Autumn Storm

by Lizzy Ford

  “We aren’t. But things happen as they do for a reason. He may recover yet.”

  Autumn heard the hidden pain in his voice. It made her sad for him. Summer was Decker’s mate, and he’d killed her. Was he able to recover at all, if she was all that held him back from the Dark? Distraught by what she’d learned, she leaned down to un-bunch and push down her leggings.

  Blood dropped onto her hand. Her nose was bleeding. She hadn’t noticed the headache creeping on her but did now. Her amulet felt warm against her chest.

  “Michael? Daddy?” the sultry voice came from the hallway.

  “Here, baby!” Grandpa Louis replied. “We’re having tea.”

  “So early? It’s not even …”

  Autumn glanced up then back. The stunning woman was a few inches taller than she was with flawless features and large eyes. Her aura was much like Decker’s: powerful, dark and seductive. She wore snug clothing and her straight hair long. Where Decker and Beck had their father’s facial features, Decker had his mother’s dark eyes, so brown they were almost black. She’d stopped in the doorway, surprise registering across her face. Autumn guessed they rarely had guests. There was no doubt in her mind this was Michael’s wife, the former Mistress of Dark.

  “A special occasion,” Grandpa Louis said.

  “Come meet Autumn,” Michael said.

  The Dark Mistress didn’t leave the doorway. Husband and wife exchanged a look that made Autumn think they were communicating silently, and it wasn’t a good conversation. At last, the woman paced into the family room with the smooth walk of a predator. Her shadows were like a flash of unrestrained fire compared to the calm magick radiating from the men.

  Autumn felt the sting of hot tea against her hand. She was shaking. She didn’t know why or why she was close to having a full-blown migraine. She replaced the tea on the tray and focused on breathing deeply to keep nausea from rising.

  “Autumn, my wife, Rania. Rania, Autumn,” Michael said. “Autumn and Grandpa Louis were having a scar battle.” He wrapped an arm around her waist as she neared. Her fire vanished.

  “Autumn,” Rania said. “It’s a pretty name.”

  “Thank you,” Autumn mumbled.

  “Beck found her with Sam in the forest in the middle of the storm,” Michael said casually.

  “And he brought her here,” Rania said.

  Autumn sensed she wasn’t welcome. “I’m sorry for intruding.”

  “You’re not,” Michael replied.

  “I’ll get the guest room ready.” The magick of the former Mistress of Dark flared to life as she moved away from her husband’s touch. He’d won whatever battle passed between him and his wife. Autumn had no idea what that might’ve been, but she was surprised someone with Decker’s magick would back down from anyone. The calm, warm Michael ran the house.

  When Rania was gone, Autumn’s headache began to fade.

  “I can go,” she said to Michael.

  “Not in this storm.” The words were kind but firm enough to warn her it was a closed subject.

  “I’ve got a collection of war movies I’ve been saving for when we were snowed in,” Grandpa Louis said to her. “Care to join me?”

  She looked at Michael. He offered a smile she took as meaning for her to go ahead.

  “Sure,” she said. She stood and followed Grandpa Louis down the hall to a media room. Her thoughts were on the strange disappearance of Rania’s magick when her mate touched her and the information the men gave her.

  Had she done something similar to Decker Monday after their walk? His whole body surrendered to her touch. If so, did that mean Summer wasn’t his mate, like everyone thought she was?

  The idea he’d fallen in love with the wrong person made her feel bad. Maybe, she was misreading what happened. After all, she didn’t think she’d handle the life of a Dark Master’s mate with the same calm acceptance as Michael and Grandpa Louis. Or maybe she might, if it meant going to bed every night with Decker. The thought made her stumble on her way to the seats up front.

  Pain went through her, and she gritted her teeth, realizing she didn’t have painkillers with her. How long was Beck planning on leaving her here? How long could the storm last?

  Autumn sat down and waited for Grandpa Louis. He joined her, cheerful, as the first documentary started. Several hours later, just when the US entered World War II, she was asleep.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Autumn awoke in a bedroom in the cabin the next morning. She didn’t recall leaving the media room but must have found her way to the guest room at some point. The scents of fresh coffee and breakfast drifted under the closed door. She rolled onto her back and gazed at the ceiling. There were maps of the constellations taped to the ceiling. Two were drawn in and shaded.

  Orion. Scorpio. Why did she know them?

  Her body didn’t hurt this morning, but her head did. She sat up and looked around. It was a guy’s room; the color scheme was dark blue and black. There was a small fireplace in one wall.

  The headache grew. Autumn looked away. It was too early for a migraine, especially since the rest of her body felt decent for once. The en suite bathroom had everything she needed for a shower, and she took a long one, grateful for the privacy Dawn had yet to afford her. When she exited, she was surprised to find her dirty clothes gone and a clean set waiting for her on the newly made bed. Her two rocks sat on top.

  Autumn lifted the sweater, troubled to find it similar to one she already owned. Unable to escape the sense she’d been here before, she gazed up at the star maps on the ceiling. Confusion and memories warred within her until she gave up digging through her mind for answers. The clothing was in her size. She refused to think about how or why but changed and limped to the stairs leading to the main floor of the cabin.

  It was the second night of her life she’d slept without pain. It returned as she navigated the stairs. She was almost relieved at the sensation. It didn’t confuse her like everything else here did. She joined Grandpa Louis in the kitchen.

  “My famous crepes,” he said. He set a plate of thin, rolled crepes on the breakfast table in the kitchen. They were topped with huckleberries.

  Autumn wolfed them down, her gaze going to the peaceful scene outside the window. The lake was covered with snow, and trees sagged under the weight of white. She drank two cups of coffee and was on her third when Beck’s voice came from the hallway behind her.

  “Heya, Grandpa Louis,” he said cheerfully.

  She twisted to see him walk into the kitchen. He appeared more rested than he had when he dropped her off with his parents, though there was still an unusual wariness to him.

  “Ready?” he asked her.

  “For…?”

  “I’m your ride back to the school.” He held out a hand.

  “Okay.” She rose and crossed to Grandpa Louis, giving him a hug. “Thank you!”

  “You’re welcome,” he said, squeezing her back. “Beck will bring you cookies, next time he is in.”

  She smiled then took Beck’s hand. The white cloud descended then lifted, revealing the comfortable television room of the school. She shuddered at the strange magick. Releasing him, she faced him with a glare.

  “Why did you leave me there?” she asked.

  “Yeah.” His hard gaze rested on the top of the stairwell, not on her.

  “Beck, what’s wrong?” she asked. “You’re freaking me out again.”

  He squeezed her arm, eyes returning to hers. “Tanya went missing yesterday. She didn’t show up at her parents, and they called the school. I’m trying to figure out if she was snatched or something.”

  She gasped. “Really?”

  “I’ve been working on tracking Decker down.”

  “You don’t think…” She couldn’t finish the sentence. She had to admit; it wasn’t outside the realm of possibility that Decker – or whatever that thing inside him was – was capable of kidnapping a witchling, if he killed so many of them.

  “I
think he’s pissed enough at me to lash out at anyone he thinks I’m interested in. I wanted to make sure you were okay last night.”

  “No worries there,” she said with a snort. “You’ve ignored me all week.”

  “Do me a favor. Don’t leave the house today.” He was distracted again.

  Shaking her head, Autumn went to the stairs and made her way up them. She walked down the hall and opened the door to her room. Dawn was sitting on her bed, laptop on her thighs. She glanced up, uninterested.

  “Let me guess. It was you at Beck’s cabin,” she said in a tone that said she didn’t think Beck would stoop so low.

  Autumn rolled her eyes. “Grandpa Louis makes killer crepes.”

  Dawn appeared startled. “You really were there. So it wasn’t Tanya.” For a long moment, she was silent, almost pensive.

  Autumn crossed the room, hoping she’d shut up the moody girl.

  “You know we’re gonna have a baby girl, don’t you?” Dawn demanded.

  “You can have him,” Autumn replied. “Actually, you can have both the Turner twins.”

  “I’ve been at Decker’s all week.”

  Autumn almost missed a step. She caught herself with her cane. She knew Decker had girls over, but Dawn? Everything she learned about Decker made her think she needed to run the next time she saw him. But she wouldn’t. As hard as it was to hear all the things he was doing, she couldn’t shake her growing concern for him or the need to help him out of his tailspin. She wasn’t sure it wasn’t too late.

  “He’s as crazy as they say.” There was an uneasy note in Dawn’s voice. “Totally worth it, though.”

  Irritated for multiple reasons, Autumn hoped she’d have some peace sitting on the couch watching television. She crossed to her closet and paused. She’d thought to change into her clothes, but the clothes she wore fit like they really were hers. Fingering the soft sweater, she noticed it was the same cut, material and quality as one of those she already had. The color was different, but they were identical otherwise.

  “I’m going to marry Beck,” Dawn continued. “All you are is a fling.”

  Talk about crazy. Autumn half-listened, her attention on her clothing. She hadn’t checked the brand of jeans, but she suspected they’d be the same as at least one of those in her closet. Did it matter?

  Yes. Only she didn’t understand why. She tugged off her coat and hung it up in the closet, unable to figure out why her sweaters made her head hurt more.

  “Are you even listening to me?” Dawn demanded, her anger growing. “Beck and I are getting married.”

  Fed up with her, Autumn shoved her closet door closed. “Right. Because he’ll marry you when you’re sleeping with his twin, and I’m staying at his cabin. Grow up, Dawn. He doesn’t want anything to do with you. This isn’t the sixties, where you could force someone to marry you by getting knocked up. You sure it’s his and not Decker’s or someone else’s anyway?”

  Dawn was quiet. A glance showed she was surprised and furious. Autumn gripped her cane and left before the girl had time to recover. She reached the top of the stairwell before she heard Dawn slam the door hard enough to make the windows shudder. She was screaming something behind the door. Autumn cringed and made her way quickly down the stairs.

  She didn’t want to be around when that train wreck left. Instead of going to the couch, Autumn went to the back door leading into the Square. She paused, gazing out the window. Much of the Square had been cleared of snow that was now piled on the sides of the boys’ dorms, reaching the roofs. The students remaining for the holiday were gathered around bonfires or throwing snowballs at each other in the snowy area, farther back in the Square near the tree line. Amber, Matilda and Michael Turner stood with the students at one fire. By the pounding in Autumn’s head, the former Mistress of Night was somewhere out there, too.

  Autumn’s hand dropped from the door knob. The people in the Square seemed … unburdened. She felt more at home with Sam in his tree stump than she did here. Though it was midmorning, the scents of turkey, ham and pies tickled her nose already. Amber told the class the day before that they’d have a lunch at noon.

  The front door slammed. She turned and caught a flash of Dawn’s blond hair through the window in the door. Relieved the girl was gone, Autumn went to the couch. Troubled by what Beck and Dawn told her, she turned on the television without any real interest in watching.

  The crowd out back moved indoors a few minutes after she sat down. Autumn moved to one side of the couch. There were a couple dozen people who filled the living area and dining room. Board games emerged, and talk from cheerful players soon drowned out the television.

  Her head ached along with her leg. Autumn rose and caught sight of the twins’ mother in the dining area. Unable to explain the strange effect the former Mistress of Dark had on her, Autumn chose to go outside for air.

  She exited onto the porch. The cold day was cloudy, though no more snow had fallen. Autumn descended the stairs and walked to the gravel driveway then followed it around the dorms. She glanced at the forbidden trail without stopping, instead continuing to the small bridge over the stream.

  Leaning over the bridge, Autumn was fascinated by the way water still flowed, though the edges of the creek were frozen.

  “Hey.”

  She looked up at the husky voice, knowing whose it was before she saw him standing at the edge of the bridge, like a shadow. Her heart quickened. Tall and strong, Decker’s steady gaze made her stomach flutter from the distance.

  “Hi, Decker,” she said.

  His face rippled, human-inhuman-human. The sight made her stomach sink. He paced onto the bridge and paused in front of her. His shadows were restrained again this day. She found herself leaning back anyway, her breathing already irregular.

  “I didn’t think you’d come today,” she said, gazing up at him.

  “I wanted to see you,” he said. “I’m here to say good-bye.”

  “Where are you…” she trailed off. Fear that wasn’t wholly hers pierced her thoughts.

  “The Darkness is taking me. I want it to. It’ll make life easier.”

  “Decker …” she said, aghast.

  “I’m not sure when it’ll happen. Soon, though.”

  “Why?”

  “I won’t hurt anyone this way.”

  Speechless, Autumn searched his face. She saw resolution there. It terrified her on levels she wasn’t able to access. The fear penetrated the recesses of her mind. He killed innocent witchlings. He might’ve kidnapped Tanya.

  I can’t lose him.

  He slept around. He’d never be loyal to her. Even if he was, how did she live with him, knowing the things he did?

  We belong together.

  Her logic and instincts warred.

  “There’s another way,” she said at last. “I mean, you can’t …Decker.” His name came out choked. She was panicking, the same sense of fear and dread filling her that she experienced watching the ghost of Summer on the cliff.

  “You’re so sweet, Autumn,” he said. His face softened. He reached forward to brush away a tear she hadn’t noticed. His touch burned, and he paused, meeting her gaze again. The connection was enough for fire to light her blood. Desire flared in his dark eyes. His hand dropped.

  “Isn’t there anything I can say or do?” she asked, distraught.

  “No.” His voice was firm. “I made that mistake once. I won’t risk it again. You all will be better off this way without me in your lives screwing things up.”

  “You shouldn’t get to make that decision for me!” She flushed with anger.

  “If I hadn’t pushed the last girl I cared about off a cliff…”

  Autumn wasn’t sure which hit her harder: the fact he admitted what he’d done or that he cared about her. As if aware of what he’d said, his face turned pink.

  “I can’t control what I am, Autumn. I couldn’t stand it if I hurt you.”

  “I refuse to believe it’s hopeless.�
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  “It’s not. I’m taking the path that will protect everyone.”

  His decision was made. She didn’t know what else to say. Her mind was making things worse, because the emotional side wouldn’t quiet down long enough for her to know what to do. She wiped her eyes.

  “I’ll miss you,” she said. “I hope you change your mind.”

  “You’ll be the first to know.” He studied her features, the need still in his eyes. “Farewell kiss?”

  She answered by eliminating the distance between them, as she had after their walk. Decker eased closer and smoothed errant curls away from her face. He tucked them behind her ears before tilting her face up. He held her gaze, tracing her jaw line.

  No part of Autumn urged her to resist this time. His tender caress left trails of fire across her skin. When his lips met hers, he released some of the passion he’d withheld the first time he kissed her. Deep and demanding, his hunger for her swept away any doubt she belonged to him, if not in this life, then in another. Autumn’s body yielded, and his arms circled her, absorbing her into his shadows, warmth and scent. She tasted his need – and his desperation. Both compelled her sense of urgency upwards.

  She clung to him, as aware of her own surrender as she was the tremor going through his body. Their magicks mixed and flowed, the five elements balanced in perfect harmony.

  Whatever they had been – or were meant to be – she had to save him.

  Decker withdrew. His breathing was as heavy as hers. His hands remained on her face, his cheek against hers.

  “I’m sorry, Autumn,” he whispered.

  The words she wanted to say were stuck in her throat. She didn’t want to leave his arms or let him face his fate alone.

  With effort, he moved away from her. She steadied herself as his hands left her body. Emotions wriggled free of the barrier blocking her memories. Though he’d only held her once, his sudden absence left her feeling empty. Alone. Lost.

  “Decker,” she called, near breathless from his kiss.

  He stopped at the edge of the bridge.

  “There must be another way.” The words sounded so useless to her own ears. Emotions and the affect of his lingering shadows drove away her ability to put into words what the hidden memories were trying to tell her.