“Any word from the girls?” Chaz asks, drawing me out of my thoughts.
I shake my head, sighing as I put my arms behind my head and stare at the ceiling with my phone still clutched in my hand.
“Not yet. They said it might take a while because of a rental car thing.”
Just to rid myself of the temptation, I crush my phone in my hand, letting the pieces fall behind the couch. I’ll have Gage fix it later.
Chaz cocks a quizzical eyebrow. “Hope having her far away lessens your psycho need for her.”
I grab a drink, wishing I hadn’t ever laid eyes on her. More than anything, I wish I had never touched her. Just her taste… The feel of her… The way her eyes held mine…
“Zee?” Chaz prompts.
Shaking my head, I look away, toying with the frayed pieces of my jeans like they’re fascinating.
“She could always change her mind about wanting to be—”
Before he can finish that terrible sentence, Kimber is suddenly walking through a portal, and my entire body goes stiff. Her clothes are ripped and she looks like she just left a fight.
“What the fuck?” I bark, leaping to my feet as a sick feeling crawls across me.
“I don’t know,” she says, wide-eyed and shaking. “Where is everyone?”
“Out. What happened?” Chaz demands, grabbing her shoulders.
She staggers, like she’s too weak to even be standing. “I… I don’t know. One second we were driving, and the next I woke up hanging upside down with my seatbelt on. I never wear a seatbelt. I’m immortal, damn it. Ella and Leah were gone when I came to, and Morgana… I heard her. I know it was her talking in the distance. They were looking for the ‘human girl.’ I barely got out before they noticed I was in the vehicle.”
“Damn it,” Chaz hisses, but I can barely stand, so forming words isn’t easy.
“Ella,” I say, shaking my head as I search for hope. “Ella must have gotten her out.”
“And left me?” Kimber asks. “She wouldn’t have left me there unconscious and defenseless. Morgana sounded surprised and pissed. She sure as hell didn’t sound weak and timid like she acted when Gage granted her freedom. I don’t even think she knows what Leah is, but it sounded like she was after her. Why?”
My jaw ticks as the taste of regret pools in my mouth.
“Because Morgana is trying to get to me,” I growl. “She must have found out about Leah.”
“She doesn’t know she’s an anointed. She only referred to her as human. Some of the orders she was barking out sounded muffled, but I could tell that much.”
“She’s not after her because of what she is,” I tell her, hearing my neck crack to the side as I try to rein in my temper. “She’s after her because of who she is to me. She has to know I want to sire her.”
“Fuck,” Chaz snarls. “We should have killed her when we had the chance. Next time she’s spotted, fucking do it. No hesitation.”
“That will be really fucking soon if she has Leah and Ella. Where was the wreck?”
Kimber shakes her head at my question. “It wasn’t her, Zee. They’re a problem for another day. Someone else took Ella and Leah. Someone strong enough to leave without a trace. It doesn’t even look like there was a struggle.”
“How? No one is strong enough to take Ella on. She would have leveled the place if they had pushed her to use too much power,” I counter, but realization slams into me at the same time Chaz curses.
“That fucking son of a bitch. Looks like Slade is finally a problem worth dealing with,” Chaz growls, grabbing his phone. “I should have known he was showing too much interest in Ella. I just didn’t think he’d fucking take her after saving her damn life and handing her over.”
The second I hear Kane’s voice on Chaz’s phone, I take the phone away from him.
“Don’t tell Alyssa anything.”
“Okay… I’m not within earshot of her. What’s going on?”
“That Gemini bastard took Ella and Leah. We need to go after him. Now. And we’re going to need our own creature god to handle him.”