Page 78 of Scythe & Sparrow
He turns away to check for traffic, but I still catch a glimpse of his face. There are shadows beneath his bloodshot eyes. A hollowness to his features, one that might not be noticeable to most people, but I’ve seen him from every angle, in every light, from far away and so close his features become hazy. I can see the evidence of a sleepless night.
I look out at the coffee shop, taking one final glance at Lark before we pull into traffic and drive away.
“Thanks for taking me back to Silveria,” I say, checking my text messages. There’s one from José confirming that they’re nearing the city. It’ll be one of the last shows of the season before we make our way home.
“Here.” Fionn extends the leather pouch toward me and I blow out a long breath between pursed lips. I take the deck out just to feel the comforting finish of the worn cardstock between my fingertips.
“I appreciate it. Thank you.” I imagine what he must have been thinking as he entered my room and realized I was already gone. Maybe it was a bit of relief, at first. He had the place to himself. Maybe dread sunk in as he spotted the deck on my nightstand. It’s impossible to divine his thoughts from his stoic expression. He just gives me a single nod.
The traffic is backed up. We inch our way along. A playlist drones through the speakers at a quiet volume. I’m not sure if it’s better to have music or silence between us. There’s a fresh wave of tension in the air as Fionn looks at his watch and taps the steering wheel with impatient fingers.
“I can take an Uber to the pier,” I say, looking out at the river of red brake lights in front of us. I don’t think we’ve made it more than a few blocks in the last forty minutes since we pulled away from the coffee shop. “Maybe you can find an alternative route.”
“It’s fine,” he says, glancing in his rearview mirror.
I open my mouth to argue when a call comes through on the car’s dashboard screen. Lachlan’s name appears and Fionn accepts the call.
“Hey, Lach—”
“Where’s Rose?” Lachlan barks, panic infusing every note. “Is she with Lark?”
Fionn and I exchange a confused glance. “I’m here,” I say. “Lark went back to your place a while ago.”
“Shit.Shit.”
“What’s going on?”
“She’s missing. Something’s wrong. I can’t explain right now. I need to get home.”
“We’re not far,” Fionn says.
“I’ll meet you there.”
“Fuck,” Fionn hisses as Lachlan hangs up. His gaze darts around the wall of traffic that surrounds us. It feels like there’s not enough air in the car. Like we’re spinning through space, though we’re not moving at all. Panic curls around us and squeezes. If we don’t find hernow, we won’t find her alive. I don’t know how I know it. But I do.
I lean closer to the passenger window. “There,” I say, pointing to a side street ahead and to the right. The turn is blocked by the cars ahead, all of us stuck. “The sidewalk,” I say, and Fionn is already moving, wrenching the steering wheel far to the right. He narrowly avoids the bumper of the car in front and jumps the curb to take the side road, cars around us honking.
“Was anything at all unusual? Did she say or do anything out of character?”
“No,” I say, swiping a tear from my lash line before it can fall. “She was happy.”
Fionn’s expression is grim as we speed down the block so we can backtrack. “Did you notice anyone out of place in the coffee shop?”
“No. There was nothing unusual at all.” Fionn glances in my direction as we near the next turn. “What if we can’t find her, Fionn? What if—”
“We’ll find her,” he says as we take the corner far too fast, nearly colliding head-on with a car taking up too much space on a narrow residential street. Fionn brakes so hard we both lurch forward. The tarot cards tumble across my lap and into the footwell. We’re going to collide. On instinct, Fionn’s arm flies out in front of me, bracing across my chest.
We screech to a stop inches from the other car’s bumper. A loud horn blares from the other vehicle, but it’s as though Fionn can’t hear it. All his attention is on me.
“Are you okay?” he asks, his arm still resting across my body.
I nod, the motion shaky.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
He tears his haunted eyes from mine, then brings his arm over my head to rest it on the back of my seat as he looks out the rear window and reverses, giving the other car enough room to pass. When he rights himself, he throws the rental into drive, stamps his foot onto the accelerator, and flies down the street. With one hand braced on the handle of the door, I take my phone from my pocket with the other, calling Sloane. She picks up on the second ring, her relaxed greeting destroyed by my tone as soon as I ask her where she is. It crushes me to tell her Lark is missing. She cries out on the other end of the phone. I hear the moment her heart splits in half. Rowan takes the phone from her.
