Incipient A Dark Paranormal Romance - Bianca Scardoni Page 0,65
meeting about? If you have new information, I want to know beforehand.
I hit the send button and then tossed my phone on the bed.
Throwing on my standard uniform—a buttoned up blouse, pleated skirt and knee-high stockings—I grabbed my blazer, tucked my phone into the pocket and then left the room in a hurry.
Since I had ended up leaving my car at Ben’s house the night before, Trace ported us to the back of his house later that morning. His sprawling backyard was adorned with perfectly manicured trees, a guest house bigger than my house in Florida, an infinity pool and a fence that seemed to go on forever. Basically, just your average ‘rich people’ backyard.
The cold slowly left my body, letting me know that we’d fully materialized and that it was safe to let go of Trace’s hand.
“Did you want to ride together?” he asked, tugging at his already loosened tie.
“Actually, I have to run a quick errand before school, so I’ll probably just meet you there afterward.” I kept my voice even and casual despite watching his expression tighten with apprehension. “It’s daytime. I’ll be fine,” I quickly added, sensing he was worried about me being on my own with Dominic on the loose.
He regarded me for a moment and then nodded. “Call me if you need anything.”
“I will,” I said and then reached up for a quick hug.
He closed his arms around me and then craned his head to my ear. “Be careful, okay?” His breath was warm against my skin and made my skin prickle.
“You’ve got to stop worrying about me. You’re going to give yourself gray hair,” I teased and then pulled back to meet his eyes.
“The fuck if I know how to do that,” he said and stole a quick kiss from my lips.
Flutters tickled my stomach as I licked his kiss from my lips and stepped back from him. “I’ll see you later,” I said and turned toward the iron gate.
Trace stayed behind, watching me for a moment before disappearing behind Ben’s house to port back to his own car.
As much as I liked having Trace around, there were conversations I needed to have that he could not be privy to. My first stop was going to be Gabriel’s since I had not spoken to him since last night after the bloodsharing fiasco. He was my Handler and one of my best-friends and I needed to make sure he was okay.
We also needed to figure out a plan to immobilize Dominic until things calmed down enough for me to work on breaking his emotions out. Between the Horsemen and the Spawn of Satan, I had enough on my plate without having to look over my shoulder at every turn. Dominic was becoming a liability and that was the last thing I needed right now.
Once that was handled, I planned on paying the Senior Magister a visit and finding out what he knew. If this meeting was anything more than a general announcement—a casual be-on-alert warning—then I needed to know that, though I had the nagging suspicion it was going to be easier said than done.
Whatever it was that was going on, I was certain it wasn’t going to be anything good.
24. DANCING WITH A STRANGER
I reached Gabriel’s apartment on the outskirts of town in record time, though the small accomplishment did nothing to ease the jitters that wracked my body as I traversed the seedy corridor to Gabriel’s unit. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting to find on the other side of the door, though judging from my mounting nerves, it wasn’t anything good.
A light flickered above head as I raised my fist and knocked on the door. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why Gabriel chose to stay in such a dingy apartment on the worst side of town when he had access to the same kind of money Dominic had. Sometimes I wondered if his living situation wasn’t just another way for Gabriel to punish himself.
I brought my fist to the door and knocked again, harder this time. “Gabriel, it’s Jemma. Open up.”
Glancing over my shoulder, I hugged my arms for warmth and waited impatiently for him to answer. I mean, I knew he was in there. It wasn’t as if he had gone out for a quaint morning stroll in the sunlight, so, what the heck was he doing?
“Gabriel!” My nerves kicked up another notch. Something didn’t feel right. “I’m busting down the door in 5, 4,