by Patti Larsen
Again.
I rushed after her without a word of warning to Charlotte, heart pounding as I pushed through a small knot of students and into the aisle. I practically ran all the way to the end, turned the corner.
Nothing. No one. Empty.
Charlotte grasped my arm, turned me to face her, her own expression unreadable.
“What is it.” Not a question.
“Not what,” I said. “Who. I saw her again.”
I didn’t have to tell Charlotte who I meant. She turned her head, lifted it, sniffed deeply. Met my eyes.
“I don’t smell anything,” she said.
Anger poured through my veins. “I bet it’s just Darin messing with me.” He’d regret it if I caught him at it. And why was I so worried about the guys? They chose that smarmy jerk over me. Fine. They could have their boys only club with their loser of a leader.
I had better things to do.
***
Chapter Eighteen
By the time my day was over, I was in a better mood. Last class with Liam ended with him happily accepting my invitation to watch a movie later. Part of me felt guilty for making him my second choice again, but since we were just friends I didn’t really let it get to me.
He arrived with a box of microwave popcorn and a giant chocolate bar, all for me. It was hard not to love him for stuff like that.
We curled up in the empty commons in front of the TV on the puffy leather couch with a shared blanket over our knees, laughed, stuffed ourselves on popcorn and just had fun. Charlotte had agreed to stay in her room and leave us alone for a while and I was very grateful. I forgot how much I loved spending time with Liam, how easy our friendship had become and was very, very thankful to have him in my life.
Now, if only I could get Quaid out of my head.
Sashenka disturbed us briefly, hanging over the edge of the couch with a big smile on her face.
“Party later,” she said. “At one of the Houses for the upperclassmen. You guys want to come?”
We both shook our heads immediately. Was I really so much of a homebody? But the warmth and earthiness of Liam’s magic was fused to mine where his leg pressed against my thigh. Leaving the comfort of our little nest seemed ridiculous.
She left quickly and we went back to our movie.
Or tried to. When I turned back, I found Liam watching me with a smile on his face.
“What?” I tossed some popcorn at him, laughing.
“I’d rather be here with you, too,” he said. And kissed me.
Everything went away. Everything. Shaylee’s Sidhe magic surged forward, wrapping around us like a cloak, pulling Liam closer, bonding our power together. His firm lips tasted of salt and butter and chocolate, kiss loving and as sweet as he was. His warm breath tickled the inside of my mouth, one hand settling on my shoulder, pulling me gently toward him, tip of his nose hot against my cheek. I leaned into it, fingers tracing over the side of his face, feeling the smooth, soft skin, so different from the roughness of Quaid’s—
I jerked away the moment Liam did. We stared at each other for a long time while emotions I couldn’t begin to sort out raged through my body. Cold and suddenly hot, cold again in a flash, I hugged myself as I felt horror slide over my face.
“Syd.” Liam cleared his throat, hand reaching for me only to drop again. “Syd, I’m sorry. It... I never meant...”
Before I could say or do anything, he rose to his feet, the blanket falling from his lap. Shoulders slumped, head down, Liam practically ran from the commons and disappeared through the door.
Oh. My. Swearword. What was that? Did we really...? And I.
Oh. My. Swearword.
I. Liked. It.
I was on my feet, pacing in front of the couch, feet tangling in the blanket now sprawled on the floor, spilled bowl of popcorn spread over the cushions. I kissed Liam. Liam kissed me. And we both liked it.
What the hell?
I shook my head. Okay, I had to admit I’d always been attracted to Liam. Right from day one when I helped him find his first class. But that was just the Sidhe power talking. Wasn’t it?
Wasn’t it?
A secret, private, quiet part of my heart reminded me of something I’d admitted long ago. If Quaid wasn’t around, I could easily have fallen in love with Liam.
Was I in love with him anyway?
No. I loved Quaid. Loved him with all of my heart. Gave him my heart, in fact. Which he stomped on and trampled and cast aside—
Damn it, Syd. Get a freaking grip.
I couldn’t think, couldn’t just pace there alone with the memory of my magic and Liam’s all wrapped up together, with the taste of him still on my mouth. I wiped carefully at my lips with the sleeve of my shirt before running from the room.
Back to my dorm and Sashenka who was just leaving.
The party. Right.
“Change your mind?” Her smile faded a little. I must have looked so panicked. I know I felt panicked.
“Yes,” I said, grabbing a sweater. “Party. Perfect.” I had to get this out of my head, had to forget what I’d done before I lost my mind. “Let’s go.”
***
Chapter Nineteen
Why are parties all the same? Indoor, outdoor, normals, witches—didn’t seem to matter. Put a bunch of kids together without supervision and access to alcohol and kablooie, instant mess.
I was beginning to accept the fact I was just a prude and there was nothing I could do about it. Or wanted to for that matter. Especially when I was in the kind of headspace where everything sucked.
Oh, I tried to fit in with the upperclassmen, even accepted a glass of cold beer just so they’d stop offering. It quickly warmed, but that was okay because I had no intention of sampling the stuff. A few sniffs told me the bouquet hadn’t improved since my first encounter with it, the night Suzanne, the cheer squad leader, had summoned up the spirit of Cesard and turned that particular party into a mass exodus of screaming teenagers.
Still, it was better being here at the party, surrounded by a crowd of drunk people, often shoved or bumped into or toes trodden on than being back in my dorm, stewing over the fact Liam kissed me.
Yes, he kissed me. Not the other way around. I’d decided by the time the door to the House opened and Sashenka and I walked into the loud and smoky place I was simply an innocent bystander in the whole kissing incident and the moment I saw him again I’d slap him for it.
Yeah, Syd. Okay. Whatever.
I finally set aside my full glass of pale yellow disgustingness, almost clinging to Sashenka who had the good taste to be drinking a soda herself. At least, I thought it was soda. If she chose to add something to it, that was up to her. But witches were notorious for not being able to hold their liquor and since Uncle Frank had as yet to take me out into the middle of nowhere like he promised and get me drunk so I couldn’t hurt anyone, just to see what happened, I wasn’t risking it.
It didn’t take me long to realize this was my worst choice of distractions. The music was so loud I could barely think, driving into my skull almost like a physical attack, making me feel agitated and angry. Charlotte pressed so close to my back at times I wanted to spin on her and snarl. But it wasn’t her fault. She was here to protect me, doing her job.
I had just turned to tell her we were leaving when I spotted the Dumont brothers oozing toward me. But instead of stopping to torment me as I expected they would, Jean Marc made oogle eyes at Tippy while Kristophe reached out and touched Sashenka’s cheek.
My magic flared, demon roaring for me to act and I almost did. Almost. But these girls weren’t frail and fragile flowers, weren’t easily thralled normals like the damaged Page or the equally screwed-up Alison. They were witches, from powerful families.
Tippy leaned toward Jean Marc, her ruby lips moving. She laughed when he jerked back from her, scowling. Whatever she said to him set her friends off. Nicci giggled beside her while Donalda howled so loud I heard her over the music.
Sashenka merely smiled at Kristophe before tipping her full glass down the front of his pants.
Okay, maybe parties weren’t so bad after all.
I might actually have even had fun at that point, just basking in the glow of the Dumont brother’s humiliation, if I hadn’t looked up and caught sight of Quaid across the room. With his friends.
And the honey-blonde hanging from his arm, her lips against his ear.
Fireworks went off in my head, practically tearing me apart. His eyes caught mine and widened just as I spun and forced my way through the crowd, pushing against Charlotte who eased aside and let me go. Fury raged through my veins, burning me from the inside out. So this is why he couldn’t be with me? Some party? And her? More fun than me, okay, I got it. Message received, loud and clear.
Liam’s face flickered in my mind, but I dodged it. Not my fault. And that damned kiss never would have happened if my so-called boyfriend hadn’t ditched me to party with his friends.
I felt the connection between Quaid and I tighten, the touch of his mind on mine, but I was so not even going there with him tonight. So. Not. He could simmer in his guilt or whatever he was feeling and leave me the hell alone.
I slammed the connection shut, delivering a blow to his magic I know made him stagger. Screw him.
Just screw him.
Charlotte kept silent when I reached for the veil and grasped her hand. No way was I walking back to my dorm. Not in the state I was in. Not even thinking about the consequences, I parted reality, the rubbery membrane between Demonicon and my plane welcoming me as I slid inside it and rode it, Charlotte beside me, back to the Yard. We stepped out only a heartbeat later and I longed to go back inside it, to run for home, to Wilding Springs and my own bed, to Gram and the coven and the Wild Hunt sleeping in my back yard.
But no way was I running. Not from some asshole guy who’d broken my heart more times than I could remember all for his own stupid agenda. No. Freaking. Way.
SYDLYNN THADDEA HAYLE. Mom’s angry connection was so loud I had to grit my teeth. Do not EVER do that again.
I’m a demon, I shot back at her. No way was she bossing me around in that tone. I’ll ride the veil any time I feel like it.
Oh boy. Was she mad. Like, not normal Mom mad, but wild animal ready to tear something apart with her teeth and claws mad.
Never. Again. Her boiling touch vanished, leaving me fuming even more. How dare she reprimand me like that? She’d used an open channel, too. Any witch in five miles would have heard her.
So public humiliation was her new game, was it?
We’d see about that.
“Are you done broadcasting, or do you plan to burn the place down?”
I jerked to a halt, looked up, startled to see Sassafras perched on the lowest branch of a nearby tree. The sight of him made my heart clench.
Fury turned to absolute crushing grief. No crying. No.
“Don’t tempt me.” There, that was better. Finding my anger always kept me level.
“Hmm.” Sassy hopped down, using magic as he floated softly to the ground. As always, when he used his magic, the flicker of the boy he used to be appeared briefly in a halo around him. “I think your mother would not approve.”
“In case you missed it,” I said with sharp sarcasm, “she doesn’t.” I clenched my jaw against the need to shoot back at her, using him as my sounding board instead. “Mom can bite me.” My whole body shook, the occasional firecracker still going off in my head as my skin tingled with the need to hurt something. Someone.
“Syd.” Sassy came to stand at my feet, stretching himself upward, claws hooking in my jeans. “Up.”
I hesitated, not ready to have my fury diffused. But I couldn’t resist his amber eyes, the way his ears flattened sideways, whiskers drooping. I finally scooped him into my arms and let him head-butt me gently.
“Are you all right?” His tone was soft, the barest purr emerging. “I felt your hurt long before your mother blew a gasket.”
No. Freaking. Crying.
“Fine.” I swallowed hard. “It’s nothing.”
“It’s not nothing.” He glanced at Charlotte who had the sense to keep her mouth shut. “Quaid?”
Now I was trembling for another reason. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
Sassy sighed. “This is the hardest part of my job, you know that?” One paw gently touched my cheek. “The heart stuff.”
I could only imagine. Generations of Hayle witches had come and gone for him. “I’m not the only one, huh?”
“Not by a long shot.” His purr rose in volume, but I blocked the demon magic he tried to use to influence me.
“I’ll be okay,” I said, setting him down. “I promise.” I did feel better, but didn’t want to, not yet. Stupid, maybe. Still. “I just need to figure this out on my own.”
Sassy’s tail thrashed once. “As you wish.”
Charlotte hissed softly before I could turn to walk up the steps to my dorm. “Is that who I think it is?”
Yup, sure was. Rupe and Simon, sneaking off again.
“None of my business,” I said, even as I felt drawn to follow them.
“What isn’t?” Sassafras’s golden gaze watched them too. “What’s going on?”
I filled him in quickly as the pair disappeared across the Yard.
“I don’t like the sound of that,” Sassy said. “Let’s follow. I want to get a look at where they are going.”
I lifted him into my arms again, grasped Charlotte’s hand and went back into the veil. Mom’s orders or not, no way was I running to chase the boys, not when I had other means of travel at my disposal. For an instant, while we rode the veil, Sassafras’s body weight seemed to increase almost to the point I couldn’t hold him. Enough of who he had been survived, it seemed, tied to his magic, though I knew he would never be a demon again.
We stepped out of the veil in the same patch of darkness we hid in the night before just in time to see Rupe and Simon climb the stairs to the door. I clenched up inside, prepped for another screaming lecture from Mom, but none came. Maybe she’d relented? I didn’t have time to wonder or care. This time when my friends knocked, Darin greeted them personally and gestured for them to enter. Sassafras’s low growl made the hair on the back of my neck and arms stand up.
“Something’s not right here,” he whispered. “Do you feel those wards?”
I flushed a little, realizing I’d not considered checking them out previously. I quickly corrected my mistake, reaching out to feel along the edges of the building.
Witch wards, certainly. They felt like Darin, only stronger. His father? But those weren’t the only ones guarding the house.
White power sizzled along the edges, and the contained virus around my neck stirred at its touch.
“No way,” I said. “How can that be?”
“I don’t know,” Sassafras said, tone grim, “but we need to tell your mother Darin’s family is connected to a clan of vampires.”
***
Chapter Twenty
I couldn’t make myself move. “There’s nothing wrong with that,” I said at last. “We’re associated with a clan. Hell, my uncle is one of them.”
Sassy just glared at the house. “There’s a treaty here, remember? No vampires allowed. And yes, it’s only meant to protect the Yard, but all of the clans are to stay away from this entire school.”
Charlotte’s nostrils flared as she snuffled the air. “I admit, I’ve been feeling uneasy,” she finally said, “but there’s been nothing concrete. I haven’t felt any vampires, not blatantly. Perhaps the wards are old, left over from a former association.”
It was pretty clear from their strength how fresh the shields were, so she was wrong.
“We have to inform Miriam.” Sassy finally turned away from his observation, meeting my eyes with his, the deep glow of his power shining in the darkness.
I wasn’t about to argue with him because I agreed one hundred percent. A quick slip
through the veil put us back in the Yard. Surprisingly, there was no reaction from my mother. Maybe she was accepting she couldn’t box me in with her stupid rules. Either that or she’d had an aneurysm from my disobedience. Still, she’d left it wide open, so it was her own fault. By allowing my power to pass through the wards surrounding the school, she’d basically told the old magic protecting Harvard riding the veil was A-okay.
The elevator dinged and we were off it within moments of leaving the boys behind at the club house. Charlotte snarled at the entry to the sitting room and slammed to a halt.
“Still can’t enter,” she said.
Nice. “Sorry,” I said. “I’ll deal with it, I promise.”
She shrugged, but not because she wanted me to forget it. “Just tell her what you need to.”
I hated leaving her behind like a servant, but had little choice in the matter. Sassafras leaped down from my arms and bounded off toward the dining room so I followed him, though I caught sight of him sliding between Maurice’s legs even as the unhappy little man glared at me from behind his glasses and blocked my way with his pudgy body and one upraised hand.
“Can I help you?” He sniffed the air as if I’d brought some horrible odor with me. “Miss Hayle?”
“I need to see Mom.” I was still furious with her, but even I knew something was up and had to take the higher road in order to have something done about it. But Maurice blocking me from reaching her? Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen.
I tried to push past him, but his power was tied to the shields on the house. He might have been no match for me alone, but with the magic of the entire Council behind him I was out of luck.
“The Council Leader is in meetings at the moment and cannot be disturbed.” He gave me a look telling me there was no way I was as important as a Council meeting and that he would do everything in his power to keep me from reaching my mother.
We’d see how that worked out for him.
