I hold up my hand. “I wasn’t suggesting that.”
Trinity returns with our fresh drinks, and I’m having a really good time. Maybe Lacey’s right. This will be my year. It sure as hell can’t be as bad as the last.
I sit back on the couch with my legs tucked under me and my glass balanced on my knee while we talk over each other and laugh. Lacey tells a story about Nick’s pregnant sister throwing a handful of mashed potatoes at her husband on Christmas when he aggravated her that has us all dying with laughter.
Time seems to loosen as the second drink hits me hard. The edges of things start to blur. The buzz feels strange, not like the energized warmth that I’m used to. My tongue feels thick and dry like I’ve burned it with a hot drink. The music begins to sound off, rising and falling in waves.
I blink hard a couple of times, trying to clear a grainy feeling from my eyes.
“Are you okay?” Lacey asks, laughing at something Trinity just said.
“Yeah,” I say automatically. The word feels like it comes out too slowly, and I carefully set my glass down. “I just need the bathroom.” The floor shifts under me when I stand up too fast and I grab the back of the couch to steady myself. Lacey doesn’t seem to notice but Trinity’s eyes flick to me and she watches me walk past.
The hallway feels endless, and the bathroom light is way too bright, piercing into my head. My heart feels like it’s beating oddly, too hard but too slow. My reflection in the bathroom mirror shocks me. Glassy eyes, heavily lidded, look back at me from a pale face.
Something’s wrong with me. I’m going to have to tell the girls. I splash water on my face, but the cold barely registers, and I grip the sink because my legs have suddenly turned hollow like they may fold under me.
I can hear music from the living room but no talking, and I try to call out, but my voice won’t cooperate. I manage to open the door and stumble back into the hallway. My vision tunnels, darkness creeping in at the edges, and it takes all my strength to focus on getting back to the living room.
My knees buckle, and I grab for the coffee table, missing it. My shoulder clips it on the way down but it’s a painless thump before my hands hit the carpet, breaking my fall. I can see Lacey sprawled on the couch, her head tilted back, mouth slightly open. God, is there a gas leak or something?
“Lacey.” My attempt to call her name only results in a wheezy breath as I reach my arm toward her.
“She’s fine,” Trinity says, leaning over me. No amount of blinking will let me see her clearly.
I try to crawl, but my arms won’t work right, sliding along the floor instead of pressing against it. The sound of the door opening reaches me, and another woman’s voice gives a command.
“Hurry up. That shit wears off quick.” Fear strikes sharplythrough the fog, but I can’t even lift my head to see anything. I want to scream for help. I want to fight back. I want Lee.
“What about Lacey?” Trinity asks. My vision fractures, the blinking Christmas lights smearing into streaks of color before my eyes refuse to open again.
“Leave her. Grab the whore.”
I can feel two sets of hands on me. I’m being carried and my heavy body begins to feel lighter as darkness closes in. It feels like I’m a bag of sand, leaking as I’m carried along.
I’m not sure how long I’m unconscious before the sound of a slamming door and voices reach me again. My eyes won’t open, but I feel myself being pulled out of a vehicle.
“Can I go?” Trinity asks. “I did everything I promised.”
“I told you you’re free when I get what I want, and we aren’t finished yet. Now help me get her inside and get your ass back out here to stand watch.”
As I’m being carried, I manage to pull my eyelids open for a moment. The full moon shines above me. It’s probably the last time I’ll see it.
CHAPTER 26
LEE
Arlow is blowingup my phone. I’ve already told him I’m not going out to celebrate tonight. Does he think he can talk me into it? I’ve been sitting with a drink I haven’t touched, trying not to think about the year ahead of me that promises to be empty.
With a sigh, I accept the call. “What?”
“Lee.” His urgent tone has me on instant alert. “You need to get to Lacey’s now.”
The wordnowlands like a blow. “Is Lacey hurt?”
“No, she’s okay. It’s Silver.” A flash of relief is followed by a new surge of fear. He pauses for half a second. “She’s been taken.”
The room tilts and my heart pounds in my ears. I’m already moving. I grab my jacket, keys, and phone, knocking my drink over in the process. “What do you meantaken?” Idemand. Cool night air washes over me, and my truck roars to life.
