Entangled Souls (5 page)

 

Nine

 

Halen awoke to the sound of the office door being opened. A wiry man entered the room carrying a rusted metal tray containing two plastic bowls filled with cold congealed oatmeal and rubbery scrambled eggs. Bolting upright, she eyed him with suspicion.

The man’s eyes bore through her as he handed her one of the bowls. “You idiotic little princess,” he fumed. “Do you even comprehend the trouble you’ve caused…for us all? No, of course you don’t. When Lucien discovers what I’ve done — handing you over to Armando Rayne — just pray death comes quickly. You’d better hope he allows us the gift of death, unlike the others.” He took a deep breath and handed Bijoux the other bowl before abruptly leaving the room.

Halen’s appetite quickly vanished and she sat her meager meal aside.

Bijoux frowned, watching her friend closely. “You really should try to eat something. I know it’s not the most appetizing thing you’ve ever seen, but I have a feeling you’re gonna need your strength, girl.”

Halen knew her friend was right, but the sight of the cold mush did absolutely nothing to whet her appetite. “This crap is beyond disgusting and you know it.”

“True dat, but it’s better than going hungry.”

Halen laid back on the lumpy mattress. She closed her eyes, willing Kieran’s image to materialize. She couldn’t deny the guy possessed a major cuteness factor. She sighed, remembering the feel of his full, kissable lips, his deep brown eyes and long shaggy hair. Would she ever get a chance to feel his lips pressed gently against hers just one more time? Then, remembering her vow to erase him from her memory, she quickly cast all thoughts of him aside.

She sat up, allowing her eyes to focus on the bowl of cold food sitting on the floor. Bijoux was right — she needed to keep up her strength. She couldn’t afford to get sick. Not now. When the time was right she planned to run away and find her way back home. She would need every ounce of strength and courage she could muster to get away from Armando Rayne.

Picking up the bowl, Halen devoured her breakfast with new found determination. She could feel Bijoux’s eyes on her, but she chose to finish eating before meeting her friend’s disapproving stare.

“You’re pissed at me, aren’t you?”

Bijoux shrugged her shoulders. “No, not really. You did what you needed to do. What I don’t understand is why you can’t or won’t fill me in on what happened to you last night. Why are you insisting on keeping it on the low?”

Halen felt telling Bijoux about her time with Kieran. She wanted to keep the memory of their brief encounter all to herself. Her feelings for Kieran were too new, too special to share with anyone…even her best friend.

“Bijoux, I can’t talk about it…not yet. Please try to understand where I’m coming from.”

Bijoux exhaled. Halen was right — she was beyond pissed off. But she didn’t want to say or do anything to jeopardize her new friendship with Halen. “No problem. It’s cool I won’t keep bugging you about it.”

Percy returned, informing them it was time to leave. Not wanting to keep Mr. Rayne waiting, he quickly ushered the girls outside. Halen moaned as the morning sun temporarily blinded her. Shading her eyes with her hands, she spotted two waiting for them, thick leather whips resting across their arms.

Armando walked over to where Halen stood talking to Bijoux, causing her to fall silent. “You girls get in. We have a long drive ahead of us and I do not intend to waste one more minute of my valuable time on the two of you.”

“How far is it to your house anyway?” Halen clamped her hand over her mouth, forgetting that she was forbidden to speak without his permission.

“Look here, I do not care who you claim to be,” Armando said, outraged by her blatant disobedience. “Never speak to me unless you are spoken to first. Is that clear?”

“Yes,” she managed to reply through gritted teeth.

“Since your duties will take place in my personal residence and not out in the compound, you may address me as Master.”

Halen bit back a sarcastic remark. “Yes…Master.”

Armando folded his arms across his chest and stared into her bottle-green eyes, which met his without wavering. “I’m going to give you some much needed advice. The face that you are the so called Chosen One in Lucien’s eyes no longer means a damn thing in the grand scheme of things. You see, in order for me to overthrow Lucien and take my rightful place as the next ruler, I need to gather more followers. To accomplish this I must increase my legion of Breeders. This is where you and your little friend over there come into play. Not to mention that I find your smart mouth irritating as will the rest of my family.”

Halen lowered her gaze she he wouldn’t recognize the resentment in her eyes. “Yes, Master.”

“Excellent! Learn your place and we shall get along splendidly.”

“Howdy there, Mr. Rayne,” Percy said, joining the group. “I hope these young ladies work out for you.”

“I’m quite sure they will be satisfactory,” Armando called back, annoyed with the nasty little man’s constant interruptions. “As long as you keep your mouth shut things will be fine. I would hate to imagine what Lucien would do if he discovered your betrayal — turning his Chosen One over to his rival. Why, I shudder to think of the outcome.”

“You ain’t got to tell me twice. I ain’t no fool. I’m heading home to lay low.” Percy focused his attention on Halen and Bijoux. “You two do as you’re told. It might not seem like it now, but I did you a huge favor.”

Bijoux rolled her eyes and tugged on Halen’s hand. “Let’s move it. We don’t want to piss off Mr. Rayne anymore than we already have.”

One of the boys placed his leather whip on the seat next to him and climbed down to offer his assistance. Halen studied his features as he lifted Bijoux into the truck. His jet-black hair was parted on the side and fell across his shoulders in thick, uneven layers. His whole demeanor exuded strength, but his body appeared lanky and frail. At least he dressed like a normal teen in ripped jeans and a
Black Veil Brides
tee-shirt. She had to admit, he was extremely cute with his dark purple fingernail polish and thick black eyeliner.

He turned to face Halen, lifting her up with one hand. He smiled, revealing perfect white teeth. “Hey, my name is Maxx. What’s yours?”

“I’m Halen, and this is my friend, Bijoux.”

“I’m his brother, Jaxx,” the driver said, turning in his seat.

Bijoux winked at the brothers. “Oh, twins! Double the trouble, double the fun.” She glanced over her shoulder to check on Armando’s whereabouts. “What kind of person is Mr. Rayne to work for?”

“He can be difficult to get along with. He has big plans for his family’s future,” Maxx said. “His son, Mitchell, is the devil walking. True evil flows through that guys veins. He has a thing for young, pretty girls. The younger, the better. People say he loves them to death…if you get my meaning.”

Halen shuddered. “I’ll definitely keep that in mind. How long until we reach Mr. Rayne’s house?”

“It will take is at least a day to reach the compound.”

“An entire day. Are you freaking kidding me?” She never dreamed Armando’s compound would be so far away. She wanted to question Maxx further, by the rising sound of Armando’s voice changed her mind.

“Maxx, stop bothering those girls. It is time for us to leave this place.”

**

The desk clerk remained outside, watching the group drive away. He turned, preparing to return inside when he noticed someone walking in his direction. “How’s it?” the young man said.

“Can’t complain.”

“I’m looking for a guy named Percy. He still around by any chance?”

“Afraid not,” the clerk said. “he left a couple of hours ago.”

“Hmm. Did he mention where he was headed?”

“Sure did. He was headed home.”

“Is home Magnolia Grove by any chance?” Kieran said.

“Not likely,” the man said with a laugh. “Nope. He was headed off to his own place.”

“I see. Did he happen to have his sister, or maybe his girlfriend with him?” Kieran asked.

“Percy ain’t got no sister, and he sure as heck ain’t got no girl.”

Kieran paced back and forth, seething with anger. The girl had stood there and lied to his face. And for what? A few measly dollars? He ran his fingers through his hair in a useless attempt to control his growing frustration. “Okay,” he said through gritted teeth. “Was Percy traveling alone?”

“Yep. As far as I know.”

“Thanks for you time.” Disappointed, Kieran headed back to the motel. Why did she lie to him? Damn her! He woke up this morning determined to see Halen one more time, having made the rash decision to confront Percy about spending time alone with her.

Now, as he walked through the crowded Atlanta streets, he was livid. She’d managed to make him look like a complete fool. Hell, she’d even found a way to con him out of his hard-earned money. Granted, losing the money was no biggie — there was plenty more where that came from, but knowing Halen lied to get her greedy little hands on it made his blood boil.

His anger gradually subsided, allowing him to stop focusing on Halen’s lies, and start focusing on her as a person. He wondered what kind of relationship she really had with Percy Nickelson. Obviously, she wasn’t his sister as she first claimed. So why did she feel the overwhelming need to leave with him? Could she still be hanging out in the city somewhere, or did she use his money to make a clean break and get out of town?

The pretty little liar, he fumed. He knew it would be better if their paths never crossed again in this life time.He had little to no patience for deceit and resolved to chalk it up to yet another learning experience.

**

Armando, along with his weary group of travelers spent their first night together half way between Atlanta and the Blue Willow Compound. Armando wasted no time in securing a room for himself, forcing the others to sleep in the adjoining campground. The idea of offering Bijoux and Halen a bed for the night never crossed his mind. He considered the girls his property, which made then undeserving of even the slightest show of common courtesy.

The two girls plopped down on a fallen log, exhausted from the long ride. Halen moved her leg to the side, twisting her foot, the pain so intense she cried out. Although Armando had ordered him to stay away from the girls, Maxx rushed to her side.

“Did you hurt yourself?”

“I moved my foot the wrong way, that’s all. No big deal. Don’t worry about it.”

“You should be more careful,” Maxx said, his dark hair falling over his eyes.

Halen smiled, blushing at his attention. “I will, thanks.”

Maxx took that as his cue and moved closer to her side. “Which one of you did Mr. Rayne get to help Lyric?”

Bijoux informed him that Halen would be working inside of the house as Lyric’s servant.

Maxx shook his head sympathetically, his long bangs falling over his face. “Lyric is as evil as her brother is crazy.” He looked at Halen and frowned, noting how delicate she appeared. “That one’s going to put you through pure hell.”

“No worries. I’m pretty used to dealing with people like her.”

“That’s not all. Lyric has a big mouth on her,” Maxx added.

“What about Mrs. Rayne?” Halen inquired. “What kind of person is she?”

“She died years ago. That makes Lyric the so-called lady of the house.”

Halen felt the need to question him more, but their conversation was cut short by the arrival of an elderly woman carrying a wooden tray with bowls of a macaroni and beef mixture and chunks of cold cornbread.

“Ugh, what kind of slop is this?” Halen asked.

Bijoux laughed. “Girl, it looks like some ghetto Beefaroni to me.”

Maxx returned to his brother’s side, speaking to him in a low voice. “We need to tell that Halen chick about our plans — see if she wants to join us. She could be a big help to the Cause. I overheard Armando saying something about her being Chosen.”

Jaxx, being the more conservative of the two brothers, wasn’t so sure. “I think we’d be smart to wait. After all, we just met the girl. We have to be sure we can trust her before we going spilling all our secrets to a complete stranger.” Seeing the look of disappointment on Maxx’s face, he flashed him a reassuring smile before continuing. “There will be plenty of time to include your new girlfriend — if and when the situation warrants.”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Maxx snapped. “But I guess you’re right. It’s just sometimes when Armando puts that whip in my hand to use on the other Breeders, I swear I want to beat his fucking brains out.”

Jaxx looked around to make sure they were still alone, giving him a stern look of disapproval. “You shouldn’t talk that way. Someone might hear.”

“Stop bitching at me. I’m not going to do anything stupid, if that’s what you’re worried about. And for the record, I still think Halen could prove to be an invaluable asset.”

“Man, you’ve got the hots for the chick big time. Please tell me you’re not falling in love with her.”

Maxx shrugged his shoulders. “I guess she’s cute enough. I know I don’t have the right to think that way about her, or any other girl. I do know one day soon I’m going to smoke Armando, then I’m going to let the Breeders have their way with Lyric and Mitchell.”

A cold chill ran down Jaxx’s spine. He knew Maxx’s threats were all too real.

 

 

 

Ten

 

“I’m sorry, Camden,” Kieran said. “Armando refuses to release Whitney.”

“Damn! Why is he doing this? Do I need to travel to Blue Willow and take her by force? Because you know I will.”

“Don’t do anything stupid. Give me some time alone with him. We can stop by the compound on the way to the Grove. That way you can see for yourself how Whitney is doing, and while we’re there, I’ll see what else I can do about getting her released.”

Camden reluctantly agreed, but only because he really had no other choice in the matter. Without Kieran’s help, he would never free his sister from Armando’s control.

Kieran removed two sodas from the mini fridge and handed one to Camden. “We’ll hit the road first thing in the morning.”

“Man, it can’t be soon enough for me. I haven’t laid eyes on my sister since I was eleven years old — we both remember what that predator did to my mother. He and Lucien passed her back and forth, feeding on her like she was an animal you pick up on the side of the road. What if Armando has used Whitney…to…you know?”

Kieran frowned. “I’ve heard rumors about your mother for years. However, I’ve never heard one word about your sister being turned into a Breeder and that’s a good thing.”

“It will be so sweet to see Whit again.”

“I’m sure she’s just as gorgeous as you remember.”

“I’ll drink to that,” Camden declared, chugging his soda. “To the only woman we’ve ever truly loved!”

Kieran’s hesitation did not escape his best friend.

“Hey, did I say something wrong? If I did, man, my bad. Truly.” Camden studied Kieran’s expression for any sign of anger.

“Naw, I’m cool…just thinking. I found out that chick is a straight-up con artist.” The look of defeat on Kieran’s face gave away his true feelings for the girl.

All Camden could do was shake his head in disbelief. “So, what, she isn’t Percy’s sister? Imagine that.”

“I have no damn idea who or what she is. Anyway, I’ll probably never see her again, which is just as well since I might be tempted to wring her pretty little neck.”

Camden laughed. “Sounds like she’s gotten under your skin if you ask me.”

“I didn’t ask you. And I fail to see the humor in the situation.”

“And here I thought you were too smart to be hoodwinked by a pretty face.”

“Okay, first of all, who the hell says
hoodwinked
? And second, thanks for the sarcasm,” Kieran grumbled, reaching for another soda. Yeah, this day just kept getting better and better.