of them ever crossed the path. He was just as dangerous and powerful as Rowan and Baron. And if three of them crash—
I shuddered.
I shook off the troubled, chilly thoughts. I wouldn’t go there. I’d try my best to prevent the three of them from ever meeting each other. Peeling the layers of my cool and bravo, I didn’t want any of them hurt, though I barely knew them.
“Go back to bed, Evie,” Rowan said gently. “While I stand in guard, no one will get to you. I’ll protect you from anyone.”
“And who’s going to protect me from you?” I murmured.
“I am,” Baron said with determination. “Sweet dream, my Evie.”
As I rubbed my eyes and peeked out the window one last time, I swore I saw a massive golden lion trot across the front of my house and merge into the shadow. I nearly yelped in alarm. When I blinked again, a huge silver wolf stood in the center of my yard, raised his head at the moon, and howled silently.
My world was so fucked.
Chapter 14
I hurried toward the blue Victorian building the next morning, exhausted from only two hours of sleep. The name Claws, Fangs, and Fiends on the sign above the door faded in and out in the brilliant sunlight.
A laughing family of four bumped into me while I headed toward the granite walk that led up to the club.
“Sorry we didn’t see you,” said the father of a teenage girl, a preteen boy, and a little girl like Fawn.
“No worries.” I smiled at them, getting an idea. “Where are you heading to?”
“We’re going to the museum,” the little girl said in excitement and pointed at the ivory building of the art museum next door to the club. “They have a special show today.”
“Would you like to join us?” the brown-haired teenage girl chimed in. She liked me right away. She’d prefer my company to her younger siblings. The girl was so much more amiable than Safiya. I wished they could switch.
“I’m going to that club.” I pointed at Claws, Fangs, and Fiends. “See the nice statue beside the burgundy door?”
The family looked where I pointed and appeared utterly confused. They then shook their head as if trying to gather a forgotten thought. I shuffled up the white marble stairs to show them where I was going, and the family turned around.
“Where did she go?” the teenage girl asked.
“We need to hurry or we’ll miss the show,” the father said, and they continued on as if they could no longer remember me.
I sighed. Clearly there was a supernatural world hidden in plain sight, but regular humans couldn’t see it. But why could I?
“Hello, handsome,” I greeted the gargoyle stone statue. Then I pinched its nose to gather courage before facing the burgundy door. I was hired. I was an employee now, so I should act like one. I should take initiative and be aggressive instead of knocking timidly and waiting for someone to open it for me.
The door swung open before I touched it. K blocked the entrance and stared down at me.
“Hey, K, what’s up?” I asked with my bright Southern accent. “I’m reporting to my station. It’s my first day! Isn’t it exciting? How do I look? I want to make a good first impression.”
My heart pounded while I bluffed. With only two hours of sleep last night, I prayed I could get through the day without any incident, and most importantly, without getting fired.
“I can’t believe the boss hired you,” K said bitterly.
“What can I say? I have my charm.” I thickened my Southern accent to irritate him. “And you should not block the entrance, KK. Rydstrom said he’d have to deduct my pay if I was late, and then I’d have to argue that you’re the cause.”
He moved aside. “Don’t pinch the gargoyle’s nose next time,” he said in distaste.
Music blared in my face. But as I turned to peek at the crowd that made a beeline toward the museum next door, I noticed that none of them looked in this direction. Just as I’d suspected, this place was glamoured. If something ever happened to me here, even if I screamed bloody murder, not a single good Samaritan would come to my rescue.
The burden was mine and mine alone now.
“The gargoyle didn’t mind,” I said and stepped into the monsters’ lair.
“As if you can speak for him?” the bouncer sneered.
“So it’s a him?” I smirked. “You inspected the gender already? How?”
“Just don’t do anything