by J. L. McCoy
“You’re going to behave now, aren’t you?” Aoife asked, drawing my attention back to her. I looked up at her and sighed unhappily, but nodded. I was absolutely exhausted and, although I was still furious, I didn’t have another round in me.
“Say it out loud that way I know if you’re telling the truth or not,” Aoife ordered patiently.
“Yes, Aoife,” I sighed again, “I’ll behave.”
“Truth,” she smiled brightly. “Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s go have us a little chat.” She motioned with her hands and Seamus, Quinn, and Lochlan lifted the chair I was in and walked me over to the front of the sectional sofa. They set me down by the coffee table but didn’t let go of my arms or legs.
Archer was seated in the tan chair again and I stared cold daggers at him as everyone took their seats. Trey came over to me and I saw that he had Styvi Nix in his arms.
“All your yelling gave her a terrible fright,” he said carefully and my heart immediately constricted at the sight of her.
“Give her to me, please” I said and he looked up at Seamus.
“I think it’s safe to let her go now. Aoife said she intends to behave herself,” Trey said.
I felt my arms being released at the same time Lochlan let go of my ankles. I immediately held my arms out and gratefully accepted Styvi from him.
“I’m sorry, girl,” I said as I nuzzled her face and let her lick mine.
Trey followed Lochlan and Seamus to the couch without another word and sat down. We all were quiet for a few moments as we looked around at each other.
“If you have something to say to me, you need to come right out and say it,” I seethed unhappily, my patience wearing thin.
“I’m sorry,” Archer said immediately. “I’m sorry we had to do that to you, but I had to be sure.”
“Had to be sure of what?” I questioned edgily.
Archer sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He sat forward in the chair and rested his forearms on top of his knees as he looked over at me. “I was worried about a Trojan Horse scenario.”
“Trojan Horse scenario?” I frowned, my brow furrowed with the confusion I felt.
“Yes,” Archer explained patiently. “Do you remember the legend of the Trojan War? It’s said that the Greeks built a giant wooden horse and hid a small number of men inside. When the Greeks pretended to sail away, the Trojan’s took the horse into their city as a victory trophy. Under the cover of night, the Greeks inside the horse emerged and opened the city of Troy’s gates, allowing the men that had returned on the ships to enter and finally destroy the city.”
“I know the story,” I said, shaking my head with impatience. “I’m an Ancient History and Classical Civilizations major, remember?”
“Yes. I’m sorry,” Archer apologized as he dropped his head, pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “As I was saying, I thought that there was a possibility that, during your captivity, Amun did something to you, effectively turning you into a Trojan Horse to gain access to us.”
“But he didn’t,” I whispered in shocked surprise. “What gave you that idea?”
Archer looked up at me and frowned. “Your dreams. You said this morning that Amun was coming to you in your dreams and that he said he was controlling them. You also said how…conflicted you felt after he left and that gave me serious pause.”
I worried at my bottom lip, deep in thought, as I remembered my dream. I thought back to some of the things Amun said, and how real it felt, and I nervously met Archers ice blue gaze. “Am I a Trojan Horse?”
“No,” Archer said, shaking his head. “Thank God no.”
“How do you know?” I asked, wide eyed and worried. “How can you be sure?”
“Since I couldn’t get a clear vision of your dreams as you said they happened, I had Hunter read you.”
I blanched at the memory of the pain Hunter caused me and I shivered involuntarily.
“I’m so sorry, Skye,” Hunter whispered from the couch.
“And?” I prompted Archer, not looking at Hunter. “What did you see?”
Archer looked over to Hunter and nodded once. Hunter nervously cleared his throat and explained. “I…uh, had a hard time accessing to your memories,” he said quietly in his slick southern lilt. “Something fought me tooth and nail, but when I finally did get through, I witnessed your whole life. I…”
“What? You saw my whole life? What the hell, Hunter? That is a gross invasion of my privacy!” I fumed, cutting him off. “My mem…”
“I’m sorry,” he said firmly, cutting me off in return. “I can’t control how much information gets transferred or what I see. It just happens, Skye.”
Styvi Nix jumped down, interrupting our argument, and padded over to Jameson. I watched as he leaned over in his seat and gently picked her up, placing her on his lap. She snuggled down into his arms, sighed once, and closed her eyes. Jameson glanced over to me and shrugged his shoulders.
I looked over at Styvi with pursed lips. Traitor, I thought unhappily. I was furious with my vampire ‘friends’ at the moment and she, the canine love of my life, was snuggling up with them.
“As I was saying,” Hunter continued, “When I saw your life, I saw your dreams too. I was able to see every dream you had after your captivity and your dreams featuring Amun.”
“Did he do something to me?” I asked, terrified of the answer. “Is he controlling my dreams?”
“Yes,” Hunter said sympathetically, “he is controlling some of your dreams. For reasons unknown, he is able to dreamwalk with you. That shouldn’t be possible given that he doesn’t have divine powers.”
“What about drinking the blood of someone who does have the divine power to dreamwalk?” I asked suddenly. “Do you think he drained another Day Walker?”
“No,” Archer spoke up. “The only dream walker known to our race died centuries ago. Amun was in captivity at that time and there is no way that he could have absorbed his power. Even if he had, you told us that he said the powers given to him through blood don’t last very long.”
“Well, if he didn’t drain someone, how does he have the power to come to me then?” I asked, frustrated.
“I don’t know,” Hunter answered. “What I was able to read from you, before you had the heart attack, didn’t show me. I got halfway through your last dream of him when I could go no further because of the distress your body was in. I saw you stabbing him and I saw him laughing, but that was it.”
“I-I had a heart attack?” I asked incredulously, furiously, as I slowly stood up from my chair. “You gave me a heart attack?!”
Out of the corner of my eye, I became aware of Seamus and Lochlan. They had flashed to stand a few feet away from me; ready to intercept me if I attacked someone again.
“Sit down, Morrison,” Hagan growled authoritatively from the couch. I eyed him with a furrowed brow, but ultimately obeyed. Hagan could kick my ass six ways from Sunday; I knew that firsthand. I definitely did not want to tango with him if I didn’t have to.
“Fine,” I growled back, crossing my legs, “but someone needs to explain to me how I had a frickin’ heart attack.”
“Your body couldn’t handle the stress that it was put under,” Archer answered carefully. “Your heartbeat became too fast and erratic, and you had a mild heart attack.”
“Am I okay now?” I asked fearfully.
“Yes. Jameson completely healed you. You are as you were,” Archer explained and I sighed in relief.
“I’m sorry,” Hunter said quietly.
“Stuff your sorrys, mister,” I growled savagely. “Do you have any idea what you did to me? Do you know what that felt like? That was the worst pain I’ve EVER been through! It burned…like you were setting my blood on fire. And my mind…it felt like you were ripping my brain in two! Do you have any idea what that feels like?!”
“That wasn’t supposed to happen!” Hunter yelled, flashing to his feet. I had never seen Hunter angry befo
re and it shocked me. He was always the most laidback of everyone in the group. “Blood sight is a painless process. I get that it wasn’t in your case, and I’m so sorry for that, but I don’t know what the hell went wrong! It wasn’t something I did! It wasn’t my fault, dammit!”
“Tóg go bog é, dheartháir,” Archer said soothingly. “Tóg go bog é.” He spoke to him briefly in Irish-Gaelic and motioned with his hand for Hunter to take a seat. Hunter complied and leaned over to rest his head in his hands. He rubbed his face a few times, sighed and then sat back up. He was calmer than he was a moment ago, but he was still upset. Guilt, sorrow, confusion and anger played across his brow.
“I can’t explain what happened to you, Skye,” Archer sighed. “No one can. My only guess is that it has something to do with you; your mind. It seems to be a little different from other human’s minds. You are able to shield your thoughts from me occasionally and this shouldn’t be possible.”
“But, I don’t always try to keep you out,” I explained, shaking my head. “And I’m not conscious of the times when I’m actually able to.”
“I know. Sometimes I hear your thoughts as if you had spoken them aloud. Sometimes, it’s silence. I don’t fully understand it myself, but that’s why I say that I believe the issues with Hunter’s blood sight originate with you.”
I was quiet for a few moments as I let all the information I had just been given sink in. When I looked back up at Archer, I wasn’t livid anymore; I was deeply, deeply hurt. “Why didn’t you just tell me?” I asked softly, my face crinkled with the pain I felt. “Why not explain what you thought was happening and let me agree to you reading me? I would have consented to it if I had known all the facts. What you did to me…it’s unforgiveable. You held me down against my will and mind-raped me. I was absolutely terrified. I thought Hunter was trying to kill me.”
I sighed as I stood up and fought the sting of tears. “What you, Trey, and Hunter did to me…y’all are no better than Amun. He tortured me to get what he wanted and so did you.”
I turned to gaze out the window and suddenly, desperately, wanted to get out of the house. I knew I couldn’t go anywhere on my own because of Amun’s ever-present threat, so poolside would have to suffice. Without another word, I hobbled on one shoe out the back door.
Chapter Eight
After stripping down to my white bra and boy shorts, I dove into the cool waters of Archer’s pool and began doing laps free-style. I had to do something physical to take my mind off the inner pain that I was experiencing. I focused on each stroke, each kick, and each turn. I threw myself into the workout and didn’t stop until my body forced me to.
I climbed out of the pool and noticed Killian standing on the far edge of the backyard. He had his back to me and he was actively scanning our surroundings for danger. I walked over to the patio table and found a bottle of water and a towel next to my clothes. I was glad someone brought them out to me, but I was also glad they didn’t try to stop and talk to me. I wasn’t ready to see anyone just yet; my emotions were still too raw. I wrapped up in the fluffy white towel, chugged the bottle of water and made myself comfortable on one of the loungers. The warm rays of the sun felt heavenly against my cool, dewy skin.
I was almost asleep when a shadow suddenly crossed my face, blocking the light and heat. I opened my eyes, shielding them with my hand, and saw Pádraig standing beside me.
“I’m sorry to bother you, but Trey wanted me to tell you that everyone leaves for work in an hour,” he said carefully. “If you were planning on going tonight, you might want to get ready.”
“Uh, thank you Pádraig,” I said a bit uneasily. To say I was a little gun-shy around vampires right now was a huge understatement; they made me positively panicky. “I’ll go get ready.”
I sat up and grabbed my bundle of clothes and my one black, Converse Chuck Taylor sneaker and started walking back to the house.
“You know,” Pádraig said behind me and I stopped to glance back at him. “Trey is a good person, Miss Morrison. He would have never done anything to intentionally hurt you. He wouldn’t intentionally hurt anyone. He’s very upset with himself right now and I don’t like seeing him that way.”
I fully turned around, cocked my head to the side in deep thought and stared at him.
Pádraig rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and sighed. “He loves you, you know. You’re the closest thing to a real sister he’s ever had. Knowing that he hurt you and knowing that you’ll never forgive him for it…well, it’s tearing him up inside.”
“How do you know all this?” I questioned.
“I can read minds like Archer…and Trey told me some. We…talk. A lot,” he answered nervously and a bit cautiously.
My eyes got wide as he finished his sentence. I don’t know why I had never seen it before now, but it all suddenly made sense. The late night talks by the pool, Trey keeping Pádraig company on his watch shifts, them always riding home together from The Mausoleum, and how Pádraig was more relaxed and open around Trey than with anyone else. I took a deep breath and slowly let it out.
“You and Trey make a good couple, Pádraig,” I said honestly. “I’m glad he has you.”
With that I turned back around and made my way through the back door and straight to my room. Thankfully, everyone was in their own rooms getting ready for the night, so I didn’t have to face anybody. I dreaded going to work this evening but I knew I was going to need the money if I was quitting. Maybe Dan will take me back at Drop Kick’s, I thought hopefully.
I hopped in the shower, rinsing off all the chlorine, then toweled off and quickly blew my long hair dry. I carefully did my makeup next, wearing it extra dark to match my mood, and I put on a mixture of blood red and black lipstick, giving me the darkest red lips possible. I chose a black vinyl tank mini dress, fishnets, and black thigh-high stiletto boots to complete the look. After throwing on some perfume and a few gothic jewelry items, I grabbed my messenger bag and prepared to walk out of my room. Remain calm, get to the club, do your job, and remember to breathe, I thought silently. You’ll be out of here and away from these monsters before you know it.
I opened the door and froze; fear suddenly coursing through me at the thought of being around vampires all night long. I was terrified of being hurt and I definitely didn’t trust them right now. I popped my head out into the hallway and looked both ways. No one was around, so I tiptoed down to Archer’s office and quietly opened the door. He wasn’t in there, thank God, so I went over to the weapons case on the wall, pulled out a drawer, and selected a silver dagger. I wasn’t going to let anyone hurt me again and would go down fighting if I had to. I quickly slipped the eight-inch dagger into the inside of my thigh-high boots and shut the drawer. I turned around just in time to see Archer walk in.
He stopped in his tracks and eyed me cautiously. “Were you looking for me?”
“Uh..yes,” I stumbled then took a deep breath to calm my sudden racing heart. “I, uh…was wondering if everyone was ready to go.”
Archer stepped into the room and I unconsciously took a step backward. He slowly set a stack of papers down on his desk, eyeing me as if I was a wild animal about to bolt, and went back to the door. “You don’t have to be afraid of me. I’m not going to hurt you. I’m sorry I had to do that to you, but I couldn’t take a chance of not knowing if my suspicions were true or not. Amun is a dangerous creature and we do not yet know the extent of his power or abilities.”
“I-I can’t talk about this right now,” I said, clutching my bag to me. “Can we please just go?”
Archer sighed, frustratedly ran his fingers through his hair, and opened the door wider. “After you,” he said and motioned with his hand.
“No, that’s okay,” I said hurriedly. “I’ll just follow you out.”
He gazed at me sadly before turning and leaving the office. I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding and took another deep one in. Get ahold of yourself! “Two weeks,” I reminded mysel
f aloud and swallowed hard, stuffed my sudden terror deep down, squared my shoulders and made myself leave the room.
As I walked into the foyer, everyone was walking out the front door. As I was the last to leave, Archer held the door open for me again and I bravely made myself walk past him. I stepped down the drive and was met with another challenge. Who the hell do I ride with? Trey and Pádraig had the Audi R8, Jameson was sitting in the 911, Hunter and Quinn were in Quinn’s truck, Seamus, Lochlan and Emrick were in the DeVille, Aoife was in the passenger seat of the Lambo so I knew Archer was going to drive, and Killian and Hagan were in the front seat of the Escalade. I didn’t like my options, but found that the person I feared the least out of the group was Jameson. I sighed unhappily as I slowly made my way up to the black Porsche.
I have got to buy a new car, I thought miserably as I opened the door and slid in.
“Hey,” Jameson said, surprised, wearing a careful smile. “I’m glad you decided to ride with me.”
“Lesser of two evils,” I mumbled as I buckled my seatbelt, hugged my messenger bag to me, and stared out the passenger door window.
Jameson took the hint and put the car into gear. We were second to leave and followed Trey and Pádraig down the drive. As we got onto the highway, Jameson sighed and looked over at me.
“I didn’t know what they were planning to do, Skye; I swear,” he said carefully. “All I know is that I was asleep in my bed and Emrick came around to everyone’s door and told us that Archer wanted everyone to wait outside the house and to be quick about it. Pádraig could mentally read the thoughts of you guys inside and started telling us a bit about what was happening. He conveyed your fear… I wanted to come to you so bad, but Killian and Pádraig held me back. You have to believe me, Skye. I had no idea they were planning to do that to you.”
“Excuses are like assholes, Jameson,” I sighed, still staring out the window. “Everyone’s got one and I couldn’t care less what yours is.”
“Are you breaking up with me?” he asked suddenly, worry etched in his voice.