All That Glitters

by Dawn Ibanez

  Ryan snapped his fingers and a small pocket mirror appeared. He opened it and looked at her. “I think we need to work more on your control,” he said before turning the mirror to her.

  Kalina looked at her reflection. She looked perfectly normal, for someone with pink hair, red eyes and a pair of horns. When she took a step away from Ryan, he reached out and pulled her closer by her waist.

  “Don’t run away from me,” he whispered.

  “Here we are! I knew I had another bottle stashed back there.” Pierre proudly displayed the wine bottle. “Fairy Wine!”

  Ryan nodded at the younger man. “Good.” He leaned over the bar. “Don’t brag about who she is. Not many people know outside of her family. We’re trying to keep her under wraps until she can be debuted.”

  Kalina felt tears come to her eyes. Ryan was keeping her under wraps. Not many people knew about her relationship to Faust, but that bartender was able to figure it out. As it stood, she didn’t know who she was. Nothing about the world around her made any sort of sense. Every question she asked was met by riddles and more questions. She almost killed a woman and felt nothing. Kalina opened a portal and stepped through. She didn’t care where she ended up, but she needed to get away from the noise and figure herself out.

  “Kalina!” Ryan called out.

  She didn’t say anything as she waved her hand and the portal disappeared.

  CHAPTER 14

  Kalina looked around the old living room. Nothing changed since the day she graduated high school. This home had been her sanctuary and her prison. On the mantle were pictures of her with her parents. Both of her parents looked detached as she smiled at the camera. Part of her wondered if her father knew she wasn’t his. Maybe that explained why he was able to simply toss her to the street when she was still a kid.

  She walked to the kitchen and stopped as she looked at the basement door. It was still covered with the panels of wood she hammered there. Her mother always did her work in the basement. The one space in the house her father never stepped foot in. If there were any answers for her, they would have to be in the room that tormented her.

  With a wave of her hand, the boards shattered into splinters. As she approached the basement door, it opened. She went to the stairs and took a breath. As much as she wanted to know what was happening to her, she didn’t want to go down those stairs.

  “You really don’t have to go down there,” Carly said from the kitchen table.

  Kalina turned to her friend. The smile that nearly crossed her face crumbled as she went to Carly’s side and fell into her friend’s arm in tears. “I don’t know what’s happening to me!”

  Carly held her. “You scared the hell out of Ryan,” she said softly.

  Kalina shook her head. She didn’t want to think about him being scared. He didn’t have horns. She reached up into her hair and sobbed harder when she felt the horns jutting from the top of her head. “What is happening to me?” she asked again.

  Carly pulled her hands from her hair. “Your demon half is waking up.”

  “We knew that. That’s why all this mess started. Why do I have horns, Carly?”

  Carly squeezed Kalina’s hands. “Think about it. You’re Faust’s daughter, right? He’s a demon. He has horns. It would make sense that you have a demon form too.” She shrugged as Kalina’s sobs slowed. “They’re not bad looking. And they’ll probably go away as soon as you calm down from whatever almost killed you this time.”

  Kalina rubbed her throat and sat on the floor. “I think we found out who sent Xian after me.”

  “That’s great. Who is it?”

  “Ryan’s ex. A woman he said that he killed a long time ago.”

  Carly whistled. “She’s either crazy or bold. Probably both. Does she know who you are?”

  Kalina shrugged. “I don’t know. But I almost killed her.”

  “This could be a touchy area for me. I’m a death dealer and all. Killing isn’t the same.”

  “She did something, and I started to choke. She had this smirk on her face, and I couldn’t breathe. The next thing I knew, I had air, and she was on her knees choking. All I could think of was how easy it would be to just keep squeezing.”

  “But did she die?”

  Kalina frowned. “No. Ryan was there. He wanted to take me back to the villa.”

  “Villa? He has a villa in Venice?”

  “We were at a celebration on Bora Bora.”

  Carly made a choking noise. “He took you to Bora Bora?” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a deck of cards. “And you left him to come back here?”

  “Don’t make a big deal out of it,” Kalina said.

  “Dude, do you realize if he took you to a festival for the equinox, he already thinks you’re special?” Carly arched an eyebrow as she started to shuffle the cards.

  “What?”

  Carly shook her head. “I keep forgetting I know more than you do,” she mumbled.

  Kalina frowned at the rip and woosh of the cards shuffling. “Excuse you.”

  Carly rolled her eyes. “Listen here, Bright Light, Magical nights are usually reserved for those you think are special. There are… things that happen that can either bring a couple together or break them forever.”

  “What does this have to do with me and Ryan?”

  “If you hadn’t run away, you could be in Bora Bora right now, doing all the nasty and naughty things you’ve been thinking about with him. Coward.”

  Kalina blushed as she stood. “I haven’t thought about doing anything nasty or naughty with Ryan.” She looked at the three cards Carly placed on the table. “Ace of hearts, seven of spades, king of clubs.”

  Carly turned over the three cards. Each one was correct. She placed another three face down. “Liar.” Carly gestured to the dress Kalina wore. “Exhibit-A, the outfit. You didn’t leave the house wearing that.”

  “He thought I’d be cooler in this. Ten of diamonds. Jack of spades. Queen of clubs. Player one has blackjack.”

  Again, she was correct. “I’m not playing blackjack. I just want to take my mind off exhibit-B.

  “Exhibit-B?”

  “He took you to freaking Bora Bora.”

  “There was someone we needed to talk to.”

  Carly placed the cards on the table and pulled her cellphone from her pocket. Kalina swallowed as she saw Ryan’s name on an incoming call. “He’s been blowing up my phone for the past 15 minutes.” She answered the call and brought the phone to her ear. “I have her. She’s a little out of sorts about herself and your intentions. I’ll think about bringing her back to you.”

  Kalina could only watch as Carly disconnected the call and put the phone on the table. “What did he say?”

  “Not much of anything.” Carly smiled as her phone went off again. “This is what happens when you don’t let them speak. They think they can rise up and take over.” She shuffled her cards once more before her smile fell. She looked at Kalina. “Listen, I know you want answers. But you aren’t going to find them here.”

  “How do you know? She may have written something in a journal. She could have something about Faust down there.”

  Carly hung her head and waved her hand over the table. Four journals appeared on it. Carly stood and looked into Kalina’s eyes. “From what I read, she met Faust, he romanced her and taught her how to siphon magic. After you were born, she was hard up, and Faust stopped coming around. And she found out your magic was something she could use the same way she used his. Aside from that, there’s nothing. Only a written record of what she did to you.”

  “You read my mother’s journals?”

  Carly tucked her hair behind her ears. “It was to protect you.”

  “Did you think I wouldn’t care?”

  “Do you think I want you going down into that basement and reliving all that shit again for no answers?”

  There were things down there she never wanted anyone to see. Things her mother could have written that no
one should know about. Kalina glared at Carly and felt her magic swirl around her. “You had no right.”

  “And I don’t give a fuck. It was to protect you.”

  She was so tired of hearing everyone say that. “I don’t need your protection! I’m not some fragile flower that always needs to be sheltered from the storm!”

  “I have never treated you like you were some fragile flower.”

  Kalina picked up a journal. “What the hell do you call this?”

  “Treating you like a fragile bomb!”

  Kalina placed the book back on the table. Carly did always have a way of getting to her. A soft chuckle left her. If she looked at it that way, she could understand. No one really knew what her magic was capable of. She could easily level the street if she couldn’t cope with the basement.

  “I think I scared Ryan,” Kalina said.

  “Probably.” Carly motioned to the phone. “You can answer it if you want. He’s only going to keep calling.”

  Kalina smiled at the silent device. “I guess I do owe him an explanation.”

  “You owe him more than that,” she said. Carly looked around the kitchen and frowned. “And I think we need to remodel this place.” With a wave of her hand, her cards disappeared.

  “Why?”

  “It’s a nice house. You just have to deal with the demons that took up residence while you were playing weak witchling.”

  Kalina ran her hands through her hair and sighed. “They’re gone.”

  “They’ve been gone since the bomb comment.” Carly embraced her. “Go back to your man. He’s worried. And this time, make him talk. Be the bomb I know you are.”

  Kalina laughed as Carly’s phone lit up again. She picked up the phone and answered it. “I’m on my way back.”

  “Do you want me to open a portal for you?”

  She paused. “You know where I am?”

  “Big deal, remember?”

  The relief in his voice was overwhelming. “I’m the one that scored the Fairy Wine. You only rank Romani.”

  “Wait, you have Fairy Wine? I want some!” Carly said.

  A portal opened behind Kalina and she turned. She disconnected the call and handed the phone back to Carly. “Wanna come to Bora Bora?” she asked.

  “I want some of the Fairy Wine. That’s supposed to be the best, but no one can ever find the little fuckers.”

  Kalina laughed as she and Carly walked through the portal. When they stepped into Ryan’s villa, Kalina saw Ryan holding out a glass full of a pink liquid. He approached Carly and wrapped her hand around the glass. “Take it, have fun. If you need anything at the festival, tell them to bill me.”

  “Only a glass?”

  “Ask for the Romani wine, they should still have a bottle or two. But remember, Kalina won’t be around to hold your hair back.”

  Carly inhaled and smiled. “So much life on such a small island,” she said softly. She raised her glass in salute to Kalina. “I’m going to have fun. I’ll see you in the morning!”

  Kalina laughed as Carly vanished from sight. “She and Dad said that’s a trick of theirs. We have to create portals…”

  “While death dealers are portals.” Ryan walked over to her and wrapped her in his arms. “Why did you leave again?” he asked.

  She leaned against him. “Because I was confused. And angry. I felt like I was being used for some reason and I nearly killed someone without feeling anything. I won’t even mention the horns.”

  Ryan pressed his face into her hair. “I thought you left because of what I said.” He pulled away just enough to look at her. “If people figure out your relation to Faust, they’ll try to use that. I had to say something to cut them off.”

  She reached up and caressed his face. “I know. But in the moment, it hurt.” Kalina moved away from him. “Add that on to what that woman said, I realized that I don’t know you.”

  He nodded and turned away from her. Kalina followed him as he walked over to a tray where two bottles of wine were chilling. She was silent as he poured two glasses. “What would you like to know?” He turned to her and offered a glass.

  Satella refusing to say his name came to her mind. “Was your name always Ryan Gold?” she asked.

  “No.” He took a sip of his wine and motioned for her to sit on the sofa. “I’ve lived a long time. We often change our names out of either boredom or necessity.”

  That was understandable. If you had a dated name like Ebenezer or something, you would want to change it in the current times.

  She watched him as he moved to sit across from her. “You’re not a witch, are you?”

  He smiled. “No, I’m not a warlock. But I can use magic just as well, if not better than most.”

  Kalina took another drink of her wine. There were so many questions she could ask. But there was one that continued to run circles in her head. “What is this between us?”

  The green in his eyes flashed as he laughed. “I’ve been trying to figure that out since we met.” She opened her mouth to ask another question when he shook his head. “My turn to ask you something.” He leaned forward and kept his eyes locked with hers. “What do you want this to be between us?” he asked.

  CHAPTER 15

  Her eyes widened and she took a healthy drink of her wine. Ryan forced his expression to remain neutral. He wanted her honest answer. He needed it. The sinking feeling that settled in his chest the moment she ran clarified his own.

  She tucked her hair behind her ears and placed the glass on the glass table between them. “I don’t even know what I want out of life. How would I know what I want this second?”

  “You wanted to live a quiet and magic free life. Even to the point where you were killing yourself. But there had to be other dreams. A home, family. What happened to all of that?”

  The laugh that left her was sad. “I had to learn early. Home is where I make it. Same with family. The Harts looked after me when the ones that were supposed to protect me left me twisting in the wind.”

  Ryan couldn’t argue with her. “You wouldn’t have wanted Faust to step in. You would have become more self-centered than Elena.”

  “And now he wants me to come into the fold. Is that why he sent you to train me?”

  He wanted to be a better person, but Kalina deserved the truth. “I was going to turn down the assignment.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  “Because he would have sent someone like Jasper after you next. Or worse.”

  Her expression soured. “It gets worse than him?”

  Ryan laughed. She was still so naïve to their world. “Yes. Faust has many people under his thumb. Some are more pleasant than others.”

  Kalina stood and started to pace the room. Ryan watched her. Her posture was that of someone torn over a decision. “Talk to me, Kalina.”

  Her eyes were the color of rubies as she looked at him. “What will happen if we trap him? Will all these people he has under his thumb try and come after us?”

  Ryan shook his head. “I know the way Faust operates. If we trap him, the only reason why anyone would come after us would be to throw a party.” He went over to her and took her hands in his. “Your magic is growing.” He led her to a mirror and turned her to it. “I don’t think anyone is in this one.”

  She shook her head and leaned forward. “Really?” she asked. “It’s bad enough my hair is doing this. But now my eyes too?”

  “I know a few demons that have snouts and tails. Maybe you would appreciate those as well?” When she turned to him in alarm, he laughed. “Faust doesn’t have either of those things. He’s more of a traditionally know demon. Big muscles, horns and claws.”

  Kalina leaned her head against his shoulder. “Please don’t tell me anything else,” she mumbled.

  Ryan wrapped his arms around her. “I panicked when you left. I think Carly hates my phone number now.”

  She shook her head. “When she got to my house, she had her phone on silent. I didn’t ev
en know you were calling until she picked up.”

  He chuckled as she raised her head and looked at him. “I don’t think she likes me very much.”

  “You’ll get used to each other.” Kalina turned her attention to his shirt and started to smooth it against his skin. “I mean, if you want to hang around, she’s like a sister to me.”

  He realized a pattern of hers. “Does anything permanent scare you?” Her wide-eyed expression told him all he needed to know. She didn’t know what was between them, but she was terrified of the possibilities. “Every time we talk about the attraction between us, you’re fine. But the instant something about the future is mentioned, you back off.”

  She shrugged. “Mom and Dad, Carly’s parents, have been together for a really long time. But they have the kind of love that lasts forever.”

  “And you’re scared of that?”

  “I’m scared that I’ll lose myself chasing after it.” She reached up and touched his face. “What if I do something to scare you off? Or if we find out we aren’t compatible?”

  Or if she found out his truth?

  Ryan silenced her with a kiss. He didn’t want to think about how she would react to his past. Those thoughts went down dangerous roads. Her fingers tangled in his hair as their tongues dueled.

  “You can’t scare me off.” He lifted her off the floor and moaned when her legs went around his waist with little prompting. He broke their kiss and looked into her eyes. “But know, you have the power to destroy me,” he told her.

  Kalina pressed her forehead against his. “You remember your promise, right?” She played with his hair as he placed open mouthed kisses down the side of her neck. “You won’t stop until we’re both soaked in sweat and completely spent.”

  He snapped his fingers and opened a portal. He carried her through and stepped closer to the bed in his bedroom on the other side of the villa. As he laid her across the soft comforter, he used the opportunity to run his hands down her body. “Probably not even then,” he vowed.

  She sat up and made quick work of removing his top. Kalina tilted her face to his and looked into his eyes. The expression he saw there was something that would humble him for the rest of his days.