“If it makes you feel any better,” she says, “I zapped one of them pretty good.”

“You did what?”

She points at the torch on the ground by the door. “It’s a stun gun.”

I chuckle at the thought of this, and Anna gives a small smile. We can’t stay in this hotel room long, but for now, Anna is safe, and Kope nearly beat the sons of Thamuz to death. I let myself picture it, and I feel a bit better.

We dodged a bullet tonight, but we’re not out of the dark yet. What happened tonight was only a temporary fix on a major problem. Father and the others will come looking for Anna eventually, and when they do, the true darkness will show itself. For now, I will hold her close.

CHAPTER THIRTY

Blake and the Twins

“Bright and early for the daily races, going nowhere, going nowhere . . .

I wanna drown my sorrow, no tomorrow, no tomorrow.”

—“Mad World” by Michael Andrews, featuring Gary Jules

I don’t want to leave Anna. Not when I know she’s being sought by madmen, and they’ve already laid hands on her once. I will never rest when she’s out of my sight. I trust that her father is working on a plan, but he’s MIA and Anna’s not sure where to turn next.

Too much has happened in the short time since she was in California. She tells me about her strange interactions with the son of Duke Shax, named Marek, and the daughter of Duke Jezebet, named Caterina. I don’t trust them. We know Caterina is not on our side—she was the one who told the Dukes that Flynn was lying, which led to his death. Marek is a wild card.

Anna’s mobile rings, and when she sees it’s Marna, she begins trembling. I’ve no clue why the sight of her friend’s name would cause her to go pale. But the way she looks up at me tells me something big is going on.

On the other end of the line, Marna is equally distraught. “Anna. She’s still not back and she won’t answer her phone. It’s been more than a day, and I’m too scared to wait any longer. I’m going to her.”

Who’s she going on about? Ginger? I move closer, trying to figure out what’s happening.

“Are there any Dukes in California?” Anna asks me. “Blake’s dad?”

I shake my head. “All the Dukes should be back in their respective areas,” I say. “What’s going on?”

“Is that Kai?” Marna asks. “What’s he doing there?”

“Yes, it’s him,” Anna tells her. She puts the phone to her shoulder and looks at me. “Can you call Blake and see if he answers? We think Ginger’s with him.”

What? That makes no sense. They’d never be so stupid.

I dial Blake and leave him a message telling him to ring me back straightaway.

“I’m going to meet you there,” Anna tells Marna. “I think it’s going to take more than just you to break the two of them apart.”

Wait just a damn minute. They’re going to Santa Barbara?

“I’m going,” I say.

Anna doesn’t argue. She hangs up with Marna and buys tickets, then gets her things together in a rush. Her lips are pursed and there’s obvious sadness in her eyes. Whatever’s going on, she doesn’t want to talk about it, but I need to know.

“Did Gin go mad when she found out Blake’s engaged?” I ask.

She stops and chews the inside of her lip for a second before standing to face me.

“She was upset about that, but it’s not what sent her over the edge.”

“So what did?” What on earth could possibly cause Gin to leave her sister and do something as reckless as shack up with another Neph?

“The twins had a . . . disagreement.” Anna looks scared to death, and I’m starting to get bloody nervous.

“About what?” I ask.

She swallows. “Marna’s pregnant.” The words come out dry and brittle, and I cannot make sense of them. Those two simple words cannot possibly go together. Marna . . . no. NO. There’s been a mistake.

“I sensed it,” Anna whispers. “It’s Jay’s.”

“Bloody hell.” Each of her words slams into me like a bullet and I cannot stand. I fall back onto the bed and grab at my hair as if I might rip the words out of my mind. This cannot be happening. Marna. She’s like a baby sister to me. God, no wonder Anna didn’t want to tell me. We only have Marna for nine more months, and then she’ll be . . . no. I shake my head. I can’t fathom it. I cannot think about Marna in hell.

I raise my heavy eyes to Anna, and my heart sinks further. Her eyes are lowered. Devastated. I think of Jay, how Anna never told him what we were, or that her mother died in childbirth, as all mothers of Neph do. I imagine how she must’ve felt when she sensed the pregnancy, when she had to tell them. Ginger’s reaction would’ve been colossal. I can’t bloody believe this is happening. It’s madness.

“Come here,” I say to her, holding out a hand. I pull her to my lap and she wraps her arms around me. “It’s not your fault.”

She lets out a sob. “It is my fault they got together. I didn’t think they’d move so fast, and if I’d known she could get pregnant—”

“Sh, Anna. Those two always fancied each other, yeah? This whole thing is awful, but you can’t stop the inevitable.”

I hold her a moment longer before she wipes her eyes, pulling herself together. “We’d better go,” she says, standing. “I’ll tell you everything on the plane.”