by J. E. Taylor
I made it into the Ryan’s house without incident. CJ led me downstairs past Alex and the girls into the computer room. A monitor was on waiting for me along with a pencil, a sheet of paper, and a simple calculator.
The test.
“I’ll take your backpack,” CJ said and put his hand out. “Did you need to go to the ladie’s room or get a drink before you start?”
“No, thank you.” I crossed to the desk, took a seat at the computer, and started the exam.
The questions were simple, and I made my way through the five-hundred-question test. When the submit button came up, I rubbed my tired eyes and pressed it. I leaned back in the chair and waited while the program calculated my grade.
My stomach growled, and I licked my lips.
CJ walked in the room and put a sandwich down on the edge of the desk along with a glass of milk. His phone beeped, and he glanced at it.
The screen dissolved into a grade. I stared at the ninety-eight percent blinking on the monitor and sighed. It wasn’t a perfect grade, like I’d expected.
“What did I get wrong?” I turned to CJ.
He scrolled through his phone. “A couple grammar questions, one of the macro-economics questions, a history question, a sociology question, two calculus questions, a science question, and a couple psychology questions. Up until the last hour, your answers were all correct. Every question you got wrong was within the last hour, so I think hunger and mental exhaustion played a role. Overall, you did excellent. I’ll bring your results to the school board and let them know I am recommending your certification of graduation with high honors.”
I picked up the sandwich and leaned back in the chair. “Thank you,” I said and took a bite. I just wanted to feed my growling stomach and take a nap.
“When you’re done, why don’t you head out back. Alex and the girls are playing soccer, and the fresh air should help. I shouldn’t be long.” He leaned over and pressed the print button on the screen. A printer whirred to life at the back of the room.
Instead of waiting, I picked up the plate and the milk and headed upstairs. I stood at the counter and watched Alex with his sisters in the yard. When I finished the sandwich and drained the milk, I put the dishes in the dishwasher and headed outside.
The day was warm, and it got warmer when Alex glanced up at me and smiled.
“Where’s my dad?” He handed one of the twins the ball and came over to me.
“He went to drop off my test at the school board and request my diploma.”
“That’s impressive.”
I shrugged.
He took my hands and inspected the gloves. “I like.”
My cheeks flushed, and I pulled my hands away.
“Can we go watch our show?” one of the girls asked.
“Sure,” Alex said.
After both girls disappeared into the house, I turned to Alex. “I’m never going to figure out which is which.”
“That was Amber. If you look at her eyes closely, you can see a ring of green around the blue. Arianna doesn’t have that green ring, but she has gold flecks in the blue of her irises. That’s the only way I can tell them apart.” He stepped closer, and an impish light filled his eyes. “My parents are gone,” he said and wrapped his arm around my waist.
The moment our bodies connected, overwhelming desire squeezed every cell. I looked into his deep blue eyes framed by long dark lashes, noticing the silver flecks mingling with aqua flecks in his irises.
Tom’s warning whispered in my ear, so I pushed out of Alex’s grasp, unnerved by the lack of logical thought when I was that close to him.
“Am I the first girl you ever kissed?”
“Does it matter?” He closed the distance.
Did it? A very large part of me didn’t think so, but that nagging voice that sounded an awful lot like Tom wouldn’t let it go. I glanced at the ground.
“Am I the first boy you’ve ever kissed?” he asked, trying to catch my eye.
I met his gaze and nodded.
He cupped my cheek. “You are not my first, but I have the distinct belief you will be the last girl I ever kiss. And kiss. And kiss.” He leaned in and demonstrated. His soft lips caressed mine with a heat that burned brighter than the fire inside me.
A sting on my neck yanked me away from him. My gaze fell to a small plume of feathers that stuck in Alex’s neck. He blinked and stumbled. I tried to catch him, but the world went dark.
Chapter 13
My head pounded, and I blinked my eyes open. The unfamiliar room sent shockwaves through me. The last thing I remembered was kissing Alex and then seeing that fuzzy feather stuck in his neck.
I shifted on the hard chair and blinked at my bound arms. The sleeves of my shirt were rolled up to my elbows. My gaze landed on the skin of my hands, and my heart leapt into my throat. My gloves were gone.
“Alex?” Hot pulses of panic ran through me.
“Faith?”
His voice was as perplexed as mine.
I twisted my hands and pulled, trying to move my arms so the edge of my palms touched the rope. The progression was slow and painful, to the point sweat rolled into my eyes. I blinked the sting away, concentrating as my internal alarms got louder with every second that ticked by.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“I’m not sure. The last thing I remember was being in my back yard.”
The door opened. Grace waltzed in wearing my gloves like they were prized diamonds. The beings following behind her made my heart plummet. Three soul eaters followed her into the room.
“I promised you a feast.” She waved toward us. “Make her death as painful as possible. I expect he will not be touched this time.”
“What the fuck, Grace?” Alex said from behind me.
“You can’t have a soul mate without a soul.” She smiled and closed the door behind her, leaving us with these things.
My right hand was just about where I needed it. My heart pounded in my chest as I focused on the rope. If I didn’t break my bonds now, we would be in trouble. I let the fire flare. The sight of flames leaping from my hand halted the soul eaters’ steps.
I yanked at the burning rope, and my hand freed. Before I turned the flame to the soul eaters, I fried the rope on my other hand. I was on my feet and standing between them and Alex before they could come to their senses.
“Back off,” I growled. “Or you won’t see tomorrow.”
Yellow flame licked my splayed fingers. I held tight to the weapon inside me, afraid that if I let go, I wouldn’t be able to stop the fire from consuming everything in the room, including Alex.
I reached with my other hand, finding the rope binding Alex, and let my flames devour the string.
He winced. “I need help with the other one,” he said.
I stepped in front of him, never taking my eyes off the creatures, letting Alex guide my hand to the rope.
Alex stood and took my hand in his. The flames sputtered.
The soul eaters charged.
I ripped my hand from Alex’s grip and pointed both palms at the charging monsters. I screamed, and fire sprayed with a jolt. It consumed everything in its path. The monsters, the walls, the ceiling. The door. Half the room was engulfed. I closed my palms, shaking and turned to Alex and stared at the solid wall behind us.
Panic as hot as the flames behind me lit through my veins. I had blocked our only exit.
“Are we underground?” I asked, praying we weren’t. I didn’t know if I could keep Alex from being burned if we were.
“No. I think we are in Naomi’s panic room.”
“Get down,” I said and closed my eyes. I clenched my fists and let the panic feed my power. When every inch of my skin burned, I opened my eyes and pointed my palms toward the back wall.
The explosion blew outward, turning the wall to dust. The cool ocean air rushed in.
I grabbed Alex’s arm, yanking him towards the opening. “Run!”
We hit the cool air ou
tside just as the room behind us flashed over.
I kept running with one focus—the ocean. I needed water, or otherwise the fire burning inside me would engulf everything around us. Alex kept pace with me and didn’t hesitate when I jumped off the cliff. He jumped with me, our hands clasped tight.
The frigid Atlantic swallowed us, chilling the fire out of me. By the time we surfaced, sirens pierced the air. Alex pulled me towards our right and around an outcrop of rock. Beyond sat a small dock, and we climbed onto it, out of breath and shivering.
He clasped my hand and dragged me towards a rock ledge. When we skirted around a boulder, a small space between the rocks opened. We slid inside out of sight. He leaned against the wall and let go of my hand to wipe his face. His gaze locked with mine in the semidarkness.
“She tried to...” He closed his mouth. Anger flared in his eyes, and then his gaze fell to my hands. He took them in his and brought them to his lips. The next moment, he pulled me to him, wrapping his arms around my numb body.
We shivered against the wall as the sirens outside got louder and louder. My adrenaline faded, and my knees wobbled. Alex held me steady.
“You saved me,” he whispered in my ear.
I let out a high-pitched laugh. “But I nearly burned you alive.”
He pulled away and cupped my cheeks, searching my eyes, and then smashed his lips against mine. The kiss was as desperate as I felt.
“Come on,” he said, breaking the kiss. He took my hand, leading me farther into the dark cavern.
We stopped when all the light faded. Four tones rang softly, and then a door swung open in front of us.
Alex led me into a dark room. A moment later, the lights came on, and Alex punched numbers on a keypad next to the door.
“Our panic room has multiple ways out.”
I raised my eyebrows. The room looked like just another play room with soft chairs, a table and a small kitchenette, instead of the one we had been in that was barren except for the chairs we’d been tied to.
I still couldn’t grasp the need for a panic room at all.
Alex crossed to another keypad and punched the sequence again. The wall moved, opening to the basement of his house. He put his hand out, and I crossed to him and clasped mine in his. Dripping, we crossed the threshold into his basement. The door slid closed behind us.
We were halfway across when the basement door flew open. Feet pounded down the stairs, and we both froze in place.
“Alex!” CJ’s voice rang out just before he flew around the corner.
Behind him, Grace appeared, and her panicked features hardened. “She set my house on fire.”
My gaze dropped to the ground as shame heated my cheeks.
“You sicced three soul eaters at us.” Alex glared at her.
“Bullshit!” Grace said. “She’s got you brainwashed.”
My head jerked up, and I squeezed Alex’s hand as the source deep inside me let loose. The room altered around us, except this time Grace and CJ were in the room with us, staring at Alex and I tied to chairs in the barren panic room.
The vision ended with me blasting the monsters back to hell.
“You were saying,” I said very softly.
CJ spun and glared at Grace. “You put MY son in danger,” he growled. “My son!” His bellow shook the foundation beneath us.
Grace’s eyes widened, and she turned and bolted up the stairs. I would have ran, too, but not because of the sight of the golden wings forming in the air behind CJ. The fury filling his face was enough for me to start shaking all over again.
He turned to us, focusing solely on his son. “You didn’t call?” The venom in his voice was enough to make me shrink behind Alex.
“Honestly, I didn’t think to call. I was still trying to come to terms with what Grace was doing.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Besides, Faith took care of it.”
“By almost killing you?” His gaze moved from Alex to me.
“I couldn’t control it,” I whispered.
“Well then, we’re going to have to work on that before you fuck up and get someone killed.”
“Yes, sir,” I said and dropped my gaze to the floor.
He marched upstairs, and we followed like wet puppies.
“Your diploma is on the table.” CJ pointed to the paper at the opposite end of the table that Amber and Arianna sat eating a snack. “And Tom is on the way to pick you up.” His forehead broke out in sweat, and the vein at his temple throbbed.
“What are you doing?” Alex asked.
“Making sure the fire doesn’t spread beyond their property.”
The front door opened, and footsteps fast approached the family room.
“What the fuck happened?” Tom asked as he stepped into the room.
CJ sent a glare at him, and I could almost make out the admonishment.
“Sorry,” Tom mumbled, and an awkward smile appeared.
“Grace tried to kill Faith and leave me soulless.” Alex summed it up with a matter-of-fact tone as if we hadn’t just had a near-death experience.
Tom blinked and then the confusion marring his features turned to raw anger that sizzled on the air. “She struck a deal with the soul eaters?” His gaze jumped to his brother.
“Yup,” CJ said. “But the newest addition to our fun little family blasted them and nearly everyone else in their house to hell.”
My skin grew cold. “Who else was in the house?” My voice shook.
The look CJ gave me settled my nerves a little. His gaze didn’t hold accusation or regret, so I knew I hadn’t killed.
“Gabe had just stepped in the front door when you blew out the back of their house. He’s okay.”
“Naomi?” Tom asked.
“Working at the school,” CJ answered.
Tom took a deep breath. “And Grace?”
CJ’s jaw tightened and that anger I had seen downstairs shuffled to the surface. “She’s fine,” he said through clenched teeth. “But if she pulls anything like that again...” His eyes were like ice.
I shivered and rubbed my arms. My teeth chattered as the chill reached down to my bone marrow. Alex put his arm around me and pulled me closer.
Tom’s gaze traveled over the two of us. A crease appeared between his eyes. He stared at Alex, blinking rapidly, like his mind couldn’t wrap around something. “Um, Alex? Are you feeling okay?”
“Fine. Why?”
CJ’s full attention was now on his son. “Because your aura is almost gone,” he growled and stormed out of the room.
“What does that mean?” Alex asked, turning to Tom.
I studied him as well. He seemed like the same boy who made my heart flutter. His touch still calmed me and set me on fire at the same time, but there was no anxiety in his question like what was burning through me.
Tom turned and went outside where CJ had gone. We followed.
The house next door imploded like a giant foot had slammed down on the structure, smothering the fire. The air rippled with heat and smoke and underlying aggression coming from CJ.
Grace stood on the other side of the iron gate, her glare pronounced even at that distance. Danger prickled my skin as we approached. A car skidded to a stop outside the neighboring house, and Grace’s mother jumped out. Her gaze was locked on the demolished house.
“You need to leave this town and never come back,” CJ said to Grace over the sounds of the fire engines and rescue personnel.
“She started the fire.” Grace pointed at me.
“You stole my son’s soul.” CJ’s growl was feral.
Alex wasn’t fazed in the least by CJ’s accusation, but I stopped moving, dumbstruck. How could she let one of those things touch him if she professed to love him? It made no sense to me at all.
“Not all of it,” Grace said, confirming my worst fears. “But enough of it that this crazy soulmate thing would be taken care of.” She put her gloved hands on her hips. “And if that witch hadn’t started the fire...”
The first hint of anger reached Alex’s face, and he let go of my hand and closed the distance to stand next to his father. “No matter what you do, there will never be an us. You had every intention of letting those things kill Faith. You had every intention of taking an innocent life. That makes you a monster. Tell me, Grace, what do your angels say about your actions? What does heaven think of you now?”
Grace’s face turned bright red. “The angels haven’t spoken to me in years. The last time they spoke, it was for me to tell Tom all was forgiven,” she said. “Heaven has forsaken me, and so have you.” A tear escaped from the corner of her eye.
“I will never forgive you. Soul or no soul, I know what you did today was wrong. And so help me God, if you EVER attempt to harm Faith again, I will kill you with my bare hands.”
The venom coming from Alex was even scarier than the anger radiating from CJ. His growling voice sounded more like his father’s than his own, and I swallowed hard, believing his threat.
Grace stumbled back, right into her mother, whose attention was now on us.
“What happened to my house?” she asked.
Grace turned to her mother and opened her mouth.
“Zip it,” CJ said. The air around us seemed to ripple with the force to silence her.
Naomi’s eyes narrowed at CJ. “Let her speak,” she ordered.
“Your daughter is evil,” Alex said. “She knocked us out, and tied us up in the panic room. When we came to, she let soul eaters into the room and told them to kill Faith.”
Naomi’s mouth popped open. Her gaze went to her daughter.
“She is no longer welcomed anywhere near this property,” CJ said.
Naomi’s shock transitioned to disgust. “And the fire?”
“That was me, ma’am,” I said and studied the ground in front of me. “I didn’t mean to burn the house down. I just wanted to save Alex from getting hurt.”
“She disintegrated the soul eaters. But I guess the damage had already been done before we woke up.” Alex glared at Grace. “She left just enough of my soul intact for me to grasp her duplicity. And had she not stolen Faith’s gloves, Faith would have died in there, and then I would have killed Grace myself.” He moved his glare to Naomi. “So just be glad that your daughter is alive. And take her as far away from me as possible so she stays that way.”