Secret Worlds (422 page)

Anger flashed in his eyes but only briefly. “I guess I’ll have to
make
you believe me.” He stood up. “May I have this dance?”

My heart raced. Why was it always a rollercoaster of emotions with him? I hated him, I loved him. A sigh escaped my lips. I wouldn’t reject him.

I removed the napkin from my lap and accepted his cold hand. He pulled me to his chest and wrapped his arm tightly around my waist.

As if on command, the music changed—a dark and exotic tune. Violins hummed to the beat of a bass drum, and the low notes pumped my body as if it were a heartbeat. I felt the vibrations in every part of me, and it ignited my skin with an intense heat. Boaz spun me around, dancing to the throbbing rhythm, round and round, faster and faster.

The candles flickered and burned low, taking light with them. A heavy mist seemed to rise from the ground, almost as if a thousand ghosts. They crowded and swirled around our legs, parting for us only when we danced through.

My eyes never left Boaz’s, even when our feet barely lifted off the marble floor. We continued to spin in a whirlwind of darkness and power that seemed to grow stronger the more I stared into his now entirely black eyes. He opened his mouth to give room for growing fangs, and his eyes rolled back. My own body seemed to be experiencing the same climactic sensation, and I moaned in excitement.

The force between us reached an epic high and took on a life of its own. Below us, snakes appeared. They slid and twisted in and out of each other, hissing and spitting almost in time to the music. I should’ve been scared, but I wasn’t. Boaz flashed me a wicked smile.

It was the smile that stopped me.

This is wrong
, I told myself, even though I couldn’t understand why. I closed my eyes and tried to fight against the dark magic. Finally, I dropped my arms and stepped away. The illusion instantly disappeared, and all was as it was before.

Boaz’s black eyes bulged from his sockets, and his upper lip sneered. Frightened, I stepped back and glanced behind me toward the closed glass doors, but when I looked back at Boaz, there was no hint of malice on his face.

Touching his head as if it ached, he said, “That was strange.”

“What?”

He collapsed into his chair, breathing heavily. “I’ve never experienced magic like that before.”

I shook my head in disbelief. “You’re saying I did that?”

“It sure wasn’t me. I’m not that powerful.”

“It couldn’t have been just me,” I whispered.

A loud chime echoed above us.

“My friends are here,” Boaz said, and he left me alone outside to go greet them.

The air was cold, but I didn’t move closer to the table where I could get warm. There’s no way I could’ve produced something so dark and disgusting with my magic. My parents did those sorts of things, not me.
I was not like them.
I said this over and over in my mind.

Muffled voices echoed from within the house, but as they drew closer, they became clearer.

“If William would learn what a gas pedal was for, we might’ve arrived only half an hour late instead of a whole hour.” The voice was shrill with a hint of playfulness.

I turned around to peer through the glass doors. Coming toward me was a petite woman in a low-cut, tight green dress. She looked a little older than myself. Next to her was a tall, mousy-looking man in a dark blue, tailored suit. The sides of his brown hair held patches of gray. They were both smiling and chatting with Boaz as if they were all close friends. I quickly turned away and took several deep breaths.

The door opened, and Boaz said, “I’d like you both to meet Eve Segur, although she hardly needs an introduction.”

I turned around and forced a smile. I hated that everyone knew who I was, yet I knew no one.

“Eve, this is William Mioni and Liane Basset. William lives in Italy, but he is visiting the states for a few months, and Liane’s from New York City.”

“It’s nice to meet you both,” I said.

William approached me and placed a light kiss on each cheek. “The pleasure is all mine,” he said and stepped back. His short, slicked-back hair looked wet—so much so that I wouldn’t have been surprised to see water drip onto his shoulders. His blue eyes lay hidden beneath bushy eyebrows, and his nose looked too large for his narrow face.

“Boaz has told us all about you,” Liane said, her eyes flashing to Boaz, just before she embraced me in a quick hug. Her brown hair was shaped into a stylish bob that cradled her delicate facial features. Her unnaturally wide eyes matched the color of her dress—they were her most striking feature.

“Did we interrupt something?” Liane asked, glancing around the candlelit patio.

Boaz turned to me, as though expecting me to answer.

“Not at all,” I said. “We were just finishing up.”

Liane’s gaze lowered to the table. “You say you’re finished?”

“Apparently we are,” Boaz said.

“Boaz,” Liane said, “be a dear and bring in two more chairs. This is much too beautiful not to enjoy, and I see you’re being wasteful.” She sat down in my chair and eyed the food greedily.

William chuckled. “Really, Liane, you’re such a scavenger.”

“Waste not, want not,” she said, and then plucked the leaf of a cooked artichoke and scraped the meat from it with her teeth.

I liked her instantly.

“So tell me, Eve, what do you like to do?” Liane asked as she drank from my cup.

I joined her at the table and sat on a chair brought in by a servant. Boaz sat next to me. “I love the outdoors. There’s something mysterious and beautiful about nature.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” William said.

Liane wrinkled her nose. “Nature is dirty and smelly. Have you smelled New York City lately?”

William coughed. “New York City is hardly nature. Have you ever walked into a forest or climbed a mountain?”

“Now why would I want to do that?” Liane asked. “What else do you like, Eve?”

“I enjoy reading.”

Liane took a bite of pasta, the white sauce dripping onto the top of her breast. William rolled his eyes, but Liane wasn’t embarrassed in the least. She dabbed at the sauce with a napkin. “Do you like to go to dancing? I know some great clubs in the city.”

I shifted in my seat uncomfortably. “I’ve never been.”

“That must change immediately.” Liane leaned back in her chair, her lips slightly turned up. “So how was it living with the great Segurs?”

“Torture.”

Liane laughed. “Isn’t it always? My parents won’t let me move until I marry, and as far as I’m concerned, that’s not going to happen.”

“So you’re going to live with your parents forever?” William asked.

“Of course not.
Parents
can’t live forever.” An uncomfortable silence followed her grin.

Suddenly, Liane jumped as if she’d been shocked. She turned to me. “I just remembered! Did you know we are distant cousins?”

“Really?”

“Our great, great grandmothers were sisters. They were scandalous, mischievous women. In fact, they were once kicked out of an entire city because of their pranks.”

William snorted. “A relative of yours causing trouble? I can’t believe it.”

“I’ve always wanted a sister,” Liane said, ignoring William. “Maybe we could be like our grandmothers and have all kinds of fun.”

“I’ve always wanted a sister, too,” I said.
Had I been born to a different family
, I wanted to add. No one else needed to suffer my parents’ abuse.

“Then it’s settled. We are sisters, you and I.” Liane took my hands in hers. “William, could you say a few ceremonious words, binding us as sisters forever?”

“You can’t be serious,” he said.

“Of course I am. Just a few words. Go on, now.”

William glanced over at Boaz for help, but Boaz just smiled and shrugged. William sighed and lifted his arms into the air. “Oh great mother of…sisterhood. Bind these two women as sisters for all eternity!”

My hand suddenly tingled. I looked down surprised. When I looked up, my eyes met Liane’s. She, too, seemed surprised.

“It’s done,” she said.

“Want to be brothers?” William asked Boaz.

“No.”

“Let’s play a game.” Liane looked to each one of us.

“If it involves a monkey, I’m out.” William said, crossing his arms.

I laughed. “Why would a game involve a monkey?”

“Ask Liane.”

I turned to Liane, waiting for an explanation, but received none.

Liane said, “Fine, no monkeys. Let’s play—Dare the Demon.”

“What’s that?” I asked, trying not to swallow.

“It’s simple really,” William told me. “We dare each other to do stupid things. You see, we are the demons.”

“Oh.”

“It will be fun, don’t worry,” Liane said. “Who wants to go first?”

“I will,” said William. He looked around the room until his eyes settled on Liane. “Since this game was your idea, I dare you first.”

“Go right ahead,” she said through a mouthful of more food.

“I dare you…” He tapped his finger on the table and eyed Liane thoughtfully. “…to take us to your most favorite secret place.”

“Now William, I thought you liked innocent games,” she teased.

William blushed. “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”

“Of course not,” she said and laughed. “As if you could ever mean anything like that. Fine. You want to see my secret place?” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

I waited anxiously. I was in awe of Liane and her straightforwardness. Her uncouth behavior from the way I was raised was refreshing. I wished I could be just like her.

Without warning, all the candles blew out, plunging us into darkness. Both William and I gasped at the same time. Boaz didn’t make a sound, but his cool hand slid across mine. His thumb caressed my palm, sending chills through my whole body. Inwardly, I moaned. I was beginning to enjoy his touch way too much.

Just beyond the patio, high in the sky, a dim light appeared and continued to grow as the walls of the home disappeared behind us. A thick fog rolled in, blanketing the ground that was no longer concrete but now appeared as dirt. Rising from within the fog, differently shaped stones took their places in rows all over what used to be Boaz’s back lawn.

“Amazing,” William whispered. “It’s a graveyard.”

He was right—it was amazing. The light in the sky had formed a full silver moon, and all around us were what looked like endless headstones, mausoleums, and statues.

Liane opened her eyes and stood up suddenly. She tapped me on the shoulder. “You’re it!” She turned and scurried away.

William stood up quickly, too; his chair tipped over as he ran in the opposite direction of Liane. I looked over at Boaz who was pulling his hand away from mine.

“Apparently, you’re it,” he said, and he walked away from me into the maze of statues and graves, gray fog billowing up behind him.

I grinned. I’d never played games like this before, but I was more than ready to start. I called out, “I’ll have you all know that I am the queen of sneakiness!”

A giggle erupted to my left. I headed in the direction of the laughter, quietly stepping around old headstones and angel-like statues. Out of the corner of my eye, a shadow crossed where I had just walked. Someone was following me.

I continued forward, but when I passed a tall cross-shaped headstone, I stepped behind it and hid. Liane walked right by me unaware of my presence. I reached out and touched her back. “You’re it!”

Liane screamed and jumped. “Oh, you little witch!”

When I ran away, she tried to follow me, but I lost her in the fog. I ducked behind a stone mausoleum, smiling big and trying hard not to laugh. Sliding with my back against the wall, I inched forward to peer around the corner. Liane’s shadow was on the other side, walking up and down the rows of headstones.

“I can hear your heavy breathing, William,” she called.

I was about to cross over behind a statue when arms wrapped around me and pulled me through the open iron doors of the mausoleum. Instinctively, I opened my mouth to scream, but a familiar hand closed over my mouth. Boaz’s partially shadowed face smiled at me in the dark.

“Are you having fun?” he whispered.

“Surprisingly, yes. How is she doing this?”

“Magic.”

“It’s incredible.”

“Not really, love. Look around, I mean really look, and you will see this is just a simple illusion.”

I reached out to touch a stone coffin lying inside the mausoleum. It felt solid. I pushed harder until the coffin dissipated along with the entire illusion. The lit candles returned, as did our table, which lay a short distance away. Not far on the lawn, William was hunched over in a ball; Liane was almost to him.

“Do you see it?” Boaz breathed near my neck, sending a wave of chills down my body.

“I do, but it doesn’t make what she did any less remarkable.”

“It’s simple magic, just a trick of the mind. You would be able to do so much more with your power.”

I sighed, not knowing how to respond. After a few seconds, I said, “I prefer to see the graveyard.”

“Then see it.”

I closed my eyes, counted to three, and opened them again. We were back in the cramped mausoleum, facing each other. I suddenly became very aware of Boaz’s hand on my waist, the slight pressure where his palms pressed. He looked down at my lips and then into my eyes. His own lips parted, and he stepped forward, closing the gap between us. His fingers caressed my cheek, and before I realized what I was doing, I pushed up on my tiptoes and pressed my mouth to his. His lips were soft as they moved against mine, slowly at first, but when my tongue touched his bottom lip, his grip tightened and he pulled my body against his eagerly.

“I’ve got you,” Liane’s voice echoed across the way. I heard scuffling, then a loud grunt as if someone had fallen over.

I pulled away from Boaz and looked down, too embarrassed and frightened to see his reaction. The illusion around us had permanently disappeared. Liane and William strolled back to the table.

“You can be such a baby,” Liane said.

William dropped into a chair. “I don’t like graveyards. They’re for the dead, not the living.”