Blood Ties

by Gina Whitney

Addison looked incredulous. “I’m sharing a room with you?”

  “Yup,” Julie said with a shit-eating grin on her face. Hari laughed under his breath.

  Aunt Evelyn said to Addison, “I really wish you’d let me get you something. You came all this way. I just feel like I haven’t done enough for you.”

  Addison didn’t even look at Aunt Evelyn as she responded. She glared at me instead. “No, I’m fine. You’ve done more than enough already.” And she walked away.

  Good grief. Addison sure knew how to throw shade.

  “Brrr, chill factor,” Hari said, rubbing it in.

  I turned my attention to Julie. She was mocking Addison with a sourpuss face. “You’ve done more than enough already,” Julie said, imitating Addison in a ridiculous British accent. I laughed, but still felt slighted by Addison.

  “Grace, I know Addison has her ways, but she came through for you. After all she did help save your life when you were a baby,” Aunt Evelyn reminded me.

  Julie hurried up and said, “I would’ve too if I had been there. If I had been told early enough.”

  “I know, Julie. I know. Grace, you need to get to know Addison…and James as well,” Aunt Evelyn said as she got up to clear the table.

  “What about Adrian?” Hari asked slyly.

  I saw Aunt Evelyn taking her time to formulate a safe response. “Well…” That was the best that she could come up with.

  “Alright,” I said. I accepted the inevitability of having to communicate with Addison, and I wanted to get it out of the way. I went to her bedroom, trying to think of topics to talk about. Hair? Weather? Celebrity gossip? Yeah, Kelsey Grammer!

  What in the hell am I thinking? Kelsey Grammer? Wow, that’s so dumb.

  As I approached the bathroom door, I could hear a highfrequency noise emanating from the room. The door was ajar, and I peeked in. Addison stood at the sink.

  “Knock, knock,” I said while simultaneously doing so.

  I heard Addison let out a hard breath. Geez, she was acting like I was a stalker or something.

  “What do you want?” she asked with her hand on her hip.

  I immediately felt the need to apologize, but that urge went away rather quickly. Why should I apologize? I hadn’t done anything to her, even though she may have thought my very birth was a bane to her existence.

  “I just want to tell you thanks for being here,” I said with a little salt of my own. That was surprising to me—it definitely was not my way.

  “Don’t thank me. Thank James,” Addison snipped.

  Oh, that name…James. The very sound of it still made me feel a little ill, but gaga at the same time. However, Addison was still glowering at me.

  “Look, Addison. I kinda know you don’t want to be here. And yeah, I get it. But seriously, you don’t have to be such a cow,” I said.

  From the confounded look on her face, I could tell not many people had dared to speak to her that way. I got a little scared when I remembered that she was a seasoned witch who had the power to zap my ass right then and there.

  Addison went back to brushing her teeth—her vain attempt to get her composure back. She didn’t respect many things, but she did respect a big pair of cojones. And I had just earned some points thanks to my female version of swinging balls.

  Addison held an oscillating electric toothbrush up to her mouth—the source of the buzzing I’d heard. It was a brilliant red, and had a base with multiple slots for strange-looking attachments. The brush’s head barely touched her teeth, but left them spectacularly white.

  “What kind of toothbrush is that?” I asked, trying not to sound totally brand new.

  “It is a Sonicare Elite e9500 series. You know, for the whitest fangs.”

  “I didn’t know Sonicare made anything like that.”

  “They officially don’t. During our time on the run, we managed to meet a few witches here and there. Let’s just say one of our kind is on their board and had this specially made for us.” Addison handed it to me. “Want to try?”

  I put it in my mouth cautiously and pushed the button. Addison stopped me with a light touch of her hand. “Grace, the toothbrush is already programmed. You barely even need to hold it. It does the work for you. Hell, I’ve applied makeup and brushed my teeth at the same time without any effort.”

  The toothbrush glided over my teeth and gums. It felt like a massage in my mouth. “Wow, this is sick! They could make a fortune selling something like this to the general public.”

  “General public?” Addison said like I had just asked her to eat trash out of a dumpster. “Silly girl, this isn’t for humans. It’s strictly for witches like you and me. You did get your fangs, right?”

  “Yeah, I did… This must cost beaucoup greenbacks. I’m sure you had to pay something for it. Since you’ve never worked, where’d you get the money?”

  Addison gave me a “whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” look.

  “Never mind,” I said.

  The toothbrush and I were getting along just fine until I accidently pressed a gray button. Suddenly water shot out all over my face like a lawn sprinkler. Addison laughed, letting her defenses down.

  “Let me help you,” she said as she got me a towel. She wiped my face and told me to look in the mirror. My teeth looked so white, it was like someone was shining a flashlight behind them.

  Addison rinsed off the toothbrush. “Don’t think this makes us friends.”

  It didn’t matter to me what her words said. When she looked at me in the mirror and gave me a look of reassurance, I knew I was in there.

  The next morning I woke up with a migraine caused by lack of sleep. I had tossed and turned all night knowing James was just two floors below me. Before I went to bed, I had nonchalantly made myself available to him on my many trips to the kitchen for glasses of milk, soda, and water. I would stand at the front door, staring aimlessly into the distance, hoping he would pop up. I practically stomped as I walked on the ground floor, trying to compel him to come up and see what the hell was going on. However, James stayed sequestered in his room all night long.

  The smell of breakfast had two fingers in my nostrils, pulling me to the kitchen. As I rounded the corner, I saw James walking in from the opposite direction. He had just come up from the basement. He was putting his shirt on, and I caught a glimpse of his block-stacked abs. I hid so he wouldn’t be freaked out by my watching him. I waited for him to go into the kitchen, and just as I was about to do so myself, I heard a “boo.” Julie had snuck up behind me.

  “You little voyeuristic hussy,” she said.

  “I’m not. I just didn’t want to bother him.”

  “Yeah, right. Let’s go get some breakfast, horny toad.”

  Julie and I went into the kitchen and were greeted by what could only be described as a paleo lover’s wet dream: eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, even protein drinks. I wasn’t bothered one bit by the lack of carbs. I had been craving a lot of meat lately; I figured I was anemic.

  Julie took the seat next to Hari, leaving me with the only open chair left. The one next to James. He and I both mumbled something resembling a morning greeting to each other.

  Adrian sat directly across from me. He was in full-on player mode and winked at me every two seconds.

  The clanging and scraping of the forks on the plates sounded extraordinarily loud to me that morning. In fact all sounds seemed to be amplified. I brushed it off, attributing it to my throbbing migraine.

  “Grace, James is going to show you some ropes today,” Aunt Evelyn said as she bit into a juicy sausage link.

  I gulped, swallowing a chunk of ham I hadn’t even chewed yet. “Okay, sure,” I said, trying my best not to look at James. It was at that moment that I unfortunately realized I liked him a little too much. Honestly it went beyond mere like, and I had to be careful with that.

  Aside from this being a business arrangement, I knew what it was like to fall in love with everything you’ve got and have that love
betray you. After Rafe I’d resigned myself to being alone. On the off chance that another guy happened to show up in my life, I’d sworn I’d keep my emotions in check. If that meant not loving to the fullest, not giving unconditionally, so be it. I might have sacrificed true love, but at least I’d still have my soul…no matter what went down.

  That was why I was attracted to and repulsed by James at the same time. He felt like he’d be good for me, but that was the way Rafe had felt once upon a time. Anyhow, I didn’t need to get involved with anyone at that time. However, a girl occasionally wants to get carnal, and Adrian was a safe bet. I was certain there would be no intellectual or emotional connection there. Just sex. That line of reasoning may have made me a slut, but I’d be a smart slut.

  I started eating like a hog that had just finished a joint. I pulled handfuls of meat off the serving plate and ate without utensils. I was making nom-nom sounds as I filled up my mouth. The eating was proof of the rapid changes within me. My cells were begging for fuel. I didn’t notice everyone else at the table intently watching me. They all knew what was going on—something more than what I knew. The insatiable hunger was a sign of something they were keeping to themselves. They knew I wasn’t ready for that revelation yet.

  I was on my way out the door to meet James for our training session when Adrian stopped me.

  “I’m sorry I wasn’t your first,” he said, stepping to me. He had no clue how to disguise his innuendos. “Your first teacher that is.”

  I could see James leaning back on his car and knew he was wondering what was going on. The longer I stood with Adrian, the more James pursed his lips. I didn’t want to give him the wrong impression.

  “I gotta go,” I said to Adrian as I circumvented him and headed to James. He smiled at me nervously as I walked toward him. I, on the other hand, thought I would lift off at any moment with all the butterflies fluttering in my stomach.

  “Let’s go over to the barn,” James said, putting his hands in his pockets. As we walked to the barn, we didn’t say anything, and stayed far apart from one another. But no matter how awkward it may have been, I felt a sense of safety I hadn’t in years—even though he still made me feel a bit nauseated.

  We arrived at the old barn, and I thought we were going to shoot the breeze a little, but James got right into training.

  He said, “All witches vary in the amount of magical power they have. Some have very little. Their powers resemble those of sensitive humans—enhanced intuition, ESP, charisma. Others are supremely powerful, with the ability to affect the physical universe through sheer will. Also we each have one particular talent we excel in. Have you noticed any special abilities?”

  “Things move by themselves when I’m around.”

  “Telekinesis. Can you control it?”

  “No, it comes and goes.”

  “Show me.”

  “I tried to show Aunt Evelyn and Julie. Nothing happened.”

  James came up behind me and took my hands. “Now, I want you to concentrate on that old can on the ground. Move it,” he said softly in my ear.

  Oh damn, he felt so good. I could see I was going to have to work extra hard to not let this guy get to me. I redirected to the can. I didn’t try any fancy tricks or gimmicks. I just said “move” in my mind.

  The can shimmied a bit. James urged me to keep going. Move, I thought. The can did a 180-degree spin.

  James let go of my hands. “Do it again.”

  This time the can popped up into the air.

  “Now make it fly,” he said.

  I really wanted to please him, and tried with all my might to make it soar. However, the can fell flat. I tried to get it to move again, but it was dead.

  “That’s okay. We’ll work on it,” he said.

  James passed me a haunting smile. His eyes were so clear and sparkly. I knew I was in trouble. I could handle Adrian. My feelings for him were a shallow stream. But the ones I had for James were turning into the Mariana Trench.

  Julie stood on the porch waiting for me and saw too much bounce in my step for her comfort.

  “So, how’d your little session go?” she asked.

  “Fine. We got a lot done,” I responded, trying my best not to say it in a sing-song way. “James is still at the barn.”

  Julie was edgy. “You know this isn’t about getting you laid. You have a job to do. And besides, they are Bolingbrokes, and you know the history. Remember where your loyalties lie.” With that she went into the house.

  That brought me back to reality. Julie was right; this was about a mission, and James did come from a rival family. It got me to thinking. Why was James—a Bolingbroke—even there? What was his deal? And why did my mother bring in one of the enemy to help us?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Trust is hard to come by. That’s why my circle is small and tight. I’m kind of funny about making new friends.

  —Eminem

  Catherine sat in the back of the Mercedes drinking a vintage bottle of Krug Brut champagne with Chetan, who was thrilled that he was indulging in the fabulous life and being driven around by Nick. Catherine knew Chetan’s initial attitude toward Nick was jealousy, though.

  When Catherine had informed Chetan she would be creating a protégé, Chetan had wondered what was wrong with him. Why did Catherine need a protégé? But now he watched Nick with a sideways glance and was relieved not to be him. To Chetan, Nick was the walking dead. Chetan made mental notes, comparing the two-timing man Catherine had picked up at the mall to this empty shell driving the car.

  With all the bottle popping, Catherine understood, Chetan couldn’t grasp the fact that she was playing him for a fool. She had employed a divide-and-conquer tactic that powerful people had used since the dawn of time. She knew she’d be able to manipulate Chetan even more by giving him two things. One, a carrot. She dangled the potential prestige in front of his face, giving him just a taste of it. Once he had a bite of that, he’d chase it forever. Two, she gave him the illusion of superiority. She would never let him feel above her. However, if Chetan felt he was better than someone else, that would keep him satisfied and working on her program. With those two things, she’d have a flunky for life.

  The trio arrived at Long Island College with the intent of locating Grace. Catherine had tried all manner of magic spells, trances, and astral travel to find her. But no matter what she did, she could not get a clear picture of Grace’s location. Old-fashioned detective work was Catherine’s final option.

  As the car made its way over endless speed bumps, Catherine was surprised by how bucolic the campus was. It was so much better than Jersey. She closed her eyes and breathed the air deep into her lungs, trying to soak in any remnant of Grace’s essence. The car passed the campus washateria. Catherine got a ringing in her ear that sounded like tinnitus.

  “Stop! Stop the car right now,” she commanded Nick. The car screeched to a halt.

  “Is something wrong?” Chetan asked, trying to recover from the mild whiplash he’d just gotten.

  Catherine pointed at a young Indian woman, Naisha Samala, who grabbed a container of laundry detergent from the backseat of her Toyota Corolla and zipped back inside the building.

  “That girl,” Catherine said, her voice displaying rare excitement. “She can tell me where Grace is.”

  Catherine got out of the car and noticed another vehicle next to Naisha’s. It had a flat tire.

  “Nick, you park the car over there, out of sight,” she instructed, then she stepped into the washateria.

  As soon as Catherine got through the double doors, a blast of hot air circulated by ceiling fans hit her in the face. It smelled like burning cleaning solvent. She strode onto the black-andwhite checkered floor, careful not to slip on the liquid fabric softener someone had spilled.

  Down a long row of double-stacked dryers, Catherine could see Naisha. She was the only one in the place; Catherine ascertained the driver of the car with the flat tire was out getting help. Catherine
knew she had to act fast before that person came back.

  Naisha sat in front of two dryers and was engrossed in something on her computer screen. She didn’t hear Catherine’s footsteps coming toward her because of the dryers’ loud tumbling and rumbling.

  Catherine was no social-media butterfly, but she could tell Naisha was. She found it funny that humans left themselves so open to attack through these means. She guessed that youthful obsession with these mediums diminished the gift of instinct; it was nearly impossible to develop or use over a computer screen, and that carried over to in-person interaction. And without instinct everyone becomes your friend. Therefore Catherine knew that this young woman wouldn’t know a predator until it had her in its mouth. Unfortunately for Catherine, Grace had no profiles on any social media to speak of.

  “Excuse me, miss,” Catherine said.

  She saw Naisha quickly closing out a window to a lesbian dating site and switching it over to a photo of a handsome, young Indian man her parents were trying to arrange a marriage with. Naisha had not yet fully embraced her homosexuality and considered her frequenting of lesbian websites a harmless pastime.

  “What do you need?” Naisha said with a childlike voice.

  Catherine did a quick once-over of the girl’s immediate space. Naisha was an editor of the college newspaper, and despite being a nice young woman, she was a rabid busybody. She had a legal notepad, articles she was proofreading, and the most recent copy of the paper. The headline article was about Samantha’s murder.

  “Oh my. That’s awful,” Catherine said, picking up the newspaper.

  Naisha didn’t seem bothered by Catherine’s handling of her personal property. “I know. The killer left her head and took the rest of the body. Isn’t that deranged?”

  “Let me tell you, this world is filled with demons. And here you are, all alone. You must be very brave.” Catherine pretended to be interested in the article.

  “Not really…just laundry. Uh, did you say you need something?”

  “Yes, I’m looking for a friend of mine. Grace Valois. I haven’t seen her in a very long time, and it’s a surprise that I’m here.”