Unraveled

FOURTEEN

COLD AIR SCENTED WITH EARTH and pine wrapped around Mary Ann, chasing away the delicious sensation of warmth and power. Lamplight was replaced by moonlight, muted and soft, the only source of illumination. When Riley released her and spun to face her, scowling, Mary Ann drew the lapels of her sweater closer together. His green eyes glittered dangerously.

“What’s going on?” she asked.

He was in her face a second later, pressing his nose into hers, his breath trekking over her face. “I was watching you. For a minute there, you looked like you were eating and savoring chocolate.” He hurled the statement like an accusation. He didn’t add, “You were feeding on her magic, weren’t you?” but the words somehow echoed between them anyway.

She gulped, striving for calm. “So?”

“So. You haven’t been eating lately. At all.”

“How do you know what I have and have not been doing? You haven’t been around.” Don’t let your hurt feelings show. Now isn’t the time for that.

His pupils expanded, only to shrink into a thin line. “I can smell food, Mary Ann. The scent of it seeps from human pores. You’ve had none for several days.” He waited for her to issue a denial. She didn’t. “At first, I thought you were too riddled with nerves about the death curse, ’cause yeah, I can smell that, too. Then I was mad at you for going into town and forgot to question you about the food. Now, there’s no forgetting. Do you want to tell me why the hell you aren’t eating?”

“I…I haven’t been hungry.” Truth. “Like you, I thought it was nerves. I still do. I mean, I can’t…I wouldn’t…” Shut up, babbler! “What’s so bad about being a D-Drainer, anyway? It’s no worse than being a muter, is it?”

He popped his jaw. “When did you last eat?” he asked, ignoring her question.

She gulped again. “I…maybe the day the witches cursed us. I don’t know.” The words whispered from her, coated in shame and guilt. You have nothing to be ashamed of or guilty for, she told herself. She’d done nothing wrong.

His eyes widened as he straightened to his full height, no longer touching her in any way. “Have you had water?”

“No.”

“Humans can’t survive very long without water, Mary Ann.”

“I plan to have a giant glass of it just as soon as I get home.”

“Have you weakened?”

Shivering now from the cold, from an influx of dread, she shook her head. Several strands of hair slapped at her cheeks. “No. That’s not a big deal, though,” she rushed to add. “I’ve been living on adrenaline.”

“That wouldn’t keep the hunger at bay for so long.”

“Dieters can go without food for a long time.”

“Are you dieting?”

He had a question for everything. “N-no, but that doesn’t mean anything.”

“You’re not hungry, even now?”

“No.”

His pupils did that strange expanding/shrinking thing. “You liked being near the witch, yes? You felt warm and safe?”

“Y-yes.” Stop stuttering. “Is there something wrong with me? I mean, there’s nothing wrong with me. I—”

“Yes, there’s something wrong with you.” He scrubbed a hand down his face, leaving red marks behind. “You were feeding off her magic, which means you really are a Drainer.”

The horror in his voice caused her stomach to churn. “I ask again, what’s so bad about being a D-Drainer?”

“Everything! By vampire law, hell, by every law in this otherworld, I’m required to kill every Drainer I find. We all are.”

Mary Ann backed up a step. Riley, kill her? No, never, she told herself. Not her. They were dating, for God’s sake. “You can’t just go around killing people. Besides, why would you have to kill a D-Drainer?” And why did she have so much trouble saying the word? “Which I’m not. You can’t know that for sure.”

His eyes glinted as if a match had been struck inside them. “There was a Drainer in that room, Mary Ann. Witches are always the first to sense them because their survival depends on eliminating them. Victoria and Lauren are out. They might hunger for witch blood, like all vampires, but there’s a big difference between drinking from a vein and gorging on energy. Plus, I’ve lived with them a long time, and would have known. That means the only other option was Aden. Except, he’d recently had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, so I can cross him off the list, too. Who does that leave, Mary Ann? Go ahead. Tell me.”

Distance, suddenly she needed distance from him. All that disgust…all that hate…both radiated from him. She stumbled backward, but didn’t try to run even though he’d all but threatened her. With the distance, she could breathe without smelling his dark and spicy scent, without feeling branded by him. He was wrong about her. He had to be wrong.

“What exactly is a Drainer?” There. She’d said the word without stuttering. They’d reason this out together and realize she was no different than ever.

Back and forth he began to pace. “Haven’t I already said? Someone who lives off the energy of others.”

That didn’t sound so terrible.

“I can see your aura and I know what you’re thinking, but listen up. Drainers are sustained only by the energy they steal. Without it, they weaken and die. But in the taking, they kill. And if that isn’t bad enough, their appetite for magic grows with every feeding.”

She was going to kill people? No. No, no, no. But…she couldn’t stop her next thought. Her mother. Her mother had died at the moment of her birth because Mary Ann had drained her of strength. Oh, God. Even before the witches and Riley had begun tossing accusations at her, Mary Ann had used that very word to describe what she’d done to her own her mother. Drained.

Had she been a Drainer her entire life?

“Soon, magic won’t be enough. Soon, you’ll take from the vampires and they’ll no longer be able to feed.” His steps quickened, feet pounding into the ground. “Soon after that, you’ll take from the wolves, and they’ll lose their ability to shift. After that, you’ll take from humans. After that, nature. You’ll destroy everything and everyone.”

“I would never do that!” she shouted. Then her shoulders sagged. She’d killed her own mother. She was capable of anything. Stop! Don’t think like that. Back then, you ate food. Real food. Riley said Drainers live off energy. “I just, I can’t be a Drainer. There has to be another explanation.”

Steps never slowing, he flicked her a menacing glance. “You won’t mean to, but you will. Drainers can’t help themselves, and they certainly can’t stop. Otherwise, like I said, they weaken and die.”

He was saying she was—allegedly—a parasite. A murderer. Tapping into living beings as if they were a beer keg, and drinking them dry. The moisture in her mouth vanished, and her heart skipped several beats. “You’re wrong. My mother… I ate…”

His expression softened. “You didn’t kill your mother. I don’t know why she weakened after your birth, but you had nothing to do with it.” He didn’t sound convinced. “The draining thing, it probably switched on during your first encounter with the otherworld.”

“Not true.” She shook her head violently, more of those strands slapping at her. “I dated Tucker, and you’re the one who told me he was part demon. I made him feel better, not worse.” Proof that she couldn’t possibly be a Drainer, right?

Riley paused to massage the back of his neck. “And then you met Aden. And then the two of you summoned all of us here. And then you were cursed and received your first taste of magic.”

All excellent and irrefutable points. “What happens if I am?” Don’t say that. You can’t be, no matter the evidence. “What happens if I’m a Drainer, I mean?”

“I don’t know.” He bent and picked up a small, round stone, then tossed it into the trees. A branch cracked; there was a thump.

She could only watch him, sick at heart. “Both you and Lauren mentioned that you guys…kill Drainers.”

“We do,” he said, his tone dead.

As dead as she would soon be?

Light-headed at the thought, she fell backward, her hand flying to her neck. “You would kill me?”

“No!” He whirled on her, hands fisted, nostrils flaring with the force of his breathing. “And I wouldn’t let anyone else harm you, either. God, Mary Ann. I can’t believe you’d even think that of me.”

Okay, okay. He was right. She released the oxygen that had snagged in her lungs. “This is new to me, Riley, and besides that, we haven’t been on the best of terms lately, have we?”

His anger diluted, and his expression softened. “No. We haven’t.”

Hearing him agree was like being slapped—even though she’d been the one to say it first. “So do you want to…break up? If we were even dating, I mean.” Maybe he’d just been fooling around. Oh, God. She wanted to vomit.

“We were dating,” he said, hard and unbending now.

Were, he’d said. Her blood chilled as if little ice crystals had formed in her veins. “And now we’re not?” Did that needy voice really belong to her? “We are dating, Mary Ann.” His head fell back and he stared up at the star-filled sky. “We’re just going through a little rough spot.”

We are dating. Okay, yes, that was good. Very good. The relief that spread through her was palpable.

Then he added, “I mean, I think we are, at least,” and that relief drained.

Drained. Not a good word choice, she thought, laughing without humor. Because if what he’d said before, about Drainers destroying…if that was true, that would mean…. no. No. No! She would not venture down that mental path. Like a hypochondriac, she’d only convince herself that her “symptoms” were real.

Riley pounded to the porch steps and plopped down, resting his elbows on his knees. “If you really are a Drainer, you’re going to kill everyone I love.” He must have been reading her aura, must have realized the direction of her thoughts. “Hell, one day you’ll kill me.”

Absolute panic filled her at the thought of his death—at the thought of causing it. “I would never hurt you. Ever!”

“You wouldn’t mean to, but…” His head fell into his upraised hands. “Damn it! I can’t believe this is happening.”

“This just can’t be right, Riley. I mean, it’s happening so fast. I was fine, me, myself, only a few days ago.” Now everything was crumbling, leaving only ruins around her.

His laugh was as humorless as hers had been. “That’s the way of the world, Mary Ann. Everything changes in a blink.”

Not like this. Not for her.

No, not true, she thought next. She’d met Aden and in seconds, her entire world had changed. She’d discovered Tucker had cheated on her with Penny and in seconds, her entire world had changed. She’d learned the truth about her mother and in seconds, her entire world had changed.

She’d met Riley and in seconds, her entire freaking world had changed.

“Is there a way I can stop this? Reverse it?” she croaked out. “If it’s true, I mean.”

“No.” His unyielding tone left no room for doubt or argument.

Still she persisted. “Have you tried?”

“Yes.”

“And?”

“And the Drainers died.”

“How?”

“Through experiments.” He lifted his head and threw a quick glance behind him. He stiffened, sighed. “Now isn’t the time to discuss this.”

She couldn’t end the conversation on such a terrible note. “I don’t want to go inside yet.” She couldn’t pretend everything was okay. Not when tears burned the back of her eyes, not when she was shaking so much she could have been having a seizure. “And really, we can’t know for sure what’s going on with me.” When she got home, she planned to eat more food than her stomach could hold. That would prove her innocence. Right?

“Yeah,” he replied, but he didn’t sound convinced. “And I don’t want to go inside, either. So let’s chat about something else. I asked Aden, but now I’ll ask you. Why did you pick him to teach you self-defense? Why didn’t you pick me?” That matters? Now? she thought. But rather than protest, she grabbed on to the topic switch like a lifeline. This was normal. This proved he still cared.

She could have lied, spared her shredding feelings from further injury, but she didn’t. “I picked Aden because I knew I wouldn’t pay attention if you were the one doing the teaching. I would have wanted my hands on you, or your hands on me. I would have wanted to kiss you. I wouldn’t care about what you were telling me.”

Some of the tension left him, and he offered her a half smile. “Okay, then. You made the right choice.”

She relaxed a little, too. That smile, so genuine… He hadn’t gifted her with one of those in what felt like forever. But that smile also upset her—because she recalled something she desperately wanted to ask him. “Answer a question for me.”

“All right.”

Are you sure you want to do this? You’ll probably have to kiss this temporary good mood goodbye. Yeah. She had to; she had to know. “What about you and Lauren?”

Yep. Bye-bye, good mood. He lost all hint of happiness, scowling again. “Why do you ask?”

That was answer enough. “Just say what we both know you’re going to say.” Please don’t.

A muscle ticked under his eye. “Lauren and I used to date.”

Just as she’d suspected, yet the news was still devastating. How was she—a supposed Drainer—supposed to compete with such a strong, gorgeous vampire? Quite simply, she couldn’t. “How long ago did you break up?” Please say years ago.

“Let’s not do this, Mary Ann.”

“Tell me.”

He sighed. “We broke up shortly before I arrived here in Crossroads. We were never supposed to date, anyway. Vlad had promised her to someone else.”

Stomach churning…“So I’m the rebound girl?”

He snapped his teeth at her, pure wolf. “Mary Ann. You were dating Tucker when I got here. I should be asking you if I’m the rebound guy.”

Good point. Okay, she could let the rebound fear go. She walked over to him and eased beside him on the step. “Why did you guys break up?”

His green eyes pinned her in place. “You really want to know?”

Oh, God. No. “Yes.”

“I didn’t like the thought of her in danger, and she was always rushing right into it.”

Just like Mary Ann had done by going into town on her own. Only, Mary Ann was human, her skin vulnerable. Just crossing the street could put her in danger. Actually, she’d never felt closer to death than just then, her hopes and dreams burning to ash around her.

“Do you still have feelings for Lauren?” she asked softly.

“No.”

Too quick a response? God, she hated this. Hated her doubt. Hated Lauren, even though the vampire had been nothing but nice to her. And by nice, she meant that Lauren hadn’t stabbed her.

Do you still have feelings for me? She wanted to ask, but didn’t. Couldn’t. The answer might be the final nail in her coffin. He’d say yes, but she would hear the “but” in his tone. She knew she would.

“Well, the danger thing is just something you’ll have to get over, Riley,” she said, as if they were still together and not just a big, fat maybe. “You can’t be the one to save the day all the time. You can’t do everything on your own. You have to accept help. Sometimes that’s the only way to get the job done.”

“I know. That doesn’t mean I have to like it,” he grumbled.

At least he hadn’t denied her outright. That was progress, right?

“Right now, I want you to promise me that you won’t tell anyone, and I mean anyone, not Aden, not Victoria, about the draining thing,” he commanded. “Not until I find a way to fix you or reverse what’s happening.”

Could he, though? He’d already admitted Drainers died when others attempted to fix them. No, not true. He’d admitted that Drainers died during experiments.

“Okay?” he insisted.

Admission time. She stood, unable to sit still a moment longer, and shifted from one foot to the other, twisting the hem of her sweater. “I won’t tell.” She kept her back to him. “But…there’s someone who already knows.”

There was a rustle of clothes, then hard hands settled on her shoulders and spun her around. Riley had jackknifed to his feet, and boy, did he look ready to murder someone. “Who?”

Just tell him. Rip the Band-Aid. “The witch. Marie. The one I saw in town. The one who…appeared at the school this morning and told me she could feel me feeding off her.”

Pupils—wide, thin. Wide, thin. Like a pulse. “Why didn’t you tell me? Damn it, Mary Ann. I could have hunted her down.”

And done what to her? “At the time, I didn’t know what she meant.”

“She could have killed you!” As quickly as he’d exploded, he relaxed. His head tilted to the side pensively. “Why didn’t she kill you?”

“I don’t know. She didn’t stick around and explain her thought process.”

Several heartbeats of time passed in silence. Then, “Someone’s developing a smart mouth.” Dryly said, without any heat.

“I thought you liked my mouth,” she replied, kicking a stone with the toe of her tennis shoe. Please, still like my mouth.

He chuckled, and the sound warmed her. “I do.”

Thank God. Her knees almost buckled—and might have, if he hadn’t wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her up, holding her close.

“You know what I want?” he asked softly.

Her gaze lifted, meeting his. She shivered. “Tell me.”

“To go on a date with you. A real date. Just you and me. No war, no being chased, no looking for answers. Just the two of us getting to know each other.”

Yes, please. “I would like that,” she said on a trembling breath.

“Soon as the witches are taken care of, that’s what we’ll do.” There at the end, he’d sounded depressed, as if he didn’t think it was possible. As if one of them would be dead by then.

Perhaps he didn’t realize that he was killing her just then. Pulling her in one direction, then another, letting her hope before crushing her into nothing. “Nope. After the witches, we’ll have to start searching for Aden’s parents.” A reminder for Riley, for her. Aden was still their friend, and they still had a mission.

“No.” Riley shook his head. “Aden won’t have time to search for his parents yet. He’ll have vampire meetings to attend, laws to pass, punishments to issue. Then he can focus on his parents.”

“At this rate, he’ll have to drop out of school,” she said. Her, too.

“Nah. Things’ll calm down soon.”

“And maybe then we can go on a second date.” Fingers crossed. To be honest, nothing had really been worked out between them. Had it? They might be dating, they might not. She might be a Drainer, she might not. Fingers crossed on that one, too.

He chuckled, but it was no more assured than his final words.

The door behind him squeaked, and Riley released her, turning. Victoria and Aden exited the cabin. Both wore grim expressions. Aden looked sick, even. His skin had a greenish tint, and there were bruises under his eyes. And he was limping, dragging one leg behind as if it hurt to bend his knee. Maybe it did. His jeans were ripped and stained with dried blood.

“Are you okay?” Mary Ann asked him.

“Yeah, fine.”

“I asked him the same thing, and he gave me the same answer,” Victoria said.

Aden smiled, and for a moment, he looked all better. “Because it’s true. I’m fine. Just tired.”

“You’ll be home soon, I swear, my king. So did the witch tell you anything?” Riley asked. He didn’t release her, but moved to her side.

“No. So we’re going to leave her tied up for the rest of the night,” Victoria replied. “Perhaps boredom will make her more interested in talking to us tomorrow.”

They were running out of time, though, the week the witches had given Aden to attend their stupid meeting nearing its end. “So what now?”

“Now we spread the word that we’ve got a witch,” Riley said, grim. “If they want her back, they’ll call their meeting to order.”

“They’ll curse us,” Victoria said.

“They already have. Therefore, you’ll do what I suggested and spread the word.”

One by one, Victoria, Aden and Mary Ann nodded.

“As for what’s left of tonight, we go home, rest.” Riley’s gaze met Mary Ann’s, just as grim as his voice. “Soon the real battle will begin.”