Authors: Rebekkah Ford
Chapter Six
Paige
“I can’t believe you’re hanging around her after what she’d done to me,” I said to Brayden, shoving him in the chest. He stumbled backwards, tripping over his feet. He latched onto an empty meal cart standing beside the wall, trying to steady himself, not realizing it had wheels. His feet flew out from under him, and his butt smacked the linoleum floor, the cart toppling with a loud bang. Nathan howled with laughter. I bent over, clutching my stomach, busting a gut.
Brayden and I had been BFFs since we were kids, then dated on a steady basis the first two years of high school. I was totally crushed when he moved to California, and I didn’t really get over it until I met Nathan six months ago. I remember when I first saw him, something fluttered in my chest, and we instantly connected. I never had taken much stock in the whole soul mate thing, and I still remained skeptical about it; however, I couldn’t deny the magnetic energy between us. I didn’t fall instantly in love with him, and it wasn’t sexual energy either, although he was frickin’ hot.
Anyway, when my mom died, Brayden went to the funeral, and when he discovered my relationship with Nathan, it pissed him off. I later tried to explain to him I wasn’t infatuated with Nathan, that we had a deep bond. Brayden wouldn’t listen, though, because he believed we were meant for each other. Then to my complete surprise, he was marked for immortality as well, which cemented his belief we were destined to be as one because how weird was that, right? Two people who grew up together being marked for immortality.
But still, I told Brayden I belonged with Nathan and not him. Brayden of course wouldn’t accept it and still believed one day we’d be a couple again.
So now I was annoyed because if he cared so damn much about me, why in the hell was he canoodling with Cassondra in Seattle? Brayden knew she had set Nathan and me up so I would see her kiss Nathan and believe he was cheating on me. She even fed half truths to Brayden about her and Nathan’s relationship back in the 1800s, just so he would tell me, and I’d believe her whole charade. Yet Brayden still remained her friend? I felt betrayed by it and deeply hurt. Laughing at him felt good, though, because it took away the sting.
“You didn’t have to do that Paige.” Brayden pushed himself off the floor and righted the cart.
“I guess I don’t know my own strength.” I shrugged and walked past him.
“Cassie is my mentor, and she’s truly sorry for what she did to you,” Brayden said.
Biting my lip, I kept walking.
So he calls her Cassie now. How cozy
. That would explain Tree’s mom calling her that.
I wanted to lash out at him right then, so he knew exactly how I felt, and he could see my disappointment in him. It seemed like when he became immortal, not only did he lose his humanity but his sense of reasoning as well. I didn’t understand or like this side of him, which was the same side that became friends with Anwar and possibly Bael and Ayperos.
What was wrong with him?
The waiting room swelled with Carrie’s relatives. I didn’t realize how many she had until now. Like me, she was an only child, but she possessed lots of cousins to make up for no sibling. I’d always envied Carrie for her tight-knit family and now getting a good look at how much they loved her, a part of me wanted to weep. I recognized the feeling all too well. Carrie’s good fortune in the kinfolk department made me feel sorry for myself.
But when Carrie’s six-year-old cousin Molly came running to me with her arms spread wide and a grin on her red lips, the feeling subsided. She jumped up like she always did when she saw me. I lifted her, liking that my immortal strength made it easy. She giggled and wrapped her legs tightly around my waist. “I missed you,” she said, looping her arms around my shoulders. She smelled like cherries.
“I missed you, too, my little monkey girl.” I tickled her sides, causing her to squirm and laugh. I peeled a lock of her dark hair off her cheek and tucked it behind her ear. “Why is your cheek sticky?”
She bounced in my arms. “Sucker.” She stuck her tongue out, and it was a bright crimson color. “Is it red?” she asked, trying to look at it, her brown eyes going cross-eyed.
“Yeah, it is.” I used my omigod–how–cool tone of voice. Out the corner of my eye, I could see Nathan smiling at us. “I have a secret to tell you,” I said and grinned when her eyes widened. I cupped my hand around her ear and whispered, “I have a boyfriend.”
A small squeal escaped her lip, and she turned her head, her nose almost touching mine. I could see the sprinkle of freckles on the bridge of it, just like Carrie had. “You do?” she whispered in awe.
I nodded and placed my mouth next to her ear. She was totally eating this up, and I could hear Nathan softly laughing. “I really love him, too.”
Molly pressed her lips against my own ear. “Are you going to marry him?” Her hot breath tickled my ear, making me jerk my head back and giggle.
I didn’t want to answer her because honestly with the way things were going, my future with Nathan looked grim. My heart twisted at the very thought, and I mentally shook myself, shutting off those painful emotions.
“Do you want to meet him?” I asked, dodging her question.
She grinned and nodded.
Nathan stepped beside me, and I introduced them. He offered his hand to Molly. “Please to meet you,” he said when she stuck her tiny hand in his.
“You, too.” Molly shook it like a pro and blurted, “Can I be in your wedding?”
“Well, um . . .” I looked at Nathan, his face beaming.
“Molly!” Carrie’s aunt broke away from the circle of family conversing with one another, saving me from that awkward moment. “Hi, Paige,” she said, flashing me an exhausted smile.
I set Molly on her feet and pushed my hair back. “Hi, Carly.” I opened my mouth to introduce her to Nathan, but she took Molly’s hand and told her they had to go run some errands.
“Nice to see you again, Paige,” Carly said over her shoulder, rushing out the room, pulling Molly along who obviously didn’t want to leave.
I blew a kiss to my monkey girl who kept looking back at me with longing in her eyes. She rewarded me with the same gesture, warming my heart.
“Cute kid,” Nathan said.
“She is,” I agreed. “Carrie and I used to babysit her.” I scanned the room for Tree, wondering how he was holding up. “I don’t see Tree here.”
“He’s talking to his mom at the nurse’s station,” Brayden said behind me. “They’re done with the procedure, so the doctor should be explaining the details of her recovery to Carrie’s parents in a minute.”
“Wow. You’re Mr. Informative,” I said, facing him. I bounced on my tiptoes when I thought I spotted a familiar person enter the waiting room, craning my neck so I could see over Brayden’s shoulder. “Max is here,” I announced, gesturing for him to join us.
Max and I have known each other since second grade. I’ve always thought he was cute with his short black spiky hair, blue eyes, and adorable dimples. This past summer though, he had totally grown into a hot, cute guy. I think his confidence in knowing he wanted to be a chef and what he wanted out of life added to his hotness. I totally envied him for it and the simple life he had.
When he waved to me, a stab of guilt pierced through me. Less than a week ago, Roeick kidnapped me outside Max’s dad’s restaurant. He knocked me out, and Max caught him in the act. Max attacked him, but since Roeick was a dark spirit inhabiting a human, and dark spirits added strength to the human they occupied, Max didn’t have a fighting chance. Roeick knocked him out as well.
When Max came to, he became frantic, but thankfully Tree and Carrie took care of the situation. At Nathan’s suggestion, they told him I’d discovered my father had been murdered, and the guy who kidnapped me had something to do with it. They also told him Nathan found me, beat the crap out of the guy and called the cops, and I was okay.
But now as I watched him coming toward me, I felt bad for not calling him to see how he was doing and to thank him for trying to save me from my captor.
“I’m going to thank Max for what he did the other night,” I told Nathan before breaking away from him.
I crossed the room and pulled Max aside. I noticed the dark circles under his eyes, which made me feel even worse. I could sense Nathan and Brayden staring at me. I opened my mouth to thank Max, but he spoke first. “How are you?” He looked equal parts worried and curious.
“I’m fine, thanks,” I said with a reassuring smile, but he didn’t look convinced. “I’ve been meaning to thank you for trying to protect me and to apologize for you getting hurt.”
“You don’t need to apologize,” he said. “It wasn’t your fault.”
“Yeah, but I shouldn’t have brought my problems to your doorstep,” I said miserably, dropping my gaze to my feet, feeling like crap because truthfully, I did.
“Hey.” He rubbed my arm, causing me to lift my eyes to his. “It wasn’t your fault,” he repeated forcefully, as if he were drilling it into my head.
I didn’t say anything, just stared. A small part of me wondered what it would have been like to have dated him. I had no idea he always had a thing for me until the other night. Too bad his shyness had prevented him from asking me out, but then again, if things had worked with him, I wouldn’t be with Nathan.
Carrie’s dad burst through the door with Tree behind him. “Okay everybody, this is what’s going on.” I think we all stopped breathing because the room suddenly became silent. My heart even paused. I shot a worried glance at Nathan, our eyes connecting above a sea of heads. He looked concerned as well, which made me more nervous. Tree beelined his way to me, maneuvering his way through the crowd. He took my hand and squeezed it in Morse Code, telling me so far she’s okay. The tightness in my chest loosened a bit while I waited for Carrie’s dad to give us the news. He cleared his throat. “The procedure went well,” he continued. “However, to protect Carrie’s brain from further stress, they induced her into a coma.”
“What!” I found myself shouting. Everybody turned and stared at me, at the same time Tree squeezed my hand, telling me to calm down. I ignored him and the hundreds of eyes glued to me. All I could think about was Carrie being stuck in Aosoth’s memories and not being able to wake up. I shook when the thought of her never being conscious again consumed me. “You got to get them to wake her.”
“I know you’re worried. We all are,” Carrie’s dad said, sounding hoarse. “But being in this coma will relieve the pressure in her cranium and reduce the swelling, allowing her brain to heal. Once she shows improvement, they’ll gradually wean her off the barbiturates and out of the coma.”
“But how will they know when her head is healed?” a male voice asked from the group.
“They’re going to do an EEG every day. It measures the electrical activity in her brain. They’ll also run other tests as well,” Carrie’s dad told him.
My body continued to shake after everybody dispersed, but not only from fear, but anger as well. I wondered if Bael had any idea this would happen, and I had the sudden urge to find him. I squeezed Tree’s hand, telling him just that. He responded with Bael probably didn’t realize the extent of her injuries and knew I wouldn’t be looking for the incantations until Carrie was okay. He released my hand when Nathan headed our way.
“I’ll catch ya later, Paige,” Max said in a low voice next to my ear when he walked past me.
“Okay.” I watched him join Brayden, talking to Carrie’s uncle as a wave of anxiety pounded through me.
I needed to talk to Nathan about finding a way to help Carrie while she remained in a coma. But I couldn’t do it with Brayden’s bionic ears around, and since nobody but immediate family could visit Carrie right now, there was no sense in staying.
“I need to get out of here,” I said and then looked up at Tree. “Do you want to come with us?”
He frowned. “I would, but they’re letting me sit by Carrie in a little while. So I’m going to stick around.” He swallowed hard, holding back tears.
“Let me know if you find out anything,” I said, hugging his waist.
He embraced me. “I will, and you do the same.” He pulled back to look at me. The crease between his brown eyes crinkled. I slowly nodded as a silent understanding came between us. Tree and I were in this together, and it was up to us to keep our bargain with Bael. He looked at Nathan. “Take care of my little fairy friend.”
Nathan reached for my hand. I took it, and he pulled me to him. “Sure thing.”
***
“I want to go to your house and do a rite of consciousness inside the circle,” I told Nathan when he slid behind the wheel of his truck. The sun was setting, and wispy clouds were swimming across the salmon colored sky, like a sea monster snaking its way through an ocean of pink lemonade. I sniffed the air and got a strong whiff of leather and rain. The smell of leather immediately whisked me back to my father’s jacket. I loved that aroma, even though it always caused my heart to ache.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Nathan said.
Of course he wouldn’t. But I wasn’t backing down on this. I had to find out if Carrie was okay, and although I wasn’t sure if the rite of consciousness would work, it was worth a try. Besides, Nathan had seven grimoires, and maybe one of them might have some information that would be helpful to me.
“I know you don’t,” I answered. “But I’m afraid Carrie might be stuck in one of Aosoth’s memories, and if I can help her, I’m going to.” I could hear the stubborn determination in my voice. I sat up straight and turned to him, my chin raised.
He closed his eyes, shook his head and groaned.
“Look,” I told him, “whether you like it or not, I’m going to do this, with or without your help. It’s your choice.” I wondered what I’d do if he refused to help me. I wouldn’t be able to use the hidden room in his house with the pentagram on the floor or his grimoires. I’d have to perform it all on my own, starting from scratch. But I didn’t care. All that mattered was making sure Carrie was okay, and I’d jeopardize my safety for that. Nathan knew this because he knew me well and groaned again.