The Cloak's Shadow

by Elle Beauregard

  They’d done it. She’d done it.

  “You’ll feel better after you sleep,” he said.

  Cecily sat on her bed and when she looked up, her swimming eyes found Zander’s. “That was Trevor.”

  Zander’s brows furrowed, then rose in comprehension. “You mean the dude on the landing?”

  “Yeah, him,” Cecily replied, pulling back the covers on her mattress. “He was my boyfriend, before—”

  “You don’t have to explain this to me now,” Zander said, cutting her off when emotion seeped into Cecily’s voice. “Tell me about it when you wake up.” It wasn’t that she didn’t want to know—she did, really. But right then, she wanted her sister to focus on being okay again. She wanted to know she would be.

  Zander sighed as she closed the door behind her and Callum to the sound of Cecily’s soft snores moments later.

  “You were incredible,” Callum said when she turned around, his voice low. His smirk was enticing, his blue eyes warm and bright.

  The back of Zander’s neck warmed. “You weren’t bad either.”

  He scoffed. “I was nothing compared to what you just did. Watching you open the cloak—” he shook his head. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”

  Zander wasn’t sure what to say so she breathed a laugh as she crossed into the living room.

  “Do you need to let your mom and Alyssa know they can come home?” Callum asked.

  Yes. Technically, she did need to let them know everything was okay.

  But they’d been waiting this long, and Zander needed something other than their company right then. They could wait a little longer.

  She turned to find Callum propped against the arm of the sofa with his arms crossed casually over his chest. His dark blond hair was loose and soft, the stubble on his jaw calling to be touched. Kissed.

  She shook her head and went to him. “Not yet.” She reached up and ran her fingers over his shoulder as she walked by him—on a path to her bedroom.

  She left the door open and pulled her shirt up over her head as she crossed the room, letting it fall to the floor behind her. When she reached her bed, she unbuttoned the fly of her jeans and pushed them down. Then she kicked them off and crawled up onto the comforter. Kneeling on the mattress, she turned to find the door closed and Callum leaving his own clothes on the carpet. His smile was dark and laced with promised pleasure when he joined her on the bed. He pull the comforter up and wrapped it around them both, encircling her in his arms.

  She smiled when he looked at her. “You’re feeling better.”

  He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to hers. “I am. I’m sorry about this morning.”

  “You weren’t yourself.”

  His chuckle was low and private. “That’s an understatement, I think.”

  When he pulled back enough to look at her, her heart tripped and a warmth suffused her chest that had nothing to do with the blankets wrapped around them.

  He was so beautiful.

  Time slowed.

  And a horrible truth rose to the surface of her thoughts.

  She was going to have to leave him.

  He had Rhia to protect him. He had runes painted on his house and tattooed on his body that kept him safe. He had years of knowledge and experience that helped him fend off the evil that threatened him simply because he could see it. Simply because it could hurt him.

  But Cecily had none of those things. No more-than-meets-the-eye animal to defend her. No runes or magic spells. Because she’d had Zander as a sister her entire life, she didn’t even have any experience to rely on.

  She was alone in this. The only thing she had for protection was Zander.

  Zander had a responsibility to keep her sister safe. Why else would she be an opaque shield over a translucent veil, if not to protect her own flesh and blood?

  Even if that meant abandoning the job she’d fought like hell to land. Or leaving the only man she’d ever truly trusted. Or loved.

  She saw Callum’s brows furrow, his expression turn questioning. He brought his fingers to the side of her neck. “What is it?”

  She didn’t need to think about this now, she told herself. Now, with him in her arms, it was time to celebrate. Time to revel in victory, in the way he looked at her, in the way his body and his mind made her feel.

  So she smiled. And she locked all those other thoughts away. For now.

  “Nothing,” she said.

  Then she kissed him.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Callum stood at the edge of the entry hall, his duffle bag at his feet. He felt amazing. It was incredible what sixteen hours of sleep and intermittent sexy times could do for a person. Oh yeah, and having remnants of evil removed from your psyche.

  You know, the usual.

  Damn, that had been one hell of a ride. Watching Zander smoke that Shadow had been incredible. The minute she'd seen Cecily's face, he'd seen the first shimmer of light bending around her. He'd watched in awe as she'd taken it in her hands—and split the thing open like it was nothing more than sheers over a window.

  He hadn't even known that was possible.

  Rhia bumped his hand with her head, pulling his attention back into the moment. He patted her neck absently, watching Zander check and recheck her purse. She was nervous—it was obvious in the way she kept checking for things she knew she had. She'd been that way since they'd woken up this morning, withdrawn and quiet. Callum figured she was due some introspection, she'd been through a lot in the last forty-eight hours.

  Still, he hoped that's all it was. Part of him worried she'd seen those bruises on her neck—deepening in color now that they were healing—in the mirror and was re-thinking the whole nothing-to-apologize-for thing.

  If that was it, he could understand. He agreed, in fact. And he would apologize forever if that's what it took.

  Rhia left his side, crossing to where Cecily was standing just a couple yards away, reading something on her phone.

  Callum brought his hand to his back pocket, confirming his own phone was where it was supposed to be. He hadn't spoken to Scott since leaving New Orleans, Saturday afternoon. He wasn't sure what he was going to say to him when he saw him tonight. He understood why Scott told Cecily what he had—he just sure as hell wished he hadn't needed to.

  "Okay, I think we're ready," Zander said, slinging her bag over her shoulder.

  Cecily looked up, tucking her phone into her pocket.

  Their mom, Nicole, stood from the sofa, crossing her arms over her chest in that way people do when they're exhausted. Alyssa stayed put on the sofa where she was sitting. She hadn't said much to Callum since coming home.

  Callum likewise hadn't been able to bring himself to say much to Zander's mom. Knowing she knew about him—knowing she knew his hands had strangled her oldest daughter—made every set of words he could think of not good enough.

  Because of course Zander had told her what had happened—she had to. He got that.

  "It was good meeting you all," he said. It sounded so lame when it left his lips. He started to revise himself, but Nicole cut him off.

  “Next time we see you, hopefully it will be under better circumstances." She smiled.

  Callum gave an awkward laugh that turned into a sigh. "Yeah, I hope you're right."

  Hey, at least she made it sound like he was welcome back. That had to count for something.

  Zander gave her own awkward laugh. "Let's not get carried away," she said as she crossed the room and gave Alyssa a hug. Then she hugged her mom. And, finally, Cecily.

  "I need to come for a visit soon," Cecily said with a smile. "Scott said he'll do my rune tattoos."

  Callum saw Zander stiffen. She stepped back with a sigh. "Look, I'm going to move back home."

  "Huh?" Cecily's questioning expression mirrored the look Callum could feel on his own face—along with the feeling of his heart grinding to a halt in his chest.

  Zander sighed uncomfortably again. She threw a glance at
Callum but responded to Cecily. "I'm just going back to pack up my things," she said. "I can't leave you here. It wouldn't be right." She threw another look to Callum. "And I won't put you through anything like that again. It wasn't fair."

  Cecily shot a surreptitious glance at Callum, who found himself glued to the spot, unable to move. Or think. Other than to think of a hundred things that would be completely inappropriate to say right then. Like are you fucking kidding me? And I’d do it all again to be with you. And I don’t want New Orleans if you’re not in it. Things he wouldn’t have dared say out loud with other people in the room.

  Cecily must have been in a similar state. She opened her mouth to speak but sighed sharply instead. It wasn't until she tried again that any words came out. "You don't have to do that," she said. "I'm fine. Really."

  Zander looked skeptical. "Did you already forget everything that happened here?"

  Cecily's expression turned stung with a dash of anger. "Of course not. But I'll be fine. You don't need to derail your career to take care of me. You worked so hard to get that job."

  "I'll find another job," Zander replied, her voice too even and too calm.

  She'd been planning this all morning. Maybe longer.

  Cecily's glance at Callum was more obvious this time, her expression pleading. "I'll keep the runes drawn on me until I can get tattooed," she said. "Callum's runes keep him safe—they'll keep me safe just the same."

  This could not be happening. The words screamed in Callum's head. It just couldn't. He needed Zander—for reasons that had nothing to do with spirits or veils or cloaks. He needed her wit. Her intelligence. Her wicked humor and sarcasm.

  Her friendship.

  But she wanted to protect her sister. And that instinct was part of what made her her.

  "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you don't want me to live at home again," Zander said to Cecily, teasing.

  "It's not that," Cecily replied. "But... in a way—"

  So, what, now Zander’s life plan involved following her little sister around every day? Even if that were possible—which is wasn’t—how was that fair to either of them? Callum’s internal monologue was biting—and then...

  "Rhia should stay with Cecily." Callum made the offer the moment the idea came to him.

  Everyone turned to look at him.

  "Rhia likes you," he said to Cecily. "And she's what has kept me safe all these years. The tattoos help, but Rhia is the real protection."

  Nobody spoke, but Cecily looked to Zander hopefully.

  Meanwhile, Callum silently worked on getting his heart to beat steadily again.

  Zander might have thought this all out, but Callum wasn't giving up that easily. Even dismissing his own selfish wants, Cecily was right. It wasn't fair for Zander to give up something she'd worked so hard for when there was another solution so readily available.

  Then there was Cecily to consider. Her connection with Trevor would be seriously limited if she lived with Zander again. Zander knew that—she just wasn't thinking of it.

  "Can I talk to you for a second?" Zander passed him on a direct path to the front door.

  Callum gave a weak smile to Zander's mom as Cecily looked on, raw nerves in her green eyes and color high on her angled cheekbones. Then he turned and followed Zander out the front door, onto the landing at the top of the stairs.

  Zander spun back as he closed the door behind them. "What are you doing?"

  "Rhia likes her," he said simply. "And she'll keep her safe. You don't need to give up everything to protect Cecily."

  Zander opened her mouth to respond, but nothing came out. She tried again. "Is this is about my career goals or is this about us?"

  Callum just stared at her for a second before he could find a response. "Of course it's about us," he said, his voice low. "Which includes you and your goals. You can’t be with Cecily every minute. It’s not fair to either of you. Yes, Cecily needs to stay safe—but you both need to be able to live your lives in the process. So, yeah, it's about us, not just about me, if that's what you're saying."

  Zander just stood there, staring at him, the hazel color of her eyes so bright in the cloud-covered sunlight. He tried to record every detail of her—the bow of her lips, the curve where her neck met her shoulder, the way her hair glinted auburn as she shook her head—in case this was one of the last times he saw her.

  "Rhia goes with you everywhere," she said.

  "Because she has to," he replied easily. "And not everywhere."

  "If you let Rhia stay here, Cecily might be safe, but you'll be vulnerable."

  Callum paused for a heartbeat before letting himself say what was on the tip of his tongue. "I won't be vulnerable. I'll have you."

  Zander released her breath on a whoosh, her gaze sliding away from his so she looked out onto the parking lot for a moment before turning back to him. "I don't know, Callum. This is..."

  Despite all the reasons he probably shouldn't, Callum took a flying leap of honesty. "I’ve fallen in love with you, Zander."

  She stopped, eyes wide, lips parted in surprise.

  So he said it again. "I've already fallen. I can't go back."

  She blinked.

  "Look," he went on, "if you end up hating me, you never have to talk to me again. I'll leave you alone, and I won't even make Cecily give Rhia back."

  "Then you'll really be vulnerable!" she shot back.

  "That's my point!" he exclaimed. "That's not going to happen! You're... Jesus, you're everything to me. Why can't you believe it?"

  "I do believe it!" she shot back. "You've done so much, risked so much to keep Cecily safe. Of course I believe it! But it's not the falling that's hard!" She sighed bitterly. "It's the landing that sucks."

  "It doesn't have to," he replied, stepping toward her, hands outstretched, fingers itching to touch her. "Not with me. The landing doesn't have to hurt."

  She kept her eyes on him, kept staring, but her brows went from furrowed to questioning.

  "You're into me, too," he said when she didn't speak, using her words from all those nights ago.

  Maybe I am into you, she’d said. Really fucking into you.

  "You said so before you stormed out of my house that first night." He smirked, teasing though the next question was serious. "Has that changed?"

  "Yes," she breathed.

  His stomach fell to his feet.

  Her eyes skated away from his. “Don’t hold back from him,” she mumbled.

  Callum felt his brows furrow. Had he heard her right?

  When she looked at him, something was different. The fear was still there behind her eyes, but the set of her jaw was softer and her shoulders weren’t as tight. "It is different than it was before,” she said. “Now I love you."

  He was weightless, flying with his feet on the ground.

  She stepped into him without any fear in her expression, as though saying the words had wiped it away. "I was so scared when I thought we'd hurt you. Of course I love you."

  A single, disbelieving laugh came from his chest as he looked into her remarkable face. He took her hands and brought them to his mouth, kissing the backs of them as he stared into her eyes. "So Rhia stays? You'll come back with me?"

  She drew a breath and he could see, behind her eyes, the way logic warred with emotion in her thoughts. He waited, giving her time.

  Until she nodded.

  Then he kissed her.

  ⫷⫸⫷⫸⫷⫸

  Callum sat his and Zander's duffel bags on the curb at the bottom of the stairs that led from her family's apartment.

  "Have everything?" Zander asked as she gave her purse one final inventory.

  Okay, so maybe the purse checking hadn't been purely about nerves—at least not as they related to her previous, wayward plans.

  Callum smiled to himself. He was about to say—for the tenth time—that yes, he had everything, but stopped. He had one last piece of business to attend to before he left. And while technically, it could
wait, he didn't like to leave loose ends.

  "Actually, can you go upstairs and make sure I didn't leave my toothbrush?" he said. "I thought of it earlier but forgot to check."

  "Toothbrush, got it." Zander turned and jogged up the stairs.

  Callum waited until he heard the door close behind her, then let his eyes scan the parking lot. "Trevor?"

  Movement to his left drew Callum's attention in time to see Trey step out from behind a nearby tree.

  "Hey, my man," Callum said in greeting.

  "Hey." Trevor smiled, but there was question in his eyes. "Is Cecily alright?"

  "Completely fine," Callum replied. "Zander and I are getting ready to leave, so you'll have her to yourself again in a few. She'll have Rhia with her—she’ll be able to see you too."

  "Rhia? That's the dog, right?"

  "That's her," Callum confirmed. "But don't let her adorableness fool you—she's straight badass if she has to be."

  Trey's laugh was small but genuine. "Okay, good to know."

  Callum took an easy step toward him. He wasn't sure he'd ever had a real conversation with a spirit before, not by choice. "I just wanted to say thanks. You really saved the day with your spirit mojo yesterday."

  Trevor laughed again. "No problem. It felt good to help—almost like being alive. Did Cissy tell Zander about us, like she promised?"

  Callum felt himself smile as he nodded. "She did, yeah."

  "How'd Zander take it?"

  Callum thought back to that conversation. He'd sat quietly, mostly acting like he wasn't paying close attention while Cecily had explained the secret relationship she'd had with Trevor. And his recent death.

  "Zander took it fine. She's good like that," Callum said with an easy shrug. "You should be proud of your girl. It took guts to come clean like she did."

  Trey looked relieved. His smile was broader this time. "I'm always proud of her," he said. "But, she's not my girl anymore. Not really."

  Callum drew a slow breath as he nodded, casting his eyes to the cement at his feet before looking to Trevor once again. "Yeah, you're right. That's another thing I wanted to talk to you about, actually."