Sin & Spirit (Demigod of San Francisco #4)(71)

Bria raced back into the room, and the cat darted behind her and then winged out to the side. The thing was on crack and Harding was going for a helluva ride. She held out her hands.

“What the hell are we doing standing there? Let’s meet Kieran on the way,” she said.

“And what? Hang out in traffic? Even with an escort, getting through the city and across the bridge will take ages. Cars can’t get out of the way if they don’t have somewhere to get out of the way to. We don’t have time! No, the ocean is the fastest. It has to be. ”

Bria gestured for me to follow her out of the house, which I did, bringing the address with me even though I knew it by heart.

“Meeting him would be out of our way, anyway.” I hopped up and down to expel some frantic, worried energy as the cat raced out of the open door.

Harding flew up out of it with his arms windmilling, landing on his butt. “That devil does not like co-existing,” he said, pushing himself to standing.

Kieran’s red Ferrari tore down the street, followed by two black BMWs and the pink Corvette from the other day. Given Aubri wouldn’t be called on to do my makeup in a crisis, Red must’ve owned it. It was like Valentine’s Day on wheels with a hockey-mask-wearing driver. How confusing.

Tires skidded against pavement and smoke drifted into the sky as they all stopped in front of my house. Kieran hopped out and jogged over, his eyebrows up.

“Over an hour away, not including traffic,” I said, handing him the paper with the address. “Apparently you have a helicopter, but Jack says we can’t get there in time, and Daisy only has forty-five minutes max. More like less than thirty.” Tears clouded my vision again. “I was thinking the ocean. How fast can you travel in the ocean? If at least one of us gets there…”

“Where is she?”

“Berkeley.” Bria said. “Not horribly far from the ocean.”

Zorn stepped up beside Kieran. I’d forgotten Zorn was a Marid Djinn, his magic originating from dark sea spirits. He, too, was at home in the water.

“We can manage this,” Zorn said, muscles popping out along his frame as he braced for what was to come. “We can get there in time, and we can drag Lexi behind us. We won’t want to be without her.”

“It’s just a woman who’s holding her. You don’t need me—”

“Let them take you,” Harding cut in.

Kieran zeroed in on Harding for a moment, as if he was reading into those words. I didn’t have time to wonder what game he was playing now.

“Fine. Drag me along, but only if we make it in time,” I said. With my blood bond to Kieran, I could survive underwater for a long time.

“Thane, grab a rope,” Kieran instructed, glancing behind him as his people jogged up. “Red, clear the train lines. That’s the second fastest way to Berkeley at this point. Get a train ready and meet us there as fast as you can.”

“Yes, sir,” Red said. “But where is there?”

Kieran handed off the piece of paper. “It’s not far from BART in the non-magical area.”

Red pulled out her phone as Thane ran from around the garage side of the house holding an ordinary rope I hadn’t realized was in my possession.

“We’ll be cutting through the water fast,” Kieran was saying, grabbing the rope from Thane and wrapping it around my waist. “I’ll be manipulating currents and the water itself, so it won’t feel natural.”

“Deep-sea swimming will never feel natural,” I said, lifting my arms.

He grinned at me. “Someday it might. Plug your nose, close your eyes, and hold your breath, okay?” He wrapped the rope around my shoulders and between my legs, and then used an impressive knot to tie it all into place at my stomach. “Maybe even cover your face.”

“Remember that you can hold your breath for more than an hour,” Zorn said, taking a black bag from Donovan, who unknowingly stood beside an eager Jack, and stowed a gun in it. He then peeled off his shirt, exposing thick slabs of muscle crisscrossed with silvery streaks of scars. “Just let Kieran drag you and do not think about gasping for breath, even if you crest the surface for a moment.”

Kieran leaned down a little so his beautiful blue eyes, stormy with emotion, connected with mine. He took hold of my upper arms. “I’ll tie myself to you in the water. Then do as we say and just hang on, okay?” He waited for me to nod before straightening and turning to Donovan. “Once you get off the train, get a car to meet us at the closest point. Zorn, do you know where that address is?”

“Yeah,” Zorn answered.

Kieran nodded and looked at everyone. “Watch each other. A Possessor took over Jack. I’m guessing the differences were subtle, mostly missed…”

“Very good,” Harding said, and his words from before filtered through my head.

Very few can feel souls the way you do, even those who possess others or use others to travel through spirit.

…even those who possess others…

That bastard had known all along, but he’d played Sherlock Holmes with the information. I’d be mad later.

“The Possessor took over the woman who grabbed Daisy,” I said before Kieran went on. I quickly went over the things I’d heard.

“Bria, get that information to Henry,” Kieran said. She nodded but didn’t immediately lift her phone to her ear, waiting for Kieran to finish. “If someone is acting different, ask them what we call Daisy. If you are asked, and you are yourself, answer princess.”