Ember

Made it.

The taxi pulled up to the curb, and I scrambled to the sidewalk and raised my head to bask in the artificial glow. I’d never been so relieved to see the bright neon lights of the Strip and the crowds wandering the streets in the middle of the night. Light meant visibility, and crowds meant lots of witnesses, and no matter how much they hated us, the Order of St. George was just as secretive and paranoid of discovery as Talon. They preferred to do their killing in dark alleys and abandoned buildings, where they could murder us in peace without having to worry about silly things like questions or the law. They would not risk gunning us down in the middle of a busy street.

At least, I hoped they wouldn’t.

“Stay alert,” Garret warned as the taxi cruised off after leaving us on the curb. Every bit of him was tense, gray eyes sweeping the crowds and sidewalks, constantly on edge. “The Order could still be here.” Faith whimpered and edged close to him, clutching his shirtsleeve. Annoyance flared, sudden and unreasonable, but Garret didn’t react to the girl’s pawing. “Keep calm,” he said without looking at her. “If you’re scared, you’ll be easy to notice. Try to act like nothing is wrong.”

“Easy for him to say,” Faith whispered to me. In the glow of the street lamps, she was pale and thin, with dark smudges beneath her eyes, and my irritation faded somewhat. Poor kid wasn’t trying to be overly clingy; she really was terrified.

“You’ll be fine,” I told her, as Garret motioned us toward the hotel. “We won’t let anything happen to you. Just stay close to us.”

Cautiously, we ambled toward the entrance. Okay, so maybe ambled wasn’t the right word; Faith was way too frightened to act normal, and her casual walk was more of a rigid march, eyes glued straight ahead. As we neared the doors, Garret casually reached down and took my hand, lacing our fingers together and making a knot form in my stomach. I stared up at him, and he offered a smile, squeezing my palm. I relaxed, even managing to smile at the bellboy who opened the door for us, like we were just three ordinary humans here for a good time. Faith, having relinquished her grip on Garret’s shirt, glued herself to my other side and clung to my arm as we swept through the doors into the relative safety of the hotel.

Once we were past the lobby, Faith relaxed a bit, uncoiling from my arm and staring at the casino floor in awe. Before, I’d been entranced by all the lights, bells, crowds and movement; now I understood Garret’s suspicion. There were so many people; any one of them could be an enemy, a soldier of St. George or a Talon agent in disguise. How many were watching us right now, gauging our movements, waiting for the perfect moment to strike?

I’d never accuse Garret of being paranoid again.

“Come on,” Garret murmured, and gently tugged my hand, leading us across the floor toward the elevators. Faith trailed us doggedly, trying to look at everything, until we reached the elevator hall. Garret hit the button, then stepped aside, back to the wall, keeping his eye on the crowd behind us.

I edged close, leaning against the wall and lowering my voice. “Did you see Riley anywhere?” I whispered. Now that we’d escaped the hotel and could finally breathe, my thoughts went to the two companions we’d left behind. I’d texted Riley once when we were in the taxi, but hadn’t heard anything back. Of course, that could mean any number of things, and I was trying not to assume the worst, but the hollow feeling in my gut continued to grow with every minute that passed with no word from the rogue.

Garret shook his head, not taking his eyes from the crowds. “No, but I wouldn’t expect him to be on the floor,” he murmured back. “If he’s here, he’ll be upstairs with Wes.”

I nodded, trying to ignore the knot of dread uncoiling in my stomach. He’ll be all right, I told myself. He probably got out long before we did, and hasn’t contacted us because he’s afraid we’re busy running from the Order. Or he’s been too busy to check his phone. Of course, he should have texted one of us, just to let us know he made it out. We should have heard something by now. Dammit, Riley, you’d better be all right. You can’t have gotten yourself killed by St. George.

The elevator dinged, and I pushed myself off the wall to move toward the doors. They slid back just as I reached them, and a man in a bright red suit stepped out, nearly running into me. I dodged back with a scowl, barely catching myself from snapping something rude. Much as I wanted to tell him to watch where he put his feet, now was not the time to draw attention to ourselves.

But the human caught me looking at him and his eyes widened, like he was seeing a ghost. Ducking his head, he sped past me and vanished into the crowds.

Huh. That was weird. For a second, I hesitated, wondering if I shouldn’t go after him. They way he’d looked at me…it was like he knew what I was.

“Did you know that man?” Garret asked at my shoulder, making me jump. Of course, his suspicious hawk eyes had caught everything. I shook my head as we entered the elevator, Faith close at our backs.

“No, I’ve never seen him before,” I said, relieved as the doors closed and the elevator began to move. Had anyone else gotten on, I would have half expected them to pull a gun or a knife as soon as the doors shut. The soldier had made me completely paranoid. “Should we follow him?” I asked, as the numbers climbed steadily toward our floor. “Do you think he’s with Talon or the Order?”

“If he is, there’s nothing we can do about it now,” Garret answered, far too calmly. “We have to get to Wes, see if he’s heard anything from Riley or Ava. Maybe they’re already here.”

I clung to that small flicker of hope as the elevator doors finally opened and we stepped onto our floor. I made myself walk, not run, to Wes’s door and rap on the wood.

It swung back almost instantly, and Wes peered out with wild hazel eyes, making my heart sink. “About bloody time you got here!” he hissed, stepping back to let us in. His room was disheveled, torn apart…and empty, as I’d feared. “Where the hell is Riley?”

“Not here,” I answered, as the hollow feeling in my stomach opened into a dark, yawning pit, swallowing me whole. Garret locked the door and stood against it, gazing through the peephole, and Faith hovered anxiously, looking confused and lost.

Wes shot me a glare full of venom. “I bloody well see that! That’s not what I asked,” he snarled. “Where is Riley? I’ve been trying to contact him for hours. Is he all right? Is he dead? Where is he?”