by K. G. Reuss
“What did you find out?” Sangrey asked, coming into the room as I wiped a vamp’s blood from my face and hands.
“That I don’t want to do this shit,” I muttered, tossing the rag aside.
“No one wants to,” Sangrey scoffed. “But in times of war, we have to do things we don’t want to do.”
“No, you don’t have to do shit,” I snarled. “We do. Honor my ass! This is bullshit and you know it, Sangrey! What’s really going on here? These prisoners were only guilty of minor infractions.”
“You don’t catch a fish every time you go fishing.” Sangrey smirked at me. “You know that, General. These creatures will go home tonight spreading the word of our power. Of your power.”
“That’s what this was about?” I demanded. “Inciting fear?”
“Fear is a useful tool. You of all people know that.” Sangrey gave me a tight smile. “Now, they know what we’re willing to do. Word will travel fast.”
“I didn’t do this to be a damn bully to the innocent!”
“You have to see the greater good in it.”
“There is no good in destroying innocent people,” I hissed at him. Damien touched me lightly on the arm, a signal for me to calm myself.
“You just need to look past the innocent and see the wicked that stands behind them,” Sangrey said darkly.
“I’m done. I’m going home,” I snapped.
“Mr. Wick, would you excuse us? I’d like a word with my nephew,” Sangrey said, his eyes focused on me.
“I’m not in the mood—” I started. Sangrey’s eyes slid to Damien who cast me a quick look before exiting.
“I know that you still see the girl. And I know you lied to the Order,” Sangrey’s voice held no judgement. I glared at him.
“Are you going to do anything about it?” I asked.
“No.” He shook his head. “I trust you know what you’re doing.” My shoulders slumped as I relaxed at his words. “You’re upset because of her. Your connection has been going wild all night, hasn’t it?”
“Yes,” I murmured.
“Then by all means, go to her. You’re free for now. I’m sure we’ll be calling on you again soon. Oh, and give Mr. Craft my regards. That was indeed a big stitch.”
I swallowed hard and backed away. My uncle always had eyes in all corners of the world. I don’t know why I was surprised he knew about Eric. I nodded silently to him and left quickly.
“How’d it go?” Damien asked as I met him at the portal.
“I just need to make sure Everly is OK,” I murmured, stepping into the portal.
Chapter 39
“She’s fine,” Damien proclaimed, coming into Eric’s room later that morning. I’d been too weak to go to her after my night filled with torturing people. Damien said he’d go and report back. “She’s just her usual depressed self.”
“Sounds about right.” Eric yawned. I’d just finished telling him about our night and how he was now a member F.I.R.E. He hadn’t seemed happy about it, but he wasn’t the only one feeling angry.
“What’s the verdict?” Damien asked, sitting down on the edge of Eric’s bed.
“About what?” Eric asked.
“Everly. You going to take care of her or what?” Damien pressed.
“No.” Eric shook his head, his eyes not meeting mine. I didn’t say anything. I wasn’t going to push it. I knew he’d give in eventually. He usually did.
“You’re nuts,” Damien snorted. “That girl is gorgeous. Are you worried you won’t be able to keep your hands off her tight little body?”
Eric flushed, and I let out a low growl.
“That’s it, isn’t it?” Damien’s eyes lit up. “You’re worried about getting too close to her!”
“I am not.” He shook his head quickly.
“Yes, you are! You don’t have to sleep with her. Damn. Calm down. You’re just going to be friends with her! I don’t understand why you’re making this into such a big deal.” Damien looked at him in disbelief.
“I’m making it a big deal because it’s a lie! I don’t lie to people! In fact, I hate it and don’t tolerate it. What am I supposed to tell her when it’s over? ‘Hey, this was great, but this wasn’t a real friendship. I’m out.’ No. I won’t be a part of it. If I’m her friend, it’s because there’s no other motive than I simply think she’s cool and we click. Anything past that violates my morals.”
“Your morals,” Damien snorted. “You banged that chick from that vamp bar in Detroit behind a dumpster in the alley while me and Shadow—” He gestured between me and him. “—took out her Cipher brother. Where were your morals then?”
Eric’s face darkened, and he looked down wordlessly, frustration on his face. There was a moment of silence before he finally spoke, “What if something happens between us? I’m not saying it will, but what if?” He looked at me with wide eyes. “I get the reason for this. I do. It’s just, the what ifs are driving me nuts. I can’t do that to you, man…” his voice trailed off, his face reddening.
“I know,” I managed to say, my guts twisting at the realness of his words. He was right. The what ifs were potential problems. I’d already thought about them and pushed them away, telling myself that Eric was trustworthy. And I still believed that.
“Screw it. I’ll do it,” Damien stated.
“What?” I frowned.
“I said I’ll do it. She won’t get much conversation or whatever it is chicks like, but I’ll do my best to keep her occupied. I’ll teach her how to headlock someone. And if she falls for me, then I won’t say anything to you about what we do. In fact, I’ll be a gentleman and tell her I’m saving myself for marriage.”
“No.” Eric let out a big sigh. “I’ll do it.”
“You will?” I asked. My mouth felt like I was sucking on a cotton ball.
“Yeah. Just don’t get pissed at me for trying to hang out with her. If things go south, you can’t get all crazy jealous and try to kill me because this was your idea.”
“Craft, you act like she’s going to jump your bones. She’s just a lost girl looking for help. You’re just going to be friends. Stop weighing every freaking scenario. If things start to go there, then just come to Shadow and tell him.” Damien rolled his eyes.
“I just don’t like surprises,” he muttered. “And I suck at trying to be friends with girls. I weird them out because of my mind stuff.”
“We’ll help you.” Damien grinned. “Right, Shadow?”
“Right,” I answered tightly.
“This is so messed up,” Eric grumbled, closing his eyes and sinking back onto his pillows tiredly. “I’m going to have to be a chick’s best friend. Should I buy her nail polish or something? I don’t even know what girls do for fun.”
“You’ll be training her so that should be easy for you.” I shrugged. “Most of your time will be spent in the gym. I’m sure she’s going to need a lot of help with it. Just offer to work with her on her skills and abilities. Show her how to do a spinning back kick. I’m sure that’s not something she knows how to do.”
“That might not be so bad.” He relaxed a bit, closing his eyes. “But what if she asks me about you, Shadow? She knows you’re a Special, or at least she will. What do I do then?”
“Then be me,” I said softly.
“What?” Eric opened his eyes and peered at me.
“Confess that you’re me. That you’re Shadow. Then you’ll be a shoo in for her,” I replied sadly.
“No. Way.” Eric shook his head, his blond hair falling in his eyes. “No way. Hell no.”
“If you have to, do it,” I returned morosely. “Anything to keep her focused on you.”
“She’ll hate us both if she ever finds out!” Eric argued.
“She’ll hate us either way. Maybe it’s better that way.” I hung my head, hating that I was going to go ahead with this plan knowing damn well that the what ifs were very real. Eric had saved her. He was a hero in her eyes. A hero who was real, tangible, a
nd easily obtainable.
And I’d always be a secret.
Chapter 40
Damien set out again the next night to watch over Everly. I stayed with Eric, feeling uncomfortable.
“I don’t want our friendship to get ruined over this,” Eric commented with a sigh as we lounged on the couch in the commons. He was finally getting enough strength to move around.
“It won’t,” I answered firmly. “You don’t have to get romantic with her, Eric. Just be a good friend. Shit talk about the guys. Make her hate them all.” I chuckled softly.
“I can do that.” Eric nodded.
“If that doesn’t work, then we can enact Plan B—Damien. How does that sound?”
“Like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”
We laughed and talked throughout the evening, for once our lives feeling normal again, or as normal as our lives could seem considering who we were. Sloane and Amanda even joined us. When Damien burst through the door, his face red, we were hooting loudly as Sloane told the story of how she hit him in the face with an empty milk carton a few nights ago.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, getting to my feet. I hadn’t felt anything wrong with Everly.
“That douche has her at his place. What do you want me to do, man? We didn’t go over that shit! I know how to deal with the lost ones, wraiths, Cipher, whatever. Throw me in with a Nattie teenager who wants to get off with a girl he doesn’t belong with and the only thing I know how to do is hit.”
“Slow down. What’s going on?” I was pulling my cloak on as he talked.
“She’s wasted. High. Drunk. I don’t know. Brighton has her on a crap ton of Nattie meds. She was feeling particularly morose tonight. I figured she’d sleep it off. Instead, she went straight to that douche Dylan and planted her mouth on his. He took her away. I slipped into the backseat with them. He was feeling her up, and he took her to his house. I can only imagine what’s going on right now. If you want to save her, now would be a really good time,” Damien finished up breathlessly, his eyes bright.
“Show me where he lives,” I growled. We melded quickly. I followed him to a large home in the ritzy part of a neighborhood.
“She’s in there with him. Upstairs. Third door on the left. Want me to go with you?”
“No, stand guard out here,” I said, my voice soft and dangerous. My hands shook as I tried to regain control of myself. I tried to run different scenarios through my mind, but I knew the only one that would greet me, and I needed to prepare for it.
Slowly, I walked up his stairs and paused outside his bedroom door, listening.
“Ever, baby, come on. Relax,” Dylan’s voice cooed. My body went rigid, all my anger coming to the surface. He was touching her. I let out a deep growl, knowing I was going to lose myself to my anger in mere moments. Maybe I should’ve had Damien come with me. I winced as the distant sound of the lost ones surrounded me, their voices frantic.
“Dylan, stop. Please,” Everly’s voice pleaded. That was it. No one touched her. No one! I swept into the room and let my shadow-self shimmer into view at the foot of his bed. She was beneath him, her shirt drawn up, his body tangled over hers. His hands were in places on her body that made me see red.
I didn’t hesitate as my anger grew. The dead shouted in the distance. They were terrified of me. Good. They should be. I pushed my will for them to disappear and was greeted by their silence as they faded away.
Reaching forward, I plucked Dylan off her as if he weighed nothing. Members of Conexus were strong—stupid strong when in shade form. He flailed in my hands before I threw him across the room. He landed with a thud against the wall, and I stalked purposefully to him. His eyes were wild as he peered through the dim light to figure out what had happened to him. He couldn’t see me. One of my perks of being Conexus.
“No!” Everly screamed, stumbling as she tried to untangle herself from his bedsheets. “No. Don’t hurt him!”
I ignored her and leaned down to wrap my fingers around Dylan’s neck. I’d been waiting for that moment for a long time. He choked and sputtered in protest, his eyes wild as he tried to claw at me.
“Stop! Please, stop!” Everly sobbed. Her hand reached out for me and touched my shoulder. I loosened my grip on Dylan’s neck and stared at her. She was drunk. Her eyes were wild, her hair a mess. Where her shirt was pulled up, the soft skin of her abdomen was exposed. She trembled as she touched me, her lower lip shaking as she silently pleaded with me.
She didn’t understand. This guy didn’t care about her. He wanted what every other guy who looked at her wanted. And she wasn’t in her right mind to decide this. He knew that, and he still took advantage of her!
He had to pay. I came to that decision easily and tightened my hold on his neck. Lifting him into the air, I let his feet dangle just off the ground. He flailed and tried to claw at me, but he couldn’t hurt what he couldn’t see. From the corner of my eye, I caught Everly sobbing. My heart hurt. I wouldn’t kill him. I’d just leave him with a warning.
“She’s mine. She belongs to me and only me. I’m the only one who will touch her. I am the only one she’ll ever love. You are nothing to her. You will never be anything to her. Tell her to leave. Tell her you don’t want her here. Do you understand?”
“I-I understand,” he managed to choke out, his eyes darting to Everly and back again. I released him, and he slid to the floor in a crumpled heap.
“Dylan!” Everly rushed to him but he backed away as she reached for him.
“Go away, Ever.” He shrank away from her.
“Wh-why? Let me help you!” She tried again, but he pushed her away.
“You need to go. Now. Leave, Ever! I don’t want you here,” Dylan’s voice was as firm as he was insistent.
“I-I’m sorry,” she whispered, grabbing her jacket off the floor. She tugged it on and glared at me like I was the bad guy. But I’d only done what I’d promised. I did my job. I protected her. That meant from guys like Dylan.
But the way she looked at me made my heart clench. She backed away, stumbling out the door, getting as far from me as she could get.
Chapter 41
“I figured you’d need help,” Eric’s voice called out to me in my head.
“How’d you know where to find me?” I asked, watching as Dylan struggled to his feet after lying in the same spot for fifteen minutes.
“Damien. He thought you might go nuts, so he came and got me.” Eric looked interestedly at Dylan who seemed confused as he stumbled around, rubbing his head.
“I messed up,” I said, looking from Dylan to Eric.
“I figured,” Eric’s voice sounded like he was smiling. “Clean up, aisle seven?”
“Yeah,” I muttered.
“I can make him forget. Or alter what he thought happened.”
“Change the memory. If you can. I know you’re tired,” I replied.
“I’m fine,” Eric said, stepping toward Dylan. He placed his hands on either side of Dylan’s head in the same manner as Brandon did when he healed. A dazed look fell over Dylan’s face, but he didn’t struggle. Eric’s hands glowed blue like they did when he stitched. He closed his eyes, and Dylan’s face went slack. A moment later, Eric released him and backed away.
“Shit,” Dylan sighed, sitting on his bed and rubbing his eyes. He withdrew his phone and dialed a number. A frown turned his lips down. He let out a frustrated sigh and hung the phone up. Finally, he got to his feet and went downstairs. A moment later, his front door closed, and his car rumbled.
“What did you do?” I asked.
“I made him think they were making out, and she got mad and stormed out. I erased you and everything from his mind. Fixed.”
“Thanks,” I said, nodding. “I was going to kill him.”
“Killing innocent Natties is frowned upon, even for members of Conexus,” Eric teased. I grinned at him and looked to the board Dylan had on his wall. Photos of his friends covered it. My eyes narrowed in on Ever
ly’s face. She was wearing a pretty purple sundress, her hair cascading around her. It was wavy, a look I’d never seen on her before. She was smiling shyly at the camera, her green eyes sparkling. She was breathtaking. I reached out and grabbed the photo off the board.
“Keepsake?” Eric asked mildly.
“Yeah,” I mumbled, stuffing it in my pocket. I’d add it to the other photo of her I had that I’d taken the first night I’d been pulled back to her.
“We should probably go find her,” Eric commented as we went downstairs and outside to where Damien was waiting.
“No need,” I grabbed at my chest, the mark on my wrist burning. “I’ll find her easily enough.”
Chapter 42
“What the hell did she do?” I shouted, sweeping into the liquor store to find her on her back, foaming vomit dripping from her mouth. The store clerk was on his knees beside her, talking rapidly into the phone. I’d shimmered to invisibility before arriving and put my hands on her chest. She was so drunk.
Pain stabbed in my chest, stealing my breath. She’d tried drinking herself to death. The thought sickened me, and I blamed myself for her lying there. I put all my energy into taking it from her. As the transfer started, I felt woozy. When it was complete, I sank back. Eric and Damien caught me before I fell completely backward.
The ambulance arrived, and she was loaded into the back. I could barely see straight.
“Shit. You’re wasted now,” Damien said, trying to keep me upright as I stumbled all over.
“This would be comical if it wasn’t so serious,” Eric added, grunting as he caught me again before I fell.
“I feel… not good,” I mumbled, my words slurred, my eyes heavy. “Is she OK?” I swayed forward, and the guys snagged me before I hit the ground.
“She’ll be OK. She just needs to sleep it off,” Damien grumbled, pulling me back upright. “Why don’t you heal yourself, so we don’t have to carry your ass back?”
