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“I thought it had to be done in ocean water?”
He looked at me. I felt his answer before I knew what it was. My hand loosened around my glass.
“No,” I said.
“Marlowe—”
“I’m not going back in that cave.”
“It’s the only place you won’t be seen. I’ll walk you all through it Wednesday. The tides, the way in.”
He knew exactly what that cave had taken out of me and put back. He’d given me two days to make peace with it in private before I’d have to stand in my living room and sell it to three terrified women like it was a reasonable place to hold a séance and bleed.
“Fine,” I said. It wasn’t fine. Not in the least.
I opened the group chat, where Callie had left another dozen questions about the pool party.
We need to talk about Saturday. My place, Wednesday, six. In person, I wrote.
Priya: sounds ominous
Jess: all of this is ominous
Priya: I haven’t slept right in weeks. I just want this to be over
Then I messaged Callie separately:
remember not a word about Kai on Wednesday. the others still don’t know. he did great today.
Callie: great? ugh I don’t even want to know what that means
On the drive home, the hum of the engine lulled me to sleep, my battery draining minute by minute, until my eyes fluttered closed.
Moments before we turned onto my street, I woke up with a thought that felt like a gut punch.
“The women going to the retreat. Are you going to be expected to—”
“No,” he said, taking his eyes off the wheel long enough to look at me.
“Kai and I are both on security, away from everyone. With the women from the pool party there, they don’t want to risk us being recognized.”
“So who’s…assigned?”
“Adrian—”
I sat up straight. “Adrian?”
“He’ll be taken off Priya as soon as the trade’s been accepted.”
“Jesus,” I muttered. “Who else?”
“Soren—”
“Him too? You know what, it’s better if I don’t know.”
I tucked my hair behind my ear and stared out the window.
Damian checked my apartment as soon as we arrived home. Nothing was out of place.
