Page 5 of Forgotten Monsters
He glides his hands down my arms slowly until he reaches my wrists, shackling them with his big hands on the guise of steadying me. My breath catches in my throat at the intoxicating heat rolling off him.
After a few seconds, he releases me, but the memory of his touch ghosts along my spine. I clear my throat, move closer to the cabin’s door, and grab the wall on both sides of the stairs so I don’t topple over.
He breezes past me and extends a hand out to my sister. “We haven’t been properly introduced. I’m Kayde Barron.”
“Jules,” she breathes, her palms flat on the kitchen table, her skin a shade greener than it ought to be. She used to get car sick as a kid, so I guess she’s in for some pain.
“And I’m Allison.” I narrow my eyes at his peculiar behavior and repeat my question. “Can you take us back to Earth, Mr. Barron?”
He straightens the neckline of his fresh shirt. “Maybe I will if ye ask nicely.” With that, he whistles back outside.
The nerve!
With a growl, I rummage through the mess under the sink and snatch a few matches from a plastic bag. Jules and I mutter the necessary incantation, and the chill of the rain vanishes. A low hum escapes my lips, and I roll my shoulders back.
The rough tumble of the sea subsides in an instant, and Jules and I exchange a curious glance. Maybe our rude, arrogant host has the power to tame the waves. He looks more likely to spark up a storm, but I can’t focus on him right now.
I brace my hands on my hips and stare down my sister. “Alright. How did you heal yourself?”
Her dark blue eyes fly to the ground. “Cole thought Darkwood would double-cross me. He cast a Fae spell to protect me.”
“It was powerful enough to last through an inter-realm voyage?” Static electricity sparks on my arms, and I can’t shake the intuition that she’s lying. Why doesn’t she want me to know the spell they used?
“I guess.”
I click my tongue. “You’re lying.”
Flames dance along her collarbone, the pulse of her anger palpable. “You want to talk about lying? Really?” She rises to her feet. “You go first. Tell me how you forgot to mention you were sleeping with a teacher—how he convinced you to kill an innocent unicorn? Tell me all that, and then I’ll tell you how I healed myself.”
“Is that a formal Fae deal? Is that something you can do now?” I keep a hard edge to my voice, but inside, I’m shaking. How much of her soul did she sell in exchange for her crown? No power is freely given away, least of all by a man like Cole Desyris. I orbited his life enough to know the prince’s rotten obsession for deals and sin. He was not an easily manipulated puppet by any means, and the depravity of his kisses still haunts me.
Jules pokes me in the chest with the match box. “No, it’s a fucking promise from your sister. You know, a member of the family you cared aboutbeforeyou became a world-class bitch and chose a raging sociopath over us.”
Blood drains from my cheeks. “You don’t understand. He’s not at all what you think he is. Killing Miss Eillis wasn’t his idea. He hated every minute of the last few months, having to lie to her. But Darkwood was adamant, and mom was dying—”
She cuts me off, unimpressed. “Regrets don’t make it okay.”
Judging by her reaction, she already knows about Mom’s illness.How?I sallow a hard lump at the fire under her skin and the cruel curve of her mouth. If anything, I thought she’d understand my need to protect my mother.
But the gloves are off; I don’t care anymore. I sink my index finger in her upper arm. “Darkwood was going to kill Miss Eillis, one way or another. She wasn’t innocent, you know. She more than dabbled in forbidden magic and smuggled powerful Magisterium ingredients out of the realm. If we don’t bring the horn back to Dark Falls soon, Mom will die. Did Cole keep it?” I ask, my voice laced with fear—and a plea for honesty.
She averts her gaze. “I’m not ready to talk about the horn—or the healing.”
“I’m serious, Jules.”
“So am I. I don’t have it, okay?” Tears flood her eyes.
“Cole kept it, didn’t he? You—you married him with no concern for the fallout, but Daniel and I, we’re ready to wait. In a few years, the age difference won’t matter.”
Her already tight jaw clenches in a hard line. “YourDanielkissed me.”
My head jerks back as though I’ve been slapped square in the face, and a heavy, disgusting ball of saliva sticks to the back of my throat.
I hold her gaze, wishing I could leave this forsaken boat. “He must have been trying to coax information out of you. If he thought you were into him—”
“Allie,” Jules breathes.
“Do you want me to believe you didn’t flirt with him? You batted your eyelashes and smiled so much, he clearly thought he could manipulate you this way. ‘Thank you, professor,’” I chime with the distinct timbre of her fake, cajoling voice. “Gods! You practically threw yourself at him.”
