Changing Beauty (The Deadly Beauties Live On 2)

“Sadie,” Ella says immediately, moving toward us. “Sadie can look like anyone and fool magic barriers that could detect imposters. She did it for months when she pretended to be Grandma.”

“Sadie’s a little pissed at us at the moment,” Zee reminds her. “I doubt she’s going to help us get back one of the people who aided in her torture.”

That sparks a feud as my mind rushes for answer.

“I said I have a motherfucking plan!” Chaz barks, stepping in between them. “And no one call Alyssa. Now more than ever we need to keep our silence about her, and Kane has to be there to keep her safe. She’s already grown weaker.”

“You’re not using my daughter,” Reese says as he moves toward us. Hell, I forgot he was even here. “You have no idea what they put her through. She won’t survive a second round of their abuse.”

Chaz’s eyes soften, and I stand beside Reese, agreeing with him. I love Kimber, and we’ll get her back, but we’re not using the girl I’m in love with to do it.

“I don’t want to use her, Reese. I have a plan that will work without her. It just might… raise a few questions about me that I don’t want to answer. And no one will ask those questions. Got it?”

Karma eyes him, taking a deep breath, and I notice she’s the only one who’s not confused about that request.

“Like what?” Ella asks, just as befuddled as the rest of us.

“There’s a question I don’t want to answer. Where’s the necklace she threw?”

I look around on the ground, just as everyone else does, but there’s no necklace in sight.

“Where the fuck is Drackus?” Reese snaps.

My heart leaps into my throat, and I run to the door, only to be launched backward the second I attempt to breach the outside. Weightlessness consumes me as I smash into the table, destroying it on landing, and I curse while hopping back up.

“I can’t dematerialize,” Karma says, straining as though she’s trying.

“That son of a bitch locked us in here,” Chaz hisses.

“I can get us out. I just need a few minutes,” Ella says while moving toward the door.

We might not have a few minutes, and I’ll kill Drackus if Roslyn ends back up in their hands.

Chapter 36

ROSLYN

A storm crackles outside, and it’s not a natural storm. It’s also not my storm.

Mom’s eyes meet mine, and she groans as she leans back. “Drackus,” she whispers. “Or Ella. More than likely, though, it’s Drackus.”

Dray frowns as he moves toward the doorway. “Definitely Drackus. Why would they send—”

His words are cut off as Drackus suddenly appears in front of the house, and he maintains his distance from the magical barrier.

“I don’t have long, and I need your help,” he says, his eyes locking on mine through the broken window.

Thad. They went for Thad.

Panic seizes me as I rush outside, but Mom grabs me by the arm before I leap off the porch.

“What do you need?” Mom asks, barely able to restrain me, and only able to do so because I don’t want to risk hurting her by fighting too much.

“Nothing from you,” he says with sad eyes before meeting my gaze again.

Then my eyes fall down to a familiar pendant, and more memories from the past assault me. Memories of tracking down innocent people as a form of exchange to get what they wanted. And I was just their tool.

“Who did they take?” I whisper, looking back up. “Is it Thad?”