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Boudicca had gotten a bit too comfortable in my shirt, falling asleep at the wheel in her role as navigator, so I held her in my hands as we raced along the cliff path as fast as our legs would carry us. If the hunters appeared through chalk-doors, I could tuck her away again before anyone saw her.

“How far could the monster have taken her?” Genie asked. I knew she liked to run, and it showed—she was barely out of breath while I was lumbering along, my throat filling with that peculiar, warm mucus that only ever made itself known when I ran distances. I didn’t tell her that, of course. Mucus definitely wasn’t on the list of approved conversation topics.

I glanced at her. “It depends on the monster. We just have to hope it doesn’t have wings.”

“Crap! I hadn’t even thought of that!”

We’d just passed the car park by 100 yards or so, all our casual dining plans firmly on the backburner, when I pulled Genie to a standstill. A figure was racing toward us from the opposite direction. Dark hair flapped behind her, her pale gray sweater marking her out like a reflector in the moonlight.

“Is that…” Genie gaped. “It is! Oh, thank Chaos! It’s Persie!” She bolted away from me, sprinting to meet her friend. I stopped a few paces shy of the pair and waited on the sidelines, relieved that Persie was safe.

The two women collapsed into each other’s arms, hugging so tightly I worried that one of them might crack a rib. Cynane and Spartacus, crushed inside Genie’s sleeves, fought their way out in a series of peeved chirps and rude hand gestures—until they saw why. They flew at Persie’s face, grabbing her and kissing her feverishly, taking no heed when she tried to bat them away. I opened my palm to let Boudicca join the festivities. She flashed me a grin and fluttered off, landing flat on Persie’s head and spread-eagling over her hair, tangling herself in the strands.

“You nearly gave me a coronary! We were all geared up to be rescue rangers, but you’re okay. Thank Chaos you’re okay!” Genie pulled back and clutched Persie’s face in her hands. “What the hell happened?”

Persie looked frozen, her mouth scrunching up as if she was trying to figure out what to say. “I… got taken by a monster—a Fear Dearg. Only, it wasn’t really a Fear Dearg. It was a person who could change into one, but a non-magical. It’s all pretty muddled, I know.” She smiled nervously. “But he had me tied up in an abandoned fishery, close to Curran Cove. I must have walked that way a thousand times, but I’ve never seen that place before.”

A Fear Dearg? Goodness, that did not spell good tidings. I only knew of those monsters vaguely, which meant I would have to do a great deal of research. And I had certainly never heard of one who shifted between monster and human. That didn’t fit the characteristics at all, even in my limited knowledge.

I edged nearer. “It was abandoned when the Institute was built, and everyone has mostly forgotten about it, since it’s so out of the way.”

“The perfect place to keep me captive,” she said quietly, tears filling her eyes. Her frozen fa?ade cracked, as though her experience had finally caught up to her. Her face crumpled and she fell into Genie’s arms, her shoulders shaking with sobs. Genie wrapped her arms around Persie tightly, pulling her close. Not knowing if my comfort would be welcome, I put my hand on Persie’s shoulder and squeezed gently, letting her know I was there if she needed me.

“You’ve been through the ringer, haven’t you?” Genie laughed through her own tears as she stroked Persie’s hair, avoiding the affectionate pixie enveloped in her friend’s locks. “Scream, cry, yell, do whatever you have to. I’m here. We’re both here for you.”

“I feel like… I’m going to… explode.” Persie clung tighter. Honestly, I wasn’t sure how to be of assistance. She sounded desperately sad, and I could find no calming words to offer. So, I just carried on standing there, my hand on her shoulder, letting her best friend do what she did best.

Genie rested her chin on Persie’s head, making soft hushing sounds. “Sometimes, you need to purge all the bad stuff. Not just monsters,” she soothed. “You’re a bottler, and I know that’s part of who you are, but eventually things fizz over. From the Door fiasco up to now, it’s all been building up inside you. All the emotions and fears and worries. Then you get kidnapped by some monster-person, and you survive on your own. You must’ve been so scared, but you came out fighting, Pers. Bravest woman I know.”

Persie sniffed into Genie’s shoulder. “I thought he was going to kill me or torture me. I thought I was going to end up like those missing magicals.”

“You’re here and you’re safe, and whoever this guy is, I’m going to nail his crown jewels to a wall.” Genie glowered at the distant horizon, as though Persie’s abductor might be listening.

“We’ll certainly investigate,” I added. “This won’t go unresolved, I can promise you that. Now, I need to call Victoria and tell her not to send in the troops.” Persie had told me about the missing magicals that her parents were investigating not long after one of our scientists vanished, in case I came across any information that could help, but I wasn’t sure if she was suggesting the two things were related. If she was, then that opened a gateway into a whole new, deeply concerning mystery. After all, one of the missing was an Institute scientist. If that was tied to this, we had a suspicious series of events on our hands.

Persie suddenly reeled back, her eyebrows shooting up in alarm. “I forgot to say, I Purged a Grendel.”

I almost choked on my own gizzard. “Pardon?”

“At least, I think it was a Grendel. I’ve been reading those books you lent to me, Nathan, and… yeah. A Grendel. And he saved my ass!”

As far as date nights went, this was fast becoming the most interesting one I’d ever had.