Page 39 of Shadow Dreaming

Jiles Smithson was going to be on the short end of the stick when we found him. I still didn’t know what we were going to do with Terrance, but right now, the focus was on rescuing Penn, and that was consuming my thoughts.

Finally, I grabbed my backpack, kissed the cats and made sure Mr. Crumbles cage was closed, and headed out the door. It felt odd not arming the security system, but until we dealt with this mess, I didn’t want IonStar having any access to seeing what was in my house.

As I jogged up the steps to the office, my mind was racing, although maybe it was the quad shot latte I’d bought and already half-inhaled. I waved to Sophia as I entered the office. “Breakroom, everybody, as soon as they’re in,” I said.

She nodded. She looked a little tired, but otherwise no worse for the wear. “Duran is already there,” she said. “He rode in with me.”

I backed up a couple steps, giving her a pointed look. “Say what?”

“Not that,” she said, laughing. “He’s too young for me, in so many ways. He was worried about me and volunteered to sleep on the sofa. By the way, Coco is doing fine—she’s loving being around my pair.”

“Good, and…good about Coco.” I still wasn’t sure what to think about Duran, but he was part of this whole mess, like it or not. I shifted my backpack, then headed for the breakroom.

Orik was there, and Dante—early for once. Duran was reading something on his tablet.

My phone rang. Frowning, I glanced at it. Seton. Damn. I’d been so focused on Penn’s disappearance that I had forgotten.

“Hey,” I said, answering. “I’m sorry, but I need to reschedule. Stuff’s going down over here, and I’m going to need your help but I’m also knee-deep in figuring out what our next move is.”

“How’s your inner demon?”

“Ready to cause hell, I’ll tell you that. But so far, I’m keeping her under control. I know that I need to talk to you, though. I’ll call you after this morning. I’ll know more by then.” I hung up, then turned to the others. “Have you told him?” I asked Duran.

“I didn’t feel it was my place,” he said.

“Okay, I’ll fill everybody in when they get here.” I opened the cupboards and pulled out a box of donut holes, arranging them on a plate. I returned to the table as Carson, Orik, and Sophia entered the room. “Morning, all. Gather ‘round. We’ve got a lot to talk about.”

“I thought you were off today,” I said, turning to Carson. “Your sister?”

“We’re in the middle of an emergency. My sister’s staying the weekend, so I’ll have time with her. She might drop by later, if everything’s okay.”

“Shall we get started?” Sophia asked.

I looked down at my tablet, where I’d written out an agenda. “We need to pay a visit to Jiles Smithson, and find out which restaurant he owns. Preferably in the reverse order. We need to figure out what to do with Terrance. And then we have to talk about last night. When I was at Sophia’s?—”

A noise interrupted me, like a spark and sizzle, and the next thing we knew, there was a woman standing there.

Around five-seven, she was cloaked in shadows, wearing a long dark robe made of shimmering webs. Beneath the robe, she was clad in a silky gown, black as night, with silver embroidery. Around her head sat a silver circlet, with the triple goddess moons.

Her hair was long, the color of the night sky, and her eyes were a deep, ocean gray. She carried a staff made of ebony wood, with silver wire wound around the top half of the staff, and a sparkling Herkimer diamond on the top.

But even more than her looks, the energy that filled the room held me enthralled. I couldn’t look away, couldn’t speak, could barely think.

Sophia gasped. “Hecate.”

Orik, Dante, and Duran said nothing, just sat there, staring. Carson jumped as his phone rang.

“I’m so sorry,” he said. “I’ll be right back.” He slipped out of the room, still looking startled.

I looked at Hecate and finally croaked out, “Welcome.”

She turned to me, staring at me for a moment. Then, she said, “I suppose you know who I am?”

I nodded. “Hecate.” Then, I froze. “I’m not sure how to address you…”

“Hecate will do. It’s my name. I’m here to offer you some help for my priestess, Penelope. But in return, you must do something for me.”

She got right to the point, that was for sure.

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