Sweet Reckoning Read online

I stopped and leaned my palms on the desk, letting my head hang.

  Kaidan came up behind me, kneading my shoulders with his warm hands.

  “It doesn’t matter,” he said gently. “You won’t see him again anytime soon, luv. Not until it’s time to fulfill the prophecy, and by then it won’t matter.”

  I turned to face him. “But what if I do see him? He’ll go after you right away. They’re not taking any chances this time, Kai.”

  I felt caught in an invisible net. Kaidan’s life was linked to my ability to use the sword. We were all intricately involved, like it or not.

  “So much has happened,” I whispered.

  “Tell me everything.”

  I told him about Marek and Caterina being sent, and the constant barrage of whisperers. So much had happened in the few days since we’d spoken. Worst of all was Marna—my eyes burned when I thought about her.

  Kaidan had no idea.

  I wrapped my arms around his waist and pressed my face to his chest. His arms went around me as well.

  “I need to tell you something,” I whispered.

  I felt the muscles under my hands and cheek tense. I held him tighter.

  “Say it.”

  My phone rang, startling me, and I yanked myself away from Kaidan to grab it.

  “Marna,” I whispered. What timing.

  Kaidan and I stood there, watching each other. I knew he’d be using his heightened hearing to listen.

  “Hey,” I said.

  “Oh, Anna.” She sounded like she’d been crying. “She’s still not back and she won’t answer her phone. It’s been over a day, and I’m too scared to wait any longer. I’m going to her.”

  Kai stepped closer, his eyebrows tightly knit with concern and confusion.

  I thought about Dad and what he’d done when our ally Zania was in trouble. Her own father, Duke Sonellion, had given up on her because of her alcoholic ways, and he left her to be beaten and sold into slavery somewhere in the Middle East. But Dad sent a group to help bail her out. Of course, her rescue had led to the eventual death of one of them. . . .

  “Are there any Dukes in California?” I asked. “Blake’s dad?”

  Kai shook his head just as Marna said, “No. It was on the news. He died last night and left his fortune to his only son.”

  I shivered. Blake’s dad, Duke Melchom, was most likely spiriting his way around China, his new duty station, looking for a new body to possess.

  “All the Dukes should be back in their respective areas,” Kaidan said. “What’s going on?”

  “Is that Kai? What’s he doing there?”

  “Yes, it’s him. Hold on.” I looked at Kai. “Can you call Blake and see if he answers? We think Ginger’s with him.”

  Now he raised both eyebrows, starting to understand, though he had no idea what had sent her running there. Kaidan turned and dialed Blake. It rang and rang, then went to voice mail.

  “Ring me back straight away,” Kaidan said to the machine, then hung up and shook his head at me.

  “Listen,” I said to Marna. “I’m going to meet you out there. I think it’s going to take more than just you to break the two of them apart.”

  “Are you sure you want to do that?” she asked.

  I was sure it was dangerous, but at this point nowhere felt safe. I couldn’t sit back and watch Blake and Ginger get themselves killed. Whisperers were bound to find them together soon, if they hadn’t already.

  “I’m sure,” I said. “I’ll leave right away and call you when my flight arrives. We’ll go to Blake’s together.”

  “I’m going,” Kaidan said.

  I bit back a smile and said to Marna, “Make that three of us.”

  We disconnected and I fired up my laptop to buy a plane ticket. Kaidan and I decided we’d drive to the Roanoke airport separately to avoid being spotted together, but it was a small airport with a minimal number of flights, so we’d have to take the same one. I remembered Dad once saying that the whisperers stayed low to earth, so I felt remotely safe at the idea of being in the skies with Kai.

  “Did Gin go mad when she found out Blake’s engaged?” Kaidan asked.

  I stopped shoving stuff into my bag and faced him.

  “She was upset about that, but it’s not what sent her over the edge.”

  “So, what did?”

  It felt like a boulder was weighing down my chest. I’d been selfishly avoiding this moment. I saw the tick of nervousness in Kaidan’s jaw. It was going to break his heart to lose one of his oldest and dearest friends.

  “The twins had a . . . disagreement.”

  “About?”

  I swallowed, barely able to get the words out. “Marna’s pregnant.”

  Kai stared at me with big eyes and a slow shake of his head like he wanted to argue the possibility. And then his eyes glassed over.

  “I sensed it,” I said. “And it’s Jay’s.”

  “Bloody hell.” He fell back to a sitting position on the bed, raking a hand through his hair as his body tensed from the shock of the news. He searched around the room as if lost before putting his elbows on his knees and letting his face fall into his hands. I knew the helplessness he was experiencing.

  For one horrified moment I thought I’d see him cry for the first time, which would have obliterated my heart, but when he looked up, his eyes were red and dry. I felt horrible bearing this news to everyone. In a way, this whole thing was my fault. If I hadn’t taken the twins to Jay’s club that night . . .

  “Come here,” Kaidan said, reaching out a hand.

  I took it and let him pull me to his lap. I hugged him around the neck.

  “It’s not your fault.”

  I choked up. “How did you know what I was thinking?”

  “You have that sad, guilty look on your face, but you’re guilty of nothing. It’s better to know these things sooner rather than later.”

  It was true that Jay’d been able to start preparing right away, which was good, but every other aspect was tragic. I couldn’t imagine a world without Marna’s smile. And it was horribly unfair that they’d fallen in love, only to be soon torn apart. And the baby left without its mother, just like we’d all been. I couldn’t help but feel guilty.

  I wondered if Jay and Patti were in Virginia now, staying safe.

  “It’s my fault they got together. I didn’t think they’d move so fast, and if I’d known she could get pregnant—”

  “Sh, Anna. Those two always fancied each other, yeah? This whole thing is horrid, but you can’t stop the inevitable.”

  Even in his heartbroken state over Marna, Kaidan sounded reassuring and strong. I let myself hold him while I got my emotions in check. So much was happening, and everything was at stake. We needed to get to Santa Barbara as soon as possible.

  “We better go,” I whispered. I promised to tell him everything on the plane. And then we’d both have plenty to worry about.

  The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.

  —Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray

  UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

  HarperCollins Publishers

  ..................................................................

  CHAPTER ELEVEN—

  GINGER AND BLAKE

  A distraught Marna met us inside the Santa Barbara airport. It was the roughest I’d ever seen her look—an off-center ponytail and flats instead of heels.

  We rented a sedan with the darkest windows possible and drove to Blake’s cliffside mansion. I shouldn’t have been surprised to see a news van outside of his closed gates, considering this was major local-celebrity gossip. Blake’s father, a billionaire, had just died, leaving his massive fortune to the city’s extreme-sports star, who just last week had got engaged to a gorgeous girl from a prosperous family. Speaking of Michelle . . .

  “Pull the car over,” I whispered.

  There wasn’t much of a shoulder, but Kai squeezed to the side and we stopped to watch. We
were half a mile away, so I had to push my sights out to take in the scene clearly.

  “Just what we need,” Kai mumbled.

  Parked in front of the news van was a sporty red car and a beautiful, pacing blonde.

  “Whoa,” I said when I focused on her aura—an ugly mix of thick forest green envy and dark swirls of gray.

  “Is that her?” Marna asked.

  I nodded and we eyed each other. Michelle was stuck outside, clearly not being allowed entrance, which could only mean one thing. Ginger was definitely in there, and judging by the overwhelming jealousy in Michelle’s aura, she knew it.

  “Can you get us a little closer?” I asked. “I’ll try and persuade them to leave.”

  Kai drove closer, stopping in the driveway of Blake’s neighbor. It always felt wrong using the power of persuasion I’d gained from my double angel parentage, but sometimes it was necessary. I honed my sights on the driver of the news van and silently repeated, “Nothing is happening here. There’s no story. Leave now….” He started looking around, nervous-like. Finally after a minute of my nudging, he started the van and drove away.

  The three of us grinned. Now for Michelle. When I started chanting the words to her, she slowly walked to her car, reached for the handle, and then grabbed her temples. She let out a mournful wail and began bawling.

  “It’s not working,” Kai said. “We’ve got to go in. Hope the git hasn’t changed the code.”

  We drove up to the gate, and Michelle ran to the car.

  “Don’t you dare roll that window down,” Marna warned me, but my finger was already on the switch. I couldn’t just ignore this brokenhearted girl.

  “I know you,” Michelle said to me thickly. She still managed to be gorgeous, even in her exhausted-looking state.

  “Hi, Michelle,” I said gently. “Listen, Blake’s going through a really hard time. . . . He’s sort of pushing everyone away—”

  “He let a girl in!”

  Crap.

  “I know,” I said. “She’s an old friend, like me. We’re going to try and calm him, okay? Why don’t you go home and rest. Give him a little time to digest everything.”

  The gates began to swing open, and the car inched forward.

  “No!” Michelle screamed. “Something’s going on! I’m going in!”

  “Go to your car,” I silently urged her with my angelic will.

  She ran to her car, prepared to follow us in. When she realized the gate wasn’t going to stay open long enough, she ran back but was too late. She was left crying at the closed gate, even angrier than before.

  “She’s gone mad,” Kaidan said without humor. He sped up the driveway and parked directly in front of the doors. The three of us jumped out, but the door was locked.

  Kaidan banged with this fist. We waited. He banged again. “Open up, idiot! This is bloody stupid!”

  After what seemed like forever, the door opened, and the three of us gaped. Blake wore only low-slung basketball shorts and the hardest expression I’d ever seen. Then his sights slipped down the long driveway to where Michelle stood holding on to the gate, bawling. His green badge grew.

  “Stop that,” I said. “She’s really hurting, Blake.”

  A vicious giggle sounded from behind him, and Ginger strode up wearing just Blake’s shirt, which stopped at her midthigh. Her badge was circling. The two of them appeared wild, lost to their natures of envy and cheating, and probably high on the rebellion of being together after holding back so long.

  Ginger rested her elbow on Blake’s shoulder and fluffed her bedhead. Blake reached an arm around her waist.

  Marna stepped up. “It’s time to go, Gin.”

  Ginger kept her arm around Blake’s neck, giving her sister a stare. “You’re one to talk. I seem to recall that line not working on you. I’m quite fine where I am, thanks.”

  “Like hell,” Kaidan murmured, pushing past them. Marna and I followed him into the immaculate stone-tiled foyer, and Kai slammed the door, turning on the couple. “Have whisperers seen you together?”

  “Course not.” Blake sounded smug.

  Marna and I let out our breaths.

  “You’re bleedin’ lucky!” Kai said.

  “Back off, brah.” Blake dropped his arm from Ginger to step up to Kaidan. “What, you’re the only one who can be with your girl?”

  “The Dukes were at their summit when we were together. This is sheer madness!”

  “Guys,” I said, moving closer. But they were too fired up.

  “Why do you care?” Ginger spat at Kai.

  “Because we’re this close, Gin.” Kaidan held his finger and thumb an inch apart. “This close to fulfilling the prophecy, and the two of you are likely to get yourselves killed!”

  Marna’s hand went to her mouth next to me, silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

  “As if you care!” Ginger yelled. “You only give a shite about yourself. You want everyone to be willing to sacrifice themselves so you can finally be with your precious Anna. Well, I’m not waiting around anymore. I’m taking what I want from this damned life while I can!”

  Ginger and Kaidan were inches apart, both angry as they shouted.

  “It’s about all of us, not just me and Anna!”

  “Oh, right!”

  Kaidan grasped her small shoulders, and when he touched her they both seemed to soften. “I don’t want you dead, Gin.”

  Her eyes watered. “I’ve nothing to live for now, don’t you see? She’ll be gone. My sister is dying! And Blake will be married off to that cow. I’d rather be dead.”

  Kaidan wrapped his arms around her just as she broke into choking sobs, her knees buckling.

  Marna started crying, too, and I took her hand.

  Kaidan held Ginger up, stroking her hair like a big brother, and I could see the understanding and concern born from sharing a childhood together.

  Marna stepped to them, and Kaidan reached out, pulling her into the embrace. Blake and I made eye contact and nodded, moving together to the next room so the three of them could talk. We sat on the leather sofa. Blake leaned back, pressing his fists to his eyes.

  “Damn,” he whispered. “Everything is so messed up.”

  That was an understatement. I had no words. When Kai and the twins came back in, the five of us sat there in sad silence. Every moment we were together brought more danger. We all knew it, yet it was hard to force ourselves apart.

  Kaidan’s phone rang, and we all froze. His tan face paled as he looked at the screen and held it out for us to see.

  Pharzuph.

  The four of us held our breath and listened as he answered.

  “I assume you took care of the girl then?” Pharzuph asked in his silky accented English.

  “Of course, Father. She wasn’t a virgin anyhow.”

  “Interesting.” There was a long, expectant pause. “The spirit I sent to oversee the operation has been sent back to the pit of hell, never to return to earth. Do you know why?”

  Kaidan’s eyes darted to mine. “No, Father.”

  “Because he admitted he did not stay to see your mission through to the end. He says the two of you persuaded him to leave.”

  “Bollocks!” Kaidan stood. “That disgusting wanker was distracting. It’s hard enough to try and bang a Neph without a spirit interfering.”

  “A whisperer should hardly distract you from your task, Son.” The suspicion in Pharzuph’s voice made my blood run cold.

  “You’re right, Father. But the deed was done, and the whisperer left on his own. Obviously I couldn’t force him.”

  “Hm.” Another pause swelled the tension in the room. “I think I’ll pay the girl a visit myself. A lot’s riding on her lack of purity.”

  Goose bumps covered me.

  Kai’s jaw clenched. “Do what you must, Father, but I hate to see your valuable time wasted.”

  “Good of you to care.” It was the last thing Pharzuph said before he hung up.

  Kaidan let out
an enraged sound and kicked the coffee table, flipping it with a giant crash.

  We all stood.

  “Everything’s going to be okay,” I said. “We just all need to get back to work. At this rate the prophecy’s bound to go down soon, and we can’t afford to lose anyone.”

  “What about you?” Marna asked. “Where will you go?”

  I looked at Kaidan, feeling the pain in his gaze. “I don’t know.”

  “Well, I don’t think you should be alone,” Kaidan said.

  “We’re all gonna have to be alone if we want to convince them we’re working,” Blake said.

  He was right. Kaidan and I couldn’t stay together, especially after we’d come all this way to keep Blake and Ginger from doing that very thing.

  Kaidan shook his head. “Anna can’t pretend to work now that my father’s searching for her. She’s got to stay hidden.”

  “Well, perhaps—” Marna was cut off by her own giant gasp as a dark, ethereal form with the largest wingspan I’d seen yet, dove through the window and halted above us.

  Our group instinctually recoiled as one. I fought to breathe and appear unafraid. We were caught. Ideas and excuses began tumbling through my mind, none of them feasible.

  The huge spirit swooped down, his horned head looming over the group before seeing me and advancing. This demon’s face appeared as a ram, thick horns curling downward. The closer he got, the stranger I felt. I waited for fear to engulf me, but a familiar warmth filled my chest instead—the feeling of safety.

  “It’s me, baby,” the spirit said.

  The voice was different in my mind—not as gruff, but still deep.

  “Daddy?” My voice cracked.

  He moved nearer. No wonder he hadn’t called. He’d shed his body. As a spirit, his giant chest and arms were bare, and he had a strange cloth wrapped around him from his waist to his knees. His body was humanesque, and yet not. Swirly and hazy. Too graceful. I felt a sense of loss knowing I’d never see that big, scary-looking man again. I pushed away the strangeness and sadness and lifted my chin to him.

  “Thank God it’s you,” I said. “So much is happening. Pharzuph is hounding me, and I don’t know what to do or where to go.”