Page 70 of Black Bird

“What you did was—” He sighed deeply. “You were incredible.” Sarah met his eyes. “For what it’s worth, Sarah … I’ve never let anyone touch me like that.” Now it was making more sense. Maybe it wasn’t her specifically. “Ever,” he finished.

“I’ll stay with you,” she choked out. He offered her a slight smile and as much as she wished she could sneer at him, Sarah smiled back.

“There’s a charger on the other side of my bed near the sliding glass door. If anything happens, call me or head to Rhaena’s. It’s Sunday … she likely isn’t going anywhere.”

Sarah nodded and he backed away, making for the front door. The chain lock slid out of place and the deadbolt flipped. He opened it, looking back at her from over his shoulder. “Lock yourself in.” She nodded again and he closed it, leaving her in the short hallway between the kitchen and the living room. Poe screeched, climbing up the outside of the cage and Sarah moved toward him. He had to be hungry.

“Let’s get you something, friend.” She smiled, letting him hop onto her wrist. He flitted up to her shoulder and she walked them into the kitchen, opening the fridge and pulling one of the containers out. There was only one small strip of raw chicken left. She handed it up to him and he took it greedily. Sarah took the rest of the containers out and tossed them into the sink, filling it with soapy water. She leaned back into the fridge, plundering around to find anything else she could give the bird, but came up short. Two white drawers at the bottom of the fridge remained, and she slid one out—empty. But when she opened the other …

Sarah’s eyes widened and she stilled, slowly kneeling to the floor and reaching into the drawer. Blood bags … a drawer full of them. She plucked one up, her hand shaking as she read the front. She knew that logo. O-negative bags from EverLife. Her face turned toward the locked front door and then back to the bag in her hand. She tucked the blood back into the compartment and shoved it closed, raising on unsteady knees, and shutting the door to the refrigerator.

Sarah turned the running water off at the sink and stood there in shock for a long moment. “What the fuck?” She murmured to herself, absent-mindedly starting to wash the dishes. Poe danced on her shoulder, curiously watching her. Sarah peered through the breakfast nook at the leather couch, recalling everything they’d done on it hours ago … minutes ago. Her mind flooded with questions and her heart felt heavy. So did her stomach. “What the hell are you doing with all of that, Kane?” she whispered, her brows nearly touching in confusion. Something dark and compelling tugged at her middle. Whispers hushed her thoughts in her mind. Ones she’d heard before but couldn’t make out. She left the containers sitting in the sink and dried her hands, stalking to the living room to get her phone and then to Athan’s room to charge it.

Wren heard her phone ringing and wiped the drool from her chin as she turned on her pillow, Denver stirring at her movement. She fished for her phone, finding it at the corner of her small nightstand and slid the call open before even looking to see who it was.

“Yeah? Hello?” She groaned, rubbing the sleep from her eye.

“Wren … where you at?”

“Hey … I’m home. Are you still at Detective Dreamy’s place?” When Sarah went silent Wren stilled, raising to sit, and brushing her hair back from her forehead. “Sarah?”

“Yeah, I’m still here.”

“What’s the matter? Are you okay?”

“I—I dunno.”

Wren tried to ease the worry in her voice, veiling it in amusement. “Uh oh … did you sleep with him?” Another long pause. “Oh shit … you did?”

“No … well—we … no, we didn’t.”

“Uhhh … that’s not what it sounds like … what happened?”

“We … fooled around a little. But I’m calling about something else.”

Wren’s mouth dropped open in a smile. “You fooled around a little? That’s all you’re gonna give me? What’d you do?”

“Wren! Please, okay? He just left, and I found a fucking drawer full of blood bags in his fridge. Bags from EverLife.”

Her mouth stayed open; her amusement wholly gone. “What?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t get it … why would he have that? Is he sick?”

“I don’t know. But he left, and said he’d be back in a couple hours. He told me Brent admitted to being with me because of his father. Conrad wants me. I told him I’d tested my blood, and he lost his shit and said he needed to leave for a while. I don’t even know where he’s going.”

“Wait, wait … back up. You said you tested your blood, told him about it? Why would that set him off?”

“Because … I figured some stuff out about it that might have blown this case open. And he had said when you were here that he thinks this is more than one person. I’m assuming whoever he thinks that is … they might be about to get it. He looked like he was gonna rip somebody’s spine out.”

Wren checked the time. It was still pretty early in the morning. “Why don’t I come get you? Go get breakfast? I’m never up this early. Might as well enjoy it.”

“I don’t have any clothes.”

“He didn’t go get them?”

“No, he—no.”

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