Devils & Thieves (Devils & Thieves #1)(50)

“Who’s watching out for Crowe right now?” I asked.

“He said he was headed to the Medici tent to catch a little shut-eye, with Hardy to watch his back.” She gave me a sly smile. “You worried about our pres, Jemmie?”

I twirled my keys around my finger, trying to look casual. “I just know he’s worried about his sister and Gunnar. He’s trying to take care of everyone. He hadn’t slept in a day and a half.”

“Uh-huh.”

We stood in awkward silence for a few seconds before I pointed stupidly at my car. “Um. I’m just heading home. Thanks for the update.” I started to step around her.

“Hey, Jemmie?” Brooke bit the inside of her cheek, looking conflicted. “We’re all hoping Katrina’s okay and all that, but I don’t think she ever meant all that much to Crowe.”

I suppressed a smile. “Why are you telling me this?”

Brooke’s cheeks flushed. “No particular reason. See you later?”

“Yeah.” I fought the urge to grab her by the shoulders and ask her more, but she’d probably end up hitting me in the head with both kegs. “I’ll be there after everyone meets.”

She nodded and continued her march back to the festival fields.





I drove home, and as I approached the house I realized more fully that Dad and Crowe had been right about the perimeter protection—it had gone soft. I hoped maybe I could replace it myself instead of asking Dad to do it, but for now I needed to save my energy for more urgent things. I called out for my mom as I walked through the living room, but then realized she probably hadn’t gotten back from working the lunch shift at Denny’s. Thinking about personal barrier spells and vault hexes, I entered my room and turned toward my closet.

Hands snaked around my waist and pulled me back. With a shriek, I jabbed at my attacker with my elbow and stomped down, hoping to crush a few toes.

“Ow!” he said, and let me go.

I whirled around, and my mouth dropped open. The minty scent of my own magic filled my nose, probably caused by my surprise. “Darek?”

“Yeah,” he said weakly, rubbing at his abs. “Sorry for startling you.”

“Where the hell have you been?”

He gingerly pulled off his aviator sunglasses, revealing two black eyes and a gash across his left eyebrow that had been closed with three stitches. “Hospital.”

“What happened?”

He winced at the shrill sound of my voice and then gestured to the bed. “Do you mind?”

I watched as he collapsed on the bed and then sat on the edge of it. It looked like every part of him hurt. “I’ve been worried about you. Why didn’t you answer my texts? And do you know where Alex is? A few people saw her leave the festival with you last night, and she hasn’t been seen since.”

His brow furrowed. “Really?” He frowned. “That’s messed up.”

“No kidding. But did you see her?”

“Yeah. I walked her to her car. But then she drove off, and that was the last time I saw her.” With a grimace, he turned onto his back and laid his arm over his eyes to block out the sunlight streaming through my window.

I probably should have been relieved that my best friend hadn’t shacked up with my… honestly I didn’t know what Darek was. I only knew that if she hadn’t been with him, she was still missing. “Hey—how did you end up in the hospital?”

“Oh, thanks for your concern,” he said drily. Then he let out a pained chuckle. “You haven’t talked to Crowe?”

“Huh?”

“I figured he would have told everyone. But I guess maybe he wanted to keep it between us.”

“Darek, just tell me what happened.”

He lifted his arm off his face. “Crowe saw my connection with you. I thought he kind of looked at us funny when I came into the beer tent last night.”

I thought back. “I guess he might have.”

“Oh, trust me. After I walked Alex to her car, I was taking a shortcut from the parking lot to the Stalkers tent when he stepped out from behind a tree. Blocked the path. Dude is big.”

“Crowe was hiding in the woods, waiting for you?”

“Who knows if he was waiting for me? Maybe he was spying or looking out for someone else. Whatever. He took the opportunity when it wandered up the path like a clueless idiot.” There was a bitter twist to his voice. “He told me I didn’t belong there. At first I thought he meant on that part of the land, and I apologized. Then he made it clear what he really meant.” Darek’s blue eyes were stark. “He told me to stay away from you.”

My stomach dropped. “Oh.”

“I told him to fuck off.” Darek let out a weary sigh. “He didn’t take it well.”

“He beat you up?”

“He told me he could kick my ass with a simple blink of his eyes, but he preferred to do it the old-fashioned way.” Darek rubbed at his jaw, which was bruised and swollen. “He did a damn good job, if you ask me.”

“That doesn’t sound like Crowe. I know he has a temper, but—”

“I’m a Deathstalker, Jemmie,” Darek snapped. “And I was a little too obviously interested in you, I guess.”