I stroke my fingers over Percy’s back in a slow pattern until we pull up to the house. The garage door is open, and the car Remy drove to the restaurant with Ash isn’t parked inside. “Where do you think he went?” I ask, then gather up Percy to get out. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t responded—he’s driving.
“I don’t know, he didn’t mention anything,” Felix murmurs.
“Maybe he took Ash somewhere, like a hotel or something. When she comes, she usually stays a few days at a time.” Gray doesn’t need to say why she won’t be staying here this time. It’s pretty evident, and not just because we have a ghost. I can admit I’m not cool enough to let her bunk here.
Nash calls, “Hey,” to get my attention when I would have just gone into the house. I wait for her to round the car. “When we get inside, just go about your normal business. I’d like to see if it will manifest or if I can get a feel for what’s here,” she tells me.
I nod distractedly and agree, “Sure,” but really, I’m wondering why I can’t stop thinking about Remy and where he is. Maybe it’s a side effect of our bond, but that doesn’t seem right.
Gray and Felix hear Nash’s request, so there’s no need to repeat it.
We find ourselves in the kitchen. I wander around like a lost soul while the others get drinks. Felix even grabs a snack. I don’t know how he can eat right now, I’m still full from lunch.
Nash starts to make small talk. “So, you designed the house. Are you an architect?”
“Yeah,” Felix confirms.
“I can’t imagine knowing how to do something like this.” Nash looks around the room.
“I can’t imagine sitting across from a necromancer, so…” He leaves the sentence hanging.
“Oh, that wasn’t me. It was your girl. She was all in for that kid from the word go. Anybody else would have probably wanted him locked up for the murder, but she was team Gavin from the beginning.”
“Murder? He killed someone and he’s a kid? There’s so much to fucking unpack with that.” Gray moves over to the booth.
“Did you design the inside of the house too?” Nash sits across from Gray but directs her question to Felix. She’s not wowed by my actions, and she shouldn’t be.
Before Felix can respond, the glass Gray got out hits the floor and shatters. We all look in that direction, but none of us say a word about it.
“I did all the hard fixtures and then helped with the other stuff.” Felix picks right back up where we left off, and our conversation continues as if nothing happened.
After another few minutes, I look at my phone again. There still isn’t anything from Remy, so I try to call him instead. The line rings several times before his generic voicemail picks up, telling me to leave a message.
“He’s still not answering,” I announce right in the middle of Gray telling Nash what new fast-food chain is trying to come to Hill Crest. “Something feels off. Am I overreacting?” I want one of them to tell me yes, but Gray and Felix just look at each other instead.
“I think I have Ash’s number,” Felix says, pulling out his phone. “Maybe he had to go see his agent or something.” After just a brief pause, he makes a call.
“Hello, yeah, this is Felix.”
I breathe out a heavy sigh. She’ll know something.
“I was just wondering if you knew where Remy was. Can you give me a call back?” My heart falls a little when I realize she didn’t answer either. “I’ll text her. She probably doesn’t know my number.” Felix’s thumbs move quickly across the screen, then he sets his phone faceup on the table so we can all see if she replies.
Several scenarios start to worm their way into my mind. Did they get into a car accident? Or is it something more mundane like Gray suggested and Remy had a meeting?
That doesn’t feel right though. A niggle of concern festers, making it impossible to ignore. What if this has something to do with Bursa? He’s kind of been an afterthought in all this since I’ve been here. Finding Aisling and making sure she was safe became center stage. Now, we’re dealing with this entity bullshit.
I hit Lewis’ number from my speed dial. “Lo,” she answers.
“Anything new with Bursa? Any news?” I don’t bother with a greeting.
She cuts right to the chase. “Nothing on our end. What’s going on, Bishop?”
“I don’t know. I have a bad feeling, and I can’t get a hold of one of my men. The guys I’m with,” I explain.
“You think it has something to do with Bursa?” I hear a door close, and the background noise over the line lowers.
“I don’t know, but something is off, and I don’t think it has to do with the shit going on at the house. Nash is here, she gave us charms, plus there’s been recent activity on that front.”
