Page 96 of Fool Me Twice

Roma swallows hard. “Thanks, Locke,” she says, and decisively, she pushes herself to her feet. “I appreciate that.”

Chester seems to sense just as acutely as Roma that their moment is over. He takes a measured step back, putting a respectable distance between them. “Just sleep on it, okay, Gutierrez? Get your head back on straight before reporting to the Council. Everything will work out for the best in the end‍—we just need‍—‍” He lets out a slow breath. “Well. We just need to get there first.”

Roma’s smile feels wan. “Yeah. Yeah, I know. Sleep well, okay?”

“You, too,” Chester says, and he claps her on the shoulder before slipping out of their little alcove, jogging upstairs to his bedroom.

Roma counts off sixty seconds in her head before following him, checking both ways to make sure no one else is around. She heads towards her own room at a quick walk, trying to avoid anyother hunters, and slinks through her door with her shoulders slumped and her head bowed. Engages the lock behind her, blindly changes into her pajamas, brushes her teeth.

Collapses into bed and buries herself under the covers and cries until sheer exhaustion drags her into a fitful sleep.

41

For a long moment after Obie’s rift closes, the living room shudders into tense silence. Ez’s pulse is still screaming in her ears, and her heart still feels like it’s been scraped raw, and everyone just looks numb and hollow and dejected. And then‍?—

“Well,” Obie says, crossing his arms over his chest. “That’s over with.”

The words are so abrupt that Ez chokes down a shocked laugh. Cass looks torn between impressed and appalled.“Obie.”

“Where did you send her?” Micah asks, morbidly fascinated.

“Back to the Sanctum,” Obie says flatly. “Where she belongs.”

“We could’ve just killed her,” Gregorio says.

Ez’s stomach drops. “No, we‍—‍” she begins, but her voice comes out too cracked and too shaky. She cuts herself off, looking away.

Sawyer shoots Ez an unreadable look before turning back to Gregorio. “No, we couldn’t have. That’s how wars start, and we can’t afford a war right now. Not until we end the epidemic.”

“Right,” Micah says, and his eyes flicker to JJ. “You feel confident that you can cast this counterspell with Ez, Jackson?”

To Ez’s dismay, JJ doesn’t seem nearly as sure of himself as before. “Not really,” he admits softly, and his eyes meet hers. “You still think I’m human enough to be your human spellcaster?”

“Human enough?” Naomi repeats blankly. “Why wouldn’t you behumanenough?”

“Long story,” Cass says curtly, and Ez winces. Looks like that’s one secret they’re going to have to share with their allies sooner rather than later. “We’ll explain another time. Ez? Can he still do it?”

Bile rises in Ez’s throat. She swallows it down hard. “I don’t know. But‍—but we’re not risking you, JJ. We’ll check how our magic combines with some basic spells before we even think about touching the Deep. After all, you already survived one thing that should’ve killed you. We’re not breaking that streak now.”

JJ’s shoulders relax, and Cass flashes Ez a grateful look. And much as Ez loves JJ, much as she appreciates his willingness to help, much as she respects his work ethic and determination‍?—

She doesn’t think he’ll be able to cast this counterspell with her, no matter how much he practices. After all, the Deep rejected Roma just for having Sanctum enchantments; Ez doesn’t even want to think about how it might react to JJ’s half-demon soul. And there’s no way Cass would let JJ do anything that could hurt him.

And neither would Ez, honestly. JJ might’ve been a human interloper at the beginning, but now, he’stheirhuman interloper.

Just like Roma was. Ez forces the thought away. “For now, though, we have bigger problems,” she says, and she turns to Naomi and Sawyer. “I had my phone on speaker when Obie gave me your address, so Roma could definitely find it again. And she could probably track down two of my properties‍—including myactual home‍—if she wanted to.” Fleetingly, Ez remembers the softness of earlier this evening, remembers dreaming with Roma about a day in their lives together and pulling a laughing Roma into her lap on the couch; viciously, she shoves the memories down. “We need new safe houses.”

Sawyer purses her lips. “Would Roma risk it, though?” she asks, casting a calculating glance at Naomi. “If she tells the Sanctum about us, she’ll be revealing that she knows about the conspiracy, too. I doubt she’d be bold enough to imply that to the Council.”

Naomi’s jaw works. “I don’t think she’d risk telling the Council about us, no. But she could always make up another reason to send a strike team here. We have to leave.” She looks around, regret flitting over her face. “Six years of safety here, and it only took ten minutes to bring it all crashing down.”

“And this place is still in my name,” Gregorio says grimly. “Thought it would keep the Chain and the Sanctum from scrutinizing it too closely. I’ll have to figure out how cover our tracks.”

Ez’s heart hurts. She still doesn’t trust Naomi and Sawyer, not completely, but‍?—

But shedoestrust their conclusions about the conspiracy. She trusts that they’re trying to do what’s right, even if it’s sometimes been in the worst way possible.

And she trusts that this loss is hitting them just as hard as it’s hitting Ez. “Do you need any help packing?” she asks tentatively. “I know you’ve been fugitives before, but…”

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