Raising Innocence: A Rylee Adamson Novel(67)

“How are we going to shake them?” Will asked.
Leaning to the left, I could just see out the bottom half of the living room window and the pair of uniforms that were standing at the edge of the walkway.
“Subtle, aren’t they?”
Wringing her hands in her lap, Deanna shifted in her seat. “I don’t see how this is going to work.”
I sat back on my heels. “The kids are to the south now, way south.” I concentrated working out the distance in my head. “I’m going to say close to two hundred miles.” Deanna’s mouth opened, and I talked over her head. “Will, Pamela, and Alex are going to go for a drive. Round about. Lose the tail, and then they’ll head south to meet us.”
Will cleared his throat. “How will we find you?”
“You won’t. I’ll find you. Just head south.”
Frowning, the Druid stared at me. “And what about us?”
“We’re going to go straight there.”
“How?”
I smiled. “Eve will take us.”
Her face paled. “You mean the Harpy? I don’t think that’s safe.”
“I’m sorry, did you think this was a picnic? Did you think that going after a mad Necromancer was going to be safe?” I laughed at her. “I can see why Daniels is taking over your coven or whatever the hell a bunch of Druids is called. You’re a fucking sissy.”
Will looked to me, and then to his sister. “Deanna, you knew what was going to be asked of you.”
“You’d side with her?” His sister glared at him.
“You sided with my Destruction against me.”
Deanna paled. Ooh, that was a shot to the gut.
I stood up, shouldering the crossbow, and checking all the sheath straps on my body. Everything was secure. Pointedly, I ignored Deanna and her outrage, her fervently whispered words to Will. Did I need the Druid? Yes, one hundred percent. But if she was going to question how we were doing things, she wouldn’t be a help; she’d just be a serious liability. Not exactly what I wanted, but it wouldn’t be the first time someone who was supposed to help me backed out at the last second. Of course, that made me think about Milly, which made me think about the fact that she’d ensnared O’Shea. Which only served to blacken my mood further.
“Are you coming with me or not?” I asked.
Deanna shook her head. “I’ll not come with you, no.” I glared at her and she held up her hand. “I said I’d help you and I will. I’ll go with William.”
Not exactly what I was hoping for, but better than a poke in the eye with a fork.
Pamela put her hands on her hips and glared at the Druid. “You know what, I’m glad you aren’t going. You just showed me what you Druids are really like. Even if you tried to take me to your stupid Druids, I wouldn’t go. You’re a coward.”
My eyebrows shot into my hairline. The witch was a spitfire, I’d give her that.
With a flounce in her step, she moved to my side. “I’ll come with you.”
I put a hand on her shoulder. “Okay, let’s go. Will?” His eyes met mine and I held his gaze. “Make it snappy.”
“You got it.”
Alex whimpered. “Alex wants to go with Rylee and Evie and Pamie.” His tail thumped weakly on the floor and he put his front paws together, begging. “Please.”
I crouched down, lifted up one of his floppy ears, and did a stage whisper into it, making sure Will heard me. “You need to keep an eye on the kitty and the Druid for me. Okay? Make sure they don’t do anything wrong.”
Before I let go of his ear, he was nodding, and then he wrinkled his lips up over his teeth in a ridiculous grin that made my heart squeeze. Gods, what would I do without Alex? What a horrible, boring, stale life I would lead.
Pamela and I headed out first to the police station. For once, the seemingly incessant rain had eased. Perfect for flying out in. Well, maybe not perfect, but better than being pelted with fat rain hundreds of feet in the air.
We nodded at the two officers who stepped in behind to follow us; I felt their footsteps stutter when Will, Deanna and Alex came out of the suite and headed toward the car.
Decisions, decisions.
I draped an arm across Pamela’s shoulders. “When we get to the police station, your job is to pin anyone who tries to stop us to the wall. Just hold them there. Can you do that?”
She smiled. “Yes. And now I can tie off the spell so I don’t have to be in the room to hold them.”
This kid was way beyond what I expected in talent. Giselle and her predictions; who knew that even in her madness she was trying to help?
“When did you have time to practice?”