“That’s hopeful,” Eve said.

I nodded. “The money clip we found was too easy. I think he might have planted it.”

“Do you think he’s been leaving clues for us?”

“I think it’s possible. A while ago, I got a note saying he needed more time. I didn’t know what to believe.”

“Wow.” She leaned against a table behind her, surprise on her face. “That would be…”

“Great. If he’s holding off the Dark Moon curse—even occasionally—then maybe he can be saved.”

She nodded, but the skepticism in her eyes didn’t surprise me. No one had ever found a cure.

I shook the thought away. I would focus only on what was possible.

“Does he say when he wants to meet us?” she asked.

“He doesn’t, so I assume that means now.”

She straightened. “Let’s go.”

“I’ll come,” Carrow offered. “We’ll bring the others, too, just in case.”

“Let me get a few of my guards as well,” I replied. “As much as I want to trust my brother, we can take no risks.”

“We’ll reconvene at the Haunted Hound in twenty minutes, then?” Eve asked.

“That will work.” I gave her one last look, then headed toward the door. I’d have to find my strongest men. Hope flared in my chest. With any luck, we’d be returning with Garreth this afternoon.

Slightly more than twenty minutes later, we joined Eve and her friends at the Haunted Hound. Between my forces and hers, we had a dozen people. Hopefully, we wouldn’t need them.

“The Hanged Man is located just a half mile away,” she said. “Let’s walk.”

I nodded, and we set off through Covent Garden. Anticipation made my heart race, and I tried to calm it. I shouldn’t get my hopes up. More importantly, I had to be cold and calculating. It was Eve’s life at stake, and I couldn’t risk that for a chance at saving my brother.

The Hanged Man was a quiet, dingy pub located down a narrow street that probably didn’t see much foot traffic. When we entered, we nearly filled the small front room. The old man who tended the bar raised his eyebrows, clearly surprised at the size of the group. I nodded at Kenneth to buy a round of drinks I knew we wouldn’t bother with, but we owed it to the bartender.

As our forces spread out in the tiny pub, Eve and I headed to the back. There were two small snugs, each filled with an empty booth, but no Garreth.

Disappointment pierced me.

She frowned. “The alley behind, maybe?”

“Let’s try.” I found a back exit near the toilets, and we walked out into the dim alley.

Immediately, a shadow stepped away from the wall. I braced myself and noticed that Eve had a potion bomb clutched in her hand.

But there was just one person, and it was the one we sought.

“Garreth.” Hope flashed within me, bright and fierce.

“Brother.” He stepped forward, his face revealed in a faint slash of sunlight. He looked tired, his skin pale and his clothes rumpled. His eyes were a strange gray, far different than normal.

He saw me looking and nodded. “I can hold the curse off for a while, though I go through dark patches.”

“What are you doing?” I asked. “We can help you.”

“I know. But it’s my turn to help you now.”

“You left the money clip that led us to the docks,” I said.

He nodded. “The Maker trusts me. Barely. I’ve been using that to get intel and leave you clues, and that was the most I could do. This was the first time it was safe for me to approach.”

“He’s planning to make Eve transition to her dire wolf form, but why?”

“I don’t know that yet, but whatever it is, we’re not going to like it. I do know where he’s hiding the stones, though, and where he plans for the final ceremony to take place. I can help you get in to steal the stones. That’s what you want, right?”

It was the most logical step. I nodded. It was exactly what we needed. “Where?”

“He has a base at the Battersea Power Station. It was abandoned in the eighties. If you come in the early hours of the morning, I can get you in.”

“Why did I see you at the museum?” Eve asked.

I couldn’t blame her for her skepticism. Though I didn’t hear it in her voice, the question made it clear she wondered.

“When I learned what the Maker was up to, I tried to get the stone before he did. I was too late. I’m lucky the thief he sent didn’t see my face.”

She nodded. “The museum proprietor said he heard two people.”

Garreth nodded. “He did. I was seconds behind the original thief. I didn’t have a chance to stop them at the stone circle, but I left the money clip. Dropped it like an accident. Can’t be blamed.”

“You need to be careful,” Eve said. “If he figures out what’s going on…”

“I’m a dead man walking already,” Garreth said. “Whatever I can do here is a bonus.”

He had a point. And by that logic, I was a dead man walking right by his side.

“There’s only one safe way to approach the power station,” Garreth said. “By train. Catch the five a.m. Just you two—I can’t sneak any more in.” He gave us directions for which station and when to jump off the train to avoid detection, as well as what we needed to bring to be prepared.

“Thank you, Garreth,” I said. “We’d never have figured this out without you.”

“No guarantees. Even with these instructions, it’ll be deadly to try to break in. I’ll meet you at the jump point.”

I nodded, wanting to hug him, the urge so strong my arms itched. But he disappeared before I could move, which was for the best.

Eve sighed and leaned against the wall. “He’s been one step ahead of us all the time.”

“Thank fates.”

She nodded. “This is going to be dangerous, though.”

“Very.” I started toward the tower. “Come on. Let’s get prepared.”

17

Lachlan

 

* * *

 

The morning train station was quiet, with only a few commuters clutching coffee cups as they waited.

Eve and I stood with the rest of them. She anxiously watched the clock, glancing up every minute to make sure the train was going to be on time.

We’d spent the night preparing for what was to come, Eve making potions and me informing my pack of what to do if something went wrong. We’d spent the night apart, of course, but she’d haunted my dreams.

When the train arrived, we climbed on board with everyone else but stayed in the entry vestibule. We’d need to be ready to jump off soon. No point in finding a seat.

As the train rumbled from the station, Eve slipped a potion from the cuff at her wrist and splashed it on several areas around the door frame. It would disable any human technology, including the alarm that would sound when I pried it open. Finished, she stared out the window. I watched her watching London and prayed this would work.

“We’re almost there,” she murmured a few minutes later. “Just crossed the river.”