My insides rebel against being with Brigid when I have Leigh. “It’s not like that. She’s just being a good friend.” Does she seriously think I’d rekindle anything with Brigid?
Gianna rolls her eyes, clearly unconvinced. “Right, because ‘good friends’ always go out of their way to introduce you to their journalist buddies while giving you bedroom eyes.”
I sigh. “You’re impossible, you know that?”
“No, I’m just looking out for you,” Gianna retorts. “Brigid has an agenda.”
I pause. I’m not naïve; I know what type of person Brigid can be when she wants something. While I was documenting the scene at the power station, she was busy texting. I bet she didn’t waste a second informing the Erinye sisters and Ry about my run-in with Dimitri and Michael. Knowing her, she spared no juicy detail, probably painting me as the Council’s errand boy and making it her mission to “uncorrupt” me, ensuring our friends stay firmly inhercamp.
But Brigidwasthere for me after Isolde cheated on me, and I thought Desi died. Even though we’re not on the same page right now, I need her to trust that I’m here to help, not to make her life worse by pushing some Epsilon agenda.
“Come on, we are almost there,” I say. “I know a shortcut up ahead.”
We enter an alley lined with ornate metal lanterns, their geometric cutouts promising intricate shadow-plays when lit. Now, powerless and dark, they offer only emptiness, punctuated by the fleeting shadows of stray cats darting between our feet.
I slow down. The hairs on my neck prickle.
“So,” Gianna muses, oblivious to my unease, “I have this idea of going to the library tomorrow to research my birth father. I want to see if there are any articles about him or his family. Do you think I’m chasing ghosts?”
“That’s nice,” I reply. A glance around the alley reveals nothing amiss, but an unsettling stillness hangs in the air. Is it just in my head?
“Yeah, and then I’m going to strip naked in the square and do an interpretive dance.”
“Cool.” I pause. “Wait,what?” I rotate, and Gianna’s eyes narrow—before flying wide at something over my shoulder.
A cold, sharp object presses against my throat. Great. Fucking perfect.
“Move, and you’ll bleed out right here on the pavement,” a gruff voice threatens. The voice is familiar, but I can’t pinpoint it.
“Um, W-Wilder,” Gianna whimpers.
Two figures emerge from the darkness behind her. Both men wear scarves around their faces. One drags a menacing metal chain across the pavement with an ominous scrape. The other brandishes a sharp knife, its blade glinting in the dim moonlight.
I want to shout for Gianna to run, but I know it’s futile. Those impractical heels would never carry her far.
“If it is money you’re after, we don’t have any,” I tell them.
The two men close in, barking at Gianna, who shrieks in response. One even dares to sniff her hair. Sparks of electricity flicker at her fingertips. I shake my head, silently pleading with her not to escalate things. A sting lances up my throat, and I realize I’ve accidentally pressed the knife at my throat too hard, breaking the skin. Warm blood trickles down my neck. I frown deeper. The stain will be a bitch to get out of my shirt.
“Keep your money. We want you to deliver a message,” the man behind me says. His voice clicks in my memory.
“Dimitri?”
The former power plant manager stiffens behind me. “Tell your queen that if she doesn’t give Stellan what he wants, then the next time we see each other, you won’t be lucky enough to leave without a scratch.”
I want to point out that I am already bleeding, but semantics. “What exactly do you want me to say to her? The queen doesn’t respond well to threats.”
“Tell her that Aurora no longer bends to her will,” one of the masked men adds as he strokes Gianna’s head. Her lip recoils.
I exhale slowly. Now that I recognize Dimitri, the situation is less dire. He’s angry, but I doubt he has the balls to harm a Blade irreparably. However, the presence of weapons and magic among the group still makes me uneasy. If I mishandle this, Gianna could get hurt.
“What does your wife think about you knifing people in the dark like some sort of common criminal, Dimitri?” If I can keep him talking, I can distract him enough to free myself, grab Gianna, and get the fuck out of here.
“Shut up! Don’t bring my wife into this!”
“But your actions reflect on her.”
The knife digs deeper into my skin. I swallow a sigh. He is pigheaded.
