"Ah, don't tell her…?" he whispered. He wasn't referring to my dream.
I grinned and shut my eyes again. "I won't say a word."
We eventually landed at LAX. On our way off the plane, Reckless Jordan handed me a small piece of paper and hurried off. Vera glared after her, and then frowned at me. I shrugged. Once we were off the plane, I unfolded the paper.
"Is that some kind of code?" Thaddeus asked, peering over my shoulder. "And it's a little weird she's asking you to call her gorgeous, but I just don't get those numbers below. There's no pattern, no sequence or repetition…"
I laughed. "It's a phone number, Thaddeus." When he still didn't understand, I said, "It's a way to contact someone. I used a series of numbers like these to contact Clara."
Vera ripped the paper from my hand, tore it in so many pieces it would've put a paper shredder to shame, and then threw the pieces in a trashcan that was rolling past, being pulled by a janitor.
She shoved my shoulder. "I can't believe you!"
"What? I didn't do anything!"
"Why did she give you her contact information, then?" Her finger was ramrod straight and centimeters from my nose.
I took a step back, laughing. "Look. She started talking to me on the plane while you two were, ah"—I remembered Thaddeus—"watching the movie. She asked me a question. I couldn't not answer her—"
"Yes, you could." Her finger hadn't moved.
I couldn't argue social etiquette with someone who had none. "Vera. I'm not going to call her. I didn't ask her for her phone number. I didn't even tell her my name. I was just being nice."
Vera glared at me a moment longer, her finger still pointed at my nose. "You're too nice." She lowered her finger.
"Now, that's something I've never been accused of before."
She shrugged. "There's a first for everything."
"Yeah, like you being mad at him for once," Thaddeus added.
She fixed her glare on him. He ducked his gaze and scratched the back of his neck.
Our layover lasted a little more than an hour. From the moment of my tongue-lashing, Vera glared at every female in the airport, as if she worried all of LAX wanted to give me their phone number. I didn't mind her reaction, and Thaddeus seemed to enjoy the fact that—for once—he wasn't the object of Vera's condemning scrutiny. Thus removed from Vera's spotlight of wrath, Thaddeus fixed his attention on the people walking by, gawking and making so many comments about the styles, I thought we'd get in a fight. Particularly with a guy with green hair spiked like Sonic the Hedgehog, ears gauged the size of silver dollars, and more piercings than a pincushion. The guy flipped off Thaddeus as he passed. Thaddeus then decided to try the gesture on for size.
I knocked his hand to the side. "It's not a nice gesture, Thaddeus."
Thaddeus frowned at his hand. "It's just a finger."
"Just don't do it."
The next young girl that walked passed, Vera flipped her off. Bewildered, the girl ducked her head and hurried on her way.
"Vera." I gave her a pleading look.
She looked smug, but she didn't do it again.
I found an exchange booth and traded our Euros for dollars, getting spare change in the process, then found a payphone in a corner and tried Clara again. No answer.
It was ten P.M. by the time we landed at SFO. We were all exhausted, not having slept much in the past forty-eight hours, and we still had a drive before we reached Yosemite. I found another payphone, tried Clara again, and then hung up.
"Still nothing?" Vera studied me.
I shook my head. A heavy pit of fear settled in my stomach. If Eris had found a way to send Morts through the Room of Doors and into Yosemite…
"I take it this is unusual?" she asked.
"Very."
"Still don't want to try your, uh, main line?" Thaddeus asked.
"No. If someone else is there, I don't want them knowing we're coming."
"Okay, so now what?" Thaddeus yawned, placing his hands on his lower back and stretching.
I looked around for the signs to the rental cars. There. "This way," I said.
We boarded a bus to the rental cars. Thaddeus was too tired to comment, but he pinched his nose from the diesel fumes. Within the hour, the three of us were on the freeway speeding toward Yosemite in a four-wheel drive Jeep Grand Cherokee.
"You know, Gaia really is missing out on the car thing," Thaddeus said from the passenger seat. "This is so much better than sitting in the saddle all day. And they don't smell and there aren't flies and they aren't always trying to throw me off."
"Pity," Vera said in back. She'd taken off her heels and was shoving her boots back on.
Thaddeus grinned to himself as he stared out the window, as if he was secretly pleased about something. Neither of us had told Vera she'd fallen asleep on his shoulder. I couldn't tell if she knew or was pretending it hadn't happened.
Since that moment, Thaddeus had seemed…subdued, and, now that I was thinking about it, a lot more like his normal self.
"So this is the States," he said.
"A state," I replied. "California."
"Isn't Rook from California?"
"Yes. Fresno."
"Can we drive by her house?" Thaddeus asked.
"No, it's out of the way and we don't have time."
"That's too bad," Thaddeus said. "I've always wanted to see where she grew up. But I guess she sort of grew up at your house, too."
He looked over at me. I kept my attention fixed on the road.
"How did you do it?" he asked.
"Do what?"
"Spend all those years knowing she was a princess from another world and never tell her."
I flexed my fingers over the steering wheel. "Interesting question, coming from you."
"Look. I know what I did was terrible…"
I glanced sideways at him.
"Okay, repulsive? Vile? The most appalling thing anyone has ever done in the history of both worlds, and I should be hung from a tree by my toes where crows can pluck out my eyeballs?"
I grinned at the road. "That’s…creative."
"I know you still don't trust me," Thaddeus continued, "but this isn't about me. This is about you, and you, Del Can't, are an honest man through and through. Not to mention the way you feel about her…I just don't know how you managed to be around her all those years and never once let it slip."
I didn't answer him. The truth of the matter was that it had been unbearable. Every time I'd laid eyes on her, the lies I'd told hung over me like a dark cloud. I, who prided myself on truth and integrity, hadn't even been honest with her about my real name. And when I realized how I felt about her, even looking at her had become a torment. All the affection I'd felt had been tainted with truths and half-truths that had gone untold for so many years. The older we'd grown and the closer we'd become, the harder and more painful it'd been to hide it from her. There had been so many times I'd almost broken down and told her everything, but by then I was afraid. Afraid that everything we'd built together would shatter in an afternoon with only a few words. And knowing who she truly was, I wouldn't have had the power or right to stop it.
I'd rather face ten thousand shadowguard than relive those early moments when she'd finally learned the truth. When she'd discovered I'd lied to her all those years. Me, the one person she'd always trusted—perhaps even more so than her own father—and I'd betrayed her.
"How long is this drive again?" Thaddeus asked, pulling me from my thoughts.
When I glanced back at him, I noticed he had a toothpick in his mouth, which he was chewing on. "Where did you find that?"
"This pocket over here." He pointed to the door handle.
"That's been used, you know," I said.
He beamed at me and kept chewing.
"You're disgusting."
"Thank you," he said.
I sighed. "We've got about three hours of driving, which should put us in Yosemite by"—I glanced at the dash—"two
in the morning."
Thaddeus groaned.
"Lean your seat back and sleep. You've got three hours."
"I can lean my seat back?" Thaddeus examined his seat.
"There should be a button on the side…"
"Found it!" Thaddeus's seat leaned back, farther and farther and farther.
"Hey!" Vera grunted from the backseat.
Thaddeus's seat was in her lap. "Sorry, V." He raised his seat enough for her to move behind mine, and then he lowered it again. He leaned back and threw an arm over his eyes. "You sure you can handle things if I take a nap? I mean, I'd help you drive but—"
"I'm fine," I said. "I'll wake you when we get close." In my rearview, Vera propped herself in the corner, fighting to keep her eyes open. "You, too, Vera."
"If you're staying awake, then I am too."
I didn't argue with her. There was never much point in arguing with Vera.
It wasn't long before she drifted off, her head propped against the window. I was exhausted, and the constant humming of the road didn't help. The night was dark and moonless, and the drive wasn't very exciting. Music might've helped, but I didn't want to wake the others. I made a last minute decision to exit the freeway and stop at a gas station for an energy drink. When I returned to the car, they were both still sleeping. It was strange having them here, in this world—like a melding of two lives, two identities. Here, I was Alex Anderson. There, I was Aegis Alexander Del Conte. I'd always kept my aegis self from Earth, but having Thaddeus and Vera here, there was no ignoring him. Having them here made me nostalgic and sad, because it gave closure to the easy life of Alex Anderson—a person I would never be again. I got back in my seat, started the car, and drove us on our way again.
Old snow covered the ground at the edges of the national park. The roads were clear but wet and lined with hard snow banks. My pulse buzzed the closer we got. It had been almost a year since I'd been here. But that wasn't the reason for my growing sense of foreboding.
When I turned down the road that led to our drive, I said, "Hey, you two…almost there."
Vera snapped awake, but Thaddeus choked on a snort and turned over.
"Hey, idiot." Vera whacked him on the back of his head. "Wake up."
"Hellfire!" Thaddeus sat up, rubbing his head. "Enough with the abuse, already!"
The end of our long gravel drive appeared in the beam of our headlights.
"You live all the way out here?" Thaddeus asked, squinting at the darkness.
"It's not as remote as it seems," I said. Before we reached the driveway, I pulled the Jeep alongside the road into the mud and snow, turned off the headlights, and killed the engine.
The night was pitch black and quiet.
Thaddeus looked at me, wary, as if he were suddenly afraid.
"My house is just over there." I pointed at the huge shadows of pine trees. "But I'd rather not announce we're here."
"You're that worried?" Vera asked.
I raked a hand through my hair. "Yes."
Thaddeus redirected his concern to the shadowed world beyond. "I can't believe you lived here. This whole setting just screams evil overlord's lair."
"Then you should feel right at home," I said, unfastening my seatbelt. Cold seeped into the car now that the heater was off.
"So, what's the plan, Del Can't?" Thaddeus asked.
The plan. I'd had ample time to think about this during the drive.
"I need to see what we're up against first," I said. "Then we'll go from there."
"Sounds vague, obscure, and overly cautious. Typical Del Can't. I prefer Rook's strategies. I mean, they really aren't strategies as much as whims, and they usually land us in heaps of trouble, but they're way more exciting."
"Well, you two are related…" I started opening my car door and paused. "Careful not to slam your doors shut."
I opened my door all the way, and a stiff and frigid breeze zapped my warmth. Rubbing my hands together, I made my way to the trunk and pulled out our bags, then gently lowered the trunk until it latched with a soft click. Vera and Thaddeus shivered as they grabbed their carry-ons from my hands, and then they followed me down the road to my driveway. Our driveway was long and a bit of a hike, but the brisk walk helped keep us warm. Before we reached the last turn, I whispered for the others to set their packs down behind a rock. Vera wrapped her arms tight around her chest. She had to be freezing, but she didn't complain. I led them through the edge of pines until my house came into view. The porch lights were off.
The porch lights were never off.
All of the windows were dark, except for the one beside the front door. It wasn't the light from the foyer. This light came from farther down the hall.
"Looks like someone's home," Thaddeus whispered.
"It's not the right someone," I said.
"Are you sure? What if—"
"Alexander."
I followed Vera's gaze to our dumpster sitting along the edge of the driveway. Something moved in the shadows, but it wasn't human. I picked up a small rock from the ground and threw it. A handful of startled coyotes darted off into the woods. What had brought so many here? I headed toward the dumpster, keeping to the edge of the drive and in the shadows, the other two trailing behind me. I reached the dumpster and immediately saw what had brought the coyotes.
It was a body.
It was contorted and twisted, as if it had been dumped on the ground. It was hard to say how long it had been there due to the freezing cold, which was also why there'd been no detectable scent. It was starting to decompose and there were chew marks all over it. Fingers were missing, and there were chunks of muscle and flesh gouged out of the legs. Deep, smooth cuts had been carved along the exposed arm, and the skin around the person's neck was broken and caked with dried blood. A wave of sickness washed over me. I didn't want to look at her face because I already knew who she was.
10
ALEXANDER
I staggered back, braced my hand on a tree, and vomited.
I'd seen death. Too many times. I'd seen clean deaths and brutal mutilations. I'd witnessed more horrors than I cared to remember. Sometimes those deaths were my doing. It was part of being an aegis. You spent time hiding in the scourges of society, where men and women and other Gaian creatures didn't play by the rules—where life was a constant bartering piece. As an aegis, it was my duty to amend wrongs, and as much wrong as I'd righted, another wrong would fill its place. It was a vicious cycle. I'd come to realize my role as an aegis wasn't getting rid of the dark altogether, but keeping the balance of light and dark in check. Yes, after all these years, the sight of death was no stranger to me, but this…this was too close. Clara…she was family.
All my life, she'd lived with us. She'd been my nanny, but we'd loved her as though she were one of us. She treated me as her own son, taking care of me when I was young, when Gaia and diplomacy took my parents away. She nursed wounds and illnesses, comforted nightmares. She'd done everything she could to nurture and protect, and when she'd been the one in danger, none of us had been there to protect her.
I made a fist against the bark and wiped my mouth with my other hand. And then I glanced up.
Vera and Thaddeus stood there, studying me, taking in my expression. Fear registered in their eyes and they shrank back. I shoved myself off the tree and started for the house. I'd lost all care for stealth. My boots crunched loudly on the gravel drive of our roundabout.
"Del Can't!" Thaddeus hissed behind me.
I kept walking toward the front door, fists clenched at my sides. Gravel crunched behind me as the other two hurried to keep pace.
"Hey, uh, so now might be a good time to tell us what your plan is…?" Thaddeus asked.
I reached the bottom of the steps and ascended two at a time. The boards creaked beneath my weight, and when I reached the top, I pounded on the front door so hard it rattled on its hinges. A shadow appeared behind the decorative glass framing the sides of the door. The handle clicked, the
door opened, and a large, gruff man with a bludgeon hooked to his belt stood on the other side.
He looked startled. "Wasn't expecting you to use the—"
I punched him in the face.
He reeled back, covering his nose, and yelled through his hands. He corrected his balance, ripped his bludgeon free, and swung, but I was already in position. I stepped aside, grabbed his arm, and broke it against the doorframe. He wailed in pain. I kicked him back and he tumbled out of the hall and into the next room, just as another man appeared. He moved fast, but I was faster. Within seconds, he was sprawled on the floor right beside the first. More footsteps echoed down the hall, and two more men appeared bearing scimitars.
I grabbed the edges of the pedestal to a marble bust and shoved it at them. It toppled into one of the men, the bust crashing onto the wood flooring, while the other man ran at me. I made a quick step. His momentum kept him pitching forward, and as he ran past I yanked the sword from his hands, spun around and slashed the back of his hamstrings. He cried out and staggered, and I kicked him down. The man who'd been hit with the bust and pedestal got back on his feet again, and in one smooth motion, I whirled around and plunged the scimitar into his gut. He dropped to the ground, and four more men appeared in the hall. These four noticed the others lying on the floor and crept slowly and timidly forward. I adjusted the scimitar's hilt in my palm and lunged. The first two were down within moments, and I snagged a sword from one of them mid-fall just in time to duck and twist and plunge both swords into the bellies of my next two attackers. I jerked the swords free and the last two men slumped to the ground, dead.
Quiet.
I crossed the hall to check the pulses of the men I'd knocked unconscious. One was dead and the other had a pulse, but it was faint. There had been enough death in the last few minutes. I decided to let him live, not that he would wake anytime soon. I grit my teeth together. I hated this—killing. It didn't matter that so much of it was necessary, because each time I killed, it stole a little bit of my soul. I was so afraid I wouldn't have any soul left when this was all over. I stood, holding both scimitars in one hand, and turned to find Thaddeus and Vera gaping at me.
Heir of Pendel (A Pandoran Novel, #4) Page 13
