“No, I mean what was that? That feeling?”
Michael’s cheeks colored. “The process can either be painful or pleasurable. I assumed you’d prefer the latter.”
“Yes please. Can you do it again?”
“What? No. We’re done. Thank you for being a good sport.” Michael strode to the door and opened it.
“Wait—”
He didn’t wait.
Fiona leaned back on her elbows, her jaw hanging slack as she stared at the doorway.
I have got to get myself one of those.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Catriona sat through the debriefing at Anne’s with her legs crossed and one foot bouncing. She felt as if she’d drunk a thousand cups of coffee without any of the heartburn or anxiety. She was pretty sure if she just jumped high enough, she would take flight and zoom out the window to parts unknown.
A teeny-tiny part of her still felt shaken by the image of Joseph bursting into a million tiny maroon lights, but really, if you had to ‘kill’ someone, it was prettier than conventional methods. And Anne assured her she hadn’t killed him. Simply sent him to some place where he could get better and back to doing his job, inspiring people to be better, not worse.
OMG. I’m a superhero.
She giggled.
“Catriona?”
Anne was looking at her.
“Hm?”
“Did you say something?”
“Hm? No. Sorry.”
Michael entered the room and headed directly for Anne.
“How’d it go?” she asked.
He sent a furtive glance in Catriona and Broch’s direction and flashed a weak smile. “Fine.”
Michael gave Anne a look that Catriona read as something other than fine.
He doesn’t know. He can’t tell and he’s afraid to let us know.
“She’s not sick?” she pressed. If Fiona was fine, she was a little disappointed. Part of her had been looking forward to cleansing her sister from her life.
Anne answered a little too quickly. “Apparently not.”
“Mm.” Catriona decided to let it drop for now. The energy racing through her body had pulled her attention away from the lie being perpetrated before them. She wanted to jump out of her skin. She looked at Broch.
I want to jump on him.
I have to get out of here before I do something embarrassing.
She looked back at Anne.
“Can we go now?”
Anne nodded. “Sure. I’ll let you know when the Angeli get a track on Rune again. Tomorrow we can set a training schedule.”
Catriona sprang to her feet and headed for the door without another word. She didn’t mean to be rude, but once she started moving she couldn’t stop. When Broch finally caught up, he didn’t come alone.
Hello, Fiona.
Her sister looked clean and fluffy again, her makeup in place, but she still wore her best dress. Best ex-dress. Now it looked as if it had been left balled-up in the backyard for a week.
Fiona grinned. “Did you hear? I’ve been declared clean by Doctor Feel-Good.”
“We heard.” She looked at Broch. “You drive.” She was a little afraid she’d kill them all. She wanted to drive a hundred and fifty miles an hour and jump over an opening bridge. Maybe some sort of canyon leap...
They clambered into the Jeep and Broch headed for home.
“What is that guy?” asked Fiona from the back seat.
“Who?”
“The doctor.”
“I think he’s an Angelus.”
“What’s that?”
“They’re like guardian angels or something.”
Fiona made a humming groan of a noise that sounded as if she were a starving woman watching a giant hamburger arrive. “An angel. That makes total sense. Are there more of them?”
Catriona shrugged. “I guess.”
“Good. Drop me off at home.”
Catriona twisted in her seat to look at her sister. “But Rune is still on the loose.”
“That’s okay. He’s on the run. He won’t come after me.”
“I don’t know...” Catriona didn’t know how hard she wanted to insist. While she didn’t think it was safe for Fiona to be at her apartment, she also didn’t like the idea of her coming home with them. In fact she hated that idea.
“Are you sure?”
Fiona nodded. “I’m sure.”
Catriona looked at Broch. “Do you remember how to get to Fiona’s?”
“Aye.”
Broch made a left and a few blocks later rolled to the curb outside Fiona’s apartment building.
“Thanks.” Fiona opened the door and hopped out as Catriona lowered her window.
“If you need anything, give me a call. And get my dress professionally cleaned. I want it back.”
Fiona looked down at the dress. “You don’t think maybe it’s time for an upgrade?”
“No.”
“Oh you poor, poor, unfashionable thing. I’ll send you something over.”
With a final taunting wave, Fiona strode across the street in her bare feet. It was only then that Catriona realized her sister had lost her shoes.
My shoes.
She raised the window. “Let’s go home.”
She looked at her phone. “I’m going to call Sean and tell him what happened so I can get this chewing out over.”
“Aye. Guid idea.”
Catriona paused.
“Do you think it’s weird that Fiona wanted to go home?”
“How come?”
“Well, after she stabbed my father she was terrified to be alone. Now she’s not concerned at all? And he’s still out there…”
“That’s a guid point.”
“Hm.” Catriona tapped her phone with her fingernail and then made the dreaded call to Sean, staring out the window as she listened to the ring.
He was going to be furious.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Rune knocked on Maddie Barbeau’s door. He’d run the entire way, far from the little house where he’d felt so at home.
Well, where he’d felt so at home after a good cleaning.
Already, he missed Joseph and Fiona and the world they’d been creating together. Their new world.
Now, a storm of hate roiled his heart. Hate for the people who had taken it all away.
They would hear the thunder of his pending approach from miles
