Echo Soul Seekers

on him in a snarling rage. Clamping hard on Dace’s arm, he tears at his flesh, savagely biting him again and again, until Cade calls him off by grabbing the beast by the neck and dragging him back to his side. Leaving Dace’s arm a mess of bite marks and blood I try to attend to, but his pride won’t allow it.
    Sparing an impassive glance at Dace’s wound, Cade says, “A noble display, brother. Very noble indeed. And yet also incredibly, absurdly naïve.” He makes a face of disdain, then turns to me with an icy-blue gaze fixed on the bloom still tucked in my hair. “Trust me when I say you couldn’t protect her if you tried. Only I can do that.”
    “What the hell are you doing here? What do you want?” Dace presses his mangled sleeve hard against the wound in a vain attempt to stanch the flow of blood. Confused by his brother’s sudden appearance, the strange tone he’s adopting, the invasive look that he gives me. So uninformed, so out of the loop, I can’t help but curse Chepi. Leftfoot too. They should’ve told him. Heck, I should’ve told him. But now it’s too late. Leaving no choice but to see where Cade leads.
    “I think a better question is—what are you doing here? Aren’t you scheduled to work?” Cade tilts his head, staring hard at his brother, as my gaze veers between them.
    They share the same strong brow, the same high cheekbones, square chin, and generous well-shaped mouth. Yet their demeanors are so different it’s easy to forget they’re identical twins. Dace is tense and confused, while Cade remains confident, poised, all too aware he’s in charge.
    “Not to worry.” Cade waves it away. “I’ll find a way to cover. It’s the least I can do after what you’ve done for me. In fact, I should thank you—though I probably won’t. Expressing appreciation isn’t really my thing.”
    Dace narrows his gaze, keeping a wary eye on Coyote, as he clutches hard at his arm with blood-slickened fingers.
    “You have no idea what’s going on here, do you?” Cade smirks. Spikes a hand through tousled black hair that’s an exact match to Dace’s in both texture and color, though Cade keeps his shorter. “Guess Chepi never got around to telling you. And it looks like your girlfriend didn’t bother to fill you in either. Speaking of—hello, Daire.” He flashes me an insincere smile—the kind that used to melt the hearts of all the girls at Milagro, or at least until they got their souls back. Holding the look for so long, I fight not to squirm under the weight of it. “You’re looking quite … radiant . Guess it’s safe to assume you two enjoyed your little retreat?”
    At the sound of his words, my entire body goes tense. Veering close to full-blown panic when he gestures toward the place just behind us.
    “You know, your little oasis. Your Enchanted Spring. Same one you used to dream about, right?” He flicks his tongue across his front teeth, leering at me. “I staged it especially for you. Doubled the amount of bubbles and flowers, made the lawn just a little bit springier —which I thought made for a nice romantic touch. Judging by the flush at your cheeks, you thought so too.”
    My breath stills. My hands grow clammy and cold. And when I reach for Dace, I find he’s experiencing the same physical reactions as me.
    “What’s going on? What is this?” Dace looks between us, his expression pained and confused, while I remain silent. Knowing only part of the story. His brother holds the key.
    “You want the short version or the long version?” Cade fishes in the pocket of his brown suede jacket, retrieving a silver-and-turquoise lighter along with a cigarette he shakes free of its pack.
    “I want the truth,” Dace says, his jaw so clenched he’s forced to grind out the words.
    “You sure you can handle it?” Cade lifts a brow, flicks the lighter’s metal wheel with the pad of his thumb. The resulting flame illuminating his blank empty eyes in a way that chills me to the core. “After all, the women in your life didn’t seem to think so.”
    Dace curses under his breath, advances on his brother, ready to end this before it begins.
    The sight of it prompting Cade to laugh, as he says, “Relax, brother. No need for big shows of false intimidation. Truly.” Seeing Dace take another step forward, he rolls his eyes and adds, “Trust me and do as I say. I’m only trying to save you from yourself. Whether you like it or not, you and I are connected in