Changeling (Black Petals Book 2)

by Marie, Tarisa

  They stare at each other. Aria seems to search for a further explanation in Aiden’s eyes.

  “Bet you have no idea that your brother here is the mighty king of hell,” Landon teases coolly while texting someone on his cellphone.

  Aria’s eyes widen drastically and she gasps. “No.”

  Her reaction sends Aiden into a whirl of laughter, surprising everyone.

  “That’s why you have so many guards. That’s why you’re so different, so strong.”

  Aiden doesn’t answer but the truth is plastered all over his face.

  Aria seems to have so many questions. She blasts a few of them off. “How? Why? You mean you are in charge of all demons?”

  Aiden has to cut her off. “I will answer all of your questions in time, Aria, I promise, but I have many things to do. I am a busy man these days, and I don’t have the time right now. When I do, I promise I will find you and explain everything.”

  Chapter 2

  Aiden and Landon let Aria go, knowing that Blayk will not be happy about this. Then the rest of us, Crispen included go back through the portal to hell and into another portal which takes us around the world to Belize where we leave Landon, Forrest, and Maxwell. Crispen wakes up from the deep slumber that Landon put him in before we left Toronto just as we enter hell again.

  Crispen is tied up and has no chance of escaping, but I still steer clear of him while Aiden carries him around. Aiden tosses him into a cell in the basement of his home in Tartarus and removes his gag.

  A rush of cusses and insults escape Crispen as we leave the room. I sense another temper tantrum coming on.

  Aiden turns to a guard at the door of the basement containing the cells. “No one is to enter without my permission. Not maids, guards, no one.”

  The guard nods in understanding.

  “Mr. Castile, you’re back already,” Terry observes as we nearly run into him while turning a corner.

  “Where is Mason?” Aiden asks a relieved Terry.

  Terry glances behind him. “Down the hall training with one of the guards.”

  “When he is done, bring him to my office, please.”

  Terry nods in agreement and then we leave him and head to Aiden’s office. All the running around today has me exhausted. I’m exhausted, yet demons don’t sleep.

  “You should eat something,” Aiden notes as I slump down in a chair across from his at his desk and he closes the door behind us.

  I shake my head. No, I don’t want to eat.

  He looks to me wearily. “I’m sorry. You haven’t been given much time to come to terms with all of this. You should go to your room and rest. I will come check on you later.”

  I shake my head again.

  He grimaces. “A few more days and I’m going to send you to live with Landon, Forrest, and Maxwell,” he says wearily. As I’m about to protest, he raises a hand. “I know you don’t want to, but I’m going to be so busy for a few weeks straightening all this out that you’re going to be bored here. I need to focus on my work not worry about what kind of trouble you’re getting into in hell. Let me tell you, Megan, there’s a lot of crap you can get yourself thrown into here. You’re safest with Landon. He’s right.”

  “Bored? I don’t care. Get me some books or something.”

  Aiden chuckles, shaking his head dubiously. “I want you to go live with Landon so he can supervise you around humans. You need to get used to being around them and you’re not getting as much of that experience here as you would there.”

  I groan in protest.

  “I’ll be there when I can. Landon and I have…business that needs taking care of,” Aiden says carefully. “Megan, what I am about to say needs to remain confidential.”

  I nod.

  “Apparently my mother was an alchemist and so was Landon’s. They were friends once.” Aiden reaches into a cupboard and pulls out a box. It looks like it’s maybe a jewelry box. He opens it and shows me its contents. A marble sits inside.

  “Uh…” I start. “A marble?”

  He begins laughing as if I’m funny. “It’s a pearl, Megan.”

  How would I know? Like I told Aiden once, I don’t know much about jewelry or jewels of any sort. “Okay…”

  “Landon claims that pearls hold souls. This is believed to be a soul. I didn’t get much else out of Landon because the place became under attack and I instructed him to take off with you.”

  “Okay, so…I’m confused.”

  Aiden sighs. “I didn’t know my mother was an alchemist. I found this box after Landon gave you that elixir, and I thought maybe he could open it. It was locked. He told me that I should be able to open it since I’m an alchemist. I didn’t know I was. He explained it all to me then.”

  I stare at him in wonder. “All this time you’ve been looking for an alchemist and…”

  “And I’ve been one myself, yes. I need to get some information out of Landon. We didn’t get to finish our conversation and we have a lot to talk about, so I will be around a lot,” he finishes.

  “Whose soul is that?” I ask, nodding to the pearl in the box.

  He shrugs. “Not a clue.”

  We sit in silence for a minute as we both stare at the box. Why is it in that box? Where did he get the box even?

  “I really don’t want to live with any of those men, Aiden, but I also really don’t feel comfortable here in hell either, so I guess… As long as this isn’t permanent. I…I need you right now.” I need him because he’s the only one I really trust right now. I need an ally in all of this, a friend.

  “I know, and it’ll only be a few weeks. I promise.” Aiden returns the box to its spot and approaches me slowly, one hand in his jeans pocket. “I trust Landon, Megan.”

  “Does this whole you being an alchemist thing have anything to do with you the reason you feel things?” I ask him.

  He explains that his mother took the elixir Landon gave me and then had him, that it must have also affected him.

  “You have no idea how glad I am that you’re you,” he says truthfully and runs a stressed hand through his dark hair. I push my chair back and stand up, ready to go back to my room and let Aiden get to work. I don’t get the chance to dismiss myself though because Aiden closes the space between us impossibly fast and his lips fall on mine, surprising the hell out of me. A surprised whimper escapes me as he pins me against one of the large bookcases in his office. It takes me a minute to take in what’s happening and respond. I kiss him back but not nearly as urgently as he kisses me.

  His actions surprise me. He doesn’t normally act like this. He cups the back of my head with his palm and moves it through my hair. He stops and rests his forehead on mine a moment later. He breathes heavily like he’s out of breath. “Is this okay?” he asks, eyes closed.

  I’m so surprised that all I can do is nod. He doesn’t hesitate. His lips fall on mine again and his body presses against me. There’s a knock on the door, but I don’t think Aiden even hears it. If he’s ignoring it, then so am I. I’m not willing to give this moment up.

  Then to both of our surprise, the door opens and from the corner of my eye I see Mason stride in. He stops to stare at the two of us.

  “Oh, Mason,” I manage against Aiden’s lips. He seems to finally snap out of it and pulls away to face a frozen Mason.

  “I…I didn’t mean to disturb you…” he hashes out quickly. He glances between the two of us.

  Aiden scowls at him. “You can’t just barge in here!’ Aiden erupts. “Do you know who I am, Mason?”

  Mason shutters, clearly a result of his ‘master’ being upset with him. “I knocked,” he reminds Aiden.

  Aiden calms himself.

  “He doesn’t know the rules, Aiden,” I remind him.

  Aiden nods. “Unless I tell you to come in, don’t.”

  “Right. Okay.” Mason fidgets with a small blade in his hands.

  Aiden’s tense expression smooths out. “Sorry. I’m edgy. I don’t mean to snap like that
.”

  Mason’s eyebrows raise as if he’s unsure. “It’s cool. What was it you needed it from me?”

  Aiden looks to him confused but then recalls what it is he wanted. “How are you?”

  Mason shrugs. “As good as I can be I guess.”

  I gather myself and move a couple extra steps from Aiden. I scan some of the books on the shelves in the room. Many of the spines I can’t read because they’re in other languages. One language stands out. I’m not much of a language person I think it might be Latin.

  “You two, hey?” Mason says with a smirk, motioning to Aiden and I. “No wonder Crispen wants your ass on a stick.” Which one of us? I manage a laugh. “He’s obsessed with Megan even if he won’t admit it now because he thinks she’s gone.”

  Aiden and I both pause to think about this. Crispen is obsessed with me?

  “Crispen,” Aiden recalls. “Yes, we need to speak. Crispen is…well, Crispen is here. Aria is safe and on her way back to Australia. I told her I’d bring you to visit her once you were in better control. Crispen needs to see you’re alright. He doesn’t know that you’re…”

  “That I’m a demon,” Mason finishes for Aiden. “He’s here? In hell?”

  “Yes,” I tell him, saving Aiden from having to tell him.

  Aiden grimaces. “You and Megan can’t really harm each other. I’ll send word to the guards to allow you both to enter. I think you both need to have a very long talk with him.”

  Mason and I glance to each other. It’s weird how Mason is suddenly back to the way he was when I first met him. You know, he doesn’t want me dead. He’s nice again. I’m thankful.

  Mason agrees and I tell him I’ll lead him to the dungeon. Aiden sends two guards with us.

  “How do you like working with Terry?” I ask him after a long period of silence.

  Mason hesitates. “I think he’s a good man.”

  Answer enough for me. I have to agree. I really like Terry.

  Our awkward walk is nearly silent until we’re almost to the door of the dungeon. “I want to apologize to you for everything I did to you while you were living with Aiden. I was wrong about a lot and I’m sorry. Crispen will come around. It’ll just take time.” I think Mason is trying to apologize for attempting to murder me. I find myself not really upset with him, but the apology means a lot.

  I accept his apology and tell the guard to let us in. The guards who have followed us give them the word and we are let into the dark dungeon. Crispen has managed to remove the rest of his ropes from his hands. When he sees Mason he almost looks relieved, that is, until he sees his brother’s soulless irises. He then goes pale as a ghost and begins to almost shake. He looks scared, sad, and angry all at the same time.

  “Mase?” Crispen asks through a shaking voice.

  Mason smirks. “Brother.”

  I decide to stay back in the shadows where Crispen can’t see me so that the two of them can have a moment.

  “What have they done to you?” Crispen whispers. The shock and worry in his voice starts to darken into pure anger and red starts to flush his face.

  Mason pulls out a granola bar from his pocket and hands it to Crispen through the bars. Crispen takes it and to my surprise he opens it and eats it. He must be starving. “I’m okay, Crispen.”

  “Blayk, Landon, and Blayne did this to you, didn’t they?” Crispen spits.

  Mason nods. “Partially, yes, that night. Partly though, this happened when you had us attack Aiden. They just finished it off and took my soul.”

  Crispen nods and looks down to the cement floor. “It’s my fault,” he whispers under his breath.

  Why isn’t Crispen attacking his brother like he did Aiden and I? Has he finally given up? I think this too soon because Crispen seems to sense my presence. He stares at the darkness where I am and I’m forced to reveal myself.

  Crispen laughs although there is no humor in it. “Where the hell am I?” he begs. “This isn’t Aiden’s house.”

  I’m surprised to hear Mason chuckle. “No, no, it’s not. Welcome to hell, Crispen.”

  Crispen’s eyes widen and he glances around quickly.

  “You might not want to piss off Aiden either. Turns out he’s the boss around here,” Mason adds quickly.

  Crispen and him share a look. Then Crispen looks to me. He then looks back to Mason. “What do you mean?”

  “Some call him the devil,” Mason says in a joking tone.

  Crispen eyes me as if to ask if this is true. I nod. He sucks in a breath and then sighs deeply. “Fuck!” he shouts and kicks one of the metal bars of his cell.

  “I’m going to go get him something more to eat,” I decide. “They say men are grumpier when they’re hungry,” I add and race to the doorway. No one stops me.

  I run to the kitchen and grab a few buns and a few slices of meat. These leftovers from the last meal will have to do.

  I take them back down to the dungeon. Mason and I watch as Crispen nearly inhales the food. Mason watches with a blank expression. I’m sure my own expression features shock and contentment. Is Crispen finally going to give us a chance? I don’t get too hopeful because, well, I’ve learnt that getting your hopes up usually leads to disappointment.

  When he’s finished eating, I almost expect him to go back to his snarky comments and rude words, but he doesn’t. The three of us sit there in silence for what seems like forever. Finally, Mason moves closer to the cell, near enough to touch the bars. He reaches out and hesitates before clasping his hand around a bar. The bars aren’t ruby encrusted because, well, hunters don’t come to hell, ever. Crispen leans up against the bars, coming close to Mason. Mason tilts his forehead downward so it rests on the metal. Mason groans a sound of frustration.

  “Brother?” Crispen asks. “Are you alright?”

  I’m surprised by his question. So much so, that I lift my head to stare at Crispen closer. Crispen frowns deeply while gazing at Mason. Mason grimaces. “I’m fine, Crispen. Exhausted, worn, stressed, worried, lost, but I am fine.”

  Crispen doesn’t reply and for a moment I wonder if he didn’t hear Mason speak, but then Crispen reaches through the bars and sets his hand on Mason’s shoulder carefully. Mason lifts his head and stares at his brother.

  “Are you truly fine?” Crispen asks him.

  Mason nods a quick nod. “I believe so. I…I am not free, nor will I ever be as a changeling, but I am still me.”

  Crispen takes a moment to digest this. It’s like he wants to not believe Mason’s words, but something is forcing him not to.

  Crispen’s gaze shifts to me then and he offers a half smile.

  “You’re not going to curse at me? Insult me?” I scoff. “Are you out of harsh words?”

  Crispen grimaces and bites his bottom lip.

  “Is that a yes?” I ask him. I shoot daggers at him with my glare. “You’re not going to try to kill me, Crispen?”

  He swallows hard and shakes his head slowly. “It seems I’ve found myself in an interesting place. I don’t feel like killing you today, no.”

  I wonder why this is.

  “Megan is still Megan, Crispen,” Mason vouches for me. “It is true.”

  “I…” Crispen hesitates. “I can’t trust the words of a demon.”

  Back to this? Really?

  Mason groans something unintelligible and grips the bars tighter. “Crispen, you’re being ridiculous.”

  Crispen hesitates before saying, “I know, Mason, and I’m trying to fight it, but my nature is overwhelming. You know it’s always affected me more.”

  “You overcame it with Megan once,” Mason tests.

  Crispen nods. “I did and it ended in pain.”

  The two men stare at each other like they’re having a silent exchange. Mason lets go of the bars and takes a step back. “I love you, Crispen, but you’re being ridiculous. I know the struggle. I know it well. I know the doubt. I’m not saying that our roles have been wrong all these years, but I’m also not sayin
g that they’ve been right. Some demons are good.”

  Crispen winces. He clearly isn’t so sure. “I can’t trust a demon.”

  “Then don’t. At least not right now. Give us time to prove that we’re not so bad,” I attempt.

  He seems to debate this and then finally he nods. “Okay. If you can prove it to me, I will attempt to trust you. First of all, let me out of here.”

  “Not a chance!” Mason shouts angrily before I can do the same. “Do you think my changing into a demon has made me dimwitted, Crispen? I know you. You will go on a murder spree the first chance you get. You’re staying here as much as I hate to see you locked up in a cage like this. You need this wake up call.”

  Crispen is silent. He scrapes his shoe across the cement floor as he debates Mason’s words.

  “Aria?” Crispen asks.

  “She’s fine,” I answer. “Aiden and Landon let her go. She has gone back to Australia.”

  Crispen’s face wrinkles in a sneer. “Australia? Right now? She knows the state of Mason, does she not? She left me with Aiden, with Landon, with you? Doubtful.”

  Mason rolls his eyes dramatically. “You really are blind as a bat, aren’t you? Aria has never had the same visions as you or I. She’s never thought the same. The urge has never affected her as strongly. For whatever reason, she trusts Aiden. I’m coming to trust him too. Megan clearly trusts him. It’s your turn. You need to see things as they are.”

  “Might be easier if I weren’t stuck in this jail cell,” Crispen mutters roughly, shaking the bars with intent. Mason looks at his brother with both pity and wonder. I can’t help but wonder what he’s thinking about.

  The door of the dungeon swings open and Aiden struts in. “Good. You two haven’t torn out his soul yet. Somehow, through all that’s going through in my mind, I forgot you shouldn’t be trusted around him alone.”

  Mason and I exchange glances. I never thought of this and truthfully I haven’t gotten the urge to take Crispen’s soul since being down here. Now that Aiden’s mentioned it though, I feel the pull. I know Mason does too. Mason has more control than I do because I find myself lurching towards the cage. Crispen jumps back in horror and Aiden pulls me back by the collar of my shirt.