Authors: Kelly Hashway
“Elisa, I know.”
“No, you don’t! I lost Phil, yet I’m still under this imprint. It didn’t end with his death. I’m hoping against hope that it ends after my next rebirth. It’s the only thing that can take this emptiness away. But if Cara remembers…”
“It will mean you’ll remember too.” I hear footsteps and assume Monique is hugging Mom. “Oh, Elisa, I’m so sorry.”
“It’s torture.” Mom’s sobs are more intense now. “I don’t know how much longer I can live with this pain. Part of me died with him. I feel like I’m not whole anymore. This isn’t a life. I don’t want this for Cara.”
“I know you don’t,” Monique says.
“We have to keep her away from Logan and hope for the best. Hope the imprint fades enough that she won’t remember him.”
“It’s your call, Elisa. If that’s what you want, then that’s what we’ll do.”
Their footsteps sound on the kitchen floor as they leave the room. So that’s it. They’re deciding for me. I can’t be around Logan, or I might end up heartbroken like Mom.
Logan
“Would you get these handcuffs off me?” The burns on my hands are killing me, and Officer Monroe is about to get his ass beat if he doesn’t let me go.
“Not happening,” Officer Monroe says curtly, “so you might as well forget about it.” He puts his hands on his hips, staring at me like…well, I guess like I’m a Hunter.
“You can’t keep me here. This is kidnapping. If you’re going to charge me with something, then take me to the station. After that, my dad will have
you
in handcuffs.”
“Garret, he’s right,” Linette says. “You can’t hold him here. It’s against the law.”
“I don’t give a damn about the law right now!” Garret’s face reddens, and he stares at me like he wants to rip my head off. The feeling is mutual. “You know about us, know what we are. That gives me the right to do whatever I see fit with you.”
Mrs. Tillman walks into the living room. “No, it doesn’t, Garret. You can’t keep the boy here. His father will be looking for him. The last thing we need is you drawing attention to yourself or to the rest of us.”
“Do
you
want to take responsibility for him?” Officer Monroe says, stabbing a finger at Mrs. Tillman. “Do you want to have our secret on
your
head? Because that’s what I’m dealing with right now.”
“She hates me,” I said. “She always has.” Everyone turns to me in surprise. “What? You expect me to sit here and be quiet while you all decide my future? I don’t think so. If you won’t let me talk to Cara, then I’m not cooperating.”
“She doesn’t want to talk to you,” Mrs. Tillman says. “And I don’t hate you. I don’t know you.” She places her hands over my burns and a tingling sensation seeps through my palms. When she removes her hands, the blisters and redness are gone. Healed. After all I’ve been through with these people, I’m only surprised for a moment.
“Then why were you so…?” I want to say bitchy, but she’s Cara’s mom. I may not like her, but I won’t disrespect Cara like that. “You were cold to me.”
“I took you into the hospital and fixed you up. I hardly call that being cold.”
“You said my injury wasn’t anywhere near as bad as Cara thought. Was that a lie?” Her eyes widen, and I know I’ve stumbled onto something. “It
was
a lie. Cara really did see my head crack open, didn’t she?” My mind swarms. “And the car accident, the windshield, it
did
break on its own. I didn’t touch it.”
“Not exactly,” Monique says.
“Shut up!” Garret yells. “No one is telling him anything. He already knows too much. You say anything else, and you might as well put a gun to his head right now.”
“So you
are
planning to kill me.” It’s not a question. I’m so pissed off I’m pretty much challenging him to do it. “If Cara doesn’t remember me, won’t talk to me or see me, then what the hell? You may as well put a bullet in my head.”
Mrs. Tillman and Monique exchange a glance.
“What? Surprised I’m willing to die for her?”
“No,” Mrs. Tillman says, sitting down on the couch next to me. “Not at all, actually. But, Logan, you need to understand something about this imprint.”
“What the hell is that anyway? I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.” Why is it easier for me to understand that they’re different—Phoenixes—than it is for them to understand I’m human?
“It’s something that happens when…” She looks at the others. No one stops her, so she continues. “It happens when a Phoenix meets their mate.”
Mate?
“What does the imprint do?”
“It makes you fall in love sooner, almost instantly.” She inhales a shaky breath before continuing. “And you’ll stay this way forever.”
“You mean until I die?”
She nods.
“So that’s why Cara doesn’t remember? Because she died?” That hardly seems fair. I can’t believe this means I’m just shit out of luck now.
“We aren’t sure,” Monique says. “We don’t know if the imprint outlasts the rebirth. Most Phoenixes don’t imprint at all, and if they do, it’s not until after their first rebirth. This is a whole new territory for us.”
“That’s enough.” Garret raises his hand. “He doesn’t need to hear all of this.”
“He’s part of it,” Monique says, giving Garret a harsh look.
Garret’s cell phone rings. He pulls it from his belt. “Officer Monroe.” He pauses and all the muscles in his face tighten. “It hasn’t been that long. Tell him to keep looking.” He pauses again before grumbling, “Fine.” He hangs up without saying good-bye.
“That was about my dad reporting me missing, right?” I’m a little surprised Dad even noticed. I figured it would be a few days before he realized I was gone. We don’t exactly interact much, not since Mom died. Then again, I took his car, and
that
he’d miss.
Garret ignores me and turns to Mrs. Tillman. “We don’t have much time to figure this out.” I recognize my ring tone, and Garret pulls my cell from his pocket. He looks at the screen and walks toward me. “Tell him you’re fine. You heard Cara was involved in an accident and you came to check on her. Nothing more. Do you understand me?”
I’m not promising him anything. I hold my cuffed hands out. “Let me out of these so I can talk to him.” Garret doesn’t budge. “The call’s going to get kicked to voice mail if you don’t hand it over soon.” He glares at me and puts the phone on speaker. I glare back. He may think he’s controlling the conversation by holding the phone and making sure he can end the call whenever he wants, but I’m not stupid. I’ll make sure this conversation doesn’t go well for him.
“Hey, Dad.”
“Where the hell have you been? I’ve left you three messages.”
“Sorry. Cara was in an accident tonight. I came to check on her. I should be home soon though.” By the way Garret is clenching his fists, I know he wasn’t anticipating that last part.
“I’m going to bed. Next time you’re going to be this late, call. I don’t like missing sleep. You know how much I work.”
“Sorry, Dad. Good—” He hangs up before I can finish.
Garret pulls the phone away.
“I guess I’ll be going home now.” I smirk, knowing I’ve beaten him at his own game.
“Like hell you are.” Garret pockets my phone and walks over to the fireplace, resting his head on the mantel.
“You can’t keep me here. My dad will go ballistic.” Maybe not. He’s probably already in bed, having dismissed me the second the call ended, but Garret doesn’t know that.
Garret stands up straight, and his brows pull together. “I’m not about to—”
“Enough.” Linette’s voice is harsh, not at all like usual. “We are not kidnapping him, Garret. If we stoop that low, we’re just as bad as the Hunters. And what will keeping him here do anyway? We can’t erase his memory. We can’t make him forget Cara.”
“No one could make me forget Cara,” I say. “I love her. I’m not going to do anything to hurt her. All I want is a chance to talk to her and make her remember me. Why can’t you see that?” My eyes are locked on Garret, the one I need to convince.
“I hate to break it to you, Logan, but what you feel for her is the effect of the imprint. It isn’t real. And when it wears off, all she’ll be to you is a human-bird hybrid that you’ll never be able to love. You’ll be so angry for how the imprint made you feel that you’ll want revenge—on her, and on all of us.” His arms swing out, motioning to everyone in the room.
He’s baiting me. Trying to get me to admit that I’ll turn on them, but he’s wrong. “Nice try, but I don’t buy a word of that.” I stand up, tugging at the handcuffs still pinning my arms together. “This isn’t fake. It’s not just the imprint, or whatever you all do when you fall in love. I felt something the first time I saw Cara. Something I still feel now. I’m the biggest cynic when it comes to love, but here I am, living proof that it exists. I’d rather die than lose Cara. I don’t care if she’s part bird or part demon. I’d love her just the same.”
Linette wipes a tear from her eye and steps toward me. “That was beautiful.” She wraps me in a hug, and a small wave of relief washes over me. One down, now I have to convince the rest of them.
“Yeah, very heartwarming,” Garret says, crossing his arms.
Linette pulls away and looks at him. “Always the voice of negativity, Garret.”
“And you’re always too eager to see the good in people. Our lives are at stake. People are dying.
Phoenixes
are dying. And you’re willing to believe the very person who was there when Cara was attacked just because he gave a speech about how much he supposedly cares for her?” Garret’s gaze is locked on me. “I’ll be damned if I lose another one of our kind because I fell for some sappy love story.”
“Then I’ll vouch for him,” Monique says, walking into the room. I didn’t think she’d heard what I said from the kitchen, but she must have because her expression has softened.
“You?” Garret raises a brow in challenge. “And what will you be able to do to stop him from telling the world about us? The most contact you have with him is feeding him at the café. That’s hardly good enough.”
“I’ll watch him,” Linette says. “I’m at his house every day cleaning anyway.”
“And what about at night?” Garret isn’t going to let this go. He wants me under constant supervision, house arrest, and I’m willing to bet he plans to keep these handcuffs on me permanently too.
Linette is my only way out of this house, not that I want to leave Cara, but if I say here like this, she’ll never trust me. She’ll only see me the way Garret does, and then any chance I have with her will be gone.
“I’ll get my dad to let Linette move in,” I say. “Our housekeeper back in New York stayed with us. He won’t think twice about it.” I look to Linette, hoping she’ll agree. If I’m going to have a Phoenix shadowing me, I want it to be her.
“What do you say, Garret?” Linette asks. “Does that plan meet your approval?” Sarcasm drips from her words.
“What’s going on?” Cara steps into the room, and I immediately turn toward her. She looks around at everyone, her eyes dropping when they meet mine. If I didn’t have these handcuffs on, I’d wrap my arms around her and kiss her, make her remember she loves me.
“Linette’s going to move in with me and my dad,” I say before Garret can object.
Cara’s eyes go back and forth between Linette and me. “Oh. So I guess you’re going home now?” She’s looking at me, but I don’t think she really sees me at all.
“I can stick around a little longer if you want to talk.” I’m grasping at smoke here, watching Cara slip away from me.
“I’m tired. I want this day to end.” She moves toward me but hesitates. Strange. Was she going to kiss me good-bye? Was there some part of her that instinctively remembered that’s what she would’ve done before all this happened?
I step toward her, but Garret closes in on me. The last thing I want is Garret to tackle me again in front of Cara, so I stop. “Sweet dreams, Cara,” I say.
She nods and walks up the stairs to her room. I swallow the tears burning the back of my throat and hold up my cuffed hands to Garret. “Would you get these off me now? Linette can babysit me. I need to get out of here.”
Mrs. Tillman nods to Garret. “Let him go.”
Garret throws his hands in the air. “So now
you
trust him too?”
“I’m doing what I think is best for Cara. Now let the boy go, Garret.”
Garret might think he’s in charge where the Phoenixes are concerned, but Mrs. Tillman is making it known that you don’t mess with mama bird. I owe her one for that.
Garret removes the handcuffs, mumbling under his breath. He couldn’t be more forceful about it either. “One wrong move, one toe where I don’t want it, and I’ll burn you to the ground before you can make a fist. Got that, Hunter?”
“You’re an idiot,” I say, rubbing my wrists. “No wonder there’s a Hunter on the loose killing people like you. You’re wasting your time on me.” I lean forward, getting right in his face. “I’d never hurt you guys.” I smirk. “Well, not Cara and the others anyway.”
He grabs me by my shirt, but Mrs. Tillman and Monique pull him off me. “Go.” Mrs. Tillman motions to Linette and me. She’s glaring at me and I know I’ve screwed up by challenging Garret, but the guy had it coming and I’m not about to apologize.
Linette takes my arm and walks me to the door. Once we’re outside, she leads me to her car and says, “You’re lucky your father will be willing to let me stay until this all blows over.”
I open the passenger door and get in. “Yeah, about that…” I wait until she’s in the car and backing out of the driveway before I continue. “I lied. We never had a live-in housekeeper in New York. And I need to get my dad’s car from the school or he will get suspicious.”
She turns toward the school, but keeps the conversation on how I lied to everyone. “Do you have any idea what Garret is going to do if your father doesn’t let me move in?”