Chapter Four
“Evie Saunders?”
Evie glanced toward the lyrical voice that called her name. A woman, slightly older than the rest of the group, stood by the doorway, a clipboard held in her hands. The woman watched those around the room; her forehead creased with a small frown.
“Is there an Evie Saunders?” The woman pushed a pair of black, thick-rimmed glasses higher on the bridge of her nose.
With a sheepish smile, Evie raised her hand in the air to catch the woman’s attention.
“Come with me please.” Her frown stayed in place, offering no reassurance as she turned to leave.
Evie gathered her stuff. She double-checked the area to ensure she left nothing behind before she walked over. The woman, already halfway out the door, motioned Evie to follow her.
A long hallway greeted them. Gray coated the walls from floor to ceiling, and the floors shimmered from the waxed surface of harsh, white tiles. The bare walls gave the corridor a utilitarian feel, reminiscent of a hospital Evie visited once. Thick, metal doors stood wide open at the opposite end. Evie preferred the warm wood tones offered at the main entrance.
She refrained from asking about their final destination. Following orders without question was ingrained within her at an early age.
After a series of turns brought them further into the heart of the building, they finally stopped in front of an oversized, steel door. Shut tight, the woman entered a long series of numbers into the security panel mounted on the right side of the door. With a loud beep, the locks disengaged with a click. Holding open the door, the woman gestured impatiently for Evie to walk through into the dimly lit room.
Evie hesitated, then complied with the silent command. When she crossed the threshold, the air around her shimmered, and her skin flashed hot for a split second. Unnerved, she peeked around the small room, taken aback by what awaited her. The room reminded Evie of the waiting area in a doctor’s office, but it lacked the sterility that would normally accompany it. Instead, the same wood trimmed walls, prominent in the rest of the building, decorated the room.
Occupants already waited inside.
Max sat beside another young man who she didn’t recognize as coming from the camp. They both turned to face her when she entered the room, and Evie was startled to find the stranger wore sunglasses. They sat on a forest green couch positioned on one side of the room. Two armchairs in a matching print sat on the other side. A glass coffee table separated the room into two sections.
“Hi, Evie.” Max grinned up at her, all teeth. The grin didn’t quite reach his eyes. Worry gnawed at her at this realization. Max was always happy.
Evie nodded at him, offering him a slight smile before she moved to take a seat in one of the empty chairs. She placed her bag on the floor next to her, along with her suitcase, and folded her hands in her lap. Her natural shyness kept her from offering any words.
The soft snick of the door closing caught her attention. The woman who led her here had left without a word. A throat cleared to catch her attention. She turned her gaze back to the couch.
“Evie, this is Caleb. He’s my...uh...boyfriend,” Max stuttered out, his cheeks tinged red.
He never mentioned anyone special before. “Nice to meet you, Caleb. I didn’t know Max had a boyfriend.”
Caleb smiled at her but didn’t say anything.
“Yeah.” Max rubbed his head sheepishly. His bashfulness put Evie at ease. She kept forgetting this wasn’t the camp. She didn’t need to remain guarded all the time.
Not used to socializing, she tried to make small talk. “How long have you two been dating?”
“Well, Evie, that’s a tough question. And to give you an honest answer, well, that would lead to more questions. Are you sure you want me to answer?” Max’s cryptic reply roused Evie’s natural curiosity, but the hint of caution in his eyes screamed at her to proceed carefully.
What kind of answer would elicit such a strong response?
Always one to pull the cat’s tail, Evie plowed forward, more curious than scared. She gestured for him to continue.
Max’s expression turned neutral, unreadable. “Caleb and I have been together for a long time. Longer than you’ve been alive, actually.”
“How is that possible? Were you childhood sweethearts?” Evie found it unbelievable. Then a thought formed. Her hands clenched in her lap, but she quickly relaxed, dismissing the ludicrous assumption. It couldn’t be true. She would have realized it by now. Wouldn’t she?
Max shared a look with Caleb, but the silent man shrugged, leaving the decision up to Max. Max leaned forward in his seat, his eyes intense as they stared into Evie’s. Trepidation slid down her spine, but she resisted the urge to bolt from the room. Soon, she would celebrate her eighteenth birthday. She needed to act like an independent adult, not some scared little child.
“Evie, Caleb and I are bond mates. We’ve been together for nearly a hundred years.” He paused, letting her absorb his words before he continued. “I’m not human, Evie. Neither is Caleb.”
Evie stared at Max, not believing what her ears told her. She’d known him for almost three years. Surely, he joked. He must be human. Her father, or one of his lieutenants, would have picked up on it if he was a supernatural.
“You’re lying,” Evie ground out.
Max loved to play jokes on people. He found humor in everything. His quick wit helped him out of more than one sticky situation before. But, Evie didn’t find this funny.
Max stood from the couch and moved around the coffee table. Warily, Evie watched as he knelt in front of her. He clasped her clenched fists within his large grip and rubbed them soothingly. His hands dwarfed hers. “Sweetheart, I’m telling you the truth. I have never been, nor will I ever be, human.”
Tears welled up in Evie’s eyes as the truth of Max’s words hit her. She believed him to be her only ally against the others. She thought they were friends.
“I am your friend.”
Evie blanched as she realized she must have spoken her thoughts out loud. Extracting her hands from his grip, she leaned further back in her chair. Max allowed her to pull back, but he didn’t move away.
“Unless this changes how you feel about me?” He rested his hands on the arms of the chair on either side of her. “Were you only my friend because you thought I was human?”
Evie huffed, exasperation making the air gush out of her. “What you are doesn’t matter to me. But, you lied to me, all this time. Why?”
“Sweetheart, I couldn’t tell you. When I was sent to infiltrate the camp, you were this tiny little thing. Wise beyond your years, but you were still so young. Only fifteen and under your father’s thumb.” Max frowned at the memory. “There was always a chance I would be discovered. If that happened, I didn’t want you hurt by my actions. I protected you by not telling you the truth. When the time came to get you out of there, I knew I needed to come clean at the first opportunity. It’s what I’m doing now.”
“What do you mean, get me out of there?” Evie asked, even more confused.
Max looked uncertain for a minute before his eyes harden with a decision. “You were safe until you reached your eighteenth birthday. Your father knew you planned to leave. With your skills, he couldn’t afford to lose you as an asset, so he made plans to prevent that. And, it was something we couldn’t allow. The Surmata elders ordered a raid on the camp. Our only goal was your extraction. Everything else was camouflage to hide our true intentions.”
“B-but…” Evie stumbled, trying to find the words.
“Sweetheart, you are special. The elders realized this years ago and tried to get you out when you were fifteen. But, your father turned down the scholarship, so I was dispatched. My orders were clear: protect you at all cost until you came of age.
“When I met you, I couldn’t help the friendship that developed between us. You were nothing like the other humans at camp. You were intrigued by the supernatural. You didn’t hold your father’s beliefs.” He reached out, lifting a curl that fell on Evie’s face, and placed it behind her ear. “You were a diamond among a bunch of coal. We found you, and there was no way we were going to let others take you away from us. You belong with us.”
“I don’t understand. What do you mean, I belong with you?” Evie questioned, still not grasping the full meaning behind Max’s words.
“Sweetheart, you are valued for your intelligence by all. Humans and supernaturals alike. But unlike humans, we value you for yourself. Your natural curiosity about everything around you. Your ability to take everything at face value, weighing it before you make a decision. Never judging any human or non-human without all the facts.
“You, sweetheart, are the polar opposite of what your father stands for. We need humans on our side, humans like you who are willing to work with us to make this world a better place. You can become the voice that bridges our two species. You can prove to the naysayers that what we tell them is, in fact, truth.”
Evie sat stunned as thoughts rolled around her head. Like he said, she weighed his words and found no fault in them. Only brutal honesty.
“The raid, everything…it was all about me? The others were left to suffer, sent away to prison camps, because you wanted me?” Hysteria crawled up her throat as images bombarded her of what they endured at her expense. Tears rolled down her cheeks, and she did nothing to wipe them away.
Max straightened and reached up until he surrounded her head with his large hands. He tugged her forward in her seat until their foreheads touched. “Sweetheart, those others are not in prison camps, I promise. We relocated them. Only the worst offenders, the ones we can prove were complicit in inciting violence, were taken away.
“Those criminals didn’t care who they hurt when they carried out their terrorist attacks against the supernatural community. Humans were hurt and even killed. For this reason, they were sent to a holding camp until a trial can be held. But the rest, whose only crime was to get involved with the group, are in new areas, still with their family members. They were given choices, like you. Most of them took what was offered. Those who didn’t want our help were mandated to check-in with the council when they were situated.
“We don’t force people to accept us. Fight us, we are stronger and more resilient. We can withstand anything a human throws at us. It’s like kittens trying to take a swipe at us. It might hurt for a minute, but it doesn’t leave any lasting damage. But we won’t stand by while innocent humans are caught in the crossfire.” He wiped Evie’s cheeks with his palms, removing the evidence of her tears. With a gentle smile, he asked, “Do you believe me, sweetheart?”
Evie stared into Max’s eyes, searching desperately for any hint of deception, but found none. Only gentle acceptance of whatever she decided. She nodded to let him know she believed him, and the blue of his eyes lightened. His smile turned mischievous as it spread, showing all his teeth.
“Now, you haven’t asked me the most important question.” He tried to look somber but failed.
He was up to something, but she decided to play along, hoping it would move the conversation into more light-hearted territory. Enough had been thrown at her for one day. Anymore, and she would burst.
Max moved his hands away from her face, beeping her on the nose. “You haven’t ask me what I am yet.”
Evie cocked her head to the side. Tentatively, almost timid in her fear of insulting him, she asked, “You’re not Surmata?”
“Not quite.” He laughed. “Guess again.”
This whole time Caleb sat quietly on the couch, not saying a word. But now, he let his presence be known once again. “Speak for yourself,” he said dryly, removing his sunglasses. Pale pink eyes glistened like diamonds.
Max waved him off, his hands swinging wildly in the air. “Yeah, yeah. Anyone can tell what you are by those gorgeous eyes of yours. But we’re talking about me, not you, pumpkin.”
Caleb rolled his eyes and leaned back into the couch, placing his feet on top of the coffee table. Both guys stared at Evie, waiting for her to reply.
“Uh, I thought the Surmata were the only supernatural species.” She hurried to add, “Besides demons.”
“Stupid, fucking, human limitations. I can’t believe they still teach such outdated shit,” Max snarled, his eyes flashing red with insult. “I am Puoli Demoni. It means half demon. My mother was a demon, and my father was Surmata.”
Evie’s eyes widened in astonishment. Demons were evil. To meet one was to meet death. If you ever came across one, the only thing you could do was pray for your immortal soul. With it almost impossible for higher level demons to cross the planes of existence, they used human hosts instead to wreak havoc on the general population. These human puppets would follow their demonic lord’s order. Murder, torture, and rape were the more common occurrences of demonic influences. Lower level demons, though, had an easier time. They could exist on the earthen plane for a limited amount of time, depending on their power level. Usually long enough to inflict mischief on others.
“Please don’t be scared of me, sweetheart. I would never hurt you or any human. There are more creatures out there like me who mean no harm to humans. As your education evolves, you will come to learn all about the supernatural.” Max’s eyes pleaded for Evie to understand. “I’m your friend. We’ll talk more later. I’ll tell you all about my heritage. But, not right now.” Max stood and moved back around the coffee table to Caleb’s side. “Now, you need to get up and go through that door. One of the head honchos is waiting to talk with you.”
Overwhelmed, Evie numbly pushed herself out of the chair, grabbed her luggage, and made her way to the far door. Turning back, she offered Max a reassuring smile. “I’ll see you later.” She glanced at the other man. “Nice meeting you, Caleb.”