My father looked toward Kiev, who was sitting a few feet away from him. My father reached into his pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. Unfolding it, he handed it to Kiev.
“As you will see from the note, Mona left the island.”
I stood up and hurried over to Kiev, looking over his shoulder at the note.
“She didn’t say where she’s gone?” Kiev stared at my parents disbelievingly.
My mother shook her head.
Kiev stood up, anguish in his eyes.
“It seems that she didn’t speak to anyone before she left,” my mother said. “Derek and I went looking for her after arriving back on the island. We visited your penthouse. The door was unlocked but she wasn’t at home. We just happened to find that note lying on the dining table.”
“Dammit,” Kiev breathed. He balled his fists, crumpling the note, and stormed out of the room. My heart ached for him. He had been through so much recently. The last thing he deserved was to be separated from Mona again. Yet I couldn’t help but feel hopeful at the witch’s note. It seemed like she was onto something. Otherwise why would she have left the island?
“Let’s hope she returns soon,” I muttered. There were so many people in this room, I was starting to feel claustrophobic. I decided to follow Caleb’s lead and step out for some fresh air.
“I’ll catch you later,” I said, waving toward my parents as I headed for the door.
I wasn’t even halfway across the room before my father whizzed past me and planted his feet on the floor in front of me.
“Where are you going exactly?”
“Just… outside. I’ll join Caleb.”
My father obviously didn’t have the heart to chastise me for leaving the island given that we’d managed to save some humans, but he looked disturbed all the same. His electric-blue gaze pierced through me. “I don’t like the way you keep slipping through my fingers, Rose.”
I didn’t know what to say. I just looked at him. He stepped aside, though I could feel his eyes still on me as I left Eli’s apartment.
I made my way down to the forest ground but, before going to find Caleb, I decided to go and talk to some of my human girlfriends. I hadn’t gotten any time alone with them since the ball, and I was dying to know what they’d thought of those dragons. I headed straight to the Vale and, on arriving in the town square, I caught sight of three girls sitting by the fountain, chatting with each other. As I neared, I recognized them as Sylvia, Becky, and Jessica.
“Hey, Rose!”
They each gave me a hug.
“How are you?” Sylvia asked.
“I’m okay. A bit exhausted… I haven’t seen you since the ball. How did it go with those guys?”
Sylvia and Jessica giggled as they exchanged glances.
“That’s just what I was asking them about,” Becky said. “All I can say is that if I wasn’t so in love with Griffin, I would definitely be in the market for a dragon.” She winked at me.
“You saw what went on at the ball,” Sylvia said. “As for what went on in our confidential meetings”—Jessica’s and Sylvia’s faces flushed bright red—“well, they’re called confidential for a reason.”
“Oh, okay. Fair enough,” I said. “I guess what I really wanted to ask was whether or not you like them.”
“Are you kidding?” Jessica said. “Tyron has ruined me for life. No other man will ever compare.” She sighed dreamily. “He redefines the word gentleman.”
“Good,” I said. “I will be interested to know how your second meeting goes with them too. You have dates tomorrow, right?”
Jessica nodded enthusiastically. “We were supposed to meet today. But Jeriad informed us that they had to postpone it for tomorrow.”
“Okay,” I said. “Well, see you around.”
Although I’d suspected that the girls would be bowled over by the dragons, I still felt relieved to hear it from their mouths. As I made my way back out of the Vale, I couldn’t help but wonder exactly what had happened during those private talks… and if indeed talking was what had gone on.
I turned my thoughts back to Caleb. I called out his name once I reached Eli’s tree again, but he didn’t respond. I guessed that meant he wasn’t in the area. We’ll bump into each other sooner or later.
Instead of going to seek him out, I continued walking alone in the forest. I replayed the events of the past twelve hours over in my head. Before I knew it, I had arrived at the Port. I walked to the edge of the jetty and sat down, dangling my feet above the calm waves. I still couldn’t shake the feeling of how uncanny this all was.
The human world knows about supernaturals.
I tried to imagine what the consequences of this might be. And I wondered whether the day would ever come when The Shade was discovered. I shuddered at the thought.
I almost jumped as a deep voice spoke my name. I twisted around to see Caleb standing behind me. Something about him looked… different. It looked like he’d had a shower, for sure, but his clothes also seemed different than what I was used to seeing him wearing. He wore a white long-sleeved shirt, rolled up to his elbows. The first three buttons of the shirt were undone, giving me a peek at his muscled chest. He wore dark pants with a brown leather belt around his waist. Something about his appearance reminded me of a windswept sailor. Yet he was well groomed at the same time. His dark hair touched the sides of his face and he still had a shadow of stubble around his jawline, giving him a rugged, sexy look—but it looked a little tidier than usual.