Page 11 of Kingdom of Chaos
“When he was talking to Kerrim, Talon mentioned gateways between the worlds. He said they’d been closed for hundreds of years. But if they were closed, then maybe they can be reopened.”
“You’re saying you’re going to try to get to that other world? The human one?”
I nod. “I’m going to find Becks and bring him home.”
Her eyes widen, and even Titus looks taken aback.
“But I need Talon’s help to do it. I don’t know the first thing about these gateways. Where they are or how to open them. I think whatever secret group or cult he’s involved with was the one who closed them. As much as I hate to admit it, I think he’s my best chance at finding Becks and bringing him back.”
“Well then, let’s go ask him,” Ensley says, grabbing her jacket from the back of her desk chair and heading for the door.
I hold up a hand to stop her. “It’s not that easy. I already went to his house. He’s not there anymore. His uncle said he left.”
“He skipped town?” Titus asks, a furrow creasing his brow.
“He did. But I pried the address out of Drake.”
Titus barks out a laugh and then looks at me with respect. “I wish I’d been a fly on the wall for that conversation.”
The memory of the shadows shifting, pulsing, reaching forward, flickers through my mind. If he only knew.
“Talon lives in Grimbrooke,” I say. “And that’s why I’m here. I need to borrow Becks’ truck to get there.”
Ensley shakes her head. “No.”
“But, Ens?—”
“There’s no way I’m letting you go there alone. I’m coming with you.” I start to argue, but she holds up a hand to stop me. “You’re not the only one who wants answers from Talon.”
She has a point. If she wants to confront Talon, she deserves the chance. But with Becks gone, this doesn’t feel like the best time for her to leave her parents. I bring it up, but she brushes it off, saying they barely notice she’s around right now. I’m skeptical, but it’s not my call.
“I’m coming too,” Titus says as Ensley starts tossing things into a small overnight bag.
I shoot him a look, and he holds up a hand too. “Talon’s the one who dragged me into all this. I’m part of it, whether either of you like it or not.”
I don’t argue. He’s right. And while I don’t know him as well as I’d like, having him along might not be a bad thing. The way his eyes keep drifting to Ensley tells me his real reason for coming, but I don’t mind. She’s in a fragile place. She can use all the support she can get.
Titus takes off to grab his things, and we agree to swing by and pick him up on our way out of town. While Ensley finishes packing, I grab my backpack and duffel from outside her front door and head around to the side of the house to their six-car garage. I don’t have to wait long. The garage door lifts, and her red sports car rolls out.
She pops the trunk and I toss in my bags, sliding into the passenger seat. “What did you tell them?”
“The truth,” she says as she pulls out of her driveaway and points the car east.
My eyebrows raise. “Seriously?”
She shrugs. “Mostly. I told them I was going to go out of town with you for a couple of days because I needed to get away from everything. They were cool with it. What about your parents?”
I take a deep breath. “They know everything.”
“Everything?” Ensley asks, her eyes wide when she takes a peek at me before focusing back on the road.
“Yep. I told them everything. And so did they.”
Ensley’s brow creases. “What do you mean?”
“Kerrim wasn’t lying. I’m not their biological child. The details around my adoption, if that’s even what you can call it, are sketchy at best.”
Her face falls, guilt flashing in her eyes. “Shoot, Lock, I’m so sorry. I’ve been so torn up over Becks that I haven’t been there for you.”
