you to is here. If you meet me in five minutes, I will give you that which you seek."
"And what is that?"
"Felicia's sire."
Chapter 41
My grip tightened around my arcphone. Thankfully, it was a lot stronger than the nom version, and didn't crack under the strain. "Who is he?"
"The correct pronoun would be 'she', Mr. Slade. I will send you a text with a location. You have five minutes to reach the location with the map and key. If I see anyone besides you and your girlfriend, I will vanish. Your friend Felicia will die. Do we have a deal?"
I wanted to roar with frustration.
Instead, I pulled the map and key from my pockets. Stared at them. Using them, figuring out how to make them function together could give us a huge upper hand. We could strike at the enemy from any direction. Go straight where they lived and stop them in their tracks. Each one was priceless. Together, they were even more priceless-er. I glanced over at Adam. Saw the pain in his face as Meghan spoke with him. Saw the hopelessness take the life right out of his expression.
I could just keep the map. Never tell him about this conversation with Underborn. Dammit, we needed every advantage in this conflict, war, whatever the hell you wanted to call it. Giving up the relics meant doing things the hard way. But saving a life—saving Felicia—that would be doing things the right way.
"Deal," I said, my voice rough with anger.
I hung up and went over to Elyssa.
Adam, his eyes red, put a hand on my shoulder. "Thanks, Justin." He choked up. "You—you put it all on the line for Felicia, and I'll never forget that." He turned and punched a divider. Dropped his forehead against it. "If I had listened to her. Talked to her, I might actually know who her sire is. I could have saved her. Now it's—it's over."
I gripped his shoulder. "Don't give up just yet. I might have a lead."
He spun, the barest flicker of hope in his eyes. "What is it?"
My phone buzzed with Underborn's text. "No time to explain but I have an option. A deal. Wait here, I'll be right back." I looked at Meghan. "Where are Felicia and Nightliss?"
"At The Ranch. I had them relocated.
"Meet me there. Make sure Nightliss is awake and ready to go."
Meghan gave me a curt nod. "I'll be ready." She handed me a vial. "Just hold this against the sire's skin and it'll draw blood."
"I'm going with you, Justin," Adam said.
I shook my head. "Can't. If anyone but Elyssa is with me, deal's off. Understand?"
He looked like he had plenty more to say, but backed off. Nodded. "I'll be waiting with Meghan." The look of hope in his eyes made me hurt inside.
I looked at the text on my phone. Set my GPS to give me walking directions. Grabbed Elyssa's hand. "Let's go."
We blurred out the back door. The time on my GPS dropped from a one-hour walk to four minutes at the speed we were going. I was going to need every second.
The address was an abandoned building once owned by a power utility. A train rumbled past on tracks less than a hundred feet away. A row of houses lined the curving road on the other side while a chain-link fence with numerous holes provided a weak defense to the red brick structure.
We sped inside. Underborn stood in the middle. Alone.
"The relics, please," he said, holding out a hand.
"Felicia's sire first," I growled.
Underborn paused. "Phissilinth informs me you have come alone." He smiled and my blood went cold. "It's heartening to see you adhering to the terms of our agreement." He motioned with his fingers and a masked man shoved a hooded figure from behind a column.
I pulled out the ring and noticed a dim ember burning inside the gem. As I stepped closer, it brightened until the entire gem glowed.
"She's drugged," Underborn said. "And she won't offer any resistance."
"How did you know we needed Felicia's sire?" I said. "Did Michael tell you?"
He smiled. "No. Naturally, he is not my only resource."
"Then—"
His hand went up in a halting gesture. "I will say nothing more on the matter. I suggest you give me the relics, and return with your prize."
I pulled the map and key from my pockets. The pleasure on his face at seeing the map made me want to punch it right off his stupid head. My leg throbbed as the anger simmered in my