Stew nods. “Trevor lied to me.” His fists balled up in his lap. “I was pissed at you because he told me you and Rick where making out at the party, and when he tried to confront you about it, Rick beat him up. I heard all the rumors going around about the fight between Rick and Trevor, but I believed Trevor. He’s supposed to be my friend. I should’ve come to you for the truth. I never knew…I’ve been so crazy jealous over you guys—I’ve been a complete asshole. I understand if you hate me. But I swear to God, I will take care of Trevor. I’m so sorry, Nat.”
As he gets choked up, I wrap him in a hug. “I forgive you.”
We cling to each other like we’d be lost if we let go—pulled apart forever. Desperate sobs flow between us.
I bury my face into his solid chest. Leaving him will be so hard. Rick is out to take my soul and force me to leave everyone I’ve ever cared about.
I kiss him through the tears. “I’m so sorry.”
He gives me a sad smile.
We lie down and hold each other tight. The moment wrapped in silence. The only sound is two hearts beating in sync. Guilt washes over me for nearly sleeping with Rick as I lie in Stew’s arms. The pull I feel towards them both is crazy. When I’m close to one there’s always a pitting desire to get closer, which is crazy considering one of them is one hundred percent pure evil.
Is it possible there was never really any connection to Rick at all, just merely the initial attraction followed by the false sense of security I felt around him? He knows everything about me, so it’s possible he just filled my head with exactly what I needed to hear. Whatever the cause, he’s still evil and the key to my salvation.
I make a silent vow to get my soul back from Rick. There has to be a way, and I’m going to find it, even if that means killing him.
Chapter Seventeen
The hallway is completely empty as I enter the building fifteen minutes before the start of my 8:00am class. I allow my fingers to run along the handle of the knife I threw in my bag last minute for protection. It’s silly, really, to carry it because I can’t over power him. He proved last night that in any form he takes on he can take me out if he wants. But the knife makes me feel a little better. Like I’m doing something to stay alive versus just cowering in my room all day and go along with whatever plan Rick has in store for me.
My boots echo off the scuffed, white floors with each step I take. When I get to my first class I lay my bag on the desk and reach inside to grab my books. A perfectly folded note falls to the floor, landing near my right foot.
Uneasy, I look around and then pick it up. I unfold the note after I clear the lump from my throat. My eyebrows rise in surprise. All it says is “Turn around.”
A gasp swoops out of my mouth while my eyes focus on the writing. My heart pounds as I slowly turn. The tips of my fingers turn cold while they cling to the strap of my bag. I didn’t even hear him walk up behind me.
Rick stands there, eyes focused, not more than a foot from me. I swallow hard and it makes an audible gulp noise. My back thumps against the desk as I try to put distance between us and my blood runs cold. Trapped. There’s nowhere to run, so I lift my chin and meet his stare and hope he can’t tell how much I actually fear him.
His lips part, like he wants to say something, but he quickly closes them as he takes in my face. He can tell I’m still pissed.
I ball my fists up at my side and wonder if it’d even hurt if I punched him square in the face. “Stay away from me.”
“Not an option.” He shakes his head. “We need to talk.”
I throw the bag back on my shoulder and curse the fact that Taylor still hasn’t called to tell me how to get rid of Rick yet. “I have nothing to say to you.”
“Fine.” He folds his muscular arms. “Then I’ll talk. You listen.”
I roll my eyes. “Don’t you get it? I don’t want anything to do with you. I just want you to give me my soul back and leave me alone.”
He sighs heavily. “You know it’s not that simple. You’ve seen enough soul collections to know a deal is a deal. Please don’t make this hard.”
“Hard? That’s a laugh. What about this is hard for you? You’re already evil. You’re not losing anything. I’m the one with everything to lose.”
His eyes narrow. “You don’t know a thing about losing something.”
“Whatever,” I growl and try to push past him, but he snatches my hand, bringing me to a halt. “Let. Go.”
He grips my hand tighter. “Not until you hear me out. You have to come with me. You’re not safe unless you’re with me.”
He’s right. I’m not safe. Every second I stay close to him is like a crazy death wish. I try again to get away from him without success. “I don’t have time for this.”
“Make time,” Rick says as he pulls me toward the exit doors.
Jerking my arm in a wild frenzy, I grumble, “Okay. Okay!” He stops and releases my hand. “I’ll meet you.”
“Where?” he asks flatly, his eyes stern.
A place with a lot of people would be best. His ability to stop time only happens when there’s a need to collect a soul. That much I’ve figured out over the years. He can’t kill me in front of a ton of witnesses. “We can talk at lunch—in the quad.”
Rick shakes his head. “No. It’s too crowded there. Meet me at my car.”
“Hell no!” I bark. “There’s no way I’ll agree to that.”
“The other alternative is your bedroom…tonight.” A smirk flashes on his face. He knew that would get under my skin.
Yesterday afternoon the thought of Rick and me alone in my room would’ve made me giddy, but now it just makes my skin crawl. Partly because of fear, but mostly the idea of being close with him makes me feel crazy. I have never gone that far with anyone before, and I hate the fact he’s given me the first orgasm I’ve ever had with another person. “Fine,” I lie. I have no intentions of being alone with him ever again. “I’ll meet you at your car.”
My arm burns from where his skin met mine. I rub my hand on it to get rid of the tingling sensation.
I take a step away from him. “Natalie,” he whispers, his voice thick with malice. “Don’t make me come after you. I’ve chased you long enough. The time for games is over.”
The threat reverberates in my ears. I can tell he means what he says by his tone. Without answering him, I turn on my heels and bolt away from my desk. It’s almost like he can read my mind, and that’s fucking creepy.
I look over my shoulder, and Rick just stands there, unmoving. His eyes trained on me while I retreat.
My shoulders sag once I round the corner out of his line of sight. I rub my forehead. How am I going to get out of this?
I dig in my bag for my cell. Taylor has to have some answers by now. Even if she doesn’t, maybe I can bribe her to take me to see her grandmother for some help. There has to be a spell or something to get my soul back.
My face crushes into a broad chest, and it bounces me back a little. “I’m sorry.” I try to apologize without looking up while I scroll down my contact list on my phone. Rick has me so distracted.
“Well, well, well, back for more? I knew you were into me before.” That voice. That cold, slithery voice makes my skin crawl.
Our eyes meet. I haven’t been this close, or alone, with Trevor Humphreys since the party. His thick cologne wafts around me, and memories of what he tried to do rush back. My stomach turns and I fight the urge to vomit all over his gleaming white sneakers. I take a step back and hold my breath as I try to step around him. I’m not giving this asshole one minute of the precious time I have left.
Trevor steps in front of my path. “Aw, come on, Nat. Don’t be like that. You know I was only playing around with you before.”
Playing around? An image of him smacking my face repeatedly assaults my brain. Instantly, my eyes narrow. “You’re psychotic,” I say. “Get some professional help already.”
He laughs in my face. “That’s rich coming f
rom the town’s very own violent psychopath. Tell me, do you have your doctor’s number handy. Maybe we can be padded-cell roomies. That could be fun.”
My fists ball up at my sides as anger pulses through me. If I thought I’d have a chance of landing a couple good punches, I’d already be swinging. But the last time we fought, Trevor got the upper-hand on me quickly. I decide to play it off like it doesn’t bother me and try to get by him. “Shut up, Trevor. You don’t know shit.”
His nostrils flare. “Look, you little bitch. I’m done fucking around with you. I know you told Stew I tried to rape you. He left me fifty messages this morning telling me he’s going to beat my ass.” Trevor closes the gap between us and shoves me back against the wall. “You’re going to tell him that it never happened. I’m not going to let a little freak like you ruin my reputation.”
I stare into his face. “Go to hell you piece of shit. I’m not lying for you. I hope the whole world finds out how demented you are. You did try to rape me. I’m just glad Rick came in and kicked your ass before you had the chance.”
Trevor’s eyes narrow, and he shoves his forearm against my throat and pushes. Hard. I claw at his arm, and my fingernails dive into his flesh. My temples throb and my head feels like a balloon ready to pop. “Oh, you’re going to tell him and anyone else who’ll listen, because if you don’t…” He presses harder to prove his point and black spots speckle my vision. “I won’t take no for an answer next time. Rick won’t be around to protect you forever.”
My knees start to buckle below me, and my lips go numb. I’m fighting to stay awake. The last thing I want is to pass out near someone who is literally trying to kill me. For a fleeting second I wonder if this is how I’m going to die—at the hands of Trevor Humphreys. It would be a convenient time for Rick to come and collect my soul.
Unable to look anywhere else but Trevor’s face, I stare into his eyes. Once again, I see the rage in them as he takes pleasure in assaulting me. There’s something evil in them, more evil than the actual eyes of the demon I once stared into. What could drive Trevor so crazy? What would make him want to kill me so badly?
“Trevor!” I hear Stew’s angry voice in the fog of my brain, followed by the sound of running footsteps toward us. “Let her go!”
Trevor releases me, and I slide to the ground, gasping for air. My hands clutch my throat as I watch Stew shove Trevor back and then blast him with a punch square in the nose. Trevor stumbles back and his hands fly to his face.
“What the fuck, dude?” Trevor questions while wiping the blood from his nose with the back of his hand. “That bitch is lying! Why the hell are you taking her side? Come on, man. You should know I would never try to rape someone!”
“She wouldn’t lie to me, Trevor.” Stew growls and then charges after him. Trevor doesn’t get a chance to say another word before he’s tackled.
Trevor flies back into the trophy case across from the gym doors. The sound of screeching metal and breaking glass assaults my ears. My bones begin to hum, just like they do when Rick collects a soul. I swallow deeply, now desperately afraid that Stew has killed Trevor.
Trevor lays there, unconscious among the broken glass on the floor beneath Stew. I look for signs of life as my heart pounds away in my rib cage. Finally, I see Trevor’s chest rise and fall but I’m still on high alert because the buzz in my bones is still there, growing in intensity. Rick’s obviously close. I only feel this sensation whenever he’s around and using some of his demon powers.
Stew’s back is toward me as he rises up from the ground. He casually dusts himself off and looks in Trevor’s direction. He stands over Trevor’s limp body and freezes. Stew stares down at his own hands, flexing his fingers in and out and my heart stops.
“Stew?” I wait for him to turn toward me. I want to know that he’s alright and that Rick’s not coming after him. “Are you hurt?”
“My hands,” he says. “They burn like fire.”
Oh no. Did I miss it? Did Rick just freeze me in time?
“You didn’t make a deal, did you?” I blurt the words out before I realize I’m about to blab my entire history with demons to the boy I love.
“A deal?” He turns to face me “What are you talking about?”
I suck in a quick breath before scrambling to my feet and gripping the wall to steady myself. “Oh my God, Stew! You’re eyes! They’re…they’re glowing!”
Stew tilts his head and furrows his brow. His hand gingerly touches his face. The white glow still emits from his eyes. “What do you mean my eyes are glowing?”
“Did you make a deal with Rick?” My voice rises while my mouth goes dry. “Are you like him now?”
“What deal?” He takes a step toward me, and my heart leaps into my throat.
I should tell him to stay back until I know exactly what’s going on here, but this is Stew, the guy who owns every piece of my heart. Rick did say he could change forms and for a split second, I wonder if Stew is really Rick. My brain scrambles in my skull.
“Stop right where you are,” Rick’s voice echoes down the hallway and Stew freezes in his tracks. “If you get any closer, I will end you. I won’t let you kill her.”
“Kill me? Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on! And why are his eyes glowing like that?” I shout at Rick while I point my finger at Stew. “Did you make a deal with him just to keep everyone I love away from me?”
“I didn’t make a deal with him.” Rick shakes his head. “Like I told you before, Stew isn’t good for you. He isn’t who you think he is. He’s not even human.”
“Well, tough guy, what exactly am I?” Stew takes a step toward Rick his eyes hard. “You’ve done everything you possibly can to keep Natalie and me apart since you’ve got here. Now you’re just trying to freak her out by lying. I’m sure she’s told you she believes in demons and all that crap and you are just using that to drive the wedge further between us.”
Rick steps closer to Stew. “I don’t work that way. Besides you’re the one trying to come between Nat and me. She was mine long before you ever came around.”
I want to jump in here and say I don’t belong to anyone. That I am my own person and make my own decisions, but since I’m not exactly sure what’s going on, I keep my mouth shut and train my eyes on the exit door.
Rick’s eyes narrow as he starts circling Stew. “I have to admit. You aren’t like any other demon I’ve ever met. You’re really good at hiding yourself from your own kind.” Rick glances at me and raises his eyebrows. “And that’s virtually impossible to do. It’s kind of a turf thing. We always have the capability to detect one another.” He pauses and turns away from me and stares at Stew. “At times, you seem completely normal—human. But obviously, you’re pure demon, like me. I’ve never come across another demon with an ability like that. But I must say, you’ve got quite a temper. You can’t even control your power long enough to make a fight look human. Messiness like that can get you discovered by a hunter and I can’t have that kind of attention brought near me or Nat.”
“Stew?” My voice shakes. “Please tell me he’s wrong. Tell me you’re not a demon and you haven’t lied to me this whole time.”
“Natalie, I’m no demon. I mean, come on, this guy is obviously Loony Tunes.” Stew shakes his finger at Rick. “Demons aren’t real. This is all some kind of sick joke. Quit trying to scare her.”
I dig in my book bag and pull out my compact mirror. He’s in denial. Is it possible he doesn’t know what he is? I take a step toward Stew and toss my compact into his open hands. “If demons aren’t real, then why are your eyes glowing?”
“My eyes aren’t—” He stops mid-sentence as he looks into the mirror. The light from his eyes reflects back onto his face. “Oh my God. What the hell…”
“Well you got the hell part right,” Rick says, his voice thick with sarcasm. “The question is, did you really not know? I can recall the exact details about the moment I sold my soul to a demon and was transitioned
. Are you telling me you honestly don’t remember that?”
Rick’s right. My deal with him haunts me every minute of everyday. How could Stew forget something like that?
“I’m telling you.” Stew rubs his face. “I don’t know. I’ve never made a deal with a demon, the devil or an angel for that matter. I’m just me. It must be you. You!” He walks over and shoves Rick. “You did this to me, didn’t you?”
“Calm down.” Rick shoves Stew back and then they stare each other down. “You would remember if I made a deal with you. Just ask Nat.”
My hand burns at the thought of promising my soul to Rick. I dig my nails into my palm to take my mind off the memory bubbling in my brain. “He’s right.”
“What?” Stew stops and snaps his head toward me. “Are you telling me you believe this asshole? That I’m a demon?”
I nod and I feel my body tremble. “Yes.”
Stew backs away from Rick. “Not possible.”
“Oh but it is, my friend. You are a demon. This makes you extremely dangerous to Natalie, especially if you don’t know anything about your powers like you say. She’s marked, and when I activated her life line, her soul became ripe for the picking. This also explains the pull you feel toward each other.” My eyes burn, but I fight back the tears. The question of why someone like Stew would want to be with me finally comes to light. It’s not love, he’s merely drawn to me because of my marked soul.
“No.” Stew shakes his head and looks at me. “No. I love her.”
“You think you love her. The call of a soul is a powerful thing. The pull you feel toward her, you may have mistaken for love, but that’s because you don’t know it’s just her soul calling for you to collect it. It’s like a Siren calling you with its seductive song. So, until you learn to control your powers”—Rick points to Trevor who still lays unconscious on the floor—“you need to stay away from her.”
Stew closes his eyes and nods, before taking a deep breath, and appearing utterly defeated. When he opens his eyes, the glow has erased, and they’ve returned to the beautiful gray that I’m used to. He appears completely human again, all traces of his demon power gone with a blink of an eye. Stew frowns at me. “You know I’d never do anything to hurt you.”