Page 57 of The Spider Queen
Anita stayed with Jonah and though Hunter offered to walk me home, I told him I wanted time to myself.
“You sure?” he asked. “You aren’t going to use that time to rethink everything, are you?”
I laughed and pulled him close. “No. I just want some time to go all squishy over you.”
He wrapped his arms around me. “I like the idea of you all squishy over me.”
As I walked home in his clothes, I sent off a few texts to Francis and the others. There was no immediate reply, so I forced myself to put my phone away. I was glad Anita had stayed with Jonah because there was something I needed to do.
I let myself into the apartment and then slowly made myself go into my bedroom, expecting to move Thane in his glass cube to the back of my closet and leave him there.
But the cube—and Thane—were gone.
Chapter 19
I gently lowered the mental wall. There was nothing coming through. It was a dark void.
Thane? Where are you?
No reply.
I called to him again, but there was only silence.
I pulled my room apart, but Thane was nowhere to be found.
Thane!I yelled, a bit more desperate.
I briefly thought about texting Anita and asking if she’d seen the cube, but I knew that would set her off.
I believed in the validity of science because I liked the answers it provided—hypotheses could be proved or disproved. Right then, I didn’t have any valid explanations for why Thane was missing, and it messed with my head. I hated puzzles I couldn’t figure out.
Late winter sunlight streamed through the blinds. Speckles of light hit the wall. I traced it to the stack of books that faced my computer. I set my hand down on top of the stack and curled my palm. It felt like gravel in my hand. Peering closer, I realized they were glass remains.
Had Thane broken out of his cube?
How?
I looked around the room again, wondering what had transpired here while I’d been in Hunter’s bed. Maybe Thane had been fighting his own battle.
After I put everything back in its place and cleaned up the glass, I went to shower. While I waited for the water temperature to adjust I reached out to Thane once more, hoping he’d answer me this time.
I don’t know what happened to you, Thane. I hope wherever you are, you’re safe.
I stepped under the hot water and washed away the last couple of days. There were gaps in my memories and dreams of shadows and terror, and I tried to make peace with what could’ve happened but didn’t. Hunter had shown up and saved me from a terrifying fate.
But by the time I got dressed, I wasn’t feeling any better. In fact, my funk was worse. Francis hadn’t gotten back to me, there had been no communication from Thane, and even though I tried not to think about Friday night, questions pounded at my skull.
The late Sunday morning was bright and clear. Spring would be here soon and I couldn’t wait. There was nothing like Charleston in spring. Everything was green and pink. I was sick of the deadness of winter.
I left the house and meandered back toward Hunter’s apartment. I thought about calling him, but he rarely called me; he just showed up. I liked that about him.
“Hey,” he said, a smile transforming his face as he opened the front door. “I thought I was going to pick you up at your place.”
“I wanted to surprise you this time,” I said.
He closed the door behind him and locked up. “Where are we going? Are you hungry?”
“Can I show you something?” I asked.
