Page 60 of Betrayed in Blood
If Lyra was surprised, she didn’t show it. That vamp stoicism ran strong in her. “When was the last time you heard from him?”
I laughed then took a gulp of my drink. “Never. He left my mother when I was very young.” I ran a hand through my hair then played with the ends as I dredged up long-dead memories. “He had eyes the color of brandy, and they crinkled at the edges when he flashed his wide grin. He always seemed to be smiling.” I stared at my drink. “It’s weird. I can’t remember his voice, but a strange melody plays in my head whenever I think of him, which is rarely, and surprisingly, even with discovering I’m a dreamwalker like him, I haven’t thought of him in months.” But I remembered the melody. Something from my dreams.
“That’s odd that you would receive a text from him after all this time.” Lyra picked up my phone. “It’s an unknown number. Could it be from your mother?”
I shrugged. “I have her number programmed in the phone. It’s possible she called from another one, but why not tell me it’s her?”
“Who else knows about Rasmussen?” Ginger asked. “I thought it was just your mother.”
“Devon and Sergi, maybe all the cadre. Sergi ran a background check on me when I first came to the manor. He ran into a dead end when he tracked my father.” I considered Colantha, trying to remember what she’d told me when we’d first met. “Colantha knew of him. At least, she knew my family name was Rasmussen. I didn’t get the sense she knew his whereabouts.”
“What about April?” Ginger swallowed a big gulp and sputtered a cough. “Wow, I made this batch rather strong.”
I snorted. “They’re always this strong.” I took another sip. The bite of the tequila was working its magic. “April would only have known if my mother said something.” I shot them both a worried glance. “There’s something going on in that house that my mother won’t talk about. I think April might be working with Venizi.”
This brought more worried glances between the two. I couldn’t blame them. It troubled me, too. The thought of my father being out there—still alive—was more than I could bear. But it was most likely a sham, and it was best not to get my hopes up.
“They’re trying to lure you out.” Lyra finished her glass and poured more. Damn vamps and their ability to drink alcohol like it was water. “If April is working for Venizi, maybe this is another way to get to Devon.”
“We might be getting ahead of ourselves.” Ginger bit into the mini burrito and talked around it. “April and your mother might have nothing to do with this.”
Lyra and I both stared at her like what else could be going on. Ginger was all about conspiracies and gossip. She gave us a rueful smile.
“Sorry. It’s possible that Lucas’s need to consider all the angles seems to be wearing off on me.”
“Well, that’s not a bad thing, but there’s not many other options that I can think of.” I took a long slow sip of the tangy drink. “Did you put chili in this?”
“A bit. I like the extra spice.”
“We need my brother.” Lyra, still holding my phone, typed into it. “Is he still in a meeting with the cadre?”
“Did you just send him a text?” I wasn’t sure whether to be appalled, nervous, or grateful. Did I want to share this with the cadre? That was stupid. We were on lockdown, at war with Venizi, and I get this message about my deadbeat dad. Yeah, the cadre had to get involved.
Lyra placed the phone on the coffee table and picked up a crab roll. “He’s almost finished and told us to wait for him.”
Ginger snorted. “As if we’re going anywhere before we finish the pitcher.”
We all laughed at the notion and the last of the tension the margaritas hadn’t been able to remove finally released. Then a different thought came to me. I gave Lyra a closer look. There was concern in her expression, but there was a soft glow. And it wasn’t her beast.
“You seem rather cheerful.”
Her melodic laugh proved my point. “It’s nothing and certainly not as important as the text you received.”
“Don’t bullshit a bullshitter. You have good news.”
Ginger scooted up in her seat. “You’re right. I noticed it when she walked in, but I was focused on the text. Well, and the fact you’d turned into a zombie.”
I laughed. “Not a zombie, but yeah, I might have zoned out a bit.” I turned my attention back to Lyra, who was obviously dying to tell us something. “Is it Hamilton?” I was almost too nervous to ask. Lyra had a mercurial mood that one never wanted to push to the dark side.
She nodded, her joy radiating from her. “He dreamwalked with me. We talked for almost an hour.” She reached out and gripped our hands. “He had a breakthrough and hopes to return here in the next few weeks.”
“That’s wonderful news.” Ginger refilled our glasses, emptying the last of the pitcher. “Did he mention what the breakthrough was, or is that too personal?”
“He didn’t say it in so many words, but I believe he’s come to accept that the decades he’s lost isn’t anything he can change.” She shrugged and sipped her drink, then stretched like a cat, her arms rising above her head as she burrowed into her seat. “Acceptance. He meditates a lot and dreamwalks with others, learning to gain his power back.” She gave us one of those looks that said she was holding something back, unsure whether to share.
“Go ahead,” I encouraged. “You’re among friends here.”
“He said I was his inspiration.” She stared at her lap, her fingers interlacing. When she looked up, her eyes glowed with unshed tears. “Why would he say that?”
