by Raven Steele
Before I reached her office, I stopped. Woman voices echoed out. I backed away, thinking I shouldn’t bother her, but the door swung open, startling me.
A gorgeous woman in jeans and a tank top looked me up and down, her expression serious, then glanced over her shoulder to Samira. “You have a visitor.”
The woman, a shifter, opened the door wider so Samira could see me. Samira waved me inside. Her face was also pinched tight like they’d been having a serious conversation before I arrived.
Just as I walked past the shifter woman, a wave of power hit me so hard, I stumbled. My head jerked to hers. Whatever she was, she was more than a shifter with some serious power.
“You good?” she asked me.
I dropped my gaze and nodded, my pulse racing. It had been awhile since I’d been in a room with others.
“Ladies,” Samira said, “this is Eve. She’s a visitor here. Eve, these are my friends, Briar and Lynx.”
Briar, the shifter, stepped toward me but she winked at Samira. “I think we’re a little more than that, Sammie.”
Samira wrinkled her nose. “Why do you have to make everything sound so deviant?”
Briar and Lynx laughed. It made my heart ache for friendship, something these three clearly had. Briar extended her hand to me. “Nice to meet you. How are you liking it here?”
“It’s … ” I cleared my throat and quickly shook her hand, “nice, but I’m leaving.”
Samira’s eyebrows ticked up. “Oh?”
“Charlie’s sending someone over to get me soon.”
She smiled. “I’m so glad to hear it.”
Briar slapped me on the back. “It’s too stuffy and boring here, right? You can be honest.”
“I, um,” I said, struggling to know what to say.
Lynx, a beautiful redhead, shoved Briar aside. “Ignore her. She talks way too much.”
Samira mumbled in agreement.
Lynx narrowed her eyes at me. “I feel like I know you. Have we met?”
Every part of me felt like cowering, but I kept my feet firmly planted. I was fairly certain I’d never met Lynx, but if she was a witch, which I definitely sensed, she could’ve easily have heard of me. “I don’t think so.”
She moved closer to me. “What’s your last name, Eve?”
I swallowed, and my gaze darted to Samira for help.
“You can feel it too, can’t you, Lynx?” Briar asked, her dark eyes on me.
“She’s got some major power,” Lynx agreed.
Shit.
Samira circled her desk and came to my side protectively. “Eve is an old friend of mine and appreciates her privacy.”
Briar held up her hands and stepped back. “I can appreciate anonymity but with power like yours, we could sure use your help here.”
“Back off, Briar,” Samira growled and guided me out of the room.
Before Samira could close the door, Briar added, “Think about it!”
As soon as there was distance between us and Samira’s office, I asked her, “Do you guys need help?”
She shook her head. “Don’t concern yourself with our problems. There are bigger things in store for you.”
We stopped in the front lobby. “What do you mean?”
“The Deific’s work is important. I think your presence there will help it greatly, which in turn will help us.” She motioned to a chair. “You can wait for your driver here.”
“Thank you for everything.” And I meant it. Blutel hadn’t just been a safe place for me, but it had also helped me face my fears.
“You are welcome back any time. Take care of yourself.” She turned to leave but stopped. “When you see Henry, please tell him hello for me.”
“Henry?”
“He’s an old friend of mine. I’m sure you’ll meet him soon enough.” She returned to her office, leaving me alone.
I dropped into the chair near the front window and waited. I was too nervous to do anything else but sit and imagine how my life was going to change. The image of the vampire with the sorrow-filled eyes came into focus. The sharp angles of his face, his dark hair and arched eyebrows.
Sooner than expected, headlights shined on the front of the house, bathing me in their glow. The horizon behind them burned a bright orange and pink, a sign of the rising sun.
A tall, well-built man stepped out of the dark sedan in a blue suit and red tie. He was bald and sported a shiny metal stud in his eyebrow. Before he reached the front door, I stepped outside and closed the door firmly behind me.
“Eve?” he asked, startled by my abruptness.
“That’s me.”
“I’m Garret. I’ll be taking you to the airport.” He looked down at the small bag in my hands. “Do you have any other luggage?”
I shook my head.
“Let’s hit the road then.” Garret returned to the car.
I paused before following him. No turning back now. It was time to embrace my new life. Just before I ducked inside the back of the sedan, light from the rising sun warmed my face.
* * *
It was a short plane ride to a small airport just outside of Wildemoor. Another driver was there to greet me and take me to Charlie. A few times, I’d wished I was back in the safe walls of Blutel, but then I would remind myself why I’d left. This was how I make it right. My personal comfort no longer mattered.
Glancing down at the smooth skin on my hands, I wondered when I’d tell Charlie about me being an immortal. What an awkward conversation that would be. I wasn’t even sure what it meant really. I healed quickly like vampires and died like them too, but lacked any of their other abilities.
The closer we came to the city, the more clustered buildings and people became. The driver drove fast and aggressively along the roads, weaving in and out of traffic like a professional. That, combined with all the people, tall buildings, and passing cars, made me nauseous. I closed my eyes tight, willing my stomach to settle.
Eventually, the driver pulled the car into an underground parking lot beneath a tall, dark brown building and pushed a button on the side of a metal stand. A tall gate opened wide, and he drove inside.
“Are we here?” I asked.
He turned between two rows of vehicles. “This is it. I’ll drop you off at the elevator at the end. Go up to the fourth floor and ask for Charlie.”
I clutched my bag tightly, my heart pounding. What if I'd waited too long and was no longer wanted? Where would I go then?
The driver parked the car, but I didn’t get out. “Something wrong?”
Anxiety swelled in my chest, and my feet began to tingle. Magic. I needed to calm down. Relax and breathe deeply.
“You all right?” he asked, staring at me with a creased forehead.
I nodded and then swallowed the lump in my throat before opening the door. The underground garage smelled like an old basement, and a slight breeze chilled my skin. I said goodbye and stepped into the waiting elevator. It vibrated and moved upwards, rattling my nerves. No turning back now.
The doors opened to a well-lit reception area with short, gray carpet and white walls. I exhaled a breath.
A woman with short, curly blonde hair and glasses greeted me from behind a desk. “Good morning. May I help you?”
I quickly stepped out and said, “My name is Eve. I’m here to see Charlie.”
“Nice to meet you, Eve. I’m Sarah,” she said, smiling big.
Sarah looked younger than me, nineteen I guessed. Fashion magazines lay scattered across her desk and three kinds of fingernail polish, each with lids open, sat directly in front of her.
“Good to meet you, too,” I said, forcing a smile. My feet still tingled.
Sarah stood and rounded her desk toward me. “I’ll take you back. Follow me. By the way, I love your hair. Is that your natural color?"
"Yeah, and thanks," I said and followed her through a maze of white and black cubicles, each one filled with people sitting at built-in desks, headsets wrapped around the
ir heads and staring at computers.
A few of them glanced at me, but for the most part, no one seemed to care. We turned a corner and stepped into a long hallway. At the end sat a dark-haired teenage boy who was hunched over, scribbling furiously with a fat red marker on something shiny and silver.
“How’s it going, Derek?” Sarah asked.
The boy didn’t look up. His hair was combed neatly to the side, and he barely seemed to fit in the chair he sat in; his legs lengthened way past the seat. When we came close, Derek stood and took a hesitant step toward us, head still down, eyes staring at the shiny object in his hands. Without warning, he thrust it toward me, revealing what he’d been working on.
My eyes lowered, and I opened my mouth to say thank you, but instead a scream tore through my lungs.
Chapter 32
I screamed again and fell to the ground, crawling backwards away from the strange teenage boy. In his open palm was an exact replica of the silver necklace Boaz had given me.
Sarah stared at me with her mouth open, eyes wide.
“Get away from me,” I cried, but the boy took several steps toward me.
The door at the end of the hallway flew open and out stepped a man with brown, curly hair. It took me a second to realize it was Charlie, but fear held me in place.
Charlie moved quickly toward Derek and spun him away from me. “Derek, let me see what you made.”
With the necklace no longer in view, I relaxed a little, but my heart still raced.
Sarah kneeled beside me. “Are you okay?”
A few people from the cubicles had rushed to help us.
Sarah waved them away and said, “Nothing to see here. Get back to work!”
“What a beautiful necklace. May I hold it?” Charlie asked Derek.
Derek shook his head vehemently and again thrust the necklace toward me again.
“Who is that?” I whispered to Sarah.
“Derek Asher, an autistic boy who works here. He’s completely harmless, I promise.”
I looked up, my gaze meeting that of the boy’s. His wide-set eyes were gray and full of raw innocence, something I had never seen in anyone else before. I stood up slowly and reached for the necklace. He handed it to me, his smile growing.
“Did you make this for me?” I asked, keeping my focus on Derek. The tin necklace felt like a bomb in my hands.
He nodded his head quickly, then walked by us, taking extra care not to touch me as he passed. I stared after him until he disappeared around the corner.
“I’m sorry about that, Eve,” Charlie apologized. “I should’ve been more prepared.”
I looked at him, really looked. His auburn hair was shorter than I remembered, and he seemed more broad chested, like he’d been lifting heavy weights. The moment my eyes met his, warmth bled through me. I may have only met him once, but I felt like we’d become close friends through our letters.
Surprising even me, I threw myself to him and buried my head into his chest, tears blurring my vision. He stroked the back of my head tenderly and guided me into an office, shutting the door behind us.
After a minute, I calmed down and pulled away from him. “I’m sorry.” I sniffed. “It’s just so good to see you.”
“And it’s good to see you! I knew I’d see you here one day, but I’ve got to be honest. I didn’t think it would be this soon.” He motioned me to sit down in a wooden chair. “What changed?”
I bit at my lip nervously. “Samira. Somehow she knew the right words to say to me.”
“She is a very perceptive woman.” He sat across from me, bringing his bent right leg up to rest upon his left knee. Behind him rested a mahogany desk; a vase of red roses, and a neat stack of papers, sat upon its top.
Although it hadn’t even been a year since I last saw him, he’d developed lines between his eyebrows and a two-inch scar on his right cheek. His eyes had changed the most. They were still green, but they reflected the pain I had read in some of his letters.
“How was your flight?” he asked.
“It was good, thank you. And thanks again for taking care of me for so long. And for the letters. They meant a lot to me.”
He chuckled uncomfortably and shifted his position on the chair. "I hope you didn’t mind that I often rambled in them. Writing them was cheap therapy."
It was my turn to squirm. "I owe you so much."
“You don’t owe me anything. The work you’re going to do will more than make up for any debt you’ve incurred.”
I immediately tensed, not because I didn't trust him, but because I was afraid of using magic. “What kind of work?”
“Let’s get the formalities over with, and then we can talk about your future.” Charlie reached for the nearby desk and removed a thick manila envelope from off its top. He reached inside and removed several papers. “As your parents’ only child, upon their death, you inherited everything.” He handed me a single sheet.
“My mother?” I asked.
“She died four months ago. There was an earthquake, and the facility where she was being held collapsed, killing everyone inside. It was a terrible disaster.”
Both my parents were dead.
“You’ve inherited everything,” Charlie said. “We transferred the funds to a Swiss bank account under an alias. I hope you don’t mind, but we didn’t want to give anyone the ability to track you. If you’d just sign this paper, then everything will be transferred over to your new name—Eve Andrews.”
"But don't people think I died?"
He shook his head. "Only missing. Your body was never found in the fire. After your mother passed, we filed paperwork showing you were alive and then created the new identity. It was all done in secret. There's not a chance anyone will find out who you really are."
I glanced down at the paper. The dollar amount was staggering. “This is all mine?”
Charlie nodded.
“What will I ever do with this much money?”
“Whatever you want.”
I set the paper in my lap.
“What made you finally come?” Charlie asked. “It couldn’t have been just Samira’s speech.”
“The desire to make things right. I’ve done some horrible things and wasted a lot of time doing nothing about it.”
“It wasn’t you.”
“But it was me, specifically my stupidity that caused it all. I let my hunger for black magic consume me, and I’m still not sure I’ve rid myself of it.”
“Time will fix that, or I should say what you choose to do with your time. We’ll help you, too.”
I tightened my jaw. “How?”
“By teaching you to use your abilities correctly.”
“What?” I asked, my heart racing again.
“We’ll teach you to use them for good,” he clarified.
“I’ve heard that before. I’m not using magic again. I think there’s been a mistake.” I stood, nearly knocking the chair backwards.
“Eve, that’s not what I meant. Please, sit back down, let me explain.”
I hesitated, searching his eyes. I knew this man. In his letters, he had admitted to being afraid of the dark for years and learning to overcome his fear. He'd spoken of having children with Moira before she died. He admitted his weaknesses and insecurities. This was a man I could trust.
I returned to my seat.
“Because of the experiences you’ve had in life,” Charlie began, “you’ve only been taught to fear and to hate. Do you think only negative emotions give you power?”
I glanced down, my gaze finding my worn brown loafers.
“There are other emotions you can use that aren’t dark,” he continued. “Emotions that don’t fill you with the anger you despise. You can feel hope, love, peace, all the feelings that are good in this world. These emotions are far more powerful than what you’re used to feeling, and they will give you the ability to use your gift in ways you never thought possible.”
“But will it change me?”
“I don’t think it’s possible for me to feel anything good,” I whispered.
“Nonsense. We’ll help you find love even in something as small as a flower.” He glanced at the roses sitting on the desk.
“Does anyone else here know about me or other supernaturals like vampires and demons?” I asked.
Charlie’s expression grew serious. “It is for you to tell who you want about yourself, and as for the real monsters of the world, well, we can’t tell just anyone. A few of us know the truth, but most people have to be eased into such things. Their sanity depends upon it. So to most of the people on this floor, we are simply an accounting agency.”
“What of the boy? How did he know about the necklace?”
“Derek?” Charlie clasped his hands together, pointer fingers up in a steeple position, and placed them under his chin in a thoughtful expression. “He has the ability to see the past and future and expresses it through art. We found him in an orphanage in England when he was nine and adopted him.”
I frowned. “The Deific adopted a boy?”
“No, no, of course not. It was Henry who adopted him.”
“Who’s Henry?”
“He is the founder of the Deific. He recognized Derek’s abilities right away and thought he’d be better off here. Derek lives upstairs in an apartment and then works here after school doing odd jobs.”
“So Henry lives upstairs, too?”
Charlie cleared his throat. “No, Derek lives with a nanny, but Henry visits him often.”
“Why would he adopt a boy and then not take care of him?”
“It’s complicated. You’ll see soon enough. Henry is anxious to meet you when you’re ready.”
I was curious to meet the man who could start such an organization. I stopped suddenly and sat up straight. “Something’s not right, Charlie. You said Henry started the Deific, correct?”
“Yes.”
