“What’s going on?” Gage asked.
“Skye said we have to get my sister back to New York soon because Apollyon knows about her and wants to take her to the Netherworld,” I told the group, and Gage cussed under his breath.
“Gotta go,” Skye said. “When Apollyon pops up topside, I’m going to help Aurum. Good luck.”
I blinked and she was gone before I could even tell her to be careful.
Turning to face the group, an idea quickly formed in my mind. “Dash and I can fly up to Harley’s balcony while Gage and Indigo get a key and meet us inside her penthouse.”
Everyone nodded, and I felt bad sending Gage off in a separate direction, but I also needed to act quickly and he and Indigo weren’t flyers, so we needed to improvise.
I quickly told my plan of sweet talking a key out of the concierge to them, and without another word Gage and Indigo took off toward the front desk, and Dash and I bolted outside.
“So the penthouse is the entire top floor?” I asked Dash as we jogged around the building.
He shook his head. “Kind of. This place is huge, so there are four penthouse apartments. I grew up in one of them, and I’m pretty sure my parents still live there. I know the owners of the other two, so it’s got to be the vacant one that they gave to Harley.”
Holy crap, he grew up here! This swanky place was Dash’s home?
Now I was extra nervous that we might run into his family.
“You can’t be seen with your white wings,” he said. “It’s nighttime, so my gray will be harder to make out. I’ll carry you.”
I nodded. “Good thinking.”
When we reached the alley between The Plaza and the neighboring building, Dash wasted no time scooping me up into his arms. He looked left and right, then his wings snapped out of his back.
Without warning, he launched into the sky, and within seconds we descended onto a balcony, where he put me down and we both crouched behind a planter. It was one of the fastest flying moves I’d ever seen, and I hoped it meant that no one watching this side of the building saw it.
After retracting his wings, Dash reached over and tried the door to find it unlocked.
Yes. Finally something going right. Loud music blared from inside.
I had about half a second to worry that this might be the wrong apartment and we might be entering his mother’s house or some other master Shade’s dwelling, when Dash walked in and a female scream followed.
Crap.
I burst from behind the planter on the balcony and bolted inside the apartment to find Dash with his hands up in submission. Closing the door behind me, I did the same and scanned the room to see my sister in a black ballgown, holding a wicked titanium blade.
“Leave now or I’ll scatter that balcony with your entrails,” she growled.
Okay, not an ideal first interaction.
“I’m your sister!” I blurted out. “Well, half-sister really, we have different moms but—”
“You put the spirit up to that crap?” she snarled. “What do you need, a kidney or something? I don’t care who you are, you need to leave.”
My heart fell at her accusation that I was here for akidney.
I stepped closer, keeping my hands high. “Listen, Harley, you may not know this but you arethe daughter of Apollyon.” I paused for effect, but her brows only drew together.
“And he needs both of us to escape from his Netherworld prison. That’s why he had us.”
She was quiet a full minute, and I prayed she would see reason and come back to New York with me.
“Okay, how much is he willing to pay?” she asked, not lowering her sword.
Dash made a half-gasp, half-choking sound behind me as I struggled to process her question.
