by C. M. Owens
I stifled a gasp when his blackened pools turned into soft brown eyes.
"You don't have to be on the dark side. Join the light." I realized how dopey and corny that sounded the second it left my lips. He'd distracted me from my pain by forcing me to focus on his, and all I wanted to do was help him. Psycho girl that I was these days.
He laughed bitterly before taking a deep breath.
"Not likely, Aria. I have my issues with the way things worked out for me. I plan to kill anyone who gets in the way for my plans. I will not be stopped. It's kind of sad though, since I feel a connection with you—almost like real family. I wish things could be different for that reason.
"I haven't had family in a long, long, long time. It's nice, but I'll accomplish my goals, and when the time comes, I'll take your life. Although you may not seek death so desperately then as you have today. Speaking of which... You may as well go on home. You're not dying today. I can't allow it."
He smiled tightly. My madness had tried to subside, but I was still craving a way out. "Sorry, but you'll have to blame Isis for that."
"It will save my family if I hand myself over. They'll stop looking for me if I'm found," I said quietly, looking down to my hands in my lap.
"No. It wouldn't. Graven wants you, but he'd still be after your family even if you weren't in the picture. It's the Coldwell curse. Taking your life won't do anything but break the hearts of the ones you leave behind, and your sacrifice won't be a sacrifice at all—it would be a pointless death attached to devastation."
His words resonated, and I fought back a new stabbing wave of painful pricks to my heart. He was right. As much as I hated him for it, he was right. My death would only free me, but it would destroy everyone else.
"Don't be this selfish, Aria. Don't destroy your family because you're hurting. Die with some dignity." He laughed as his dangerous grin spread. "When I kill you, for instance."
I didn't know whether to smile at that or not. I just nodded as I stood to walk away, regretting the explanation I would have to give my family later. But a whoosh of air left my lips when I was suddenly thrown over a shoulder, and being raced away with immortal speed.
A little startled and disoriented, it took me a few seconds investigate my newest attacker. But it wasn't an attacker. Between the glimpse I had of the sandy blonde hair and the close look I had of the tattoo on his arm, I could tell it was McKee.
Even though I was being hauled through the woods fast enough to steal my breath, I relaxed. Trees crashed and a black smoke crept toward us as Lokan raced behind us, gaining on us with each second. That smoke would kill McKee.
"Bodyguard!" I called, sighing in relief as he slowed down.
He smirked as he turned to walk away, shaking his head. I went from being over a shoulder to placed in the front of a familiar car within a matter of seconds. McKee was behind the wheel within the next breath, jerking the car on the road before the engine even had a second to register being cranked.
I smiled at his haste, and spoke reassuringly. "McKee, he won't chase us."
"You don't know that. He may be right behind us. He'll kill you, Aria. What the hell are you doing out here?"
He was focused on the road, but. His little red mustang made me think of the red wrapping paper.
"Thank you for my gift," I said, smiling as I veered the conversation.
His confused expression was comical, but instead of going back into panic mode, he murmured, "You're welcome."
He checked the rearview mirror as I clicked my seatbelt on, making sure to draw it tight. He relaxed, but he was still driving like a bat out of hell.
"Now tell me what you were doing out here," he repeats, his tone softer this time.
I really didn't want to talk about it. But at least this would be good practice for telling my family later on.
"I had a bit of a breakdown," I said through a weary sigh, ignoring the tears pricking my eyes. The next part would be the hardest to get out without falling apart. "Tallis met his soul mate—his real soul mate, apparently. I needed to get away."
Nope. I was too chicken to tell just how crazy I had gone. But I was holding back the tears. If I fell apart in front of McKee... I didn't want to risk it.
I could have sworn I saw McKee smile. That shouldn't have surprised me, though.
The smile faded very quickly into a stern, angry look before he scolded, "That's no reason to risk your life, Aria!"
Ah, crap. I wasn't about to tell him that I begged for someone to kill me.
I was distracted by the unfamiliar scenery we kept passing by now, and I really wanted a subject change. "Where are we?"
He smiled faintly, and his breathing changed as he calmed down again.
"I thought, maybe, if you didn't mind, we could go and talk. I know a safe, quiet place. I could really use a friend, and it looks like you could use one, too," he murmured softly while turning down a different road, one that seemed as secluded as the Verdans' road.
"Yeah, I could. I'm sure I could be a good listener, too." I smiled at him as I put my hand on his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"I'm sorry about what Taryn tried to do to you," he said, catching me off guard.
I had no idea how to broach that.
"I'm sorry you lost your sister," I said lamely, regretting how socially awkward I was when he winced.
But no one wrote a book on how to say "your crazy sister tried to kill me, so my empathic best friend used the sins from an evil soul sucker to kill her." So I sat there quietly instead of making the situation worse, and he studied the road ahead.
For a long while, neither of us said anything. Despite my best attempts, nothing I thought of to say would have made the air less tense, so I gave up.
"You had to defend yourself," he said at last, putting me out of my misery. "I wish I had been there to protect you."
His eyes were soft and in pain, and his voice was strained with guilt and regret. I hated how hard this must have all been on him. I also hated not knowing where we were going, but I trusted him.
He needed me, and considering I had just begged someone to kill me, I guess I needed someone, too—possibly someone licensed in psychiatry, but McKee would have to do.
Lokan was right about not being selfish. Ironically, I had been pulled back from the ledge by someone who was on a mission to kill me in the future. So twisted. When did my life get this complicated?
It wouldn't be long until he was my enemy. It was sad because I did feel some strange connection to him, just as he said—like we were family. Well, technically we were family, but I mean real family—the warm closeness you can only share with relatives. It shouldn't have been so prominent, considering I barely knew him and he was a vicious killer, but it was there.
A fight was coming, all of it spawned by bitter resentment that has been festering for centuries. I hated knowing that if his father hadn't killed himself, Lokan most likely would never have become a monster. But when and how was he planning to kill me? And what was Graven up to?
Sometimes I wished I could ask magic the questions that plagued me. There was no hierarchy in magic. The closest there had ever been was Isis and Allora. Even they didn’t have all the answers. There really needed to be a rule book or something to explain any and all situations, because I kept running into crap no one knew anything about. There also needed to be something to let you know when the rules changed—a magical whistle that blew like a referee calling a foul.
My thoughts were interrupted as we turned onto a driveway. An enormously glamorous mansion sat on a hill, complete with an immaculately manicured yard that seemed to be as large as a golf course. It made Iris's home and yard look like a shoebox in comparison.
The sparkling water fountain sat in the middle of the arced driveway, splitting up the loop. I half expected the mermaid in the center to be spewing liquid gold instead of mere water. I was fairly certain that my jaw was unhinged as I stared up at the sandstone home that towered o
ver us like a king's castle.
This place was hidden, sitting way off the small back road. It had markings—crests—like so many houses I had seen now. It was a magical house, but whose house was it?
"Where are we, McKee?"
He smiled, but it looked nervously excited. "You'll see. I think you'll like it here."
I turned to look out the window at the gorgeous stallions that were galloping up. I was about to ask if they were changers, when suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head. I tried to move, but darkness invaded my eyes, and phantom weights left my limbs immobile as everything faded around me.
Chapter 14
Trapped
Fear is a constant reminder of our mortality.
I groaned inwardly as my skull throbbed. My arms refused to move, but not because I felt paralyzed anymore. They were bound behind me and tethered to the chair I was sitting in.
The telltale killer stench was in the air, but it was so powerfully overwhelming and bountiful, making it unbearable. Quiet chatter piqued my interest, but I couldn't see. Fortunately, I wasn't blind—just blindfolded.
I wanted to scream, but the coarse fabric that was drawing my mouth back painfully was making that a little hard to do, considering it muffled each sound and restricted my vocal power. I started panicking and moving around until the chair tipped to the side, taking me with it. With me being bound, I couldn't do anything to defend myself. My already throbbing head bounced off the hard floor, and a pained whimper escaped me instead of the agony-laced scream.
Warm skin touched my hands, startling me and inciting more panic, but they were untying me.
"Was it really necessary to tie her up?" McKee growled. "What's she going to do?"
My blindfold came down, revealing McKee to me as he removed my gag and helped me up. I warily allowed him to take my hand and ease me up, slowly trying to understand what was going on in my groggy state.
McKee pulled the chair back upright, and he eased me onto it when my legs threatened to give out. My heart was thudding loudly in my chest as I slowly took in my surroundings, wondering where all the stomach-churning smells were coming from—or who.
The room looked like a normal, clean living room—if you didn't factor in the horrific stench. It was much too big to be called a mere living room, considering you could fit an entire orchestra in here and have room for an audience.
A large bay window was draped in red, satin curtains, and it was centered on the far wall. On the wall in front of me sat an oversized white fireplace.
"I like the dramatic affect, McKee. You know that by now," a girl's voice said, though no face was visible.
"What's going on?" I whispered, turning my accusatory glare at McKee.
Sickening chills invaded me, stealing what little bit of warmth I had left, as fear encased me and ensnared me with its unrelenting claws.
He smiled, denying me an answer. And his smile wasn't alleviating any of my fear. In fact, it only terrified me that much more. He was friends with these people.
I saw a guy with a bald head and a large chin come into view, and from there, numerous others started filtering in, each of them casually relaxing and keeping their space from me.
One guy leaned against the wall, smoking as he lazily looked me over. He was slender and creepy, his eyes almost covered by his shaggy hair. Then I saw McKee's mom and dad guarding the doorway, both of them expressionless—cold.
My voice was quiet and shaky as the pieces of the puzzle fell into place and screamed for my attention.
"You were all bad—not just Taryn. Traitors—all of you. You never cared about any of us at all," I said in a quiet rasp, the knot in my throat almost choking me.
McKee snarled, "We are not traitors, Aria. We're just fed up. It's time for a new era." His voice softened. "I'm willing to give you the chance to be a part of it, before it's too late."
"Be a part of what? The Dramus circle?" I gasped in disbelief at the fact he would even think I would consider that.
"It's actually the Graven circle now. Daddy has more power than Grandpa ever did," the lone girl's voice said again, but my sanity was once again in question when I never saw a girl.
But she walked out in front of me as her words sunk in. Daddy has more power than Grandpa ever did. She was Graven's daughter. The very realization cost me a ten seconds of breathing.
She was almost pretty in the worst bad-girl sort of way. She had long, shiny, silky black hair that hung pass her waist. Any other time, I might envy her for that.
She was slender and petite, but size was misleading in the immortal world. I'd seen that first hand with Ayla and Selesha. Wearing her black, skinny-leg pants with red high heels and a low cut red shirt, she was dressed to play the devil's advocated.
Her hands were covered by red and black leather gloves that fastened at the wrist and had the tips of the fingers cut out, exposing her manicured red fingernails. Her eyes were dark and smoky, with makeup to match, and her lips were a fierce candy-apple red.
Seeming bored, she walked across the floor, casually playing with the ends of her hair. Sounding disinterested, she spoke to McKee again.
"Let's get this over with. I've got other things to do today."
McKee rolled his eyes at her before he turned back to me. "Aria, there's so much you don't know, and I couldn't possibly tell you everything in one day, but I can promise you that if you just join me, you'll be making the right decision."
Swallowing hard, I weighed all the wise options, but lying and playing along had never been my strong suit. So instead of being smart, I chose the stupid route.
"McKee, you've gone mad. I can't be a part of this."
His eyes didn't falter, and he never acted surprised. At least he didn't expect me to cave.
"Aria, we can be together here. I can be your soul mate. You can forget about how Tallis hurt you, and you can be with me. Everything is so much easier on this side. People are looking over their shoulder for you, but you never have to look over your shoulder for anyone. You're the dominant power on this side."
Again, I'm given the opportunity to say something smart. But I was a really dumb girl who apparently had a death wish—again.
"You've lost your mind. I could never betray my family." Tears crept out before I could stop them. "I trusted you," I whispered, feeling weighted by his betrayal. "How could you do this to me? I'll never be your soul mate. How can you possibly even think that you love me, when you let your sister bring men in to kill me?"
Still, his temper didn't flare. Instead, he continued to speak pleadingly instead of angrily. "She was never supposed to hurt you. Her orders were to bring you to me, but sometimes things get messed up when witches are involved. I'm sure Warren got greedy and wanted you for himself. Just like so many others have in the past."
Graven's spawn rolled her eyes, seeming exasperated. "Oh please, McKee. She's a Coldwell. She's never going to join us. Get over it and quit delaying the inevitable. Daddy said I could have her."
She smiled menacingly at me, and her red lips exposed her white teeth. I half expected them to be pointy and jagged, but they were as perfect as the rest of her outward appearance.
She took a step toward me, but McKee stepped in front of her, blocking her path to me. She made sure to give him an exaggerated pout.
"Yastine, you don't get to make that call. Graven promised me I could try. I decide when she's not going to choose us. I've earned that much."
Yastine backed up, sighing in aggravation. McKee turned to me, looking even more determined.
"I love you, Aria, and I have since the moment I met you. Please consider the opportunity you have here."
Yastine began mocking gagging noises. McKee shot her an evil look, warning her. She rolled her eyes and quit, but she didn't look the least bit afraid of his glower. I shook my head, disbelief plaguing me.
"You don't love me. If you did, I wouldn't be here right now. I wouldn't have been knocked out, tied to a chair, and
held here against my will. That's not love. Besides, it wouldn't matter even if it was. You know I love Tallis."
I refrained from calling him a psycho, since that would probably get me killed quicker.
Yastine was snickering now, reveling in my refusal as though it was comical. McKee just ignored her this time.
"He's found his soul mate, Aria. You said it yourself. There's no chance of him ever being with you now. You don't have to worry about that on this side. We've discovered a way to choose our own soul mates. All you have to do is be willing to choose me. The power on this side is more than Iris and the rest of them will ever have. It's only a matter of time before the war begins.
"Magic is about to collide, Aria, and you're currently on the losing side. I'm stronger on this side than I ever was on yours. Just imagine how strong the two of us could be together.
"Graven is just looking for some reassurance. Once he finds it, Iris and the rest of them will be destroyed. You may as well choose us and live happily with me. No more pain at all. You won't ever have to feel threatened again by anyone."
He dropped to one knee in front of me, acting as though he was ready to propose. He reached for my hand, but I pulled it away hastily, treating him as though he was contagious.
"Right now, you're the only one threatening me. And I would rather live in pain for the rest of my short life, than spend an eternity with you."
Yastine's mocking laughter rumbled across the room, growing louder with each new breath.
"Shut up, Yastine!" McKee roared. "I don't need to deal with you on top of everything else right now."
She scoffed, "I just can't wait to say I told you so. I think it's so cute that you thought you would be the first to turn a Coldwell witch. It is burned into their veins to be good. They have no choice."
Though she was insulting and sarcastic, the way she looked at him made me believe she liked him. That was the real reason she was acting like a royal bitch. That was why she was in such a hurry to get me out of the way.