Soul Bound

by Mari Mancusi

  “Mm-hmm. Sure you are. Except that, you know, you look like someone burned your favorite Batman shirt.”

  He leans back against the swing, letting out a long sigh.

  “Come on, Jareth,” I press. “Tell me what’s bothering you now. You know whatever you say will be between the two of us. You can trust me, remember?”

  He’s silent and, at first, I’m pretty sure he’s not going to speak. I almost give up and go back inside. But just before I start to stand, he opens his mouth.

  “It’s just… watching you in there,” he says in a voice filled with agony. “Reunited with your sister…” He shakes his head. “You never had any doubt, did you? You weren’t scared. You knew what needed to be done and you did it, with no thought to your own safety…”

  “Of course I was scared,” I protest. “I was scared out of my freaking mind. But Sunny needed me. And so I did what I had to do. Like my dad did for me back at Fairyland. That’s just what family does for one another.” I look at him helplessly. “I mean, you did the same for your family, right? When Slayer, Inc. attacked, you did what you could to save your sister…”

  Jareth cringes, rising from the seat so quickly I almost fall off myself. He walks to the opposite end of the porch and stares off into the neighborhood. I rush after him, turning him to look at me, surprised to see the blood tears shimmering in his eyes.

  “What aren’t you telling me, Jareth?”

  He hangs his head. “I lied to you,” he whispers.

  “What?”

  “I didn’t tell you the whole truth. Of what really happened the night my sister died. All these years, I’ve made it sound like I did all I could. That I tried my best and still failed.”

  I stare at him, horror growing inside me. “What are you saying?”

  He’s silent for a moment. “When those first slayers broke through our defenses, one of them recognized me,” he says at last. “He knew I was one of the Consortium members who voted them into power. Who’d given them the right to police vampires and slay those who didn’t conform to their rules. Like my sister and brother.”

  “So?”

  “So he told me if I fought back—if I harmed even a single hair on the head of one Slayer Inc. operative, he’d consider that a breach of contract. Basically an act of aggression between two parties who were supposed to be on the same team.” Jareth lets out a frustrated breath. “He said I would give them the right to sever the agreement altogether and go after our entire organization. Slaying them one by one until vampires were eradicated off the face of the Earth.”

  “Ouch.” I grimace.

  “I could choose to save my family,” he concludes in a broken voice, “but it would be at the expense of the entire vampire race. And so I hesitated,” he continues. “Trying to figure out what I should do. I would have gladly died to save those I love. But I didn’t want to betray my people either. The vampires trusted me; they’d placed themselves under my leadership. How could I willingly sacrifice them when they’d done nothing wrong?”

  “I can’t even imagine having to make that decision,” I whisper. “And in a split second, too.” I place a hand on his arm, trying to comfort him. But he only jerks it away.

  “Sure you could. That’s what I’m trying to say. You wouldn’t have had one moment of doubt. You’re a fighter, Rayne. You would have dove in, saved your family, and then continued to fight until you’d saved every last vampire on Earth.” He hangs his head. “I, on the other hand, hesitated too long, my feet stuck in the mud, unable to move or act. And as I struggled with the decision, that same slayer stabbed my sister in the heart with his stake.” A lone tear slips down his cheek, splashing down onto the white-painted porch. “I’ll never forget the look she gave me before bursting into oblivion. She knew in her heart, somehow, that I was the one who’d betrayed her.”

  I grab him and turn him to face me, not taking no for an answer. “Jareth, look at me,” I command. “You were put in an impossible situation. I’m sure your sister doesn’t blame you for that. She knows your heart was in the right place. That you wanted what was best for everyone.”

  Jareth frowns. “That’s easy for you to say. But you can’t prove it. We’ll never know for sure. And I will live with this guilt for all of eternity.” And with that, he storms off the porch and into the night. I wonder if I should follow him, chase him down, and try to assure him that it wasn’t his fault. That he doesn’t have to live with the guilt. But I know that it won’t do any good. The only person he’d ever believe right now would be his sister herself. And she’s too dead to—

  Oh my God. A lightbulb idea suddenly goes off over my head. I rush back inside the house, up the stairs, to the living room where Sunny’s trying to not to laugh at Race’s rakish charm.

  “Come on,” he’s urging her. “It’ll be like a big sleepover! Makeovers, pillow fights…”

  “Go to bed, rock star,” I say as I shove him aside. “Sunny and I have more important business to discuss.”

  “More important?” he cries in mock horror. “But what could be more important than me showering honor and affection on the most beautiful fairy to ever set foot in Hades itself?”

  I snort. “Good night, Race.”

  He releases a long, exaggerated sigh, then hops off the couch, taking Sunny’s hand in his and bringing it reverentially to his lips. “Good night, sweet princess,” he says sadly. “May your beauty and grace enchant my dreams tonight and forevermore.”

  Sunny giggles. I roll my eyes. He is seriously too much.

  “Fine, fine,” Race says, catching my look. “I guess I’ll go join your father downstairs for a little HADES-TV. Hopefully he won’t reject me.” And with that, he heads down to the lower level of the house.

  Once he’s gone, I turn to my sister.

  “Is Jareth okay?” she asks. “He doesn’t seem himself. Are you two in a fight or something?”

  I quickly give her the rundown of what had happened.

  “Wow, I can’t even imagine having to live through eternity with that much guilt,” Sunny commiserates. “No wonder he’s always so dark and brooding.”

  “No kidding,” I reply. “But what if we found his sister for him? She was a vampire—she’s got to be down here, somewhere, right?”

  My sister’s eyes widen. “Of course,” she agrees. “In fact, I bet his whole family is down here. You could find out where they’re living and show up at their front door. Then they can tell him they don’t blame him whatsoever for what he did and absolve his guilt once and for all.”

  “Unless they do blame him…” I make a face. “I mean, we don’t really know what happened, right? They could be whiling away eternity pushing pins in a Jareth-shaped voodoo doll for all we know.”

  “Yeah, but they’re his family,” Sunny reminds me. “I mean, even when I’m super mad at you, I always get over it in less than a hundred years.”

  “Please. You can’t stay mad at me for five seconds.”

  “We’ll see about that, next time you piss me off.”

  I snort. “But the point is, Jareth’s family might be living at 666 Lake of Fire Drive right now, being burned alive and cursing the day Jareth was born. How do we know? And is it worth the risk? If he sees them suffering, he’s going to hate himself ten times more than he already does.”

  Sunny considers this. “What about that Hellbook thing?” she asks. “Maybe we could look them up on that! Figure out what their life is like by reading their walls.”

  “That’s a great idea!” I jump up from my seat on the couch, diving for my dad’s computer. “If they seem to be happy, we’ll risk it. If not, we won’t mention it at all.”

  “Sounds like a plan!”

  I look back over at her, sitting on the couch, smiling at me. A sight I never thought I’d see again. My sister, back in my life. It’s like a dream come true.

  And now it’s Jareth’s turn to wake up from his nightmare.

  26

  “I don’t k
now if this is a good idea,” Jareth grumps as I drag him onto the No. 777 bus later that evening, after we’ve all had our first real sleep in ages. “Going out and about like this, we risk running into the Demon Patrol again. And this time there will be no Hercules to save us.” He gives me a disapproving look. “You’re this close to scoring an audience with Hades and rescuing your sister. Do you really want to risk being dismembered right about now? Just so you can have dinner?”

  I withhold a smirk; I’ve got him completely fooled. “Hey, I haven’t enjoyed real food in almost a year,” I remind him. “I’m so not missing out on my one chance to chow down on a veggie burger.”

  When my father had informed us that even vampires could eat food down in the Underworld, I realized it was my perfect excuse to get Jareth out of the house to see his family. After all, there was no way he was going to agree to the mission if I told him the truth. But after Sunny and I had perused his family’s Hellbook wall and discovered they lived about a mile away from Dad in the super-uppity Elysian Hills neighborhood, we knew it was vital I make this family reunion happen while there was still time.

  “Besides, what else do we have to do today?” I continue. “I mean, Dad’s still got to set up our meeting with Hades. Might as well take advantage of all the Elysian Fields has to offer while we’re waiting. And I hear the chef came from a five-star place in Manhattan before he died in a tragic flambé accident.”

  Jareth leans back in his seat, staring out the window. “I suppose it will be nice,” he admits. “I just don’t want you to get sidetracked here.”

  I smile at him, appreciating the sentiment. He came back about an hour after storming off from my father’s house, full of apologies. It wasn’t my fault, he admitted. And he didn’t want to distract me from my mission. From now on, it was all about Sunny.

  Except that it wasn’t. Not that he needed to know that right now. Didn’t want to scare him away again.

  The bus pulls up to the side of a pristine, tree-lined street in a gated community with huge mansions that makes my dad’s place look like a small shack. The grass is so plush and green here that it almost looks fake and the gardens are overflowing with the most exotic, colorful flowers I’ve ever seen.

  “Here we are,” I say, grabbing Jareth by the arm and dragging him off the bus. We step down the stairs and the doors close behind us as the vehicle pulls away. Jareth looks around the neighborhood with puzzled eyes.

  “Are you sure this is the right stop?” he asks. “It doesn’t look like Hell’s Kitchen…”

  “Trust me,” I say, leading him down the street, following the directions Sunny printed off Hellbook. As we walk, I take a closer look at the houses we pass. Unlike the subdivisions back home, where every house looks cookie-cutter, here, they’re all completely different. Different styles, different generations. I guess everyone built the home that they felt most comfortable in, in the same style that was popular when they lived or died. There are adobe forts, Victorian mansions, New England saltboxes, and…

  … one big, old, honkin’ castle at the very end of the cul-de-sac.

  Jareth stops in his tracks, his eyes bulging from his head. “That castle,” he murmurs. “It looks just like…” He glances over at me, his expression full of fear. “You’re not taking me to dinner, are you?”

  I shake my head. “Not exactly, no.” I try to grab his arm, to get him to continue to walk. But he seems frozen in place. “Come on,” I urge. “We’re almost there.”

  “Rayne,” he says in a strained voice. “No. You shouldn’t have done this.”

  “Yes, I should have. After all, you’ve spent years and years missing your family. Are you going to tell me you’re going to voluntarily give up a chance to finally see them again?”

  “Well, no. I mean, I don’t want to. But what if they…” He trails off, looking miserable. “What if they don’t want to see me? I don’t think I can live with that.”

  “Well, I don’t think you get to make that decision,” I say, grabbing his arm again and dragging him a few feet closer. But he digs his heels into the pavement. Argh. Stubborn vampire.

  “Rayne, don’t think I don’t appreciate what you’re trying to do here,” he says. “But I don’t think it’s a good—” He stops, eyes widening at something behind me. I whirl around in time to see a petite, purple-glowing woman with hair down to her waist, running across the castle drawbridge as fast as her slim legs can carry her.

  “Jareth!” she cries in an English-accented voice. “Is it really you?”

  Jareth’s nails dig into my arm, so hard they draw pinpricks of blood. “Sarah?” he whispers.

  It must be, because a moment later, the girl has thrown herself into his arms, squeezing him with wild abandon. “I can’t believe it!” she cries. “You’re here. You’re actually here! I heard the rumors but I didn’t believe it!” She buries her face in his chest and hugs him even tighter. “Oh, Jareth, it’s so good to see you at long last!”

  It takes a moment for my shell-shocked ex-boyfriend to find his voice. “Sarah,” he says at last, pulling her away to look her over. “You’ve grown up.”

  She giggles. “I had an extreme makeover at one of the Elysian salons down here. It’s one of the benefits of being truly dead—you can pick whatever you want to look like. Of course, most people choose to go younger—shave off ten years or so. But after living in the body of a ten-year-old for a couple hundred years, I figured it was time to try life as a teenager.”

  She turns to me, her eyes—so much like Jareth’s—shining brightly. “Oh, Rayne, thank you,” she says. “Thank you for bringing my brother back to me. And for taking such good care of him.”

  “I try,” I say with a small smirk. “It’s not always easy, let me tell you. That brother of yours is one stubborn vampire.”

  “Don’t I know it,” Sarah replies, looking lovingly at her older brother. “Now come on! David’s out playing baseball—he’s a complete sports addict these days—but Mom and Dad are inside! We’re just about to have dinner. You have to join us. Dad grills a mean porterhouse steak.”

  “See? I didn’t lie! We are going to dinner,” I point out to Jareth as Sarah drags him toward the castle. Somehow he manages to make his feet work, but he’s still not saying too much. I hope he’s okay. I mean, I meant to surprise him, not put him in a coma.

  We step over the drawbridge and through the main gate. While on the outside the castle looks totally medieval, I’m surprised to see on the inside it’s warmly decorated like a Pottery Barn catalog and has all the modern conveniences of the twenty-first century. A woman who appears to be in her early forties, with blond hair and blue eyes, stands at the sink, washing dishes. She grins widely as she sees Jareth, yanking off her rubber gloves and walking over to give him a huge hug.

  “My son,” she cries, kissing him soundly on both cheeks. “It’s so good to see you. We were starting to worry that you wouldn’t be stopping by.” She turns to me and gives me a big hug, too. “I hope I’m not being too forward,” she apologizes. “It’s just… I’ve wanted to meet you for so long now, Rayne.”

  I beam, liking her already. “I never thought I’d have the chance to meet Jareth’s parents,” I admit.

  “How… did you know I was even here?” Jareth interrupts, still sounding dumbfounded by the whole scene. “And how do you know about Rayne?”

  “Are you kidding? We keep very close tabs on you, my boy,” announces a deep, booming voice from the next room. A moment later, a handsome man in his early forties—who looks startlingly like an older version of my boyfriend—steps into the room. He slaps his son on the back affectionately. “We know everything you’ve been up to these last few years.”

  “But how… ?”

  “HADES-TV,” his sister explains, pointing to their sweet sixty-inch flatscreen hanging above the fireplace. “We started subscribing a couple years ago. It’s a closed-circuit television system that allows you to tune in to relatives you might have back on E
arth.” She gives Jareth an impish look. “We know what you’re up to anytime—day or night.”

  Jareth stares at the TV, then at his eager family. “And you’ve been watching me?”

  “Of course!” Sarah cries. “I mean, you’re still my brother, you know. I need to keep an eye out for you—make sure you’re okay.”

  “I can’t tell you how happy we were the day you met Rayne,” his mother adds. “After all those years of being alone—finally you had someone to care for you.” She gives me an endearing look. Oh yes, I like this woman a lot!

  “Hope you don’t mind, Rayne,” Sarah says. “But I always wanted a sister.”

  I smile at her. “Not at all. I think it’s great.”

  Jareth sinks down onto the red slip-covered sofa, rubbing his face with his hands. “I can’t believe this,” he says, half to himself. “I’m sorry. I… I need a moment.”

  “Take all the time you need. We have eternity.” His mother leans down and kisses him on the top of his head, the gesture sending trills of happiness all through me. Ever since I met Jareth, he’s been such a loner. Never warming up to people, never able to relax and share with anyone except maybe me—and then only once in a while. To see him in a home setting, surrounded by people who love him as much as my family loves me—well, it’s surreal to say the least.

  No matter what happens, I’m so glad we did this. It can’t help but make things better.

  “I’m going to finish up dinner,” Jareth’s mom tells us, heading back around the breakfast bar. “Honey, will you check on the steaks?”

  “Absolutely, dear,” Jareth’s father agrees, walking to the back of the castle and pulling open the sliding glass door. The delicious smell of barbeque wafts through the room.

  I plop down on the couch next to Jareth, trying to catch his eye. “This is your chance,” I hiss at him. “You’ve waited so long to talk to your sister. Now here she is. Don’t blow this. It’s an opportunity I’m pretty positive will never come again.”