Each word is like a sledgehammer to whatever fight I have left. I’m so tired. And if I give in…everything will be okay. I know it will. Because the old woman is smiling now. Her orange eyes…how did I think they were cold? They’re full of tenderness. Understanding. She knows what’s best. She’ll take care of me.
I slip my phone into her palm, then take out my earbud and drop it on the ground. As Regina slams her foot down on it, something deep inside me knows I’ve made a terrible mistake. Until she speaks again. “Come now, ladies. Your new master awaits.”
With an arm around each of our waists, Regina leads me and Dion to the Thunderbird, tells us to get into the back seat and sit still, and slides behind the wheel.
Fight, Zoe. She’s dangerous. She’s going to kill you. And Sin.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I try desperately to scream, to move even a single finger. I’m close. So close. The thought of losing Sin—of him caught in Thorn's clutches again—is almost enough to let me break free. But then the Fae bitch turns around with a tiny, odd-looking gun in her hand. “Time to say goodnight.”
The dart pierces my neck, and the world turns cold and dark. A tear tumbles down my cheek, and my eyes flutter closed.
As I slip away, I’m so confused, because my inner voice—the one that just a second ago told me I failed—utters one, final thought.
No. You succeeded.
Twenty-Seven
Sin
Zoe is not answering me. Shoving the Bureau doors so hard the walls shake, I call out for her, but I can tell she is gone. As is most everyone else. On their assigned stakeouts across the city.
I should have been here. Should not have driven so far. Why did I not start with a phone call? Sariel, the only watcher I know in the earthen realm, would not answer my questions. He was downright angry at being disturbed, and we battled—physically—for an hour before I bested him and demanded he tell me why the Almighty would torture me like this.
“We cannot claim to know the Almighty’s will, demon spawn. If this Zoe truly is your Genevieve reborn, there is a reason she is here. You will have to see it through.”
I shove him up against the wall of his shed, lifting him off his feet. “How do I break through the wall built around her memories? At least tell me that!”
The watcher shakes his head. “You cannot. She must do that all on her own.”
Stomping through the bullpen, I catch sight of one of the witches. Ashley? Aisha? Amber. “Were you here? When Zoe left?” I snap.
“Yes.” Amber rushes over to me, her eyes wide. “She got a call and said something about Macy’s on Market Street. Is she in trouble?”
“Thorn has her. I am certain of it.” Saying the words aloud is too much, and I brace my hand on Zoe’s desk, my world collapsing as I speak.
“What can I do?” the witch asks. “I don’t know what she is, Agent Sin, but she’s strong. I read her aura before she left, and…she’s…something I’ve never seen before.”
I blow out a deep breath, searching for strength. “Zoe is descended from the seraphim. But she can be killed. She has died before. I will not let it happen again.” Admitting the truth frees something inside me, and I strip off my leather jacket and my shirt, yank open my desk drawer, and pull out a pocket knife.
“What are you doing, Agent Sin?” The witch takes two steps back, wary, and I offer her a cold grin.
“I’m going to find my partner,” I say as I cut two holes in the back of my shirt, another two in the leather jacket, and get dressed once more. “And stop hiding who I truly am.”
The witch follows me as I sprint for the parking lot. Now is not the time to bother with human transportation. As soon as I am free of the building, I let out a roar. My wings burst forth, and then there’s only air beneath my feet. I bank to the left, seeing Amber’s jaw drop open, and take off towards Market Street.
* * *
I amstrong enough to glamour everyone within two blocks when I land—thanks to what Zoe and I shared this morning—and I hide my wings until I blend into the crowd. Zoe’s scent lingers, so very faint now, but still trackable. It’s strongest in front of one of the shop windows, and as I approach, something crunches under my shoe.
Fuck. Zoe’s earbud. On the corner, I find her broken cell phone. And on the next block, another concentration of her scent—along with the panther shifter. They used Dion to trap her, and now Thorn has two victims. From Zoe’s research, hisfinaltwo victims in this city. In a day, perhaps two, he’ll brand them, and not long after, he’ll sell their pain and terror for the first time. Let them be ravaged, tortured, tormented by the worst of the otherworld. And he’ll drive them slowly insane. Zoe fought before. Can she do it again?
Even if her mind does not break, Thorn will still destroy her body. He will let her be violated, let others break her bones, trap her deep in nightmares she will be unable to escape from. And so much more. All to feed off of her misery.
“Zoe,” I whisper as I stare up at the sky, the city lights obscuring the stars. “I will find you. I swear.”
Clenching my hands into fists, I call upon all of my strength to hide myself from the world around me and take to the air, returning to the cliff overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge.
“Gabriel! Get your celestial ass down here! Right the fuck now!” The wind howls around me, angry and vicious, and I turn in a slow circle. “Gabriel. I swear if you do not show yourself to me, I will fly up there and pull the feathers from your wings one at a time while you scream for mercy!”
