Renegade (Heven and Hell #4)(50)
Author: Cambria Hebert

Kimber stood in the center of the now empty dance floor with her arms wrapped around herself and a drawn look on her face. “For once she might not be acting,” I said, looking at her aura and reading the fear and hurt there.

I felt Sam nod. “Well, after everything that went on tonight, I think you might be right.”

After Kimber called the police and reported a found body and the disappearance of her DJ, the evening took a definite somber turn. Everyone at the party stayed in that weird trance-like state until the police sirens cut through the cold October night. It was like a hypnotist suddenly snapped his fingers and yelled “awake!” because everyone was suddenly completely aware of where they were and the fact the cops were coming. Everyone scattered like ants at a picnic, leaving behind Sam and me, Cole and Gemma, Riley and Kimber to come up with a story about the bodies.

Thankfully, we had enough time to clean up the carnage of the werebats before the cops arrived and the guests at the party noticed and started asking questions.

Just as the cops were climbing out of their cruisers and slamming the doors, Kimber insisted we all go in the house and leave dealing with them to her. It didn’t seem like the worst idea because it was her house and if we all stood around trying to explain, we might look suspicious.

“Did you talk to Gran?” Sam asked.

“Yeah, she said it was fine we were staying here tonight. She’ll see us in the morning for a big breakfast.”

“You’re lucky to have her.”

“We are,” I corrected, reaching up to kiss the side of his neck.

Sam stiffened and I looked outside to see two officers carrying a zipped-up body bag no doubt containing the DJ’s body. Kimber saw and threw her hands up over her face, her shoulders shaking. I couldn’t tell if she was faking her emotion or not. But it was clear the officer was uncomfortable around her distress.

“Maybe I should’ve stayed out there,” I murmured. “It really wasn’t fair to leave her dealing with all this.”

“She isn’t by herself,” Sam replied and motioned with his chin to the corner of the lower deck.

“What’s Riley doing out there?”

My head lifted under his shrug. “He’s been out there since the police showed up. I guess he’s just watching.”

I watched him for a few moments. He didn’t move; he just stood there in the shadows and stared at Kimber and the officers while she answered question after question.

“Can you hear what they’re saying?” I asked Sam.

“Most of it. It’s mostly routine. Kimber’s saying all the right things.”

“They’re going to want to question everyone who was here.”

“Probably.”

I moved away from the window, not really wanting to see anymore. Living it had been enough.

“There’s still a few minutes of your birthday left,” Sam reminded me.

“It’s probably better that it just be over.”

“It can’t be over. Not yet.” He moved closer to me, grabbing me around the shoulders and turning me to face him.

“Why is that?” I smiled up at him.

“Because I haven’t got a dance with my girl yet.” The husky quality to his voice was like visiting a foreign country and hearing someone with an accent speak an ordinary word, but it somehow was seductive.

“Riley says I’m a horrible dancer.”

“Riley’s an idiot,” he said as he wrapped his arms around my waist and drew me into the circle of his personal space. I looped my arms around his neck, linking my fingers as our feet began to shuffle over the floor and he swept me around in a slow circle.

“There’s no music, Sam.”

“You’re all the music I need,” he murmured, his breath tickling my ear and making every hair on my neck rise.

The lighting in the room was scarce because we didn’t want the officers outside to see us standing in the window and so we danced to the music of our pounding hearts as the darkness folded around us, creating a moment as intimate as if I were standing before him completely undressed.

I liked when I lowered my head to his chest, I fit perfectly, my head reaching just below his chin. “I think this is my favorite part of today.”

“Mine too.”

“Sam?”

“Hmmm?” he said, the sound vibrating through his chest and tickling my cheek.

“Why didn’t he try to kill me tonight?”

His arms tightened around me, but he didn’t say anything until we’ made a full turn. “I don’t know.”

“But you have an idea.” I knew he’d been thinking about this like I had. “We both know it’s weird he’s been out of that cell for this long and hasn’t really come for me.”

“He hasn’t exactly left you alone, either.”

I thought about tonight, the night at the gym, and even what happened after school in the chemistry lab. I thought about the werebats that seemed to fly around my house at night, colliding with the window like they were trying to get inside to eat me. Was he trying to scare me? Drive me out of my mind and then come for me? Did he think I would put up less of a fight?

“Riley said something to me that night you found that body in your car,” Sam began. We still moved in lazy circles. Our feet bumped together, and I was still tight in his embrace.

It seemed odd that this moment could still feel romantic when we were talking about death and kidnapping. I guess it didn’t matter what the topic was when I managed to steal a few precious moments alone with Sam.

“What?” I snuggled in a little closer against him.

“The other Princes in hell, they don’t know who the Soul Reaper is. They know Beelzebub found him, but he never told anyone who it was.”

“Maybe he didn’t have time,” I reasoned. “We locked him up right after I admitted who I was.”

He shook his head and his chin rubbed against the top of my head. “He’s been out. He might be here on Earth, but he could’ve sent word. Hecate knows too. Where has she been? She’s been way too quiet.”

I’d almost forgotten about Hecate. “You’re right.”

“I wish I wasn’t,” he murmured.

“You think he would tell the others who I was. The odds of me being killed would definitely be in his favor then.”

“I won’t let them hurt you,” he vowed. It was a sentence he repeated faithfully almost from the day we met. Back then it had been a phrase to hold on to, a promise that made me less afraid. It made whatever I looked over my shoulder for less frightening and more manageable. I’ve grown stronger since he first started saying those words to me. I now know I don’t need him to save me, that I could do that all on my own.