Labyrinth: The Keeper Chronicles, a prequel
Read Labyrinth: The Keeper Chronicles, a prequel Online
Authors: Katherine Wynter
Labyrinth
The Keeper Chronicles, a prequel
Katherine Wynter
Copyright © 2015 Katherine Wynter
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13: 978-1519265005
ISBN-10: 151926500X
Praise for The Keeper Chronicles series
Five Stars
“If you’re looking for a compelling urban fantasy read with a rich plot, romance and mystery, then look no further than Awakening.”
-K.C. Finn for Readers’ Favorite
Five Stars
“A creepy and epic story to thrill urban fantasy fans from a talented narrator…”
-Self-Publishing Review
Five Stars
“Urban fantasy fans will find unique and enthralling characters in this suspenseful story…In a genre that is too often crowded with defanged vampires and misunderstood monsters, this book focuses on the dark and scary side of demons.”
– Foreword Clarion Reviews.
Also by Katherine Wynter
From Geminid Press
The Keeper Chronicles: Awakening
From Under the Moon
Blackout
Blackout: Rise of the Nano
Hunt for the Lost Raven
Table of Contents
Rebekah chewed the eraser on her pencil and read the page of her
Principles of Forensic Accounting
textbook for the fourth time. Then a fifth. Growling in frustration, she shoved her notes into the textbook and slammed the cover closed. Then she tossed it to the other side of the bed for good measure.
There. That'll teach it.
“Going that well, huh?” Sarah asked from the bunk on the opposite side of their shared dorm room, a crooked grin twisting her features. Although they had the type of bunks with a desk beneath, neither girl liked to use hers. “Couldn't be distracted by a certain boy who's your friend but not your boyfriend, could you?”
Rebekah and Sarah had shared a double room in Weatherford Hall for their freshman and sophomore years at Oregon State University, which meant they both knew each other's quirks and habits a little too well. Going to high school together didn't help either. Neither did being best friends. Okay, so Rebekah couldn't hide anything from her roommate.
“I don't know what you're talking about.” Rebekah pushed the book off to the side of the bed, then flopped back on the mattress and stared at ceiling, her dark hair spilling across the lavender sheets. Sometimes having a roommate could be annoying. “Jason and I are friends. That's it.”
Unfortunately.
“Um hum. That why you
study
together almost every day. Because you're such good friends. And you're sooooo interested in learning.” Sarah looked up from where she painted her toenails orange, her right knee tucked under her chin, and winked.
Sometimes Rebekah wished she roomed with a deaf, mute stranger. She grabbed the pillow from behind her head and threw it at her roommate.
Sarah squealed, capping her bottle of nail polish before grabbing the pillow and launching it back. “Hey, I know what’ll cheer you up. Why don't we go to a party tonight? Meet some new guys—you know, ones that might actually want to do more than just study.”
“I can't. Jason and I are supposed to meet at the library. He said he'd explain this accounting homework.” Rebekah squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the glib remark she knew was coming. After a minute, she opened her eyes to see all four-and-a-half feet of Sarah glaring up at Rebekah from the foot of her bed. For such a tiny girl, her presence commanded authority. Maybe it was her dark eyes and supermodel-like chestnut curls. Rebekah crossed her arms. “What?”
“You're coming out with me tonight.”
“I just told you why I can't.”
Sarah shook her head. “No. You're calling him right now to cancel, and then we're going to find a nice bonfire party on the beach and cozy up to some sweaty, half naked men and get trashed.”
“No. I can't. Finals are next week, and I need a good grade in my history class or I'll have to repeat it.”
“And what's your grade now?”
She hesitated. This wouldn't help her case. “97.”
Her roommate gestured for Rebekah to continue. “Okay, let's hear your next excuse.”
“I'm meeting Jason.”
“We've settled that. You're not. Next?”
Rebekah pulled her blanket up over her head, then peered out from behind it. “Accounting homework?”
Sarah shook her head no.
“Intro to Shakespearean Sonnets essay to write?”
Again, Sarah shook her head.
“I don't want to?”
Exasperated, Sarah went over to the desk and grabbed Rebekah's phone. “You leave me no choice. You'll thank me in the morning. Or not.” Sarah keyed in Rebekah's password and unlocked the phone, walking out into the hall with it.
This isn't going to be good.
Rebekah jumped down and followed her friend. “Who are you calling, Sarah?”
The girl grinned, backing further away as a couple of guys passed them in the hall. The phone rang once and then again. Rebekah heard the sound like a death knell tolling on the end of her chances with Jason. “This isn't funny, Sarah. Give me the phone.”
“Hello?”
“Hi Jason, this is Rebekah's roommate, Sarah. She wanted me to call and tell you that she can't make your study session tonight...”
“I'm going to kill you!” Rebekah hissed, though not loudly enough that he would hear.
“...because she has to go to a party. This guy—he's a senior engineering student, I think—invited her out, and between you and me, I think...”
Rebekah reached for the phone. “Hang up. Now.”
“...she's kinda into him.”
“Oh.”
Was he disappointed?
Rebekah leaned in to listen next to Sarah and gestured for her friend to continue.
“Yeah, sorry. You guys are just friends, though, right? So it’s no big deal.” Sarah adopted her most innocent tone. The kind that had gotten Rebekah blamed for whatever trouble they got into together growing up. Well, sometimes Gabe got blamed.
He paused. “Is she there? I'd like to talk to her.”
He sounds angry.
Rebekah shook her head no.
“No. She went to the showers to get ready.” Rebekah flashed a one and then a five. “She should be back in about fifteen minutes and then we're going to the beach for the bonfire. Should I tell her you'll call back?”
Another pause. “No. No, don't mention anything.”
He hung up the phone.
“And that,” Sarah beamed proudly, handing the phone back to Rebekah, “is how you do it. You can thank me now.”
Rebekah took the phone and shoved it in her pocket. “What if he doesn't come over? What if he thinks I don't like him and stops hanging around?”
Sarah shrugged. “There
is
still a party tonight. Fish in the sea and all that.”
“I thought it was supposed to storm? Are you sure a bonfire is a good idea?”
The girl winked. “What's the worst that could happen, he sees you all hot and wet? Sure. Sounds terrible. I think we should definitely hide in our room and eat cookies and watch television.”
“Well, when you put it like that, I guess I don’t really have a choice, do I?”
“Nope!” Sarah grinned and looped her arm through Rebekah’s, leading her back to their dorm. “That’s why you love me.”
“We’ll see.”
“Isn’t it a little cool for this?” Rebekah tugged down on the top of her cutoff jean shorts so the top straps of her black bikini bottoms just showed. She twisted in front of the mirror. Maybe she should get something to wear over her bikini top? “Shivering isn’t attractive.”
Sarah scoffed, checking her yellow striped sundress. “Then sit close to the fire. You’ll be fine. It’s better to be cold than dress like an old lady. Trust me.”
So no top then. Rebekah felt something tingle and glanced at her phone. Phantom ring. Jason still hadn’t called. Or texted.
Stop moping,
she chided herself, shoving the phone into her pocket.
Sarah’s right. There are plenty of guys out there. Fish in the sea, blah, blah, blah. You can do this.
“Okay. Let’s go.”
They left their room and took the stairs down to the ground floor where a few other groups of students were milling about near the parking lot. Rebekah knew most of them since their dorm was primarily home to business students, and she'd taken a class at some point or other with most of them.
Jason stood off to the side, whispering something to a girl Rebekah didn't recognize. His chestnut hair was perfectly disheveled and his strong Roman nose bent down just a little at the end in a way she's wanted to kiss since the first time she saw him. Standing there in a navy polo shirt and plaid shorts, he could have been on the cover of a golf magazine. The girl laughed at whatever he said, tossing her blonde hair back as she touched his arm. A golden streetlight showered down on the two like a spotlight.
A shiver spread down Rebekah's spine and she rubbed her arms.
Did he pick that spot just to make me jealous?
Jason glanced up to see her staring and frowned. He blinked a couple times as if startled and rubbed his eyes. The girl glanced at Rebekah, grabbed Jason's arm, and pulled him away into the shadows.
“Come on.” Sarah took Rebekah's elbow and steered her toward the path that would take them to her car. “He's just trying to make you jealous.”
“Well, it's working.” Rebekah's instincts cried out for her to chase the girl down and strangle her pretty little throat. The urge was so strong she had to stop herself from doing something violent. That wasn't like her at all. “I think I need a drink,” she muttered. “Maybe two.”
While the beach wasn't exactly close to campus, it was within driving distance for those lucky enough to have a vehicle, and it took them about an hour and a half before they finally parked and walked down the grassy slope leading down to the beach. Night was in full effect, but the lights of bonfires warmed the shoreline. The echoing boom of music and laughter filled the beach but still couldn't drown out the kiss of the waves.
They walked to the nearest fire where forty or so people danced and drank. A shirtless Alpha Sig thrust a shot of something into their hands.
“Thanks,” Rebekah said, then chinked her little plastic shot glass against her friend's. “Let's party!”
The Alpha Sig joined in, raising a shot in salute. “Let's party!”
She drank as the others at the fire cheered, then downed a second shot. The bonfire roared to life with a flash of heat as someone tossed a shot onto the wood. Rebekah, head spinning lightly from the first two drinks, grabbed a bottle of beer from one of the coolers and took a sip. The music and fire were hypnotic, and she danced for a while in the undulating mass that writhed around the fire. Several of the Alpha Sigs danced with her for a little bit, their bare chests glistening with sweat in the firelight, but each time their hands started to grab for her waist or hips, she backed up and drifted over to another area.
After the beer, Rebekah grabbed Sarah and pulled her toward the next fire maybe a quarter mile down the beach.
“Isn't this great?” Sarah asked, her words more than a little slurred. She clung to Rebekah's arm.
“Yeah.” Rebekah tried to put more energy into the word than she felt. “Great.”
Where was Jason? Had he really gone off with that blonde? He hadn’t struck her as the type to be distracted by the nearest pretty face. Maybe she'd been wrong.
The next fire was a little more subdued, couples whispering and seeming lost in their own private worlds. Rebekah pulled Sarah past it and on to the next fire where someone had an acoustic guitar out and strummed a tune to a small but appreciative audience. “Let's hang here for a bit,” Rebekah suggested, gesturing to an isolated piece of driftwood.
Sarah bounced on her toes, some of the slur already gone from her speech. The walking must have cleared her head. “But I wanna dance some more. Can't we go to the next fire?” She pointed at where another fraternity had volleyball and torches and keg stands and pulsing music.
“Why don't you go without me?”
“But you're supposed to have fun tonight! That's the plan.” She hiccoughed. “Come have fun.”
Rebekah gave her friend a playful shove. “Why don't you go get started, and I'll join you in a few minutes?”
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
As Rebekah settled in to listen to an acoustic version of “Stairway to Heaven,” she angled herself against the driftwood so she could see Sarah.
Sliding off her flip flops, she buried her toes into the sand and rubbed the bumps on her arms. Maybe sitting had been a bad idea. Now that she wasn't moving, the cold air blowing in from the ocean seemed stronger, curling around her body and freezing every bit it could touch. Someone passed her a shot of something clear and a beer. Rebekah dropped the shot into the solo cup and guzzled the beer down, the warmth radiating up from her belly. That was better.
She glanced over at the next fire and could just make out Sarah's short silhouette dancing with a guy about twice as tall as she was. Most of the other figures were shadowy, forms that flitted in and out of the firelight like apparitions.
“There you are.”
Rebekah turned to see Jason appear from the other side of the fire. She held up her hands in surrender. “Here I am.”
He chuckled, a hint of a smile turning up the perfect corners of his mouth. “What happened to your engineer?” he asked.
“He didn't work out.” She gestured for him to sit next to her. “What happened to your blonde?”
“Not my type.” He settled in the sand next to her, his leg brushing up against hers. With the fire off to his left, the light gathered on the side of his face nearest her, as though all the heat was drawn her way.
She didn't pull her leg back. “What is your type then?”
“Intelligent. Fierce.” He reached out and brushed her dark hair behind her ears. “Kind eyes.” His fingers left a trail of fire across her shoulder and down to the small of her back as he caressed her. “Cute little nose.”
I think he's going to kiss me.
“What will you do when you find this mysterious girl?” she asked in a whisper.