Page 104 of Cold Curses

Gwen must have seen my grief. She sighed. “Just hang on, Elisa. We’ll get this figured out. I swear it.”

I hoped she was right.

* * *

As we rode back to the shore, I was numb, sitting alone on a bench seat in the coast guard boat. With my head in my hands, I tried to figure out what to do next. Time passed, and then we reached the shore, and I had no memory of the ride itself. I stepped onto land, nearly stumbled to the ground, stupid with grief.

I heard my screen buzz, squeezed my eyes shut. I knew itwould be Aunt Mallory asking if Dante had given us instructions for waking Lulu up. Instead of a solution, I had to give a mother her nightmare. I considered just tossing the screen into the lake instead. But I did the right thing and pulled it out.

Found not a call but a single short message.

she’s awake.

SEVENTEEN

I left the booking to Theo, Gwen, and the Feds, and took an Auto to Hyde Park. I was out of the vehicle before it stopped. I left the door open behind me, and I ran toward the House. This time, even monster was wise enough to try to tamp down its frenetic excitement.

I waved a hand at the security desk, took the stairs two at a time. I nearly slipped to my knees when I took a corner at a speed too fast for hardwood. My mother reached out an arm before I drifted into her like a Japanese street racer.

“You run like your mom when she smells barbecue,” Uncle Catcher said with what I was pretty sure was a smile.

“You can look in,” Aunt Mallory said, “but she’s sleeping.”

That had me tensing again. “Sleeping?”

“She woke up, said hi, said she really needed a nap, and fell asleep,” Mom said.

“But how do you know she’s not—”

Before I could finish the question, a snore louder than a river monster’s roar—which was a comparison I could use now—issued from the room, even with the door closed.

“Never needed a baby cam,” Uncle Catcher said. “We just listened for that.”

Mom looked alarmed. “That was really loud. You’re sure she can breathe?”

“It’s not respiratory,” Aunt Mallory said, putting a comforting hand on my mom’s arm. “The doctors thought it was related to her dreams. Maybe some kind of communication.”

I’d heard her snore, but she didn’t do it often and never loud enough that I’d worried about her breathing. But it was very Lulu to turn her dreams into a vehicle for artistic expression.

“Speaking of pizza,” Mom said, “why don’t we get some food? It’s been a long night, and her body probably needs a reset. Let’s give her a little time before waking her up again.”

It had been hours since I’d eaten, and food sounded amazing.

But we hadn’t been talking about pizza.

* * *

The Cadogan House cafeteria wasn’t your average plastic-tray-and-casserole type of place. There were fast-food options, but the House’s head chef, Margot, made sure there were fancier and healthier options, too, including an ample supply of bottled blood.

The cafeteria served two meals per night in the summer months when evenings were short, and three in the winter when nights were long and we could be active longer. Tonight’s choices ran the gamut from salmon and roasted brussels sprouts to club sandwiches.

Feeling at least a little victorious, I opted for the latter, and had no reason to be shy about drinking blood here. That was definitely a benefit of growing up in a vampire house; I might’ve felt like an outsider because of monster, but never for my fangs.

Aunt Mallory had opted to wait upstairs with Lulu; I guessed she wanted a bit of quiet. Mom, Uncle Catcher, and Dad, who’d joined us after wrapping up a meeting, sat with me at a table.

I managed one bite of my sandwich before my screen rang. Ifound a message from Connor:demons corralled. heard lulu awake and dante dead. dinner with swift at hq, then home. stay safe.

He was safe. Everyone I loved was safe, at least in this beautiful, singular moment. Which did great things for my appetite.