Page 81 of Terror at the Gates

“Yeah,” I said. “Everything’s fine.”

“What did she say?”

“Nothing nice,” I said.

“Lilith.” My name was almost a whine as it left her mouth. “You didn’t make things worse, did you?”

“Why am I the one who always makes things worse?” I asked, frustrated. “She hates me, Coco. She doesn’t like my family, and she wants to fuck Zahariev.”

“Okay, okay,” Coco said, glancing around like she wasembarrassed by the possibility that someone might hear me. “I’m sorry. I just…wantthis for you, Lilith, and if you can’t get along with her, it’s going to make everything harder.”

“I’vetried!”

I had triedsohard. I had tried harder with Hassenaah than anyone else in my life. Nothing about me impressed her, not kindness, not bitchiness, not talent.

She hated me.

And the fact that Coco insisted otherwise hurt.

I looked away and pulled Cherub out of her sling before slipping it over my head.

“Are you heading home?” I asked.

“Yes. Aren’t you?”

“I need…to find Zahariev.”

I lied because I couldn’t really tell her I was going to search for a few grams of jade.

“What time will you be home?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” I said. “Late, I imagine.”

She stared at me. I knew she didn’t want me to go. She wanted to talk through this tiff, make sure everything was all right between us, but I didn’t feel like talking, not about Hassenaah anyway. I had other, more pressing matters to deal with.

“Okay,” she said, her voice quiet.

She held out her hands for Cherub. I lifted her up, looking into her coppery eyes.

“You’re a great sidekick,” I said, handing her over.

She meowed at me, and Coco lifted a brow, trying not to smile.

“What?” I asked.

“Nothing,” she said. “I just thought you didn’t want acat.”

“She grows on you,” I said, reaching to scratch behind Cherub’s ears. I lifted my gaze to Coco’s. “I’ll see you later.”

“Be careful, Lily.”

I left Praise the same way I’d entered, through the back. As I reached for my umbrella, my phone vibrated. I pulled it out of my pocket to see Esther was calling, and my heart rose into my throat. Had she gone into labor? Why wasn’t Gabriel calling me instead?

“Hello?” I answered.

There was silence on the other side.

“Esther?” I asked. I took a few more steps before I came to a halt, pulling my phone away from my ear, just to check that the call hadn’t dropped. It was still active and tracking the seconds. “Esther, is everything all right?”

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