Demon Snare (These Immortal Vows Book 1)

by Kestra Pingree

  “L-let’s go,” I say as I produce my keys from inside my pants pocket. “Are you driving with me?”

  “If you don’t mind,” he replies.

  “I don’t mind.”

  I was prepared to drive before I asked because Rynne never drives. He doesn’t have a car.

  Actually, his living situation is a little unusual. He said his parents sent him here on his own because they weren’t impressed with their local schools. So they sent him off to Reverie because of its good reputation. His parents are very spiritual people, and spiritual people like Reverie. I could understand that much. I asked him once why they didn’t come with him if that’s that case, but he said they decided to take the opportunity to travel the country, something they’ve always wanted to do in order to help as many people as they can with their knowledge of the unseen. They sound a lot like my parents, except for the traveling part.

  Rynne’s been staying at Reverie’s hotel since he first got here a year ago. It’s a good location for him since it’s near the center of the town; it’s ideal for walking pretty much anywhere you’d want or need to go.

  I walk with Rynne out into the nearly empty parking lot, where we easily find my white Toyota Camry. We wordlessly slip into my car after I unlock the doors. I don’t realize I’m shaking until after I start the engine and place my hands on the steering wheel. I glance at Rynne to see him looking outside his window. At least he hasn’t noticed my shaking. I need to pull it together—but Didi said she wanted me and Rynne to pose as a couple.

  The burning sensation flushes through my body again, so I roll down my window to invite the crisp autumn air inside to cool me off.

  “If it gets too cold, let me know,” I say.

  Rynne glances at me just as I’m about to shift my car into drive. “Are you feeling okay?” he asks. My heart nearly stops when he reaches out to me and brushes his fingers across my forehead, resting his hand there to gauge my temperature. “You might have a fever.” He frowns.

  “I don’t,” I insist, but my voice sounds small. All I can think about is Rynne’s hand on my forehead. “It’s nothing. I’m fine.”

  Hesitantly, he retracts his hand and brings his eyes back to the window. “If you say so,” he replies.

  I’m hopeless. I’m super self-conscious about every move he makes. He isn’t acting any different than he usually does, but I want to read something more into his every gesture. I want something more.

  I don’t think he gets my feelings for him at all.

  I don’t even get my feelings for him. He’s the only one who has ever made me feel this way. To be honest, I’ve always just ignored boys. My parents taught me about lust and all the other deadly sins since I was a child. It’s probably naive, but I made a vow then to never bother with boys if it meant falling into lust. I never even thought of breaking that vow before Rynne.

  I drive out of the parking lot and set off down the road for Reverie Park. The park is pretty easy to spot in almost any part of Reverie, thanks to the Old Merry Way, the park’s original and most iconic roller coaster. Its tracks are made of wood, and even though the wood has been replaced throughout the years, the material has stayed the same, true to its roots. The town puts in a lot of effort to keep all of the rides built throughout the years authentic and true to their intended designs.

  It doesn’t take long before we reach the open parking booths, and I drive into the parking lot. We don’t have to pay for parking this time of year since all the rides are closed, meaning we won’t have to contend with tourists, but they keep Fairytale Forest open since it’s a walking trail within the park. It gets its name from the fairytale inspired sculptures and scenery decorating the trail. Well, that’s true for most of the trail. There is one sculpture inside that doesn’t fit with the theme. It’s a sculpture as old as this town: the Guardian Angel.

  “It sure is quiet this time of year,” Rynne comments when we’re both out of the car.

  I say, “I think it’s nice.”

  He nods in agreement. “And it looks like the Johnsons beat us here.” He points out a black SUV.

  If Didi had really forgotten her camera, that wouldn’t have been possible. I don’t say that thought out loud, but the look Rynne gives me means he probably came to the same conclusion.

  Rynne and I walk past the ticket booths and into the open park. The red-rock paths are empty, dusted with orange, yellow, and red leaves that look like they were meant to be part of the trail. The rides stay still, sleeping on either side of us as we wind our way through the original rides to the new ones. Walking through the park feels like time traveling. You start out with the old rides made in the 1900s to the new rides made up to this year, 2016, all in one place and within minutes.

  There are two kinds of people who bother visiting Reverie. The first group comes for the amusement park, and the second comes for the spiritual resources.

  I don’t typically mind silence, but I find myself worrying over what Rynne is thinking. I glance at him from time to time as I worry, but his expression is unreadable. Everyone, myself included, sees him as a nice guy. He’ll talk to anyone, and he’s always considerate. That’s just who he is, but in these quiet moments, he seems different. Mysterious. Unknowable. It’s like his mind is somewhere else, far away from here.

  “You’re staring,” Rynne notes.

  I jerk and turn my head forward. He wasn’t even looking at me. He must have seen me staring in his peripheral vision. God, I’m so stupid. At least the silvery arches inscribed with the words Fairytale Forest are just ahead of us now. Connor and Didi are standing right in front of them. Maybe I won’t have to explain myself.

  “You guys are slow, and we had to pick up a camera!” Connor yells, using his hands to direct his voice toward us.

  I decide not to say anything. I know Didi never left her camera behind in the first place; it was probably just inside her backpack.

  Didi waves her Canon camera at us and adds, “Hurry up! I need to get pictures while the light is good.”

  Maybe I don’t want to do this after all. Maybe I’ll tell Didi I changed my mind. Pictures with Rynne, the two of us posing as a couple? No, no, no, no. I can feel my body itching to run away, but warm fingers wrap around mine as Rynne takes my hand and walks us forward. I stumble alongside him as heat flashes across my face.

  “Getting into your roles already?” Didi asks.

  “Where are we starting?” Rynne interjects, calm and straightforward as usual. He doesn’t let go of my hand.

  “Let’s walk down the path and see if anything catches my artistic eye.” Didi throws her hands up into the air dramatically, her large camera in one hand; I guess she isn’t afraid she’ll drop it.

  The flush won’t leave my face because Rynne doesn’t let go of my hand. I have a hard time focusing on the beautiful scenery as we walk along the trail. I see vague images of sculpted fairytale stories, but the image that sticks out the most in my mind is Rynne’s hand holding mine. The warmth of his skin is soothing against the chill of the wind. My stomach is full of butterflies, and my heart is beating a million times per minute. I can’t believe he’s holding my hand. What possessed him to do that?

  “Perfect!” Didi announces.

  I reluctantly shut down my thoughts of Rynne to focus on what she’s talking about. I see her and Connor standing next to the Guardian Angel statue, the crowned jewel of our town. The work done on his flowing robes and feathered wings makes the marble seem soft. If you touched the fabric, you’d feel silk. If you touched the wings, you’d feel the fluff of downy feathers. That’s what it looks like anyway. The whole thing is as hard and cold as you’d expect marble to be. Being able to convey those diverse textures through a sculpture and tricking the eye like that must take a lot of skill.

  As masterfully crafted as the Guardian Angel is, it’s not the primary reason people come to him. People come to the Guardian Angel because of a rumor. They say he witnesses promises and helps dreams come tru
e. It’s said that if you make a promise of love underneath the angel’s outstretched arms, you will be blessed. Likewise, if you come to the angel and ask for help in succeeding at a worthwhile task or a dream, the angel will assist you there as well. I’ve never tried it, so I don’t know how true any of that is. My parents say he’s a very powerful relic that fights off evil auras throughout Reverie, though. The founders created him for that reason. He is a depiction of God’s goodness, and he holds God’s power within him to this day.

  “All right, you two,” Didi says after she’s finished walking around the statue, finding which angles are best. “Come here.”

  I look up at Rynne when he doesn’t move. He’s still holding my hand.

  “Rynne?” I ask.

  “Do you still want to do this?” he replies. “It looked like you were getting ready to run back there.” He squeezes my hand.

  “I-I’m fine. Let’s get it over with before Didi comes here and makes us.”

  He smiles that smile of his. The one that’s too perfect for any human to have. I’m not sure what the intent behind that smile is. Is he happy we’re doing this together? Is he just smiling to try and calm my nerves? What does it mean?

  I take the lead this time as I walk us over to the Guardian Angel. Didi and Connor exchange satisfied looks with one another before Didi starts placing me and Rynne every which way like we’re mannequins. She snaps pictures faster than I can think, and then she repositions us all over again. When she positions us to hold each other’s hands out in front of us and to gaze into each other’s eyes, I feel especially embarrassed. It’s like we’re making a promise of love in front of the Guardian Angel. That’s what it looks like. That’s also what it feels like. I don’t think Rynne’s ever looked at my like this, like the reserved and always pleasant layers making up his actions are almost washed away, like he’s looking into my eyes with a genuine tenderness. I want to get lost in that feeling, but then I start doubting myself. Maybe I’m just projecting all of this onto him. What a disaster. If Didi and Connor are really trying to help me out, they aren’t.

  “Perfect!” Didi says as she finally puts her camera away. “Thanks. I’m sure to get an A with those. You two look really cute together.”

  I slip my hands away from Rynne’s and slide down onto the ground in front of the Guardian Angel. I don’t think I can take another second of touching or looking at Rynne. The fire still hasn’t left my cheeks.

  Connor calls Rynne over to look at something. I’m glad I get a moment away from him to let my nerves settle down. I want him to know how I feel, but I’m not sure I’ll ever work up the courage to tell him. But what if I never tell him and he moves away after high school? What if I never see him again?

  Seeking comfort, I touch the black diamond hanging around my neck.

  Didi slides down next to me and places a hand on my knee. She tells me, “Now’s your chance.”

  “Chance for what?” I ask.

  “To ask the Guardian Angel to give you courage to go after Rynne of course!”

  “Keep it down!” I hiss.

  “C’mon, Tasia. He totally likes you.”

  Does he?

  I stare after the boys. Connor climbs onto the back of a unicorn standing up on its hind legs and acts as if he’s in a rodeo, hanging on with one hand and twirling his other hand in the air. Rynne just laughs at him—his melodious laugh.

  “It can’t hurt,” Didi tells me.

  The wind picks up for a moment, tangling Didi’s curly orange hair and my straight brown hair together. We both laugh as we untangle our hair before knots can form.

  “We should have worn our hair up today it seems,” Didi says.

  “Looks like it,” I agree.

  “Think about it at least, Tasia. I know I’m not wrong.” She grins at me, and then she leaves me to join the boys.

  I look up at the Guardian Angel hovering over me, arms outstretched and welcoming.

  “There’s no such thing as love at first sight, you know,” I tell the angel matter-of-factly. “You hear fairytales all the time about love at first sight, but they’re just an abstraction, an idea of what a perfect world should look like. Love at first sight, in reality, isn’t love. It’s lust.” My parents have the perfect marriage. They’re happy and they love each other, but they told me it’s something they built for themselves. Their relationship wasn’t built on a fleeting attraction.

  Know yourself. Be wary of your feelings and seek their origin. Fill your life with positivity, good intents and feelings.

  “Guardian Angel,” I whisper with a sigh, “please give me the courage to tell Rynne how I feel.”

  I look up at the Guardian Angel one more time, and then I go to join the others, where Rynne greets me with a smile warm enough to melt my heart. There’s a light, a goodness, that comes from him that I’ve never felt from anyone else. I love that about him. I love everything about him. He inspires me with his light, and I want to share that same light.

  CHAPTER 2

  Tasia

  BY THE TIME I get home, the sun is almost ready to set. I park my car on our gravel driveway, and then I walk up to the front door. There’s a ring of garlic on our door, like always. I smile as I touch the garlic. I don’t feel the same kind of comfort from it that I get from my black diamond, but I know garlic is a powerful repellent of negative energy.

  I proceed to unlock the door, and I’m greeted by my parents’ shop and our home: the Wrens’ Nest. It’s a silly name, but not inaccurate. My parents try to cram so many items into our small house that it probably looks unorganized and messy to the untrained eye, but us Wrens know exactly where everything is. And it’s not like you can’t walk on the floor. Some would probably accuse my parents of being hoarders, but I don’t see it that way. They stock up on as many different items as they can so whoever comes here can get the help they seek. Some people come looking for herbs, others for crystals and gemstones, others for rosaries, crucifixes, and others come for advice. My parents have an office set up in our only spare room for those who come to learn about everything we know. Knowing energies and how they work seems like common sense to me because of how I was raised, but I’ve come to learn that most people don’t know the first thing about it—that’s not even including the supernatural. Most of the people who come to my parents from out of town are people who have been living in darkness for too long and need help finding a way out.

  As I walk through the living room, I catch the scent of incense burning in our gold censer. My parents splurged to get a gold censer since gold is an amplifier. I can’t tell what incense is burning because the smell is mixed with whatever Mom is cooking for dinner. The combination is not appetizing.

  “Is that you, Tasia?” my mom calls from the kitchen, located just beyond the living room. “Did you get all of your homework done? Or did you put it aside so you could play all evening?”

  I go into the kitchen so I can see her face. Her dark brown hair is pulled up into a ponytail to keep it out of the way, and she’s holding our landline phone to her ear while stirring a pot.

  “I got my homework done,” I say.

  “Come and sit down,” my dad says. He’s sitting at the kitchen table and pulls out a chair for me.

  “Thanks, Dad,” I reply as I sit next to him.

  Mom brings her attention back to the phone. Dad sits back in his chair. He watches the nearly silent program playing on the TV he mounted in the corner of our kitchen. It’s a strange place for a TV, but it’s the only place we really have room for one. None of us are big TV watchers anyway. Dad turns off the TV with the remote sitting on the table. Then he catches my eye and gestures to Mom. He rolls his eyes, playfully accusing Mom of being on the phone too much by mimicking her. I smile and stifle a laugh in response. He grins at me and rubs the unkempt stubble on his face.

  He asks, “Did you have fun with your friends, little wren?”

  “I’m not much of a little wren anymore,” I reply. “I’
m sixteen, Dad.”

  “You’ll always be the little wren, though. That’s the curse of being the youngest member of this family.”

  I shake my head at him, but I smile all the same.

  “So? Have fun with your friends?”

  “Yeah, I had fun. Didi wanted to use me as a model for a photography project. I didn’t think I’d like it, but it turned out okay.”

  “I bet you were beautiful, dear. I’ll want to see those photos,” Mom tells me, somehow keeping track of two conversations and fixing dinner all at once.

  I immediately feel my face start to flush. I don’t want my parents to see those photos. Then again, she’ll know it was just Didi’s project. They wouldn’t automatically assume there might be something between me and Rynne, I think…

  “Say hello to Fiona.” Mom holds the phone out to me.

  I take the phone. “Hey, Fiona. I was wondering who Mom was talking to.”

  “Just me,” my godmother replies. “We haven’t talked in a while. How are you doing?”

  “I’m good,” I reply, and I absentmindedly twist the phone’s wire around my finger. I’m glad that nervous habit can’t transfer to my cell phone. “You should come out to visit us again.”

  “As soon as I get a chance to, I will.”

  I smile. Fiona and my parents have been friends for years. My parents trust her more than anyone else in the world, and that’s why she’s my godmother. Having Fiona in my life is what I’d imagine having an aunt is like. As far as families go, mine is pretty small, but I’ve never gone without anything. Between having my parents and Fiona, I’ve never felt alone.

  “You’re not supposed to wait for an opportunity to arrive. When it comes to family, you make time,” Mom informs, pressing her cheek against mine to make sure she’s heard.

  Fiona laughs. “Then I’ll make time. The beginning of next month.”