Page 48 of Ashes

“He’s inSpine,” Tanner says, accepting a glass of water and some small pink painkillers from Mack. He downs them in one gulp.

“Spine?” Mack sits on the other side of the bed while Kole and Luther remain standing. “You’re sure?”

“What’sSpine?” I ask, unable to let go of Tanner’s clammy hand because I’ve never seen him shaken before. Not like this.

“A club,” Luther replies. “A sex club.”

I swallow hard. “Sam’s working in a sex club?” I turn back to Tanner. “What did you see?”

“He was dancing.” Tanner tilts his head to the side and frowns. “People were in the audience. Doing… all kinds of stuff while they watched.”

“Where is this place?” I ask, standing up as if I’m ready to leave right this second.

“Red Rock,” Mack replies, “but, Nova, it’s not a nice place. A lot of what goes on there is highly illegal. We need to talk about how we approach this.”

“Red Rock?” My stomach lurches like I’m at the top of a rollercoaster. “He’s in Red Rock? He’s been this close the whole time?” I look around at the guys. “So, let’s go. Let’s get him out.”

“We will.” Mack fixes me with his steely eyes. “But we need to think it through. Our faces are all over the news.”

“I’ll go.” Luther speaks up. “I know the area. When we investigated the FHB ring in Phoenix Falls, I made contacts that side of town. There’s a place I can stay overnight. Little CCTV. Won’t be hard to stay unseen. Plus,Spineis pretty much an ‘anonymous only’ kind of joint.”

“I’ll come.” Tanner tries to sit up but cries out and grips his head. “Maybe not.” He sinks back onto the pillows.

“I don’t think I should.” Kole looks annoyed with himself. “In a couple of days, maybe. Right now, I’m too wired.”

I look at Mack, expecting him to volunteer next but, instead, he shakes his head. “No shifters allowed.” He sighs. “Luther, can you handle it alone?”

As they start to talk amongst themselves, fire crackles in my belly. “What about me?” I put my hands on my hips. “You’re not even considering that I might want to go? That I’d be just as useful as any of you.” I raise my eyebrows at them. Mack clears his throat sheepishly.

“Nova, it’s not that—”

“It’s not fair for Luther to go alone. I’m going too. Anyone feel like stopping me?”

* * *

When Luther pulls up in front of a large, expensive-looking house with a neat B&B sign out front, I lean forward in my seat and frown at it. “This doesn’t look like the best venue for being undercover. I was expecting somewhere…”

“Seedier? Like a dank motel?” Luther asks, pulling onto a gravel driveway that leads to the back of the property.

I raise my eyebrows, taking in the neat white coving, slate roof, and large windows.

“I know the owners. They’re discreet.” Luther parks the car and climbs out. From the back, he grabs our overnight bag. “This way.”

Walking toward the house, my feet crunch on the gravel. Instead of going to the front door, Luther stops at the back entrance and takes out his cell. He dials a number he seems to know by heart. It rings several times, then someone answers and Luther says, “It’s me. I need a room.”

He hangs up without waiting for a reply. Moments later, the door opens and a short, round-stomached mage answers. Older than Luther, even Mack, and barely my height, he looks up at us through thick-rimmed glasses. His eyes look comically large beneath the lenses.

Without speaking, he nods and moves aside to let us in. Down the corridor in front of us, I can see a large winding staircase and a beautiful high-ceilinged entrance hall. A curved visitor’s desk displays a sign that says,Ring for Service. Behind it, brass keys hang on small hooks behind a glass screen.

But instead of going to the desk, we turn right. A little further down the hall, the man opens a door and ushers us through into a stairwell where a series of steps curve down into darkness.

Instead of showing us the way, the man takes a key from his waistcoat pocket. This one is black and shiny. “The usual,” he says.

Luther nods.

Then the man turns and leaves us.

“Ladies first.” Luther steps back and gestures for me to take the stairs down. I wait for a light to come on and illuminate the stairs. When it doesn’t, I snap a flame into my palm and use that instead.

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