Page 75 of Tracking Snow

Snow shakes her head, a frown pulling her face taut. "No. She hasn't been in since..." She trails off, and there's a flicker of panic in her eyes.

"It's just," Jessie goes on, "She's in here at least three times a week, even if it's just to get a latte on her way to work so she can get a hit smelling the books. I swear that woman is a book dragon in human form. But I haven't seen her in almost two weeks. I'd like to think she's just been reading from her own hoard of books at home, but I don't know. I feel like something's wrong."

Snow turns toward me. "Since the first night you came to Poison Apple," she says quietly. "She hasn't been in since then. When HAM attacked the bar a few nights before, she showed her Will o’ the Wisp powers."

Isabelle and Jessie trade a look.

"You think HAM is responsible for the disappearances," Isabelle says.

I shove my hands into my front pocket, and they curl around the book Jessie gave me. I recognize that look in Snow’s eye. The one that promises she’s going to throw herself directly into danger.

And we’ll be right next to her.

Chapter 23

Never Talk Smack About a Man’s Mama

TWO

"That was not a low profile," I yell at Snow as we run. "You promised we’d keep a low profile."

"Well, he was being a bigoted asshole," she yells back. The clatter and heavy footsteps behind us prove they don’t plan to give up.

The Dry Dock had gone quiet the second she shoved through the door of the dive bar. A room full of men in matching white HAM jackets turned to find their turf invaded and every part of One wanted to streak out of there like lightning.

But Snow forged ahead, planted both hands on the sticky bar and said, "I’m looking for my friend, Goldie. A gorgeous voluptuous blonde who wears a lot of pink with tattoos, makes a mean appletini, and has a smile that feels like sunshine itself."

She distinctly avoided the part where Goldie was a siren. Which would be the main reason HAM would target her, but no use informing them if they didn’t know.

The tall, hefty bartender clenched his fists so tight I hear the snapping of bones. "Filthy magic freaks aren’t welcome here."

"The bitch is human," a voice came from the corner. He’s an even bigger guy in the corner, nursing a beer. I recognized him from the first night Snow and I met. He glared at her but kept to his seat.

The bartender cast a suspicious eye on Snow but leaned in and laid a hand on hers. "Then you can stay, honey, and we can get you on the right path." To his credit, it sounded kind, like he was saving her from my kind of filth.

Snow simply looked down at where he was touching her.

All Seven us knew something very bad was about to happen.

"He’s mistaken," she said, looking up at the bartender as she slipped her hand out from under his. "Because I do know magic."

She stepped right into the man’s space, reached up, pinched his nose between two knuckles, and yanked her hand away.

"Got your nose."

The room went so quiet, the only sound was the humming of the old beer cooler behind the bar.

Snow held her thumb between her fingers and wiggled it at him. "Ta-da. Magic."

I stared at her.

All of us stared at her.

It went downhill very quickly from there.

One might be super-fast, but we needed to disappear quicker than he could move, which is why I took lead, grabbed Snow, and phased out through the wall where we broke into a run.

You should have let me lead. I could have taken care of it, Four complains darkly.