Milayna (15 page)

“Yeah, why?”

“I just want to see what the general feel of the group is about Lily,” he said “How ‘bout six?”

“Okay, I’ll see you then.” He walked around and opened the car door for me, grabbing my bag out of the backseat.

“Thanks for the milkshake.”

“Sure.” His eyes followed his movements as he slipped the strap of my messenger bag up my arm and settled it on my shoulder. When his fingertips slid over the side of my neck like a feather, I sucked in a sharp breath. His gaze shot to mine.

I wrapped my fingers around the strap of my bag. “Thanks.” I gave him a shaky smile. “I’ll see you later.” Turning, I walked up the path to my door.

***

At six o’clock, my dad drove me to Chay’s. He wouldn’t let me walk alone, and Muriel wasn’t home. He dropped me off and waited, watching me through the windshield as I climbed the porch steps and walked to the door. I pushed the doorbell, smiling when I heard the University of Michigan’s fight song start to play.
Go Wolverines!

Chay lived in a beautiful home with a wraparound porch and baskets of ivy hanging over the bannisters. The front was lined with bright fall mums; their smell hung in the air. I was admiring the flowers when the door opened.

“You must be Milayna,” a man about my dad’s age said. He was tall like Chay and had the same dark hair. It was even cut the same—short on the sides and a little longer on top.

“Yes, sir.”

“Well, come on.” He smiled and opened the door wider so I could pass through. He waved to my dad before closing it after me. “They’re all in Chay’s room.”

Chay’s room! Oh, no, no, no.

My heart beat a little faster. I followed his dad through a large room full of overstuffed chairs and comfy-looking couches. A large flat-screen television, tuned to a classical music channel, hung on the wall.

“Chay!” his dad yelled down a hallway. When there wasn’t an answer, he looked at me and rolled his eyes. “Last door on the left.”

“Thanks.” I walked slowly down the hall. The walls were filled with family photos. I saw Chay as a baby and toddler, as a boy with his dad on fishing trips, his school portraits—the kind that always turn out horrible but parents displayed them anyway as their little way of torturing us. I stopped to look at a photo of him and his uncle at the ice cream shop when I saw a photo of our dads together. There was also a picture of them with Uncle Rory. I was looking at them when I heard a door open behind me.

“Like what you see?” he drawled. He leaned against the doorjamb, one arm stretched above his head.

“I’m amazed is all.”

“Amazed?” His eyes twinkled. They looked more blue than green just then.

“Yeah, I wasn’t sure you were capable of smiling until I saw the photographic evidence.”

“Ah.” He pursed his lips to hide a grin. “C’mon. Everyone’s in here.”

I followed Chay into his bedroom, which was actually two rooms. The wall had been knocked out and a wicked cool archway with built-in bookcases on either side was put in its place, combining the two bedrooms into one large room. On one side of the archway was his bed—somewhere deep inside my stomach a huge butterfly staged a rebellion at the sight—and dresser. On the other side was a couch, some waffle chairs, and an entertainment center with a huge television where the guys were already engrossed in a video game. Their little avatars ran around the screen, battling aliens.

I expected posters of sleek cars or rock bands. But his walls were mostly bare. Painted a silvery gray to complement his maroon bedspread and curtains, it was sophisticated. And it fit Chay perfectly.

“Nice room.”

“Thanks.” He turned and led me to the couch. “Move,” he said and knocked Steven’s foot off his knee. “Get up and let her sit there.” Steven rolled his eyes but moved to a beanbag.

I sat where Steven had been, and Chay eased himself down next to me. Leaning over me, he flicked open a door on the table next to the couch. “You want a Coke?”

“Sure.” He pulled a pop out of the little table. Sitting up, he handed it to me. “Thanks.” I bent forward and studied the table, which was actually a small refrigerator. “I so want a room like yours.” I laughed.

He smiled, slow and sexy, and my heart melted little by little. “Or you can just come visit me.” And there it went. My heart officially melted into a puddle of goo. While I was trying to recover from his comment, Chay turned toward the room.

He put his palms on his thighs and yelled to be heard over the commotion in the room. “Okay, everyone! I want to get right to the point of why we’re all here so we can get on with the pizza and fun stuff. So, who has Lily talked to?” Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at him. Most had odd expressions on their faces. No one said anything. That was when I noticed Muriel wasn’t there.

“Come on, I know she’s talked to some of you,” Chay said with an exasperated sigh. “She’s talked to me.”

I looked at him. I wasn’t sure why, but I was angry that he didn’t tell me.

Slowly, everyone in the room raised their hand. Lily had talked with everyone there. Except me. Lily didn’t make a secret out of the fact she didn’t like me much. But her job as an Evil was to recruit demis for Azazel and from what I understood, I was at the top of his Christmas list. So I couldn’t get my mind around why she wouldn’t approach me. Unless… she planned to use the team members against me.

“Milayna?” Drew asked.

“No. She hasn’t said anything to me. I wonder why?”

“Who knows? Maybe Azazel wants to turn everyone against you and force you to choose sides,” Chay answered. “Is anyone having any trouble with her other than her talking to you?”

Everyone answered in the negative.

“What about Azazel’s team? Has anyone had any contact with them?”

Everyone raised their hand except Jen and Shayla.

“You?” I asked Chay.

“Yes.” He didn’t elaborate, but I didn’t expect him to. He was stingy with his information.

“Did anyone have any problems with the goblins? Since you’re here, I’m going to assume you didn’t take them up on their offer.”

The room erupted in a flurry of “
no
,” “
no ways
,” and a few curses.

Chay smiled. “Good. Let’s have some pizza.”

“You have pizza in here, too?” I opened the door to his private refrigerator and peeked inside.

He laughed. “No, it’s in the kitchen.”

Everyone got up and raced down the hall to the kitchen. I grabbed Chay by the arm and waited until the last person left the room. “Why didn’t you tell me you talked with Lily and had a visit from the little red imps?”

“Imps?” He arched a brow and pursed his lips.

“It’s faster than hobgoblins. Just answer my questions. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I warned you, Milayna. You don’t know who you can trust.”

Ugh, you keep saying that. I got it. I got it. I wonder where Muriel is?

Four weeks, four days until my birthday.

Muriel left early that morning. She didn’t tell me beforehand that we wouldn’t be riding together, or I would’ve had Jen pick me up. Instead, I had to find my own way. Faced with riding the bus, I prayed to the car gods that my old beater would start. Thankfully, it roared to life—probably waking all the neighbors—and I drove myself to school.

“What happened this morning, Muriel?” I slipped into my seat next to her in calculus.

“I’m sorry. I forgot to tell you I had a make-up quiz to take in one of my other classes. I wanted to take it this morning, so I wouldn’t be rushed tonight for the game.”

“Where were you last night?” I clicked my pen open and shut, open and shut, open and shut.

Muriel snatched the pen out of my hand and gave it a disgusted look. “I had some errands to run for my mother.”

“Oh.” I didn’t mention that I saw her car in the driveway all night. Chay’s warning kept repeating in my head.

I saw Chay looking at us from the corner of my eye, but I ignored him. I didn’t believe Muriel, my best friend and cousin, would switch sides. It just wouldn’t happen. If she said she had other things to do, I believed her. Chay’s warning be damned.

***

It was Friday, the night of the big game between the South Bay Cougars and the North Bay Cowboys. The group was going to the game together.

Chay followed me home from school that afternoon. “I’ll pick you up tonight,” he said when we got to my house and he walked me to the door.

“That’s okay. I can ride with Muriel.”

He drummed his fingers on the car door and shook his head once. “I’ll pick you up.”

I sighed. I hated his moody,
I-know-it-all-and-you’ll-do-it-my-way
side. He’d been that way all day. He stalked back to his car. Revving the engine once, he backed out of the driveway and headed toward his house.

“I’m surprised he didn’t want to walk me inside,” I muttered. Then I looked up and knew why. My dad was waiting at the door. “Hey, Dad.”

“How’s it going? Everything good?” He clamped a hand on my shoulder as I walked by him into the house.

“Yeah, why?” Goose bumps ran up my arms and the hair on the back of my neck did
the wave
like people in a stadium watching a game.

Great. What big surprise is he gonna spring on me now? I’m not sure I can take anything else. No more demi-angel stuff. Enough is enough. And I think I’m at a full tank.

“You didn’t ride with Muriel today.” He followed me inside.

I let out the breath I was holding, my cheeks puffing out. “Oh, that. Yeah, she had a quiz to make up before school. She left before me.”

“Ah.”

We walked into the kitchen, and I dropped onto a chair. He poured us two glasses of milk and rattled around in the pantry until he found my mom’s hidden Oreo cookies.

“Ooh, living on the wild side, huh? Dipping into mom’s private stash of cookies. Dangerous.” I grabbed a cookie and dunked it in my milk. “Mm, yum. Hey, Dad? How do you know Chay’s dad?” I asked around another bite of milk-soaked Oreo.

“Hmm?” He was focused on twisting apart his cookies and scraping out the frosting centers.

“I saw a photo of you and him at Chay’s house last night. You’ve never mentioned you two knew each other. There was one of you and him with Uncle Rory, too.”

“Oh, hmm, I didn’t know he kept those old things after he moved.” He shook his head and chuckled. “We used to work the same beat in the department years ago. Lots of good memories.” He stared off in space for a few seconds before he pulled his attention back to the present and smiled at me.

“He moved?”

“Mm-hmm.” My dad sat his glass of milk down and wiped his mouth. “After Chay reached the age of accountability, his dad took a job with another department. But there weren’t many demi-angels in that area. So they moved back as soon as a position opened here.” My dad stuffed his mouth with another Oreo and talked around it. “That’s how I initially met Chay’s dad. Uncle Rory and I teamed up with him to make sure the three of you were safe before you reached the age of accountability.”

“Is that why everyone lives so close together? Because you teamed up to protect us when we were kids?”

“Yeah, and because demi-angels don’t just draw physical strength from each other, but also mental strength and comfort. Haven’t you felt a difference when you are with other demis?”

I tipped my head to the side and thought about his question. “Yeah. I didn’t think about it until now, but yeah. I feel calmer, more at peace. I have a sense of belonging. Not to just the group, but to something bigger. It’s hard to explain.”

“Demis naturally gravitate to each other. It isn’t a conscious decision—it just kinda happens. Our group found each other to keep you kids safe. Now you’re able to fend for yourselves for the most part. It’s time we step back and let you make your own decisions.”

“What do you mean—our own decisions? You mean to take sides? About joining with Azazel?” I spun the Oreo like a top and glanced at him through my lashes.

He leaned back in his chair and stretched his legs out in front of him, crossing his ankles. “That would be one decision, yes.” He tried to seem relaxed, but I could hear the tension in his voice and see it in the way his neck muscles bunched around his shirt collar.

“And the other is to remain a demi?”

“Yes.” His tone was just a little too sharp and when he put his glass down, it hit the table just a little too hard. Most people wouldn’t have noticed.

“But those are the only two? I mean, we can’t renounce our status, can we, Dad? I can’t walk away from being a demi?”

My eyes were trained on my dad, waiting for an answer and hoping it was one I wanted to hear. I gripped my cookie so hard that it broke and the pieces plopped into my milk. I ignored it.

“Not that I’m aware of. I’ve never heard of it happening before. The only way would be to join with Azazel and transfer your powers to him,” he said, a grim look on his face.

“And that’s what Lily did.” Tears sprung to my eyes.

“I know.”

I sniffed and wiped my tears away with the back of my hand. “Sorry. I don’t know why I’m crying.” I tried to laugh, but it came out as a sob. “I barely know her, and she doesn’t even like me.”

He sat up and leaned toward me in his seat. “It doesn’t matter how well you knew her. She betrayed you. She betrayed the entire group. It’s okay to feel sad and angry about that.”

“Dad? If there were something going on, you’d tell me, right? I mean, if you knew someone was thinking about changing sides, or if they already have, you’d tell me? Because I don’t want to find out like I did with Lily if someone I really care about decides to betray the team.”

He tilted his head to the side and studied my face for a beat. His brows furrowed over his eyes. “Of course I’d tell you, Milayna. Is there something you should tell me?”

“Nope. Everything’s good, Dad.” I stood and grabbed my things before giving him a kiss on the cheek. “I gotta get ready.”

“Oh right, the big game is tonight. Let’s see,” he scratched his eyebrow with his thumb, “we want the Cowboys to win, right?”

I rolled my eyes. “You make the same joke every year. Maybe if you’d stop, we’d actually win a game.”

He made an overly innocent face. “I guess I jinxed you for another year.”

“Thanks for the cookies, even if you did commit petty larceny by taking them. And make no mistake, Mom will press charges if she finds out.”

“Yeah, yeah. When your mom notices they’re gone, we’ll just blame it on Ben.” My dad grinned, and I laughed.

***

Chay picked me up at exactly five o’clock. The game didn’t start until seven.

Chay held the car door open for me, and I slid in. “Why do you want to go so early?” I asked.

“My Uncle Stewart sets up an ice cream truck every year at the game. I help him. You don’t have to help if you don’t want to. I just couldn’t—”

“I’ll help.”

“I’m sure there’ll be a free milkshake in it for ya,” he told me. He looked over and smiled.

“I’d do it even if there wasn’t. I don’t mind helping.”

And you’ll be there. Enough of a reason for me.

“I know you would. You’re a nice person, Milayna.” He shifted the car into drive and maneuvered through the streets of our subdivision.

“Oh, ah, thanks,” I said, feeling my face warm. “You can be nice, too, when you try really hard.”

He laughed and nodded his head. “Yeah. I’ve been told that before.”

“I can believe it.”

The ride to the school was short. It was only a few—silent—minutes later when Chay parked. We walked to the field and found his uncle’s ice cream truck. “Hey, Uncle Stewart, what do you want me to do?” Chay called.

His uncle stuck his head out of the door and smiled. “Hiya, Chay. Hiya, Milayna!”

“Hi, Uncle.” I lifted my hand in a wave.

I dropped my things on the ground next to the truck’s opening. “What can I do to help?”

“You’re helping me? Well, ain’t that sweet of ya!”

“Hello? Your nephew over here is helping, too.” Chay waved his hand in his uncle’s face.

“Yeah, but she’s sweeter than you. C’mon, Milayna, I’ll show you what needs doin’.”

I smiled over my shoulder at Chay and followed Uncle Stewart inside the truck.

Uncle Stewart showed me how to mix the malt base and the ice cream base for the machines. Then I was given the extra hard job of putting out the toppings. I had a suspicion that he was giving me all the easy jobs. Chay was washing down the truck from ceiling to floor, making sure everything sparkled before it opened.

I was filling the cherry container when Chay grabbed my wrist. Two cherries dangled by their stems between my fingertips. He looked in my eyes as he guided my hand to his mouth. He ate the cherries one by one, his soft, full lips brushing against the tips of my fingers, eyes, more green than blue just then, locked on mine.

My wrist burned where he touched it. My eyes were transfixed on him, his mouth, his lips, his tongue. I parted my lips and tried to remember how to breathe normally. Time seemed to slow, and the blood in my veins turned to molten lava. As it made its way languidly through my body, it seared me, burned me from the inside out with an exquisite pain that only his touch could quench.

My heart screamed with pleasure when he reached around my waist and pulled me to him. “Oh,” I gasped. I dropped the cherry stems on the floor and put my hand on his shoulder, stifling a moan at the definition I felt there.

“I just swept that floor,” he murmured with a crooked grin.

I looked down at the floor. “Sorry, I’ll—”

“Milayna.” I looked up at him. His eyes darkened. His hand let go of my wrist and skimmed up my arm and around the back of my neck, gently nudging my head toward him. My lips parted, and I leaned into him. He dipped his head… and I screamed.

I dropped my hands and held my head. The pain was searing. I heard Chay’s uncle run into the truck. He took one look at me and closed the doors and windows.

“She has visions?”

“Yes,” Chay answered. His arms tightened around me. He sounded so far away, the sounds in my head drowning him out.

Football field. Concession stand. Orange rope.

“What do you see, Milayna?” Chay’s voice.

“A concession stand. An orange rope.”

A woman wearing a blue apron. Picking up the rope. No, not a rope. An extension cord.

“It’s an extension cord.” My vision cleared, and I whirled around to the window and tried to unfasten the locks. “How do I open it?” I yelled. Chay reached over, unlatching the window, and I peered out. My gaze searched the growing crowd for the concession stand and the blue-aproned woman in my vision.

A force jerked me backward and slammed me against the back of the truck. I squeezed my eyes closed and watched the vision scroll through my consciousness.

Black rope. No, another extension cord. The wires are exposed. Water.