“Sure. Why not?”
“Well, because. It just doesn’t happen that way, does it?” It seemed crazy to me, but she shrugged, as if she couldn’t see what I was fussing about. “After three days you could love someone?”
“Do you love him?”
I let out a long breath. “I don’t know. He was my first kiss.” I dropped my chin in my hands. “Aren’t you supposed to know someone for a long time before you love them? I thought that feeling those warm fuzzies inside was a normal thing that happens to new couples dating.”
I didn’t like the way Sidelle was frowning at me. Like I was some kind of exotic species. “What?”
“Zoe, aren’t you seventeen?”
“Yeah, why?”
Her expression was incredulous. “How is it that you’ve never kissed anyone before?”
“I just ... didn’t. I’ve been waiting for that special someone, I guess.”
“So? Was waiting for Shay worth it?”
“Definitely.”
She smiled, looking like a satisfied cat. “Isn’t that your answer?”
My jaw dropped, seeing what she’d just done. I studied her profile in silence, thinking about how much I liked her straightforward attitude and her witty comments. She was just cool. And right now, she sat so quiet and serene that I feared she had fallen asleep.
“Nope. I’m still awake.”
Had I said that out loud? I didn’t think I had.
“Nope, you didn’t. I can feel your eyes on me.”
I stared at her. “Can you read my mind? Do you read everyone’s? Do you do it all the time?”
“Slow down, would ya? Man, Zoe, sometimes you talk a mile a minute.” She rolled her eyes. “Geez. I thought I rambled. Yes, I can read minds, and no, I don’t do it all the time.” She wiggled her index finger. “If I concentrate on someone and their thoughts are clear, I can get glimpses—images sometimes—but most Ordinaries’ minds are like a crazy drug or something because they are so jumbled. Plus, I don’t do it a lot because I don’t like to. I feel like it’s an invasion of privacy. But the truth is that I am one of the few fairies who think that way, so if you’re around other fairies, be careful. They will let themselves in and take whatever thoughts you have.” She lifted one eyebrow and smiled. “But in case you’re wondering, I can’t get a read on yours.”
Oh, thank God.
“I couldn’t picture your kiss, and I should have been able to. Doesn’t matter. You described it well enough. Anyway, sometimes it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure people out. I mean, I can usually tell just by body language, facial expressions, and good guessing.” She turned to stare at me. “But I can’t get a read on you at all. And now I’m trying to.” She blinked—twice—then shook her head. “Nothing. Interesting.”
“Okay,” I said. “So my thoughts might or might not be safe around your kind. Tell me something else. Can you read minds over distance? Do you have to know the person in order to read them? And can you only read Ordinaries, or can you read other Enlightens?”
“I don’t have to know the Ordinary, and distance doesn’t matter. Other than Ordinaries, I can also read the angels when they let me, wolves, and nephilim.”
“The wolves? Werewolves?”
She nodded, but she didn’t look like she wanted to talk about them. Fascinating.
“How come when Shay and I touch, it feels like an electrical current goes through us?”
“That actually happens?” She leaned forward. “What’s it feel like?”
“It’s like when you get zapped from static.”
“Maybe it’s your sparkly personalities. Got any more questions?”
“Too many to list,” I replied glumly.
She waited, but my mind had gone dry. I took another sip of my chai, hoping to come up with something.
“That’s okay,” she assured me with a smile. “I’m sure you’ll think up more.”
Do I want to know what she’s read from Shay?
Chapter Fourteen
Zoe
After speaking with Sidelle, I felt I had gotten a reasonably good handle on my feelings about both Kieran and Shay. I swiped my phone on to check the time and realized it was already 2:00 o’clock. I sent a quick text to Shay telling him he could come over if he wanted to, that our girl chat was done. As soon as my phone locked, Sidelle grinned.
“Should I leave now so you can have some alone time with your boy toy?” she teased.
At least I thought she was teasing. “No, you can stay if you want. Since I’m in the know these days, we’ll all probably be hanging out a lot more together, don’t you think?”
“Probably. Plus, you’ll need me to referee between lover boy and your bestie!”
Wasn’t that the truth, I thought with a sigh. My phone pinged with a text from Shay, saying he was at the front door. Trying to dampen the thrill that raced through me, I excused myself and set off to let him in.
He smiled like the sun. “Hey, Zoe. I brought the orchid.” He handed me the single white flower again, and I rose to my tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek.
“Thanks.” I moved for the stairs. “I’m going to put this in my room. Sidelle is outside if you want to join us out there.”
“Oh—” He turned me back toward him. “I could wait for you here. Are your ‘rents home?”
“No, they’re running errands. Why?”
A smug smile lifted one corner of his mouth. “Because then I’m free to do this.” He pulled me into his arms and lowered his lips to mine, giving me a real kiss. The peck on the cheek hadn’t been enough. I was a little dizzy when I stepped back, then I gave him an apologetic smile and raced upstairs. After I put the flower safely in my room, I returned and found Shay and Sidelle chatting out back. Shay had taken my chair, but when I moved to find another one, he grabbed my arm and patted his lap with his other hand. I snorted then shrugged.
“Fine,” I said. If he wanted my full weight on his lap for who knows how long, he was going to have it. “No complaining allowed.”
I leaned into him while he wrapped his arms around me, holding me close despite the electrical shock. When we linked our hands, Sidelle narrowed her eyes and tilted her head, but watched in silence. Her mouth kept twitching, but I wasn’t sure if it was from trying to hide a smile or some smart comment.
“We were talking about the Marqs from last night,” Shay told me. “I think we need to come up with a schedule for one of us to be with you at all times.”
“She definitely can’t go off jogging alone anymore.” Sidelle cleared her throat. “It’s way too dangerous now that she has two levels of demons after her.”
“How’s that going to work when I’m at home and during school nights?” I asked.
“We’ll think of something,” she replied. “But you can’t be alone. Sam is going to keep sending his minions after you until we can figure out how to stop him and the Marqs.”
“Have you ever killed one?” I watched her closely. “What can kill them?”
“Glamour will only hold them off for so long,” she informed me. “I got lucky last night because there were only four. My Glamour on its own can hold off any number of DKs at a time, but during wars we leave them to the Nephilim and guardian angels. Some of the Archangels and more experienced Nephilim can take on a Marq, maybe even two.”
“When Knights are killed on Earth, they don’t die,” Shay explained. “Their bodies disintegrate and reappear in Hell. Depending on what sort of bodily damage was inflicted on them during a battle and what they died from. That determines how long it will take their bodies to regenerate and be sent back to Earth to fight again.
“Knights are the lowest on the totem pole. They are easy to kill since they are most like humans. They’re susceptible to all human ways of being hurt or killed. Marquises, on the other hand, are almost impossible. Very few of us have lived to tell the story, anyway. We’ll have to talk with my dad and the Council to see if there is a way.”
> “I need to learn to fight,” I decided. “I mean, if demons are going to keep coming after me, I should at least know how to defend myself, right? With a sword, I think. You all seem to have one.”
Shay looked skeptical. “Zoe, I’m not sure about the fighting with swords. Not right away, anyway. It takes years to learn how to wield one correctly, and we don’t have a lot of time right now. But yes, I think you should learn some basic self-defense maneuvers as a precaution. And gradually get into offensive with hand to hand and see how that goes. After that we can maybe advance to fighting with weapons.”
I heard footsteps on the patio coming toward us, and I craned my neck to greet the visitor.
“Hey, Kieran!” I said, unaccountably relieved to see him. But my smile faded upon seeing his frown.
“Your dad let me in and told me to come on back. Am I interrupting?”
I suddenly saw myself as he saw me: snuggled on Shay’s lap, and I blushed a deep red. He stared at me, clenching his jaw.
I waved with my free hand, trying to keep my voice light. “Of course not. We’re formulating a strategy against the demons.”
“I see,” he said. His hard eyes went to Shay.
“Okay, boys!” Sidelle shouted. “You two need to bash this thing out then let it go. We have way bigger problems than trying to figure out who gets the girl. Sorry, Zoe.”
“No offense taken.” I shifted, and Shay helped me stand. Hoping to ease some of the tension, I grabbed two more chairs and set them with the others.
“Good.” Sidelle pointed at Kieran. “Now knock that crap off. Since you weren’t at Cali’s party last night, you wouldn’t know that two more DKs showed up and tried to kill Zoe. They got smart and brought four Marqs along to the par-tay.”
“Didn’t Shay tell you last night?” I asked.
Kieran chose not to sit, but his eyes widened at the mention of Marqs. He turned to me, and I almost cried with happiness when he hugged me. “My God, Zoe, are you okay?”
I reluctantly peeled myself from Kieran’s embrace and nodded. “I’m fine. Sidelle saved us. She’s a fairy! Did you know that?”
He chuckled and nodded.
“Zoe also created another protective orb last night,” Shay said. “It was like the one in the warehouse, it was permeable, but it wouldn’t let us out.”
“Us?” Kieran snapped.
“Kieran ...” Sidelle warned.
She’s so awesome.
“It was around me, too,” Shay admitted, taking my hand. I saw admiration in his eyes. “We could move, but only a few steps. I tried poking it with my sword, but nothing happened. It basically moved outward with the sword’s movements. Under different circumstances it’d be pretty cool.”
At Shay’s insistence, I resumed my place on his lap after that, and never let go of his hand during the rest of the conversation. I couldn’t read Kieran’s expression, but he seemed to be dealing with the situation as well as he could. Maybe he was okay with it. Then again, maybe he’d blow a gasket later.
“So what’s the next step?” Shay asked.
“I think I should talk to the Council and Michael, and you talk with your dad,” Kieran said. “We need to figure out how to stop or at least slow the Marqs. I’m betting Sam is extremely angry after last night. He’ll send the Prince out soon, since the cage lock hasn’t broken yet, if the Marqs can’t get the job done.” He turned toward Sidelle. “And I think you should go to the Summer King. Advise him of the situation, if you haven’t already.”
“What can I do while you guys do that?” I asked. “I need to be proactive about this.”
“Zoe?” Dad yelled from the back door.
I leaned away from Shay when I heard my name called. Please don’t come out here. I didn’t want to explain why I was sitting on a boy’s lap.
“Yeah, Dad?”
“What is that sitting on the street?”
I was relieved that he stayed in the doorway. “I’m not sure I know what you’re talking about.”
“I know you do, because it was here last night, too.”
Oh crap. With pleading eyes, I whispered in Shay’s ear, “My dad wants to look at your car.”
He laughed. “Oh, is that all?”
Muttering apologies to my other two friends, I extracted myself from Shay’s lap and led him to the house.
Shay stood beside me, smiling confidently at my dad while I introduced them.
“Dad, this is Shay Curator. He’s Kieran’s friend from, um, school. Shay, this is my dad, Kevin.”
Shay extended his hand. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Jabril.”
“Where’s Mom and Stella?” I asked.
“They dropped me off so they could do more shopping.” Dad answered me, but his smile was all for Shay. “That’s a mighty fine specimen out front. 1957 Chevy Bel Air, am I right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Please, call me Kevin.”
“Okay.”
The three of us walked out to his car, and dad surprised me with how cordial he was around Shay. Not the overprotective father I’d expected at all.
“When did you buy it?” Dad asked. “All the parts still original?”
“Mostly,” Shay replied, avoiding his first question. “I changed out the stereo to a CD/iPod player.”
Dad seemed to agree. “I would, too. Do you drive it to car shows? I don’t think I’ve seen this one at any of them around here.” He glanced up from the car, looking sheepish. “I can’t get the women to go with me when one’s in town, so I usually go alone.”
“There’s one coming up next weekend at the Minneapolis Convention Center,” Shay said. “Wanna go with me?”
Oh Shay, you’ll have my dad wrapped around your finger in no time. Dad glanced at me with hopeful eyes. I couldn’t deny him this.
“I think you should,” I told him.
Now that he had my permission, Dad walked around the Bel Air, not touching it, but examining it under a microscope. Looking up from the wheels he asked, “What made you pick this model and not some other one?”
“It was between her and a 1962 Lincoln Continental Convertible with suicide doors.” He shrugged. “I got a better deal on this.”
“A ‘62 Lincoln. That’s a pretty sweet car, but I’d have to agree. This is better.” He shook Shay’s hand again. “Good choice. Very good choice.” They stood side by side, staring at the car, and I had to work on not laughing.
“I’ll leave you two alone now,” I said with a grin, then turned back to the house. Just before I reached the front door, I glanced back, still amazed at my dad’s behavior. If I hadn’t turned around, I would have missed it. Dad had leaned over to whisper something in Shay’s ear. Shay nodded and said something back. I was dying to know what they were talking about. Then again, they were probably just talking cars.
By the time I made it to the front door, Shay had jogged up to stand beside me. “Your dad is way cool!”
“You’re saying that to butter him up.”
“No, he is. Kieran says so, too.”
“What did he whisper to you at the end?” I asked.
He smiled gently and brushed his fingers over my cheek, tucking back my hair. “He told me to treat you better than I care for the car. He said a car can be replaced, and you can’t be.”
Now that was nice to hear. “And you said?”
“I promised I’d protect you with my life.”
Chapter Fifteen
Zoe
When we returned to the backyard, Kieran and Sidelle sat chatting away as if they were besties, and I felt an unexpected pang of jealousy. Then again, I supposed they had history, too. She’s hard not to like. As we approached, I picked up some of the conversation, and it wasn’t about me this time. They were discussing some ancient war or battle, bringing up words like Heaven, Hell, and Fallen Angels. Kieran said something about “going to the Council soon.”
Sidelle smiled at Shay as we returned. “How was the car showing?”
&n
bsp; “I’m sure Shay was a smooth talker.” Kieran glanced at our linked hands. “He always has been.”
“Ho-kay!” Sidelle exclaimed, jumping to her feet. “That’s my cue to scoot. A gal can only take so much testosterone, and this makes my quota for the day! I’m outta here. See ya ‘round, boys.” She gave me a little hug. “Bye, Zoe. I’ll see you tomorrow at school. Keep both of them in line, will you?”
Her exit left me alone with Shay and Kieran—and a whole lot of awkward silence. That was disappointing. I had been hoping she’d stay to be the referee.
Kieran glowered in his chair, and a wave of regret passed over me. This wasn’t fair to him—to any of us, but especially to him. I knew we had to talk, sort out everything and move on. I also knew deep down that while Shay was inextricably a part of me now, I still needed Kieran. The four of us would have to work together.
I faced Shay. “I’m glad you came over, Shay, but now I’m wondering ...” I swallowed. “Can I ... I need to talk to Kieran alone.”
He hesitated only briefly. “I’ll go.”
“Thanks for understanding. Can you find your way out?”
He nodded. “If I make a wrong turn, I’m sure your dad will help me.”
I realized I had just made my choice. No going back. I stood on my tiptoes and quickly kissed Shay on the lips, then I watched him retreat, leaving me alone with Kieran.
“So. You and Shay.”
I turned back to Kieran and looked him straight in the eye. “Yeah.” I sat across from him, my expression grim. “Kieran, I don’t know what to say to you to make you feel better. I’m sorry you’re hurting. I’m also sorry I don’t feel the same way you feel for me.” I reached for his hand, but he withdrew. I understood, but couldn’t say the move didn’t hurt. A lot. “I wish I did. I do. I mean, you’ve always been there for me. You always stood by my side. I just ... I can’t change the way I feel, and I don’t think about you that way. You’re like family.”
He wouldn’t look at me. “Does he make you happy?”
“He does. I feel like I’ve known him my whole life—like you, but in a different way.”
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