Page 109 of An Oath at Midnight

“Be safe,” he said, then with one last quick press of his lips to mine, he walked out and closed the door behind him.

I stood there and stared at that door for far longer than was sane. Shaking myself out of it, I finally sat and jotted down everything I knew. Isaac’s name glared up at me. On a whim, I pulled out my phone and hit Brent’s number.

He answered on the third ring. “Yeah?”

“Hey, it’s Magnolia. I know you have a whole confidentiality thing, but I wanted to ask you something.”

There was a beat of silence. “You can ask.”

“Why did you end Isaac Eldridge’s membership?”

Another beat. “Usually, I wouldn’t tell you shit, but I think we’ve already crossed that bridge. I kicked his ass out because he was getting too rough with females who weren’t into pain. He crossed the line. And I would have kicked him out sooner, but the females in question only came forward after I saw it myself.”

I recoiled. “So you’re saying he has an aggressive streak?”

“Yes. And there’s something else, something I hadn’t really thought too much about until now. They were all redheads. I just assumed that was his type, but the level of violence he was dishing out, it was more than that.”

Fuck. “Thanks, Brent.”

We ended the call, and I instantly hit Asher’s number.

She answered on the second ring. “What’s doing, feisty?”

“You free?”

“Yep. Where are we going?”

* * *

It was dark by the time I pulled up outside Ryan Alway’s apartment. Clouds had gathered, rain was brewing, and it was muggy as hell. But this was where I was supposed to be. I had planned to go to Isaac’s place, but the moment I got in the car, the vines had started tingling in the middle of my back and I’d been led here. What part Ryan played in all this, I had no idea, but going by the alarm bells wailing through my head, there was definitely a link between him and my task.

It was hot, and I yanked up my sleeves as I looked up at the second floor. The lights were on at Ryan’s place, and I could see a shadow moving behind the curtains. He was home, thank fuck. As soon as Asher got here, we’d head up.

Ryan knew something, that much was obvious, and I wasn’t leaving until I’d extracted every bit of information I could from the little creep. That night at the Hazarks’, the way he’d been with Jenna, the look in his eyes—I shuddered—Isaac wasn’t the only one with a violent streak. The guy had given me the major icks.

The door to the building opened and Ryan strode out, heading down the street, hands in pockets, whistling while he walked. Shit. My internal alarm wailed again, screaming at me to follow.

I had no choice. I followed my instincts. I quickly texted Ash, letting her know the direction I was headed. Ryan walked faster, carrying on for a couple blocks, and I was forced to pick up the pace to keep up with him. He turned down the next street, and I jogged after him, rounding the corner—

Fuck.

I slammed on the brakes.

He was leaning against the building, arms crossed, waiting for me with a smirk on his face. “You’re not very good at the whole stealth thing, are you, Magnolia?” he said, gaze burning into me.

My heart kicked to life in my chest, and I forced a chuckle. “Obviously not. When did you make me?”

“I saw you sitting in your piece-of-shit car outside my very nice apartment. What the fuck do you want?” he said, the amused expression falling away.

“To talk to you, that’s all.”

He tilted his head to the side. “Aren’t you persistent. And what would we have to talk about?”

I got the feeling this guy wouldn’t believe anything less than the truth. Besides, I knew without a doubt that Maria and Leah Golden would have filled the whole prom committee in after we’d stopped by to talk to them. “I’m trying to clear my sister’s name, and I was hoping you’d help me.”

“You really believe she’s innocent?” he asked with what appeared to be genuine surprise on his face.

“I know she is.”