Angel Of Mercy (Cambions #3) (14 page)

Heaving in a breath, I sat up on my elbows trying to get my bearings. I’d been with Flynn in the car last I remembered. Now I was in my room with Flynn, Luke and Sebastian. What the hell
happened?

“Dude, I didn’t do it. She pulled her shirt off,” Flynn was saying, shaking his head. “I was blindsided for a second, then she—” He demonstrated cupping his own hands towards his chest.

Sebastian strong armed Luke who looked like he wanted to pummel Flynn to the ground. I put it all together. Leaping to my feet, I punched him in the stomach. “You asshole.”

I heard laughing behind me as I wailed on Flynn who stumbled and fell. I straddled his hips to knock him in his head. He covered it by crossing his forearms though he didn’t fight back. He obviously knew that he was at fault.

Raising my hips and moving my legs, I went for the coup de grâce. Large hands cinched me around the waist and my knee made contact with nothing but air. “Kayla, lass, you know
she
did that, not him.”

Sebastian was so strong he held me one handed, while preventing Luke from going in. “Here, take your girl.” He flung me, though smoothly, into Luke’s embrace. Sebastian went to Flynn and took his wrist. A second later, they were both gone.

I stood there, Luke’s arms around me, letting it all sink in. But after a long moment, he released me as I slid down to the floor. Realizing I was fully dressed, and with the echo of Sebastian’s words, remorse washed over me. Flynn hadn’t given in to my demon.

“He’s right. Flynn called me. He didn’t have to. But he did.”

Still searching the ground for a hole that I could crawl into, I said nothing but watched Luke’s feet turn away. I watched them move in front of my bed where I heard the bed sheets shift under his weight. “Come here,” he said quietly.

My head hanging low, I walked over to him. As soon as I was in front of him, he peered up between the curtain of my hair. “It’s not your fault.” His words were patient and kind. This was my Luke. “Or his either,” he added hastily.

Nodding, I let him draw me on his lap. “I haven’t been sleeping. I’m trying but it’s not the same without you.” I mumbled.

“Is your mom home?” he asked.

Shaking my head, I thought about how my mom wasn’t doing shift rotation. She seemed to be taking more and more evening shifts and not day shifts. I didn’t get it. It was like my punishment was on the honor system.

“I’ll stay the night,” he said and pressed a kiss on my forehead.

Feeling guilty, I said, “I don’t want to take you from research.” There wasn’t a reason to say more. We both knew what he was doing.

“You are more important,” he said before he ever so tenderly kissed me. Then we were falling. Falling more into each other. Turning my body, I laid myself parallel on top of him. I longed to shed every last item of my clothing. Losing control only reminded me that left to my demon’s devices, I wouldn’t have a choice in my destiny.

“Please,” I said.

His eyes bugged out for a second registering my request. “Mercy.”

Even I heard the double meaning in my name, but didn’t care. “Luke, I want it to be you.”

Rolling us on our side, his hand stroked my hair as he kissed me. “You have no idea how hard it is to deny you.”

“Then don’t,” I said, staring into the murky depths of his blue eyes, I wanted to clear his indecisiveness.

I knew he warred with giving me what I wanted and his convictions that I be treated like glass. “I won’t break.” I promise.

When his eyes opened, conflict in them, he said, “But maybe I will.”

Now I felt like an infection. Slowly, I was poisoning the one boy I loved. Ashamed once again, I turned away from my heart wondering when I’d finally break him and not in a good way. I’d already damned him. And he had his reasons for not taking my virginity. Maybe he feared further damnation. But I was too embarrassed to ask.

Luke pulled my back into his chest, pushing my hair over my shoulder. Mumbling in my hair, he said, “Marry me.”

We’d been down this road and I was too tired to fight about it now. He was here and I needed rest. Diverting the conversation, I asked, “Did you get my voicemail?” He pulled out his phone, looked at it and shook his head. “Then how did Flynn get in touch with you?”

“My phone,” he said. He connected the dots because he added, “I got my phone unlocked because I knew I would be out of the country frequently. I guess I just missed your call.”

“Were you with Sebastian?” I asked.

Shaking his head, he said, “I called and he answered for once.”

I said nothing more instead opting to squeeze his hand. It was late. The act of closing my eyes pulled me into a dreamless sleep.

~

Waking up late in the morning wasn’t so pleasant. “Mercy McKayla Moore,” my mom’s voice trilled. Sitting up straight, I looked around but Luke wasn’t there.

“Mom,” I said.

“You can’t sleep all day,” she said. “Don’t you have homework and chores?”

Since moving to Flynn’s house, I hadn’t had to do many chores. They had a housekeeper that came in three times a week. The only thing I was responsible for was my own laundry and only because I turned down the offer for her to do it for me. It just seemed, I don’t know, wrong.

“Okay,” I said to my mother hoping to appease her. She left without further comment. Then I looked around before I was tugged down by an invisible force. Just when I started to giggle, an invisible mouth was crushed to mine.

“Shh, your mom might come back,” Luke chided.

Whispering, I asked, “How did you know she was coming?”

“I heard the knob turn,” he said, quietly. “How did you sleep?”

“Better,” I admitted. “Probably the best sleep I’ve had in a while.”

“Good,” he said. “I got some things to do, but I can come by tonight.”

“You’re not going back to do more research?” I asked.

I could tell he was worried about me and I was worried about him. “There’s some stuff I can do around here.”

Selfishly, I didn’t want him leaving the area so I didn’t argue that I’d be fine. “Did you ask Sebastian about Sara?”

“No, I forgot. So much other stuff on my mind.” He shook his head. I knew the feeling. It had taken me a couple of days to tell Luke about Paul being awake. With that human girl’s death and everything else it had gotten lost.

Wanting to trust him, I didn’t voice the concerns of the tiny devil on my shoulder who was telling me that Luke had way more feelings for Blondie than he wanted to admit. He was quiet and I knew he was thinking about her. I decided that I would ask Sebastian on my own. Luke and Flynn were entirely biased when it came to her.

Wanting to draw his attention back to me, I said, “I’m going out with Maggie tonight.” I’d already agreed to go with her. “With this moon thing coming up, I think she needs some girl time.”

“What are you both up to tonight?” he asked making himself visible again. It had been a little weird talking to air.

“Um, we’re going to her brother’s St. Patrick’s Day party.” Biting my top lip, I waited. Originally, I’d planned to ask him to come with me, but I thought more about spending time with just her. Plus, I still felt a little guilty about pulling Luke from his research.

“A Frat party?” he asked with an arch of his brow.

Biting my lower lip at the corner, I nodded.

His hand came up and touched at my hair. “It’s okay. I trust you.” The problem was, I didn’t trust myself. Well, I didn’t trust the demon that shared my body. “And you did get enough sleep last night.

When he got up, I wasn’t totally sure of his mood. “I’ll see you later,” he said.

I nodded. Now if he was human, it would have been odd to see him step out of my window and disappear. But he wasn’t. And my life would most likely never be normal again.

After Luke left, I followed my mother’s instructions. I did my laundry, my homework and even prepared dinner. What I hadn’t notice before was that the strain in the house extended not only from my mom to me, but between her and David as well. She said little things, but they barely spoke.

With Flynn no longer on tied to the house, he wasn’t at home for dinner. That left the rest of us eating the meal I prepared in silence. The little bit of conversation revolved around the food I prepared. The two seemed to try to outdo themselves by complimenting me.

“Mercy you prepared a wonderful dinner,” David said.

Mom countered, “She’s self-taught but she cooks like a chef in a five star restaurant.”

Things like that were traded back and forth. All I could do was nod. I didn’t have that natural charm Flynn had. If he’d been home, I’m sure he would have lightened the mood.

When Mom finally left for work, the tension dissipated. I hated to think it, but she was the instigator of all the bad feelings in the house. David headed upstairs and I hung out in the den. As soon as David went out, I immediately called Maggie who was on standby. While she headed over, I worked on my make-up, which I was getting better at. By the time she showed up, I was ready to go.

“Where’s Amber?” I asked.

She hadn’t been hanging around us very much anymore. “She’s dating—” Maggie told me about some guy on the basketball team. “Plus she’s still not over Paul.”

That name brought a frown to my face. He’d steered clear of me ever since he got back to school. And I gave him space. If ever we caught each other’s glance, he’d look away. And I really couldn’t blame him.

“Eme,” she said softly, looking at me for a second before her eyes returned to the road.

“Yeah,” I answered, confused by the ominous tone in her voice.

“I, uh, stopped at the shopping center down the road from your house,” she began. “I ran out of my favorite lip gloss.”

Squinting my eyes, I peered over at her as she fidgeted her hands on the steering wheel. “Out with it,” I said.

“I really hate to tell you this because it’s probably nothing.”

“Maggs, just tell me,” I said, dread filling me.

“I saw Luke’s car. He wasn’t alone.”

Dead silence. Oh, the radio was going on in the background, but I felt heat claw up my throat. “That blonde chick from school was in the car with him.”

She continued to speak, but I didn’t hear a thing. It was all white noise blended into the background. The problem was he’d told me that he trusted me, so I should trust him. I had faith in
my
Luke, but not this new version.

Maggie went on and on about how much she knew he loved me, but the scream or the tears clamoring to get out kept me quiet for fear I would explode. By the time we’d gotten to the party, I’d riled myself up. And that is how the trouble began.

To say the party got out of hand was an understatement. The sights and sounds were coalescing all around me into one jumble of swirls. I felt light and heavy all at the same time. Coolness met the belly of my skin and then it was gone until another cool sensation returned.

A breath of words entered my ear. “You want to get out of here?”

Turning my head, I was face to face with pools of golden brown. They were the kind of eyes you could trust. My mind was quickly invaded by thoughts of summer blue eyes and the boy who owned them. The reminder of blonde hair and what Maggie told me, had me answer in the affirmative. “Yes.”

The guy who was by far one of the most attractive I’d seen tonight, lifted me from the counter. He held my hand to tug me along. But it wasn’t a hand that I was familiar with. Hesitating, I struggled to remember why that wasn’t a good idea. The space was tight with people. And just like any party, the music was turned up to deafening levels. Being much taller, he leaned down to speak in my ear. “Did you change your mind?”

He pulled back enough that I was lost in his eyes again. They were like warm honey. His lips were so close and I had the urge to get closer to him. “I don’t even know your name.”

With a megawatt smile, he answered, “Keller. Yours?”

“Mercy,” I said, feeling like we were meant to coexist in the same space. He began to lead me again when I passed Maggie.

“Eme, what the hell.” Although my eyes had been opened, it was Maggie’s voice that broke through the haze.

“Get you grubby hands off her,” she yelled, pulling my arm from the guy’s. Out of his hold, everything spun around my head like a child’s mobile. I felt like I stepped off a tilt-a-whirl. With another yank, I moved in the opposite direction. Well, kind of.

I turned to see the guy’s eyes still on me. I couldn’t look away. The pull was so strong. “Maggs,” I whispered, with slow enunciation. If she didn’t break the spell, I was bound to go to him as soon as she let go. I blinked a few times trying to get my bearings. My legs were wobbly and the room was still spinning.

Either she didn’t hear me or she didn’t care. She pulled me with purpose through the party that was going on all around me. I finally lost sight of him.

Coming to a sudden stop, I looked up to see Liam standing in front of Maggie. They were talking but I was trying to keep myself from falling over. Soon, we were moving again. I wanted to continue to look up, but movement in that way made my dizziness worse. So I ambled my way through, guided by Maggie.

 The frozen air hit me like a wall and woke some of my senses. I wasn’t wearing a coat and with my
barely there
clothes, I didn’t have much to keep me warm. Still, it felt better out here. My wits were coming back to me at an alarming rate. I sat in the nearest plastic chair with a thump and breathed deep to somehow get it together.

“What the hell, Eme? Where were you going with that guy? Luke is going to freak. Yeah that guy was hot, but still?”

My eyes opened to new depths at her words. “Luke doesn’t care. And he won’t find out anyway,” I said, daring her to spill that bit of information.

“You are so dense. Luke is gaga for you.” Then a sheepish expression covered her face. “Plus, I kind of texted Flynn to see if you’d gone home. I couldn’t find you.”

“You what?” I asked, nearly shrieking the words.

“You’d been gone for a while. And I didn’t find you anywhere in the house. I looked in the kitchen before checking upstairs. I thought maybe you left and went home.”

Covering my face with my hands, I asked, “What did you tell him?”

“Nothing,” she exclaimed. I felt marginally relieved. “Honest, nothing….  I just texted him that I found you and they are on their way.”

“They?” I asked.

“Um,” she said, and I knew what was coming. “Luke was with him. So they’re both headed here.”

I didn’t look at her. It wasn’t her fault, but I was angry, though more at myself.  However, I was afraid I might say something wrong. I wasn’t ready to see Luke. There was an ache deep in my heart at the thought of him with Blondie.

Patting my arm while she stood above me, she said, “He loves you Eme, don’t doubt that. I wish I had a guy with the kind of devotion he has for you.” Maggie had her mind made up, but she hadn’t seen Luke when he wasn’t himself. “Stay here. I’ll go get you a bottle of water.”

Stay
wasn’t in my vocabulary. My stomach began to revolt. A guy, who had been sitting on the far end on the porch steps, walked over to me. For a second it looked like his blurry twin stood next to him. But ever so slowly, they came together as one. How much had I drunk?

“You need this more than me,” the guy said with a soft lisp as he handed me an unopened bottle of water. I reached for it, my hand missing it by a mile. The action sent me hanging my head over the side of the railing vomiting green beer like the exorcist chick. The guy with the water bottle held my hair like Maggie would have done if she’d been there.

When it was over, I plopped back down in the plastic chair. I truly felt the extent of the cold for the first time despite the warm body sitting companionably in the chair next to me.  Although I had emptied the contents of my stomach, I still didn’t feel one hundred percent. My damp skin had frozen over, yet I didn’t want to go back inside. It was crowded in there. With the weather unseasonably cold, it kept everyone else inside. Even Maggie hadn’t yet returned.

The pounding music that seeped through the walls sent me up on wobbly legs away from the house. Needing space, I didn’t intend to go far. I heard the guy’s soft protests that I should sit down and drink the water but the yielding hand disappeared at the sudden spike of music and the voice that yelled out, “Dude, are you Tanner? Some guy is looking for you.” There was a pause. Then the voice added, “He said he’s ready to go.”

 I walked out past the open gate and into the trees that bordered the backyards of fraternity row.