Keeper of the Peace (Graveyard Guardians #2) (13 page)

As he stood there, leaning against the door
of the Chevelle, he suddenly felt prickles on the back of his neck.
He reached up and rubbed where he had felt it, but then he was
overcome by that strange feeling that people get when you’re being
watched.

He scanned the area, looking for anything
unusual or anyone that might be watching him.

Nothing.

Must be the stress. He tried to shake the
feeling as he opened the door and slid behind the wheel.

CHAPTER

12

AIDEN

Aiden arrived at the Napa compound around
noon. The sun was high in the sky and it was hot, but it was a dry
hot, not the sticky heat that he was used to in Florida.

The taxi pulled up to the gates, informing
whoever answered the intercom that he had Aiden as a passenger.
Aiden had to show his ID to the camera lens and then the gate swung
open. The long driveway leading to the house had vineyards on each
side of it, but you could still see the mansion in the distance,
rising above the grapes and the stone wall surrounding it.

When they pulled up in front of the massive
home, the driver circled the fountain and came to a stop in front
of the doors. Aiden got out of the car and grabbed his bag from the
seat beside him. “Here you go.” Aiden threw they guy more than
enough cash than needed for the fee and the tip.

“Thanks man.” The driver accepted the cash
with a smile.

Aiden opened the door and stepped out of the
vehicle. “No prob. They will open the gate for you on your way
out.” The guy nodded, put the car in gear and headed out, leaving
Aiden standing in the drive, looking up at the Empresses vacation
home.

He used to come here with them a lot when
they were younger, but now he only came when there was some kind of
job that needed to be done in the area. The place was fully staffed
and a few members of the Reaper Guard stayed here all the time.
Basically, they were on call for the Empress.

With a sigh, he shouldered his duffel and
jogged up the steps into the house. Inside, the place was dead
silent. The silence only added to the cold, yet classy, atmosphere
of the interior. He knew there were several people around, but
still, he neither heard nor saw anyone.

The first thing he needed to do was to go
upstairs and find a room. He chose one of the average sized rooms
that had an adjoining bathroom. The room was all white with the
exception of a maroon accent wall. The queen sized bed had a maroon
bedspread, matching pillows and rested in a wooden four poster
frame. The sheer curtains were also maroon, to match the rest of
the décor.

He threw his bag on the bed and then headed
back downstairs to find some food. It was in the kitchen that he
finally found signs of life. A short Hispanic woman stood before
the massive granite island chopping different colored peppers and
sorting them into bowls.

“Hello, you must be Aiden?” She greeted him
cheerfully and without any trace of an accent.

He nodded. “I am.”

“I’m Alma, the cook here. I heard you were
coming so I stocked up the fridge. The other guys here empty that
thing so fast I can barely keep up with them. I assure you, if you
open it now there will be food. Tomorrow however, I cannot make
such a promise.”

Alma put a smile on his face. She seemed a
genuinely happy person and those type of people were contagious.
“No worries, Miss Alma, anything will do at this point. I would
like a beer though, do we have any of that around?”

She pointed to the double door refrigerator.
“Same place. Help yourself. I hope we have a brand you like.”

“I’m not picky,” he told her, opening the
door and peeking in. On the bottom shelf he spotted a twelve pack
of Sierra Nevada, which he could tolerate. Snatching one up, he
reached in his pocket and withdrew his keys so he could use his
bottle opener.

After tipping his head back and guzzling
nearly half the bottle, he returned to the fridge. He had spotted a
container with what looked like cold fried chicken in it. Pulling
the container from the fridge, he popped it open. Yeah! It was
fried chicken.

“Did you make this?” he asked Alma.

She must have seen him grab the chicken
because she had a plate in her hand and set it down on the counter
in front of him. “Yes. I make a large batch twice a week and leave
it for whoever is hungry. It disappears rather quickly.”

Aiden nodded as he set two thighs on his
plate and then took a bite of one. “Mmm, I can see why it doesn’t
last long.”

Alma offered him a smile and then wiped her
hands on a dish towel. “I am going to have my break now. If you
require anything you can either come find me or text me at the
number on the refrigerator.

“Thank you,” Aiden mumbled with his mouth
full. Alma disappeared through the side door, leaving him alone
with his chicken and beer.

An hour later, he had taken an SUV from the
garage at the compound and was headed over the mountain. He took
his time driving and enjoyed the views. The vineyards were
beautiful against the hills that surrounded them. It wasn’t like
Florida, but the wine country had its own appeal.

Aside from enjoying the scenery, Aiden spent
the drive trying to figure out how exactly he was going to approach
Jack. He certainly couldn’t go to the Estmond house, that place was
crawling with Keepers. Going in there would mean certain death.

He rolled into Summer Hollow and still
hadn’t decided exactly how he was going to do this. His fuckin
emotions were getting in the way too. He was supposed to be here to
give Jack a message and then get the hell out of California, but he
missed his friend … the only one he’d ever really given a shit
about in his whole life.

As he passed the grocery store, he spotted a
shimmering red aura among the cars in the parking lot. Without
hesitation, he hit the break, causing the car behind him to slam on
theirs. The driver leaned on his horn and then hit the gas, passing
him where they weren’t supposed to pass. He looked over just as the
car went around him and the driver flipped him the bird.

“Asshole,” Aiden muttered, even though he
knew damn well he was the one in the wrong. He backed up in the
middle of the road and then turned into the parking lot of the tiny
ass grocery store.

Before he parked, he caught sight of the red
aura again, the sign of a Reaper. Beside the red one, was a harder
to see silver aura of a Keeper. Jack and Lucy.

Looks like his problem solved itself. None
of them would do anything to him in a public place. Not that he was
afraid or anything, he just wasn’t in the mood to fight with Jack,
or any of the Estmonds.

He parked the SUV and stepped out of the
vehicle. Mentally, he prepped himself for the meeting. The last
time he had seen Jack, the bastard had stabbed him. But, he had
done it for the woman he loved. Aiden only somewhat grasped that
concept, as he had never been in love. He knew Jack though, and he
knew that man would do anything to protect that Keeper.

Forgiveness didn’t come easy to Aiden, in
fact he had never needed to forgive someone because no one had ever
dared cross him. But, he forgave Jack for all that he did because
he was Jack … his brother.

He entered the grocery store and scanned the
front of the store. There were four cashiers, only two of which
were open. A rack of those twenty five cent candy machines sat
between the exit door and large freezers holding bags of ice. He
smiled at a dark haired cashier who was ogling him and then headed
down the main aisle to find Jack.

As he passed each row he peered down the
aisle to see if his friend was there. He found him on the third
one. Jack and Lucy stood in the freezers and appeared to be in a
heated discussion. As he got closer, he could hear what they were
saying.

“Luce, I don’t like frozen yogurt, it’s
nasty.”

“Just try it, you pansy ass.” She opened the
freezer and snatched up a carton.

“No, I want something with chocolate and
nuts and more chocolate and lots of fuckin’ calories. Not your
chick food.”

“What are you, on your period?” She slapped
at him and threw the yogurt into the cart. “Should we rent a chick
flick to complete your chocolate binging?”

“I like chocolate, sue me, that doesn’t mean
I’m emotional enough for chick flicks.”

“Fine,” Lucy sighed. “We’ll get both, but
you better promise me that you will at least try the yogurt.”

“I promise nothing.” Jack narrowed his eyes
into a mock glare.

“Then no chocolate for you.”

“Shit, what will I eat while Dr. Phil is
on?”

Lucy laughed and headed for the freezer that
held the ice cream.

Aiden smiled at their interaction and then
watched his friend bend down and give Lucy a kiss. He had truly
never seen Jack so happy over something since they were
children.

Then, as if Jack sensed his presence, he
lifted his head and spotted him. Without hesitation, he moved in
front of Lucy in one step, guarding his precious Keeper.

“What the hell, Jack!” Lucy tried to push
him out of the way. When she leaned around Jack’s body to see what
the problem was, her eyes landed on Aiden and widened. Oddly
enough, it wasn’t fear in her eyes, it was interest.

“Aiden,” Jack nodded without taking his eyes
off of him. “Why are you here?”

Aiden knew that moving closer would only
make Jack even more defensive, so he stayed where he was. “I just
came to give you a message from your mother.”

“We got the message loud and clear,” Jack
retorted.

“That isn’t the message I’m talking about.
Can I come closer so we can talk?”

“Fuck off.”

“Jack,” Aiden tried to explain, “I’m not
here to hurt anyone.”

“You forget, Aiden, I know your games and
what you’re capable of all too well.”

Lucy finally managed to step around her
protector and stood by his side. “What is your message, Aiden?” Her
voice was steady and firm.

Nodding gratefully at Lucy, he focused on
Jack again. “Your father won’t last much longer. The Empress wanted
me to come and tell you this … and give you the opportunity to come
home to see him before he passes.”

This news was somewhat expected. Everyone
was shocked the man had hung on for as long as he had already. He
watched Jack process the news. First his eyes warmed a bit, then
they went cold, blocking out any feeling he had for his father.
Aiden knew what was coming.

“I can’t. I won’t leave Lucy. Even if I
wanted
to go back there and see him I wouldn’t. It’s too
dangerous.”

Lucy slid her hands around Jacks and tilted
her gaze up to his. “Jack, this is your father. Maybe you should
go.”

“No,” he shook his head. “That part of my
life is over. They are no longer my family. My mom almost killed me
for fucks sake! I know my father would have tried even harder than
she did to get rid of me.

Aiden agreed. “Yeah, and I wouldn’t be here
either.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Jack
demanded.

Aiden saw his opening and took a chance by
stepping forward a few paces. Jack noticed, but didn’t seem to
care.

“After the mess at the compound, I fell from
the grace of our Empress. When they were going to shoot you, I
kicked the gun away and stopped it. That little action messed up
everything I’ve worked for my entire life.”

“So why did she send you here?”

Why do you think, ass hat. “Because she’s
not stupid, she knows that I am the only one of us who had even a
chance of getting close enough to talk to you.”

“Well, you found me, we talked, now you can
tell her I’m not interested.”

“All right, I will pass the message.” Dammit
Aiden, talk to him some more. Don’t waste this opportunity. Jack
slid his arm around Lucy’s waist, turning her away. “Uh, Jack?”

Their eyes met and locked. “What?” Jack
demanded.

“I miss you, dude. I just wanted you to know
and I’m going to try and get out soon. I’ll probably get caught
though, cause she is having me watched.” He shook his head, choking
back all those girly emotions.

Jack narrowed his eyes and his arm slid off
of Lucy’s waist, but quickly grasped her hand. It was fascinating,
almost like they always had to have contact. Plus, they didn’t have
the burn that Keepers and Reapers usually have. “Okay. Come
closer,” Jack told him, dragging Lucy to meet him half way.

“I thought you didn’t want to get near
me.”

“I don’t, but I want to talk to you at a
distance where no one is going to hear, if the Reaper Guard really
is watching you. Now tell me what’s been happening.”

Aiden shrugged. “I just want out now.”

“You know there is no way to just
get
out
.”

“I know that, I’m the one who told you I’d
help you before all this happened. But now, I don’t like it. You’re
not there, I don’t like the way the Empress rules, I don’t …” He
stopped, it was one thing to say you missed someone or that you
didn’t like the practices of your leader, to admit fear was not
Aiden’s style. He was a killer. Fear should not exist to him.

“Don’t what?” Jack pushed.

“Nothing, don’t worry about it.” Aiden
hooked his thumbs on the pockets of his jeans.

Lucy’s eyes were swinging back and forth
between him and Jack as they conversed. “Aiden,” She asked softly,
“Is there something you want to tell us, something we need to
know?”

“Nah, I think I covered it.” He turned, but
before he could walk away, he felt Jacks hand wrap around his
arm.

“Wait.”

Aiden stopped and turned to face his friend
again. “Are you afraid, Aiden? Do you think they are going to hurt
you?”

Aiden guffawed, “I’m not afraid of anything,
but yeah, one wrong move and my ass is toast.”