[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
to the building. I had bigger concerns.
It s Clarence s, said Adrian, as soon as he answered the door.
Huh? I asked.
The Jag. I figured you d want to know. He let Belikov drive it over since Sonya left with
the rental. He stepped aside as I entered and shook his head in dismay. Can you believe it
was locked away in his garage the whole time I lived with him? He said he forgot he owned it!
And there I was, stuck with the bus.
I would ve laughed under almost any other circumstances. But when I saw Dimitri s face,
all humor left me. He was pacing the living room like a trapped animal, radiating frustration
and concern.
I m an idiot, he muttered. It was unclear if he was talking to himself or us. I didn t realize
she was gone last night, and then I spent half the day thinking she was out gardening!
Did you try calling her cell? I knew it was a foolish question, but I had to begin logically.
Yes, Dimitri said. No answer. Then I double-checked to make sure her flight hadn t
changed, and then I talked to Mikhail to see if he knew anything. He didn t. All I succeeded at
doing there was making him worry.
He should, I murmured, sitting on the edge of the couch. Nothing good could come of
this. We knew the Warriors were obsessed with Sonya, and now she d disappeared after going
out alone.
I only just found out she came to see you two, added Dimitri. He stopped pacing and
glanced between us. Did she say anything at all about where she was going?
No, I said. Things didn t exactly& end well between us.
Dimitri nodded. Adrian implied the same thing.
I looked up at Adrian and could tell he didn t want to get into it any more than I did. We
had an argument, he admitted. She was trying to push Sydney into some experiments, and
Sydney refused. I jumped in when Sonya kept pushing, and finally she just took off. Never
said anything about where she was going.
Dimitri s face grew darker. So, anything could ve happened. She could ve been taken
right outside on the street. Or she could have gone somewhere and been abducted there.
Or she could be dead. Dimitri was speaking in terms of her still being alive, but I wasn t so
sure. The hunters who had jumped us in the alley had seemed pretty intent on killing her then
and there. If she hadn t come home last night, the odds seemed good they d found her then.
Twenty-four hours was an awfully long time to keep a creature of darkness alive. Studying
Dimitri s face again, I knew he was well aware of all of this. He was simply operating on the
hope that we had a chance to do something, that we weren t powerless.
Resolved, Dimitri strode for the door. I have to go talk to the police.
Missing person report? asked Adrian.
That, and more importantly, to get a search out on that car. If she was taken& He hesitated,
driving home the fear that lurked in all of us. Well. If she s hidden away somewhere,
she s going to be very difficult to locate. But it s a lot harder to hide a car than one woman. If
the police can get its description out there, we might get a clue if it turns up. He started to
open the door and then glanced back at us. You re sure you don t remember anything else
she said that could help?
Adrian and I reiterated that we didn t. Dimitri left, giving us unnecessary instructions to
alert him immediately if we thought of anything or if by a miracle Sonya showed up. I
groaned once he was gone.
This is my fault, I said.
Adrian looked at me in surprise. Why on earth would you say that?
Sonya came here left when she wasn t supposed to because of me. Because of my
blood. Who knows what would ve happened if I hadn t refused? Maybe a few minutes difference,
and the hunters wouldn t have been around. Or maybe if she hadn t been so upset, she
would ve been able to defend herself more. A million memories tumbled through my head.
Sonya making the lily grow for me. Sonya talking to the queen on Adrian s behalf. Sonya
showing me pictures of bridesmaid dresses. Sonya working diligently to stop Strigoi and redeem
herself. All of that could be lost now.
Maybe, maybe, maybe. Adrian sat down near me on the couch. You can t think like that,
and you sure as hell can t blame yourself for the actions of some crazy paranoid fringe
group.
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]