Demon Bones: The Soul Series Book 2

by D. S. O'Neill

  “I…I need to take a shower.” Her voice was low and raspy, barely even audible. “Get out, please.”

  Dax glanced behind her at Tallen, some wordless message passing between them, before he moved around her and exited the bathroom. The door closed softly behind the two men.

  Ria was left alone and adrift in the bathroom.

  Chapter 3

  Four hours later and Ria found herself holed up in her room, the day’s events playing in her mind as she folded her clean laundry. The last few weeks with the guys had led to a comfortable and easy friendship with them, one she’d never really had with much of anyone in her life. They trained together, ate breakfast, lunch and dinner together, and shared everything in the cabin but her clothes. And they provided a sense of security while she was…eh…disconnected from her abilities. She was closer to them then she had been with any sole person ever, but today’s activities had changed something in her. Her relationship with the guys was shifting into something newer…and definitely scarier. It was unfamiliar territory, and she wasn’t sure if she was ready for it. Friendship was easier—she could keep walls up and guard herself. Intimacy was so much more…well…intimate.

  Shaking her head, she stood up from her bed and headed to the Bluetooth speakers on her dresser, turning them on and connecting them to her phone. She needed to get some good music on to help rid her mind of her whirling, tumultuous thought process. Scrolling through her playlist, she selected one of her favorite songs and turned the volume up. Time to get gangsta.

  Moving around the room, she rapped along with Iggy Azalea’s Murda Bizness, letting her inner thug take over as she threw up fake gangsta signs and shook her hips.

  “Click clack, bang bang, we in the murda bizness.” She laughed at herself as she rapped along with the song, even twerking a little bit every now and then as she moved back and forth from her bed to her dresser, putting her clothes away.

  As the song came to an end, a soft chuckle alerted her to the presence of someone at her bedroom door. Whirling around, her gaze fell on four sets of equally amused eyes belonging to four extremely tall, exceptionally good-looking men she’d briefly forgotten she currently called her roommates.

  “The murder business, huh?” Dax was clearly holding himself together by a quickly fraying thread, barely keeping the laughter from bubbling over. Next to him, Jace was actually smiling—possibly the first one she’d ever seen him wear—a quirky, lop-sided smile that made her think it was an unusual action for him, while Tallen was looking at her with a wicked look in his deep blue eyes. She instantly knew he was planning on using this situation against her in the very near future. Cade even had a smile on his face, softly shaking his head back and forth as he chuckled under his breath, his black eyes sparkling with amusement.

  “What? I’m OG, yo. Represent.” She threw up the sign for westside, knowing full well she looked white as fuck doing it, but not caring in the least. There was no way she was gonna be embarrassed about her love of white girl rap. She owned her shit. Like, 93% of the time.

  Dax’s hands went up in mock surrender. “Hey, no problems here, Red Hot. You let your freak flag fly.”

  “I will.” She grabbed a pair of boyshorts off her bad and waved them around like a flag.

  All four sets of eyes flew up and followed the lacey pair of black and red skull panties as she waved them around.

  Pausing in her flag waving, she glanced up at the underwear, then slowly put them down. “Okay, so…maybe not the best item to represent me.”

  “Oh, I think that’s a perfect representation of you.” Tallen responded without an ounce of sarcasm. His mouth wore a sexy as fuck smirk as he eyed her with something more behind his gaze.

  “Please put those away.” Cade asked with a bit of discomfort as he rubbed the back of his neck.

  “Hey. Don’t diss my skull panties. They’ll take it personally. Plus, I look awesome in them.”

  “I’ll be you do.” Tallen muttered under his breath. She pinned him with a look that clearly said ‘I heard that’. He just shrugged, not looking the slightest bit repentant.

  Cade eyed her before responding. “You really don’t mind waving your underwear around in front of a group of men, do you?”

  “Not like Dax didn’t already go digging through them.”

  Three sets of eyes whirled onto the man in question. Cade looked appalled and Jace looked pissed off, whereas Tallen just looked curious.

  Backing slowly away with both hands raised, Dax sputtered in defense. “I was looking for a shirt!”

  “You were looking for a shirt in Ria’s laundry?” Jace asked in disbelief.

  “Yeah, a shirt he snuck in there after I’d already started the washer, the sneaky little slacker.”

  Dax looked miffed. “I don’t feel like slackers can really be called sneaky. It’s counterintuitive.”

  “And yet, here you are, proving the world wrong every day.” Ria remarked with a raised eyebrow.

  His miffed expression grew. “I’m not a slacker. I have a freaking Ph.D. in psychology.”

  Ria’s jaw dropped. “You have a freaking WHAT?! Since when?”

  He shrugged. “I got really bored in the early 90’s. I think some things might have changed since then.”

  Huh. “Who’s your favorite famous psychologist?”

  “Skinner. I’ve managed to use operant conditioning to make Tallen start hanging up his towel after he showers.”

  Tallen’s head whipped around to stare at Dax. “The fuck?”

  “What?” Dax shrugged. “You’d leave your wet towels on the floor. They were smelly. It was annoying.”

  “You freakin’ Freud’ed me?!”

  “Please. Freud was a sexist ass who was in love with his mother.”

  “That is not the poi—”

  Ria threw her hands up between the guys. “As exciting and riveting as this period of revelations is, I’d really like to finish my laundry and go to bed if I’m gonna be up in time to” gulp “go to the shooting range with Jace. And, ya know, live. Possibly. Hopefully.”

  “You’ll be fine, Arianne. I’ll train you in each part of a gun and how it functions long before you fire one. We’ll be using a Glock 9-millimeter, one of the most basic firearms out there.” Jace reassured her as he moved to stand in front of her, placing both hands on her shoulders and looking down at her from his impressive height.

  Heaving a sigh, Ria shrugged his hands off while offering a half-hearted smile. “Well, live or die, I still need some sleep. So, out, out with you lot!” She shooed them out with a fake British accent and closed the door, leaning back against it as she considered what she was going to be up against the next day.

  The things I do for maple bacon crack.

  ********************************

  “You’ve got it. I think you’re ready to fire it.” Jace commented as he picked up a magazine and loaded it into the gun. He gripped the barrel and reached out to hand it to Ria, keeping the barrel pointed down. She eyed it warily, reminded herself that there wasn’t a bullet in the chamber and the safety was on, so she would be fine. Slowly, she reached out and grabbed the hand grip, keeping the barrel pointed towards the ground. She turned to face the target 15 yards away and slowly raised the pistol, aligning her gun sights with the target in the open air range where they stood. Taking a deep breath, she slowly released and squeezed the trigger. The recoil ripped through her wrists and all the way up her arms, startling her. She knew the first time she fired would be uncomfortable, but damn. That was hell in a handgun right there.

  “Good. You’ve got excellent aim. Loosen up on your hold a little. You’re holding the gun, not strangling it. Also, you’re pulling a bit to the left.”

  “My fingernails are stabbing into the soft spot between my thumb and forefinger on my left hand.”

  “Maybe you should file them down.”

  “File my claws? How would I possibly live up to my title as wildcat?”

  “No
one calls you that.”

  “Maybe I’ll claw Tallen’s face off and start a trend.”

  “I’ll text him and see how he feels. For now…” He reached out and gently took a hold of her hands as she kept them raised towards the target, his touch creating an annoyingly pleasant tingle across her skin. Shut up, hormones. Repositioning her hands a bit, he then took a step back, examining her hold. “That should help. Try again.”

  Taking aim once more, she eyed the target through her sights and took a deep breath. Upon releasing it, she fired a second time. The recoil still stung her wrists a bit, but the painful bite in the soft spot of her left hand was gone.

  “That’s better. Ish.”

  “Good. Keep going.”

  After emptying a full magazine into the target 15 yards away, she lowered the gun, slowly turned around and walked to the table a few yards away. Gingerly setting the firearm down on the table, she proceeded to stare at it as if it were a two headed snake covered in slime that was hissing at her vehemently. “I don’t like it.” She looked back at Jace. “Nope. Don’t like it at all.”

  Jace smiled softly as he chuckled. “Well, for someone who doesn’t like it, you’re one helluva good shot.” He glanced back at the human-shaped target riddled with holes, the majority of which were dead center in the chest, before looking her in the eyes again. “At least you’ve got the basics down, and I feel confident enough in your aim and capabilities to say we can call it a day.”

  Her relief was palpable. “Good. Can I burn this gun now?”

  “It’s a gun. You can’t burn a gun.”

  “I can sure as hell try.”

  “It’s my gun. You can’t burn my gun.”

  “I can sure as hell try.”

  “For someone who dislikes firearms so much, you sure are the violent type.”

  “My momma raised me right.”

  His head tilted to the side. “Your momma didn’t raise you at all.”

  “It’s a saying.”

  “An inaccurate saying, in your case.”

  “You’re kinda being a butt.”

  Blink. “Excuse me?”

  “You’re being a butt.”

  “I’m not even sure what that means.”

  “You know what? I lied. I want the gun. I need to shoot you.”

  “This is exactly what I mean by violent.”

  Her eyes narrowed. Watching him, she saw a slight twitch of his lips and realized with no small amount of shock that he was messing with her. “Why, Jace, I do believe you have a sense of humor. Granted, humor at my expense—for which I will be paying you back in kind—but a sense of humor nonetheless. And here I thought you were robot angel 3.0.”

  Jace’s head fell back as he laughed loud and full. It sounded rough and unused, a deep, rumbly kinda laugh that sent shivers straight down to Ria’s toes. SHUT UP, HORMONES.

  After a few moments of him laughing and her staring in blatant awe, he settled down and smiled at her. “How would you like to go get some brunch?”

  It was a warm smile, full of fondness and a touch of something else that made the tingle in Ria’s toes jump back up and settle low in her belly. The sensation was unsettling, and she couldn’t tell if she wanted to get used to it or not.

  Yes, food. Happy food. Comforting food. Safe food. Food good.

  “Uh, yeah, food good. Like food.”

  An eyebrow quirked up his forehead at her unusual remark.

  “Oh, don’t even look at me like you ain’t already used to my weirdness. I’ve been living with you for, what, 5 weeks now? My freak flag is practically our coat of arms now. Let’s get some grub!”

  ********************************

  “Bacon, bacon, you’re the best. I love you better than all the rest!” Ria sang happily as she placed another perfectly crisp piece of bacony goodness in her mouth. Moaning happily, she wiggled in the seat of the booth she and Jace were sharing at the local diner. They served breakfast all day, making it one of Ria’s favorite places. Okay, so, yeah, pretty much any place with food was her favorite. She wasn’t a Skinny Minnie by any means—she loved food, as her curves proudly attested to, and she owned it. After all, like Meghan Trainor said—you know it’s all about that bass, ‘bout that bass, no treble…or whatever.

  Sitting opposite her, Jace watched with amusement as she destroyed her plate of fried eggs, hash browns, and bacon in true Ria fashion. Each bite was accompanied with either another butt wiggle in her seat, or an overzealous moan of pure happiness.

  “So, basically, if you’re ever mad at me, I just have to feed you.”

  She gasped in abject horror. “Excuse me? How dare you lower me to such debase standards!”

  Taking another bite, she chewed quickly, then swallowed. “It has to be good food. Preferably bacon. Or cheesy garlic bread. Or cheesy anything, really.”

  “Good to know you have such high standards for yourself.”

  She waved her fork at him. “Don’t be a hater.”

  “No hating. Just amused and intrigued.”

  Stretching her arms up high above her, she arched her back, noticing as his eyes inadvertently strayed to the strip of skin that appeared as her shirt rode up her stomach. Or maybe he was just worried about being blinded by her pasty white skin. Tanning was not her forte. She really couldn’t care less about being tan…or at least, she used to not care.

  Now, with Jace’s eyes on her, she wasn’t so sure.

  “So, Big A. Tell me—what’s your weakness?”

  His eyes moved up to meet hers. He watched her silently, long enough to lead Ria to the inevitable conclusion that he wasn’t going to answer. And why should he? Not like they were best buds or anything. Not like she hadn’t totally let him kick her ass every day and call it training or anything. Sure, they hadn’t known each other their entire lives (mostly cuz his life was, like, a billion years long), but still. The entire situation was disgustingly frustrating.

  Grr. Guys are dumb.

  “Family. Family is my weakness.”

  Well, that was unexpected. Pleasantly unexpected, but unexpected nonetheless.

  “Well…as far as weaknesses go, I think that’s a pretty great one.” She commented, sipping her lemonade. “As I told Cade—some people’s weakness is meth. You chose well.”

  Silence prevailed for a few moments as Ria ate the rest of her food in quietly, Jace having already finished his burger a little bit ago. She watched people meander outside. A family of three were walking—a father, a mother, and what looked to be a three year old—and she smiled at the child’s adorable antics as he tried to convince mom and dad to go into the local toy store using a series of arm waving and rapid pointing. Mom and dad seemed to be debating with one another about the wisdom of entering before finally acquiescing and allowing their son to drag them into the toy wonderland. It was a sweet sight to see, and Ria briefly pondered what it would have been like to have a family like that.

  “You know, when I say family, I’m not just talking about blood relations. Family extends beyond that. I consider you family.”

  Whipping her head back towards him, she blinked stupidly, completely caught off guard by his admission. “You do?”

  “Yes. I do.”

  She took a moment to consider this. “Do you always torture your family in the wee hours of the morning before even the sun is willing to show its face?”

  While Ria had been expecting him to become obtusely defensive, what actually occurred surprised the hell out of her. His face fell, and he actually looked…well, hurt would have been the best word. As if she’d offended him or something. Oh, now he looks frustrated. Okay, hurt and frustrated. And…concerned? Settle down there, you emotional Speedy Gonzales!

  “I’m not trying to torture you, Arianne. I’m trying to help you. I’m trying to protect you, to keep you as safe as possible until…” His voice trailed off as he realized he was approaching a no-no territory in the land of conversation subjects.

  “Until I
get my powers back.” She finished for him.

  Both his eyebrows jumped in surprise at the fact she was finally saying it aloud to him. “Um…yes. Until then.”

  Perhaps she was finally maturing into the kind of person who really owned their shit…even the shit that made them feel weak and vulnerable. Maybe she’d actually be able to call herself a real adult now. After all, she was adult-y enough to file her fucking taxes—of course she could own up to her weaknesses.

  “Well, Big A. Since we’re both in the ‘sharing is caring’ mood, care to tell me how you four fell in with each other? I mean, no offense, but y’all are about as opposite as salt and jelly fish.”

  “I’m sorry…did you say jelly fish?”

  “Yup. Sure did. Totally opposite things, right?”

  “Uh…yeah. I suppose so.”

  “So the phrasing works.”

  “Okay, but the actual phrasing is ‘as opposite as salt and pepper’. You know that, right?”

  “First of all, people put salt and pepper in almost everything, so apparently they do, in fact, go together. Second of all, pepper is boring. Jelly fish are cool, and way more opposite. They’re all ‘Bzzz! Bzzz! I sting you! Von, two, tree times! Mwa ha ha’!” She cackled in a Count Von Count voice.

  A few heads turned to look at her from the surrounding tables at the sound of her voice cackling through the restaurant. She smiled sweetly and waved, even though no one waved back. Shrugging, she turned back to Jace and grinned cheekily.

  He was staring at her with a look that exuded both bafflement and wonder, his mouth hanging open slightly. Apparently she could still throw him for a loop, even after five straight weeks of pure and utter wackiness. She reveled in her ability to confuse and befuddle her guys.

  Mwa ha ha indeed.

  “No, but seriously. What’s your story? Give me the deets, broseph.”

  “Not your broseph.”

  “Comrade.” She responded with a Russian accent.

  He rolled his eyes.

  “Fine, fine. Just spill already, mister.”

  Rolling his glass of water back and forth between his hands, he seemed to consider her request before responding. “I can tell you how Dax and I met, because I know he won’t mind. I’m actually surprised he hasn’t already told you himself.”