35. Alana
Alana
If anyone notices our absence, they don’t say anything. I’m about to whack Lance on the back of his head for being a general asshole, but as I’m about to take a step towards him Grae pulls me in close and whispers, “It was Ian that was the giveaway, not Lance.” I frown.
“But it’s more fun to hit Lance and a whole lot less illegal.” I have energy I need to deal with, and a little aggression never hurt anyone… Only a lot of aggression.
I’m not sure how I’m feeling about everything.
Grae knows most of my personal secrets, things that not even Lena knows.
It sucks that I can’t hide everything from him, and yet it's freeing too.
Like weights finally being lifted for the first time in years.
Waverly claps her hands reminding me of my host duties.
“It’s almost time. Should we get set up?”
I’d turned the basement into a multi-tier theater, with recliners and a drop-down TV with surround sound.
It’s a few years out of date but it will do.
Since I don’t live here full time I never needed to upgrade, but maybe I’ll be staying here more often.
With Grae and Midge here, it doesn’t feel as lonely.
The adults file downstairs and partner off, except for Donny and Uri who sit next to each other out of default.
Grae takes the seat next to me with his phone out.
“Um, so about Kyoto.” He is not giving this up, is he? He looks down at his calendar. “I need to fly to Korea for a few weeks. You could meet me in Kyoto and see it in the fall as the leaves are changing or we could wait and see it in the Cherry Blossom Season.”
“You’re planning a few months out? That’s making some pretty big swings there, buddy.” I’m not sure how I feel about it, but it doesn’t seem as crazy as it did a few days ago when he first brought it up.
He shrugs. “Did you want to go play with otters?”
I blink at him a few times.
“That’s literally the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard you say.
” I cross my arms across my chest and pout.
“Of course I want to go play with otters.” He grins with a smugness that makes me want to kiss and punch him at the same time.
“Will you be back in time for the mid series finale of Knights of the Night?” The show is doing an episode mini season, then going on break and returning with the final few episodes.
They’re really dragging it about as long as they can.
“Why?” He interlocks his fingers with mine. “Are you going to miss me?”
“I'm having a watch party, and I’m trying to figure out how much food to order.”
Everyone’s phones are on silent, and I rest my head on Grae’s shoulder. He presses his lips to my head before the music cues up. No fan retrospective, just a black screen that fades into the scene with the Pirate King that Grae and I watched before.
Only Waverly and Dimitri watch the scene like we did.
Everyone else leans forward in their seats like if they get closer to the screen they’ll get sucked into the world of The Knights of the Night.
Izzy grabs Lance’s arm when it flashes to the Dragon and the Demon awakening in the Pirate King’s mind.
Lukas leans forward when the Dragon’s claws form.
Jenny grabs Joey’s arms when the Dragon’s hand rips the dragon scale off the other Merman’s neck.
Uri jumps out of his seat when the Pirate King announces they will be joining the battle, and everyone cheers when the Pirate King says his mate is alive.
The collective joy of a fandom is awesome to be a part of.
But it’s nothing new from them. That’s how they react to everything—pure love, excitement and joy.
They do it for every one of life’s celebrations.
They support each other during questions of faith or pain.
The girls drop everything and come running or start a group chat.
The boys… they break into apartments with vague threats of violence.
What am I so afraid of? Nonna’s right—I was given this second chance and it's wasteful to not take it.
There’s an explosion rattling through the speakers, and my attention is back on the show.
Each scene moves the story closer to its conclusion.
Honestly, I missed some of the details the podcasts will be geeking out over tomorrow.
It’s nice just to disconnect from reality and immerse yourself in a fictional world.
The final credits play and the group moves out of their entertainment stupor. Uri gets up and stretches his back, Joey grabs Jenny’s empty drink, and I check my phone.
17 missed calls.
Shit. It’s Tim, my glitter bomb guy. What could’ve gone wrong? I call him back, not bothering to get out of my seat. Normally I would excuse myself when talking about work stuff, but with this group I don’t have anything to hide.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“The guy I’m, um, delivering packages to,” Tim’s voice sounds shaky, and I try not to roll my eyes when he attempts to sound so professional through it. “He’s under your protection now, right?”
“Yeah. No physical damage, we’re being annoying for a while,” I say and this gets Waverly’s attention. I mouth the words ‘glitter bomb’ and she smirks. “Did you want me to pick out specific colors?”
“Um no,” he stammers “that’s not gonna matter now.” My stomach drops and the back of my brain whispers what my frontal lobe refuses to believe. “Eddie’s dead.”
“Self-inflicted?” Did I scare him bad enough for him to take his own life?
“Not unless he fell on his knife ten times and shot himself in the back of the head.”
I jump to my feet, and the rest of the world fades away. “Tell me everything.”
“It’s better if I show you.” And a few seconds later there’s a video hitting my notifications.
Tim curses and cries as he walks out of a bedroom, but then he turns around and the camera focuses on the blood-soaked carpet and the holes in Eddie's back. And yes, there’s a gunshot to the back of his head.
Tim nudges the body with his foot, and it rolls over.
A cold sweat drips down my back as Eddie’s lifeless face looks at the ceiling.
The camera pans over to the wall where there’s a message in what I can only assume is Eddie’s blood.
‘No one’s safe- D’
I can’t protect...Anyone. My body wants to revolt and shut down, but I don’t have time for that. Think. The Deviant went to Eddie, and he’s connected to CJ who is connected to…
Grae.
His chest rises and falls two times in the second I’ve been looking at him. The concern on his face shifts, because something on my face must’ve changed. For a second, his lips part and close again like he’s buffering his words. There’s a mix of fear and concern in his eyes.
“Alana?” He finally says.
“Tim get your ass into hiding right fucking now!” I snap. I push past Grae and open the storage closet. Old gym equipment, a few coats and a pile of DVDs. I fling it all across the room and push my hand to the back panel.
A computerized voice says, ‘Good evening, Lioness.’ The left side of the closet opens up. It glows a pale blue, shaded by ten identical military-grade backpacks. I yank them off their hooks and come back out to see a room of familiar and terrified faces.
“I have six cars in the garage and weapons upstairs. Lance, unlock them.”
To their credit, the Four Families jump to attention and wait for instructions. Izzy is my first in command in these sorts of situations. She needs to manage both her family and Mastodon’s logistics.
“Izzy, send notice out to the teams. I need eyes on Unicorn, Pegasus and Fuck Nugget in the next thirty seconds, and I want them moved to secure locations. Water, air and underground. Then take Lance and Drew and go to that place we went that one time.” I pause and give the order, “Then lock down.”
“Got it!” she says while taking out her phone while running upstairs.
I hand Waverly her bag next. “Take your sister and Lukas to the place with the pink sky, understand?” Over the years, I made sure she was well trained in this situation.
Monica is already reaching for a bag when I lock eyes on her. “Take Maria and Thiago to The Shire—you know the code?” She hitches the bag over her shoulder and gives me a nod. Thiago is already up the stairs calling the kids down and telling them to grab the puppy.
Jenny stands in the middle of the room, her eyes wide, laced with panic.
Clear tasks, easy recall. “Jenny, you remember the blue cow?” As soon as I knew she was sticking around, I took her on a drive to a vineyard where the storage closet is a panic room and information hub. But her eyes drift upstairs.
“Are we bringing the dog?”
“Of course. Kingston gets one potty break, but once you’re inside, you lock down. Understand?”
Joey grips her hip. “Do you know the location, because I sure as shit don’t.” The blue-haired woman blinks. She dashes over and grabs a bag, pauses, and gives me a hug.
“What do you need me to do?” Katya pulls her hair into a ponytail, and she’s locked in. “Extra people on Siren?”
“That’s a good idea but no.” I offer her a bag, but she doesn’t take it. “Go to the Driftwood.”
“You need me.” I do. She’s one of my best agents. But…
“I need you tomorrow and the day after. Ian’s already lost one mom. I won’t let it become two.” She pulls the bag out of my hand and motions with her chin. Dimitri follows her, but Uri stays behind.
“I’m Mastodon." Damn he’s picking a really stupid time to be loyal.
“No, you are Four Families. You always were and always will be.” I squeeze his arm and hand him a bag. “Go.” I don’t realize my hands are shaking until I start to send the text out to the Fathers.
Me: Scatter