“Sure. I understand that you don’t think you have any, and I’m sure that’s an excellent survival tactic after everything we’ve all been through.” Benny turned and looked out at the night. “Maybe I should get rid of feelings. That’d be nice. I mean, I feel everything all the time, and it’s exhausting.” He was quiet for several moments, no doubt continuing the one-sided conversation in his head. Finally, he nodded. “Nope. I’m good. Feelings make life worth living and give us a reason to fight the way we do.” Apparently satisfied, he turned back to Adare. “We have to work on you. You’ll never find happiness this way.”

Happiness? That was merely a construct of idealists. “I like my life and my job. That’s all I want.” An image of Grace spread out before him on his bed flashed through his mind and called him a liar.

Benny huffed out air. “Sometimes it’s difficult being your brother.”

They’d become brothers, bound by blood and bone, during the Seven ritual. Adare turned down the heat. “I’m sorry about that, Ben.” He really was.

Benny’s phone buzzed, and he dug it out of his pocket, pressing it to his ear. “Go for Benjamin.” He listened and then straightened. “When? Where?” He cut a look toward Adare, losing the lazy amusement normally glowing in his eyes. “Do we have allies nearby? Okay. Great. They need to find that driver, right now, and lock him down. We’ll be there as soon as possible.” He clicked off.

Adare slowed the vehicle, adrenaline flooding his system. “What’s happened now?”

“That was Talen at Realm Headquarters. Grace wasn’t on the plane.”

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Grace lay back in the surprisingly comfortable bed of the motel, the pain behind her eyes so great she had to close them. During the last several months, she’d tried over-the-counter pain meds, alcohol, and even sugar combined with caffeine, but nothing touched the pain. So she let it take her, sometimes into a deep sleep she feared could turn into a coma.

Every instinct she had told her that was where her brain was heading.

Brian and Bobbi had taken her to several of the old restaurants and bars they used to frequent, but nothing had jogged her memory. She’d done her best to keep her face averted from any surveillance cameras, since the Kurjans knew she was in Colorado. At least she was far away from where they’d attacked, so maybe they wouldn’t look immediately in Denver. Once she’d started to feel sick, Bobbi had taken her back to her rental car, offering to put her up for the night.

She wasn’t ready to spend the night in the place where she’d been attacked. Plus, she could use a little bit of space from Brian and Bobbi.