by T. Aleo
I want to laugh, because if he knew what I was hiding, he wouldn’t want to see them. Instead, I hold up a finger. “Excuse me, I beat them up.”
He laughs. “My apologies.”
Without missing a beat, I ask, “So then you graduated and took off?”
An amused grin pulls at his lips as he nods. “I did.”
I wait for more, but nothing comes. “And?”
He laughs, but I don’t back off. I want to know. What is he hiding? “As soon as you tell me why you’re locked away, princess, I’ll tell you why I took off.”
“There is no reason—” I try, but he shakes his head.
“There is,” he argues, before taking a wide step toward me, chancing a glance at JJ before looking back at me. “But I’ll settle for something else.”
He then leans toward me as I look to where JJ is sitting. He’s on his phone, not paying any attention at all. Meeting Killian’s gaze, I swallow hard. My heart, it’s doing that galloping thing he spoke of. My skin is burning from the heat his body is generating, and God, his eyes are mesmerizing.
What is happening?
“Yeah?” I ask, almost swallowing my tongue.
Letting his head fall to the side, he grins. “Are you dating anyone?”
My eyes widen a bit. “Me?”
“You, princess.”
I hate that nickname, I do! But why does it make me breathless? “No. I’m not. You?”
“No.”
His eyes are so dark, gazing into mine. I don’t know what is happening right now, but a part of me is sure he’s about to kiss me.
In front of God and everyone.
Including JJ.
“I can’t kiss you here,” I blurt out, and his brow quirks.
Eyeing me, he curves his lips even more. Shit, why are those fangs hot? “Kiss you? Rebekah von Stein, you naughty thing, I was just looking into your eyes. I love how they aren’t the same color.”
I bite into my lip. “I think they make me look like a freak.”
His eyes soften, his lips turning up into a full grin. “No, princess. Gorgeous is more like it.”
Swallowing hard, I’m lost in his spell. I don’t have words. I don’t have anything. I’m frozen, unsure what to say, how to move, or even what the hell I’m supposed to do.
His chuckles run down my spine as I hold his gaze. “I have to say, princess, I think you like me,” he says, backing away slowly as my face burns. Scoffing, I glance away, trying to prove him wrong.
“Like you? Please. You’re the one into me,” I shoot back and he laughs, which makes my heart drop a bit. I was joking, obviously, but then he seems so uninterested. Did I read this wrong? Is this a one-sided attraction?
But wait, why does it freaking matter?
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yup.” I have nothing else to say. My heart is beating so out of control I worry I will need a new one. Crap on a cracker. Who is this guy? And why does he make my blood boil one second and my whole body catch on fire with need the next? Leaning my back to the bar, I suck in a breath before reaching for an ice cube and popping it in my mouth.
Because obviously, I need to cool down.
“I’m sure that happens a lot. All these people falling for the gorgeous Princess von Stein.”
And then I promptly start to choke on said ice cube. As I hack up one of my lungs, not sure which one, Killian rushes to my aid, but I wave him off. I notice JJ stands just as the ice starts to melt in my throat. I hold my hand up and choke out, “Just an ice cube.”
JJ scoffs. “Can you not die by ice cube today?”
“Good plan, I’ll stick to that,” I gasp out as I swallow hard, my eyes watering. Killian hands me a paper towel, and I wipe my face as I choke out a breath. “That was scary.”
He grins. “Yeah—”
“Vampire, three steps back, buddy.” JJ’s voice is sharp, almost menacing, but Killian just grins. Taking three steps back, he looks over at me.
“Is he always there?”
“Always.”
He looks dejected but not surprised as he glances back to JJ. Killian clears his throat, and I watch as he assesses the situation. I find it intoxicating. Is he trying to figure out a way to be alone with me? Lord, what is the matter with me? This is so damn wrong, and I know better, especially with all this crap that’s happening with my brother, but I can’t help myself.
“Why?” I say, and his lips purse.
“Well, you accused me of trying to kiss you earlier.” He pauses as my face warms, his lips curving. “Figured, since you asked, it must mean you’re thinking about kissing me. And if that’s the case, how am I supposed to kiss you when that guy is always around?” he mock-whispers to me, and I can’t help it, I laugh.
He wants to kiss me!
For the love of God, I sound insane.
Biting into my lip, I glance over at JJ to find him talking to Oceanus. Taegan is nowhere to be found, but my brother’s shoulders are taut. He’s angry. As much as I want to know why—and question him ruthlessly until he tells me—I really want to meet Killian in the back.
Clearing my throat, I say, “What if I deny that claim?”
“I’d call you a liar,” he decides and I grin.
“So you want to kiss me?” I ask and he laughs.
“I mean, should we hold hands first?”
I roll my eyes. “You’re impossible.”
“I’ve been called worse.”
My breathing has sped up, and I want nothing more than to meet him in the back. “I could go to the back to get ice.”
He nods. “And I should come help. Can’t have you choking on any more ice cubes.”
Licking my lips, I nod. “For sure, no telling what could happen then.”
His eyes are dark as his lips curve. “Are we talking about you choking on ice cubes? Or…”
“Oh my goodness, how old are you?” I tease, pushing off the bar. He thinks he’s hilarious, though, and he laughs as I pass by him. “Don’t come right away. Give me a minute.”
He laughs. “Not the first time I’ve heard that.”
I glare and shake my head before heading toward the back. Before I can go through the door, though, Oceanus’s gaze meets mine, and I pause.
“What are you doing?”
“Heading to the back for ice,” I say before walking to him. I place my hand on his bicep. “Are you okay?”
“Fine. Rebekah, don’t worry about me,” he says, annoyed, and I want to ask more, I do…but I’ve got other things to do. But something is bothering me. Dropping my voice, I look up at him as he looks down at me, a quirk in his brow. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
I smile. “You never told me you dated Christiana Kelley.”
He pauses, his eyes narrowing to slits. “H-how do you know that?”
I shrug at his look that’s a little confused and maybe a little angry. “I don’t know.”
“Don’t you lie, Rebekah,” he demands, and I look down at his chest.
Why did I say anything?
“Killian told me.”
His head tilts to the side before his gaze locks on Killian. “How did he know?”
“He went to school with you.”
Oceanus is a statue, his eyes glued on Killian. I instantly regret saying anything. “Don’t be mad at him. I kind of pressed for the info.”
He shakes his head. “It’s fine, Rebekah. Go on now, get the ice.”
I don’t move, though. I don’t trust the murderous gleam in his eyes. “Promise me you won’t say anything to him. Or start a fight.”
He looks back down at me and nods. “Promise.”
Crap. I messed up. I look back at Killian. He’s oblivious as he pours some blood in a martini glass and hands it to the lady in front of him. Turning, I glance back up at Oceanus as he lowers himself into the seat beside JJ before I head to the door. When I look back, though, their heads are together, and my heart drops to my stomach.
What did
I just do?
Maybe I’m overreacting. Maybe it’s no big deal.
But after filling the two buckets with ice, I lean against the cooler, watching the door as I wait.
For close to fifteen minutes.
And even though I told Killian to wait, I know something is up. Fear settles in my chest as I reach for the buckets and head out to behind the bar. Pushing the door open with my back, I glance out, not seeing Killian. When I see that JJ and Oceanus have been replaced by Cyrus, I know something is wrong.
And it’s all my fault.
“Where are JJ and Oceanus?” I ask Cyrus. He shrugs, looking bored as always. I fear for our clan if something happens to Oceanus and Jonas. Not that it could, but I’m just saying, the brother in front of me is not the sharpest tool in the shed, and this clan would be doomed.
Waving me off, he lets out a long breath, unaware of the panic I feel that surely must be coming off me in waves. Did Oceanus break his promise to me? I wouldn’t think he would, but where is Killian? It doesn’t make sense. “I have no clue. Oceanus called me to watch you. He had something to do with JJ and Father.”
I shouldn’t question him. I mean, it could happen, but I know he’s lying. “And Killian?”
“Who’s that?”
“The guy who was working behind the bar!” I exclaim in frustration, and he shrugs once more, like it’s nothing. Like Killian has no worth. I hate how much that bothers me.
“Oh, that vampire? He said he had to bounce, and he left. I don’t know.”
My blood boils. “Liar.”
He rolls his eyes, completely uninterested in my anger. “Whatever. Get your shit done so we can leave. I’m tired.”
“Not until you tell me what’s going on,” I protest. But Cyrus being Cyrus leans on the bar, completely ignoring me as he opens a game on his phone. Letting out an annoyed roar, I throw my hands up. “Did they take him?”
“Take who?” he asks, looking back at me with his uninterested blue eyes.
“Killian!”
“Who took Killian? And what kind of name is that?”
“Argh!” I holler, receiving weird looks from the patrons in the bar, but my focus is on my unfocused brother. With the patience of a saint, I ask, “Did JJ and Osh take Killian?”
Cyrus’s brow rises. “I told you. Vampire bounced. JJ and Osh went to meet Father.”
I slam my fist to the bar and pain shoots up my arm, but he doesn’t even jump. He only holds my gaze, his blue eyes blazing as I yell, “Tell me the truth!”
He moves so fast, I don’t even realize his nose is against mine until he is speaking in hushed tones. “Shut your mouth, Rebekah. Don’t bring attention to yourself. You don’t know what is going on for a reason. Do as you’re told. Do you understand me?”
His eyes are almost pleading. As if he wants to tell me but can’t. Exasperated, I throw my hands up before starting to say, “I want—”
“I don’t care what you want. Shut up,” he demands, cutting me off before pinning me with a look that sends chills down my back. Cyrus has never spoken to me like this. He’s never cared enough to do so. That should tell me something, but I just glare. As much as I want to tell him to fuck off, the glint in his eyes scares me. Something is off, and I know he won’t tell me what that is.
No, I have to find Oceanus.
When I push him away, he almost falls off the stool as I stomp to the ice chest. “Fuck off, Cyrus.”
He doesn’t even entertain my words; he just goes back to his phone as my heart swims in my gut. While I know Oceanus has the answers, I’m also very much aware that if I ask JJ or Oceanus, even my father, they’ll lie to me. They’ll treat me like a child, but I have to know. Killian wouldn’t have just taken off. It doesn’t make sense, and I have to find out what happened.
The problem is, how?
I finish my shift quickly, and after everyone leaves, I’m right behind them, walking through the side door to our home as Cyrus locks up. I hear him call my name, but I ignore it, heading toward my father’s office. The house is quiet. It’s almost four in the morning, but it’s eerily silent.
That is, until I reach the hall where my father’s office is.
I hear a grunt first and then a crash. Rushing to the door, I go to push it open, but then I’m being swung around. My body careens into the wall as Cyrus presses his forearm into my chest. “I called for you.”
“And I ignored you. Let me go!” I struggle against him. He isn’t stronger than me, and within seconds, I have my forearm in his back, my other hand holding his wrist as I squish his face into the wall. “Now, brother, we both know I’m stronger than you.”
Cyrus scoffs, but before he can say anything, my arms are yanked back. And then it’s my face in the wall.
Damn it.
Cyrus gives me a smug look as he comes off the wall. “Yeah, but you aren’t stronger than Oceanus.”
Glaring, I try to look back at Oceanus as he says, “Rebekah, why are you assaulting our brother?”
I try to shake out of his hold, but there is no moving. Letting out a sigh, I close my eyes. “He won’t tell me where you went or what happened to Killian.”
“I had to meet Father, and Killian left before we did.” He speaks so calmly, like it’s nothing, but I don’t have to see my brother’s face to know he’s lying. That alone makes my stomach drop. Oceanus never lies to me. Even when he doesn’t want me to know something, he tells me so, that he can’t discuss it with me. He doesn’t lie, he doesn’t keep things from me, and the fact he is lying to me right now scares me. Obviously, something bad is going on here and it involves Killian, but what?
How?
Ugh.
I’m unsure, but I know I need to tread lightly. “Can you let me up?”
“Are you going to attack Cyrus again?”
“Not at this moment.” His weight disappears from me. I feel him take a step back as I move my shoulders, stretching them where they ache from his weight. I turn then, meeting his amused but stony gaze, and I almost don’t recognize my brother. He looks guilty but still in control, and I don’t know what to make of it all. “Did Killian say where he went?”
He shakes his head, his eyes darting to Cyrus. “Nope, he said he had to go. I said, whatever, and then Father called for us.”
Clearing my throat, I stare up at him, waiting for him to look back at me. When he does, his eyes are dark and full of lies. I don’t know what to say. I could accuse him, but what good would that do? He wouldn’t lie to me if he didn’t have a reason, but I don’t know what that reason could be. And what has Killian done? Oceanus wouldn’t lie to me over what Killian told me about Christiana. If Killian had been fired for it, Oceanus would have just said that, but that’s not it.
No, there is more.
But then, what if I am wrong? What if they aren’t lying, and Killian did run off? Did he reject me? That doesn’t seem right, though… No, it had to be something more, and I am going to find out. Before I can say anything else, something catches my attention to the left of Cyrus. When I look up, I’m stunned to see Irvina Kovalchik, the Grand High Witch of the Works. My brows go into my hairline, and my mouth drops open at the sight of her. Unlike traditional, scary witches, Irvina is breathtaking. Like a beautiful fairy, with white skin, long black hair, and catlike green eyes. No one would expect her to be a day over thirty, but she is actually a hundred and thirty.
Also, she’s the second most powerful person in the Works.
Breathless, I watch as she looks us over and then goes into my father’s office without a knock or even a pause. Whipping my gaze to Oceanus, I feel my eyes widen. “What in the world is Irvina doing here?”
But my brother just shrugs. “I don’t know, Rebekah. Go on to bed.”
“No! I want to know what is going on,” I protest, but he shakes his head.
His voice drops to a whisper as he holds my gaze, his eyes pleading. “Please go to bed. Don’t fight me on this. Tomorrow, we’ll talk.”
I glare because I don’t believe him. He just wants me to be quiet, but how can I when the grand high witch is here? She wouldn’t be here unless it was something witchy, and what could be witchy about Killian? He is a vampire. What in the hell is going on?
Looking around, though, I know I won’t find out anything if I don’t play nice. Can I believe that he will tell me tomorrow? I’m unsure, and when I glance back up at him, he nods.
“It’s no big deal. Just some witchy shit.”
I hold his gaze. “Does it have to do with Killian?”
He shakes his head. “No, Rebekah, he left. Seriously.”
Averting my gaze, I draw in a long breath and then let it out. Without another word, I move past him. Cyrus is on my heels, not that I care.
Because Oceanus is still lying to me.
I don’t sleep that night.
I couldn’t. No matter how hard I tried. I was too obsessed with what is going on. I sat in my window, watching the road for any signs of movement. I’m not sure what I was hoping to see. Killian leaving or being dragged away, I don’t know. Irvina left at a little after seven, and it wasn’t a big ordeal like it usually is when she comes. She typically has a car full of bodyguards and her servants, but this time, she actually drove herself, which I found odd. It was almost as though she came in secret, and I don’t know why she would.
It’s all just so crazy, and the possibilities of what could be going on are driving me half mad.
Pulling my hair up, I slide my feet into my sneakers before going out to find JJ waiting for me. His eyes lock with mine, and I strike my hips.
“You going to tell me what’s going on?”
He shakes his head calmly. “Nope.”
“Does it have to do with Killian?”
“Nope.”
“Where is Killian?”
“I don’t know.”
Throwing my hands up, I let out a frustrated breath. “Whatever.”
Heading toward the kitchen, I eat quickly so I can meet my brothers in the sparring room. It’s Friday, and we always meet for a morning workout. I’m hoping Oceanus is there early so he can tell me what’s going on.