by K. G. Reuss
“Is it because of this Everly? Are you in love with her?”
“Amara, it’s because of me. I’m a mess in my head. And I don’t want to bring Everly into this—” I waved my hand, gesturing between the two of us.
“But it’s true, isn’t it?”
“A few weeks ago I stood in her bedroom plotting her murder,” I said softly. “Now, after all we’ve been through with each other, I feel for her, yes. But I never acted on it in any way other than keeping her safe. We’ve spoken twice in fourteen years. She doesn’t even know who I am. And nothing will ever happen between me and her. So please, don’t run with the idea that I’m leaving you for her because I’m not. I’m doing this because it’s time. I’m not happy. You’re not happy. It’s turned into just sex and fights with us. I know you want more than that. And I can’t give it to you. I know that if we keep this up, our parents will force us into marriage. I really don’t want that. I want to marry when I’m ready for it. I want to genuinely marry for love.”
“And you’ve never loved me,” her voice was laced with pain and heartache.
“Mara, don’t do this,” I pleaded gently.
“I need to hear you say it.”
“Why?” I asked, exasperated. “What will it change?”
“I need to know,” her voice wavered as she looked at me with glassy eyes, some of the tears already slipping silently down her cheeks.
“I care about you,” I said softly, looking down at my hands. “But no, I’m not in love with you.”
“I need you to leave,” she sniffled, balling her hands into fists. “Now.”
I rose from my seat.
“Amara, I’m really sorry. Truly. I-I never meant to hurt you—”
“Please. Just go.” She let out a soft cry. I backed away from her, watching as her body shook. There wasn’t anything I could do about that though. Instead, I slipped out the door, closing it softly behind me, feeling like the worst person in the world.
Chapter 20
The weeks passed by painfully. My heart was in disarray at being away from Everly, but the thought of being near her gave me moments of insanity. I’d ordered Eric and Damien to stop going to her daily. Instead, they checked in on her once a week, two tops. I’d gone to the Order and asked for her to be brought to Dementon. I didn’t mention anything about her being the Mancer. I didn’t want to confirm it for them and put her in even more danger. Instead, I opted to say I felt she’d benefit greatly from our school. The Order agreed to take it to a vote at the next meeting before passing it down to the school board to deal with.
Over the passing weeks, I barely ate or slept. I did missions, tore down haunts, and took out the Cipher as assigned, hauling them kicking and screaming to Xanan to be dealt with.
“You realize you’re fighting for the wrong side, don’t you?” a vamp Cipher snarled at me on my most recent encounter with our opposition. “The Order are the ones you should be fighting! You’re just a blind fool! We know the Mancer has been born! We’ll find her!”
I silenced him with a stake through the heart, not an ounce of remorse tainting me.
“That was interesting,” Damien commented, wiping his blade on an old curtain in the Cipher nest we’d just decimated.
“He was spouting lies. It’s all they’re good for,” I growled, wiping at my brow. I leaned against the wall, suddenly feeling ill.
“Everly,” I said her name softly.
“Is she OK?” Eric asked, hearing me.
“She’s scared. Terrified.” I stared fearfully at Eric and Damien.
“I’ll go,” Eric stated firmly. “I’ll report back as soon as I know anything.”
He didn’t wait for me to say anything. He simply melded into the shadows and disappeared.
“We cleared out everything in this place,” Adam proclaimed, coming into the room, Sloane, Brandon, Amanda, Chloe, and Amara behind him. Amara and I had barely spoken to one another since our breakup.
Damien grinned as they straggled in before looking over to Sloane, his eyes lighting up. “Hey, babe. You ever kill a caster?”
She rolled her eyes at him. “Just the carrion who get tainted by the rest of the messed-up factions. You never see a real caster out there being a total screw up.”
“Pity,” he sighed, his eyes moving over to Amara.
“Don’t start with me, Wick,” Amara snarled before Damien could even open his mouth.
“You’re moodier than usual now that Shadow has moved on. Does that translate to rougher sex with weres?” Damien asked innocently.
“I’m going to kick your ass,” Amara growled at him, taking a dangerous step toward him.
“Sounds like foreplay.” He winked at her.
“Amara, come on,” Brandon sighed. “He’s just trying to irritate you. Just chill. I’m hungry and don’t want to deal with this shit tonight.”
I caught Amara’s eye. She cast me an angry glare before stomping out of the room in her tight, black hunting outfit.
“Dude, if you’re hard up, you should tap that shit now. I bet some good old hate sex will soothe both your wounds,” Damien advised me.
“Shut up,” I snarled, not in the mood for his teasing. I was feeling sicker by the minute.
“Wick, why are you always such an ass?” Chloe demanded.
“Babe, you wound me.” Damien feigned grabbing at his broken heart. “I’m a sweetheart. Right, Sloane?”
“Yeah, if that means you’re an egotistical dumbass,” Sloane remarked, causing both Chloe and Amanda to laugh loudly.
“Love you too, babe.” Damien winked at Sloane who grinned at him. I wondered when they’d stop fighting and actually get together since they so clearly liked one another.
“You don’t look so good, Gen,” Brandon observed. “Did a vamp bite you or something?”
“No.” I shook my head, my hair falling forward into my eyes. “I just need to get home. We’re done for tonight.”
“Woo!” Adam whooped, grinning. We melded and made our way back to our common room. Once there, I went straight to my room and showered before finding my bed. I fell into a fitful sleep with Everly on my mind.
Chapter 21
“Hey,” Eric’s urgent voice roused me from my sleep. I sat up and stared at him blearily.
“Is she OK?”
“Yeah, if by OK you mean she’s seeing the freaking dead at every turn and hearing voices.”
“What?” I threw my blankets back and got out of bed. Dashing to my bathroom, I dressed in my all black hunting attire and came out, staring him down.
“Seems her abilities have been severely heightened since her accident. I’ve never felt the dead or creatures from the void so strongly before. They’re surrounding her, man. They’re under her bed, in her closet. She’s being haunted. Bad. Their presence is so strong that even I can see them sometimes.”
“What?” I repeated, my eyes widening. He nodded wordlessly.
“I know you wanted to keep your distance, but I think you need to go to her. Just check on her. See if there’s anything you can do. She’s so afraid. I almost showed myself to her just to calm her down.”
“I’m going.” I grabbed my blades and shoved them into their slots on my person before melding away. I went straight to her living room. I winced. Eric was right. The place was loaded with the dead.
“Stop! STOP IT!” Everly’s pained voice shouted out desperately from her kitchen, the sound of silverware clattering to the floor. “Stop! Please!”
“Ever!” I heard her mom’s voice.
“Make them stop, Mamá. Please!” Everly begged, sobbing.
“Make what stop, baby?” her mom’s scared voice called out.
“The voices. The-the people. . . the dead people. Make them go away!”
“Ever?” her friend Nina’s voice came out frightened.
I stopped listening after that because a wraith slithered from beneath her couch, its hollow sockets focused on Everly’s voice in the other ro
om not even noticing me. I raced forward and rammed my blade through its torso. There was a grotesque sucking noise as it sizzled and disappeared.
I burst into the kitchen, not caring if she saw me. Her eyes immediately locked on mine as her friend tried to calm her down. My heart broke in that instant for her all over again. She was so frail as she sat there, her eyes glassy with unshed tears and filled with her unspoken fears.
“No, it’s not,” she whispered. I took a step toward her, this overwhelming urge to make everything go away washing over me. I concentrated on it so hard all the sounds around us faded away, leaving us in silence. It had worked. I’d blocked them.
She let out a breath as she gazed at me.
“Everything will never be OK again.”
She had no idea how right she was.
Chapter 22
I disappeared after that. I went immediately to Headmaster Brighton’s office and barged in like I owned the place.
“I was just going to summon you,” Brighton said as I came into the room.
“Yeah, then maybe we’re on the same page here. Everly Torres. Are you familiar with the name?”
“Quite.” He nodded. “She’s been on my radar for a few years now thanks to the Order’s desire for me to watch her.”
“Why?” I demanded.
“Well, the Order asks that I keep tabs on potential Specials, especially those of the psychic variety. She never displayed any abilities past the age of twelve. So, I assumed she was just like other sensitive Nattie children. Of course, with this new dilemma I can see that we’re in a bit deep with her. In fact, I was just summoned by one of my connections to go to her. I’ll be meeting with her shortly.”
“You’re meeting with her?” I wasn’t sure why that bothered me so much. Maybe because I knew Brighton would report his findings to the Order, and I didn’t want them to know so much about it. On the other hand, I knew better than anyone that Brighton knew his shit and would see to it that she was taken care of.
“I am.” He stopped putting papers into his briefcase and looked at me. “Is there anything I should know about?”
“She’s in trouble. You know that which I speak of?”
“Of course. Is it true then? Is she the Mancer?”
“No,” I snapped, lying. I couldn’t have him knowing that bit of information. “But she is an untrained Special who’s being haunted. She needs to make it here to Dementon. Do whatever you need to do to make that happen. Got it?”
“On whose orders?” Headmaster Brighton sighed. “You know I can’t intervene—”
“My orders,” I growled. “I’ll take care of the Order.”
“I don’t doubt you will.” He chuckled and looked at me thoughtfully. “I’ll be honest with you, I’ve thought for a long time that she needed to be evaluated and brought here. Now I can confirm it. I’ll make sure she makes it here. You just need to be patient. This could be quite beneficial.”
“I know it could be.”
We regarded one another silently for a moment. I knew that he knew I was full of shit. He knew what she was just as well as I did. “Will she be a Conexus recruit?” he asked the question easily.
“Never,” I answered softly, my guts churning as the thought of my beautiful girl engaged in deadly battle erupted into my mind.
“Ah, I see.” He smiled kindly at me. “I know you care for the girl. You’ve been in and out of here for weeks dealing with it. So have Mr. Craft and Mr. Wick. I read the reports.” He winked at me. “I know you all think I don’t, but I do. Allow me to get to this, then, eh? You must understand that this could take some time. It’s hard to convince a parent to let their child come to a place like this when they aren’t familiar with our world. Everly taking a turn like this might be just what we need to make it happen. This could be a very good thing indeed.”
“I don’t care. Just see to it that she’s helped.”
“You know I will.” He nodded solemnly at me as he rose to his feet. He grabbed his jacket from the closet, looking every bit the part of a psychiatrist that he moonlighted as in the Nattie world. He was how we got a lot of our students there. He kept a watch over the troubled ones who had no idea what or who they were. Many of them made their way to his facility where he tested them and brought them to Dementon where they were able to understand their abilities. Brighton was a Fae who specialized in reading emotions. And he could sense thoughts, almost like a telepath.
“Please let me know how she’s doing,” I said as we walked out of his office.
“You know how patient doctor confidentiality works,” he sighed, stopping on the steps outside the building.
“She’s important to me,” I answered fiercely, the truth of the words coursing painfully through me.
“I know she is,” he murmured as he looked up at me. “I’ll do what I can, General.” I watched as he climbed into one of our black SUVs and drove toward the Dementon gates. When he was gone, I went back to the Conexus house wondering if Everly was doing OK.
“How’d it go?” Eric asked, coming to me as I stood in the kitchen watching Damien make a sandwich.
“Headmaster Brighton is intercepting her as we speak. She’ll be in good hands. He’ll be able to keep track of her and how bad things get. Hopefully, he’ll be able to get her here eventually.”
“Good,” Eric nodded. “What about us? Are we going back on mission?”
“I think so. Just to check in on her. This is going to be rough for her. When I was in her house, I felt what you said. It was thick in there. They were everywhere.”
“Did you magic palm any of them?” Damien asked, taking a large bite of his turkey sub.
“No, but I did take out a wraith. It’s weird,” I said thoughtfully. “I wanted them gone, and I focused on it. And just like that, they were.”
“Maybe you’re her shield. I mean, if you protect her, then it only makes sense,” Eric put in.
“True,” I murmured. I was just about to say more to them about it when Amara and Sloane came into the kitchen.
“Hey,” I greeted them awkwardly. Sloane beamed at me, but Amara only scowled at me.
“That time of the month?” Damien asked mildly, a twinkle in his eye as he looked at Amara.
“I don’t shift until later,” she growled at him which only made him grin wider. The tension was too thick. I cleared my throat and tried to make nice.
“How are you doing, Mara?” I asked.
“Shouldn’t you be creeping around the shadows somewhere in some poor girl’s bedroom?” she sneered nastily at me. Everyone grew quiet.
“You’re right. I have to go.” I pushed off the counter not wanting to make a scene. “I hope you start feeling better, Mara. See you guys.” I didn’t wait for an answer. I made my way up to my room and flopped down in bed with no intention of going near Everly.
Chapter 23
The following weeks passed by slowly. Painstakingly slow. I made sure we all kept our distance from Everly. As much as it tore me up, I knew it was important because these things needed to happen if we were going to get her to Dementon under the guise of her needing the school’s help. I just hoped it didn’t push her too close to the edge.
Eric, Damien, Brandon, and I walked through the Dementon campus in a tight-knit mass of black uniforms, cloaks, and stern faces. We all were armed, as was our typical style. I had to do an inspection after we got out of classes to make sure the walls were secure. The students left on the grounds rushed away from us, afraid to be nearby anything that had to do with our group. I was used to it. I liked it that way. We were the law of our land, and it was important that people remembered that.
We stopped at the limits, the place where our world met the Nattie world. Eric reached out and touched the large brick wall, nodding his approval at me. It was warded. Sloane and Jared had done a great job. The wards deterred the Natties and kept anything rogue out.
We proceeded to check the entire grounds before going to sit at our usual ta
ble. I was listening to Damien rag on Eric when a shadow was cast over me.
“Do you think life would be easier here for the students if you Conexus members didn’t walk around on the grounds like you ruled the world?” a deep familiar voice cut through my thoughts on how to get more protection for the school before Everly got there.
“Nevron, what an unpleasant surprise.” Eric didn’t miss a beat as he looked to the large, blond haired vampire with the red eyes who sneered down at us.
“Oh, and look. He brought a friend.” Damien grinned as Marcus Ambrose, an amber-eyed warlock with hair as black as night joined Nevron.
“Aren’t you cute, Wick. Tell me, what’s it like being the general’s lap dog?” Marcus smirked.
“I’m no lap dog,” Damien growled, getting to his feet.
“Said the mutt,” Nevron retorted, as Damien began to shake, ready to shift.
“Damien,” I warned, rising to my feet. Damien let out an angry hiss but calmed himself. “Nevron Blackburn and Marcus Ambrose don’t pay a visit to anyone unless they want something. So, tell me…” I glared at them. “What do you want?”
“Are you always this much fun?” Nevron’s red lips curved up into a broad smile.
“Always. Now get to the point,” I replied evenly. I took a step toward them and noted how anyone left in the square had backed away. They knew I had a short temper and meant business. Nevron and Marcus were the campus cool guys. I didn’t trust them as far as I could throw them, and most of that had to do with the fact that Nevron was related to Aviram. And Marcus’s family had a history of being deeply involved with the Cipher. It only made sense that the two were best friends. However, I’d never found any dirt on either of them to warrant an interrogation or a trip to Xanan. They kept their noses clean, but they held a lot of power. After the Conexus on campus, they were the next feared. I didn’t care for either of them. Even if Nevron hadn’t been a vamp, I would’ve hated the guy.
