Blood Moon's Servant: A Paranormal Thriller Page 25

  An unnatural wave of calm swept his worries away. Hitching a ride with a psychopath was no big deal, really. The police would stop Alex once they reached Vancouver. If nothing else, his adventure would result in a surprise visit with his brother.

  The jet door popped open and a chubby, East Indian man in a pilot’s uniform scrambled down the aircraft steps. “Mr. Cardelle, it’s wonderful to see you again. And you’ve brought your lovely sister! It’s an honor, my dear.” The pilot bowed as if the Cardelle siblings were royalty.

  Alex rolled his eyes. “Hello, Roy. I trust everything is in order? We need to leave as soon as possible.”

  “Of course!” Roy spoke in a permanent, jubilant shout. “I have never disappointed your family before, and I am not about to start today. Ladies first.” He beamed adoringly at Nova.

  She grabbed Chris’s hand and towed him toward the plane. Chris trailed after her with his emotions pinballing between blissful calm and spikes of anxiety. Something about Roy made him sick to his stomach. The pilot had been brainwashed into worshiping the Cardelles.

  The interior of the plane was three hundred square feet of spacious luxury. Soft leather couches and oak coffee tables were positioned about the cabin in cozy clusters. A door to Chris’s right opened into the cockpit. A closed door on his far left likely led to a bathroom.

  “We’ll be airborne in less than twenty minutes,” Roy called out cheerfully as he plopped down in the pilot’s seat.

  Alex flopped onto a couch and flicked on an enormous, flat screen TV. “We’re on the news again. They finally figured out two of my hostages were lying dead in that classroom for days.”

  Chris and Nova chose seats as far from him as possible. Chris curled up in a cushy leather armchair and snagged a hickory brown throw off its backrest. “So, when did Alex go crazy? Before or after he met Amy Evans?”

  Nova snorted. “He was born crazy.”

  “I can hear you.” Alex shot them a venomous look.

  “We know.” Nova laughed. “We just don’t care.”

  Chris furrowed his brow, unsure if he agreed with her. He stayed silent until his curiosity got the better of him. “Why does Roy worship you guys? It’s kind of gross.”

  “Let’s just say he serves my family.”

  “Do you have a lot of servants?” He had thought Nova’s family was poor like Susan’s. Why, then, did they own a private jet and have servants like royalty? His world rocked with a stomach-churning guess. What if Alex was a descendent of some crazy European prince?

  “Oh, Chris. How little you know.”

  He pressed his lips into a frown. She didn’t have to treat him like a baby.

  The plane was still sitting in its hangar with no sign of departure. “What the hell is taking so long!” Alex bellowed, startling them all.

  Roy shot him a nervous look. “There’s a teeny tiny problem with the engine. I’ve called maintenance. They’ll have it sorted out soon.”

  “Problem with the engine my ass.” Alex seethed. “Damn that meddling angel.”

  The delay lasted another full hour before the plane was cleared for takeoff. Alex visibly relaxed once they were cruising toward the sky. Nova, too, looked less on edge.

  “Are you tired?” she asked in an undertone.

  Chris nodded, yawning for emphasis.

  “Come on.” She stood and opened the door he had assumed led to a bathroom. Instead, he gaped at a fully furnished master bedroom with a king-sized bed and oak furniture that matched the main room’s coffee tables.

  “Cool!” His family had money, but he had never been exposed to luxury like this.

  “Great idea, sis,” Alex mocked from his spot on the couch. “He’ll be much more cooperative after you bond him.”

  Nova shot her brother a furious glare and slammed the door on his laughter. She sagged against its solid surface. “Sorry, he’s a lot to take sometimes.”

  “That’s the understatement of the year.” Chris flopped face-first onto the pillow-top mattress. “What did he mean, bond me?”

  She came over to perch beside him and drummed her fingers against her knee. “It’s a long story, and I’m not supposed to tell you.”

  “We have a lot of time to kill. It’s like a five-hour flight to Vancouver, isn’t it?”

  “How did you know where we’re going?”

  “’Cause that’s where my brother is.”

  Nova averted her troubled gaze. “What’s your brother like?”

  “You asking me so you can figure out the best way to kill him?”

  “No! I’m just making conversation.”

  “Then let’s talk about you, not Zack.”

  “Okay. Ask away.”

  He drew his brows together in a worried frown. He felt sorry for Nova, but no way did he trust her. She had kept his secret from Alex but had done everything else her brother said. She seemed unable to disobey him. Blurting the wrong thing could cost Zack his life.

  “You and Alex have weird powers, don’t you? I know it sounds crazy, but I swear I spent half an hour sliding through the ground beneath Toronto this evening.”

  “You’re not crazy. That was real.” She shrugged one shoulder. “Oh, what the hell. Alex already got us in trouble with the supernatural world. I might as well enlighten you and get it over with. I like you, and I’d prefer you not lose your mind.”

  She launched into a mind-bending tale about supernatural beings called Darks who possessed untold power and ruled the world. Chris sat quietly and listened, half entranced, half amused. He wasn’t sure he believed her. Her story explained the weird events of the afternoon but sounded more like an action movie than real life.

  “I’m telling you this because it’s dangerous for humans if they experience a lot of supernatural weirdness that they can’t explain.” Nova flopped against a pillow as she concluded her story.

  “Well, thanks.” Chris felt lightheaded. Because he hadn’t eaten in days or because Nova claimed she was a strange, supernatural Dark creature and the world as he knew it had turned upside down?

  “You don’t believe me.”

  “I believe that you believe it.”

  Nova scowled. “Watch this.” A red plastic tray laden with sandwiches and soda materialized in her hands. “See? How do you explain that?”

  “Oh my God. That is so freaking dope!” Chris snatched a sandwich and began stuffing his face.

  “Eat slowly or you’ll make yourself sick.”

  “What else can you make appear? Supermodels?”

  “I can create anything inanimate out of darkness.”

  “What?” He asked with his mouth crammed full of ham and cheese. Food had never tasted so good.

  “Nothing alive.” Nova smirked. “Stop gawking at me like I’m a circus freak.”

  “I don’t think you’re a freak. I think you’re awesome.” She gave him a reluctant half-smile. He pressed his original question. “What’s bonding?”

  “Okay, okay.” Nova threw up her hands. “Bonding is a power all Darks have, whether we want it or not. When we kiss someone, that person instantly finds us irresistibly attractive. Like fool in love, do absolutely anything we say attractive. We gain the power to control them if we want.”

  “Wow.” Chris smirked. “That’s pretty dark.” She smacked him with a pillow. He laughed and tried to grab it, but his hands closed around empty air. She had ghosted away. “Don’t melt through the floor. There’s nothing to breathe out there.”

  “Technically, I could suck water from the atmosphere and breathe that if I wanted.” Nova beamed at him, enjoying showing off.

  Chris felt his mouth part. “How can you breathe water?”

  “I’m a shark Dark. Every Dark shifts into some sort of animal, and we’re good at things that that animal can do. I can breathe air and water.”

  Chris nodded as the puzzle pieces fell into place. Alex must also be a shark. That explained his creepy obsession with blood.

  “You look stressed.”
Nova gave his shoulder a sympathetic squeeze.

  “I’m trying to make it all make sense. Do I know any other supers?”

  “Actually, yeah. Ryan is a Dark like me.”

  Chris slumped against the pillows and let his eyes slide shut. “I think I’ll absorb all this while I nap.”

  “Sweet dreams. I’ll do my best to make sure Alex doesn’t kill you while you’re out.”

  “You’re a true friend.”

  Chris woke to a commotion in the main cabin. He scrambled out of bed and hurried from the room. “What’s going on?” he asked a pale-faced Nova.

  “We’re having trouble landing the plane.” Her voice was breathless with fear.

  Warm, glowing light enveloped them both. Nova screamed as if it was burning her. Chris waved his hand through it and broke into a peaceful, happy smile. Everything was going to be fine.

  The plane exploded.

  Forty

  ALEX STRETCHED OUT on the couch and settled in for a peaceful, eleven-year-old free flight. Nova could do whatever the hell she liked with Chris, so long as she kept him calm and cooperative. He encased the couch in a bubble of water darkness. It blocked out sound, light, and best of all, everyone else onboard.

  Alex grabbed a pillow and closed his eyes. He knew instantly he had made a mistake. He fought to open his eyes but could not fight the terror. Dread weighed him down as he slowly sank into fear. He struggled to maintain a grip on reality and clenched the couch cushion in his fists. He had to remember that it wasn’t going to be real. He had to remember that nothing he did or said would save her. He had to remember⸻

  The years rewound before his eyes. Flashes of color, sound, sorrow, and joy unraveled like string from a rolling spool, flinging the threads of his life into a messy web of pain. He came to rest on a point in time six years in the past.

  Preteen Alex was perched atop his childhood bed in his parents’ empty mansion. He held a black iPhone in his hand and winced as it released an annoying, high-pitched beep. It was 10 A.M. on a Saturday, and he was bored out of his mind. Everyone else in his class was off having fun. Even Lara had a date with Ash. Alex shook his head. Ash was a loser, but at least Lara was happy. Alex sighed. That was more than he had ever had. Luckily for him, FaceTiming Felicia always made him feel better.

  The beeping stopped. FaceTime took its leisure to connect. Half of Felicia’s face appeared on the screen. Her eyes were blurry with sleep, and she had a pillow propped behind her head. “Alex. Why are you calling me at seven a.m.?”

  “Sorry. Forgot about the time difference.”

  Someone off camera groaned into his pillow. “Tell Renz to go away.”

  Felicia turned her head. “It’s not Renz, it’s Alex.”

  Alex’s face split in a mischievous grin. “Are you and Vince on a sleepover? I called that right!”

  “Keep your voice down.”

  “Why?” A smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth. “You guys hung over?”

  The screen swung in a dizzying arc before Vince’s face appeared. “Felicia, where’s the mute button?”

  “No! Please don’t hang up. I’m sorry. I did call with a question.” Birds chirped in the background and a thick tree trunk loomed behind Vince. “Where the hell are you guys?”

  “Vince’s treehouse.” Felicia yawned.

  “Why are you calling?” Vince was notoriously grumpy in the morning, like a bear post-hibernation. And just like an angry bear, he was best not provoked.

  “Can I talk to Felicia again?”

  Vince passed her the phone with a longsuffering sigh. “Hold it like this. A little to the left.” Vince was grumpy with everyone but the girl of his dreams, it seemed.

  “Perfect.” Alex smiled. Felicia looked sleepy, and her hair was a mess. Just the sight of her face made him happy.

  “All right, dude, we’re awake now. What’s your urgent question?”

  Alex rested his chin on his hand. “I still haven’t figured out how to talk to her. She’s, like, never alone.”

  Vince snorted. “Sounds like someone I know.”

  Felicia bopped him over the head with her pillow and dropped her phone with a muffled thunk.

  Alex stared at a patch of sky. “Hello?”

  Felicia giggled. “Sorry. Girl troubles, right? I thought we went over this already. You were going to try to get to know her brother.”

  Alex made a face. “Her brother’s lame.”

  Felicia swept a tangled lock of hair over her shoulder. She pressed her lips together and began finger-combing out the knots. “Why don’t you just talk to her? Maybe her problem is she doesn’t know that much about you, so she isn’t sure if she likes you.”

  Alex’s shoulders slumped. “Or maybe she knows too much.”

  “She knows what you portray, but is that the real you?”

  “The real me?”

  Her mouth quirked. “Yeah, no offense, but you come across as an outstanding jerk most of the time.”

  “Gee, thanks.”

  “Hey, you asked for my advice. All I’m saying is talking to her might help her see a new side of you.”

  “The less jerky side.” Vince snickered.

  “But she’s always with friends!”

  Felicia giggled. “And you couldn’t possibly show more than one person a nicer side of you.”

  Alex huffed out a frustrated sigh. “I have a reputation to uphold. Vince gets it.” Vince was the leader of his own shady crew.

  Vince raised a brow. “Our situations are pretty different, bro.”

  “Whatever.” Alex scowled. “That’s all the advice you have? Talk to her, even though it’s impossible?”

  “Yep!” Felicia flashed her hundred-watt smile. “Glad we could help.” She hung up on him.

  Alex flung his phone onto his bedside table with a furious grunt of frustration. He clenched his forehead between his hands and tracked his crush with darkness. She was an addiction, a fixation, a gorgeous obsession he was unable to shake no matter how hard he tried. And it only grew worse the older he got.

  She was at the community center on Ninth Street where the Culture and Arts fair was happening later that afternoon. Knowing her, she had volunteered to assist with setup. She was way too good for this town. She was way too good for him, as well.

  Alex slid off his bed and grabbed his leather jacket. He had nothing else better to do. He might as well take Felicia’s useless advice and try to talk to her.

  The community center was a zoo of activity. People dashed to and fro in a state of frazzled pandemonium. A man in a blue blazer stumbled with an enormous painting and knocked a little old lady clean off her feet. Alex wandered past them as onlookers rushed to the old woman’s aid.

  A plump lady with short blonde hair snagged his arm as he passed her half-constructed booth. She was sitting on a bench in front of a loaded down table with a wall of paintings to her right. A stack of paintings rested on the floor where the wall behind her ought to have been. “You look like a strong young man. Would you be able to snag some partitions from the supply closet for me?” Her eyes darted around the room with frantic desperation. “My husband was supposed to help, but our daughter came down with the flu and we had to cancel the sitter. I’d get them myself, only I’m pregnant and I’m not supposed to be lifting things.”

  “I got it, I got it.” Alex tugged free and scrambled toward the supply closet. The last thing he wanted was to help. He’d hide out in the closet until he found his crush in the chaos.

  He wrenched open the door and stepped inside the dimly lit space. A petite, young girl spun to face him and squeaked in alarm. She clutched a manila envelope to her chest like a paper-thin shield. Alex struggled to breathe. It was her, the girl he was looking for.

  “H-hi,” she gasped. “Mrs. Dietrich sent me to find the Arts and Culture guides. They were supposed to be in here.” She held up the envelope. “But I think they all fell out.” She nodded to a box on the floor that was overflowing with multi-co
lored flyers.

  “Okay.” Alex stared at a purple bruise below her eye, a recent addition to her collection of injuries. Someone had hit her last night. His chest constricted in pain. “What happened there?”

  She gulped and took an automatic step back. She collided with a tower of boxes and darted a look around the tiny space as if searching for a way out. Alex’s heart twisted. She was scared of him. He had a reputation as a bully. He had enjoyed this position for years, had prided himself on it, even. He had never disliked his image, until now.

  The words he wanted to say solidified in his chest. He spotted a stack of partitions atop the pile of boxes behind her. He reached for them with a resigned sigh. She flinched away and squashed her tiny frame against the tower of boxes.

  He dropped his hands to his sides. “This pregnant lady asked me to get those for her.”

  “Oh.” The relief in her voice was painful to hear. She turned and eased a couple partitions over her head. Alex took them from her, unable to resist brushing his fingers over hers as he did so. He propped the thick plastic sheets against the door. She turned to face him, her cheeks flushed with color and her eyes alight with emotion. His heart skipped several beats. Was it possible she felt something for him? He shoved the stupid hope deep into a crevice of his heart. No way. He was a bully, and she might as well be an angel. “Um, so, I should keep sorting these flyers.”

  “Right.” His gaze was once again drawn to the bruise below her eye. Anger welled within him like a fierce winter storm. How could anyone hurt her? She was sweet, innocent, beautiful. How dare they.

  “Alex, why are you staring at me?” Her voice was shrill with panic.

  “I’m sorry. It’s just.”

  “I got up in the middle of the night. I was thirsty. I forgot I left my door ajar, and it was dark.” Tears glistened at the corners of her starry blue eyes.

  “That’s not what happened.” His voice was low and urgent.