Page 58 of The Tracker's Secret

“Maybe it isn’t,” she said, though not without a hint of dread in her tone.

“I know I should call Aaron and Josh, but what if Damien knows a way to make Josh better? What if we can save him, and they can be together and be happy?”

She half-smiled. “It would be great. It really would.” She paused, then added, “I’ll do it. I’ll keep my eyes open.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded.

“Okay,” I said, cracking my fingers as if that would help me build some courage. “Then I’ll ask Eric more questions, see what else he knows. If he’s involved, like Jake thinks, he might have all the answers we need. And even if he isn’t, he certainly knows more than you and me.”

Rosalina tapped her crimson-tipped fingernails against my desk, thinking. Finally, she said, “I’m failing.”

“Failing?”

“Yeah, you asked me to keep you on a straight path, out of crazy schemes like this, and instead, I just joined your bandwagon. I hope you realize that.”

I winced. “You’re right. Oh, God. Have I corrupted you?”

“We’re screwed.”

“Pretty much.”

Chapter 21

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LATER THAT AFTERNOON, I was in my potions alcove inventorying my ingredients to figure out when I needed to schedule another trip to Elf-hame, when my phone rang. I picked it up absentmindedly as I finished typing a couple of numbers into my laptop, which rested on my worktable.

“Hello?”

“Toni Sunder?”

The voice sent a chill down my spine. I thought I recognized it, but it couldn’t be. “Yes, this is Toni.”

“Ms. Sunder, it’s Ulfen Erickson.”