I’d forgotten about the pinky swear. “Morgan—”
“I can’ttellyou,” he said again. He reached into his pocket, pulled his phone free, and typed his passcode. Then he stared blankly at the screen. “What was I doing?”
My throat knotted. I swallowed the grief and fear and gently took the phone from his unresisting hand. “I think you were trying to help.”
I checked his text messages for anything from Alex or the other “chemistry club” kids: nothing. They probably used a more-secure app that automatically deleted messages after a short time. I scrolled through email, his contacts, even his calendar. Then I opened the Maps app.
There, under the “Recents” list, were all the addresses Morgan had searched for in the past month. Most were familiar: a convenience store, a couple of fast-food places...and a pinned address downtown.
I showed it to him. His lips tightened, and he nodded silently.
I took a screenshot and texted it to my own phone, then kissed Morgan’s greasy forehead. “I love you.”
He squinted at me. “Grandma? I don’t feel very well.”
“Don’t worry. I’m going to take care of this. I promise.” I stepped back. “Ronnie, I need you to take Morgan back to the shop.”
Ronnie entered the room and looked Morgan over. “Whoa. Is he...Do you think that’s safe? What if he goes full shoggoth-cat?”
I wiped my face. He was right. Whatever was happening to Morgan was progressing too quickly. He hadn’t become dangerous or violent yet, but who knew how long that would last. “Grab sheets from the hall closet. How much do you know about tying a man up?”
“Not much.”
“Then it’s a good thing you’ve got an expert here to teach you. We’ll get him safely restrained. Then, after I’ve left, I want you to call Jenny and Temple. Tell them what’s happened to Morgan, and that I’ll be back soon.”
Ronnie frowned. “Where are you going?”
“To end this.” I knew Jenny wouldn’t approve. She’d spent most of her life trying to atone for the hellish things she’d done. She’d want to get through to Alex, to save the friend she remembered.
After seeing Morgan, I had no such compunctions. Forget her “no killing” rules. I was only half-demon, but I was going to bring the full wrath of Hell down on Alex Barclay’s head.
“Things are about to get fun. In the words of the great Ash Williams, ‘Come get some.’”
CHAPTER 20
Annette
Blake jumped to his feet when he saw me carrying Morgan down the stairs. Behind him, Ava’s eyes filled with tears.
“He’s getting worse,” I said bluntly, before he could speak. “Ronnie’s taking him to Second Life. I need to borrow your car.”
“What the hell, Mom?” Blake moved to block our path. His body tensed, and his face set into that old, familiar, my-mother-is-the-worst grimace. “You’re handing your own grandson off to a stranger for what? So you can play detective again?”
I wished he would have yelled. Anger would have been easier to take than the raw hurt and disappointment.
“Morgan told me where to find Alex,” I said.
Blake’s expression changed. His lips thinned and his eyes narrowed. He pulled his keys from his pocket and gestured to the door without another word.
They watched as Ronnie and I strapped Morgan into the van. Morgan mumbled unintelligibly, but he didn’t struggle.
I patted his hand. “Jenny and Temple will take care of you. You’re going to be all right. I promise.”
I couldn’t tell if he heard or understood.
“I’ll get him there safely,” said Ronnie. “You have my word as a Kensington.”
He was so damned earnest, but I appreciated the sentiment.
