“Sorry I didn’t get here sooner,” his voice sounded tight with anger. “He didn’t… do anything?”
“Nah.” She shook her head reassuringly. Then she looked up at him, remembering; confusion drawing her brows together. “Something weird did happen though.”
“What?” Stellan frowned.
“I totally threw Teagan across the room. Effortless. You see the wall.” She gestured to the cracks and peeling paint.
Stellan laughed and sat down beside her, picking up the discarded panda bear with no name. “Maybe it just means you’ll be kick-ass after you’ve fed and are one of us.”
Eden wasn’t so convinced. In all the stories, in all the times she’d met other people like them, some already full blown creatures of the Blessed and others still awaiting the awakening, she’d never heard of someone who hadn’t even fed on their first soul yet taking down one of the Blessed. Eden groaned and flopped back on her mattress. “I’m not ready, Stellan. I don’t care what you promised Ryan and Ceecee.”
Stellan snorted. “I told you not to let her hear you call her that.”
“Whatever.”
“Come on, Paradise.” He nudged her, his dopey smile making her grin back up at him. “Do this for me. Just let me try to change your mind, OK? Who knows… if you become one of the Blessed you’ll probably be strong enough to kick Teagan’s ass and change Ryan’s mind about the betrothal.”
Eden froze. “You think?”
Stellan’s grin widened. “Totally.”
She mused over this for a moment. That was tempting. Really tempting.
Stellan nudged her leg. “Well? Will you let me try?”
As his warm grey eyes washed over her face, she thought about how cool and kind her brother was to her. He always had been. And he didn’t kill people… he just did what his nature compelled him to. He wasn’t a bad guy right? And maybe if she did this, if she did the Awakening Ceremony, all her anxieties and worries and guilt would just… melt away.
“OK.”
***
That night someone opened the iron door, leaving it open a moment too long. The scream that wrenched through the mansion made Eden stiffen in her bed. She heard the horrified plea just as the iron door slammed shut, a frightening hush descending over the house. Try as she might, Eden couldn’t get the picture of the red-headed woman out of her head.
Worse. She wasn’t a little girl anymore. She had the power to do something. To help whatever poor soul was trapped down there at the mercy of Ryan and Teagan’s perversions.
But she was so scared.
Burrowing deeper into her duvet, Eden began to cry softly into her pillow to muffle the sound.
No matter what she promised Stellan, she didn’t know if she could do it.
I can’t do it.
Chapter Four. BFF
Eden shrugged off the prickling sensation on the back of her neck that told her she was being followed by one of her dad’s goons. She picked up her pace, letting her long hair fall in a dark curtain around her face. Not that that would do anything. Bozo behind her would just pick up his pace and… well… her hair was what pretty much gave her away since she was the only one in the family with hair as black as midnight.
“Hey, Winslow!”
Eden glanced up and smirked at Noah. He stood by one of the bench seats at the lake, ignoring the Saltonians who had decided to take a Saturday morning stroll too. A sense of peace flooded Eden’s chest even as the hunger snapped from somewhere deep inside her. She reached him with a wry smile on her face. “S’up dude.” She nudged him with her shoulder, and then gave a little jerk of her head. “Just a warning, we have a Code Goon a few yards behind us.”
Noah frowned and checked out of the goon with barely a flicker of his eyes. She had no idea how he did that. He was so cool and surreptitious. “Clocked him.” He nodded grimly and started walking in the opposite direction. Eden dug her hands into her jacket pockets and followed. “I thought you were going to talk to your dad about that?”
Eden sighed. “Ryan and I aren’t exactly on speaking terms these days.”
They were silent a while as they walked the path along the lake. Subconsciously they moved closer together when they recognised a couple of seniors from school. The group just stared at them with disgust, their eyes washing over Eden and Noah dressed in black, while they popped in their yellows and pinks and blues. There were no comments made, however. None ever were when Noah was actually in the vicinity. While Eden found Noah’s company soothing, others were a little wary of him. He had this dangerous teen vibe thing going. Eden had told him on more than one occasion that he should trade in his car for a motorcycle.
They passed the group and Eden remained silent. She felt Noah glance sharply at her. “Are you OK? You’ve been quiet all week.”
Eden sighed again. She and Noah didn’t really talk about their parents. Noah’s mom and dad were academics and socially inept, so Noah had never invited her over to his house because his parents wouldn’t like it. And Eden had never invited Noah over to her house because she didn’t want him to die. But sometimes all she ever wanted to do was tell him the truth… maybe just to have someone to talk to. And maybe just to see how far she could push their friendship; to test him. In the end, Eden would never tell him because Noah knowing the truth was dangerous, and she would never do anything to put him in jeopardy. Ryan would hurt him. She knew deep in her bones that if he got the chance, Ryan would do what he had to, to cut her off from all human emotion. He was aware of Noah. The fact that he allowed her to hang out with him told Eden he was hoping Noah was going to be the one to push Eden to her limits. Bastard. He was so twisted. No wonder she was messed up. “If I ask you a question, will you promise not to judge?”
She saw the concern flicker in Noah’s eyes but he nodded quietly.
“Do you think… do you think it’s possible to hate your parents?”
He smirked. “Of course.”
“No, Noah.” Eden shook her head, swallowing back the bitter rage. “I mean… really hate them.”
She felt his eyes on her face, studying her intently and she flushed. Finally he sighed heavily. “I don’t know what to tell you. I guess, I don’t know.”
“But what about you? How do you feel about your parents?”
“Eden, look-”
“I know we have this unwritten rule that our parents are off limits but I’m not asking for anything, Noah, I just want to know… do you love them?” This time she looked him straight in the eye. For a moment he didn’t say anything and she got lost in the clearness of his gaze. The colour had always amazed her, not blue, or purple, but pale violet. But it wasn’t just the colour. There was so much going on behind them and yet there was no deceit there. No hate. No sociopathic blankness. And now, pushing out into the fore was a sadness. A sadness for her.
“I don’t talk about my parents much because there isn’t a lot to say. However, I also don’t talk about them much because I know you don’t have a great relationship with yours, and me and my mom and dad are really good friends. I love them, Eden. I’d die for them.”
For some reason that made her want to cry. Her throat started closing and she began blinking rapidly to stop the tears.
“Hey dude,” he teased, nudging her gently. “I don’t judge you for hating your parents right now. I know they’re pissing you off.”
Frustration gnawed at her and she wanted to scream at him that he didn’t know anything. She wanted to tell him the truth about who they were, what they wanted of her, what her father intended for her. She laughed humourlessly, bitterness ringing in the sound. Noah flinched a little, concern tightening his jaw. “You have no idea, Noah. No idea.”