Page 78 of Soul Bound

“God, I hope not.” We reach the top of the stairs and we scan the large ballroom. Hundreds of people dressed to the nines mingle around the room, fake laughter fills the room along with pleasant—mind-numbing—small talk. Waiters walk around the room in black and white tuxes with trays of champagne. “All these people are here to see him. Can you believe that?”

“We’ll get our revenge on him soon, but we need to focus on figuring out where in the hotel the auction is taking place.”

“Right.” She nods her head once as she scans the room. “Let’s take a lap of the room,” she suggests.

We walk slowly around the edge of the room, Winslow makes a point to stay hidden slightly beside me, keeping her head down as much as possible. We agreed before we showed up, we didn’t want to have a confrontation with her parents. I frown when we pass a waiter and Winslow swipes a flute of champagne off his tray.

She catches my scowl and shrugs. “I’m not going to drink it. It’s just to keep appearances up.” She gives me a pointed look. “And alcohol was never my issue, but I chose to not drink because I don’t want it to spiral into something more.”

I don’t judge her for having an issue with drugs in the past. As sad as it is, I understand why she started using in the first place. I can’t imagine being in her shoes and being constantly assaulted by spirits—and not understandingwhy. I can only hope now that she has an understanding as to why it’s happening to her, she’ll be able to cope better. And if not, I’ll be there for her, to help just like I promised.

“Oh goody.Look, it’s the man of the hour.” Winslow pulls me to stand at one of the many high-top tables placed around the room. She puts her glass down on the white tablecloth covered surface. “Doesn’t look like my mom is with him, she would be on his arm if she was. He’d never leave her alone at an event like this, she’s usually so drugged out of her mind from her ‘mommy’s little helpers’he wouldn’t trust her to act accordingly.”

Cyrus stands about fifteen feet from us, mingling with a couple that screamsmoney. I can hear him schmoozing them for a donation to his campaign. What a fuckingprick.

“The more I learn about your family, the more I start to appreciate mine,” I tell her as I wrap my arm around her waist when I feel her body stiffen and her heart rate pick up when she looks at him. I wouldn’t put it past her to storm up to him and beat the shit out of him. I wouldloveto witness such a thing, but there is a time and place for it to happen.Now is not the time.

If Winslow was a shifter, I imagine she would be growling right now, instead, she silently fumes as she watches him. Her eyes are narrowed, and her mouth is slightly pursed in distaste. I kiss her temple. “Calm, sweetheart. You’ve got to stay calm,” I whisper in her ear before I pull away.

She leans into me, but she stays stiff as a board. I run my hand up and down her arm, trying to soothe the fury brewing in her.

We’re both so focused on her dad as he moves about the room, shaking people’s hands, smiling his million-dollar politician smile at each one of them, that we don’t notice the woman approach us.

“Hello,” she says politely. She wears a modest black evening dress and her dyed blonde hair is perfectly coifed. “Are you two enjoying the event?”

Winslow looks the woman over. “We’re having the time of our lives.” The smile she plants on her face oozes fake happiness.

The woman is oblivious to it though. “I’m so glad to hear it. My name is Darla and I’m Cyrus’s campaign manager. We’re using this event to help boost his public appearance for his election as governor of Rhode Island.” She scans the room and breaks into a big smile when her eyes land on Cyrus. “There he is! Would you like me to introduce you?”

A smile I can only describe as wicked grows on Winnie’s face as she regards the campaign manager. “If I’m being honest Darla, I would rather deepthroat a cactus than do that.” I about choke on the air I’m breathing at her response. “But thanks for the offer.”

“Oh… okay then.” Darla gives us a weird look, like she’s trying to figure out why we would come to a function that is honoring Cyrus if we didn’t want to meet him.

“We’re in the tech business ourselves,” I lie. “We wanted to come to the event to hear the other speakers talk about their projects. We’re not ones to get involved with politics.” I try my best to smooth over the awkward situation.

“Understood.” Darla scans us warily but nods her head. “If you change your mind, don’t hesitate to come on over. He’s always happy to meet new faces.” She politely smiles once more before blending into the crowd behind her.

Chuckling softly, I look down at Winslow “I thought I said to behave.”

“I said I couldn’t make any promises.” She sniffs defiantly. Her eyes narrow and she stands up on her tippy toes, trying to get a better view of something. Dropping back to her normal height, she grabs my hand and starts to pull me toward the main exit.

“Where are we going?”

She doesn’t slow down when she answers, she just continues to weave us between the guests. I have to apologize to a couple we accidentally bump into. Winslow doesn’t offer them a second glance.

“I have a plan,” she tells me over her shoulder. “You might not like it.”

“Care to share with the class?”

We enter an empty hallway and she finally slows down some and releases my hand. She marches down the corridor, checking each door for something and eventually comes to a stop in front of the men’s room. “He’s in there.” She motions to the door with her head.

I’m not following. “Who is?”

“Cyrus—my dad.” Her face scrunches at the term. “We have no idea where the auction is taking place. And I got to thinking, who better to ask than someone who’sbeento one of the auctions?” She smiles proudly at her idea.

But I shake my head at it. “I thought we were going to avoid your dad.”

“I’m just going to pop in real quick and ask him where the auction is, and then pop right out,” she explains like she’s simply making a milk run.

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