Almost. Adrian should have told me why he'd abandoned me when I needed him the most. The fact that he hadn't only highlighted that he was thinking more about himself than me. Plus, if he couldn't admit something so small to me, how could I trust him with the really big things, like our fates?
And Zach. He got the other end of my stink eye. He could have said something before now, too. Men. They were the same whether they were Archons, humans or Judians.
Something else occurred to me. "Zach lifted his restraining order on you the same day I came across the first minions and demon I've seen in months?" It couldn't be a coincidence...
"It isn't," Zach said, using his intrusive skills again.
My irritation died away. His inconsideration paled next to making sure that I was still alive.
"Thank you," I said, hoping for the hundredth time that Archons were more invested in the fate of humanity than they let on. Aside from my bloodline, I wasn't anyone special, yet Zach had saved me more than a few times. I just wished I understood why so many other people had to suffer and die.
Zach inclined his head, which was his version of "you're welcome." "Preparations have been made. You are to start your search for the staff at once."
"You're forgetting one thing," I pointed out. "We have no idea where Moses's staff might be. This is a big world, and that's not even counting all the demon realms in it, too."
Zach glanced at Adrian, and when they exchanged a meaningful look, my hackles rose. "If either of you even think of hiding something from me again-" I began furiously.
"We're not," Adrian interrupted, his gaze piercing as it landed on me. "I told you, Ivy, no secrets and no holding back this time. Moses's staff controls nature, which is why we need it to repair the realm walls and the demons also want it so they can use it to send those same walls crashing down. So, our best bet is to start with places that have natural anomalies. Even while dormant, the staff will affect what's around it."
That made sense, but, "I doubt it'll be as simple as googling places that are known for large congregations of locusts, frogs, lightning bolts or partings of seas," I said tartly. "If so, demons would've found it centuries ago."
Adrian raised a brow. "They've spent a lot of time scouring places with unusual natural phenomena, but they can't sense hallowed objects. Only you can. That's why we're going to find the staff and they're not."
He sounded completely confident. Then again, he was overlooking the most dangerous part of this mission. It wasn't whether or not we could find the staff. It's what could very likely happen if I tried to use it.
"I'm going with you, too," Jasmine said, her words distracting me from a topic I didn't want to dwell on.
I turned to my sister. "You've been through enough. We'll find you another place to stay at on hallowed ground, so you'll be safe-"
"You think I'll ever feel safe again?" Her voice filled with more pain than any eighteen-year-old should ever have. "I'm barely holding it together with you and Costa around me 24/7. If you leave me by myself, I'll lose it for sure. And I spent months trapped in a demon realm, so I know what we're up against."
"Jasmine," I tried again.
"I'm going." She cut me off with a flash of her old stubbornness. "Either help me pack or get out of my way, Ives."
She hadn't called me her pet name from our childhood since we'd rescued her. That, plus the glimpse of her former spunk, melted my resistance away. Who was I to lecture her? She was right. In some ways, she'd been through a lot more than me.
"Fine, then you can help me pack," I said, trying not to think about how I was going to find the staff while not getting myself killed, my sister hurt or my heart broken again.
"I'll pull our ride around," Adrian stated.
I gave him a doubtful look. "You think we can fit four adults and a winged gargoyle into your vintage metal baby?"
His smile was threatening and promising, like a lion licking its prey while deciding whether to eat it now or later. "We're bringing my Challenger, but we're not riding in it."
Huh? "What's that supposed to mean?"
His smile widened into a grin. "Get packed and you'll find out."
CHAPTER FIVE
I DROPPED MY suitcases when I saw the bus. It was so long that it extended well past the driveway, and it had to be at least three feet taller than Brutus at his full height. Now I knew what Adrian meant about bringing his Challenger but not riding in it. The muscle car was hitched to the back of the bus, and though it wasn't small, it was dwarfed by the black-and-gray behemoth that had the words Soul Smashers emblazoned across both sides of it.