Caelen (Monsters of Veridia #2)

Chapter 1

Chapter

One

Daniel jolted awake, his heart thundering against his ribs. White hair and green eyes faded like smoke, leaving only the ghost of fingertips trailing down his neck. He pressed his palm there, where dream-touches still burned.

Not again.

He kicked off the twisted sheets and stomped to the bathroom mirror. Dark circles hung under his eyes, courtesy of three nights with the same dream visitor. The same half-fae who'd kept him prisoner. The same smirking face that he couldn't get out of his mind.

Daniel splashed cold water on his burning cheeks.

It didn't help.

You don't really want to get rid of me, do you?

Daniel took a deep breath, wishing he could tell himself that he was imagining Caelen's voice in his head.

He wasn't, though. Somehow, he and Caelen were connected, even though they resided in different worlds now. It made zero sense.

The Shadow King had gone back to Veridia. Shouldn't that be enough to make Daniel forget that he'd ever been more than a character in a book?

Sadly, it wasn't.

The old pipes rattled through the walls of their shared Airbnb as someone else took a shower.

Maybe Daniel should take a shower too.

Maybe a shower would wash away the lingering sensation of fingers exploring his skin.

You enjoy your dreams of me. I am flattered.

"Dreams are not reality," Daniel said angrily, unsure if he was speaking to the Shadow King or himself. He stalked back into his room and almost stumbled over a stack of comics he'd bought yesterday. The latest issue of "Savage Sword" lay open where he'd dropped it, unable to focus on the story. His suitcase gaped open in the corner, clothes spilling out like guts.

He grabbed a colorful cardigan from it and pulled it on over his "Ask Me About My Ship" t-shirt.

When he was dressed and ready and moved toward the stairs, the scent of coffee drifted up from the kitchen. Inviting, but still, Daniel suppressed a sigh.

The others would be down there. Adrian and Knox being disgustingly cute, Lyrian flipping through channels on the television… and Zev was probably eyeing the toaster with an unhealthy amount of suspicion while Leon shook his head, watching.

They'd take one look at his face and know something was wrong.

The only wrong thing is that you are denying our connection.

"Don't you have anything better to do?" Daniel mumbled. "Don't you have a kingdom to run?"

You could run it with me.

There was a thought… Daniel shook his head. He was definitely not made to run a kingdom.

You underestimate yourself. Everyone underestimates you. Everyone except for me. I've seen inside your soul. I know you're far more special than anyone admits, even yourself.

Daniel tried not to listen. Caelen had given him this spiel before. He didn't mean it. He couldn't. He was lying, trying to get Daniel to do what he wanted.

But Daniel could ignore him. His head was so chaotic. What was one more voice vying for attention?

"Get it together," he muttered, running fingers through his dyed hair. Blue, pink and green. Last month, his brother Jamie had complained that he looked as if he'd stumbled and fallen into several pots of paint.

But he'd said it with an air of exasperated affection for his exuberant, idiotic little brother.

It felt like forever ago now.

Laughter sounded from downstairs, and Daniel gave himself the push he needed to join his friends.

He took a deep breath, forced a smile on his face, and went down the stairs, putting a little spring in his step.

"Good morning, fellow adventurers!" He spread his arms wide. "What incredible discoveries await us today?"

Knox and Adrian looked up from where they huddled over steaming mugs at the breakfast bar. Lyrian sprawled across the couch, feet propped on the arm while flipping through the TV channels.

"Someone's chipper." Adrian's eyebrow arched over his coffee.

"When am I not chipper?" Daniel asked, making his way into the kitchen. "I'm a ray of sunshine. A beacon of joy. A?—"

"Walking disaster," Leon finished, appearing behind Daniel with hair still wet from the shower. "You're about to knock over the sugar bowl."

Daniel jerked back from where he'd been gesturing wildly, barely saving the sugar from certain doom. "Well, that would have been tragic." He grabbed a mug for himself when he noticed Zev, crouched in front of the microwave, nose almost pressed against the buttons. His purple eyes narrowed as he traced the symbols with one finger.

"Has our resident night fae found a new technological nemesis?" Daniel asked, hoping to take everyone's focus off himself.

"It makes food hot without fire." Zev said as if this should explain why everyone should be on their guard. "How does it know when to stop?"

Leon explained. "It's called a timer. You set how long you want it to run."

"But what if it lies?"

"Microwaves don't lie, Zev."

"Everyone lies. Except for fae. Is this a fae device?" Zev pressed his finger against the start button, jerking back when it beeped.

Daniel grabbed a mug, filling it with coffee while maintaining his bright smile. "Hey, at least he's moved on from the smoke detector. Remember yesterday when he tried to destroy it because it started chirping?"

"It was clearly a spy device." Zev straightened, still eyeing the microwave. "You're all too careless, considering what we're up against"

Daniel stirred sugar into his coffee. "We don't even know what we're up against."

It was the truth. According to Knox, Caelen had not been the one who opened the first portal between Veridia and this world. Some other mastermind was pulling the strings behind the scenes, and as of yet, none of them had any idea who that might be.

They had nothing really to go on, either, and it drove Daniel mad. Adrian and Leon were doing all sorts of research, but Daniel needed a more tangible task to sink his teeth into. Something that would allow him some distraction from the things his mind liked to focus on when everything was quiet.

In the quiet, it was hard to ignore Caelen's voice.

He took a sip of coffee and tried to swallow the thought down along with the sugary liquid.

"We'll figure things out," Adrian said, always so positive these days.

As if on cue, Lyrian flipped to a news channel.

On the screen, a somber news anchor stood in front of what looked like a park. The banner below read "MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCES IN OAKRIDGE."

Daniel's coffee mug froze halfway to his mouth.

"Another portal incident has been reported in the Oakridge area," the anchor said. "Unlike previous occurrences across the country, no monstrous creatures have been spotted. However, seven residents have gone missing in the past forty-eight hours. Local authorities are investigating."

"Turn it up," Knox commanded.

Lyrian raised the volume just as they switched to aerial footage of Riverside Park. Daniel knew those winding paths, the old gazebo where he used to read during lunch breaks. The camera panned across to show police tape cordoning off sections near the duck pond.

"Witnesses report seeing strange lights and hearing unusual sounds before each disappearance. The missing persons include three joggers, a dog walker, and?—"

"Wait." Leon straightened. "Isn't Oakridge your hometown, Daniel?"

Daniel was already fumbling for his phone. "Jamie's bookstore's right next to that park."

His hands shook as he pulled up his contacts. The voices of his friends faded to background noise as he hit Call.

"Come on, pick up." Daniel paced. "Pick up, pick up."

"Cracker?" His brother answered the phone, calling Daniel by an old childhood nickname that no one but him used anymore. "Please tell me you're calling to let me know you're miraculously showing up to work today? The area is swarming with people. You wouldn't believe how many cosplaying tourists are camping out here. I need you to come here and talk nerdy to them."

Daniel was so relieved to hear Jamie's voice that he let him ramble on for a moment. When he found an opening, though, he cut in. "Jamie, listen. Have you seen the news? About the disappearances?"

"Hard to miss when there's a news van parked right outside. But hey, business is booming. Who knew mysterious happenings would be such good advertising?"

"It's not just mysterious happenings. It's real as fuck and it's dangerous as fuck. You should close the store for a few days and stay home."

Jamie's laugh crackled through the phone. "Is that my little brother sounding scared? You dragged me ghost hunting in abandoned buildings when you were twelve ."

"This isn't like that," Daniel emphasized. "These aren't ghosts, they're monsters. Trust me on this."

"Sorry, cracker. We're making more sales than Christmas season. I'm not closing."

Daniel pressed his palm against his forehead. "Fine. I'm coming in to help."

"Really? But you're supposed to be on vacation."

"Consider it canceled. I'll take the afternoon shift."

Knox stepped forward, shaking his head. "Daniel."

Daniel held up his hand, silencing whatever protest was coming. "I'll see you in a few hours."

He ended the call before Jamie—or anyone—could argue with him.

"Don't be stupid," Leon said. "That area is dangerous."

"I know it is. My brother's store is right next to where people are being sucked into worlds that shouldn't exist outside of fantasy novels." Daniel shoved his phone in his pocket. "I'm not sitting here doing nothing while he could be next on the list."

Adrian set down his coffee. "After what happened with Caelen, should you really get in proximity of?—"

"What do you think I'm going to do?" Daniel whirled on Adrian, trying his best not to react visibly to the Shadow King's name. "Of course I won't approach those portals. The poor people of Veridia couldn't handle all of this awesomeness." He gestured at himself. When Leon opened his mouth, Daniel waved him off. "Look, I'll just sell some books to a couple of nerds, flirt with a few more of them, leave broken hearts in my wake and be back tomorrow, hopefully with some news on the portal situation."

You want to flirt with these people?

Jealous? Daniel thought back while he flashed his friends his most winning smile, the one he used to convince everyone that there wasn't a problem in the world that couldn't be handled with just the right amount of spunk and glitter. It was his secret weapon for disarming people—a confidence bordering on delusion that everything would work out just fine.

If only he could convince himself.

"I'll be careful, I promise." He held up his right hand as if swearing an oath. "No running toward swirling vortexes of doom, no matter how tempting."

Leon sighed. Adrian just shook his head, already resigning himself to Daniel's stubbornness.

Lyrian, however, perked up from his lounging position on the couch. "Perhaps I should come along? I'm good at handling crowds."

While the thought of Lyrian sweet-talking random bookstore patrons was admittedly amusing, Daniel didn't want the added complication of having the siren around while he was trying to talk sense into his brother. "No way. You're only interested because I talked about flirting and breaking hearts."

"You shouldn't go alone," Adrian insisted.

"I won't be alone," Daniel shot back, preparing to leave. "I'll be with my brother and three hundred nerds who want to talk about portal fantasy."

And the voice in his head, that would also be there, but he didn't mention it.

Instead, he gathered his things, shoving his wallet and phone into his pockets. His friends' concerned faces followed him as he bounded up the stairs to his room. He grabbed his messenger bag, which was covered in pins from various fandoms, and slung it over his shoulder.

Back downstairs, Knox blocked the front door. "At least let one of us?—"

"Nope." Daniel ducked under Knox's arm. "You guys keep researching. Maybe figure out who's behind all this." He yanked the door open, letting in a blast of autumn air. "I'll text updates, promise."

He stepped outside before anyone could protest further.

Daniel's sneakers crunched through fallen leaves as he walked to his car—a beat-up Prius, covered in bookish bumper stickers, like This vehicle makes frequent library stops and Bibliophile on Board . The engine wheezed to life after two tries.

His phone buzzed. He ignored it.

His friends meant well, but they didn't understand. Jamie wasn't just his brother—he was the one person who'd always gotten Daniel, who'd given him a job when no one else would hire someone who couldn't sit still and talked too much about things nobody else cared about.

Daniel wasn't about to let anything happen to him.

Even if it meant being closer to where portals might open.

Even if it meant being closer to...

You could pull me through.

And there was the whole reason Caelen chose to hang out in his head. He was hoping that Daniel would be his gate back into this world.

But Daniel was smarter than that.

Think of what we could accomplish together.

But the mental images Caelen sent him didn't speak of accomplishments. When Daniel closed his eyes, he saw himself and the Shadow King, both of them naked, skin on skin. His blood ran hot and his cock twitched with interest.

Caelen was sadly gorgeous for being so damn evil. White hair, fine features, elf ears, green eyes and a smile that could make Daniel want to be on his back for him.

He bit his lower lip hard.

"Nope. Not going there. Get out of my head so I don't crash this car." He jabbed the radio on, cranking up the volume until pop music drowned out his thoughts.

Fortunately, Caelen did not seem interested in making him drive his vehicle into a tree.

Approximately three hours of bad radio sing-alongs later, Daniel pulled into the familiar parking lot behind Bookmark'd . The store's weathered brick facade looked the same as ever, string lights twinkling in the windows despite the early hour.

But something felt different. The air seemed heavier, charged with an energy that made the hair on his arms stand up.

Or maybe that was just his paranoia talking.

Daniel killed the engine and sat for a moment. Through the rear window, he could see the edge of Riverside Park, where yellow police tape fluttered in the breeze.

Things aren't right here , Caelen supplied helpfully.

"Really? I hadn't noticed." Daniel grabbed his bag. He stepped out of the car, straightened his cardigan, and headed for the back door of the bookstore.

Whatever was causing those portals, whatever dark force was snatching people away, Daniel would make damn sure it didn't get anywhere near his family.