Page 104 of Amber Gambler

“I know you’re pissed at me.”

“Pissed?” His voice pierced my brain like an ice pick through the ear. “No. Pissed isn’t the right word.”

Spirits roused beneath the pavement, their moans growing in volume, but Kierce set his hand on mine. It didn’t stop them. I was too wired for that. But it did dial them down enough for me to hear what Harrow said next without giving away that Kierce was beside me.

“I heard about the recordings from a friend in the 514. I can guess what you think of me.”

“You kidnapped my brother. You don’t have to guess. I’ll tell you. You’re dead to me. Hurt him and you’ll be dead to everyone else too. I might kill you anyway for thinking you can put hands on Matty after you tried it with me.” I drew in a ragged breath. “Where is he?”

“Safe.”

“Safe isn’t a location.” I gritted my jaw to keep from screaming at him. “Where is my brother?”

“Meet me at Wormsloe at ten, alone, and listen to what I have to say.”

“Bring him with you.” I trembled with rage at his gall. “If I don’t see him when I pull up, I won’t stop.”

A bluff. A bad one. I would scour every inch of the plantation for the slightest hope of finding him.

“That’s fair,” he soothed, propelling my fury into a whole new dimension, where entire worlds died from my salty tears poisoning their lakes and my sobs crackled across the skies with deadly electric promise.

“What about Badb?”

“What about her?”

“You almost killed her.”

“She’s the one who assaulted me. I didn’t touch that damn bird.”

For no good reason, I believed him. But I didn’t want to, so I ignored it in favor of embracing more anger.

Unable to stomach talking to him for one more second, I ended the call and forced myself to release the death grip on my phone rather than throwing it as far as I could across the parking lot.

“I would kill him for you.”

Kierce said it conversationally, and again I was put in a frame of mind to reflect on what Bash had said to me about how Kierce reacted to my words. “If I decide he needs to die, I’ll kill him myself.”

“Do you believe him?”

“About Badb?” I wanted to lie and say no, but the best I could do was admit, “I don’t know.”

We had time before the meeting at Wormsloe Plantation, so we got out and went in search of Carter.

By the time we reached the correct floor, word must have traveled, because she waited for us two steps away from the elevator doors. Her eyes met mine then dropped to the pink-striped fabric straps crossing Kierce’s chest. I wasn’t sure what she meant to tell me before the sight of him sent her thought train smashing into the tunnel walls of her mind.

After taking a healthy step back, she asked me, “How fast do necromancers reproduce?”

“Nine months.” I almost laughed to see her squirming. “The same as humans.”

“Mmm-hmm.” She gestured toward the baby sling he wore knotted at his left hip. “Then what…?”

Leaning forward, Kierce revealed our “child” in her nest of blankets.

“I can’t decide if you two producing an actual baby in the time it takes for a pizza delivery is more or less creepy than this latest fashion choice Kierce has made.” She flicked her wrist, urging him to straighten. “I guess this is good news? She must be doing better if she feels up to a ride along.”

“She’s healing,” Kierce confirmed, tucking Badb in again, “but I want to keep her close.”

“We need to talk.” I jerked my head toward the elevator. “Let’s hit the bar.”

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