Page 82 of Demon's Bluff

I took a slow breath, hands laced about my warm cup. “You think we should leave,” I said, but it wasn’t a question. “Take Newt at face value about the mirror and hope I can figure it out when we get home?”

Elyse lifted a shoulder and let it fall. “I never wanted to be here, so yes.”

“Funny. I never wanted you to be here, either,” I muttered.

“Oh, for God’s sake.” She turned to face me. “This isn’t about a mirror anymore. You want to see Kisten. Make sure he’s dead twice before we go. So go see him already.”

For a moment, all I could do is stare. “Are you serious? Why do you even care how I feel?”

She shrugged, eyes going everywhere but to me. “I, ah…” Her gazemet mine for an instant, and her grip on her cup tightened. “I shouldn’t have tried to trick you using Kisten as bait,” she said softly.

My lips parted in surprise, and she hunched forward, brow furrowed. “I amsosorry,” she said intently. “I knew you loved him, but I didn’t care about what that meant, only that I could use it against you. And seeing you react to him, and then watching Newt try to do the same thing…”

My anger flared, and her expression pinched, becoming contrite. “I am so sorry,” she said again, and I wished Jenks were here so he could tell me if this was an act or not. “It was cruel and self-serving, and I know having the chance to say good-bye doesn’t make up for that, but you could find some closure maybe. And we could go home? You said you knew where to get a demon stasis charm.”

Closure? I didn’t like how she said that, as if the one act would tie the box with a bow and put it on the top shelf in my closet. Not to mention her thinking it meant I’d forgiven her for trying to bribe me with Kisten in the first place.

“You need to go to the boat,” she said, eyes darting. “Say good-bye if nothing else.”

She just wanted to go home, but as I eyed her guilt and embarrassment, I wondered if I could trust her long enough to at least make sure he was twice dead. That I might have left him for the sun was a guilt I didn’t want to live with.

My gut tightened and my foot began to jiggle. Jaw clenched, I tilted my head to study the dark sky and moon.We have a few hours to sunrise.“I’m probably not at the boat anymore. Art came to kill him before midnight. It happened fast.”

I blinked as the tears threatened, coming from nowhere.I am not going to cry in front of a coven member.

“Come on.” She stood, cup in hand. “I read Kisten’s file. It’s like a ten-minute bus ride to where his boat is. You should find out if Newt was lying.” Her lips twitched and she forced a smile. “And if nothing else, we can get something to eat on the way. I’m starving, and coffeehouse pastries aren’t going to do it.”

I sat and stared at her, wondering if she was doing this not because she believed what she was saying but because she had to have that demon stasis charm and I was her only source.

Lips pressed together, she took my cup—as if it might lure me into following her. “You can’t help him, but you can say good-bye,” she said. “Once you know for sure, we can go home.”

My stomach hurts.This was something I wanted to do, but I was likely to walk away even more messed up. “After we get the mirror.”

Elyse put a hand on my shoulder and smiled. “And that demon stasis charm, sure.”

Chapter

19

The buses didn’t run outto Tucker’s Landing, and the rusty beater that I had magically hot-wired from a used-car lot was burning both oil and antifreeze. I had driven so Elyse could eat, and the takeout bowl of Skyline chili in her hand gave me the twin feelings of hunger and nausea.

I could tell even before sunrise that the day was going to be hot. There wasn’t a cloud in the predawn sky, now just beginning to show a hint of light at the horizon as we drove in from the main road. I wasn’t sure if I should be thankful or creeped out that Elyse knew where Kisten had tied up his boat for his deadly rendezvous on the Ohio River. So I settled on suspicious.

Uneasy, I brought my gaze down from the skies as I parked at the outskirts, among the stored, tarp-covered boats that hadn’t seen water in years. Kisten’s yacht was at the nearby docks, set apart from the rest. The small cruiser was Kisten’s sanctuary for when he needed space from Piscary. Or at least it had been. It was usually berthed at the quay outside the restaurant. Here, tied to a rickety, moss-covered dock, it looked huge.

“You okay?” Elyse asked, and I got out. The woman glanced at her chili, then awkwardly followed, bowl in hand.

“Peachy,” I said softly as I walked to the dock, certain I wasn’t on the boat. Art had fled immediately after Kisten had bit him. I’d left shortly thereafter, finding my way to the church to get some stakes to kill somevampire ass. My life might have ended right there if Jenks hadn’t downed me with a forget charm.Thank you, Jenks.

My feet were silent on the damp boards, Elyse’s steps fast and out of sync behind me. Memories flooded me as I paced to the stern, where it was easier to board, memories of Kisten, his smile, his blue eyes bright with love—dark in desire, how he made me feel…But mostly, how helpless I’d been when Art had attacked him, the way the boat had moved with his weight when he came aboard, how the water had lapped, chattering out a warning, Art’s bloodlust, and then anger when Kisten had died before he’d gotten even a taste—and lastly, Art’s fear when Kisten had sacrificed his undead existence to protect Ivy and me.

Exhaling, I grasped the railing for balance and swung my leg over it. “Don’t touch anything,” I said as the boat moved and I drew my other leg over and stepped down into the luxurious cockpit. “The I.S. couldn’t care less about what happened, but the FIB sweeps for evidence and there was no sign of you.”

The cushions were still out, damp with dew, and I blinked fast, sealing everything away.

Elyse scuffed to a halt behind me. “Maybe this isn’t such a good idea.”

But it was too late, and I hiked my shoulder bag higher and looked through the glass doors. Kisten’s kitchen and living room were dark and tidy. Breath held, I slid the doors open and stepped into the galley, resisting the urge to call out to him.

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