Page 17 of Hunted in the Shadows
Cliff bristled, voice sharpening. “What have I told you about digging into my phone?”
“I was trying to call Jon, andAnnajust happens to appear at the top of your contacts list.”
“Tell that to the last three hookups you texted back for me. That chick from Tennessee calls me once a week asking if I still think about her in the shower—thank you so much forthat.”
Pushing the laughter from my voice, I said, “You didn’t answer my question.”
He blew out a sigh. “Guess Blockbuster got me nostalgic yesterday. Figured it wouldn’t hurt to check what Anna’s been up to,” he muttered. “Looks like she’s still under Dad’s thumb since she went to the university he always wanted us to go to. I’m not gonna bother her. It’s enough to know that she’s doing alright.”
“Is it?” I murmured. “I would give anything to be able to pick up the phone and call Hazel right now if I could.”
Cliff leaned back in his seat so I received the full effect of his crooked smile. It was a kind of cocky, well-meaning grin that could disarm anyone. I had to remind myself that he was a master of misdirection to keep from smiling back. I had seen this deceptively simple move work many times on others.
Enough to see the flicker in his eyes that came with it, the faint clench to his jaw.
“Sylv, I’mfine. We finally iced that vampire nest, basically saved the city, and hey—bonus—none of us died in the process. It’s been a good end to the week, and you’re being a buzzkill.”
I huffed, shaking my head. “Come on, that ‘I’m fine’garbage doesn’t work with me anymore. It’s not a crime to talk about her, if you wanted to.” The hum of my beating wings felt deafening as I dropped my voice lower, gentler. “Anna didn’t hurt you the way the rest of your family did, right?”
A ripple of tension set through Cliff’s frame, but I felt bold, desperate not to lose my grasp on this shred of his past. I glanced at his neck, where his pulse was pounding.
“No,” Cliff said after a second. “She was barely fourteen. Just a kid.”
His gaze set on the cell phone like it was burning an acidic hole in the table. When he spoke again, his voice was fragile and gravelly—scarcely recognizable from its usual commanding resonance.
“It’s beenyears, Sylv. A long fucking time. If she can get past talking to a dead man, she’ll think I ran out on her—or worse.”
“You don’t know that,” I offered.
“And you do?” He rubbed his eyes with his palms. “I wouldn’t know what to say.”
“Maybe start by saying you’re proud of her. I mean—anyone who knows you could see that.”
He sucked air through his teeth. “That’s not enough.”
“Come on—you could sweet talk a rock into buying gravel. Trust yourself.”
I angled my hover into a graceful arc toward his phone. No sooner had I landed and swiped my palm over the touchscreen, Cliff snatched it out of my reach.
“This isn’t your goddamn business, okay?” Cliff said, the sudden punch behind each word making me jump. “Fuck off about this. Who cares?”
He shut the laptop with a harshsnapand started to rise from his seat. I acted on a half-formed thought—stay—andthrust my palms out to conjure a spell.Ice connected to his wrist, creating a thick cuff that sealed against the tabletop. Cliff’s eyes glimmered with surprise as they shot to me. He attempted to free himself with several vicious tugs before it became clear my ice was too thick.
“Cuffing people to tables now?” he grumbled, dropping back into the chair. “Dick move, Sylv.”
I drew in a shaky breath—bracing myself. “I know you don’t like to talk about what happened with your family—”
“And yet here we are,” Cliff drawled.
Pulling to a hover, I folded my arms over my chest and glared at him. “I’m done with your walls and your fucking secrets and you constantly shutting me out. If you want to brood alone, fine. But don’t pretend like no one cares.”
My heart pounded the moment the words fled my mouth, each coming out sharper than intended. I rarely raised my voice at Cliff like this, and now our eyes caught and my nerves buzzed. What if I had impulsively crossed a line I couldn’t return from?
But he didn’t look upset—in fact, the corners of Cliff’s mouth indented like he could be convinced to smile.
“You yell a lot when you care,” Cliff said. “Kinda starting to think it’s your thing.”
I eased back in the air, giving him space. “Don’t you think your sister at least deserves a chance to hear the truth?” I asked softly.
