16. Artemis
16 ARTEMIS
Saint texts that he’s staying at Starlight tonight, which suits me perfectly fine.
That cot in his shop must be uncomfortable and small, but I can’t imagine going home to his energy.
Especially when I check my neck in the rearview mirror in my car and find red hickeys.
They’re just the beginning, and I’m sure Kade did it on purpose.
Bastard.
I drive home slowly, mindful of the sheriff’s deputies staked out along the way.
He’s upped patrol since the informant’s body made an appearance.
I haven’t inquired about his investigation.
Honestly? Not my problem.
There’s no evidence that it was a pointed threat in my direction.
It could’ve just been a nice blank wall for whoever murdered him.
Jace, Wolfe, and Apollo are on it anyway.
Besides, there’s one more missing informant.
When will he turn up?
And in what manner?
Police lights flash behind me.
I grip my steering wheel tighter and groan through my teeth, then pull off to the shoulder.
A small part of me hoped they’d fly past, but I’ve got no such luck.
It follows, stopping a good distance away, and I squint into the rearview mirror to see which asshole on Bradshaw’s force it is.
Their uniforms are green, and they wear ostentatious dark-green hats with a narrow, rounded brim.
Apparently they’re not allowed to be outside without the hats, which makes it all the funnier.
Yet it slightly disguises the deputy as he approaches my car, the flashing lights behind him silhouetting his body.
I roll down my window, and the sheriff himself leans down into the opening.
“Artemis,” he greets me.
Great .
“Brad,” I respond.
Nathan Bradshaw has had more of a Brad attitude lately,
His smile widens.
“Aw, don’t be like that. I just wanted to talk to you.”
“You could’ve called.” I drum my fingers on the car door.
“I’m exhausted. Can I not go home?”
He sighs.
“I just wanted to warn you that we’re getting outside pressure to take the investigation into Bow & Arrow.”
I rear back.
“What? Why?”
“Because the body was attached to your building, Tem. It took four of our guys to get him down.” He stares at me.
“You’re not taking this seriously.”
“Jesus. I’m just not jumping to conclusions. Am I supposed to run around afraid? We just spent a year doing that, Nathan.”
“Nathan,” he repeats quietly.
“Now I’m Nathan.”
“You’re annoying,” I snap.
“I wasn’t speeding. Unless you have anything else to say, I’m going home.”
He sighs.
“The warrant is coming. I can’t stop it.”
“Thanks for the warning.” I restart my car.
He steps back, and I hit the gas.
Outside pressure from whom ?
There’s the city council, of course.
They’ve undergone some changes recently, but it’s all been in our favor.
I can’t see them turning on me.
The Hell Hounds are now led by Malik, and while we don’t exactly see eye to eye, he’s not a bad guy.
These Cyclopes that are digging their way into West Falls…
do they have enough momentum to pressure the sheriff?
I’m still puzzling it over when I get home.
I park in the garage and take the elevator straight up, definitely more distracted than normal when I unlock my condo’s door.
I get inside and shed my jacket, drop my phone and wallet on the entryway table, and kick off my shoes.
What I said to Bradshaw wasn’t a lie—I’m fucking exhausted.
If only I could sleep.
My gaze is drawn to the kitchen, then Saint’s bedroom.
I make a regular habit of dumping out his alcohol, if only to spite him.
But he’s surely restocked…
“Artemis.”
I scream.
Shit. Fuck .
I’m not a screamer, but?—
Reese steps out of the shadows by the window.
He blended in over there.
I wouldn’t have even glanced in that direction, bypassing the living room to find alcohol in the dark and then retreating to bed.
He switches on a lamp.
His blond hair looks slightly damp, the strands darker than the last time I saw him.
He runs his fingers through it, dragging the longer top pieces back.
They flop right back into his eyes, and I hate that it gives him a devil-may-care appearance.
“Reese.” It comes out hoarse.
“What are you doing here?”
“I wanted to talk to you.”
What is it with guys these days?
“You could’ve called,” I point out.
“Does no one here have a phone anymore?”
I throw my hands up and change direction for the kitchen.
With him showing up, I definitely need a drink.
Reese’s gaze is on my back as I rifle through the cabinets without luck.
Halfway through the second one, it occurs to me that Saint is 1) an asshole and 2) tall.
So he probably shoved it in the back corner of the top shelf, out of my line of sight.
I climb up onto the counter, knocking travel mugs out of the way.
I spot the red wax of a whiskey bottle, stretch, wiggle my fingers, and finally grasp it.
The next thing I know, I’m back with my feet on the floor and Reese taking the bottle from me.
Close.
He’s so close.
I catch his scent, cedar and smoke.
The good kind, like a campfire.
Even so, I sidle away to put some distance between us.
If I could get a damn minute to breathe, maybe I could figure out what I want to do.
Or how I feel. But right now, everything is jumbled and I’m confused and I think I’m on the verge of a panic attack.
Yep.
A weight presses down on my chest. I struggle to keep my breathing even, but my muscles tighten so much it’s impossible to draw in more air.
I stumble back farther, gripping the counter, and the room tilts.
I close my eyes, then open them again just as fast.
Reese’s back is to me.
He doesn’t notice my struggle as I inch around the island and put more distance between us.
I can’t tell if I want him to leave or tell me what he wants or hurry up and pass that bottle over.
When he faces me, his brows pinch together.
“Jesus, Artemis. Sit down.”
I…
I don’t think I can.
I don’t want to follow his orders.
Between him sneaking in here— sneaking or breaking?
— and Kade waking me up in my Bow & Arrow apartment, and Saint living here while hating me…
I can’t get a grip.
I can’t catch a fucking break .
“Okay, okay.” Reese pulls at my wrists, carefully untangling my hair from my fingers.
I hadn’t realized I had done that, but my scalp aches.
He keeps ahold of my wrists and directs me backward, until my calves hit the couch and my knees automatically bend.
He lowers himself in front of me.
His gaze locks on the red marks on my neck.
“Who gave you those?”
“Please just leave me alone,” I plead.
His green eyes search my face.
“You know I can’t.”
“I don’t know that. I don’t know why you’re in Sterling Falls, or even why you went down to Terror. I don’t know why Kade—” I cut myself off.
His brows raise. “Kade Laurent?”
Shit.
Fuck.
“Uh…”
He glances around like the man might be hiding in my apartment.
Comical, seeing as how he was that culprit tonight.
“He’s in Sterling Falls?” Reese’s gaze swings back to me, the intensity of it catching me off guard.
“Y-yeah, he’s been looking for you.”
“Did he—?” He squeezes his eyes shut for a second, and then he’s up and moving.
He goes to the window, peering down at the street far below.
“Reese.”
“I’m leaving,” he murmurs.
“I’m going. I wanted to talk to you, Artemis, but I thought we had time.”
“He doesn’t know?—”
“You cannot tell me that.” He shakes his head.
“Just… stay safe. Please.”
My brows furrow.
He wants me to be safe?
What the fuck does that mean?
I don’t get the chance to find out, because before I can ask, he slips out the door.
And he’s gone.
“What’s a girl like you doing in a place like this?” A man leans an elbow on the bar beside me.
He’s at least fifteen years older than me, judging by the gray at his temples and the fine wrinkles around his eyes.
Still handsome, but not my type.
I scowl. “The bottomless mimosas, obviously.”
We’re in what used to be Descend, a bar that was run by the Titans in West Falls.
It fell into a bit of disrepair—okay, a lot of disrepair—but a few months ago, someone bought the shell of a building and sent in a crew to fix it up.
And now, it’s Madness .
Because whoever now owns it seems to have a sense of fucking humor.
Get it? Descend into madness?
That’s where I’m going anyway, the way I’ve been spiraling lately.
Just to be clear—there are no bottomless mimosas here.
They probably don’t even have orange juice in stock, let alone Prosecco.
Descend was never that type of bar, and the new owners apparently decided to keep up the same motto.
It’s dark, the atmosphere mostly dim string lights, lamps, or fake candles, with splashes of neon around.
Like the one that says, fall down the rabbit hole behind the bar, casting all the liquor bottles in red.
The guy doesn’t seem to know what to do with me, especially as the bartender reappears in front of me with a glass of whiskey.
Getting a clear liquor in this place is about as likely as a fucking mimosa.
I toss it back and wipe the back of my mouth.
“Do you want to get out of here?”
I swivel to face the man, making a show of looking him up and down.
He’s wearing a leather jacket over a flannel, jeans, work boots.
And yet, he doesn’t strike me as someone who’s ever had a hard day’s work.
It’s just a costume.
I wrinkle my nose. “I’m good.”
“You’re drinking, and it’s nine o’clock in the morning,” he points out.
“This place opens early.” And it seemed better to come here instead of drink alone in my apartment.
After Reese’s abrupt exit, I kept expecting Kade to storm in.
I waited on my couch for an hour, then another, without moving.
Finally, when the sky began to lighten, I showered and changed and headed out.
I walked here, but I wouldn’t say Madness was my destination.
I’m not crazy . Or an alcoholic.
I just am not coping well with life.
“You’re here, too,” I add to the man who’s still judging me.
He raises both hands in surrender, and I face the bartender again.
I motion for another, silently cutting myself off after this.
This will be my third, and I still need to function for the rest of the day.
My phone buzzes in my pocket.
I retrieve it and scan the screen, and for some reason, I flush.
“Hey.” I clear my throat.
Shift on my seat.
The bartender arrives with my drink, and I swallow it just as fast as the last.
“Where are you?” Malik asks.
I roll my eyes. “None of your business.”
“Uh-huh. Well, I thought you might want to know that our search was successful.”
It takes me a minute to work out what the Hell Hounds’ leader is talking about.
It feels like eons ago since I asked him to find Reese for me.
But he has?
Too late—I found him first .
A giggle slips out, and I smack my palm over my mouth.
“You don’t sound right,” Malik says.
“How did you find him?”
Did I say that out loud?
“Yeah, you’re talking out loud,” he says.
“Where are you?”
“Descend.” I roll my eyes.
“Okay, Madness. Same thing.”
He sighs.
“Stay there. I’m on my way.”
“Watch out for the one-eyed monsters,” I whisper.
Did I mention those drinks were doubles?
I hang up on Malik and sag on the stool.
Reese was in my apartment only hours ago, and I haven’t slept a wink in…
I don’t know how long.
Every time I blink, the sandpaper feeling in my eyes intensifies.
If I have to then deal with Malik?
I’m one hundred percent not doing it sober.