Keeper(85)

Maggie waved her hand. “That’s what I’m here for, remember? If he does catch your scent, it will be much harder to sniff out two of us.” She beamed at me, confidence shining in her eyes.

I wrapped my arms around her with a laugh. “Please, just promise me you’ll be careful.”

“Don’t worry about me, Styles. I’ll make like Barry Allen and be back in flash—you can count on it.” Maggie hugged me tightly and pulled back with a smile. “You be careful too. Find the Hetaeria.”

“I will, I promise.”

Maggie moved over to Serena, and Ty stepped in front of me. His face was serious, but there was a storm swirling in his eyes. “I’ll keep her safe,” he said.

“I know, just keep yourself safe too, okay?”

With a nod, he turned toward Maggie as if to go, but then turned back to me, closing the gap between us. “Lainey,

I . . .” He trailed off, running a hand up to squeeze the back of his neck. He let out a deep breath, and instead of speaking, he reached for one of my hands and then gently placed it across my chest. My own heart pulsed against my fingertips.

“You feel that?” Ty asked. His eyes were flashing, and there was a desperation in his face that I didn’t understand. I managed to nod.

“It’s the one thing he can’t take away from you.” Ty leaned forward, his forehead touching mine. “Do you understand?”

I squeezed my eyes shut, knowing it wasn’t my mortality he was speaking of. I was consumed with fear and doubt, but every beat of my heart was a reminder of something so much stronger. Goodness. Courage. Strength. Determination. Heart.

We were dangling from the edge of a cliff, and in the moment before we hurled ourselves completely into the void, Ty had given me peace.

Tears sprang up in my eyes. I blinked them away as I lifted my head and met his gaze. “I understand.”

He nodded, the tiniest trace of a crooked smile on his lips.

I watched as Ty and Maggie headed toward the orchestra, weaving in and out of the crowd until I could no longer see them.

Serena wrapped a hand around my arm. “You ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” I smoothed the front of my dress and stood a little taller. “Let’s find the Hetaeria.”

We moved through the room, sticking to the shadows. We linked elbows and giggled playfully to each other to give the appearance of two silly partygoers; all the while we were busily scanning the faces around us.

Serena had given me a vague description of the people we were looking for, but no one seemed to fit the description. Pockets of people dotted the room, but the masks and elaborate costumes made it difficult to see features clearly. There was a feeling of unease that permeated the room, and despite the facade of merriment many wore, the crowd seemed to be waiting for something to happen.

Shivers waltzed up and down my spine. Don’t think about that now. Focus on finding the Hetaeria.

We’d stopped to accept a glass of sparkling cider from a waiter when Serena’s hand flew to her temple. She let out a gasp and squeezed her eyes shut.

The waiter seemed startled, but I let out what I hoped was a realistic laugh and waved my hand. “Parties! Aren’t they just exhilarating?” I didn’t wait for a response before grasping Serena by the elbow and ushering her away from his wide eyes.

“What is it?” I hissed when we were out of earshot.

“A vision,” she wheezed, surprise coloring her cheeks. “It’s the Scavenger. He’s here.”

I whipped my head back and forth, but there were no familiar faces that I could see. “How much time do we have?”

“I don’t know. But we need to move fast.”

We continued canvasing the room. My heart was pounding, and worry pulsed through me in time with the music. Serena kept whispering words of encouragement in my ear, but I could tell from her faltering smile that she was every bit as worried as I was.

What if we can’t find them? What if the vision about the Hetaeria was wrong? What if the Scavenger catches up to us first? The voice inside my head was screaming. It took every ounce of strength I had to keep my face neutral.

“Breathe, Lainey,” Serena whispered, feeling the tension in my limbs. “We’ll find them.”

But the more we searched, the more panicked I became. I felt like Cinderella, racing against the clock—except I doubted my story would end with a happily ever after. I walked with my hand pressed against my hammering heart, desperate to keep it from clawing its way out of my chest. Deep breaths, Lainey. Just breathe, I coached myself, ignoring the ranting inside my brain.

“Lainey,” Serena said, pulling me to the side. “Over there.” There was a large round table tucked behind a pillar. In the dim light of the room, it was difficult to see the faces of those sitting around the table, but there was one distinguishing feature that made my heart stop.

A woman with fiery red hair was facing us, her face hidden behind a large lace mask. The flame color of her hair was like a beacon in the darkness. It also matched the description that Serena had given me.

“Is that them?” I asked, watching as the red-haired woman caught my gaze and leaned over to whisper something to the gentleman next to her.

Serena’s face was pale, and indecision seemed to be written all over it. She turned to me, her eyes blazing. “I can’t be sure, but there’s only one way to find out.”