On Pins and Needles: Sierra Fox, Book 3 (24 page)

“What?” He’d lost some weight since the last time I saw him because the familiar shirt and jeans didn’t fit him as well as they used to. His features were gaunt and his eyes appeared to be a lot darker. The air of menace I’d grown to associate with him lately wasn’t there, though.

“Let’s not pretend we don’t know what’s really going on.” He paused, leaning over the desk to clutch his chest, a grimace darkening his face. “You know what’s happened to me, and know the demon has pretty much taken over. But sometimes…
sometimes
I get a reprieve. I manage to overpower him for a brief moment or two and can see the world through my own eyes again.” He looked up, his gaze intense on mine. “I miss being in control.”

“Maybe you should’ve thought about that before giving your body over to some demon,” I snapped. I really didn’t have any patience or pity for him right now. The closer he got, the more my pulse quickened. I kept expecting him to strike at any moment. This could all be another trap and I wasn’t going to let my guard down.

He snorted. “You make it sound so easy.”

“It is easy. You either choose to join a crazy demon-obsessed group, or you don’t.” I leaned to my side, slowly moving my right hand so it hovered over the hilt of my sheathed dagger. I wouldn’t hesitate to use it on Jonathan the same way I’d used it on Mauricio.

“I didn’t want to hurt you. I really didn’t…”

“It’s too late for regrets, Jonathan.” Too late to change the fact I’d realized he probably never cared about me at all—had just wanted to use me.

“I suppose it is.” He licked his lips again, as if he couldn’t get rid of the dryness I could see from here. His body was already changing, slowly becoming the gray creature I’d encountered several times. He groaned as he squeezed his chest. “I…don’t have long, and certainly don’t want him to see where I am when he returns. Listen to me—she’s sick of waiting and is getting ready to strike. No matter what I say, she’s done postponing the inevitable.”

I found the fact he referred to the demon as
him
instead of
it
disturbing. “Who are you talking about?”

“Maya…” Sweat collected on his brow and his face was getting grayer, losing the youthfulness he once had.

“How do you know about her?”

“She’s my associate.”

Oh my God! It suddenly clicked, almost as if something inside my brain shifted to reveal what had been nagging me since I’d seen the blurred pictures of Maya Anwar on the laptop screen. Maya had been the woman in Jonathan’s bookstore the day I went to make sure he understood we were over.
 

My heart sank as I realized something else. “
You’re
the one who lures them into the alley, aren’t you?
You’re
Jay.” Not Jay as the girls assumed, but
J.
It made sense. Jonathan might be in his mid-twenties and possessed, but the demon could still use his boyish charm to attract teenage girls. “Tell me!”

He nodded. “Yes, it’s me, but I didn’t want to hurt those girls! I had no choice. I’m no longer in control.”

“I think you need to go.” How could I have a conversation with a killer? He might not be the one physically attacking them, but he still played a big part. “I’m going to call the police if you don’t leave right now.” This could be the lead Gareth needed to put an end to this horrid case.

“The police can’t keep me—
him
—restrained.” He shook his head and once again groaned. “Just listen to me for a second.”
 

I looked into his eyes and they were the same ones I’d first seen in Prologue, which reminded me why we’d met—a poltergeist—and I got pissed off all over again.
 

“You can’t let her find the Moss girl.”

“What does she want with her?” My heart pounded so hard I felt like it would explode.

“The girl’s not as strong as you but with both of your talents, we can complete the ritual sooner. They’re—
we’re
—running out of time.”

“Why?”

“I need to go now.” He fell backwards, tumbled a few steps and collided with the wall, which kept him upright. A crack appeared on the paint. “I can’t keep him suppressed for much…longer.”

“What’s her plan?”

“I can’t. I don’t…”

“What does she plan to do with Willow?”

He met my gaze. Those familiar chocolate-brown eyes were back, pleading for me to let him go. “Now that you’ve eliminated so many members and broken the circle, the girl’s got a focal purpose. But first, she’s going to be the carrot you can’t ignore.”

“Jonathan, I need to know more!”

He shook his head and took a step back. The average-sized shadow on the wall behind him swelled to freaky proportions. The demon was taking over.
 

“You have to tell me.”

He raced out the door like a flash.

I stood up and ran after him, calling out his name, but by the time I’d reached the landing and was leaning over the banister, he was already gone. Though, he’d left a series of cracks on the corridor wall and the large window.

The sound of thumping footsteps echoed overhead.

 
I looked back and noticed Wyatt the solicitor peeking out of his office. He shook his head in obvious disgust then closed his door seconds before Papan stormed down the stairs looking furious.
 

“What the hell’s going on?” he asked, sniffing the air. “Did you just call out to Jonathan?”

I nodded, trying to catch my breath. “He was here.”

Papan didn’t say anything. Instead, his eyes flashed amber and he ran down the stairwell, disappearing out of sight. Leaving me clutching the wooden banister as I collected my thoughts and sorted through what Jonathan had said. Sure, there hadn’t been any real clues or whereabouts that would give us the advantage but he’d confirmed Maya wanted Willow to lure me. I wasn’t going to let anyone use someone I cared about like that again. Not after what happened with Ebony.

How many more people would these assholes be willing to hurt in order to fulfill their stupid ambition? The fact this bitch was part of the
Obscurus
made sense of everything, and filled me with the same rage Mauricio had instilled the night I stabbed him to death.

“He’s gone,” Papan said when he returned. “What the hell did he want? And why didn’t you call out for me?”

“You didn’t smell him?”

He shook his head.

“He must’ve been telling the truth for once.”

“The truth about what?”

I looked at Papan and sighed. “He looked pretty sick, said he wasn’t under the demon’s influence and wanted to tell me something.”

He frowned but asked, “What did he want you to know?”

“That Willow’s in a whole lot more danger than we thought.”

“These are awesome!” Willow said between bites of her second taco.

I had to agree, Papan had really outdone himself tonight. We’d stopped by a local grocery store on the way home from the office and spent a lot more money than I’d expected on food. Living on my own meant my grocery bills were quite moderate. With so many people coming in and out of the house, it made sense to stock more food in the fridge and pantry. Besides, I’d recently found out that Papan liked to cook and was pretty good at it. So I was willing to store whatever he needed in order to enjoy his cooking. Not that he’d let me pay, insisting it was the least he could do to thank me for my hospitality. I’d let it go today—it wasn’t worth fighting about.

“You’re very good in the kitchen, Jason,” Oren said with a smile. I’d never seen him eat so much, but he was busy stuffing his face with tacos and guacamole.

“What do you think, Fox?” Papan asked with a wink.

“I agree with all of the above,” I said, packing my second taco.

The atmosphere around the kitchen table felt different. After seeing Jonathan and realizing just how bad things were, my mood had darkened and I’d expected to come home to a sad ambience. Instead, I found Willow teaching Oren how to play a computer game on my laptop. Good thing Papan convinced me not to mention Jonathan while we were in the store.
 

“Why ruin a good mood?”
he’d said.

Now, looking around at their smiling faces, I totally agreed. We really could be mistaken for a happy family enjoying a meal without a care in the world.

“So, did you have a nice day?” I asked Willow.

She smiled and took a sip of her soda. “Yeah, it was nice to hang out with Oren. He’s been teaching me how to meditate and calm myself down. I’m showing him how to play some games.”

“Seems like a fair exchange,” Papan said with a laugh.

“Not as fair as you’d expect.” Oren shook his head, causing his white braid to sway. “These games are hard and very frustrating. Not to mention addictive. It’s no wonder kids spend countless hours on them and lose track of time. I lost several hours I’ll never get back, and still haven’t been able to beat Willow’s score.”

“Is the meditating helping you?” I asked my sister. This was something Oren had tried to teach me many times, but I just couldn’t get the hang of it. I found it too hard to quiet my mind and the few times that I had, I found myself astral projecting to another part of the house.

She nodded. “It’s great for the soul.”

“Wait until I teach you other, more involved things,” Oren stated.

“You’re going to teach her more?”

He nodded. “We need to find out what her necromantic potential is, and I’ve got just the exercises to figure that out.”

I really wanted to ask him when—and
if
—he was planning to tell her the truth of who he was in relation to her. How would Willow take it? She was acting so differently from the girl who’d practically collapsed from exhaustion last night that I didn’t know what to think. Maybe she was faking the good mood for our benefit, even if she looked genuine.

“I’m also looking forward to finding out what I can do.” Willow polished off another taco. “Until I met you guys, I had no idea there was even a name for it.”

“Don’t be in any rush to learn too much too quickly.”

“Relax, Sierra, I know what pace is best for a newbie.”

I quirked an eyebrow at Oren’s newly-developed vocabulary. It looked like they were teaching each other, and I couldn’t help but be happy about that. It was strange, but until a few months ago I’d been an only child with parents who didn’t give a crap about her and deceased grandparents. Now, I had my biological grandfather helping me understand the true extent of my power and a younger sister who needed my help.
 

We spent the next half hour eating in silence. When we did speak it was mostly light and fluffy comments about mundane things, which was fine with me. I didn’t want to get into a big discussion about what everyone’s powers were and how we could help Willow become stronger. I knew it was something Oren would eventually broach because he’d done the same with me, but right now was about enjoying a nice meal and having shallow conversation.

“Do you guys mind if I take a few photos?” Willow jumped out of her chair.

“Go ahead,” I said with a smile.

“Great!” She turned on her heel and headed for her bedroom.

“What did you put in her drink?” I asked Oren.

He shrugged. “She’s been like this all day and I had nothing to do with it.”

“How does someone go from totally devastated to this?”

“Willow’s mind is in a delicate place right now,” Oren said, meeting my gaze. “It seems to be playing musical chairs with her, but I believe it’s a side effect from her unusual condition.”

“I hope you’re right.”

Papan placed a hand on my thigh. “Don’t worry about her, she’s a kid. Kids bounce back a lot quicker than adults sometimes.”

I nodded but felt a shiver crawl down my spine. Sure, kids might recover from devastating events a little quicker because they had their whole lives ahead of them, but Willow had been through more than most. And had just found out her boyfriend and best friend were currently connected to her because they’d become poltergeists. Then again, maybe knowing they were nearby affected her in a positive way. I wasn’t sure, but if she kept acting so carefree I’d have to speak to her about it.

“I’ve got my phone—are you ready?” Willow asked with a beaming smile.

We all nodded and sat closer together so she could snap a shot of us. Then she went about snapping a variety of shots—Papan and me, Oren and me, Papan and Oren, Papan and Oren with her in between—until she’d pretty much taken every combination she could manage with four people and finished up with a few of us two together. I couldn’t pretend the thought of having a photo taken with a sister I’d only recently found out about didn’t excite me.

“I’m sending these to you,” she said, moving her fingers over the screen.

I nodded.

A knock on the front door interrupted the easy flow of conversation. Even Oren, who was doing the dishes while Papan tidied up the table, stopped to peer over his shoulder with narrowed eyes. It was past nine and we weren’t expecting anyone.

“I’ll get it.” I stood and headed for the door with Papan shadowing my every move. I peeked through the peephole. “It’s Conrad.” Papan nodded and I opened the front door.