Traitor (17 page)

His smile was as bad as Liam’s. It was totally infectious. Why hadn’t he utilized this sooner? I could feel myself grinning, even through the odd interactions. Aiden nodded and continued. “This place is so different. I don’t know what I was expecting. Maybe nothing. It never occurred to me I’d see Liam and Mum again. I figured Neamar was all I had.”

“Funny how things change.”

He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans, as he seemed to take everything that surrounded us in. “Some stay the same. Mum can still cook.”

I laughed. “Yeah, she definitely can.”

We both nodded absentmindedly. My eyes wandered to Liam’s window. Warm light bathed the sides of the windowpane, and I could still hear music. It wasn’t as angry as before, but I knew he was probably hurting.

Aiden must have noticed my distraction because I heard him grunt as he pushed off his perch. I looked around and found his hand extended to help me up. “You probably want to go see Liam after everything that’s gone on today.”

I smiled. “He needed some space earlier, but I think he’s probably good now.”

“I’ll have to learn his nuances from you, won’t I?”

“Brothers always know better than anyone else.”

A darkness covered Aiden’s eyes, but disappeared quickly. “Brothers usually spend a lot of time together. I’m painfully behind at the moment.”

“You have all the time in the world now.”

Aiden smiled, and I couldn’t help but notice the similarity in the likeness of Liam’s and Aiden’s smiles. They were definitely brothers. He shooed me away. “Go! I’ve stolen enough time from you. We’ll talk soon. We have a lot to discuss. I think I can probably help your cause.”

It was true; Aiden knew more about Neamar than anyone else. Anyone but Dalbach, of course, but Dalbach was still a Changeling, and not likely to divulge too much. Aiden would be great to have around. I fist bumped him and grinned. “It’d be great to have an insider.”

He winked. “Consider me the mole.”

We walked back into the house. Everyone was still in the living room, chatting in small groups. No one bothered me as I snuck down the hall. Light leaked from under Liam’s door. I knocked lightly, but there was no response.

I knew better than to think he was in another room in the house. I placed a hand on the door and talked through it. “Liam, I know you’re in there. It’s me.”

The music was low enough that I knew he heard me. I heard a shuffle, then footsteps toward the door. It swung open, and there was my Liam.

He looked at me briefly, then turned and went to his bed and plunked down. The bed creaked beneath him as it accepted his weight once more. His hands slid across his midnight blue comforter and picked up the dark wooden frame that lay beside him.

I knew that frame; I gave it to him. That was a picture of us.

I leaned against the doorframe of his bedroom as he ran a hand across the glass covering our picture. The sigh he let out was full of frustration. “Do you ever wonder if we were just an accident, Ash?”

That wasn’t a question I’d been expecting. I crossed my arms defensively, as if his words were weapons to fend off. “What do you mean by that?”

“I mean, I’m mortal. That’s it. That’s all I’ll ever be. But you…you’re already part faerie, have all these abilities, and now that Reese is protecting you, you’re free to be immortal. Emily’s immortal, Mom, Aiden, Reese, pretty much everyone in your life is immortal but me.”

“Not Desmond, Issac, or Jesse.”

Liam laughed. “They don’t want to be, either. So it doesn’t really count.”

“Really? Why don’t they want to be immortal?”

“They don’t want to watch all their loved ones die. They figure one life is enough to live. I can’t say I blame them. Maybe they’re on to something.”

It was my turn to sigh. I pushed myself off the doorframe and crossed his room quickly. Before he could protest, I curled up beside him on his bed, and he didn’t fight my embrace. It felt like second nature as I put my arm around his waist and pulled him close. “Liam, it doesn’t matter if you’re immortal or not. I love you.”

“Sometimes I wonder if you’re with me out of guilt. Reese really would be the better option.”

Silence. Why was everyone on a Reese kick today? Next time I saw the guy, I might just say something mean to offset all the pro-Reese propaganda flying around.

Liam started again and tried to disentangle himself from my arms. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything.”

I tightened my grip and hoped he’d get the hint. He didn’t need to go anywhere; he belonged beside me, as he always had. “It’s no big deal. It doesn’t change that I love you. But you should start packing because we need to get going pretty quick. Memaw doesn’t think we have too much time before we get another influx of Changelings, and unless you have a load more of those worm blades, we might be in a sticky situation.”

He repositioned himself out of my grasp and this time, I let him. He got off the bed, groaning as he went. Even though Roslin had healed his wounds, obviously muscle soreness wasn’t something she cured. I watched as he fidgeted and moved things around on his desk. He started to reorganize his already alphabetized CD collection that lined the wall above his desk. “Ash, I called Jesse. After talking with him, I think I’m gonna stay behind. He and I are going to watch Mum’s house while you’re gone. Makes sense. Someone has to, right?” He tried to fasten on a convincing smile when he turned to face me once more. It didn’t reach his eyes, and it definitely wasn’t convincing.

“Liam, stop it. You’re coming with us. It’s already been decided. You’re staying with Reese and the guys.”

“All the more reason to stay here.”

Why was he making this so difficult? It was becoming hard to feel sorry for him when he was obviously doing a good job of it himself. I felt myself becoming frustrated, and Memaw’s words came back to me.
Let him go
, she’d said. It seemed like that was the only true option I had. “How are you going to get to Ohio when we’re all there?”

Liam smiled. “I doubt that will be a problem, but if the situation arises, I’ll let you know.”

He leaned in and kissed my forehead. His hands found my waist, and he squeezed gently. I loved when he did that. My breath caught in my throat and I leaned in to kiss him properly. He gave in for a short time, but then pulled away with a sigh. It looked like he was in pain. “I love you, Ash. Please don’t forget about me.”

“Hadn’t been planning on it,” I joked, moving in to kiss him passionately. “But you might need to give me a little more firepower to work with if you want to make sure you stay in the forefront of my mind.” He wasn’t going to get away with these half-kisses he was giving me.

His hands pushed against me at first, but it didn’t take long for his tune to change. He sighed under my touch, and his breath swept across my neck as he moved to kiss my jaw line. We shuffled back across the room and I felt my heels knock against the bed frame. He turned, and I pushed him down onto the bed. I grinned proudly at him as his eyes burned with passion I hadn’t seen for a long time. “There’s the Liam I know. You shouldn’t make me have to work so hard for it, that’s supposed to be your job,” I murmured as I kissed his neck.

Once more he sighed and rolled out from underneath me. “Ash, you need to go. I’ll miss you.”

When I looked into his eyes, the blue was no longer liquid, but just hard sapphires. They reminded me of Aiden’s eyes. He’d made up his mind, and there was no talking him out of it. He could be so stubborn once he made a decision. I bit my lip. No part of me wanted to leave his side, and I ached from knowing that this might be our longest goodbye yet. “Okay. I hope you change your mind and come to Ohio. We’ll have a bed waiting.”

As I walked out, I looked back once more. His head was down, but I could have sworn I saw a tear drop to the floor. He’d deny it.

“I love you, Liam.”

He didn’t look up, but the fervor in his voice was unmistakable. “I love you, too, Ash. Please don’t forget it.”

E
VERYONE WAS IN
a buzz back in the living room. They didn’t seem to notice my somber mood. Personally, it felt like my insides were crumbling. Knowing that I wouldn’t have Liam there for school, for everyday life, it just made it a little harder to look forward to going home. It felt like maybe I
was
leaving home, leaving here.

There was no choice but to be strong, to be a mirror image of Memaw’s strength, but in all reality, I would rather stay here. Stay with Liam. God, why’d he have to be so difficult? I closed my eyes tight for longer than I should have. Thankfully, No one noticed.

Roslin ran around the room at warm speed as she positioned people for the departure. All of the furniture had been pushed into corners of the room. The coffee tables were stacked on top of the chairs, which gave the room an even sparser look. The fire was slowly dying in the fireplace, only partially burning embers glowed from the midst of black ash. All that was left in the suddenly large room was the forest green area rug that covered a good portion of the otherwise rustic wooden floor. Roslin had been busy.

Everywhere I looked, there was a smiling face and palpable excitement over heading into a new adventure. The rumble of chatter from the group was like a beehive bursting with activity. Desmond swapped mock punches with Reese as Memaw and Tess were in deep conversation. Aiden stood beside Tess, still and quiet. I wondered if he knew what he was getting into with our motley crew. He was the only one that seemed nervous out of our bunch besides me, but I was pretty sure we were nervous for different reasons.

Roslin brought me out of my personal mope session by bouncing in place in front of me. Her excitement over this new undertaking was tangible. Her eyes shone bright with anticipation and she rocked on the balls of her feet as she addressed everyone. “Okay, so Emily, Reese, and I will take all of us back to Ohio. Tess and Aiden, you go with Emily. Desmond and Issac, you’re with me. Ash, you’re with Reese.”

Reese beamed with enthusiasm as he bound forward and embraced me in a bear hug. My feet left the floor as he lifted me to his eye level. “Ready, Ash? I’m getting pretty good at this now.”

Roslin laughed behind him, and walked up to us. As she did, she put an arm on his shoulder. Her voice dripped with antagonism. “I’ll get there before you, and I have two people.”

There was no way Reese would ever turn down a competition, be it checkers or a crossword puzzle. Roslin had just made this a game, and Reese would be in for sure. He dusted her hand off his shoulder and crossed his arms in a tough-guy manner. Who did Reese think he was kidding; everyone knew no matter how hard he tried to be the tough guy, he was really no more than a big teddy bear. Even in my somber mood, it made me laugh, albeit a shaky one. “Whatever, Pinky. I’m gonna have Ash moved in before you show up.”

The bantering didn’t help calm my nerves. “How many times have you done this, Reese?”

His smile stretched wider. “Three. And I’m a quick learner now.” He winked at Memaw. She rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“Let’s go before Reese decides to make any more bets that could get my granddaughter accidentally sent to Timbuktu,” Memaw said, holding tight to Tess and Aiden. When she closed her eyes, all that was left was an orange wisp of her magic that lingered in the air. It sparked and crackled like the Changelings’ magic, but instead of an acrid scent, this smelled fresh and clean, like the scent of a newly peeled orange.

Reese laughed as he waved away Memaw’s trail of magic and looked back at me. “Really, she doesn’t trust me at all, does she?”

“Nope,” I said, “Not in the slightest.”

Roslin’s eyes lit up with excitement as she looked at Reese. “Ready, little grasshopper? Let’s show Emily that the joke’s on her.”

“Been ready. Don’t start crying when I beat you!”

No time to think. Reese grabbed me into his signature bear hug and we were off. The funnel twisted and turned at breakneck speeds and plastered my hair to my forehead. Reese’s bark of a laugh sounded beside me and he squeezed me tighter. “This is great!” he yelled.

I begged to differ.

Seconds later we hit the linoleum in our kitchen, scaring Mom half to death. She sloshed soapy water down the front of her shirt as she jumped in fright. One hand clutched her heart, while the other held onto the wet washcloth she’d been using to wash dishes. She didn’t seem to notice the small puddle that was growing beside her on the floor and began to soak through her woolen socks. As she took us in, she got excited. “Ashlyn? Reese? What’s going on? Why are you here? Where’s Chris?”

There wasn’t a chance to answer those questions because just then Roslin showed up with Desmond and Issac. Mom was nonplussed. She shook her rag in their direction, and the water splashed Reese and I. “And who are these people?”

Again, as I opened my mouth to speak, Memaw walked in from outside, towing Tess and Aiden with her. When I glanced at Aiden, he was a light color of green. His lips were pursed tight and he seemed to be doing everything he could to not throw up right there on my mom’s floor. As he swayed slightly, Tess put a hand on his shoulder to steady him. He looked grateful.

It seemed like that might have been his maiden voyage with that style of faerie travel. I held in a giggle. That’d be mean, and I didn’t even know him that well yet. I turned back to Mom, who looked like she was about to faint. Her face was a mixture of confusion and amusement. “What in the world?”

Roslin laughed. “It’s a long story, but would you mind if you had some houseguests?”

***

After catching Mom up on everything, she was fine. Actually, she didn’t seem shocked at all, which was pretty impressive. While Mom had proven time and again that she was tough enough to withstand the life we now had to live, Memaw and I still didn’t mention anything about Dad. That was probably good. Mom didn’t need to have that kind of information dumped on her in front of a bunch of new people. Better to find a good time to bring it up, or not talk about it at all. Memaw thought Mom was getting better about all this stuff, but I still didn’t want her to get too deep in it if it could be avoided. Someone needed to be normal, for goodness sakes.