Destined (Vampire Awakenings) (2 page)

   Ethan glanced out the window. Mike and Jack were still hidden within the shadows of the alleyway, but he could see them clearly in the darkness. “What about you?” he asked, returning his attention to her. “The last I knew you were going to France, to ah, take pictures,” he fumbled
as he struggled to recall the details
.

   Kathleen smiled softly as she leaned back in the booth. “That was my ex-husband, he was the photographer. My daughter
’
s and I went with him.”

   Ethan barely remembered her daughters, and he couldn’t recall their names. He knew the one was two years younger than he, and had been closer to his sister, Isabelle. The other had been
very young
the last
time
he
’
d
seen her. “I’m actually between jobs right now.”

 
Her voice grew distant and thoughtful as her
forehead
furrowed with worry. Ethan realized that the paper she
was
reading was opened to the classified section. He frowned thoughtfully
as he
wonder
ed
what it must be like to have to work, or to worry about how to pay bills, and survive. He was extremely grateful that he would never have to know.

  
“What about your mom and dad?” she asked, pulling him out of his
wandering
thoughts. “What are they doing now?”

   He forced himself not to bite his lip as he met her steady gaze. “Dad’s a lawyer,” he lied.

   “Never thought I’d see that,” she said with a rueful smile. “I never thought your dad was the type to settle down, at least not until he met your mom.”

   He shrugged as his gaze darted longingly toward the window. He was growing more uncomfortable by the
second;
he just wanted to be back outside, where he was free. And where Jack and Mike were waiting to bombard him with questions, he realized with an inward sigh.

   “Well, I just thought that I would say hi, and see how you were doing. I have to get going
now,
”
he said softly.

   He was very adept at lying
.
H
e
should be
,
he
had been doing it his whole life and he thought nothing of letting them roll off his tongue now. “Oh yeah,” she said quickly. “Of course. Tell everyone that I say hi, and tell your mom...” her voice trailed off as her eyes became distant again. “Tell your mom t
hat I miss her,” she breathed
.

   Again, Ethan felt that pain. It was his mother that had given up her friends, more so than his father. He suddenly understood the wistful look that crossed her face when his father, David, Doug, Jack, and Mike recalled stories of the
ir
younger days in
high school and
college. Without thinking, Ethan reached out and gently squeezed Kathleen’s hand. She seemed as surprised by the gesture as he was. He had never touched a human being in order to offer them comfort, but this woman looked so sad that he had needed to offer her some kind of solace.

   “I will,” he promised her.  

   She patted his hand gently and released it. “Are they still living at the same place?”

   “Yes.”

  
She nodded her eyes still sad and distant.
“Maybe I’ll give her a call.”

   “I’m sure that she
would like that
.”

   He turned to leave. “Ethan.”

   “Yeah?” he asked, pausing to look back at her.

   “Are they still as in love as they used to be?” Her voice was soft, and her eyes gleamed with a fierce
wistful
ness that tugged at his heart.

   “Even more so,” he said honestly.

   She beamed at him as tears filled her large eyes. “That’s wonderful,” she said in a choked voice.

   Ethan left before she could start to cry. He didn’t deal well with humans under normal
conditions;
he sure as hell didn’t know how to deal with an emotional one. Not that his sisters didn’t get erratically emotional sometimes, but that was different. They were different, stronger and tougher than any human could ever be. He darted back across the street and was almost pounced upon by Mike and Jack.

   “Let
’
s get to the car first,” he
said briskly
. “I’m ready to go home.”

   They exchanged glances
,
but shrugged as they followed him back to the car. Ethan filled them in on the conversation as they left California
behind
, and headed into Oregon.

CHAPTER 1

   “For God’s sake Ethan
,
g
et up!” Isabelle cried impatiently as she tugged at his arm. Her brother groaned as he stubbornly refused to look at her.

   “Isabelle I’m telling you right now, if you don’t get out of my room, I’ll...”

   “You’ll what?” she demanded
angrily
. “Nothing, that’s what, now get up!”

   Planting her hands on her hips she scowled at him as he opened one emerald eye to peep up at her. “What the hell are you doing here
anyway
? Go back to your own house,” he growled, rolling over and burying himself beneath his sheet.

   Her eyes spit fire at him as she reached down and ripped the sheet off. “Hey!” he yelled, trying to rip the sheet back. She refused to relent it as they got caught in a tug of war that she was determined to win.

    “Ethan Joseph
,
get out of this bed right now!”

    His eyes snapped to hers as he scowled fiercely. She didn’t back down as she met his look with one just as fierce, and even more determined. “What do you want?” he snapped.

   “Kyle and Cassidy climbed up a tree, they refuse to come down.”

   “Get Ian,” he growled, finally managing to wrench his sheet back.

   She instantly seized it again. “Ian is with Mike, David, Doug, Jack, dad, and
Aiden
, so forget about
Aiden
too. They got out of bed this morning
, unlike
some
people,
and went to town to get more wood for the new house.”

  
Ethan groaned as he threw his arm over his eyes.
“They’re immortal, tell them to jump.”

   “Ethan!” she cried in exasperation. “They can still break bones, and what if they accidentally stake themselves on the way down?”

   She knew that he was trying to stifle a laugh at the image that conjured. The only thing that held him back
from doing so
was the fact that he knew his brother and sister as well as she did. The possibility of th
em
accidentally staking themselves
was very good. With a loud groan he threw the sheet aside and swung his legs out of bed. Isabelle took a step back, a victorious gleam in her eyes as she smiled smugly.

   He didn’t bother to look at her as he tugged on his jeans and a T-shirt. “How the hell do they manage to get themselves into these messes?” he muttered.

   “The same way that we did.”

  
He groaned as he shook back
his tussled hair.
“Who dared them to go up the tree?”
he grumbled.

   “Julian.”

  
He snorted in disgust.
“Of course.”

  
Isabelle waited for him to slip his
sneakers on
before
heading
outdoors. She led the way down the path that cut through the woods toward the lake before veering off on another path that led further into the forest. They had spent many hours playing in the
se
woods
as children, and Isabelle knew the trails like the back of her hand.

   “Does mom know?” Ethan demanded.

   “
L
ike I was going to tell her
,
s
he’s got enough on her mind right now.”

   “Huh?”
Ethan asked tiredly.

   Isabelle shook her hair back as she cast
a
scowl
over her shoulder at him
. “Never
mind,” she muttered.

   Ethan stuck his tongue out at her. Isabelle forced herself not to laugh as she made a face at him. They may be adults now, but he was the one person that could always bring out her childish side. She loved that the most about him. She turned down the path that led to the tree
house, a path that she could follow with her eyes closed. The distinct chant of
,
“Jump! Jump!” suddenly reached them.

   “Ah hell!” Ethan muttered as he broke into a run. Isabelle was right on his heels as they burst into a small clearing. Willow and Julian were standing at the base of a huge sycamore, looking up into its high, leaf filled branches as they continued to shout at their younger siblings. Cassidy was scooting down a branch, trying to adjust her hold as she started to slide to the side. Kyle, the less daring of the twins, had a death grip on his branch. “Don’t you dare jump!” Ethan bellowed, causing even Isabelle to jump in surprise.

   Willow and Julian spun
around
, their eyes wide as they gazed guiltily at
t
h
e
m. Cassidy let out a yelp as she jerked in surprise. With horrifying clarity, Isabelle realized that
Cassidy
wasn’t going to be able to retain her hold on the branch as she slid perilously to the side. Ethan rushed forward, catching her just before she hit the ground. He grunted under the weight of her tiny body, his knees hit the ground from the force of the impact.

   Isabelle rushed up to them, slightly breathless as her heart hammered rapidly with fear. Cassidy lay for a moment, her tiny face scrunched tight. Then, one bright blue eye popped open and she looked wearily up at
Ethan
. She twisted her head, her long sandy blond hair covering her face as she looked at the ground just inches beneath her. She turned back around and burst into a brilliant grin as she hopped easily out of his arms. “Thanks!” she cried.

   “Don’t mention it,”
Ethan
grumbled
, shaking his head as he rose slowly
.

   “Nice catch,” Julian said in awe.

   Ethan wip
ed
the dirt off
the
knees of his jeans. “Show off,” Isabelle muttered, casting him an amused grin. He scowled at her for a moment before smiling softly. She lifted her head to peer through the thick branches at Kyle. “How are you going to get the other one?”

   “Think they could both fall out alive?” he asked hopefully

  
She gave him a dark look as she shook her head at him.
“Do you think a snowball could survive in hell?” she retorted.

   “Yeah, that’s what I thought too,” he mumbled unhappily.

   She slapped him lightly on the back as she grinned happily. “When was the last time you climbed a tree?”

   His face twisted thoughtfully as he shrugged. “Ten years
,
maybe.”

   He glanced back up at Kyle, who was clinging tightly to his branch, his face
w
as white as a ghost. “Jump Kyle,
it’s
fun!” Cassidy urged.

   “Don’t you dare jump!” Isabelle yelled
at her brother
, shooting Cassidy a
silencing
look.

   Cassidy
smiled happily back as she hopped from foot to foot, not in the least bit ashamed.
“Well, it was!” she protested.

   “And if I hadn’t caught you?” Ethan demanded.

   She shrugged
, refusing to be intimidated by either of her
older
siblings
. “It would have hurt, but I heal fast!”

  
Isabelle shook her head, trying hard not to laugh as she met Ethan’s aggravated gaze.
“How d
o you argue with that?” she
whispered.

   “Easily,” he said softly before turning back to Cassidy. “Then mom and dad would have found out what you did.”

  
Cassidy’s mouth dropped as she looked worriedly over at Willow and Julian.
“We only climbed a tree! There’s nothing wrong with that!”
Cassidy protested.