When the Grave Calls

by B. L. Brunnemer

  He nodded as he set down the screwdriver.

  “So, they give you a job and send you off as a baby?” I asked, hoping to take his mind off of Lexie. “Without instruction? Isn’t that kind of rough?”

  He nodded. “That’s the way it is. Familiars aren’t running through the streets. There aren’t a lot of us. Our instincts usually guide us in the right direction. Once a contract was made, my entire purpose was to protect Lexie. From nightmares, to her enemies, shadow people, demons, humans, all of it.”

  “And that’s where you run into a problem with Lexie. She’s saying the opposite of your instincts.” At least that was clear.

  He nodded again.

  A question came to mind, an old one. One that I needed to know the answer to. “Have you ever thought to protect her from me?”

  His head snapped up, his eyes meeting mine. “No.”

  “I mean”—I took a breath— “did you ever get the feeling that I shouldn’t be near her? That I might hurt her?”

  “Never.” He tilted his head to the side in a very Lexie manner. “You don’t have that in you, Zeke.”

  My eyes began to burn as I looked down at the floor. “How can you tell?”

  “Instinct,” he said. “There’s a level of soul death that accompanies abusers, and I don’t see that in you.”

  I glanced up at him. “Soul death?”

  “Parts of their souls that are dead or damaged,” he explained. “It happens sometimes by going through trauma. Some are born that way, some are taught to be that way, but it all results in the same kind of rot on their souls that is deep down. You don’t have that.”

  Relief had me leaning against the truck. “Thanks.”

  “No, thank you,” Hades said. “I think you’re right. I should give her some space and time.”

  “No problem.” I watched as the familiar walked out of the garage, still confused. I could only hope I gave him good advice. His words ran through my head. I didn’t have soul rot. I wasn’t my father.

  Lexie

  I was half asleep in Miles’ room when something broke the silence. A voice, small and sobbing.

  I bolted upright, trying to find the source of the sound.

  Miles opened his eyes. “Angel? What’s wrong?”

  “Not me,” I whispered.

  He sat up beside me as I searched the room.

  A small, frightened whimper drew my attention to the corner of the room. A girl was curled up there. Her small face looked up at me, her light eyes wide as tears poured down her face. “Make it stop.”

  My breath caught. It was the girl from my dreams. I pushed back my covers and got to my feet. In that time, she blinked out of existence.

  “Did you see what I saw?” Miles got out of his side of the bed.

  I nodded. “That’s the girl from my dream.”

  “Where’d she go?” Miles asked, worry lining his face.

  Our eyes met a heartbeat before we rushed out of the bedroom.

  Miles went to Isaac’s room while I hauled ass down the hall to Zeke’s.

  We both pounded on doors until everyone was awake.

  After a thorough search we met in the living room.

  Jessica shoved her mussed hair out of her face and squinted at us. “What is the matter with you people, don’t you ever sleep?”

  “Not when a possibly dead girl is wandering around the house.” Ethan walked past her and went to me. His hand went to my lower back. “Did you call Uma?”

  I nodded then turned to the others as they reached us.

  Isaac moved to stand beside Jess. Zeke took my other side while Asher and Miles filled in the rest of our circle.

  “Uma?” Jessica asked.

  “She’s the head of the witches in town,” I said absently. “Did anyone find anything?”

  All the guys shook their heads.

  “Every ward I saw was intact,” Asher said.

  “Ward?” Jessica turned to look up at her brother.

  “It’s a protection symbol, it keeps the dead out of the house and away from Ally,” Asher answered.

  “So, she wasn’t dead,” I surmised.

  The front door opened. Uma walked in swathed in a lavender robe. “What do we know?”

  The boys moved over for Uma to join the circle.

  “It was the girl from my dreams, only this time in black and white while I was wide awake,” I explained in a rush.

  “So, this is Uma,” Jessica whispered to Asher.

  Asher nodded.

  Uma glanced at her before turning back to us. “The wards?”

  “Intact,” Zeke answered.

  “Hmm. She could be astral projecting.”

  “Right into our bedroom,” Miles muttered.

  Jessica’s head snapped around, her eyes going from Miles to me and back again.

  “Did she say anything?” Uma asked, drawing my attention back to her.

  “Yeah, she asked to make it stop,” I said. “But didn’t say what ‘it’ was.”

  Jessica’s eyes traveled down my body to where Ethan’s hand rested now on my hip.

  I pulled away a little; Ethan dropped his hand to his side.

  “This was the same girl from the files in New Orleans?” Uma asked as her brow drew down.

  “Yeah.”

  The witch’s lips formed a tight line as she mulled over all the information. “Then let’s take a wildly intuitive leap and say that she’s probably still with Jadis’ forces.”

  Ethan began to twirl his rings. “Do you think they’ve started up the experiments that they had going in New Orleans?”

  My stomach tightened.

  “They very well could have. They’ve been here long enough.” Uma sighed. “What is she up to?”

  “She’s trying to take us out,” Miles stated. “One by one.”

  Uma turned a questioning gaze on him. “What makes you say that?”

  “An associate of mine spotted one of Jadis’ people in the crowd while Asher’s house burned,” Miles announced.

  Uma cursed under her breath. “If that’s so, then we can assume that Ethan’s attack was an abduction attempt.”

  “Let’s assume away.” Ethan’s voice was dry. “If they’re doing experiments again, we have to stop them.”

  I reached over and took his hand in mine. His fingers squeezed tightly. Jessica’s brows drew down, her lips pinched.

  Uma turned to Ethan. “The problem is, this could be a trap set up by Jadis.”

  “A trap?” Isaac asked.

  Uma nodded. “To draw us in and hit us with overwhelming force.”

  I thought about the girl again, the desperation in her eyes. “I don’t think it’s a trap, she seemed genuinely terrified.”

  “Just like any good bait would be,” Uma countered.

  “If she was only bait, wouldn’t she have had something more informative to say other than help me?” Miles asked.

  Uma was silent for several heartbeats. “Maybe, maybe not. We’ll have to see how this develops.”

  “What happens if she comes back?” Asher asked. “Can she do anything to us?”

  Uma scratched her eyebrow. “Astral projection is one of the rarer abilities. If she’s a strong enough psychic, she could move or interact with the location she’s projecting to.”

  The guys and I cursed. Well, except for Miles.

  “But that level of power is exceedingly rare,” Uma explained. “It’s almost unheard of.”

  “How much interaction are we talking about?” I shivered as a sudden chill ran up my spine.

  Zeke stepped closer, sharing his body heat with me.

  Jessica’s eyes narrowed.

  “The most I’ve heard of is picking up an object before the strain became too much and they disappeared,” Uma said.

  “So, she wouldn’t be able to come at us with a knife?” Zeke asked, his hand moving to my back.

  Jessica stood up straight and turned to Asher.

  “No, I highly doubt t
hat would become an issue. Tomorrow we’ll decide how to move forward.” Uma started for the door. “Go back to bed for now. We’ll work on it in the morning.”

  Uma shut the front door behind her.

  “There’s a creepy not-dead girl around the house and we’re supposed to go to sleep?” Isaac scoffed. “Not happening.”

  “She’s right, we need to get some sleep.” I knew I was tired as hell. “I’m going to bed. Night, guys.”

  “I’m coming with you.” Isaac started to follow.

  “Me too.” Ethan shuddered. “I’m not going to be alone if creepy girl comes back.”

  “We can’t all sleep in Lexie’s room,” Zeke snapped.

  “You can sleep on the floor for that negativity,” Isaac shot over his shoulder as his arm wrapped around me.

  I snorted.

  “Hold it!” Jessica’s shout had everyone turning around. She was gaping up at Asher. “You’re going to let your girlfriend go sleep with your friends?”

  Silence dropped over the living room.

  “She’s cheating on you!” Jessica snapped.

  “She’s not cheating on me,” Asher said, trying to be patient.

  Jessica turned on him. “Bullshit! Look at them all over her!” She turned back to the guys. “How could you guys do this to him? It’s not hard to see how he feels about her! And you’re his best friends! What the hell are you guys thinking?”

  “Jess,” Asher bit out between his teeth. “Stop talking.”

  “She’s not cheating on Asher,” Ethan tried.

  “You tell me I should be respected by whoever I’m with and yet you just stand by and let this ho get with your friends? What the hell are you thinking? She’s worse than Trish—”

  “She’s dating all of us, Jess,” Asher snapped.

  My stomach dropped. We hadn’t even begun to talk about coming out of the poly closet yet. And Asher just … shit.

  Jessica gaped up at Asher while the rest of us shared looks.

  “What?” Jessica asked.

  Asher clenched his fists. “She’s dating all of us. Now stop insulting her.”

  “You’re not serious.” Jessica shook her head. “You’re joking.”

  “No, I’m not,” Asher said in a serious voice.

  Jessica turned to Ethan. “Tell me you’re not—”

  “I am.” Ethan reached over and wrapped his arm around my waist.

  “So am I,” Isaac announced with a smile.

  Jessica turned to Zeke. “Zeke?”

  “Yep.” Zeke shrugged.

  “Miles?” Jessica’s voice was soft.

  “Yes, I am,” Miles stated simply as his ears began to turn pink.

  Jessica turned to me. “You fucking slut!”

  I rolled my eyes. “Here we go.”

  Jessica took a step towards me. “You freaking ho! I knew you were a slut, but I didn’t think it was this bad! What is the matter with all of you? How could you do this to them?”

  “Jess,” Asher bit out. “Stop. Talking.”

  “No!” Jess took another step towards me. “My brother is the greatest, most loyal person on the planet, and you’re just hooking up with his friends? I thought Trisha was low—”

  “Jess!” Asher moved between us, stopping his sister from getting any closer to me.

  “—but you fucked up his life by turning him into a werewolf and now you’re fucking up everyone else's too! You’re going to ruin his best friends!”

  “Jess!” Zeke snapped.

  “You’re a fake! Liar! And Clay—”

  Everyone erupted in protest.

  “Jessica! Shut the hell up right this minute,” Asher roared above all the others.

  I grabbed the back of his shirt and I wasn’t the only one. Ethan reached out and took a fistful too.

  Jess looked up at Asher with wide eyes. “She—”

  “Is dating all of us. It’s a lifestyle choice. Every one of us is a consenting adult.” Asher growled between his teeth. “I’m the one who agreed to it. I’m the one who has to see her with the others. I’m the one who has to hear her sleeping with Isaac. I’m the one who has to deal with it. So stop talking about shit you don’t understand!”

  Jessica gaped up at him, stunned, and took a step back.

  Zeke moved between Asher and Jessica. “Asher. Calm down.”

  Asher’s shoulders rose and fell as he took several deep breaths. “No, I’m sick of this bullshit attitude of hers.” Asher tried to take a step forward but our grip kept him in place. “From now on you won’t say a word against Ally, Jessica, or so help me, I’ll never talk to you again.”

  The blood drained from her face as she gaped in horror at her twin.

  Before anyone else could say anything Asher reached behind himself to pull my hand from his shirt. “I have to go for a run.”

  Both Ethan and I let go of him. Asher hurried past us and out of the room. The back door slammed shut hard enough to rattle the windows in the kitchen.

  Jessica slowly sank onto the couch cushion in the silence.

  Miles went to the kitchen muttering something about tea.

  Ethan left my side to go to Jessica. He sat down on the coffee table across from her.

  “Maybe I should go,” I whispered up to Isaac.

  Isaac met my eyes and nodded.

  “I’ll be in Miles’ room.” I squeezed his arm and quietly made my way out of the living room.

  Ethan

  Jessica’s face was pale, her fingers trembling on her Hello Kitty pajama bottoms.

  Eventually, Miles brought in a steaming mug of tea and held it out to her. She didn’t even look at him as I took it and set it on the table beside me.

  “Jess,” I said softly, “take a deep breath for us.”

  She did as I asked, her eyes filling with tears. “How could he say that?”

  “Which part?” I asked in what I hoped was a soothing voice.

  Her blue eyes met mine. “How could he choose her over me?”

  I leaned forward and took her hands in mine. “That’s not what he’s doing, Jess. He didn’t mean that. Right now he’s just pissed off and didn’t know how else to let you know it.”

  She shook her head as the others moved closer around us. “How could you all share her?”

  “That’s not what we do,” Zeke growled.

  Jessica didn’t even flinch.

  “Yeah, it’s not like that,” Isaac stated.

  “We each have our own relationship with her and we’re aware of all of her relationships between us,” I explained as simply as I could.

  She shook her head. “You guys are crazy.”

  I grinned. “Maybe a little.”

  Isaac smacked my arm.

  I looked up at him and shrugged. “Come on, we’re a little crazy to try this.”

  “Not the best time for jokes, brother.” Isaac squatted beside Jessica. “Jess, I know you’re worried about Asher. Hell, about all of us. But we’ve all thought this over carefully. We debated for a long time about whether it’s the right thing to do or not.”

  Jess looked up at Isaac.

  “But what it all comes down to is, we’re all in love with her, and she’s in love with each of us. And we’ve all agreed to give this a shot instead of hurting each other,” Isaac explained softly. “Lexie isn’t a slut. She isn’t trying to hurt anyone. She’s just a girl in love who was in an impossible situation.”

  Jess shook her head. “It’s going to end in disaster.”

  “Maybe. But if we didn’t give this a shot, disaster would already have happened.” Isaac shrugged. “Can you understand that?”

  Lexie

  I was sitting up against the headboard when Miles’ bedroom door opened. The guys filed in one by one. Except Asher. He was probably out running still.

  Miles sat beside me on the bed. Zeke leaned against the bookcase across from the end of the bed. Isaac and Ethan sat at the end of the bed.

  “So, how’d the talk go?” I as
ked them.

  “She’s calmed down and understands that you aren’t cheating on any of us,” Miles summed up.

  “I bet she loved that,” I muttered.

  “It took some talking, but Isaac managed to get through to her.” Ethan turned to his brother. “Good job, by the way.”

  Isaac’s cheeks tinted pink. “I just read her aura and talked to her about what she was really worried about.”

  “Me?”

  “Nope.” Isaac shook his head. “She was scared, not angry, so we spent some time talking about her fears.”

  “She was scared you’d hurt us,” Zeke summed up. “And ruin our relationships.”

  “Ah.” I couldn’t blame her.

  “But she’s calmed down and agreed to keep quiet about it,” Ethan said.

  I nodded. “Good, that should at least buy us some time before it gets around school.”

  The twins shared a look.

  Ethan turned to me. “Well, we all got to talking downstairs after Jess went to bed and, well, we were thinking we needed to have a talk.”

  My stomach knotted. “About?”

  “Birth control,” Miles said.

  I turned to him, stunned.

  His ears were bright pink as he met my gaze. “And since Asher let it slip that your relationship with Isaac has … progressed, I thought it would be a good time to discuss it.”

  My face warmed. I had nothing to be embarrassed about. It’s perfectly logical that they’d want to talk about it now. “Okay …”

  “Shouldn’t this be between each of us and her?” Zeke groused from across the room as he crossed his arms over his chest.

  “STDs won’t stay between only two of us,” Miles countered.

  “Shit, Miles.” Isaac gaped at him.

  Ethan cleared his throat. “I personally assumed condoms.”

  “So did I,” I muttered. I would not balk from this conversation. Nothing to be embarrassed about. It’s an important conversation to have. With four of the five of my boyfriends. Geeze.

  “Condoms aren’t always enough,” Miles pointed out. “It might be a good idea to get everyone tested and add another form of control.”

  I turned and narrowed my eyes at him. “You mean the pill?”