Charade (32 page)

Note to self: it is good defense to knee demons in their ‘man parts.’

I pushed off the ground and raced toward the scroll. The demon recovered from his groin injury and grabbed me by the foot, yanking me off my feet. I used my free leg to kick it in the head as Sam lunged, ramming his fist right through its back; it disintegrated right on top of me. Gross.

I rolled over and grabbed the scroll, hurrying to shove it inside my bag as I stood. Sam helped me to my feet and we both turned when we heard scuffling.

Cole was being ambushed by the two remaining demons.

As he was fighting, he was hit from behind and Cole slumped to the ground.

“Cole!” I screamed as Sam ran forward at the demons.

But he didn’t have a chance to do anything to them.

A super strong gust of wind blew in from the door and knocked the demons to the ground. Sam hurried to send them to dust. I crouched beside Cole. “Cole!”

He groaned and looked up at me. I grabbed his hand and squeezed.

“Is he all right?”

All of us whipped around at the new voice. Kimber was standing in the doorway looking torn.

“Kimber? What are you doing down here?”

“Mrs. Britt sent me to see what was taking you so long.”

What had she seen? How would she even know we were down here?

“Oh, uh—I accidently tripped and fell off the walkway above these passageways. Cole and Sam came after me and we got lost down here.”

“Cole?” Kimber asked, taking a few more steps inside. I could see her aura even in the dark and I could see that she was genuinely worried about Cole.

And that she still loved him. Nothing like a demon attack and threat of death to bring out someone’s true feelings.

“Heven?” Cole groaned, grabbing my arm.

“Everything’s okay,” I told him as he sat up, holding his head. I felt around for blood, but there wasn’t any. Thank goodness.

“You need to hurry up,” Kimber snapped.

My show of concern for Cole angered her. If only she understood…

“Kimmie?” Cole asked, getting to his feet.

Kimber, who was on her way out the door, stopped and turned. The red in her aura gave way to pink. “Yeah?”

“What are you doing down here?”

Kimber huffed and her worry turned back into anger. Keeping up with her aura was like watching exploding fireworks. “Hurry up!” she barked and disappeared from sight.

“How much did she see?” Cole asked as we walked toward the door.

“I don’t think anything,” Sam said.

I remained silent because I wasn’t so sure. I think Kimber saw a lot more than they thought. I also thought that she pretended to buy my excuse about being down here, because if she started asking questions, then I would too.

Like how exactly she knew where to find us and why that gust of wind flattened those demons right as they were threatening Cole, the guy she still loved.

Chapter Seventeen

Heven

The rest of the day seemed to drag on endlessly. I was filled with dread, waiting for the next demon to attack, expecting something in every corner or shadow we passed. Sam and Cole were wound just as tight, and wherever we went, they flanked my sides, closing in and making it harder to breathe than it already was. My bag felt like it held ten heavy stones when, really, all it held was a cherry lip gloss, some money, a student ID and the scroll. But what weighed me down most of all were the questions. They swirled through my brain like snowflakes in a winter storm, clouding every other thought I had.

Something was going on with Kimber.

I knew.

She knew I knew.

When I wasn’t staring at shadows and corners, I was staring at her. She avoided my gaze like the plague. I might have brushed it off before as her just being angry and thinking I stole Cole, but not anymore.

Her eyes betrayed her, the way she hunched her shoulders betrayed her, but most of all, her aura betrayed her. Lies and uncertainty cloaked her wherever she went. And it seemed to me that her skin became paler every day.

What did she have to do with that wind back at the Colosseum? What is in that box she is carrying around? Why do things seem to happen when she’s around—
odd
things, like slamming doors and blocking that mist? What bothered me most of all about Kimber is that she seemed to hate me. Sure, she was angry and sure, she turned out not to be the friend I thought she was, but I never believed she hated me. Maybe she did begin to hate me when she began thinking that I was after Cole, but deep down, I think she knows that Cole and I are just friends. I think she uses it as an excuse to cover up something else, an excuse to hate me.

And I let her.

Because I have secrets too. Secrets that I don’t want her to know because it would put her in danger by knowing. Isn’t there enough danger already? I would rather Kimber hate me than be my friend and be hurt because of it.

An echo of the Dream Walkers last words echoed through my head.
When everyone around you is dead…
I shivered and Sam pressed even closer to me.

Is everything okay?

I have to talk to Kimber.
As much as I wanted to protect her, I needed answers because I had a terrible feeling that something was wrong and only getting worse.

He nodded. I leaned around him to look at Cole. “Cole, I need to tell Kimber.”

Cole stared back at me for a long, quiet moment. I prayed he would agree because, even if he didn’t, I was going to tell her anyway. Telling Kimber that Cole was my brother would take away her excuse to be angry at me for stealing her boyfriend; she wouldn’t have an excuse to ‘hate’ me anymore. Maybe then I could get her to talk to me.

“Yeah.” Cole sighed, scrubbing a hand down his face. “She needs to know.”

“Thank you,” I whispered, reaching out to squeeze his hand. He didn’t respond, but returned the pressure with his fingers.

The bus pulled up in front of the hotel and I wanted to weep. It seemed silly to be happy to see a place that wasn’t really safe. I mean, hadn’t a demon already attacked us at a hotel? Yet it was kind of serving as my temporary home, and at least inside my room, I could relax a little and not have to worry so much about watching everyone around me.

At the bank of elevators, Sam hesitated, his fingers clasped tightly around mine. I knew from our Mindbond that he did not want to let me go upstairs alone. He was my guardian, my protector, and he wanted to be with me, but rules were rules and Mrs. Britt was standing by the elevator doors, watching everyone like a hawk. I sighed and leaned forward, pressing my lips to his, not caring that the teacher was watching. Sam’s lips were gentle as was his caress to my cheek, which was a complete juxtaposition to the urgent intensity that he carried within.

I’ll be fine. I promise.
I tried to soothe him.

It’s only an hour until dinner,
he said, the words like a mantra.

I tapped his forehead, reminding him like he always did with me that we are connected even when we are apart.

I’ll rip this place apart if I get one bad feeling.

I’ll see you in an hour.
I tried to reassure him before turning toward the elevators, ignoring Mrs. Britt’s glare. I’m sure I’d be reminded about the no-touching policy later. Whatever. Sam was still watching as I climbed on the elevator and the doors began to close.

During the short ride to my floor, I prayed that my talk with Kimber went well because, if it didn’t and I couldn’t control my emotions, Sam might not be able to keep the tight lid closed on the already tenuous grip he had over himself.

I stepped off the elevator and into the empty hallway. I was behind everyone because I lingered in the lobby with Sam. I took a deep breath and relished the single moment when I was blissfully alone. It was one of the few times since arriving here in Rome that I had one second to myself. I walked slowly, trying to draw out the time, if only for a second. When I rounded the corner, my heart sank because there was someone in the hall and I was no longer alone. The person hurried in the opposite direction towards the stairwell and didn’t even give me a glance.

It was Ms. Merriweather. When she reached the door, she paused to look left, then right… to make sure she was alone? Hadn’t she heard me come around the corner? I slowed my steps even further, trying not to make a sound as I watched her. She always seemed off somehow. Just before she stepped into the stairwell, something happened that shook me to my core: her usual blue and green aura blinked out and the space around her was replaced with a cloud of black.

I had never, not once, seen black in a person’s aura before.

I blinked, thinking my eyes were playing tricks on me, but when I looked back, the black cloud was still there, hanging over her like an angry thundercloud... I blinked once more and the blue and green aura was back, surrounding her like it had never been gone. As if the black had never been there at all.

The shower was running when I let myself into the room and I heard the beat of music from behind the bathroom door as I passed. As anxious as I was to speak with Kimber, I was glad that I had a moment to think. What could it mean about Ms. Merriweather’s aura? Had I really seen that burst of black or was I just imagining things? Black was not a color I associated with an aura and I didn’t know what it could mean. Aura’s always surrounded people with certainty, clarity and truth. Was Tabitha Merriweather somehow able to mask her aura? Or change it? Influencing an aura wasn’t something I’d ever even considered before. To me an aura was true; they didn’t lie. It unsettled me to think what I believed to be a constant truth was somehow being manipulated.

I went over to my suitcase and ruffled around for something clean to wear to dinner and settled on a cotton sundress and sandals. Laying my choices out on the bed, I reluctantly removed my bag and placed it beside my suitcase. Kimber took a long time in the shower and I began to worry that we wouldn’t have time to talk. Finally, the shower turned off and moments later, she came out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel. She walked right past me without even glancing in my direction.

“Hey,” I chirped, trying to sound friendly.

She ignored me and turned her back, reaching into her suitcase and pulling out some clothes.

“I was hoping we could talk.”

“I don’t want to talk.” Her voice was low and muffled as she pulled a dress over her head.

“Great minds think alike,” I said, motioning toward the dress I had chosen as well.

She turned toward me, glancing in my direction briefly. “We are nothing alike.”

Her cheeks were splotchy, her eyes were red and her voice was thick from crying. I gasped. “What’s the matter?”

“Nothing.” She turned away again.

It didn’t look like nothing. Kimber hardly ever cried, so whatever made her cry had to be bad. “Did something happen back home?”

“I said I’m fine!”

“You don’t look fine.”

She huffed and went back into the bathroom, shutting the door in my face. I was about to yell through the wood, but the hairdryer came on and blocked my words. With a sigh I picked up my brush and went to the mirror on the wall and began brushing. It looked like I wasn’t going to be allowed in the bathroom anytime soon, so I did my best to clean myself up out here.

Is everything okay?
Sam asked.

Yeah. Kimber doesn’t want to talk.

I’m sorry, sweetheart.

For some reason tears sprang to my eyes. I sat the brush aside and blinked them back as I checked my reflection one last time before changing into my sundress. The deep purple material was soft and cool against my skin. It was slightly long and it brushed at my toes when I moved. Instead of being annoying, it was comforting. The dress was strapless so I couldn’t really hide the necklace with the key on it beneath my shirt. I shrugged and allowed it to fall forward down over my chest. It was pretty and no one would know it was anything other than an accessory. I decided to grab a light sweater out of my suitcase in case I got cold and bent down to search for the one I wanted. When I stood, Kimber was there behind me, mere inches away.

“Gheesh!” I gasped. “You’re going to give me a heart attack.”

Her eyes were alarmingly blank and I wondered if she heard what I said. Suddenly, she moved, taking a swift step toward me, her eyes still strangely vacant.

“Kimber?”

She blinked, her eyes clearing. “What?” Her voice was defensive, but her aura flared a muddy brown shade, telling me that her actions confused her.

“I wanted to talk to you.”

Her gaze dropped down to the key on my necklace. I had the urge to curl my hand around it out of view, but that would give away more than I wanted, so I ignored her stare to say, “It’s about Cole.”

“What about Cole?” She forgot the key and looked at my face.

“Remember how I told you that something was going on with him and I couldn’t tell you?”

She crossed her arms over her chest and nodded.

“He said I could.”

“He did?” I hated to see the hope come into her eyes. Kimber still loved Cole, but his heart wasn’t hers anymore.

I nodded. “It’s confidential, but you’re my friend and I want you to know.”

Her eyes softened and her aura smoothed out into the vibrant hues that were normal for her.

I opened my mouth just as there was a loud knock on the door. “Girls,” Ms. Merriweather called on the other side. “We’re going downstairs for dinner.”

Kimber stiffened and took a step back. Her face hardened and became a mask. I sighed.

“We’ll be right there!” I called. “So about what I wanted to tell you,”

“Kimber, you don’t want to be late,” Ms. Merriweather said.

Something passed behind Kimber’s eyes and her aura bloomed a shade of gray. I suppressed a shudder at the unsightly color. She didn’t seem to notice my obvious distress as she grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder, walking to the door.

“Kimber.”

She stopped and turned.