“Maybe that was because they knew they had something to stay hidden from.”

“Maybe.”

“And it’s been all television people this time; big egos to deal with.”

“True.”

Releasing the drawer handle, he took two steps forward. He’d known almost immediately that Mouse was shadow-held—one look at his face and he’d seen it wasn’t the cameraman at the controls. He didn’t like to look at Arra’s face because he’d realized why her expression seemed familiar. The last time Tony’d seen it the body it belonged to had been spiked to a blackboard. Bodies, actually. “Arra, what happened yesterday in the church?”

“I destroyed the shadow.”

“Good.” Another step.

“But Alan Wu was dead and I could do nothing more.”

“So you ditched me.”

“I knew there would be authorities to deal with and this is your world.”

“You’re living in it. On it.”

Plastic crinkled as she shrugged. “My history only goes back seven years.”

“So you were afraid the cops would find out you’ve got no past?”

“No past here.”

“Okay.” Sounded reasonable, but reasonable didn’t explain why she’d disappeared, why she was still wearing yesterday’s clothes, and why she was in his apartment. “What else happened?”

The snort was a pale imitation of her usual explosive exhalation. “What makes you think something else happened?”

“I don’t think you’ve been home.”

“Adults don’t stay out all night on this world?”

Tony sighed. “Who fed your cats?”

Her eyes widened and the nailed-to-a-blackboard expression was replaced by the dawning realization that the world hadn’t actually ended—even though it might be better for some concerned if it had. “Oh, shit.”

He grabbed her arm as she tried to rush by him. “Wait. I’m coming with you.”

Her car had been parked a couple of blocks away. After he’d thrown on some clothes, they’d all but run to it. Arra’d burned rubber out of the parking spot before Tony’d barely got his door closed.

Finally buckled in, he sank down in the seat and wondered where he should begin.

“How did you get into my apartment?” The door had been locked, the chain still on when they left.

“I’m a wizard. I have powers.”

Well, duh. “You teleported?”

“I got a demon to carry me through . . . GREEN!” The light obediently changed. “. . . the Netherhells and emerge in your apartment.”

Fucking great. He’d done the demon thing. It was how he’d met Henry—ripped up by said demon and in desperate need of blood. “Seriously?”

“No. I suppose you could call it teleporting. The senior among us could move ourselves from point to point over short distances. It’s what made us start thinking about other worlds.”

“Why?”

“We had to be moving through something, didn’t we?”