Soul of Darkness (20 page)

None of this could mean anything good.

And the million dollar question was: who had healed me?

But instead of trying to get to the bottom of what had happened by asking me more about the incident, Malcolm suddenly dismissed further discussion.

“I do not think we need to talk about this now. You should get some more rest, my dear,” Malcolm said in a resolute tone of voice, making it perfectly clear that the topic was closed for discussion, even though he’d been the very one who’d insisted we talk about it only moments before. Something was definitely up. But whatever it was, they seemed determined to keep me in the dark.

The safety and warmth I’d previously felt in the presence of my companions were abruptly gone.

I was the enemy in their midst…and I felt it.

They didn’t need to spell it out for me…it was as clear as daylight:

I belonged to the shadows, to Darkness.

For, now that I thought about it, what else could have saved me? What else had the incredible power to resurrect the dead…or to save a life that should have been beyond saving?

Apparently, I’d deluded myself into thinking that I’d managed to chase Darkness away. Evidently, I wasn’t as powerful as I’d believed. The part of me that held the most power was the one belonging to Darkness, after all. What had I been thinking?

I closed my eyes against the threatening tears and, after a while, let the motion of the train lull me back to sleep again.

Several hours later, I felt a bit more rested. Malcolm or one of the twins must have left the compartment at some point during my nap, for someone had procured bottles of water and snacks. There must have been a dining car on the train.

I decided I didn’t really care how the food and water had gotten there. I was much too hungry. My thirst was even worse, though…my mouth feeling as dry as desert dust.

I realized it hadn’t actually been that long since I’d last had something to drink, but somehow the knowledge alone of not having water at my disposal had instantly made me crave it more than I would have had I not thought about it.

Greedily, I guzzled down half a bottle of water before starting on my food.

“I found these, as well,” Malcolm said a few minutes later, handing me a small, travel sized pillow and a thin woolen blanket. Apparently, it had been Malcolm who’d gotten the supplies.

“You
found
them?” I asked suspiciously.

“Well, not so much
found
as bargained for,” he admitted, seeming reluctant to acknowledge that someone with his formidable powers had been reduced to buying blankets when he could have easily summoned them within a second.

“What did you pay for them?” Aaron asked.

“An arm and a leg,” Malcolm said, using the popular phrase.

“Thank you,” I said gratefully.

“You are most welcome, my dear,” he said a bit shyly.

Considering how shunned and left out I’d felt only a while back, I was even more stunned and touched that Malcolm had thought so much about my comfort.

Despite the fact that he seemed cautious around me and that we hadn’t exactly known each other that long, in that moment I could really feel his warmth and kindness. Though he might not trust me, he nevertheless appeared to be sincere about generally caring for the person I was apart from the darkness I carried.

It was a bit strange and something to get used to, but I found it pleasing to know he cared.

“Aidan, my boy, would you please do me the honor of joining me while I inspect the train to make sure we have not been followed,” Malcolm addressed his son.

Aidan looked at his father, his brother, and then at me, obviously feeling uncertain about whether or not it would be wise to leave Aaron alone with me.

Apparently unwilling to voice his fears, though, he shut his already partially opened mouth again, nodded curtly in Malcolm’s direction, and shot me an uncertain glance, before heading out through the sliding door of our compartment with Malcolm on his heels.

Chapter 14 * Incident

“
W
hat was that about?” I wondered out loud, my question aimed in the general direction in which Aaron was seated. I might just as well have been talking to the walls, for he behaved as though I hadn’t spoken a word.

Not that I’d actually believed Aaron would know why Malcolm would find it necessary to speak to Aidan alon
e―
for it was obvious that this was what the ‘inspection of the train’was really abou
t
―
I’d just wanted to make some conversation to clear the air a bit.

It was the first time in a long time that Aaron and I were alone together. And the atmosphere in our small compartment was beyond tense. Though I hadn’t asked him about it and he hadn’t mentioned it, I knew he hated me.

His contempt for me was very palpable, and he hadn’t made any attempts at hiding it. What I wasn’t sure about was whether he treated me this way because he believed I was lost to Darkness or if there was another reason. Was he perhaps angry at me because of Aidan? Because I had made out with him at the beach? Or did he know about my feelings for his brother?

How could he, though, unless someone had told him. But who would have?
I
hadn’t even told Aidan how I felt. But perhaps I hadn’t needed to tell anyone. Perhaps my actions had spoken louder than words ever could have.

That must have been it.

By saving Aidan’s life through sacrificing my soul, I had openly revealed my feelings for him and had ended up deeply hurting Aaron, who had only just found the courage to open up to me emotionally.

I had shattered his trust and hurt him. I hadn’t meant to, but it had happened.

Despite the large lump in my throat, I suddenly felt the overwhelming need to say something…anything…and make him talk to me again. I needed to at least try to apologize.

“Aaron,” I managed to whisper his name. As I was suffering from nerves, my feeble voice had come out just strong enough for him to have caught it. I was sure he’d heard me. Yet he still didn’t react in any way.

“Aaron, I’m so sorry. I…I never intended to hurt you,” I apologized, saying what was on my mind right then, though my apology must have hit Aaron out of the blue, since we’d never before talked about what had happened.

For a moment it looked as though he would just ignore me again, but I seemed to have struck a nerve, and he finally responded.

“Who said I was hurt? Where do you get off telling me how I feel? You don’t know anything.”

“Sorry, I didn’t think…I mean…I…,” I stuttered, suddenly doubtful that I would ever find the right words to apologize for what I’d done. He’d given me his heart…and I had stomped on it. I fell silent, instead waiting to see if he had anything else to say.

When the minutes just ticked by, I was sure the few sentences we’d exchanged had been the last of our conversation, if you could even call it that.

Therefore, I was fairly surprised when Aaron abruptly got up from his seat and sat down directly opposite me. When he unexpectedly leaned forward, his arms resting on his knees, surprise turned into alarm.

He was right in my face, and the expression he wore was one of warning. Whatever he was about to say or do, he clearly meant business.

“I want you to listen to me very carefully…Not for one second will I ever again believe anything that comes out of your mouth, do you understand?”

Not waiting for a reply, he added:

“Don’t
ever
  apologize to me again. I don’t want to hear it.”

His cold words cut deep and were so unforgiving that I felt tears pooling in my eyes. Though I hated to appear weak in front of him, I couldn’t do anything to stop myself from crying.

For, tears have a way of disobeying logic or restraint.

But seeing me cry only seemed to make Aaron resent me even more, as though he felt like I was purposely manipulating him…when all I truly wished for was for the tears to stop and my embarrassment to pass.

“As if I would believe your tears,” Aaron said coldly, “You’re nothing but Dar…,” he began but abruptly stopped. Perhaps he’d caught himself before saying something I wasn’t meant to hear.

I had no idea what he’d been about to say, but I was sure it hadn’t been a compliment.

However, my curiosity instantly vanished as I felt my body slump. The exertion of the previous day as well as the emotional stress I was currently under were beginning to take their toll on me, and I started to slowly slide down my seat, unable to summon the energy to stop my descent.

Before I could hit the ground, though, my body was supported by strong arm
s
―
arms that had once made me feel safe. Now…I wasn’t sure what they made me feel.

For the moment, though, all that mattered was that they held me.

Aaron appeared uncertain as to what to do with me and seemed to feel that I might just slide off again if he sat or laid me down on the seat. After hesitating for a brief moment, he lifted me onto his lap and cradled me in his arms.

We hadn’t been this close in a long time. I’d almost forgotten how good it felt to be held by him. Closing my eyes, I rested my head against Aaron’s chest, my ear pressed against the part of him that held his heart. I could hear it beating with a ferocity that matched the drumming of my own heart, and I felt the heat of his body mixing with mine while our breaths lingered inside our chests as though afraid to escape too loudly and shatter the spellbinding silence enveloping us.

It was a captivating moment, a moment in which time seemed to have stopped just for us. The hateful words Aaron had spoken only seconds before seemed to have been swept away…the atmosphere changing in the blink of an ey
e
―
as though by magic.

Aaron’s hand was suddenly at my throat. But instead of throttling me…which I was sure he would have loved to do not too long ago…his long fingers slowly started to caress me, following a trail down my neck and between my breasts to come to rest at the bottom of my sweater.

My stomach was in knots…my heart pounding wildly…my whole body tingling and trembling from his touch. It seemed reason and caution lay buried under the weight of the spell that had fallen around us.

For, I suddenly realized, that’s what this must be. Nothing but the curse’s magic would have overcome Aaron’s hostile feelings toward me so quickly and completely.

What was happening now was seriously dangerous and utterly unstoppable. For, although I realized what was about to occur, my body seemed to be acting of its own accord.

There was no stopping this.

Aaron’s hand lingered at the hem of my sweater for a moment as though he’d actually tried to resist. Then he pulled it over my head in one swift motion without the slightest difficult
y
―
thanks to the fact that my arms had suddenly risen on their own to help hurry along the process.

I knew how wrong it was as our lips touched…as his tongue stroked against mine.

I knew how wrong it was as my hand glided down into his pants, stroking him where I’d never before touched a man.

I knew how wrong it was as strong muscular arms suddenly grabbed me from behind and pulled me off of Aaron’s lap.

And as the spell we’d been under ceased to control us, I felt a great embarrassment come over me.

Oh my God, I’ve been busted half-naked, wearing a slightly see-through bra, with my hand down Aaron’s pants…and was pulled back by Aidan, of all people!

My face felt as though it were on fire as I hastily bent and picked my sweater up off the floor. Pulling it over my head so quickly that I turned it the wrong way and struggled to get my arms through the right armholes, I felt like a clown in a circus act…only, I didn’t intend to make anyone laugh.

When I’d finally put myself back together, I chanced a glance at the others. Malcolm was standing in the doorway appearing somewhat apprehensive. I couldn’t blame him. For Aaron and Aidan stood facing each other with similar murderous looks on their faces.

The atmosphere had turned tense in the space of a heartbeat, a deafening silence once again descending upon us. Only, this silence was of a deadly serious nature.

Though they were brothers, Aaron and Aidan seemed angry enough to bash each other’s heads in.

The image they presented looked surreal as they confronted each other in ready-to-fight stances, their keyed up bodies and clenched fists exactly alike. I’d never before seen them act this hostilely toward one another. At times it had even appeared as if they might grow to like each other.