Fire Night (Devil's Night 4.5)

Good idea. We weren’t turning Taylor over to anyone’s care this time. We had a place to hide him. If he survived.

They ran over to collect Taylor as Banks jumped on her phone. “The marina,” she told someone, probably Damon. “Kill him if you have to.”

And please hurry.

I opened the back door, letting Emmy in first.

“That was a good move, baby,” I told her, remembering her little hand trick on his throat. “John Wick, right?”

“John Wick 2.”

I nodded, rushing in after her. “Oh, right.”

“I’ll keep you posted,” Rika told her mom on the phone. “Don’t worry.” She listened, then nodded, glancing at me. “As soon as we know something, yes.”

She hung up and handed the phone to me. I tucked it into my pocket, Damon in the driver’s seat in front of me and Winter wringing her hands next to him.

I heard a notification beep, and then Damon tapped the screen of his cell.

“What is it?” Rika asked.

“Banks texted,” he told us. “The kids are at the marina.”

“Does Banks have them?” I blurted out.

But he shook his head, punching the gas, the engine revving under us. “I don’t think so.”

“Damon…” Winter begged, and I could see her knees shaking.

He clasped her hand. “They won’t do anything.”

“They might not plan to, but I doubt that dead body upstairs was planned, either,” she pointed out. “Something went wrong. They’ll be more scared now.”

Rika scooted forward and put her hand on Winter’s arm.

“If they were going to…” I started, but thought better of saying that out loud. “They would’ve done it at the house. They want ransom or something.”

Winter paused a moment, dropping her head. “Or they’re selling them,” she muttered. “Or bringing them to someone else.”

Jesus. I closed my eyes, groaning. We all knew the worst-case scenarios, and none of them ended happily for us if we didn’t catch up to those kids in the next ten minutes.

I hated that she let those thoughts fester, but…it kept us alert, I guess.

“Just go,” Rika barked. “Go around him.”

Damon swerved into the wrong lane, passing another car, and then jerked the wheel again, speeding on ahead, in front of it.

Taking out my phone again, I dialed Athos.

I should’ve called her right away. Shit.

“Hey,” she giggled, and I could hear her friends’ chatter in the background. “I’m not drinking. I might do some kissing. And I’m raising a little hell. Proud of me?”

“Go to the theater,” I blurted out. “Now. It’s an emergency. Stay there until I come and get you.”

There was silence, and I half-expected to be questioned, but she didn’t fight.

I heard her swallow. “Okay,” she replied quietly. “I’ll text when I’m there.”

“Love you,” I said.

“Love you too.”

We hung up, and I looked at Rika who was listening in, her shoulders relaxing when I nodded.

We didn’t ever overreact, and Athos knew it. If I sounded worried, I had cause, and she needed to do what she was told.

Rika reached behind and picked up a jacket out of the third row, pulling it on, and then dug under the seat, pulling out a blade. She kept them in all of our cars and various spots in the house for immediate access.

But I put my hand on hers, stopping her.

She met my eyes, and I shook my head. No. Not this time.

Her eyes narrowed, confused. “You can’t be serious,” she whispered. “I’m always with you.”

My heart ached, because I never wanted to do anything without her. She was the reason we were who we were. It had all started with her.

My eyes dropped to her stomach, our son starting to show himself more every day.

“I need you to be with him,” I told her.

At all costs.

“But Octavia and Madden—”

“We’ll get them.”

Of course, she was needed. And always wanted.

I touched her face, tipping her chin up to me, and the look in her eyes took me back to that night when she was thirteen, yelling at me over the hood of my car. “I’ve waited too long to see you and me walking around in one person,” I murmured.

We loved Athos and we were lucky, because I didn’t give a shit about the mother who’d left her at the sitter’s when she was seven and never came back, or the father she’d never known.

She was made for us.

But I was dying for another chance to be a dad.

Damon swung into the parking lot of the marina, cliffs on both sides and snow pouring white over the sea. Rika finally nodded, knowing this was as far as she went.

“I’ll call Search and Rescue.” She took my phone out of my hand. “And direct the police when they get here.”

I took her face and leaned in, kissing her as Damon and Winter jumped out of the car, and headlights fell upon us from behind.

Kai and Will were here.

“Lock the doors,” I whispered against her mouth.