Cinderella Complex (16 page)

 

Jack surveyed the room. “It's a Grimm feather, all right. But I don't see any.” He clutched my arm and led me toward the exit. “We better get you home. I'll let Mom know we're leaving.”

I kneaded my fingers together. Everybody who passed by us made me suspicious. Their smiles. Their gazes. The Grimm could be anyone. The Grimms could be anywhere. A hand clamped down on my shoulder.

“Holy crap, Jack. You scared me.” I sucked in a deep breath as my pulse throbbed.

“Sorry. C'mon, let's go.” On guard, he left the building first. He looked up at the trees and into the shadows.

We maneuvered between cars until we reached ours. Before he let me get in, Jack checked the backseat and floor for any stowaways.

“So, this is what it feels like to have a bodyguard,” I teased.

“This isn't a joke.” He ushered me into the front seat. Once inside, we secured our seatbelts and he roared the engine to life.

“Would you chill? I'm fine. See.” I waved my hands in front of his face. Truth be told, I was scared to death. And the last thing I needed was Jack freaking out on me. He shifted into gear and pulled out. Street lamps dotted the cityscape as we headed out of town.

Fog whispered across the road. The windows frosted over. The car chugged and coughed before it stopped moving.

“C'mon.” Jack slammed his fists into the steering wheel.

The hairs on my arms stood on end.

“Jack.” My voice cracked. “Something's wrong.” I watched as he tried to get the car to turn over. The air sizzled with energy, with a heavy blanket of magic that hadn't come from me.

Crash
.
The car slid across the road and the rear door on the driver's side buckled. I screamed as the car flew into a ditch. A black wing brushed across the back window. Fear sang in my ears, telling me to hide, run, or do something.

Jack fumbled with his seat belt and kicked the door open. He unsheathed his sword. It glowed golden with liquid flames.

“Stay put.” He slammed the door shut behind him. Within seconds, I heard the distinct sound of clashing blades. Jack swung his weapon at a shadowy figure which appeared to conjure itself from the fog.

My hands trembled as I gripped the door handle. What if they hurt Jack? A fist punched in my window. Glass sprayed everywhere. I fought to get my seat belt released, then scurried away to the middle section of the seat.

Jack leapt at the creature, knocking it to the ground.

Riiiip
.
The roof of the car peeled back like a sardine can. The Grimms had torn the vehicle apart. I ducked down low, but it was too late.

Claws dug into my shoulders, hefting me into the air.

“Stop!” I screamed. Pain seared my body, as the dagger-like talons penetrated my skin and muscles. My feet flailed beneath me. “Let me go.”

“Maggie!” Jack ran toward me, his wings extended. But before he could lift off, a figure tackled him and crashed him into a large maple.

I clenched my eyes shut. Please let him be okay. My flesh burned and throbbed. Blood seeped through the fabric of my dress. I wriggled, trying to raise my arm to strike my captor. But its claws only sank deeper.

I cried in agony. Black dots danced before my eyes.
Stay focused
.
You have to be strong
.

From behind the cloud cover something flew through the sky toward us. An enormous wingspan stirred the air. Whatever it was, it came fast. It wasn't pulling up. The Grimm holding me screeched as the new one rammed into it. I toppled from the talons and fell toward the ground. Before I could extend my wings, a pair of arms caught me.

I swallowed hard, staring at raven-like feathers. This Grimm wore a dark hooded sweatshirt, which covered his features.

“Close your eyes,” he whispered. “And you won't get hurt.”

My body quaked, but I clung to him. My eyelids squeezed shut as the night air zoomed past. What would he do to me? I imagined blood and pain. Torture.

“Please, let me go.”

I heard a low chuckle. “If I did that, you'd splatter all over the road.”

“No, I can fly myself.”

He ignored me. We descended. I dared a quick peek at my surroundings, only to find we'd landed in someone's yard. The Grimm carried me to a gazebo and sat me down on one of the benches.

“You should be safe here. Stay hidden until the others leave,” he said in a low voice.

No way. The Grimm had just saved me. “Wait.” I caught his hand. “Who are you? Why did you save me?”

He went still. “You dare question me?”

I released his hand, my fingers moving to the hood. “I have every right to.”

He grabbed my arm. “You forget we are enemies, Godmother. I may have saved your life, but it changes nothing.”

My breath caught in my throat. “Then kill me.”

“No.” He jerked back. “I have other uses for you. But be warned, you better watch your back.”

In one swift motion, he darted into the dusky sky. I cowered on the bench. My gaze darted back and forth across the yard. The gloom-drenched wood-line made me shiver. Somewhere within the darkened trenches I knew
he
watched me.

If we truly were enemies, then why help me? It didn't make sense. He'd attacked his own kind to save me, to free me.

“C'mon, Jack, where are you?” I clutched my dress.

At last, my brother landed outside the gazebo, his eyes wide with worry. “Thank God you're okay. I saw the Grimm take you…”

“One of them saved me.”

His mouth twisted. “What?”

“One of the Grimms saved me.”

“Crap.”

“My thoughts exactly.” I hugged my chest, trying to get warm.

“We need to get you home. The car's totaled, so we'll have to fly.”

“All right.”

“Are you sure you're okay?” He eyed my wound.

“Yeah.” My lips quivered as I forced a smile.

“Liar.” He bent closer, pressing his hands onto my shoulders. My skin warmed beneath his touch, and slowly, the wounds began to close.

“How—”

Jack's lip twitched. “You didn't think you were the only one given powers, did you?”

Matter of fact, I did. But no way would I admit it to him.

After a moment, he picked me up. “I managed to kill one of the Grimms. And I injured another one. I slashed its arm pretty good. Maybe they'll take the hint and leave us alone.”

“Why are they attacking us all of a sudden? They used to stay in the shadows.”

“Because they know you're making Katrina's happy ending come true. They're trying to stop it.”

“Then why save me?”

Jack shrugged. “I don't know, but we need to figure it out. Which means from here on out, I'm sticking to you like an extra pair of butt cheeks.”

Great. Not only did I have to worry about the enemy closing in, but now I'd have to contend with an overbearing big brother.

 

I pierced a leaf of lettuce with my fork, dipped it in my blue cheese dressing. Taylor chatted non-stop about Will Edgar asking her to Homecoming, while Jack and Riley stood near the cafeteria entrance, talking. It seemed like everyone around me had someone. How depressing.

So where is Seth today
?

Jack appeared next to me. “Riley and I are going to Homecoming.”

My gaze met his. “Are you back together?”

“Yeah. She apologized for acting jealous.” He smiled. “Knew it was only a matter of time. Females can't resist me.”

I snorted. “Keep telling yourself that.”

“Hey,” a familiar voice said. Seth sat down across from me. A bruise ran down the side of his face, his arm was bandaged. He looked as if he'd tangled with an angry bear and lost.

I dropped my fork. “What happened to you?”

Seth glanced at Jack then at me. “Motorcycle accident. Probably a good thing you didn't come with me last night.”

Jack stiffened. His hand gripped the edge of table. “Motorcycle accident?”

“Something ran in front of me. Probably a deer. I tried to swerve and ended up in a ditch.”

“What a coincidence, we totaled our car last night too,” Jack said. “We were up on Crowley Bridge Road.”

“Where did your accident happen?” I asked Seth.

“Crowley Bridge Road. The fog got real thick.” Seth's eyes darkened.

Goosebumps puckered my skin.

I glanced at Jack. “What are the odds?”

“Is there something you want to tell us?” Jack bristled.

Seth shrugged. “I don't know what you mean.”

“Really, I think you do.”

“What's your problem?” Seth challenged him. “I just told you I got into an accident, and now you're interrogating me.”

“Just seems odd we both crashed in the same area.”

“I didn't realize there was some law against crashing on the same road.” Seth clutched the table, his knuckles white.

“Jack, knock it off.” What the heck had gotten into my brother? “The visibility was horrible.”

His eyes narrowed. “We need to talk. Now.”

Jack tugged me from my seat. I followed him into the hall.

I jerked free from his grasp. “Ow. What's going on with you?”

“Okay, did you
not
notice his bandaged arm?” Jack paced back and forth, his eyes wild.

“Kind of hard not to.”

“Last night, I injured a Grimm. I cut its arm with my sword.”

“You can't be serious.” My brother's lost his freaking mind. No way was Seth a Grimm. I would've sensed it.

“He's been acting weird lately. I mean he saved you from Grimms at the summer house, and then he went and disappeared for a few days.”

“Seth's our friend. We've known him forever. He's not a stinkin' Grimm.”

Jack ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes. “I hate this. I don't know who to trust, Maggie. Everybody looks suspicious to me. Half the time, I can't even sleep at night. I worry someone will break in and hurt you.”

I touched his arm. “The last thing we need to do is toss aside our friends. Yes, there are bad things out there, but Seth's always had our back.”

“You're right.” His fists clenched and unclenched at his side. “I'll apologize. But do me a favor?”

“Sure.”

“Be careful.” Jack tugged on my hair then headed back to the lunchroom.

For some reason, I didn't think this was the end of it. The Grimms kept ruining everything.

From down the hallway, I caught Connor staring at me. He juggled his books in his hands. I noticed the wrapping on his forearm. I gasped. He waved at me then disappeared down the hall.

My mind raced. This was getting ridiculous. Who could I trust? Maybe it explained why he'd suddenly become so interested in me. But it didn't make sense—he was supposed to be Kat's happy ending. The Godmother power wouldn't screw up this bad, would it?

****

Seth caught me at my locker after school. “Hey, can I give you a lift home?”

“I thought you totaled your bike?”

“Mom let me take the truck.” He took my backpack out of my arms.

I closed my locker door. “In that case, I'd love a ride.”

He led me outside to a brand new, shiny black truck. He opened the door for me and slid the bag in next to my feet. His hand grazed my leg.

My breath caught in my throat as I glanced at him. Dark hair fell across his forehead. With trembling fingers, I brushed it aside.

With a lopsided grin he asked, “You ready to go?”

My face burned. I pulled my hand back. “Yeah, whenever you are.”

Seth walked around to the other side of the truck, climbed into the driver's seat, and started the engine. He waited for me to get my seatbelt on before he pulled onto the main drag. He flipped on the radio and rock music filled the cab.

“Listen, I wanted to apologize for leaving in such a hurry last night.” Seth signaled a left turn.

“Apology accepted.” I gawked at him, watching his arms flex as he turned the corner. “I was worried for you.”

He chuckled. “Well don't be. I just felt sick and wanted to leave before I hurled everywhere. Didn't think I'd make much of an impression on you if I vomited in public.”

He winked and my pulse quickened. I shifted my glance out the window. The overcast sky threatened rain. What was he trying to tell me? “You wanted to make an impression on me?”

“Maybe.” His voice softened.

I kneaded my hands together in my lap. Why had it taken me sixteen years to realize how totally hot Seth was?
Please let him like me too
.
This seemed insane. Best friends weren't supposed to be into each other.
But then why can't I stop thinking
about
him
?

“I hope you don't mind, but I need to swing by my house to drop off the extra house key for my mom,” he said.

“No problem.”

After a couple of miles, Seth eased the truck into his driveway. He got out and opened the garage door.
Oh my
. Inside sat the mangled piece of metal that used to be his motorcycle. I jerked the door open and followed him.

“Oh my—Seth.” My gaze met his. “Ho—how did you survive?”

He shrugged. “Luck.”

“What happened?”

“I'm not real sure. One minute I was fine, the next I felt really sick at the Exhibit. Like someone zapped me or something.”

I went still. Did my magic make him ill? What if his accident had been my fault?

My voice cracked with emotion. “Did another car hit you?”

“Everything got hazy when I left. There was fog and the next thing I knew, something rammed into me.”

I clutched my chest. I couldn't breathe. Crap. This was my fault. The Grimms targeted him
because of me
.

Seth caught me by the elbow. “Mags, you okay?”

“Yes.” I gave him a shaky smile.
No, I wasn't okay
. If the Grimms hurt Seth, who else would they come after? Mom? Grandma? Taylor?

Seth's brow furrowed. “You look like you're gonna pass out. Do you want to come in and sit for a few minutes?”

“No, really. I'm fine.”

After another quick once-over, he walked inside to drop off the key. We headed back out.

The moment he parked in front of my house, I slid from the truck. I reached back in to grab my school stuff.

“You can come in if you want. Mom and Jack are both gone.”

He laughed as he shut off the engine. “Are you hitting on me?”

“No.” I totally was.

“So you're not interested in the least?” He hopped out of the truck and followed me as I walked to the house.

I spun around, my fist raised, ready to sock him in the chest. He caught my hand and brought it to his mouth. His warm lips pressed against my knuckles. My body burned as if I'd walked through a bonfire. I'd never wanted anyone more than I wanted him now. I swallowed, hard.

“What if I was interested?” I finally said.

He smiled but said nothing. Instead, we pushed into the foyer where I dumped my backpack on the bench and headed into the kitchen. I grabbed us both a cola and walked into the family room.

We sat down on the couch. He pushed his knee against mine. For a second, I couldn't focus. He was so close. My nerve endings pulsed from the contact.

“We're not going to be weird with each other now, are we?” I asked. “Because, after the kiss—”

He set his soda down onto the coffee table and moved in closer. He stroked my face. “No. We'll never be weird.”

I stared at his lips. My stomach fluttered. We moved in. I wanted him to kiss me so bad. He tilted my head back, his breath warm against my face. He bent his neck down and pressed his lips against mine.

His cell phone went off. He groaned. He pulled it from his pocket, eyes narrowed when he stared at the display screen. He flipped it open. “Hello.” His face darkened as he stood up. “I already told you, I won't have any part in it.” He hung up.

“What was that about? Are you okay?”

Seth grabbed his jacket from the back of the couch. “I've got to go. I promise, we'll finish this soon.”

I tailed him upstairs. “Who was that on the phone?”

“My dad.” He snorted. “I've been summoned.”

“Summoned?”

“Take care of yourself, Maggie. And stick close to Jack.” His voice sounded urgent.

I wanted to ask him what he meant, but he left before I could press him further.