Page 61 of The Daughters of Nyx

I swallowed hard and nodded. “I know.”

Heaving a sigh, Rowan sent out a message to Maeve and the others to come to the apartment. My heart squeezed with

anxiety as we waited. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d asked for permission to go to a party. Kerry had never cared, so long as I wasn’t going out on a night when she needed me to babysit. Thea’s grandmother, as kooky as the woman was, always said we needed to be more social and pushed us to have fun—but never too much, she’d warned.

I blew out a breath as time seemed to slow and we waited for Maeve, Elias, and Adrian to appear. They trickled in after what felt like an hour, but I knew it had to only be minutes. In that time, Rowan had closed the blinds and curtains in the apartment and flicked on the lights; Thea and I had shared a look of uncertainty, but he’d eventually explained that as a Changed vampire, Maeve couldn’t be out in the sun.

I’d felt a moment of guilt until she strode in. Dressed in leather pants that hugged her legs and a plum-coloured silk button down, with daggers strapped to her body, she looked like she was about to step into a board meeting—or fight to the death. Regal and scary was how I would describe her.

Elias, on the other hand, looked even more terrifying in his combat clothing. If I remembered correctly, he’d been on shift outside the apartment, searching for any sign of hellhounds or the person hunting me.

Adrian entered the apartment last, rubbing his eyes. He had dark circles under his eyes, and looked as if he’d just woken up. Guilt swirled in my gut, but when he smiled, it simmered away to something else as I looked him over. He wore no shoes, but grey sweatpants hung low on his hips, outlining more than I thought he realised, and a white t-shirt that hugged his lean frame.

Our last conversation replayed over and over in my head, reminding me that I had just been a job. He might have claimed that what he’d done had beenreal, but that didn’t stop the shame from burning in my gut whenever I thought of the moments we’d shared.

I quickly looked away, cheeks warm, and instead found Maeve’s inquisitive stare. “What’s all this?” she asked, looking me over, then at the state of the apartment. Her eyes danced over where Thea sat amongst the remnants of old costumes, then back to me.

Biting my lip, I sucked in a breath. “Thea and I want to go to a Halloween party.”

Maeve’s brows furrowed, gaze hard. “Absolutely not.”

“Please.” As I took a step towards her, her blue eyes softened. “Look, as much as I don’t really mind staying in the apartment, I just need a moment to be old Ivy. It’s a Halloween party at a house outside of the city, with people Thea and I know or have been around before. I know you need to protect me, but I also need a night of not being…aDaughter of Nyx.”

Maeve’s jaw ticked as she looked me over. She was much better at hiding her emotions and expressions; Adrian and Rowan normally wore everything on their face, clear enough that it was easy to read them. But Maeve was hard to understand.

Finally, she shook her head. “It would be unsafe—and extremely dangerous—to let you go. It would be an unknown environment, and we wouldn’t be able to keep eyes on you at all time.”

“Someone could go in with them,” Rowan offered. When I looked over to him, he was standing by the window with his arms crossed. “That way we can keep eyes on Ivy at all times.”

“Did you miss the part where letting her out to some stupid party would be dangerous?” Elias muttered.

My eyes narrowed. “I already warned Rowan that Thea and I are pretty damn good at escaping. So, we could go with or without you. But we also aren’t stupid. We’ll take the necessary precautions.” I turned back to Maeve. “Please. With everything that’s been going on, I just need a night of normal. Thea and I always celebrate Halloween in some way. It’s tradition. We can be careful.”

Maeve and Elias shared a look, and whatever passed between it had my heart thundering in my ears.

Please, just give me one night.

After another painful moment, Maeve rubbed her eyes. “Fine. You will take someone from the team with you, and youmuststay with them at all times.”

“Adrian,” Thea interjected. I whipped around to face her. “What? He’ll fit the theme better.”

I narrowed my eyes, but I also knew better than that. Her stare seemed to be telling me to trust her, and as much as I loved my best friend, she was also a wild card that scared me. She knew exactly what we’d talked about yesterday, but she had something up her sleeve.

After a few moments, I sighed. “Fine. If we have to have a babysitter, then we’ll take Adrian.”

Maeve eyed us warily, but bowed her head. “The rest of us will take up positions around the perimeter then. Adrian, use the communication rune to keep us updated. You two—

” Maeve spared Thea a worrying glance before meeting my stare, “—will have until two A.M before we pull you out. Understood?”

As much as Maeve scared me sometimes, I couldn’t help but throw my arms around her. “Thank you.”

The vampire made a sound in the back of her throat as I quickly pulled away. “When does thispartystart?”

“Around eight. Right?” I asked, turning to Thea.

My friend nodded. “That’s the time Jase gave me.”

“Then we have four hours to prepare.” Maeve turned from me to the rest of them. “Full tactical gear, and a meeting to determine our points of weakness. Ivy, I’ll need the location and some part of your costume that we can charm for additional protection. You too, Thea.”

---