toward my locket. “For this, I think she might be willing to make the trade.”
I step back, shaking my head. “I won’t trade that.”
“Catalina, come look at this,” she calls out, her eyes fixed on my locket. “This one’s got sugilite on her.”
Catalina whisks over to us in the snap of a finger and puts her hand on my necklace without permission. “And it’s coated in silver.” She looks at the candle and then at me. “If you want the candle, give me the necklace.”
I clutch onto my heart-shaped locket, shaking my head.
She snaps the chain from my neck and drops the candle at my feet. “It’s not really a choice. I’m taking the necklace. You can have the candle if you want.”
I’m sorry, Aislin mouths, looking like she’s a step away from bursting into tears.
“It’s okay.” I scoop up the candle and hold it in my arms, trying to figure out if I’m really ready to use it, ready to open my heart like that.
The silence of the prickle on the back makes me wonder if I’m not.
ALEX
I’m not sure if the ring will work, and I really don’t want to fucking talk to him, but this isn’t about me. This about saving Gemma, and if that means talking to Nicholas, I’ll do it. I’m just hoping, since his fey blood connects with every breed of faerie in the world, he’ll know a thing or two about Banshees.
“So what exactly are we doing here?” Laylen asks, glancing around at the tan walls of Gemma’s bedroom.
I crack my knuckles. “Looking for Nicholas.”
“Come again?” Laylen does a double take.
“He’s fey.” I shrug. “He might know something about my mother. Plus, Gemma said she saw him in her dream where she died, that he took her to the Afterlife.”
“Okay.” Laylen clears his throat and shifts his weight, leaning against the doorway. “Is he here?”
I shake my head, inching into the room. “I’m not even sure the ring will work on me.”
Minutes tick by and still no Nicholas. I sigh, about to give up, when I hear a soft thud from somewhere in the room.
“Look at you,” Nicholas’s voice floats around the room. “Got you a fancy little ring, huh? Sure does look pretty.”
I roll my eyes. “Show yourself.”
“You first,” he says with a laugh.
I take a few calculated breaths, trying to keep my temper under control. “Where is she?”
“You’ll have to be more specific,” Nicholas says. “Because the list of people you’re looking for is endless. I mean, there’s me, the lovely Jocelyn who might not be so lovely anymore . . . and of course, your dear old mom, Alana.”
“Tell me what you know.” My eyes skim the ceiling and the walls as I draw out my knife.
Laylen turns in a circle and accidently bumps into the desk, knocking a CD onto the floor. “He’s not by me, is he?”
I hold up a finger. “Not yet . . . but . . .”
“I have nothing to say to you,” Nicholas says. “Now go away and don’t come back unless Gemma’s with you. I miss our little talks and watching her undress.”
“Goddammit.” I grunt in frustration, wishing I could beat the living shit out of him.
“Keep it together, man,” Laylen says, scooping up the CD off the floor. “He wants you to get pissed off. It’s just like when we were kids, and he stole all our stuff just to watch us struggle to find it. He likes torturing people. It’s his thing.”
Laylen’s right. I need to get my shit together; otherwise, I won’t get anything out of Nicholas.
“I’ll tell you what. Show yourself and I’ll make a bargain with you,” I try to entice him, knowing it’s risky, but I’m desperate.
“What kind of a bargain?” he asks, his curiosity piquing.
“The kind where you can live again,” I say, circling the room.
Laylen shoots me a what-the-fuck-are-you-doing look, but I swiftly shake my head, warning him to keep quiet.
Nicholas appears in front of the foot of the bed with his eyes narrowed and his arms folded. He looks the same as he always did except I can see through him.
“This better be good,” he says.
“It is, but I want your info first.” I toss and catch the knife before pointing the tip of the blade at him. “Starting with the location of Jocelyn and then move on to my mother.”
Nicholas eyes the knife. “You know that can’t hurt me. I’m a ghost.”
“Then I guess you have nothing to worry about.” I stop tormenting