by Tefft, Cyndi
“So what if I was hanging out with Ravi? Would that bother you?” I was baiting him and I knew it, since I had no desire to hang out with Ravi, but I was a little peeved at him for taking Micah’s side.
He nodded unapologetically. “It would. ‘Tis not that I don’t trust you. I do. I just don’t trust him.”
“But we’re in the band together! Are you saying you want me to quit the band?” My tone made it clear I had absolutely no intention of quitting, regardless of his answer. Aiden remained calm as ever, which only served to annoy me further.
“Of course not. You love it.”
“And Stephanie loves playing the violin. So she should just stop because Micah doesn’t trust Brandon?”
He frowned at me. “That’s not what I said.” He looked like he wanted to end the conversation, but I was just getting started.
“And what about Mona? You told me I shouldn’t be jealous of her, even though she was obviously coming on to you in the game room. How is that any different? I don’t trust her as far as I could kick her!” My voice had started to get screechy in indignation.
He sighed heavily, running his hand over his mouth and down his chin. “Mona is a woman. There is naught she can do to me if she doesn’t get what she wants. It’s different with a man who can harm a lass in order to get his way.”
I barked out a laugh. “You think Ravi would hurt me?”
Aiden shook his head and picked up my hand, squeezing it lightly to draw my attention back to his face. “No. I just said that I don’t trust him. ‘Tis my job to protect you and knowing how he feels about you, I wouldn’t like him to be tempted, is all.” His eighteenth-century view on women was rubbing me the wrong way, but I could see arguing was getting me nowhere, so I kept silent. He went into the kitchen to refill his drink, then turned to me as if he’d just remembered something.
“Ian has asked me to accompany him to the casino in Lincoln City this weekend. Sarah wanted to know if you and your friends would come stay with her. She said she’d like to spend time with you doing cooking and crafts. Would you be amenable to that?”
“What about the hell transporter?” I asked.
He froze with the glass halfway to his mouth.
“Have you—“ he started, but I cut him off.
“No, but for a while there, you wouldn’t let me out of your sight and now you’re leaving for a whole weekend to go gambling? It’s not Ravi you should be protecting me from, is it?”
Aiden looked like I’d hauled off and punched him. I had crossed a line and I knew it, but I was pissed. An array of emotions passed over his face but he said nothing. The silence hung between us like sides of beef in a cold locker, swaying back and forth, chilling me to the bone.
“You’re right. I won’t go,” he said finally, his voice full of self-reproach.
I don’t know what I expected, but all of a sudden I felt like a worm. One minute we’re fighting about Ravi—of all people—and the next, I’m raking him across the coals about the hell transporter.
Nice.
“No, I want you to go. It’s just… “ Frustrated, I rubbed the bridge of my nose and tried to think clearly. “I don’t know what we’re doing about it. Are we just waiting for it to attack again? What kind of plan is that?” Aiden sat down at the table, his gaze boring into the wood grain as his mind worked. Unable to sit still, I jumped up and began pacing.
“It could happen again at any time and I need to be there with you,” he said.
“To do what? How is that going to get us any closer to killing it?”
“It’s not,” he conceded. “We haven’t any idea where it is. If we could but locate it, I could trap it. If I could get my hands on it…” His fingers curled into tight fists.
A thought occurred to me and I stopped. “Wait a minute. We know it can control my mind, so maybe… Maybe the connection works the other way, too.”
“You’re going to try and control its mind? Even if you were able, how would that help?”
The idea built within me and I started to get excited. “No, not control it exactly, though that might be something to consider. I was thinking I might be able to just… you know, get in there. Look around. Figure out where it’s hiding.”
Aiden’s eyes grew wide. “And you think you can?”
“I have no idea, but it’s worth a shot. We don’t have anything else to go on.”
Aiden nodded, though I could tell he had reservations about it. Striding over to the couch, I sat down and took a deep breath, trying to cleanse my mind and focus on the transporter.
“Now?” Aiden’s incredulous voice broke into my thoughts at the same time I felt his weight next to me on the cushion.
“No time like the present,” I said with more confidence than I felt. Closing my eyes, I pictured the beast, with its reptilian skin, razor-sharp claws and blood red stare. A shudder ran through me. Aiden took my hand and started rubbing little circles over my fingers. Envisioning the monster as it appeared to me in the band room, I tried to connect with it the way I sent thoughts and pictures to Aiden, but without anything specific in mind. My senses came alive, noting the hum of the refrigerator and Aiden’s breathing beside me, the feel of the worn fabric couch beneath me, and the taste of garlic on my tongue from dinner. I waited, channeling all my energy toward the transporter.
Nothing happened.
It was as if I were trying to read Stephanie’s mind or connect with Jennifer telepathically. Maybe I was transmitting but there was no receiver. Blinking at the brightness in the room, I shook my head at Aiden.
“It didn’t work.”
“This time,” he said, earning a lopsided smile from me. “We’ll try again later. Perhaps I’ll try as well. And I won’t leave your side until we find a way.”
“No. I mean, yes, we can keep trying, but I want you to go on your weekend with Ian.” He started to protest, but I shut him down. “We can’t let the hell transporter dictate our lives. If we spend every moment being afraid, then it’s won. I’ll be here with Sarah, so you don’t need to worry. I’ll ask Jen and Steph to come, too. It’ll be fun.” He looked doubtful, but nodded. “But I have to ask: why the casino? You don’t have any money to gamble, I’m sure.”
“Aye, that’s true. Ian does, though, and he likes the way I play cards. He told me I can have half of the winnings.”
I cocked an eyebrow at him. “And pay half the losses?”
“Och, ye don’t have much faith in me, lass.”
I wrapped my arms around his neck and gave him a teasing smile. “Oh, I have lots of faith in you. It’s the casino I don’t trust.”
“Touché,” he said, then told me to be quiet in Gaelic and saw to it himself by sealing my mouth with a kiss.
Chapter 24
Jen couldn’t make it because her oldest brother was getting married that weekend, but Steph agreed to hang out with me and Sarah while Ian and Aiden were at the casino. Sarah was beside herself excited to have two college girls to spoil. When she rattled off the list of things she had planned to keep us occupied, I nearly burst out laughing. There was no way we’d get all those things done in just two days. Still, her enthusiasm was infectious. And it didn’t take long before Steph fell in love with her just like I had.
“She’s like the best grandma ever. Can I keep her?” Steph whispered.
Tying a ruffled apron around her ample waist, Sarah called for us to join her in the kitchen. In her slow, southern drawl, she patiently explained how to make a perfect pie crust. “The trick is to have all your ingredients ice cold—even the flour—and to mess with them as little as possible.” She grabbed the butter out of the freezer and I watched in fascination as she shredded it with a cheese grater. “All those little pieces of butter will nestle into the flour and then melt when we bake the pie, creating a flaky crust with little drops of heaven in every bite.” She winked at Steph, who grinned broadly in response.
While the pie baked, we worked on making Christmas cards with
Sarah’s extensive collection of stamps, papers, and ink, admiring each other’s handiwork. Even though it was only October, Sarah was the type who gave handmade gifts for the holidays, which meant she had to plan ahead. In the evening, we watched a sappy romance movie on their big screen television as we ate our apple pie with homemade whipped cream, giggling like little girls and swooning over the hunky male lead.
Steph and I shared the guest bedroom, which boasted a feather bed the size of a football field as well as an attached bathroom. She went in to brush her teeth and came out wearing long sleeved polka dotted jammies. The alarm clock on the nightstand glowed 3:00 a.m. by the time the two of us stopped talking and laughing, and finally fell asleep.
The tantalizing smell of cooking bacon stirred me awake the next morning, drawing me out of the warm cocoon of pillows. After a quick shower, I pulled on a tank top, a green sweater, and my favorite jeans. When I came downstairs, Sarah had prepared a country breakfast of mammoth proportions.
“This is amazing,” I said between mouthfuls of bliss. Buttery biscuits slathered in sausage gravy, homemade jam… Thank God my mom couldn’t cook to save her life while I was growing up or I’d have been unable to fit through the doorway. I’d have to be careful around Sarah, I thought, or my jeans wouldn’t fit anymore.
After we helped clean up the dishes, Sarah shepherded us into a sewing room where she’d spread out an assortment of blue and red fabric patches, batting, needles, and yarn. Seeing our curious faces, she took a seat and explained.
“It occurred to me the other day that your sweet Aiden needs a quilt of his own, honey. My mother’s old pink bedspread doesn’t suit him at all, so I thought it would be a fun surprise for him to come back to a new quilt. Would you girls like to help me make one? It’s as easy as pie.”
Steph laughed at that, fingering the fabric. “Well, I don’t know that I’d call making a pie ‘easy,’ but it certainly was worth the effort.”
We settled in and got to work sewing the swatches together, talking like old friends. Sarah had made some of her sweet tea, which I had grown to love. Classical music played in the background while we worked. When Steph named the piece and its composer as one of her favorites, Sarah paused with a needle midway through her fabric.
“You don’t mean to tell me you write music?” she asked, surprised.
Steph shook her head. “No, no. Nothing that impressive. I just play it.”
“Just!” I said in mock outrage. “She’s the first chair violinist in the orchestra and even does paying gigs during the summer.” Unable to contradict my statement, Steph dropped her eyes and began busily sorting the squares of cloth on the table, her manic organization skills kicking into high gear. She tried to look unaffected but the flame in her cheeks gave her away.
“First chair!” Sarah exclaimed, her face aglow in admiration. “My goodness! A master musician in our presence and here I didn’t even know. You’ll have to play for us sometime, dearie. That would be such a treat.”
Steph finally looked up and nodded, unable to hide her smile. “I’d love to.”
Sarah reached across and squeezed her hand. The two shared a sweet moment and then went back to work. As we stitched the blanket together, I snuck glances at Steph, who looked more relaxed than she had all semester.
I wasn’t paying attention and stuck my finger with the needle.
“Ouch!” My knee knocked against the table and Steph’s tea tipped over, soaking the sleeve of her shirt, then cascading onto the thick beige carpet. “Oh, no! I’m so sorry!” Sarah waved a hand at me then ran to the kitchen for a towel to sop up the spill. Steph cradled her dripping arm, trying to decide what to do.
“Steph, look at you!” I said. “I’m such an idiot. Here, you can wear my sweater. I have a tank top on underneath. Let’s go into the bathroom and change. I’ll grab a band-aid for my finger. Sarah?” I asked, gesturing to the mess. She shooed us away, insisting it was no problem.
The MacKinnons’ guest bathroom was about as large as our dorm room and much newer, with marble countertops, knotty pine cabinets, and ornate wall sconces. I stopped sucking on my finger long enough to pull my sweater off over my head and hand it to Steph. She hesitantly removed her soiled blouse.
What I saw made me stop breathing.
Her upper arms were mottled with fading bruises. She refused to meet my eyes and quickly pulled the sweater over her head.
“What the—?” I said, aghast.
She bent to riffle through the cabinets looking for a bandage for my finger.
“Steph, did Micah do that to you?”
“It’s no big deal. It looks worse than it is. He was just upset, that’s all. It was my fault, really.”
“What? No way is this your fault! It’s never okay for a guy to hurt you, even if he is upset. You have to break it off with him.”
To my surprise, her eyes flashed cold and angry at me.
“That’s easy enough for you to say, Lindsey. You’ve got Aiden. I don’t. Micah may not be perfect, but he loves me and that’s good enough. You wouldn’t understand. Excuse me.” She shoved past me on her way out of the bathroom and didn’t look back. I stood dumbly staring after her, not knowing what to say or do to make things right.
Chapter 25
Jen’s whole body twitched with that I-Have-Big-News look as she plunked down across the lunch table from me with her tray. “Guess what? I entered this drawing at the mall like a month ago, and yesterday they called me to tell me I won! Can you believe it? How awesome is that?” I nodded enthusiastically as I swallowed my forkful of salad and prepared to ask what she’d won, but she continued without prompting. “I won a weekend at this really cool ranch that’s about twenty miles outside of town. It comes with two cabins, and there’s hiking trails and a lodge, and all kinds of cool stuff. I was thinking maybe you and Aiden would like to go with us next Saturday.”
“A weekend with just the four of us, with two cabins in the woods? Um, yes please!” Something flickered across Jen’s face, but before I could decipher what it meant, it was gone.
“It’s gonna be great. Just wait,” she said, then popped a grape in her mouth.
Aiden was excited about spending the weekend with Jen and Paul, as he had become fast friends with Paul in the weeks since school had started. I was looking forward to getting a little space from Steph, who had hardly spoken to me since our confrontation at the MacKinnons’ house. We pulled onto the road that led to the main lodge and followed the instructions that Jen had given me to find our cabin. Recognizing Paul’s red Honda Accord, I parked next to it and popped the trunk.
Stepping out of the car, I breathed deeply, reveling in the cool autumn air. It had been raining off and on for weeks, but we’d gotten a respite that weekend. The weather was cold but clear, and the scent of pines all around reminded me of our family cabin. Jen appeared and helped us unload our things. She was giving us a tour of one cabin when I heard another car pull up outside. When the car door slammed, Jen looked at me guiltily.
“Don’t be mad, okay, but there are two bedrooms in each cabin so we decided to invite Steph and Micah to come, too.”
“What? Jen…” I sounded whiny and unappreciative, I knew, but I was so looking forward to getting away from… that. Aiden’s grip around my waist intensified in admonition. “Fine, whatever,” I said, resigned to the change. Maybe Steph and Micah would stay in the other cabin so we could still get some time alone.
Just then, Mona’s signature nasal laugh wafted through the open front door.
“Oh, yeah, and Mona and Ravi.”
If looks could kill, Jen would have been dead on the spot.
“I know, I know!” she said, holding up her hands. “It was Paul’s idea. He said he wants all of his friends to get along and that if we spent some time together as a group, maybe it would help.” She shrugged helplessly and rolled her eyes as if to say, “What was I supposed to do?” Apparently, she hadn’t told the other couples either, and I watche
d her repeat this same story to them as they came in, their lips pursed in displeasure as they saw us standing there. Only Mona seemed truly pleased at the situation. My jaw clenched as she smiled invitingly at Aiden.
When Micah went out to get their bags, Steph surprised me by making a beeline over to us. “Lindsey, can I talk to you for a second?” she whispered and pulled me aside. “I didn’t realize everyone was going to be here or I would have told Jen I couldn’t make it.” Before I could take offense, she continued, her face ashen. “Jen and Paul are going to want a bedroom to themselves and I expect everyone else will, too. I don’t want to share a bedroom with Micah. I can’t. I already told him I’m not ready to have sex and I know he’ll freak out that everyone else is doing it and we’re not.” Her eyes pleaded with me for understanding.
My heart ached at the look on her face. “It’s okay. You can share my room with me,” I told her, realizing at the same time that I was committing Aiden to sharing a room with Micah.
Aiden… I reached out to him with my mind and explained the situation. Mona turned to us then, her eyes darting between me and Aiden.
Aiden came over and kissed me on the cheek then turned to Steph. “I thought I heard you ask to stay with Lindsey tonight.” She nodded guiltily. “‘Tis no problem at all. I’ll sleep outside. I’ve brought my plaid. I’ve never needed more than that and a blanket of stars to cover me at night anyway. Though I do love the quilt that you made me whilst I was gone. Thank ye kindly.” Steph’s face flushed with appreciation and relief.
After unloading the car, Aiden and I stole away to take a walk along one of the nature trails, enjoying the afternoon and the time alone. The meandering path eventually led us back to the main lodge, so we stopped for a quick peek inside. The beautiful log building felt so open and airy, its high ceilings lined with heavy beams. A gift shop was tucked into one corner next to the reception desk. Mounted game heads hung all along the walls, their glass eyes seeming to follow my every move. Retreating from their creepy stare, I took a step back and felt a sharp poke between my shoulder blades. A squeak of fear slipped out as I turned to find the display of a wild boar with its razor sharp teeth bared for battle. Aiden’s laughter rang through the open building and I smacked him on the arm.
