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“See what?”

“There was…” He worked to clear his vision, squeezing his lids shut with every blink. “I thought I saw something.”

Sylvan and Valen shared a heavy look.

Choking back bile, he straightened his jacket and pulled away from Sylvan, realizing at that moment that the Reaper had been gripping it in fists, keeping him on his feet.

Shit, had he really almost fallen down?

He should’ve brought his Devils here, instead of these three. Maybe then he wouldn’t have laid bare his fucked-up mind for everyone to see. But he was doing his best to protect his family, keeping them away from Gaven and this mess of an agreement, which was why he’d made the decision to call Malakai before coming here. He would rather involve the Reapers than put the lives of the people who meant the most to him on the line. Max had offered to come, but he’d shut him down. Just because he was being dragged into this didn’t mean any of his Devils had to be.

“I’m fine.” He swallowed. Sweat prickled across his brow, but he felt cold, like his chest was icing over. “Let’s get out of here.”

The others whispered to each other as they followed him out of the alley, but he paid them no mind.

Something…he’d seen something. It was either that, or he had hallucinated the creature.

To hallucinate meant to experience something that seemed real but was not actually present, typically as a result of a mental disorder or of being on drugs.

He sure as shit wasn’t on any drugs, so that could only mean…

Was he crazy? Or was there something else going on?

—

Back in his car, alone at last, Darien took several minutes to focus on breathing. The Reapers ripped by on their motorcycles, Malakai turning his head to look at the car as he passed. Darien knew he couldn’t see in—the spells were too thick for that—but he still felt horribly seen. The magic powering the motorcycles glowed brightly, ribbons of color threading together like DNA strands in the glass tanks that were located between the seat and dashboard.

As soon as he’d caught his breath, he dialed Loren, desperate to hear her voice. The day had been filled with so much shit, he hadn’t had a chance to speak with her yet.

The line rang twice before her soft voice drifted through the speaker, every word groggy with sleep. “Darien?”

“Baby, hey, it’s me.” His own greeting almost made him slap himself in the face. Of course she knew it was him; she’d greeted him by name, and she had caller identification. Shit, his mind was spinning. Would he even be able to drive without crashing?

Sheets rustled in the background. “Are you okay?” she croaked. The flick of what sounded like a light switch sliced into his hearing, making him wince.

“Yeah, I’m fine, sweetheart,” he reassured her, blinking hard. The headlights of passing cars pulsed through his window, the glow of streetlights on the intersection up ahead bright as flares. He repeated, breathless, “I’m fine. Why?”

There was a pause, and when she spoke again, she sounded more awake, concern heavy in her tone. “You sound tense.”

“Nah, I’m fine, I’m fine. I just needed to hear your voice.” He shouldn’t have called her. If he’d taken a minute to think through his actions, he would’ve realized how worried she would be. He rarely ever called her at this hour. But he was already feeling better now that he was talking to her. The sprint of his heart had slowed to a steady jog, and the thumping in his head had become a dull ache instead of a shooting pain.

“Okay.” She didn’t sound like she believed him, but she was letting it go. “Where are you?”

“The Devil’s Advocate. I had to take care of a few things here, but I’m heading home now.”

“Did everything go okay?” She was always careful to omit any names whenever they spoke on the phone, just like he’d told her to.

“Everything went just fine. Nothing to worry about.”

“Good. That’s good, Darien.” She sounded tired, a yawn threatening to swallow up her words.

“I’m so sorry for waking you up.”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to be sorry.” There was a brief pause, and her voice turned into a hoarse whisper as she added, “I’m always here for you.” Something about the way she said it made him sit up straighter.

“Everything okay with you?” Silence weighed the phone down, sending a tremor through his hand. “Loren?”

A breath rattled the speaker. “Yeah, I’m okay. I’m just tired.”