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He reached for the money, nodding. “Look, I’m really sorry, Cate.”
“What do you have to be sorry for?”
“I got you mixed up in this.” He gestured to the leather bag, the money, the magical passports. “But I’m going to get you out of it.”
“Great.” I shouldered my bag higher, tapping my foot. I didn’t need to be reminded that Channing had been the reason I’d tracked down Lach, that I had made that bargain to protect him. I didn’t know if I hated him for introducing me to the world I’d lost or loved him for giving me even a short time with it. And thinking about it now was a waste of time.
“I’m going to fix it,” he swore, rising to his feet.
“Channing, I’m not really worried about that right now. It’s not safe for us here. I’ll tell you in the car.”
He lifted his chin, squaring his shoulders, and pressed on with the apology. “I’m sorry I couldn’t keep you safe.”
“I’m your big sister. It’s my job to protect you, remember?” I hitched my thumb toward the open door behind me.
But he didn’t budge. “Not anymore. He’ll protect you now.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked slowly, dread skittering up my spine at the determination on his stony face.
“You’ll understand.”
I opened my mouth to demand an answer, but before I could speak, a rough hand clamped a rag over it. I jerked as a sweet aroma bloomed in my nostrils, thrashing wildly as darkness blotted the edges of my vision.
The last thing I saw was my brother’s stricken face.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Lach
It had been decades since I dumped a body in the bayou. I drove to the northern territory, away from the egrets Goemon had warned us about but nowhere near the spot I’d taken Cate. It felt like a lifetime had passed since that day. Maybe because my own life was now on borrowed time. Maybe because of everything that had happened, because everything had changed.
Her. Me. Us.
Everything.
The sinking sun cast an orange glow on the glassy surface of the slow-moving river as I parked and popped the trunk. Some said dead bodies were heavier to carry than people, but they always felt lighter to me.
I’d wrapped MacAlister, along with a few stones, in a Turkish rug from my bedroom to keep my upholstery clean. A sentimental gesture, since I’d probably never see the Mercedes again, but I couldn’t stomach the idea of losing anything else today. Not after seeing the look on Cate’s face when I nipped her away, when I took that shot. I’d needed her to understand what I was doing, but I couldn’t let her stop me, couldn’t risk that she might wind up wearing the same mark now branded on my neck if I let her stay.
My boots squished into the muddy bank, saltwater and decay hanging in the thick air as I hoisted the body higher on my shoulder. Getting rid of the body would ensure no one could confirm Cate’s involvement. I’d charged the wraiths with silence—one of my last official acts as ruler of the Nether Court, but a command they would follow. Although she hadn’t been the one to kill him, I doubted Bain would care. It wouldn’t matter that he had been the one who’d sent his penumbra to assassinate her. Blood spilled was blood owed. And if it had been her blood, I would have spilled every drop from every soul at the Infernal Court and not been satisfied.
But she was alive. With any luck, she was already safely in New York. I tried not to think about it, tried to ignore the relentless urge to follow her, to check on her, to see she was safe for myself.
Because she wouldn’t be if I was anywhere near her.
So, I’d followed through on my promise to buy her time, praying that it would stem my need for her long enough to get my head on straight. Considering I hadn’t managed a clear thought since the moment I first saw her in front of the Avalon, I doubted it would work. But I had to try. I had to do everything I could to keep her heart beating, because the thought of a world without her…
I heaved MacAlister into the river, his body shattering the bayou’s serenity with an ominous splash. For a minute, the bloodied carpet bobbed on its surface until water soaked through the fibers of the rug and it slowly began to sink, as heavy as my own heart. A ripple cut across the water in pursuit of the bloody bounty. If the body didn’t settle to the bottom, the alligators would see there was little to find.
I half expected them to continue to the shoreline in pursuit of me, half expected that the pain in my own chest seeped blood like the body in the water. And as I backed away from my dirty work, the ache deepened, the need to go to her so acute that I stumbled, nearly tripping in the marsh grass.
I was so preoccupied that I didn’t hear anything until a shotgun cocked behind me. I swiveled slowly around to find Goemon aiming at me.
“Most people run from us.” He spit on the ground and resumed his target.
I swallowed, keeping my hands in front of me. There was no point reaching for my own gun. He’d felt me the minute I stepped foot on his land. He had likely known the moment MacAlister’s signet burned its badge of shame into my flesh, the other members of the Wild Hunt sensing it as well. They would have all been pursuing me soon enough. At least it was going to be quick.
“Who was it?” He jerked his head toward the bayou.