Sinthy opened the closet and pulled out a big shopping bag. “I teleported to town as an experiment, and while I was there, I monitored the wards’ strength if I wasn’t around. It stayed solid, so I decided to grab a few things while I was there.”
“Son of a bitch,” Nico said. “So, it does work.” He let out a heavy sigh.
He’d obviously trusted Sinthy, but the uncertainty looked like it had added five years to his life. Knowing the protection would remain in place if she left had a relieved grin spreading across his face as Sinthy walked over with the bag.
“Here.” She handed Nico a stack of small boxes.
Nico looked at the six boxes with pictures of phones on them. “Phones?” Nico asked, looking thoroughly confused.
Sinthy nodded. “Burners, as the kids call them.” She grinned mischievously. “I figured you guys would ditch your phones here and take these instead. There’s a chance Viola could trace you guys with your personal phones.”
Nico held one of the boxes up and chuckled. “Didn’t even think of that. Thank you, Sinthy.”
“No problem. And these are for you, Maddy.” She handed me a few bottles of pills and a thick book.
She’d gotten me prenatal vitamins and a pregnancy book. Tears pricked my eyes. Sinthy had thought about my baby while she was out there in the real world. This sweet woman was thinking about what was best for my baby, and all I could do was complain that the timing was bad.
I gritted my teeth and made a decision. From today, I was going to try to celebrate and enjoy this pregnancy. It was a happy time, one that deserved to be observed with joy. I couldn’t let Viola steal that happiness from me.
Sniffling back tears, I put an arm around Sinthy. “Thanks. I really appreciate it.”
“When do we want to go?” Sinthy asked.
Nico looked across the room at the guys, raising his eyebrows questioningly.
Luis shrugged. “We’re good whenever,” he said.
Swinging his gaze back toward me, Nico said, “I guess we need to say our goodbyes.”
Mom and Dad got to the house less than ten minutes after I called them. Nico’s parents and brothers were all there too. All of them looked relieved that we were getting someplace even safer but worried about being so far from us.
“You’ll check in a lot, won’t you?” Mom asked as she hugged me tight.
“Yes, Mom. I promise. When it’s possible, I definitely will.”
Her hand moved from my back down to my belly, and she smiled sadly. “Be careful. For your sake, but also for the baby’s. I can’t wait to meet the little one.”
I took Mom’s hands in mine and looked into her eyes. “It’s going to be all right. We’ll be safe. Please try not to worry about us.”
I said my farewells to my dad and Gabriella, then to Nico’s family. Nico’s mom and I hadn’t gotten off to the best start, but over the last few weeks, all that had really smoothed out. Her eyes were even a little misty as she hugged me.
Sinthy came into the room with the little wooden box that held the vial. I still had no clue where she’d hidden it all this time. I could almost feel my pupils dilate as my eyes fell on the box. Something about that damned thing always called to me. Like a phantom or ghost was nudging and pushing me toward it. My heart rate jumped a little, and my palms got sweaty too.
Sinthy saw the look on my face and sighed. “That’s what I thought.”
Blinking rapidly to clear my head, I looked up at her. “Huh?”
She pointed to the box and then to me. “This thing is like freaking catnip for you. That’s why I hid it and put a bunch of spells around it. Otherwise, your mind would have been on this thing all day, every day.” She waved her hand over the box. “Hang on a second.”
Indecipherable words tumbled from her mouth as she moved her hand across the wood. Then, in an instant, the strange pull of the box vanished, and I was suddenly back to myself.
“Are we ready?” Nico asked as he slung a backpack on his shoulders.
I hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, I think so.”
Nico’s father stepped forward and hugged his son again. “I’ll keep this place safe, son. I promise. Everything will be as it was when you get back.”
Nico smirked at him. “Well, you do have enough practice. What was it? Thirty years as pack alpha?”
