Renegade (31 page)

Of course, the way Riley was with her when he thought I didn’t see made me think it might be more. Like they might be friends.

I didn’t get it. It annoyed me. But it made Heven happy and it seemed to keep Riley from being a nastier version of himself, so I wasn’t going to complain.

“I’m just glad it’s you she’s with ‘cause I can’t stand that guy,” Cole said into my ear over the music.

“You used to hate me too,” I reminded him.

He grinned. “Not anymore.”

I held up my fist and he bumped it against mine. I took a drink of my soda and watched Riley completely ignore a blonde who was trying to dance with him. He turned back to Heven and the girl sulked away into the crowd. It made me wonder if Riley had more than friendly feelings toward Heven…

“What did it feel like to die?” Cole asked, interrupting my thoughts.

I glanced at him. “That was totally random.”

He shrugged. I wondered if he had more than soda in his cup. He was waiting for an answer so I gave him one.

“I didn’t feel it.”

“It didn’t hurt?”

“No, but it’s not like I was shot or attacked or anything. Airis did it. It was quick. One minute I was here… and the next I wasn’t.”

“How long were you gone?”

I shrugged. “Few minutes, maybe.”

“Did it hurt when she brought you back?”

“No. Why are you asking me all this?”

“I’ve just been thinking about death.”

I understood that. There had been a lot of it lately.

“Gemma won’t be with me because she thinks it risks my life after I die.”

“You mean in heaven?”

He nodded.

This was interesting party conversation. I glanced back at Heven to make sure she was okay. She was still dancing it up with Riley. It was beginning to annoy me.

“So?” I prompted Cole when he said no more.

“So I was thinking if I died and came back, then she couldn’t use my dying as an excuse anymore.”

He was definitely drinking more than soda.

“Cole. You can’t just die and then come back to life. Who would bring you back?”

He shrugged. “I get to keep my body when I die. All I have to do is come back here from heaven.”

I snorted. “It’s not like you can call a cab.”

He grinned. “Too crazy, huh?”

“Look, man, I get it. You want to be with Gemma. Dying isn’t the answer. Dying only makes you dead.”

“Well, then what should I do?”

“Do what every guy on this planet does when he wants a woman.”

He looked at me like he had no clue what that was.

“Wear her down, my friend. Wear. Her. Down.”

“Is that what you did to my sister?” He crossed his arms over his chest and glared at me.

“All this?” I gestured to myself and grinned.

Cole snorted.

“She didn’t stand a chance,” I added and took a sip of my drink. “Oh, and jewelry doesn’t hurt.”

“Right,” Cole said. “Wear her down,” he muttered to himself.

My eyes caught a figure standing at the edge of the crowd. “Yep,” I said. “No time like the present.”

He followed my gaze, his eyes stopping on Gemma immediately.

“She came,” he said, sounding shocked.

“See?” I told him. “You’re already wearing her down.”

He drained the last of his cup and looked around for somewhere to put it. I snatched it out of his hand and slid mine down into his, and he grinned. “Thanks.”

He went off toward Gemma and I turned back to watch Riley dance with my girl.

Except they weren’t in the spot they had been.

I scanned the dancers, looking for them, figuring they’d just moved with the crowd. Except I didn’t see them at all. Not in the center or at the edge of the dance floor.

They were gone.

Chapter Sixteen

Heven

Three girls. That’s how many “ladies,” as Riley calls them, tried to slip themselves between me and him while dancing. He was a pretty good dancer. Actually, I guess Riley was a pretty smooth guy all around.

Every time a girl approached, he ignored her. I thought that was his way of playing hard to get at first. But then when they tried to get his attention or bump me out of the way, he moved so he was closer to me and there was no room for her.

After the brunette stormed off in a huff, I wiggled a little closer and put my hand on his arm. He spun me in a circle and then grinned. I laughed. “So how come you’re ignoring all the
ladies
?” I said, mocking the way he always said it.

“The ladies aren’t the birthday girl,” he yelled over the music.

“Uh-huh, you can’t use that charm on me,” I called. “What gives?”

He spun me in a circle again. I bumped into someone and yelled out an apology. “Geez, Heven,” Riley said when I turned back. “You suck at dancing.”

“Yet another reason to find a new partner.”

“I’m not in the mood to entertain the ladies tonight.”

“Because…” I prompted.

He got this stubborn clinch in his jaw and I knew I was going to have to drag it out of him. Just then someone tapped me on the shoulder. It was a guy in my chemistry class. Riley crossed his arms and glared at the guy, making his eyes dart around nervously. I rolled my eyes and smacked Riley in the stomach.

“DJ wants you to come to his booth!” the guy in my class yelled over the music.

“Why?”

He shrugged. “He just asked me to come get you.”

“Okay, thanks!” I yelled.

The guy nodded and then glanced at Riley before slipping into the crowd. I began weaving through the dancers to get to the booth. I stopped beside the platform and waited for the DJ to see me. Riley stepped up next to me and the guy saw us a waved. “I hear it’s your birthday!” he yelled over the music.

I nodded.

“I have a little birthday present for you,” he said and grinned.

It wasn’t a grin that inspired good feelings inside me and I wasn’t sure why. So I focused in on his aura.

There were colors, like a normal aura had. Oranges, blues, some red. But there was something that made nervous.

It was cloudy.

I could see no reason why a guy who was seemingly having a fantastic time essentially hosting a huge party would have a cloudy aura.

Unless, of course, Beelzebub was involved.

I glanced at Riley and wet my lips nervously. “How did you know it was my birthday?” I yelled to the DJ.

“I have my ways,” he said with a hard glint to his eye. Beside me, Riley stiffened.

Now that statement could be taken two ways. 1) Kimber told him and planned this whole thing or 2) Beelzebub hijacked this poor guy’s body and was about to kidnap or try to kill me.

Option number one was looking pretty darn good.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Riley demanded.

“You’ll see,” he intoned.

Before we could do or say any more, Kimber called to the crowd over a microphone and that’s when all the drama began.

Sam

Riley wouldn’t let anything happen to her. He wouldn’t. I
knew
this. It didn’t make me feel any better.

Sam, I’m right here by the DJ booth.
Heven’s voice quelled the budding panic rising inside me.

I looked over toward the booth and she was there, standing right next to the DJ with Riley right at her back. He looked at me and nodded, like we had some unspoken pact to keep her safe.

I guess maybe we did.

Heven caught my eye and waved, and so I waved back, then pushed away from the railing to make my way through the crowd. Riley’s time with Heven was over. Halfway there, Kimber materialized at my side and smiled.

“Wanna see a cool trick?”

“No.” I tried to walk away but found my feet were somehow stuck to the ground like my shoes had been glued down. “Kimber,” I growled.

She smirked. “Wanna see my trick now?”

Like I had a choice. “Sure,” I replied.

Kimber produced a microphone from somewhere in that dress and flipped a little switch. “How’s everybody doing tonight?” she called and her voice bounced all through the yard.

The DJ heard her talking so he turned the music way down. “I’m seeing an awful lot of treats going on around here this Halloween but hardly any tricks!” The crowd went nuts. Kimber ate it up like she was being crowned queen.

“Trick or treat, everyone?” she asked.

“Trick!”
the crowd yelled.

“You asked for it,” she said and then dropped the mic. An eerie hush fell over everyone as they stood there waiting for some lame party trick to happen.

At first nothing happened at all, and I glanced at Kimber who was still at my side, eyes closed with a weird smile on her face. She stretched her fingers toward the ground and that’s when it began.

“Look!” someone yelled out on the dock and pointed toward the center of the lake.

The water was taking on an electric green color that seemed to start at the bottom and rise up as the water churned. Bubbles boiled and rose up, popping just above the surface and streaking the air with the same bright green in the water. People began to chant, “Bubble, bubble, bubble.” And Kimber began to laugh.