car.” She returned to the front door, casting apologetic glances my way. “We need to have that housewarming party you keep putting off.”
“Oh, we will,” Jez piped up from the kitchen. “I won’t let her get out of it again.”
Kylarai smiled, and though it held sadness, it still lit up her face. “I’ll come by one night soon. We’ll go for a run. It’s been a while.”
I smiled and nodded, doing my best to squelch the growing urge to scream. After a few more insistent hugs and promises to see me soon, Kylarai made her way to her Escalade in the driveway.
I closed the door and leaned against it. “Well, my night is off to a fucking great start.”
Jez appeared at the end of the hall. “I’m not going to insult you by asking if you’re ok. I imagine it feels kind of like being picked last in gym class. Nobody wants you on their team.”
I laughed, a bitter sound that resonated through the empty corridor. “Nice try, Jez. Don’t expect me to believe you were picked last.”
“No, but I know what it’s like to walk alone.”
We stood at opposite ends of the hall, staring at one another. Jez was the only werecat I knew. I imagined that came with its share of loneliness. Cats might be solitary creatures, but they too craved love and affection.
“I feel like I’ve lost my wolf and my pack all in one day,” I said, waiting for the emotion to hit me. Instead, I was numb. A hollow sense of calm always overcame me when I needed to shut down and escape. It would help me now, but I’d pay for it later when the floodgates broke open.
I stared at Jez, noting the predatory glint in her eyes. She had lost so much more, yet there she stood, ready to fight back.
Determination gripped me. I shoved away from the door with a bounce in my step. “Let’s get ready. We have some ass to kick.”
* * * *
“Are you sure? Once you do this, he won’t ever forget it. He’ll hold a grudge.” Willow’s warning went in one ear and out the other.
“He already hates me. I might as well give him a reason.”
I watched Willow pour a salt circle on the floor of Harley’s old room. In jeans and a t-shirt, he looked so casual. With his silver wings absent from sight, there was no indication of his angelic nature.
The Wicked Kiss seemed like the safest place to summon a creature of darkness. Falon could make all the noise he wanted, and nobody would give a damn.
“Are you sure that circle will hold him?” Jez asked, a brow raised in skepticism. Makeup hid the dark circles under her eyes. With her trademark red lipstick and skinny jeans, she hid her pain well, projecting a normal outward appearance.
“As long as nobody outside the circle breaks it, it will hold.” Willow glanced my way, a mischievous glint in his gold-flecked green eyes. “You have something silver?”
“Will this work?” I pulled the silver cross Kale had given me out of my pocket and handed it to Willow.
He held up his hands in refusal, unwilling or unable to touch it, and I swore something almost wistful crossed his face. “Yeah, that works just fine.”
“Are you ready? This is your last chance to change your mind.”
“I don’t have a choice. I can’t track Lilah through the number she messaged me from, and I’ve gotta find her before she targets another person I care about.” A nervous flutter started in my stomach. I was excited, looking forward to getting tough with Falon. In the back of my mind, I almost hoped he was hard to break.
I shrugged out of the long jacket that hid my dagger; I didn’t need it or the dagger for this. In a black tank top and jeans, I was ready for a fight should one come my way.
Tossing my hair back, I stared at the cross, briefly struck with concern for Kale. Maybe I shouldn’t be worried after what he’d done to me. Still, I needed to know he made it out of the FPA basement.
“Alright, let’s do this,” I said, my mind made up.
“You’re doing it,” Willow replied. “I’ll guide you.”
We stood outside the circle, careful not to get too close. Willow spoke slowly, the Latin rolling off his tongue with ease. It was just two lines, but it took me a few tries to get right.
“There are several ways to summon a