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  Daemon

  I woke up to a noise in the kitchen. “Goddamn, shut it. I’m trying to sleep.” I piled on another pillow to bury my head under but it was yanked off forcefully. I blinked hard as the bright sunlight blinded me. I was about to punch one of the brothers when Lilly’s big blue eyes blinked at me. Her face hovered above mine.

  She smirked. “Wild night?”

  “No. I’m sick. Ate something bad.” I tried to grab another pillow, but she pulled it out of my reach.

  “I thought Fallen didn’t get sick?”

  “Well, I feel like shit, so clearly we do,” I grumbled as I turned on my side.

  She poked my arm, then proceeded to poke my face.

  An annoyed breath escaped me as I got up, squinting at the blinding sunlight shining through the windows. I found my sunglasses on the side table and snatched them up along with my hat then I shrugged on my hoodie.

  “What do you want, Lilly? Where’s Jake?” I looked towards the clanking noise in the kitchen and found him.

  “Nothing. We were just wondering what you and Gabby were doing last night?”

  I got up, not wanting to be a part of the conversation.

  “Is there coffee?” I asked Jake. He pointed to the pot with brewed coffee.

  I poured a cup and snatched bacon off his plate.

  “Hey, fucker!”

  I smirked and sipped on my black coffee.

  Lilly sauntered closer with a shrewd look.

  Fuck. She was up to no good, but she didn’t know whom she was dealing with.

  “What do you want, newly appointed Dark one?”

  That stopped her in her tracks. I stopped the smirk that threatened to break from my mouth. I’d played this game with more vicious beings than Lilly. To survive in the underworld, it was not just about power, but who was more cunning, more vicious, and especially who was smarter. Most only cared about brute force, but there was always someone more powerful. Lilly was just a fledgling with too much power. She didn’t know what to do with it—she would be eaten alive.

  Her aura flared. I ignored her and sipped my coffee, unfazed. As I walked past her, I bent down and whispered, “You must learn to control that. The boss wouldn’t want you exposing us.”

  I sauntered to my room with my head pounding. What the fuck did Gabby do to me? Where the fuck was she? I needed to find out what she’d seen.

  Sensing her in her room, I forced myself to keep walking to mine. I didn’t want to give Lilly or the brothers any more reason to suspect anything. They needed to go out. I needed more time with Gabby.

  A decision needed to be made about Lilly. I either got on her good side or continued antagonizing her. Either way, I needed to be ready for the backlash from this whole fucked-up situation.

  I rubbed my throbbing head with the heel of my palm, but it didn’t do shit! I closed my eyes, slowed my breathing, and cleared my thoughts. I let my body relax and did some meditation techniques. After a few minutes, I fell into a trance-like sleep—in and out of consciousness where my body was asleep, but my brain was alert. I was dreaming, but I was somewhat aware and having a lucid dream. At first, it was just a jumble of scenes—me fighting, the brothers, the underworld, the boss, the other Fallen. Then a face. I woke briefly, before I fell under again and dreamed of Gabby and Lilly, then a petite girl with unruly golden wavy hair that went all the way down her lower back. I reached out to touch her hair. My heart thundered, and my hand shook. As soon as I was about to touch her, I woke up.

  I sat up. Cold sweat ran down my neck and soaked my shirt. My shaking hand gripped my head as I tried to remember anything distinguishable about that girl. Nothing. I was fucking losing the details. Fuck!

  I needed to find Gabby. This was the first time my dreams had gone this far. It used to be a feeling. Now, I knew, that feeling was attached to a girl.

  I never felt anything for any girl the brothers threw at me. I thought it was the darkness in me that made me incapable of feelings toward anything or anyone. The first time I had any inkling of feelings was when I first sensed Gabby’s energy. I knew then I had hope and might be capable of feelings. She was the key to my past.

  Five

  Chapter 4: Trigger

  Gabby

  I stood on the bedroom balcony and watched the sunrise, soaking in the peaceful morning while the boardwalk was empty of noise. There was only the sound of the waves crashing and the birds squawking. Even the smell of the salty air was strong, not polluted by any cooking from the restaurants below. The air felt just right. It was perfect, cool weather. It helped me think past my swirling emotions and encouraged my logical side to resurface. I had been struggling with a plan. I had to do something—I couldn’t just sit here and watch Lilly go dark. I was no longer taking a backseat.

  As soon as the sun was high, I took one last look around the boardwalk and walked around the corner to Daemon’s room.

  I knocked on his balcony door, which slid open immediately. I hesitated. He looked horrible. His face was pale, and he had dark circles around his eyes.

  “I’m sorry to bother you. I… Are you okay? You look awful.”

  He nodded, turned around, then tugged a shirt on.

  “What did you do to me?” he whispered, his face curious.

  My brow furrowed in confusion. “What are you talking about?” He didn’t look this bad yesterday.

  He looked around to make sure that no one was around, then whispered once again. “Last night. What was that?”

  Understanding dawned on me. “I tried to drive the darkness out of you. I didn’t mean to pull away that fast, but I didn’t want to be hit with your past experiences. Unlike Lilly…” I looked away and gazed at the ocean as I continued in a whisper. “Unlike her, you don’t have pure darkness. You can survive without it.”

  His shoulder brushed mine. “What do you mean?” His voice was persistent.

  Daemon was always cool and collected, but this time, his expression was desperate. His pupils had dilated, and the frown on his face made him look vulnerable.

  I turned and faced him. “I mean, I can drive the darkness away if you want me to. Your dark aura feels different to the others. I thought it was because you were the Dark one at first, but now that I’ve felt Lilly…” We held each other’s gaze—pain reflected on both our eyes—mine at the loss of my sister—his at the loss of his identity.

  “I didn’t know if it would work, but you responded to it last night. When you’re ready, let me know, and I can heal you of the darkness. I…” I gauged his expression and decided to lay it all on him. I fixed him a stare and said, “The dark aura in you is not natural. It was forced upon you. It’s polluting your true aura. I’m not sure how long I’ll be here for, so if you decide to be rid of it once and for all, find me, and I promise to heal you.”

  He let out a loud breath and ran his hand over his lowered head, then met my eyes and nodded. “Was there something you needed?”

  “Yes, I wanted to make sure that the brothers would be out of the house today. I want Lilly to myself.”

  He drummed his fingers on the banister. “I can arrange that.” He gazed around the ocean with a troubled look, then walked back to his room.

  I stayed in place for a moment longer. I scanned the house as Daemon had taught me. Lilly and the brothers were asleep in their respective rooms. I got coffee, then walked to the beach. The bodybuilders were there, along with a few joggers.

  I dug my toes into the sand and sat gazing out on the wide, blue ocean as I finalized my plans for today. I had allowed myself a few minutes to mourn the loss of my past life. Even though I’d lost my parents, I had been content. I had plans for attending my dream college—UCLA. Lilly and I should have been with the freshmen who started this fall. Memories from the last few months of summer hit me—we were truly happy then. How did things get so complicated?

  With a slump of my shoulders, I bitterly thought of the day I had met Alec.

  Now, I had lost everythin
g. I had no parents, no Lilly, no UCLA, and no Alec. My eyes glistened with unshed tears at my self-pity. I allowed myself to wallow in those dark thoughts just for a moment, then brushed them off. Would I really trade Alec for all of those?

  I looked around the mostly-empty beach. An old couple walked by holding hands while a few joggers passed them.

  I clenched my fists. I would trade them all for Lilly—she was my sister and my responsibility. I’d failed her.

  I looked up at the blue sky and blinked away the tears that threatened to fall. This seemed to be the story of my life—being faced with impossible decisions—either way I chose, I lost someone I truly loved: Alec or Lilly.

  I sighed and bowed my head, braced my arms on my legs, and subconsciously traced the sand with my fingers. I gripped the fine sand and allowed my frustration to bleed out of me.

  It didn’t matter! I had no control over this shit. I’d been thrown into this fucked-up situation, with no choices, and dealt some shitty cards. What was the point in fighting something out of your control? Clearly, bigger players were controlling this, and we were just pawns in their game.

  With slumped shoulders, I got up, brushed the sand off my shorts, and made my way back.

  True to his word, Daemon and the brothers were gone. I sensed Lilly in the room as I quickly scanned on my way up the stairs. I walked in, and Lilly looked up from her phone.

  “Oh, It’s you.”

  I brushed off her rudeness. “Were you expecting someone else?”

  “Yes. I was waiting for Jake. I don’t know where they are, and they’re not answering their phones.” She huffed and sat up.

  “Oh, they have an important mission. They will be gone all day.” I waved my hand as I headed to the bathroom. A small smile threatened to break free from my lips.

  “How did you know that?” Lilly glared from the mirror.

  “I ran into Daemon this morning, and he told me.” I shrugged as I kept my expression neutral.

  She narrowed her eyes.

  I moved past her and grabbed a swimsuit. “I was just at the beach. It’s gorgeous out. I just came back to change so I can lie out. Want to join?” I asked while changing into my red two-piece bikini.

  I peeked in her direction and saw hesitation in her eyes. She glanced at her phone, and with a frustrated sigh, she said, “Fine.” She stomped to her suitcase and dug around.

  I hid my smirk. Lilly hated staying indoors and hated being alone. She was a social creature that always thrived on being in the middle of things. Even when we were young, she loved being the center of attention. It was funny how those traits had never changed. In some way, she was still the same Lilly, just much darker.

  Words escaped me when she stepped out of the bathroom, wearing a white backless one-piece bathing suit with a deep plunging neckline that showed off her navel and side breasts. The worst part was that you could see an outline of her nipples.

  She raised an eyebrow, daring me to say something.

  “New suit?” I asked, instead.

  “Yes. Jake bought it for me,” she gushed as she slipped on some clogs.

  Jesus, my sister was turning into a Dark Ho, right before my eyes. She had never been conservative, but she wouldn’t have worn anything like what she had on right now. Maybe she wasn’t like the old Lilly, after all.

  “Are you ready?” I glanced back from the door.

  Since we were only a few steps to the beach, I only had shorts on, but Lilly didn’t even bother. She wore heels and her suit. Guys whistled and hollered at her, and my face was hot from embarrassment and anger. The old Lilly would have told those guys off. Instead, she strutted her stuff and winked at a couple of them.

  I walked ahead of her, shaking in anger. I glanced back to make sure I didn’t lose her and found her surrounded by a group of guys.

  I stopped in my tracks as I noticed her aura snake around the men. She held her sunglasses close to her mouth. She was talking to one guy, but her hand was on another guy’s chest. I saw both of the men’s auras turn dark as the others turned lustful.

  Lilly’s dark tendrils of energy spread and a big smile plastered her face.

  Oh my God, she was influencing these guys. I marched back to her, broke through the circle with my shield in place, and tugged her towards me.

  “What a killjoy,” she grumbled.

  “Is this your thing now, Lilly? You enjoy causing chaos in strangers?”

  “Didn’t you see how they were fighting over me?” she asked as she popped her sunglasses in place.

  I didn’t dignify her statement with an answer but led her to a more secluded spot and laid a towel down.

  “Why are we here? Why can’t we stay where it’s more crowded? This spot is boring,” she whined.

  Wow, this chick was annoying. I counted to five in my head, and with controlled patience, I said, “There will be a lot of noisy kids at the busy area. You don’t like that, do you?”

  She thought for a minute. “You’re right. Those brats are annoying.”

  I knew that would work. I needed to keep Lilly away from crowds.

  We lay in silence for a while.

  “I’m bored,” she complained.

  I ignored her and continued to keep my eyes closed.

  “Excuse me. Yes, you two cuties.”

  I looked up, worried about what she was up to now.

  She gestured to the two men next to us, her aura pulsing again. I froze. I didn’t know what to do if Lilly caused a fight.

  “Can we help you?” one of the guys asked.

  “Yes, can you both do me a favor and help me with this?” She waved her sunblock bottle and pouted. “I don’t want to burn.” Her aura pulsed stronger.

  The two guys beamed and said, “It’ll be our pleasure.”

  They rubbed sunblock on her with extreme enthusiasm as I watched with my mouth open. They were pretty much fondling her, especially when she faced forward.

  I’d had enough, so I went for a swim and made sure to stay gone for a while, not returning until Lilly was alone.

  “Your two minions are done?”

  “They ran out of sunblock.” She shrugged.

  “Tragic.” I eyed her as she continued to sun her front. “Are you going to swim? You used to love the water.”

  “Nope. That was the old me.”

  My stomach dropped with her casual statement. “Remember when we went to St. Thomas a few months ago, and we swam all day then continued into the night?”

  She didn’t respond at first, so I glanced at her. Then she shrugged. “Barely. Those were stupid times. We were children playing pretend.” Her voice was hard.

  “What do you mean?” I whispered. My heart beat out of my chest. My palms were cold and sweaty in anticipation of the truth. This was the talk Lilly and I needed to gain closure. A part of me wanted this, but it also caused terror. Even though I was still in denial, buried deep inside, I knew that I had lost her.

  She sat up and pushed her sunglasses to her head. Her dark blue eyes stared back at me. “Haven’t you figured it out yet, dear sister?” She stressed the sister part as she sneered. “Our past. It’s fake. A big lie. Planted. We. Are. Not. Sisters.” Each word she stressed felt like a stab in the heart.

  “How… How, did you know? Who told you?”

  She shrugged, then looked over the ocean and continued. “We never had parents. We were never born. I don’t even know if any of our childhood was real. They planted us, to either be allies or enemies. So which is it, Gabby? Make a fucking choice because I’m sick of this shit. I’m sick of pretending that we’re family because we’re not.”

  I gaped at her, then I reached for her hand. She flinched at our touch, but I ignored it. “No matter the circumstances of how we came about. You. Are. My. Sister. I know no other reality. My feelings are real, and I will fight for you and protect you until I know for certain that the Lilly I love is gone.” I held her flat dark eyes for a moment. She stuck her nose in the air and broke e
ye contact.

  “Lilly, since you seemed to have discovered a lot in the short time that you had been made aware. Can you tell me one thing?”

  She looked back at me.

  “What happened to Josh?”

  She laughed a cruel sound that I had never heard from Lilly before. “That loser? Why are you asking about him? The brothers got rid of him.” She shrugged.

  Everything in me turned cold. “Is he dead?” I asked slowly.

  Her sinister smile, along with her dead black eyes, was the last straw, and the cackle of her laughter trailed me as I ran. I didn’t stop and continued running along the shore, wiping away angry tears until I escaped the crowds, and I was far away from the boardwalk. The quietness helped clear my mind and swirling emotions.

  I had lost Lilly. How many times would I have to cry about that? How much proof did I need until I accepted that my sister was truly gone? My Lilly had a big heart, and even though their relationship had been new, she’d liked Josh a lot, and the thought of his loss would have devastated her. I had been hopeful that he was just somewhere far away. I never thought he would be dead.

  Anger pulsed in me, which stirred the cold void still stubbornly latched to my soul. I felt it much stronger than before like it was etching itself permanently inside me. Hate I had never felt against anyone burned inside, and the desire to kill flickered a flame that refused to be doused—I hated those brothers! They’d taken everything from me. I had nothing, and I had no one. It was all because of them! My body shook in fury, which made me push harder against the soft sand, and I ran until my calves burned as my tears flowed in anger.

  I slowed to a steady pace when I could no longer push my burning muscles. I had been running for a few miles with no one in sight when I saw the silhouette of a guy with a lean physique that was on display, as he was shirtless, and his board shorts rode low on his hips. I was momentarily distracted by this runner as his lean body flexed with his lithe, graceful movement. When he got closer, I almost stopped and stumbled as I recognized Alec.