Sensing my ensuing discomfort, Winter said, “Of all the people in the world to fear, a fae is not one. They are usually the good-willed annoying type, but they are not immune to getting pissed off too. It is when the happy clappies get upset that you feel like you just went through an apocalypse. If you can help it, don’t piss off a fae.”
Wasn’t that the general rule for surviving in this world? Keep them happy and your world doesn’t come crashing down on you. “People can compel me to tell my secrets and fall in love with them, but the lesson I should walk away with is ‘not to piss them off,’” I said with credulous doubt.
“I assure you, it’s good advice.”
We both looked up at the gym’s window to see Teddy’s bulbous nose, a very fitting name for the large gym manager. He wasn’t fat. He was solidly built, but with a roundish shape. His OCD just wouldn’t allow anyone to go over their allotted-sign up time, even if there wasn’t anyone waiting. He tapped three times at a steady rhythm and Winter responded with a shake of her head in the rhythm. Next, the dark beady eyes narrowed, the paper-thin lips pressed in the window as he called her the b-word. Brat. He believed that most of the guys that used the dungeon, a less attractive dank part of the nice gym, gave us preferential treatment, allowing us to skirt most of the rules. Yes, they were a little nicer to us, but it didn’t cross over the threshold of the room we sparred in. Once we hit it, the chivalry and be-nice-to ladies-bit was left at the door. They didn’t spar as much with us anymore. They were tough guys with fragile egos and no matter how progressive a man is, getting beat by a woman stung.
We dressed quickly, and since we had both skipped breakfast, brunch was the only reasonable post-workout thing to do. I hopped into her new monstrosity of a vehicle, and frowned. She grinned. “I don’t care, judge away.”
“It’s an unnecessary gas guzzler. It’s just right for you! You might as well move into the darn thing,” I joked, my hand waving over the large backseat of the Navigator, a replacement for the Range Rover I destroyed when I backed into the creature that had attacked her.
“I’m sorry. We all can’t drive Tonka cars,” she smarted back. My poor Civic was the recipient of ridicule every chance she had.
“So where do you want to go?” she asked.
The words had just barely passed my lips when she turned the car around and headed east to our favorite restaurant, Lily’s. It was a quaint little Caribbean restaurant we had discovered about eight weeks before and we had been there at least nine times since.
We were nearing the restaurant when Winter’s phone rang, a different ringtone than her typical one. She let it ring until it stopped. The second time the phone rattled, she sent it to voicemail. When it rang the third time, she hesitated before she answered, taking a deep breath. “What do you want, Abigail? I thought we agreed that once we broke up, it was over. No communication—remember? That is what you wanted.”
Winter’s annoyed expression changed at the sobs on the other end. “Will you come to Gideon’s house, please?” asked the distressed unfamiliar female voice on the other end. Winter listened to her for a few minutes before she took the next exit and turned around. Fifteen minutes later we pulled up in front of a ranch home. Dark clouds crowded the sky, shadowing the white siding and making the house look dark and gloomy. Thunder crackled and rain poured from the darkened sky, hitting just the house and a small portion of the surrounding area. The branches of the trees that neighbored the house folded under the torrential rainfall.
Winter jumped out the car and headed for the house. I soon followed behind her.
Yeah, go into the only house that has been targeted by Mother Nature’s wrath, I thought. Great idea.
Winter walked into the house without knocking. Pacing in the middle of the living room was a tall, thin blonde woman, whose appearance mirrored Winter’s. Her long blonde hair was pulled back into a French twist, her features narrow and striking. The distressed looked eased slightly when we walked through the door. She hugged Winter, clinging to her as she buried her face into her neck. Winter stiffened, standing motionless for long time before she relaxed into the embrace, wrapping her arms around her and gently stroking her hair. When she lifted her head, Winter wiped away her tears then kissed her lightly on the cheek.
“Abigail, what’s the matter?” Winter asked.
She opened her mouth several times, but the words just wouldn’t come out and once again the tears welled in her eyes, spilling down her cheek. She quickly brushed them away and asked us to follow her.
Abigail walked us through the house that definitely wasn’t hers. The owner should have invested in a housekeeper. Game controllers and a headset were tossed on the sofa. The unflattering light leather armchairs had water stains on them. The area rug was positioned at an odd angle, which I assumed was to hide stains in the carpet. Empty beer cans and potato chip bags filled the garbage cans. In the bedroom, lying on a king-sized bed, was her counterpart. They were related and it was apparent. In fact, they looked exactly alike. His hair was mussed, and like Abigail, his face was thin, features sharp and keen, skin a light dusk color that contrasted with the platinum blond hair. He lay in a comatose state.
“How long has he been like this?” Winter asked,
“Two days. I took him to our doctors and no one seemed to be able to do anything for him. He’s getting worse. At first there was some movement, a slight wiggle of his finger and things like that.” She knelt down, gently stroking his face. “And now—nothing,” she whispered.
“What do you want me to do, Abigail?”
“Dr. Jeremy can help him. I know he can,” she entreated softly.
“You want me to have Jeremy treat Gideon? You know Sebastian will never allow that,” Winter said.
This was Gideon? Josh had mentioned him as a potential resource when we were looking for the culprit responsible for attacking and killing the vampires and were-animals. Known as the “master of mischief,” he wasn’t liked or disliked. But he was an elf and Sebastian didn’t like to get involved with anything that didn’t involve the pack. This had nothing to do with the pack.
The blonde stepped closer, taking Winter’s hands into hers. Her eyes glistened with tears that she fought back. “I can’t just let my brother die without doing everything I can to help him. If I had other options, I would have used them. Please.”
Winter sighed a ragged breath as she nodded. She stared at Abigail for a long time, and her habitual moue hardened, unlike her eyes, which were the gentlest I had ever seen. She pulled out her phone, glanced at me, before planting her eyes on the floor. “Jeremy, it’s urgent. I am bringing in Skylar. I think I injured her pretty bad,” she said.
I heard Jeremy over the phone chastising her about whether she actually knew anything of self-control. She mumbled something and then she hung up.
I wanted to say something, but the words just wouldn’t come out. I was still seething when Winter picked up Gideon with Abigail behind her. Lingering in the house for just a moment as I composed myself, trying not to let my righteous anger dominate the situation. Winter was trying to save her friend’s brother and I was just caught in the crossfire of the horrible politics that existed in this world. I took a long, deep sigh and slid into the front seat. I couldn’t look at Winter. Just because I understood the reason I was brought into this deception didn’t mean I had to like it.
“I’m sorry, but there was no way Jeremy would have shown up if I told him it was Gideon,” she explained.
“I know, but I would have liked a heads-up or something,” I said.
“Sorry.”
Ethan, Gavin, and Josh’s cars were already there when I arrived at the house. Gavin, the resident problem child, opened the door, and when he saw Winter carrying Gideon he looked as though he was ready to slam it. His eyes narrowed and his frown deepened as the sky suddenly became dark and cloudy. Hard rain fell, drenching us as we made our way to the house.
Gavin directed a stern look in Abigail
’s direction before turning it to Winter. “What are they doing here?”
“Not now, Gavin,” she said, walking past him and heading back to the clinic and laying him on one of the beds. We waited in an odd silence for Jeremy. It didn’t take long for him to come in and when he didn’t seem surprised to see Gideon lying on one of the beds I knew Gavin had warned him. “He shouldn’t be here,” was all he said after watching Gideon for a long time.
“I know but…”
“No.” It was the first time I had ever heard Jeremy sound angry. Each word grating and acrid. “There are no excuses. He shouldn’t be here,” he repeated, cutting her off when she opened her mouth to protest. “What you have done is unacceptable, and you know that.”
He was having a much harder time controlling his anger. I knew there was a staunch rule that everyone took care of their own, punished their own, which was only deviated from on rare occasions. Were-animals had been known to kill a vampire if their blood lust drove them into psychotic killing. Vampires and others have been known to hire a Hunter to track down rogue were-animals. These things occurred so rarely they were exceptions, not rules, and it was done to maintain their anonymity from the rest of the world.
Dr. Jeremy inched closer to Winter, and his attention moved slightly in Abigail’s direction before returning to her. His voice low, tone firm, he said, “You’ve never been able to deny her, which has always been your problem. That weakness cannot become our problem, and you promised it wouldn’t.”
“He’s here now, will you please just look at him,” she asked quietly.
“I will see what I can do.” He patted her gently on the shoulder and the stern mask dropped, an understanding of the difficult situation she was in. Winter followed the rules; that was her thing, often setting aside her own feelings to do what was necessary, and doing this had to come with some effort and humbleness.
He turned and walked over to Gideon, opening the lids of his eyes. He looked and then systematically began to examine him. “When did this happen?”
“It’s been about two days. We were supposed to meet for lunch, but he didn’t show up. You are aware of my brother’s reputation and it isn’t unusual for him to sleep in and miss our lunch if he had a very active evening the night before. But when the hard winds and rain started in our neighborhood, I knew something was wrong with him.”
Oh, what a delightful way to say my brother often stands me up when he’s drunk off his ass from partying.
“Your doctors have no idea what’s wrong?”
She shook her head. “We’ve already lost four to similar symptoms. They were only alive for five days once it started.” She brushed away the tears that rolled down her cheek and his face softened. Unlike the other were-animals, who seemed to frown upon any displays of maudlin emotion, especially tears, he seemed impassioned by it.
“No one seems to be able to help him. Some didn’t even try. I just couldn’t sit back and wait for him to die,” Abigail admitted, her voice breaking as she spoke. Her fingers brushed over her face, smearing her mascara as she wiped them away.
“The four that died, were they potential candidates for leaders?” asked Sebastian. He had not slipped in unnoticed. A man like him can’t enter a room undetected; there is sense of command that he exudes, wearing his power and predacious nature like clothing. He never had to introduce himself as the Alpha; his ascendancy served as his title. Sebastian moved closer to Gideon and looked at him.
Abigail watched him. Her hands slipped over Winter’s, holding them as she eased closer to her. “Three of them would be ones I would consider potentials.”
“You don’t think this is a coincidence?” Winter asked Sebastian.
“Coincidences do not occur as often as people would like to believe, and almost never in situations like this,” he said.
He watched them carefully in silence. I am sure he was weighing the situation, trying to decide if helping Winter’s friend was worth whatever problems might develop between the pack and the elves.
“You are aware that last month the witches and elves became allied?” he asked Winter.
Winter’s eyes didn’t falter, although she failed to hide the same concern that lingered on his face. There was a shadow of hopelessness, as if she expected Sebastian to send them away.
The witches were not ones you messed with. I wasn’t sure why, but people seemed to go out of their way not to have to deal with them. It didn’t help matters that Josh was an ally of the pack, which had already caused unnecessary strife more than once. His loyalties were split and most believed that such a thing couldn’t exist because in the end you always had to choose. There hadn’t been a situation where Josh had to—yet—but there wasn’t any way he would pick anyone over his brother. The same was true with Ethan.
Sebastian’s attention wavered between Winter and whatever garnered it behind her. Taking a long breath before he spoke, addressing Dr. Jeremy. “Examine him. Do what you can, but we cannot be involved for more than twenty-four hours. If he cannot be helped within that time, then please accept my condolences for the loss,” he said before heading toward the double door. Abigail tried to hold it together, but a cloud of desolation cast a dark look over her face.
Sebastian hadn’t made it past the double doors of the clinic before his phone rang. He looked at the number, his brow furrowed as he answered it. “Yes, Mason,” he said in a deep voice, just cordial enough to hide his annoyance.
The tone on the other end was a lighter, raspy Australian brogue. “You should worry about yours, and let me deal with mine. Aren’t you tired of poking your nose where it never belongs? Send her away.”
“Obviously, if she is here, you aren’t taking care of your own.” His full lips curled into a reproaching smirk that remained as the chastising voice on the other end continued.
“As usual, you have found your way into a business that isn’t yours. I am asking this time. But if I were in your situation, I would consider the request thoroughly and do as I ask,” he said.
Had this man ever dealt with Sebastian? He barely responded to polite entreaties and he damn sure wasn’t going to respond to an unsubtle threat.
Sebastian’s voice was a gentle cool resonance as he responded. “Of course, I will give it as much consideration as I give you,” then he hung up the phone. He turned to Dr. Jeremy. “Take as much time as you need. I want Gideon alive.”
The weight that had bound Abigail seemed to have relaxed; a hint of a smile wavered along her lips as she rested her head against Winter. Winter responded by gently stroking her cheek; the light kiss on Abigail’s lips seemed to comfort her. Winter comforting? I felt like I had been dropkicked into Bizarro world.
The thought of leaving the house crossed my mind, and I would have, especially when I saw Gavin slouched into a corner, his delineated features sharpened by a scowl. His hair had grown out too long and the thick straight mass eclipsed his face, covering his eyes, which were his most alluring feature. They were deep cocoa and crescent-shaped. It was like staring into a chasm, easily swept into them no matter how unpleasant he was, which was often. “I have better things to do than babysit Winter’s girlfriend’s brother,” Gavin said as Sebastian started towards his office. Sebastian was so used to dealing with the hostile and uncooperative were-panther, he seemed bored with him anytime he had to.
“If I cared, that would be a different story, now wouldn’t it? You’re here. If Mason decides to act on his threat, I need you, but most importantly, you’ll do it because I requested it,” Sebastian said in passing, before closing himself behind his door.
If it was directly related to pack affairs, even the unnecessarily agitated Gavin might have found a sliver of interest in the situation. But if it didn’t involve the pack directly, the were-animal’s interest went down to nil. Gavin sunk back into his corner and looked moderately interested as the door opened and a hard click resounded against the floor announcing Kelly’s arrival. The high strappy black heels conti
nued to tap against the hardwood floors until she stopped in the middle of the room awaiting Gavin, who had pushed himself up from the wall.
She smiled. Her limpid wide walnut-colored eyes were coated in dark mascara, thick liner, and deep shades of shadow gave them a smoky appearance. High cheekbones highlighted by deep coral blush and her lips colored with a similar shade. She slipped off her coat. Underneath she wore a champagne-colored wraparound dress that clung to her frame, accentuating the curves that were normally hidden beneath her ill-fitting scrubs. Hair that was often pulled into a puffy ponytail or back with a headband was a thick corkscrew halo that framed the face.
The stern charcoal eyes burrowing into her didn’t seem to bother her. Instead, she stayed planted in the middle of the room, and amusement traveled along her face before settling on her lips and eyes. Whether she was willing to admit it or not, she gained a certain pleasure from irritating Gavin, a skill which he had perfected.
“Why are you here?” he asked in a crisp, even voice.
“Dr. Jeremy called me,” was her immediate response, and as with everything she did, it was accompanied by her broad smile.
He scoffed. “He calls and you come running, no questions asked. That’s a fool’s response.”
Kelly never let Gavin’s behavior or his harsh tone bother her. She shrugged. “Yeah, but it’s kind of our thing,”
He blocked her advance toward the door, closing the limited space between them. “How many times must I tell you that you don’t belong here? When he calls, you can ignore it. They got along just fine before you, and I am sure they will continue to do so,” he said. His voice never matched his mood. The low purr always held a slight hint of a peril, even when he spoke with her. The dynamics of their relationship were confusing. He didn’t dislike her, which made her one of the few people that held such honors; but he didn’t seem to like her around either.
Midnight Falls (Sky Brooks Series Book 3) Page 8
