Burned (Keeper of the Flame) (14 page)

Before leaving, I run back upstairs to the
bedroom and grab the necklace out of my dirty jeans. I latch it
around my neck and hope that will be good enough. It saved me from
Logan last night, it should keep me safe if he comes around
today.

I take a deep breath and pull open the front
door. The day is bright with sunshine. I hope if Logan’s powers are
stronger that means it will be harder for him to come out during
the daylight. But I’m definitely starting to doubt the “creature of
the night” saying really applies to vampires. Logan has been fine
every other time we were out in the sun.

After a swift look around, I race past the
hedges, jog up the steps to my mom’s house, and twist the handle.
The door is still open like last time. Once I’m in, I shut it
behind me and slump against the surface. No sign of Logan.

My heart races faster than I thought it
would. I’m
afraid
of him. What does a vampire do to someone
who’s stabbed him?

I push away from the door. No time to worry
about that.

I go straight for the bookshelves. It doesn’t
take long to find something of interest. Another journal. I flip
open the cover. It’s one from our family. When I spy Selena’s name
in there, I tuck it under my arm. That has to be important. I find
a few other unmarked books that look like they contain general
spells. Nothing like the Book of Shadows, but I have no idea what
information is going to be useful now.

Besides, it’s about time I start exercising
my powers.

When I hear a noise toward the back of the
house, I freeze. My heart jumps into my throat. Logan? Or just the
house settling?

I’m on edge. It could be anything.

After a moment, I call out, “Hello?”

Nothing. Of course not. If there really is
anyone there, they’re not going to answer.

“Shit,” I whisper. I should have thought
about this longer.

I take what I have and decide to leave. I can
come back later with Ryan or when things calm down. When I have
some clue where Logan is or what he’s up to.

I head straight to the door. I whip it open
and gasp.

“Hi,” Logan says, hand propped against the
door frame. “I thought I might find you here.”

I step back, reaching automatically for the
necklace.

I’m ready to slam the door in his face when
he holds up his hand. “Don’t worry, I’m not here to hurt you.”

“Apparently kidnapping doesn’t fall under
that category.”

“Okay, then, I’m not here to kidnap you.
Better?”

I swallow. I hate that I actually believe
him. He looks good, wearing dark wash jeans and a black leather
jacket. He doesn’t look like he’d chased me through the woods last
night or that he had a letter opener protruding from his back.

“You…you can’t come in,” I say. My voice
trembles a little and I thrust my chin up.

“Yeah, that’s one thing that hasn’t changed
since last night. But.” He flashes a grin. “You could invite me in
and we could have a little chat.”

“Go to hell.”

“So that’s a no?”

“You seriously think I’m going to invite you
in after what you did?” Anger pushes through the fear. I’m halfway
tempted to toss my necklace at him just to see him writhe in pain.
“You kidnapped me. You stuck a needle in my arm. You do realize
these things were
against
my will. If I go to the police,
they’ll arrest you.”

He laughs, straightening and pacing away,
toward the stairs. For a moment, I think he’s leaving, but then he
doubles back. “You can try. But I’ll just influence them to think
it was your fault. I can make them think other things, too. Like
your new friend Cheyenne is planning an attack on Main Street. She
probably has a gun‒she
has
to be taken out.”

“Logan, no‒”

“I’m just saying, you’re going to want to
keep this to yourself. We can handle this like adults.”

I grit my teeth. “Your tactics so far have
proven otherwise.”

“Still full of spunk. I like it.” He grins
and paces back to me. “Let’s clear up a few things, why don’t
we?”

I fold my arms over the books, keeping them
secure against my chest. “I’m not coming out there.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

I frown. He’s making fun of me. Screw him.
“What do you want to clear up, Logan? You might have all day to
irritate me, but I’d rather be doing other things.”

A dangerous smile skims his lips, like he
thinks I should have all the time in the world for him. He leans as
close to the entryway as possible. “How about you forgive me for
kidnapping you, and I forgive you for stabbing me?”

I straighten. He wants to make apologies? He
wants me to forgive him? “It was self-defense,” I say.

Anger flashes behind his eyes. “I don’t
recall you looking very defenseless when you ripped my shirt off.
In fact, you looked like you were about to‒”

“Stop.” I look away. If he wants to be an
ass, I can play this game, too. “You got your feelings hurt because
I used you to get what I wanted. Boo hoo. Get over it.”

His chest moves up and down with a few deep
breaths. He doesn’t say anything for a long moment, then his face
relaxes into a smile. “If it makes you feel better to tell yourself
that, fine. I was after more of a truce.”

“What kind of a truce?”

“You agree to help me with the spell and I
don’t hurt anyone you care about.”

He’s bluffing. He has to be. There’s no one I
care about here. My mom isn’t even here. Cheyenne and Ryan are
just…new acquaintances. But still, I don’t want to see them
hurt.

“I don’t know how to do your spell. I don’t
even have my mother’s book anymore, thanks to you. Maybe you can
find another witch to help you.”

I’m about to slam the door when he says,
“Wait.”

“Now what?”

“I’ll give you your mother’s book back if
that’s what you need for the spell.”

I narrow my eyes. He’s negotiating now? Is it
really that big a deal for him to break this curse?

“I almost thought you got out of Shadow Hill
last night,” he says, brows drawn low. “I followed you and saw you
get stopped by the boundary. You weren’t hurt too badly, were
you?”

I cross my arms again. “No, I was fine.”

His eyes capture mine, black beginning to
take over the irises. “I’m not going to hurt you,” Logan says,
repeating his words from before. “You can come out now.”

I lift the necklace off my chest. “Care to
repeat that?”

His eyes go back to blue. “I meant it, I just
think you’re having trouble believing it. Come on, let’s talk.
Trade stories. You’ll see I’m not that bad a guy. And maybe I’ll
convince you to work with me.”

“In your dreams.”

He’s about to speak again when we hear tires
on gravel. Logan glances over his shoulder and frowns. “Ryan.” He
looks back at me. “It was good seeing you, Willow. I’ll be in
touch‒unless you are first. Think about what I said.”

He leaves the porch, walks down the drive and
casts Ryan a wave before vanishing through the trees.

Ryan brings his truck to a haphazard stop,
barely on his driveway, and races around the hedges. He looks in
the direction which Logan vanished, and then to me, standing just
inside the doorway.

He strolls over, jaw clenched, and hikes up
the steps in two long strides. “What the hell are you doing
here?”

I hold out the books as if that will explain
it well enough.

“Are you serious?” He glances behind him
again and steps inside. “You could’ve gotten yourself killed.”

“He doesn’t want to kill me.”

“How can you be so sure?”

I frown. “Because if he wanted to, he would
have done it already. Besides, he needs me for the spell.”

“Vampires can be unpredictable. I don’t think
you want to test him.”

“Ryan, I have to do something. I can’t just
hide in your house all day and hope this will all go away.”

“One day,” he says, voice hard. “You could
have given it at least one day. To recuperate. For things to calm
down. Or waited for me to get here.”

The anger in his eyes is offset by the fear I
also read there. My own frustration fades. “I’m sorry.”

He sighs, shaking his head. “What did Logan
want?”

“To negotiate.”

“Negotiate what?”

“He still wants me to help with the
spell.”

“No.”

“Ryan, he said‒”

“
No
. Willow, you know what he could do
to you? If you break that curse, you know what could happen to
every person in Shadow Hill?”

“Will you stop?” I ask. When his eyes narrow,
I continue. “I’m not saying it’s smart to help him, I’m just saying
he threatened to hurt people.”

Ryan rubs a hand down his face, looking
tired. “I imagine that’s going to be happening a lot more. Him
threatening you.” He narrows his eyes at my necklace, reaching out.
His fingers stop an inch away from the pendant. “What’s this?”

“It was given to me,” I say. “From one of my
ancestors.”

He lowers his hand. “Amethyst. Smart. How did
they give it to you?”

“I’m pretty sure it was a ghost.”

He clears his throat. “Well. That’s
different.”

I laugh. “It helped. It hurt Logan.”

“That’s good to know.” He gestures in the
direction of his house. “Ready to go?”

I nod. He takes my arm and we leave my
mother’s house. He stays vigilant, rushing me to his door, and
doesn’t let go until we’re inside. Once the door is shut firmly, he
turns to me. “When did Cheyenne leave?”

“Not too long ago.”

He frowns.

“Come on, Ryan,” I say with a sigh. “I’m
going to have to leave sometime. And Cheyenne‒or you‒can’t be here
all day. In fact, I should probably figure out where I’m going to
stay now that I’m stuck here.”

Ryan doesn’t answer, just walks to the
kitchen and pulls orange juice from the refrigerator. I follow him,
setting my books on the table before sighing.

“You’re quite the conversationalist,” I
say.

He settles his hand on the door, peering over
the top of it. “What do you want me to say?”

He’s right. I don’t know what I want him to
say. I’m independent by nature, he’s obviously quiet by nature, and
neither of us really knows what to do.

“Yeah.” I give a short laugh. “You’re right.
This whole situation is…” I shake my head and scoop up my books.
“I’ll just give you some space.”

I leave the kitchen and walk upstairs into
Ryan’s bedroom. My clothes from yesterday are still on the chair,
and the pajamas I discarded on the bed. But it’s awkward being in
here because now I feel like I’m intruding.

When I turn around, I freeze. Ryan’s standing
there, shoulder propped on the door jamb. He runs a hand through
his hair and says, “I was pissed, okay?”

“What?”

“When you got here, I was angry because
things were coming together just like my father said they
would.”

I step back and sit on the bed, shaking my
head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He walks inside and blows out a breath. “The
original four families were, of course, vampire, werewolf, witch
and‒”

“Shapeshifter?”

He lifts his brows, mouth curving into a
smile. “Yes. Because they were allied with the witches, our kind
was deemed as‒guardians, I guess you could call us. Someone to help
protect and look after the witches. To provide a lookout, since we
could manipulate other forms besides animal.”

My mouth opens in surprise, but he continues
before I can ask questions.

“Anyway, I’m supposed to be looking out for
the witches.” He gestures. “That’s why I live so close to your
mother. But…we didn’t know she was related to the Keeper of the
Flame. And when you got here, I didn’t know what to do besides try
to run you out of town. It’s not like I practice my powers. And
it’s not like I’ve really needed to. Until now. It was easier just
to try to get you to leave.”

He props his arm on his dresser, running his
hand down his face. “But instead, it just got you kidnapped and
hurt.”

I stand. “Ryan, it’s not your fault.”

“It’s entirely my fault. A lot of this could
have been prevented. And you‒” He breaks off, throat moving in a
hard swallow.

The guilt is written all over his face.

I walk to him, stopping close enough our
shoes are almost touching. He’s so tall I have to tilt my head back
to look at his face. When I reach up to touch his cheek, he goes
completely still. My fingers catch on the stubble at his jaw.

“If you hadn’t come last night, I might not
have gotten away. Then I’d still be stuck in his house and he might
have‒”

“Don’t,” he says softly. He reaches up,
catching my hand in warm, strong fingers. “Don’t think about what
he might have done.”

He turns his cheek into my palm again and I
nod before pulling away. “I’m glad you were there.”

“It’s my job to help you and to protect you.”
He swallows again, chin dipping to stare at our feet. “I want you
let me.”

It’s a big change from him trying to chase me
out of town. His eyes lift to meet mine, and I nod. I’m not usually
one to depend on someone else. I like my space. I like my freedom.
But a lot of that has been effectively ripped away from me.

At least I know I can trust Ryan.

He blows out a breath and backs up, creating
some distance between us. “I’d feel better if you stay here again
tonight.”

My lips curve. “I don’t have anywhere else to
go.”

“And I’d appreciate if you don’t leave unless
I know where you’re going.” At this, I frown and it’s his lips that
curve. “For today. For my peace of mind.”

“Deal. Just for today, though.”

“We’ll discuss that stipulation after we get
through today.”

I nod reluctantly.

He laughs, and I’m glad to hear the sound. It
eases some of the stress I feel.