4. Serafina
FOUR
Folding the last pair of black leggings, I set them in the small dresser and stalk out of the walk-in closet. Dusting off my hands, I look around the small space, more than a little pleased with myself. All of my bags are unpacked and suitcases stored under the comfortable queen-size bed in my room, I even lit the small welcome candle I found on my coffee table. It”s not my favorite scent, far too fruity for my taste, but there is something about having a candle lit after cleaning your space. It makes all your work and effort worth it.
The distant cheers of people echo through the brisk evening air outside my window. The sun slowly sinks behind the mountains, making way for the pearly light of the moon to show dimly in the darkening sky.
I frown and walk over to the large window in the small living room, looking over the forest below, then glance to the left where bright lights stand tall, lighting a field below. There are bleachers full of people I can barely make out, and I shake my head as I watch night fall. There is something strange about the night here. It comes quickly and holds an air that I’m not used to. It both concerns and excites me. My mind is telling me to stay inside while my magic begs me to go down to the forest below, the darkness calling to us like a siren”s song.
I look at the thick trees below and then at the light where the cheers of the crowds echo, a wave of longing suddenly striking me as my gaze bounces back and forth. I feel trapped, stuck between two worlds like a ghost doomed to haunt a world it doesn’t belong in.
Light and life or dark and death. One calls to me more than the other, beckoning me into its shadowy arms with a promise of calm and peace. To soothe my unsettled soul and rip apart the very existence that causes me confusion, I long to surrender to death the way my lungs seek the air to breathe. And that is the biggest fear of all.
Death. My Death.
I can”t help but wonder what it would be like to die. To let my magic not only consume me, but take me from this existence and finally silence the dark voices in my head.
I startle when more cheers erupt, yanking me out of my twisted daydream, and grumble under my breath in annoyance. They’ve been going on and off for over two hours, and I can”t help but wonder how long rugby games take. Will this be something I’ll have to deal with every night? If so, I’ll have to invest in a pair of earplugs. Sighing, I look to the corner of the cozy living room where the fire I built is crackling merrily in the hearth and roll my eyes, moving to sit on the couch.
“Are you going to come out yet? Or will you creep on me like a freak all evening?” I ask. Then grab the fleece blanket I draped over the couch and tug it onto my lap, trying desperately to fight off the cold that always seems to linger deep in my bones. Reaching up, I gather my long hair into a messy bun on top of my head, tying it up with the hair tie I keep on my wrist.
The light in the corner of the room bends and twists moments before a weird popping sound fills my ears. My oldest brother”s shield, which he constructed to hide himself from me, falls away, leaving behind a fuming man with dark hair and eyes.
I smirk at him as I reach forward and grab the bag of potato chips I set out on my coffee table for this talk. “Chip?” I offer, popping open the bag and grabbing a handful of the delicious little snacks as Atlas glares daggers at me.
“How long have you known I was here?” he asks, voice low and clipped with anger.
“Since you crept into my room, about…” I look down at my phone and nod before looking back up at him. “Forty-six minutes ago,” I respond, making Atlas’ frown deepen.
“How the hell do you do that? Not even Gabe can see past my shields,” Atlas mutters, callused hands moving to the wheels of his chair as he pushes himself forward. Twisting the wheelchair expertly, he flicks the wheel locks down before leaning forward and lifting himself out of the chair and onto the couch next to me. He’s slower as he folds his slim legs under him, scowling at them with bitter resentment before he finally settles and looks back at me. Dark, chocolate brown eyes watch me down a long, straight nose. His lips are thin as he scowls at me and crosses his arms back over his chest.
“How mad are you?” I ask, popping another chip into my mouth. I lean back, getting comfy. My stomach rumbles as I give it the food it”s been craving all day, but I ignore it in favor of watching my brother.
“There is no form of measurement that I can use at this moment. Ask me tomorrow,” Atlas grinds out, brown hair styled to perfection, the strands longer on top and shorter on the sides. His gold earrings gleam in the fire”s soft glow as we sit across from each other on the couch, and I nod, acknowledging his anger.
“Deal. Now, how much trouble am I in?” I ask, and Atlas chuckles coldly. I figured since Gabriel hadn”t visited yet and my phone had stopped ringing, Atlas had already contacted him. “And how did you know I was here? I thought I’d covered my tracks well. I didn”t anticipate a confrontation from you until tomorrow mid-day,” I add, slightly frustrated at myself for being unable to stay hidden from my brothers for long.
“You did cover your tracks,” Atlas bites out, eyes flashing with fury as he leans forward. “To the point that Danica had to calm Gabriel down before he destroyed the entire Council Building.” I wince at that remark, a small amount of guilt filtering in.
“Oops,” I mutter.
“Oops,” Atlas agrees and sighs. “It wasn”t until you crossed over my shields on Silverwood grounds that I knew where you were and could call Gabe. He’s furious, by the way. Only once I threatened to give Dani every ounce of embarrassing blackmail I have on him did he agree to wait until he calmed down to talk to you.” I laugh at that, thinking about my brother”s sassy little wife and how she has my scary big brother wrapped around her tiny finger.
“Yeah, that would do it,” I agree.
“You owe me,” he points out, and I snort.
“I owe Dani by the sounds of it, though I’m honestly shocked that she’s managed to keep Gabe home for this long if he knows my location,” I grumble, a slight note of bitterness filtering into my words. Atlas frowns, catching on to my mood immediately, like fucking always, and shakes his head.
“You know Gabe only ever wanted to protect you, Fina,” he whispers, the anger melting from him instantly. His hand moves to rest on my leg, where he pats it a few times. “He has one focus in life: to protect those he loves.”
“And to fix what Dad did,” I add, thinking of my brother”s obsession to right the wrongs my lunatic father inflicted on this world.
“Yes, I suppose there is that. But Fina…” Atlas starts, and I sigh, roll my eyes, and nod.
“I know. I wasn”t there for most of it. So I don’t know what I’m talking about,” I whisper, my throat tightening with my lies.
My father was a monster. A true fucking nightmare who reigned over the Fae world for years without any repercussions for his horrid actions. His obsession with creating a stronger, deadlier Fae species almost killed not only my brothers but several other Fae. It got to the point that the Angels had to come in and take care of the Demons my father negotiated with.
The number of Fae killed or harmed by dear old dad is still unknown but believed to be in the thousands. He used me as a pawn to keep my brothers in line and bend them to his will. Gabe did manage to save me; I only wish it had been before Dad turned his psychotic gaze on me.
Not that my brothers know that.
As far as they know, I’m the first female Reaper born in centuries, and that”s why I have magic control issues. Not that I have something more—something darker—lingering in my mind. It would probably kill Gabe if he ever found out Dad tested on me before he swooped in and saved the day.
“That’s not true,” Atlas admonishes. “You were young when things happened, but you”re not stupid, Fina. No one thinks you don”t know what you”re talking about.” I bite the inside of my cheek, pushing the evil voice back as it tries to creep forward.
I’ve gone back and forth over telling my family about the lingering magic inside me, but when I heard Gabe talking to his wife about how glad he was that I escaped my father”s testing, I knew I needed to keep it to myself. For the most part, it hasn”t been an issue. It only became a problem when my best friend and first love took off years ago, leaving my magic unbound and wild. In my young naivety, I trusted a boy who I thought would always be there for me. I relied on him to keep the darker parts of myself calm, and when he left, so did all of my control.
“Anyways…” Atlas sighs, leaning back on the couch and crossing his arms over his chest, falling back into the disapproving brother role he’s so good at. “Why are you at Silverwood, Fina? You were in the middle of classes at Black Veil University,” he points out, and I nod.
“Yes, and I transferred here,” I grumble, not liking how we’re talking about pointless topics. Obviously, I’m no longer enrolled at Black Veil if I’m here.
“Why?” Atlas clips, studying me with narrowed eyes.
“Is it too much to think I wanted to be around you? I missed you, Atlas,” I whisper, smiling softly and leaning forward. But Atlas’ scowl deepens.
“Stop being sweet. It”s freaking scary. Now tell me the real reason you’re here,” he demands. I let my soft smile melt off my face, annoyance flickering as I glare back at him.
“I heard you and Gabe in his office. I wanted to help find the missing girls. And no,” I say when Atlas’ eyes widen in anger. “You can”t do a damn thing about it. I’m twenty years old, Atlas. Not a small child who you can move around like a pawn on a chessboard. I can choose where I go to school. Besides, I really do miss you,” I add, not liking that he didn”t believe that part. Sure, I was trying to butter him up a little, but that wasn”t a lie.
“No other reason?” he asks suspiciously, and I frown, shaking my head, refusing to admit that when I heard Atlas was coming here, the thrill of having a reason to leave Black Veil was immense.
Even though I love my family and home, I need a place where I can be myself. I will always be Gabriel Covington’s—the head Councilman—deadly little sister back home, and a part of me wants to be myself without the built-in reputation. I’ll never be able to outrun my magic and the terrified looks I receive for them, but maybe… just maybe, moving halfway across the world will grant me a fresh start. Somewhere I don”t have the heavy mantle of the Covington name and all it entails hanging over me.
Atlas clicks his tongue, bringing me back to our conversation. “Gabe wants you to go home.”
“That”s nice,” I mutter, my voice cracking from using it more than usual.
“You need some water,” Atlas mutters, worry creasing his brow as I stand, already moving to the small fridge in the pocket-sized kitchen and grabbing one of the water bottles. I hold up an extra one, silently asking if he needs a drink, then toss it a little harder than necessary at his face when he nods. Atlas’ hand whips out, catching the bottle with ease and smirking at me as he cracks it open and takes a deep drink of the cold water.
“You don”t understand the danger of you being here, Fina. Girls are going missing, not boys. From our information, it is suspected that the Demon activity is growing in the forest. Girls aren”t just being taken and killed. They are being used to help summon dark magic. Gabe’s never going to allow you to stay here,” Atlas finally says after a few moments of blessed silence.
I shrug.
“Gabe can’t make me do anything. He”s no longer my guardian. Besides, if there is something out there that I can’t handle, then we have bigger problems than me ditching Black Veil to come here.” Atlas reluctantly nods, and I smirk, knowing I’m starting to get through to him. “I want to help, Attie,” I whisper, my old nickname falling from my lips before I can think better of it. “I need to help. To feel useful,” I admit, then scowl, not liking how vulnerable that sounded. I just got to the point where I could start doing virtual counseling sessions, so I don”t want Atlas to think I need more than that. “I feel like I could be useful. As you pointed out, girls are going missing. And at the risk of sounding conceited, there is not another Fae girl out there who has more defensive or deadly magic than I do,” I rasp, my voice slowly getting worse the more I talk.
I take another drink of water as Atlas sighs, but nods after he thinks it over.
“You’re right. I’ll call Gabriel, but I’m not promising anything where he’s concerned. I agree that you could be useful, and since we haven”t had any luck in the last three years tracking down this serial killer, you being here would be beneficial,” he admits, and my brows shoot straight up into my hairline.
Shit, this has been going on for longer than I realized! How come Gabe hadn”t done anything before now? That doesn”t seem like him at all.
“As long as you promise to stick with me and don”t go all vigilante…” he pauses, looking at me with a stern expression. I hold my hands up in the air and nod.
“I’m definitely not the hero in this story, Atlas. You know that as much as I do. I just want an opportunity to figure out what the hell happened to these girls. Some sick fuck is out there killing them like it”s a game. I want to put an end to that. It’s time that the killer hiding in the dark has something to fear. I can be their monster.”
“Language,” Atlas chides, and I roll my eyes. Freaking Atlas… Always the proper older brother. “And you are NOT a monster. I don’t want to hear that again, Serafina.”
“Attie!” I snap, glaring at him when he only gives me a disapproving look.
“Fine. No stupid games, and you don”t need to convince me. I’m glad to have you here, Fina,” he promises, a smile lingering on his lips as he nods. I breathe a sigh of relief, then frown when Atlas starts to chuckle. “But you will have to convince Gabriel on your own. I can call him and let him know I’ll watch out for you,” he starts, and I glare at him. “But you will have to convince him to let you stay,” he finishes as he shifts his legs out from under him and shimmies to the edge of the couch. Planting his hands on his wheelchair, Atlas lifts himself onto his seat, turning his back to me and effectively shutting down the conversation.
“You know that will never work,” I mutter under my breath, keeping my hoarse voice low so I don”t aggravate it further. I’ll need to talk to teachers tomorrow, so I need to be careful. I purse my lips, wondering if I packed the tea one of my uncles gave me for Christmas. That would feel really good on my throat right now.
“You say you’re old enough to make your own decisions?” Atlas asks, and I nod. “Then you’re old enough to talk to Gabriel and make him see that. I’ll see you tomorrow in class, Serafina. I’ve taken the liberty of changing your course schedule so you’re in classes with the professors I know. You also have a new English teacher,” he says, then points to his chest when I give him a puzzled look.
Fuck. That class is going to suck. Atlas will purposely pick on me. I know he will.
“This way, I can keep track of your English grade. You’re currently sitting at seventy-three percent,” he scolds, mock outrage in his brown eyes. “That simply won’t do for my sister.”
I stare at him for a moment as he rolls his chair over to my door, then looks over his shoulder at me, waiting for my answer. I hold my hand up in front of me and slowly lift my middle finger in his direction, making him laugh and nod.
“See you in the morning, baby sister. I’ll email you your new schedule,” he says affectionately, his gold rings catching the light as he flicks his fingers, causing a burst of magic to rush through the room. The door clicks open, letting my brother out before it shuts on its own, and I huff under my breath before walking over to grab my phone and tabbing to Gabriel’s number. After a brief moment of hesitation, I scroll up to Danica’s name and hit the call button. I’m going to need backup for my cranky brother, and she’s the only one I know who will help me.