Intertwined (16 page)

“She’s such a riot, that one.”

“So you’re not enemies?” And why did she suddenly want them to be? What was wrong with her? Were the two dating? Her teeth ground together.

“No. Vlad, the first of the vampires, gave the same blood he had drunk, the blood that changed him, to his beloved pets. They, too, began to change. Soon they were able to take human form, though they retained their animal instincts. In those early days, they were vicious, ferocious, and would try and eat everyone they encountered. Those people who were attacked, the ones that survived, began to change, as well, though they retained their human instincts. Those are
my
people. Vlad helped them, nursed them. In return, my people pledged to protect his.”

All that history was fascinating. Scary, but fascinating. And yet that wasn’t what her mind focused on. “So why’d you decide to reveal yourself to me now?”

“Because,” was all he said, eyes narrowing.

“Why?” she insisted. So that he could finally touch her with his hands? A girl could dream. Her eyes widened. Where were these thoughts coming from?

“Because. Now, I believe you were going to tell me what you were talking about earlier.”

Frus-trat-ing. But she should be used to his lack of
response. Clearly Riley felt entitled to all the info she possessed, but didn’t think it was necessary to return the favor.

He’d said he wouldn’t hurt Aden, but would he help her help him? She could use all the help she could get, and she
did
trust him. Sighing, she told him some of what Aden was going through. “I think we need to find out, if at all possible, exactly who the people inside him are. The best place to start is with Aden’s parents. From there, we can find out where he was born and who was around him. Only problem is, I don’t know who his parents are.”

“Call and ask him.” He nudged her with his shoulder.

For a moment, she remained unmoving. He’d purposely touched her. And his skin, even through their clothing, had been hot. Wonderfully hot. “I can’t. He lives at a ranch for kids who’ve been in trouble with the law and stuff. A phone call from a girl could maybe get him kicked out since he’s not supposed to think about dating, but about improving his future.”

“You told me you weren’t dating him.” Riley said it quietly, but the words were no less intense.

“I’m not. I was just explaining what the man in charge of his care might think.” Why did Riley care if she was dating Aden? For the same reason she cared if he was dating Victoria?
Don’t think about that now
. She pondered her options with Aden and almost clapped when an idea took root. “
You
could visit him without causing any problems. You could ask him about his parents for me.”

Riley was shaking his head before she finished her sentence. “Hell, no.”

“Please. You can run to him and run back to me in no time. I’ve seen how fast you are. Please,” she repeated. “Helping Aden will be beneficial to me, as well, you know. The more we learn about his abilities, the more we could learn about mine.”

He scowled. “Stop batting those lashes at me. I’m immune to feminine wiles.”

She was batting her lashes? And she had wiles? She wanted to grin. “I could find out tomorrow at school, I guess. I probably won’t get any sleep tonight, my mind will be so active. And of course, lack of sleep will affect my English test, which is sure to bring down my perfect grade. But I’m sure I’ll get over it. Eventually.”

For a long while, there was only silence.

“I am such a moron.” Riley scowled at her and stood, striding to the bathroom to remove his clothes. “You’ll owe me for this,” he called.

So she really
did
have wiles. This time, she wanted to laugh.

A
DEN HAD THE PAPERS
he’d printed off at school, research about Vlad the Impaler, hidden in his geometry book as he lounged on his bed. This was his first peaceful moment since returning home. He’d had homework to complete and chores to do. During said chores, Ozzie had threatened him again—this time with decapitation—if Aden ratted about how he was buying his drugs.

The boy had sounded desperate, and Aden figured it was only a matter of time before Ozzie tried to get rid of him. Not by killing him, of course. Ozzie wasn’t a murderer. At least, he didn’t think so. But a liar? Yeah. Perhaps Ozzie would hide
drugs in Aden’s room and send Dan looking for them. Perhaps he’d just claim he’d seen Aden do something vile.

He’d have to stay on guard.

As for now, this moment, he was determined to relax. With a sigh, he buried his nose in the book. But relaxing, he soon realized, was nothing more than a dream. The more he read, the more he realized Victoria was right to fear what her father would do to him if he proved less than useful. A knife in the heart, perhaps, for that was how he would die. Or would the vampire king simply torture him, as was his habit?

Vlad Tepes, Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia, Vlad the Impaler, Dracula, had been known—when he’d been human—for his cruel punishments. He’d loved impaling his enemies and leaving them out in the open to die slowly and painfully. Allegedly, he’d done this to over forty thousand men and women.

Not like Aden could really say anything. He cut the heads off corpses. Still.

Some people believed the warrior had been killed in battle against the Ottoman Empire; some believed he’d been assassinated. Bram Stoker had been the first to immortalize him as a vampire, and Aden had to wonder why. Had the two actually crossed paths?

A scratching at the window had him bolting upright. He glanced at the clock. 9:00 p.m. Could it be Victoria? She’d never come to him so early, but her father could have decided it was time to eliminate him. Had she come to warn him?

What has you so afraid?
Eve asked.

“An overactive imagination,” he said, forcing himself to calm.

A paw met the glass and the scratching began again. Frowning, he stood and padded over. A stray animal?

When he saw Mary Ann’s wolf, he jolted backward.

More scratching.

So. The wolf had finally come for him. The night would only be better if Vlad decided to join the party. Aden grabbed his daggers from the insides of the boots he’d pushed against his bed.

Since Aden had broken the lock, the wolf was able to pry the window open with his paws. Aden remained in place, armed, ready. This wasn’t how Elijah had predicted his death, so perhaps he’d just be mauled. That didn’t lessen his determination to defend himself however necessary.

Rather than leap at him, though, the wolf remained outside and peered into the bedroom. A tense moment passed in silence. Then:
Do you know your parents’ names?

The voice drifted through his head, but that wasn’t what held him immobile with shock and disbelief. His parents? Really? “Look, I’m sorry about your leg. I went back to bandage you up but you were already gone. I didn’t want to hurt you that day but you gave me no choice. You were going to kill me. I had to do something. Just like I’ll do something tonight if you attack.”

You and I will settle that soon, but not now. Now I need to know if you know your parents’ names.

Confusion beat against the shock and disbelief.
What
was going on here? “No. I don’t. They were just Mom and Dad,
and I was three last time I saw them.” He could have asked one of his caseworkers for their names, but hadn’t allowed himself to do so. They hadn’t cared about him, so he wouldn’t care about them. “Now, if you want a fight, you won’t walk away unscathed.”

Could you be any more uncooperative? I’m trying to help you here.

“Yeah. Right.”

With a growl, the wolf twisted around and raced off.

M
ARY
A
NN WAS AT HER DESK
running a Google search on the best way to track down a birth certificate when Riley reappeared.

He doesn’t know.

She rubbed her temples. “I was afraid of that. Did he know where he was born, at least?”

Riley had been stalking toward his discarded clothes, but stopped.
I didn’t ask him.

“Oh. Well, I’ll ask him tomorrow, I guess. If he doesn’t know that either, it’ll be okay. We’re going to order his birth certificate. It’ll give us his parents’ address, as well as the hospital he was born at. I just need his driver’s license. Do you think he has one? If he does, I can get that tomorrow, too. If he doesn’t…I don’t know what I’ll do.” She pushed out a frustrated breath. “Waiting is going to be hard. I wonder if I’ll sleep, after all.”

Riley ran his tongue over his teeth and jumped back through the window.

T
HE SCRATCHING STARTED UP
again.

Aden stormed over, ready this time. He had a dagger hidden at his side. “Decide you want a piece of me, after all?”

Do you know the name of the hospital where you were born?

This became more confusing by the moment. “No. Why do you care?”

Do you have a driver’s license?
The wolf sounded irritated and out of breath.

“Yes. But I’m not allowed to drive. It’s only for identification.” He’d gotten it a few days before coming to the ranch. He’d been one question away from failing the written test, the souls “helping” him with his answers, but had aced the driving itself. Everyone had loved the illusion of freedom and had been quiet, lost in the moment.

Aden,
the wolf snapped.
Concentrate. I need you to give me your license
.

“Why?”

Mary Ann wants to order a copy of your birth certificate. Since you don’t know who your parents are, I’m guessing you don’t have one handy.

Wait. Mary Ann wanted his birth certificate? That had to mean she believed him. That had to mean she was going to help him. He wanted to laugh—even though he’d told her to stay away from the beast, not recruit it to his cause. “No, I don’t. But I’m not giving you the license until I hear from her. I don’t trust you.”

Well, you’d better start, because she’s trying to help you
and your friends and won’t be able to sleep until she has that license. I don’t like the thought of her tossing and turning.

She’d told the wolf about the souls; she’d confided his darkest secrets to his enemy. Aden waited for a sense of betrayal to overtake him, but it never did. She was trying to help him. Nothing else mattered.

“What does the name of the hospital I was born at matter? What do my parents matter?”

You’ll have to ask her.

“I will.” Aden crossed the room to his desk and dug through the top drawer for the requested item. “Here.” He held it out and the wolf clasped it between his teeth. “I don’t want her tossing and turning either. If you hurt her—”

She has nothing to fear from me, human. I wish I could say the same about you.

H
ERE YOU GO
. Riley dropped the license in her lap.

Mary Ann bent down and hugged him. “Thank you.”

My pleasure,
he said, purring against her hair.

Now that she’d seen his human form, the action made her want things she shouldn’t. Things she didn’t want to name, not to Riley and certainly not to herself. But she couldn’t help but wonder if Riley wanted those unmentionable things, as well.

Why else would he hang out with her so much? Unless…

She pulled back, a smile frozen on her face. Did she make him feel calm, as she did with Aden and apparently Tucker? Was it part of his job, something that helped him protect Victoria?

That was
not
what she wanted.

The fake smile fell away. She faced her computer to hide her now-pinched expression. “All I have to do is send a note with my request, a copy of a photo ID and ten dollars, then boom, his birth certificate is mine. Can you believe that? I’m going to order mine, too, since apparently my dad lost it.”

From the corner of her eye, she saw Riley back away from her, shake his head.
I have to go. The clothes I’ll leave behind. Hide them from your dad.

“He’d freak out if he found them, that’s for sure. He’d only just gotten used to the idea of me dating Tucker. If he knew a boy was actually sneaking inside my bedroom…” She shuddered. “I’d be placed on total lockdown.”

Your dad’s reaction to Tucker’s appearance would not have come close to mine. But like I said, hide the clothes. I’ll need them next time I’m over.

Next time. He was coming back; she would see him again. Maybe by then she’d have her new, silly feelings for him under control. “I will.”

Oh, don’t worry that the underwear is missing. I don’t wear any. See you tomorrow, Mary Ann.

T
HE NEXT MORNING
,
Aden did a double take as he arrived at school. Victoria stood just outside the front doors. What was she doing out in public? Everyone could see her—and every boy that passed her couldn’t help but stare.

Shock pounded through him, an urge to hide her riding fast on its heels, and he quickened his step. Mary Ann had to run to keep up. They’d met in the forest, halfway between their houses, and had walked the rest of the way together in a rare moment of privacy. Shannon had stayed home sick. The wolf was also absent. She’d grumbled about him the entire way, wondering where he was, what he was doing and why he wasn’t with her. There hadn’t been an opportunity to thank her for deciding to help him.

“What are you—oh,” Mary Ann panted. Was that excitement in her voice?

He followed the line of her gaze. The boy Aden had seen
with Victoria that day in the forest—Riley, the bodyguard—stood beside the vampire, clearly angry to be there.

But Aden was more interested in Victoria. Today she wore a glittery black shirt that hung midthigh like a dress, a pair of black tights and slippers with little bows on top. Her blue-streaked hair was pulled back in a ponytail that swung behind her. The only thing that was the same was her opal ring.

She noticed his scrutiny and shifted from one foot to the other. “These new clothes are uncomfortable, but for once we were concerned with fitting in. Do you like them?”

“You’re beautiful.” And she was.

Her lips slowly lifted into a smile. “Thank you.”

“Hello, Riley,” Mary Ann said to the bodyguard.

Riley nodded in greeting. “Mary Ann.” Was that gruff affection in his voice?

Aden frowned, his attention whipping to her. “You know him?”

She nodded, gaze not leaving the boy. Man. Whatever he was. He looked older and harder than all the guys entering the building. “You know him, too. He’s the one you warned me away from. Don’t worry, though,” she rushed to assure him. “He won’t hurt us.”

The only person—thing—he’d warned her away from was the werewolf. With that thought, Aden sucked in a breath. The werewolf. Riley the bodyguard was the werewolf?

He moved in front of both girls, splaying his arms, and studied the boy, this human version of the big, black animal.

“As Mary Ann just told you, I’m not going to hurt them,” Riley said, rolling his eyes.

Aden remained in place. His gaze landed and remained on Riley’s legs. There wasn’t a bumpy area to indicate bandages.

“I heal quickly,” Riley explained with only the barest hint of anger. “Only limped for a day.” He shrugged. “Or two.”

This was so unexpected. Surreal, unbelievable.

“Eve?” Aden said aloud, and Riley frowned.

Yes,
Eve responded.

The only time Mary Ann had failed to banish the souls was when she’d been with the werewolf. That meant the wolf somehow negated her ability, the same way Mary Ann usually negated Aden’s.

When he’d considered Shannon the wolf, he’d thought that Shannon, in human form, simply could not affect Mary Ann—and therefore Aden—in any way. But Riley did, even in human form.

Which meant Aden was indeed standing in front of the “vicious and bloodthirsty” creature that hated him. The vicious and bloodthirsty creature that had helped him last night.

Aden?
Eve prompted.
Did you need something?

“Oh. Sorry. I was just checking to see if you were with me or in the black hole,” he muttered.

“Who are you speaking to?” Riley demanded as Eve said,
I want to talk about Mary Ann. There’s so much I
—

Who to answer first? “A friend,” he told Riley. “And Eve, you know I can’t talk to you in public. Please understand.”

She growled at him, not unlike the wolf had in their prior encounters, but lapsed into silence.

“Actually, I shouldn’t be speaking to any of you. Not here.” Aden scanned the area, said, “This way,” and took Victoria and Mary Ann by the hand, leading them under the towering oak that shaded the side of the building.

A frowning Riley followed. His narrowed gaze remained on Aden and Mary Ann’s twined fingers until Aden released her.

“What’s going on here?” Mary Ann kicked a pebble with the toe of her shoe, looking nervous, unsure. If Aden wasn’t mistaken, she was watching Riley through her lashes.

Poor Mary Ann. She obviously liked the boy, yet Aden knew that wouldn’t end well for her. One day soon she would find herself running through the woods, tears streaming down her cheeks, Riley the wolf chasing her. To hurt her?

Or maybe to comfort her, he thought suddenly. Stranger things had happened. Obviously.

“I’ll explain in a moment. Introductions are in order first, I think,” Victoria said, breaking the awkward silence.

How could he have forgotten? “Victoria, this is Mary Ann,” he said. “Mary Ann, this is Victoria. Everyone but me already knows Riley, apparently.”

“Nice to meet you,” Mary Ann said.

Victoria nodded, her gaze darting between Mary Ann and Aden. “You, as well. I’ve heard much about you.” Her tone was far from welcoming.

Was she…jealous?

“I don’t see any…I mean…” Mary Ann’s cheeks bloomed with color. “Never mind.”

“They are retracted,” Victoria explained. “They elongate when the hunger comes upon me.”

Mary Ann covered her neck with her hand. “Oh.”

“She won’t bite you,” Aden said.

Victoria didn’t offer an assurance of her own. Maybe she
was
jealous. He wanted to grin.

He studied each of the people around him, marveling. How diverse they were. A beautiful vampire, a mysterious shape-shifter, and a seemingly normal teenage girl. They hadn’t known each other long, not really. Strange how he’d already come to feel so close to them. Well, two of them, anyway.

“You told me werewolves were vicious,” he said to Victoria. “If that’s the case, why is one guarding you?”

Her mouth kicked up at one corner. “He
is
vicious. To everyone but me, that is. And that’s exactly why he’s my guard.”

Excellent point. That didn’t mean he liked it. “What about Mary Ann?”

“I told you. I would never hurt her,” Riley said, offended.

“That’s good to know. But if you ever change your mind, I’ll make you regret it.” He stated it matter-of-factly. Because that’s what it was: a fact. He didn’t have many friends, and those he had he would protect with his life.

Riley traced his tongue over his sharp, white teeth. “Are you threatening me, little boy?”

“Hey, now,” Mary Ann said. “None of that. You two need
to play nice. Riley, Aden is only looking out for me. Aden, you remember how Riley helped you last night, right?”

“Yes,” he said grudgingly. Between her questions about the wolf, Mary Ann had told him that when his birth certificate arrived, they were going to hunt down his parents. As grateful as he was to her and as brilliant as he found her plan, he wished he were more excited about it. Actually, any emotion besides dread would have been welcome. But he just couldn’t work up a single ounce of enthusiasm at the prospect of meeting the people who had abandoned him.

“Since we’re on the hurt-a-girl-and-pay subject, you should know that I take my job seriously,” Riley said, the warning clear. “Harm Victoria, I won’t just make you regret. I’ll hang you by your own intestines while you’re still alive.”

Mary Ann’s eyes rounded, as big as saucers. Had the wolf scared her? Part of him hoped so. She needed to know what kind of person—thing—she thought to call friend.

Riley noticed her expression and offered her a half smile. “Sorry. I’ll make it quick and painless, okay?”

“You shouldn’t threaten,” she said. Rather than fear, he heard anger in her voice. A whole lot of anger. So why was she looking at Victoria now, rather than Riley?

Aden replayed the conversation through his mind and realized she hadn’t liked the way Riley had rushed to the vampire’s defense. Jealousy must be contagious, because they all seemed to have caught it.

“I would never hurt Victoria,” Aden assured him. “You, on the other hand…” He would not back down and Riley needed
to know that. He had his daggers, and he wasn’t afraid to use them. Even here.

Victoria stepped forward and placed her hand on Aden’s shoulder. He felt the burn of it, the sweet sizzle, and his attention swung to her, the werewolf momentarily forgotten.

Her ocean-water eyes glowed. He couldn’t have turned away to save himself from a bullet to the head. Just then they were the only two people alive, transported back to their pond, splashing and laughing and brushing against each other. He’d held her, had almost kissed her.

“He will not attack you here,” she said. “You have my word.”

A gust of wind swirled between them, lifting her hair and casting several locks in his direction. They danced across his cheek, tickling.

“Now. Let’s talk about something other than your intentions toward each other,” she suggested.

“I’m all for that,” Mary Ann said. Her anger appeared to have drained. “What are you guys doing here? Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy you’re here.” She flicked Riley a glance. “I just can’t figure out why you are.”

A tremor moved through Victoria and she dropped her arm, focus wavering between Aden’s face and his neck. “You know how I told you that my people sensed you?”

He nodded. Was she thinking of drinking from him?

“Well…we weren’t the only ones. Others have arrived.” Concern radiated from her as she leaned into him, careful not to make contact. “Goblins, fairies, witches,” she whispered. “They’re searching for the source of the lure.”

Dear God. More creatures? And they were searching for him? Aden shook his head, wishing the bombshell Victoria had just dropped could be dislodged and lost. Wishing he could forget the trouble that was sure to come. How much more could he take?

“We were raised among them and know how they operate,” she continued. “They’ll want to capture you. Study you.”

“That’s why we,” Riley said, butting in, “are here to protect the two of you from being taken or injured by these creatures.”

He laughed until he realized the werewolf was serious. “I can take care of myself.” He’d been doing it his entire life.

“Regardless.” Riley shrugged. “Orders are orders. Vlad doesn’t want you harmed before he’s had the chance to meet you.”

Aden tossed up his arms. “Why can’t he meet me now?”

Riley ignored him. “And you,” he said to Mary Ann, “are Aden’s closet friend, which means you could be used to get to him. Which is why you’ll be protected, too.”

She nodded and it looked like she was fighting a smile.

So did Riley. “The good news is, Victoria and I are now students here. You’ll be seeing a lot more of us.”

Victoria, with him all day? Okay. Maybe being hunted by goblins, fairies and witches wasn’t such a bad thing. Still…“I haven’t seen anyone suspicious.” Or different, for that matter. Wait. That wasn’t true. The old lady at the shopping center, the girl that first day here at the school and then the boy pretending to be John O’Conner. They glittered and pulsed with energy.

What if
they
were goblins, fairies or witches? But they hadn’t tried to hurt him or Mary Ann.

Again, Riley shrugged. “You might not have noticed them, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t seen
you
.”

He scrubbed a hand over his face. “What do those creatures want with me?”

“The same thing we did, I’m sure.” Victoria twirled her ponytail around her fingers. “To figure out how you blasted that energy, how you hurt them with it. And how you’re still humming with a strange sort of power. Except,” she added, tilting her head, “when you’re with Mary Ann. Only then does it stop. Well, except when Riley is with you. Why is that?”

“I don’t know.” But he wanted to figure it out. “What can you tell me about those I’m up against?”

“With witches, you must be careful.” Victoria clasped his hand briefly in warning. “They can smile while cursing you. Goblins enjoy eating human flesh. Unlike vampires, they do not take only a few pints of blood and walk away. They eat the entire body. Fairies are equally powerful, their beauty a mask for their treacherous hearts.” She had spat the word
fairies
.

“Don’t like fairies much, I take it?” Mary Ann said, brow arched.

Riley nodded. “They are our worst enemy.”

Even though Aden had dealt with weirdness his entire life, he realized anew that there was a whole world he knew nothing about. He might not want to learn it all, but he had to, every little detail.

“I spoke to my father yesterday,” Victoria began.

“Victoria,” Riley snapped.

“What? He needs to know.”

“You father will not like an outsider knowing of his frailty.”

“Aden won’t use the information against him.” Once again she reached out and squeezed Aden’s hand. “Anyway, during Samhain—Halloween, you humans call it—my father will officially rise. In honor of that, he is hosting a ball and it is there that he wishes to meet with you.”

There was a catch, he knew there was. There was too much guilt in her tone. Then her words sank in and he gaped at her. “You father, Vlad the Impaler, wants to meet with me on Halloween night? And what do you mean, he will officially rise? I thought he was alive and well.”

“Yes, he does want to meet you, and by rise I mean just that. For the past decade, he has been in hibernation to calm his mind, to prevent his too-long lifetime of memories from driving him insane. Your energy woke him early, though his body is—and will continue to be—weakened until the ceremony.”

Good lord. He’d woken a beast. Literally. No wonder Vlad had wanted to kill him at first.

“I’m asking you to please come,” Victoria said. “Do not try and thwart him. You will not like the consequences.”

Had she ever tried to thwart the man? he wondered as he peered into her now-haunted eyes. What had been done to her in punishment? Perhaps it was best that he didn’t know. If Vlad had hurt her, Aden would want to kill
him
. And if he tried to kill the king of the vampires, even in the man’s weakened
condition, he’d most likely be chopped into little Aden bits and scattered throughout Crossroads.