“I don’t expect a response. Why would I when I called you hundreds of times with no answer?”
I stared into his beautiful green eyes, torn by indecision. By his proximity, and the ever-quieter voice in my mind that said something wasn’t right here.
He laughed, a wretched, awful sound. “I wish I could’ve waited, that I could’ve told you when you were ready. I need you to understand that I love you unconditionally, though, and that I’ll do anything for you. We don’t have to put a label on this.” He motioned between us. “Whatever it is right now. I don’t expect anything more from you than I did before.”
I stood, lips parted, unable to form a response.
“I need you to be honest with me, though, because I don’t think you realize the hellfire that’s coming for you when my brother arrives.” He paused, searching my face for something that I didn’t know how to give. “Is there anything else you aren’t telling me?”
I stared at him for what felt like an eternity, unable to process his proclamation of love. Truth. He was asking for the truth, and all of it. He didn’t realize that what he’d asked for was impossible to give. I doubted even I knew half the secrets I kept.
“No.”
He blew out a breath, and brushed strands of hair from my face. He was vulnerable, but standing here, he seemed so strong and sure of himself that I couldn’t find it in me to move away.
“Good. Now we need to figure out how we’re going to get around my mother. She has every intention of interrogating you tomorrow by forcing Alec’s hand. The Council’s going to want a firsthand account of what happened, without any of the bias that comes with recounting it. She’s going to want you to drop your shields so that she can enter your mind to see the entire thing, play-by-play.”
“That’s not going to happen. She can kiss my ass.” My tongue seemed to have found itself again.
He smiled. “Luckily for you, her ability is very different from mine, and I suspect she won’t be able to get around your shields. You’re going to need to be vigilant, though, especially if she touches you. She can pick through your mind and see anything she wants—something the Council’s found very useful lately.” His voice soured on the word useful.
“My shields are still up, so how are you getting around them?”
He caught a strand of my hair in his fingers and played with it. “Your hair is so soft,” he murmured. He ran a hand through it, knotting it so he could tilt my face up.
I should’ve stopped him, but we hadn’t crossed any boundaries yet.
It’s just hair.
Yeah, just hair. Sure. We’d go with that.
What it was was my restraint slipping. I needed to stay on point.
“How, Lucas? You can’t ask for answers without giving them.” I batted his hand away, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Do you really want to know?” He cocked his head, monitoring my reactions.
“Yes.” I gritted my teeth. His closeness was messing with my head, and the fireflies starting to come out added to the already-too-romantic mood. I cared for him, yes, but it wasn’t love. It was being sixteen and stupid. I knew that. Intellectually. Just like I knew he was enjoying this, but his next words were too simple, too easy, to be anything but a lie.
“You let me in.”
“Liar.” I pushed him back, and as unyielding as he’d always been, he moved. His eyes widened, and I could only guess why. Maybe my sudden strength was too much, or maybe he’d been under the impression that I would believe such blasphemous statements.
“I’m not lying to you. Why do you think I started to hear more and more as the year went on? And now I can hear every fascinating thought that runs through that mind of yours, when you aren’t actively blocking me.”
Fascinating thought? Nope. Not going there right now. We had bigger things to deal with.
He sighed.
“Getting back on subject, what’s your mom’s problem anyway? She seems to have a serious case of being a bitch,” I deadpanned.
His lips quirked up in a grin that fell short. Ghosts haunted his eyes. “She wasn’t always this way…but living in this world changes people. My mother envies those more powerful. I’m surprised Tori didn’t warn you…” He trailed off, but I got the distinct impression that there was a lot more to this story than he was letting on.
“She mentioned it, but I’ve been a bit absentminded lately.”
“I knew you would be,” he said. Lucas probably thought I was thinking of him, but my thoughts turned to the summer, and the shitstorm I’d been dealing with because of that warehouse.
I’d stayed away in the beginning of the summer for many reasons. Lily was, and still remained, unstable at best. She was a mess, unable to cope with the guilt of nearly getting us killed—no matter how many times I told her it would take more than a warehouse of demons. That response seemed to work less and less as the days went on, though, and her moodswings got worse. Her anger was rapid and unrestrained. She would lash out, breaking doors, throwing lamps, occasionally sending a fist through a wall. It worried me how little it took to get her there, because I recognized the demon in her eyes. I saw it in my own.
While her anger troubled me, though, it was her depression that terrified me. Just as rapidly as she could throw a fist, she could turn into a sobbing mess—or even worse, become so apathetic that she was unresponsive. It was crushing to see her in distress, because I didn’t know what to do. She didn’t want to be coddled, but she couldn’t seem to pull herself out of it. Hell, she’d almost killed Elizabeth again last week, and I’d finally had to make the call to send her away, against her wishes. She would remain with her best friend Bella until Daizlei started up again next month. Maybe being away from everything would heal her in a way I couldn’t. Maybe then I could finally help her.
I’d come here to help myself work through things, without the craziness of living under one roof with Elizabeth. To give myself time to think. To plan. I hadn’t even set foot off the bus, though, before trouble found me again.
“Tori knows,” I said. The subject change was abrupt, and nearly as uncomfortable as the conversation.
“What?”
“Even if your mother can’t get around me, it won’t matter. She can just go through Tori’s mind and a get a firsthand account of what happened.” I leaned back against the rails, wishing I could just bask in the dying sun for a quiet moment. My brain didn’t know how to shut down anymore, though, and being here with him was only making it worse.
“I’ll take care of my sister.” He rested his elbows on the rail next to me as he stared out.
“And what exactly does that mean?” I pushed, turning to him.
He raised an eyebrow at me, and I glared. “Not even you know all my tricks.” He grinned, clearly amused by my lack of knowledge. “I’ll make you a deal, tit for tat. If you’re honest with me, I’ll be honest with you.”
“I have been honest, you prick. What are you getting at?” I fumed, making the door fly open. I winced, refusing to look.
He only gave me that knowing look. “You need me right now, and you know it. For multiple things.” There was that word again, need. What I needed was a straight answer. “When you’re ready to be honest about that, I’m ready. Until then, I’ll be waiting.” He gave me a smug half smile, and the glass door shattered.
Goddamnit. Clamp it down, Selena. Hold the leash. Force the power back. I breathed slowly.
“Feeling a little on edge?” he prodded, running his fingertips along my cheek, and tucking my hair behind my ear. His scent hit me as he brushed his lips ever so lightly across mine then kissed the corner of my mouth.
I swayed a little, and started to lean in—only to have him pull back.
“I can fix that. Whenever you’re ready.” I didn’t miss the restraint it took for him to step away, but I was livid with myself nonetheless.
“You can share my bed with Tori tonight, and I’ll take her room. Hopefully, it won’t be to
o…overwhelming.” He winked at me and left the balcony, stepping around the glass.
As pissed off as I was at him for playing me like a fucking fiddle, I knew he meant exactly what he’d said. He wouldn’t force a label on me, or change the way we were, even if that was what he wanted. He would become what I needed, simply to be with me. And…I knew damn well how easy it would be to play this game. When the mind games were over, though, I didn’t think he would like what would be left of us. What would be left of him, when the fire burned out, and his heart was nothing but ash.
Chapter 64
I lay in bed well into the morning, with Tori snuggled into my side. Last night had been terrible, for more reasons than one. She was up all night moaning, and a cold sweat still covered her. I shifted her head to my chest, feeling her forehead. Cold. She was ice cold, and yet she’d sweated through her clothes. I’d taken them off, worrying that the damp clothes would only make her colder. I brushed her hair back from her face, and bright green eyes stared up intently.
“How are you feeling?” I murmured.
“Thirsty,” she rasped, trying to sit up.
I eased her off me and into a sitting position against the headboard. She cringed when I opened the mini-fridge next to the bed and light flooded the basement. I quickly shut the fridge door and handed her a bottle of water. Tori fumbled with the cap until I mentally loosened it for her then watched as she drained the bottle.
“More,” she urged. Her voice was slightly stronger.
I gave her another, and then another, before I held up a hand. “That’s not what you’re thirsty for, and we both know it. If you keep drinking, you’re going to throw up, and I don’t think you want to deal with that on top of fighting the transition.” I covered her with the comforter.
The transition was the only way to become one of the Made, one of the two breeds of Vampire that plagued this world. The Vampires we’d run into were the Born, with eyes tinted black like the demons I’d slain. It was only fitting, really, since they hailed from the same beasts that haunted my nightmares. What I didn’t know was why Vampires, or said demons, had hunted me in the first place. I glanced at Tori, her eyes wide as a child’s and dilated.
“You saved me.”
“Yes. Did you think I wouldn’t?” I asked, my lips twitching as I bit down on my grin.
She cracked a smile. “Not really, but…I was worried you’d be too late.”
I nodded, looking away. What I didn’t tell her was that I’d thought I would be too. The Born weren’t something to mess with. Luckily for us, there were only two, and it was daylight. They could walk in the sun, but it wasn’t kind to their senses. That was the only reason we’d gotten away so easily, relatively speaking.
“You’re going to be okay. Just don’t die in the next twenty-four hours.” I couldn’t imagine what I would’ve done if she’d died, especially in the transition. That would’ve… The only message I would’ve sent to whoever was hunting me was their messenger’s heads on a pike. The thought was more appealing every time it crossed my mind.
Tori’s shaking started again, and I moved to grab her a blanket, but she shot her hand out, grabbing mine with a surprising strength.
“I know you’re keepin’ secrets again. Someone sent them after you. I was just the collateral damage.” I opened my mouth to refute it, but she didn’t give me the chance. “You saved my life, though, so we’re even. I’ll keep your secret.”
I loosed a shaky breath and pulled her into a tight embrace. “I’m sorry about what happened to you. I’m going to find whoever’s doing this and put an end to it. I promise,” I whispered.
She winced, and I instantly released her. “I didn’t know ‘sorry’ was in your vocabulary,” she teased with a weary smile and tired eyes.
I appreciated her attempt to lighten the conversation but seeing the bite mark on her only fueled my anger. “I mean it, Tori. Someone’s going to pay for what they did to you.”
She took my hand and traced the scars. “Make them pay, but not for me. Make them pay for what they did to you.” She looked up with startling intensity.
I gripped her hand in mine, and nodded once. It wasn’t enough for all this girl had done for me, but it would have to do. For now.
Quiet footsteps came from the stairs that I recognized as Lucas’s. “Help my sister get dressed and go upstairs. Alec is here,” he said from the bottom of the stairs. His voice sounded strained, but I didn’t ask.
Tori squeaked and tried to climb around me.
“Wait,” I ordered, forcing her to sit. I walked over to the long dresser and pulled drawers open. All the clothes were way too big for her, but I grabbed a pair of sweats with an elastic waistband and a baggy shirt. After rolling the sweats a few times, I gave up on getting them tight. At least she was covered.
“Thanks,” she mumbled when I put an arm around her waist and leaned down to pick her up.
“I got it,” Lucas said, coming around the corner.
“It’s really no—”
“I got it,” he repeated. Meeting my eyes, he scooped her up and cradled her to his chest. “After you,” he insisted, and waited for me to go first.
Why’s he acting so bizarre this morning? I waited, staring at him suspiciously. What’s he playing at?
He smiled smugly with that stupid half-grin on his face, while Tori hurried me along. “Selena, I want to see my brother. Hurry up!”
I gave him a distrustful glare as I turned to the stairs. Light was coming from the top, and I could make out his parents’ voices.
“I don’t know what’s taking so—”
“Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. Hunter.” I smiled brightly, and turned to the blond-haired stranger. “You must be Alec. I’m Selena,” I said, but made no move to extend my hand.
“I’ve heard so much about you. Speaking of which, where’s my darling sister?” His golden eyes assessed my closed posture and fake smile.
There were footsteps behind me, and I moved out of the doorway to give them room. Alec’s expression lit up with actual joy when he saw Tori, but it was short-lived. When Lucas set her down, she stumbled two steps before Alec caught her.
“I haven’t seen you since Christmas. What have you been doing?” Tori asked, sighing in contentment when he picked her up.
“I’ve been busy, little sister. My mistress has had a lot on her plate these past few months, and so I’ve been sent to deal with the other Councils in the meantime.” His answer was both vague and intriguing.
“But—”
“Please, Victoria. I’ll be here for a few days, so we can catch up soon. I promise. Right now, I need to find out what happened yesterday. The Council sent me here to gather information, and we need to know how you survived.”
She went still in his arms, as if it had only just occurred to her that he was here on Council business. “Of course,” she said sourly, pursing her lips.
He sighed. “Why don’t we take a seat and get this figured out, and then I’m yours for the rest of my time here.” He made it sound like an offer, like she had a choice as he carried her into the living room. She huffed softly when he laid her down on the couch.
“I’m not any happier about this than you, but the Council has forced my mistress’s hand, and I must obey.” His words were so formal for a brother reuniting with his sister. If this was the sibling who liked him, I could only imagine how strained it must be between him and Lucas. Something in what he said bothered me, though. I turned it over in my mind and picked up on the word obey. It was a word used for dogs and slaves. What the hell did he do for the Council?
“Who exactly is your mistress?”
“Anastasia Fortescue, Heir to the Fortescue name and Member of Court.”
I’d known he served the Fortescues, but it didn’t stop the pen on the end table from rattling as I took a tight breath. “You serve Anastasia?”
His gaze flicked to the pen. “Yes. Is that going to be a problem?”
“Of
course not,” I lied through gritted teeth.
Mrs. Hunter smiled like a predator closing in on her prey. Alec took the chair next to me, and Lucas sat with his father on the loveseat, back straight as a board. Only when Mrs. Hunter took a seat at Tori’s feet did Alec begin.
“Can you please tell me what happened yesterday afternoon?”
I stared at him for a moment, knowing the part I had to play, the part I’d rehearsed when I’d sifted through it all late last night, and then I gave him the lie. I wove a beautiful, fast-paced story, complete with descriptions. I told him what they’d looked like, what they’d done, how I’d punished them. I offered every gory detail, down to the word “break.” I told him how their bones snapped, and that they’d been in too much pain to explain why they were sent, or by whom. I ended with realizing Tori had been bitten, and that her safety was the priority, not my revenge.
Alec seemed bored, and he definitely didn’t revel in the gory details like I’d hoped he would when I chose how to spin this tale. What could he possibly do for the Fortescues that made torture boring? I had a feeling I didn’t want to find out.
“Well, you have quite a spectacular memory for details. Very impressive. Most victims have difficulty recounting what happened and what their attackers looked like. My mistress will be very pleased, but…” He sighed.
I knew what was coming, and braced myself.
“I need to see everything that happened, and make sure your memory is as good as it seems to be.” He looked at his mother expectantly, and she leaped to her feet.
“No.”
“Excuse me?” Mrs. Hunter hissed.
“Pardon me if that answer was too quick for you to catch. No. You may not enter my mind or touch me under any pretext.” Sarcasm dripped from my voice, but the venom was clear. They would not touch me.
“Selena—”
“It’s Ms. Foster to you. I don’t give a damn who your mistress is,” I spat. The lamp next to me shattered. My breath hissed through my teeth.
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