Lunacy (23 page)

Kerry gave me a wry smirk, hands tucked into her jean
pockets in an almost masculine pose. “Don’t worry, Kacea. She’s
overzealous, but she means well. Promise.” The quiet girl’s
reassurance made me feel a bit better about the whole situation,
and I nodded my thanks with a genuine –albeit a little weak- smile.
She clapped me on the shoulder, the light contact from someone of
our clan bringing me a measure of comfort.

We ended up at a salon on the second floor and I was
seated before I knew what had happened. “I called ahead to make you
an appointment,” Aya gushed. “I even sent them a picture of you in
your whole outfit so they could find something perfect to bring it
all together!”

I nodded and the stylist gave me a smile in the
mirror, a caramel skinned woman with brilliant green eyes. “No
worries, hun.” She ran her fingers through my hair. “You and these
luscious locks are in good hands.” I closed my eyes and let her go
to work, almost afraid to open my eyes when it was all over.

“Go ahead and look now, love. I think you’ll be
pleasantly surprised.”

Doing as I was bidden, I opened my eyes, a gasp
escaping my lips as I turned my head back and forth to get a good
look at it in the large mirror across from me. My bangs were loose,
falling straight in their usual asymmetrical manner to either side
of my jaw. From my forehead back, all of my hair was done up in
partial braids that went from my crown to the back of my head. From
there, each plait was banded into place and the rest of the hair
beneath it fell in loose ringlets that foamed around my shoulders
like ocean waves at midnight.

Very pleased, I paid the extravagant bill without
batting an eyelash. We were headed back to Aya’s car when my cell
rang. I fumbled to extract it from my purse, finally retrieving it.
I saw Jynxx’s name flash on the screen and my heart sank with
sudden dread. Something was wrong. Very wrong. I could feel it.

“Hey, hun. What’s up?” I asked, trying to sound
nonchalant and hoping my fears were for nothing.

Jynxx was quiet a second, long enough that I almost
thought I’d lost the call. “Tonight at the samling, they won’t just
be introducing me as the rightful leader.” I let that sink in. It
could have meant a million different things, but none of them were
the words he spoke next: “Teigan has challenged Gavin for his rank
as beta due to some… issues that have recently occurred.”

I swore under my breath. Elomina had explained to us
a little about the way rank could change hands, but not much. This
challenge didn’t sound like a good thing, and Jynxx’s emotions
struck me like a tidal wave through the phone. “You’re projecting
really hard, babe… What exactly does this mean?”

“Tonight, they’re going to fight for the title as my
second.” He was silent again and I waited, knowing there was more
bad news coming. “Unless the victor grants them mercy, that means
we’ll be burying one of them tomorrow.”

Chapter 21

"That's..."

"Absolutely batshit insane. Believe me, I know. Tried
talking them out of it, but when I walked in on Teig kicking down
the bathroom door and trying to shove the door knob through Gavin's
back via body slam... I knew serious shit had been going down."

Gavin was a creep, but I still wouldn't wish anything
like that upon him. Teigan was always so calm and collected; it
must have been something awful to provoke him like that. "Are they
both alright?"

"Yeah. Some bruises and scrapes, but nothing that
won't heal up in a few days. Provided that they're both even alive
by then, that is. Even as the Kongen, I still don't have any
control over power struggles... The best I might be able to manage
is calling for a damage count if there's an obvious winner, before
they're both so frenzied that there's no stopping them."

I hated to admit it, but the thought of losing either
of them made me feel paralyzed by sadness, and a touch of fear. I
wasn’t sure how we were going to manage to get through this
challenge with both of them in one piece, but there had to be a
way. Jynxx and I said our goodbyes and hung up. Something must have
shown on my face, because Aya looked at me curiously, her own
expression quickly growing as worried as mine had to be.

“What happened?” she asked, her words quiet like she
was afraid of the answer.

I was silent a moment, trying to think of the best
way to tell her without sounding like an insensitive bastard,
knowing her history with Gavin. “Gavin and Teig… They had a big
fight; I guess it’s something that’s been going on for a long time
now. So tonight at the samling, Teigan’s challenged him for the
position as beta.”

The bubbly blond’s skin turned ashen at the news, her
whole body almost physically wilting from the strain. "As much as
I'd like to say that I'm surprised... I knew it was only a matter
of time." Her voice became wistful and it seemed more like she was
talking to herself than any of us. "Stupid fucking hot head..." She
tried to conceal a sniffle, her blue eyes growing darker with
repressed tears.

I put my hand on her shoulder and gave it a
reassuring squeeze, not trusting myself to say anything that
wouldn't worsen her already porcelain fragile psyche. "Would you
like me to drive?" I asked finally, the only help I could really
offer her.

She merely nodded and handed me her keys, letting the
much taller Kerry put an arm around her waist and keep her close as
we trekked to the car. The ride back was fairly quiet, and none of
us mentioned that Aya was openly crying over the beta. If both of
them survived this contest, I was going to have a serious sit down
talk with that red haired freak about Aya's feelings for him. I
mean, who knew? Maybe a constant girl in his life could sort him
out.

Back at my house, Aya and I both climbed from the car
and she did something I totally wasn’t expecting. She threw her
arms around me and hugged me with near bone crushing intensity. I
felt dampness on my shoulder from her tears, but it was residual.
She held me back at arm’s length, looking slightly up into my eyes.
“Thank you, Kacea.”

Aya reached into her small purse and withdrew a
darkly royal purple pouch from it, holding it out to me. “I wanted
to wait to give these to you, but now you might need them tonight.
I know you won’t have time to train with them, but if you need to..
I’m sure you could do what you may have to.” I was confused and
unwrapped a set of six very light throwing knives, as well as two
sheathes I could put around my forearm or strap to a leg. “They’re
coated in silver, so they’ll do more damage to ulven than humans…”
She was talking quickly, rambling to try to distract herself from
the bomb I’d just dropped on her. Before I could even thank her,
she went on.

“I’m glad Jynxx chose you over some other bitch from
the clan.” She chuckled a little and it made me smile to see her
normal cheer peeking through the sorrow. “Because seriously, if
Perfection had gotten her claws into him, we’d all be fucked
sideways.”

Before I could ask who this woman was, Aya gave me
another quick hug and hurried to the driver’s side. Our eyes met
over the car and she gave me a curt nod, her eyes filled with
determination. She had a plan and, as they drove off, I found
myself hoping it wasn’t going to make the whole situation even more
complicated than it already was.

I felt older as I made my way into the house,
noticing that Mom's car was gone, but Jynxx's was in the driveway.
With a sigh, I trudged into the kitchen, bound and determined to
have myself something to eat that would help chase away all of
these negative emotions.

Much to my surprise, I was greeted by the smell of
delicious things cooking in the kitchen. I was drawn to it like a
moth to a flame, going to Jynxx and dropping my bags on the floor
next to us. I wrapped my arms around him, burying my face in his
chest. I said nothing for a few minutes, just soaking in his warmth
and listening to the steady beating of his heart. "This is going to
suck, isn't it?" I said quietly. He took so long to respond that I
was ready to repeat myself, unsure that he'd even heard me.

He kissed the top of my head, being very careful as
he rested his chin on my elaborately styled hair. "It's certainly
not going to be easy to keep them both alive, kitten."

"Only because Mister Cool as a Cucumber finally lost
his shit," Conner's voice rang out clearly, and it startled me. I
hadn't noticed that the others were even there. I lifted my head
from the comfort of Jynxx's chest and looked to each of them, not
at all shocked at the absence of Gavin.

"Was I just supposed to let him keep being an abusive
prick to you and Ken? Hell, he almost went after Jimmy before we
even had breakfast today. We don't even know if he's ever going to
turn, and he might be Jynxx's little brother, but he's more built
like his mother than their tank of a father. Would you be happier
had I let him break and abuse a boy who just turned sixteen and
might be wholly human?" Teigan's voice was filled with heat and
cold all at once. Clearly, something like this had been in the
works for a long time. His vehemence and rage toward Gavin was
palpable, stinging like frostbite.

The omega shook his head. "You could have just kicked
his ass and been done with it! Why'd you have to throw this whole
position challenge bullshit into the mix, Teig?! We could end up
losing both of you, for Christ's sake!" Conner's words echoed off
the walls, his volume louder than he intended. His eyes were
glowing with his emotions, their appearance watery. "You're one of
my best friends, Teig. Like the brother I never got to have. If I
lost you..."

The older ulven crossed willowy arms over his slender
chest, leaning back against the counter and pointedly studying his
feet. "People do stupid shit when they're upset, Conner. You, of
all people, know that." His words were quiet, almost taunting, and
I felt like there was a story that someone hadn't filled me in
on.

"Don't you dare..." Conner practically hissed, the
venom and anger floating around in the air making my skin
prickle.

"Guys!" I half shouted, getting everyone to stop and
look at me. "Everyone zip up and chill out. We're all friends,
here. We're on the same side. Let's remember that. Gavin isn't even
wholly the enemy, either." I remembered the way Aya's face had
fallen at my news. If someone cared about him that deeply, there
had to be some redeeming quality about him that I just hadn't seen
yet. "Has he always been this much of a punk, or is it a more
recent development?"

They all thought it over for a minute before anyone
answered. "This extreme level of douche baggery is new. He's always
been kinda dickish, but never to this degree." Kenshin put in with
a sigh, turning his jade green eyes to me. "You sound like you
might have an idea, Kaysh."

The hamster wheel in my brain was working double
overtime before I finally voiced my idea out loud. "What if it's
not his doing?"

"What are you talking about, kitten?" Jynxx fired
back, intrigued.

"Well... We've got all this other supernatural mumbo
jumbo going on. What are the chances of someone fucking with Gavin
to get to us? Making him be a prick with intentions of planting him
on the throne, so they can use him as a puppet?" The kitchen was so
quiet you could have heard a pin drop. It unnerved me and finally I
shook my head. "Never mind. Forget I even suggested it."

Teigan perked up then, having mulled it over. "No,
Kacea. You may be right. We know for a fact that the reason Jynxx's
parents vacated in the first place was to protect Jynxx and Jimmy.
What if the same people they meant to protect the boys from are now
working to get their hooks into the Clan? With the time of Jynxx's
ascension at hand, it would be the perfect opportunity to jump in
and grab the reigns before he has a chance to really dig his heels
in."

"Do you think that maybe Alain has something to do
with this?" I asked point blank.

"Where the hell did that idea come from? And how do
you even know that Alain is one of us?" Kenshin and the others
stared at me and I shrugged, trying to remember how I knew. That
nagging pain spiked my brain again and I winced, air hissing
between my teeth.

"I don't remember. There's this... blockage in my
brain, almost like something majorly traumatic happened. Every time
I try to focus on it, it feels like someone just tried to give me
an ice pick lobotomy..."

Jynxx ran his fingers soothingly down my arm, lacing
his fingers with mine. "The first time it hit her, we were in the
car. It actually made her eardrum rupture."

"Are you serious?!" Conner took a step forward and I
merely nodded. "That's some heavy fucking magickal interference
going on. Whatever happened, someone with balls of steel doesn't
want you to be able to recall it."

Teigan looked from Jynxx to me before asking, "Do you
think we should ask Mina about it? Maybe see if she can remove it
so we know what someone think they're protecting you from?"

I shook my head almost immediately. "No thanks. If I
can't break through it on my own, I don't want to try. With how
badly it hurt me before, I'll pass. When it's time for me to be
able to accept it and just roll with whatever this trauma was, my
brain will let me know. Until then, I'm not fond of bringing on a
potential aneurism over it."

Conner was the first to agree with me. "The fact that
you mentioned Alain makes me wonder... What if it has something to
do with him and his parents? I mean... The Reece family are the
ones who broke away from our clan when Jynxx's folks took power.
They felt they were entitled to the rule because their blood line
was more 'pure'."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." I held my hands up. "So you mean
to tell me that the reason Jynxx's folks split town was because
Alain's family formed their own clan and wanted to wage war on the
Davisons?"