chapter seventeen

My retail therapy hadn’t worked as well as I’d hoped. All I had to show for my shopping spree was that single bag from Victoria’s Secret, but although instinct told me my dad wouldn’t be happy that I’d made such little use of his gift, I just couldn’t see continuing after my chat with Ethan. Not that I’d been having that great a time to start with.

I thought sure Finn was going to ask me about my conversation with Ethan, especially after the whole mocha-in-the-face thing, but he didn’t say a word. His social skills could use some work. Then again, I wasn’t real anxious to talk about it, so the silence wasn’t completely unwelcome.

Finn took me back to my dad’s house. I thought he might drop me off there, seeing as Dad said the house was completely safe, but he came in with me.

“In case you want to go out again later,” he said, which was a veritable speech from him.

It was a plausible explanation, but I couldn’t help wondering if he did double duty as prison guard. So I pushed the issue.

“I’m exhausted,” I said. “I don’t see myself going out again today. At least not until Dad gets home.”

He shrugged his sturdy shoulders. “I’ll be here if you change your mind.”

“Can’t you just give me a phone number? I can call you if Iwant to go out, and you won’t have to kill the rest of your afternoon just sitting around the house.”

“That’s my job,” he said.

Yup. Definite jailor material here. “Is there anything I can say that will get you to leave?” I asked. “Because I’d really like some time to myself.”

“I can wait in the garage if my presence disturbs you.”

The garage which, conveniently, I’d have to pass through if I wanted to leave the house. Not that I wanted to leave the house by myself, not when there could be people out there wanting to kill me. I’m not the stupid airhead from three thousand bodyguard stories who thinks, “Gee, someone’s trying to kill me. Let me ditch my bodyguards so I make a nice, juicy target.” I just wanted to know I could leave if I wanted to.

I’d wanted a great many things since I’d come to Avalon. I hadn’t gotten any of them yet.

I was feeling almost bitchy enough to make Finn hang out in the garage, but I knew I wasn’t being fair. Like he said, he was just doing his job. It wasn’t his fault I didn’t like it.

“Fine!” I said in a huff. I grabbed my Victoria’s Secret bag and made a grand exit, stomping up the stairs to my room. Childish, I know, but I figured I was entitled.

There was a phone in my room, so I made another attempt to call my mom. I didn’t know what I was going to say to her, especially after finding out why she’d become an alcoholic, but everything that had happened to me in Avalon so far felt almost surreal. The idea of touching base with reality—even the depressing reality of my mom and her drinking—held a lot of appeal.

I got her answering machine again. I couldn’t think of anything to say in a message, so I hung up.

If I didn’t keep myself busy, I was sure I’d spend the rest of the afternoon brooding, so I plugged in my laptop and finally started reading one of the dirty books I’d downloaded, but I couldn’t keep my mind on it. The moment something remotely sexy started to happen, I’d find myself remembering the feel of Ethan’s lips on mine, the warmth of his body as he leaned over me. Which would immediately lead to the memory of how he’d lied to me and betrayed me.

My spiral into misery was interrupted by the sound of the doorbell. For half a second, I hoped it would be Ethan, coming to prostrate himself at my feet and beg forgiveness. But I was never going to forgive him, and even if it might have been satisfying to see him grovel, I couldn’t take seeing him again.

Footsteps made the stairs creak, and moments later, Finn appeared in my doorway. He’d ditched his jacket and tie, as well as the sunglasses, and all I could think was … wow! If he walked around without his Secret Service Man disguise, he’d be a menace as every woman behind the wheel of a car would forget to look at the road. If it weren’t for the Fae tilt to his eyes, I swear he’d be a leading candidate for the next James Bond.

“You have a visitor,” he said, and I had to suppress a laugh, because his accent was just close enough to British to make me think, “Bond. James Bond.”

“If it’s Ethan, you can tell him to forget it,” I said, the urge to laugh instantly disappearing.

Finn shook his head. “It’s Kimber. But if you don’t wish to speak to her, that’s perfectly understandable, and I’d be happy to send her away.”

Maybe sending her away would have been the right thing to do. She’d hurt me worse than Ethan had, if only because I’d let down my guard and trusted her, while I’d always remained wary around Ethan. It made my heart ache just to think about how she’d lied to me. And yet … Yesterday, when we’d sat in her room together, I’d had a tantalizing glimpse of what it would be like to have a real friend, a friend I didn’t have to hide anything from, and I’d liked it. A lot.

I didn’t know if I could find it in my heart to forgive her—assuming she actually did like me and wanted forgiveness—but I’d never know if I didn’t talk to her. Besides, I’d given Ethan the chance to explain himself this afternoon. It was only fair that I give Kimber the same shot.

“I’ll be down in a minute,” I told Finn, and he nodded.

I took a couple of deep breaths as I listened to Finn’s retreating footsteps. I gathered what I could of my courage and dignity, then headed down to the living room.

Kimber was sitting primly on the couch when I emerged from the stairway. I looked around for Finn, but he was nowhere to be found.

“He’s downstairs,” Kimber said, standing up and turning to face me.

I was glad not to have to play out this scene with an audience, though I hated the idea of Finn having to hang out in the garage. I walked closer to Kimber, my arms crossed over my chest, my chin jutting out. Kimber stared at her feet for a moment, then found the courage to meet my eyes.

“My father made me swear not to tell you anything,” she said, sounding miserable. “It didn’t seem like we were doing anything so terribly wrong at first. We were just getting you away from Grace and being friendly. I told myself there was no harm in it. But then Ethan started flirting, and I realized there was more to the plan than just being ‘friendly.’”

My throat ached. “Yeah, because why else would a guy like him give a girl like me a second glance?” I asked, and I almost winced at the bitterness in my voice. I reminded myself for the millionth time that I’d known from the start that Ethan’s interest was too good to be true.

Kimber’s eyes widened. “That’s not what I meant!”

“Isn’t it? Because I can’t imagine how else you’d have been so sure it was all some part of this big conspiracy of yours.”

Kimber sank down onto the couch, and she looked so hurt it was hard to remember the ice princess I’d first met. “That’s not it at all,” she said, and I could have sworn she was fighting tears. “It’s just that I’m a cynic, and it was too … convenient that he ‘just happened’ to fall for you under the circumstances.”

I let out a heavy sigh. “From one cynic to another, tell me why I should believe anything you say?”

She looked up at me, and there was a shimmer of tears in those lovely eyes of hers. “I can’t think of one good reason why you’d believe me,” she said with a sniffle. “But I wish you would anyway. I hated having to lie to you, but my dad would have been so furious with me if I disobeyed him. … Ethan can do no wrong in his eyes, but I’m a different story.”

“You told me my dad was still in jail when you knew he was already out.”

She nodded. “It’s what my father told me to say. I argued with him about it. You were bound to find out eventually that we’d lied, and I told him it would undo any good impression we might have made. But he wouldn’t listen to me.” A single tear leaked from the corner of her eye, and she brushed it away.

“Sorry,” she said with another sniffle. “I have no right to cry when you’re the one who got hurt.”

But it was clear that being stuck in the middle had hurt Kimber plenty, too. “You get brownie points for trying to warn me about Ethan, at least,” I told her. And, while she’d betrayed my trust by lying about my father, I couldn’t help remembering the way she’d calmly accepted what I considered to be my shameful secret.

I didn’t want to lose her, I realized with a start. The lie was going to be a sore spot between us for who knew how long, but I didn’t know how I could survive in Avalon without a friend.

My decision made, I met her eyes. “If you promise never to lie to me again, then maybe we can kinda start over.”

She gave me a wide-eyed, hopeful look. “Really?”

“We can give it a shot.”

Her smile was positively brilliant, and there was no missing the relief in her eyes. “Thanks for giving me a second chance,” she said, then startled me by giving me an exuberant hug. She sobered a bit when she let go. “I’d better get out of here before your dad comes home. He might not be too happy to see me right now.”

I hoped Dad wouldn’t be a problem. He’d told me he wouldn’t stop me from talking to Ethan, even though he didn’t approve, which seemed like a good sign.

“Are you doing anything tomorrow?” I asked. “Because I tried to do some shopping today, and it wasn’t much fun on my own.”

Her eyes lit up. “Ooh! Shopping is one of my favorite things. And I can take you to all of the best boutiques.”

“I’m sure we’ll have Finn looking over our shoulders the whole time,” I warned.

She grinned wickedly. “And this would be a bad thing?” she teased. “I got a good look at him before he let me in, and all I can say is, yum!”

“He looks less ‘yum’ and more ‘yikes’ when he’s in Secret Service Man mode,” I warned.

Kimber’s grin was undiminished. “All the better. He can be our little secret.”

A weight lifted off my shoulders as I grinned back at her.

My dad didn’t come home until after seven, by which time my lunch had long been burned out of my system. In other words, I was starving. I’d assumed he’d take me out to dinner, but I wasn’t at all disappointed when I came downstairs and discovered he’d brought Chinese takeout. Yay! I’d get to eat sooner.

There wasn’t actually a dining room in my dad’s house, but he did have a small round table with two chairs hiding in one corner, and that’s where we ate. Finn had left as soon as Dad got home, so it was just the two of us. I thought it was kind of cozy, almost homelike. Until Dad started talking.

“So Finn tells me you ran into Ethan this afternoon,” he said, and the food turned to ashes in my mouth.

I swallowed, then mentally gave myself a kick in the rear. I should have known Finn would give Dad a full report, especially when Ethan made such a big deal about having something important to tell me. I should have spent some time this afternoon deciding what I was going to say to my dad—I was afraid a death threat would make me into even more of a prisoner than I already was—but of course I hadn’t wanted to think about it.

“Yeah,” I said, trying to sound casual as I shoved another bite of sweet-and-sour chicken into my mouth. It still tasted like ashes, but as long as I was chewing, I couldn’t be expected to talk.

Dad leaned back in his chair, and I could feel his eyes on me even though I was looking at my plate.

“Well?” he prompted. “Would you like to tell me what happened? I hear he had something urgent to tell you.”

I wasn’t eager to tell Dad about what happened. But I also wasn’t eager to get killed, so not telling Dad about it probably was a bad idea. I took a gulp of water to help wash the chicken down, then composed myself as best I could.

“On the night that Ethan and Kimber rescued me from Aunt Grace, we were attacked by Spriggans.” Fae reserve or not, Dad gasped softly. “Kimber thought they were after Ethan because he’s so powerful. But Ethan thinks they were after me.”

I had left so much out you could drive a truck through all the holes in my story. Don’t ask me why I didn’t spill the beans about Ethan’s role in the attack. I was hurt enough to want to hurt him back, but some instinct made me hold back.

From the look on Dad’s face, I could tell he knew I wasn’t telling him the whole story. I tensed for the ensuing interrogation, but he surprised me by letting it slide.

He sighed hugely and pushed his plate aside. “I suppose I’ve put this off as long as I could,” he said. “It’s time to talk about your status as a Faeriewalker.”

“You say that as if you know I am one.” I hadn’t said a word about it to him, figuring I’d avoid the whole topic until he brought it up.

He smiled wryly. “It became fairly obvious once I brought you home. You haven’t even glanced out that front window yet. Most people immediately comment on the view, and it was a sunny day today.”

“Maybe I’m afraid of heights.”

His eyes narrowed. “Don’t be coy.” He didn’t quite snap at me, but there was definitely annoyance in his voice. “You can see into Faerie.”

I shrugged. Being coy, I guess. It was almost like if I didn’t admit it out loud, it wasn’t actually true.

“And Ethan and his Underground have explained to you what this means?” he prodded.

Another shrug. “To tell you the truth, it doesn’t seem like that big a deal to me. Not big enough for all this drama.”

“Then you haven’t thought about it enough.” He was still pissed at me, though I wasn’t sure exactly why. “How well do you know history?”

The question startled me. I had no idea what it had to do with the conversation. “Let’s just say it’s not my favorite subject at school,” I answered, because let’s face it, history classes are boring, boring, boring.

“Typical American,” Dad muttered under his breath. “Have you heard of Richard III?”

I gave him an exasperated look. “I said it wasn’t my favorite subject, not that I’m completely ignorant.”

“Richard III took the throne when his brother, Edward IV, died. But what he is most famous for is his possible murder of the Princes in the Tower, his brother’s sons.”

“Like I said, not completely ignorant.” I couldn’t say I knew much more about it than what Dad had said so far, but I was finding his tone somewhat condescending.

His eyes were like blue spears impaling me, and I gathered he wasn’t used to being talked back to. He was going to have to get used to it if I stuck around. Still, that stare was intimidating enough that I felt myself sinking down into my chair.

“Whether Richard killed those boys or not has been a subject of great debate among historians.”

He paused, waiting for me to make a smart comment, ready to jump down my throat if I did. I kept my mouth shut, still wondering what this had to do with Faeriewalkers.

“At that time, Avalon was under mortal control, ruled by the kings of England. It was a time of great strife for the Crown, as the houses of York and Lancaster fought over the throne. It was known as the Wars of the Roses, and it went on for more than thirty years. The Fae took sides in the conflict, the Seelie favoring York and the Unseelie favoring Lancaster.” He flashed me a smile I might have called bitter. “Remember what I told you about how the Fae don’t change. The Seelie to this day wear the white rose of York, and the Unseelie still wear the red rose of Lancaster.

“The Unseelie single-handedly destroyed the house of York by kidnapping the Princes in the Tower and leaving Richard holding the bag, as it were. Because he was suspected of killing those children, he was never able to fully secure the throne, and when he was killed in battle, the crown passed to the house of Lancaster.”

Okay, it didn’t take a rocket scientist to realize where Dad was going with this. Obviously, a Faeriewalker had been involved in there somehow, but I didn’t understand how. I frowned in concentration.

“So there’s some kind of spell that can make people just disappear? And a Faeriewalker carried it to the Tower of London and made the kids go poof?”

“No. The Unseelie Fae sent a Faeriewalker and an Unseelie Knight into the mortal world. The Knight cast a series of confusion spells that allowed them to infiltrate the Tower and gain access to the Princes.”

“Wait a minute!” I said, sitting up straighter. “I thought Faeriewalkers could just carry magic into the mortal world. They can actually bring people?”

Dad nodded. “There is an aura of Fae magic that clings to Faeriewalkers. If the Fae is careful to stay within the Faeriewalker’s aura, then he—or she—can enter the mortal world, with all his magic intact. Just as the Faeriewalker can bring mortals into Faerie with working technology.”

“So that’s what happened to the Princes? The Knight and the Faeriewalker kidnapped them and took them to Faerie?”

“Yes.”

“So what happened to them when they got to Faerie?”

Dad looked grim and unhappy. “Mortals cannot survive in Faerie. Not without a Faeriewalker’s special magic protecting them. The Faeriewalker abandoned them there, and they died. Are you beginning to see why your being a Faeriewalker is a ‘big deal’?”

Yeah, that was getting obvious. No wonder no one knew for sure what had happened to the Princes. They hadn’t taken into account the possibility of a magical abduction into Faerie.

“Having a Faeriewalker on one’s side is rather like having a nuclear weapon. Even if one never intends to deploy it, the threat is a potent one. Grace wished to win you to her side by force; Alistair wanted to win you to his side by having his children ingratiate themselves to you.”

I raised my chin, hating to be reminded of Ethan. “And you?” I asked. “How do you plan to get me on your side?”

He smiled at me, leaning over and covering one of my hands with his. “By being your father. By protecting you, and by treating you kindly. And by being honest with you.”

I gently extracted my hand from under his, not quite ready for physical signs of affection yet. “I like your way better,” I muttered under my breath.

He smiled again, and his eyes twinkled. “I’m rather counting on that.”

I went to bed that night cautiously optimistic about my situation. I certainly felt safer, more comfortable, and more free now than I had since I’d first set eyes on Aunt Grace. But I couldn’t help wondering if Dad’s attitude toward me would change if I stopped doing what he wanted me to do. Would he still treat me “kindly” then? Or would the claws come out? Because I knew he had some, even if he hadn’t shown them to me yet.