Raise someonefrom the dead. She knew. She really knew! Someone ignorant of what Julian could do would not have known to ask that kind of question. Mary Ann wanted to whoop. No, no, I promise you. Nothing like that. By sheer will alone, she managed to remain sedate. Im just trying to find the person who couldraise something. A person who died the same day I was born. Someone who might havepassed that ability to someone else.
If Daniel Smart was Julian, his last wish might have been to talk with this woman. Tossing out these half truths as she was, Mary Ann risked alienating her, but she couldnt just spill the entire truth, either. Not yet.
Silence. More of that dreadful silence.
Then, My Daniel couldnt do what youre asking.
Oh. Shed been so certain. Maybemaybe Smart was lying. There simply wasnt another explanation for what Mary Ann had read.
But his brother could, the woman finished.
Okay. There was another explanation.
He disappeared that night, too, and hasnt been heard from since. Now please. Leave. And remember what I told you. Dont come back here. Youre not welcome.
TWELVE
AN HOUR LATER, MARY ANN found herself nestled inside The Wire Bean. The ridiculous name aside, she liked the place. The internet café was cozy, with plush couches and small round tables, as well as booths with multiple plug-ins right there on the side.
She pretended to sip a mocha lattebecause actually drinking it would have made her sick. Human food was no longer hers to enjoy, only the magic and powers of others. Not that she was bitter. Except that she was freaking bitter!
Anyway. The drink had been paid for by Tucker.
His version of let me get this was casting an illusion so that the girl at the registerwhod smiled and flirted with him and Riley to an annoying degreethought shed been handed a twenty when in reality, Tucker had handed her a nice helping of air.
Riley had voiced a complaint. Tucker had looked at him and said, Really, Rover? You stole Mary Ann a laptop, and you question my methods? Really?
Yes, really.
At least my victim isnt going to cry all night about losing the first ten pages of his book report.
Well, arent you just the do-gooder, the shifter sneered.
At one timelike, an hour agoall of this bickering would have bothered her. Right now? Hardly a blip on her radar. She was busy.
Of course, then theyd argued about who got to sit next to her. Flattering, as well as insulting, since it was merely a pissing contest and not a true desire to be near her. Riley won. Barely. And only because he tripped Tucker and the boy fell face-first into the coffee-stained tile.
Now her shifter was leaning back, his arm stretched out behind her, and Tucker sat across from her, scowling at them. Mary Ann continued to pretend to sip and type, breathing in the delightful fumes while searching for answers about Daniel Smarts brother, Robert.
You know, Tucker said. Im actually a pretty good guy when its just me and Mary Ann. You kind of harsh my mellow, Fido.
Ill pretend thats true.
Its true, Mary Ann said without looking up from the screen. Just like I negate Adens abilities when Im around him, I negate Tuckers evil.
Id argue the word evil, Tucker said.
And you, she went on, ignoring the demon, negate my negating ability.
Poor Tucker, Riley sneered. Having to deal with being a bad boy.
And dont you care that Im calling you by different dog names, Max? Tucker said with an obvious sulk.
No. And by the way, Max is my brothers name.
Wait. Tucker leaned forward, lips twitching into a grin. Your brother is a wolf-shifter and his name is Max?
Yeah. So?
So you do know thats, like, the most popular dog name of the year?
What are you, a statistical handbook?
Frowning, Tucker ran a hand through his hair. If youre not gonna react to insults the right way, Im not sticking around. First I called you Fido. No reaction. Then I called you Max, and you corrected me. Youre lame. He slid from the booth. Ill be outside. Smoking. Maybe drinking.
Dont stab anyone, Riley said with a wave of his fingers.
His expression darkened. Do you have anything to add to this conversation, Mary Ann?
Thats great, she said distractedly, having already tuned them out.
He pushed out a sigh. Find me when youre done.
Sure, sure, Riley assured him. Then flipped him off.
Tucker stomped out of the café, the bell chiming over the door.
What a douche, Riley muttered. Im going to kill him before this is over, you know that, right?
Thats great.
And youll be okay with that?
Thats great.
Youre not listening to a word Im saying, either, are you?
Thats great. Seventeen years ago, people had not Facebooked or tweeted their every thought, so finding Robert Smart was a little more than difficult. But she was finally getting somewhere.
She found a news story about him, and that led to another, and another and still another. Each one had to do with Robert Smarts ability to locate dead bodies and communicate with the dead. But none of them mentioned raising the dead. More than that, there was no mention of his death. So, she might be getting somewhere, but it wasnt doing her any good. Until
Bingo! A story about his disappearance. Excitement rushed through her as she read the first few lines. Hed disappeared the same night his brother was killed. Andoh. Disappointment replaced her excitement. His body was never found, and he never married, she said. He had no children, no relatives other than Daniel and Tonya. Which meant talking to his family was out. Tonya was likely to call the police if she caught sight of Mary Ann again.
Thats great, Riley said, mimicking her. Then, without taking a breath, he added, But he could be out there talking to the witches or the fairies, you know.
And if he had no family, what kind of last wish would he have had? Not to say goodbye to them, of course, as Mary Anns mother had wanted to do with her. So, what had he wanted?
She needed to know. In order to leave Aden, Julian had to do what his human self regretted not doing. But the souls didnt remember their human lives until someone reminded them. Right now, she was the only one who could remind Julian.
Mary Ann, Riley prompted.
Maybe if she printed out his (previous) life story and read it to him? Maybe then hed remember. Or, maybe it was time to switch gears and spy on Adens parents. Yeah, maybe. The deed to their house belonged to Joe Stone. Paula, the mom, hadnt been mentioned. Were they still together? Separated?
Mary Ann?
What? Oh, yeah. Riley had said something. Robert, witches, fairies. Of course hes not talking to the witches or the fairies. Hes dead.
A long, drawn-out sigh had warm, minty breath washing over her. I meant Tucker.
Oh. Then go follow him. Kill him. Whatever. Please. I just need a few minutes of peace.
A beat of stunned silence. Are you trying to get rid of me?
Yes. But for some reason, its not working.
Wonderfully calloused fingers settled on her chin and turned her face. Mary Ann? His eyes glittered with amusement.
What?
Youre sexy when youre focused. With that, he leaned over and kissed her. Right there in front of everyone, he slipped his tongue into her mouth. He was warm and wet and as delicious as she remembered. Shed never been one for public displays of affection, but she found herself leaning closer, wrapping her arms around him, sinking her hands in his hair.
He knew just how to move his tongue against hers. Just how to apply pressure, how to ease off, how to take her breath and give her his. And the warmth, she couldnt get enough. She pressed closer to him, so close she could feel tendrils of energy flowing into her mouth, down her throat and swirling inside her stomach.
She knew that sensation.
Panic infused her, and she wrenched away. They were both panting, but Riley was glazed with a sheen of perspiration. Her heart raced as she gasped out, I was about to feed off you.
I know. There was no upset in his tone, which surprised her.
And you didnt pull away from me? You idiot!
His lips quirked up at the corners. I liked what we were doing.
He was amused? Idiot was too kind a word for him. But, see? This was exactly why shed run away from him. He didnt take his safety seriously.
Scowling at him, Mary Ann dragged her legs between them and pushed him. Right out of the booth. He landed on his butt with a shocked humph. Get out of here before Ibefore Iknee you in the balls!
More quirking. He took his time standing up. Ill find a witch. If youre hungry, you can
Her anger deflated. He was trying to take care of her. How could she stay mad at him? Im not. And she wasnt. Not fully. Not yet.
You know what happens when you let yourself go withouteating. Just let me
No. Yes, she knew what happened. She hurt. Worse than shed ever hurt in her life. Im fine. She didnt want him messing with the witches, possibly getting bespelledalthough the impotency thing hed mentioned to Tucker might do them both some goodand she certainly didnt want to be responsible for another death.
The witches were going to hurt you. Now you can hurt them first.
Technically that was true. She could hurt them. When her hunger reached the point of pain, she fed without thought or intent. Witches first, fairies second, but one day neither race would be enough. Shed crave the others. The vampires, the shifters. Even humans. But as she was now, only partially hungry, she would have to touch the witch to feed, and she just didnt want to get that up close and personal if she didnt have to. For all the reasons shed previously mentioned, but also because, well, she liked a few of them.
TwoMarie and Jennifercould have killed her a dozen times. They hadnt. Theyd talked to her, instead, and walked away. She kinda felt like she owed them.
Go find Tucker before I decide youll make a tasty snack, she said. Wait. First tell me what you meant about Tonyas aura being black.
He frowned as he slid back into the booth. Usually that means the person is going to die. But hers was an old black, kind of faded to a gray. Ive seen that kind of aura a few times before, but usually on people who had somehow cheated death through magic or been cursed for a long, long time.
Was that what would happen to Adens aura, then? Slowly fade, maybe rot? So her life was saved through magic? Or she was cursed? Which one?
I dont know. I didnt get a magical vibe off her. He shrugged. But that could just mean the curse is so much a part of her, like her lungs or her heart, that no one can sense it. Or it could mean that magic wasnt used.
So what youre telling me is that you have no freaking clue?
Correct. So what youre telling me is that you dont want me to stay with you? Because after that tasty snack comment, I want you to
Go, you nympho!
Laughing, he stood and blew her a kiss, then stalked from the shop. Mary Ann forced her attention to return to her laptop. Her hands were shaking as she typed. And what do you know? She typed without thinking and ended up with a search on Adens parents. Again. Maybe her subconscious was trying to tell her something.
Fine. Shed go with it. And another thing. Her next ward, she decided, was going to prevent boys from muddying up her thoughts and ruining her concentration. But somehow, she doubted even that could protect her from Rileys appeal.
ADEN SURPRISED VICTORIA. Rather than walking into the throne room, where his guests awaited him, and demanding answers, rather than feeding himself, he first prepared himself for the possibility of battle. A task that caused several tension-filled hours to tick by, morning giving way to afternoon.
She listened to a one-sided conversation he had with Elijah and knew Aden was upset because the soul hadnt predicted this, and he hadnt prepared. She listened as he spoke with the councilmen, then Maddie, learning what he could about the nine warriors awaiting him. She breathed a sigh of relief when he placed guards and lookouts in every room in the house as well as outside. She watched as he armed himself, looked away as he changed into a new T-shirt and jeans, and waited with him for the wolves, already tired from patrolling, to come in from the forest.
There was no time to think about their kiss and his anger over her lack of virginity, which was out of character for both past and present Aden. Did he suspect the boys identity? Would he hate her when the suspicion was confirmed?
Okay, there was time to think about all of that, but she couldnt allow herself the luxury. She needed to focus, to be at her best. Just in case Aden wasnt. He still hadnt eaten, and she didnt know why.
Something else she didnt knowwhy he had stopped what he was doing, twice, to announce that he wasnt going to dance.
Now he marched along the scarlet rug, Victoria just behind him, wolves flanking him, and a handful of his strongest vampire warriors behind them. Vampire citizens lined the walls, watching him, forming a hallway that led straight to the throne room.
Victoria caught whispers like just appeared, trouble and war, and each caused dread to work through her.
Whoever the warriors were, they could obviously teleport, since they had not stormed through the house but had just appeared in the throne room. And to appear somewhere, a teleporter had to have been there before. Which meant Vlad had once entertained the warriors.
As Aden approached the throne room, two of his sentries threw open the tall, arched doorways. Without a pause in his stride, the new and as-yet-uncrowned vampire king entered the room. Victoria expected more whispers, something, but the only thing to be heard was the thump of multiple pairs of boots and the scrape of wolf claws. Then Aden stopped, as did everyone behind him, and there wasnt even that. Just silence.
The newcomerstaller and stronger than Victoria had imagined, and shed imagined very tall and very strongformed a backward V. A war formation. Too many times to count, shed seen her father act as the center of just such a V. It was a pose meant to intimidate, to show unity. A kind of you mess with one, you mess with all thing.