His lips expand with a grin. “You know that, too, don’t you?”
Pressing my lips together, I move to turn my head. Surprisingly, he allows me to, but only so he can position his lips beside my ear.
“Don’t worry, my little rainbow trout; one day, you’ll realize you aren’t as different as you think,” he breathes hotly into my ear. “You’ve just been hanging out with the wrong crowd.”
I restrain the shiver wanting to course through my body, but lose control when he kisses the tip of my earlobe. My reaction makes my stomach churn with nausea and guilt. How can I possibly react to him this way when the love of my life is only standing a few feet away, trying to save me! And to a demon, of all creatures. A demon who, underneath the sexy guy façade, looks like an ugly troll.
I really am messed up.
“Let me go,” I say as I writhe my body in a desperate attempt to get away from him.
The numbness that was consuming my limbs has thawed, except for my knees down. The sensation is disconcerting, like my legs have turned into ice sculptures. At least I have most of my mobility back, though.
“Relax.” He reclines back and positions his face in front of mine again. “I’ll let you go, but not before I show you something.” He cups my chin and angles my head in the direction of the cage’s far back wall where a short, rounded figure with wrinkly grey skin and beady yellow eyes is tapping his foot impatiently.
Behind him, Hunter and Evan are trapped on the other side of the cage. Or, well, Hunter is. Evan is currently MIA.
“We’re going to get you out of here,” Hunter promises me with his palms lined up against the invisible wall of the cage. “Evan just went to get something to break down the cage.” He gulps. “Right now, we’re locked out.”
“Okay,” I mouth, trusting him. Then my attention shifts to the ugly, little creature standing inside the cage near the wall.
“I don’t know why we’re still here,” he spits, tapping the gold watch on his wrist. “We were supposed to be underground ten minutes ago.”
Terror lashes through me as my gaze whips back to the demon holding my face. “What the hell is that?”
“A demon.” A smug smile dances at his lips. “The demon who pulled you into this cage.”
Confusion bounces through my mind. “No, you pulled me in here.”
“Did I?” he questions, radiating amusement. “Because, from what I remember, you were already in here when I showed up thirty or so minutes ago, like I said, after being summoned by a shapeshifter demon.”
“I …” My gaze skates from the pissed off troll-ish demon then back to the dangerously sexy demon in front of me. “You tricked me.”
“No, you were just too oblivious to notice. But that’s okay; witches can be pretty self-absorbed. Good thing you’re only half a witch.” He frees my face from his grip then sits back, grinning.
I massage my cheeks with my fingers while wiggling my jaw from side to side. “I don’t know where you got your info, but I’m not a hybrid.”
His head bobbles back as he releases a frustrated groan. “Must we go over this again?”
“Please don’t. I’d rather you just stop lying.”
“I’m not lying.”
“Yes, you are.” My hands ball into fists on my lap as frustration simmers beneath my skin. “If I was part demon, I would have realized it by now.”
“How? Because your self-demon sensors would have told you?” he ridicules. “Trust me, sweetheart; these sorts of things don’t work that way. If someone isn’t born into the demon world, they usually don’t know they belong there. Unless someone tells them. And considering you’re pretty ignorant about all of this, I’m guessing your parents never told you.”
“First of all, quit calling me stupid and ignorant, and definitely don’t ever call me sweetheart again,” I snap while he simply grins. My eyes narrow into slits as I continue, counting down on my fingers. “Second, if my parents knew I was part demon, they would’ve told me. And lastly, if I was some sort of special hybrid that the demons wanted to get their hands on, why wouldn’t they just take me instead of using my sister to get to me? I mean, you were right by me in the park, and I was petrified. You could have taken me then, but instead, all you did was threaten to—”
“I wasn’t quite sure what you were then,” he cuts me off sharply, his eyes blazing with a silent warning to keep quiet.
Why? Why would I even trust him?
I open my mouth to finish the rest of my statement and prove I’m not going to listen to him, but I snap my jaw shut as the walls begin to bow, making an ear-splitting noise.
Cringing, I raise my hands to cover my ears, when he snags ahold of my wrist, stopping me.
“As long as you keep your mouth shut about what you are, I can arrange to get your sister back,” he whispers. “But under no circumstances are you to go anywhere near The Illuminating Horror House of Truth, got it?”
My brain rattles in my skull as the cage’s walls bend to and fro. “Why? What is that place even—”
“No questions,” he snaps. “Just a yes or no.”
I sneak a glance over at the ugly troll demon, who is scampering around and squealing with his hands over his ears. “But what about—”
The sexy demon splays his fingers across my cheek and angles my head back toward him. “Don’t worry about him. He won’t say a word; I’ll make sure of it.”
Every single part of me screams not to make this bargain, that making a deal with a demon is by far the worst decision I could ever make. But so would allowing Ryleigh to remain a demon prisoner, used for trafficking and who knows what other purposes.
“All right, I’ll keep my mouth shut and stay out of The Illuminating Horror House of Truth.” For now, anyway. If I find out he’s lying, though, all deals are off. I also don’t bother mentioning that Hunter and Evan already know, since they overheard the other demon talking to me. If he knew that, he might not have made the deal.
“Good.” He removes his hand from my cheek as he gracefully leaps to his feet. “Now, all we have to do is kiss on it.”
I blink up at him stupidly. “Heck to the no way am I kissing you!”
His eyes glimmer mischievously. “One little kiss on the lips to seal the deal, or no deal at all.”
“You’re a sick, twisted, demon, perv freak!”
“And you’re about to kiss me, so what does that make you?” His brow pops up, his lips tugging upward into a cocky grin.
“I’m not that great of a kisser,” I continue to protest. Which is sort of the truth, I guess. I mean, I’ve never kissed anyone, so I don’t really know …
My gaze roams over toward Hunter, who’s distracted by the ugly demon sticking his tongue out at him. Relief washes over me that he’s not listening to this embarrassing and kind of disgusting conversation going down.
“I’ll be the judge of that.” The sexy demon kneels in front of me. “So, do we have a deal? Or, should I take off and let your sister continue to rot in the underground tunnels?”
Grr … Curse all demons and their evil tricks!
“Fine. One peck on the cheek.” I fold my arms and cross my legs, refusing to act as if I’m enjoying it.
“Nope.” He shakes his head. “It has to be on the lips.”
“Says who?”
“Says the person you’re making the deal with.”
My hands once again ball into fists. “Fine.” Then, to make things really unpleasant, I pucker my lips like a fish.
Amusement glitters in his eyes as he dips his head toward mine. “If you think that’s going to take my fun away from this, you’re completely and utterly wrong.” Then his lips are on mine.
They are surprisingly warm and soft, and for the weirdest moment, I feel sort of content, calm, at peace with myself. Then his hand finds my waist, and he lets out a growl as his tongue slips out to part my lips.
Holy shit, that might feel too good!
Putting my hand against h
is chest, I gently push him back.
“There. The deal is sealed.” When my voice comes out even and composed, I give myself a mental high-five. The last thing I want is for a demon to think his kisses made me melt a little.
His nostrils flare as he takes deep breaths and searches my eyes. “That’s it?”
I nod, ignoring the fluttering in my heart. “Yep.”
“Fine.” The one word comes out clipped. Then he springs to his feet, draws the hood of his cloak over his head, and looks down at me. For the briefest moment, he looks baffled, but then a haughty grin spreads across his face as he throws me a wink. “Until we meet again, my little rainbow trout.” He puckers his lips. “Just be ready for me.”
I start to shake my head, but then I remember …
“Wait. How am I supposed to know when you’ve gotten my sister back?” I ask, jumping to my feet. The blood rushes from my head, and I nearly collapse, but somehow, I maintain my balance. “I don’t even know how to contact you.”
“You don’t need to. I know where to find you.” Then, like at the park, he vaporizes in a swirly haze of smoke.
I spin around to where the troll demon was, but he’s vanished, as well.
And just like that, I’m left standing in a cage, alone, with nothing more than the hope that the demon will give me back my sister.
Chapter 2
I don’t know how long I stand there, staring into empty space, but reality eventually crashes over me like a violent wave.
“Oh, my ditzy witches, did I just make a deal with a demon?” I whisper in horror. “And kiss one?”
“You did what?” Hunter’s astounded voice sails from over my shoulder.
I startle, but I don’t turn around, partly out of shame, and partly because he might be a traitor.
“Huh? So you didn’t see that?” I play it off coolly.
“No, I didn’t. Why would you do that?” he chokes, sounding hurt. “That doesn’t sound like you at all.”
“Because I panicked and felt like I had to.” Summoning a deep breath, I twist around to face him.
He’s standing only inches away from me, his posture stiff, his lips set in a thin line. On a positive note, his blue and black hair is tinted with blond and has an inch more length.
“Hey, your hair’s starting to change back.”
He makes no move to reach up and feel the freshly grown strands. “I don’t care about my hair. What I care about is what kind of deal you made with that evil bastard, and why the hell you kissed him.”
I crinkle my nose, pretending the kiss was more revolting that it was. “Yeah, that definitely wasn’t my finest moment, was it?” I shrug. “He said he wouldn’t make the deal if I didn’t give him a little smooch.” I put on a sarcastic smile. “But, hey, at least I got my first kiss out of the way.”
Anger flashes in his eyes, his fingers curling into fists. “Don’t play this off by pretending it wasn’t a big deal.”
“But it’s not,” I insist. “I know some girls get all weird about their first kiss being special, but honestly, I never expected anyone to ever kiss me.”
He frowns. “Evalee, I don’t think—”
I hold up my hand. “Look, I know it’s weird I just swapped spit with a soulless spawn of the devil, but I needed to make the deal, and that was part of it.” I let my arm fall to my side. “I’d appreciate it if we stopped talking about the kiss.” I shudder as if I’m truly disgusted. And I am, but more with myself and the fact that I’m not entirely disgusted by kissing the demon.
What is wrong with me?
Hunter gradually shakes his head, the muscles in his jaw ticking. “Fine. Will you at least tell me why he was even here? And why he willingly entered the cage?”
“Maybe because he knew you guys were about to tear the walls down?” I intentionally avoid his first question, wanting to avoid talking about possibly being a hybrid, and because I’m still confused over whether or not I can trust Hunter. “I really don’t know the answer to that. I honestly didn’t even realize he’d entered it until about five minutes ago—I was so out of it.”
“I know.” His throat muscles work as he swallows hard. “For a minute, I thought you were … you were dead.”
“So did I.” I rub my hands up and down my arms and wiggle my toes around, making sure every speck of my body is free from the petrifying curse. Then my thoughts float to my sister and how, according to the police, she died from petrification. “I probably should be.”
His brows pucker. “Why would you say that?”
“Because I was petrified.” I hug my arms around myself. “That was how Ryleigh died.”
Pity overflows from his eyes. “Oh, Eva.” He reaches for me, but I shuffle back, and he immediately frowns. “What’s wrong?”
“We need to talk. But not here … Some place private.” I peer around at the multiple hallways extended out of the rounded room we’re in. “Where’s Evan?”
“After the cage began to crumble, he ran off to grab a harness.” He shakes his head with his fingertips pressed against his temples. “I don’t even want to know why.”
“To make sure my demon didn’t escape.” Evan whisks back into the room, carrying a leather collar attached to a chain. “With the cage down, he’ll be able to …” He slows to a stop as his gaze sweeps the demon-free space surrounding Hunter and me. “Fuck, he took off already? How the hell did he do that? It should’ve taken him a few minutes after the walls fell before he was completely free.”
“I think the other demon kidnapped him,” I explain. “Or killed him. I’m not sure which.”
Evan drops the collar and chain to the floor then drags his fingers through his hair. “Great, now I’m going to have to capture another one.”
“I’m sorry,” I tell him. “I feel like this is all my fault. I never should’ve gotten that close to the cage to begin with.”
“No, it’s not your fault,” Evan insists, resting back against the wall with a heavy sigh. “If anything, it’s my fault for not putting up a better cage. I can’t believe he made the walls ripple like that.”
“You probably didn’t use enough surface energy when you created it,” Hunter tells him, standing so close to my side that our arms touch.
I discreetly inch away from him, not ready to touch him yet. If it turns out he did rat me out, I won’t ever go near him again. Even if he stands in the center of my lawn, blasting a boom box and begging me to forgive him.
Hunter notices my offish behavior and gives me a quizzical glance, mouthing, “Are you sure you’re okay?”
Unsure of what else to do, I give a shrug,
Evan rubs his jawline contemplatively. “You think so?” he asks Hunter.
Hunter tears his gaze off me and distractedly nods. “The next time you create a cage, up the force. Then the walls shouldn’t have so much bend in them.”
“All right, I’ll give that a go.” Evan pushes away from the wall and walks toward us. “How did you learn about surface energy? Last I heard, it wasn’t included in the standard wizard and witches curriculum. “
“It’s not in the standard classes curriculum,” Hunter says. “But a few advanced classes include it.”
“So, you’re one of those smart guys who doesn’t look like it,” Evan questions, looking as though he’s struggling not to grin.
“I guess so,” Hunter replies, sounding somewhat offended.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean for that to come out as rude as it sounded,” Evan apologizes, stopping in front of us.
“It’s cool,” Hunter replies with an indifferent shrug.
Curiosity creeps into Evan’s expression. “So, what do you know about internal energy?”
A trace of an arrogant smile graces Hunter’s face. “A bit.”
After that, the two of them begin chatting about energy as if they’re old friends, like Evan and I were supposed to be. Meanwhile, the demon’s words echo in my mind.
While I don’t want to be a hybrid,
I can’t help being painfully aware of how different I am.
How different exactly, remains undecided.
Chapter 3
“You’ve been awfully quiet since you escaped the cage,” Hunter declares the moment we hop into his truck. “Is this about the kiss?”
I find it odd that he doesn’t bring up the fact that I might be a hybrid demon first. Out of all the things revealed while we were at Evan’s, the kiss seems like the biggest issue at the moment.
But, since he’s not bringing it up, I’m not going to, either. Not until I figure out if Hunter could’ve possible shot me in the back with his wand—metaphorically speaking—and told the hybrids where my sister was hidden.
“No. And I don’t want to talk about that kiss. Ever again,” I grumble, staring at Evan’s warehouse perched in the center of acres of dry, wilting grass. “And maybe I should be asking you why you were so chatty in there.”
“I’m always chatty,” he points out as he twists the keys and the engine rumbles to life. “Why do you sound so jealous?”
“Because I am.” I rest back in the seat and prop my boots up on the dash. “Evan is supposed to be my old friend. Not yours.”
“You do realize how ridiculous you sound right now, right?” He pauses, giving me a somewhat concerned look. “Are you sure this isn’t about the ki—”
“Enough with the kissing thing! It happened, and now it’s over. I did it for a good reason, too.” I hope. “And I do know how ridiculous I sound right now, which probably makes me even more pathetic.”
“Eva …” he starts, his tone laced with pity.
I point a finger at him. “Don’t do that.”
His brows dip. “Don’t do what?”
“Look at me with pity.” I face forward in the seat. “I hate it when you do that. And while we’re at it, you should stop looking at me altogether.”
“Okaaay,” he drags out the word as he shifts the truck into reverse. “I’m just going to keep my mouth shut until you’re ready to tell me what’s really bothering you.”
The fact that he knows my anger isn’t fully stemming from him stealing my old buddy and kissing some demon floors me even more.
Mystic Willow Bay, Witches Series: The Secret Life of a Witch Page 9
