Page 145 of Red Marked

“You have a Red girlfriend too, and her name is Pearl, not Star.”

“She’s not my fucking girlfriend, and Pearl doesn’t suit her at all.” I make a face.

“You’d better get used to calling her that, and you’d better call Ridge.”

“I’ll call him right now, before I go back in there.” I gesture at the restaurant.

“Because one look at Star and you’ll forget everything.” He chuckles.

“It’s Pearl. Now fuck off already.” I’m smiling, though. “Thank you for everything. Give my love to Carla.”

“I will. Take care of yourself.”

I nod.

He turns to go, then stops. “I like her.”

“It isn’t like that.”

He turns away, laughs, and waves without looking back. I watch him walk down the beach toward the passport control office. Beyond that is all sand.

I pull out my phone and call Ridge.

He picks up on the second ring. “Flint. Hi! Long time no hear.”

“Hey. It’s been way too long, and that’s on me. How are you? How’s Robyn?”

“We’re okay.”

Ridge has never been a big talker, but there’s quiet, and then there’s this. His voice is flat and tired.

“What’s up?” I ask.

He breathes out. “It’s Robyn. We got some bad news recently.”

I stop walking. “What kind of bad news?”

“We’ve been trying for a baby. For a long time now. She went for tests.” A gull screams over the water, and I press the phone harder to my ear. “She’s infertile, Flint. She’ll never be able to get pregnant. She’s in a really bad way… I love her no matter what, but she’s struggling with it. Shit!” He sounds broken.

The last time Magma told me to make this call, I grinned and asked him if Robyn was pregnant.

“Oh, fuck! Ridge, I’m so sorry.” My heart breaks for them.

42

Star

Flint drops onto the gravel lot next to the border control building. I come down behind him and let go of my bag a second before my claws touch the ground.

We shift. I dig a shirt out and pull it over my head. Flint steps into a pair of sweats. He crouches over his duffel and pulls out a folder of paperwork and his ID. I take my ID card out as well.

“Ready?” Flint asks.

I nod.

My heart is hammering as we walk to the door. There’s a guard on either side of it, both of them armed; they are watching us. A shadow slides over the gravel, and I look up. A patrol passes overhead in a tight wedge, low enough for me to count their claws. The last time I crossed this border, those same dragons would have killed me on sight.

This is it.