Page 24 of Gods of Prey
“Actually,” Jovie says, her voice dropping slightly, “I wanted to ask you something, Revel.” She glances at Sebastian, then back to me. “This might sound strange, but have you everexperienced anything ...unusual in your apartment building? Like seeing things that shouldn’t be there?”
My pulse quickens. This is about Sienna.
“What kind of things?” I ask carefully.
Sebastian’s attention snaps fully to our conversation, his eyes narrowing.
“It’s nothing,” he cuts in with a glare toward his wife. “Jovie thought she saw someone today who isn’t around anymore. Just a trick of the light.”
But Jovie shakes her head, determination setting in her features. “It wasn’t a trick. I know what I saw. It was Sienna.”
The name hangs in the air between us. Sebastian’s face pales slightly.
“Sienna?” I repeat, pretending ignorance. “As in...” I open my arms, gesturing toward the event in her honor.
“My sister, yes,” Sebastian says tightly, his eyes never leaving my face.
“I saw her,” Jovie insists, turning to Sebastian. “It was just like our wedding. And she’s appeared multiple times since. Including this afternoon, while I was waiting for my coffee. She was just standing there, watching me. Then she smiled and mouthed my name before disappearing when someone walked by. Just like she did a couple weeks ago, when I was taking a walk.”
I keep my expression neutral, though inwardly I’m cursing Sienna’s impatience. We had a plan. She was supposed to ease into this, not materialize in a public coffee shop and scare the woman. Apparently she’s been playing by her own rules.
But why, why,whyare they telling me this? Surely, mortals don’t share with strangers that they think they’ve seen the ghost of their dead sister. Is this a test? Do they suspect something of me?
“Grief makes us see things sometimes,” I offer carefully.
“I’m not grieving anymore,” Jovie says firmly. “I know what I saw. And for some weird reason, I feel like you know, too.” She hesitates, looking between Sebastian and me.
Okay, so she’s not afraid of the ghost of Sienna at all.
Sebastian’s hand tightens around his champagne flute. “Stardust, please. Not here.”
An uncomfortable silence falls between the three of us. I need to salvage this situation.
“The mind is a mysterious thing,” I say softly. “As are the connections between people who care deeply for each other. Some bonds transcend even death.”
Sebastian’s eyes snap to mine, sudden suspicion flaring. “That’s an interesting perspective from someone who supposedly specializes in medical research.”
“I have varied interests,” I reply, holding his gaze steadily. “Philosophy, mythology...The human condition in all its forms.”
Before he can respond, there’s a commotion near the entrance of the hall. The crowd parts as security guards rush toward the doors. Sebastian immediately pulls Jovie closer, protective.
“Stay here,” he tells her, already moving toward the disturbance.
“I’ll keep an eye on her,” I assure him, earning another long, suspicious glance before he strides away.
Once he’s gone, Jovie turns to me fully. “You know something,” she says, not a question but a statement. An accusation. “About Sienna.”
I hesitate, measuring my response. “What makes you think that?”
“The way you reacted when I mentioned her. And there’s something about you...” She studies me intently. “You remind me of someone, but I can’t place who.”
The lights flicker throughout the hall, plunging us momentarily into darkness before returning. When they come back on, I startle.
Standing beside me, clearly invisible to everyone else in the room, is Sienna.
“Boo,” she says, her voice lifting in jest.
I ignore her, unwilling to break this small thread of Jovie’s trust to berate the infantile goddess standing beside me with a shit-eating grin.
