---

“So, what do we do now?” Tessa asked as I parked my car in the manor’s underground garage.

I was still debating that. I knew what I had to do; I just wasn’t sure I wanted her with me.

“I don’t know,” I said, knowing my answer was stupid. I exited the car and marched up the stairs.

“Landon, wait.” Tessa hurried to catch up with me. In the middle of the kitchen, she grabbed my arm. “Landon, stop.” I paused and dared a peek at her. She was fuming, and I was fuming too. “What the hell is going on?”

“Nothing.”

She sighed. “Okay, look. I get it. It’s awkward after what happened last night, but you don’t have to worry. You made it clear that you—” She pressed her lips tight. “You made it very clear what you want and what you don’t, and I’m not a clingy girl, okay? I’m not going to bother you and throw myself at you. So just forget what happened and go back to being the guy who was helping me avenge my father.”

Shit. She still thought I regretted kissing her and didn’t want to be with her. She thought my bad mood was because of that? So far from the truth. But she didn’t need to know the truth. She couldn’t know the truth.

“It’s just …” I started, unsure what I would say, but feeling I should say something. “I have a lot on my mind. And Aidan texted me a few minutes ago. He wants to talk to me, so I’m going to find him now.” I took a step back. “We can go through my notes later.”

She put her hands on her waist. “Later? Landon, this demon already killed five people, almost six. We can’t waste time.”

“I know. Believe me, I know.” I retreated another foot. “I just need to go talk to Aidan now. In an hour or two, I’ll be back and we’ll plan how to catch this demon. Okay?”

She let out an exasperated sigh. “Okay.”

Hating the anxiety and helplessness in her blue eyes, I turned around and dashed away from the kitchen. I went directly to Isaac’s office and was glad to find Amber seated in the high chair behind the desk.

I closed the door and leaned on the cool wood.

She raised her head from her journal and cocked her eyebrows at me. “What’s eating at you?”

“I need your help.”

“Oh-kay.”

“I need you to keep Tessa entertained for the next couple of hours.”

She leaned back in the chair. “Why?”

“Because I’m close to finding that demon, and I don’t want her to know.”

She crossed her arms. “Why?”

“Because!” I ran a hand over my hair. “Because she’s green. She’s inexperience.”

“You know that isn’t fair, right? She’s a good fighter.”

“Yes, she’s a black belt. Against humans in controlled tournaments. We are talking about demons. She isn’t used to this. We had years of training before we were allowed on hunts. She hasn’t had even two full days of training.”

“Why the sudden change? You didn’t seem this worried when you took her to the beach when the nagas came, or when you went after the demon knowing it was still inside the house.”

“That was different.”

“Explain it to me.”

“I don’t need to explain anything to you.”

“Explain or I won’t help.”

I sighed, not believing what I was about confess. “Because I don’t want her getting involved in this any more than she already has. Because when I go after the demon tonight, I don’t want to have to worry about her while I’m trying to kill it. Because I know I’ll worry and check on her. I know I’ll get distracted. And if she gets hurt—”

“You like her,” Amber said. I didn’t answer, which was an answer in itself. “I still think it’s not fair.”

“Amber, Isaac pushed her away to keep her safe. This life is harsh. It takes the things we love the most and you know it.”

She flinched at my low blow.

Amber’s and Aidan’s mother hadn’t been a hunter, though she had known all about it and raised her kids hoping they wouldn’t be hunters like their father. An unruly werewolf went to her workplace and attacked her—payback for Hendrick killing most of his pack.

She stood. “For the record, I don’t think you’re making the right choice. But … I do see your point, so I’ll help you. What’s the plan?”

“Just … keep her entertained while I’m away. I don’t know, ask her to cook something else, or take her for a stroll in the garden, or watch a movie … whatever. As long as you don’t take her off the estate. Please.”

A smile stretched over her lips. “I might have an idea.”

---

Nurse Lindsey, a vampire with long locks and dark catlike eyes, met me at the reception of the health center. She often worked with the Sanctum of the Seven, facilitating our way in when we had to talk to victims or look at bodies.

“How is she?”

“She’s fine. A little scared and still sore from her wounds, but she’ll be out of here in another day or two.” Lindsey glanced at the to-go coffee cup and the box of bagels in my hands and smiled. “She’ll like that. She has been begging her sister for some real food, but the other one is too worried. Since she’s at the hospital, she should have only hospital food.” She chuckled.

“Her sister is here?” I asked as she pushed the internal hospital doors open.

“You’re in luck. The sister left not long ago to take a shower and rest. She won’t be back for at least an hour.” She guided me through the maze of hallways.

“That’s good.”

Lindsey paused in front of a door. “Just don’t upset her too much. Her blood pressure has been spiking.”

I scoffed. “I’ll try.”

I turned the knob and peeked inside. Liz Morgan was lying on the hospital bed, covers up to her chest, staring out the window.

She saw me entering the room and tensed, her eyes going wide. “You …”

“I brought you these.” I showed her the cup and the bagel box. She stared at it, wary. “How have you been?”

“I’ve been better.” She humphed. “You know, everyone in here thinks I’m crazy. They practically laughed in my face when I said a monster attacked me and killed my husband.”

I placed the cup and the bagels on the table beside her bed. “I know.”

She glanced at the goods again. “Why are you here?”

“I need to ask you some questions.”

She reached for the coffee. “I already told everything that happened to the police. You can ask them. I’m sure their report ends with a ‘she’s crazy,’ and then they laugh each time they read it.”

“Actually, I’m here to talk about something that happened sixteen years ago.”

Her face paled. “W-what?”

“You know Vanessa Brody, Tony Carvalho, and Josie Brown were killed, right? A few days before you were attacked.”

She nodded. “I heard about it …”

“You know the monster that attacked you and killed your husband? It was the same monster that killed them. And now Duke Lewis is dead too.”

Her hand flew to her mouth. “No.”

“I saw Lola Johnson outside Duke’s house when the police were there, checking the crime scene. She told me you all and her brother, Peter, were friends in high school. She also told me Peter died during a camping trip right after graduation. All I could find about his death was it had been an accident. He fell and was impaled by a hunting knife. Even the newspapers clippings, I found don’t explain what happened or whom he was with. So, since you were all such good friends, I was wondering if you know anything about it.”

Her lips trembled. “I can’t … I’m tired of lying. Every time someone asks me that, I feel heavy. I feel dirty. I can’t lie anymore.” A sob ripped through her throat. “It was an accident, but it started as a teasing thing. We didn’t mean to … We didn’t think it would …” Another sob cut her words.

“Okay, okay.” I patted her shoulder. I wasn’t good at comforting strangers, something that was common with my job. “Just take a deep breath and start from the beginning.”

She took one, two, three deep breaths. “We had just graduated high school and everyone was leaving for summer jobs and then college soon, so we went camping together. A last celebration before real life began. We were drinking and playing. Duke’s father liked to hunt deer and other game, so their truck was full of hunting gear. We started messing around with the hunting knives and rifles and traps.” A new tear rolled down her face. “It was so, so stupid. We were eighteen. Young and stupid. And drunk. The guys started a fight, and suddenly everyone had knives in their hands. I don’t remember exactly, but the guys rushed in like bulls, and then Peter was on the ground, a hunting knife deep in his chest.” She swallowed a sob.

“What happened then? Why couldn’t I find any record of this?”

“Tony’s uncle was the chief of police back then. He didn’t want his brother, his nephew, and his nephew’s friends, getting in trouble for an accident, so they hid the real story. They said Tony and Peter had gone hunting with Tony’s father and uncle, and there was an accident. That was it.”

So messed up.

“Tell me the names of everyone who was there that night.”

“Peter and his girlfriend, Vanessa. I was dating Duke back then. Besides Tony, Josie, and Duke, there were also George Marsh, T.J. Dale, and Johnny Holt. George still lives in town, but I know Johnny and T.J. moved away for college and never came back. Vanessa moved away too, but she came back a couple of years ago. Each time Lola shows up to visit their parents, Vanessa freaks out. She would come to me and cry nonstop. She wanted to tell them. She wanted to confess.”

“But you convinced her otherwise.”

“Not only me, all of us. When she got like that, I called everyone, and we all talked her out of it.” She paused, her eyes full of unshed tears. “What does that have to do with what’s happening now? Do you think …?” She gasped. “Do you think the monster is Peter? Oh my God, he somehow came back to get his revenge.” Tears streamed down her face.

“I don’t think so.” If Peter had somehow come back, it would have been as a ghost and I had seen the demon with my own eyes. It wasn’t a ghost. “However, I do think it’s related.”

“Oh my God,” she muttered. “Ghosts, monsters, it’s all real.”

“Liz, don’t worry about that now. You’re safe here.” Nurse Lindsey kept a close eye on her. “Just get better. After you leave this hospital, this monster will be gone, and you can resume your life as if nothing had happened.”

“How will you get the monster?”

I still wasn’t sure what kind of demon it was, but she didn’t need to know the details. “Let me worry about that.” I patted her shoulder once more and retreated.

Liz looked at me, her eyes so sad, so defeated. “Please, make sure none of my friends die. Not anymore.”

I stuffed my chest as if delivering a promise. “I’ll do my best.”