Page 30 of Forever Midnight

Slumping into an armchair, I rub my forehead. “So I have the challenge of discovering whether my piano is haunted, if Tru even desires me,andtelling him I’m a vampire. Easy.”

“Don’t doubt his ability to understand,” Syn says. “The gods know I had no idea how Bowie would react to such news, but here we are today.”

“Right.” I nod. “I feel terrible for compelling him.”

“You did what was right in the moment,” Yves says. “This should be handled delicately for both your sakes.”

“Yes. You’re right.” Shaking my shoulders, I turn my gaze to Yves. “I need to kill something. Please tell me there’s a job I can pick up.”

He smiles. “Find Raph. He’s stalking his target for the night.”

“Where are Eros and Thorn?”

“Still out looking for Vinni.”

“Do you want me to come along?” Syn asks, squeezing my shoulder.

“Nah, I’m good. I just need to get my feet under me again. I’ll go now while Tru sleeps.”

Pulling myself up, I drag my hand through my hair and push away thoughts of haunted pianos, broken hearts, and tragic love.

ChapterFourteen

TRU

Itwist in the sheets, slowly gaining awareness of my surroundings. Midnight’s bed. As I sit up, gazing around the dark room, I try to remember how I got here. We were talking about…Huh. I got nothing. I don’t remember drinking, but I’ve lost a couple of hours.

Once I crawl out of bed and take care of my bathroom needs, I roam the house looking for Midnight, but it’s obvious he’s not here. A niggle of panic tugs at my chest, but I push it away in favor of trusting that he wouldn’t go behind my back to handle Vinni without me. He knows how much this means to me.

In the kitchen I find a glass and pour myself some water from the fridge, peeking around his cabinets and pantry. There’s almost nothing to eat. He must go out for every meal. Or maybe they have some kind of communal cooking arrangement.

As I roam around his empty apartment, I start to actually notice the art on the walls looks very old. Even the frames. It’s all very ornate, but his actual furniture is sleek and modern. I don’t know shit about design, but I do know what midcentury modern furniture looks like thanks to the girl I pretended to like in college. Except for the wall art and a few sculptures, Midnight’s home definitely reflects that time period the most.

I wander down the hallway, stopping at the entrance to a music room, where a large black piano dominates the space. It’s very beautiful, and something draws me closer, even though I know shit about pianos.

Setting my water down on a small marble table nearby, I exhale as a shiver rolls through me.

Gideon.

I twist around at the whispered sound of my name, but I’m alone.

Gideon.

There it is again. Unless I’m going crazy. Or maybe I’m still asleep and this is some kind of weird dream.

Play, Gideon.

My eyes dart around the room. Still alone. Sweet. I’m definitely going crazy. I turn to leave, but it’s almost like my feet are stuck in place, and instead I move toward the piano. When I reach out to drag my hand over the distressed, aged wood, my fingers tingle. I pull my hand back, staring at it and then the piano, then backing away from it.

A wave of nausea hits me the farther I get away from it and I stumble back to the bedroom, where I crawl into bed, curling up under the blankets until Midnight gets home.

Then I remember he put his number in my phone, so I grab it off the nightstand and press the button next to his name.

“Are you okay, Tru?” is how he answers.

“Yeah. Where are you?”

“Out doing a job with Raphael. I should be back in less than an hour.”

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