The only person I could possibly contact was Justin. He was human and outside the MPD system—but he was also my family. Someone could be watching him.
The MPD had classified the case against Ezra, ensuring it wouldn’t leak back to him or his guild, but Odin’s Eye had been brought in on it—and possibly other guilds too. There was no way to know, but I suspected the men Zylas had noticed scoping out the museum hadn’t been cultists. They’d probably been Odin’s Eye scouts.
We were on our own. Not even Darius could swoop in to save us this time. He needed to protect the Crow and Hammer.
Our only chance was to separate Ezra and Eterran, and for that, we needed two people who weren’t here—and whom we couldn’t reach.
I pressed the call button again and listened to Robin’s phone ring and ring.
I tried to sleep again but my restless brain would only doze for a few minutes at a time. Aaron, snoring softly, had replaced Ezra on the sofa beside me, and Kai had retreated into the bedroom to sleep. Ezra sat on a kitchen chair, which he’d placed in front of the TV. He watched the security feed, the rise and fall of his chest the only sign that he wasn’t a highly realistic mannequin.
My mind whirled, questions and worries and fears and dread leaving me dizzy and antsy. Another hour crept by, and I gave up on sleeping. Pushing off the sofa, I stretched my arms over my head, then tugged the flip phone from my pocket and called Robin again. No answer.
Ezra’s head turned as I walked over to his chair, and I stopped dead at the twin crimson eyes glowing in his face.
Fear uncoiled in my gut. “Uh … Eterran?”
“Ezra is sleeping.” A guttural accent tinged his words. “I am keeping watch.”
“Don’t you need sleep too?”
“Not the way a human does. Demons will rest, but sleep is dangerous.”
Pondering that, I walked to the kitchen table where our gear was stacked. Unearthing my combat belt, I opened the back pouch. Empty. Hoshi hadn’t returned. Whenever we’d been separated before, she would find her way back to me within a couple of hours.
That Odin’s Eye mythic had smashed her with his fist. Was she okay? Had he injured her? Had she escaped that basement or was she still there, too hurt to find me?
Chewing the inside of my cheek, I grabbed a kitchen chair and carried it over to Ezra—or Eterran, rather.
I set it beside him and sank down. “We haven’t talked about what you’ll do once you’re no longer trapped inside Ezra.”
“I do not know yet. Only when I am myself again will I know.”
“What do you mean?”
“I have been trapped inside a human for ten years.” His jaw tightened, then relaxed. “If I am still demon enough, I will find a way to return to my world. If I am not …”
Trailing off, he resumed his observation of the security footage. I caught my lower lip between my teeth.
“Eterran …” I leaned closer, lowering my voice. “How much are you influencing Ezra these days?”
“Another question I cannot answer, payilas. Our minds are bound. Our thoughts mix in strange ways.”
“You mean … you can’t tell who’s who anymore?”
“Nothing so simple. I know my mind, and he knows his.”
I swept a lock of hair off my face. “Then what? I don’t get it. Are you the one who’s determined to survive, or is Ezra really fighting for it too?”
“He has always fought, but against me instead of for himself.” He exhaled harshly through his nose. “I have despised him for that more than anything else. His weakness, his foolish guilt. But there was always strength in him. If he had been kanyin instead of human, I could have taught him how to become a fearsome fighter.”
“If he’d been what?”
“A juvenile male demon. A young warrior.” His lips curved up. “Like the Dīnen et Vh’alyir. Zylas is past his kanyin years, but he has much to learn yet.”
My mouth quirked in a frown, but before I could ask any more questions, the crimson glow faded from his eyes. Ezra squinted blearily, then covered a wide yawn with one hand.
“Were you talking to Eterran?” he asked, rubbing his face.
“Yeah. He said if you’d been a demon boy instead of a human, he could’ve made you into a proper warrior.”
Ezra stared at me.
I shrugged. “That’s what he said.”
Shaking his head, Ezra pushed to his feet. As he arched his back in a stretch, I got up from my chair and slid my arms around his waist. He engulfed me in a hug, and I leaned into him, resting my cheek on his shoulder.
“Makiko still isn’t back,” I whispered. “I can’t reach Robin. Kai’s wound needs a healer. We can’t ask anyone for help. What are we going to do?”
He brushed his thumb across my cheek, wiping away a tear. “We’ll figure it out.”
The bedroom door swung open and Kai appeared, his hair rumpled. Joining us, he held his hand out. “Tori, the phone please. We can’t wait any longer without knowing what happened to Makiko.”
Plucking it from my pocket, I handed it over. “Are you going to call her?”
“No. If they have her phone, they’ll be waiting for us to contact her.” He flipped it open. “I’m going to try some other numbers and see what I can learn.”
Already punching buttons on the phone, he headed into the spare bedroom, swinging the door half shut behind him.
Ezra leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to my tense mouth. “Let’s make something to eat.”
In the kitchen, we investigated the fridge, freezer, and cupboards. There were no perishables to speak of, so I got out a frozen pack of ground beef, tomato sauce, and noodles. Our spaghetti wouldn’t include any cheese—a crime, if you asked me—but it’d be hot and filling.
Aaron woke up while we were clanking pots around, and the three of us quietly discussed our options as
