Expel (16 page)

Chapter 26

Hells Bells

Who knew Tad would run out to an all night pharmacy and get the prescription filled? Who knew that he and my mother would stand guard and watch as I ingest the tiny white disaster?

The next morning, I sit in Marshall class nodding off intermittently. I stare off into space while batting away the army of bugs crawling over my skin, which come to think of it, may not actually exist.

The bell finally rings, dismissing me from my misery. Marshall calls me to the front with his voice reverberating in an unnatural echo. I assure Gage it’s fine, and he kindly waits outside the door.

“What?” The word pulls like cotton from my lips.

“I have a bone to pick with you.” He tosses the stack of homework he’s just collected onto his desk and half of the papers fall into the hungry mouth of the trashcan below. I want to giggle at his impotent effort, but all I can afford is a moan that gets stuck in my throat.

“What?” I ask lazily. It seems to be the only word left in my lexicon thanks to Tad and his eat-your-brain-cells-for-breakfast stupid idea of a pill.

 
“I ran into a certain someone at the Transfer who gave me the most curious bit of news.” He folds his arms in disappointment.

“Ezrina?” Normally I wouldn’t accommodate him with the truth.

God! What if one of the side effects of this horse tranquilizer is losing the ability to bend the truth? Bending the truth is my specialty. This pill is like Kryptonite to me.

He gives a curt nod. “She informed me that you entered into a—”

“Covenant,” I cut him off.

“And you gave your—”

“Word,” it comes out lethargic, and I give a slow and refractive nod like all those stoners at Ellis’ parties.

“And now you’re going to have to—” he generously motions for me to finish.

“Learn my lesson,” I say, rather proud of my spontaneous confessional.

“You haven’t learned a thing from dealing with Holden the first time. You don’t make promises to just any creature that happens to be the vicinity. Remember, Skyla, you are a little higher than a human, nothing more. You certainly lack the ability to gift Ezrina with what you’ve promised.”

“My mother does,” I say, fully aware of the fact I’ve screwed up royally.

“In the event you haven’t noted, your mother isn’t synonymous in any way with mercy. It’s not her specialty. You, my friend, are digging your own grave. The only tragedy being, you won’t have the privilege of curling up and dying. You’ll live forever in the body of a misshapen hag. Does this please you?”

I shake my head.

“And I suppose the Pretty Oliver has already exposed you to the fact you’ll be needing my services to procure a new body.”

“He doesn’t want a new body. He wants the old one.” I gasp at the thought of another metaphysical mix-up.

“You, my love, are in what they like to call, here on earth, a hole,” he reprimands. “I suppose it won’t take you long to make yet another idle promise concerning your flesh.”

“I guess you know me.” My words fall to the floor and crash around my feet in shame.

“There’s only one problem.” He lifts my chin with the tip of his finger.

“What?” It fires off like an echo.

“I’m no longer accepting the offer as payment.” He picks up his coffee and begins to head out of the room. “Enjoy the afternoon, Ms. Messenger.”

***

After another bliss-filled day at school with Gage, my mother informs me we’re headed to Demetri’s to acquaint ourselves with the premises before I officiate my community service.
 

All of the euphoria I felt hours earlier has dissipated at the thought of exploring the Fem frontier with my mother and the evil pinhead trying to lure her into his lair.

“He’s giving us the grand tour.” My mother beams as we round out the long roads of Paragon Estates that stretch out like a yawn.

This is much farther down in the Estates than I’ve ever been before.

“He must be loaded,” I muse.

As the property lines expand, so do the habitats of the rich and infamous. Giant, sprawling estates that make Marshall’s multilevel expanse feel impossibly humble, the acreage itself altogether restrictive for a horse ranch.

“Here it is,” her voice escalates with glee as she pulls onto a paver stone path that travels through a small forest hedging up on either side.

“Have you been here before?” Really it’s an innocent question. But the fact my mother neither has an address or directions sprawled out in front of her is an alarming indication of what that answer might be.

“Never.” Her eyes cut out the driver’s side window. “He said it was the second driveway on the left once we passed the crossroads, and this would be it.”

A giant wooden sign arches over the opening of the forest that reads
Edinger Estate
with an infinity symbol cradled between the words. I glance over to Mom’s arm where the glossy bangle happily hops as she steers us into a circular driveway.

“Oh my, God!” Mom gasps when she sees the enormous structure.

“Holy shit!” I spike up in my seat not nearly as mesmerized as my mother, but equally taken aback.

It’s the freaking Transfer! The haunted mansion Marshall held me hostage in. A replica. An original—who the hell knows?

It takes everything in me not to knock my mother unconscious and speed us back down the driveway.

Demetri steps out, dark and greedy for my mother’s affections. He wears a carnal grin, nothing but lewd intentions written all over him. Mom bolts from the car and into his arms like he was my father incarnate.

Look at her.

She’s not even hiding the fact she’s into him. And what exactly is it she sees in him? He’s like the second coming of Rasputin if not the first.

“Hello, Skyla, welcome,” Demetri greets me as I stretch my legs.

It feels more like some dysfunctional family reunion, definitely not like the beginning of any public restitution that’s supposed to be taking place. I rove my eyes over the structure, the entry, the balcony above. The giant white dwelling is identical to the one in the Transfer, and for a brief moment I’m not entirely convinced we’re on Paragon anymore.

“I am in
love
with this place!” My mother radiates with pleasure. Demetri’s arm remains slung low around her waist as she twists and turns, drinking it all in.

“It could have been yours,” he offers.

I choke at the thought of him trying to suck my mother in with real estate. Sure, Tad may be currency deficient, but at least he…he’s…oh, crap.

“She’s happily married,” I snipe. “Aren’t you, Mom?”

“Of course, I am.” Mom offers an incensed look that ensures a verbal assault once we get back in the car.

“I apologize, Skyla,” Demetri drops his arm to his side. “Your mother and I are simply old friends, nothing more.”

“I just thought I’d throw out the obvious,” I shrug. “She’s very much in love. In fact, she’s getting married to my stepfather again.” How she could possibly stomach saying yes twice, I will never know.

“Another wedding on the horizon?” He feigns enthusiasm as he motions for Mom to guide us up the stairs.

“Oh, it’s just our first anniversary is coming up, and we thought it might be fun to renew the vows.” She brushes it off as if the idea were childish to begin with.

“Where’s the venue?” He stops shy of opening the door.

“It’s just a little thing we’re doing in the backyard. You know, with a weenie roast afterwards. No big deal. Of course, you’re invited.”

“Backyard? Sausages?” He scoffs, holding back a laugh. “I won’t hear of it. Have it at the estate. I implore you to at least consider it.”

Perfect. Tad can never compete with Demetri now.

“Are you sure? I could never impose,” she bats away the thought.

He picks up her hand and presses his lips to the back, looks up at her with those dark mysterious eyes that killed my father.

“You deserve all of the splendor and majesty life could afford on your wedding day, Lizbeth. And I’m here to make sure you have it all.”

Splendor—majesty? I’m here to make sure you have it all?

Yeah, right.

Just friends my ass.

Chapter 27

Smooth Operator

Demetri leads us inside. Surprisingly, it looks a lot less Transfer, and a lot homier in an opulent museum, art gallery—safe house for Fems, sort of way. Creamy marble floors, expansive ceilings, a double grand staircase that sweeps up with intricate ironwork. An enormous chandelier sparkles overhead, dripping with crystal formed into long pointed spears. Not one sign of the dearly departed, expending dated fashions the way they do down under or wherever the hell the Transfer really is.

Demetri leads us through one giant expanse after another until we hit a wall of windows that expose the glory of his paradise-like backyard. An oversized pool sits adorned with fountains that splash heavenly blue waters into oversized bowls made of stone.

Foliage and flowers I have never seen before crawl along either side of the walk. A wall of roses leads into a maze of flora and fauna with hedges twice as tall as a man. It’s all, right out of a storybook, and knowing Demetri, it might, quite literally, be. He’s a freaking mentalist. He’s probably been inventorying my mother’s brain for her idea of the perfect abode and produced it on command in an attempt to further lure her into his chamber.
 

“Would you look at this?” My mother groans with an ache I’ve never heard her dispense before. Desire springs for all the things she can grasp with her eyes. It’s doubtful she isn’t having remorse over marrying Tad at this very moment. The covetous hunger in her suggests she’d flag down the first divorce lawyer that crosses our path and have that wedding with
Demetri
come April.

“Shall we?” He holds the door open to the back for us.

A heavenly scent of exotic blossoms greets us—so sickly sweet is the aroma of their nectar, I swear, there must be calories involved. A spray of pink open-faced flowers I’ve never seen before dots the delicate black ivy—an entire gazebo covered with lavender wisteria demands our attention off the back. This is nothing short of spectacular, a breathtaking horticulture wonder.

Forget my mother’s wedding—I want to marry Gage right here in this perfect paradise. I play with the ring he gave me that symbolizes our forever brand of love and wander away from my mother and Demetri who have become embroiled in their own conversation regarding lobster, filet mignon and other things that will most likely take Tad out of the wedding equation rather swiftly and permanently.

I had never even thought of what my wedding to Gage might be like, outside of that courthouse vision he had. It would seem that part already came true after my court hearing when the judge stared Gage in the face and told him to kiss his bride, a.k.a. me, but I know for a fact, deep in my heart, that I’ll be marrying Gage one day.

I hate that this is Demetri’s grandfather’s estate but it doesn’t stop me from getting lost in the fantasy of walking down a petal-strewn path and straight into…

“Logan?” I squint into the bushes and see a blue velum form in his likeness before he fills in completely. He’s leaning against a boxwood hedge, and gives a quiet smile, so I go over. “Hey!” I wrap my arms around him and press into a deep warm hug. “You feel so, real.”

He inhales sharply into my neck as his chest rumbles with laughter.

“So do you,” he pulls back and smiles with his eyes bearing into mine. “After the accident, the first time I saw you—it felt like a dream, like
you
were the ghost.”

I take in a breath at the idea. “What’s it like?” I lean in and relax against his chest, wanting to hear all of the details about what lies beyond.

“I’m not sure. I opted out of paradise. It’s not my time, so I don’t have to go.”

“Are you in the Soulennium?” I’m completely fascinated by whatever Logan has to say. I’ve never been dead but I have been to the Soulennium, once with Marshall, and once with Giselle and my mother.

“That’s exactly where I am.” His brows crease. “Never mind, I don’t want to know how you know about the Soulennium. What’s going on?” He twitches his head towards Demetri, so I fill him in.

“Also, I want to tell Gage about you.” I look down at my ring and sniff.

Logan picks up my hand and rubs his thumb over the sparkling sapphire. His lips twist with mournful agony. You could fill every black hole in the universe with the sadness exuding from the two of us.

“Why do I love you?” I catch his gaze and hold it. If I could only have the answer to just one question, this might be the one.

“Do you love me?” Logan’s face is stone. He doesn’t bother to show me his cards, just holds them, waits for me to purge my emotions so he can pick and choose the ones he wants to keep.

“You know I do,” it comes out depleted as I lead us deeper into the labyrinth the shrubbery provides.

Try not to sound so enthused
, he says, picking up my hand. A wall of silence springs up between us, a serenity so threatening it looks to topple right over our heads.

What I really mean is why didn’t I fall in love with Gage first. Is it because you met me in my dreams? I fell in love with you then. I could tell by the look in my eyes I loved you.
I’m specifically talking about the old me back in L.A., the one Logan thought it was a good idea to use as a mode of inter-dimensional transportation.

I don’t know why
, he stares into the ground as we slow to a meandering pace.
But
I’m not sorry you do
.

You said you knew something
, I stop to look into his eyes.
You said you knew the end and that I should save something for you in here.
I place my fingers over my chest.

Logan carefully plucks my hand off, rounds his gaze over my features as though he were absorbing me into his cellular structure.

I only know one thing
.
It’s amazing, Skyla.
He buries a smile into the side of his cheek.
But it doesn’t tell me whether or not we’ll be together—if we’ll be happy.

Tell me.

Logan doesn’t answer, just gives a long blink as if wishing he could.

I stare down at the ring Gage gave me—caress it from the underbelly with my thumb. How could I be so careless to fall in love with two people?

You weren’t careless.
Logan squeezes my hand.

I always forget you’re listening and say the stupidest things
. I fight off the tears that want to come.

Logan presses out an easy grin, causing the line in the side of his face to invert.

There is a purpose, Skyla. If it’s one thing I’ve learned while I’ve been away from my body, it’s that everything happens for a reason. I know you love Gage
, he tips his forehead into me,
but,
he gives a depressed sigh
, I’m sorry, Skyla. After the faction war, I’m not going to stand around with my hands in my pockets. A new war is going to begin. And I won’t give in until I win. That’s the only war I care about—the one for your heart.
 

“Skyla!” My mother calls. “Time to go inside.”

“Come with me,” I whisper.

He shakes his head.
I can’t get in.
There’s a binding spirit. I‘ve already tried. I’d better go see what Holden is up to,
he whispers, pulling me into a soft kiss on the cheek.
Be safe
. And with that he evaporates, makes me wonder if he were simply a delusion all along.

I see my mother up ahead with her neck bent in laughter over something moronic that expelled from Demetri.

How can I judge my mother so harshly when my own heart lies in two distinct places?