by K Fisher
Tucker’s eyes narrowed in on Hazel as he crossed his large, muscled arms against his chest. He took one more long, unamused look at her before glancing up at the driver as they sped along the highway. His voice was slow and concise, each word crisp.
“When these graven lines you see,
Traveler, do not pity me;
Though I be among the dead,
Let no mournful word be said.”
The driver let out a sigh and chuckled, Hazel’s mouth fell agape as she stared at him in surprise. For the first time that she could recall, Caden let out a laugh. It was almost like a bark, loud and sharp from the front. “Well. I didn’t know you actually knew any poetry. Did you write that?”
“Edwin Arlington Robinson. Just remember you don’t know a lot about us just yet, but you will.”
There was a lingering promise with the words, one that somehow left Hazel in both discomfort and comfort. The driver began droning on about his world, encouraged by the random grunt or response from both Tucker and Caden. As they drove towards her former home, Hazel’s eyes left the front of the car, staring out at the passing trees and world around them. After a while, the trees and mountains made way for houses and shopping centers.
As they drove through the city and to the outskirts of Portland, familiar roads whizzed past her window and danced along in Hazel’s mind. Memories she had tried to forget for so long, but seemed to always return to her. Going to the farmer’s markets with her adoptive mother before her mental sickness took over, the tulip fields with her father after her mother's passing. Horses ran along their fences and cows in fields, all things Hazel used to love driving by and looking at. Now they filled her with dread, each farm animal was a minute closer to the home she had been trying to avoid.
What did she actually plan to do? Summon the Guardian from her past and ask him to help them? Faye had told her a bit about the power she had tried to stifle down her entire life, the plane jumping. Could she truly pull Aiden from the spirit realm and into their world to help them? What of the power he had told her he possessed? Would that not be releasing a demon to further harm them all? There were too many things working against them all, yet the two men she traveled with followed in blind faith.
Still, if anyone could find Faye, it would be her two partners and the brother of the woman who took her. Aiden would know all of Danira’s tricks and surely drag her out of hiding, would he not? It was all a gamble and so against the way Hazel had navigated things before.
Look at all the good that had done her. No matter how far she ran and how hard, the dead still found a way to drag her back into their world.
They started down a gravel pathway and Hazel’s breath hitched, the car falling silent as they pulled up in front of the cold, Victorian home of Hazel’s upbringing. There was an energy in the air, one that felt dark and muggy as it settled in on each of their chests.
“Looks like we’re here! I hope you three have a better rest of the weekend. Thank you for choosing Uber!”
Chapter Sixteen
Four years prior
The last time Hazel stood at the door to her childhood home, it had been shortly after the death of her father. He had left her the home and every cent to his name, something that she had not anticipated after moving out and away when she was so young. Hazel had convinced herself for years that the distance in his voice when he spoke to her and the isolation in his large home had meant he hated her in some way before he died. She had been so desperate to leave the isolating life she’d lived there with her father, she had never thought he’d forgive her.
But her father had not been the only one to be affected by her sudden decision to leave and not return. The companion she had spent every day questioning, learning about, and befriending had not been able to properly display his emotions in regards to her leaving. On one hand, it was clear he missed being able to share in conversation with someone, but on the other hand, he still urged her to run away from the turmoils of her past and the spirits that reached for her.
Including himself.
The moment she had turned eighteen, Hazel had left and did not see her father until the day he died, seven years later. They spoke on the phone formally a few times, but he never disclosed the poor health he found himself in until it was far too late and the cancer finally took over. It was not that Hazel hated her adoptive father, she never hated him. It was simply that, no matter how much time they spent together growing up, she never knew him. His fear for her becoming like his late wife heightened each year she lived there until she was no longer allowed to take piano lessons, or engage in anything that wasn’t school or spending time alone in her bedroom.
She had relied on her Guardian to continue the lessons, her only friend.
Although he was there for her, there were times the spirit would fight against his own needs, disappearing for weeks on end while he tried to reason with the devil and angel on his shoulder. When he returned, he’d express his apologies, telling her she’d never understand the struggle he faced.
Every time he spoke with her, it brought her closer to the spirit realm, the very thing he was trying to keep her away from, whether he was fully aware of what his presence was doing, or not.
Finally, the loneliness won out and Hazel left overnight, not trusting herself to wait until morning. By the first afternoon of her eighteenth birthday, her father had read the note she left behind and she had already settled in a motel twenty miles away, using her own hidden stash of money to supplement herself until she could get a grasp on her next steps and what she needed to do to survive.
Hazel had worked from that point on, using her extensive schooling to achieve her goals, despite never fully feeling connected with those around her. She had taken lovers, been hired and fired, seen loss, and fought depression by the time she returned to her father’s home. Well aware that her adoptive father would never again see the adult face of his daughter and learn of the things she had experienced.
The house was empty, but Hazel knew she was being watched the moment her short heels hit the foyer. Shutting the door behind her, Hazel took in the home around her, noting the familiar paintings and wall decor as well as the unfamiliar plants and furniture that had been placed after she had left. The familiar, distinct smell of peppermint wafted through the hallways as Hazel walked, the scent almost masking the dust and musky undertones of the home.
He had died several months previous, but only now had she found the ability to enter the home. It would be the only time she did so before it was sold. She wasn’t entirely sure why she felt the need to, but she told herself it was to ensure there was nothing left she wanted to take.
Deep down, Hazel wanted to see her Guardian just one last time. To ensure he was real and her childhood had not just been one of her coping mechanisms. She knew he was though, deep down in her soul, she did. Despite the spirits being few and far between, she still saw them. Still sensed them.
Just as she sensed Aiden watching her.
Hazel put her purse down at the end of the hallway, climbing the staircase to get to the bedrooms above. But instead of heading towards her old bedroom, she made her way to the reading room. Adjusting the long black coat wrapped tightly around her body, Hazel’s light brown eyes stopped when they rested on the large wooden door. As her hand extended to reach the knob, an energy swirled around her, pulling at her will and begging that she turn around and leave. An urge that rested deep within her gut.
Instead of listening to it, Hazel opened the door and entered the reading room.
Where there had once been bookshelves along the walls, there was now an empty room. Well, empty aside from the grand piano in the center. There were holes in the walls from where the shelves had been torn out and no one had bothered to fill them. Not another piece of furniture within, the large window that looked out into the gardens was covered with slabs of wood, the shine from the sun outside reached through the cracks and exposed the dust in the air above the black piano.<
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It looked so different from the other pristine rooms, sticking out painfully. Hazel walked into the room and allowed the door to close behind her. Moving slowly, she approached the piano and took a seat before it. The long keys were exposed, yellowed with age and the bench creaked when she rested her full weight upon it. It was not a piano she had ever seen, far different than the baby grand she had practiced on downstairs when she was growing up and never something she had seen in the possession of her adoptive father.
The room was silent around her, not a sound to indicate anyone was there with her, still Hazel knew she was not alone.
Her fingers rested on the keys and she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath in through her nose and out her mouth. Cool, calm, collected. When the breath was released, she allowed her body and mind to succumb to the piano.
The song that played was softly muted by the energy that filled the room. Hazel felt a presence at her back, a body that surely had to be only a few inches away. Still, she played. She played the song her Guardian had taught her so many years ago, body swaying forward as she poured herself into the melody and escaped from the thoughts that haunted her. Beneath her fingers, the old keys played without need for tuning, a deep and rich melody she had missed so dearly.
When Hazel’s eyes opened, she saw the flash of bright blue and knew the body behind her was the one she sought. The body moved slowly, settling in on the bench beside her. As his leg touched her own, sparks of his Affinity danced along the fabric of her jeans and warmed through her entire body. She did not look directly at him and he did not look at her. Instead, Aiden’s fingers took space on the piano near hers as it had so many years before.
When he began playing, the blue of his Affinity spread through the keys, each one glowing beneath their fingers as they created the song together. There was a heat from his body that she had not remembered from before, one that spread throughout her continuously. Hazel took a deep breath and continued playing, her fingers racing along the keys as they approached his. Aiden’s long and eloquent fingers stopped playing as hers continued their dance. For a moment, she thought he’d remove them from the piano altogether and leave, but instead he dropped them slowly upon hers.
She stopped playing, captured where her hands remained softly trapped beneath his own. Hazel looked over and up, meeting the familiar set of crystal eyes she had remembered. They were nestled beneath thick, long lashes, his angled face inspected hers, both beautiful enough to be sculpturesque, but strong enough to appear masculine. There was a soft shadow of a beard upon his face, one she was not certain she’d remembered when she was younger. But there was surely no way it could have grown, he was dead after all.
His mere presence took the breath from her, shocking Hazel. She had not been prepared to see him up close once again, had not been prepared for the effect he had over her after so long. But she had been only a child before, just barely able to spread her wings and fly. Now, she had seen quite a bit of things, had experienced so much more.
“Why did you come back?” His voice did not seem far away, it was not an echo in the room as it had been before. He was right there with her, somehow. As human as she had ever felt him be.
“I had to come back one last time,” she responded strongly, surprising herself.
“Did you come back to see me?” This time, Aiden smiled. His bright teeth shone, a laugh falling from his full lips as he shook his head. One stray strand of his dark hair slipped forward, but instead of resting against his forehead, it floated through it. “I’m so flattered you’re still thinking of me. I didn’t know my piano lessons were that good.”
Perhaps not as ‘here’ as I had thought.
“I needed to see if you were real.”
“I doubt that very much. You see, if you were really crazy and saw me, how would that prove you weren’t? I think you missed me. You’ve changed a lot, but I would remember that energy from anywhere. The entire house moved with it when you approached.” His voice cracked slightly, eyes dimming until the glow had dissipated, leaving only the clear blue behind. It was a color that took Hazel’s breath away, her own energy feeding into his like a source. It was a connection that she accepted easily, but did not yet understand.
“This is the last time I will be here,” she repeated, finding it suddenly necessary that she drive that point home.
“So you said.” This time his hand left hers, rising until it cupped her cheek. Hazel’s breath caught as she kept her eyes on his. There was a sadness there, one that cloaked a fire she had seen a few times before. “You’ll never cut your connections with the spirits, will you? When I saw you walking here, for a split second I wondered if you had died.” His hand on her skin was soft, but his voice was rough.
“Aiden, you told me a great many times when you were my Guardian. I have experienced a lot, have worked hard and never once has my life been threatened by the spirits you’ve warned me against. I need to sell the home, another family will live here. I wanted to come and tell you myself. To tell you that I would not be able to return and this place will no longer be owned by the same family.”
“Not able, but not that you don’t want to.” There was a soft tilt to the side of his lips, one that Hazel found herself fixating on. Everything about Aiden was familiar but new, her body responding in a way it never had before as the fire spread down her body and rested at her core. A grinding need that left her breathless in the piano bench, wanting nothing more but his touch. An adult woman responding to a century-old Guardian spirit, an old friend, and watchful companion.
He frowned, studying her face before shock briefly registered in his eyes. His eyes lowered to her lips, captured in the same moment she was. He growled, hand dropping from her skin as he tore away from the piano, standing and walking a few feet away. Aiden turned to face her, the emotions still clear as day in his eyes despite his perfect posture.
“I’m not a little kid, Aiden. I have a few questions for you, and I need you to answer them for me before I leave.” She had planned this for a long time, thought about this moment as soon as her adoptive father had passed. From his reaction, it was clear her Guardian had the same electric reaction to her as she seemed to have for him. Although she could not explain it, Hazel would use it if she had to.
“I am well aware you are an adult, Hazel,” Aiden hissed, eyes spanning her face before returning to her eyes as he spoke again. “Ask your questions.”
Hazel stood from the piano, already missing the contact between them both. It was security, it was ensuring her he was not only real, but there with her. She didn’t stop until she stood before him, looking up into his familiar face. Only this time she was painfully aware of how much taller he was than herself, an easy foot. His broad shoulders and lean torso vibrated with his Affinity…power that would not leave him whether he was dead or alive, Hazel was certain.
“Aiden, if I can walk between the spirit realm and the real realm, is there a way that I can allow the spirits to be free? A way to bridge the two together so you’ll not be confined to this home?”
“Feeling sorry for the captive spirit, Hazel? Don’t think on it, I’ve known someone with that same vision and only evil can come from that desire. You should not meddle with…”
“I know. I shouldn’t meddle with the worlds. Answer the question.” Hazel’s voice was firm, strong as she lifted up onto her toes, dangerously close to his lips. It was a bold move, and one that stilled the air around them both. “Answer the question,” she whispered, eyes staring his down.
She saw him swallow, felt his arms tense as he seemed to struggle for control before speaking. “I think you can.”
“Tell me how to free you,” Hazel said, feeling the desperation in her own voice. She hated how long she had pined over the answer to the question, had truly wished there was a way she could free him and no longer feel the guilt over abandoning him.
Over abandoning her father.
“Hazel, it’s time for you to leave.”
“Stop protecting me and just answer the question, Aiden. I deserve an answer, I’m trying to give you your freedom, isn’t that what you want?” Hazel knew she was weakening him, could see it in his eyes. He was right there, ready to fall over the edge and spill everything she needed to know about her power and what she was capable of. Her Guardian simply needed a push.
That was when Hazel leaned forward and pressed her lips against his, still perched on her toes. He was firm and alive beneath her lips, shocked for a mere moment before he moaned a sigh of pleasure against her. Her face was captured with both hands, feet flattened as he leaned down to continue the kiss. Aiden’s warm, powerful lips worked against hers in desperation, his power pouring into her until sparks of blue danced along the walls of the room.
Things between them ceased far sooner than Hazel wanted them to, Aiden pulling away as he shook his head. There were words on his lips, things she knew he wanted to say. Instead, he frowned and took a step away from her.
“Get out of here, Hazel. Don’t ever return.”
Without another word, his body faded away, the glow of his power consuming him and erasing the man who had been there with her.
She stayed calling his name until she could say no more, but no matter how long Hazel remained, Aiden did not show himself again.
Chapter Seventeen
The Uber pulled away leaving the somewhat bloodied trio standing before the ornate home Hazel had once lived in. Since then, the lawn had been redone, a massive fountain taking precedence in the front of the house where the flowers once grew. There were layered gardens, empty of vines or plants as they prepped for the cold winter, making them look like a graveyard of exposed earth. One colorful ball was half hidden in a planter by the walkway, but there was no sign of a dog, and she didn’t remember Caden or Faye mentioning one. There were no other parked vehicles at the house, hopefully confirming the woman of the house had gone to her sister’s side and given them some time to work with.
