The Lost Soul (Fallen Soul Series, Book 1) (25 page)

He cocks an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“Nothing.” I wave him off and push to my feet. I extend my hand and help him up. “How did you get him to cooperate?”

He dusts the grass off his jeans. “I’ve told you Gemma, he has a thing for you.”

“That’s the only reason he helped you?” I inquire. “Because he has a thing for me? Why am I not buying it?”

Nicholas materializes in the front door. “Because I’m a manipulative jerk, who you think very lowly of.”

He struts down the stairs with a big smirk on his face. He catches me eyeing the bright red lipstick smearing his neckline. “Death Girl’s lips aren’t toxic, in case you were wondering.”

“I wasn’t.” I observe Alex’s reaction from the corner of my eye. He looks like he doesn’t care at all. In fact, he appears to be relieved. I love the look. It makes me feel like I have his heart in the palm of my hand.

“Shall we go?” Nicholas sticks out his elbow.

I sigh, link my arm through his, and grab Alex’s hand.

Alex slips his hand from mine. “We gotta take my car. I’m not leaving it here.”

Nicholas rolls his eyes. “You want me to ride in a car? How ridiculous.”

“You can do whatever you want. I only care about Gemma.” He directs his attention to me. “Hold on a second. I left my keys on the table.” He jogs up the stairs and vanishes inside.

I lean toward Nicholas’ ear and lower my voice. “If you ever invade my mind again, I’ll rip out your soul and feed it to the Banshees.”

He jerks his head back, flabbergasted. “What did you say?”

I put my finger to my lips. “Shhh… it’s our little secret. Because if you tell Alex, I will kill you.”

“Alright,” Alex says, arriving by my side. He pats his pocket. “I got my keys. Now let’s get out of here.”

I watch Nicholas like a dog eyeing a cat, making him fidget.

“Alright, let’s go,” Nicholas mutters, stomping for the car.

My lips curve into a grin. I snatch Alex’s hand and practically skip to the car. We peel down Stasha’s narrow driveway and a strange calming sensation devours me. I feel free, like I could conquer the world if I wanted to.

And maybe I will.

***

“What the hell happened?” Alex asks, dumbfounded.

We’re standing in the Foyer, which hasn’t been cleaned up since the sprite brawl went down. The front door’s window is shattered, glass scattering the floor. The table beside the door is tipped over, one leg snapped off. The chandelier flickers, and the spot where it hooks into the ceiling is cracked.

“We had a bit of a faerie problem,” I tell him, feeling like myself again. I’m not sure if it was the jealousy or my lengthy death, but for a moment I’d felt like the evil villain.

Nicholas waves at us. “Well, I’m going to go. I’ve had about all of the Keeper drama I can handle for the day.”

“What about Aislin?” I ask. “You’re the only one who can bring her back.”

“I’ll go pick her up and drop her off,” he assures me, still jittery from my threat. “I’m keeping my distance for a while. I’ve told you everything you need to know about how to get your Foreseer power back, now you’re on your own.”

We let him walk out the door without a second glance. By the time the door slams shut, Alex has me in his arms, kissing and touching me passionately, wanting me so bad he can’t stand it.

“Where’s Aislin?” he asks between gasps. “Where’s Nicholas bringing her back from?”

I kiss him deeply, my tongue caressing his. I taste his love and apprehension and it flames my skin. “From the Foreseer holding cell.”

He pulls back quickly, leaving my lips hanging. “Why the hell is she there?”

“Don’t worry.” I smooth his worry line away with my thumb. “She’s fine. I had Nicholas put her there until she can regain her mentality.” When he arches an eyebrow, I add, “When we were in the Faerie Realm, she put a spell on herself so Luna couldn’t force her to do a spell.”

“What kind of a spell?”

“One that makes her stupid.”

A thousand comebacks track his expression, but he blinks them away. “Okay, I’m going to just let that one go. It’s too easy.” He pauses. “And where’s Laylen?”

My shoes crush the pieces of glass on the floor as I inch toward the stairway, pulling him with me. “Getting the Crystal of Limitation fixed.” He reacts like I expected; his face enflaming, his shoulders stiffening, his gaze fierce. I put a finger across his lips. “Don’t worry. I don’t have my power back, so I can’t even use it yet.” I omit my knowledge that I know how to get my power back.

His shoulders relax. “I don’t want you to use that thing. I read in that Foreseer book of yours that it’s killed a ton of Foreseers because of its intense power.”

“You’ve been reading my book?” I back up the stairs, guiding him by the hands.

“I wanted to learn more about who you are, and your power.” He matches my steps. “You’re so… careless sometimes. I just worry about you.”

I reach the top of the stairway, my skin humming with an emotion I’ve never felt before. Boldly, I pull him to me and enfold my arms around his neck. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too.” He rubs his lips together. The color has returned to his skin and his eyes are vibrant. “A lot.”

“Oh yeah?” I dare with an arch of my eyebrows. “How much?”

“A lot, a lot.” He embraces me and it’s just what I crave.

His lips beckon me near, which I do. We melt into each other. He picks me up and I hitch my legs around him. He carries me down the hall and kicks his bedroom door open, his lips never leaving mine. My body steams and my insides tingle as we collapse on the bed. I find the hem of his shirt, my fingers drafting the lines of his muscles. His lips are untamed against mine. A choking feeling seeps through my body and emotions creep up that make me uncomfortable. But I stifle the feeling and let go. I want more. His hands feel every part of me and he moans as his hand slides up my spine, bare skin against bare skin. He finds my Keeper’s mark and caresses the flames bordering the circle. I gasp as his lips suck the skin on the hollow of my neck. He sweeps my locket to the side and his mouth travels lower.

“Alex.” I gasp, not in objection, but in bliss.

He pulls away, panting heavy breaths, caught in the intoxicating moment. “We should get some rest… it’s been a long couple of days.”

Conquer. Conquer. Conquer.
“Not yet,” I beg. “I don’t want to stop.” I press my legs against his hips. “
Please
.”

He sweeps pieces of my hair back and gently kisses my forehead. “We have time, Gemma. For all of this. But I don’t think now’s the right time. You were just pissed off at me for being with Stasha. You’re not thinking clearly.”

“I’m thinking clearer than I ever have,” I mumble, but he still slides off me.

I glare at the ceiling, annoyed.

“I love you,” he says, snuggling his head against my neck. “I’m not going anywhere.”

I lie motionless as he drifts to sleep, exasperated and obsessing over power. The window swings ajar and a chilled wind rushes in. I slip out from under his arm and close it, but pause when I spot a bug on the branch. Carefully leaning over the windowsill, I scoop up the Black Widow, my phobia of spiders suddenly nonexistent. It’s tranquil in my palm, like it belongs there. Maybe it does. I set it back on the branch and leave the window open. Stealing the keys from Alex’s pocket, I slink out of the room and hurry outside. I hop in his car. The leather seats are cool against the back of my legs. Cranking up the radio, the lyrics of “Degausser” by Brand New pours through the cab of the car. I don’t know where I’m going, but I have a feeling I’ll know when I get there. Because at the moment, I don’t think my mind’s quite my own.

It’s midday, a couple of hours since I left the castle and Alex. When I first pull up to the structure, I’m not sure where I am. I take in the dark ambience of the windows, the grunginess of the building and the ones that surround it. Flowing in and out of the entrance, are people dressed in gothic-styled clothes with Greek hieroglyphics on their skin. I realize why I’m here.

“Laylen.”

I climb out of the car, stuff the keys in my pocket, and step up onto the curb. People are lined up in front of the door like it’s a fancy night club. There’s even a bouncer with arms the size of my body and tattoos covering his bald head. Knowing I probably won’t get in, I try anyway. Tipping my chin up, I stride with confidence for the velvet rope.

The bouncer gives me a once over and then stares at my eyes. “You Gemma?”

My confidence falters. “Yeah.”

He unhooks the rope and steps aside. People waiting in line shoot me dirty looks and some even bare their fangs. Inside, the air reeks of cigar smoke, sweat, and rust. There’s a mob of people chatting in a slender hallway with blood red walls and an ash black floor. I pat my empty pockets, wishing I had brought my cell phone.

There are vampires, witches, and fey all over the place. My first instinct is to shield my eyes with my hand. Back when Stephan ruled, my violet eyes were a dead giveaway I was the star.
 You’re not the star anymore, though. You are a normal girl. One that will rule the world.

I shake the disturbing thought away and weave through the crowd of people. The end of the hall opens up into a large dancing area and a bar. I’m verging nineteen and wonder if I’m old enough to be in here. Although, if I’m not, I don’t think anyone would care.

A woman no more than a few years older than me, wearing a bright pink dress dances on the countertop, holding a margarita glass. I think she might be dinner with the way a row of vampires watch her, dressed in their black clothes, mouths watering.

One of her high heels suddenly snaps and she nose-dives to the floor. The vampires lunge out of their stools, plummeting for her.

The floor vibrates under my feet as a large group of people sway to Deftone’s “Change.” I turn to head back, overwhelmed by the amount of people, most who aren’t human, when someone rams into my shoulder.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry.” The women in the florescent pink dress stands beside me, pinching the stem of the margarita glass, the rim chipped and the base cracked. There are bite marks on her neck and blood stains the tip of her auburn hair. “I apologize for my misstep,” she shouts over the music. “But I’m supposed to take you somewhere.”

I shake my head, backing through the crowd. “Um… No thanks. I’ve gotta go.”

“No, no, no, no, no.” She drops the cup to the ground and it shatters. “I’m not going to hurt you, but you have to come with me, okay?” Without permission, she takes my arm and leads me through the crowd.

I consider bolting, but curiosity keeps me going. There’s a stack of stairs that spiral to the ceiling. We wind up, the railing wobbling with our movements. The top merges with a hallway where the music dissipates the farther down we go. At the end is a door.

She lets go of my arm. “This is a really great place, isn’t it?” She walks inside.

Smoke swirls around in my head and cold crackles my body. Laylen told me once that vampires like the cold temperature. I assume the men sitting at the elliptical shaped table are vampires. They hold cards in their hands and have stacks of poker chips in front of them.

I hug my arms around myself and stand in the doorway, gawking at them like an idiot. “Why did you bring me here?” I whisper to the girl, only to realize she’s moved to the opposite side of the room.