Primal Kill (The Order of Vampires #5)

“I guess that’s where the saying sitting ducks comes from. While we have this time, we need to use it wisely. I need to get online. There’s a store in town that sells phones. We would just need Ruth’s ID and some cash to set it up.” Still no response. “Or I could take a dune buggy to the moon, bang a few astronauts, and have a shopping spree on Mars.”

“It won’t be much longer.”

“Ade, are you listening to me?”

“I’m sorry. What?” She turned away from the window.

“I said we could probably get a smartphone under Ruth’s name so our data use would be more discrete. That way the IP address wouldn’t be linked to the house.”

“I told you I don’t understand such things, June. What’s wrong with a library?”

“Libraries are limited, and there’s the risk of exposure. If we buy a smartphone, we’ll have everything we need at our fingertips.”

“What is everything?”

“Every book ever written, forums, community groups, search engines, videos, social media. The internet is an unfathomable web of information right in the palm of your hand.”

“A whole book?” she asked, voice full of skepticism.

“Not just a book. All of them. Millions.”

“That doesn’t seem possible.”

“Trust me, it is.”

Adriel chewed her plump lower lip. “I don’t know. I’m not comfortable taking money from Ruth.”

Juniper glanced over at Ruth, who slept silently in her chair. “I’ll never understand how you immortals pick and choose your ethics. We aren’t taking advantage of her if she offers. We could just ask her for the money and see that she got it back eventually.”

Adriel’s stare returned to the dark window.

“Hey, what’s going on with you?”

Her brows pulled together. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m just hungry.”

“So, get Danny back here.”

Her lips twisted and pursed. “No. I think I’m just nervous.”

She understood how anxiety was sometimes comforted with snacking. “What about a snack? Maybe something sweet or salty?”

Her green eyes turned upward. “I love tomatoes.”

She scrunched her nose. “Tomatoes? Not chips or chocolate or a cookie?”

“Well, I wouldn’t turn away a cookie, but I really love fresh tomatoes. I had an entire garden of them at home. I love the earthy way my fingers smell when I prune them. Maybe I’m just homesick.”

“I’ll add tomatoes to the grocery list.”

“The store-bought ones taste like pesticides.”

“You’re picky.”

“Maybe, but only because I’ve had better and see no reason to settle for less.”

Juniper smirked, liking when Adriel flashed that sort of queen energy. “It’s a shame all Ruth’s potted plants are dead.”

Glancing out the window, she sighed, her animated expression fading. “As good as a tomato sounds, I don’t think that’s what I want.”