A few seconds passed with him staring after Tony, my eyes fixed to his profile. His blue eyes were the same sapphire shade as mine and Riley’s, his pale white skin-tone closer to my little brother’s. He looked like he did from the vision I’d seen of him and Juliet Aurora, the one he’d shown us. But older, crow’s feet around the corner of his eyes, his black hair speckled with gray.
“Dad…”
The dad who’d been cursed to be a shade. Thedad who’d killed my brother. The dad who’d taken Riley but let me and Preston be adopted into other families.
A clash of shock and rage swept me off my feet. He moved quickly, grabbing me before I hit the ground. I heard the shotgun clatter on the asphalt seconds later.
Rainwater pounded my face, forcing my eyes to close. My hands burned, my knees ached, and something new crawled through my body.
No, no, no. Tony bit me. Tony the wereleopard bit me and infected me and any moment now I’d shift into one too. Blue and orange, witch and a big cat.
“I’m here, Isaac,” Daniel said gently, lifting me into his arms. “I’ll get you home.”
The rain stopped hitting my face. I opened my eyes, his face blurry, his head blocking out the deluge.
“Dad…”
“It’s okay,” he whispered. “I’m here and I’m sorry. We’ll talk. We’ll?—”
Bright light bloomed across his features. He looked up, letting out a tight breath. I heard the car speeding toward us, coming to a stop, then Riley calling my name.
“Little brother,” I replied, turning my head.
“Dad?” he responded, his tone increasing by several octaves. “Is that you?”
I saw Daniel’s eyes glisten. “It’s me.”
I expected a major drama to kick off. Part of mewanted to punch my dad in the face, to launch into a full-scale panic attack for what he did to Riley.
But shock kept me still along with the were infection burning through my body.
“Can I take him, please?” Drake asked, flanked by Alice and April.
Daniel glanced down at me and smiled sadly. “Of course. Of course.”
He placed me into Drake’s arms as if I were a newborn baby.
“I’ve got you,” the scrying witch said to me.
“Dad…” Riley whispered, the rain seeming to fall harder. “You’re really here.”
“My sons,” Daniel responded. I saw him bend to pick up the shotgun. “I’ll be back.”
“Wait,” April said. “You can’t go.”
What happened next? What were we going to do with him?
“I have to. I must get The Star.”
There went another stomach drop. “What?—”
He took off, tearing through a hedge and calling back with, “I’ll have you all together again.”
The Bramble siblings went after him, Drake running to the car to get me out of the rain.
“Dad,” I rasped, everything spinning and blurry and gross.
Tony’s changed me.
