Unraveled

TWELVE

AT THE RANCH, Aden ate a sandwich. Or five. Afterward, he showered while Mr. Thomas stood in the back of the stall and yelled at him. He had his arms braced beside the nozzle, the hot spray hitting him directly in the face. He tried not to care that his first couples shower was with another guy.

“You smell like my sister,” the fairy ghost snarled. “Where have you been?”

So. Ms. Brendal had been telling the truth. “Tell me about her. Your sister.” Like, did she attack first and ask questions later? And had she been watching Aden without his knowledge? Other than the ghost prince, he hadn’t been around a fairy—that he knew of.

“You will not touch her! Do you hear me? I will kill you first.”

“I hear you. I just know that it’ll be hard for you to see that threat through since you’re dead and all.” He shouldn’t encourage a conversation, but he really hoped Thomas would accept what he was and quiet down. “For the record, though, I have no intention of hurting your sister.”

There was a heavy pause. Momentary—as always. “I want to leave. Why can’t I leave?”

“To depart from this world, you have to do in death whatever you regret not doing in life,” he said, turning. That, he knew for fact, since that was how he’d lost sweet, motherly Eve.

Thomas crossed his arms over his chest. “My last wish was to kill you.”

“Then I guess we’re stuck with each other because you can’t get your hands on a weapon.” Aden twisted the knob, the water pressure easing, then stopping. He stepped out of the stall and grabbed a towel.

Thomas continued to rant, but Aden easily tuned him out. And not because of any medication.

On the drive home, Dan had told him to continue taking his new pills just to prevent another scare like yesterday’s. He’d even walked Aden to his room and watched as he put a little white tab on his tongue and swallowed. Of course, the moment Dan had left, Aden had spit the pill in the trash. He must be getting better at compartmentalizing each distraction, as he’d done with Shannon in the forest today. Or maybe he was simply too distracted to listen.

What had Dr. Hennessy done to him? He’d started to mention the forced hypnosis to Dan, but had changed his mind when Dan became a supporter of Operation Take Your Pills.

Frowning, Aden patted himself down and wrapped the towel around his waist. He padded through the hall to his bedroom. It was empty. Where was Shannon? He heard muttering from the other rooms, some of it angry, but the doors were shut and he couldn’t tell who was fighting with whom. This late in the evening, the boys usually holed up and chilled with their roommates.

With a sigh, Aden dressed in his customary jeans and a T-shirt.

“You’re going out again?” Thomas gritted out, claiming his attention. The ghost paced from one side of the bedroom to the other. “Where are you going? You can’t leave me here!”

Wear something sexier, Caleb said. We’re gonna see Victoria.

Leave him alone, Elijah replied. We have more important things to consider. I mean, really. No one’s mentioned Aden’s parents in days. When are we going to start looking for them? Finding them will benefit all of us.

His parents. He’d managed to walk the Forget Them path for days and Elijah’s reminder was like being shoved in front of an oncoming bus.

They’d given him up when he was a toddler, and hadn’t checked on him since. For that, he hated them. Still. He had to talk to them. Sooner rather than later. They might know why he was the way he was. They might have a relative just like him.

More than that, however, he would be better able to search for information about Elijah, Caleb and Julian along the way. Like who they used to be, what their final wish had been. Then he could free them. If they still wanted to go.

You eager to pass on or something? Julian asked the psychic.

Aden had dreaded having this chat, too afraid of the answers.

Yes. No. I don’t know. I’m just curious about who I was. Maybe, like Eve, I knew Aden’s parents. Maybe I did something wonderful with my life. Knowing would be…nice. And if nothing else, the more we can find out about Aden’s abilities, the better equipped we’ll be to help him deal with everything going on around him these days.

Well, I’m hungry, Caleb said, and Aden suspected it was because the soul was just as afraid as he was. Do me a solid and see if Mrs. Reeves has extra sandwiches in the kitchen.

“Give me a minute,” Aden replied as he tugged on his boots.

“I asked you a question,” Thomas snarled. “Where are you going? Answer me this time!”

“Or what? You’ll try to slap me?” he asked dryly.

Hinges creaked, and then Shannon was strolling into the room. He paused, looking Aden over. “Nice.” Then he blushed, like he’d done earlier. “I—I didn’t m-mean—”

“I know,” Aden said on a laugh. “No worries.”

Thomas the eavesdropper stilled and quieted.

“I’m g-glad I caught you.” Shannon closed the door, shutting them inside, and leaned against the wood, head back, eyes closed. He sighed, the sound weary.

“Something wrong?” Aden asked.

Slowly Shannon’s eyelids opened. His green eyes were bright with apprehension. “I—I need to tell you s-something. You need to k-know, and keeping it i-inside…”

“Yeah, I know.” Secrets ate at you. Proof: Aden was currently riddled with holes. “You can tell me, whatever it is. I won’t judge you. Like I can, you know.” He leaned his hip against the side of the desk and crossed his arms over his chest. He glanced at Thomas, who was still listening, and decided to forge ahead anyway. “I’m Crazy Aden, remember?”

“You aren’t c-crazy.”

“Thanks.”

Shannon pushed out a breath. “W-we’re roommates, and if y-you find out later, y-you’ll be pissed, and t-then you’ll want t-to kill me.”

Sounds serious. Do you think— Caleb growled. Do you think he laid a move on our girl Victoria?

Nah. I bet he murdered his last roommate, Julian said.

“Tell me!” Aden didn’t mean to shout, but the thought of Shannon and Victoria together was enough to make him—

“I-I’m g-gay,” Shannon said, and the words were uttered with shame and remorse and all kinds of guilt.

Gay. Aden blinked. That was all? Seriously? “Okay.”

Those green eyes widened. “O-okay?”

“Yeah.”

“But, w-were you not l-listening? I’m queer.”

Aden rolled his eyes. “I don’t know about that. You’re a pain in the ass sometimes, but I wouldn’t say you’re weird.”

“You know w-what I meant,” was the snapped reply.

“So, too soon to joke about?”

That earned him a scowl.

“Shannon. Seriously. You’re gay, not diseased. It’s fine. I’m not worried.”

The scowl vanished, replaced by astonishment. “But we’re s-sharing a room.”

“So? Are you afraid I’ll get handsie?”

A smile twitched at the corner of his friend’s lips, and he seemed to shed ten pounds of tension. “You’re really all r-right with it?”

“Yes, I’m really all right.”

“Thank you.”

“Am I the only one who knows?” Aden asked. “Do you want me to keep quiet?”

“R-Ryder knows.”

Today in the forest, that blush, Ryder’s inability to look at Shannon… Ah. Everything made sense now.

Shannon peered down at his feet, pushed out another breath, then banged his head against the door once, twice. “I t-thought he was, too, but no. He d-doesn’t swing that way.”

He’d clearly been hopeful, though. “Is your being gay the reason your parents kicked you out?” Aden asked.

A nod. “Part of it. T-they had heard about Dan’s ranch and called h-him. I’d started to get into t-trouble, shop-lifting, drinking, t-that sort of thing, and it was e-either come here or hit the s-streets. I came here.”

“Good choice.”

Another smile began to break its way free. “I think so, too.”

A tentative knock sounded at the window, and Thomas hissed in a breath. Shannon straightened and Aden turned. There, beyond the glass, stood a blonde vampire. Victoria’s gum-chewing sister.

Frowning, concerned, Aden stalked to the window and opened it as quickly as he could. Cool evening air blustered inside. “Stephanie?”

She popped a bubble. Moonlight bathed her, illuminating the paleness of her skin. “The one and only.”

“Another vampire princess who belongs to Vlad. She. Must. Die.” Thomas raced forward with every intention of attacking. Only, he smacked into the same invisible wall Aden had encountered in his world with a thud. When he realized he was blocked, he pounded at the wall with his fists.

Aden forced himself to concentrate on the vampire. “What are you doing here? Is something wrong with Victoria?”

“Physically, no, but I was one of the girls chosen to date you. So yeah, there’s something wrong with her mentally.” He did not like hearing that. “Take me to her. I need to—”

“Slow down, cowboy. She’ll be fine.”

Fine. That wasn’t good enough. “You’re still taking me to her. And FYI, I won’t be dating you.”

“’Cause you only want Vic. Yeah, yeah, I know.” Stephanie rolled her eyes, flattened her hands on the pane and leaned toward him, saying quietly, “I also know she likes you and didn’t want strangers laying the moves on you, especially when she can’t trust them not to bite and enslave you. So here I am. Chosen, and not fighting it.” Now she splayed her arms and turned, giving him a full view of her bright red tank and microscopic miniskirt. “Me, in all my glory. Do you know how lucky you are? Lauren and I were promised to others, but with Vlad’s death all bets are off and you get a chance with me. And you might want to rescind your command, oh, mighty king, because if I take you to her now, I’ll be taken off the list, and it’s better for everyone if I’m on it.”

His stomach churned into hundreds of little knots. “All five girls have been chosen, then?”

“Yep. And let me tell you, the council didn’t want you dating another of Vlad’s daughters, but most of the girls basically had to be forced to agree to see you—sorry, but it’s true, you being human and all—even though their fathers want to make that royal connection, and as I was volunteering… By the way, I’ve met every single girl on the list. So, I change my vote. You aren’t a lucky boy.”

“I hadn’t realized,” he replied dryly.

She laughed, and it was a musical sound.

That was the kind of laugh he wanted to elicit from Victoria, at least once a day. Soon, he thought wistfully—and then felt all kinds of guilty. Victoria was perfect, just the way she was. She was smart and dedicated and understood him and his past. Without judging. With acceptance. And he didn’t mind working for one of her beautiful smiles. Liked having to do so, even. Was proud and excited when he won one. Except, she deserved to be happy all the time and now he was probably making her miserable.

At least, he kind of hoped he was.

More guilt bombarded him. He shouldn’t want her to be jealous, but he far preferred jealousy to the indifference she’d shown him at the vampire mansion.

“Aren’t you going to invite me in?” Stephanie asked.

He glanced over his shoulder. Shannon still stood against the doorway, expression curious. Thomas was still beating at that invisible wall. “Actually,” he said, turning back to her, “I’ll join you out there.” He was due to meet Riley, Victoria and Mary Ann in the forest, anyway. In…two hours, he realized with a glance at the clock. Not soon enough. Not that he didn’t like Stephanie, but he was uncomfortable with this situation. “Shannon,” he began, only to be cut off.

“Yeah, I k-know the drill. Go. I’ll cover for you.”

“Thank you.”

As Aden sheathed his blades in their ankle holsters, Stephanie said, “Don’t forget your ring.”

Vlad’s ring. Oh, yeah. He removed the opal from the drawer where he’d stuffed it after returning from the vampire mansion, slid the metal in place and climbed outside. God, it was cold. So cold mist formed in front of his face every time he exhaled.

They walked side by side toward the forest, but just before they reached the line of trees, Stephanie grabbed his arm and stopped him.

“Goblins and wolves are out there.” Even as she spoke, a howl rent the air. The howl was quickly followed by a high-pitched screech—a sound no human could have made. He cringed.

“Where should we go?” he asked.

“We’re going to be all romantic and crap and sit out here, under the stars. I have to report back, you know, so we have to make this seem real.” Grinning, she waved her arm, motioning to his feet. “Behold.”

Looking down, he found a black blanket, spread out and velvet soft. So. They really were going to be “romantic and crap.” With a sigh, Aden plopped down and stretched out, staring up at the sky, stars twinkling from their perches like diamonds.

Stephanie lay down beside him. “So what do you want to talk about?”

I bet she’s soft, Caleb said.

You’re gonna get us in trouble, Elijah snapped.

“I want to talk about Victoria.”

She snorted. “I’m shocked. Really. Well, what do you want to know?”

“Are you okay with my dating her?”

“Why not? You’re cute.”

A compliment. Surprising. “Yeah, but your other sister hates me.”

“She does indeed. Like a rash.”

He smiled; he just couldn’t help himself. “Thank you for sparing my feelings.”

“Welcome.”

“You’re…different,” he said. He hooked his hands under his head, hoping that would warm them. “Not like the others.”

“I know. Isn’t it wonderful?” she asked, nudging him with her shoulder. Heat wafted from her, enveloping him.

His smile widened. “Victoria says you used to sneak out.”

“Yep. Every chance I got.”

“You weren’t afraid of your father?”

“Of course I was. We all were. He believed punishment was the only way to train someone, and that man was all about training us to be the undefeatable army he’d always craved as a human. But Lauren was his favorite, his main concern. She is a warrior through and through, after all, so most of his attention was directed at her. Me, I was too…uninterested, I guess is the word, but he wanted my mother happy. Females were his weakness, not that he would ever admit that aloud. He admitted to no weaknesses. Anyway, he washed his hands of me, didn’t even give me a wolf guard, and left me in my mother’s loving care.”

She spoke as if her father’s desertion didn’t bother her, as if the man had done her a favor. “What about Victoria?”

“What about her?”

“He didn’t wash his hands of her?”

“We don’t share the same mother, and he didn’t care to make hers happy. So no, there was no washing.” Stephanie rolled to her side, peering over at him, her hands tucked under her cheek. “He pushed her to be his next Lauren. If she laughed, she was punished. If she disagreed with him, she was what? Punished.”

No wonder Victoria was so serious. No wonder she rarely relaxed. Aden was suddenly glad the man was dead.

Something about that thought disturbed him, causing the fine hairs on the back of his neck to rise and his brain to ache. Every time he thought about Vlad, he felt this way. Why?

“So what are your plans for us?” Stephanie asked. “For all the vampires?”

“To find you a new king,” he answered honestly. “Before that, though, I don’t know.”

Her eyes widened, her expression pure puzzlement. “You don’t want to be king? Really?”

“Really.”

“That’s just… I mean, wow. Who doesn’t want to rule the best vampires on the planet?”

“Me.”

She popped a bubble. “That’s wise, I guess. I mean, you’re just a human. But in the meantime, if you make it to your coronation, I have some suggestions.”

“Wait. Remind me when the coronation is taking place.”

“Twelve days, my friend. Twelve long, long days.”

Long? When time was ticking by so swiftly and so unmercifully he could barely keep track? Still. Once he’d dealt with the witches, he’d have…roughly a week to find his replacement. That was doable. He hoped.

“Meanwhile, you’re the man in charge, so your word is still absolute. So will you listen to my suggestions or not?”

“Let’s hear them.”

“First, no more black robes. You didn’t pitch a fit when I dropped mine, haven’t said anything about my lack of proper dress now, and I thank you for that. Anyway, we need color. Lots and lots of color. Not just me, but all of us. Only, everyone else is too afraid to risk punishment to act without approval.”

“Color. Done.” He knew Victoria secretly loved pink.

Stephanie clapped. “Excellent. I’ll spread the word when I return. Now. Second suggestion.” Another of those high-pitched screeches rang out, this one closer, and Aden sat up. So did Stephanie. “Uh, maybe we should move our blanket closer to the ranch.”

A third screech echoed, this one even closer. They hopped to their feet, but not before Aden fisted his daggers. A few feet away, leaves and branches rattled. As he moved in front of Stephanie, a small, deformed man burst through the thicket, heading straight for Aden, as if pulled by an invisible rope.

“Goblin,” Stephanie yelped.

Not a man, then. The misshapen creature was the same height as Aden’s kneecaps. He had pointy ears, yellow skin and eyes of red fire. Worse, his teeth were like sharpened sabers. Though the goblin wore clothing, the material was slashed to ribbons, revealing a gaping hole where his heart should have rested.

Great. Not just a goblin, but a dead goblin.

“Julian,” he muttered. If the soul was close to a dead body, that dead body awoke. Always. And then, of course, that newly awakened corpse attacked Aden, hungry for his flesh. Again, always.

My bad.

Aden had fought corpses a thousand times before and knew removing the head was the only way to stop them. Only, he’d never fought a nonhuman one before. Would decapitation work this time? Guess he’d find out.

When the creature reached him, he arced one of his blades toward the thing’s throat, but just before contact, the goblin ducked and bit into his kneecap.

Aden howled, fire instantly sparking in his leg and spreading. Adrenaline pumped through him, too, quickly dousing the flames and keeping him on his feet. He punched the creature’s temple, dislodging its teeth—ripping his own jeans and flesh in the process—and sending the little fiend flying to his side.

The goblin lay there a moment, chewing the bleeding hunk of Aden’s skin, ecstasy filling those red eyes—along with hunger for more. Aden swooped in and slashed, using both his blades, crisscrossing his arms like scissors. The goblin rolled out of the way, fast, so fast, escaping the deathblow.

Get him! Julian cheered.

You can do it, Caleb said. Maybe.

Steady, Elijah added. If you can stall him—

The goblin leapt at him. Aden spun and the creature darted by, hitting the ground before jumping back to his feet. He jolted forward, closing the distance, daggers once again raised. He would succeed this time. Nothing would stop him.

Or maybe something would.

A dark wolf burst from the trees, flying past him and slamming into the goblin, chomping at his midsection. That didn’t slow the goblin down, however. The creature scratched and bit, angry, hungry, uncaring about pain. Corpses never cared. Perhaps they simply didn’t feel.

The wolf raked sharp claws over the goblin’s face. Flesh sizzled, actually burning, and black blood squirted.

“That’s not going to stop it,” Aden shouted, racing forward.

The wolf tossed him an irritated glance. Dark brown and golden fur was matted to its face, and one of its eyes was nearly swollen shut. A growl of warning sounded.

Move away!

The hard male voice reverberated through his head, unfamiliar…maybe.

“Hold him down.” Though Aden suspected the wolf, whoever it was, would attack him for interfering, he raised his blade and struck. Finally. Success. The goblin’s head detached from its body and rolled away. That body twitched, then stilled.

Aden was panting as his arms fell heavily to his side.

“Good job, boys,” Stephanie said, skipping over to them. “For a minute there, I thought we were all goners.”

The wolf turned pale blue eyes on Aden—Nathan, Aden suddenly realized, Riley’s brother—before focusing on Stephanie. A moment passed in silence.

She paled, shook her head. “No.”

The wolf uttered another growl.

One step, two, she backed away. “But I’m supposed to be here. The councilmen told me to—”

More silence. Another growl.

“Fine,” she snapped, and vanished, there one moment, gone the next.

Okay. What had just happened?

Nathan turned his heated gaze to Aden. I killed the thing, yet it came back to life a few minutes later. How?

The wolf was speaking inside his head, he realized. He didn’t like the extra noise, but he wasn’t going to complain. “I did it,” he admitted. “I wake the dead, but only when I’m close to them,” he added in a rush. “So if there are any more dead goblins in the forest tonight, I’d get rid of them quickly if I were you.” Nathan nodded. Thank you. For protecting the princess. The praise was offered grudgingly.

“My pleasure. But, uh, what did you say to her to get her to leave?” He knew the wolf had said something. He just didn’t know why the vampires kept deferring to the wolves when the vamps were supposedly the ones in charge.

You’ll find, Your Majesty, that wolves are the most feared creatures in the land. Even by their allies. Now, please. Leave the area. Just in case. With that, Nathan bounded off.

“He’s right.” Riley’s voice suddenly echoed around him. “Our claws produce the same je la nune contained in your ring. That’s why vampires are careful not to anger us. That’s also why we try not to use our claws on other creatures. Try being the operative word. We don’t want them getting their hands on the poison.”

Aden turned. Sure enough, Riley, Victoria and Mary Ann were striding forward. All three were frowning. Riley with urgency. Mary Ann with fear. And Victoria with…concern? “And yet you serve them,” he said.

“Yes.” Riley offered no further explanation. “Now, come on.” He waved Aden over before he could ask why. “Enough dawdling. We’ve got work to do—and it’s not kidnapping a witch. Lauren already bagged one.”