Great. Just peachy keen.
“Hey, you’ve got my number. Just call me if you run into any trouble. I won’t be there
to help you two, but I might be able to talk you through any tough spots. And check
in with me in a few days; I might have an answer for you about what the black stuff
is and what it means.”
For the first time, I truly regretted blowing off Arnold’s offer to help me over the
last month. He might have saved me a lot of grief if I hadn’t listened to the belt
and had contacted him before the sickness set in. Even though he’d as good as confirmed
I was still infected, I wasn’t afraid anymore. He had resources in his mage coven
and access to potential solutions I couldn’t have dreamed of coming up with on my
own. The belt had well and truly warped my perceptions of what my options and who
my friends really were.
“Thank you,” I said, voice a bit thick. “Arnold, you’re a lifesaver.”
“Hey, what are friends for? Now put my girlfriend on. I want to hear her voice before
she leaves.”
I leaned over the breakfast bar and tossed the phone to Sara. She was quick to scoop
it up and rise from the couch, heading with purposeful strides and a quiet murmur
into the phone into the bedroom, shutting the door behind herself.
It seemed as good a time as any to find Royce and let him know we were almost ready
to leave. The two of us needed to have a chat, too. This entire situation was driving
me bonkers. After I had finally broken down and given in to my desire for him, we
had to separate. The breadth of a continent would be between us, taking away any chance
I had to get to know him as more than the embodiment of a fairytale nightmare and
understand what I had committed myself to practically before it began.
No one was in the hall when I left the apartment, though I could see someone’s booted
foot and jean-clad leg sticking out, barely visible in the doorway leading to the
foyer and outside. Whoever was on night watch was sprawled at the front desk.
I headed up the stairs, quietly padding my way to the third floor. The door leading
into Royce’s quarters was ajar, light spilling out through the crack. I nudged the
door open a bit and poked my head in, glancing around for the vampire.
He wasn’t in the main room with all its intimidating open space and eclectic collection
of statuary. For some reason, I felt the need to tiptoe across the hardwood floors,
my bare feet not making a sound as I made my way to Royce’s
was going epically wrong in our lives. “I’m afraid not. That’s kind of why I called
you to begin with. I’m really sorry—again—that I’m not calling with good news, but
Sara and I aren’t safe yet. There are still people after us, and we’re going out of
town to lay low for a while.”
“Can’t say I’m surprised considering all of the people who are after you. I suppose
it’s better you two are somewhere safe until all this blows over. Where are you guys
going, and for how long? Someplace I can visit?”
“We’re going to Los Angeles until Royce settles things here. We’re staying with some
vampire Royce knows, so it probably wouldn’t be a good idea for you to swing by unless
we can meet somewhere other than the vamp’s house.”
Arnold didn’t reply right away, waiting just long enough for the silence to grow ominous
before he spoke. “Whatever you do, stay away from the werewolves out there. There
are two primary packs that will pose a great deal of danger to you if they even get
a whiff of your scent. The Amberguard pack might just kill you, but the Goliaths will
kill and eat you. Not necessarily in that order.”
That was . . . good to know.
Particularly considering that Analie had mentioned her pack name at one point. Gavin,
the werewolf I was supposed to deliver the package to, was a Goliath.
Great. Just peachy keen.
“Hey, you’ve got my number. Just call me if you run into any trouble. I won’t be there
to help you two, but I might be able to talk you through any tough spots. And check
in with me in a few days; I might have an answer for you about what the black stuff
is and what it means.”
For the first time, I truly regretted blowing off Arnold’s offer to help me over the
last month. He might have saved me a lot of grief if I hadn’t listened to the belt
and had contacted him before the sickness set in. Even though he’d as good as confirmed
I was still infected, I wasn’t afraid anymore. He had resources in his mage coven
and access to potential solutions I couldn’t have dreamed of coming up with on my
own. The belt had well and truly warped my perceptions of what my options and who
my friends really were.
“Thank you,” I said, voice a bit thick. “Arnold, you’re a lifesaver.”
“Hey, what are friends for? Now put my girlfriend on. I want to hear her voice before
she leaves.”
I leaned over the breakfast bar and tossed the phone to Sara. She was quick to scoop
it up and rise from the couch, heading with purposeful strides and a quiet murmur
into the phone into the bedroom, shutting the door behind herself.
It seemed as good a time as any to find Royce and let him know we were almost ready
to leave. The two of us needed to have a chat, too. This entire situation was driving
me bonkers. After I had finally broken down and given in to my desire for him, we
had to separate. The breadth of a continent would be between us, taking away any chance
I had to get to know him as more than the embodiment of a fairytale nightmare and
understand what I had committed myself to practically before it began.
No one was in the hall when I left the apartment, though I could see someone’s booted
foot and jean-clad leg sticking out, barely visible in the doorway leading to the
foyer and outside. Whoever was on night watch was sprawled at the front desk.
I headed up the stairs, quietly padding my way to the third floor. The door leading
into Royce’s quarters was ajar, light spilling out through the crack. I nudged the
door open a bit and poked my head in, glancing around for the vampire.
He wasn’t in the main room with all its intimidating open space and eclectic collection
of statuary. For some reason, I felt the need to tiptoe across the hardwood floors,
my bare feet not making a sound as I made my way to Royce’s
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