Page 83 of Blood So Brutal

Her eyes lingered on those wings before they shot back to mine. “You’re going back? Why?”

“It’s complicated, Rummy. I can’t explain it all, but there are some things I need to take care of before I can come back.”

There are some people I need to kill. There’s an entire evil archangel I need to get free from.But I didn’t tell her any of that. She had enough to worry about already.

“Are you alright?” she asked. “You survived Moira? You made it to The Golden City?” Her voice held so much hope, but why wouldn’t it? She still thought The Golden City was the great, magical place I could live my luxurious, perfect life in after completing Moira.

So, I smiled anyway, nodding my head. “I survived. I made it.”

She hugged me again. Hard.

“How are you?” I asked. “Tell me how you’ve been. What’s been going on around here?”

The smile faded from her face. She looked away, glancing down at her feet. “I don’t know, Hunt. Things are different. I can’t explain it, but it’s just a feeling. I’m on edge all the time; everyone is. It’s like we’re all afraid now.”

“Afraid of what?”

She shrugged. “Vampyres? Ourselves? I really don’t know, but the longer you’re gone, the worse it gets.”

When I didn’t respond, she shrugged. “But I’m sure I’m just being paranoid. We’ve all been a little on edge since the last attack.”

“Have there been more since I left for Moira?”

“Only one. The Phantoms took care of them this time, but we’re all waiting on the next attack.”

Even hearing her sayPhantomssent the hair on the back of my neck raising.

She picked up on it instantly, eyes softening. “He isn’t here.”

I stiffened. “What?”

“Lord isn’t here. I saw him go into the forest yesterday with a travel pack. I haven’t seen him since.”

My stomach dropped.

“Lord left?”

Jessiah’s features softened too. He had no idea who Lord was, had no idea how much it meant to me that I would get tosee him again, would get to tell him I survived, that I made it into The Golden City and I could finish what he started by sending me there.

“Maybe he’s back and I missed it,” she offered. “Or you could stay here with me and wait for him.”

“Not an option,” Jessiah interrupted from the shadows. “We’re running out of time already.”

He was the whole reason I got into this mess.

He was the whole reason for everything.

I slowly stepped backward. Maybe he returned. Maybe he snuck back in tonight and Rummy didn’t see his arrival.

“I have to go check,” I said. “I have to see for myself.”

Rummy reached out and gave my shoulder a squeeze. “I’m coming with you.”

Jessiah, to my surprise, didn’t stop Rummy from coming along as we slipped back onto the shadowed streets of Midgrave and headed for Phantom. Nobody said a word as the cave entrance approached. Nobody spoke as I stepped inside, eyes vigilant, listening for any signs of Lord.

But the cave was empty. Nobody was here.

“He could be home,” Rummy whispered. “There’s one last place you could check.”

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