What should he say? Congratulations seemed inappropriate, given the circumstances. Silas decided a nod would be enough.
“They say the baby is about seven weeks along. We didn’t even know.” He looked at Laina. “I guess she still doesn’t know.”
“She’ll be so excited, Kyle. The entire pack will be.”
“I hope so.”
Silas ran a hand through his hair. Too long and bushy, it caught in his fingers, but who had time for haircuts when you were hunting down your mortal enemy?
“We’ve got to find him,” Kyle said, his voice low and threatening. “Alex needs to pay for this.”
“I won’t stop until he does,” Silas said.
“What’s taking so long? Jason said Alex was so weak he could hardly use the amulet. That was weeks ago.”
“I know. Alex has to be working with a healer. Has to be.” Silas rubbed the back of his knuckles against the stubble on his chin. “I’m getting closer. I’m staking out a new place tonight.”
Kyle rose from his wife’s side and paced the room. “Maybe. Maybe you got too close and that was why he targeted Laina.”
“Yeah. I was thinking the same thing.”
“So, what are you going to do about it?” Kyle’s voice rose in pitch. “You have a Hecate on your side, a best friend who’s a caretaker. Fuck we’ve got a fairy godmother in Gerty, for Pete’s sake. Stop trying to do this on your own and get it done.”
Silas was pondering how to respond without losing his shit, when Meredith stumbled into the room, panting and doubled over. She looked like hell. Half her red hair spilled from her ponytail, her clothing was disheveled, and her eyes bulged.
She grabbed Silas by the collar and shook him. “You… you left me there. Why did you leave me there?”
“I… Uh….” Goddess, he felt like an asshole for leaving without her. But he’d had no choice.
“Do you know what cupping is?” Her voice was quiet but held a tinge of venom.
Slowly, he shook his head.
“After you left, Dr. Lucky Charms decided the therapy I needed involved suctioning heated glass cups to my skin.” She pulled the neck of her blouse aside to reveal an angry red welt. “Not only did it hurt like hell, he charged me five hundred dollars!”
“We’ll submit that to the department for reimbursement,” Silas mumbled.
“And then… And then…” She shook him harder. “By the time I left, my invented condition was a real one. I feel like I’ve been hit by a frickin’ truck. You abandoned me. I had to call for an Uber. An Uber, Silas! I could barely sit down.”
“Did he do that to your butt too?”
Meredith scowled. “My entire backside from neck to ankle looks like an infection of megasized adult acne.”
Kyle snorted, then broke into a full-out laugh despite himself.
Meredith raised her head, seeming to notice Laina in the bed and Kyle by her side for the first time.
“My sister,” Silas said. “She was stabbed today. We think it was Alex. I had to leave unexpectedly. I’m sorry.”
Lips parting, Meredith shoved against his collarbones and staggered backward, glancing between him and Kyle. “Manahan said you were here for your sister. I had no idea.”
“Who is this person?” Kyle asked Silas.
“Meredith.” She held out her hand in Kyle’s direction. “I’m Silas’s new partner.”
“She’s not really my partner,” Silas said. “Well, technically she is, but temporarily... and not really.”
Kyle raised his eyebrows. “I’m Silas’s brother-in-law, Kyle.”
