The Chronicles of Kerrigan Box Set Books # 1 - 6: Paranormal Fantasy Young Adult/New Adult Romance

by W. J. May

  He shook his head. “Don't worry. You rest. I'll fill you in if there is anything.”

  “You sure?”

  “Positive. Why don't you check what we can make for dinner if you feel like it? Or we can order take-away. I'm easy.”

  When Devon closed the door, Rae fell back against the couch and closed her eyes. The events of the day ran through her head. She could not figure out why someone would want to go after Sarah. Her background checked out according to the Privy Council; her tatù wouldn't reveal the secret of the tatùs or have the power to dominate the world, control people, or be detrimental. She was sweet, and when together with her future husband, everyone loved them. A regular girl who overnight would become a princess. It was storybook perfect.

  “So why does someone want her dead?” Rae asked herself out loud. She got up and went to her room to grab her laptop. A note lay on the dresser from Molly saying that she had filled up the drawers with some casual clothes and other needed items. Rae found a pair of jogging pants and casual long sleeve top. She changed into the comfy clothes and grabbed her laptop.

  Back in the living room she settled back onto the couch and rested her legs along the length of the couch, setting her laptop on top of her thighs. She opened it and waited for the computer to load.

  The monitor displayed a search engine on people surviving fires. She forgot that last night she had been trying to find information on her mother. She stared at the screen and wished it would be as easy as a Google search to find her.

  What does Jennifer know? Rae wished to talk to her, just the two of them, on their own. However, now was not the time. Jennifer had a mission of her own who knows where, and Rae had her own operation. She grabbed her phone and dialed Luke's number.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey, stranger.” Rae smiled and glanced at the door hoping Devon wouldn't walk in.

  “You still workin'?”

  “Yup.”

  “Sucks.”

  “It's not so bad.” Rae glanced around at her surroundings.

  “I'm working, too.”

  “What are you doing?” She slapped her forehead. “Forget I asked. How are you doing?” They seemed to have an unwritten rule that they wouldn't discuss work.

  Luke chuckled. “It's good to hear your voice.”

  “Yours, as well.” She grinned and checked the door again. Silly paranoia.

  “I have a feeling this isn't just a social call. What can I do for you?”

  He knew her too well. “My first year at Guilder I read an article from some tatù kind of paper. Have you ever heard of it?”

  “Yeah. Give me a sec.” Clicks came through the phone line. Luke was probably typing into a computer. “It's old school. It stopped like ten years ago, maybe longer. It was big in the sixties, seventies. Actually the last article written was about the fire… Gosh, how'd you survive that?”

  “You've never read it before?”

  “No. I heard about the fire, but never read the article about it. I mean, it doesn't really have anything to do with me. No ink, remember?” He was quiet a moment. “Holy sh-sorry. How'd you not turn into some rebel, screwed up kid?”

  Her aunt and uncle had kept her grounded. “Who says I didn't?”

  “A little rebel never hurt anyone.”

  “Good to hear.” She ran her finger over the mouse part of her laptop to turn the screen back on. “So the reason I'm calling…” She hesitated now, not sure she had a right to ask Luke to help her and unsure it might lead to trouble.

  “It's okay, Rae. If there's something I can help you with, I'll try my best.”

  She didn't have anyone else. “The Privy Council believes my mother died in the fire. I don't.”

  “Do you have reason to think otherwise?” He lowered his voice. “You think they are lying to you?”

  “No. Not at all. They really believe she died in the fire. There were two bodies recovered.”

  “Did they do any DNA testing?”

  “I don't know. Probably. Maybe. I remember someone once told me they knew for definite my father perished in the fire.” Lanford had told her that.

  “Why do you think the other body wasn't your mother’s? Is it a hunch? Or maybe you're hoping so?”

  He said the words as kindly as possible. “Kraigan's mother disappeared the same time as the fire. He believes she took off on him. I don't. I don't ever remember meeting her, but my gut is telling me she's the one who died in the fire with my dad.” How could she explain it?

  “But if your mother started the fire…”

  “I think my mom's tatù made her fire-resistant. At least to the fire she created.”

  “Oh. Now that's interesting.” He made some clicks that echoed through the phone.

  “Why is it interesting?”

  “There's this guy, Cromfield. He was around way back, like Tudor times. He had all these theories about tatùs. A museum in town has one of his books on display. We should go sometime to see it. Anyway, this guy theorized a whole bunch of stuff. He was like a scientist and tried all these experiments as well.” A mouse clicked as he spoke. “I'm trying to find a paper I read on it a while back. I can't seem to locate it.”

  Rae didn't know what to say. She wasn't about to let Luke know she had broken into the museum to steal a sheet of paper from Cromfield's book. “I heard of the guy.”

  “You have? Of course, you would have. I'm sure Guilder has an entire class dedicated to the guy. He's got some theory on tatù evolution. I'm going to dig it up for you. Have you heard about it?”

  “Not about tatù evolution.” Just that he drew a picture of me way before I was born.

  “I'll find it.”

  “Can you look for something else for me, too?”

  “I can try.”

  “Can you see if the Xavier Knights have anything on my mother?” She took a swig of water from the bottle Devon had tossed her earlier. “I don't want you to get into any trouble.” What if the Xavier Knights had her? It seemed kind of farfetched, but she didn't want to put Luke in any danger. “It doesn't have to be classified. Though if you do find any classified files about her, you have to let me know.”

  Luke gave a low laugh. “You are a rebel, with just enough crazy to make me like you. I'll see what I can find out. Can you email me your mom's full name, date of birth, all that kind of stuff? Send me a picture of her too if you have one. I'll see what I can find for you.”

  “Thanks, Luke. I really appreciate it.” Rae's gaze shifted to the door to the flat. She could hear Devon coming in the main door. “I should get going now. You know, work to do and stuff.”

  “No problem! Give me a few days, and I'll see what I can find out.”

  “Thanks again. I didn't know if I should ask, I don't want you to get into any trouble.”

  “I won't. It's fine.”

  “I really appreciate it.”

  “You already said that,” he teased. “Oh, Rae?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I phoned Molly the other day, but she hasn't gotten back to me. Have you spoken to her?”

  Oh shoot. “I have. She's fine.”

  “Next time you see or talk to her, tell her to give me a shout.”

  Rae grinned. “Are you crushing on Molls?”

  “Uh, no.” He laughed and Rae could tell by the noise coming through the phone that he was shaking his head. “I'm still trying to impress you with my wit and charm.”

  “You are charming.” Was she seriously flirting with him?

  “Good to hear. Guess I just need to convince you now that I'm good for you.”

  He was good for her. A nice guy, he liked her, he didn't have a tatù but knew all about them and didn't judge her. He was perfect. “Hey, I gotta go. I'll call you later.” She hung up the phone as Devon stepped through the door. She realized she had hung up on Luke before replying to his last comment. That was rude. Her head could be persuaded to like Luke; it was her bloody heart that kept beating to Devon's rhythm and mak
ing her do stupid things, like hang up on Luke. She vowed to not let that happen again.

  She slipped her phone in her pocket, shut the laptop and then jumped up to check what food was in the kitchen. “How did it go?” she asked as she searched through the cupboards.

  Devon came in and sat on one of the bar stool chairs. “Fine. I guess. They weren't able to find out anything about the intruder. There is nothing to prove someone was there. It's strange.”

  Rae closed a cupboard and crossed her arms over her chest as she leaned against the countertop. “I didn't make it up.”

  Devon's eyebrows shot up. “I never said you did.”

  “It feels like Maria and Curtis are accusing me that I did.” She pursed her lips together. “Or hinting at it at least.”

  “They aren't! Plus, Sarah and Alfie were there. All three stories corroborate.”

  “You checked?”

  “No! They just do.” Devon's head tilted slightly as he stared at her. “What's up with you? Why are you so defensive?”

  Because you're getting in the way of me liking a boy. Mature, Rae. Very mature. “Curtis shouldn't have left his post for coffee. Neither should have Maria. Had they been watching…”

  “What could they have done? They are Intel people. Their job is to get information out to us or warn us of incoming problems. That kind of stuff. They aren't trained to defend and protect. Do you feel responsible for not catching whoever was in the bathroom?” Devon tapped the granite top with his finger as he spoke. “You prevented something terrible from happening. That's what you need to focus on, not about letting them get away.” He stared at her for a long time. “Is this because of Kraigan? Because he got away?”

  “No!”

  Devon pushed the bar stool away and came around to where she stood. “He's not coming near you. I'm not going to let that happen again! Ever!” The fierceness in his voice reached his eyes, making them bright. “I'll kill him myself!” He stood, legs shoulder width apart, hands on his hips, and his chest heaving.

  “You shouldn't keep that hatred for Kraigan so bottled up inside of you. It's not healthy.”

  “What?” Devon stared hard at her and then his lips slowly curled upwards as he tried to fight a smile. “Are you taking the mickey on me?”

  “I…” Rae's stomach growled loudly, interrupting her. She looked down at it in surprise. “I guess I need to eat.”

  “I think you do, and quickly.” Devon's body relaxed. “You feel like curry? There's a take-away place around the corner. I can go grab us something. Or you can come if you want.”

  “Sure.”

  She followed him out to the car, and they drove in silence. The sun had begun its descent, and the early night sky was changing from gray to black fast. It looked like it might storm tonight. The air held the scent of spring, but it was being tossed around in the wind trying to get rid of the last remnants of winter.

  Devon pulled into the restaurant and parked the car near the take-away door.

  Rae held her hand on the door but did not open it. “Do you mind if I wait in here?”

  “Sure, why?”

  She pointed at his clothes. “You're dressed to the tens and I've changed into jogging pants and comfy clothes. Seems a bit odd.”

  “You look fine.” Devon shrugged. “What do you want?”

  “Chicken Curry with rice. Or tikka masala. I'm good with anything.”

  “I'll get you some poppa dons to eat on the ride back. Don't want that tummy of yours growling at me.” He nipped out of the car before Rae could throw a gust of wind or electrical spark at him.

  While she waited, she thought about her conversation with Luke. Cromfield seemed to have had his hands in everything. He had worked for King Henry the Eighth, had written books, done scientific-y things, inventions, predicted the future and who knew what else. The guy seemed to have had free rein back then.

  What was the theory Carter had been so keen on? The double tatù ability? Rae couldn't see the big deal about it. It should have proved to the Privy Council back then and now, that mixing tatùs didn't mean demon children. Hadn't Cromfield coupled two tatù people together and waited the sixteen years to see what happened to the child? The results showed two tatùs becoming one. Like a blending. Sure, it lessened the amount of people with abilities but it didn't create stupid-devil spawn or whatever the PCs were so scared of. Rae tucked a loose chunk of hair behind her ear.

  Jacked up people liked to keep journals. Cromfield, her father… Probably a bunch more crazies. Her dad's journal was gone thanks to Kraigan. Not that it was super important. It did have information about the brainwashing technique he had created but Devon, and the PCs, had dismantled that thing a couple years ago. What else was in the journal? The fact her grandparents were both inked? She had been surprised when Carter mentioned it back in his office, but she had read it in the journal and must have forgotten.

  Her stomach moaned, but this time not because of food. A weird thought crossed her mind. Her grandparents both had tatùs. Her dad ended up with a combined tatù and then married her mom. Crap! The sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach grew heavier. Why did she have the feeling that Cromfield had only tested immediate results, like two tatùs and then waited sixteen years? What if he had continued his research and combined two more tatù people together; as a second generation of tatùs… Like Rae. Her grandparents had both been inked; her parents had both been inked, she was unchartered history. That's why she had her mother's ability. It had just taken longer to show up because the dominant ink came first.

  Kraigan would have it as well if he didn't realize it already. She needed to find out what his mother could do.

  Cromfield would have loved to be around now to see Rae.

  She stared at the front door of the restaurant as Devon stepped out. It had begun raining, and Rae hadn't even noticed. Devon! Imagine what kind of super-baby they could have? She shook her head and flushed the thought from her mind. That was never going to happen! She would never let her child go through what she had gone through.

  Chapter 14

  The alarm on her phone grated her ears. Rae would have preferred another hour of sleep, but Molly had been insistent on the phone last night that Rae needed to come early to be outfitted perfectly for the polo match.

  Rae yawned and stretched her arms. She shouldn't be tired. She had gone to bed early, right after eating actually. The thought of last night sent her rushing. If she hurried, she could beat Devon. She rolled out of bed and made her way to the shower.

  She slipped into a long skirt and black tank top. “This is ridiculous. I'm telling Molly I need more clothes down here.” She grabbed her purse and phone and headed down the hall to the front door.

  “You want coffee?”

  She jumped at the sound of Devon's voice. He stood leaning against the kitchen doorframe, a mug in his hand. He let out a low laugh. “Didn't mean to frighten you. I assumed you heard me.”

  She shook her head. “I'm just going to head up to see Molly.”

  Devon came toward her. “I'll come too. You sure you don't want coffee?”

  “I'll get one later.” She opened the door and made her way to the staircase.

  “Rae?”

  She paused, already half up the stairs. “Yeah?”

  “Is something wrong?”

  “No,” she replied too quickly.

  “Then why are you avoiding me?”

  She scoffed. “I'm not avoiding you.”

  “Really? You wouldn't look at me on the ride home from picking up dinner. Then you scarfed your food down so fast I thought you were going to eat mine as well.”

  “I was starving.” She noticed the teasing in his eyes but looked up at the walls to avoid them.

  “You literally ran for the bedroom as soon as you finished. You couldn't get away from me fast enough.”

  “I don't know what you mean.” She sucked at lying. “I just needed to rest.”

  “I know you, Rae,” Devon
spoke quietly and with loaded implications.

  When he didn't say anything else, she hesitantly met his gaze. He stared at her with big puppy dog eyes and she almost told him about her theory on Cromfield and tatù-crossed children. She hesitated because he looked like he wanted to say more, but he seemed to be holding back as well. He didn't push her. It took every ounce of willpower to break the silence between them and move forward, away from all the unsaid things they seemed to want to say to each other but couldn't. Somehow she knew that by not finishing this conversation, they would be closing the door to any future they might have had. She didn't know about Devon, but she had to let go of her feelings for him. There was no other choice.

  Rae tried to speak but had to clear her throat to get the words out. “W-We should probably go see Molly. We don't want to be late.”

  “Yeah…” Devon forced a smile and made his face unreadable. “Let's see what she has in store for us today.” He passed her on the stairwell taking the stairs three at a time.

  Molly's door flew open as Rae reached the top step. “Finally! I was wondering if you guys overslept.” Her eyes flitted back and forth between the two of them. “Are you two sharing a bed?” She grinned wickedly. “'Bout time Rae found her way between the sheets!”

  “Molly!” Rae pushed a burst of wind at her friend, ready to kill her. Her face burned with embarrassment.

  Molly flew across the room and landed on the sofa. “Give it up, Rae,” she laughed. “If it makes you feel any better, I heard Devon's in the same boat as you.”

  This time Devon grabbed two pillows off the settee chair by him and drilled them expertly at Molly's head.

  She threw her hands up in surrender. “I'm done.” She then grabbed one of the pillows and held it up to protect her head and waited. When no more pillows came, Molly peered over the top of the lace cushion. “Sorry, guys. I didn't realize you were both so sensitive.” She quickly ducked behind the cushion as Devon tossed a balled up sweater at her.

  “Grow up, Molly.” Devon walked over to the side of the room where his clothes were laid out and snatched up the pair of jeans and red shirt. “Do your job. Stay out of my personal business, or you'll be finding work outside of the Privy Council.” He grabbed a bag filled with polo equipment and tossed it over his shoulder. “This everything I need?”