Sami made a face that would’ve been comical under different circumstances. She was used to Paris taking her side. She didn’t like being called on the carpet by her favorite aunt. My other friend, Kelsey, has two boys, and she told any kids she came in contact with to “shut up” when they started whining. It was automatic now. Paris took a much softer approach.
“I’m not worried about what people think,” Sami argued. “I just don’t want to be a geek.”
“That argument contradicts itself,” Paris said. “I went to college with your mom and we weren’t hanging out with the cool kids all of the time. People were still in awe of your mother because she chose her own path and always stuck to her guns.”
“I know I was in awe of her,” Aric said. “From the first moment I saw her and she accused me of invading her personal space, I knew I had to have her.”
“She was mean to you the first time you met?” Sami was incredulous.
“She was … sarcastic,” Aric clarified. “She was mean to me quite a few other times, though. She was also incredibly kind, witty and smart. Those are traits I want you to inherit from her. There’s not one thing I want you to inherit from Katie Dolloway.”
“Whatever,” Sami muttered, dejectedly throwing herself in a chair. “No one understands how hard it is to be a kid. You guys act as if it’s easy.”
“Compared to the real world, it is easy,” I said. “You’ll figure things out on your own eventually. I have faith.”
“That doesn’t tell me where we landed on the chicken,” Sami pointed out. “Do I have to eat it?”
Good grief. She really is my daughter. “Only if you want ice cream cake. It’s totally up to you.”
Sami blew a raspberry as she leaned her head back against the chair. “Fine. I’ll eat it. I won’t enjoy it, though.”
“That’s what I was hoping for,” I said. “I … .” I broke off, narrowing my eyes when the murmuring returned. I snapped my head up, scanning the woods surrounding our house. I didn’t see anyone close to the perimeter fence, but I could hear them. “They’re here.”
“Where?” Aric turned swiftly, narrowing his eyes as he tried to find something to focus on in the thick trees. “I don’t see anything.”
“I can hear them.”
Aric handed the tongs he was using to flip the chicken to Heath and moved closer to the table, tilting his head to the side as he listened hard. “I don’t hear anything.”
“I don’t either,” Paris said. “I think Zoe is the only one who can hear it.”
“And Sami,” I said, my heart constricting when I realized the implications and leveled my gaze on her. Her dark eyes had taken on the glazed quality I’d come to recognize.
“What’s happening?” Helen asked, alarmed.
“Whatever happens, don’t drop that fence,” I ordered, striding around the table and planting my hands on Sami’s wrists. “I’ll be right back.”
This time I didn’t opt for a soft entrance. I slammed my consciousness into Sami’s mind and grabbed the first thing I saw – which happened to be a shrouded figure moving in Sami’s direction. We were back in the abandoned house, Sami standing close to the pentagram with a puzzled look on her face.
“Who are you?” The figure gurgled, and when I reached up to pull back the hood I found nothing there. It was as if the robe had form but there was nothing inside.
“What’s happening?” Sami asked, confused. “Why am I here? I didn’t come here? Did they take me?”
“You’re still on the deck, Sami,” I said. “You’re okay. Come here, please.”
Sami didn’t have to be told twice and she scampered to my side, her eyes big as I shredded the black robe and left it in tatters. I glanced over my shoulder to find another closing in.
“Go ahead. Take another step. I dare you.”
The figure seemed conflicted. Without a face it was impossible to be certain, though.
“Kill it,” Sami ordered. “Kill them all.”
I couldn’t see anyone else hanging around the room, but I didn’t necessarily believe it was only the three of us. Something told me at least one other entity was watching.
“Who are you?” I repeated.
Low murmurs filled the room. I couldn’t pick one voice out of the din but I thought it sounded like chanting more than anything else. That made sense. They were using a spell to draw her out. That’s the only way they had power over her.
“I’ve had it with you asshats,” I warned. “From now on I’m killing before talking. I don’t care who you are or what you want. I’m at the point where I just like ripping bad things apart. I guess you could call it a character flaw.”
The second figure finally spoke in a segregated voice. It was low and gravelly. “This isn’t Covenant College. You can’t win.”
“You’re not the first rotten thing to say that to me,” I countered. “Somehow I always find a way to win, though, and those I beat end up crying because I don’t take prisoners. Not anymore.”
For emphasis I lashed out with my mind and shredded the floating figure.
“I don’t know if you’re witches … or warlocks … or just dudes with really small penises who want to steal power because they don’t have any of their own,” I said. “I will not let you take my kid. I can promise you that.”
I grabbed Sami’s hand and pulled her closer.
“We’re going home,” I said.
“Do I still have to eat the chicken?”
I sighed, resigned. “No. When your father asks, though, you didn’t sucker me into letting you off the hook. We had a long discussion about the merits of chicken and you stated a strong case so I decided to compromise. Deal?”
Sami beamed. “Deal.”
“I still get a bigger piece of cake than you.”
Sami didn’t look troubled by the possibility. “We’ll see.”
Eighteen
“What happened?”
Aric scooped up a discombobulated Sami and cradled her against his chest. It was almost as if he was protecting her from imminent peril, which I was fairly certain wasn’t coming – at least not yet.
“Her subconscious took her back to the abandoned house. Two robed figures were there,” I replied, running my hand over Sami’s hair. “They didn’t speak, but I heard the murmuring again. I think it’s chanting. It sounds as if it’s coming from a long way off.”
“That doesn’t necessarily mean anything,” Paris said. “It could simply mean that they’re in another place together. It might be far away, but I sincerely doubt it.”
“Put me down, Dad,” Sami ordered, making a face. “I’m not a baby.”
“You are to me,” Aric said, although he grudgingly lowered her to the ground.
“What happened here?” I asked. “Did anyone try to breach the perimeter?”
“There was no movement at all,” James said. “It was just … quiet.”
“You weren’t gone very long,” Aric said. “It was creepy watching you stand in front of me knowing your mind wasn’t there, but you were fast so it didn’t drag on for too long.”
“Can you describe the robes?” Paris asked.
“They were long and black,” I answered. “I don’t remember seeing any markings. “I grabbed one of them by the throat – and I could feel something there when it happened – but I tugged off the hood and it was empty.”
“How is that possible?” Helen asked.
“Because they weren’t really there,” Paris explained. “They were shells, for lack of a better word. It’s just like Zoe wasn’t really there.”
“She was there enough to grab the thing,” Sami said. “They made noises when she killed them.”
“That’s probably because she killed the connection, not them,” Paris said. “The whole thing is … odd.”
“Yes, that’s a nice way of putting it,” Aric said. “The fact that my daughter keeps getting sucked away and my wife takes off like Zorro to retrieve her is a little more tha
n odd.”
“I’m sorry,” Paris said, her eyes flashing. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
Aric clenched his hands and exhaled heavily. “I know. That came out wrong.”
“Let’s focus on the task at hand,” I said. “They’re not going to give up. We have to figure out who they are and exactly what they want.”
“They want me,” Sami said.
“They do,” I agreed. “But why do they want you?”
“Do you hear anything when you’re under, Sami?” Paris asked. “Do they say anything to you?”
“I don’t remember most of it,” Sami replied, chewing on the corner of her lip. “I didn’t even remember appearing in the room until Mom showed up. I just … I don’t know.”
“She was aware of my presence almost instantly this time,” I offered. “She didn’t struggle to wake.”
“That’s good,” Aric said, petting Sami’s head. “That means it’s getting easier for her to differentiate between what’s real and what’s fake.”
“For now,” I said. “What happens when they increase their efforts? I think that’s only a matter of time. They seem to know all about me.”
“Why do you say that?” James asked. “How can you know that?”
“One of the robed things talked this time,” I explained. “It said it wouldn’t be like Covenant College and that I couldn’t win.”
“Then Mom said she always won and wouldn’t take any prisoners,” Sami said. “What happened at Covenant College that would be so freaky to them?”
That was a loaded question. “Hey, aren’t you hungry?”
“Yes, and I remember that you promised I didn’t have to eat chicken,” Sami said. “You’re trying to avoid the question. Why?”
Aric rubbed the back of his neck as he shuffled back and forth. “I don’t think that’s important right now,” he said finally.
“It’s obviously important,” Sami argued. “These things knew about it, and Mom didn’t even blink when they mentioned it. What’s going on?”
“Sami, it doesn’t matter,” Aric said. “Your mom caved and you don’t have to eat the chicken. You do, however, have to eat the corn and potato salad before you get any ice cream cake. Who wants to eat?”
He was trying to be upbeat, which, given the circumstances, was a bad idea. Sami would never let this go now.
“What happened at Covenant College?” Sami repeated.
I blew out a sigh. I had a feeling the past was about to come back and bite me. “Sit down and fill your plate, Sami,” I said. “I think there are a few things we should probably explain to you.”
“Now?” Aric’s eyebrows shot up his forehead. “I thought you wanted to wait until she was older.”
“That was before the past came knocking on our door and trying to lure our child out of the house,” I said. “We have to tell her everything.”
“That sounds freaky,” Sami intoned. “Are you a badass in this story?”
“Sometimes,” I conceded.
“All of the time,” Aric said, shaking his head. “Okay. If we’re going to do this I’m going to need a lot of food and a beer. Let’s get this show on the road.”
“I can’t wait,” Sami said, her youthful enthusiasm bubbling up. “I bet this is going to be a great story.”
“Not unless we tell it wrong,” I said. “Trust me. This story has more twists, turns and tears than the darkest of fairy tales. Prepare yourself, Sami. If you thought I was a pain now, just wait until you hear how I was back then.”
“You were magnificent,” Aric said, kissing my cheek and causing my heart to warm. “You were also a pain in the ass, and I often wanted to throttle you.”
Love comes in many shapes and forms. I guess you can’t look a gift soul mate in the mouth, though.
“OKAY, we may have … glossed over … some of the manner in which we met and got together,” I said once everyone was settled, reaching for my glass of wine and forcing a smile for Sami’s benefit. “Things were mostly as we told you, though.”
“So you lied?” Sami didn’t look happy at the prospect.
“We didn’t lie,” Aric corrected. “We just left some things out.”
“Oh, I can’t wait to hear this,” Helen muttered, topping off her glass of wine and guzzling half of it before topping it off again. “This is the stuff of fairy tales.”
“Thank you, Mother,” Aric intoned, shaking his head. “I met your mother a day or two after she arrived at Covenant College. I had no idea who she was when I ran into her in the University Center. We sparred verbally a bit, and that was it.”
“I thought he was creepy but ridiculously handsome,” I said. “I happened to be dating someone else, though. His name was Will.”
“And he was a jackass,” Aric said. “He also happened to be my fraternity brother. So when your mom came to spend the night at the fraternity house we met again.”
“Eww, gross! Mom had another boyfriend before you? That’s so weird.” Sami speared a tomato slice from the vegetable tray in the middle of the table. “I can’t believe you had another boyfriend.”
She said it as if I somehow betrayed Aric, which was mildly funny and something only a child couldn’t wrap her head around. “The relationship didn’t last long because I found out Will was a wolf.”
“And not a good one like us,” James added. “He was bitten. I told you how that works. You remember, right?”
Sami nodded. “Why didn’t you know he was a wolf before?”
“Because I didn’t know those things existed,” I replied. “Grandma and Grandpa Lake decided to keep me in the dark about what I was. They didn’t know if I would manifest powers, and I didn’t until I went to Covenant College. That’s why you shouldn’t be so depressed all the time about having few powers. You have a lot more than I did at your age.”
“So what happened?” Sami asked. “Did you take one look at Dad and dump this Will guy because it was love at first sight?”
“No, I dumped Will because he was a weasel, but I was still uncertain about your father.” I decided if I was going to do this it had to be the whole truth. I couldn’t half-ass it. “I had a roommate named Tara. She disappeared at a bar one night. Her body was found behind a bar – er, at least we thought it was her body – and I was attacked by a vampire and killed it. Those were the first signs that things weren’t as they appeared.
“The story is really long and boring, but suffice it to say that Tara was alive, and she was a witch,” I continued. “She was trying to kill another vampire – a friendly one named Rafael – and there was a big bonfire where they were going to kill people, but your dad showed up to save the day. He was always a hero.”
“Rafael?” Sami wrinkled her nose. “I’ve heard Dad talk about him. How come he’s never around? Is he dead?”
“No, he’s in Europe,” I answered. “I hope you’ll get to meet him some day. We’re still sporadically in touch.”
“If there was ever a time that you were in real trouble, Sami, Rafael would come to help you,” Aric said.
“I thought you didn’t like vampires?”
“I like this one okay,” Aric conceded. “When he’s not hitting on your mother, that is.”
“So were you in love after Dad saved you?” Sami asked.
I shook my head. “I went home for winter break. Your dad showed up to warn me that I was in trouble from wolves in the area I lived. Word got out that I was an active mage, and people wanted to stop me.”
“I threatened the people in charge and they backed off,” Aric said. “Then we went back to school after the holidays and kept running into each other.”
“And your dad dated someone else and annoyed me,” I added.
“I didn’t date her,” Aric argued. “Besides, you wouldn’t give me the time of day. I was trying to make you jealous … and it worked like a charm. Your face got so red whenever you saw me with her. What was her name again?”
“Stupid,” I answered.<
br />
“Okay, you’re getting off course,” James chided.
“There was a sphinx on the loose. Your dad helped me get rid of him, and then I learned about all the stuff your grandpa does behind the scenes in the wolf world,” I said.
Sami rubbed her bottom lip, her dinner all but forgotten. “And then you were together?”
“No.”
“When does this story get good?” Sami asked, annoyed.
“I followed your mother home for the summer and didn’t give her a choice about dating me,” Aric said. “I was sick of her putting me off. We were together for the next year.”
“Wait … .” Sami did the math in her head. “But you’ve been together forever.”
“We took a break for a year,” Aric said.
“But why?” Sami looked crushed by the news, as if all of her childhood dreams were crashing down around her. “Why would you do that?”
“Because we had a fight,” I answered. “I had a roommate named Laura – who happened to be from the same hometown as Aunt Paris – and some things went bad, and she tried to steal my powers. I ended up killing her by using her own magic against her.”
“That doesn’t explain why you and Dad broke up,” Sami pressed.
“We broke up because I did something wrong,” Aric explained, wetting his lips. “I knew Laura was a threat, but I didn’t tell your mom, and she almost died because of it. She had every right to be angry.”
“Why didn’t you tell her?”
Now we were getting to the nitty-gritty and the questions were becoming more difficult.
“Because … because I was still loyal to my fraternity pack and I was ordered not to tell your mom,” Aric answered. “It was the wrong choice. I loved your mom even then, but I broke her heart.”
Sami’s eyes were wide when they locked with mine. “Did you cry?”
“Yes.”
“Did you want to hurt him?”
“No. I could tell he was hurting on his own.”
Sami didn’t look convinced. “I would’ve kicked him or something.”
The simple statement pained Aric. He’d always been Sami’s hero. “I made a terrible mistake. I’d take it back if I could, but that’s not the world we live in,” Aric said. “After that, your mother started investigating a group of people on the campus called The Academy. They were monster hunters bent on eradicating all paranormals.”
Dying Covenant: The Complete Series Page 16
