Let It Burn

Chapter 9

"What were you thinking, Irina?"

A loud voice booms from somewhere in the house, and I bolt upright. My eyes are still blurry with sleep, but they're on Holden in an instant, making sure he's still there. His eyes are open; he just hasn't gotten up yet.

"They do know it's morning, right?" Holden mutters. He glances at his phone. "It's barely eight."

Gran's voice hits my ears. "I thought I might save your miserable lives! There was no way I could get you back alone. Even with Talon's help, I wouldn't have made it out alive. So, yell your heart out, Eddie, if it makes you feel better, but it's over now. Nobody was hurt."

Holden and I glance at one another. We both get up from the couch and run toward the voices. Gran and Eddie are in the kitchen, poised for a stand-off, staring each other down. Dad sits at the table with a steaming cup of coffee and a plate of eggs and bacon. He doesn't act like he knows the other two are in the room.

"What's going on?" I ask.

Gran and Eddie turn simultaneously. Eddie's eyes become as round as saucers. He glares at Gran, his anger renewed. "What is Holden doing here?"

Gran rolls her eyes. "He's here because he didn't want Iris to come alone."

Holden covers the bandaid on his head. Eddie doesn't need another reason to be angry.

"Where's Ian?"

"He's at home with Mom," I answer. "We thought whoever sent Dad's bloody cross to us might hurt her if she was alone, so he went back to protect her."

Eddie glares at Gran. He knows what she did.

Dad begins to eat, oblivious to the drama around him. He's not a morning person; he doesn't speak until he fuels himself with coffee and food. A tornado could fly through the kitchen, and Dad wouldn't care until after he'd eaten breakfast.

I sit at the table beside him. He glances at me and smiles, and for a moment, it's as if we're at home and none of this ever happened.

Holden smoothes his hair down and goes to Eddie. They embrace. It's the happiest I've seen Holden since we made it to Crimson Pass.

"I was worried about you," he tells Eddie. "I was afraid you weren't going to wake up."

"I'm tough." He points to Holden's band aid. "What happened?"

He grins. "I got into a fight with a vampire."

"I bet you never thought you'd say that sentence."

Holden says, "Not in a million years."

A smile settles on my face. I'm so glad to see Holden and Eddie reunited. Gran sets a glass of orange juice and a plate of food before me. I thank her as she sits beside me.

"Aren't you going to eat?" I ask.

"No. I already had breakfast. You enjoy your eggs and bacon."

Her dispirited tone breaks my heart. She keeps having to defend her decisions. Would any one of us have done anything differently? Dad and Eddie have the luxury to say 'yes' because they're shikaris. They have the power to rescue someone on their own, but Gran doesn't have superpowers. All she has to rely on is her wit and instinct. For the first time since coming to Crimson Pass, I understand why she lured us here with the cross. It was the fastest way, the path of least resistance. She wasn't worried about the fallout, only about the final result.