Only A Call Away
We dodge across several streets and in front of numerous shops before Jackal tugs on my arm and pulls me into a small alley.
He holds me close, and I lean into him instinctively, breathing in the fresh, wild scent with which I’ve become so familiar.
“Are you all right, love?”
“Yes. Just worried about everyone else.”
He leans in closer as footsteps sound near us. Once they’re gone, my anxiety drops enough that I can focus on his words.
“I do have somewhere we could go, but I want to run it by you first,” he says.
“Run it by me? We’ve got some very angry-looking warlocks searching the town for us and essentially trying to kidnap Starla. If it gets us out of here, I’m all for it.”
Anywhere we can regroup. Because, unfortunately, she’ll still have to find a way to attend this weekend regardless of the less-than-welcoming welcome committee.
At least that’s how Grammy Pearl presented things.
Jackal runs a hand through his hair.
“My plan would give us a safe spot, but it’s not something I just wanted to surprise you with. I mean, she is lovely. They’re all lovely. I had intended to ask you to stop by and see them after this is all done, but this isn’t how I’d expected to—”
“Jackal!” Sometimes it feels as if I’m the only one who can shake the seasoned investigator. I do like that we’re on even footing, but this isn’t the moment for it.
His face shifts, features dropping into a determined expression as he glances around the corner to ensure we’re not about to be found.
“Right.”
He takes one more deep breath.
“My sister lives in the Lake District. Along with my brother-in-law and my niece Lottie. They’d readily house the lot of us, but I didn’t want to shove you in front of my family with no preparation.”
For a few moments, I just blink at him. He’d mentioned where his sibling lived, but I’ve been so focused on Starla I hadn’t made the connection.
My thoughts whir to life, peppering me with all the ways I might embarrass myself, or worse, cause these unknown family members to decide I’m nowhere near good enough for their beloved Jackal.
“Leena? Leena? Leena!” He pushes me until my back bumps the wall of the nearest building, but I see it’s for my own benefit when a warlock marches by, just missing us as we flatten into the shadows of the alley.
The near-miss jolts me out of my reservations.
What if they hate you? What if they’re lovely people and you endanger them?
Maybe. Maybe not.
“Yes, let’s go there. We just need to signal the others,” I say.
Another warlock rushes by, and while he’s one of those we didn’t speak to, I can spot him by the subtle way his eyes flash.
He doesn’t really give our small alley a thorough glance.
Jackal grabs my hand, leading us back out to a main street.
We duck into a store, where we find Ji-hwan pretending to shop.
He’s actually purchased a few things, and the bulky bag he’s carrying also conveniently hides Pickles from view for anyone trying to look in the front window.
“Are dogs even allowed in here?” I ask him.
He flashes me a smile.
“Please.”
Jackal laughs.
“You flirted.”
“I may or may not have turned on the charm enough to woo the employees. But honestly, the basset hound did half the work himself. I think they’d have been happy to pet him and offer him a few chips from one of their snacks even if I hadn’t been here.”
His statement is confirmed when we leave the shop and all three workers behind the counter shout their goodbyes to Pickles and tell him to come back any time, because he is “the cutest wee thing” they’ve ever seen.
We run into the others in the town square.
Exos has hidden himself among the crowd, sitting with a newspaper over his face.
He’s hunched and has his legs bent so he’ll look a bit smaller, and Starla has fully committed and taken refuge in a bush.
She climbs out, and I help pluck a few leaves from her hair.
“My father’s plans always did have flair.
Not in the same way as me, of course. He’d say his methods have elegance, but he is used to getting his way.
I’m a rare exception. I guess with me so close, he didn’t want to risk us slipping through his fingers.
” She tries to laugh it off, but I can see the tension in her face and the crackling that dances across her fingertips for just a moment as she loses control of her key.
I grab her hand, ignoring the small jolts of pain that surge through me.
Starla jumps, then squeezes my hand. The sparks die down.
“Thank you,” she says. “We’ll still have to attend the event.
Grammy Pearl said it was a non-negotiable.
But I’ll feel a lot better if I’m there on my terms—and ready to face him.
Not to mention he’s just lost any high ground in the situation he might have mistakenly thought he had. Who sends men to kidnap his own child?”
She laughs again, but she’s shaking.
Back in Carolina Beach, Leon’s men grabbed her when she was purposefully trying to go after one of them. Since the incident, she’s claimed that it didn’t leave much of an impact.
“Some men don’t, you know,” she’d teased about the incident.
But it’s clear this is bringing up bad memories.
Exos speaks, voice low and gentle.
“I spotted a coffee shop a few blocks away. We can head there for now. Hide in a corner table?”
“We need to leave,” she protests, but she accepts his hand as we begin to make our way out of the town center.
Jackal waves a hand, getting the witch’s attention.
“Already on it. I’m calling Zyra. Once I speak to my sister and give her a heads-up, we can stay there for the night. She won’t turn us away.”
“And a family member of Jackal’s isn’t likely to be bribed or monitored by any of Councilman Taylor’s men. He may go that route for local hotels to try and catch you,” Ji-hwan adds.
Jackal gapes at him for a moment.
“Sometimes I forget you’re a skilled investigator as well,” Jackal says.
Ji-hwan flashes a smile with just a hint of fang.
“That’s the idea. People are much more likely to reveal their secrets to someone they don’t find suspicious. A big part of why I’m so good at my job.”
“Let’s go get some much-needed caffeine, and I’ll contact my sister and let her know that we’ll need a ride,” Jackal says.
I give him a sidelong glance.
“Couldn’t we drive ourselves?”
“If Councilman Taylor is watching the train station, it’s likely he’ll have his eyes on places we could stay here, and also ways we could leave. Such as rental car lots,” he says.
I’m glad we have him. I don’t want to end up in an altercation with a bunch of warlocks in the middle of a human town. If Starla goes with them to prevent a confrontation and gives in to her father now, she goes in no better than a prisoner. Already under his thumb.
If we show up on the evening of the first event and make a grand entrance, it also makes a statement to him.
Starla’s willing to abide by the details of the agreement, but he can’t use his influence to push for anything additional.
We may have to be careful for the duration of the weekend, but after that our options are open.
If he, or any of his friends, bring harm to Starla, I will make sure they regret it.