She shook her head. “I just think he’s not what he seems.
She was right about that. And I guess that also meant I’d been right—Mindy had the instincts to make a goodalimentatore.
I considered telling her the full truth now, but I wanted to give Allie one more day to do the right thing. And honestly, I wasn’t sure that this was the kind of thing Mindy needed in her head before she opened in one of the starring roles in the community musical.
I was no actress, but it seemed as if things like your best friend being part-demon and having a crush on a vampire were the kind of things that might distract you from your song and dance routines.
Or maybe I was just making excuses to stay quiet.
Whatever my reasons, all I said was, “I’ll be honest, Mindy. We checked him out pretty well. You know that he goes to Coronado High, so Eric was able to dig into his records.” Just saying Eric’s name alleviated some of my guilt. Mindy might not know everything, but she did know the truth about Allie’s father.
“Okay. Well, that’s good. You guys are coming tonight night, right?”
She looked both excited and young. I went over and gave her a hug. “Of course, we are. I’m so proud of you. Allie is too.” She grinned and didn’t even argue with that.
Then she looked down at Timmy and took his hand. “You ready?”
“Ready!” he chimed.
She gave me one final smile, then led my little guy across the backyard to her home.
Suddenly, I was alone, my husband and my kids out of the house. Granted, Timmy was just across the way with my best friend’s daughter. But Allie was out doing adult things, and one day soon, Timmy would be, too.
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that my role in the world was changing too. It was less about me being a mom or a Demon Hunter. Now, it was going to be about me training a new generation. Not my kids, but my students.
It was important work—maybe the most important—because there were things hidden out in the world. Evil things. I knew that well. And I needed to make sure that there were people around who could keep the world safe when my generation of Hunters stepped away from the job.
I looked around my home, feeling melancholy as I tried to decide what to do next. I was about to give it all up and go take a long bath when my phone rang.
I grabbed it up, pleased to see that it was Eliza. “Hey cousin. What’s your ETA for coming back to San Diablo? Do you have a date for the memorial yet?”
“Not yet. Do you need me up there? It’s kind of crazy down here, to be honest.”
“It’s a little crazy up here too,” I told her. “Apparently Allie is the only one who can defeat Lilith and there’s a whole slew of demons trying to kill her.”
“So, basically, things are rolling on as usual,” she quipped.
I laughed. “Pretty much.” I considered what she’d said a moment ago. “What do you mean things are crazy there?”
“I was in a car accident.”
“What? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I promise I didn’t die. I’m not a demon in an Eliza suit. But my leg is broken.”
“Were you in the car?”
“No. I was in a crosswalk. Some guy ran me down. Honestly, if I hadn’t been training, I would have probably been killed. Instead, I just landed wrong when I jumped out of the way. Broke my right tibia. It should heal clean, but I can’t drive right now. I’m really bummed, because I thought I might go up to San Diablo for a night so I could do the birthday party after all. But I can’t make it work.”
“I’m so sorry. And Stuart doesn’t have time to come get you. Mindy’s show is tonight, and…”
“Don’t worry about it. Seriously. It was just an idea that a reckless driver snuffed. You have enough to do. And I still have things to box up. Speaking of, did you check out the box I sent back with Stuart?”
“I’m sorry,” I said, glancing over to where I’d put it under the side table next to the couch. “I’ve been going a mile a minute.”
“No worries. It’s not like there’s anything important in there. Wait for me and we can go through it together. Although I don’t know when that’ll be. Stupid leg. I’m moving so slowly now.”
“I wish we could get you here easily.”
