Shadow Blood: Kallen's Tale (Witch Fairy #4.5) (9 page)

She attempts a smile but it is hardly recognizable.  “I know.”

I lean in and kiss her then pull back.  “I will be back soon.”  She nods and I stand up and follow Grandmother out the door. 

Chapter 14

Grandmother and I start in the kitchen.  Tabitha is already at work collecting all open containers of food.  She will burn these in a ritual that will keep the poison from seeping into the ground or water. 

I am surprised to find that there are no traces of magic in the air.  Grandmother does have the house protected with an alarm system that would let her know if there was an intruder but I had assumed someone had magically negated it.  It would take powerful magic to do that though.  I am not quite ready to think about the connotations of that yet.  There has to be another explanation than the one staring me in the face.

When we clear the kitchen, Grandmother and I start on the other rooms of the house, one by one.  We go our separate ways after the kitchen as it is unlikely we will find anyone but better safe than sorry.  Every room is just as it should be.  Pristine and magic free.  Each room checked off our list is one less denial step closer to the inevitable.  Someone already inside the house did this. 

I can tick off the innocent.  Grandmother and Tabitha would never do something as passive aggressive as poisoning food.  If they were angry enough to kill someone, they would much prefer the other Fairy carried the knowledge of their wrath into the Shadow realm with them.  Xandra and I were otherwise occupied at the time.  Despite my concern, my body reacts to the memory of what we were doing then.

Alita would not have poisoned herself and she does not have a malicious enough bone in her body to attempt to kill anyone.  Kegan has his moments when he is a total pain in the ass, but he is not homicidal.  More often than not, people want to kill him instead of the other way around.  Xandra’s parents are ghosts.  Her mother may be a talented Witch, but gathering the poison and putting it in the tea and god knows what else is definitely beyond her magical scope nwo.  Which leaves just one person.  Barb.

It is becoming more and more obvious that she is the culprit but a thorough search of the house yields no proof.  I cannot possibly go to Xandra and tell her that her aunt is behind the attempt on her brother’s life.  And quite possibly hers.  If I do not have hard and fast evidence, she would never believe it.

Grandmother’s eyes are grim when we meet back in the kitchen.  “I am assuming that you found no indication of magic or an intruder,” she says.

Her eyes tell me she has come to the same conclusion as me.  I shake my head.  “No.”

“You should go to Xandra and see to her and her family’s welfare.  Do not explain too much.  There is no need to set off a panic quite yet.”

I believe the word panic is a bit tame here.  Telling Xandra and her parents that Barb is guilty will create a cataclysmic tirade of magic inside of Xandra.  We all will need to tread carefully in that situation.  With a nod to Grandmother, I return to the bedroom where I left Xandra and her family.

I am surprised to see Xandra asleep on her brother’s bed.  As soon as I walk in, her father is in front of me demanding answers.  “Did you catch the son of a bitch who did this?  What is going to be done to prevent this from happening again?  How is my family supposed to stay here a moment longer and feel safe?”

All valid questions.  I will answer them to the best of my ability at the moment.  Quietly, trying not to wake up Xandra or her brother, I say, “Nothing was amiss.  Grandmother and I searched the house and grounds thoroughly.  Whoever did this left no trace of themselves.”

“Was it done by magic?” he asks.

I shake my head.  “No.  There would have been traces of magic left even if there was a Fairy with the power to do it.  Grandmother or I would have been able to sense it.”

It is Xandra’s mother who responds.  “Are you saying that someone walked in this house with none of us the wiser and put poison in a jar of tea?  That seems impossible.”

“We were preoccupied for a day in a half as we waited in our circles for Xandra to return.”  Grandmother still would have been able to feel an intruder in the house but I am going to keep that to myself.

“Except for us, who should have known,” Xandra’s mother says. 

It is hard to miss the defensiveness in her voice.  Dammit.  I had not even thought of that.  “I did not mean to imply…”

I am cut off.  “Of course,” her father says briskly.  “Julienne, we’re all on the same side here.”

After a moment of battling with her defensiveness, she finally says, “Yes, you’re right.”

Time for a quick subject change before this takes another turn for the worse.  I nod towards Xandra.  “Shall I leave her here with you for the evening?”  That is the last thing in the world I want to do.  I would go crazy with worry and probably end up sleeping outside the door to make sure her aunt stays clear.

“No, I think she’d be more comfortable in her own room,” her father says. 

I grow fonder of him every day.  Before her mother can argue, I lift Xandra from the bed and cradle her in my arms.  She snuggles against my chest as I walk out of the room and down the hall.  Once we are back in her room, I lay her gently on the bed.  She looks so peaceful lying there.  The hormone driven part of me wants to wake her up with a kiss that would push sleep far from her mind.  The rational part of me knows that she needs her sleep.  After a lengthy internal struggle, I finally replace her clothes with pink satin pajamas and let her sleep.  I crawl into bed next to her and with one arm draped across her waist, I follow her into the land of dreams.

Chapter 15

A while later, I wake to an empty bed.  Of course my mind travels to all of the places it should not go.  I imagine her stolen from the bed or lured into a trap by her aunt.  I know I am being ridiculous, but I cannot truly rule that out as an impossibility.  Rising, I try to remain calm as I do a quick search of the lavatory and bathing room.  She is in neither place.

A quick trip down the hall tells me that she has not gone to check on her parents or her brother.  I cannot stop my heart from pounding a little faster as I make my way to her aunt’s room.  I breathe a sigh of relief when I hear her aunt’s even breathing as she sleeps and I cannot sense Xandra anywhere around her. 

Where has she gone then?  I take the stairs two at a time, forcing my mind to believe that she is either getting fresh air on the beach or in the kitchen satisfying her hunger or thirst.  I check the beach first with a quick step out on the terrace.  No sign of her.  Next I check the kitchen and I stop in the doorway; wondering how I will ever get this knife out of my heart.

Kegan is backed against the counter with Xandra stalking him like prey.  He is babbling about sandwiches but that is not what she is focusing on.  “Okay, if you would like to have a seat, I will fix you one, as well,” Kegan says, his voice a couple of uncomfortable octaves higher than usual.

Xandra raises a finger to trace his jaw and then follows an invisible line down his chest, her finger stopping as it slightly hooks the top of his boxers.  Every millimeter of its journey pushes the knife in my chest deeper.  “I prefer to stand,” she says, taking another step forward and leaning her body against his.  I have never hated my cousin more than I do at this moment.  But there is a nagging voice in the back of my mind that knows I cannot blame him for what is happening here.  Still, I want to go over there and punch him bloody.  But I have no idea what to say or do to Xandra.  So I stand here in a catatonic state and consider ripping my heart out so it cannot make me feel any more pain.

Kegan puts his hands on her shoulders and pushes her away gently.  “Xandra, are you sure you are okay?  You are acting strangely.”

Her face forms into a pout.  “I thought you wanted this?”  Her hands are back on Kegan and she slides them up his chest until she can warp her arms around his neck.  I am too stunned to move.  I cannot believe this is really happening.

Kegan attempts to free himself but I can see the signs that he is losing his will to fight her off.  “You made it quite clear that your interests lie elsewhere,” he says with little conviction in his voice.

“Perhaps I have rethought my choice,” Xandra says, pushing her body against his again.  “Have you changed your mind?”

Kegan’s self-control is drowning in his obvious desire for her.  “What about Kallen?”

A teasing smile turns Xandra into a sultry vixen.  I can barely hear her when she whispers in his ear, “He never needs to know.”  She nips his earlobe and he is lost.  Kegan slides his arms around her and closes his eyes as she begins to kiss a trail along his jaw.  The sight of her actually kissing him is enough to pull me out of the stupor I have fallen into.  If her lips meet his, I will never be able to forgive her.

My voice has returned with a vengeance.  “Cousin, I give you five seconds to leave this room.”

Kegan’s face floods with guilt and fear.  He is remembering the last time I caught him this close to Xandra.  But she has neither emotion on her face.  Dropping her arms from Kegan’s neck, she turns to me and says in a voice that implies I am overreacting, “I was simply amusing myself for a moment.  It meant nothing.”

Kegan attempts to defend himself.  “Kallen, I swear, I did not…”

I do not want to hear anything from him.  My only concern is Xandra at the moment.  “You have two seconds, Kegan.”

He is gone in one.  Xandra watches him leave and then turns back to me with her arms folded across her chest.  “You didn’t want to play with me earlier.  Why do you care if I find my amusements elsewhere?”

This must be a nightmare.  There is no other explanation for her behavior.  Unless she has gone mad.  Again, are the consequences of her going into the Shadow realm a slow loss of sanity?  Whatever it is, I am not prepared to accept her behavior as anything other than cruel and duplicitous.  “You have nothing to offer as an explanation other than that?”

Instead of a reply, Xandra pulls her bottom lip between her teeth and looks at my coyly as she walks to where I am standing.  Putting a hand on my chest, she pouts, “Are you really mad at me?  I was only teasing.  I never would have done anything with your cousin.”

That forces me to take a step back.  That is the first time she has truly been dishonest with me.  I do not know if my heart can take much more.  It is already in so many pieces that it may never be able to be mended.  I take yet another step back from her.  “I would prefer you not to touch me at the moment.  And I believe what I saw when I walked in makes that statement a bold lie.”

Her pout becomes more pronounced.  Usually I find her pout to be cute.  Right now, I find it to be anything but.  “You really are no fun.  What harm would one little kiss be?  You know my heart belongs to you,” she says.

I open my mouth to say something but I have been stunned back into silence.  Who is she?  Who is this beautiful creature standing in front of me trying to seduce her way back into my heart after ripping it into tatters?  There is no remorse for her actions.  Not on her face, in her body language or in her eyes.  She is definitely not the person that I fell in love with.  How can she have become so different overnight? 

Unless something is making her act like this.  Like being in the Shadow Realm for a day and a half.  Could it truly have changed her this much?  Cocking my head, I ask carefully, “Xandra, are you well?”

She backs up and stamps her foot in frustration.  “Why do you keep asking me that?”

Yes, there is definitely something amiss here.  I take a step closer and put my hand to her forehead.  I pull it back for fear of burning it.  Putting my hands on her barely cooler cheeks, I tilt her face up so I can see it better.  Yes, definitely something amiss.  “Xandra, you are burning up and the green of your eyes is duller than normal.  Almost as if there is a brown haze over them.”

She pulls back from me in anger.  “That’s nonsense.  I feel fine.”  As she says this, she becomes unsteady.  I reach a hand out to balance her when she attempts to steady herself with the counter edge.  She misses and I grab her by the waist to keep her from falling to the tile floor as she slips into unconsciousness.  This is not good.  Grandmother is not going to like this, but I send her a message anyway.  Perhaps she will have a better idea of what is going on. 

Chapter 16

I feel her begin to stir again as I lay her down on one of the sofas in the main living room.  Struggling to open her eyes, she says quietly, “Kallen, where are we?”  Now that she is awake, I pull up the eyelid of her right eye to determine if her pupils are dilated.  “Hey,” she says indignantly.  “What are you doing?  What’s going on?”  She attempts to sit up but I push her gently back down.