A small grin breaks past her stoic expression. “Not a bad idea. I’ll take it under advisement. Though all things considered, old girl held up pretty well.” She pats her dashboard. “A lot better than that tiny car of Hank’s would’ve.”
Hank rubs his massive triceps. “Everybody hates on the bug, but she hides better than this monstrosity.” Brynn punches him in the leg, and he chuckles. “And on the subject of hiding, do you think you could charm the van against tracking, Fee?”
Tracing the cuff tattoo on my wrist, I lift my shoulders, then let them drop. “I’ll give it a try, but she’s pretty big, so no promises.”
Shutting my eyes to concentrate, I press one hand into the roof, and the other into the door frame. As my mind settles, my senses reach out for the vibrations. Slowly they connect. Like a gentle shiver, they roll into my magical grasp.
I lose my balance as the van bounces over a rough patch in the road. My grip slips and I grunt with frustration. Sweat dampens my hairline. This would be a lot easier if I hadn’t just expended so much energy on slowing down our pursuers.
A cool hand on my back steadies me. Out of the corner of my eye, I glance at Max. A faint smile plays on my lips. He winks. Smooth move, but also a helpful one. This added support makes it far easier to focus while in this precarious position. I let a breath slide slowly out through my nose as I gather the van’s vibrations into a singular, concentrated ball of energy, then shift them ever so slightly.
The space around me tilts and I grin. Now just off center, the charm will essentially discourage anyone from looking directly at us. It’s not a perfect cover, but we’re not going for perfect here, functional will work just fine.
I spin back around, and flop into my seat, arms crossed, heels on the back of the row in front of us. “And that’s how it’s done.”
“I stand in awe,” Max says.
“Don’t patronize me.” Snickering, I elbow him.
“I wouldn’t dare. Way too risky.”
My cheeks warm and my lips tingle. To distract myself, I dig around in my backpack for a bag of nuts I bought at the coffee shop. Though we’ve already made out essentially in front of Hank and Brynn, I don’t especially want a repeat with an audience. Not with this heady desire raging through me. If I start kissing him now, things are going to get deliciously out of control fast.
Professional? Nope. But I can’t seem to make myself care.
We approach Shreveport without much more drama — aside from a fox sighting I’m shamelessly excited about. Twenty minutes outside of the city, Brynn calls Aline, setting up a location for us to meet.
Without overthinking it too much, I slide fingers through Max’s and give him a squeeze. He threads his fingers through mine. A thin layer of sweat coats his palm. Jogging his knee, he focuses on the road ahead, wiping his other hand on his jeans.
Black dots scatter across the material, and it strikes me for the first time that he hasn’t been able to change clothes in days. Showered or not, he has to be miserable in an outfit marinated in sweat, blood, and general travel funk. We should have grabbed him some things when we visited The Mercury Room.
Guilt tangles in my stomach, furious at myself for not noticing sooner. When this is all over, I’ll have to do something about it, make sure he doesn’t have to spend another second in this dirty get up.
“When was the last time you talked to her?” I ask under my breath.
His Adam’s apple bobs. “The night I left.”
“Four years. That’s a long time. Do you know if she ever tried to find you?”
“Not as far as I could tell. Though I got rid of my cell and didn’t exactly leave a forwarding address so ...” Max shrugs.
“My parents never came after me either,” I say.
Tightening his grip, Max lifts my hand to kiss my knuckles, managing a weak smile. “They couldn’t handle our brand of awesome.”
I laugh and bump him with my shoulder. “Not many can.”
As we approach the meeting site — a dog park with a massive fountain in the middle — we all fall silent. I catch myself holding my breath. Too much rides on this, and I still don’t feel like I have a clear strategy put together.
Aline has been at this for Fates know how long. Countless other hunters have tried to find her and failed, forcing Iris Smith to shift her bounty to Max, just to try and get some kind of closure. What makes me think I’m going to be any different? Especially when I’ve failed to figure out my own curse a thousand times over?
Digging my nails into my palm, I lift my chin and mentally lock away these fears. We’re going to succeed, because success is the only option. Failing leads to way too many consequences. Consequences I’m not willing to suffer. If absolutely all else fails, I’ll use my bounty cuff on her, take her in by force.
None of the other hunters had that before, this item of my own creation that will function even in a neutralizing spell. That’s why we’re going to succeed.
Brynn pulls into a parking space, then turns in her seat to look at me and Max. “She says she’ll only meet the two of you. Go to the north end of the fountain. She’ll find you.”
With one last quick glance at each other, Max and I climb out of the van, and start across the field. Dull clouds flatten the sky overhead. Oppressively heavy,
