Darkness Unveiled

by Emerson Knight

  “Answer,” I whispered, my lips nearly touching hers.

  “Because it was time,” she whispered back, a gentle, honest dagger into my heart.

  “Have a good night,” I whispered, slipping my hands around her waist and slowly pulling her to me as I lightly kissed her lips. This is how you say good-bye. I expected her to pull away. Instead, she pressed into me. Her kiss hardened, and I found myself falling into her, as I’d done so many times before. An old passion ignited. Our kisses became ravenous as our hands searched and kneaded each other in deliciously familiar patterns. Chris’s left hand tugged at the waist of my jeans, then slipped up my shirt, sending electric ripples through my body as she caressed my skin until she pressed her fingers into my chest. With both hands, I tugged her shirt over her head, then laved my tongue over the swell of her breasts as I tried to unclasp her bra, until the tension became too much and I tore it from her body, eliciting a gasp, and tossed it aside. I stopped myself, pulling back just enough to take in the sight of her. I should’ve backed away, should’ve sent her home. Together we were trouble, but there was an inevitable finality to our relationship. I needed the distraction from Sky. Chris was here, now, and I wanted her. In her eyes I saw the same, urgent lust demanding satisfaction.

  A deep growl escaped my lips as we tugged at each other’s pants, pulling them off. Pressed together, we kissed and kneaded each other on our way to the ground, as if melding into a single, writhing body. My lips remembered every inch of her skin, brushing over her breasts and traveling down to her stomach, to—I stopped at the light scar on her abdomen that spread like a fading spiderweb. She met my inquiring look and pulled my face up to steal the questions from my lips. Her tongue licked at me and I forgot everything, lost once more in the heat of our primal sexual urges.

  I held her gaze as I slowly slid into her, exhaling a ragged ecstatic breath. A deep moan escaped my lips as I moved rhythmically against her, kissing her and breathing in her moans until she surrendered beneath me. As her groans intensified, I moved deeper, commanding her pleasure until her body shuddered against mine repeatedly and I finally let go.

  I awoke with a start, sitting bolt upright, to find Josh glaring at me from the entryway. Sky stood behind him, her mouth agape. Confused, I blinked at the sunlight filtering through the curtains. I was naked on my living room floor, I realized, with Chris sleeping naked next to me, barely covered by a blanket. Hastily discarded—in some cases torn—clothing surrounded us as if swept up and then abandoned by a tornado. The events of the previous evening came flooding back to me. I choked back a rush of regret as I watched my brother shaking his head at me, his face darkening in anger. I wasn’t sure if Sky was angry or just shocked, but she was judging me as well.

  I glared at Josh. What is he doing here? I should’ve never given him a key. He shouldn’t have brought Sky. My jaw clenched, a rise of anger providing an anemic defense against their judgment. I turned back to Chris, cursing myself. How did this happen? But the answer was shamefully obvious. As it always happened with her, I had let my passions get the best of me.

  She stirred next to me, her expression groggy as she squinted, taking in our predicament. She answered my brother’s scowl with a mischievous grin as she sidled close to me, drawing the blanket to cover her breasts. As she brushed her lips against my shoulder, her attention shifted to Sky, who wrinkled her nose in disgust.

  Leave it to Chris to make things worse. One night of indiscretion, and already she was a wrecking ball crashing through my life.

  “Threatening and trying to kill each other is what … foreplay?” Josh snapped.

  She batted her eyelashes at him, relishing his revulsion as he shook his head. She kissed me on the shoulder—presumably for his benefit as well—then rose, drawing the blanket around her body. She made a casual show of gathering her clothing, gave Josh and Sky a pleasant smile, then went upstairs to my bedroom. I was much quicker about gathering my clothes, but he stopped me at the bottom stair.

  “No!” he shouted, jabbing a finger at me. “You stay right there!”

  I hesitated, surprised by the audacity of his tone. As brothers, we fought a great deal—he made mistakes and I tried to shout or beat some sense into him. I didn’t appreciate the role reversal, no matter how deserved. I turned to him, waiting for more as I pulled on my underwear in plain sight of him and Sky. She remained angry and shocked, but surprisingly kept silent while my brother struggled to put his disappointment into words.

  “I need to shower and dress.”

  “It can wait,” he snapped.

  I crossed my arms over my chest, scrutinizing my brother.

  “What? Life isn’t dangerous enough for you? You’ve decided to spice it up by sleeping with Demetrius’s lover?”

  “She’s not Demetrius’s,” I insisted with a snarl.

  “Really! I’m not sure he got the memo. Whether she accepts it or not, she is his. What do you think happens when they trade—they have tea and talk about the weather? You can’t seem to have dinner with her without getting into her pants. You think he’s any better? You just screwed Demetrius’s lover! How do you think this is going to play out?”

  I didn’t appreciate my brother’s tone, especially in front of Sky. “We are not going to have this discussion now,” I commanded, glancing meaningfully between them.

  “When should we have it?” He gestured broadly. “When Demetrius is trying to see what your insides look like as he rips you apart?”

  Let him try. “I’ll be fine.”

  “He will try to kill you over this out of principle because you dared to touch something of his—”

  “She is not his,” I barked, trying to shut him up. I already knew I’d made a mistake hooking up with Chris, but I didn’t need my little brother’s public admonishment. I sure as hell didn’t care about Demetrius.

  Josh shook his head, incredulous, while Sky turned away, seemingly unable to look at me.

  “Drop it,” I snapped. I should’ve never given you a key. “Why are you two here?”

  He sighed, answering reluctantly, as if the reason for barging unannounced into my home no longer mattered. “Skylar thinks that Gloria’s involved with the attacks. We’re going to check it out.”

  Hardly a reason to barge into my home. I looked from Josh to Sky, expecting to hear more, but her expression twisted into a fresh grimace, as if my look alone somehow offered fresh insult. Confused, I turned back to Josh. “Give me ten minutes to shower and dress.”

  “Are you going to be able to just shower and dress,” he scolded me, “or will you need a chaperone?”

  “Screw you.” I gave him a smirk, then climbed the stairs.

  “It’s not me I’m worried about you screwing,” he called after me, but I ignored the jibe.

  I entered my bedroom just as Chris emerged from the bathroom with a towel around her, her body glistening. “I’m going with you.”

  “Why?” I asked, pulling a fresh shirt from my closet.

  “We have an agreement, remember?”

  “The pack has an arrangement with Demetrius,” I corrected her.

  She gave me a half-smile, as if she felt sorry for me. “Did you think my business arrangement with Demetrius was going to end just because we had sex? It was nice, Ethan, but business is business. Clean up, and let’s go to work.” She slipped into a t-shirt from my dresser, then went downstairs.

  I showered quickly, dressed, and was downstairs a few minutes later. Retrieving my phone, I noticed Josh had called me six times since last night, the last of the calls in quick succession. No wonder they’d come looking for me. My guilt deepened. Had I not been distracted by Chris, I would’ve heard the calls. I still didn’t understand how Gloria’s suspected involvement deserved such urgency. She was a Tre’ase, a trickster demon.

  Is there something he didn’t want to tell me in front of Chris?

  I was about to ask him about the phone calls when I caught sight of Chris through the window, stan
ding in front of the open trunk of her tan BMW. I watched her, entranced as she wiggled into a pair of jeans, then took off my shirt and replaced it with a button-down. She stuffed one knife each into her boot sheaths, then strapped another sheathed blade around her thigh. Next came a pair of shoulder holsters, followed by two pistols. A third pistol, already holstered, was strapped to her hip. I couldn’t help my attraction to her. She was a distraction, but a sexy one. I realized my brother was staring as well. She noticed our attention, giving us a confident, knowing smile as she sauntered like a predator back into the house.

  Josh gave an exasperated sigh. “This has disaster graffitied all over it.”

  “It’s hard to stay away from her,” I admitted, just softly enough so that Sky couldn’t hear, but I needed to get a grip. Last night was just a last gasp of a dead relationship, and I had no intention of revisiting the past. We had work to do.

  My brother frowned at me. “Maybe when Demetrius breaks your legs, it’ll help.”

  A moment later we left the house. Chris got into her BMW, while Sky climbed into Josh’s Jeep Wrangler. Judging by his glare and her scowl, I decided to ride with Chris. It wasn’t my preference. The sooner we put some distance between us, the better.

  “That was fun,” she said with a mischievous smile as she drove.

  I wasn’t sure if she meant hooking up or being discovered by Sky and my brother. “That won’t happen again.”

  Her smile became a grin, but we continued on in silence. I kept my eyes on the road, trying to distract myself from the memory of Sky’s disgust. She didn’t want me. She had no right to judge, but that didn’t make me feel any better about my predicament. As much as I hated to admit it, Josh wasn’t wrong about Demetrius. He clearly viewed Chris as his—whether she agreed with him or not. I could handle his wrath, but there was no guarantee he’d limit his revenge to just me. Putting the pack at risk because I couldn’t control myself was unacceptable.

  I gazed at Chris as she drove one-handed, her other elbow propped on the open window. I found it difficult to believe that she cared for him. Was she just playing him to get what she wanted? I hoped she knew what she was doing with him, but I doubted it. Our days as a couple were over, but I worried she was in over her head.

  Once we reached the long, deserted road that led to Gloria’s, a mischievous look came over Chris as she glanced into the rearview mirror. She hit the gas, quickly accelerating well past the speed limit. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Josh angrily gesticulating as he sped to catch up.

  “Slow down,” I said, glancing at the speedometer.

  Chris accelerated instead. It wasn’t like her to be so reckless, but apparently I was along for the ride. I growled as I buckled my seatbelt. Glancing back at Josh once again, I couldn’t help a small sense of satisfaction at watching his frustration. Now you know what you put me through.

  A few minutes later, we parked in the driveway of Gloria’s white and red striped house. The curtains were drawn, but I doubted she ever opened them. Fallen leaves littered the yard, and mail poked out of the stuffed mailbox next to the door. No one answered when Chris knocked at the door. Most likely, Gloria had left town a few days ago, which lent some credibility to Sky’s theory. There was also the chance that we’d find her corpse inside. The supernatural world could be a violent place. Glancing around first to make sure the neighbors weren’t watching, I stepped back to kick in the door, but Chris intervened. She knelt at the door as she drew out a small kit of tools. It took her less than a minute to pick the lock.

  The door creaked open and I followed her inside, struck immediately by the obnoxious redolence of lemon and brimstone combined with ammonia and bleach. At first glance, the living room offered no hint of trouble. The floral-patterned couches and cherrywood end tables were undisturbed, and the hardwood floor was clear of debris. The entire room was immaculate, with seemingly nothing out of place. I signaled to the others to spread out through the house, then quietly stepped into the kitchen, which was just as tidy. Steel pots hung from the stove, and the countertops were clean and organized. The sink was empty, as was the dishwasher. I opened the fridge, not surprised to find only a few condiments—nothing perishable.

  In the room next to the kitchen, an empty fruit bowl sat at the center of the dining table, and each chair was neatly tucked into place. Wherever Gloria had gone, she didn’t plan to be back soon. I returned to the living room, converging there with the others.

  “She’s gone,” Chris announced.

  Josh looked around. “You think she was taken?”

  “No, her things are too neatly placed,” she frowned. “Just her necessities are gone. She’s in hiding.” She walked out the door, expecting us to follow. “We should visit her son. He may know something.”

  I scowled, surprised at the news. I didn’t like surprises.

  “Son?” Josh asked. He didn’t like surprises, either.

  Chris grinned. “It’s a ‘not-so-secret’ secret.”

  “Where does this son live?” I asked in the BMW, once we were on the road.

  “I’d rather show than tell,” Chris answered.

  I sighed openly as I drew out my phone and began tracking our movement and location via GPS.

  “He prefers privacy.”

  “If he’s not involved,” I said, my attention fixed on my phone, “he has nothing to fear from me.”

  We found ourselves on an unpaved country road bordered by cornfields, driving farther and farther from civilization. Swiping ahead on my phone map, I saw that the road would soon come to an end. I saved the location, then retired my phone to my pocket. I expected a lonely farmhouse at the end of the road; instead, we came upon a dead end. Several trails led through a thick copse of maple trees, each blocked by traffic barriers. Gloria’s son, it seemed, was serious about his privacy.

  We parked the vehicles and gathered at the main trailhead. “He’s not dangerous, but he spooks easily,” Chris warned, gesturing for us to walk quietly as she led us onto the poorly maintained trail that was at times obscured by overgrown fauna. Fallen leaves and dry branches littered the path, frequently cracking beneath Sky’s feet. The first few times, Chris gave Sky sharp, reproving looks at her clumsiness, but stealth didn’t come naturally to her. The path wound its way into the increasingly bleak and desolate forest until it brought us to a small sienna brick house that appeared to be poorly maintained. The windows were closed and covered by drapes, yielding no opportunity to peer inside. I intended to circle the house to assess the situation, but Chris walked straight up to the door and entered without knocking. I hurried to follow her inside, with Josh and Sky following close behind me.

  Crossing the threshold, I was immediately struck once more by the redolence of lemon and brimstone. The house was dark, and quiet. Unlike Gloria’s home, this place was a mess. The furniture was old, mismatched, and carelessly placed. Unfolded laundry was piled on the couch, and an unwashed plate with silverware and crusts of food sat on the cluttered coffee table. I turned to investigate the hall and saw a shadow dart across, from one room to another. I tensed, prepared for a fight, but Chris seemed unconcerned.

  “Thaddeus,” she sighed impatiently. “I need to talk to you.”

  At first, he didn’t answer. I took a quick look into the kitchen and saw a back door closed and bolted shut. Nothing would come from that direction without announcing itself. The only threat, then, was Thaddeus, and whatever else waited down that hall. Chris stared into the shadows, her hands on her hips, waiting. In the past, I would trust her lack of concern, but I wasn’t so sure I could trust her judgment anymore. Since our breakup, she’d made a string of reckless choices, and I counted myself among them. Could I trust her now?

  Something inhuman-looking eased itself out of the shadows, a broad-shouldered, grotesque figure with a goat like lower body. Its upper body was covered in coarse hair, permanently bent by a severe curve in its spine. Small horns protruded from its head, but the face was humanlike. Thadde
us. I had seen Gloria only once, a year ago during Sky’s visit. She had appeared then as a typical old woman, but she did have the gift of morphism. Was this thing before me her true countenance?

  Sky and Josh tried not to stare, but I shared no such compunction.

  When Thaddeus spoke, his voice was surprisingly delicate. “What do you want?”

  “Where is she?” Chris asked.

  “Who?”

  “This isn’t the time for games. Where is your mother?”

  “I wasn’t aware she was missing.”

  Is he lying? I couldn’t read the changes in his unique physiology. “If she’s in trouble, we will help,” I promised, taking a step closer.

  Thaddeus shied with a fearful abhorrence at my approach, giving me pause.

  “Do you hate your mother so much for bringing you into this world that you wouldn’t help her if she’s in need of it?” Chris asked.

  “Make him leave,” he pleaded, gesturing to me.

  I wasn’t entirely surprised by his reaction—Gloria had reacted to my presence as well. I was pretty sure why. Chris gave me an inquiring look, then nodded toward the front door. I wasn’t doing any good here. Josh and Sky scrutinized me with baffled expressions as I slowly backed up until I stood just outside across the threshold.

  “I know it’s hard to live like this,” Chris said, approaching Thaddeus cautiously, “unable to walk between the two worlds. It’s unfortunate not to be gifted with the ability to change your form, destined to live in this way because of a mother who is too selfish to relinquish or even share her gifts.” He tensed as she gently rested a hand on his shoulder. “I am sorry this is your life. But I will be even sorrier once I tell Demetrius and Sebastian that you were reluctant to offer assistance with finding the culprit responsible for attacking and slaughtering their people. I cannot imagine the downward spiral your life will take with them as your enemies.”