Felipe and Sebastian arrived a few minutes later. They came in quietly, just as I’d told them to, though Sebastian was over exaggerating it by tiptoeing across the foyer tile.
“What’s the big secret?” Felipe asked.
I glanced toward the stairs first, making sure Maddy hadn’t come out of our room for some reason. “Maddy and I went to check on her bar today. I think she was getting sort of stir-crazy, and she missed the place. Anyway, we got there, and everything was untouched. Exactly like when she left it.”
“I’m assuming we’re going to come to a problem at some point?” Sebastian said.
“Getting there,” I said. “We both catch a scent. It’s not anything we recognize from the bar. Then it hits us. It’s Maddy’s birth mother.”
“No shit?” Felipe said.
I nodded. “Yeah. It was similar to Maddy’s smell but different enough for us to realize what was going on.”
“But she wasn’t there?” Sebastian asked.
“Not in the building. Maddy kind of lost her shit, understandably. She was pissed about her mom sneaking around her bar but not coming out to meet her. When we left, I found this.” I handed the sticky note over to Felipe. He and Sebastian looked at it.
Sebastian raised an eyebrow. “You aren’t going here, right? This sounds sketchy as shit.”
“I thought the same thing at first, but there’s no reason she’d attack me. And if it was some trick by the royals, they could have tried to take us right there at Maddy’s bar. No, this is a legit meeting. I’m not stupid. That’s why I called you guys over. Sebastian, I want you to stay with Maddy. Felipe, you’re coming with me.”
“Three o’clock?” Felipe said. “The witching hour?”
I rolled my eyes. “Trust me, the symbolism wasn’t lost on me. Werewolves, shifters, and secret societies? Why not throw in a nod to witches? Are you ready to go?”
“A little early, isn’t it?”
“It’s a bit of a drive to the outer edge of town, and it wouldn’t hurt to get there early and check the perimeter. I don’t think this is a trap, but there’s no reason to go in totally blind.”
An hour later, Felipe and I pulled up a half-mile from the address. We went the rest of the way on foot, walking in silence, not discussing anything, simply doing what needed to be done. I loved Sebastian like a brother, but he liked to talk when he was nervous, and this wasnotthe time for that.
The house looked safe. We made two different circuits. Once at a five hundred yards out, and another at a hundred. Neither of us saw anything that looked like a trap. There were also no signs of the royals’ soldiers. This place was clean. Felipe and I sat in the woods, and a quick glance at my watch told me it was time to move in.
“Ready?” I asked.
Felipe nodded but gave me a weird look. “I’m ready, but do you think anyone is in there?”
I glanced at the house again. Even from a hundred yards away, I could see what he was saying. The lights were on, but the housefeltempty. There were no shadows passing by the windows, no lights turning off or back on, and there didn’t seem to be a car in the driveway.
“Only one way to find out,” I said.
The walk up to the house was strange. It felt like we were here to peddle something like traveling salesmen or religious missionaries.Hello, do you have time to talk about our Lord and Savior Edemas?I shook the thoughts away as we stepped inside the gated fence that cordoned off the front yard. Felipe nudged me and gestured toward the porch. The front door wasn’t fully ajar, but it was definitely open a crack, a sliver of light clearly visible. I nodded to him, letting him know I’d seen.
At the top of the stairs, I took a tentative step up to the door. I gave the wood a single sharp knock. The front door swung in about three inches. Felipe nodded to me, so I pushed the door the rest of the way open. The brightness of the interior hurt our eyes after being in the dark for so long.
“Hello?” I called. There was no answer.
Felipe and I walked through the house, announcing our presence. There was no one here. Our instincts had been correct. I kicked a chair in the living room, releasing my frustrations.
“Nico? I found something,” Felipe said from the kitchen.
I rushed to the kitchen, where Felipe stood at the kitchen table. I looked down at what he’d found and released an irritated sigh. On the table was another damned envelope. My name was written on it in black marker.
“What is this damned woman playing at? I don’t like games,” I hissed as I picked up the envelope and opened it.
Felipe gasped, and my eyes widened. Maddy’s birth mother wasn’t playing games. She was giving us more information. Stuff we’d never have gotten on our own.
“You’ve gotta call Luis,” Felipe said as we dug through the contents.
