Page 12 of Terror at the Gates

“What thefuck,” I muttered under my breath.

I dropped down from the counter. My body felt weird, like my bones were shaking, but then I realized I really was shaking as I drew my phone out of my pocket to call the only person I could think of—my emergency contact, Coco.

The phone rang and rang.

“Come on, come on, come on,” I murmured under my breath. When she didn’t answer, I hung up and called again. Then the bell rang, signaling someone was entering the shop. I bolted for the door, shoving my weight against it. Whoever was on the other side shoved back.

“We’re closed!” I shouted, fumbling for the lock. I clicked it into place despite my trembling fingers and put the phone back to my ear.

“Lilith?”

“Coco, thank fuck!” I said. Relief descended through my body like a cooling wave, though it did nothing to ease my racing heart.

Someone punched the door.

“Fuck off!” I yelled.

“Lilith, what is going on?”

“Coco, something bad has happened.”

“Where are you?”

“Raphael’s Relics,” I said. “Look, Abram is dead.”

“Dead?”

“Yes! I don’t know what to do!”

I couldn’t think. It felt wrong to leave him, but he also had cameras everywhere. I realized I wasn’t exactly responsible,but I also didn’t trust the enforcers to believe me, even with video. They worked for the church, and I was a woman. It was likely, being the daughter of Lucius Leviathan, I wouldn’t have to serve time, but they would definitely use any excuse to send me back to my father, and I’d do just about anything to avoid that.

“Hold on,” Coco said.

There was a sound like static and the distant echo of music. I waited, my throat feeling tighter and tighter.

“It’s Lilith,” I heard Coco say. “She’s in trouble.”

There was a pause, and then I heard Zahariev’s voice.

I almost groaned. Of course she would go tohim.

“Lilith.” He said my name and nothing else.

“Abram is dead, and I don’t know what to do,” I said.

There was silence on the other side. I wondered what he was thinking, what he looked like. Was he clenching his jaw or pursing his lips? He did both when he was frustrated.

“I’m coming,” he said and then hung up.

Slowly, I let my hand drop to my side, clutching my phone. It was the first time I realized how loud silence could be. I looked around, feeling crowded by everything in the cluttered shop. After a few seconds, I crept around the counter. Abram lay still, and despite the lack of movement, I called his name. I don’t even know why. I didn’t expect him to answer.

There was silence.

My eyes shifted to the blade. He’d been holding it when he collapsed, and now it lay beside his body. The way it shimmered beneath the dull light made me think it was taunting him. I inched forward until I was close enough to reach for the knife, using the tips of my fingers to pull it toward me. I wasn’t sure why I was so afraid of this deadman, maybe because I did not know why he had died so suddenly, but the reality was, once I was out of here, I still had rent to pay.

I shoved the blade into my pocket, skin crawling as I retreated to the front of the store. I was alone, but I still felt like someone was watching. Maybe it was because of the cameras.

Eventually, I chose a spot on the floor and sat, pulling my knees to my chest. The sounds outside kept my spine straight. I waited for someone to break down the door or shatter the glass window, fueled by drunken revelry or a wild high. Antique shops were a frequent target for robberies for those seeking gold, relics, and weapons to move through the black market. Based on my luck, if anyone was going to break into Raphael’s, it would be tonight.

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