Page 16 of All the Devils are Here

“Should I not be?”

She shrugged. “I thought they might have called you to go. You’re a part of the emergency collective, yes?”

“Cleo, what are you talking about?” I hung up my coat and rolled up my sleeves. It was true I was a part of a coalition of doctors with flexible schedules who could go to a crisis if needed, but I hadn’t been contacted in over a year.

“There was a storm off the southern coast last night. It was huge and out of nowhere. There was flooding, boats beached, etc. They mentioned on the news they were calling in doctors, that’s all.”

Dread settled in my stomach. “A storm?”

“Very large, apparently. Out of season too.”

I went to my office and booted up my computer, immediately searching the headlines. The images made my feet begin turning to stone in order to keep myself still. Pure destruction along the coast, with debris still floating in the water. It was barely eight in the morning. When did this happen?

There was a live feed of rescue boats bringing people in, and the commentator was speaking. “We don’t yet know the full count of casualties and the missing, as rescue crews are still scouring for any signs of boats which had made radio contact last night. One such vessel belonged to the well-known patron of the arts, Raoul Chagny, who was hosting a party for more than two-hundred people on his yacht when the storm struck. While the man himself has been rescued, the vessel did capsize, and more than half the guests are still missing.”

I knew him by reputation and nothing more than that. But when the shot cut to him and he began to speak, I froze, terror making my stone form appear so quickly I nearly burst through my clothes. In the back of the shot was Meg’s friend—the one who had come to my house yesterday. The woman was crying, and I could barely see her behind the talking millionaire, but she was there.

There was no sign of Meg.

Grabbing my phone, I called hers, and it went immediately to voicemail. Which didn’t mean much. If she’d been in the water at all, the phone was probably dead. But there was no way I was going to sit here andwaitto find out if she was all right.

Danger be damned. Everything be damned. If she were gone—

Grabbing the ID for the emergency medical collective, I strode back out into the front office. “Cancel my appointments. Use the emergency as the reason.”

“Oh,” Cleo looked up in surprise. “Of course. When will you be back?”

“I’m not sure. I’ll keep you posted.”

Swinging my coat off the hook and back onto my body, I didn’t wait to hear her response.

* * *

Being a monster was helpful sometimes. It allowed you to disregard the things that normal humans had to worry about, like transportation. Why would you go through the trouble when you’d helped some of the local air spirits a few years ago, and they were more than happy to fly you to Marseille in less than half the time?

I’d had to change my hands and face to stone to keep the cold air from freezing, but it was worth it when they let me down near the Marseille dock barely half an hour after I’d left my office. I hadn’t even stopped at home for my medical bag, because as much as I could help, I wasn’t here as a doctor.

I was here for Meg, and Meg alone.

The badge got me past the lines, and I started looking, panic growing stronger with every face that wasn’t hers. A woman in a bright yellow coat was taking names from people, and I swallowed down my fear, shoving it into a place it could be useful.

“I’m looking for a possible victim.” My voice rasped on the last word. Meg was not a victim, and I was regretting everything I’d said or done around her. Because this?Thiswas my worst nightmare. Here I was, trying to avoid pain for both of us, and the rest of the world, by not letting myself get closer and instead I was full of fucking regret.

The woman looked at me and noted the badge around my neck. “Name?”

“Meghan Irela.”

She shook her head. My chest felt like ice, and I wondered if it were possible for a stone heart to crack in two. “No, not here. But we haven’t taken everyone’s information yet. Plus, they’re still bringing people back.” Then she pointed. “The doctor’s tent is over there. I’m sure they have work for you.”

“Thank you.” I went in the direction she pointed and doubled back, still looking for Meg’s blonde hair. But every head I found was someone else.

There.

I dropped to my knees in front of the woman I’d seen on television. She was shivering, wrapped in a blanket. “Janelle?”

She looked up, and there was no recognition in her gaze. “Who are you?”

“I’m Meg’s friend. The one she was staying with.”

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