Darkness Brutal (The Dark Cycle Book 1) by Rachel A. Marks Page A

though. Those two just keep looking at me, Connor with curiosity and Kara with growing anger.
    Holly starts to sing, “Kara and Aidan sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G . . .” as she dances from the room in a blur of colorful clothes.
    Lester follows, giggling. Jax walks past smiling and flipping the bird in my direction.
    Finger disappears like magic. For such a large guy, he’s silent as a ghost.
    Connor comes up to me, looks me over, and then says, “We meet at the van, in the back. Six thirty. A minute late, and you stay home.” He stares at me for a tick longer than is normal—like an alpha dog—and then turns and walks away.
    Kara’s the only one left. She doesn’t move off her perch on the counter, looking down at her boots. There’s a skull painted in what looks like Wite-Out on the toe of the left shoe.
    “Hey,” I begin, hoping I don’t regret trying to explain this, but knowing I need to get it out of the way, “I could tell Ava kind of freaked you out. She can be—”
    Kara hops down off the counter, stopping the words in my throat with her sharp glare. “Just stay away from me,” she says. “Both of you.” There’s no trace of fear in her words or on her face, but I feel it, like a razor against my skin. It’s the only thing I’ve felt in this house since I got here yesterday.
    She walks past me, putting the earbuds back in, and a strange foreboding fills me as I watch her go.
    Not a good way to start my new life.

ELEVEN
    It’s nearly seven thirty at night by the time we get to the apartment. I leave Ava at the house with Holly—reluctantly. There’s no way she could have come with me. I know I can’t watch her every second, but I feel like I need to. Ava pushed me out the bedroom door, saying I was being ridiculous, that I’d only be gone for a few hours and she’d be fine.
    But I’m not sure I trust that house yet. I’m not sure if I trust Sid’s protective measures. And I’ve only just gotten her back.
    When I talked to Holly about keeping a close eye on things, she frowned at me and asked, “Isn’t your sister, like, eleven?”
    “She’s almost twelve.”
    Holly laughed and shrugged. “Sure. I’ll watch out for her,” and then she walked away mumbling, “Hyperprotective much?”
    But I didn’t feel any bad vibes from her, so I decided to loosen my grip a bit and trust Sid that the house was protected. Plus, it won’t be until Ava’s actual birthday that the demons come.
    We reach the apartment complex off Balboa. The van pulls into the alley, parking in the rear garage. I try to make myself stop worrying—I need to focus on getting this right. Don’t let them see too much, but let them see enough to win their favor. Sid seems to have pretty high expectations from the sound of it.
    The boys all start piling out and unloading the equipment, obviously having done this hundreds of times. Connor and Kara disappear through the gate, entering the building’s poorly lit courtyard.
    The apartment complex is small, old. Most likely built in the sixties, but obviously rebuilt, probably after the Northridge quake in ’94. It’s surrounded by wrought iron and fir trees.
    “Hey!” Connor yells from the van. “Make yourself useful.” He tosses me an orange extension cord and points for me to follow Lester, who’s walking next to Jax through the back iron gate.
    I trail behind and follow directions as the boys set up video and audio in the courtyard. I don’t ask any questions as the lights are positioned and a small area is cleared for a table and computers. I just do what I’m told and keep my mouth shut.
    Connor talks to the camera crew when they get there, three guys who look more like hipster coffeehouse rejects than a serious crew, but what do I know about Hollywood? After he gives them some instructions on how small the apartment is, a timeline for the night, and descriptions of what kind of “frames” and “moods” he’s looking for, he waves for me to