Page 53 of Ira

“Did you go to the shadow realm?” Latika asked quietly. “With the others? No one will tell me the truth. No one talks about you at all.”

“Yes, I did.”

She grimaced, looking away. “You’re ruined then.”

I snorted, remembering that I probably still had some Shade cum sticking to my skin despite my best attempts to clean myself up. She had no idea.

“No, Latika. You’re ruined if you truly believe that poison. I feel very sorry for you, and I hope you recover from the sickness that has infected your mind.”

Her face flushed.

“Do you remember who I told you to avoid before I left?” I asked coolly, some of my affection for my sister being replaced by annoyance. Latika nodded, looking away. “And did you do as I asked?”

She nodded again, shifting her weight uncomfortably from one foot to the other. “Yes.”

“Good. I’m sure your teenage years were much more pleasant than mine then. And you didn’t have a kid to raise. Aren’t you lucky?” I snarked, a little of the bitterness I’d been carrying around creeping out. I turned away, striding purposefully toward the end room and throwing open the door.

It was jarring to see an adult-sized bed in the middle of the room rather than the bunk beds against the wall that we’d shared back then, though it shouldn’t have been. After taking a moment to orient myself, I headed for the sliding closet doors, pushing them open and tossing Latika’s shoes back into the bedroom behind me to clear the floor.

I could feel Latika standing behind me, but she didn’t say anything. Perhaps I’d shocked her into silence.

The ancient carpet came up easily in the corner of the closet, though it probably hadn’t been touched since I’d last moved it,and the loose floorboards beneath it were exactly the way I’d left them. It was no coincidence that this hiding spot was here. Randal Jackman had given me very specific instructions on what to do all those years ago.

Carefully, I lifted out the shoebox of documents, tucking it under my arm and covering the hole back up. All I wanted to do now was get out of here—looking through the box would have to wait. What if there had been a leak at some point? There wasn’t any guarantee that what I had was even legible at this point.

“What is that?” Latika asked as I moved back out of the closet on my knees before climbing to my feet.

“Nothing you need to worry about.”

“I find that hard to believe.” She was trying to sound tough, but I could hear the tremor of fear in her voice.

Instinct demanded that I put her mind at ease—to mother her the way I had when we were young. But we were both adults now, and we were standing on two different sides of a battle line that was drawn in blood and betrayal. It wasn’t one that could be easily crossed.

I stared at Latika for a long moment, memorizing her features again the way I had the day I’d left all those years ago. Replacing the portrait of her I had in my mind with one that was a little more up-to-date and a little less idealistic.

“I hope I’ll see you again someday, little sister. Under different circumstances. Until then… Well, good luck, I suppose. I hope you don’t come to regret the choices you’ve made.”

She didn’t say anything as I walked past her, out of what had once been our room before heading out the front door into the quiet, dark night.

It was a strange feeling to walk away. To feel like I’d slayed one of my own personal demons, and yet to feel completely hollow inside at the same time, but I didn’t allow myself time to reflect on it.

Step one was complete. And that was the easy part.

Chapter 18

“Got it,” Meera said, hopping into the front of the contraption I’d been waiting miserably in. Hearing her voice offered some relief, but seeing her would have been far preferable. “I’m going to find us somewhere to stay for the rest of the night and to hide out tomorrow. I’m exhausted, and kind of overwhelmed, and I don’t think I’m going to make good decisions right now. I need to think about exactly what I’m going to say to Adela. What if she’s changed her number? Oh god, I didn’t even think about that…”

It was harder to pay attention to her words when she started driving, and I just did my best to keep up in the safe confines of the darkness she’d created for me. I wasn’t entirely confident that she’d find somewhere suitable for us—would I just spendthe next day in the back of this vehicle?—but eventually Meera came to a stop and assured me that she’d be back for me shortly.

The short amount of time she was gone felt like hours, but she did eventually return for me, confidently opening the back door of the van.

“I feel pretty certain that you’re safe here, though I’m less confident about myself,” Meera said cheerfully, ushering me out. “It’s probably the dodgiest motel I could have found, but it’s dark and it’s private.”

I moved like the wind, hoping that my body language encouraged Meera to rush too so that we could get inside at least. If that was even an improvement, safety wise. The long building we were parked in front of was eerie and decrepit, and I desperately wanted to whisk Meera away from here.

She led me into a room at the end, having filled Harlow’s bag with almost everything she could source from the vehicle.

“I should have packed snacks,” Meera mumbled to herself, closing the door behind her and double-checking the lock. For my benefit, all the lights were off, but I suspected Meera didn’t need them to know how dismal this room was.

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