“Kadi?”
“In here, Seth.”
“Hey… Oh, you’re not alone.” He looked at Peder and back to me.
“I’ll give you two some privacy. Please make yourselves at home.” Peder made a hasty retreat out of the room.
“Well, you scared him off.”
“Trust me, I do not scare that man. No one does.”
“Maybe not, but you bother him in some way.”
“We had a weird night years back and since then he’s been standoffish every time I see him.”
“A weird night?”
“He had been out drafting, so he was out of sorts that night.”
Mortal drugs and alcohol won’t intoxicate a banshee. Instead, they feed off the mentally ill or medically altered. It circled back to the mortal being detached from reality; their detachment passes onto the banshee and gets them high. I had only seen one banshee after drafting and he acted like a drunk mortal.
“So, he was messed up?”
“Quite. I was still awake when he got back to the house. He told me how he feels about…”
“I know he’s in love with Ian.”
“Yes, well, he told me, and I comforted him. He was so far gone that he tried to kiss me. When I explained I wasn’t interested, he got embarrassed and left. The next day he wouldn’t speak to me. Wouldn’t even stay in the same room as me. I tried talking to him, but the more I tried the angrier he became, and he left the house. I haven’t seen him again until today.”
“Oh… Well… You should try talking to him. Maybe he’s over it now.”
“I doubt it. Anyhow, I know the long ride has you restless, so I thought you may want a workout.”
“Hell yes.”
Seth and I used every square inch of the gym, including the sauna before meeting Peder and Bryce to talk about our next step in finding Ian.
There were recent reports of locals and tourists disappearing from Key West. Wherever Gabriel and his men were keeping these mortals was probably the same place they were holding Ian.
After we discussed a few plans, and after some persuading by Seth, Peder agreed to going with him to Key West and get themselves seen. This should call out any of Gabriel’s men and hopefully lead us to their hideout.
“Wouldn’t it be better if I were to go? I’m the one who they want—”
“NO!” the three men exclaimed at the same time.
My eyebrows shot up, but before I could speak Bryce stepped forward.
“My pip, we know you can take care of yourself—”
“Do not placate me, I know what you’ll say. And fine, I will sit here idle while they go, but just know that when we do find out where Ian is, I will go out to rescue him. You can put as many wards as you want on this house, but I will not stay here waiting.”
“Deal. For now, sit back and try not to fret too much.”
“Wait… Seth are you sure you should go? You’re a Scout. Maybe Peder should go alone.”
“I am going, Kadi, even if it means blowing my cover. It’s Ian.”
He didn’t need to elaborate further. Ian was well-respected in our clan. Anyone of us would risk our lives to help save him.
“Seth will be fine, darlin’. Don’t you worry, I’ll have his back as if it were my own. I’ll go get ready. Meet you back here in a half an hour?”
I grabbed Seth’s arm.
“You’re going tonight? Right now?”
“Looks like. I’ll be fine. Remember I lived with Alexi for years before Ian found me. This will be nothing.” He turned to go upstairs, and I followed him into his room, not willing to leave his side just yet.
“With Ian already missing… I don’t know if I could stand it if something happened to you too.” I began to pace.
“Listen, I never told you what it was like living with Alexi. I never told you because it was so horrible, I don’t want to remember. But trust me when I tell you I can handle whatever these assholes throw at me. So, don’t get it in your head that you need to sneak after us. Stay the fuck inside.”
“Hey! You watch how you talk to me. Don’t make me kick your ass before you leave.”
He hugged me and I leaned into him.
“I am sorry you went through what you did, but I won’t ever stop worrying about you. Come back to me and bring Ian with you.”
“Done. See you soon, beautiful.”
I hoped with all my heart that he was right.
Chapter Five
After Seth and Peder left, I went in search of Bryce. I found him sitting at the breakfast bar playing solitaire.
“Hey, want to play some rummy? I need to get my mind off things.”
I took the deck he handed me and shuffled. We played for a while before I realized I hadn’t seen Sheryl since we arrived.
“Where’s blondie?”
As if my words had summoned her, Sheryl came rushing through the front door in a panic. Seeing her wild-eyed look, I jumped off the stool so fast the momentum knocked it to the floor.
“Seth texted me about heading to Key West. We must go after them. They’ll be ambushed. Gabriel is there.” She directed the last bit to me.
I ran to my room to change into my gear before storming into the garage and raiding the weapons locker. I had my knife belt, but I grabbed extras for my boots. While Bryce was removing the wards from the house, I grabbed his bow and a quiver full of faeritonium arrows, and Sheryl’s sword and put them in the car.
“Let’s go!” I called to them as I got behind the wheel. The guys had about an hour’s head start on us, we needed to hurry. I set the GPS and backed out of the driveway. As I drove a thought occurred to me.
“So, blondie, why is it you’re always the one to announce that someone has gone missing? First with Ian, now with Seth and Peder.”
“Maybe because I’ve infiltrated Gabriel’s gang, so I see and hear things. Kinda the point of me doing this double agent thing.”
“Or maybe you’re helping Gabriel. Maybe you’re taking me to him. Another trap, perhaps?”
“You know what? Screw you. I’ve been risking my life for months to save your ass!”
Oh right… “You’re right. Taking my anxiety out on you is wrong.”
“I care about Ian, too, you know.”
“Yeah, I know. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. We can’t control who we love.”
I wasn’t sure if she was referring to herself or me, so I decided to use the time to call a few of the other Hunters in our clan. I called a couple and asked them to spread the word. We were meeting a little over a mile from where Sheryl thought Gabriel was holed up and have a quick confab beforehand.
When the GPS directed me to pull off the main road, I couldn’t help but smile when I saw our clanmates. Though I wasn’t surprised, it still impressed me how many came to help. We were looking for Ian and Ian had risked his life for just about everyone in the clan at one time or another. He portrayed himself as a big hardened banshee, and he could be ruthless as hell, but inside he had a huge, soft heart.
I stepped to the front of the car to greet everyone. “Hey, thanks for coming on such short notice. Here’s what we know…”