Page 92

Hopefully.

He walked through the closest garage door, all of them open to the night, and found the others—Ivy, Roman, and Kylar—piling into one of Roman’s cars. A modern muscle machine with sparkling black paint.

“Take whatever you want.” Roman’s offer echoed in the cavernous space as he swung open the driver’s door. “Keys are on that wall.” He pointed.

Max scanned the pristine selection of vehicles and bikes. “I’ll follow you guys to Archie’s.”

“Go find Maya, Max,” Ivy said, leaning out of the passenger’s-side door. Kylar was already in the back—she’d had to move theseat forward for him to get in. “I promise I’m fine with it. You’ll just have to answer to my brother when you get back home.”

Max walked over to the wall Roman had indicated to and scanned the labels on the keys hanging from hooks. Roman sure was organized.

He picked one and hit the button to unlock the doors. “I’ll help you find the kids, and then I’ll figure out what I’m doing from there,” he said, answering Ivy, who still watched him through her open door.

Roman fired up the engine. Its sexy growl filled the garage, the candle-smoke scent of magic flavoring the air.

Ivy shut her door.

“Wait, Max,” Dallas called as she followed him to the vehicle he’d selected. “What about Loren?”

“What about her? She’s leaving soon, too.”

“Yeah, but I haven’t said goodbye.” Despite her words, she was already walking to the passenger’s side.

“You can go with her if you want, Dal.” He opened his door. “Unlike Darien, I won’t try and stop you.”

“Don’t you think you’re being a little hard on him?”

“Whose side are you on?” Max fired the question before he could stop it.

Dallas’s lopsided wings drooped. “I don’t want to pick sides. I’ve come to care about all of you guys, even when you’re all treating each other like a bunch of stupid jerks.”

He braced his hand on his open door, his expression softening as he gazed at her from across the roof of the car. These past few weeks, Dallas had become so much easier for him to read. And right now, she looked so torn, he was tempted to leave her behind so she wouldn’t be forced to choose between him and her adoptive sister. After the argument he’d just had with Darien, one of his very best friends, he knew too well how it felt to have to choose.

Roman backed out of the garage, sleet pounding the roof of his car like bullets.

“Dallas, I swear to the gods I won’t be upset if you decide to go with Loren. I’ll see you back in Angelthene, and everything will be the exact same as it is now.”

She took a moment to think about it as Roman turned the car around in the driveway.

“I want to come with you,” she decided.

His brows bumped up. “You’re sure?”

Her chest rose with a slow breath, her attention briefly flicking to the door that led into the house. She faced him again, and nodded once.

“We need to leave now, then. Roman’s not waiting for us.” He ducked inside and started the car.

Dallas hesitated for a moment longer before getting in, reclining her seat to accommodate her wings.

Max backed out of the garage and followed Roman to Archie’s Arcade.

Dallas was already gone.

No one was here anymore except Arthur, Jack, and Lace. They were currently in separate areas of the house, probably doing their final rounds to make sure they weren’t forgetting to pack anything.

Loren tried not to feel hurt by Dallas’s decision to leave without saying goodbye. Time was not on their side, and she figured Dallas had been forced to decide quickly—and she had chosen Max. Loren didn’t hate her for it—not at all. Not when she knew she would have chosen Darien, if the roles were reversed. They used to be attached at the hip, but eversince they’d fallen in love with the most unlikely men, their relationship had changed. They weren’t bad changes, though. Somehow, Loren felt closer to Dallas now than ever before.

She flicked off the salt lamp on the nightstand. The room was completely dark now, apart from the hallway light slanting in through the open door. She put her jacket on, grabbed her travel bag off the bed, and checked one more time to make sure her few belongings were indeed packed.