Having reached the appropriate floor, Evee led Gilly to the suite shared by the three remaining Benders and then knocked on the door.
Within seconds, Nikoli opened the door and seemed surprised to see them. His eyes were slightly red-rimmed, as if he’d been crying. Gilly couldn’t blame him. Had he not shown some emotion over the loss of his cousin while telling his family, she’d have considered him an asshole of the highest order.
“Are we late?” Nikoli asked, glancing at his watch. Evidently seeing that they were in fact a half hour early, he asked, frowning, “Is there a problem?”
“Is Viv here?” Gilly asked.
Nikoli looked surprised. “No, she hasn’t been here since we arrived at the hotel earlier. Why?”
“She was supposed to be on her way here to discuss something with you,” Evee said. “At least, that’s what she told me.”
Nikoli invited them inside and motioned for them to have a seat on the couch in the living area. When they were seated, Nikoli stroked his beard, worry etching his face. “She said she was coming here?”
“Yes,” Evee said.
“You mean to tell me she’s not shown up here at all this morning?” Gilly asked, getting to her feet.
“I haven’t seen her since the feedings,” Nikoli said.
“I told you,” Gilly said to Evee. “I told you something was wrong.”
“What are you talking about?” Nikoli asked.
About that time, Gavril appeared, freshly showered, barefoot, dressed in jeans and a cobalt-blue button-down shirt.
His eyes went wide when he saw Gilly and Evee, and then narrowed. “Is there a problem?”
“I’d say so,” Evee said.
“What is it?” Gavril asked.
“The girls are saying that Viv was on her way here to talk to me about something, but she never showed,” Nikoli said, nearly shouting. Dressed in jeans and a forest-green pullover, he went over to the desk in the living area, grabbed his scabior and attached it to his belt. Gilly noticed his hands shaking slightly.
Gilly stared at Evee and said, “She’s gone missing. Heaven and all the elementals, our sister has gone missing!”
Instead of answering, Evee suddenly burst into tears. “We have to find her! We have to!”
“She’s got to be our first priority,” Gilly said. “Screw the missing Originals and those damn Cartesians. We want our sister back—now!”
After Lucien belted his scabior to his jeans, they all but ran out of the hotel en masse.
To the patrons of the hotel, they must have looked like lunatics, running down hallways, across the foyer, and all but crashing through the front doors of the hotel.
Gilly had no idea where to start looking. She feared most of all that somehow the same thing that had happened to Ronan had happened to her sister. The only thing that abated her fear was an innate knowledge that all three sisters carried. One knew when the other was hurt. It only made sense that Gilly would know in her heart of hearts if Viv was dead. And she didn’t feel that was the case.
Not dead, but in grave danger.
Seeing the worry and pain in Gilly’s eyes over her missing sister felt like a dagger in Gavril’s heart. He would have done anything to remove the pain from her and make her world normal again.
The problem was no matter how hard the Benders had tried to help the triplets, their situation seemed to be getting worse than better. Yes, they’d managed to get rid of more than their share of Cartesians since they’d arrived in New Orleans. But that hadn’t stopped Ronan’s death, or the death of some of Viv’s Loup-Garous, Evee’s Nosferatu and Gilly’s Chenilles. It was as if all of the Cartesians ever created from centuries ago had zeroed in on this place and were bound and determined to take out every last Original, along with the Triad.
The Benders had traveled the world, fighting groups of Cartesians whenever they appeared to destroy a sect of the netherworld. From Africa to Alaska, England to New Zealand, they’d fought and won each battle they’d been confronted with. Never, however, had any of the Benders faced a situation like this. The more they battled, the worse things seemed to become, and for the life of him, Gavril couldn’t figure out why. Certainly it had something to do with the Cartesians discovering the Originals here, but usually, after a battle or two or three, they’d move on to easier territory. This definitely wasn’t the case here and now.
Now Gilly and Evee were standing in their hotel room, claiming Viv was missing. She’d told Evee she was coming to the hotel to talk to Nikoli, who knew nothing about the impromptu meeting, but regardless, Viv had never showed up.
Gavril saw the pain in Nikoli’s eyes and how quickly his expression went haggard. Viv had been paired with him. His job was to protect her and her Originals, and for all intents and purposes, judging by what he’d seen when Viv and Nikoli were together, it had taken on a whole new course. His cousin was in love with the woman who was now missing, and nothing short of death would stop him from finding her.
So far, all that had happened was the disappearance of all of Viv’s Loup-Garous, and now the woman he not only was supposed to protect, but cared for in a deeper way than they were allowed, was missing. Gavril could only imagine how deep the wounds were inside of him. Not only had Nikoli been the one to contact the family about Ronan’s death, recounting the tragic tale again and again to various family members, but now he had to deal with Viv’s disappearance. How much pain could a man bear without breaking? Gavril could only imagine, for if Gilly had been the one to go missing, he’d have already cracked wide open.
Everyone seemed frozen in place, unsure of what their next move should be. If by some horrid chance a Cartesian had gotten to Viv, they’d never find her. She’d be dead, hidden away in another dimension, just like Ronan. Only there’d be no family to contact, save for the Elders, as Viv’s entire family members were her sisters, who were already here.
As if reading his mind, Gilly said, “She’d not dead. I’d know it if she was. But she’s hurt.”
“What do you feel, either of you?” Gavril asked.
“Danger,” Evee said.
“Yes,” Gilly confirmed. “It’s all around her. I get the sense that she’s trapped somewhere and has to stay hidden to stay alive. Wherever she is, she was chased there, coerced there, hurt there. The Cartesians are waiting for her to come out of hiding in order to pounce on her again. They’re counting on her doing just that.”
“Viv’s too smart to let that happen,” Gavril said. “If she knows they’re waiting for her to come out of hiding, she’ll nest herself right where she is until we can get to her.”
“I know,” Gilly said. “But how long will that be? How hurt is she? She’s a prisoner for all intents and purposes. That’s no way to live—or die.”
“We’ll find her,” Gavril said. “It may be a good idea to start from the beginning. Nikoli, since feeding is over and all the Loups are missing, anyway, go to the north compound and see if Viv’s there. Evee and Lucien, you take the Bon Appétit Café first, and then the two of you head back to your house in case Viv doubled back and wound up being there. I’ll take Gilly and head for the St. Louis I Cemetery, just in case she decided to go there to help check on Gilly’s Chenilles. After that, if we don’t find her at the cemetery, then we’ll head to the Elders in case she went there, looking for help.”
“Not