“Hi, Asher.” He gestured back toward us. “This is Emily and Layne.”

“Welcome,” Asher said before looking back at Leon. “Was that your final trip?” There was something in Asher’s tone I couldn’t quite discern. A note of caution, perhaps? Nervousness? It was hard to say, and I was too physically and emotionally exhausted to think much about it anyway.

“Yes,” Leon said. “It’s too dangerous to travel into Los Angeles now.”

Asher gestured for us to follow. There were two dirt bikes sitting off to the side and Asher got on one and Leon mounted the other. “Your chariots await,” Leon said. I smiled weakly.

“We’ll go slow enough that you won’t need a helmet,” Asher said. “Just hold on.”

Layne got on behind Asher and I propped myself on the seat behind Leon, and then they both turned the keys already in the ignitions and began slowly driving up the winding road.

I estimated there were about thirty homes in this neighborhood, and it only took about five minutes to get to the top, slips of stunning mansions visible through the trees as we rolled by. The dirt bikes turned into a driveway and came to a stop in front of a gorgeous white brick estate, an empty water fountain sitting off to the side. I hefted my backpack on my shoulder, the familiar movement causing my heart to constrict. It had been a constant for the last however many miles as I’d traveled with Tuck.

Tuck.

Tuck.

“Follow me,” Leon said. “I’ll show you where you’ll be staying.”

I hesitated, glancing around at the quiet night, lanterns flickering and the scent of night-blooming jasmine somewhere close by tickling my nose. I heard the dirt bike fire up as Asher drove away and then turned toward Leon and Layne and followed them to the front of the house.

“It’s safe here,” Leon said as we entered. “You’ll have nothing to worry about.”

We set our things down in the foyer. The inside of the home was as beautiful as the outside, marble floors and unlit crystal chandeliers sparkling in the candlelight scattered all around the vast foyer. Leon led us into a sitting room on the right with a soaring ceiling, and similarly lit by hundreds of candles. I almost startled when I noticed an old man standing near the window with blue velvet curtains. He smiled kindly and walked toward us, his cane tapping on the floor. “I’m sorry to startle you. I just realized how spooky I must look, an old man standing in the shadows. I promise I’m not as eerie as first impressions might suggest. Welcome to Cielo Hills,” he said. “Hi, Leon.”

“Merrick. I’m going to go get some water for me and Emily and Layne.”