Alpha Erased (Alpha Girl 9)

Whoever this fey girl was, she had some guts to argue with the queen like that.

“I know I can’t read minds, but I’m not an idiot.” The fey girl punched the button again. “I can tell when—”

“Did you show him Cosette’s picture? She could—”

“Yes, I showed him Cosette’s, and he said he hadn’t seen her.”

The elevator door creaked open. Her voice sounded farther away as she stepped inside.

I opened the door a little more—just wide enough to poin

t the camera lens of my phone through it—and snapped a picture.

Her back was to me, but I could see her long blonde hair. She was tall and thin, and the way she flicked her hair over her shoulder reminded me of someone.

“Cassie’s not here now, and no, she didn’t answer my texts. She’s probably at the store. She’s eating more and more. It’s revolting how much she can shovel in at once. I’ve never seen anyone eat like that. She said that’s why she passed out, and I believe her, Mother. I—” The elevator door slid shut, and I opened the door, stepping into the hallway.

I glanced down at my phone. I wished I had a better picture of the fey, but she’d called Helen “Mother,” which meant that the girl had to be one of Cosette’s siblings. That’s why she could argue with Helen.

I went to my apartment. As soon as I stepped inside, Van, Chris, and Cosette appeared in my living room. They all started talking at once, and I turned to them. “Shut up.”

I motioned to Cosette toward the balcony.

“What?” she asked.

“If the fey parked on the street, she should be outside in just a second. She’s one of your sisters.”

Cosette pushed past me, and for the first time since I met her, there was an echo of her mother’s ice-cold anger on her face. The look was part-ice, part-anger, part-demand to be obeyed, and all of it showed the fey she truly was. In that instant, I was glad she was on our side.

“Just wait.” I grabbed her arm. “See if you know who she is when she comes out. I don’t want to start something without knowing fully what we’re getting into and what they could do to Tessa.”

“Right, but depending on who it is, I might go out there and confront her.”

“As long as it doesn’t risk Tessa.”

She took a breath, and some of the ice in her eyes thawed. “Of course.”

I bit back my thank you and released her arm.

We stood at the balcony rails, staring down below. The blonde fey exited the building below us. I watched Cosette as she stared at the girl for a moment, and then she walked back into the apartment.

She stared at Van for a moment and then tilted her head to the side. His eyes widened just a touch, and then he gave a nearly unnoticeable nod and was gone without a word.

“Where did Van go?”

“The Lunar Court. You were right. That was my sister.” Cosette dropped into the loveseat and flicked her hair over her shoulders.

That was what I’d recognized. The fey girl had the same mannerism as Cosette.

“Van didn’t want to start a war without cause, and he didn’t want anyone spooking and doing something to Tessa. So, we’ve been careful.” She shrugged. “Now we know where Tessa is and who’s involved—other than my mother. His plan is adjusting a little.”

Cosette looked up at me. “But none of that’s important right now. If Tessa’s as close to fading as you think she is, we can only focus on breaking through the magic.”

There was a part of me that still wanted to chase down the fey girl and do something. I wasn’t sure what, but I wanted the fey to pay for what they’d done to her. To me. To us.

But there was a bigger part right now that was holding the rest of me back. The part that wanted my mate safe and whole. I wasn’t sure how to make that happen, but I was reasonably certain that attacking the fey wouldn’t help. “Then we can’t risk chasing down who did this. Not unless we’re certain that we can get them to undo it.”

Cosette shook her head. “No. My mother won’t undo it. She’d rather Tessa die. It would solve a lot more problems for her.”