He holds my gaze for several long seconds. “One of my kind just had a baby day before yesterday. His wife is a human.”
Crap!
“They’re not safe. None of you are.”
“I know. Bolt is going to brief—”
“You don’t get it. If I was the harpy – and I’ve had to learn to think like these creatures – if I was her, I’d be headed for the hospital right now. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that you and Bolt were in that ward together for a reason. She saw you two together and then followed him. I’m sure she’s going back. Might even be there as we speak.”
His jaw tightens, and his eyes blaze. “You’re right! I’ll let Night know.” He grabs his phone and dials. I catch snatches of his conversation. He tells this Night person what happened and urges him and his family to leave the hospital. Then he calls another doctor at the hospital and tells him to sign a release form for the mother and baby. “They’re leaving as we speak. I wonder if I should go over there.” He scratches his beard.
“You can, but they’ll probably be gone by the time we get there.” I fold my arms. “You need to stay away from all of your non-human friends. She’s using you to get to them. Text Night and tell him to watch out for a tail. She’s in a white Toyota Camry, sporting a bullet hole in the back, but she might switch cars.”
I watch him send the text.
“Has he seen it?”
“Yes, they’re driving out as we speak.” He looks worried.
“Okay, then. I’m going to get an Uber.” I frown. “I don’t like the thought of leaving you on your own, but I don’t have a choice. Do you think you’ll manage for a couple of hours?”
Lyre smiles. He’s so cute when he does. His eyes dance. His whole face lights up. “I’m a big boy. I can take care of myself.”
A big boy.
I try hard not to think of him in those boxer shorts and fail. Yes, you are! “I know, but I still worry. Lilith is conniving.” I decide to mess with him. “Let’s face it, you have a thing for the harpy. Can you even trust yourself if she were to show up?” There might be some truth to what I’m saying. I am worried for him and his friends.
His eyes darken. “I do not have a thing for the harpy.”
“Do I need to proposition you to prove a point all over again?” I chuckle.
“You can proposition me all you want, but don’t start something you can’t finish, Morgan.” His gaze bores right into me. I feel my breathing hitch and my core tighten.
I see his nostrils flare, and I pray I put enough perfume on this morning to cover my scent. I want Lyre. I don’t care what species he is. Maybe if we had met under different circumstances, things would be different.
“I cleared my afternoon when I ran out of the office earlier. Don’t call an Uber, I’ll take you wherever you need to go.”
“No,” I start saying, shaking my head.
“Let me help you, Morgan. You’re helping me.”
“I’m doing this for Andy.” I don’t know why I say that because it isn’t completely true anymore. This used to be all about Andy. It’s still mostly about my partner, but I’ve come to like Lyre. I still have to be on my guard, but I’m definitely starting to trust him. I’m mostly doing this for Andy, but it’s about more now. I find I want to help Lyre. I want justice for him, as well. “And for you too,” I push out the words, feeling my cheeks heat. I hate that I sometimes feel like a schoolgirl around this man. “So, a ride would be great.”
“Great! I can try to help you fix this. I think I know where we can get parts.”
“I need to go to a scrapyard,” I say.
He frowns. “Scrapyard?”
“I’m not spending good money on a new gasket. Some of the vehicles in the scrapyard are practically new, which means their parts are practically new as well. I’ll salvage the parts I need, and then we can head back here. It’s going to be a long afternoon, so feel free to leave anytime…just be careful.”
“I said that I would help. We’re partners in this, we need to watch each other’s backs. Also, she’s technically not after me, is she? She’s after my friends.” His eyes narrow, and his jaw tenses.
“But she needs you to get to them. We’ll get her before that happens.”
“Unless she already knows where one of them lives. I did this. I brought her into our lives.”
“I was the one who insisted that Andy and I rush headlong into that warehouse. I’m the reason he’s lying in that bed.” I grab his hand and squeeze. “We screwed up, but we can fix this. We will fix this.”
He nods once, pulling his hand away. “Let’s get your car fixed. Maybe we should just have it towed to—”
“No….” I panic just a little. I have very little money left. “I’ll fix it. It’s not a big deal.” I play it down. It’s a big job, but I’m up for it. My car is quite literally the only thing I have left in this world. I don’t like the idea of taking a day to fix it but what choice do I have? The good news is that Lilith is desperate. It’s just a matter of time before we get her; before I end her.
13
Lyre
It’s dark when I pull into my garage. Morgan pulls up alongside me like she does every day. The neighbors will talk if she parks out on the street. I can see that she’s exhausted, but she insisted on coming back to my place anyway. She said it’s still early, and there’s a harpy out to get me. I couldn’t argue with that. I need to keep my friends safe, and that means we have to catch her. Night, Shannon and their baby daughter got home safely. We’ve set up a system to check in with one another.
The garage door closes. The lights are on. They work on a motion sensor.
I get out of my car and watch as Morgan does the same. She stifles a yawn. “Why don’t you come inside?” I point to the door that leads into my house.
She shakes her head. She’s so damned hard-assed. “I should get out there and keep watch.” She unzips a bag on the back seat and takes out a small bag of potato chips, a chocolate bar – I think it might be the one I gave her earlier - and a can of soda. She looks down at her hands, which are covered in grease. “I might use your bathroom first to wash up.”
I frown. “That had better not be your dinner.” I look at the junk food in her hands as I walk around my car to her.
“What’s wrong with this?” She holds the items up.
“That’s not food. It has zero nutritional value.” I take a few steps towards her. “Do you have any idea what this is doing to your arteries?” I touch the bag of potato chips, and it crackles.
“No, and I would prefer not to know.”
“You can’t eat that.”
“I can.”
I make a noise of exasperation. “You are the most stubborn woman I have ever met. We’ve had one hell of a day. Please just come inside. You should absolutely use my bathroom.” I can’t help but smile. Morgan has a smudge of grease across her cheek. It’s adorable. Before I can think about it, I gently rub her face with my thumb and hold it up. “You’re covered in grease. You could do with a good scrub and a change of clothes.”