He shook his head and looked at me funny. I wondered if maybe he was thinking about getting up and smacking me across the face for my lack of empathy, but I didn’t sense any threat coming from him. Instead, he surprised me by cracking a smile. “All this? Really, Lexi, don’t you know?”
My eyes widened. Okay, where was he going with this? “No. Really. I wouldn’t have asked if I did.”
He leaned forward and rested his arms on the table. A loud turbo-prop plane flew overhead, and he didn’t speak until the noise died down. “This bit of cosmetics,” he said, pointing to his teeth, “and these,” he said, pointing to his clothes, “and all of this,” he said pointing to the condo, “was all in preparation for…us. For having a family. For having security. For an attempt at something normal since that is all that you know.” My mouth fell, and he continued, “Being linked with a Dentelle doesn’t come without complications and risks. We needed a comfortable and secure place to live, and now we have it.”
Okay. He was beyond lunacy. And he was living in Fantasyland. I already knew that, but I was still shocked every time he reaffirmed it with some crazy, irrational explanation. Incredibly, all I could think of to say was, “How can you afford this? I’ve never seen you work?”
“Work?” he said, slapping his leg and laughing loudly. “No. Not the kind of work you’re thinking of.” Then all of a sudden, he stopped laughing. All traces of humor disappeared from his face. His expression darkened, and he said, “Do you really want to know?” I nodded slowly. In a low, ominous tone, he said “Without going into great detail, let me just say there are a lot of single, wealthy women looking for someone. Once they find me, fall for me, and leave the bulk of their estate to me, they die. Suddenly – of mysterious, unknown causes, of course, leaving me a very rich man.”
I grabbed my glass of orange juice and guzzled it down. Why had I asked? With Kieran, everything always lead back to Essence and death. He picked up his own glass, clanked it against mine rather forcefully, and said, “Cheers! Here’s to our binding link.” He smiled broadly and then drained his juice in one gulp. Reclining comfortably into his chair again, he launched into a one-sided conversation about our future. Meanwhile, I sat like a programmed robot, responding at all the right times without ever truly tuning in. His voice, his mannerisms, and his very presence grated on my nerves and sent my blood boiling. All I could think about was revenge and how sweet it would be.
My ears didn’t perk up until he started talking about his expectations for our “linking ceremony.” While he didn’t give me all the details, he confirmed my suspicions of a big production – one which was slated to take place in front of all the other Ray-pacs. I didn’t know if he’d finally told them I was a Dentelle or not, but he definitely expected them all to be there. Personally, I thought it was all about him proving his superiority and reaffirming his authority.
He also alluded to a big surprise he had in store for me, and I couldn’t help but wonder if that big surprise was Ash. I had the feeling Kieran wanted Guardian witnesses as well. Knowing the way his heinous mind worked, I figured he’d gain great satisfaction in watching Ash, Dakota, and Izzy squirm helplessly in their seats as he and I linked. I was foaming at the mouth, wishing I had a machete in hand, when he informed me I was expected to be “dressed up” for the occasion.
“I’ve taken the liberty of buying you the perfect dress, which you will wear. Maya will be picking it up later today, along with some other accessories. You will follow through with your promise to link with me willingly, and you will look beautiful when you do.”
Fuming, I stared him down. “I don’t think that is necessary.”
“Yes. It is. And you will do it,” he said angrily, slamming his fist against the table, proving yet again the instability of his psyche.
“Of course, I’ll do it,” I seethed. “But I don’t have to be happy about it.”
“You will improve your attitude before tonight.”
“What about Ava Rose?” I asked. “Will you let her go home after we are linked?”
His eyebrows came together in the center of his forehead. “If you cooperate and all goes as planned, and, then yes. I said I would.”
I studied his face, but his expression was unreadable, and his voice was carefully controlled. I couldn’t tell if he was lying. I had to plan that he was, though. When did he ever do what he said he was going to?
“How can I believe you? Especially when she knows who you are and that you and I are together in Oklahoma City,” I said, wondering why I hadn’t given this more thought before.
He laughed. “That is not a problem. One of my people is experienced with mind control. Ava Rose can be sent home without any recollections of where she’s been or who she’s seen over the last week.” He frowned. “Don’t doubt me, Lexi. I have connections, and I can make anything happen if I want to.”
That’s what scared me most – his connections. My thoughts wandered back to Ava Rose. If I somehow managed to get her to safety, I would need Jason’s sister, Hannah, in a big way. She was also a Memory Manipulator, and no matter how much I’d hate to see her do it, she’d have to alter Ava’s memories of the last week. There was no way I could send Ava home like this; I’d probably be the one brought up on kidnapping charges.
I had an obligation to get her home safe, sound, and oblivious to the fact that Kieran was a horrible monster. If that meant erasing all her fond memories of Oklahoma City, then so be it. She’d have the rest of her life to create new and wonderful memories. Hopefully, I’d get her out of here so she could do that. Me too, because I’d like to be around for the rest of her life and make some memories with her.
CHAPTER 20 – SMALL MIRACLES
I was relieved when Ava awoke and joined us for breakfast. Afterwards, Kieran kept a tight leash on us, and the morning passed quickly. It was like he didn’t want to let us out of his sight. He insisted we hang out in the game room, so we played ping pong and pool. Ava, of course, enjoyed every minute of it, while I was trying to figure out how we were going to escape this mess. I thought maybe if I could cozy up with Maya in the kitchen, I might be able to snoop around for her cell phone and get a call out to Jason or something. Time was running out. And I was getting nervous. I felt confident I could take out Kieran during the linking ceremony and Ash could surprise a couple Ray-pacs and eliminate them, but the odds of us walking away alive were slim to none.
Then something changed. Kieran put his cue stick down and walked over to the window. He was nodding his head ever so slightly and tapping his fingers against the window sill. I decided he must be communicating with Aria. All at once, he clapped his hands together and said, “Excellent!” A minute later, he turned around. But it was weird. His expression was neutral, and he seemed unbelievably composed. Overly so. And that set my nerves on edge. Even though he was trying really hard to contain his emotions, I could tell by the way his amber eyes glowed brighter than usual, he was super stoked about something. I could also tell he was chomping at the bit to make his exit because he called for James and Vincent and began pacing the room. Whatever all these restrained emotions were about, I knew it wasn’t a good thing. Worried, I checked in with Ash, but nothing had changed at his end, and he hadn’t seen any action outside his small window.
When James and Vincent arrived in the game room, Kieran told Ava how happy it would make him if she helped Maya make some lunch plans. I could tell she was disappointed our fun was over, but he sweet-talked her pretty good, and soon she was eager to be on her way. After she left, Kieran spoke privately with James before dishing out a set of orders for me. He had business to attend to, and because I hadn’t earned his trust as of late, I was to be confined to my room until he returned. To make matters worse, I was placed on a “no contact order” with Ava Rose while he was gone. That really upset me, and I let him know it with a few choice words, but he did not waver in his directives.
I realized right then and there just how paranoid he was. Now that
we were approaching the final hours before our linking, he was taking every necessary precaution to keep me confined. By keeping me and Ava Rose separated, he took away that one in a million chance we might be able to escape. That he knew me so well, only ignited my temper further. With an abrupt good-bye, he left, and I found myself once again locked in my bedroom. Only this time James was guarding the outside. Furious, I launched into full-blown outburst. I even threw a lamp across the room and enjoyed listening to it shatter against the wall. I tore apart my bed and tossed the blankets all around. I opened the sliding door to my balcony, but the iron security gate directly on the other side was locked into place, and I couldn’t even step outside. I kicked at it and pulled at it, but it was heavy-duty Guardian-proof, and there was no way I was bringing it down. Eventually, I closed the slider as the outside heat was unbearable. Resigned, I sat down on the floor and let Ash know what was going on; it felt good to have someone to talk to for a change. I apologized for dragging him into this mess. He assured me I wasn’t to blame – that it was all on Kieran. We talked strategy for a bit and then sounded off, promising to touch base again in another half hour.
I was in the bathroom, washing my hands when I felt the snapshots coming on. Bracing myself against the countertop, I closed my eyes as the swirling of colors appeared and formed into images:
The parking garage below the condo building
A lifeless body being thrown into the trunk of a black BMW
Izzy’s face on the body in the trunk
The trunk door slamming shut
Ava Rose waving to me from the back of an SUV
That was it. Short, sweet, and completely baffling. Was Izzy dead? Or still alive? And how was I supposed to get to the parking garage? And why in the world was Ava waving from a vehicle? The images dissipated, and my eyes shot open. For the first time ever, I saw myself as I looked right after a premonition. Glazed over, my big brown eyes were wide and my pupils were dilated something crazy. Despite having a darker than normal tan, my skin seemed pasty, and my cheeks flushed cherry red. My blonde hair was full of body, almost like it had just come down from and electric charge. Visibly vibrating with fear, I turned away from my reflection, let go of the counter, and flew out of the room.
How was I going to get to Izzy? I pounded on my door and called out to James, demanding to see Ava. I only did this to see if he was still there. Unfortunately, he was. Rudely, he informed me Ava was swimming and I wasn’t allowed to join her. Then he told me to stop banging on the door or he’d report me to Kieran. I ran around the room in a frenzy, trying to figure a way out. That’s when I spotted the big white grill in the ceiling that covered the air vent. Without another thought, I grabbed the chair I’d thrown into the corner of the room, slid it over, and placed it under the grill. I wasn’t quite tall enough, so I grabbed some pillows and stacked them on the chair. Luckily for me, the grating snapped off easily, but a blast of cool air almost swept me off my feet. A little air conditioning was a good thing, but this felt like an arctic breeze. I could see that, although the space was small, I shouldn’t have any problem wriggling through on my stomach.
Trying to stay on top of things, and figuring every second was precious, I pulled the chair back to the corner, shoved some pillows onto the bed, and gathered the strewn blankets from around the room so I could tuck them around the pillows. I hoped that if James peeked inside, he’d think I was napping. Now that the vent was open, I had no problem jumping up that high and latching onto the edge. The tricky part was doing it one-handed, because I had to replace the grate once I was in the air duct. After doing so, I intentionally slid due west down the duct because I knew the living room and kitchen were the other way. While sliding along the tight-closed space, I contacted Ash and let him know what I was doing. He wasn’t happy about it, but I told him I had to do it. In order to stay focused on the task at hand, I told him I couldn’t talk but would keep him updated along the way. After a long straightaway and a couple twists and turns, I came upon another grate. I had no idea where I was, but instinct told me to go there.
I dropped from the duct and landed on a velvet red comforter, atop a massive, unmade California king bed. I shivered. This was Kieran’s bedroom. Totally grossed out, I scrambled off the bed and was about to run for the door, when something caught my eye. Gasping, I covered my mouth and started for the far wall. It was plastered with pictures. Most of the pictures were of me. There were pictures of me alone, and there were pictures of me with Ash, Ava, Jessica, Ally, Jason, and others as well. Further down on the wall, was a smaller section of pictures. I cried out when I spotted my parents and my brothers. But when my eyes landed on a picture of Ellen Zimmerman, I did a double-take.
Anger welled inside me, and I felt like destroying something, but I curled my toes and refrained. I remembered the nurses being so surprised Ellen had died in her sleep. They’d said she’d been so spunky and active the week before her death. Everyone had been surprised at her passing. My heart constricted. Was it possible? I didn’t even want to think it, but my gut told me it was more than possible Kieran had played a part in Ellen’s death. The need for revenge festered inside me. But I also knew the best revenge was saving Izzy and Ava, and I was wasting precious time.
I closed my eyes and deliberated. That’s when I remembered Ava telling me a story about laundry chutes. She’d had quite a discussion with Maya about it one day, and apparently, Kieran had one in his room. Of course! Without another moment’s hesitation, I ran into what I thought was his bathroom. Instead, I found myself in his security room. There were TV screens showing surveillance detail of the outside balconies as well as different areas around the grounds. One screen showed the elevator, and I wondered if it was recording. Assuming I was going to need to take the elevator to the parking garage, I couldn’t leave evidence I’d been there. Deciding it would be safer to have a glitch in the video system rather than having it record me, I shut that one down with plans to turn it back on later.
From there, I proceeded through his closet, which had a dissociative identity disorder of its own. One side was lined with black clothes and leather items, and the other side was filled with the casual khaki and light-colored clothes Kieran had been wearing all week. There were tons of drawers that I would have opened and snooped through if I’d had time. I couldn’t get that comment out of my mind about some journals he’d stolen from a Guardian stronghold – journals that had information on Dentelles. Shoving that thought aside for the time-being, I hurried into the bathroom and started opening cupboard doors. To the right of the sink I found it, and to my surprise, the laundry chute was twice the size of the air ducts. Taking a deep breath, I plunged inside – feet first, allowing gravity to take me for a ride. I just hoped there was a basket with a lot of dirty clothes at the bottom to soften my landing. There was, but I hit with such force, the laundry basket, which was on wheels, went sliding across the room and banged into the wall.
Jumping out of the basket, I shoved it back into place and peeked out the door. That’s when I realized my good fortune. I’d come out right next to the indoor swimming pool. Carefully, I snuck out of the laundry room, gently closing the door behind me. I dashed over to the pool door and looked through the window. Ava Rose was splashing around in the water all by herself, and Vincent, being the total loser that he was, was conked out in a lawn chair. I grinned, hardly able to contain my excitement. My emotions only sky-rocketed from there when I spotted his keycard on the table next to him. What an imbecile! Opportunity was staring me straight in the face, and I had to take it. While I worried I might not make it to Izzy in time, I had Ava in my sights and figured I was here for a reason. Premonitions worked in mysterious ways, and I planned on taking full advantage of my good fortune. Or maybe I was exactly where my premonitions had directed me to be.
I waved my arms, praying Ava would look my way. My key card had been confiscated, otherwise I would have been able to access the pool room. In answer to my prayers, Ava spotted
me and started waving frantically, motioning for me to come inside. Holding one finger to my lips, I motioned with my other hand for her to come to the door. She giggled and pointed at Vincent. I smiled, nodded, and kept my finger pressed to my lips. Oh yeah, we wanted him to sleep all right. Sleep all day.
When she finally opened the door, I said quietly, “Shh! Wait here while I grab your towel; we’re going to let Vincent sleep.”
She scrunched up her face in delight and nodded. “Okay, Lexi. I’ll be real quiet. But what are we doing?”
“I’ll tell you in a minute,” I whispered back.
Moving quickly and quietly, I grabbed her towel and Vincent’s key card before hurrying back to her. We closed the door, and I bit my lip nervously as it clicked. Looking through the glass, I kept my eyes glued to Vincent, but he didn’t stir in the slightest. In fact, I think he started snoring a little louder.
Grabbing Ava’s hand, I rushed us over to the elevator and inserted his card. “Ava, we’re going on an adventure, and I’m going to need you to listen to me very carefully and trust me. Can you do that?” The elevator opened, and I pulled her inside. After I inserted the key card, I pushed the button for the parking garage, and the light turned green. I’d been trying to figure out what the snapshots from my premonition were all about because rarely did they focus on more than one person. And this time Izzy and Ava had both been depicted. I’d decided maybe my premonitions were pointing me in a direction that would allow me to save them both. I was still working on the “how” part but figured the parking garage had something to do with it. That’s when it hit me, and the perfect plan began taking shape in my mind.
“Okay,” she said tentatively. “Is this a fun adventure or a scary one?”
“A little bit dangerous. It’s kind of like a secret mission,” I said, trying not to sound frantic, but my heart was pounding a hole in my chest. I knew I was playing with fate right now. But damn, it was my turn to win one. And for some reason, with my premonition and my instincts working together, I felt like this was the time. The one time I could save Ava and maybe do it without getting caught. As the elevator rocked a little bit and we descended, I dried her off with her towel.
Dentelle #3 Guardian series Page 34