Gigi made a “humph” noise, clearly not buying my story.
I rolled my eyes. “Come on.”
It shouldn’t have surprised me that even Gigi knew who Chase was, either personally or by reputation only. Even more reason for me to avoid him. Being around Chase would only get me noticed, and not in a way I’d like. If only my foolish heart would stop stuttering every time I saw him.
CHAPTER 23
I WAS BACK in my ridiculous cat burglar outfit, creeping in front of Alec’s house just after dark. Hopefully, the ensemble didn’t prove unlucky a second time. If it did, I was going to toss it into Gideon’s fireplace and light it on fire to exorcise the demons. A patch of scrubby ponderosa pines across from Alec’s house provided good cover for my stalking. Only the puffs of white from my breath were visible in the golden glow of the streetlight. I shuffled farther back, hugging myself to conserve as much heat as I could.
Waiting alone in the dark left my mind time to wander. How could April not have told me about meeting Alec? Just over a year ago, April had tried to rekindle things with Alec, but he’d moved on and told her to do the same. She’d dated a couple of guys since then, all of whom were a hundred times better than Alec as far as I was concerned. Was that what this coffee date was about? I was her sister. She could have confided in me. Although I would have done my best to talk her out of meeting Alec. Maybe that was why she didn’t say anything.
A text drew my attention away from the stakeout.
Gigi: Thanks for helping me today! I feel so much better about Saturday.
Me: Of course. You’re going to do great!
I smiled to myself, happy to help someone like Gigi. I had the odd sense that she reminded me of the person I could have been if my life didn’t revolve around revenge.
I tucked my phone away and shifted in position for a better view of the street. Alec may have graduated from Hell High, but he was still living at home, two neighborhoods over from my house. The picture of Alec and April weighed heavily in my pocket, along with the note instructing him that his fiancée would be receiving a copy tomorrow unless he called Mrs. Conrad to recommend some silly freshman for a role in the musical. Never mind that I didn’t think Alec’s word was worth anything. Apparently, the Red Court thought differently.
The flash of headlights spooked me as a car came around the bend. I recognized it as Alec’s truck. Haley’s plan dictated that I should leave the note on Alec’s car or wrap it around a rock and chuck it at him if I was feeling less charitable. But neither option was very appealing.
I imagined the look in Alec’s eyes when I showed him the photo. I wanted him to see me and know that I held his future in my hands. This wasn’t high school. It was the rest of his life I could be affecting. My pulse was already racing at the implication of what I was doing, catapulting me to a whole new level of Red Court high.
As Alec gathered his bag and coat from the front seat, I deserted my hiding place and crossed the street.
“Alec?” I called out.
He turned and squinted into the darkness. “Hello?”
His confusion turned to surprise when he recognized me. “Ember? What are you doing here?”
Ruining your life.
“I have a delivery for you, actually.”
“From April? Listen, I can’t accept any gifts or notes. I tried to tell her over coffee the other week. I’m engaged now.”
He held up his left hand like he was wearing the engagement ring. So dramatic.
“That’s not what this is.” I gave him a withering glance, my best Gideon and Haley hybrid.
“Oh, ok. I was sorry to have to tell April I didn’t want to get back together. I know things haven’t been easy for her.”
“They haven’t, but if you ask me, she’s a whole lot better off without you.”
I yanked the picture and note out of my pocket and shoved them at Alec’s chest.
“Ow! What’s this?” He looked down at the note and photo.
“The Red Court wanted me to give that to you.”
“I don’t understand.”
Alec’s fingers clenched around the paper. If I had to hazard a guess, I’d bet he did understand. This was his reckoning. A past mistake finally catching up to him. He should have run farther.
“The Red Court says that if you don’t call Mrs. Conrad by tomorrow morning, like they’ve asked, your fiancée will be receiving a copy of that photo.”
Alec’s chin lifted and he narrowed his eyes. “So?”
He just had to be difficult. The Red Court wouldn’t have given me the photo as ammunition unless it was capable of striking a killing blow. “Does your fiancée know that you met your ex-girlfriend, one who broke up with you, for coffee? Recently?”
His eyes flicked quickly to the left, but I caught what they said, even if Alec wouldn’t admit it out loud.
“If you were going to meet April for coffee just to tell her that you two are definitely over, why not tell your fiancée? If that was the case, April would surely back you up.”
Alec grimaced. If I was a betting girl, I’d wager that Alec hadn’t told my sister that they were well and truly done. Maybe his vanity couldn’t let go of some girl pining over him.
“And you? What’s your part in all this?”
Wouldn’t you like to know, asshole.
“I’m just unlucky to know you, and the one they tasked with delivering the message. Just do what they ask. This photo would be a hell of an engagement gift for her.”
“I can’t believe you, Ember. This is my future wife. You’d really ruin everything for me because of some promise I made to a stupid high school club?”
We were more than a club and he knew it. I continued to aim my practiced stare at him, silent.
“I thought I was done with this crap,” he muttered.
In his dreams. I bit my lip to keep from smirking. This jerk made a deal and thought he was in the clear. It was time he learned the Red Court motto.
“Don’t you know? You never stop owing them.”
* * *
I was nearly back to my car a few blocks down from Alec’s house when a twig snapped behind me. I whirled around, searching the darkness, and groped desperately in my hoodie pocket for the key-chain pepper spray my mom had given me. Safety first.
“Hi,” a quiet voice from the shadows murmured.
“Umm...hi,” I said back. My numb fingers finally grasped the pepper spray bottle. Carefully, I pulled the tiny canister out, trying to keep it concealed in my palm.