Lend took my hand in his as we walked outside into the brisk October morning, a breeze rising to greet us as soon as we stepped onto the sidewalk. Summer had lingered this year, reluctant to give up her hold. Only in the last week or so had a chill crept into the nights. The leaves were hinting at change, gold and red weaving their way in. After living in the climate-controlled Center for so long, I was definitely a fan of this whole seasons thing.
I was also a fan of my boyfriend. The sunlight gave an extra sparkle to his water eyes, and his nearly black glamour hair was shiny and oh so adorable. The day couldn’t have been more perfect.
“I have a present for you,” Lend said. Did I say the day couldn’t have been more perfect? Because it totally just got better.
“What for?” I squealed, not trying to hide my excitement. Presents in the Center had been few and far between, and, with Raquel as the main giver, painfully practical. There was the travel-size first aid kit for my twelfth birthday, the infamous encyclopedia Christmas (honestly, who buys those anymore? It’s called the internet), and of course, the pinnacle of craptacular gift giving: socks. Every. Single. Year.
But the box Lend took out of his pocket definitely didn’t have socks in it. “Is it sparkly?” I bounced impatiently on my heels as he opened it.
He laughed and pulled out a delicate silver chain, threaded through an open heart-shaped pendant. Three pink stones lining one edge stood out in contrast to the dark metal of the heart. I pulled my hair off my neck and he clasped it there, the trace of his fingers against my skin raising goose bumps.
I fingered the cool metal. “It’s beautiful!”
“Oh good. I’ve never given jewelry before.”
“Well, you’ve set a ridiculously high standard for yourself. Should have started out with something tacky.” I put my arms around his neck and hugged him close, breathing in his cool scent.
“It’s not just pretty, though.”
“No?”
“Practical, too. The heart is made of iron.”
Warmth flooded through me, a spurt of affection I should have been used to by now but that still always managed to surprise me. Leave it to Lend to find a way to protect me with faerie-repelling iron. Of course, this meant that he was almost as practical as Raquel, but his practical was sparkly and pretty. I ran my fingers through his hair. “Perfect.”
“It is?”
“You are. But the necklace is, too.”
We kissed until an old lady walking her dog coughed loudly in our direction, reminding us that we were, in fact, on the sidewalk and not in our own little world. I smiled sheepishly at her, only then noticing that she was a glamoured paranormal. Her froggish face, mottled green, didn’t really go with her floral housedress and slippers. This town? Weird.
She wouldn’t quit staring; I couldn’t figure out what she was, and suddenly I was nervous. I glanced at the sky, to check for errant clouds, but didn’t see anything. Tugging Lend’s hand so we’d keep walking, I shook off my unease. “What else is on the agenda for this morning?” I asked.
“Doesn’t the necklace get me off the hook for planning things?”
“Fine. But it only buys you today. You still have to figure out something for us to do tomorrow. And as for right now, I think food is in order. Lots. I forgot breakfast.”
“Okay, we can—” Lend’s phone rang and he pulled it out of his pocket, frowning at the number. “One sec.” He answered it and I plotted what to do with the rest of the hours in the weekend. The movies this afternoon with Arianna, after which I had a secret plot to drag her out for karaoke. She denied it, but I totally caught her belting Duran Duran in the shower. If that didn’t work out, I was thinking bowling. I’d never gone and was guaranteed to be horrible, but it’d be fun with Lend. Maybe we could even double with Carlee and whatever boy she was currently dating.
My stomach sank as I tuned into the conversation.
“All of it?” Lend asked, his voice tight. “Can you— No, calm down, it’s okay, it’s not your fault. I’m glad you didn’t get hurt. I can come back up. Are you sure everyone’s stuff is gone?” He closed his eyes, holding back a sigh. “Okay, give me an hour or two to get there.” He hung up and stared at the phone as though he could erase the conversation.
And, just like that, my weekend evaporated. “What?”
“Natalie, a girl in my group, was in charge of compiling everything. Some guy stole her bag at the Metro station—took her laptop, all the notes, everything. We’re screwed. I’ve got to go and help them put it all back together. It’s three weeks’ worth of work.” His jaw was clenched with stress.
For the briefest moment I was tempted to tell him that getting a double degree in biology and zoology didn’t matter. At all. In the grand scheme of his immortal life, this one stupid college group project? Not even a drop in the bucket. But . . . if he knew he was more elemental than human, would he quit school? Quit normal life?
Quit me?
Yeah, so not telling him. Not right then, anyway. I mean, if he had eternity, what difference did it make if I told him tomorrow or ten years from now? He wasn’t getting any less immortal. Of course, maybe if I told him, I could be around him without feeling guilty. But I’d waited this long, and I didn’t want to make today even worse.
“Evie?”
“What?”
“I’m sorry. I know this sucks.”
“Oh, yeah. I mean, it sucks, but you gotta do what you gotta do, right?” I gave him my best aren’t I a supportive girlfriend? smile.
We hurried back to the diner, the happy spring in my step dead. So the trees were changing color. Big bleeping deal. Lend made a few calls, but in spite of his best efforts it was clear he needed to be there to help fix it. He left me with a lingering, regretful kiss and nothing to do for the next two days except homework.
“Back already?” Arianna asked when I walked in, headphones on and voice way too loud.
“He had to go back to school.”
“Lame.” She actually looked up now and frowned, seeing my face. “That kinda makes your weekend suck, doesn’t it. Wanna go . . . I don’t know, hang out in some dark alley with me until the sun goes down?”
I forced a laugh. “No worries. You keep exacting virtual revenge. We’re still on for the movie this afternoon.”
“Fine, but I’m not holding your hand.”
“Thank heavens for that.”
She put her headphones back on. I trudged to my room and flopped onto my bed.
And screamed as my door slammed shut. A figure stepped out from behind it. “Rather pink in here, isn’t it?”
A Trashy Life
My heart stopped. For one horrible moment I thought Reth was in my room. And then I picked up the nearest object—a shoe—and threw it straight at Jack’s head.
“What are you doing in here, you little weasel?”
He picked up my shoe from where it had clattered to the floor after hitting the door behind him. “How do you walk in these heels?” He sat and removed his own shoe, trying to jam his foot into my purple sling-back.
I stalked over and yanked it away. “What are you, five? Answer my question.”
He looked up at me, impossibly big blue eyes wide with innocence. “I thought we were friends, after you made me strip and all.”
“I’m calling Raquel.”
“Fine, fine. I was just doing some reconnaissance.”
“Reconnaissance?”
“Oh, sorry, that’s a big word, isn’t it? It means I was scoping the scene, getting the—”
“I know what it means! What, is IPCA investigating me now? Screw them, they can forget about any help from—”
“Do you ever let anyone else finish a sentence?” He smiled at my glare, flashing his dimples. “That’s more like it. You’re much prettier when you aren’t talking. True of most people, I’ve found. Anyhow, I needed to see the address Raquel gave me so that I could find it again.”
“Why?”
“
As you so graciously pointed out the other day, I’m not a faerie. I need to see a place before I can open a door there. Or at least open a precise door there. Otherwise it’s anyone’s guess how close I’ll get.”
I sat down on the edge of my bed. As long as the weirdo was already here, I might as well get some answers. It had been nagging at me: how he could do what he did? It shouldn’t be possible. “How did you learn? To use the Paths, I mean.”
His mouth twisted into an impish grin. “Don’t let my good looks fool you. I’m terribly clever.”
I rolled my eyes. “Clearly. But you still shouldn’t be able to use the Paths.”
He shrugged, standing. “Watch and wait long enough, want something bad enough, and you can figure out a way to make it happen. I make a lot of things happen.” Smiling enigmatically, he reached out a hand to my wall. “I’ll pick you up later?”
“I haven’t agreed to anything.” I narrowed my eyes.
“Of course,” he said, distracted as he focused on the white lines snaking out to make a door. “So, I’ll pick you up later, then.”
“No! Don’t you listen to anything? Tell Raquel I’m not going to—”
Before I could finish my sentence he walked through the faerie door, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like, “Girls are annoying.”
The wall formed again behind him, becoming the innocent recipient of my withering glare. Jack might look my age, but he was like a little kid on a sugar high—in need of a good spanking.
Good heavens, that sounded creepy. I lay back on my bed and closed my eyes. What a mess. I focused on letting the stress melt out of my body, letting myself drift into a restful, weightless state. It felt like if I could find peace, think things through, everything would be okay with my life, with Lend and me. I could figure out how to tell him the truth just right so that he wouldn’t even think of giving up on his mortal lifestyle. I’d come up with some way for us to work, some way for me to have all the important people in my life in my life, for as long as I wanted them to be.
A loud rapping on the door jarred me, shattering whatever epiphany I was undoubtedly about to reach.
“EVELYN, GET YOUR LAZY, SCRAWNY, PALE BUTT OUT OF BED RIGHT NOW.”
I opened my eyes with a roll, then walked out to the hall, feeling justifiably surly. “You have volume control on that mouth?”
Arianna shrugged. “You sleep like the dead. Nona needs help downstairs.”
“Great. Exactly how I wanted to spend my weekend. Lend free and grease filled.”
“Funny, I’d choose sleeping in and going shopping, but to each her own. Get down there.”
“What about our movie?” I whined, hoping that Arianna would help get me out of work.
“Creature of the night and all that jazz. I’m good with a late show.”
“Fine.” I stomped down the stairs, sulkily pulling my apron down off its hook on the wall and fastening it. It was great having an income now that I didn’t have an IPCA spending account (and, trust me, I missed that account something fierce), but working in a diner was a little less interesting than going on bag-and-tag missions.
And by a little I mean a lot. Keeping with the charming diner cow theme, we had to wear skirts—poodle-style skirts—in cow print. Cow print. There are many animal prints that are fabulous in any style. Cow is not one of them. It’s insulting, really. Which was why I stubbornly kept my own skinny jeans on. I wasn’t scheduled, I wasn’t going to dress bovine.
Just my luck, Grnlllll (or was it four l’s? Or a double r, triple l? If you think Welsh is weird, try reading Gnomish) was in the kitchen. Gnomes are earth elementals and usually live under the ground, mining and digging. They even look kinda like moles, with furry heads of hair; small, squinty eyes; and noses more snoutish than anything else. They’re happiest burrowing around in the dark and damp. What on earth Grnlllll was doing in this bright kitchen I had yet to figure out, but whatever it was, it certainly wasn’t making her happy.
And her French fries? Not good.
Grnlllll growled something at me that I didn’t bother trying to interpret, and I went out to take orders. Afternoon business was pretty typical—mostly the local paranormals, which meant an abundance of steaks so rare I could hardly stomach looking at them and shakes, the ingredients of which I didn’t even want to think about.
Things picked up as evening began curling against the windows with its cold insistence. My feet and back ached, and if I had to smile one more time and pretend like I didn’t notice the vamp in the corner licking his lips whenever I walked by, I was pretty sure I would scream. It was bad enough that half of the local vamps tried to use their mind- control powers to convince me I didn’t want a tip.
I always want a tip, you undead creeps.
Still, it was kind of funny watching vampires get more and more frustrated when they couldn’t persuade me. David and Arianna had kept my glamour-piercing abilities secret, which I appreciated. It made things less complicated.
I ripped off the bill and slapped it down on Lip-licker’s table. “Fifteen percent, like always.”
He scowled, then his face smoothed into a stunning smile. Stunning if you couldn’t see through his glamour to notice that every single tooth was grinning out at me through his rotting cheeks. He reached out to try and take my hand, but I whipped it away.
“Seriously. Fifteen percent or I’m slipping garlic powder into your next Bloody Mary.”
He fixed me with a scowl that could launch a thousand horror novels. I smiled. Muttering murderous things under his breath, he pulled out his wallet and handed over the money.
“Come back soon,” I chirped, beaming as I went back to the cash register. I might not have Tasey on me regularly, but I could still best vamps.
Nona swished by. Even the way she walked looked like a tree swaying in the wind. Local guys, non-paranormals, came by the diner sometimes to watch her. If they could see her hollowed-out tree trunk of a back, complete with tail, they’d probably feel different.
Then again, you never know with guys. And she was a pretty hot tree.
She stopped in front of me, smiling. “Thank you for working tonight.”
“Sure. Oh, hey,” I said, remembering my earlier question. “I’ve been seeing more and more paranormals that I don’t recognize. Does David know about them?” I met with him and Arianna pretty regularly to go over paperwork and details for their little operation, but I didn’t know everything.
Nona waved a hand gracefully through the air. “There is no danger. Would you mind helping Grnlllll in the kitchen? She cannot get the trash out on her own.”
My stomach sank. Trash duty. Great. The gnome was shorter than the trash bags, but of course we couldn’t get smaller bags, oh no, so I got to be on call any time the filth was full. And taking out the trash meant the Dumpster, and I had to actually touch it to get it open, and it was sticky.
STICKY.
I’m really not a lazy person, but for the last eight years of my life all I had to do was pick up my things. I couldn’t exactly take the Center’s trash out to the curb, considering it was a sealed underground complex. Diner trash was enough to make me nostalgic for those sterile white halls. Better sterile than sticky and smelly.
Back in the kitchen Grnlllll pointed in the direction of the trash—which she had let overflow and spill onto the floor. Trying to ignore the gag building at the back of my throat, I heaved the bag out of the can. It flopped into my leg, leaving a vile, dark smear of disgusting on my jeans. Brilliant.
Grnlllll’s voice graveled something at me as she pointed angrily to the streak I was creating as I dragged the bag along the floor, but at this point I didn’t care. I should have had this whole weekend off. I should have been snuggled up next to Lend right now, making fun of a bad movie with him and Arianna. I didn’t ask for this.
Besides, she may have been too short for the Dumpster, but she wasn’t too short to mop.
I kicked open the metal door leading to the
dark back alley, gulping at the night air as the stench of rotten food assailed my nostrils. I could feel it lodging in my sinuses, and I wondered if I would ever be able to smell anything else.
The single light above the door flickered. I’d probably have to replace the bulb, too. Stupid gnome. Taking a deep breath, I walked to the Dumpster between our brick wall and the next building, flipped open the lid, and threw in the bag—and a big glop of something fell straight out onto my shoe.
“Bleep!” I screamed to the wall in front of me. “Bleep, bleep, bleep!” I kicked the Dumpster, then grabbed at my foot. Now I was dirty, my toes hurt, and I felt like an idiot. I closed my eyes, pinching the bridge of my nose. It was okay. This was okay. I would go upstairs, take a shower, and go to bed. For the rest of the weekend.
The light flickered off, then came back on. Too bright. Way too bright. I opened my eyes to see the lines of another faerie door forming on the wall next to the Dumpster.
“Go away,” I snapped. “I’m not in the mood.” If Raquel thought sending idiot Jack repeatedly would help her cause, she was wrong.
A figure, taller than Jack and more beautiful by far than anyone else I knew, stepped out of the door.
“Now really,” he said, his voice liquid gold, “that’s hardly the welcome I expected, my love.”
Ex Marks the Spot
Reth. In front of me. In the alley behind the diner. I couldn’t sort out whether the fluttering in my stomach was fear or excitement. How had I forgotten what a beautiful, beautiful thing he was? Looking at him now, glowing faintly with warmth in the cold dark, all the feelings for him I’d ever been overwhelmed with flooded back in.
Including all the terror and pain he’d caused, so yeah, I wasn’t going to jump him or anything. But still, he was pretty to look at. And the last thing I wanted to see right now. Or ever, really. I held up a hand, palm out. “I’m not going anywhere with you!”
Reth raised one eyebrow. “There’s no need for crass threats. I don’t wish to take you anywhere. Except perhaps out of this alley, in an effort to escape some of the stench.” He looked pointedly at my stained apron.
Supernaturally (Paranormalcy) Page 4