Chapter 4 #2
Not even Calder could ruin coffee—it was sacred like that.
I took another sip as though to prove that to myself.
“So,” Izzy hedged.
I lifted my gaze over the rim of my mug as she shifted in her chair and crossed one perfectly denim-clad leg over the other.
As always, Izzy looked polished and composed, her outfit effortlessly put together.
She’d once been the perfect little socialite with a bank account to match—before Trystan had blown her world apart.
He’d bankrupted Izzy’s family, cheated on her, and dragged her darling reputation straight through the mud.
And yet, you’d never know any of that by looking at her.
Meanwhile, my bank account had more zeroes than I knew what to do with, and I currently resembled the swamp monster from the Black Lagoon. Her crisp, high-collared blouse made my oversized T-shirt look less like a fashion choice and more like a cry for help.
Which was fair, I supposed.
“Wanna tell me about him?” Izzy asked when I didn’t speak.
“No,” I chuckled. I could go my whole life without speaking about Calder again, and it would be too soon.
Izzy didn’t rush me. She just waited, elbows on the table, chin resting in her hands like she had all the time in the world—which, as an immortal, she did.
“Okay,” she said when I didn’t continue speaking. “Then don’t.”
I blinked at her, thrown off by how quickly she agreed.
“I’m not going to push you,” she said. “You’ll talk about him when you’re good and ready.
And no one can tell you when that should be.
Trust me. If anyone knows a thing or two about horrible husbands, it’s me.
I know the pain it causes to speak about them, especially when you don’t want to.
” Her mouth twitched. “So, we can just sit here. Or we can talk about running clothes. Or the bar. Or nothing at all. And if you decide you want to talk about him…” She shrugged. “I’m here.”
Relief brought a small smile to my lips.
I should have known Izzy wouldn’t push. But she was right.
If anyone would understand what I was going through right now, it would be her.
And though it pained me to even think Calder’s name, I had to admit, a part of me wanted to talk about him.
To finally unburden myself of the weight I’d been carrying for years.
“He’s from Utah,” I said quietly.
Izzy’s eyebrows rose, then quickly dropped. Her expression smoothed as she settled in to listen.
“Not from here,” I continued. “And maybe that was part of the problem. People who don’t grow up in Eternity Falls don’t always feel tethered to it the way the rest of us do. This place isn’t just where I live. It’s my home. It’s the only place I want to be.”
Izzy nodded, silently urging me on.
“It was ten—no, eleven—years ago when he blew into town. All charm and trouble, wearing that stupid half-smile of his that turned a girl’s insides into soup. He’d never planned to stay. Eternity Falls was just a blip on the map. A paranormal-only pit stop on his way to somewhere bigger and better.”
I huffed a displeased laugh. “But on his first night here, we ran into each other. Literally. And that was it.”
The memories of that night flashed, unbidden and unwelcome, before my eyes.
“It was instant,” I said. “There weren’t any fireworks or violins or any of that crap. Just… certainty. Like my wolf had been waiting her whole life for someone and finally found them. It was this beautiful moment, like, Oh. There you are.”
“I’m familiar with that feeling,” Izzy said, softly chuckling.
“He does dangerous work,” I continued. “And has a fancy phrase for his job title, but at the end of the day, he’s a thief. One who specializes in reclaiming supernatural antiquities.”
Izzy frowned at that. “I’m not sure I understand.”
“Artifacts,” I said. “Think archaeologist. Only, instead of permits and careful excavation, Calder locates the cursed or magical artifact and reclaims it before humans find it. His work is about retrieval, not preservation. It’s his job to find the item and transport it somewhere safe before it ends up in the wrong hands. ”
Izzy cocked her head. “What wrong hands?”
“Human hands,” I said flatly. “The kind that don’t know what they’re touching until it blows up in their faces.
I saw some pretty powerful artifacts while working with Calder.
If humans ever found one, they’d not only learn about our existence, but could unleash magic and chaos on the world.
Calder’s job is to keep that from happening, no matter the consequences. ”
Surprise widened Izzy’s eyes.
“He doesn’t enjoy destroying sites,” I added, feeling the need to defend him.
“So, he takes every precaution to avoid it. Once he’s hired, he uses locator spells as much as possible to pinpoint the artifact’s exact location.
Then he knows precisely where to dig. Only the immediate area is affected.
The rest of the site remains intact. It isn’t always pretty.
But he does what’s needed to keep humans from learning about these things. ”
“I didn’t know that was a concern,” Izzy murmured. “I never really thought about it, actually. But yes, there were things—items, jewels—my family owned that were magical in nature. And I have no idea where they went after we went bankrupt.”
I nodded. “You see the issue then.” Then, because there was still so much to tell, I pressed onward.
“It was some sort of artifact that first brought Calder to Eternity Falls. Honestly, I can’t remember.
I’d been so caught up in him that I hadn’t paid much attention to his job.
It was the same for him too. We were young, in love, and new mates.
I introduced him to my family, and they welcomed him with open arms.”
My mouth twisted. “Eventually, his work pulled him away, but instead of staying behind like a sensible person, I said screw it and went with him. It was my first time leaving Eternity Falls.”
I paused and drew a deep breath, steadying myself. This was where the story started to take a turn, and I needed to gather my wits.
“For two years, we bounced all over the world,” I said. “Calder didn’t care where the job took us. Someone would notify him of an artifact that needed rescuing, and we’d sweep into town, dig it up, and disappear before any humans noticed—or could report us trespassing on historical sites.”
“Wow,” Izzy murmured. “Thorne Wolfe, the treasure hunter. I never would have guessed.”
That made me chuckle. “We all have a past. Calder took me under his wing and taught me the trade. But after those two years, something started to change. Calder started taking more risks, and he started taking jobs that required breaking into homes to steal the artifacts. Soon, he’d made a name for himself.
People began calling from all over, looking for him to retrieve items lost in divorces, feuds, you name it.
Digging for lost artifacts was one thing.
But stealing from people’s homes was another.
I started to question what we were doing.
But Calder told me it was no different than the sites.
That these artifacts needed to be returned to their rightful owners. ”
I took a deep breath, my fingers tightening around my mug. “It all ended in Istanbul.”
Izzy went still.
“Someone hired Calder to retrieve a necklace that carried the spirit of the client’s dead mother.
There was some sort of dispute going on between the son and the father—I wasn’t involved in any of that.
But Calder took the job, and I went with him.
Unfortunately, I don’t remember much after we broke into the place.
All I remember is waking up in a local hospital.
Calder said some witch hit me with a nasty black spell and had nearly killed me. ”
“Goodness,” Izzy murmured.
“The next day, we were on a plane home,” I said. “Back to Eternity Falls.”
“You were hurt,” Izzy said. “And that frightened him.”
I nodded. “The second we got back to town, I knew I never wanted to leave again. I’d missed my parents, my brothers, my town. I didn’t even have to ask Calder to stay. He just announced that he was retiring. Said we were home for good.”
I lifted my mug to my lips and took a slow sip, relishing the heat as it spread through my body. Coffee truly could cure all ailments.
“We were happy—deliriously so,” I said. “Or, at least, I was.”
Sympathy softened Izzy’s eyes.
“Three years later, I woke up alone. No note. No phone call. His number was disconnected. Cassian and I spent a few years chasing leads in search of him. But they never panned out.”
My throat tightened. “Eventually, I stopped looking.” I met Izzy’s gaze.
“Because at some point, you realize that if someone wants to be found, they wouldn’t make it so hard to find them.
My mate had abandoned me. And it was time for me to accept that.
So, I chose to move forward and live my life without him. ”
“And now he’s back,” she said.
“And now he’s back,” I echoed.
“What’s your plan?” Izzy asked. “How do you want to handle this?”
A bitter laugh spilled from my lips. “I don’t plan on doing anything. He left me. He broke my heart. He can go jump off a cliff for all I care, as long as I’m not standing at the bottom. I want nothing to do with him.”
Izzy stared at me, her gaze knowing. She was a vampire with excellent instincts and keen senses. Twenty bucks said she could smell the lie all over me. She just chose not to point it out. Because sometimes, a girl had to tell herself a lie or two, if only to preserve her sanity.
If I kept telling myself I wanted nothing to do with Calder, maybe one day I’d actually believe it.