Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 90630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
I’m making popcorn when the doorbell rings. It’s dark, so I don’t want to just open the door.
“Are you expecting anyone?” Devon asks, coming into the room, and I shake my head.
“Let’s check the footage,” I say and we both go into the mudroom behind the kitchen. Devon punches in a code and unlocks the screen.
It’s Antonio.
What the fuck? I blink a few times and continue to stare at the screen hanging on the wall that shows all the exterior camera footage. Yes, that’s him all right. I hurry through the house and throw open the front door.
“Are you serious?” I shake my head, lips parting but I’m quite literally speechless. “You shouldn’t be here and I told you, I’m not arguing about Larissa anymore. I had nothing to do with that.”
“I’m here about her,” Antonio says. “I’m here because I need your help and you’re not answering your phone.”
“Yeah, I muted you for the rest of the day. “What’s wrong?” A sick feeling starts to form in my stomach.
“Gia,” Antonio says. “She’s missing.”
Chapter
Thirty-Seven
“What do you mean?” I blurt.
“I mean she’s missing.”
“How long?”
“We think she snuck out sometime in the middle of the night.”
“Snuck out?” I echo and step back, motioning for Antonio to come inside. I can tell that he’s not lying; our little sister really is missing. “Do you have any idea where she was going?”
“Yeah.” Antonio apprehensively steps into the foyer and looks around. This house is fancy and intimidating on its own. When you factor in that it houses five vampires and a witch, it can feel like a house of horrors to some people. “Coming to find you.”
“Me? What?” I ask even though I heard him.
Before he can answer, Devon comes sliding to a stop next to me. “What the hell is he doing here?”
Antonio stiffens. He hasn’t seen Devon since he was human and lying on the ground of the parking lot, bleeding out.
“Gia is missing.”
“Your little sister?” Devon questions, and I nod.
“Tell me what happened,” I say to Antonio, and close the door behind him.
“Mom found a note at some point this morning. Gia misses you and…and doesn’t believe what she’s been told, thinks Xavier is the hero the news is making him out to be, and wants to come live with you.” He pulls his phone from his pocket and shows me a photo of Gia’s note.
“Oh. Wow. Okay…wait, last night? I talked to you this morning and you didn’t say anything.”
“No one knew she was missing until much later.”
“How?”
“Everyone has been really distracted. Ya know. Since Larissa was detained on the suspicion of mass murder.”
“Do not put that on me,” I snap and Antonio and I stare at each other for a few seconds.
“Oh, hello,” Mabel says, striding into the room. She’s pushing a pram full of stuffed animals. “Who is this?”
“This is my brother, Antonio,” I tell her. “Antonio, this is Mabel.”
“Is he here for the tea party?”
“No,” I say. “Our little sister is missing.”
“Gia? Well, you’re gonna go find her, aren’t ya?” She reaches into the pram and digs out Ellen. “She can have her once you do.”
I take the creepy doll. “Thank you, Mabel.” I tuck Ellen under my arm and close my eyes in a long blink. “Do you have anything of hers?” I ask Antonio.
“Yes. In the car,” he replies.
“Get it, and I’ll do a locator spell.
Devon slowly moves his head back and forth. “I will remind you that the last time you went looking for a missing family member, it didn’t end well.”
“I know!” I put my head in my hands. “But she’s just a kid and Antonio isn’t lying. She’s missing.”
“Anytime someone’s in danger, you just run, no questions asked.”
“She’s my sister, what do you want me to do?”
“Find her and then let him go. You don’t have to join.”
“She’s a kid. She ran away from the Order. I know what they’ll do to her.”
She’s a kid,” he repeats, but he’s not stating it. He’s asking if they’ll go easy on her because of it.
“It doesn’t matter. She’s old enough to know right from wrong according to the Order, and she’s going to be punished for defying them. And the Russos will be mad that she came looking for me.”
“So you plan on finding her and what? You bring her back here?”
“No, of course not. I’ll find her and then try to convince Antonio to get the fuck out of town and sort it all out himself.”
Devon just holds my gaze for a moment. “I couldn’t talk you out of it last time so I’m not going to even attempt to talk you out now. You should at least wait until Xavier can come with you.”
“He’s busy and at the TV station anyway.”
“Call him at the very least.”
“I will,” I promise. And I will. But not now, not right before Xavier goes on live TV. “I can tell Antonio is in line and once I do the spell I know exactly where she is.”