by C. M. Owens
He laughs lightly while shaking his head. "I promise I won't. I'm not in a hurry this time."
That brings me back to the night he was in a hurry. He shuts the door to my side, and almost as quickly, he's climbing into his seat. As he cranks the car, I decide to probe for the answers to the questions that I've had since I first started reading Amy's journals.
He pulls out of the driveway, cautiously checking his mirrors as if he's mocking my concern for safety. I can't help but enjoy his playful side, but I have to remind myself it's his deadly side that worries me.
"Why does Amy believe you're meant for her? Sierra thinks the same thing, and I realize it's the whole bond between lycan and night stalker, but she's determined you're meant for her. What if she's right?"
He sighs out, not seeming particularly thrilled about my question. "Whoa. I wasn't expecting that." He turns out onto another road, and then he gasses it lightly, showing respect for my earlier request. "I'm not meant for Amy. You have no idea how sick I am of telling everyone that. Please don't make me start with you. It's gotten to where I don't even want to go back home because of Sierra and her."
I lean back, turning on my side so I can watch his face as he speaks, searching for any sign of a lie or uncertainty. So far, he seems honest.
"So, how is it that she's so certain you are, and you're so certain you're not?"
He puts his blinker on and pulls up to stop at the curb on the side of the road. As he turns to face me, his eyes are that perfect emerald green I fell in love with.
"Because I've never once felt anything but brotherly toward her. It's not like Deke and Sierra, but Amy is desperately grasping for someone to care about her. She's gone through a lot, and for a while, I tolerated her bullshit simply because I felt sorry for her. She continues to take each kind gesture as something more. Sierra is like her alpha. She is protective, nurturing, and maternal toward her. It's in their nature to side together. Pack mentality and all.
"I've never once felt toward anyone the way I feel toward you, and I'm perfectly capable of deciding who I am and who I am not meant to be with. I don't ever want you to view me the way I view Amy, so I try not to press you too hard, but, Alyssa, you feel it, too. I see it in your eyes when you look at me the way you're looking at me right now. You're young and confused. I understand that, too. But I'm not leaving your side until I know for sure you won't be mine."
My heart sings and cries out for him, but my mind keeps restraining it. He turns to face the road again, but before he can push it into gear, something happens. We're frozen almost instantly, and I hear Kane gasping for air.
I can't move anything on my body until I push forth with all my strength, feeling an invisible fabric tearing as I slip over onto Kane's lap and slam the car in drive.
"What the hell?" he strains out.
"It's her. She's trying to make one of us her third victim."
It's not an easy task to drive while in someone's lap, but the farther away I get us, the less I feel the pressure of her attack. I feel Kane's arms slipping around me as he pulls me to the side and takes over the wheel.
I'm still partially in his lap, as he takes back over the pedals, and I feel my stomach try to come up in my throat as he slingshots us around a curve, making me cling to him to keep from flopping around in the car.
"How did you fight that?" he asks as we round another deadly curve. "I could barely breathe. That wasn't a human witch's power; that was a spirit's force. You shouldn't be able to withstand or overcome something like that."
He almost sounds panicked right now. If that little bit of extra power scares him, he can never understand who I really am.
"And you said you wouldn't freak out over all my secrets, yet here you are freaking out over something as simple as fighting off a holding power."
"A crushing power, Alyssa. Not a holding power. You hardly even stumbled. I felt my chest caving in on me. I'm not freaking out, I'm just shocked. Possibly a little impressed. More than anything, I'm scared to damn death about how close I just came to having to watch a spirit rip you to shreds."
I frown as I lean into him. "Drackus would save me before she could do it. Either him or Mom would. I need to call him."
The car skids to a halt, and his arm wraps around me to keep me from flying through the windshield as the tires screech out their agony.
"He's your father," Kane says in a barely audible whisper.
I suppose I gave it away just then with the way I spoke. I turn to face his wide-eyed face, and I nod just the slightest bit to confirm his fears. His head drops back, and I climb over into the passenger seat and fasten my seatbelt as he puts the car back in gear and speeds away.
"It all makes so much more sense now. That's what you've been afraid to tell me. That's why you're involved with so many dark. And that's why he came to save you from Castine. Holy shit."
"Kane, I know you're probably terrified of me right now, and I know you more than likely want me out of your life, but you can't tell anyone about this. His enemies would use me as a bargaining chip. The things they would do-"
"Alyssa! Damn it! I'm not going to say a fucking thing, and I can't believe you think I would."
I slink back, feeling a little scolded. A tear slips free from my eye as we slide into the hotel parking lot. I start to get out, but he jerks me to him, pulling me into his lap before his lips find mine.
I'm shocked by the fiery kiss, considering that's the last thing I ever expected from him again. More of my tears fall, and he collects them with his thumb as he pulls back, leaving me breathless.
"I don't want you out of my life... ever. I'm not scared of you at all. I'm pretty fucking scared of your dad, but that's a typical guy reaction to any girl's dad."
I start laughing through my sniffling, and he pulls me to him, letting my head rest on his chest as he kisses me through my hair.
"Absolutely no one from my coven will ever hear about this from me. I assume Dray knows."
I nod, flinching lightly. "He made a deal with Drackus to keep an eye on me as long as my father didn't touch you. He was a little pissed when he thought you were playing games with your prey."
Kane swallows hard, nodding at nothing in particular. "That all makes so much more sense now as well. Dray jumped my ass every time I said something to you. He was worried I would go too far, I suppose, and then you would tell your father to just do it."
"I'd never-"
"I know, but Dray doesn't know you like I do. I wish you had trusted me with this, Alyssa."
"I haven't ever trusted anyone with this. Mom told Frankie and some of her people, and Dad told some of his most trusted group. This is the closest I've ever come to telling anyone."
"How did you keep this a secret? Everyone knew Drackus and Calypso had a daughter. How did you keep them from finding out it was you?"
Steadying my breath, I answer, "Mom prepared for that. She knew the day would come where she might have to fake my death, but she planned on raising her daughter. So, when she learned she was pregnant, she and Drackus told the councils they were separated. A few months later, she announced she was pregnant. She made herself look like a total slut when she told them she didn't know the guy's name.
"She named that child Alyssa Coldwell on paper, but no one ever met me. Then she returned home to be with my dad. After she had me, she announced another pregnancy - a false pregnancy. Airis Devall was the child everyone knew Drackus to have. My dad still calls me that name.
"The councils got restless when they weren't allowed to meet me. It's only mandated that a child born from immortals be registered, not seen. Mom had been right to be suspicious about all the enemies that might come out and seek justice by using me against them. I spent almost ten years confined to the house, never going anywhere.
"Then Mom left Drackus; said she couldn't do it anymore. He's not exactly the nicest guy, as you're well aware. We moved in with one of my mother's best friends, Shay, and she trusted only her with ou
r secret. The rest of the coven knew me as the first daughter, Alyssa. Aunt Hilly came to visit some, but no one else. I became Alyssa Coldwell, and Airis Devall stayed with Drackus... so to speak.
"Early on, at the age of ten, shortly after my parents' true separation, an opportunity presented itself to kill Airis Devall forever. I was attacked, but it was a young, weak night stalker. At ten, I killed him myself. But no one knew, and Airis Devall had the chance to die.
"At seventeen, Alyssa Coldwell almost died as well. A night stalker had been tipped off. Someone told him I was a witch, and he hunted me until he found his chance to strike, and it was brutal. Any other mortal witch would have probably died, but the strength my parents' blood offered gave me the extra time I needed to be saved.
"Mom disguised the scar with Aunt Hilly's help. No one knew about the attack or how close I came to dying. Then Alyssa lived on, and Drackus never even came to check on me.
"I've never looked back. I all but cut Drackus out of my life. The first night stalker who attacked me had been hexed by someone who was an ally to Drackus. He wanted vengeance. The second one wanted vengeance as well. I don't know how he knew who I was, but he did. Drackus had done something to his coven. I never got the details - never really needed them. It was enough to know Drackus would only ever bring me harm. Until this whole ordeal with Castine, I hadn't spoken to him since I was ten."
He brushes my hair from my cheek, his green eyes burning into mine. He isn't even looking at me any differently. How is that possible?
"Airis, eh? I sort of like it."
I laugh lightly, considering that's not even close to being what I expected him to say.
"Well, don't get used to it. Airis is dead - as far as everyone's concerned. Besides, Airis is the name that ties me to Drackus's darkness. I prefer the light. Alyssa is all you get."
His eyebrows cock up as a sweet smile floats across his lips. "So I get Alyssa? Sounds good."
I shake my head, feeling foolish for my wording. "That's not what I meant. Let's go in before they send out a search party."
"I suppose that would give new meaning to a witch hunt."
I laugh involuntarily, and he snickers, too, as he pulls me to him, keeping his arm over my shoulders as we head toward the lobby. This feels so much like it did when we were together, but I'm more relaxed now than I ever was then.
That's so stupid. I'm more relaxed now that I know he's a night stalker? Sheesh.
I'm comfortable with Kane, more so than I thought possible after the rude awakening, but I'm also comfortable with Gage. Both of them are extraordinary in their own ways.
We enter the lobby, making everyone think we're a happy couple as Kane keeps me close to him. I'm cold, so it's nice to have an immortal's warmth. Then something strikes me as we get on the elevator.
"Isolis was cold to the touch, freezing actually. Why? How?"
His lips tighten.
"Too much witch's blood. I've seen it happen before. If a night stalker starts living primarily on the blood of a witch, he or she suffers the frosty touch. How much did he touch you?"
I shiver, making Kane tense. "Enough to know I'm glad Dice showed up when he did."
As the numbers start ticking up, carrying us to the fifth floor, Kane surprises me with his random turn of conversation.
"What's going to happen when Gage shows back up? Are you going to be with him even though it feels so right to be with me?"
My stomach twists and turns like an agitator in an old washing machine. I dread finding out what the answer to that will be. Fortunately, I don't have to voice my concern because the doors to the elevator open, revealing a smirking Dice.
"I assumed the lot of you would be a few minutes longer," he teases, his odd English accent irking me.
"Where are you from?" I ask curiously.
"Up north, though I couldn't give you an exact state. There weren't states then. Why?"
"Your accent... it's different. It's almost like I'm listening to an old movie."
"Ah, well, that's because you should have asked when am I from as opposed to where. To answer that, I'll just let your imagination wander. Not all of us are too keen on giving away such intimate details."
I laugh lightly as he gives me a wink, but Kane just rolls his eyes at the flirty incubus. He pulls me toward the room where Zee is standing in the hallway, waiting on us.
"What's going on?" Kane asks.
"The human girl was here. We found her stuff, but we can't find any pictures. We did, however, find plenty of things we can use to track her. Sierra and Amy are almost here."
Kane frowns, looking down to me, and I shrug. It's not like he has to apologize for them. It's not his fault the two are such bitches to me.
"The spirit tried to hold us. We think the witch was after one or both of us this time," Kane says, sighing in exasperation. "It's strong to have such power without a body."
"How the hell did you get out of that?" Dice asks, falling over himself to come and stand in front of Kane.
Kane does well not to look at me and give it away. "We drove like hell. Where's Dray?"
"He's doing some of his dark angel mumbo-jumbo, trying to get a glimpse of this girl by using some of her personal things," Zee murmurs.
Suddenly, the two lycan girls are walking toward us. Sierra's auburn ringlets are bouncing, though I think lycans should have to bear dark hair like the rest of the dark entities.
Amy's midnight black hair is illuminated slightly by the glow of the moonlight beaming down on her. The orange in her eyes flickers as she sees me, and Kane's arm slides protectively around my waist.
Amy growls low in her throat, her upper lip twitching into a snarl, and Kane's eyes flash blue to warn her off. I'd almost like to kiss him right now just to piss her off.
Yes. I'm that frigging bitchy at this point.
I lean into him instead, which forces a wry grin to pop up on his lips, and his tame, green eyes come back to rest over the blue.
"Stop with the territorial growling out here," Dray grumbles, tossing a shirt bearing the witch's scent to Sierra. "Let's find our human witch."
Chapter 21
A Spirit's Wrath
Of course she'd be in a dilapidated old house with creaky shutters, broken windows, and a rotting porch. With the dark trees circling the forgotten hazard, it's the Hollywood layout of a spirit fest if I've ever seen one. I'm already freezing, and now we're heading into the haunted mansion; one fitting to every cliché ever dreamed up. This is so infuriating.
What a stupid, unoriginal human witch. Do the humans not have any imagination?
Kane pulls off his jacket and wraps it around my shoulders when he feels the violent shivers trying to make me convulse. Then he wraps his arm around me, pulling me in close as we casually and silently make our way through the house.
"She's not here," Dice gripes. "She was here though. It looks like this is where she comes to hold a séance and speak with the spirit. It's private and secluded enough, and there are pentagrams everywhere. It's very likely she'll be back. We're going to set a trap, and hopefully it'll work."
Kane nods just as Dray walks in. "Take Alyssa home for now. We'll call you if we need you."
"I want to stay," I quickly interject, knowing it's not a good idea for me to be alone with Kane.
"Sorry, but spirits can sense a mortal's life. It won't know our immortal lives are here. It'll be easier to surprise the human witch if her unknown associate has no clue we're lying in wait."
I grumble under my breath, and Amy crosses her arms over her chest, venom seeping from her eyes as she stares holes through me. I'm sure she'd like to set her beast free on me right now, but she refrains.
"Kane, will you come back with us when all this is done?" Amy asks, her doe-eyed expression so deceitful.
It's hard to look sweet and disarming when you're a vicious predator.
"We've still got Castine to worry about. I'll see you guys later," Kane murmurs over his shoul
der while rushing me out of the house.
I almost laugh at his haste, and then I start running beside him as he keeps a human pace. I'm not sure why he's running, but I'm running because it's absolutely freezing out here now... literally.
The ice has started forming over the small puddles that are lying in the small divot-like areas on the ground. My breath fogs in front of me, and my skin burns everywhere winter's kiss touches it.
I start his car, using my magic, urging the heat to hurry up and find me, and he lets out a small laugh as he opens the door for me. He struts to the driver's side after closing the door, and he smiles as he finds his place beside me.
"So, I was running because it's cold as shit out there, but why were you running?" I ask as he starts backing out.
He turns onto the street, and I realize we're not too far from my house now. It's a little creepy to know this bitch has been calling out to the spirit planes while just down the road from me.
"Because I just heard them say they were staying there and we're going back to your place... alone. Of course I was in a hurry."
I laugh nervously as his fingers lace with mine. He draws my icy hand closer to his lips and I revel in the warmth of his breath as he kisses it.
"You're not going to behave, are you?" I groan, pulling my hand back when he goes to shift gears.
"Hell no."
I sigh out, stifling a laugh, and then we turn onto my drive in record time. Kane smiles deviously as he walks around to open my door for me.
"I think you should work on your skills against a night stalker subduing you some more."
"I'm sure you do."
He chuckles lightly while pulling me from the car, and then our fingers entwine. It's hard not to touch him when he wants to touch me. I almost prefer the asshole as opposed to the amazing guy he is. Night stalker or not, I'm still in love with him, and that's not something I can keep denying if he keeps being this perfect.
When I shiver, he pulls me closer, giving me some heat that flows so freely from his masterpiece of an immortal body.