Shaking my head, I exhale a deep breath before I find the words to speak. “Enough,” I bellowed into the empty sky. “I am sick and tired of you always showing up and then acting as though we are causing you problems. Why are you so determined to ruin our lives?” The words flew out of me like vomit and I winced as Ace’s expression momentarily morphed into something similar to pain.
Ace opened his mouth to speak, but then thought better of it.
“Spit it out,” I ordered, focusing all of my energy on Ace.
“I don’t know why you have to be so stubborn and argumentative about all of this. I told you that I would take you to Crow Haven, but there are rules you must follow. Danger lurks everywhere and you keep putting yourself right in the center of the storm,” Ace shouted.
“I can’t stop living my life. I’ve survived sixteen years so far,” I began, but Ace refused to allow me to finish my thought.
“No,” he shouted, throwing his hands up in the air. I swear the air shook as his fists punched through the invisible walls. “You don’t understand. Your presence here brings unfathomable danger and risks to all of us. Until you comprehend the magnitude of your role with the Seekers, you have to walk on the side of caution. It is beyond exhausting following you and having to check everywhere you go for danger.”
“I never asked you to do this,” I cried out.
“No one asked me,” Ace yelled, his hearty voice causing the ground below me to shake. “Your assignment to me was never my choice, but here we are,” he laughed, though there was no humor at all lacing his voice.
Hurt registered in my heart as his words struck me down. Sure, I wasn’t a huge fan of Ace’s but to hear that he never wanted to work with me was painful to hear.
“Then don’t bother anymore. Whatever is going on, I will figure it out on my own,” I said, fighting to hold in my betraying tears.
Shaking his head, Ace folded his arms tightly across his chest. My eyes betrayed me as they focused in on the line of muscles bulging through his taut skin.
Even amongst the darkness, his yellow, glowing eyes lit up our surroundings.
“This is why you need us!” Ace roared. “Lizzie, I am going to say this once and then I need you to leave it alone until the time is right to share the rest,” Ace breathed, stepping so close to me, I could feel his warm breaths caressing my skin. “What you don’t know yet, is that you hold the power to keep the Demons away from our town. Your Great Aunt Morgan was the key to keeping us safe. Now that you have arrived, the Demons will stop at nothing to end your life. The one thing missing from this entire equation is the necklace,” Ace said, his chest rising and falling rapidly.
My mind raced as this new information spun around me like a raging twister. It was as though each time I was given more information about my life, I ended up with a million more questions. Nothing made sense at all to me anymore and I was starting to question my own sanity.
“I don’t...this doesn’t…” the words eluded me as my brain and my mouth seemed to be at odds with one another.
“Just tell her,” Maylee cried out, her body shaking in frustration.
I briefly turned to her, shocked by her sudden outburst, but thankful for her help all the same.
Ace paused for a moment, his eyes dancing between me and Maylee. For the slightest of seconds, I thought he was going to walk away and forgo giving me the information I craved so desperately.
“Lizzie, your Great Aunt Morgan possessed a necklace that your family has held for centuries. Whoever wears that necklace, ignites the key to the protection spell placed on the gem inside the necklace. We have to find it before the Demons destroy you and everyone else in this town. This is all information you would have learned in greater detail had you been patient and just waited like I asked you to,” Ace said, shaking his head in anger.
“Umm, guys,” Maylee said, trying to interrupt us.
“Wait, Maylee,” I stated, holding up my hand to pause her. Turning my anger back to Ace, I closed the slim space between us. “You were going to make me wait to tell me that there is a necklace that could save me?” I spewed out, my words like flowing lava.
“This isn’t information you just throw out in everyday conversation. There are rules to the supernatural world-- to the Crows at Crow Haven, that we must abide by. It’s not that simple,” Ace argued.
Finally stepping into the battle, Maylee approached us with caution.
“I really need for the two of you to stop fighting,” she said, her eyes locked behind us.
“Maylee, just stay out of this,” Ace stated through gritted teeth.
Shaking her head, Maylee continued to stare blankly behind us.
Both Ace and I stopped and slowly turned to see what had Maylee so frozen in place. I could see her chest rising and falling as her bewildered eyes grew large with fear.
The air seemed to fill with a thick haze that stifled our ability to breathe. Sweat trickled down my brow as I struggled to take in another breath.
“Maylee, what’s going on?” Ace asked, his eyes never leaving his sister's stricken face.
“Don’t move,” Maylee whispered, her voice quivering and barely audible.
I don’t know what it is about someone telling you not to look, but it is as though your body is forced to look anyway. It didn’t matter how much I wanted to close my eyes and wish myself back inside of Ace’s car, I was still going to look.
Slowly, I turned and what I saw will forever haunt my dreams.
Hovering over the roadway, a black figure lured my eyes to its nasty form. The black tentacles of darkness that swirled all around its long and haunting form, caused a shiver to race down my spine. Red, crimson eyes stared back at me, like pools of blood ready to spill out and rain down on me.
A string of curse words were elicited from Ace as he took a step back from the dark figure.
At that moment, I wasn’t sure what to do. My fight or flight instincts told me to run and never look back, but my body didn’t seem to get that memo. It was as though I was frozen in place and only placing myself as an offering to the figure before me.
“What is that?” I asked, not sure if anyone heard me over the shaking of my voice.
“That’s a Demon,” Ace said, his words sounding so foreign to me right now.
Demon.
That word sliced through me like a rusty knife. I had heard the threats of Demons, but it never felt real until I was faced with one right in front of me. Even though my mom was a Mediator to the dead and I had heard stories that some would only see fit for fiction, a Demon was still something I never imagined I would ever face.
Until now.
“What do we do now? Lizzie isn’t prepared to fight,” Maylee said, her stance rigid and frightened.
Fight? Why in the world… Oh yeah, I had almost forgotten.
“Get in the car,” Ace ordered, his body never moving.
I wanted to fight him because I was so close to standing my ground; but right now, I knew better than to question him.
Not with a Demon staring down at me.
It didn't dawn on me that my feet were moving until I was jumping into the car with Maylee hot on my tail.
Somehow, Ace had moved at lightning speed to get in and he was already revving the engine to get us out of there.
“Can we out run a Demon?” I cried out, turning in my seat to stare into the darkness.
“We will try,” Ace seethed, his eyes never leaving the road.
The car raced down the one lane road with the Demon chasing after us, hovering over the car as it stared back at me with such intensity. I could barely breathe. Its outstretched arms were reaching for me, as though it were trying to reach into my very soul.
“Go faster,” Maylee cried out from the front seat.
“I’m going as fast as possible. If we didn’t have Lizzie with us, we could fly,” he shouted back.
Again, Ace felt the need to attack me with a sarcastic comment which only broug
ht on more pain.
“Either help me or leave me here to fend for myself, but stop acting like you are the victim here,” I roared, throwing my anger out onto Ace.
Somehow, that managed to shut him up for a moment and he continued to drive.
I watched as Ace drove past the turn to my house and as the world passed by in a blur, true fear really began to set in.
“Where are we going?” I asked, my voice trembling in spite of myself.
“Crow Haven,” Ace stated firmly.
“Why Crow Haven?” I questioned, even though it didn’t really matter. I just wanted to be safe and away from this disgusting Demon chasing our car.
“It’s the only place where the Demons can’t touch us. They can’t break the barrier that protects us there,” Maylee told me.
At that moment, all I could do was nod because my life was now up to Ace, Maylee, and Crow Haven.
Chapter Twelve
Unwelcome Guest
W
e turned off of Main Street as Ace drove back onto the main highway that drove through Nicholasville. As we passed by the large, white house of Camp Nelson, I admired the gravestones marking the fallen soldiers of war. So many wars had been fought there-- both real and supernatural. Right before we passed the large bridge over the Kentucky River, linking Nicholasville to Garrard County, Ace turned left onto a small, tree lined road. We drove for what felt like forever, down winding turns and up high hills. Finally, the car slowed as a drive came into view.
Gravel crunched beneath the tires of Ace’s car as he turned onto a long drive.
I could barely make out the bodies of the trees as they stretched out over the drive.
I watched in a fearful amusement as the Demon stopped just as the car began to slow. Its beady eyes remained locked on me until we were so far into Crow Haven’s property that it was now too far in the distance to see.
Falling back into my seat, I let out a heavy breath as my heart began to slow.
White lights came into view from the front window and suddenly, I found my gaze mesmerized by a very different sight this time.
Standing tall at the end of the long, gravel driveway was a home towering over us. The bright lights surrounding the home make it appear as though it were almost daylight. The three-story brick home had been painted a dark, charcoal gray and the windows were outlined in a shinny black. Thick metal gates lined the walkway that led from the gravel to the massive stone front porch. The home had a very gothic feel to it, but yet, at the same time, a comforting mood, too.
“Where exactly are we?” I managed to ask, as my eyes traveled over the home.
“Crow Haven,” Ace deadpanned.
Opening the driver’s side door, he jumped out of the car and was gone before I could even process a response.
Maylee turned in her seat and looked at me over the headrest.
“We are about ten miles away from your house. Crow Haven is hidden away in the hills that overlook the Kentucky River. It’s actually really beautiful in the daylight,” she said, smiling in spite of our situation.
I offered a slight smile back. Maylee was only trying to comfort me, even if we both knew it was an almost hopeless endeavor.
“I can’t wait to see it,” I added.
We both exited the vehicle and a chill tore through me as the cool night air hit me. Crossing my arms across my chest, I struggled to find warmth within myself.
“Are you cold? We can start a fire or get blankets,” Maylee offered.
“Sure,” I smiled.
I followed Maylee as she led me up the steps and through the heavy wooden doors and into Crow Haven.
We walked down a long, narrow hallway lit by wall sconces until we were met with a grand staircase. Hushed voices drew my attention to a small formal living room to my right. I stopped mid-step, my noisy side refusing to move further.
Peeking into the room, I spotted Ace standing toe-to-toe with two guys who had the same black hair and menacing glares that Ace shared. I knew instantly they were talking about me as I heard my name slip out of Ace’s mouth.
Grabbing my hand, Maylee tried to tug me forward, but I refused to budge. “No, I want to know why Ace is talking about me,” I growled out.
I guess my voice wasn’t as quiet as I had planned for it to be, because the three guys in the room all turned and locked eyes on me.
“Well hello, Lizzie. I have heard so much about you,” one of the guys said, as he sauntered over to me with a cocky grin on his chiseled face.
My mouth opened, but no sound escaped. He was strikingly handsome in a distinguished sort of way. While he reminded me of Ace in some of his features like his hair color and eyes, but the way he carried himself with ease and grace was far different from Ace.
Stretching out his hand, the guy watched me under a careful eye. “How rude of Ace not to introduce us. I’m Collin, one of Ace and Maylee’s cousins,” he said, smirking at the mention of his cousins.
“Hi,” I finally managed to say.
Taking my hand, Collin greeted me and I felt a shiver of nervousness from his touch.
“It’s such a pleasure to meet you. How rude am I being, let me also introduce you to my brother, Levine,” Collin said, gesturing toward his brother.
I managed a slight wave at Levine who was smiling my way, but didn’t bother to move.
“Call me, Levi,” he stated.
“Lizzie will stay here tonight and then I will take her home in the morning. We encountered an issue tonight,” Ace stated firmly.
Issue? Did he really think a Demon chasing us was an issue?
“She’s not ready to be here, yet,” Levine expressed, his jaw tensing. Like Collin, he had a sort of classic air to him that made him appear very different from Ace.
“Let me get Lizzie settled in,” Maylee offered, but I fought her hand away again.
“No, I told Ace tonight that I wanted answers and now that I am here, I demand them,” I pursued.
Collin chuckled as he smiled down at me. He was very tall, probably six feet or taller.
“This girl has spunk, just like her Aunt Morgan,” he chuckled.
That got my attention. “You knew my aunt?” I asked.
“Of course, we all did. The crows were grateful to your aunt and the protection she aided our town. But now that you are here, it looks like a whole new level of fun is about to begin,” he said, his eyes sweeping over mine.
“We can tell Lizzie everything in the morning,” Ace intervened.
“Sure. I will be glad to impart wisdom on Miss Lizzie,” Collin pronounced.
“Brother, stop playing games. Let Ace handle this,” Levine chided his brother.
I wanted to argue and kick and scream until they had no other choice but to answer my millions of questions, but as a yawn escaped my lips, I realized I was beyond exhausted. It must be well into the night right now and I was suddenly too tired to think straight.
“Yes, I will handle everything in the morning. Maylee, please take Lizzie upstairs to one of the empty bedrooms,” Ace ordered.
I finally allowed Maylee to pull me away, but not before I saw all three men turn back to their original heated discussion.
As we began climbing the massive white, marble stairs, I felt like I was taking the stairway to heaven. Everything felt so surreal right now and all I could do was fight to keep my eyes open.
Maylee led me into a room and the last thing I remember was falling onto a large, fluffy mattress.
A warm stream of sunlight heated my face as my eyes slowly opened, revealing ominous and strange surroundings.
Groaning, I sat up, stretching my arms high above my head.
In an instant, the events of the night before flashed through my mind like a movie.
The football game.
Ace driving me home.
The Demon.
Crow Haven.
A wave of nausea washed over me as I was reminded of where I was.
“Good morning,
” a deep voice spoke from the doorway.
Startled, I grabbed the black silk sheet and cradled them in my arms.
Shadowing the doorway, Ace stood looking vexed as he took in my disheveled appearance.
“Um, hi,” I replied, unsure of how to exchange pleasantries with him.
Ace stepped into the room and the air around me seemed to shift as it grew heavy and thick.
“So, Maylee is bringing you something to eat, but I thought we could talk,” he said, nervously.
“Ok,” I answered, sitting up straighter.
As Ace made his way further into the room, I took a second to admire the decor of the room. The walls were a rich hunter green with dark cherry wood molding. Large, floor to ceiling windows offered a breathtaking view of the Kentucky hills as the sun shown high in the morning sky.
A red brick fireplace faced the wood sleigh bed and inside a small fire slowly blazed. Showers of oranges and reds licked the air as the heat radiated and warmed me.
Ace found a seat in a plush, navy blue armchair that sat beside the warm fire.
Ace looked so out of place in the fancy room with his black t-shirt, baggy jeans, and eyebrow piercing.
“So, Maylee has explained to me that I have been less than welcoming to you since you arrived here,” Ace said, leaning his elbows on his knees.
Rolling my eyes, I couldn’t help but smirk at his attempt to be polite.
“This is normal behavior for you?” I asked.
Somehow, that elicited a chuckle from Ace. “I don’t typically talk to a lot of people. I try to avoid conversations as much as I can,” he admitted.
“I’ve noticed.”
“Anyway, I understand that you want answers and last night you were given answers in a manner that I hadn’t planned. Our dedication to Crow Haven is sacred and your role with us should not be taken lightly. I apologize for...everything,” he added.
I had to admit, I was blown away by his calm manner and the way he seemed almost human.
Almost adorable.
Nodding my head, I tried to remain calm. “I just want to understand who and what I am,” I stated.
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