Opal

Chapter 12

Blake had a confident air about him as he walked up to our table, but it had nothing on Daemon’s deadly swagger or the cool and arrogant smile he was wearing that instant. It was a purely predatory look.

Suddenly, I wasn’t sure a public place was a good idea.

“Bart,” Daemon drawled, his fingers tapping along the booth behind me. “It’s been so long.”

“I see you still haven’t figured out my name.” Blake slid into the seat across from us. His gaze dropped to the pile of torn napkins, then to me. “Hey, Katy.”

Daemon leaned forward. The smile was still on his face, but his words were like the arctic winds. “You don’t talk to her. At all.”

There was no stopping He-Man when he came out to play, but I pinched him under the table. Daemon ignored me.

“Well, only talking to you is going to make this conversation real rough.”

“Like I care?” Daemon said, placing his other hand on the table.

I exhaled slowly. “Okay. Let’s get to the point. Where are Beth and Chris, Blake?”

Blake’s gaze slid to mine again. “I—”

A current of electricity coursed from Daemon’s hand and shot across the table, shocking Blake. He jerked back with a hiss, his eyes narrowing on Daemon.

Daemon smiled.

“Look, you tool, you can’t intimidate me this time.” Blake’s voice dripped contempt. “So you’re just wasting time and pissing me off.”

“We’ll see about that.”

Jocelyn returned with Daemon’s massive meal and took Blake’s order. Like me, he only requested a soda. When we were alone once more, I focused on Blake.

“Where are they?”

“If I tell you, I’d have to trust that you two, plus anyone else, aren’t going to give me a cement swim.”

I rolled my eyes at the mafia reference. “Trust is a two-way street.”

“And we don’t trust you,” Daemon threw out.

Blake drew in a long breath. “I don’t blame you. I’ve given you no reason to trust me other than the fact I didn’t tell Daedalus about how well the mutation held.”

“And I bet either your uncle—Vaughn—stopped you from turning me over, or you thought he was doing his job,” I countered, trying not to remember the look of horror that had settled on Blake’s face when his uncle betrayed him. He didn’t deserve my sympathy. “But he screwed you over for money.”

Blake’s jaw worked. “He did. And he put Chris in danger. But it’s not like I haven’t had to convince them otherwise after the fact. They think I’m happy to be an implant. That I’ve drunk the Kool-Aid and asked for seconds.”

Daemon snickered. “To save your own ass, I’m sure.”

He ignored that comment. “The fact is, Daedalus doesn’t believe you’re a viable subject.”

“How do you know?” Daemon’s fingers tightened on his fork.

Blake shot him a duh look. “The only real wild card here is Will. Obviously he knew and used that knowledge.”

“Will isn’t our biggest or most annoying problem right now.” Daemon took a bite, chewing slowly. “You either have a lot of courage or are incredibly stupid. I’m going to go with the incredibly stupid part.”

Blake snorted. “Yeah. Okay.”

A dangerous look shadowed Daemon’s face, and for a moment, no one moved as Jocelyn returned with Blake’s drink. The second she was gone, Daemon leaned forward, his eyes starting to shine behind his lashes. “We gave you a chance and you came back here after you killed one of our own. You think I’m the only person you have to look over your shoulder and watch out for? You’re so wrong.”

A thread of fear finally showed in Blake’s churning eyes, but his voice was even. “The same goes for you, buddy.”

Daemon sat back, eyes hooded. “As long as we’re on the same page.”

“Back to Daedalus,” I said. “How do you know they’re watching Dawson?”

“I’ve been watching you guys, and I’ve seen them hanging around.” He leaned against the booth, folding his arms. “I don’t know how much work Will did to get him free, but I doubt he pulled the wool over anyone’s eyes. Dawson is free because they wanted him to be free.”

I glanced at Daemon. Blake’s suspicions mirrored our own, but that was another problem for another day, it seemed.

Blake’s gaze fell to his glass. “Here’s the deal. I know where they’re keeping Beth and Chris. I’ve never been there, but I know someone who has and can give us the security codes to get into the facility.”

“Hold up,” I said, shaking my head. “So you can’t really get us in. Someone else can?”

“Go figure.” Daemon chuckled. “Biff is virtually useless.”

Blake’s lips thinned. “I know what level and cell they’re being kept in, so without me, you’d just be running around the compound begging to be captured.”

“And my fist is begging to be in your face,” Daemon shot back.

I rolled my eyes. “Not only are you asking us to trust you but to trust someone else?”

“That someone else is just like us, Katy.” Blake dropped his elbows on the table, rocking his glass. “He’s a hybrid but has gotten out from under Daedalus. And as expected, he hates them and would love nothing more than to screw with them. He’s not going to lead us astray.”

Yeah, I wasn’t liking any of this. “And how does anyone get ‘out from under’ Daedalus?”

Blake’s smile lacked warmth. “They…disappear.”

Oh, well that sounded reassuring. I tucked my hair back on both sides, feeling cagey. “Okay, say we do this; how do you get in contact with him?”

“You won’t believe anything unless you’re there to witness it for yourselves.” And he was right about that. “I know where to find Luc.”

Daemon’s mouth curled. “His name is Luc?”

Blake nodded. “He’s not going to be reachable by cell or e-mail. He’s kind of paranoid about the government tapping cells and computers. We’ll have to go to him.”

“And where is that?” Daemon asked.

“Every Wednesday night he hangs at a club a few miles outside of Martinsburg,” Blake explained. “He’ll be there this Wednesday.”

Daemon laughed, and I wondered what the hell he found so funny. “The only clubs in that part of West Virginia are strip clubs.”

“You would think that.” Smugness crept over Blake’s expression. “But this is a different kind of club.” He glanced at me. “Females don’t show up in jeans and sweaters.”

I gave him a bland look as I plucked a fry from Daemon’s plate. “What do they show up in? Nothing?”

“The closest thing to nothing.” His smile was real now, causing the green in his eyes to sparkle, reminding me of the Blake I first met. “Bad for you. Yay for me.”

“You really want to die, don’t you?” Daemon said.

“Sometimes, I think so.” There was a pause, and his shoulders rolled. “Anyway, we go to him, he’ll get the codes, and then it’s on. We go in, you get what you want, and I get what I want. You guys will never see me again.”

“That’s pretty much the only thing you’ve said so far that I like.” Daemon’s sharp gaze landed on Blake. “The thing is, I’m having a hard time believing you. You say this hybrid is in Martinsburg, right? There isn’t any beta quartz near that place. How come he hasn’t become some Arum’s afternoon snack yet?”

A mysterious glimmer filled Blake’s eyes. “Luc can take care of himself.”

Something wasn’t right here. “And where’s the Luxen he’s tied to?”

“With him,” Blake said.

Well, that answered that question, but still, none of this sat well with me. Crap, this whole situation was looking dicey, but what choice did we have? We were already in deep. Might as well go in over our heads—sink or swim, as my dad would say.

“Look,” Blake said, fixing a steady stare on Daemon. “What happened with Adam—I never wanted that. And I’m sorry, but you of all people have to understand. You’d do anything for Katy.”

“I would.” A faint tremor coursed through Daemon. Static built, raising the tiny hairs on my body. “So, if for one moment I think you’re about to screw us, I won’t hesitate. You won’t get a third chance. And you haven’t seen what I’m fully capable of, boy.”

“Understood,” Blake murmured, his eyes downcast. “Are we on?”

The million-dollar question—were we really going to do this? Daemon’s heartbeat calmed, and I felt it in my own chest. His mind was made up. Not only would he do anything to keep me safe, he’d do anything for his brother.

Sink or swim.

I lifted my lashes and met Blake’s eyes. “We’re on.”

…

I spent the bulk of Sunday at Daemon’s house, watching a marathon of Ghost Investigators with the brothers while I waited for—er, stalked—Dee. She had to come home sometime. That’s what Daemon said.

It was almost dusk when she returned. I hopped up from the couch, startling Dawson, who had dozed off around hour four of things that go bump in the night.

“Is everything okay?” He was wide awake now.

Daemon scooted over, taking my spot. “Everything’s fine.”

His brother stared back for a long second and then refocused on the TV. Knowing what I wanted to do without even telling him, Daemon nodded.

Dee started for the stairs without saying a word. “Do you have a couple of minutes?” I asked.

“Not really,” she threw over her shoulder as she continued up the stairs.

I squared my shoulders and followed. “Well, if you only have a minute, then I’m taking up that minute.”

Stopping at the top of the stairs, she turned around. For a moment, I thought she might push me down the steps, which would totally derail my make-up plans. “All right,” she said, and then sighed as if she’d been asked to recite trig formulas. “We might as well get this over with.”

Not the way I wanted to start this conversation, but at least she was talking to me. I followed her into her bedroom. Like every time before, I was overwhelmed by the amount of pink. Pink walls. Pink bed coverings. Pink laptop. Pink throw carpet. Pink lampshades.

Dee moved to the window seat and sat, crossing her slender ankles. “What do you want, Katy?”

Mustering courage, I took up residency on the edge of her bed. All day, I had planned out this long speech, but suddenly, I just wanted to grovel at her feet. I wanted my best friend back. A look of impatience pinched her delicate features, and my stomach fell.

“I don’t know where to start,” I admitted quietly.

She drew in a heavy breath. “Maybe start with why you lied to me for months?”

I flinched, but I deserved that question. “The night in the clearing, when we fought Baruck, I don’t know what happened, but Daemon didn’t kill him.”

“You did?” She stared out the window, idly playing with a dark curl.

“Yeah…I connected with him—with you. We…we think it was because Daemon had healed me before. Somehow those healings had already blended us together.” Leftover fear from that night surfaced, coiling my insides tightly. “But I was hurt—really badly, I guess, and Daemon healed me after you left.”

Her shoulders tensed. “The first lie, right? He told me you were fine, and I was stupid for believing him. You looked…really bad. And afterward, when Daemon was gone, you didn’t act right. I should’ve known something was up.” She gave a little shake of her head. “Anyway, you could’ve told me the truth. I wouldn’t have flipped out or anything.”

“I know.” I rushed to agree. “But we weren’t sure what really happened. We thought it would be best not to say anything until we found out. And by the time we realized we were connected somehow, everything…everything else was going on.”

“Blake?” She spat out the name, dropping the piece of her hair.

“Him…and other things.” I wanted to sit beside her, but I knew not to push it. “Things started happening to me. I would want a glass of tea, and the glass would fly out of the cupboard. I couldn’t control it, and I was so afraid of exposing you guys somehow.”

She looked at me then, lashes lowered. “You told Daemon, though.”

I nodded. “Only because I thought maybe he knew what was happening, since he healed me. It wasn’t because I trusted him more than you.”

Dee’s lashes lifted. “But you stopped hanging out with me.”

My cheeks flushed with shame. I had made so, so many poor decisions. “I thought it was the right thing to do. That if I ended up moving something without meaning to around you, I didn’t want you to get caught up in it.”

She barked a short laugh. “You’re so like Daemon. Always thinking you know better than everyone else.” I started to respond, but she went on. “The funny thing is, I could’ve helped you. Water under the bridge now, though.”

“I’m sorry.” I wished those two words could take back everything I had done wrong. “I’m really—”

“What about Blake?” Her hard stare met mine.

My gaze went to my hands. “I didn’t know what he was at first. Honestly, I liked him because he was normal. He wasn’t like Daemon and I thought… I thought I didn’t have to question why Blake seemed to like me.” I laughed, the sound just as harsh as Dee’s. “I was an idiot. Right off, Daemon didn’t trust Blake. I thought he was jealous or just being Daemon. But then there was this Arum that came into the diner when I was with Blake, and I found out what he was.”

Dee faded out and reappeared by her dresser, hands on her hips. “So, let me get this right. There was an Arum, and never once did you think about telling me or any of the others?”

I twisted toward her. “I did, but Blake killed that one and Daemon knew. And we were watching for them—”

“Sounds like a lame excuse to me.” Was it an excuse? It was, because I should’ve told them. I swallowed the sudden lump in my throat. Her eyes flashed bright. “You have no idea how hard it was to keep everything from you in the beginning! How worried I was that you’d get hurt just being around us and…” Dee stopped, closing her eyes. “I can’t believe Daemon kept this from me.”

“You shouldn’t be upset with Daemon. He did everything to stop this. He didn’t trust that Blake just wanted to help control my abilities. It was my fault.” And the guilt gnawed away at me, bit by bit. “I thought that Blake could help me. That if I knew how to control my abilities, I could fight—I could help you guys. You would no longer need to protect me or be worried about me. I wouldn’t be your problem.”

Her eyes snapped open. “You were never a problem to me, Katy! You were my best friend—my first, only real friend. And yeah, I’m a little slow on how the whole friendship thing works, but I do know that friends are supposed to trust each other. And you should’ve known that I never saw you as being weak or a problem.”

“I…” I puttered out, not knowing what to say.

“You never believed in our friendship.” Wetness gathered in her eyes, and I felt like the biggest tool ever. “That’s the part that kills me. From the beginning, you didn’t believe in me.”

“I did!” I started to stand, but I froze. “I made stupid decisions, Dee. I made mistakes. And by the time I realized how bad my mistakes were, it was…”

“Too late,” she whispered. “It was too late, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah.” I took a breath, but it got stuck. “Blake was who he was, and everything that happened was because of me. I know that.”

Dee came forward, her steps measured and slow. “How long did you know about Beth and Dawson?”

I lifted my gaze, meeting hers. A huge part of me wanted to lie—wanted to say it wasn’t until Will confirmed it, but I couldn’t. “Before Christmas break, I saw Beth. And then Matthew confirmed that if Beth was alive, Dawson had to be.”

She sucked in a cry and her fingers curled in. “How…how dare you?”

I could tell she wanted to slap me, and my cheek stung even though she hadn’t. I kind of wished she would. “We didn’t know if we could find him or get him back. We didn’t want to get your hopes up only for you to lose him again.”

Dee stared at me like she didn’t even know me. “That is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. Let me guess, it was Daemon’s idea? Because it sounds like him. He’d want to protect me at the same time as he was holding me back—hurting me.”

“Daemon—”

“Don’t,” she said, turning away. Her voice shook. “Don’t defend him. I know my brother. I know he has good intentions that usually just suck. But you—you know how much losing Dawson hurt. It wasn’t just Daemon who lost his shit. I may not have moved the house off the foundation, but a part of me died the day I was told he was dead. I deserved to know the moment you thought he was alive.”

“You’re right.”

Her body shimmered for a second. “Okay. Okay…all of that aside. If you had told me about what was going on with Blake, Adam and I would’ve known what we were walking into. We still would’ve done it—believe me, we would’ve gone into that house to help you—but we wouldn’t have been blindsided.”

My throat seized up. There was a stain on my soul, dark and cold. I hadn’t murdered Adam, but I had a hand in his death. Like an accessory after the fact. People made mistakes all the time, but most of them didn’t cause someone’s death.

Mine did.

My shoulders sagged under the weight. Saying sorry wasn’t going to smooth that over, not for her or me. I couldn’t change the hand of time. All I could do now was move forward and try to make up for it.

The anger seeped out of Dee as she watched me. Walking back to the window seat, she sat, tucking her legs against her chest. She rested her cheek on her knees. “And now you guys are making another mistake.”

“We don’t have a choice,” I said. “We really don’t.”

“Yes, you do. We could take care of Blake and whoever he’s told.”

“What about Dawson?” I asked quietly.

She didn’t answer for a long time. “I know I should be able to put aside how I feel about Blake for him, but I can’t. It’s wrong. I know. But I can’t.”

I nodded. “I don’t expect you to, but I don’t want things to be like this between us. There’s got to be a way…” Pride went out the window. “I miss you, Dee, and I hate that we haven’t been talking and that you’re upset with me. I want to get past this.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

Tears burned the back of my throat. “What can I do to fix this?”

“You can’t. And I can’t, either.” Dee shook her head sadly. “I can’t fix Adam’s death. I can’t fix why you and Daemon think working with Blake is a good thing. And I can’t fix our friendship. Some things are just broken.”