Calvin groaned before answering, then looked at her wearily, his brown eyes warm and thoughtful. “It’s like…the ultimate invasion. It feels like you don’t really have control anymore. Her thoughts are so potent, so concentrated that they’re impossible to ignore. Somehow she saturates your mind with an intensity…this urgency to carry through. And it hurts, once you try to fight it. The sheer recognition of the intruding mind is unpleasant, but trying to go against it–trying to fight that voice–it’s excruciating. It actually makes your head throb.”
“Hmm, I can’t imagine that,” she said.
“You want to hear the really weird part?”
“There’s more?” When she let her fingers slide down the back of his neck, Calvin let out a soft growl of pleasure.
“What’s the really weird part?” she asked.
“Well, it’s actually kind of hard to explain, but…” He closed his eyes and chuckled. “I’m not sure I can say it right.”
Evie noticed a hint of red lending new color to his olive skin; it heightened her curiosity. “Well too late now. You’ve got me all curious, so you’re just going to have to spit it out.” His smile revealed the dimple in his cheek. She searched his face, wondering what it could be that seemed to actually have him blushing.
“Well,” he started, glancing up at her, “I told you that it hurts to fight it. But the really crazy part is that it feels good to obey it. There’s …pleasure involved, and it builds as you get closer to following through, especially if the act is violent. It’s hard to even want to question what you’re doing. It’s a real distraction.”
“That’s interesting,” Evie said, a little short for words. “Yet you can still fight it. I’m even more impressed now that I know that.”
“I think that’s part of Parker’s problem. He’s so used to just doing whatever feels good, you know?”
Evie ran her hand along his jaw, admiring the strength in him. “I wonder what would’ve happened if your dad would have fallen in love again,” she said. “None of your grandfathers ever got remarried?”
“No, none. I never understood why my dad didn’t at least try to move on and find love again. Not until recently, anyway.”
Calvin’s pause made her wonder if he was going to elaborate. Though his shoulders moved in a lazy shrug as he gazed at her, the intensity in his eyes made her heart sputter. That familiar current between them–vibrant, heated, and thriving–pulsed and swelled as a sudden warm breeze picked up.
“It took finding you,” he said, “to realize what it’s like when your heart is so… captured by the one you love–that it’s no longer your own.” He pressed a kiss to her palm, nuzzled his face into her open hand, and let his eyes close.
Evie took a moment to let his comment sink to the depths of her own heart, certain–in that moment–that she knew just what he meant. As Calvin’s breaths came slower, deeper, Evie let her eyes close in weary defeat, chasing unwanted images of their fate with more pleasant thoughts of their future. She focused on what she hoped to see: a time when it would all lay behind them–the day they were free from the ancient curse of the Knights.
Chapter Thirty-six
“So I think I’m figuring this whole thing out, with my dreams I mean,” Calvin said.
Evie brought the porch swing to a halt with her heels, looked at him through the dark shadows of the night. “Oh yeah? Let’s hear it.”
“The canyon is phase two. The part where I swoop in, come to your rescue.” The porch light grazed the side of his face, revealing his weak attempt at a half-smile.
“So if that’s phase two,” she said, “phase one must be…”
“The abduction,” he answered. “And that’s what I’ve dreamt about more recently. From what I can tell, it’ll take place at night, after dark. But here’s the new development–fireworks.”
“Fireworks?”
“Yes.” He leaned in. “Evie, if this foresight is accurate, they’ll be going off during the time of your abduction. This is a really good thing because firework displays are planned ahead of time, announced–and that means–predictable. You don’t know how much weight this takes off my mind, to have it narrowed down…” He broke off, appeared to be lost in thought for a breath. “Anyway, according to the research I’ve done so far, all of the local firework displays will take place on either a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday night.”
She brought her warm mug to her lips, inhaled the sweet scent of her herbal tea. “Hmm. That does really narrow down the time.” The temperature outside, though warm earlier, had settled into something slightly cool–just cool enough to give her the occasional shiver. “You know, talking about the whole abduction should really freak me out–I know that. But it doesn’t. And it isn’t that I doubt it will happen, it’s just that, the idea is so hard to grasp.”
Calvin nodded. “I know what you mean.” He shifted in his seat until he faced her. “So here’s the plan. Say you have to head out at night, like to the library or the grocery store, but Riverdale City is having their celebration–meaning there will be fireworks close by that night. You’ll drive to wherever you need to go yourself, but Parker and I will follow you. In fact, I’ll want to be there before you even get in and out of your car in case it happens then. It’s more likely to happen in some sort of parking lot than anywhere else because you’ll already be out of your car.”
“On the nights when there are fireworks, I picture me just… staying at home to avoid it.”
“Trust me, a big part of me wants you to do exactly that. But this thing’s going to play out whether we’re ready for it or not. If you simply go with whatever comes along naturally, it’s more likely that my foresight will be accurate. We don’t want to do anything to change the course of events. Anyway, Parker and I will be right there to ensure that your captor doesn’t hurt you. His objective is to get you where Jocelyn wants us–the canyon.” He paused, scanned the darkness beyond the fence.
“What is it?” she asked in a whisper.
He didn’t answer right away. “Nothing, I guess. Hey, I know that Frank Pilger is behind bars now, and we have an idea of when the abduction will take place, but just in case, I want you to avoid any outdoor running until this is over with. Okay?”
Evie didn’t want to say yes to that. She’d only recently started running outside again, but Calvin was right. It wasn’t a good idea for now. “Yeah. I’ll stick to the treadmill.”
“Anyway, where was I?”
“The canyon.” She offered him the warm mug.
“Oh yeah. Parker and I will follow you to phase two, watch and make sure nothing happens to you in between. We won’t let you out of our sight.” After taking the offered sip of herbal tea, he handed the steaming cup back to her.
She wrapped her hands around it, let it warm her fingers.
“I better get you inside,” Calvin said. “Parker’s waiting for me.”
“How are you doing it all?” she asked. “School, your work, coming here, going to The Loft. I bet you’re exhausted.”
He reached his hand around the back of her neck, kissed her forehead. “I’ll be glad when it’s over. That’s for sure.”
She led him along the porch and stopped at the back door.
“I won’t be able to come out tomorrow night,” he said. “Parker’s getting off early and we’ll be training ‘til late. But I’ll be here Saturday morning to pick you up.” He brought his mouth to her cheek, spoke in a whisper. “Are you sure you want to spend another Saturday in The Loft?”
“Of course,” she said. “When else am I going to see you? Besides, I don’t mind being there, really.” Her mouth met his for a short, tender kiss. “See you Saturday?”
Calvin nodded, a strange sort of conflict set in his eyes. “Saturday,” he said, and walked away.
***
“I can’t believe how much better you did today, Parker,” Fiona said. “Didn’t you think so, Calvin?”
Calvin glanced at Parker. “He’s i
mproving.”
Evie drizzled some extra syrup onto her final pancake. She couldn’t help but notice Calvin’s resistance to compliment his older brother, but she wanted to stay out of it. “I love having breakfast for dinner,” she said. “This café is my favorite.”
“It’s a good one,” Fiona said. “What about you, Evie? Weren’t you impressed by how well Parker did today?”
Evie nodded. “Yeah. He’s fighting the whole mind thing way better.” She glanced over at Parker. “You only teleported a couple of times during that phase. I thought that was great.”
Fiona glared at Calvin. “I bet that’s nice to hear. Right, Parker?”
“Definitely,” Parker said.
Calvin blew out a loud puff of air, annoyance plain on his face.
“Geeze, man, what’s your problem?” Parker scooted his empty plate away. “Nothing I do is good enough, is it? I teleport three times the entire day and–”
“That’s just it, Parker. It only takes once. You guys expect me to be all excited about his progress when he’s still slipping up?” Calvin turned his attention back to his brother. “You teleport at the wrong time and we’re dead.”
“I don’t get that,” Evie said. “How is Parker’s whole teleporting thing meant to help out? Why does he even have that ability?”
“Because one of these guys needs to follow Jocelyn into her world,” Fiona said. “And that ability will allow Parker to move from one realm to the next, meaning, he can get out once he’s in.”
Evie was confused. Calvin hadn’t talked to her about this part. “We want him to go into her world?”
“Well, you know Jocelyn wants one of the Knight men for herself, right?” Fiona didn’t pause long enough for Evie to reply. “In order to accomplish this, she has to get one of them to do something Winston refused to do so long ago–sacrifice his earthly life for her, the way she did for the dark side.”
Evie shivered. “That’s where the mind manipulation thing comes in,” she surmised, glancing at Calvin. Why had he kept her in the dark about this?
Fiona took a sip from her mug before speaking. “Yes. Once she gains access to our world, Jocelyn will also gain access to every mind within her reach. With her persuasive ability, she’ll most likely work on both men, and choose the one who falls more deeply under her spell.”
Parker leaned in. “But if Calvin follows her in, he won’t be able to teleport out. So it has to be me who goes. Calvin’s mad that he has to rely on me. Thinks I’m going to screw it all up.”
“Is that true?” Evie asked Fiona, horrified. “If Jocelyn gets Calvin to go, he’ll be trapped down there forever?” Her voice had risen in pitch, breaking as she uttered the last word. She thought the men would have time to come to and break free of the spell.
Calvin kept his gaze down as she turned to him. “When did you plan on telling me this?” she asked.
Fiona reached over the table, rested a warm hand on Evie’s wrist. “You don’t need to worry yourself about that, Evie. With as well as Calvin does at fighting the manipulation, I’m confident he’ll be able to resist.” She slowly withdrew her hand and glanced at Parker, a trace of sadness washing over her face. She masked it with a weak smile. “I’m pretty sure Parker will be able to fight it too. The hope is that, when he goes with her, he’ll be going with his own purpose, not hers. That he’ll go with the knowledge of who he is, who she is, and what he has to do.” Though she’d been speaking to Evie, Fiona hadn’t taken her eyes off Parker.
A million what if questions raced through Evie’s mind.
“But what if Calvin does go? It could happen, right? If he did somehow get lured down there, and then he came to, it would be too late?”
Calvin grimaced. “Evie, are you seriously worried that I’ll be manipulated more easily than Parker?”
“Well then what’s Parker supposed to do once he gets down there?” She mostly wanted to know if it was something Calvin could do too; she couldn’t accept the idea that he’d have no options if he wound up following that horrible witch into her dark world.
Parker leaned forward, grabbing hold of the pendant at his neck. It was identical to Calvin’s. “My job is to get this thing around Jocelyn’s scabby old neck.”
Evie eyed the pendant Calvin wore, feeling more hopeful already; he had a pendant too. “So how are you going to do that?”
“I’ll just charm her into putting it on with my obvious lady skills, of course.” Parker flashed a grin at Fiona who was already rolling her eyes.
She wasn’t so sure about Parker, but Evie knew Calvin could charm the dark woman into wearing the necklace. She was still set on finding a way out for Calvin, in case he followed somehow. “So let’s say you get it around her neck. Then what?”
Calvin spoke up. “Then he’ll teleport himself and Jocelyn to the location of the other pendant.” He glanced at Fiona before continuing. “Which will lead him to you and me. We’ll be waiting for him in The Lockdown.”
“Well, you have a necklace too. That doesn’t help in the whole teleporting thing? I mean, if you did somehow get lured down there?” Evie knew she was grasping at straws, but she couldn’t help it.
Calvin looked annoyed. “No. What the amulet does is allow Parker to take Jocelyn with him, that’s it. And I won’t be wearing this,” Calvin said. He reached around the back of his neck and removed the pendant. “Fiona says you need to wear it.”
Evie focused on the necklace as it neared, suddenly mesmerized by the piece. Her recurring dream came to mind–the one that left her desperate to own it.
The warm tips of Calvin’s fingers grazed her neck once he clasped it. He tilted his head. “Looks nice on you.”
The pendant rested firmly against the base of her throat, nearly pressing against her, as if some magnetic connection to her flesh held it in place.
“That amulet has a direct relation to one of Jocelyn’s victims–their mother,” Fiona said. “That alone is extremely powerful. But what makes it even more potent is the connection it has to Calvin, and what he has with you. It binds the three of you in a way.” Fiona looked at Evie thoughtfully. “That piece will help protect you.”
Evie tried to sift through all the information clogging her brain: Magical amulets. A dead lady who kills people. Secret worlds and luring spells. She tried to simplify all of it, get back to where she’d left off. Only she’d reached a dead end; Calvin wouldn’t be able to leave the witch’s world if he went along. That much was clear.
“So the plan is,” she started, “that Calvin won’t go with her, but Parker will. And once Parker does go, hopefully of his own will, Calvin and I will head to this other place.” She felt encouraged when everyone at the table nodded in agreement. “And since I’ll be wearing this necklace, it will lead Parker and Jocelyn to our location where we can vanquish her?”
Fiona shook her head. “Vanquish? No. Trap? Yes.”
“What?” She might be new to all this, but Evie liked her idea much better; it sounded more permanent. “Trapping doesn’t sound that great.”
Calvin stood up, pulled some bills from his wallet, and set them on the table. “It’s better than it sounds,” he said. “I’ll tell you more on the way home.”
Grey sky deepened to a near black above the mountains in the east. In a subtle shift of hues, the color gradually slipped into lighter, pastel tones until it met with a pink sliver of sunlight sprawled over the western sky. The shimmering color danced on the surface of the Great Salt Lake, and Evie marveled at the deception; the view belonged to a warm evening in spring, yet the air outside was frigid. Early May and it still felt like March.
Calvin flipped on the heat in the covered Jeep while Parker escorted Fiona to his own car. Evie rubbed her hands together in front of the vents. “So what kind of world will we be waiting in? For Parker, I mean.”
“The Lockdown. And it might not vanquish Jocelyn, but it will trap her in every sense of the word. I mean, body and soul–bound indefinitely. We won�
��t have to worry about her again.” He eyed the rearview mirror as he backed out. “This one’s different from The Loft. The world itself already exists, so I won’t take part in designing it. What I will design is her cage.” After pulling onto the main road, Calvin shot her a quick glance, a spark of excitement flashing in his eyes. “Once we get down there–”
“Hold up. Did you say down there?” she asked.
“Yeah.” He let out a short chuckle. “These worlds are below the surface, but they don’t belong to the underground, and evil has no way of entering without someone from our side. Anyway, from what Fiona said, there will be other spirits down there, captured and bound. We may actually see them while we’re there.”
“Other souls?” She shot him an incredulous glance. Every once in a while, when something was just too hard to fathom, Evie had moments of doubt. “Calvin, don’t you ever wonder…” she began, but stopped short when he looked back at her, eyes tender and kind. After everything she’d experienced, how could she doubt? She’d been on journeys to the sky, watched Calvin transform a giant, blank canvas into a moving, functioning world. “Never mind,” she said.
Calvin took one hand off the wheel, reached to secure her hand within his grasp, and watched the road ahead as he spoke. “Evie, it’s a lot to take in. I’ve had more time to digest all of this than you have. But even in the beginning, I had to take it seriously because it threatens your life–you–the person I love most. I could never dismiss anything that might cause you harm.”
Evie nodded, comforted by his words, and reached into her pocket with her free hand. After grabbing her ChapStick, she smoothed a thin coat onto her lips and replaced the lid.
Calvin cleared his throat.
When she looked over, his eyes were unreadable in the fading light. “What?” she asked.
He pulled to a stop at the traffic light, brought both hands back to the wheel. “My lips feel dry.”
She smiled. “They do?”
Evie's Knight Page 27
