“I know, I know, that’s as likely to happen as I am to turn into a sweet little kitten.” Tate’s words were lighthearted, meant to make me worry less. Except he always forgot I could feel what he was feeling.
Right now, waves of anxiety and worry poured down our bond.
Nodding to appease him, I let Tate leave me behind.
I went back to my room and stalked the length of it. My shadows wafted around me, filling the room with darkness. They had searched the entire vampire crypt by now and had turned up with nothing. I hated myself for not putting shadows on her, even when she was sleeping. If I had, then I’d know where she was right now.
Terrified at finding her the same way we found her a few nights ago, my shadows twitched in agitation. I tried calling her again.
This time, it rang. And rang. And rang. Each ring was like a stab on my heart until finally it went to voicemail again.
My fingers curled around the phone as I sank down onto the bed. The time seemed to go on forever. Every time I looked at my phone, time had barely passed, so I stopped looking.
When the door opened, I jumped off the bed, crowding Tate as soon as he stepped into my room. “Did you find her?”
Tate shook his head. “No sign of her and her bike is gone. Did you try calling her again?”
“Yes,” I hissed as I turned back to the room. “No answer.”
The anxiety in Tate had risen even more, adding to mine. “You don’t think she… got attacked again, do you?”
For the first time in over a hundred years, I cursed my existence as a vampire. If I wasn’t one, then I could go out there and search for her in the daylight. I wouldn’t feel so helpless, waiting around for her to call me or to show back up.
Waves of calm pushed into me.
“Kyren,” Tate’s hand sat on my shoulders, “it’ll be okay.”
My eyes finally focused back on him. Noticing the shadows had gotten out of control again, I drew them back into me, allowing Tate’s calm to soothe me, even knowing it was a false calm.
“What about Xinyi?” Tate brushed my hair from my face. “Do you think she might know where Jack went?”
Instead of answering, I pushed past him. Stalking down the hall, I found Iris’s room. I pounded on the door with my first and, when no one answered, I threw it open.
Iris sat up in bed, her dark hair wild around her face, her naked top half on display. Xinyi laid naked in the bed next to her, barely covered by the sheet. She bared her fangs at me and threw a pillow.
“Ever heard of knocking?”
Dodging the pillow, I moved further into the room, stopping at Xinyi’s side of the bed. “Wake her up.”
Iris gaped at me, her eyes darting to Tate who had followed me in and then to me. “What? No.”
“Jack is missing,” Tate explained, sounding far calmer than either of us felt. “We just want to know if Xinyi has heard from her.”
Frowning, Iris shook Xinyi shoulder. The tiny female grumbled in her sleep and swatted at Iris’s prompting. Then, when that didn’t work, she smacked Xinyi on the ass.
Xinyi yelped and jerked awake. “What? What? I’m awake. Owwww. What was that for?” She twisted around in the bed, and Iris, not bothered by displaying her own body, quickly covered Xinyi with the sheet. “Uh… hey guys, Tate. Kyren. What are you doing here?”
Iris moved in closer to her companion. “They’re looking for Jack. Have you heard from her?”
Brows furrowed, Xinyi tilted her head to the side. “Not since she went out with you two yesterday. Hold on.” She reached over the side of the bed and grabbed her purse, pulling her phone from her purse.
“Ah hah!” she cried out and then frowned. “Oh. It seems like she went home for the weekend. Something about a family emergency.”
The tension in Tate’s shoulders eased, and some of my panic receded. Someone had heard from her. We knew where she was… sort of. From what I knew, Jack had human parents, ones that weren’t involved in the supernatural world.
“Do you know where her parents live?” Tate asked for us, already knowing where my mind was going.
Xinyi shook her head. “Sorry, I don’t. You might ask the office. Though they may not tell you since you’re not family. Maybe you could—”
