Expensive - Amy Bellows Page 0,45

going to help us go into hiding. Now that isn’t an option. We need to figure out how to disappear on our own.

“I have to go.” Even if I don’t know where Manny was taken, I need to at least try to find him. Also, I need to call Kenai to see if he can get a hold of Manny’s team. They should be warned about what happened.

After that, I’ll find a place to hide with Andrew. We can’t wait any longer.

“I’ll call Marjorie and ask her to come back to work.”

I shake my head. “It’s too late for that. I’ll take one of the cars in the garage. Do you have a safe room in this house?”

“Yeah.”

“Lock yourself inside and don’t open the door for anyone but me. Bring your burner phone. I’ll call as soon as I have more information about what happened to Manny.” I lean down to kiss him. As long as I know he’s safe, everything will be okay. We’ll get Manny back. We’ll find someplace to hide. There isn’t another option.

“The Tesla has tinted windows,” Andrew says. “And it’s electric, so it’s charged. I don’t know how old the fuel is in some of the other cars.”

“Okay. Promise me that you’ll stay in the safe room until I contact you.”

His shoulders tense. “Don’t worry about me. Go save your friend.”

I turn around and head for the door. It doesn’t occur to me that he never promised to stay in the safe room until after I drive away in the black Tesla.

But he wouldn’t do anything stupid. He’s pregnant, and he understands the stakes better now. I remind myself that Andrew isn’t some damsel in distress. He was taking care of himself long before I came into the picture. Everything will be okay.

For now, I need to focus on saving Manny.

22

Andrew

I find my burner phone tucked under a few pillows. In the recent-calls list, there is only one number—the number I could see on Howard’s business card because I’m pregnant.

I select it and press Call.

“Hello, Andrew.”

He saved my number. I shouldn’t be surprised. After all, I’m a pregnant omega, and he specializes in prenatal magic. But it still makes me realize how vulnerable I am to him. Timber was right. He could tell the Monroes. I don’t think he will, but it’s still an option. And if they came after Timber’s friend already…

Running away together will never truly be safe. We’ll always be looking over our shoulders. There will always be a chance that they could find us.

We need a permanent solution to this problem—a way to reinstate my legal independence. And we can’t wait any longer. I only have a few weeks before I’ll give birth to this egg, and once I do, I won’t have legal control over our baby either. As long as I have a bond ache, my entire family is at risk.

“I want to get rid of my bond ache,” I say.

“Like I said before, I don’t perform spells of that complexity. It’s too risky.”

“Do you know anyone who would be willing to do it?” Getting a recommendation from him—a warlock too ethical to perform the spell himself—was far better than resorting to finding one on my own.

“Maybe. I’d need to ask around. When do you want this done?”

“It has to be now. Before anyone else finds out about my pregnancy.”

There’s silence on the other end of the line for a few long beats, then Howard says, “Come to the Pallisade Ice Baths. Fly, don’t drive. There’s a private place for you to shift back into your human form on the cliffs. And bring five hundred thousand dollars in cash.”

The safe in Marjorie’s office has a lot of money in it, but I’m not sure it has that much.

“I don’t know if I can get five hundred thousand dollars in cash. I have people watching my finances right now. I wasn’t aware that it would be so expensive,” I admit.

“Oh, son. The spell you are seeking will cost far more than that, but you can pay the other warlock with a wire transfer. The cash is for me. I can’t be involved with this on paper. I need people to know that I’m a safe person to turn to when they’re seeking magical prenatal care, and if this spell gets botched, it could reflect badly on me. If you can’t get five hundred thousand, bring what you can.”

There’s a kindness to what he’s saying. He’s letting me make the choice