Текст книги "Onyx (A Lux Novel)"

Автор книги: Jennifer L. Armentrout

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Текущая страница: 14 (всего у книги 25 страниц)

Chapter 22

Bethany—Dawson’s girlfriend—was alive. And she was with the DOD. It sounded insane, and I went through every stage of denial as I made my way home, but it was her. That face had been burned into my memory. I paced the house until Blake showed up, stunned by what this could mean.

He took one look at me and frowned. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“I think I have.” My hands opened and closed at my sides. “I think I saw Bethany today with this guy from the DOD.”

Blake frowned. “Who’s Bethany?”

It felt wrong telling Blake about this, but I needed to tell someone. “Bethany was Dawson’s girlfriend. And Dawson was Daemon and Dee’s brother. They were supposedly attacked by an Arum and killed, but their bodies were taken away by the DOD before Daemon or Dee could see them.”

Understanding dawned in his eyes. “Man, I was curious. Every Luxen comes in threes.”

I nodded. “But if it’s really her—and I’m pretty sure it’s her—what does that mean?”

Blake sat on the arm of the recliner, turning the TV remote over and over above his hands…without touching it. “How close were Dawson and Bethany?”

Then it hit me. It all seemed so clear. The walls tilted a little as panic punched a hole in my chest. “Oh my God, Dawson had healed Bethany. That’s what everyone thinks. That she got hurt somehow and he healed her. And he could’ve changed—mutated—her, right?”

Blake nodded. “Oh, man…”

“And I bet Bethany is a nickname for Elizabeth and… And what did that girl look like—the one who told you about the DOD named Liz?”

His brows rose. “She had brown hair, a little darker than yours. Kind of sharp features, but really pretty.”

It all started to click together. “This is insane. How would the DOD have known about her? She and Dawson disappeared just a couple of days after whatever happened between them, unless…unless someone who suspected that Bethany had been healed told the DOD.” My stomach tumbled over as I pulled my hair back into a messy twist. “Who would do that? One of the Luxen?”

“I don’t know. I wouldn’t put it past the DOD to have Luxen who are the eyes and ears for them,” he said, rubbing his brow. “Man, that sucks.”

Suck didn’t even cover it. That meant someone close to the Blacks had most likely betrayed them in the worst way. Anger whipped through me. I turned just as the curtains billowed out as if a rush of air had entered the room. A small cyclone of books and magazines moved through the living room, spinning and spinning.

“Whoa, simmer down, Storm.”

I blinked and the cyclone fell apart. Sighing, I picked up the books and magazines now scattered around the room. My pulse thrummed in my ears as my mind raced through what I’d discovered. “If the DOD has Beth, then what did they do with Dawson? Do you think he’s still alive?”

Hope sparked with that idea. If Dawson was alive, that would… It would be like my father still being alive. My life would change. Daemon’s and Dee’s lives would change for the better. They’d be a family again…

Blake grasped my arm gently, turning me toward him. “I know what you’re thinking. How wonderful it would be for him to still be alive, but Katy, the DOD doesn’t want Dawson. They wanted Bethany. And they’d do anythingto get control of mutated humans. If the DOD told his family he was dead…”

“But you don’t know if they told the truth,” I protested.

“Why would they keep him alive, Katy? If that really is Liz—Beth—then they have what they want. Dawson would be dead.”

I couldn’t believe that. There was a chance he was alive, and there was no way I could live with myself without telling Daemon and Dee.

“Katy, he can’t be alive. They are ruthless,” he persisted, and his grip tightened on my arm. “You do understand that, right?” He shook my arm. Hard. “Do you?”

Surprised by his doggedness, I lifted my chin. My eyes met his, and there was something wrong in his, a quality that was slightly off and scary, like when he’d smiled and threw the knife at my head. Ice trickled through my veins.

“Yeah, I understand. It probably wasn’t even her.” I swallowed, forcing a smile. “Blake, can you let go of my arm? You’re hurting me.”

He blinked and then seemed to realize he’d been squeezing my arm. He let go and choked out a laugh. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want you getting your hopes up and being let down. Or doing something crazy.”

“No, my hopes aren’t up.” Rubbing my arm, I backed up. “And what could I do, anyway? I’d never tell Daemon or Dee if I wasn’t sure.”

Relieved, he smiled. “Good. Let’s start training.”

Nodding, I dropped the subject and hoped Blake forgot about it. Our training consisted of freezing things, and as soon as he left, I rushed to grab my cell. It was near midnight, but I texted Daemon anyway.

Can u come over?

I waited ten minutes before I texted him again.

This is important!!!

Another ten minutes went by, and I was starting to feel like I was one of those psychotic girlfriends who texted the crap out of guys until they responded. Damn him. Cursing, I sent him one more text.

Its abt Dawson.

Not even a minute later, I felt the rush of warmth on my neck. Stomach tumbling and twisting, I answered the door. “Daemon…” My words died off and my eyes widened. I must’ve woken him up, because…

No shirt. Again.

It had to be below thirty degrees outside, but he was standing in front of me in flannel pajama bottoms and nothing else but glorious, perfectly formed skin stretched taut over hard muscle. I hadn’t forgotten what he’d looked like shirtless, but my memory had not served him one bit of justice.

Daemon stepped inside, eyes wide and luminous. “What about Dawson?”

I shut the door, heart racing. What if telling him was a mistake? What if Dawson was dead? I’d just be screwing up Daemon’s life even more. Maybe I should’ve listened to Blake.

“Kat,” Daemon snapped, impatient.

“Sorry.” I moved past him, careful not to touch any of his exposed skin, and went into the living room. Popping in front of me, he planted his hands on his hips. I took a deep breath. “I saw Bethany today.”

Daemon’s head jerked to the side and he blinked once, then twice. “What?”

“Dawson’s girl—”

“I know what you said,” he interrupted me, dragging both hands through his tousled hair. For a moment I was a bit distracted by the way the muscles in his arms and shoulders rippled. Focus. “How can you be sure it was her, Kat? You’ve never seen her.”

“I’ve seen her missing person’s flyer. It’s a face I can’t forget.” I sat down, rubbing my hands over my knees. “It was her.”

“Holy shit...” Daemon sat beside me on the couch, dropping his hands between his legs. “Where did you see her?”

I watched the confusion lining his face and I wanted nothing more than to comfort him somehow. “At the post office after school.”

“And you waited until now to tell me?” Before I could answer, he laughed under his breath. “Because you were training with Bilbo Baggins and you had to wait until he left to talk to me?”

Squeezing my knees, I jerked my chin. Daemon should’ve been the first person I went to. Being shocked by what I saw and the training sessions weren’t nearly as important or a good enough excuse. “I’m sorry, but I’m telling you now.”

He nodded curtly and returned to staring at the Christmas tree. It seemed like forever ago that we’d put it up. “Man, I don’t…I don’t even know what to say. Beth’s alive?”

I nodded, pressing my lips together. “Daemon, I saw her with Brian Vaughn. She’s with the DOD. They’d pulled over on the side of the road and the car door had opened. That’s how I saw them. He was closing the door and he looked angry.”

Daemon slowly twisted his head toward me, and our gazes locked. Time stretched. An array of emotions went through his eyes, turning them from a bright green to a dark, stormy color. I saw the moment he knew what I was getting at—the second that his entire world came crumbling down and was rebuilt within seconds.

Suspecting that Dawson had healed Bethany, and then jumping to Dawson and Bethany disappearing because of the DOD rather than the Arum wasn’t a hard leap to make. Not after discovering that by healing me, Daemon had also changed me. Then you throw Blake into the mix, plus everything he’d told us about the DOD and their search for mutated humans.

Daemon was smart.

He shot to his feet and within seconds, he was out of his human form and blinding me. His light flared a shade of red-white as he pinged across the room. Wind picked up, stirring the bulbs on the Christmas tree. She was with the DOD?His voice whispered to me, tight with fury. The DOD is responsible for this?

Hearing Daemon’s voice in my head always took me a few seconds to get accustomed to, and out of habit I answered verbally. “I don’t know, Daemon, but that’s not the worst part of this. How would the DOD know what happened between Dawson and Bethany unless…?”

Unless someone told them?His light pulsed and a blast of heat filled the room. But Dawson didn’t even tell me he’d healed her or that anything happened. How would anyone know? Unless someone had seen them other than me, suspected what happened, and betrayed us…

I nodded, not even sure if he was looking at me or not. All I could see was his form, no features, no eyes. “That’s what I’ve been thinking. It had to be someone who knew, and that probably really limits the pool of suspects.”

Several moments passed and the temperature in the room continued to rise. I need to know who betrayed us. Then I’ll make them wish they’d never landed on this planet.

Eyes wide, I stood and pushed up the sleeves of my sweater. Swallowing, I took a chance. Daemon?

His light flickered. I hear you.

More proof that our connection hadn’t gone anywhere. I know you’re hell-bent on revenge, but most importantly, what if Dawson is still alive?

Daemon drifted over to me, and tiny beads of sweat broke out on my forehead. Then I don’t know if I should be happy or sad. He’d be alive, but where? The DOD has him, and if that’s the case, what kind of life has he had? For two years?His next words sounded choked, even within my mind. What have they been doing to him?

Tears filled my eyes, blurring his light. I’m sorry, Daemon. I’m really sorry. But if he’s alive, then he’s alive.I reached out, placing my hand through the light, touching his chest. The light pulsed erratically then calmed. My fingers hummed. That’s got to mean something, right?

Yes, yes it does.Then he stepped back, and a second later he was in his human form. “I need to find out if my brother is alive—and if he’s not…” He looked away, jaw working. “I need to know how and why he died. It’s obvious why they would want Beth, but my brother?”

I sat back down, wiping my palm over my forehead. “I don’t know—” Daemon grasped my hand so quickly, I gasped. “What are you doing?”

He turned my hand over, his brows furrowing. “What is this?”

“Huh?” I glanced down, and my heart stuttered. A deep, purplish bruise circled my wrist, right where Blake had grabbed me earlier. “It’s nothing,” I said quickly. “I banged my arm into the counter earlier.”

His eyes lifted, piercing mine. “Are you sure that’s what happened, because I swear if it’s not, you tell me and that problemwill be solved.”

I forced a laugh and an eye roll for extra benefit. There was no doubt in my mind that Daemon would do something terrible to Blake even though it was an accident. There were no shades of gray with him. “Yes, Daemon, that’s all that happened. Geez.”

Studying me, he backed up and sat on the couch. Several moments passed. “Don’t tell Dee about this, okay? Not until we get some leads or something. I don’t want her knowing anything until we know for sure.”

Great. One more lie, but I could understand why. “How are you going to get leads?”

“You said you saw Bethany with Vaughn, right?”

I nodded.

“Well, I happen to know where he lives. And he probably knows where Beth is and what happened to Dawson.”

“How do you know where he lives?”

He smiled, a bit evilly. “I have my ways.”

A new panic dug in with icy fingers. “Wait. Oh no, you can’t go after him. That’s insane and dangerous!”

Daemon arched a coal-black brow. “As if you care what happens to me, Kitten.”

My mouth dropped open. “I do care, jerk-face! Promise me you won’t do anything stupid.”

Watching me a few seconds, his smile turned sad. “I won’t make promises I know I’ll break.”

“Argh! You’re so freaking frustrating. I didn’t tell you so you’d go off and do something stupid.”

“I’m not going to do anything stupid. And even if what I plan is risky and insane, it’s a well-thought-out level of stupidity.”

I rolled my eyes. “That’s reassuring. Anyway, how do you know where he lives?”

“Since we’re surrounded by people who potentially want to do my family harm, I tend to keep tabs on them like they keep tabs on me.” He leaned back, stretched his arms until his back bowed. Good God, I had to look away. But not before I caught the gleam of satisfaction in his eyes. “He’s been staying at a rental in Moorefield, but I’m not sure which one it is.”

I shifted on the couch, yawning. “What are you going to do? Stake out his block?”

“Yes.”

“What? Do you have a James Bond fetish?”

“Possibly,” he replied. “I just need a car not easily recognizable. Does your mom work tomorrow?”

My brows rose. “No, she’s off in the evening and will probably be sleeping, but—”

“Her car would be perfect.” He shifted his weight on the couch and was now so close, his bare arm pressed into mine. “Even if Vaughn has seen her car, he won’t suspect it belongs to her.”

I scooted over. “I’m not letting you take my mom’s car.”

“Why not?” He inched over, grinning. A charming smile—the same he’d used on my mom the first time they’d met. “I’m a good driver.”

“That’s not the point.” I moved against the arm of the couch. “I can’t just let you take her car without me.”

He frowned. “You’re not getting involved in this.”

But I wanted to be involved in this, because it did involve me. I shook my head. “You want my mom’s car, then you get me along with it. It’s a two-for-one special.”

Daemon tipped his chin now, peering up through thick lashes. “Get you? Now that sounds way more interesting of a deal.”

My cheeks flushed. Daemon already had me, but he just didn’t know. “As in a partnership, Daemon.”

“Hmm.” Daemon flickered to the door. “Be ready after school tomorrow. Ditch Bartholomew by any means necessary. And do not speak a word of this to him. You and I will be playing spy alone.”

Chapter 23

Making up some lame excuse about having to spend time with my mom, I successfully ditched a very pouty Blake. Getting the keys from my mom wasn’t too difficult, either. She’d crashed from a double shift as soon as she got home, and I knew she wouldn’t be awake to notice her car was gone. We’d waited until darkness fell, which clocked in around five thirty.

Daemon met me outside and tried to take the keys. “Nope. My mom’s car means I’m driving.”

He glared at me but got into the passenger seat. His long legs were no match for the cramped seating. He looked like he’d outgrown the car. I laughed. Daemon scowled.

I turned on a rock station, and he changed it to an oldies station. Moorefield was only fifteen minutes away, but it would be the longest damn drive of my life.

“So how did you drop Butter-face?” he asked before we even pulled out of the driveway.

I shot him a dirty look. “I told him I have plans with my mom. It’s not like I spend every waking minute with Blake.”

Daemon snorted.

“What?” I glanced at him. He stared out the window, one hand on the oh-shit handle. As if my driving was thatbad. “What?” I repeated. “You know what I’m doing with him. It’s not like we’re hanging out and watching movies.”

“Do I really know what you’re doing with him?” he asked softly.

My hands tightened on the wheel. “Yes.”

The muscle worked in his jaw, and then he turned, angling his body toward me the best he could given the limited space. “You know, your whole life doesn’t have to involve training with Bradley. You can take time off.”

“You could also join us. I liked it…when you helped out, when you were there,” I admitted, feeling my cheeks burn.

There was a pause. “You know my stance on that, but you need to stop avoiding Dee. She misses you. And that’s just messed up.”

Guilt chewed at me with small, razor-sharp teeth. “I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry?” he said. “What for? For being a crappy friend?”

In a second, anger flashed through me, wild and hot like a fireball. “I’m not trying to be a crappyfriend, Daemon. You know what I’m doing. You’rethe one who told me to keep her out of this. Just tell Dee I’m sorry, okay?”

The familiar challenge was in his voice. “No.”

“Can we not talk?”

“And that would also be a no.”

But he didn’t say anything else while he gave me directions to the subdivision where Vaughn lived. I parked the car halfway between the suspected six houses, grateful that my mom tinted the windows of her car.

Then Daemon started in again. “How has your training been going?”

“If you got over yourself, you’d know.”

He smirked. “Are you still able to freeze things? Move objects around?” When I nodded, his eyes narrowed. “Have you had any unexpected outbursts of power?”

Besides the whole mini cyclone in my living room after seeing Bethany, I hadn’t. “No.”

“Then why are you still training? The whole purpose was for you to get control. You have.”

Wanting to bang my head against the steering wheel, I groaned. “That’s not the only reason, Daemon. And you know that.”

“Obviously I don’t,” he retorted, pushing back against his seat.

“God, I love how you’re all up in my personal business but don’t want to be involved in it.”

“I like talking about your personal business. It’s usually entertaining and always good for a laugh.”

“Well, I don’t,” I snapped.

Daemon sighed as he twisted in his seat and tried to get comfortable. “This car sucks.”

“It was your idea. I, on the other hand, think the car is a perfect size. But that might be because I’m not the size of a mountain.”

He snickered. “You’re the size of a little, itty bitty doll.”

“If you say a vacant doll, I will hurt you.” I wound the necklace chain around my fingers. “Got that?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

I stared out the windshield, caught between wanting to just be angry with him—because that was easy—and wanting to explain myself. So much bubbled up in me that nothing would come out.

He sighed. “You’re worn down. Dee’s worried. She won’t stop bugging me to check on you and see what’s wrong, since you won’t hang out with her anymore.”

“Oh, so we’re back to you doing things to make your sister happy? Are you getting bonus points for asking?” I asked before I could stop myself.

“No.” He reached out, catching my chin in a gentle grasp, forcing me to look at him. And when I did, I couldn’t breathe. His eyes churned. “I’m worried. I’m worried for a thousand different reasons and I hate this—I hate feeling like I can’t do anything about it. That history is on repeat and even though I can see it as clear as day, I can’t stop it.”

His words opened up a hole in my chest and suddenly I thought of Dad. When I was little and would get upset, usually over something stupid like a toy I wanted, I could never really put my frustration into words. Instead, I’d throw a fit or pout. And Dad…he always said the same thing.

Use your words, Kitty-cat. Use your words.

Words were the most powerful tool. Simple and so often underestimated. They could heal. They could destroy. And I needed to use my words now. I wrapped my fingers around his wrist, welcoming the jolt that touching him gave me.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

Daemon looked confused. “About what?”

“About everything—about not hanging out with Dee and being a terrible friend to Lesa and Carissa.” I took a deep breath and gently pulled his hand away. I looked out the windshield, blinking back tears. “And I’m sorry about not being able to stop training. I get why you don’t want me to. I really do. I understand that you don’t want me in danger and that you don’t trust Blake.”

Daemon sat back against the seat and I forced myself to continue. “Most of all, I do know you fear that I’m going to end up like Bethany and Dawson—whatever really did happen to them—and you want to protect me from that. I understand. And it…it kills me knowing that it hurts you, but you’ve got to understand why I need to be able to control and use my abilities.”

“Kat—”

“Let me finish, okay?” I glanced at him and when he nodded, I took another breath. “This isn’t just about you and what you want. Or what you’re afraid of. This is about me—my future and my life. Granted, I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life when it came to college, but now I face a future where if I step out of the range of the beta quartz, I’m going to be hunted. Like you. My momwill be in danger if an Arum sees and follows me home. And then there’s this whole DOD mess.”

I squeezed my hand around the obsidian. “I have to be able to defend myself and the people I care about. Because I can’t expect you to always be there to protect me. It’s not right or fair to either of us. That’s why I’m training with Blake. Not to piss you off. Not to get with him. I’m doing it so that I can stand beside you, as your equal, and not be someone you need to protect. And I’m doing this for myself, so that I don’t have to rely on anyone to save me.”

Daemon’s lashes lowered, shielding his eyes. Seconds passed in silence and then he said, “I know. I know why you want to do this. And I respect that. I do.” There was a “but” coming. I could feel it in my bones. “But it’s hard to stand back and let this happen.”

“You don’t know what’s going to happen, Daemon.”

He nodded and then turned to the passenger window. One hand came up, rubbing along his jaw. “It’s hard. That’s all I can say about this. I’ll respect what you want to do, but it’s hard.”

I released the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding on a soft sigh and nodded. I knew he wasn’t going to say anything more about this. Respecting my decision was better than an apology. At least now, we were on the same page, and that was important.

I peeked at him. “Anyway, what are we going to do if we see Vaughn?”

“Haven’t thought that far ahead yet.”

“Wow. This was a good plan.” I paused. “I really doubt Bethany is in one of these houses. That would just be too dangerous.”

“I agree, but why did they have her out in public like that?” He’d asked the million-dollar question. “Where anyone could see her?”

I shook my head. “I got the distinct impression that Vaughn wasn’t too happy. Maybe she escaped.”

He looked at me. “That would make sense. But Vaughn, well, he’s always been a punk.”

“You know him?”

“Not extremely well, but he started working with Lane a few months before Dawson disappeared.” The last word seemed to get stuck on his tongue, as if he were still getting acquainted with the possibility that Dawson wasn’t dead. “Lane had been our handler for God knows how long, and then Vaughn showed up with him. He was there when they told us about Dawson and Bethany.”

Daemon’s throat worked. “Lane seemed genuinely upset. Like Dawson wasn’t just a thingthat had died, but a person. Maybe he grew attached to Dawson over the years. See”—he cleared his throat—“Dawson had that kind of effect on people. Even when he was being a smartass, you couldn’t help but like him. Anyway, Vaughn couldn’t have cared less.”

I didn’t know what to say. So I reached over the small space between us and squeezed his arm. He looked at me, his eyes bright. Beyond him, several large snowflakes fell with a quiet hush.

Daemon placed his hand on mine for the briefest moment. Something infinite flared between us—stronger than physical, which was weird because it really fueled all that physical stuff in me. Then he pulled back, watching the snow. “You know what I’ve been thinking?”

Why I hadn’t crawled over the center console and into his lap yet? Because damn if I was wondering that very thing, but the car was way too small for those kinds of shenanigans. I cleared my throat. “What?”

Daemon leaned back against the seat, watching the snow just like I was. “If the DOD knows what we can do, then none of us are really safe. Not that we’ve ever been safe, but this changes everything.” He turned his head toward me. “I don’t think I said thank you.”

“For what?”

“For telling me about Bethany.” He paused, a tight smile pulling at his lips.

“You needed to know. I would– wait.” Two headlights turned onto the street. It was at least the fifth one, but it was from an SUV. “We’ve got one.”

Daemon’s eyes narrowed. “It’s an Expedition.”

We watched the black Expedition slow down and pull into the driveway of a single-story home two houses in. Even though the windows in our car were tinted, I wanted to slide down in the seat and hide my face. The driver’s door opened and Vaughn stepped out, frowning at the sky as if it dared to annoy him by snowing. Another car door closed and a figure moved into the light.

“Dammit,” Daemon said. “Nancy’s with him.”

“Well, you weren’t really planning on talking to him, were you?”

“Yeah, I kind of was.”

Dumbfounded, I shook my head. “That’s insane. What were you going to do? Bust up in his house and demand answers?” When he nodded, I gaped. “Then what next?”

“Another thing I hadn’t fully worked out yet.”

“Geez,” I muttered. “You suck at this whole spy thing.”

Daemon chuckled. “Well, we can’t do anything tonight. If one of them went missing it probably wouldn’t be such a huge deal, but two of them would raise too many questions.”

My stomach churned as I watched the agents disappear into the house. A light turned on inside, and a slender figure moved in front of the window, drawing the curtains closed. “Huh. Private bunch, aren’t they?”

“Maybe they’re getting some bow-chicka-pow-wow.”

I looked at him. “Ew.”

He flashed his teeth. “She’s definitely not my type.” His gaze dropped to my lips, and parts of me quivered in response to the heat in his gaze. “But now I totally have that on my mind.”

I was breathless. “You’re a dog.”

“If you pet me, I’ll—”

“Don’t even finish that sentence,” I said, fighting a grin. Smiling only encouraged him, and he needed no extra reason to be a terror. “And knock the innocent look off your face. I so know—”

The obsidian flared quickly, heating up my sweater and chest like someone placed a hot coal against my skin. I yelped and jerked in my seat, banging my head on the roof.

“What?”

“An Arum,” I gasped. “An Arum is nearby! You don’t have any obsidian on you?”

Alert and tense, he scanned the dark road. “No. I left it in my car.”

I stared at him, shocked. “Seriously? You left the one thing that kills your enemy in your car?”

“It’s not like I need it to kill them. Stay here.” He started to open the door, but I grabbed his arm. “What?”

“You can’t get out of the car. We’re right in front of their house! They’ll see you.” I ignored the rising fear that always came with the Arum. “Are we still close enough to the Rocks?”

“Yes,” he growled. “They protect us for about fifty miles in every direction.”

“Then just sit still.”

He looked like he didn’t understand the concept, but he took his hand off the door and sat back. A few seconds later, a shadow moved up the street, darker than the night itself. It glided to the curb, drifting over the lawns coated with a thin layer of snow, stopping in front of Vaughn’s house.

“What the hell?” Daemon placed his hands on the dashboard.

The Arum took form, right there, out in the open. He was dressed like the ones we’d faced in the past: dark pants, black jacket, but no sunglasses. His pale blond hair moved slightly as he stepped up to the front door and pressed his finger on the doorbell.

Vaughn answered the door and grimaced. His mouth moved, but I couldn’t make out what he said. Then he stepped to the side, letting the Arum enter his house.

“Holy monkey balls,” I said, eyes wide. “That did not just happen.”

Daemon sat back, his voice tight with fury when he spoke. “That did. And I think we’ve discovered how the DOD knows what we’re capable of.”

Mind reeling, I stared at him. “The DOD and the Arum are working together? Sweet alien baby… Why?”

His brows puckered, and he shook his head. “Vaughn said a name—Residon. Read his lips.”

This new development was so not good. “What do we do now?”

“What I want to do is blow up their house, but that would draw too much attention.”

I pursed my lips. “No doubt.”

“We need to go see Matthew. Now.”

…

Matthew lived farther out in the boondocks than we did, and if the snow kept coming down, I had no idea how I was going to get Mom’s car home. His house was a large cabin built into the side of a mountain. I carefully made my way up his steep, graveled driveway that my mom’s Prius wouldn’t dare conquer.

“If you fall and break something, I’m going to be irritated.” Daemon grabbed my arm as I started to slip.

“Sorry, not all of us can be as awesome—” I squealed as he slid an arm around my back and lifted me into his arms. Daemon zipped us up the driveway, wind and snow blowing at my face. He put me down, and I stumbled to the side, dizzy. “Could you give me a warning next time?”

He grinned as he knocked on the door. “And miss that look on your face? Never.”

Sometimes I seriously wanted to just punch him in the face, but it made me warm in all the right places to see this side of him again, too. “You’re insufferable.”

“You like my kind of suffering.”

Before I could answer, Mr. Garrison opened the door. His eyes narrowed when he saw me standing next to Daemon, shivering. “This is…unexpected.”

“We need to talk,” Daemon said.

Eyeing me, Mr. Garrison led us into a very sparsely decorated living room. The walls were bare log and a fire in the fireplace crackled, throwing off heat and the scent of pine. There wasn’t a single Christmas decoration. Needing to thaw out, I sat close to the fire.

“What’s going on?” Mr. Garrison asked, picking up a small glass full of red liquid. “I’m assuming it’s something I don’t want to know, considering she’s with you.”

I checked myself before I said something back. The man was an alien, but he was also in control of my bio grade.