by Trina M. Lee
“The price is always changing, but it often means giving something up. Something that means a great deal to you. It’s certainly not an easy decision.” Not the most powerful of pep talks but Cinder always parceled out his best encouragement in small bursts. “I believe in you.”
“Glad somebody does,” I scoffed, unable to share his certainty. “I can’t risk not being here for Rowen when everything goes down.” That was all there was to it. He needed me. I might be the only one able to keep Koda from killing him.
Cinder pulled me into a hug. I could practically feel him smiling. “Ah, my dear flame bearer, you will do well. For now I will leave the Scorpio Key in your care. Do with it as you will. I trust you.”
Maybe disappointment wasn’t the right response. It would have been easier had he taken it. No decision to make was preferable to the wrong one.
“Are you sure?” I asked, giving the glass case a nudge. The scorpion flicked its tail once and grew still again. “It will be safer with you.”
He kissed my forehead, and I knew there would be no getting rid of the key. “Get some rest, Ember. You look tired. Thank you for the tea.”
A sudden sense of urgency gripped me. He was going to leave, and I still had questions. Against my better judgment, I dared to ask. “Wait a sec. Let’s just say, if—I mean a big if—I wanted to do this, how might one use the key?”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“It takes blood to open a doorway between the two worlds. A few drops on the key for each person entering. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you to only do this when there’s no chance of being seen by anyone.”
That was all Cinder had said when I inquired about using the key. I’d spent the rest of the night tossing and turning, tormented by ‘what ifs.’
What I’d learned in my twenty-four years on Earth was that when things seemed random and coincidental, they usually weren’t. This opportunity to see my imprisoned father felt random. It couldn’t be.
With the alignment just days away, my stress level rose on a steady incline. Rowen’s life was at stake. Dash had become a secondary problem to Koda’s willingness to destroy the love of my life.
Choices lay before me. Be Koda’s bride. Ha. Not fucking likely. I could give him the Scorpio Key. It would buy me a little more time before Koda made a move against Rowen. Or so he said.
I could also bypass Koda completely and offer Dash the amethyst. But would that be enough to keep him from unleashing Rowen’s full power? And if he rejected the stone as an offering, he would still know I had it. And I’d be no closer to saving Rowen.
A conversation I’d overheard between Cinder and an unknown visitor came to mind. His visitor had claimed the fate of Rhine’s sons was in my hands while Cinder argued that I was to lead the nephilim, not save them. There was only so much I could do.
Those words haunted me now.
As I got ready to go meet Jett at The Spirit Room, I wrestled with my options. They all sucked.
I needed to keep Koda from killing both brothers. Yet I also needed to keep Dash from turning Rowen into the third member of their triad. Offer the stone and hope for the best? Or try to find another way? But how? Being Koda’s bride was out of the question.
The Scorpio Key.
I didn’t see how a visit to the prison realm would help me. On the other hand, I had to consider that there had to be a reason for this opportunity to come up now.
Jett waved me over to the table she’d secured near the bar when I entered the busy building. “You look like shit.” She greeted me with a scrutinizing once over. “Didn’t sleep well, huh?”
“Not really. And thanks. That’s helpful.” I plopped down in the chair beside her, waving a hand in refusal when she offered me one of the two drinks in front of her. “Where’s Sam? I’m surprised he’s not hanging off your face.”
Jett frowned and shook her head. “Don’t bust my ass because your man is MIA these days. I’m a high-strung creature. I need an outlet. Sam provides that.” She pointed toward the bar where Sam stood in the drink line with Arrow.
“I’m sure he does.” I snickered.
No Rowen in sight. That was probably for the best. I wasn’t sure I could meet those amber eyes right now.
“What?” She elbowed me. “What are you not saying?”
I glanced around for Koda, knowing he had to be lurking. “Nothing at all. Help me decide what to do.” During an earlier phone conversation, I’d told her about the key because I couldn’t make this decision alone. “I’m running out of time, and every option is starting to feel like a screw job.”
“Every option is definitely a screw job,” she confirmed, doing nothing to make me feel any better. “Process of elimination I guess. Until you determine which is most likely to be effective with the least repercussions.”
“That’s the problem,” I groaned, shoving my hair back from my face with both hands. “I’m not sure that’s possible. Every option blows.”
Her dark eyes sparkled with curiosity. “Don’t you wonder what he’s like? Your father.”
I had to think about it, even though all I’d been doing since my talk with Cinder was thinking about it. “Yes and no. He’s gotta be a piece of shit. But Cinder seems to think he could help. Somehow. I don’t know. I’m just so conflicted.”
“Flip a coin.” Jett rummaged in her purse. “No thought. Just chance.”
“What? That’s a horrible way to make a decision this big.” I refused to accept the quarter she shoved at me. Letting a coin decide which path I’d take felt reckless and impulsive. I’d made my share of reckless, impulsive choices, but this couldn’t be one of them.
With a shrug Jett dropped the coin back into her purse. “Suit yourself. It’s not like you have much time though.”
“Don’t remind me. It’s all I can think about.”
“You shouldn’t have run out the other night. Rowen was looking for you before the countdown.” Her sudden change of subject didn’t make me feel any better. “I told you he wasn’t interested in that chick.”
I studied a purple stain on the table’s surface. A night of tossing and turning had left me with many questions come morning. Maybe even a few answers I’d rather not have.
“He found me. You know, Jett, I’m starting to think being with Rowen is a conflict of interest anyway. I mean, I love him like crazy. But if I’m supposed to be some leader among the nephilim, won’t that just complicate things even further?” Again I scanned the vicinity. Koda had to be around. I didn’t want him to catch me off guard.
An annoying slurp made me wince. Jett slammed her now empty glass down and shoved it aside. “Makes perfect sense. I see your point. But I know you, Spike. You tend to jump the gun with matters of the heart. Be careful. I don’t want to have to pick up the pieces if you fuck everything up.”
That coaxed a small smile out of me. “But you will anyway.”
“Yeah.” She reached for the remaining drink and stirred the ice with the straw. “I will anyway. “
Hearing myself say it gave me a sense of panic. Since our breakup I’d held onto the hope that we’d find our way back to each other. Now I wasn’t so sure. I didn’t love him any less. If anything, I might have loved him more. Which was why I had to do right by him. Not to mention myself. If being together threatened my ability to do what I needed to do, then I had to reconsider.
Ugh, but I so didn’t want to. I wanted Rowen. And yet, I also wanted to do my absolute best in this ongoing battle against the dark.
Too many decisions were making me crazy.
Arrow stopped me from further thinking when he sidled up to the table. He plunked his beer down and produced a spliff from a pocket. “Anyone care to join me outside?”
“Yes.” I shoved my chair back. “I could use something to take the edge off.”
Jett opted to stay at the table with Sam. As Arrow and I made our way outside, I considered telling him about the Scorpio Key. His father was in the prison realm too. His
opinion might be worth hearing.
We headed for the parking lot which was thankfully void of people. Hopefully no Koda either. I wanted this chance to talk to Arrow. “No Rowen tonight?” I asked, trying to sound casual.
“Nope. He’s with Dash. And boy did we argue about that one.” Arrow tucked the joint between his lips and sparked it up. Taking a deep toke, he laughed bitterly. “Needless to say, I lost.”
Rowen had taken Arrow’s place in Dash’s dark coven. Which meant doing the dirty work Arrow used to do. I tried not to think about what that entailed. As much as it hurt me to think about, it had to hurt Rowen more. Innately good, surrendering himself to keep Arrow and me alive had come at a high price.
“Can I get your opinion on something?” Accepting the joint when he passed it, I paused to wait for his response while sucking in a deep lungful.
“Yeah, of course. Shoot.” Arrow sauntered over to his BMW and leaned on the hood. He adjusted the beanie hat hanging from the back of his head. It was a wonder it always stayed just so.
I followed, deciding where to begin and how much to share. I handed the spliff back and leaned awkwardly on the car, felt weird about it, and then stood up straight. Pacing a few feet away, I walked a line back and forth in the snow.
“I have a decision to make,” I began. “And I don’t know what to do.”
Starting with Koda’s New Year’s Eve ultimatum, I laid out the predicament I faced. Because I couldn’t find a reason not to tell, I included the Scorpio Key. Throughout my rambles we passed the joint back and forth until it was gone. Despite feeling a little more mellow, it hadn’t done much to ease my mind.
“Wow.” A reaction came slow to Arrow. “I can’t believe there’s a key. It’s just so unexpected. I mean… Wow.”
“I know. I’m right there with you.” Finished with my lengthy outpouring of problems and potential solutions, I perched beside him against the BMW. “At this point I’m tempted to offer up the amethyst. Cinder will be upset, but if it works, it might be worth it.”
Arrow cracked his knuckles. Staring off across the parking lot toward the street where people gathered to smoke and chat outside, he said, “Don’t do that, Spike. You don’t want to, and that’s because you know deep down it’s a bad move.”
“I don’t have a lot of options. They all come with repercussions. I’m scared.” Did I just say that? To Arrow Freaking Lynch?
He eased my frantic inner dialogue by daring to show me I wasn’t the only one who felt vulnerable right now. “I’m scared too. My brother’s life is on the line. I don’t know what Dash wants to do with his triad, but it ain’t gonna be good. I feel helpless. Like I’m just some dipshit with nothing to offer while you’re making yourself crazy trying to figure it out.”
Couldn’t really argue that. Arrow had tried to lure Rowen into the dark. He’d gone over and above to keep me out of the picture so Dash could sink his claws into Rowen. His regrets had come too late.
“You still have time to do the right thing,” I said. Offering a guy like Arrow positive encouragement wasn’t my strong suit. He hadn’t made it easy to get to this point.
He waved a hand dismissively. “Forget about me. I’m a lost cause. You’re the special one. You’re the one who needs to do the right thing.”
Holding out my hand, I created a small flame to chase the chill away. It didn’t work. That chill dwelled within me.
“I don’t know what that is.” My voice came out small and weak.
Arrow sat stiff beside me. Tension built in him despite the space between us. “I know we’re not the best of friends, but I’ve never known you to be someone who compromises their morals. Don’t start now. Trust me, you’ll regret it.” It seemed that circumstances might have shown Arrow the error of his ways. Perhaps there was hope for him after all.
“You’re right, I know.” I slid a glance his way to find him still fixated on the small crowd outside The Spirit Room. “I just wish the right choice was obvious. So there’s no way I could get it wrong.”
Feeling my gaze upon him, Arrow looked at me. An uncharacteristic friendliness shone in his black-rimmed hazel eyes. “Just be you. Not the flame bearer or some chosen demon ass-kicker. Or even a nephilim. Just you. Spike. Can’t go wrong with that.”
My cheeks grew warm. A weird sensation crept over me. It had to be the first time I felt anything akin to warmth or friendship toward him. I wasn’t sure how to react.
Arrow held my gaze, and I knew seconds before it happened that he was going to kiss me.
He didn’t drag it out or do the uber-slow lean, as seen on TV. He just went for it. For a brief, precious few seconds, I had the choice to pull away and slap him or to ride it out. Maybe it was his vulnerability or the fact that he’d been an ally lately when I needed one most. Not that any of that canceled out the many times he’d been my own personal pain in the ass, a nemesis of sorts.
Yet I didn’t pull away.
Tender and soft, Arrow’s kiss had a pleasantness to it I hadn’t anticipated. Assertive but not aggressive, he took command of my lips in a manner that stole my breath and kickstarted my pulse. The touch of his pierced tongue on my bottom lip was exploratory. Timid almost. The steel barbell was smooth and a little kinky. I accepted his unspoken request, parting my lips. He tasted of mint and marijuana.
The scent of his cologne clouded around me so that my senses overloaded with the suddenness of Arrow. I reached to touch his face, caught up in the unexpected power of the moment.
He seemed startled by my response. The fact that I kissed him back somehow deterred him. He pulled away. “I’m sorry. Holy shit, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.” Ducking his head, Arrow avoided my gaze. He fidgeted with his hat. Anything to keep from looking at me.
My breath came in a slight shudder. My heart raced. Cheeks flushed despite the cold, I had to take a moment to gather myself. “It’s cool.” My breathiness was apparent and not at all as casual as I’d tried for. “You don’t have to apologize.”
“Yeah, I do. You’re my brother’s girl. Like I haven’t fucked him over enough already.” Pulling a pack of cigarettes from his back pocket, Arrow busied himself with lighting one up. He watched the plume of smoke float up into the evening sky above our heads.
Jett was right. Jett was right. My mind repeated that because it was so damn hard to think of anything coherent and sensical.
Of course Arrow having an attraction to me didn’t mean anything. He’d been open about that right from the start. Physical attraction didn’t immediately translate into anything more than that.
“I’m not though,” I heard myself say, voice stronger now. “His girl, I mean. I haven’t been for some time now. I love him, of course, but I don’t belong to him, and we are not together.”
Now he looked at me. Guilt lurked in his gaze.
It filled me too, even though what I’d just said was true.
“I know. I didn’t mean for it to sound like that. You’re not an object. I just meant… You know what I meant.” Flustered, Arrow stuck the smoke in his mouth and gave a lazy half shrug.
Because I couldn’t leave well enough alone and the opportunity had been presented, I took it. “Arrow, that song you guys played at the party, was that about me?”
Silence. He held my expectant stare before slowly letting his gaze drift over me. To my lips. My neck. Down to the small flame that still burned in my palm, dancing and flickering in the chilly air.
“So,” he finally said. “When are we going to see our shithead fathers?”
And that was all the answer I would get. It was answer enough.
“You want to come?” He’d surprised me with that one. “Are you sure? It might be dangerous, and you know, shithead father. Are you ready for that?”
His bitter laugh was as cold as the winter night. “Meet the asshole who Dash is so desperately trying to replace with Rowen? Fuck yeah, I’m ready for that.”
I hadn’t realized yet if I would use the Sc
orpio Key, but hearing Arrow talk, I guess I’d always known I would go. How could I not?
“We don’t have much time,” I said, glad the subject change let us move on to something less awkward. “I guess we go tomorrow night.”
The second I walked back into The Spirit Room, Koda cornered me. Getting up in my face, he backed me into a literal corner behind the bar. “Where’s the Scorpio Key, Spike? I know you have it. I checked the Black Market.”
“Back off, asshole. Spike doesn’t owe you shit.” Arrow hovered close, making every effort to shove between Koda and me.
Koda’s sinister chuckle preceded the shove he gave Arrow. “Do not fuck with me today, you little shit. I have no qualms with killing you, and your brother will be next.”
I shot Arrow a warning look, willing him to back off. Koda was my problem. For now. No need to piss him off and have him take it out on Rowen. “I gave it to Cinder.” The lie rolled easily off my lips. “He asked for it. I’m sorry. I had to.”
“Oh yeah? Why don’t I believe you?” Koda blocked my escape with a hand on either side of my head, pinning me to the wall.
Gritting my teeth, I tried to keep a level head. We were in public. Koda could only do so much here. “I don’t give a shit what you believe, Koda. I’m sorry, but Cinder has the key. What do you want it for anyway? You don’t seem like the type to visit prisoners.”
Koda stroked a hand over the side of my face. Ignoring my shudder, he slid his hand down to my throat. Slowly the pressure increased until stars danced in my vision. “I have a few things to say to Rhine myself before I kill his sons,” he snarled. “So get me that fucking key.” He released me with a shove that bounced my head off the wall.
My hand went to my throat, and I sucked in a deep breath. Arrow pushed in front of me with shadows seeping from his hands. I grabbed his arm to keep him from making a bad move in public. It wouldn’t be the first time.
Koda backed off, having gotten his message across. “I’m out of patience with you, white lighter. Twenty-four hours. Get. Me. That. Key.” We watched him disappear into the crowd.
