“She’s our friend, and might I remind you, I’m the one who bore the brunt of this,” I said as I shook my head and hopped a little on my good leg. “We have to at least try and figure out what’s going on.”

“That’s great, but I need all of my limbs for CrossFit, and your leg looks like it might fall off,” Jess said.

“Stop,” I said, and held up my palm as I leaned against the bathroom’s doorjamb, injured leg bent behind me. “Enough. Let’s all think this through and figure it out. We can’t just abandon her.”

Melissa sighed. “Fine. But I think we should keep a healthy distance in the meantime.” She looked at her phone. “Time’s up. I have to get home. My client waits for nothing, not even this.”

Jess helped me down the stairs after Melissa left and paused at the front door before she opened it. “I’m game to help Liz out however I can, but we need to be careful. None of this is normal—not that Winchester ever is, but this feels wrong.”

I nodded. “I know.” I watched her jog across the front yard, a sinking feeling in my body. It wasn’t just me who felt the darkness. And while I wanted to keep Liz at more than an arm’s length away, I couldn’t. I couldn’t let someone else I loved slip away.

“I’m hungry,” I heard Emily call from the other room.

“One second,” I said. I hobbled over to her, and she stared at me.

“Does that still hurt? You should go to the hospital,” she said. “Your leg is going to get worse. Yuck.”

“I’m okay. Just a little cut.” I kept my voice high and cheerful, too afraid to ask what she knew.

She stared back, something flickering behind her eyes that made my knees lock up. Then she turned and bounded into the kitchen. I steadied my breath before I followed her, pushing aside the idea that she was aware of far more than she should have been.

CHAPTER
9

Whoever said it’s best to just rip off a Band-Aid clearly never had to yank a bandage off a blistering, infected wound caused by a supernatural force. I screamed so loudly at urgent care when the doctor peeled off the gauze pad that I heard a nurse drop something metal in the next curtained partition.

The doctor had jumped back, gloved hands in the air like she was working the overnight shift at a gas station and had no desire to be a hero that day.

“Okay, let’s try that again, but maybe a little calmer this time,” she said, narrowing her eyes at me over her blue face mask. “Just try and relax.”