“I promise I haven’t done anything weird,” I said. Again, that was true. It was RJ, Uncle Rob, and Mr. Tanner up to no good. Not me. I hadn’t even asked for a secret lair.

“You’re sure you don’t have anything else you’d like to tell me?”

“Nope.”

He slowly exhaled as he hit his turn signal and pulled up to the curb outside Jacob’s place.

“Scarlett.”

“Yes?”

“It’s our job to keep you safe. So you’d tell me if something was going on, right?”

“Of course.” I would 100% tell Briggs if something sinister was afoot. But...that wasn’t the case. I just had a new secret exit from the apartment. And a secret lair. It wasn’t a big deal. At least, it wasn’t a big deal until our Russian neighbor came home and threw a fit about there being a new exit from her apartment too.

“Good.”

I knew he’d said good, but he was still looking at me like he didn’t believe me. I wondered if he was questioning Liam about this too. Liam was a better liar than me though. There was no way he’d crack. And I wasn’t going to either. No, I hadn’t asked for the secret lair. But I had been using it. And I was actually kind of excited to see the final product.

“Have fun with the Caldwells,” Briggs said.

“Thanks, Briggs.”

“I’ll pick you up at 8.”

I nodded and climbed out of the car. I breathed in the smell of autumn in the air. The air always seemed fresher on Jacob’s street. I walked up the steps of the brownstone where he lived and rang the bell.

Aunt Brooklyn answered. She was holding a bowl in one arm and was clearly in the middle of mixing something. “Hi, sweetie,” she said.

Two redheaded kids ran behind her and into the living room. They’d run by so quickly, but I was pretty sure it had been Skadi and Thorin. They were Mr. Tanner’s kids.

“Thorin! Stop! You’re not it anymore.” Jacob’s little brother ran into the entranceway, chasing them. But when he saw me, he slid to a stop in his socks. “Oh, hi, Scarlett.”

“Hey, Max.” I ruffled his hair. He was a spitting image of Uncle Matt. But he seemed much more devious.

Mr. Nigel’s daughters ran by next. They were definitely playing tag inside the house. I heard a crashing noise in the distance.

“Sorry, it’s complete chaos here,” Aunt Brooklyn said as she gave me a side hug.

That was pretty much the way she always greeted me. And it was always true. Jacob had three siblings. Well, half siblings technically. And it was always chaos at his house. But Aunt Brooklyn always had such a big smile on her face when she said it.