My parents aren’t my parents. Ryleigh isn’t my sister. I’m not just a witch. Hunter isn’t my best friend. I’m completely alone in this world.
“You’re hurting me now.”
“Eva …” he starts with empathy in his eyes. “I’m so sorry.”
“Yeah, me, too.” I trace the heart patterns on my comforter, a house warming gift from Ryleigh. When I think about her role in all this, my heart pierces with blinding pain.
While I love my parents and everything, I’ve never been super close to them. But Ryleigh and I … I always felt like we had a sisterly connection. I guess I was wrong.
“What about Ryleigh?”
“What about her?” Hesitancy laces his tone.
I peer up at him, but clouds have moved over the moonlight and the room has grown too dark to see him clearly. “Just how big of a role did she play in all this? And what about her death? Was that part of it, also? Do you guys know how she really died and just aren’t telling me?”
He shakes his head with zero indecision. “Ryleigh’s death is an unsolved case. But before she died, she’d been working a few cases.” He scratches the side of his neck, fidgeting. “Including the one I’m working on with the demons. There is suspicion that her death wasn’t an accident.”
“But the police said it was.”
“The police aren’t part of the society, and therefore, don’t have access to the same info and magical technology we do.”
“Which makes them clueless?”
He nods. “More or less.”
My mouth sinks into a frown. “Kind of like me, I guess.”
“Eva …” he starts, putting his other hand on my knee.
I swat both his hands away and spring to my feet. The second I stand upright, the room whirls around dizzily, the aftereffects of the sleep spell continuing to course through my bloodstream.
And just like that, it all crashes over me like a violent, powerful spell. I think about my parents, who aren’t really my parents. Ryleigh, who I thought was my sister. I’d been so upset when she died, and had been working so hard on that spell to bring her back. And while I still care for her enough that I don’t want her dead, my heart weeps over the fact that, even in her death, she never bothered to tell me the truth.
And then Hunter … My best friend Hunter … His betrayal might just hurt the most.
Hurt and anger current through my body as reality downpours over me. Slowly, I start to accept the truth. That almost everyone I’ve ever cared about has been lying to me.
That’s why I finally turn and run.
Chapter Eleven
“Eva!” Hunter shouts, but I’m already barreling out the door and down the hallway.
All the lights are off in the house, which I find odd. Peyton is a vampire and frequently goes out at night, but Opal isn’t much of a party girl and usually chills at home during the evenings.
Could something have happened to her? Did Hunter maybe do something to her?
The last thought leaves me feeling guilty, mostly because the trust spell is telling me to turn off my stupid thoughts and quit being ridiculous.
When I hear Hunter’s footsteps sound after me, I focus back on running away from him. But by the time I reach the top of the stairway, he’s hot on my heels.
I take each step two by two, and by some divine miracle, I manage to make it to the bottom without eating shit. (I seriously have issues with stairs.)
“You need to calm down,” Hunter demands as he chases after me. “And don’t you dare step foot outside.”
I make a mad dash straight for the door, more for show than anything. Deep down, I don’t know what to do or where to go—who to trust.
“Why? What’re you going to do to me if I do?” I grab the doorknob, flip on the light, and glance back to look at him. “Come on; fess up and tell me how you’re going to punish me if I disobey. Because the old Hunter would’ve just come outside with me.” I allow my gaze to deliberately move up and down him. “I’m guessing this new, weird, Goth Hunter might not let me get away with so much.”
He stops at the bottom of the stairs, gripping the banister. “What does how I dress have anything to do with this?”
“Because you look different,” I state.
When he squirms, another crack ruptures across my heart.
“This is how you look when you’re not around me, isn’t it? You dressed like this tonight because you knew you were going to have to tell me the truth.”
He wets his lips with his tongue, his lips parting as he starts to speak, but I talk over him.
“Do I even know the real you?”
He nods, but the movement isn’t steady. “You know me probably better than anyone …” He rubs his lips together, hesitating. “But truthfully, a lot of people don’t know the real me.”
I stare at him, wondering—and I mean, really wondering—if I can even be in love with him. Is it even possible to love someone you don’t really know?
“Look, I know this is hard to take in”—he dares a step off the final step—“but I need you to stay in this house … It’s important that you do.”
My fingers wrap tighter around the doorknob. “Why?”
He takes another step toward me, the floorboards creaking under his weight. “Because it’s dangerous out there.”
“Why now?” I wonder. “Why did it all of a sudden become so dangerous? Just because the demons took my sister?”
He shakes his head as he reduces the space between us even more. “That’s not the full reason.”
My heart pounds in my chest as he nears me. “Then tell me the full reason.”
“I don’t know the full reason yet.” He’s within arm’s reach now. “What I do know is that someone told the demons where your sister’s body was, and how you were trying to revive her. They knew how to get to you, which means someone close to you is a traitor.”
I want to say, like you, but the contract promise already revealed that he didn’t out Ryleigh’s location.
“Please just stay with me.” He sticks out his hand for me to take, his eyes silently begging me to listen to him.
Every instinct is urging me to slip my fingers through his. That while he’s lied to me, I can feel in my veins that he’s worried about me and just wants to protect me.
I step forward and start to reach for him, when Opal comes bursting down the stairs with her wings out.
“Hunter, we have a huge problem. The demons might know a way to get Eva to …” Her eyes widen as her gaze lands on me. “Oh, crap.”
“Wait …” I put two and two together and back away. “She’s part of this, too?”
“I was going to tell you. I was just waiting for the right time.” Hunter moves toward me with his arms extended.
I jump back, reach behind me, and throw open the door.
The wind howls and sends leaves and fog billowing around me and into the foyer. My hair whips around my face and goose bumps dot my arms.
“No!” Hunter cries, lunging toward me with his gaze trained over my shoulder at the outside.
I trip backward to get away from him and stumble over the threshold, almost going down. However, my back smacks against a rock-solid surface.
I stiffen and spin around, only to come face-to-face with the dark-haired, red-eyed demon I made the deal with.
“Eva, run!” Hunter shouts, snagging ahold of the hem of my shirt.
I start to let him haul me backward, but the demon places a hand on me and poof.
Just like that, we’re gone.
Chapter Twelve
When I regain consciousness, I have to blink several times to process where I am. Green grass and tree trunks are above my head, and the starry night sky is below my feet … What the hell? What is this? Upside down town?
“What the heck? Why is everything upside down?”
“Do I really have to answer that?” The demon’s voice sounds alarmingly close.
I blink and blink again,
putting together that the world isn’t upside down. I am. Because the demon has me slung over his shoulder and is carrying me somewhere.
“Where are we going?” I murmur, my brain fuzzy, probably from being upside down for so long.
“That will be revealed in time,” is all he says as dirt crunches underneath his shoes while he continues to hike toward the unknown.
Fear pummels through me, and I long for my magic wand. Sure, I suck at using it, but if for nothing else, I could stab him with the end of it.
“Are you taking me underground so the demons can drink from me or whatever?”
He chuckles. “Not even close.”
“Are you going to hurt me?”
My body jostles as he jumps over a rock.
He laughs darkly. “If I wanted to hurt you, I would’ve done it already.”
“What about my sister …? I mean, Ryleigh? You said you were going to get her body back.”
“I did.”
My heart leaps with hope. “Then where is she?”
“I dropped her off in your basement.” His hands wander to the back of my thighs, and he grips them tightly as he makes a sharp right turn up a twisting brick path. “Right before I took you.”
“Why have you taken me?” My fingers curl into fists. “This wasn’t part of the deal.”
“It wasn’t not part of the deal, either.”
I frown. “I can’t bring Ryleigh back to life if I’m here with you. And my time is already running out.”
“Don’t worry; time here moves much differently,” he assures me. “You may be here for a while, but when you return home, you’ll probably only have been gone for a few hours.”
“Where is here?” I wonder, lifting my head to peer around at the grassy hills, trees, and brick path. “It looks like a magical forest to me.”
“You’ll find that out soon enough,” he replies with a shrug.
I grimace, beyond frustrated. “Can’t you just tell me the truth? I really need some of that right now.”
“Patience, my little rainbow trout.” His grin is evident through his voice.
I sigh. Damn demons. They love getting their kicks and giggles by playing mind games.
Technically, don’t you, too, since you’re kind of one of them?
“Who are you, anyway?” I ask, trying not to think about what I may or may not be. Otherwise, I might start crying. And while I’m not super in tune with my demon knowledge, I know better than to cry in front of one.
Again, with the one, Eva, as if you aren’t part of their kind.
He gives a drawn-out pause, then, “For now, you can call me Max.”
“Is that your real name?”
He doesn’t answer, leaving me to come up with my own conclusions about who he is, what he is, where in the magical kingdom he’s taking me, and what he’s going to do with me once we get there.
Stolen Kisses
(Mystic Willow Bay Witches Series, #3)
By Jessica Sorensen
Stolen Kisses
Jessica Sorensen
All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2017 by Jessica Sorensen
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.
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For information: jessicasorensen.com
Cover design by Mae I Design
Created with Vellum
Chapter 1
Do you ever wonder if your life has been a complete and utter dream—or a complete and utter nightmare, depending on what kind of life you have? Or have you ever had one of those moments when you question if you’re dead and what you’re seeing is the afterlife, but you don’t realize it? Or do you sometimes question if you’re trapped in a coma and your mind has created a delusional world when you wake up in a demon lair with rap music booming through the stony walls? No? Huh. Well, I guess it’s just me then.
Just in case you ever do find yourself in these sorts of situations, take my advice: you’ll question if anything is real.
“What the hell happened?” I mutter, clutching my head and blinking around at what I can only assume is a demon lair. Well, either that or I’ve stumbled across a very high-tech bear cave.
I immediately shake my head. Seriously, Evalee, a high-tech bear cave? What the hell is wrong with my brain! That is the million-dollar question, isn’t it?
I rack my mind for how I got here, trying to put together the pieces of how I ended up lying in a bed, in a cave, with lantern lights covering the domed ceiling, a stereo with a pretty great base system, and the largest flat screen television I’ve ever seen.
Slowly, bits and pieces creep back to me …
Hunter confessing our entire friendship is a lie …
The secret society he, Opal, Ryleigh, and my fake parents belong to …
Me being some sort of part-witch, part-demon, part-creature in question freak …
Max the demon showing up, kidnapping me, and carrying me someplace where time moves faster than in Mystic Willow Bay …
Me begging Max to put me down when I started to feel dizzy …
Then blacking out after hanging upside down for too long.
“Freakin’ demons.” I press my fingertips to the brim of my nose and take a few measured breaths, telling myself to remain calm, that whatever’s about to happen can’t be any worse than finding out I’ve been lied to my entire life by everyone I thought cared about me. “It really can’t be worse,” I mutter, my heart clenching in pain. “Nothing can … I don’t think.”
Sucking in an inhale, I lift my head and sit up straight in the bed. I give my body a once-over to make sure everything is normal and that Max didn’t do anything to me while I was passed out, like … say curse me with a unicorn horn pox. Except for a couple of scratches, my pale skin appears free of any horns. However, my shorts do have a couple of tiny burn holes in the hem, and so does my black T-shirt and plaid shirt.
“What in the freaking smoking witches happened?” I slip my finger through one of the singed holes and frown. “Why does it look like someone pressed cigarettes into my clothes …? Or like a dragon breathed on me?” My eyes widen. Perhaps, while I was unconscious, we ran into a dragon.
Fearing other parts of my body are burnt, I push from the bed and shuffle toward a tall, oval mirror perched in the corner of the room. As the cool, jagged, rocky floor scuffs against my bare feet, I become aware that I’ve lost my boots. Well, either that or Max jacked them so I can’t easily run away.
Grimacing at the thought, I move in front of the mirror and examine my body. My long brown hair is a tangled mess, but fortunately appears the same length as always. And except for a black smudge across my left cheekbone, my face looks normal. Well, as normal as a face can look with weird rainbow eyes.
Blowing out a stressed breath, I comb my fingers through my messy hair then move on to my next problem—figuring out where in the bleep I am. I know from the small, glittering stream of water cascading down the walls that I have to be in a demon’s lair. But is this Max’s place? Why would he bring me here? Why did he take me at all? He never did give me any answers. He just told me that I could call him Max and that I’d be returned back to Mystic Willow Bay in time to save my sister. That means he’ll eventually let me go, right?
I nearly laugh at my stupid thoughts. Ha! Just because a demon says something, doesn’t make it true. In fact, usually every day is opposite day for a demon, most
of them being liars.
Which would make you a liar, too.
A shaky exhale trembles from my lips as reality crushes down on my shoulders.
I’m part demon. I’m part of the group of species that kills for fun, curses people for no reason, and lives underground; sometimes in sewers, and sometimes in gross, nasty lairs. Although, this lair doesn’t resemble any of the photos I’ve seen of demon lairs. Perhaps this room is the nicer section of it.
Summoning up every drop of courage I possess, I inch toward the arched doorway across from me to get a better look at where I am. The closer I get, the louder the music becomes, blasting out any other noise and giving me no sense of what’s going on.
Am I alone? Is a cluster of demons waiting for me to step out so they can feast on me?
According to Hunter, if a demon tries to drink my power, they die. I wouldn’t have believed him, if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes.
That revelation makes me feel a tad bit better, but any sense of comfort goes bye-bye, see ya on the next full moon when I exit the room and step out into a smoke-filled room with chairs, tables, and a fireplace.
Oh, yeah, and about ten flippin’ demons, both male and female, smoking cigars, drinking whiskey, and playing a game of cards.
I instantly screech to halt and start to back away, but it’s too late. I’ve already been spotted by every single one of them.
“Um …” I try not to panic, yet my anxiety shoots through the roof as ten pairs of red, bloodthirsty, murderous eyes fixate on me.
And all of them look ready to kill.
Chapter 2
Okay, maybe I jumped to conclusions when I said all of them look ready to kill. Only a couple look murderously bloodthirsty, but that could be that they’re just thirsty.
My guess is confirmed when a demon with sandy-blond hair and sporting a tux materializes in the room to refill everyone’s glasses.
Mystic Willow Bay, Witches Series: The Secret Life of a Witch Page 14