I look up but hold back a snappy retort. After all, I decided to try and get along with him now. “Jay, I’m right here. I’m…sorry I wandered off.” I tried to remind myself that if the situations were reversed, I’d be mad if he wandered off too. “This awesome kid and I were just talking.” I turned to the kid. “What’s your name, anyway?”
He looked at Jay, tall and menacing, and then inched closer to me. At first I thought the kid was trying to shield himself but then his chest puffed up and he put his hand in front of mine. I was startled to realize he was trying to protect me. My heart melted. I knew I had to fix his cart for him. I didn’t care what it would cost me. “I’m Riley.” He spoke assuredly and without any trace of his earlier tears. “Who are you?”
**************
Jay
Who has this kid? He probably met Kira two seconds ago and he looked like he would kill for her. Kill me for her, in fact. As if I were a threat to her, the girl who could break every bone in my body with one of her spells, if she wanted to. I had to hand it to the kid though; he was as brave a human as I ever met. Was I that brave at that age? No I was causing trouble, not stopping it. I smiled, remembering. “Hey there, Riley, I’m Jay. How’s it going?” I displayed my open palms as a sign of peace, of trustworthiness.
I don’t know why I cared but I wanted this kid to know he could trust me. I just saved Kira from a flying cart, his flying cart by the looks of it. I wasn’t going to hurt her. “That was some pretty good running you did back there. You must be really fast.”
He looked hesitantly at me “Yeah, I guess I’m pretty fast.”
“Pretty fast? I bet you are the fastest kid in the whole town. You could be a champion runner.”
He smiled then, all dimples “You think so?”
“Oh sure, and trust me, I know fast.” I smiled for emphasis “Listen, I’ve got some stuff to tell Kira. Do you mind if I join you guys?”
Riley looked eagerly over to Kira for confirmation and she winked at him as she responded. “It’s all right with me.”
Oh, Riley was done for. If a girl like that winked at me when I was that age, I would have followed her to the ends of the earth. Hell I probably still would.
Riley gestured to a spot on the other side of him so he would be in the middle of Kira and me. “It’s all right with me too. You can sit down if you wanna.”
I couldn’t help smiling then as I took my designated seat on the rocky hill. “Ok so here’s the deal. I got a hold of Trent and he’s on his way now.”
Kira exhaled a heavy breath. Apparently, she was more worried then she led on. “Good. What did he say? Is everything ok with the guys?”
“Yes, they’re fine, mostly relieved to hear from us. Max is on the surveillance tapes and any other traffic cams that may have caught us. He should be here in an hour or so.”
She nodded and I noticed the slight hesitancy in the gesture as if she wanted to say something more. “That’s great to hear.” She turned to the boy “Riley, I have an idea why don’t you go down to your cart and see if there’s anything you can salvage. Jay and I will join you in a minute, if you want.”
Riley faced the wreckage with a determined stare. “Ok” He headed to the wood pieces, showing off a little as he sped down the hill like a racer. I watched the kid go.
When I turned back to Kira, I realized then how close we were sitting together and that she was staring at me expectantly. “Jay, I wanted to thank you for saving me back there and for saving me in general. I know you’re not thrilled with what I am but you saved me anyway and I appreciate it.”
I stared stunned for longer than I should have. She began to fidget and play with a silver ring on her right hand. Finally, words emerged from my mouth “You’re welcome. I don’t dislike what you are.” I said, annoyed.
She nodded patiently “Yes, you do and the sooner you come to grips with it, the better. I know you don’t like ‘my kind’. I understand there are thousands of generations of mistrust between our ancestors but you have to snap out of it and realize that I’m just a person. I can’t help what I am anymore than you can. You should really get to know me before you start judging me.”
I stared at her blue eyes, blazing and sincere. “Just so you know I’m not mad about what you are, I’m mad you didn’t tell me, instead of me finding out like this.”
“Fair enough but you of all people can understand why I didn’t. You should’ve at least given me the chance to explain.”
“Fine, next time you talk, I will listen, if you agree to do the same.”
She inched closer and put her hand out to me “I will.”
She smelled like cinnamon and it reminded me of when I was a kid and my parents made me cinnamon rolls on special occasions. Back when my mom was alive and my dad was around. I’d wake up to the intoxicating smell of the rolls and run down the stairs like it was Christmas morning.
I placed my hand in hers and shook it. I looked around then spotted the kid pulling pieces of the wood three times his size off the ground. He looked so small next to the wood but it didn’t faze him. He kept at it like his life depended on it.
I heard Kira take another deep breath beside me but I couldn’t look away from the kid. “Listen Jay, about the Cart, I want to-”
I cut her off “I’m going to fix it for him.”
Chapter 19
Kira
Riley, Jay, and I laughed and talked as we attempted to rebuild the cart. We had gone over what pieces were broken, what could be fixed, and what needed to be purchased. Riley took Jay to the hardware store and I stayed behind to guard the broken pieces.
Before they left Riley told us exactly what pieces he needed. He was a brilliant craftsman especially for a ten year old. His excitement grew when he realized that he knew the cart so well from working on it over the past few months that it wouldn’t take him so long to rebuild. He knew where each piece went and showed us exactly what the construction would look like when finished.
They came back with the wood, nails and everything else they needed. Also Riley explained how Jay even asked the man at the hardware store how best to build brakes. Now they both had a pretty good idea and were excited to get started. Jay turned to Riley “Ok, let’s go get the tools you told me about.” Jay said.
Riley looked back and forth from me to Jay for a while so I said “What’s wrong, Riley? If you don’t have enough tools we can buy some more. It’s no problem at all. In fact, I think I need new tools anyway.”
“No, I’ve got my dad’s old tools. They’re the best. I’ve just got to go home to get them. Would you guys mind staying here?” His eyes pleaded for me to listen.
“Of course not, you go and we’ll be right here.”
His little shoulders sagged in relief. “Ok, thanks. I’ll be right back.” He ran down the street, showing off again.
“What do you think that was about?” Jay asked me.
“I’m not sure but I don’t think he wants us to see where he lives.”
Jay nodded. “We should tell him about our no pity party rule.”
I smiled in relief that Jay and I were ok. “Totally.”
The cart was finished in no time and I even helped a little by holding things up or handing them pieces of wood, wheels, or tools. Jay was the machine that did most of the heavy duty work and Riley was the brains of the operation. When we had it up and running we were sweating like crazy but it was done, breaks and all.
I turned to Riley “How do you feel?”
He smiled his dimpled smile. “Awesome. What about you Jay?” He turned to him admiringly.
“Definitely awesome.” They exchanged grins and I tried to keep my heart from gushing to the floor.
Riley put his hands behind his back “I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere.”
“Ok” Jay and I called out to Riley as he was once again running down the street.
“Jay” I said hesitantly.
“Yeah?”
“Did you
tell everyone what I was? That I know what you are? When you were on the phone with Trent?”
“No.”
“Why not?” “Because it’s your business and you deserve to tell them when you’re ready.”
I put my hand on Jay’s arm “Thank you. I’m going to tell them tonight when we get back. If they are in possible danger they deserve to know why.” I took my arm back and waited but he didn’t add anything more. “I’m going to get us some water, be right back.”
“Get the kid a juice or some sort of sports drink, he’ll like that better. Trust me.” He went for his wallet but I shook my head. Luckily, I had my purse on me the whole time with the long strap holding on tight across my shoulder.
“I got it. Be right back.” When I came back I had three blue sports drinks. I saw Jay speaking with Riley and a man in uniform.
I walked quickly over to them, hoping everything was ok. “Kira” Riley shouted and waved to me. I handed him the bottle and he smiled excitedly “Thanks.”
“Sure” I said and Jay wiggled his eyebrows at me as if to say I told you so. I’d never seen him in such high spirits.
I handed him a bottle and the unknown man stuck his hand out to me. “You must be Kira, I’m Sheriff Evans.”
I shook his hand “Nice to meet you.”
“Riley goes to school with my daughter Billy Anne and he told me he was going to build this. I can’t believe how great it is. He tells me you helped him.”
“I worked under his direction mostly, Riley is a great builder.”
“I agree” Jay said “He reminds me of my friend Will.”
I watched Riley straighten to his full height of about 52 inches with pride. “Sheriff Evans says my mom can have a permit to sell her creations in the town square.”
The Sheriff smiled “A deal is a deal. You did a great job, Riley.”
“Thanks.” He said and took a big sip from the sports drink, turning his lips blue.
“Well I’ve got to get going. Riley, let me walk you and the cart home, and I’ll go over the details with your mom.”
“Ok. Thanks, Sheriff.”
Jay put his hand out to the Sheriff “Yes, thank you. Riley’s a great kid. ”
“I know it.” Sheriff Evans replied.
Riley turned to me hesitantly and I gave him a huge hug. “Bye, Kid. Keep building, ok?”
“I will.” He said. He turned to Jay “Take care of Kira, please.”
Jay busted out laughing. “Oh, I will or she’ll kick my butt.”
“That’s right.” I said.
Sheriff Evans got a hold of the cart and rolled it along as Riley walked next to him, directing them both. “Bye” he called out.
Jay and I waved until they were no longer in sight.
*************
Jay
I glance at my watch then turn to Kira, “We should head to that bar that I called from. I told Trent we’d meet there. Hopefully the guys are already waiting.”
“Oh, I hope they haven’t waited too long.”
“No, they shouldn’t be here for another 20 minutes but Trent can be a speed demon when he wants to be. Especially if he thinks we’re in danger.”
“Right.” she said and we walked into the bar. Inside were the weary faces of Trent, Will, and Annabella. “Hey” Kira said smiling nervously at them.
“Hey” Annabella answered. Trent and Will looked right to me. “Is everything ok?”
“Yeah, let’s go.”
“You sure you don’t want to go back home instead.”
“Nah, really it’s cool. Let’s celebrate. At the very least, let’s relax.”
Will slapped me on the shoulder “All right man but you are explaining everything.”
“Oh we’ll explain everything...later.”
Kira nodded at me and mouthed. “Thank you.”
We got in Trent’s Jeep. I sat up front, Kira and Annabella sat in the middle row and Will sat in the back. “So” I said. “How’s the beach house looking?”
“Good” Trent said “I went next door and told Rosie we would be there. She’s going to come by and help with some meals.”
“Perfect.” I said thinking of the woman I’d known all of my life. She was a werewolf in the pack of that area and she took care of our beach house year round. She cooked and cleaned whenever one of us was in residence but according to her she was the boss.
“Anything new on the attack at Doc’s?” I asked.”
Will spoke from the back seat, “Just that they are 99 percent sure it was a human and there was nothing missing from the office. They’re pretty sure it was an attack and not a theft. They’re asking around to see if anyone else had any similar incidents recently. That’s about it.”
“What’s the update with the security cameras?”
“Max and I have been texting” Will said. “And all security cameras in a 20 mile radius have been taken care of, including traffic cams. Max assures me he’s been very thorough. He even watched one of them and is impressed with Kira’s ‘gone in 60 seconds’ impersonation.”
Damn. “Yeah well, as long as no one else sees it, we should be fine.” There was a moment of awkward silence. They were practically dying to find out what happened but they didn’t want to anger me by asking again.
“In related news” Annabella added, finally breaking through the quiet. “A stolen car was found on the shoulder of the highway, completely empty. The owner whose license plate matched the car had trouble claiming it as his because the windows weren’t tinted before today. Even the windshield was fully tinted, which I’m pretty sure is illegal.” She did a poor job of keeping the curiosity from her voice.
God, Kira was smart and she really had thought of everything. I pictured horrified people giving eyewitness reports of seeing a car driving itself down the road and laughed out loud. “Trust me, the tinting was necessary.”
Trent gave me an odd look but I ignored it.
“Like I said guys, we’ll explain later. It’s Kira’s story too and I think she deserves a night to chill before going into specifics.” I turned around to the seat directly behind me to see what Kira thought about all this but all I found was her with her eyes closed. She was sleeping peacefully, leaning against the car door. She must’ve passed right out.
I berated myself for being such a jerk to her. Here she was living in hiding, scared out of her mind by some enemy in the rest stop, running for her life. And there I was giving her a hard time, making it worse. I’d done a lot of shitty things but this was one of the shittiest. I decided then that even if she’d done something horrible in her past, it didn’t matter. She’d been nothing but helpful to me and try to protect my pack. I’d also wager that she protected Uncle Eric last night from the attacker with some sort of spell. I thought I’d smelled residual magic and now I knew why. She’d saved all of our lives.
From now on, I was going to have her back.
Annabella looked at Kira and then to me “Is she ok?” she asked softly.
“Yeah, let’s just say the girl can handle herself in a crisis.”
Annabella smirked “Well we knew that, she handles you after all.”
“True enough. In light of the fact that Brandon’s not here to say this, I’ll do it for him. It sucks that the snacks never made it out of the rest stop. Who’s hungry?”
Trent snickered. “Took the words out of my mouth, man. Next drive-thru I see, it’s on.”
Chapter 20
Kira
I awoke to the smell of french fries. I lifted my head and something dropped from underneath it and onto my lap. I wiped at my eyes and lifted the item. It was a sweatshirt. “Hey sleepyhead” Annabella said from next to me.
Jay turned around to face me. “French fry?” he said as he held out the fry holder.
I grabbed one. “Yeah, thanks.” I tried to force away the images of my dream. I was being chased by a three headed witch that snarled as I ran in circles, while another witch sat above me on her broomstick
and laughed. It wasn’t my most creative dream but it made sense nonetheless. I held up the soft fabric. “How’d this sweatshirt get here?”
Trent answered “Annabella put it under your head. I had in my backseat.” That made sense. “Thanks.” They probably kept a lot of clothes in their cars in case they had to transform back from wolves. Wow, that was a crazy thought. I can’t believe my new friends are shifters. I mean I’d learned about them plenty but I’d never met any before. I sure know how to pick ‘em.
“What do you want to eat? We have…everything.” Jay said.
“Salad?” I asked just to mess with him.
“Um, no but we can stop and get you one but we’re almost home and-”
“I’m kidding.” I said laughing. “I’ll take chicken fingers and honey mustard if you got it.” A bunch of bags were thrown at me and I laughed some more. I went through them and found what I wanted. “You guys seriously know how to eat.”
“We already ate, this is the leftovers.” Werewolves, now it all made sense.
“Where are we, anyway?” I asked.
“Like I said, we’re almost there, about fifteen minutes.” Jay replied.
“What time is it?” “4:30 p.m. on the dot.”
Annabella went for her purse and said “Oh. That reminds me, here’s your phone, Kira. Thanks for letting me borrow it.”
“You’re welcome.” I checked it to make sure my parents hadn’t called freaking out. By some miracle there were no missed calls. I texted them just to check in, like I’d said I would. Only this time, I could say I was safe from my mom’s vision. I wanted to tell them but that would scare them even worse.
Unfortunately, every explanation sounded like this in my head. “Hey guys, Omg Mom was right, I was attacked but I’m totes fine, half of those dark creatures she saw was just my werewolf friends. Also ran into random warlock on the road trip but it’s really NBD and must’ve been a coincidence. No worries. XO Kira.” Yeah…I was going to hold off on that one. What I sent was “Hey guys, hope your day is going well. I’m doing great. Miss you both. XO Kira.”
Shifting Shadows (Sparks Collide Trilogy) Page 14
