by Tee, Marian
He pulled back and, for one moment, everything I had ever hoped for from Lucian was shining in his forest green eyes. His eyelids shuttered closed, then he was back to being his aloof, busy self.
“Stay out of trouble,” he reminded me before waving me away.
~~~
“It’s just the two of us then?” Audrey got inside the SUV next to me. She looked prettier than usual. Her purple and white striped blouse hugged her body like second skin, emphasizing the kind of cleavage that flat chested girls like me could only dream of. The black miniskirt, tights, and mules she wore with it added funky glamour to her look.
“Just the two of us, yes, and you look fantastic, by the way.” I raised a brow and teased, “Are you planning to get someone’s attention?”
She rolled her eyes. “Come on, Deli. You and I know Wesley’s so into you he barely notices anyone else when you’re around.”
I remembered the last time I had spoken to Wesley and looked away guiltily, busying myself with driving. “Audrey?” I asked in a small voice.
“Yeah?”
“Are you angry at me?”
She asked in astonishment, “Why should I be?”
“Because when Wesley flirted with me a few days ago, I flirted back.” My voice had gotten smaller and smaller until I was close to whispering the last few words.
“Oh. That.” She didn’t even pretend not to know what I was talking about and my guilt increased.
“I’m sorry,” I burst out before she could say anything further. “I know it was wrong. I know it,” I repeated miserably. “But I was just so mad at Lucian I wanted to get back at him in any way. Then Wesley came and I wanted to make Lucian feel jealous—”
“It’s okay, Deli.” She stopped my ramblings with a soft laugh.
“Is it really?”
“I can’t say I wasn’t a little hurt, but in the end, I knew you didn’t mean anything by it.”
“I promise I won’t do it again.”
“Not make Lucian jealous?”
“Duh. Not that. I mean, flirt with Wesley.” I tossed my hair over my back. “I can’t promise I won’t try to make Lucian jealous. There will be times when it’s the only way he’ll remember I’m not just his ward—”
“Is that an Australian term for girlfriend?” Audrey tossed me a curious look.
“Something like that.” I tried laughing my little blunder away.
We got to the fair at half past seven. The whole town seemed to have turned up for it, and we had to endure long lines just to buy cotton candy, throw darts at colorful balloons, and ride the Ferris wheel.
Nevertheless, Audrey and I had fun. It was pretty amazing how well we got along considering the short span of time we’d known each other. She was as outrageously blunt as ever, and I couldn’t stop laughing as she pointed out people she knew, whispering horrendous facts about them.
There was the primly dressed Martha, a lovely brunette who had been caught two years ago having sex in the boys’ locker room with Arthur, the pimply-faced son of Sanger’s Reverend Andrew Roberts. She had been quickly wedded to Arthur, and her wild child days had come to an end under the Reverend’s strict supervision.
Bartholomew Scott, a large, balding man in his fifties, was described to be an old, pompous, know-it-all. He was the richest man in town, lived in an ostentatious two-story home, and everyone knew the only reason he came to live in Sanger was because he had been tired of living in the shadow of his far wealthier relatives.
And then there was Matthew. He was exactly as Audrey had described—tall and stocky with handsome blond looks. He had a nice smile and even nicer teeth, and I realized why so many people had chosen to believe his word over the rebellious-looking, albeit equally good-looking, Audrey.
One of these days, I had to figure out how to avenge Audrey on this jerk.
“Hey, Deli. Do you want to try that out?” She pointed to one of the attractions at the edge of the fairgrounds.
It was a two-story structure with the words House of Mirrors garishly painted on a sign above it. I could hear people screaming and laughing from within. “What is it?”
“You’ve never tried something like it?”
I shook my head.
“It’s a maze of mirrors. All you have to do is find your way to the exit.”
I glanced back at the makeshift house. “Is it safe?”
She laughed. “Of course, it is. Why shouldn’t it be?”
But what if a Zekan was in there, hiding, waiting to kill me? I forced a smile. “I don’t think—”
“Oh, come on,” she exclaimed, dragging me with her to the ticket booth. “It’s going to be fun, I promise. My treat, too.”
And that was how, minutes later, I found myself gripping her hand tightly as we stepped past the entrance and into a dimly lit passageway. Inside, the so-called House of Mirrors was even scarier than I had imagined. Larger, too.
There were two doors to choose from. A couple of sophomores were with us and they took a chance with the red door on the left, half-succeeding in scaring each other as they made jokes about seeing ghosts.
“This is the best,” Audrey exclaimed, jumping up and down in excitement. “The man outside told me they’d have zombies here to make things scarier.”
I managed a sick smile as I moved to follow the girls, now squealing, as they crept past the door.
Audrey caught my arm, frowning. “Where are you going?”
“Inside?”
She laughed, shaking her head. “Where’s your sense of adventure? We’ll take the other door and see where it leads.” She opened the blue door, gesturing me to follow her. “Come on.” I had a bad feeling about this, and when a loud gust of wind shut the door closed behind us, it took every ounce of my courage not to run away.
We found ourselves in a small cubicle, our reflections staring back at us from the front, left, and right. It was even darker here, with just the tiniest glow of yellow light from the ceiling.
Of course, my Evren sight made me see things more clearly. Audrey was wide-eyed in fear and her giggle was high-pitched and tinged with nervousness.
“Don’t you be scared, Audrey. That’s my role.” Evren or not, the House of Mirrors was a creepy place, and I had the strongest urge to go back.
Then again, why shouldn’t I?
“No,” Audrey protested when I moved to open the door behind us. She looked more relaxed now and took my hand in a firmer grip. “We can do this, Deli.” She began touching the mirrors and the one to our right slid back, revealing yet another cubicle of mirrors.
“See?” she boasted and pulled me in. The door closed behind us. We looked at the mirror in front us, saw the zombie grinning at us from behind and screamed.
Oh, God, save me.
I ran through more cubicles of mirrors. Audrey and I had parted ways in our confusion, and I had no idea how to find her, much less find a way out.
Should I turn Evren now?
If I turned into a dragon, I was pretty sure I’d stop feeling frightened. No measly human in a zombie costume could ever scare me when I was twenty feet tall.
“Voice?”
I hurriedly relayed my dilemma and afterward, I asked anxiously, “What should I do?”
“Let me tell Lucian.”
“He’s not coming here. I already asked him—”
“This is different. Just stay where you are. Count backward from ten and he’ll be right beside you.”
“But—”
“Start now. Ten.”
I bit my lip and looked around furtively.
Nine.
I could still hear the younger girls screaming but there was no sound of Audrey. She was probably just as scared as I was but just too proud to shriek.
Eight.
I fidgeted, trying to look anywhere but my reflections, which was hard, since they were all around me.
Seven.
Oh, God, Lucian, hurry up or I’m going to panic, and then I’ll turn Evren and
I won’t care if the whole United States of America sees me.
Six.
I froze when I felt the door of a nearby cubicle squeaking open. Oh, drat. What if it was another zombie? I clenched my teeth, hugging myself tightly.
The door directly to my right opened slowly and I forgot counting by the second.
Five, four, three, two, one!
To heck with waiting. I got ready to scream myself into Evren, but a hand suddenly clamped down on my mouth. And then I was being whisked away, traveling through cubicles without pause.
Was I being kidnapped?
I sank my teeth on the hand still clamping my mouth shut.
“Deli, dammit.”
“Lucian?”
“Did you have to bite me?”
“I thought I was being kidnapped.” Relief reduced me into a weak-kneed state of gibberish, and I threw my arms around him. “Oh, Lucian.” I burst into tears.
He held me awkwardly in his arms, still speedily and steadily making his way through cubicles. In a moment, we were outside, and he set me down gently on my feet. “Stop crying,” he muttered, looking around self-consciously.
But we were all alone. The House of Mirrors had been erected at the edge of the grounds, and the closest people I could see were half a mile away, lining up to shoot balls and have the bikini-clad lady inside a portable tank dumped into the water.
He sighed. “What am I going to do with you? You’re stronger than everyone here and yet, a man in a zombie costume made you cry.”
“But he looked scary.”
He pressed his hands to his forehead. “Deli.”
He always looked cute whenever he was struck speechless by my logic. I stared at him and I just knew. I’ll never ever stop loving this guy.
Lucian’s hands dropped, and the way he was suddenly looking at me made me gulp and take a step back. “Lucian?”
He kissed me.
He didn’t stop kissing me as he urged me backward, picking me up when I hit the corded borders of the fair. He jumped over them with nimble ease and yet his lips never left mine.
When we got to my SUV, my hands shook so badly I had a hard time taking the key out of my pocket.
Our drive home was spent in silence, and I remembered to send Audrey a text message almost at the last minute, telling her Lucian had come to take me home. As an afterthought, I also texted Wesley and asked him if he could please make sure that Audrey got home safely.
And then Lucian was switching the ignition off, his lips covered mine, and I lost myself in his kiss.
When I opened my eyes, Lucian was already kicking the door open to my bedroom.
I stared up at him, wide eyed.
He stared back at me, locking his gaze with mine even as he continued to move without hesitation. Another light kick sent the door slamming closed and then he was laying me down on the bed.
He followed right after and pulled me close, embracing me with such fierceness I actually had a hard time breathing.
“Lucian?”
He kissed my forehead. “Mmm?”
“What are we going to do?” I whispered.
He tugged a lock of my hair and chuckled. “Definitely not what you think we’re about to do.” He stroked my back. “I just want to be with you.”
“Can I record that?” I couldn’t believe he was saying those words back to me. I had no idea what made Lucian act like this, like he couldn’t get enough of me, but I wasn’t going to complain.
He chuckled again. “Never.”
Three minutes later, I whispered, “What are we going to do?”
“Just sleep and be with each other. Don’t you like the idea?” he teased.
“I’d like it better if you’d also tell me you love—” One mind-blowing kiss made me lose my train of thought.
“Just…enjoy the moment, will you, hmm?”
“But—”
“Sleep.” Lucian yawned and he looked so cute I just had to sigh.
He stopped yawning and glared.
I blinked. “What did I do?”
“Just…” He sighed, pulled me even closer to him, and his hand drifted over my eyes, urging them to close. “Just sleep, okay?” he grumbled.
So totally cute. I smiled at myself.
Lucian grunted next to me.
“Goodnight, Lucian.”
“Goodnight, Deli.”
~~~
When I woke up at dawn, Dyvian was angrily hauling Lucian out of my bed, and I began shrieking.
“What the heck are you doing?”
Dyvian barely glanced at me, unable to stop glaring at Lucian. “What does he think he’s doing?”
Lucian shoved him away but didn’t say anything. He glanced at me, his face unreadable, his mouth forming a grim line. “Are you all right?”
I nodded, bewildered and scared.
His face softened a little and he smiled. “It would help, you know,” he murmured, “if you looked the part.”
I looked down, realizing I was clutching the covers to my neck for no reason, and hastily let them go so Dyvian would see how fully dressed I was. Because that was what he was worried about, wasn’t he?
“Nothing happened, Dyv. At all,” I gritted out, embarrassed at how Dyvian was acting like his brother had taken advantage of me. If anything, I was the one intent on taking advantage of Lucian last night.
He shook his head. “Nothing has to happen for him to take advantage of you.” His chin jutted aggressively as he scowled at his brother. “How could you have been so dishonorable?” The word, quaint as it was, should have sounded weird on Dyvian’s tongue but terrifyingly enough, it didn’t.
“This isn’t any of your business, Dyv.” I didn’t want him to continue, afraid of what he’d provoke Lucian into saying.
He ignored me, focused entirely on his brother. “Well?” he challenged. “You violated our agreement, didn’t you? You still—”
“Dyvian.” Lucian’s voice was extremely soft.
I swallowed and even Dyvian’s voice faltered. But he proved I wasn’t the only idiot around here when he straightened and met Lucian’s gaze head on.
“At least be man enough to admit your real reasons for doing it, for being here, with her.”
“Oh, you’ve done it,” I whispered and began praying there’d be enough of him left to stitch back together. Didn’t he know how fanatical his brother was about keeping his feelings private? I waited for Lucian’s fury to explode spectacularly, but he only remained silent.
Dyvian’s next words were worse. “Admit it, Lucian. You love her.”
And hell, once more, broke loose.
Chapter Fourteen
Breakfast used to be one of my favorite times of the day. But it was hard to remember that when Lucian’s seat was empty, Dyvian was sporting a black eye, and I was struggling with depression. Whoever said being immortal was lifelong fun should try stepping into my shoes.
The silence was uncomfortable. Dyvian sat in his usual place, exuding “don’t talk to me” vibes I was happy to oblige. I had my own worries to think of.
Awful. It was the only word I could think of every time I remembered the fight between Lucian and Dyvian. They had grappled on the floor, slamming each other against the walls and ceilings, making the entire house shudder with the force of their blows. I could only be thankful we had no nervous neighbors to call 911.
Dyvian had given a good fight, but it was obvious something stronger had been driving his brother. Lucian had seemed possessed, and I had been out of my mind with worry, crying for them to stop. When my voice had gone hoarse, I whispered the last thing I could think of saying.
“Please stop, Lucian. You don’t have to say you love me.”
They were, apparently, the magic words he had been waiting for.
He walked out on us without looking back.
I shook myself out of the bad memories just as Dyvian’s face twisted in pain when he leaned forward, reaching for a slice of banana cake.
I quickly helped him with it.
Lucian strode in when I had just finished sipping the last of my coffee. His cold face spoke volumes of the fight between him and Dyvian. “Hallir has called for a meeting.”
Dyvian didn’t look up, staring hard at his plate, which for once didn’t contain a mountain of food. “Has something happened?”
“He didn’t say. But he made it clear all Evren are expected to attend.” It pained me to realize how Lucian’s gaze studiously avoided mine. “Be ready to leave in ten minutes.”
He left just as quickly as he appeared. Fed up at being ignored by Lucian, I glared at Dyvian and accused him jokingly, “This is all your fault. I won’t be surprised if he runs back to Angelica’s arms after this.”
I had expected him to retort like he always did, but he didn’t. He shook his head, smiling tiredly. “Believe me, Deli, I did it for both of you.” He stood and bent to kiss me on the cheek.
I caught hold of his hand when he was about to turn away.
“What is it?”
“Nothing. I just…” I bit my lip. “I know you’re trying to help me, but you don’t have to. You didn’t have to. I was happy.”
“Not completely,” he rejected vehemently. “If we had left things as they were, if I had decided to turn a blind eye to what happened, Lucian would never admit to himself he loves you.”
“You don’t know that—”
“Yes,” he interrupted me with terrifying certainty. “I do. I’ve known him far longer than you. I know things—”
“If this is about your mother—”
He jerked. “You know about her?” He laughed bitterly. “He probably whitewashed it. I was the lucky one. When that bitch gave me to Lucian, he was old enough to have taken care of me. But Lucian hadn’t been as lucky.”
His voice became low and tight. “She left Lucian without so much as a word of goodbye. He was only eight years old, and she left him, dammit. I could never get him to speak about the years he had been alone, but I could see in his eyes that what that woman did hurt him incurably. You have to understand, Deli. For the first years of Lucian’s life, she had acted like a perfect mother only to toss him away like he was trash for no apparent reason.”