Chapter 5
Isa
Safely inside her car, Isa gripped the steering wheel as she watched Locke saunter down the sidewalk, his ass holding her attention.
He jogged across the street, and when he reached a black muscle car with equally dark windows, he stopped and looked back.
Caught staring, she swore and looked away, imagining his smug smirk.
“Ugh, what is wrong with you?” She started her car and continued to berate her bratty hormones. “He’s nothing but trouble.”
Ignoring the answering purr of contentment from her mind, she put the car in gear.
A glance up showed Locke standing at his open car door, waiting for her.
He motioned for her to go on ahead. Her teeth clenched, and instead of flooring it, she pulled out of her spot and drove sedately by.
Her rearview mirror showed his driver’s-side door closing and the bright glow of his headlights coming to life.
She flexed her grip on the wheel and shuffled through the various boxes of her more problematic emotions in the hopes of finding one to safely stuff her current confusion into without breaking the lock.
It should have been a simple exercise, but it was proving difficult.
Normally, dealing with the dead left her feeling disconnected from…
well, everything, as if a layer of emptiness existed between her and the world.
It was her coping tool, a way to keep a lock on her addiction to wallowing in those darker emotions and the chaos they created.
Unfortunately, that wall could last anywhere from a handful of minutes to several hours, depending on the depth of her interaction with the tormented soul.
And since Leo’s violent death had shredded his soul to the point where stitching the remnants together had been challenging, even for her magic, she shouldn’t be this riled up so soon.
Leo had bounced all over the emotional spectrum, from shocked and scared to resentful and bitter and everything in between.
He kept getting lost in his confrontation with Kelly.
Although it was clear from the shit ton of guilt he held, he hadn’t intended to hurt her, his attack had been sparked by an ugly layer of bitter envy that quickly spread into an inferno.
There were flashes of things that didn’t make sense—like the strange split in personality, from guilt ridden to insanely furious, as if some switch had been thrown.
His initial shock at wielding magic had bordered on horror, but when the magic came, he’d been manically elated.
Isa had sensed scattered bursts of vicious satisfaction at proving “him” wrong, coupled with an arrogant need to gloat.
The problem was, she’d had no clue who “he” was until Locke started asking questions.
Under interrogation, Leo’s wildly careening emotions kept disintegrating, shredding memories piece by piece, and she’d needed both elements to force him to tell the truth.
In his confused state, his memories started to tangle, dragging Isa along for the ride, and her hold on the fragile pieces that made up Leo became even more draining.
Only well-honed skill, and a depth of magic fueled by her battle-scarred will, allowed her to navigate the churning currents without going under.
But among Leo’s fractured flashes were familiar images that had left Isa not just worried but skating the edge of scared.
And Isa didn’t do scared. Hell, she’d give anything to talk to Cass, her Oracle bestie.
Cass was a great sounding board when Isa was dealing with Reaper shit, but since she was involved with her own drama up in Vegas, it was up to Isa and Des to handle things, and that required an urgent conversation with Des.
She pressed the accelerator a little more as she drove through the nearly empty downtown streets.
Isa made the turn that would take her to Wonderland and cursed softly as she caught the glare of Locke’s headlights behind her.
She would have to make the most of her alone time because blindsiding Des with Locke would not be good.
She sped up until she lost Locke’s lights.
Then, since digging her phone out of her pocket while driving wasn’t a good idea, she touched the charmed stud in her ear. “Call Des.”
After a heartbeat, Des’s voice filled her ear. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, but I ran into Locke at Leo’s.”
There was a pause. “Locke Turon?”
“You know any other Locke?” she asked.
That earned her a four-letter word that made her wince.
“Leo?” he bit out.
“Dead.”
“Well, shit.”
She couldn’t agree more. “Locke’s following me back to Wonderland.” A charged silence filled her ear, so she asked, “How’s Kelly doing?”
“She’s holding, but I called River, asked him to represent her. He agreed and is heading over to her apartment to meet up with us.”
Relief trickled through her. Kelly would be in good hands with River Ortiz, a friend of Des’s who ran a private family law firm with a solid reputation.
The two men had met in middle school, and although they’d taken different life paths, their friendship had stayed strong enough that when River had a client whom the justice system had failed, Des was happy to step in with a helping hand, and by extension, so were Isa and Cass.
“What time?” she asked.
“I was just waiting to hear from you before I took her home.”
“Can’t you hold off? I’m almost to Wonderland, and Locke’s going to want to talk to her.”
“You think that’s wise?”
Probably not. “I don’t know.”
“I’m not feeling reassured, Isa.”
“Yeah, neither am I.” She took the last turn, seeing the parking lot in front of Wonderland, then pulled the proverbial pin. “Des, I think Angel’s involved in this mess.”
This time, the pause was heavier. “How?”
“I’m not sure, but I think Leo’s been spending time at the Den.”
“That’s not good.”
“No, it’s not.” She pulled into a spot and parked. “Look, I’m here and heading in.”
Des’s unhappy voice took on a warning note, holding her in place. “Isa, if Angel is mixed up in whatever this is, let Locke handle it.”
She didn’t want to acknowledge the painful hitch in her chest that idea caused. “It’s not that simple.”
“It is that simple.” Des’s tone was hard. “You confront Angel, and things are going to get messy.”
Like they aren’t already? “I know, Des.” Isa didn’t need him to spell it out—she’d lived the nightmare before. She threw open her door and got out, beeping the car’s locks. “We need to see if Kelly knows anything.”
“About the Den or Angel?”
“Either.” She started for the bar’s entrance.
After a beat of silence, he gave in. “You want to ask her outright?”
“You have a better idea?”
He muttered something she didn’t catch then said, “If you put Locke and Angel in the same room—”
“I get it, Des.” She yanked the door open and clattered down the stairs, too keyed up to be creeped out by the shadows enveloping the stairwell. “But you know Locke. He won’t back off.” And she couldn’t live with herself if she let him walk into that vipers’ pit alone.
“Fine.” With that, Des’s voice cut off.
She hit the main floor just as the door behind the bar swung open. Des held it as Kelly passed through, her face drawn and streaked with tears.
The girl spotted Isa and froze in place. “He’s really dead?”
“He is,” she confirmed, trying not to wince. Kelly paled further and started to wobble as panic and horror filled her face.
Des caught her, giving her something to lean against, but Kelly didn’t look away from Isa. “It was an accident, I swear.” Her voice teetered between hysteria and pleading.
“I know.”
Kelly tore free from Des and rushed from behind the bar, leaving Des to follow at a slower pace. Isa met her halfway, capturing the younger woman in her arms.
“I can’t… I don’t know what to do.” The words tumbled out as tremors ran through Kelly’s slender body.
Isa tightened her hold, giving her a tether so she wouldn’t fly apart.
She wanted to console Kelly—reassure her that the paltry paring knife couldn’t have possibly inflicted enough damage to be lethal, that something else killed Leo—but had no solid evidence, so she kept silent.
She met Des’s grim gaze, finding a reflection of the protective streak they each carried.
It was what made Wonderland a strange family.
Proof or no proof, there was no way they were hanging Kelly out to dry—that wasn’t how they worked.
“We’ve got you.” She loosened her hold and shifted so she could see Kelly’s tear-ravaged face.
“Locke’s right behind me. He’s going to ask you what happened.
” She held Kelly’s reddened gaze. “You tell him exactly what you told me and Des. Don’t elaborate.
Don’t try to charm. Just repeat what you told us, okay? ”
Kelly swallowed hard then managed a jerky nod.
Isa forced her lips to curve up. “Good. Afterward, Des is going to take you home so you can talk to River. You remember him?”
Kelly nodded. “He’s a lawyer, right?”
“Yep, and since he’s on our side, you can answer any question he asks, but don’t try to make things sound better than they were. You give it to him straight, then you do everything he tells you. Understand?”
Kelly’s nod was smoother this time.
Isa looked behind Kelly to Des, who leaned a hip against a nearby table, and raised her brows in silent question. He gave a small head shake, so she turned back to the girl in front of her. “Kelly, did Leo ever mention the name Angel or a place called the Den?”
Kelly frowned. “No, why?”
The door at the top of the stairs creaked before Isa could answer. She lowered her voice. “Remember, keep your answers to Locke simple.”
She turned so she could wrap an arm around Kelly’s shoulders as they both faced the man gliding down the stairs. He hit the floor in a fluid stalk, and Isa couldn’t suppress the shiver that wound down her neck as he closed in. Goddess help me if he ever decides I’m prey to his Hound.