Winter's Edge

Chapter 48 - Tipped Off

Abby

IAN slammed the car keys down on the kitchen counter in a fit of rage. "How did they know where to find us?" Loose change and a magazine he wasn't even touching pushed away from him. "You were the only one I told, Joseph."

Joseph planted his hands on his hips. "I had to tell everyone else where you'd be in case you two called for help or turned on your scramblers. That's why I wasn't far away. Neither were Kat and Lena. It's standard protocol."

Ian's blue shirt, still unbuttoned, hung down over his black slacks. "Somebody here tipped off the Hunters. Abby could've been killed."

I nearly spoke up, but my throat and lungs still hurt. Not to mention my stomach. I'd slipped back into my dress before I'd gotten out of the car earlier to cover the two small blood spots under my skin. Concealing my powers was paramount, especially if someone on the supply run proved to be the killer.

Joseph's expression softened a little. "Are you sure it was one of us? Couldn't the Hunters have spotted you on their own and followed you the rest of the evening?"

"I saw the same Hunters arrive before us at one of our locations. Possibly two. That's not following. They knew where we'd be." Ian looked around at everyone. "Who was it?"

Their looks all said they had no idea.

Ian let out a frustrated growl and stormed out of the room up the stairs.

I looked at Joseph with a raised eyebrow.

He shook his head.

Joseph always knew what was going on, but his tense brow said he was just as confused as the rest of us. I couldn't help but remember Ian's statement about the keeper of the keys possibly being the murderer. And Joseph had been acting strange sending Ian on gold runs so he could do personal errands. If Joseph was the murderer, he was an amazing actor...just like any good psychopath would be.

Murph had a worried look on his face. "Are you okay?"

I nodded.

He hesitated a second. "Is my SHO okay?"

I wondered which he'd be more upset with, me getting beat up or his car getting beat up. "Yes."

He sighed. "Oh, thank God."

I gave a half-smile then headed up stairs. Ian was standing in his room when I found him, arms folded over his chest, deep in thought.

I wrapped my arms around his chest, leaning my cheek into his back. As my wounds pressed against him, I winced. His body relaxed a little at my touch. "It's gonna be okay."

"Someone betrayed us and you were nearly killed," he said. "That's not what I call 'okay.'"

"We get attacked by Hunters sometimes," I said. "I know it looks like they were tipped off, but maybe they weren't. Maybe they already had people at the park."

"It was the same couple. I don't forget faces." He seemed sure of his memory, and I figured he was probably right.

"Maybe there are Hunters that look the same as them. We can't just assume someone here is a traitor."

"We already know there's a murderer in Winter's Edge. We know he'd probably try to take out a Telekinetic before leading the Hunters to the city. What better way to do it than while we're on a supply run?"

"Is that the real reason you're upset?"

Ian let out a long sigh. "Not entirely." He turned around and wrapped his arms around me. "I'm upset that you got hurt."

"But we made it out okay."

"This time, sure. But what about next time?" His eyes went dark. "What if the killer's on this run with us and knows about your powers? What if they were trying to kill you in the park so you couldn't snoop around in Winter's Edge and find the killer?"

"But they chased both of us, not just me."

Ian pulled away and began pacing the room. "Maybe they know about both our powers."

The faces of my friends and family went through my mind, tugging at my heart. Surely none of them was the murderer. "Who would want us dead?"

Ian turned to me. "Kat, Jesse, Reilly, and your mom are the only ones who know about my power."

"You're the only one who knows about my power," I said. "I seriously doubt anyone else knows."

He shook his head. "I have a really bad feeling about this." His pacing brought him my direction and he stopped in front of me. "We need to find this killer."

Worry twisted my expression. "Ian...do you think we killed those Hunters?"

He stared at the wall behind me. "I don't know. It was Merek behind me."

"The Telekinetic?"

Ian nodded.

"Let's just assume he and the other Hunter survived. It's not easy to kill a Telekinetic, and our race cars are so small, they'd have a hard time killing someone in a Bimmer. You can't move an inch in those cars without finding another airbag."

He nodded again. "It wasn't your fault, ya know. You were just doing what I asked."

He was right, but a part of me still felt responsible to a degree.

"It was us or them," he said. "There's nothing wrong with defending yourself or others."

Hopefully, he wasn't just saying that to drive away the darkness. What happened wasn't enough to cause me to go mad, but I wasn't sure about him.

I sunk into his chest and our arms wrapped around each other. "I don't wanna lose you."

He squeezed me tight. "You won't."

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