Elves Invasion

33

“Eye, do you have a landline?” Ava asked, saving Windyard from having to decline. “I need to check in with my sister back in Massachusetts. Let her know I got in okay. I’ll call collect.”

“No you won’t,” Eye said, shaking his head. He put down his beer and gestured for Ava to follow him. “The guy who owns this place is a trust fund baby. He won’t even notice.”

Eye took Ava into the kitchen. There were a bunch of people attacking a fondue set on the center island, laughing, making a mess. They looked so happy. So free. Ava watched them with a smile, imagining Juliet’s bright laugh chiming out of the mix. Eye got the landline receiver out of a drawer and pulled open a sliding glass door that led to a wraparound patio.

“It’s quieter out here,” he told her, handing her the phone.

“Thanks, Eye. I won’t be long.”

He stayed with one hand on the open door. “So, you and Windyard—” he began leadingly. “Are you two, like, together?”

“Yes,” Ava answered, just to make things easier. It didn’t even feel like a lie, and she had to remind herself that it was.

“Cool,” Eye said, backing off. He stumbled a little, his feet suddenly awkward.

Ava closed the glass door behind her and saw Eye lingering on the other side of it for a moment, reluctant to leave her. He finally stalked off, frowning to himself like he wished he could go back and do that whole conversation over again.

Ava’s hands shook while she dialed her home phone number. As usual, Juliet sensed that Ava was going to call and picked up before the end of the first ring.

“Ava?” Juliet said.

“Jules—” Ava’s voice broke and more tears came.

“Are you hurt? What happened?” Juliet asked, her voice high and breathy with worry. Ava tried to say something and failed. “You shouldn’t have called—”

“Juliet. I need money. A lot of it,” Ava managed to choke out. “I’ll wire it,” Juliet said. “Can you just think where really hard and not say it?”

Months had passed since Ava and her coven had left Scot’s body in the snow, but she should have guessed that no amount of time would make the FBI agent assigned to her case back off.

“Simms,” Ava said, naming the Rottweiler of a special agent.

Ava looked through the glass and watched Eye pacing back and forth on the edge of the kitchen like a caged cat, and it clicked in her head. Simms would never let Ava’s case go. She probably didn’t even understand why she chased after Ava the way she did, but Ava understood. Simms was either a latent mechanic or a crucible.

“It’s far, Jules.” Ava pictured what she’d seen that day. She spent a long time concentrating on the different images and all the associations that she could make for this place. Several minutes passed before Juliet responded.

“Got it,” she said. “Aw, I always wanted to go there.”

Ava laughed and sniffled at the same time. “I really miss you.”

“I miss you, too, but you need to go. The cash will be at the Walmart,” Juliet said. “Be safe.”

Ava hung up and stared out at the varying shades of darkness that still couldn’t quite smother the beauty of the view. The house was built on the edge of the bluff, and the surf brushed and sucked at the rough rocks below, filling the air with a muffled shushing. Midnight water winked back at the moon. Ava could smell the redwoods seasoned with salt from the ocean. She didn’t know what to do.

The sliding glass door opened behind her. Ava turned, expecting to see Eye there, but it was Tristan. She smiled at him. “Shouldn’t you be in there breaking hearts?” she teased.

Tristan smiled back at her joke, but looked away. “I think I’ve gotten tired of all that,” he said, sitting down on the edge of the deck next to Ava. “It’s one thing to know that you run around with a lot of girls, and another thing to actually meet yourself and see you doing it.”

Ava nodded. “When I first met Lillian, and I’m talking about that first second I laid eyes on her, I hated her. Probably because I saw in her all the things that I disliked in myself. I’ve never hated anyone that much.”

Tristan looked at her sharply. “You’ve never talked with me about meeting her.”

“I’ve never talked with anyone about it,” Ava said. “It’s almost embarrassing to see yourself so clearly. To know—not just think—but to know that you aren’t as great as you thought or maybe just hoped you were.”

“That’s it,” Tristan said, nodding. “I always hoped I’d be a better person than I am, but after meeting the other Tristan, and sharing his memories . . . well. I know how flawed I am. More flawed than anyone knows. Even you.”

Tristan took a breath as if he was about to tell Ava something, but a sharp sound from around the corner of the wraparound deck made Tristan jump. As he stared into the dark, trying to find the source of the sound, the sliding door behind them opened.

“Did you talk to her?” Una asked. Caleb was right behind her, and they stepped outside to join Ava and Tristan.

“Yeah,” Ava said, her mind back on Juliet. “Money’s on its way. Someone’s waiting for us back there, though.” Ava sent them all an image of Simms.

“We can’t fly, then,” Una said. “She’ll be all over us as soon as we try to board a plane.”

“We can take a bus. Or rent a car under a fake name,” Ava suggested.

“I like the rental car idea better. It’s more private,” Una replied.

“See what Breakfast can get out of Eye. Maybe say one of us needs a fake ID to buy alcohol or something,” Ava said.

“That’s shouldn’t be too hard,” Una said, a wry smile dimpling her cheek. “He’s practically got Eye asking him to marry him.” Her eyes unfocused as she passed Ava’s request to Breakfast in mindspeak.