Page 90 of Ghost

“He should be…” Miles muttered, moving away from the door as I pulled out my spare keys. “He said that he’d start dinner.”

“Oh no! What if he’s dead?” I wondered, rushing to open the lock.

“He’s not dead,” Miles sounded amused. “No ghost can kill Damen.”

That’s whathethought. But no one seemed to understand, Damen was more fragile than any of them knew.

After all, they were still under the impression Kasai was harmless. But I knew better. Damen was a ticking time bomb. That bird was going to drain him until nothing was left. And I was the only one who cared.

This might be why he didn’t show up and save me. Damen was mythical. He had to have a sixth-sense about this sort of thing.

“Why is she so worried?” Maria asked.

I slammed the door open, leaving the two of them in the entryway as I raced toward the stairs.

“Nothing,” Miles replied, then called after me. “If you’re going to get him, then check the guest room. He’s probably sleeping.”

Chapter Thirty-Four

Damen

Flash

Titus followed me as I ran down the marble hallway. “Hurry up!” I cried.

We were meant to wait with the adults, so we would be there for the naming ceremony official. But we had been eager to meet him. As the adults whispered among themselves urgently, Titus and I took the opportunity to go on ahead.

It was too difficult to wait. He was here.

Titus was visiting when a message arrived for my momma. Momma wanted to wait until it was time for the ceremony, but we begged her to bring us early. After all, Bryce and Brayden Dubois were our best friends. They needed us anyway.

They didn’t know how to be big brothers to a xing. But Titus and I could help them.

We had known what was happening before Mrs. Dubois even knew she was pregnant. Her energy was different. It was the same feeling that drew Miles, Julian, Titus and I together. And today was the day where we’d finally meet again.

It had been so long.

Titus and I raced through the hallways, headed toward the main bedrooms. I could feel that he was there, but the bond, which had been so strong the beginning of our journey, began to grow faint.

“He’s not going anywhere.” Titus’s patient words were at odds to the numb feeling that grew inside me. Replacing joy. “We should wait.”

“No.” My heart was pounding now. Instinct took over. If anything happened to him, I was the first one affected in the cycle. The first to feel it—the others would follow. First it would be Miles, then Titus and Julian.

And something had happened.

Why were the hallways empty? Even here, in front of Mrs. Dubois’ room, there were no adults to be seen. The double doorways seemed so big, and I felt like crying.

Why did it feel as though a piece of me was missing? We had to get to him.

“Titus…” I glanced at my best friend. His expression had changed—he felt it now too.

“Move.” His eyes flared red. He was too young to shift right now. But millennia worth of instincts attempted to take over. Titus reached past me, slamming the doors inward.

Mrs. Dubois appeared to be asleep, pale among the dark sheets. A nurse was nearby. She had been rearranging items before our arrival, but now she stared at the two of us in surprise.

There was something wrong with this picture. Something that was supposed to be here, but wasn’t.

“Where is he?” Titus spoke for the both of us.