Chapter 45
Aiden
“If I were the disgraced not-dad of a heartbreakingly gorgeous, murderous bombshell of a woman, where would I be?” Rafe mused aloud, stroking his chin.
“Knock it off,” Wyatt barked. “This isn’t funny. And don’t call her anything related to bombs, it might freak her out.”
Rafe looked dumbfounded. “Is that all you heard in what I just said?”
I ignored them both, then looked off to the islands in the distance. “I’d probably go hangout in the old farmhouse,” I said. “No one to bother me. No one would even know I’m there.”
The argument was still in full swing behind me. “You think saying bombshell would upset Skye? How weak do you think she is? That woman could walk on water!”
“I’m just saying, have a little nuance when talking about her. She doesn’t need to be hearing the word bomb come from one of her Links.”
“She’s not even here,” I muttered.
They ignored me.
“Nuance? God, I’m adding another sucker-punch to your list.”
“Another one? How long is this list?”
“Now? Fourteen.”
“Fourtee–”
“Holy shit, shut the fuck up!” I shouted, throwing my sparking, glowing arms in the air.
Wyatt and Rafe both froze, looking at me in shock. They both had their hands clenched into fists, clearly having been ready to throw punches.
“Why don’t we check the farmhouse? Rafe, you said the Chain bed looked slept in before we put Wyatt there!”
Rafe blinked several times like he couldn’t believe I was shouting at him, then he straightened back to his usual princely posture. “The Chain bed did appear slept in. I assumed it was Skye.”
“Skye…sleeping in her parents’ bed? She didn’t have her own room?” Wyatt said, also straightening before hiding his fists in his pockets.
“No, you’re right. She’d have stayed in her own room.” Rafe furrowed his brow.
“So who was staying in the Chain bed before we put Wyatt in there?” I said.
“How could Levi have been staying in the Chain bed?” Wyatt said slowly. “How could he have been getting from one island to the other?”
“They have a boat,” I answered.
“Zephyr used to be all over the bars from what I understand,” Rafe said thoughtfully. Wyatt scowled, but we ignored him. “Levi gets into a mood, pushes Skye away, Zephyr leaves him after dinner…no one has any excuse to come looking for him.”
“And if they do, who’s to say he’s not incorporeal?” I finished.
“Exactly,” Rafe pointed at me, and I smiled. He looked to Wyatt, who groaned.
“Fine, I guess we’re breaking into the farmhouse.”
We didn’t break into the farmhouse.
Wyatt and Rafe argued about how to get inside for about five minutes before I walked up to the backdoor and used the zappies to open the keypad lock. They pushed in behind me, nearly breaking the door frame as they tried to beat the other inside.
Now, we were crowded in the kitchen, speaking only through our minds to stay quiet.
We hadn’t planned anything before getting inside, and now I understood their brash decision to break into the apartment. They were military-trained, yet totally stupid at the same time.
We should’ve made a better plan, Rafe said. This is just like breaking into the apartment.
Except our Key who kills people isn’t here, I replied.
Wyatt pointed at me, then drew his finger across his neck.
I rolled my eyes. Skye knows she kills people. It’s not going to freak her out if we say it. Anyway…do either of you know Levi’s affinities?
Rafe’s eyes widened, then went far away as he tried to sift through his memories. He shook his head.
All I know is he can go incorporeal. I assume he has air as well.
Now isn’t the time for assumptions, Wyatt growled.
Weird thing to say when this is your second time breaking and entering without a plan, I said dryly.
Wyatt lunged at me and I barely stifled my laugh.
Idiot, Rafe muttered at Wyatt. I saw one of Skye’s nightmares once. Levi told one of the Pilgrims that the Arias were a family of air affinates.
How interesting, Wyatt said. I wonder why they never bothered to test if he could use his affinities after being healed.
Rafe shrugged. I think–
We all went silent as a creak came from up the stairs.
The three of us looked between each other as another creak sounded from the Chain bedroom. The door was closed, and Skye’s room was back to being locked. The creaking came again, sounding like an old bed frame.
Rafe put his finger to his lips, then moved up the stairs. Wyatt and I followed behind him as a shadow slunk ahead, slipping up the doorframe and disappearing inside the lock.
The door swung open quietly, hidden by the dark of the night, and from my view in the hall, I could see a dark lump in the bed, shifting back and forth as if trying to get comfortable.
The lump froze as it realized the door was opening, and then the room exploded.
Shadows burst into action, making the room even darker. Someone from the bed cried out, and I sent my affinity to flick on the lights. The room barely lit up as the storm of shadows continued swarming the bed.
Finally, light flooded the room as the shadows settled, then parted to reveal…Levi. His skin was flushed, his cheeks and tips of his ears turning a deep shade of purple.
“What the fuck!” He cried, clearly struggling against the shadows. “How did you get in here?!”
“Your daughter gave us a key,” Wyatt lied.
Levi’s expression darkened.
“I knew that girl would get me killed,” he muttered. “Make it quick. I can’t be looking over my shoulder forever.”
“Sure you can,” I said cheerily.
“What a peculiar thing to say,” Rafe murmured. He turned to me. “I figured we didn’t have to worry about suicide since he was immobile, but now…”
I snorted.
Wyatt crossed his arms. “You’re going to give us some answers because you owe it to your children, not because you’re afraid of us. It’s time to be a man, Levi.”
Levi struggled against the shadows, that statement having pissed him off. “Funny you’re the one to tell me that. Didn’t you run away from my daughter after throwing yourself at her during a panic attack?”
The temperature of the room dropped significantly. Rafe chuckled nervously while Wyatt remained stone-faced.
“You’re not helping your case,” I said. “How often did you watch them?”
“I love them,” Levi replied, his voice strained. “I watched them every day.”
“When were you able to move again?” Rafe demanded.
Silence filled the space, and Wyatt snapped, “Why do you keep making this worse? She’ll never speak to you again if you don’t fix this! She deserves–”
Wyatt cut off abruptly, then turned, linking his hands behind his head.
A new heaviness settled over the room with the words he’d left unsaid.
Skye deserved better.
“Do you have any idea what I went through?” Levi said quietly. “I didn’t pretend to get strangled and almost die, you idiot!”
“No, you just pretended to be paralyzed,” Rafe drawled. “All while ignoring your children who sacrificed everything for you…unnecessarily.”
“I didn’t have a choice!” Levi shouted. “You’ve fucking seen her. She looks just like her mother. You try staring at a beautiful woman who looks like your dead wife everyday and see how well you do!”
Rafe chuckled in disbelief while Wyatt got scarily quiet.
I shook my head. “That’s…not a good sentence, man.”
“Aiden,” Levi said a little desperately, focusing on me. “You love her. You’d do anything to keep her safe.”
I knelt down in front of him, ignoring how Rafe and Wyatt tensed and moved toward me. My arms were glowing, static was in the air. I wasn’t afraid of this man. He should’ve been more afraid of me.
“I wouldn’t lie to her,” I said. “And I wouldn’t make her feel like shit, either. It’s not her fault she looks like her mother.”
Levi’s expression fell but he tried again. “If the only way to keep her safe was to lie, would you do it?”
“No.” He shook his head, opening his mouth again but I went on, not letting him speak. “No. And you know something else? She doesn’t lie to me either. Even when she couldn’t tell me her affinities, we at least agreed we would never lie.”
“How the fuck would you explain to two teenagers what’s going on, then?!” Levi snapped.
“They haven’t been teenagers for a long time,” Rafe argued. “Zephyr became a man the moment you were hurt. The moment he had to bring you back to life and then keep you alive.”
“Levi…” Wyatt sighed deeply, then began speaking in his counselor voice. “The lie could be forgiven. It’s your other actions that make the lying worse.”
Levi stared at him.
Wyatt looked up into the ceiling with another deep sigh.
“You lied, but then you also ignored your children, your daughter who’s not your daughter more than your son who is your son.
Your daughter, who you were already overly critical of, who already believed she was at fault for what happened, felt as if you were disappointed in her. ”
Levi didn’t speak.
“Are you?” I asked darkly.
“Am I what?” Levi looked confused.
“Disappointed in her,” Rafe ground out.
Levi’s dark eyes jumped between the three of us before finally settling on me, like I was the least threatening of the three of us.
“Like mother like daughter,” he muttered. “You’ll probably be hurt the worst. Get out while you still can.”
“You’re full of shit,” I whispered, shaking my head. “Tell us what we want to know, and then you’ll never have to worry about her again. I’ll make sure you never have to see her.”
Levi gulped, then spoke slowly.
“I…met Iris right out of school. Everything was fast. She was coming off a previous heartbreak, so looking back…maybe that had something to do with it. She was perfect for me and Benny. Did her testing, saw she wasn’t in the Chain, but none of us cared.
We all moved in together and started our lives.
Zephyr was born quickly, she got pregnant so easily. It was all meant to be.”
Ugh, I’d heard shit like this before. It was an older belief that only those fated to be together could get pregnant so easily. It led to a lot of custody disputes when people later found their true Keys or Links. Wyatt knew all about that.