The Company of Shadows (The Company #1)

by Olsen, Lisa

“It’s alright, I know the girl code. I’ll settle for meaningful glances at you behind his back.”

  “Good. He can be pretty shy around girls.”

  That turned out to be an understatement.

  When Ethan rapped on the door, he barely lifted his gaze off the ground, offering a mumbled greeting to Kelli. He treated her more like a fare than a friend as he drove them down to Spanky’s, responding with a series of monosyllabic grunts when she tried to draw him into the conversation. Kelli ignored him after he failed to respond to her flirty request to see his sexy tattoos. There was no sign of the sling or bandage, and he moved easily with no sign of pain or restriction.

  There wasn’t a good time to brace him about loosening up until after he parked the car and escorted them into the store. While Kelli stood chatting with Dylan, their boss, she cornered Ethan by the door. “What’s with the Mr. Mumbles routine? You didn’t have this much trouble talking to Penny the other day.”

  “That was different,” Ethan replied, clenching his hands into fists and then releasing them, rhythmically. “We were supposed to be neighbors, nothing more. I don’t know how to talk to someone like your friend Kelli. Am I supposed to flirt back with her when I’m your boyfriend?” he shook his head, and Cady took pity on his bewildered expression.

  “No, but she’s never gonna buy that you’re my boyfriend if you keep up with the silent routine. Can’t you at least be a little friendlier than that to me?”

  “Friendlier?” Ethan nodded slowly, digesting the critique, before wrapping a possessive arm around her waist. “Alright, I can do that.” His hand dipped to the curve of her ass, pulling her tightly to his lean form. He delivered a scorching kiss that chased all thoughts of subterfuge from her mind.

  “What was that?” she murmured, slightly dazed when it was over.

  “I thought about what you said. I’m supposed to be protecting you, and I figure the quickest way to draw the subject out of hiding is to provoke a reaction from him.”

  “You have my permission to try that tactic anytime you like,” Cady breathed, more than a little affected by the coiled strength in his body and the way he held her.

  Unfortunately, the only reaction it provoked was one from her boss.

  “Hey, no touching the merchandise, pal,” Dylan growled. He’d tied his scraggly hair back into a ponytail and trimmed the ragged facial hair into a thin mustache and the suggestion of a goatee. A huge improvement, but the clothes were still awful. An open button up shirt in a hellish orange print over brown, fringed, suede pants and pointy toed boots.

  Ethan made no move to let go of Cady. “I’m just saying goodnight to my girlfriend,” he replied in a challenging, cocky tone she didn’t recognize.

  Dylan’s eyes narrowed at him, giving Ethan a bold look up and down before flicking to Cady. “I’m not paying you to make out with your boyfriend. Time to get to work.”

  “I know, I’ll be there in a minute,” she replied meekly, wanting another word before she let go of Ethan.

  “Move those gorgeous buns, kitten, I don’t got all night.” Her boss fired out that last order before going back to locking up the rest of the shop.

  “Looks like he’s the only one who objected,” Cady whispered once he was out of earshot and Ethan leaned close to her ear, his words sending a shiver down her spine.

  “Keep an eye on him.”

  “He’s my boss, he’s harmless. I do have to go though. Are you really going to hang out waiting all night while I’m in here working?”

  “Yes, I’ll be out there keeping an eye on you, don’t worry.”

  “I’m not worried. I’ll be locked in safe and sound until closing time. If you had anything else you wanted to take care of, you could take off for a while. Actually, I should be fine for the rest of the night. Ian’s set to pick me up after two and then we’re gonna hang out with Kelli at home. Which you’re perfectly welcome to join us, you know,” she pointed out.

  “I’ll sit put for a while, see what happens. If I do need to bug out, I’ll send you a text.”

  “What happened to the Challenger, by the way?” Cady asked, not having been able to react much when he picked them up in an unfamiliar white Jetta.

  “I junked it.”

  “Aw, I loved that car,” she mourned, wondering how he’d managed to get his hands on a new car so quickly.

  “Chop chop, missy.” Dylan snapped his fingers at her like a dog and she fixed him with a withering glance.

  “Alright, alright, I’m coming. I’ll see you later.”

  “Be safe.” Ethan’s fingers brushed over the necklace, and for the first time Cady thought she saw naked emotion escaping the tight confines of his will.

  “You too.”

  * * *

  Ignoring the mutterings that came from the direction of her boss, Cady locked herself in the cage where Kelli was already entertaining the store’s two customers by debating the merits of Assterpiece Theater. Dylan hung around longer than normal, maybe to make sure Ethan didn’t come back to distract Cady, but took off after a while.

  Every once in a while, Cady would try to spot Ethan out there through the barred windows, but she never saw him. She considered texting him once or twice, but decided that would only reinforce the impression that she was worried, and she wasn’t. Apart from the upstanding members of society who patronized Spanky’s brand of sticky charm, there was no sign of anyone who made her feel more uncomfortable than usual. Safe in her cage, the night passed swiftly enough.

  Sometime after one, she got a text from Ethan. Everything okay in there?

  Yep, kinda bored, she replied, surprised when the phone rang a few seconds later. “Hey,” she smiled, looking out the window again. “Are you still out there?”

  “Of course. Listen, your brother’s going to pick you up tonight after work, right?”

  He sounded tense to her, or not tense, but excited maybe. “That’s right, why?”

  “I picked up something on the police scanner. I want to go check it out, but not if it leaves you exposed.”

  “What is it?”

  “It’s the report of a woman’s body found behind a bar not too far from here. It might not even be his handiwork, but…”

  “No, you’re right, you should totally go check it out,” she agreed immediately. “I’m fine here, locked up tight.”

  “I’ll probably be back before you get off work anyway, but if not, stick to your brother’s side.”

  “I’ll be fine, you go ahead. Call me if you find out anything good.”

  “Alright, bye.”

  “Was that Ian?” Kelli asked as soon as she got off the phone.

  “No, that was um, David,” Cady replied, remembering at the last instant to use the alias. “He had to go run an errand, so he might not be able to give us a ride home.”

  “Oh, well that’s okay,” she shrugged. “It’s a nice night out, and we always walk anyway. Though I’m kinda regretting these shoes now.” Kelli flexed her foot one way and then the other, repeating it with the other foot.

  “That’s what you get for wearing hooker heels,” Cady chided her gently.

  “Whatever, they make my legs look amazing,” Kelli grinned, and Cady had to agree. Her legs did look fantastic, but she’d much rather be comfortable in her white sneakers. “My tan is totally fading though, it’s been too hot to lay out for almost a week.”

  “My roof tomorrow,” Cady declared. “I’ll bring a spray bottle of water and a bucket of ice. You won’t even notice how hot it is.”

  “Ooh, it’s a date. I’ll bring the margaritas!”

  They chatted lazily, making plans for an idle day in the sun. There was likely to be a week of the heat left at most, before the worst of it was over and the inevitable morning fog returned. Soon summer would be over, and another school year would be starting without her.

  Cady’s mind started to wander, thinking about the future. Maybe she should make plans to go to community college? In a couple of ye
ars maybe she’d be able to transfer to a more prestigious school, or maybe she could look into applying for a student loan or a scholarship program. Just because things hadn’t turned out the way she’d planned didn’t mean she had to ditch her entire future.

  As she took a customer’s soggy bills, she vowed it would be her last summer working at Spanky’s at the very least. Business picked up then, and there wasn’t much time to think about more than making change and a pump of hand sanitizer before she greeted the next customer.

  Just before closing time, Cady’s phone buzzed again, but instead of another text from Ethan, this one came from her brother.

  Party’s running long, might be late in picking you up.

  “Damn,” she muttered. “Looks like we lost our escort home.”

  Kelli’s face crumpled in disappointment. “Oh no, what happened to Ian this time?”

  “Nothing happened to him, he’s caught up at work. It’s not a huge deal. We can probably hang out in here until Dylan’s done with closing and he’ll probably be here before then.” Briefly, she considered texting Ethan to let him know they were left high and dry, but she hadn’t heard back from him yet, and she didn’t want to interrupt him in case he was in the middle of something sneaky. Instead, she sent a text back to Ian. No worries, bro. We’ll hang out ‘til you get here.

  Dylan arrived just before two to lock up, and he didn’t seem to mind them hanging out while he tallied up the night’s receipts and deposited the cash into his night safe. “Well done, ladies,” he grinned, happy with the night’s take. “Keep it up and I might be able to spring for a bonus at the end of the month.”

  “Thanks, boss,” the girls replied in unison. Dylan’s bonuses typically didn’t amount to more than an extra twenty bucks, but still, twenty dollars was twenty dollars.

  “No body guard tonight?” he asked, looking up from his ledger. Dylan kept a paper ledger that he tucked away in the freezer compartment of the mini-fridge, the only record of his night time side-business.

  “No, Ian had to work late, we’re just waiting for him to get here,” Cady said, looking out onto the street again, but there was no sign of him.

  “Oh right, the brother. I meant the boyfriend, I thought he might be sniffing around. You know, I never figured you to go for the handsy type, kitten.”

  “He’s not always that forward,” Cady replied, face flushing as she thought about that kiss. “But he had to go take care of some stuff. I’m sure Ian’ll be here soon though, we’ll be fine.”

  Dylan popped the plastic covered book into the freezer, shutting the door with a flourish. “I could give you girls a ride if you want.”

  He’d never volunteered to take them anywhere before. Sure, Ian was usually on hand, but it had Cady leery of the sudden offer of help. “Are you sure it’s not out of your way?”

  “Nah, at this time of night it’s not like there’s any traffic, right?” He gave them a crooked grin, showing yellowed teeth.

  “Really? That would be awesome!” Kelli gushed, and Cady could tell she was motivated by the killer heels.

  Something pricked at her nerves in accepting a ride, but he wasn’t exactly a stranger, and it was getting late. Besides, he didn’t sound like Ash at all, just his usual smarmy self. “Thanks, that’s nice of you,” she accepted.

  “Alright, let’s get a move on then,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “I got a bottle of Jack at home with my name on it.”

  Cady sent Ian and Ethan both a text that they’d caught a ride with Dylan, and not to worry. Dylan’s car was a metallic bronze Cadillac Seville, with a white top showing more than a few repairs. The back seat was piled high with cardboard boxes, overflowing with dusty possessions, everything from books to a scarred rolling pin, and they had to squeeze together to sit in the front.

  “What’s with all this stuff?” Kelli asked, picking up an ashtray in the shape of a frog with big red lips.

  “I bid on one of those storage auctions, and this is the crap I won. I haven’t had time to go through it yet, but I’m thinking there are some real beauties in there.” Dylan flashed a weathered grin, pulling onto the road. “So, which one of you lives closer?”

  “Kelli does, but we’re both going back to my place,” Cady replied, only to have Kelli contradict her.

  “Actually, I’m thinking about going home. I’m beat.”

  “I thought we were going to hang out.”

  “Yeah, I know, but then Ian had to bail and it’s getting late…”

  Cady knew from past experience that Kelli didn’t consider it late until the sun came up, but she let it go, more than a little disappointed at being blown off just because her brother wouldn’t be there. “Alright, some other time then.”

  “Which way am I going?” Dylan asked, and Kelli gave him directions to her apartment. Cady was too bummed out after her friend left to be worried about riding alone with Dylan anymore. “You’re quiet tonight, kitten. Cat got your tongue?” he asked after riding along in silence for a few minutes.

  “I’m just tired, I guess,” she replied.

  “You shouldn’t work such late hours.”

  “You’re the one who set them,” she snorted. “Trust me, if you paid the same for your regular shop, I’d be hitting you up for the day shift.”

  “You need a man to take care of you.”

  There were so many things wrong with that observation, she didn’t know where to begin. But it was her boss, so Cady kept the biting retort that leapt to mind from slipping out. “I do just fine,” she said shortly.

  “A pretty girl like you… it’s a wonder you don’t have suitors lined around the block. You should wear your hair down more often, you have such lovely hair.”

  Oh man, was he hitting on her? She’d never been so glad to be able to say, “Yeah well, I have a boyfriend, remember?”

  “Yes, him,” he said, his voice dropping to a gravely pitch. “He had his hands all over you as though he owned you, nothing more than a pretty bauble.”

  The conversation was starting to get weird, and Cady shifted as far away from him as she possibly could, pressing against the passenger door. “He’s a dangerous guy,” she tossed out there as a warning. “And he’s the jealous type, so…”

  “He didn’t look so dangerous to me.”

  “Appearances can be deceiving,” Cady murmured, starting to wonder just who she’d climbed into the car with. His entire body language and mannerisms had undergone a subtle shift. Dylan was usually kind of twitchy, toes tapping, hands constantly in motion, but the man who sat in the driver’s seat seemed inordinately calm by comparison. There was also the manner of his speech; Cady didn’t think Dylan even knew what bauble meant.

  “Yes, they can,” he smiled brilliantly, the light from the dash casting his face in a sickly yellow glow. “Take this body for instance. You would never know it to look at him, but the man has a collection of Russian nesting dolls. More than forty of them, in all shapes and sizes. I’ll bet you didn’t know that.”

  Cady shook her head, too scared to reply aloud.

  “But sometimes,” he spoke again, driving casually with one hand. “Appearances can reflect the soul. You, for instance, are the picture of beauty and grace. The very face of love.” His hand rose to stroke her hair and she cracked her head against the window, flinching away from the touch. “Shhh, you have nothing to fear from me. I would never harm you.”

  “It’s you, isn’t it?” she breathed, staring at him in horror.

  “You know me,” he beamed. “Even in this shell you still know me. I knew you would. You smell so… delicious, I’d know you anywhere.”

  “How did you…?” Cady licked her lips, her mouth suddenly dry. “You sounded just like Dylan before, not like you at all.” Maybe if she could keep him talking… maybe she could reach her phone, or… Cady wasn’t sure where she was going with the plan, but he seemed to be taking her home, not back to his rape factory. If she could get a message to Ethan…


  “It’s not rocket science, kitten. It’s not like the guy is all that complicated in the brains department, you get me?” He favored her with a sleazy grin before returning to the altered speech pattern. “I have access to all his memories, his thought patterns. I could even let you speak to him if you like.”

  “He’s in there with you?”

  “Of course. Blissfully unaware of our conversation for the moment, but I can let him achieve some measure of consciousness without losing control.”

  Thinking she might be able to distract him, Cady nodded vigorously. “Show me. Let me talk to Dylan.”

  “As you wish.” Guiding the car to a stop only a couple of blocks away from Cady’s apartment, he turned off the ignition. A shiver rippled through his body, but before Cady could so much as inch towards the door handle, the change was made. “Cady?” Dylan stared back at her, dark eyes wide as he took in his surroundings. “What the fuck is going on?”

  “Dylan, listen to me. You have to fight him,” she pleaded. “Kick his ass out and take your body back!”

  “Are you high? What are you doing in my ride? What time is it?”

  “Screw this…” Cady slipped off her seatbelt, but a restraining hand kept her from going any farther.

  “There, I sent that hateful man away, you’ve no need to run,” he soothed.

  Yeah, like that was who she wanted to run away from. “What do you want from me?”

  “I only want to love you.” He leaned forward to kiss her, stained teeth and all. In one swift movement, Cady threw the door open, bolting from the car.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Cady hit the ground running, not bothering to look behind her. If there was one thing she’d learned from horror movies, it was looking behind you meant slowing down and possible tripping, and then she’d be dead meat. The demon would be faster and stronger than she was, and she didn’t plan on giving him any more advantage over her than that.

  Glad she’d worn comfortable kicks instead of heels or even sandals, her feet pounded the pavement, giving her pulse a run for the money. Convinced she’d feel his hands on her throat any second, Cady burst through the building’s lobby door, thankful for once that the lock was broken yet again and she didn’t have to fuss with a key.