I closed her fingers over the knife handle and gave half a shrug. “I’d offer you a gun, but I couldn’t hide it anywhere,” I said, smirking down at my outfit (which could arguably be classified as such).

Her grasp tightened, features animating out of shock. “Are you Micah? Spencer told me you’re Au—"

I pressed a finger to her lips. “Those names are too dangerous to state out loud. But yes, I’m his.”

Her wavering lips lifted into a smile and I offered my own in return.

“I know a back entrance,” she said. I let her lead me by the hand, her contact more bearable than most.

We reached the end of the bar where a guard blocked our way, only his imposing outline recogniseable through the thick smoke.

“What do we have here?” he asked, voice mocking and clear, portraying his lucid mind. “Our Daisy isn’t trying to leave us, is she?” he clucked. “Get on your knees while we wait for this fucking mess to clear. You should know better, little flower, there’s no escape for you.”

I pushed Ava behind me and crouched into a fighting stance, the corkscrew sticking out between my fingers. “Your wish is my command, sweetie.”

He swaggered forward and, like a good girl, I did as he asked and dropped to my knees, plunging the cork screw directly into his thigh, right to the hilt. I couldn’t pull it out—I tried—my weapon stuck in his torn flesh.

With each tug, his breath hitched, a pained wheeze escaping through his teeth. Identifying a lost cause, I bolted to my feet, my hand blindly closing around the closest solid item as I proceeded to smash it over his hard skull.

His shadowed form unceremoniously slumped to the ground, alcohol and glass spraying in all directions. A regrettable frown dominated my face when I realised I was holding the remnants of a $10,000 champagne bottle. I brought the remainder to my lips and poured what was left of the expensive drink down my throat.

We skimmed the outskirts of the party, Ava blindly steering us down a smoke-filled corridor when my Variant stirred in my chest. Before I could recognise the call, the thick cloud diluted for one solitary second, one stagnant lapse in time that refocused my whole motivation, my entire night, my one goal.

Oscar Masatino strode directly past, no flicker or acknowledgment on his hard, determined face, resolute on his intended destination.

I hadn’t realised I’d frozen until Ava dragged me around the corner, hand outstretched to open the side exit. I stopped her, enclosing her fingers in mine.

Leaning forward, I whispered instructions into her ear, omitting the most vital part: why I was deciding to stay.

She shook her head, attempting to protest and begging me to go with her, to no avail.

I would not miss this opportunity. I couldn’t.

Before she could refute further, I pushed on the latch, shoved her through the door and flipped the lock straight after. Turning, I switched my earpiece on and ventured further into the depths of Forbidden Garden.

Spencer’s high cackling came through immediately. “Did you see that finale? I swear, that’s one of my best performances yet.”

Emerson’s distinct huff shortly followed.

Although we had state-of-the-art earpieces installed, we only used them in dire circumstances. We’d learnt early on that Spencer would use the open communication as a form of therapy, compromising more than one mission in the past.

I interrupted their taunts by announcing my link in. “Tell me you’re at the point?”

As soon as they confirmed, I spoke over them, their voices drowned out by my command. “I’ve sent Ava to you. I want you to take her back to the Temple and keep her safe.”

“Why? What will you be doing?” Spencer asked.

“I’m following another lead.”

I didn’t tend to keep things from my sisters. In fact, I never kept anything from my sisters. Secrets were a non-issue in our family, our trust unwavering. I now smothered that hopeless sentimentality beneath my resolve to protect them…and lied.

“It’s nothing significant, just something I have to check out.”

“We don’t deviate from the plan, Micah,” Emerson said.

“What plan? Most of it was improvised with glitter and smoke,” I snarked while blindly navigating the bustling hallways, trusting in my Variant to lead the way, scoping for that same familiar aura.

“Ah, exactly,” Spencer’s voice high-pitched in my ear. “My epic P-L-A-N. Per usual, it fucking worked.”

Car tyres screeched and slamming doors could be heard in the background. “The infantry have arrived, Micah,” Emerson said. “The place will be crawling with more Ludus soon. Get your ass moving now.”

Spencer huffed. “Bloody hell, we’re over here, woman. Can you not see my hand waving at you?”

“She can’t see you, her back’s turned to us,” Emerson replied.

“Can you see Ava?” I asked. My answer was a muffled scream that punctured down the earpiece.

Then Emerson’s laugh carried over. “Let her go, Spence, before she screams the place down. Then none of us are getting home.”

Stifled movements followed, then Spencer breathed. “I like your dress.”

“You can’t have it,” I heard Ava reply from a distance.

“Hide it,” said Emerson, and my mouth curved into a smile.

“Is that Eden’s dog?” Ava asked.

My smile dropped as fast as it appeared. “What dog?”

A sharp bark came through the speaker, followed by a low growl.

“Where the hell did you have that hidden?” Emerson spat. “And who’d you steal a fucking dog off, Spence? Give it back.”

“Her name is Fran, not it. And she belongs with us. Her name rhymes with Tan.” Her voice was confident, as if that meant anything.

“She is actually he,” Ava enlightened. “As you can tell by his massive balls hitting the pavement. Fran is short for Frankenstein.”

“Don’t give me that face, Meek. I’m not giving him back. Fran wanted to come with me. His previous owner was a downright cunt.”

“Well, you’re not wrong there,” Ava replied.

Right on cue, Eden scurried past me on her hands and knees, hysterically screaming for her lost Fran. Spencer chuckled with mirth in the background.

As I turned the next corner, my Variant flared to life.

“Take Ava. If I’m not back in time, get Psycho out of Oakview. Don’t wait for me.”

Simultaneously, my sisters’ berated shrieks echoed through the intercom. I removed the grain-sized gadget from my ear and crushed it beneath my high heel.