Chapter 4
The neon lights outside the Circus were bright in the misty darkness, the sky heavy with unshed rain.
Gabriel held my hand as we walked. Mistral was on my other side and Crispin stuck close behind us.
Even with them around me ready to threaten off any unwanted advances, every look from one of the vendors or passersby gave me a chill.
Since we had started spreading the rumors of my whereabouts that morning, there would already be many of my grandfather’s allies around.
I could feel Ringo shifting for a better look behind us from his perch on my shoulder.
Nothing like basically having eyes in the back of my head, though I was worried about him too.
He had been quite adamant about not being left behind, and I had to admit, he’d saved my ass more than once.
I couldn’t really argue with him when the stakes were so high.
I trained my eyes on Sebastian and Penelope leading the way ahead of us. “I’m surprised they’re not racing each other,” I muttered under my breath.
Hearing me, Mistral chuckled. “They certainly do give new meaning to the idea of sibling rivalry.” He seemed relaxed for someone who hadn’t been able to go out into the city since his mother passed away. A lot had changed since then.
“It’s rather garish, isn’t it?” His eyes were on the largest neon sign above the entrance to the casino, depicting a dancing woman twirling amidst falling bills.
His predictable thoughts on the Circus somehow made me feel a little more at ease.
Sebastian and Penelope reached the entrance just ahead of us. A wraith stood inside, watching us with cool, impassive eyes. He had to know what was going on—pretty much all of the supernatural community did—but he let us walk by without comment.
Stepping into the colorful lights and noises of the casino was like entering a bubble. I had never much cared for the chaotic environment, especially now. My senses were going haywire.
Sebastian finally took the lead, guiding us to a poker table with several empty seats near a solid wall. A good place to defend ourselves and not get overwhelmed by numbers. Though Sebastian chose the table, Penelope sat first, acting very much like it was a race.
I sat as far from her as possible with Mistral beside me and Gabriel at our backs. For once the hulking goblin did not look out of place. Plenty of patrons had not so subtle bodyguards in a place like the Circus.
I gripped the edge of the table, feeling like all eyes were on me even though no one was obviously looking my way. Ringo had hidden in my hair at the sight of the first wraith, so there went my eyes in the back of my head. “Isn’t this a bit obvious?” I said through gritted teeth.
“Of course it is,” Crispin slid into the seat at my other side. “But that doesn’t mean they won’t take the bait.”
Penelope had already been dealt in and was ignoring us, her fingers dancing over her cards with practiced precision.
I spotted a few friendly faces scattered through the crowd—allies we’d positioned throughout the Circus.
None looked our way except Braxton, who caught my eye and gave me a wink from across the room.
Leave it to him to be cheery at a time like this.
I could only hope he wouldn’t get hurt when everything went sideways.
My mouth went dry at the thought of him getting hurt.
I considered ordering a drink to calm my nerves, but before I could even raise my hand, Gabriel’s fingers dug into my shoulder.
In one fluid motion, he hefted me from my seat just as a light shattered above us, raining glass and sparks everywhere. Ringo clung on for dear life.
Then it was chaos. Bodies surged toward me from every direction.
Maybe the plan had worked a little too well.
Our allies emerged from the crowd to intercept my grandfather’s people, just as we’d arranged.
Gabriel’s blade flashed silver in the neon lights.
Mistral’s magic sent two attackers flying backward into a craps table.
I pressed my back against the wall, scanning the crowd desperately for my mother. She was supposed to bring our grandfather here once his allies were occupied so we could face him evenly matched. But where was she? My heart hammered against my ribs as the minutes stretched on.
The guys had herded me into a corner, catching any would-be kidnappers our other allies let slip through.
Marcie had met with my mother long enough to tell her what time to come.
Something was wrong. Maybe she’d already been captured.
Maybe the only way this ended was with me in my grandfather’s grasp too.
“Stay behind me,” Gabriel shouted over the din, deflecting a shimmering ball of light with his sword.
I did not want to know what that ball would have done had it hit one of us.
Crispin and Mistral formed a protective semicircle around me while Sebastian darted through the melee in a streak of shadows, taking down our attackers with ruthless efficiency.
“Eva.” The voice came from beside me and I nearly jumped out of my skin. Marcie had appeared from nowhere, her eyes wide. “I can feel him. Our grandfather—he’s close.” She grabbed my arm. “Come with me. Now.”
“But we have to—”
“There’s no time. We could lose him.”
Trusting her, I let go, and the familiar nauseating sensation of a shift pulled at my insides.
I gasped as reality bent around us. The last thing I saw was Sebastian lunging toward us, suspicion flashing in his eyes as he reached out and caught the edge of the shift. Then we all tumbled into the void.