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“But I don’t knohat I owe the the deal!”
“I know,” Max said “And they know it, too This is why it’s a bit tricky But they can’t do anything—shouldn’t do anything—right now, not until we talk to them If you don’t reet you out of it on a technicality”
I sat up straighter “You can? Then do it! Talk to thee “You talked to the woo back there Pass the h her”
“No,” said Jacob “Sage has a tour to do”
Sage’s mouth dropped open “Fuck the tour! Fuck all of this I’ until we deal with Dawn” He looked atto lose you”
“You can’t do anything for her, Sage,” Jacob said, colder now “You outs more than to have your new career throay You can’t let theo on with you, as will Max He’s heryour life; it really is the best way to stick it to them Don’t involve yourself Just be there for her and trust Max”
I couldn’t believein, the voices turning toit, and now they were co like there was a catch with ht I brought this on myself
“What about my family?” I asked quietly “I should be with the happen to them”
“Your fa out of the chair He stood beside Jacob, arms folded across, and I was suddenly—dumbly—struck by how similar they looked An old Jacob and a new one “But you need to be here withthe problem with you Your family is safest if they stay in their lives, none the wiser”
I nodded, knowing that made sense
“Dawn,” Jacob said, bringing the photograph forward “Do you recognize this?”
I took the photo into my hands and immediately dropped it I felt sick to the bone “Where did you get that?”
“The hotelhis hand onsqueeze “He said it was fronize it, don’t you?”
“It was irl” I gingerly picked the photo back up I had no idea why there would be a photo of this, but I guess it didn’t matter I flipped over the back “She won’t doubt me next time,” I read aloud “No, I certainly didn’t”
“What happened to the horse?” Sage asked
I frowned, wondering why his voice trembled “My brother tore it apart Had a fit Why?”
He sed thickly, his Adaeline She saw the photo She said—”
“Little brothers can be so cruel,” Jacob filled in quietly We all looked to hieline”
“I knew she was a fucking GTFO,” I growled
“I don’t think so,” Max said with a shake of his head “I’ve suspected her, and I’ve been watching her…but I don’t think she’s a de to do with this”
He and Jacob started walking for the door I felt a pang of fear at the idea of Max leaving , I still felt safe with Sage by , he had still saved me from the demon in the bathroom
“We’ll be back soon,” Jacob said “Don’t open the door for anyone else And I mean anyone”
They went out, closing the door behind theet in with you?” he asked
I set in under the covers He opened up his arms for me, and I carefully nestled in them
“You’re going to be all right,” he said deter the top of my head
We both kneas lying But I let him lie to me anyway
Chapter Eleven
Sage
I felt like someone inserted a toothbrush intoI knew or thought I kneas scrubbed clean, and here was this brand-neorld that I had tosense of
It wasn’t that I hadn’t gone through this before—obviously I had And obviously I knew there was so Dawn and the supernatural But for all the shit I’d seen in es fro in Lake Shasta last year, I did not expect to see a seven-foot-tall demon in my bathroom, one bloody tentacle don’s throat I did not expect to feel the fear in knowing that she was really, truly in debt to the Devil And I really did not expect for Red Potato to be a elic kind
But the show o on, Jacob said And so I tried to bury this new truth by knocking on Tricky’s door and seeing what kind of uppers and downers and drowners he had I’d been sitting inall sorts of crazy Daith Max somewhere—apparently safe, yeah I knew that, but it still bothered eline, but I’, he and Max had gone to find her and get to the botto, but she was nowhere to be found The hotel staff said she checked out of her room about the same time as all the demon shit went doith Dawn in the bathroom