his mother was striding down the hall and knocking on Eve’s door. He steeled himself to see Eve again. Everything knotted up inside him, except for the voices that relished chaos.
No one answered Eve’s door.
His mother frowned at him. “I thought you said it wasn’t safe for her to be out.”
His father stood at her back, hovering and watchful. Alec unlocked his dead bolt for his parents, then shifted into Eve’s house. It was dark and quiet as a tomb. Standing in her living room, he reached out to her and was met with an eerie silence.
Eve. Where are you?
She hit him in a rush, a full-throttle blindside of fear and worry that knocked him back a step. He growled and shifted to her.
She screamed when he arrived beside her, recoiling from his sudden appearance. Alec caught her by the back of the neck and clasped her to him. “Shh... I’m here.”
As she trembled against him, a rapid-fire series of images hit his brain. Montevista. Sydney. The priest. Azazel.
Fury churned inside him.
Abel!
His brother’s name was a roar. Once again, Abel had left Eve hanging in the wind.
It would be the last time.
Setting Eve away from him, Alec’s fingers linked with hers. He pulled her along the length of the chain link fence, searching for any signs of blood, torn clothing, or a scuffle.
Then he felt the Marks. Faint, but nearby. He shifted Eve to -the parking lot on the other side of La Palma. The open space was poorly lit, but his enhanced vision picked up two forms crumpled atop each other in the distance.
He shifted again, moving them closer more swiftly. He stabilized Eve when she stumbled from disorientation.
“Oh my god,” she breathed. Her hand tightened on his, then she released him and knelt beside the fallen guards.
Montevista sprawled atop his partner, almost as if he’d shielded her body with his own. Eve reached out and brushed her fingers across his cheek. He groaned, then stirred.
“They’re alive,” she said.
As their firm leader, Alec knew that, but he didn’t belabor the point. Instead, he stood behind Eve, wondering why it had taken a few moments for their connection to be reestablished.
Abel appeared on the other side of the two prone figures on the ground. “What the hell happened?”
“If you’d been doing your job,” Alec snapped, “you would know.”
Eve growled. “If you two start fighting—”
“Where the fuck were you?” Abel challenged.
“With Ima and Abba.”
His brother’s eyes widened. “Why?”
“Don’t worry about my business. Worry about hers—” Alec jerked his chin toward Eve, “—and how Azazel snatched the priest right in front of her.”
“I can see that” Abel stared at Eve with a frown, getting caught up to speed by sifting through her thoughts.
“You both suck,” she groused. “These two are hurt and you’re going to stand there bitching at each other?”
Alec ran a hand through his hair. “Get her out of here.”
Abel stood and shifted to her side. He glanced at Alec. “You got these two?”
“Yeah. Go.”
Eve shook her head. “I’m not going to—” She was shifted away midsentence by a touch of Abel’s fingertips to her crown.
The silence that followed their departure was brief.
Montevista groaned and rolled to his side. Sydney gasped and lifted her head.
“Where’s Hollis?” she asked.
Alec knelt beside them. “Safe.”
But for how long? The assault on the priest had been too bold. Why not just take Eve?
He placed a hand on both Marks, and shifted with them to Gadara Tower.
“—leave them here like. . . What the hell?” Eve snapped, lurching as Reed returned her to her living room. “I hate when you do that with no warning!”
“Sorry, babe.” Reed steadied her with gentle hands. “But you had to know we weren’t going to leave you out there.”
She glared at him. “And you have to know that I’m going to be worried sick until I know they’re all right.”
“I’ll find out for you.” He pressed his lips to her forehead. The moment they connected, the realization of how close he’d come to losing her hit him right between the eyes. His hands tightened on her biceps. She made a soft noise of protest and he released her hastily.
He stepped back, retreating to a safe distance.
“Hey,” Eve said softly. “It’s okay.”
But it wasn’t. Not for him.
She tapped her temple with her finger. “Keep me in the loop.”
He managed a smile. Of course, he assured her. “Get comfortable. When I get back, I’ll start that dinner I promised.”
Eve opened her mouth to say something, but he shifted away quickly. He