Fire Night (Devil's Night 4.5)

“Did he kill her?” Emmy whispered.

“I won’t ask him.”

Not ever.

“He could be the only one who knows what happened that night,” she pressed.

I know. And he wouldn’t live much longer to tell the story.

“No one knows where her grave is, then?” she asked again.

“Nowhere near Edward’s,” I told her. “That’s all I know.”

I snuggled her close, wanting to make the most of the time we had left before the kids came home, and discussing Reverie Cross was not what I had in mind.

“So, do you love me?” I teased.

“I’m almost positive I told you I did just thirty-nine seconds ago.”

I scoffed. I liked to hear it more frequently. She knew that.

She laughed, pressing her mouth to mine. “I love you.”

I moved over her lips, freezing my ass off out here, but the warm promise of her body had me hard and ready.

“I want to go somewhere,” I told her.

Catacombs, pantry, spare bedroom…wherever.

“I want to dance some more,” she whined.

I cocked an eyebrow. “How about you dance for me?”

I could live with that.

A wicked smile crossed her lips, and she bit her bottom lip. “Race you.”

And before I could reply, she pulled away, hiked up her dress, and started running.

A laugh rumbled through me, watching her scurry back into the house in her high heels before I sprinted, chasing her.

Bolting through the sitting room, she squealed as I tailed her and we both ran into the hallway, toward the guest rooms.

But then she halted all of a sudden and screamed, her back going rigid.

“Will!” she cried.

My smile fell, and I darted up to her side, taking hold of her.

“Wha—?”

But then I looked down and saw a bloody pool on the wooden floor, a body lying in the hallway.

I sucked in a breath and pulled her back. “What the fuck?”

“Oh, my God.” She covered her mouth with her hand.

“What’s going on?” Kai called from downstairs, and I looked over the railing to see him standing in the foyer.

“Hurry!” I waved him up.

Kneeling down, I tried to make out the guy’s face in the dark, but he was face down, only the left side visible.

Who…? What the hell happened?

“Baby, get the lights,” I told her.

I pressed my fingers, finding his neck to check for a pulse, but I couldn’t find one. Light finally illuminated the hallway as footfalls hit the stairs, everyone running up after us.

“What the hell?” Kai said, stopping next to the body. “Who is that?”

How would I know?

“Is he dead?” I heard Michael ask.

No idea. I stared down at him, a young blond man in street clothes, blood seeping out of his head. I didn’t recognize him, and he wasn’t dressed for the party.

“Who is that?” Rika asked.

I shook my head.

Someone raced past us as I searched his pockets for identification, but when I reached under his jacket, I felt it.

I hesitated, the pulse in my neck throbbing.

Shit.

I flipped him over, dug under his arm, and pulled out the pistol from his holster. It laid in my palm, realization starting to hit all of us at the exact same time. The only people who had weapons were Lev and David, and this wasn’t either of them.

“The kids are gone!” a woman shouted.

What? I shot to my feet as everyone spun around to lock eyes with Mrs. Cuthbert.

“What kids?” I barked. “They’re at the theater.” And then I jerked my chin at Emmy, tossing her my phone. “Call Miss Englestat.” She had the kids at the theater. “Have her do a head count.”

She nodded, her hands shaking as she dialed.

“Mads and Octavia,” Damon murmured, his worried eyes meeting mine. “They stayed behind.”

Mads and Octavia… I darted my eyes to the nanny.

“They’re not in their rooms,” she cried.

And my face fell, realizing those were the kids she was talking about.

Everyone ran.

“Tavi!” Banks raced down the hall to the rooms the kids used when they were here.

“Madden!” Kai bolted down the other hallway where it forked to search the gallery where his son liked to hide.

“Madden!” more voices called as everyone fanned out.

My mouth went dry. I dipped down again, searching for the dude’s pulse and not finding it. Putting my fingers under his nose, I waited to feel the warmth of his breath.

There was nothing.

More footfalls ascended the stairs, and I rose up again, piecing together the possibilities in my head.

“He’s dead,” I said.

“It wasn’t us,” I head Lev say, and I looked up to see him and David standing at the top of the stairs, out of breath. “We didn’t see anything.”

“That’s obvious!” Banks growled.

“The door’s been opening every ten seconds with guests, Banks!” Lev yelled. “Anyone could’ve gotten in. I told you we needed more security.”

“But you all didn’t want ‘armed guards and a metal detector at the front door’,” David added, quoting Michael.

Michael grabbed his collar, shoving him away. “Search the house. Go!”