Page 12 of Monsters of Midnight

“A lot of good protection, I am,” I complained, my heart still rubbed raw from having lost Caroline. If something came to attack us, I might just lie down and let it rip me to shreds.

Chapter 6

RYDER

I noticed the look of disapproval from Magnus and the glance of glee from Ratchet. I didn’t like either one of them. Ratchet’s look made me think he thought there was something more going on between Laney and it might lead to mischief. Magnus was just clearly jealous that his former girlfriend was no longer his own. She obviously wasn’t mine. The last thing I could bear to think about was another woman, but there was something really familiar about Laney that I really appreciated. It could be that she wore the same perfume as Caroline, or maybe that they had similar mannerisms. There was something about Laney that reminded me distinctly of Caroline, and made me comforted by her presence.

I closed the door quietly behind me as we left and walked down the spiral staircase toward the hillside. Mount Diablo was a beautiful barren mountain. It was full of golden grass and walking trails that made it a delight to spend time in. I hadn’t built this place just to get out here in the open or to look at the scenery from behind the glass. I’d actually come out here because I enjoyed walking out into the woods. The freedom to try different things and to go to different places and to enjoy going on long hikes. The moon was so full in the sky it created enough light for us to walk by. Laney tripped at first so I reached back and grabbed her hand to steady her but quickly let it go. It was almost like a shock to touch her.

“Are you flowing some of your fire fly mojo?” I asked.

Laney looked at me and rolled her eyes. “I don’t even know what firefly mojo is, much less how I’m supposed to use it. I did some things when I was in the volcano. I really don’t have any defensive mechanisms against anything that comes at us.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of that,” I grumbled, “but I don’t really think we have anything to worry about. Ratchet wouldn’t have let us go if there was any danger of us being way laid. We would see it on the rift map or they will see it from the roof before we see it here.”

“What I should be doing is being at home and researching what I can do with my fire fly powers,” Laney responded.

“There’ll be plenty of time for that,” I said. “We’ve just been through a big shock and I’m still not quite sure how either one of us is actually going to deal with it. I know I for one am having trouble thinking about anything other than Caroline.”

“Me too,” Laney murmured. “I just get like the weirdest things, like a flash of the way she would eat ice cream.”

“Oh my gosh wasn’t that just the craziest thing ever?” I chuckled lightly at the thought of it. “The way she would get it in a cone and then bite the bottom of the cone and wait for it to drip out, then she would bite the top off really quickly, so it didn’t flow over the sides.”

Laney laughed. “Or the way she lined up all of her shoes so neatly and if one got out of place, she would quickly move it so it was back in line.”

“Nothing else was in line. It’s like you think the house would be all nice and neat and tidy like the shoes but no, there are piles of clothes and disorganization.” I smiled at the memory.

We were walking along the mountain side, breathing in the fresh air. I reached out and let the long grass run against my hands. It felt good to be in touch with reality. The one overriding thought just kept coming to the foreground. “I just-I just want to know where she is,” I said. “Like where she is inside Undirheim and what she’s doing.”

I felt completely defeated.

Laney stayed silent as we walked along.

I felt the words bubbling out of me, momentary musings, dying to get out. “It’s no shock she died before I did that was to be expected. It was always going to happen, but I don’t know. I thought we’d at least have some life together. I didn’t realize something I was doing was going to get her killed.”

“It wasn’t what you did,” Laney insisted. “Magnus did that.”

“Magnus was just trying to help our mother,” I pointed out.

“You can’t seriously be letting him off the hook,” Laney insisted. “He’s the one who got the rings available to Cade. Even if you let it slide that he killed your wife, there’s still the little problem of oh, he tried to destroy all of humanity just so your mother could find some peace. I mean that’s a little narrow, don’t you think? Whatever happened to the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the one?”

“I’m not letting him off the hook,” I insisted. “He’s going to have to face the Demigod Corporation no matter what.”

“Are they seriously going to do anything about it?” Laney asked.

“I should hope so,” I responded. “It’s part of their job to govern people and punish wrongdoers. If we can prove it”

“What do you mean? I saw them give him the rings!” Laney cried.

“It doesn’t mean they will find him at fault., I pointed out.

“He had my best friend killed,” I insisted.

“Cade killed Caroline,” I clarified.

“He had a hand in it!” My voice was getting shrill.

“It’ll take a long time to prove that,” I shrugged.

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