The Golden Lily

Adrian stopped in front of another. It was as yellow as his car and showed another mix of styles, like a southwest version of a medieval castle, complete with turrets. "Nice juxtaposition," he remarked.

I turned, knowing my eyes were wide as I stared at him. "Did you just use juxtaposition in a sentence?"

"Yes, Sage," he said patiently. "We use it all the time with art, when we're mixing different components. That, and I know how to use a dictionary." He turned from me and scanned the house, his eyes resting on a gardener who was out trimming some hedges. A sly smile crossed Adrian's lips. "You want to see the back? Come on."

"What are you - " Before I could say another word, Adrian strode up the granite pathway and cut across the lawn to where the guy was working. I didn't want anything to do with this, but the responsible part of me couldn't let Adrian get into trouble. I hurried after him.

"Are the owners home?" Adrian asked.

The gardener had stopped his clipping and stared at Adrian. "No."

"When will they be back?"

"After six."

I was astonished that the guy was answering these questions. If I'd been asked them, I would've assumed someone was staging a break-in. Then, I saw the glazed look in the gardener's eyes and realized what was going on.

"Adrian - "

Adrian's eyes never left the other man's face. "Take us to the backyard."

"Of course."

The gardener dropped his hedge clippers and headed for a gate on the side of the house.

I tried to get Adrian's attention to stop this, but he was outpacing me. Our guide stopped at the gate, entered a security code, and led us to the back. My protests died on my lips as I gazed around.

This back property was almost three times the size of the front. There were more palm trees ringing the yard, along with a terraced garden full of plants, both native and non-native.

A huge oval shaped pool dominated the space, its turquoise hue startling against the gray of the granite that surrounded it. On one side of the pool, several steps led up to a smaller, square pool. It could only hold a few people, and a waterfall poured out from it, down to the larger pool. Tiki torches and tables around the pools completed the lush setup.

"Thanks," Adrian told the gardener. "Go back to your work. It's okay if we're here. We'll see ourselves out."

"Of course," the man replied. He walked back the way we'd come in.

I snapped back to reality. "Adrian! You used compulsion on that guy. That... I mean, it's..."

"Awesome?" Adrian walked over to the steps leading up to the upper pool. "Yeah, I know."

"It's wrong! All of this. Breaking and entering, and compulsion..." I shivered, despite the sweltering heat. "It's immoral. Controlling someone else's mind. You know it! Your people and mine both agree."

"Eh, no harm done." He climbed to the top of the pool and stood on its edge, surveying his kingdom. The sun brought out chestnut glints in his brown hair. "Believe me, that guy was easy to control. Weak-willed. I barely had to use compulsion."

"Adrian - "

"Come on, Sage. Not like we're going to hurt anything. Check out this view." I was almost afraid to go up there. It was so rare for any of the Moroi here to use their magic that it was easy for me to pretend it didn't exist. Seeing Adrian use it - the most insidious kind - made my skin crawl. As I'd told Ms. Terwilliger in our charm discussion, no one should be able to control another like that.

"Come on," Adrian repeated. "You're not worried I'm going to compel you up here, are you?"

"Of course not," I said. And I meant it. I didn't know why, but some part of me knew Adrian would never, ever harm me. Reluctantly, I went to join him, hoping that would encourage him to leave. When I reached the top, my jaw dropped. The intimate pool hadn't seemed that high, but it gave us a stunning view of the mountains off in the distance, rugged and majestic against the blue of the sky. The larger pool glittered below us, and the waterfall made it look like we'd entered some mystical oasis.

"Cool, huh?" he asked. Adrian sat down on the small pool's edge, rolled up his jeans, and took off his socks and shoes.

"Now what are you doing?" I asked.

"Making the most out of this." He put his feet in the water. "Come on. Do something bad for a change. Not that it's really that bad. We aren't trashing this place or anything." I hesitated, but the water was intoxicating, as though it too could wield compulsion. Settling down, I copied Adrian and dipped my bare feet into the water. Its coolness was startling -

and wonderful - in this intense heat.

"I could get used to this," I admitted. "But what if the owners come home early?" He shrugged. "I can talk us out of it, don't worry."

That wasn't exactly reassuring. I turned back to the gorgeous view and lush property. I wasn't always the most imaginative person, but I thought back to what I'd said about living another life. What would it be like to have a home like this? To stay in one place? To spend days by the pool, soaking in the sun, and not worrying about the fate of humanity? I fell into daydreams and was so caught up that I lost track of time.

"We have to get back to the shop," I exclaimed. Glancing over, I was astonished to see Adrian watching me, a look of contentment on his face. His eyes seemed to study my every feature. Seeing me notice him, he immediately looked away. His usual smirky expression replaced the dreamy one.

"The mechanic will wait," he said.

"Yeah, but I'm supposed to meet Brayden soon. I'll be - " That's when I got a good look at Adrian. "What have you done? Look at you! You shouldn't be out here."

"It's not that bad."

He was lying, and we both knew it. It was late afternoon, and the sun was merciless. I'd certainly felt it, though the coolness of the water had helped distract me. That, and I was human.

Sure, sunstroke and sunburns were concerns, but I loved the sun and had a high tolerance for it. Vampires did not.

Sweat poured off Adrian, soaking his shirt and hair. Pink blotches covered his face. They were familiar. I'd seen them on Jill back when she'd been forced to play outdoor sports in PE.

Left unchecked, they'd turn into burns. I jumped to my feet.

"Come on, we have to get out of here before you get worse. What were you thinking?" His expression was astonishingly nonchalant for someone who looked like he would pass out. "It was worth it. You looked... happy."

"That's crazy," I said.