Whisper Cape (34 page)

Yes, she remembered too well, so she did as he said and kept her hands planted on the wheel. She was frightened, and not sure of his intentions. She wished she could see his face, but he held the knife with the point sticking into her neck, its sharp blade piercing deeper into her skin with the slightest movement.

“Now you listen to me and you won’t get hurt—not this time, anyway. You tell me where the crystal is, and while you’re at it, the fucking book. Shit, the crystal is worthless to me without the book.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. What crystal and book?”

“Don’t play stupid with me. You know damn well what crystal and book. I know your father had them hidden all these years. Thought he could fool me. I’ve had all this time to perfect my powers. They are far greater than his ever were, and greater than yours will ever be. And once I have yours and everyone else’s, I’ll be even stronger.”

“It’ll never work.”

A piercing sting sliced through her skin as the cold blade sank deeper into her neck.

“Shut up. You don’t talk unless I tell you to. I don’t give a rat’s ass what you think. I want the crystal. You little whore, you thought you could stop me with a few little sparks, but all you managed to do was hurt that poor, defenseless little dog. You have no idea what I’m capable of doing. You will tell me what I want to know or I will kill your friends and your family, one by one, until you tell me. I’ll start with your little friend Darcy. I’ll snap her neck, but first I’ll have my way with her, show her what a real man is like. Tell me now or Darcy will be the first to go.”

“I can’t, I don’t know, please, you’re hurting me.”

“You're lying.”

From somewhere deep inside Addie found her courage. “Why don’t you just go ahead and kill me now, get it over with. It won’t make a bit of difference if you do it now or later, you still won’t have what you want. Kill me—I don’t know where the stupid crystal and book are.”

He repositioned his body, reaching around her and she realized she’d only made things worse. He laughed and placed his hand over her breast.

“Nice.” He moaned and pinched her nipple hard, bringing tears to her eyes, then moved his hand down, sticking it inside her pants, grabbing at her crotch.

“You’re very stupid. You really don’t expect me to believe you, do you?” He yanked on the curls of her mound before his fingers slipped inside her and she couldn’t hold back the tears that streamed down her face.

“I could take you here. Maybe I should just fuck you until you tell me. If you don't, you'll condemn all those close to you. As your loved ones die off one at a time, you’ll be begging to give me what I want. Remember my words for now and know you will eventually succumb to me.”

Addie cringed as he tugged at the hair between her legs again, then her temple exploded with pain just before everything went black.

***

Cael ran from the site of the burning house and into a thicket, then teleported to the main highway. He was frantic; Addison’s truck was nowhere in sight. Then it dawned on him. “Ah shit, I forgot.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He found her name among his contacts and pushed send, hearing the phone ring on her end, but then it went to voicemail. “Addison, for the love of God, where are you? Call me.”

He vanished, materializing further up the road, dashing in and out of space every quarter-mile or so until he became lightheaded. He’d never used so much energy before, never teleported so frequently in such a short amount of time. His throat burned and the smoke lingering in his lungs wasn’t helping matters. Wearing down, losing stamina, he bent over, placed his hands on his knees and tried to catch his breath.

“Dear God, where is she? Please give me strength to find her.” Cael continued searching, but still no sign of Addison or her truck.

He sighed and rubbed his eyes. “What good are these powers if I can’t use them when I need them?”

Cael had never cried before—at least not since he was a child. He’d wept when his dad left, but those tears soon turned to anger and he vowed never to cry again. These were different, though; they were tears from exhaustion and most of all, fear for Addison.

Fighting the fatigue, he vanished once more and reappeared again, finally spotting her truck stopped on the shoulder of the highway; the entire front end was stuck in a ditch.

He ran on weak and shaking legs and found her body slumped over on the seat.

“Addison!”

Cael tugged the door open, almost tearing it off its hinges.

“Oh God, Addison.” Blood trickled from her neck.

He placed his fingers on her neck to feel for a pulse and felt the sticky blood oozing from a wound.

She moaned.

“Thank God, Addison, Addison, wake up, baby. There you are; can you hear me?”

Addison moaned again, and slowly opened her eyes. He blinked his wet eyes and smiled. The emotional display would have embarrassed him in the past, but he didn’t care if she saw the tears. He’d found her, and she was alive. Nothing else mattered.

She groaned, and touched his cheek. “You’ve been crying.”

“I know, baby, I know. I was so worried.” He wiped his face with the back of his hand.

She tried to sit up and brushed her fingers over the bump on her head before lowering them to her neck; it was sticky. When she looked at her hand, she saw the blood, then sank back down on the seat. “Eidolon, it was Eidolon. He—”

“You’re going to be okay. I have you now. Come on, I need to get you out of here.” He scooped her up, cradled her in his arms.

“I don’t know if I’ll ever be …” Her voice trailed off as she lost consciousness again.

***

The muffled sounds of people walking by the glass wall of the ER waiting area continually caught Cael's attention. He sat hunched over his knees in one of the yellow plastic chairs that lined the wall, wishing one of those passersby would be the doctor. What was taking so long? Being the only one in the drab little waiting area and annoyed by the sound of the TV hanging from the wall in the corner, he stood, reached up and switched it off, then paced the gray-carpeted floor. He’d used Addison’s cell phone to contact Maia and Gerry. He wasn’t sure how bad her injuries were and they’d be pissed if they found out later. Now they were on their way.

He stopped pacing and leaned against the wall with his head back, his eyes squeezed tight, his hands fisted at his sides. The need to punch … no, more like beat-the-hell-out-of-something, raged in his chest. How could he be so stupid, so fucking irresponsible to leave her alone? He turned to slip out the door, to get the hell out of there, to go bash a tree or something when he saw Maia and Gerry hurrying toward him.

Here we go
, he thought as he caught the anger flaring in Gerry’s eyes.

“Cael,” Maia yelled out as both she and Gerry came running over to him. “Is she okay?”

“I don’t know.”

Maia placed her hand on Cael’s shoulder. “What did the doctor say?”

“Nothing yet. They took her for x-rays or something.”

“Where were you when this happened?” Gerry asked.

Cael ran his hand through his hair; he wanted to pace, to pound something. He didn’t want to stand there and answer questions.

“We were on our way home and there was a house on fire. We stopped; I ran out to help. When I came back, her truck was gone. I found her a short way up the highway. She must have gone to try to turn the truck around or something and landed in a ditch. She banged her head pretty badly. God, if anything happens to her ... I’ll never forgive myself.” He was used to lying or stretching the truth, but never liked it, especially this time.

Gerry glared at him, but he didn’t care. He’d even considered not calling them, but the gash on her neck would only make them suspicious and worried if they were to see it and not know what happened.

The doctor finally came out. “Are any of you folks here waiting for Addison MacKenna?”

“Yes,” they answered as one.

“Well, she’s doing fine. The injury to her neck required seven stitches, which should dissolve on their own, and she has a minor concussion. She should be feeling much better by tomorrow.”

“Oh, thank God,” Maia said.

“We took a CT scan of her head and there doesn’t seem to be any major trauma, and no hemorrhaging. Her vision and reflexes are fine. She’s good to go whenever she’s ready. Because of the concussion, she’ll need to have someone stay with her through the night and wake her every couple of hours, just as a precaution.

“She says she doesn’t remember what happened. Can any of you tell me?”

Gerry and Maia looked at Cael.

Cael cleared his throat and stuck his hands in his pockets. “I’m not sure. When I found her, she’d passed out in her truck in a ditch on the side of the road. I can only assume she lost control of the truck somehow.”

“Well, she’s lucky you showed up when you did. With a little rest she’ll recover nicely.”

“Thank you, doctor. Thank you so very much,” Maia said.

“You’re welcome. You can see her now.”

Addison was still lying on the bed when all three of them entered her room. Cael rushed to her side and took her hand. Maia went to her other side. Gerry stood at the end of the bed, arms crossed over his chest.

“I’m so sorry, baby. I never should have left you alone.”

“We’re just glad you’re okay, sweetie,” Maia said.

“Do you know how you lost control of the truck, Addie?” Gerry asked.

Addison glanced at Cael before answering. Cael noted the sudden shift in Gerry’s feet, and he sensed the man’s suspicions.

“I’m trying to remember, but my head’s still a bit fuzzy. I should get dressed. The doctor said I could leave, right?”

“Sure, sweet thing. Maia, you help her—Cael and I will wait out in the hall.”

Cael kissed Addison on the forehead before leaving the room.

In the hallway, Gerry leaned up against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, fury welling in his eyes. “How did she get the gash in her neck?”

“I can’t answer that. I know you blame me for this, but ...”

“Fucking A, I should beat the bloody hell out of you is what. Lucky for you, I promised Maia I wouldn’t.”

Cael only nodded. “Look, I take full responsibility for what happened.”

Cael shuddered when he thought about it. That sick bastard could have killed her tonight, but he figured he was toying with them, at least until he located the crystal and the book. He wondered why Addison hadn’t tried to use her powers—but maybe she had.

“It’s too late for that. I think you should stop seeing her.”

Did Gerry really think he had that much control over Addison? “What? I think that should be—”

Addison and Maia stepped out from the room.

“Addie, you’ll stay with us tonight,” Gerry commanded as they all walked out of the hospital.

“No! I don’t think I need a babysitter. No offense, Maia, but I’d rather stay with Cael tonight, if you don’t mind.”

Gerry was a hard-ass, and played the fatherly role a bit too heavy, in Cael’s opinion. He secretly smiled when Addison stood up to the man.

“No sweetie, of course I don’t mind. We'll drop you two off at the truck.” Maia gave Gerry a calming pat on the shoulder and Cael figured she understood that Gerry was acting like a jerk.

“The truck is in a ditch, Maia. We’ll have to call for a tow tomorrow,” Gerry said.

“I’ll take care of it,” Cael assured them.

“We’ll give you a ride to your place then,” Maia said.

The ride home was agonizingly quiet. Cael took a silent deep breath as he and Addison left the car. Just before Gerry steered the car away from Cael’s rental house, Maia stuck her head out the window. “Nice place, Cael. Don’t forget, dinner tomorrow night. Will seven work for you?”

“Sounds great, we’ll be there.”

Cael and Addison strolled toward the door arm in arm.

“Did you save the boy?”

“Yes, but I almost lost you.” The unbearable thought wrenched his gut.

Chapter 34

They entered the house and Addie headed straight upstairs. She left the light off, needing the comfort of the dark. She hoped it would ease the ordeal of telling Cael everything, not being sure of how he would deal with it. God, she wasn’t even sure how
she
was coping. Remembering the whole horrible experience had her trembling as she sat on the bed. Cael came over and sat beside her; draping his arm around her, he drew her in and reached for the light.

“No, please. Leave it off.”

“Tell me what happened.”

Moving away from him, she sank back against the pillow, slung her arm across her forehead, and closed her eyes. “It was Eidolon.”

“Yes, so you said before you passed out. Tell me what happened.” His hands clenched, watching her.

She opened her eyes but kept them lowered, unable to look at him. “I’m trying! It’s just …”

“I’m sorry. I know it must be difficult. Eidolon is very powerful.”

He misunderstood and she shook her head. Maybe if she just eased into the assault, one horrible step at a time. Addie sucked in a deep breath and started with the easy part.

“He was waiting for you to leave. He set the fire and knew you’d go in to rescue that little boy. When you disappeared, I unbuckled my seatbelt so I could get out, but he stopped me, put a knife to my throat. I'm not sure how he got in the truck; I wasn’t paying attention to anything other than the fire, and I was so afraid for you. I didn’t have a chance to think and I couldn’t figure out how to free my hands to use my powers.” Her voice trembled; she lowered her arm and sat up.

Cael scooted closer. “I’m sorry.”

She sighed again, twisting her fingers together on her lap. “With the knife at my neck, he told me to drive, so I did. He kept telling me to go faster, and when he told me to pull over, I lost control of the truck and plowed into the ditch. He swore he’d kill everyone I know if I didn’t give him the crystal and the book, starting with Darcy. He said he’d have his way with her first, I think he meant sexually, before killing her. I heard my phone ring, but he wouldn’t let me answer it. He told me to keep my hands on the wheel. Every time I tried to move, he pressed the knife harder into my neck.”