Blackbird Broken (The Witch King's Crown #2) - Keri Arthur Page 0,54

save your son’s life,” I snapped back. To Mo, I added, “What do you want us to do in the meantime? Reign’s been drugged—”

“Because he was screaming for his damn sister,” Gianna muttered. “It was attracting attention.”

“Perhaps he knew his sister was in danger.”

She snorted. “He’s five.”

“And a twin. We twins have a special bond.” And I couldn’t help but wonder when the one between Max and me had broken—and why I hadn’t even noticed.

“Just drive,” Mo said. “It may not be safe to stop, as it’s unlikely Winter got Gianna’s location details from Reign if he’s been drugged and hasn’t stirred.”

Something I hadn’t actually thought about. I glanced quickly at Gianna. “Did you pack anything of Reign’s that Max or Winter gave him?”

“Just an old teddy—”

I swore and twisted around. The teddy had been strapped into the middle seat next to the car seat. It was indeed old—a grubby-looking bear with threadbare cheeks, black ears, and a natty blue waistcoat. It was also, I thought with a stab to the heart, Max’s bear—one that he’d absolutely cherished as a kid.

Maybe, despite all his plotting, some part of him did actually care for his children—or, at the very least, his son.

And maybe I was just grabbing at something—anything—that meant my brother wasn’t totally lost. That some love, light, and decency remained.

“Hang on a sec, Mo.” I put the phone on loudspeaker, placed it on the console, and then leaned back to grab the bear. A quick but thorough examination revealed the existence of a small, circular object. The tracker, no doubt.

“Your instincts are spot-on, Mo—there’s a tracker in his teddy.”

“What?” Gianna said, horror in her expression.

“It may not be the only one, either,” Mo said. “Your brother’s never been one to leave things to chance. Ditch the teddy—”

“No,” Gianna said. “He won’t sleep without it.”

Max hadn’t either. I blew out a breath and drew Vita. After carefully unpicking a few stitches, I squeezed the small disk out of the bear’s fat little backside. “The tracker’s little bigger than a ten pence piece.”

“Which means it probably hasn’t a huge range. They might still be following you.”

I opened the window and tossed the tracker out. “We’ll drive around Penrith until you can give us a location,” I said. “If there is a second tracker, then at least there’s less chance of them hitting us in a busy market town.”

“Hopefully. Just be careful.”

“I will.”

I disconnected and then glanced at Gianna. “Have you got anything else of his—or even yours—that Max or Winter gave you?”

“The teddy and a few clothes was all I had time for.” She glanced at me. “Who’s Mo?”

“Our grandmother. Did Max never mention her?”

Her expression was amused. “This was a business deal, not a love match.”

“I certainly didn’t think it was love—he’s homosexual.”

She snorted. “Well, that explains his awkwardness over the whole sex part of the arrangement.”

I blinked. “You and he actually had sex?”

“How else does one get pregnant?” She raised an eyebrow, amusement evident. “Him being gay does explain the decided lack of enthusiasm and why proceedings stopped the minute I did fall pregnant.”

This was certainly a day for shocks. I wasn’t sure I could take too much more, especially where my brother was concerned.

“Do you have his phone number?”

Her eyebrow rose again. “You don’t?”

“I course I do, but it might not be the same one.”

She immediately rattled off the number. It was the same one.

“What about Winter? Do you have his number?”

She nodded. “But I don’t know that one off by heart—I was warned never to use it except in emergencies.”

“I’ll need you to give it to me so we can track it.”

“I will, as soon as I can access my phone.” She glanced at me. “Winter is … unpleasant.”

If that wasn’t the understatement of the year, I wasn’t sure what was. “Trust me, I’m well aware of that.”

Her gaze slid over me, then rose to the bloody sleeve of my arm. “If you knew what Max was up to, why haven’t you stopped him?”

“Because we didn’t know. Not until very recently.”

“But he’s your twin—”

“And we don’t live in each other’s pockets. Who was Naya?”

She blinked hard, several times. “My cousin. Max was paying her to homeschool the twins, as she’s a qualified teacher. She also had babysitting duties when I had to go out.” A lone tear trickled down her cheek. “Is she really dead?”

“I’m afraid so.”

One tear became two. She bit her lip and lightly shook her head, as if to loosen the grip of sadness.