Protected (Book 1 in the Ariya Adams trilogy) (21 page)

“I’ve known Ariya a lot longer than you. What goes on between us is none of
your business.”

“And what goes on between Ariya and me is none of yours. I’m glad we understand each other.”

There was a testosterone overload happening down here. My eyes started tearing up. I’d be so glad to be rid of these absurd emotions after graduation, like my mom said. Riley came around the corner and saw me. I mouthed,
Thank you
. He looked at me with a pained expression and touched my arm as he passed.

I continued on to the bathroom
, knowing I would unfortunately bump into James. He came out and looked at me as if he wanted me to say something.

“Having fun?” I asked wanting to make it soun
d like I hadn’t heard anything.

“Sure.” He kept walking.

If he cared so much about me, he wasn’t letting on now. Maybe he was doing as I had asked when we talked last and letting me move on. At least he seemed like he was, given that he clearly wasn’t going to stop and chat.
Good riddance,
I thought.

I walked into the bathroom and locked the door. The window was open and it was freezing. What the heck? Did Riley want us all to get sick? Closing it wasn’t working because it was jammed. Perhaps one of the boys co
uld fix it once I finished up. As I was washing my hands, I saw a shape in the mirror.

Looking up
, there was a sight that made me frown. Devon was standing behind me.

“We really have to stop meeting like t
his,” he smirked.

Not again
, I thought.

I didn’t want to make any noise
for fear he would go after someone at the party. What if he tried to hurt Caroline again?

“What do you want?” I
snarled through clenched teeth.

I hated him. The look on his face confirmed every thought I had a
bout him not being good. He hadn’t wiped the clown-like grin from his face yet, and it creeped me out.  All the horrible feelings he had given me before washed over me all over again. My skin crawled like there were tiny insects running up, down, and all over me. Good to know my body had some sort of defense mechanism for the monsters around me, at least for Devon.

He rushed
at me, but did not slam me into the wall this time. Maybe he didn’t want to make noise, either, since James, Caroline, Nick, and Emma, my own army of vampires, were waiting for me on the other side of the door just up the stairs. He may not have slammed me against the wall, but he was still holding me there too tightly. He was much too close for comfort.

“Y
ou’ll be coming with us soon enough.” He smiled and leaned in to whisper in my ear, nuzzling into my neck.

I thought I was going to vomit. His breath was rancid
, smelling of rotten meat. I hoped that it wasn’t something disturbing that he digested causing that stench.

“Emma and I have big plans for you.” My eyes widened. Did he say Emma? He chuckled softly. “You aren’t really buying that she’s here to help when your little boyfriend can’t stay away from you. Emma wants James to
herself, which means she will do what she’s told when it comes to getting rid of you.” I started struggling to get free of him.

“H
old still, little one. I’m not taking you anywhere yet. I just wanted to remind you that I’m still around. We haven’t seen each other in quite some time. Have you missed me? I’ve missed you.”

Some of my self-defense moves came up in my head and I tried to move quickly to surprise him. His grip was digging into my arms and I felt like he was crushing me. Any move I made
, his grip just got tighter. He blocked me when I tried to do another one, and a strange noise came out of me as I grunted against him. Did anyone hear that? This feeling of being helpless was getting old. I needed to train harder.

He jerked his head up
, and it reminded me of the same movement the wolf I ran into earlier in the year, which had in fact been Devon, made before leaving. Was he going to really let me go? Now that I knew Emma was somehow involved? He leaned into me again, causing my body to tense from nerves.

“Gotta run
, my pet,” he whispered, and was out the window in an instant.

The bathroom door flew open, slamming into the tiled wall behind it and James looked at me.

“Where is he
, Ariya?” I pointed out the window and James jumped through it, out into the night.

Emma was with him and followed
behind him into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. She locked it. Then she walked over to the window and slammed it shut. She brushed her hands before she turned towards me, sneering.

“My dear Ariya.
We obviously need to chat. Devon shouldn’t have come here tonight. He isn’t good at keeping his mouth shut or keeping secrets, so I don’t even want to pretend he didn’t say something.”

She sta
lked closer to me, causing me to recoil. She was stronger than me, but was she stupid enough to try something with so many people close by?

“
The only reason he’d come here is to taunt you, and I would like to know what he said. He enjoys playing games too much. At least that’s what I’ve learned over the years. He’s stupid,” she spat out.

All I could do was stare at her in disbelief.
Over the years? Why would she have been working with him for years? Were they working on something to do with me for that long?

“What did he mean when he said you two have something planned for me? Emma
, what is going on? I thought you were here to help.” I still couldn’t believe it. She is my family, whether I like her or not.

“You’re actually quite lucky the rest of those idiots went to cha
se Devon and it’s just you and me here so I can make one point perfectly clear. Yes, Devon seems to have spilled the beans on us working together, which is unfortunate. Yes, our little plan together involves you, but it isn’t time yet. Now that you know I’m not here to help, though, that could be a big problem. I’m going to keep playing the helpful great, great grandmother card, and you’re going to act like you believe it a little longer. I wouldn’t want you ratting me out to anyone. That could turn out tragically. You’re going to play the game with me, too, and pretend to believe everything I say.” Emma hadn’t scared me before, but she definitely scared me now.

“Why would I do that? You are lying to James, Caroline, Nick, and me. You’re my family! Why would you be helping some psycho werewolf who wants to hurt my friends? Why is any of this your concern in the first place?”

“Ugh, if the rest of your friends would get off their high horses and just tell you what was going on this would be so much easier. I don’t want to ruin the fun, so this secrecy is going to continue until they are ready to fill you in on the rest of the details of who you are, Ariya. However, you
will
obey my command to keep quiet about what you know.”

I could tell them. She wouldn’t be a match for them. Ther
e was no way. Three against one. Well, two, if Devon came too. Emma was staring hard at me and, as if reading my mind, she continued.

“
Ever since I was turned, I have been training. I’ve gotten flawless at fighting and making sure the vampires I kill stay dead. If you let on at all that I’m not here to help or that I am working with or even know Devon, I swear I will stake Caroline, Nick, and James and make you choose which one you’re going to save. Only one. Am I making myself clear now?”

“How could we be related?” I let out the breath I had been holding as I sai
d it.

“Don’t test me
, Ariya. I have no patience for you as it is.”

“James will never forgive you.”

I wasn’t 100% sure he cared that much about me, but it was worth a shot. Maybe if she thought that, she’d stop this nonsense. She walked towards me. I thought she was going to punch me in the face. Her fangs were out and gleaming. Her face looked severe. Come to think of it, I hadn’t been scared of vampires at all before tonight, but I was quickly getting there.

There was no reason to be fearful because I’d never
really seen the vampire side of James, Nick, or Caroline. They hadn’t ever gotten angry with me. Emma was what I imagined vampires from nightmares to be. She radiated evil. She was snarling in my face with shadows crossing over her features in a way that definitely wasn’t human. If she was trying to intimidate me, it was, unfortunately, working.

“H
e won’t ever know I was involved.”

Jumping at her contact
, thinking it would be violent, I was surprised when she wrapped her arms around me and started stroking my hair.
What the hell?
I bet she’s strong enough to rip my head off
, I gulped.

Then she said, “Do
n’t be frightened, it’s okay.”

Hearing someone coming down the stairs
, the reason for her change in demeanor became obvious. Emma reached behind her to unlock the door. James opened it a split second later. No wonder she put on the take-care-of-Ariya act so suddenly.

“Caroline and Nick met me outside
, but we couldn’t find him.” James walked straight up to me and took my face in both his hands. “Ariya, are you okay?” He searched me for signs of damage.

I was so angry I didn’t know what to say
, but I did not want to test Emma. The mixture of fear from seeing her vampire side come out, and the rage I felt from her deceiving us and plotting against me was causing a strong wave of emotions to come rushing over me. While I don’t think she would stake James, I was sure she wouldn’t hesitate to hurt Caroline or Nick, and the risk was too great for me to take.

Taking a breath through my nose to steady my voice, praying it
would be convincing, I spoke up. “I’m fine. He was just trying to scare me. He didn’t hurt me.”

“Why did you open the w
indow?” James crossed his arms.

He looked like he was getting angry now. He could take a chill pill and drop the attitude
with me for now.

“It was open when I came in
, James. Weren’t you in here before? Was it open then? I didn’t know I had to worry about being confronted by Devon in the bathroom at a house party when my guards were surrounding me. Maybe if I knew what was going on, I would notice things like this and take a chaperone with me to the bathroom? Would that be better?”

It was disrespectful to speak to him that way
, but it didn’t matter to me. I was fuming. I knew I wasn’t really angry with James, but I sure was taking it out on him. The anger should have been directed at Emma for betraying me, her family, but I had to keep my mouth shut for now.

T
here was a part of me also a little upset at James for letting her stay with him. He shouldn’t trust her. Why was he believing her if she was so horrible before? If he would question her a little more, maybe none of this would be happening. But then, I didn’t even know what ‘this’ was. Why was Emma interested in working with Devon? What had I done to her? Or to Devon?

“James,” I started. “If this is something that is going to keep happening, I need to know what is going on. How can I possibly stay safe if I don’t know what Devon is lurking around for? I need answers and I need to be on your side
, helping. I know there is more going on here than all of you just happening to be surrounding me during a time when some crazy werewolf is after me. There is more going on and I need to know, don’t you see?”

He stared at me
, narrowing his eyes for a minute. I was pleading with him. I tried to beg him with my eyes to tell me. Emma was still here, and I didn’t dare even look at her for fear of giving something away that would hurt everyone. He nodded briefly.

“Emma, go back to my place. Caroline and Nick are going to do a quick loop around town to see if they can find Devon. I’ll get Ariya home and fill her in
, and then I’ll be back.”

“I can come with you and help. I have lived through this
, remember?” Emma was trying to get him to let her stay. She probably just wanted to make sure I didn’t blab anything.

“No, I think i
t’s best Caroline and I do this,” James said. She looked livid at that comment, but quickly softened her gaze.

“Of course,” she said. “Ariya,” she turned to me and was facing away from James. I tried to make my expression thoughtful
, like I was curious about what James was going to tell me. “I’m glad you’re safe. I’m glad everyone is safe.” She squinted at me as if to remind me that everyone might not be safe if I opened my mouth. She didn’t need to remind me. Their lives weren’t something I was willing to risk. She walked out of the room and before I could follow, James was blocking the door.

“Ariya, what did Devon say to you? What aren’t you telling me?” He reached out to touch my arm
, but I drew back. His touch, the confusion with us, it was something that I couldn’t handle just then.

I was quiet. I cou
ld say what Devon had told me. I just had to change one word around and pass off lying to James to keep Emma’s secret safe. I could do this.

“Ariya?” he repeated.

I looked up at him. “He said ‘you’ll be coming with me soon enough. I have big plans for you.’”

“He won’t get to you, I promise,
” James said.

He reached his hand out again
, but this time thought twice about touching me before bringing it back down to his side.

Now that I knew Emma was involved with this whole plot
, I wasn’t sure I believed him. She knew my weakness was my friends and, if it came down to it, I would go along with her to protect Caroline, Nick, and James. If it came down to my choice, I would always choose to protect them. Until further command, the only thing to do was wait and paste on a happy face around her.

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s get you home so we can talk.”

We thanked Riley and headed back to the apartment, using the excuse that I wasn’t feeling well. Helen even packed up some of the dessert and told me she’d love to get together sometime. She really was sweet, and I told her I would take her up on that.

On the walk home
, James didn’t say much. He let me know Caroline and Nick would be back at the house by the time we got there. He was right, as they were already inside sitting down when I opened the apartment door.

“Ariya
, I’m sorry! We should have been listening harder to see if we heard anything suspicious.” Caroline threw her arms around me in a tight lock.

“Caroline, this isn’t your fault. Devon is crazy and I just want to know what’s going on so I can understand where the crazy is coming from. Or are all werewolves this way?” I asked.

“Oh, they’re all this way.” Caroline moved aside to show she had a cup of tea sitting at a spot on the couch for me. I smiled at her. Nick said some vampires turn off their feelings; Caroline was not one of them. She is one of the warmest and caring people I knew.

“Ariya, sit down and we’ll start explaining. Do you
need anything?” James inquired.

“No, I’m fine
, James. Please, just start letting me in.”

“A
ll right. Please be patient. There are lots of details and I’m going to try to get to as much as I can.” He paused, settling himself in.

I was sitting on the edge of my seat
. Finally, ready to hear what might be so awful that I wasn’t allowed to know until now. He continued.

“In the late 17
th
century, there was a Queen of Poland who had been forced into marriage for political reasons. Her name was Electress Christiane Eberhardine. She married Frederick Augustus I when she was twenty-one. He was a strict Catholic and she was Protestant. Back then, that was an issue. She was known to be stubborn, according to history, however, she was really just in love with another man.”

“
Their marriage was an unhappy one, and the two never even lived together. She lived in self-imposed exile outside of Dresden, Germany, and the King lived in his palace elsewhere in Poland. He was a habitual womanizer and was not with her for more than their wedding night. He saw she could hurt his political career with her Protestant beliefs and, since they couldn’t divorce, he basically just left her on her own. She wasn’t a woman to back down from things she believed in.”

“
Even though she lived on her own, she was visited constantly by the man she loved, Krystian Zajac. She was watched by a small group of guards, as she was still married to the King and could be harmed. The pretense also had to be kept up in some way that they were tied together. There was no way she would ever be left without some servants and guards. There were also rumors that a warlock lived with them as well.”

I held up my hand, “What in the world does this have to do with Devon?”

“Do you want to hear or not? Hush. There is a lot of background to this,” Caroline scolded me.

“Sorry.
I’m sorry.” I looked at James and meant it. I had been way too anxious to hear this. I didn’t want him to stop. “Go on, James. I’m sorry, I’ll listen.” He nodded, satisfied I would listen this time.

“She had a way about her that was endearing. Christiane thrived when helping others. The village around her palace in Torgau
, and even the city of Dresden, which was the closest larger city to them, benefited from her donations and from her visits when they were sick. She often allowed children to play in the palace courtyard, and enjoyed it when her people were happy. That was rare among nobility back in those days, so the warlock and the guards had grown to love her and respect her.”