is capable of bringing.”
“You’re saying you want me to kill you?” Colt asked.
“I’m saying I’ve had many decades to weigh the consequence of my existence,” said Vaughn. “In order to atone for the lives the changeling has taken, I must put an end to him, but I take no joy in doing it. His blood is on my hands, as with all the rest. To go to hell together seems a fitting end, and as inadequate of an atonement as it is, I wish for this power to die with me.”
“You’d still be passing it on,” Colt protested.
“And in my long life, you are the first soul I believe would see this power as the curse that it is rather than the gift I once mistook it for,” said Vaughn. “If you choose to prove me wrong, well, I won’t be around to feel the weight of it on my conscience.”
Colt snorted. “You know, if I didn’t hate your fucking guts, I’d almost like you.”
Vaughn smiled tiredly. “So we have a truce, then? We kill the changeling, together.”
“And then I kill you,” Colt said.
Vaughn gave a solemn nod.
“Then it’s a deal,” said Colt. He couldn’t help but feel like he was making a deal with the devil, but if there was one thing he would say for Vaughn, at least he knew he was one. By the time all was said and done, there would be two fewer devils in the world.
Only time would tell if Colt was the one who would remain.
Chapter 21
The moment Colt left Andrew’s apartment after dropping both him and Vaughn off, he got a text from Ronnie with an address and nothing else. When he got there, they were going to have a talk about his habit of sending cryptic text messages with little to no explanation.
When he pulled up outside the city courthouse, Colt was sure Ronnie had texted him the wrong address. That, or he was just fucking with him.
The serious look on the younger ghoul’s face when he finally caught sight of him made him doubt it, though. Colt waved to get his attention and walked over, eyeing the fountain with a statue of Neptune in the center, pouring out water from a magical vase. “Alright, what is it you wanted to show me?”
“This,” Ronnie said, pointing at the courthouse steps behind him. “Those would be the trial lawyers, and I’m thinking this would be the fountain.”
“So what’s ‘wrapped’?” Colt asked, looking around the granite basin.
“Let’s find out.” Ronnie rolled up his sleeves and reached into the water.
“Be careful,” Colt warned. “No telling what he put in there.”
Ronnie continued to fish around, biting the tip of his tongue in focus. “Really tempted to pretend like something just chomped my arm off, but you’re going through a lot, so I won’t. Just know it’s taking a gargantuan amount of restraint.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Colt said flatly, glancing around to make sure no one was watching, human or otherwise.
“Got it!” Ronnie cried in triumph, pulling out a small object wrapped in layer upon layer of plastic.
“That explains the wrapped part, I guess,” Colt said, taking it from Ronnie in case there was something hazardous inside. He shifted a few claws to cut the wrapping open and frowned when he saw the contents. It was a tiny leather-bound notebook, fortunately untouched by the water. The interior was more confusing than anything. There was only one page with anything written on it, just two lines of seemingly meaningless numbers.
“He’s fucking with us,” Colt snarled.
“Let me see that,” Ronnie said, taking the book from him. He looked up at Colt with a weary expression. “Dude. They’re coordinates. We put these in the GPS, they’ll take us to the drop site.”
“Oh,” Colt mumbled, running a hand down the back of his head. He’d never considered himself book smart, but between Ronnie and Peter, he was starting to feel like a complete moron. The stress and lack of sleep probably weren’t helping either.
“Come on,” Ronnie said excitedly, walking toward Colt’s truck. At least one of them was having fun. “Now we just need the Plague Doctor.”
“Already taken care of,” Colt said.
Ronnie’s eyes widened, and he checked the truck bed as if he was expecting to find the ghoul tied up under a tarp. “Seriously? Where is he?”
“With Andrew, waiting for a location.” Colt texted a picture of the coordinates to Andrew. “They’ll meet us there.”
“They?” Ronnie asked doubtfully, hopping into the truck. “You’re telling me the Plague Doctor