CHAPTER SIX

P iper parked her car in the underground carpark and stepped into the elevator. She glanced at her phone, then put it in her pocket. Then pulled it out again.

What was she looking for again?

She rubbed her forehead.

What the hell did I drink last night?

She felt like she had a hangover, but not like a hangover. It was as if she was walking around in a fog. It was the third time she’d felt like this recently. Maybe she needed to go to the doctor.

“Hey,” she said to a few colleagues as everyone made their way to their desks with coffees and miserable-looking faces.

Because, Monday.

Sitting down at her desk she mumbled her own hello to her neighbors.

“Hard weekend?” Jeremy asked, smirking.

Was it?

“Ahh,” she began, then frowned.

“Jesus, girl, was it that good?” Then he frowned. “Or bad?”

Despite herself, Piper grinned. “Why does your voice go twice as camp when you even think about sex?”

Jeremy tilted his head. “Hmm, it’s the penis factor.”

“I know I’m going to regret asking this, but what is the penis factor?”

“It’s like when you see that handbag you really want on sale.”

Piper blinked. “I’m lost.”

“I know, honey.”

Jesus.

She couldn’t handle Jeremy on a Monday morning. Or Wednesday afternoon.

And where the hell was Kara?

“Okay, well no, I didn’t have a hard night. I guess I just had a bad sleep. It’s a double-coffee morning.” She fired up her laptop.

“Speaking of... double caramel latte,” Kara said, plonking the reusable coffee cup in front of her.

“Oh, thank God.” Piper hugged it like it was life.

Because in truth, it was.

Kara sat down at her desk and frowned. “You okay, Pips?”

Piper nodded.

The photo on her desk caught her attention, which was weird because it was the same one she’d stared at for two years. It was of her and Sage at a college football game, grinning like idiots. It was taken just weeks after she started, and they were both so happy to be rooming together at Brown.

Being born twelve months apart meant her last year in high school had been spent separated from Sage. She’d been a popular student and Kara had been there, but she hated being so far away from her sister.

They were polar opposites—Sage the nerdy science student and Piper the cheerleader—and yet, at the time, she’d thought nothing and no one could get between them.

Sage .

That’s right. Where the hell was her sister? Piper sent off another text and scrolled through those she’d already sent.

Fifteen days’ worth.

Even Sage wouldn’t ignore her for that long.

“Still no word?” Kara asked, glancing at the photo she’d been staring at.

Piper shook her head.

“I mean, I know she hasn’t fully forgiven me, but she’s never ignored me for two whole weeks. Something’s wrong.”

Kara nodded slowly. “She hasn’t posted on socials either.”

“I know, right?”

“She hasn’t?” Jeremy asked, his voice way too pitchy. “You need to call the police.”

“But your mom said she knew where she was, right?” Kara asked.

“Kind of. She’s super-vague in her answers,” Piper answered, opening her emails. “I’ll call her again at lunchtime. She was supposed to be home yesterday.”

“That’s not like her,” Kara said, and Piper nodded slowly.

It was very weird.

She’d thought many times she got her powers of interrogation from her mother. That woman asked more questions than the FBI.

A few hours later she pressed call and when her mother answered, she dived straight into it.

“Have you heard from Sage?”

“She’s in the tropics with Ari, darling,” her mother replied.

Right. She knew that.

Didn’t she?

“Has she messaged you?”

“No. Well, yes. I’m not sure. But she’s fine. She’ll be back soon.”

Piper narrowed her eyes. Her mother was never that relaxed about hearing from either of her daughters. Something wasn’t right.

“Which island is she staying on?”

“Not sure, darling. Now, are you coming for dinner one night this week?”

“Mom!” Piper snapped. “Where is Sage?”

“I told you. Chicken, or would you rather have fish? I can never keep up with what you girls will eat. Are you doing gluten or dairy-free this month?”

Piper shared a look with Kara, who was listening to the conversation on speaker. They were sitting across the road in the park catching some of the midday sunshine.

Weird , Kara mouthed.

I know , she mouthed back.

Something wasn’t right and she was going to get to the bottom of it.

“Gluten-free. I’ll let you know which night I can come. Gotta go.”

“Bye darling,” her mom said.

“Okay, which aliens abducted your mother?” Kara asked, and bit into her sandwich. “That’s downright creepy.”

“I told you about her boyfriend, right?”

Kara nodded. “The big hot guy?”

“Yes. I think he’s got something to do with all this.” Piper ignored her lunch. She had lost her appetite. “I don’t know how, but I’m going to find out.”

“Like he’s kidnapped her?”

Piper shrugged. “She’s been weird since she met him. Faking a migraine, hanging up on me—okay, fine, maybe that’s not so unusual—but she quit her job, which she loved. And now disappearing to the islands when she’s more into skiing.”

“I mean, people can decide to like a tropical island holiday suddenly. That’s not really grounds for a police investigation,” Kara said. “Don’t glare at me. I don’t want you getting into a confrontation with the police again.”

“That was one time.”

Kara stared at her.

“Fine, two... three times. But that’s not what we’re focusing on right now.”

Kara snorted.

“My point is... okay, this is going to sound weird, but every time I focus on her boyfriend I get a piercing headache, right here.” She pointed to her temple.

“So this Ari guy is causing headaches in both you and Sage? I’m not following.”

Piper let out a sigh. “Plus, I’ve been having dreams about a friend of his. Sexual. I think it’s his friend. God, honestly, I feel like I’m going insane.”

“Sexy dreams about some hottie doesn’t sound horrible to me, nor does it sound insane. Girl, maybe you just need to shag this guy?”

Piper lowered her head into her hands. “I don’t know who he is.”

When her friend didn’t respond, she tilted her head and opened one eye to look at her. Kara was staring at her, confused. “Trust me, I have no idea either. It’s like he’s haunting me.”

“I’m not sure whether that’s completely romantic or creepy,” Kara said. “Maybe you should speak to a doctor?”

Great, now her best friend thought she was insane.

AFTER WORK, PIPER DROVE to Sage’s house and parked outside. She sat in her car for over ten minutes, just watching. The sun began to set and when she was sure her sister or her roommate, Tony, wasn’t home, she got out and crossed the road.

Reaching up on the top of the door, she felt for the hole and the sticky tack.

Bingo.

Same as she’d done in college.

Piper pulled the key out and let herself in.

Whoa, the place was spotless. Sage wasn’t a messy person, but it looked like the place was ready for an open home. She continued walking through and found Tony’s room empty.

When had he moved out?

Sage’s room looked odd. It was too tidy and looked unlived in, even for someone on holiday.

Piper opened the wardrobe doors and found the space completely bare.

What the hell?

She ripped open a few drawers and they were also empty. Aside from a few random t-shirts and things, there were no personal belongings anywhere in her sister’s room.

Piper stood looking around the room, her brain whirling.

Think.

Think.

Think.

She moved to the bed and reached down, slightly lifting the mattress.

Gotcha.

She sat on the bed and opened her sister’s diary.

TWENTY MINUTES LATER Piper stared, open-mouthed, at her sister’s bedroom wall.

Holy shit. Two men?

Sage had a threesome.

With Ari and—she glanced back at the diary—no name was given for the second man.

Ari? An image of a man flashed before her.

“Argh.” A piercing pain sliced through her head. She pressed her hand against her eyes. “Shit.”

She flicked back a few more weeks and kept reading.

Pain.

So much pain.

“Fuck it.” She couldn’t focus with the pain. Piper tucked the diary under her arm and made her way down to the car. She needed to get home, if she was getting a migraine, to take some drugs. She hadn’t had one in years, but this felt like a doozy.

The pain seemed to be subsiding by the time she walked in her front door, but she knew if she took the drugs now it was less likely to get any worse. She took off her makeup and got ready for bed, then grabbed her pills and a large glass of water.

Tucked up under her covers, she swallowed down the meds and then began to scroll through Sage’s diary.

Date with Ari... blah blah.

Promotion at work... hope I get it...

Had lunch with Carl... God, how many guys did her sister have in her life?

She flipped a few more pages, going back a number of weeks, and felt the drugs begin to kick in. She slid down the bed further and turned onto her side.

Applied for the promotion... got an interview. Angry at Piper... yeah, yeah. Although it made her sad to read, she tried to skip past it. Piper hated that she was invading her sister’s privacy, but Sage was missing. There was no denying it after Piper had seen her apartment.

Her eyes begin to droop.

Overheard scientists talking about vampires. They’re real. I’m sure of it.

What the hell?

Vampires... Her eyes closed even as her brain fought to process what she’d just read.