We heard something crashing to the ground as it echoed through the car speakers.
“Yeah, there was no fight. They just came, and then they were gone. But it was clear they were provoking us,” Simone went on.
“What do you mean they just left—”
“I mean, they were there, then they were gone!” she hollered at him. “They left the moment Druella asked them what they wanted.”
No. They left the moment he came.
I looked out the window, and just as we passed the street light, there on the corner, waiting with the rest of the afternoon commuters, dressed in all black, with dark hair, he stood patiently, openly staring at me. Our gazes met for a brief second as Simone drove farther away. I twisted my head back to see if he was still there, but he was gone.
He was messing with me!
He had to be freaking messing with me.
“Druella, what is? Do you see them?” Simone asked, checking in her rearview mirror.
I shook my head, sitting frontward again. “No. They are gone. I don’t feel them, either.”
“We should all meet,” Tate said.
“Forest, or should we go to Axel’s?” Simone asked, already shifting lanes to get out of the city.
“No, we will wait,” I said, motioning for her to stay in her lane.
“Wait? Druella, they came to my door. They obviously—”
“We have no idea what they wanted or what they were looking for. All of us gathering together or rushing to my uncle’s doesn’t accomplish anything except making the coven panic. We weren’t attacked.”
“So we wait until we are?” Simone snapped. “No, we need to hunt them down right now—”
“I. Said. No,” I spat out each word so harshly that the look on her face changed, and she shifted as far as she could in her seat because of the sheer heaviness of the magical air around me. Inhaling deeply, I calmed down and grabbed my phone, and continued speaking, “We do not just blindly run after them. That could be a trap for all we know. They might have come to make us hunt them now. We have no idea who they are or what they want, only that they know where Simone lives. It might be just her, or it might be all of us. I’m sending out a warning to everyone else to stay alert.”
“Are we telling Axel?” Tate’s voice, calmer now, came over the speakers.
“I just messaged him,” I replied as my uncle’s reply popped up. “He’s going to look into it. If any other vampires come, we will then defend, and we should be mindful of the humans.” I added that last part. Axel’s message simply said, “Destroy them.”
“Keep me posted. I’ll keep my eyes open around here. But if you need me—”
“We will call. Thanks, Tate,” I replied. I placed the p
hone back into my pocket and glanced up at the museum as we came close.
“Be safe,” he said before hanging up. When he did, I glanced over at Simone, who hadn’t said anything as she parked in the employee garage, the guard waving to us. She didn’t even look at me as she got out of the car, tossing her bag over her shoulder and walking with her head high.
“Are you mad at me?” I asked, rushing to catch up to her, but she just walked faster. “Simone!” I tried not to laugh as I caught up to her.
Her head whipped back at me as her eyes narrowed. “Are you laughing at me?”
I lifted my figures to measure. “Only a little.”
When her eyes narrowed, I grinned, causing her to march toward the elevators angrily, putting her badge over her head. I took out my badge as well, following after her and the others coming in. We moved to the back of the elevator, and only then did she mutter under her breath.
“All you had to do was say no. You didn’t have put that much energy out there,” she grumbled, rubbing the hair that was still standing on her arms.
“Sorry. You know I can’t always help it,” I replied. Being boundless didn’t come without its disadvantages. Since my magic wasn’t grounded in spells, it was often linked with my emotions or desires. Who could always control their emotions?
“Yeah. Yeah. I will see you later,” she replied as we walked off, Simone going left and me right.