Free Revealers by Amanda Marrone Page A

clears his throat. “Wow. I thought this was going to be a tough one tonight—-but I didn’t think it would be this bad.”
    I take a Sascha-sized gulp of brandy and shudder as it burns its way down my throat. “You know what I think? I think I’ll take that ride, Michael.”

7
    So how do you think someone gets on the list? I ask. I clutch the armrest as Michael takes a corner too fast.
    “We’re not sure if there really is a list,” Dani says from the backseat.
    “Are you kidding? Did you see how scared Margo was when that slipped out? There’s a list! Michael, what do they tell you when you’re on cleanup crew?”
    “Just that they’ve tracked someone down, and then they give us the address where they are.
    Sometimes they tell Connor and me personal info, like that last guy—the wolf—my mom told us he might be interested in joining me out in the woods behind the bar, if you know what I mean.”
    “But how could they know that?” I ask.
    “Crystal ball?” Michael says.
    Dani leans forward and nods. “Mrs. Keyes has one, she could be using it to track people down, or maybe she uses a spell to locate them.”
    “But what about Kelsey? She was supposed to meet Troy and Andrew, so how did they know to send you over there to make sure they didn’t show up and witness the kill? If she was using a crystal ball, shed have to be watching Kelsey 24I7 to happen upon that information.”
    “I don’t know. They just told me to have a couple of cases of cold beer in the back of the van, park it by Troy’s house, and loosen a battery cable. I was supposed to convince them partying would be better than being bitten. Not that I mentioned Kelsey or anything, but being underage and unemployed, they were more than happy to accept some free booze in return for tightening up the cable for me. Actually, Andrew seemed pretty relieved they were going to take the beer back to Troy’s. But you know what? Troy’s been bitten before—I could see marks on him.”
    “Oh!” Dani says. “That means Kelsey’s probably, you know, snacked on him before.”
    I nod. “And it also means vamps don’t always turn their prey—something we were told they do.”
    Dani and I exchange looks, and I know we’re both wondering if what she’d read on that message board is true.
    “And Kelsey could’ve been telling the truth when she said she wasn’t going to reveal to us,”
    Dani says.
    “And maybe we didn’t have to dust her,” I add.
    Dani shakes her head. “What matters is she wasn’t human anymore. Maybe she wasn’t going to go after us, but she was fully capable of it.”
    “Yeah, and Z did say she’d already turned some other people, but still, I don’t think this whole gig is quite what we thought it was. If there’s a list, it means someone—maybe Helena—is making some sort of decision about who we go after and when we do it,” I say.
    “Geez, Jules,” Dani says, swatting me on the shoulder. “You’re making it sound like there’s some evil plot. I just figured Helena makes a list of baddies as the coven hears about them, and then someone does research to make our job a little easier.”
    My shoulders slump. “Yeah, I guess.” I watch the houses go by as we near my neighborhood. What Dani said makes sense, I think, but it doesn’t explain why Margo was all freaked out—and she was freaked out. “Why all the secrecy, then? Why not tell us exactly what’s going on instead of waiting for the stupid birthday initiation crap?”
    Michael laughs. “Because you witches are totally anal about tradition! Margo and Z
    wouldn’t even get in the van because you’re supposed to fly home after a kill. Hell, you’re probably breaking all sorts of covenants riding home with me.”
    “I know, it’s so stupid—what does it matter if we stick it or get a ride home?” I ask. “And why these capes? Loved getting shit about them from Kelsey tonight. She asked about our lame
    ‘Little Red Riding Hood’