“I will try.”
Twenty-Six
Zoe
Where the hell is Sin? He’s been gone for two hours, and we’re supposed to head to a seedy bar in the Tenderloin in twenty minutes. The Bureau has a full wardrobe of undercover outfits tailored for each of its agents, and one of the witches helped me choose a tight black skirt, patterned stockings, and a shimmery red tank that dips low between my breasts and leaves next to nothing to the imagination.
Oh, and no bra.
“Stop fidgeting,” Amber says as she pins my hair up so delicate ringlets tease my neck. “That spell won’t hold the top to your boobs forever, you know. The more you tug at the material, the weaker it gets.”
“Great. So I need to worry about a wardrobe malfunction all night?”
The shy witch blushes. She can’t be much older than twenty, but her hazel eyes hold wisdom well beyond her years. “Not all night. Just maybe after 10:00 p.m. I’m trained in reading auras during interrogation. Physical magic was never my passion.”
“Auras?”
Amber steps back and gives me the once over. “Spin for me?”
I try and almost fall over with the three-inch heels I’m wearing. “Don’t we have anything more…sensible? How am I supposed to chase after anyone wearing these things?”
“Easy,” Amber says with a grin. “Just say the words, ‘Feet, don’t fail me now.’ They’ll turn into sneakers.”
“Really?” Just when I think I get a handle on this world, there’s something new to process. “Feet, don’t—“
“Not yet! Otherwise I’ll have to reset the whole spell!” Amber shakes her head. “Sorry, I should have said that up front. I forget that you’re human. You carry yourself like one of us.“
“I have no clue what the fuck I’m doing most of the time,” I admit. “But what do you mean ‘one of us’?”
“An other.” The witch frowns and narrows her eyes. “Stand still for a minute, okay?”
“Sure.” My skin tingles all over, like something inside me is desperate to escape. It’s probably just my desire to get out of these tight clothes, but Amber’s stare unnerves me, despite her shy personality. After a full two minutes, I start to fidget again. “Um, Amber? What are you doing?”
The witch flinches, like she forgot I was even here. “Sorry. I was trying to get a read on your aura, and it’s…weird.” Twirling a lock of blond hair around her finger, she chews on her bottom lip, then swallows hard enough I can hear it. “You’re not human, Zoe. I don’t know what you are. But you are definitely not human. And…” Amber huffs out what might be a laugh. “You knew.”
“Suspected,” I correct. “And I don’t know what I am either. You really have no idea?”
I would do almost anything for answers, and I think Sin has them, but every time we start talking about it, we end up fucking each other blind. So not helpful.
“No. It’s like…you’re human on the outside, but not the inside.” She shrugs. “It’s hard to explain. Like, there’s this other-ness deep in your soul, but your body…that’s human.”
I’m about to press her for more answers when my phone rings. The tight leather skirt has a hidden pocket at the small of my back, and I tap the single earbud in my left ear. “Sin? If you’re not back here in—“
“It’s Dion.” Her voice, usually so bubbly and effusive, holds an edge of strain, and I can hear people talking around her. “I just left my place, and I think the bitch who took Jacinda is following me. I’m scared, Zoe. What do I do?”
“Tell me where you are.” I nod at Amber and run—with very small steps thanks to this damn tight skirt—to my desk. “I hear people. You’re not alone, right?”
“I’m on Market Street. Ten blocks from Loup Noir. But, Zoe…shit. I don’t want to lead her there. And she’s getting closer.”
“Do not, under any circumstances, talk to her. Do you understand? Don’t let her say a word to you. Put in your earbuds, blast the music, stay where there are lots of people. I’ll meet you outside Macy’s in…um…ten minutes.”
“Just…hurry. Please.”
The Bureau has a pool of cars parked under the building, and I snatch up the keys for a Thunderbird and text Sin from the elevator.
Dion’s in trouble. I’m going to pick her up on Market Street, then bring her to the Bureau. Get your ass back here ASAP.
Ten minutes later, my phone buzzes as I double-park around the corner from Macy’s. Sin’s name flashes across the screen, but I shove the phone into my pocket. I don’t have time for this now. He’s just going to yell at me, and in five minutes, I’ll have Dion and we’ll be on our way back to the Bureau.
My feet are already starting to ache as I turn onto Market Street, but Dion’s mane of jet black hair is just barely visible over the rest of the crowd and so I push through the discomfort. She’s facing away from me, pretending to window shop at the department store. Thank God.
“Dion!” I say as I reach for her arm.
“Do not say another word,” an accented, alluring voice says in my ear. “Your voice belongs to me now.”
Panic wraps icy fingers around my heart, and I try to scream, but nothing comes out.
“Give me your phone and your keys,” the woman says, and my entire being aches to please her. I can’t give her my phone. I need it. And my keys. Dion is only a foot away from me, and her eyes…they’re so serene, almost like she’s floating on air. Her lips are parted slightly, and she watches the woman behind me. Regina.
The keys slip from my hand, but I don’t make a move to pull my phone from my pocket. Fight. Find your voice and scream your damn head off.
A tiny, weak sound tickles my throat, and for a second, I think maybe I can fight her. Until Regina turns me around, takes my chin in her long, bony fingers, and pins her cold stare on me. “You will do as I ask, or I will kill the panther by flaying her skin from her body one inch at a time. Give. Me. Your. Phone.”
Each word is like a sledgehammer to whatever fight I have left. I’m so tired. And if I give in…everything will be okay. I know it will. Because the old woman is smiling now. Her orange eyes…how did I think they were cold? They’re full of tenderness. Understanding. She knows what’s best. She’ll take care of me.
I slip my phone into her palm, then take out my earbud and drop it on the ground. As Regina slams her foot down on it, something deep inside me knows I’ve made a terrible mistake. Until she speaks again. “Come now, ladies. Your new master awaits.”
With an arm around each of our waists, Regina leads me and Dion to the Thunderbird, tells us to get into the back seat and sit still, and slides behind the wheel.
Fight, Zoe. She’s dangerous. She’s going to kill you. And Sin.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I try desperately to scream, to move even a single finger. I’m close. So close. The thought of losing Sin—of him caught in Thorn's clutches again—is almost enough to let me break free. But then the Fae bitch turns around with a tiny, odd-looking gun in her hand. “Time to say goodnight.”