Exaltation (26 page)

“We are going to have to be careful,” he breathed. This girl was too innocent for him and he knew it. Nice and slow was the only way to go if he was going to have that kind of relationship with her.

Both Dagen and Jamison had outright told Rydell he didn’t have a fever for her. He was starting to believe it, but there was still something about her that drew him forward.

At the same time it made him keep his distance, he felt like he was treading across sacred ground. In his life he had rarely said more than a few words to the girls he was intimate with. He made it a physical act, nothing more. This was different and because it was—it was pushing him to open up his mind to memories he was sure were better left locked away. He
knew
they were.

He pulled Raven to him and held her for a second.

“On a positive note I did not fly out of your arms and land in the swamp,” Raven joked after a minute or two of breathing him in. A bellowing laugh came from him. It sounded so natural yet odd coming from someone as serious as him.

“I think we need to get you dirty,” he said as he unclasped her arms and slid her around him as if she were weightless.

“You’re insane!” Raven yelled over the motor as he cranked it.

“It’s not mudding unless you get muddy,” he bellowed as they peeled away. He was clearly using his energy to protect her from the mud on the way out there; on the way back she had no such luck.

Raven was soaked with sloppy mud, and for spite she sat in his car in her condition.

You would think someone who owned a car as mint as his would have had a come apart, but instead he climbed in, too, and roared off, making sure the car fishtailed. It was a wild ride.

On the way home he blared music, old rock, but it was the kind that made you move to it—the kind that made you feel alive.

When they pulled up in front of Emery’s house it was eleven fifty-nine. Raven flew from the car and ran around the back just to make the gate screech right as the curfew time clicked into place. She planned to go back and tell him goodnight, but as she turned he was there.

“You ran again,” he said as he carefully put his hand on her waist and eased her closer to him.

“Had to tell them I was here, otherwise there would be no mudding in my future.”

“You had fun?” he asked as he moved her mud dried bangs out of her eyes with his other hand.

“I needed tonight. Life has been busting my bliss bubble lately.”

He laughed, really loudly, so loud Raven reached to cover his mouth.

“Your what?” he whispered.

“Bliss bubble, that’s my zip code, man.”

“Sounds legit,” he said as his eyes rapidly moved across her image.

“You should know. You’re in it with me, the creator of the current one I’m in.”

“Am I?” he said as he held her gaze and leaned in to kiss her. His lips had barely touched hers when they heard someone clear their throat. Someone that should
not
be there. Raven tensed and so did Rydell as they both moved their stare to the gate.

Jamison was standing there. Behind him, through the bushes, Raven could see Emery sitting in the chair on the stoop, trying to cover her worried gaze with a smile.

“Dad, this is Rydell. My, um, boyfriend.”

Jamison gave him a troubled once over. “That serious,” he said as he reached to shake Rydell’s hand.

“I guess that’s what they call good friends these days,” Rydell said with a boy nod and a wink aimed at Raven.

Jamison looked over both of them. “Do I want to ask?”

“Mudding,” Raven said.

Jamison raised his brow. “With or without a car?”

“Four-wheeler.”

He nodded once as he looked back at Rydell. “Very exhilarating night I assume.”

“Blissful,” Rydell said with a shy smile.

“Well, Rydell, if you’re seeing my daughter now that must mean she invited you to Sunday dinner.”

Rydell looked down at Raven.

“I was getting to that.”
No, she wasn’t!
She knew Miss Thelma Ray would have a heyday messing with him, and not in a positive way. She was way more protective than Raven’s dad or Emery. “Um, I’m not sure if it’s your crowd, like everyone comes. More like a party on a Sunday afternoon.”

“Sounds nice.”

“Bring a friend,” Jamison insisted. “I think Soren mentioned a boy named Dagen that you ran with,” Jamison added.

“We’d be honored, sir.” Rydell said.

Jamison nodded once. “Five minutes, Raven,” he said as he turned to walk back to the porch.

Rydell pulled her into the shadows behind the bushes and before she could giggle his lips were on hers. It was a sweet, slow goodbye kiss that made Raven dizzy.

“Tomorrow,” he whispered as he watched her walk through the gate.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Raven couldn’t take the ridiculous grin off her face as she made it through the gate. She didn’t even glance at Jamison and Emery.

Jamison said her name right as she opened the screen door.

Raven turned as if to notice him for the first time.

“Anything you want to say, talk about?” he asked as he leaned back in his seat. Emery kept her eyes down.

Before Raven had left for work she’d hashed out a discussion she wanted to have with her dad. She was going to tell him that she thought there was a boy in trouble in the Veil, and she needed to find the house he was at to put her mind at ease. She knew it was going to be a hard argument, because according to her father the house didn’t exist. And even if it did, the dead were dead. There was no sanction of souls who respect the natural circle of life more so than the Dominium coven, there are things you can’t come back from—death was ranking right up there at the top of the list.

Even after being with Rydell and having real fun she still felt devastated about the day before. But at the same time she had some hope that if she stayed in the bliss bubble she was in she might actually get some sleep, and with sleep she could sort out her thoughts the next day, check her argument for flaws.

“Absolutely. I’m proud of you,” Raven said, choosing to aim this conversation in a different direction.

He raised his brows.

“Yep, you two listened to me. You’re taking time off of work and spending it with Miss Emery, alone. Bravo, man. I can’t wait to drop the Miss Emery and pick up the MOM word.” That was true. She’d accidently called her that more than a thousand times.

Emery blushed. Jamison had stayed every night there but he left before the girls got up. Not to hide but because he was trying to figure out this mess that was going on, how to get that boy out of the Veil. They had to find him first, and Raven was the only one that knew where he was.

They were still working out how they would explain their relationship to the girls.

“I meant about yesterday,” Jamison said after he cleared his throat, and tossed an ‘I told you so,’ glance at Emery.

Raven let the screen door close and leaned against it. She bit her lip to keep the conversation she had plotted within.

“It was scary but I feel safe now,” she finally said.

“I want to talk about what you said about the Veil,” he said, leaning forward and looking up at her.

“I just kept landing in scary places.”

“But you said you saw the old man, that he showed you a house—one you’ve seen before.”

“He was sitting in front of a home.”

“And?”

“And I don’t remember exactly what he said, something like the Veil is eccentric and if I said I wanted to go home it would not take it literally, or it would, one of the two.”

“And you saw a place you thought you saw when I took you in there?”

“Did, not thought. I did see a house the first time you took me in the Veil.”

Jamison glanced at Emery and saw the hope he was feeling in her eyes. Raven had been taken near this boy twice. The universe was trying to pull them together even though death was separating them.

If Jamison could find the boy, pinpoint him, then the coven could move to barter to free him from the prison of death. It would take time, but Jamison had faith it would happen—that it
had
to happen.

“Anything else happen?”

“Dad, for a few hours tonight I was happy. I was me again. I’m not a fool. I know there’s something dark lurking in my future. Something that will make me grow up, feel hard emotions, and make impossible decisions. But I want to be happy when I can be.”

“I want you to be happy, too. I don’t want you to fear anything. I just cannot stress enough how important it is for you heed whatever that man said to you.”
He created your soul, Raven, he knows where the other half is…
If only he could say such things and not rob her childhood, her innocence at the same time.

Raven looked down. “Is anyone in the Veil in pain?”

“Some. It’s a process. They have to come to terms with the past before they can move on.”

Raven fumbled with her mud caked fingers, picking the dry mud off of them. “And you can’t ease that pain, right? They chose. If they’re there it’s final.”

“Raven, what did you see?”

She glanced to the side as her eyes glassed over and guilt absorbed her. “I saw someone that was sad…broken…heartbroken.”

Jamison stood. A half second later he was standing before her and lifting her chin. “You were led to him,” her eyes told him yes. “Did he say anything?”

Raven’s breath caught. “He must have known a girl with my first name. She might have kind of looked like me.”

Emery gasped ever so slightly as she pulled her hand to her mouth.

“Raven, you know that’s not true. You know he was speaking to you.”
She’s not ready for this…look how terrified she is,
Jamison’s thoughts warned.

Raven swallowed nervously. “And I know he’s dead. So whatever you think I should wait for is gone.”

Jamison searched her eyes rapidly, seeing that she didn’t believe her own words. “Nothing is absolute, little one. No death can fight the pull of souls made of one.”

Raven’s lip trembled. “Then why am I afraid?”

Jamison pulled her to his chest, ran his hand down her back. “Because you’re young, because he makes this real, and you don’t want it to be, not yet.”

Raven clenched her father’s back, knowing he was right, exactly on point.

“He’s not hurt, though, right?” she asked.

“No, but I want to see him. I need you to show me,” Jamison said, leaning back.

“What’s that going to solve?” Raven asked. “Are you telling me you can raise the dead?”

“I can’t, no.”

“You know someone that can?” Raven asked with a lifted brow as she felt her stomach flip.

“In a manner of speaking, but that is not the point right now. First of all I need to figure out why he’s there, and go forward from there.”

“Go where? What do you mean? What does this mean? Am I supposed to drop out of high school and get hitched to a haunt, and fight these bad people that think I’m a solution to a problem they don’t want solved? Or am I to do that in between my studies? Tell me how two weeks ago I was skating and going to school and now this?”

“Look at me,” Jamison said. “You’re not ready for this. I know you’re not because it scares you, because you’re not driven by a call within. You will be one day. We both know it, and when that day comes you will have far more answers than I, or this coven, can give you. All I want to do right now is make sure those that are meant to be with you are. I can’t solve this in one day, a week. For all I know I never will be able to, but I cannot sit idly by and ignore the signs you are trying to disregard. Twice, Raven. Twice you were shown where he was. The Creator himself led you there. We can’t ignore that.”

Raven let out a shuddering breath. “Need a shower first.”

Upstairs the twins were already in their nightclothes, the book and a notepad in hand. Matching wicked smiles came to their faces when they saw Raven.

Raven blushed and pushed past them to take a shower. She lingered in there forever. She felt like she was at a crossroad and she didn’t want to be. Her childhood was perishing before her eyes. The carefree youth that she adored was soon to be gone
forever
.

She wanted the boy in the Veil safe. She wanted to believe her father could do that, help him. Doubt was her enemy. She felt like she was forcing something into place that was not ready, and that was not her style, to say the least. Bliss was all she knew, let life come and go as it’s meant to.

As she got dressed the twins updated her on the next page they thought they had decoded properly.

“This word means monarchy. I know it does,” Ash said.

Raven froze as she pulled her shirt over her head.

“Bet you double or nothing the next thing you find talks about monarchs that are at war. Divided,” Raven said.

Matching quizzical looks followed.

“I think Rydell is from a warring coven. That’s why Soren and I saw Dagen move the way he did. They had to be taught the same things about vim that we were.”

“I must have missed the lesson on how to vanish,” River said, jutting her chin up.

“The whole school thing looked like what we did in The Realm, ask Soren,” Raven said, glancing at Ash. “Maybe if we practice we can figure it out. Either way you guys need to get through those books and return them.”

“You want us to return what he stole from us?” River protested. Books in general were treasure to her.

“Return them, then tell someone he has them or something. Seriously, I have a class with him. It’s not going to be good if he figures it out. I don’t trust him.”

They made no promises they would as Raven left. She was too uptight about this deal before her to argue with them.

***

Jamison and Raven walked a few blocks in the Quarter without saying a word. Raven had butterflies in her gut, a sick feeling shrouding her.

“Ready?” he asked as they turned down another street to walk back toward the lower Quarter.

Raven nodded. She didn’t need him to coach her on how to get in. The Quarter was mystical at all hours of the day, but late at night it was like another world. Easy to imagine the dead.

At first Raven even thought she had not made it past the curtain because everything looked the same, but then she heard older music, hooves on the ground.

“Do you remember the direction you said yesterday?”

“I said them all.”

“Can you maybe remember the order? That might get us close.”

“Dad, one word took me to that house, not a direction.”

He stared down at her. With a shaky breath Raven uttered, “Home.”

Everything moved around them. Raven held her father’s stare even after she heard the music, the guitar. She was insanely edgy. Jamison broke their stare first.

Raven read his expression. It wasn’t a good read, he was thrilled and mad at the same time.

“The Selected,” he said under his breath.

“Selected for what?” Raven asked, still not daring to look away from him. She could hear what sounded like a party, laughter. That out of place feeling grew and grew inside of her.

“Divine travel.”

Raven didn’t know what that meant and was too nervous to focus on it. Her gaze moved to the house. Every light was on. The door was open.

“I don’t know if this is a good idea.”

“I just want to look into his eyes,” Jamison said, taking her hand. He doubted he could find this place again. He had no idea how Raven got this deep in the Veil and out as easily as she did. This was not the thin fringes he had taught her to use.

To track this boy Jamison was going to have to have something of his—his essence. It would take time, but they could weave spells from there. At least give Reveca Beauregard a direction to bargain in when they asked her to find his soul.

Raven made sure she walked just behind Jamison. She felt like she was four again. Strolling at his side, having to take three steps to his one. He wasn’t walking fast—Raven was dragging.

When they reached the door the sound of multiple voices all laughing and having a good time roared around them.

There were women there, all ages, more young than old. The one thing they had in common was the way they were dressed, and how forward they were. More than a few made advances at Jamison, but he didn’t even notice. He was taking in the home, the details of it, as if he had just stepped onto a spaceship or something.

Raven nodded for him to go into the room she was in before.

When they got there Raven knew that though she had witnessed horrifying events in the veil, grueling souls—she’d never once seen anything as tragic as what was before her.

She chose not to breathe, because if she did she’d either cry or puke.

The boy was there on the couch, playing his guitar as girls hung on him like he was a coat rack. One standing behind the couch even pulled up his chin and sunk her tongue so far down his throat Raven had to wonder why he wasn’t choking.

“Cashton, love, play me a song,” another girl beckoned. Pulling him away from the girl that had him in her clutches as she ran her hand up his thigh.

He urged the girl who had him away. When his gaze moved to glance back at the one that wanted him to play he saw Raven.
Really
saw her. He froze in place. The music he was playing stopped. The girls with him glared at her.

Raven was crimson with embarrassment. The room was spinning. As Cashton stood Raven thought and said every direction she could think of.

The scene flashed all around her, and he was gone. Everything from blood and gore to serenity passed by Raven’s vision before she finally said ‘out.’ And found herself by the river that backed up to the Quarter.