Chapter 5
Five
BECKS
I’ve never been more positive of anything in my entire life.
I combed through the university’s student directory before I ever set foot in West Virginia, going through every name and face. The moment I saw Haven’s photo, there was no question she was Locklyn’s twin.
“Get her and get out of there,” Talon says. “Find somewhere safe to stay for a few days and don’t reach out to anyone, including us.”
Something’s wrong.
“Why?”
Talon pauses before saying, “Another girl was murdered.”
The blood drains from my face and I sneak another sidelong glance at Haven, making sure she hasn’t bolted as Talon goes on to say, “We think there’s a leak somewhere in the Order and that’s why we’ve always been too late.”
Haven looks so much like Locklyn, it’s messing with me. Turning away from her, I lower my voice so she can’t hear me say, “There’s someone in the Order actually working with the demon?”
“We’re not sure of anything at this point, but it’s not worth taking any chances.
After you get her out of the city, text me the location of her parents.
Locklyn and I will take care of them. Then get rid of your phone.
Get rid of hers too, just in case. Find a burner phone and reach out to us in a couple days.
If I don’t pick up, don’t leave a message. ”
“Is that really—?” I start to ask when she bolts.
I hang up on Talon and take off after her, my long legs eating up the distance quickly.
“Wait,” I call, just as she’s about to break through the trees and enter the neighborhood. But she just picks up speed.
I reach her just as she passes the last tree. Grabbing her from behind, I wrap an arm around her and yank her back into my chest, sliding a hand over her mouth so she can’t scream.
I can’t have her waking the whole neighborhood. I don’t have time to deal with something like that.
The guy I fought was obviously possessed, so I think our theory about the demon being semi-corporeal is wrong and it’s using human vessels instead.
It knows who she is now and probably where she lives.
If the demon can inhabit bodies, it might find a new host and come back.
I have to get her away from here before that happens.
She thrashes against me as I pull her back into the wooded area.
I barely manage to keep my grip on her as she uses defensive techniques to break free.
It makes me grateful that Locklyn dragged me to Pete’s Gym so many times, because practicing with her taught me how to anticipate Haven’s moves.
But even so, she frees an arm and elbows me square in the nose.
Tears instantly spring to my eyes, and I blink against the rush of wetness.
“Stop fighting me,” I growl, the edge in my tone sharper than it should be.
She only redoubles her efforts.
When I get her a safe distance from the nearest house, I try a different tactic.
Leaning close, my nose brushes her hair as I murmur into her ear: “I’m here to help, not to hurt you. I’m just asking that you hear me out, and if you don’t like what I have to say, I won’t stop you again.”
She stiffens in my arms, but relief floods me because she’s stopped fighting.
“If I let go, will you promise not to run?”
After a pause, she nods then sags into my embrace. Her back molds against my chest and I can’t help but take note of the way she feels, wrapped in my arms.
She’s small. Delicate. She fits in my arms just like Locklyn used to.
As soon as the thought appears, I shove it from my mind. Of course she feels like Locklyn; they’re sisters. Twins. But I don’t need thoughts like that clouding my judgment.
Removing my hand from her mouth, I slowly release her, stepping back with my hands up to give her some space.
She whips around, her amber gaze wild. The color is so similar to Locklyn’s that it shreds the mental walls I’ve built to keep those thoughts at bay.
“I’ll scream,” she warns.
“You just agreed not to,” I say with my hands still up in the universal “I-mean-no-harm” gesture.
She scoffs, like that hardly matters. She backs up a step, and I worry she’s going to bolt again.
She’s spooked. I get it. I need to calm her down.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” I say again, keeping my voice calm and steady.
“I heard the guy on the phone. You’re trying to kidnap me, and he’s going to go after my parents.”
Thinking back to what Talon said, I wince.
After you get her out of the city, text me the location of her parents. Locklyn and I will take care of them.
“Okay, fair. Taken out of context, that didn’t sound good. But that guy back there . . .” I gesture to the wooded area behind her. “. . . he was trying to hurt you. I’m trying to protect you, and your parents.”
“Who are you? And what do you want with me?”
“My name is Becks,” I say evenly, and then pause.
How do I get her to believe I’m here to help her, not hurt her?
If I bring up the Order, she might bolt.
There’s a reason she and her parents have been in hiding for so many years, and if I had to guess, I’d say they either blame the Order for what happened to them all those years ago, or at the very least don’t trust them anymore.
The other option is to tell her I know her sister, but I have no idea how that is going to land. She might not even know she has a sister, and if that’s the case, this isn’t the time to drop that bomb on her.
“I know what’s after you. I’ve been searching for you for a while,” I start, but as soon as the words leave my mouth, it’s clear I’ve said the wrong thing, because she starts shaking her head and inching away. She’s a half-second away from running again.
“Just let me go. I need to get to my parents. You don’t have to worry about what I saw. I promise I won’t tell anyone.”
She doesn’t believe me. And I don’t really blame her. All she has is my word to go off of. And that probably doesn’t mean much, because even though I saved her from the possessed dude, when she tried to flee I dragged her back into the woods. It doesn’t look good for me.
I rake a hand through my overgrown hair, and she follows the movement with her eyes before she gives me a full once-over.
When her gaze locks back on mine, her pupils are blown wide, nearly eclipsing the dark amber. Her chest lifts and falls in sharp, frightened breaths.
I could make her come with me. If she has magic, she clearly doesn’t know how to wield it, otherwise she would have used it against her attacker.
My training and size outweigh whatever knowledge she has of fighting.
But the thought of taking her by force, even if it’s for her own good, makes me sick to my stomach.
Casting a quick glance over my shoulder, I catch the twinkle of streetlights through the trees. If I want her to come with me of her own free will, there’s only one thing to be done.
“Okay, listen, it’s not safe for you here anymore. I need to get you somewhere secure.” She twitches like she’s going to bolt, and so I quickly go on to say, “But let’s go check on your parents first to make sure they’re okay too.”
The plan was to get Haven and run right away, letting Talon and Locklyn take care of her parents, but maybe I can just take all of them. If it makes Haven feel safer to have them with us, I’ll make it work.
She eyes me suspiciously, but I notice her breathing evens out.
“How do I know you’re not going to hurt them?” she asks, and I rack my brain trying to come up with a way for her to trust me. I come up with nothing.
That is until I remember the weapon I have sheathed under my shirt in my waist. I learned to use one the first time I was in the human world when I lost my magic.
I’ve not needed a gun since I came back, but I still carry one on me at times like this, just in case.
I forgot it was there because my magic is usually more than sufficient in a fight, but it may be exactly what she needs right now to feel safe around me.
“Do you know how to use a gun?” I ask, and she rears back.
Shit. I’ve spooked her again.
I lift the hands I still have hovering in front of me higher. “I have a gun holstered at my waist. I’m going to keep my hands up so you can take it. If I try to hurt you or your parents, you can shoot me with it.”
Her eyebrows jump up her forehead. “You’re telling me to shoot you with your own weapon?”
I give a nervous chuckle. “I very much hope that doesn’t happen.”
I raise my arms even higher so my shirt rides up enough for her to get a peek at the holster and the butt of the gun. She quietly gasps and her eyes get impossibly larger, but she’s not running.
“Go ahead and take it, then let’s go check on your parents. Then we can all leave together.”
She swallows, and starts to inch forward, her gaze locked on my face. Once she’s close enough, she cautiously reaches out. With one hand she lifts the edge of my t-shirt higher. Her cold knuckles graze my abs, making my muscles twitch.
Her gaze drops and sticks for a moment before snapping up to my face. Grabbing the gun, she shuffles back quickly.
Okay. Baby steps.
“Is it all right if I lower my arms?” I ask, hoping the question helps her feel more in control.
She gives me a jerky nod, but keeps the gun trained on me. It shakes a little in her hands. It’s clear she doesn’t know how to handle the weapon. The only reason I’m not concerned is because she hasn’t flipped the safety off.
I slowly drop my arms, shoving my hands in my pockets to hopefully appear even less threatening, which is hard because I’m a big guy, almost a foot taller than her and twice her weight. My size alone must be intimidating.
“Do you want me to walk in front of you?”
“Huh?” Her brows pinch, like she’s not sure she heard me right.
“To your house,” I clarify. “Would it make you feel better if I walked ahead? So you can keep me in sight and know I’m not pulling anything.”
“Oh, that,” she says. A sudden burst of color appears high on her cheeks, making me wonder what she thought I meant.
She shakes her head. “No, it’s okay. Let’s go.”