Page 29 of Expose Me

“It’s OK.” I pushed him away gently and stared at the incoming call with uncertainty.

“What is that?” he asked.

“It’s a video call. From the looks of it, from a secure device. It’s completely untraceable from either end,” I explained. Electronic devices weren’t really manufactured anymore, but the ones from before supes and Houses ruled the world were commonly spelled to work for our purposes. With an extra spell from a techno witch, they could even be made untraceable—by old-school tech and by magic. There was only one person I knew who would even bother to try to reach me securely.

“Can I have some privacy please? I need to have a conversation.”

Zey looked at the phone in my hand, then back at me, his expression hardening. “No.”

I ground my teeth. He still didn’t trust me not to spill his secrets about his precious Onuei. Whatever.

I answered the video call. Lowell’s head and shoulders appeared on the screen. My best friend’s black hair was messy, his expression pinched and tired.

“Sky!” He sat up straighter. “Thank the gods. Are you OK?”

“Physically, yeah. Every other way ...” I cringed. He mirrored the expression.

“Girl. The House of Spirit and Sapphire is in total chaos. I’ve never seen Reg this pissed off. What the hell is going on?”

He didn’t ask where I was because he knew I would tell him if I could. That’s why he’d made sure the call was untraceable before contacting me. No one would even know we spoke unless one of us told them.

“I’m not assisting a fugitive,” I insisted. I felt a deep urge for someone to believe me, trust me when I spoke the truth. If my best friend didn’t believe me, it was going to hurt. “I mean, I guess technically, we’re both fugitives, but it’s not like I had some massive plot to undermine the House or some shit. This is happeningtome, and they all think I’m a traitor.”

“Bunch of ungrateful assholes,” Lowell grumbled and took a big gulp of his beer. “After all these years you busted your ass working for them. I don’t know what the hell Reginald is thinking.” Lowell was a bear shifter and had grown up in the House of Spirit and Sapphire. I was only a teenager when my mother died and I joined. Lowell and I had been friends from an early age. In a House with so many witches, complex rituals, and procedures, Lowell’s massive build and natural affinity for physical things often left him overlooked and underappreciated. I was a mere human with a particularly handy ability. We’d both had to fight to prove we belonged in our House.

“It doesn’t matter.” I smiled, surprised at how difficult it was to swallow around the lump in my throat. The relief at his outrage on my behalf was palpable. “Youdon’t think I’m the bad guy with some shady plan, and that’s all that matters.” I was running around with a guy from another realm, hiding from everyone, so of course getting my life and my reputation back mattered. But in that moment, I only cared what my bestie thought. I hadn’t realized how badly I just wanted to have someone on my side.

“As if you could keep a secret from me,” Lowell scoffed. “Especially one this big.”

“Right?! Can you please go tell those assholes that if I had some evil plot against them, you would’ve known?”

“I have. Why do you think I hadn’t called until now? They’ve been questioning me and watching my every move since you portaled out of Melbourne.” He sighed, then took a chug of beer and clapped his hands. “Right! So, what’s the plan? What can I do?”

I was acutely aware of Zey standing just a few feet away, watching and listening closely. I knew he didn’t want me to share any information with anyone, but he could go suck it.

“I love you for offering, but all you can do is stay safe and tell no one you spoke to me. The last thing I need right now is to worry about you being hurt or excommunicated because of me.”

“Really?” He deflated. “Sky, I know you’re an independent, strong woman and all that, but come on. You don’t have to do everything on your own.”

“I’m not on my own.” I threw an exasperated look at Zey. “Unfortunately ...”

“Right.” Lowell followed my gaze like he could look through the phone and see what I was glaring it. “Who is this ‘individual’ you’re in cahoots with.”

“I’m still trying to figure that out, but I’m trying to help him find something.” Zey stepped closer, looking like he was ready to slap a hand over my mouth. I ignored him. “When we find what we’re looking for, he’s going to help me clear this mess up. Everything’s going to be fine.” I really, really hoped that was true.

Lowell’s image wavered; the call tracing protection spell was running out.

“Shit.” He took a deep breath. “I’m not sure how much longer we have.”

“It’s OK. Thank you for calling. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

He smiled and, at the last moment, I thought of something.

“Lowell, there might be something you can do to help,” I rushed out.

He nodded and leaned forward. “Hurry.”

The phone flickered again. Zey might be pissed at what I was about to tell Lowell, but he’d just have to deal with it.

---