September Moon (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #8)(26)

“I miss you, too.” Kale’s admittance was uttered with bitterness. “More than you’ll ever really know.”

I wanted to insist we could get our friendship back. I didn’t though, because it would be a lie. Even as I tried to deny it, I was painfully aware of the dangers of our proximity.

“Ok, so what’s the plan?” I asked, redirecting the conversation. If I could get him talking about something other than us, maybe we would both relax.

“I guess we start at Jez’s apartment. Hopefully your sister can trace her phone. It’s not like Jez to skip out on a hunt. Whatever she’s up to, it can’t be good.”

I nodded, already fearing the worst. “She’s on a mission to dull the pain. That never ends well for anyone. It doesn’t work.”

Kale laughed, a scornful sound. “No, but it sure feels good to try.”

“Yeah, I know.” So much for keeping the topic off of us.

We fell quiet, but it was awkward and strained. The uneasy conversation had been less obvious.

“So tell me about Jenner,” Kale said, regarding me with a sly smile. “What could he have done to warrant such a punishment?”

It bothered me to hear him refer to being bound to me as a punishment even though I’d said it myself. It had been punishment for Jenner as well as a way of keeping him loyal to his bloodline. But that had never been my intention when I made Kale mine.

“Really? You want to talk about this?” With a raised brow I gave him a critical once over. He motioned for me to continue. “Ok, fine. Jenner is the star of his own show. He screws and bleeds victims on stage in front of an audience. When Arys lost the poker game they played, Jenner made us take the stage. He wanted to watch us together. So we turned the tables on him and made him part of the act.”

Kale’s hands tightened visibly on the steering wheel. His expression never changed. His attention was on the road. Yet the telltale vibe of jealous anger seeping from him spoke loud and clear.

I swallowed hard and added, “Nothing happened with Jenner. I manipulated him into taking my blood. We didn’t…it wasn’t physical.”

The quiet that fell was nerve wracking. I wished that he would say something, anything. His eerie silence was freaking me out.

“So you mind-f*cked him,” he said at last. “And now he’s yours. He’s going to crave you like a drug that never leaves his system, and he’ll never find relief. Definitely a hell of a good way to torture a guy.”

I knew what he was doing. Still, it wasn’t in my nature to keep my mouth shut when being judged. “He had it coming, and I’m not sorry,” I spat the words with more force than necessary. “But you, Kale, I will never stop being sorry for what I did to you.”

We stopped at a red light, and our eyes met. I willed him to see the truth. Hurting him had never been my intent. The hardness in him felt foreign. The walls he had formed between us were built from pain, betrayal, and love. A deadly combination.

The rest of the drive to Jez’s was spent with only the sound of the radio to fill the void. I stared out the window, watching the city streets fly by. As we passed restaurants and bars filled with humans going about their lives in blissful ignorance, I felt a longing I hadn’t known in a very long time.

The commercial area gave way to residential. We pulled up in front of Jez’s building to find the windows of her second floor apartment dark. Because of the underground parking, we couldn’t know for sure if she was there.

“It doesn’t look like she’s home,” I commented, refusing to go about this night in strained silence. “You said she was supposed to meet you? Could she have run into some kind of trouble on the way?”

“We were supposed to hunt a new vampire with a taste for kids. She was eager to tag him. I can’t imagine what would keep her from doing that.”

We got out of the car and entered the lobby. After pressing the buzzer and receiving no response, I manipulated the door lock with little effort, and we were inside.

“You’ve gotten so good at those little things. I bet you can pull off some pretty impressive shit now.” Kale’s observation was accompanied by a smirk.

“Let’s hope so,” I quipped. “I have a feeling I might have to in the not so distant future.”

I paused to allow him to ascend the stairs first. I knew better than to allow Kale at my back. He swept by me with a knowing look and a snicker.

Jez wasn’t home. Standing outside her apartment door, I could feel the absence of her lively Were essence.

“What now?” I asked. My phone rang as Juliet came through for me. She read an address to me that sounded familiar, but I couldn’t quite place it. “Thank you, Juliet. I appreciate your help. Don’t tell Briggs, or he’ll think I owe you guys another favor.”

“Little sister isn’t so bad after all,” Kale said after I’d hung up. “Good to know.”

I typed the address into the map on my phone. It was The Spirit Room, a rock bar I’d been to a time or two. It wasn’t a place I knew Jez to go. What could be going on there that would keep her from meeting Kale or answering her phone?

“I know this place,” I said, showing Kale the map. “I went there with Brogan to find Gabriel the night Falon swiped him and took him to Shya. Can’t imagine why Jez would be there.”