The Shadow Stealer

by Melissa Giorgio

  “Really,” I said flatly. “Are we talking about the same Evan here?”

  “Haha.” Evan gave me a pointed look. “How about you be nice to me, considering I rushed over to take care of your boyfriend?”

  “Aww, what’s wrong with Rafe?” Denise asked.

  “He’s sick,” I quickly said before Evan could make up some ridiculous story about Rafe’s condition. “And I’m grounded, so I can’t go see him.” I didn’t mention my plans to somehow see him behind Dad’s back. It involved someone with a car—in this case, Evan—and someone else—Chloe—to cover for me. It wasn’t the world’s most thought-out plan, obviously.

  “That sucks. Tell that boy to feel better soon.” Denise left the register, heading for the break room. “I’m going to go on my break. Let Bernard know, okay?” She didn’t even wait for me to respond before walking away.

  “Okay,” I said to no one. “Have fun. Pick me up something to eat.” I rested my head on my hand and sighed deeply. “No one thinks about me anymore.”

  “Yeah, I forgot to bring you cake, sorry,” Evan said, not sounding sorry at all.

  I glared daggers at him, but he didn’t seem to notice.

  “I was too busy taking care of Rafe.”

  I stood up straighter, my heart thumping faster. “Is something wrong? Is he regressing?” Oh my god, and I had gone to school and now work? I’d texted him, but he’d only answered once to say he was feeling better. He probably lied! I knew I should have been there, taking care of him—

  Evan held up his hands. “Easy there. He’s fine. He slept until noon today, and then he was complaining that he was starving, so I had to go get him food. I mean, he was so hungry he didn’t even care about me being there. He waited until after he ate to tell me to get lost.”

  “I’m sure he didn’t mean it,” I said, lying through my teeth.

  “No, he meant it.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” I said. “He shouldn’t be alone right now.” I realized something. “You left him alone!”

  “Gabi, I told you, he’s okay! He’s up and walking around. I bet if he knew I was coming here, he would have insisted on coming with me just so he could see you!” Evan said that like it was a bad thing, and it made me want to fling something at his head. “But I told him to stay home and rest. He’s still tired, but at least he’s not in pain anymore.” Evan shook his head. “I can’t believe I missed part of the spell. Kain didn’t see it because he sucks, but what’s my excuse?”

  I wrapped my arms around myself. “I’m just glad it’s over. He’s going to get better, and we can finally put this behind us.” Of course, there were a million more things we needed to deal with. “Did he tell you what my mom said about the spell Nina used?”

  “He did.” Evan’s face darkened. “Disturbing as hell. I knew Collins was an asshole, but I just thought he liked to get off on bullying kids. He wanted me to be his apprentice, Gabi. If my situation was like Nina’s, and I had no one in the world to speak up for me, then I would have been the one learning demon magic.” He picked up the gossip magazine I’d been reading and leafed through the glossy pages. “I never got a chance to thank Liam for telling Collins to leave me alone. Sure, my dad went with him, but I know Liam was the one who did the talking. But Liam scared the crap out of me, to be honest, and because I was such a coward, I never got to say anything.” Closing the magazine, Evan scowled. “And then I nearly got Rafe killed… I’m really surprised Liam hasn’t found a way to come back from the dead so he could kill me.”

  It was so weird to see all these different sides of Evan. When I’d first met him he’d been flirty and annoying, but now he was serious and remorseful and even a little bit sad. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I miss the old Evan. “Hey.” I leaned over the counter and tapped him on the shoulder. “What happened between you and Alex? You guys looked like you were patching things up right before Mom teleported us out of there. I was a little surprised, considering how much she looked like she wanted to kill you when you were at my house. And then in Rafe’s apartment she was throwing plates at your head!”

  “What, you think she could resist this forever?” Evan gestured to himself, sounding so much like his old self that I had to fight to keep a grin off of my face. God forbid I encourage him! “I told you she’d come around.”

  “Uh, no, you were the one who gave up before you even tried to fix things with her.”

  “Whatever. That doesn’t matter.” He waved a hand carelessly in the air to emphasize his point. “What does matter is she no longer wants to murder me in my sleep and throw my dead body out of a moving vehicle.”

  “How did that even happen?” I pounded my fist against the counter. “I want details, Underwood!”

  “Okay, okay.” He grabbed two chocolate bars and placed them on the counter before pulling out his wallet. “Ring me up for these—one’s for you—and I’ll tell you.”

  Whoa. Free chocolate. I made a mental note to be nice to Evan—for at least the duration of his story. After that, I couldn’t make any promises.

  “It was my sacrifice, really,” Evan said nobly as I unwrapped my chocolate bar. I paused in my work to give him a skeptical look, but he was gazing out into the distance, as if he were an actor on stage. Settling for rolling my eyes and sighing loudly, I went back to my chocolate. “When I let your mom use me to help you guys get away—that’s when Alex realized I was a changed man.”

  I choked on my chocolate.

  “After your mom borrowed my magic, I passed out, and when I woke up, my head was resting in Alex’s lap as she gently stroked my hair. Gazing up at her, I could see the love shining in her eyes—”

  “Evan, seriously, if you don’t stop right now I’m going to be sick everywhere.” So much for me being nice to him.

  He frowned at me. “You said you wanted details!”

  “Yeah, but you don’t have to make it sound like a passage from a romance novel!” I complained. “Next you’re going to say you ripped your shirt off and all your muscles were glistening in the sunlight or something equally horrifying.”

  “Fine, fine,” Evan said. “Although I’ll have you know my glistening muscles are not horrifying.” He paused, waiting for me to finish gagging. “Ahem. After Silver Moon finished interrogating us, Phil invited us back to Kain’s place. He and Sherlock went to the hospital, which left Alex and me plenty of time to talk.” Evan took a giant bite of his chocolate and chewed thoughtfully for a moment. “And we talked. For a really long time, and without any screaming or throwing of any glasses, plates, or cutlery. Although I wouldn’t have minded breaking some of Kain’s stuff. Would have served that cocky bastard right.”

  “Evan.”

  “You’re no fun, you know that?” He shook his head. “Anyway, like the other day in your kitchen, I explained to Alex why I did what I did to bring her back. But this time, she listened. I told her that while I regret hurting you and Rafe, I’ll never regret having her back. She said she hated that I’d used you—and nearly gotten Rafe killed in the process—and it was impossible for her to look at me and not think about what I did.” He placed his chocolate bar down on the counter and stared at his fingers. “I thought that was it. That that was her way of telling me it was hopeless for us. I’d done the unthinkable, hurt so many people, and in the end, I was still going to be alone.

  “But Alex kept looking at me,” Evan continued. “It was this intense gaze, like she was trying to see inside of me or something. I asked her what was wrong, and she blurted out, ‘Can you kiss me?’”

  I dropped my chocolate bar. “Seriously? She asked you that?” Alexandra didn’t seem like the type. She was more likely to punch him in the face.

  Evan smiled wistfully. “The first time we ever kissed, we were sitting in a Japanese restaurant and she asked me the same exact thing. I was scared then, and I was scared now. But I figured if I hesitated, I would never get the chance again so—I did it. I kissed her. And it was just like befor
e. It was like… magic.” He pointed a finger at me. “I’m not exaggerating this time, either. I kissed her and it was like we were fourteen again, falling in love for the first time. Before this whole giant mess. Before I nearly lost her… It was like that stuff had never happened.”

  I placed a hand over his and squeezed gently. “I’m happy for you, Evan.”

  His serious expression was replaced by a dorky grin I’d never seen him wear before. “Me too. God, I can’t believe this is even happening. I mean, we talked some more, and she threatened me—”

  “Threatened you?” I asked, confused. “That doesn’t sound very romantic.”

  “She told me if I ever betray Rafe again, she’s going to cut off my man parts,” Evan said with a wince.

  “Your what?” I totally lost it then, laughing so hard I was certain Bernard was going to yell at me over the loudspeaker. But he never said anything, which must have meant he was too busy playing online poker to notice what I was doing (or not doing, in terms of working).

  Evan scowled. “I’m so happy you find threats to my precious parts so amusing.”

  “Please, it’s funny and you know it,” I said, wiping tears from my eyes. “Now you have incentive to behave.”

  “She only said I couldn’t betray Rafe,” he reminded me. “She didn’t say anything about behaving. Besides, that’s boring.” Evan posed. “As long as I don’t make any more stupid mistakes, we should be good.” His eyes darkened. “I wish I could say we were a couple again, but even though we kissed and it felt familiar and good, it didn’t solve everything.” He laughed softly to himself. “I know I shouldn’t get my hopes up, but it’s so hard, Gabi.”

  “You can’t rush her. Look at it from her point of view.” I tapped my finger against the counter, trying to imagine what Alexandra must be going through. “She just spent the last two years of her life in a coma, and when she woke up, everyone she knows is older. But she still feels like she’s sixteen. That’s gotta be bizarre, you know?” I didn’t feel the need to point out how Evan had changed—and not just physically. I was certain the Evan Alexandra knew before her coma would have never done something as drastic as betray Rafe. When she looked at Evan now, did she miss the boy he used to be?

  Would she ever be able to separate the two?

  “Even if I have to spend the rest of my life proving to her that I’m worth it, I will,” Evan said softly. His face was determined, the most serious I’d ever seen it. He might have been a total slacker, but when it came to Alexandra, he’d always give it his all.

  “Good luck,” I said, meaning it. I wanted them to get back together. Even if I hadn’t known them before her accident, I could see how much they meant to one another. It would be stupid to stay apart!

  “Ah, I don’t need luck.” His serious expression melted into a goofy smile. “I’ve got Evan Charm, remember?”

  I shook my head in exasperation. “You know that’s not a real thing, right?”

  “Yes, it is! It’s just so strong you don’t even know it’s working on you right now!” He leaned closer, bumping his forehead against mine.

  I pushed away from him. “Ugh, that’s creepy,” I said. “Turn it off, turn it off!” I rubbed my arms vigorously. “Look, you gave me goose bumps now!”

  “Creepy?” He glared at me. “This is the thanks I get for buying you chocolate, huh?”

  “I would have been nicer if it had been cake…”

  The door mooed again and Evan glanced behind him. “Oh, wow, people really shop here?”

  “Sometimes.” I closed my magazine with a sigh and stored it under the counter. “And then I actually have to do some work.”

  “I’ll let you take care of your customers.” Evan balled up his wrapper and aimed for the garbage can behind the register. He missed, of course. “While I go home and take care of your boyfriend. Want me to tell Rafe anything?”

  “I don’t know. Are you going to twist my words into something stupid?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Then forget it,” I said. “I’ll call him when I’m on break.”

  “Got it.” Evan turned to walk away.

  “Hey—Evan?”

  He paused.

  I fiddled with the wrapper on my chocolate bar. “Just—I just wanted to say thank you. For coming back so quickly when I asked you to. I really appreciate it.”

  I expected a stupid remark. This was Evan, after all. But all he did was wave to me over his shoulder and say, “You’re welcome.”

  Chapter Forty-one

  As soon as Denise came back from her break, I went on mine. Retrieving my coat and bag from the break room, I sent a quick text to Rafe once I was outside the store. He called me back immediately, and I was relieved to hear his voice no longer sounded strained. “Hey, handsome,” I said, waiting for the traffic light to change. “I’m on break, about to get a slice of pizza, and I wanted to see how you were doing.” I clutched my phone tighter. “And don’t lie.”

  “I’m okay,” he said. “A little sore, but better than yesterday. And better than the day before that. I’m getting stronger. I can feel it.”

  Evan had said the same thing, but it was good hearing it from Rafe. I wanted to sink to the ground in relief, but instead I crossed the street and entered the pizza parlor, where I was instantly surrounded by the amazing aroma of sauce and cheese. The guy behind the counter waved to me—I came here a lot—and nodded after I pointed to the plain pie and held up one finger. “What are you doing now?” I asked as I dug through my bag for my wallet.

  “Watching a basketball game. I wish I was eating pizza with you, though.”

  I reached into the fridge and picked a can of soda. “Aww, you’re so cute. I wish you were here, too. Then I wouldn’t have to pay!”

  Rafe groaned. “Oh, thanks for sending Evan here, by the way. He’s so annoying, trying to take care of me, that I barely remember I’m in pain.”

  “Haha, I knew asking him to come was the right idea.” I paid for my slice and soda, grabbed a couple of napkins, and sat down at an empty table. “But in all seriousness, I hated the thought of you being alone. You know if I could have stayed there, I would have, right?”

  “Gabi, if you’d stayed here last night, your dad would never, ever let me see you again.”

  I sighed, depressed. “You’re right. I need to work on him. He’s way too strict!”

  “You’re only just realizing this?”

  “I guess I always knew.” I took a bite of my pizza. “But now with Mom around, telling him he’s too hard on us, I’m really noticing it. Although,” I said, “I was lucky that he only grounded me for two weeks. I really thought it was going to be the rest of the school year.”

  “Maybe if you were Chloe…”

  We laughed at that. “Maybe he cut me some slack for being semi-responsible most of the time.”

  “Speaking of your mom,” Rafe said, “have you talked to her?”

  “Not today.” I frowned and reached for my soda. “Why?”

  “She stopped by to see how I was doing, and she said she was going to head back to the city tonight. Did she tell you that?”

  Alarm shot through me like a jolt of electricity. She was going back? Already? And she told Rafe instead of me?

  What happened to her always being there for me?

  My stomach twisted, and I regretted the bite of pizza I’d just eaten. It was pretty obvious that Mom and I had different ideas of what “being there” meant. I thought she was going to stay here with us, keeping an eye on me. She’d said it herself; she needed things to blow over with Silver Moon before resuming her life in Manhattan! I didn’t think two days was enough time, but I guess she did.

  Or maybe she just doesn’t want to be around you anymore. Dammit. The old voices were coming back, and I hated myself for being stupid! How could I trust her so easily, when she was just going to turn around and do the same thing again?

  “Gabi?” Rafe’s voice cut through my thoughts, sounding
worried.

  “She said she was going to stay,” I whispered, a big fat tear trickling down my cheek. I swiped it away angrily. Why was I crying? I should be furious!

  And I was, but I was also crushed. Heartbreakingly so.

  “She said there was something she needed to do,” he said. “But you shouldn’t be hearing this from me. Call her and ask her what’s going on. You have a right to know! I’m sorry I didn’t call you immediately, but I knew you were at work—”

  “Don’t apologize. You haven’t done anything wrong.” But Mom had. “I’m going to go. I need to see if I can catch her before she boards her train.” She was probably already on her way to Manhattan, but I had to at least try. I hung up with Rafe and called Mom. She answered after a few rings and I demanded, “Where are you?”

  “What’s wrong?” She must have heard the agitation in my voice and mistook it for something else.

  “Nothing—no, that’s a lie. Are you back in Manhattan?” Did you leave without saying goodbye? Again?

  “You talked to Rafe.”

  “Yes, I talked to Rafe. And you didn’t answer my question!”

  “I’m going back tonight.”

  “But—” You promised. The words got stuck in my throat. Frustrated, I mentally kicked myself. She’s not a mind reader, Gabi! Tell her what you mean!

  “Gabi?” Mom said softly.

  “You promised,” I choked out. “You said you were going to be here. Did I misunderstand you? I thought we were at least going to have a few more weeks together before you went back! And how can you leave without saying goodbye!” I sucked in a deep breath before blurting out, “How am I supposed to trust you if you keep leaving us?”

  She was silent for so long, I wondered if I’d pissed her off. No, that wasn’t fair. I was the one who had the right to be mad, not her!

  I wasn’t nine anymore. I wasn’t going to stand to the side and let her do what she wanted without letting her know how it affected me.

  “You’re right.” She said the words so softly, like a sigh, that I had to press the phone against my ear to make sure I didn’t miss anything. “I’m doing it again, and I didn’t even realize. I’m such a failure as a mother.”