The park was just as crowded as the city sidewalks. Couples strolled hand-in-hand. People lined up at food vendors. A fucking bus was parked to one side, music blasting from it. A party bus? What the fuck? We had to do a sort of hop-skip through the crowd, shoving our way toward our target. He was making headway.
We came to a lake. Upon the lake, the oddest boats floated on wide rafts—half moons and Cinderella carriages. Obviously a big attraction. And they were lit up with strings ofcolored lights. Great glowing things floating across the lake. I was momentarily distracted.
Then the motherfucker got in a fucking Cinderella carriage!
“What the hell?” Killian growled as we stopped at the edge of the lake.
I grabbed the railing that separated the walkway from the boat dock. Below me, rows of neon crescent moons and carriages waited, their colors as obnoxious as their shapes. I looked from them to the man we'd been chasing. He was navigating his boat into the middle of the lake.
“Let's go!” I raced down to the dock, dragging Mi-cha with me. “Tell him we want a boat.”
Mi-cha started speaking to the man. He was gesturing wildly at our target. She flashed a badge at him, and he nodded, waving at a moon boat.
“He says the moons are easier to navigate.” Mi-cha waved at the boat. “It has a joystick controller. Hurry!”
“I can't believe I'm doing this,” Killian growled as he jumped into a neon green, glowing crescent moon.
Only two could fit in each boat. I went with Kill, leaving our guards to take another boat, and Sever with Mi-cha. Killian was in such a rush that he hit the dock as we backed into the lake. The human shouted at us, but Kill didn't care. We kept going, spinning in a circle before my husband got the hang of the huge black joystick controller.
“Killian!” I growled.
“I'm sorry!” Kill snapped. “The last time I used a joystick, it was in a fucking arcade. When I was twelve!”
“There!” I pointed at the pink carriage floating across the lake.
We shot after it. Which means we went about five miles an hour over the water.
“Come on,” Killian growled.
I motioned at the water, summoning my Water beag (a minor elemental magic). Suddenly, we surged toward the carriage, the water driving us forward. The carriage came to a stop, and three moon boats converged on it. Killian was standing up before we bumped into the carriage. Then he was cursing.
The boat was empty.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“Nothing?” I asked.
Hunter Mi-cha shook her head. “There are no cameras focused on the lake. And the dock employee says the man stole the boat. He just jumped in and took it. That's how I was able to get him to let us take the other boats. I showed him my police badge and told him we were chasing a suspect. Normally, you have to make a reservation for—”
“Hunter Mi-cha,” Killian growled. “We don't care about the boat rentals.”
“I'm so sorry.” She went quiet, her shoulders drooping.
“Kill!” I smacked him.
“Sorry, Hunter Mi-cha. I'm on edge,” he said. “He got pictures of us. Why? Why would he need them?”
“It can't be good,” I said, searching the crowd as we headed toward the vans.
“He has to look,” Mi-cha murmured.
“What's that?” I asked.
“He has to look at people and things to learn about them, right?” she asked in a stronger voice. “Maybe a picture allows him to look longer. And maybe the longer he looks—”
“The more he learns,” Killian finished. “Son of a bitch! He'll know everything about us soon.”
“Good,” I said.
