Living Violet (24 page)
“Sam, you need to turn off the security alarm,” Nadine said nervously.
It then occurred to me that I was home, so Nadine's anxiety came with a good reason. With one eye open, I reached over and disabled the security system before the entire Williamsburg Police Department caravanned to my front lawn. With that accomplished, more murmurs occupied the room on my behalf. Nadine remained downstairs while Caleb transported me upstairs in the direction of my bedroom.
“No, I wanna sleep in my mom's room,” I whined, pointing across the hall.
“Okay.”
We crossed the threshold like a newlywed couple, and Caleb played the role of happy groom to the hilt, laying me ceremoniously on Mom's bed. Keeping with the matrimonial theme, Caleb knelt in front of me as if ready to propose. Instead, he gathered my left foot and unlaced my sneaker.
His nimble fingers pulled at the laces, removing the offending footwear. The footie socks soon followed along with a slow exploration up my ankle before moving on to the next foot. Caleb could make any action look X-rated, or maybe it was just me.
He worked with silent efficiency, engrossed in the solemnity of the task.
I stared, almost hypnotized, as his hair hung in a feathery veil over his face. He looked distant, almost complacent, like a servant who had accepted his fate. There was no task too belittling, to base for him, for he had seen and probably done it all. I also saw the love in his eyes, the wordless devotion, and the longing for true physical contact. Though it was clear what would happen if we went too far, it didn't stop him from dipping his toe in the water.
I couldn't quite put a finger on my feelings about this crazy boy, but somehow he had managed to slip under my radar and steal a piece of my heart.
My shirt fell away, with very little effort on my part. I didn't respond; I grew too distracted by clothing flying in the air in a colorful blur. I must have been out of it, because there was no way in hell I would let a guy undress me. But I was too tired to care if Cake Boy got an eyeful of my goodies.
Caleb was far from a saint, and his wandering eyes validated that point. They drifted down my body, stopping at my small chest and not-so-small abdomen. He'd seen naked women before, but he approached the situation with the fascination of untried youth. Cupping the back of my head, he eased me to lie back, his eyes expanding under a haze of indigo light.
“Well, since we're here, I might as well go all the way.” He gave a playful smile and reached for the button in front of my slacks.
“Caleb, if you try anything, I swear ...” I warned, with little conviction, especially while lifting my hips to aid the disrobing.
“Oh please,” he scoffed as the fabric crawled farther away from my body. “You would like that, wouldn't you? Now shut up and keep still.”
Ever the gentleman
, I thought.
, I thought.
His hands traveled over my inner thigh, making me burn with fever, but Caleb remained diligent in his task.
“Relax, Sam. I've got you,” he promised, tossing my pants to the opposite side of the room.
“That's what I'm afraid of.”
He stopped. “You're afraid of me?”
“I'm afraid of what you do to me,” I confessed.
“Lethargy: the ultimate truth serum.” He chuckled and set me up straight. “For what it's worth, you have the same effect on me, if not worse.”
“This is abuse, you know,” I mumbled under a cloud of cotton that suddenly cast me into darkness. Once light returned, a T-shirt draped my body in a baggy tent.
“Oh, I can tell you're really suffering, you poor baby.” He pulled the covers back and tucked me inside.
A moment later, soft pillows and blankets swallowed me whole. The environment embodied safety and familiarity, an oasis for the weary traveler. Enfolded in a cocoon of Mom's floral perfume, I drifted deeper into peaceful oblivion. A warm body spooned behind me, its fingers tracing my arm and rounding the ball of my shoulder. “Sam?”
“Hmm?”
“I have to pick up Brodie in a few hours. Nadine will stay here with you while I run to the airport. You promise to behave while I'm gone?” he teased.
“Uh-huh,” I mumbled into the pillow.
Soft lips pressed against my temple, and the weight of his head settled next to mine. His arm snaked across my stomach and dragged me closer to his warmth. With an assuring squeeze, he whispered, “I won't let anything happen to you. I finally found the one thing that's mine. He's not taking that too.”
“Okay,” was all I could get out before the world disappeared.
28
S
omewhere between comatose and coherent, I heard movement stirring in the house.
omewhere between comatose and coherent, I heard movement stirring in the house.
My eyes fluttered open and focused on the darkness soaking the bedroom. The high beams from a passing car filtered through the blinds, dragging bands of light across the ceiling. Turning onto my back, I traced the left side of the bed, which was now empty. Events of the day slowly returned to memory, and I immediately wanted to go back to sleep. But Nadine had played babysitter long enough, so I forced myself to get up.
More noises came from the bottom floor, low murmurs and thumps; then a light footfall treaded up the stairs. It drew closer, those foreign feet unfamiliar with the creaking wood on the eighth step. That sound could break the deepest sleep, and I gained just enough clarity to recognize the figure in the doorway.
I smiled up at him and admired the familiar bends and slopes of his face. “What are you still doing here? I thought you were going to the airport.”
Purple eyes twinkled in the dark in response. Moonlight cut across his features, which took the smooth consistency of marble. “I'll leave in a bit,” he said. “Sleep well?”
I sat up and stretched. “Yeah. Where's Nadine?”
“She's asleep, so we have to be real quiet, okay?”
I leaned over to turn on the lamp and noticed that the digital alarm clock was off. No bright red numbers glowed in the dark. In fact, no lights were on in the house save for two purple spheres following my every move.
“Caleb, what's going on?”
Instead of answering, he drew deeper into the room, his eyes locked on mine. His gentle hands slid around my waist, luring me to him with the slightest persuasion. His warmth was inviting, and I couldn't find one good reason to argue. My lids grew heavy as I drifted within that purple mist, surrendering to the weightlessness of dreaming.
“Don't be afraid, Sam. I'm here,” he whispered.
Soft fingers touched my cheek, and I welcomed the affection, needing the closeness to ease my fear. The comfort only lasted a second as I began to note something off center. Caleb lacked that sweet, sugary scent that seemed to ooze from his pores. His touches were heavy handed, greedy, and pinched my skin as his grip tightened around my waist.
“Caleb, stop. You're hurting me.”
“Not yet.”
He wasn't acting like himself. Questions rose to the surface and spread like a violent rash. Had he fed today? Was Capone lashing out again? Maybe seeing his father again had triggered a reaction. Whatever the case may be, I had to get away from him, but I could barely look away, let alone manage a good shove. All my energy had been tapped by one glance, and the luminous glow in his eyes told me he wasn't satisfied. Only when his mouth lowered to kiss me did I find the strength to look away.
“Caleb,” I choked out, evading his lips. “Snap out of it. It's Sam.”
“I know,” he rasped and dove in for another kiss.
“Where's Nadine?” And where was Caleb for that matter?
The more I struggled, the more I realized that this dream had taken an unpleasant turn. My head tossed from side to side, dodging his hungry mouth and fighting to shake out of this nightmare. So imagine my shock when I discovered I was already awake.
Fingers pinched my cheeks and firm lips found mine. A pulling sensation soon followed, and trickles of energy passed my lips, pure, unencumbered potency. I kicked and punched, but he wouldn't move.
“You're a strong one, just like your mother. You've made it difficult for me to get to her now, so you'll make a good substitute. I can wait until she's released to finish what I started.”
That was all the clarification I needed. Though he shared a visual and vocal likeness, this was not Caleb. This only meant one thing. I was under the draw, and a powerful one at that. I'd pondered the idea for a while, but now I understood what the draw entailed; that strange gravitational pull that lured women to their death.
No matter how many times I blinked, Caleb's face stared back at me, mocking me for giving away my heart and lowering my guard.
We deceive our prey. With one look, we become who they desire most.
The phrase played over and over in my head like a bad nursery rhyme. Every word of it dug into my brain, its truth striving to take root. It was my mantra, a reminder of who he
really
was. An imposter.
really
was. An imposter.
Applying strength born from sheer panic and adrenaline, I served him an upper cut to the jaw. Seizing a window of escape, I raced to the door.
“Get back here!” His hand trapped my waist and tugged me backward.
I clung to the doorjamb for dear life, my nails biting into the wood. “Caleb's your son! How could you hurt him like this? I hope you rot in hell!”
“And what do you know about hell?” he yelled. One tug sent me flying back into the room. My head struck the wall, the impact breaking the picture over Mom's bed. My weight collapsed to the bed, and I shielded my face from falling glass.
The back of my skull felt like a cracked egg, while the shots of pain trickling down my face were its yoke. My ears rang; red lightning bolts flickered across my vision. A hand latched on to my ankle brought me back to the present.
“You've never given your soul to someone you love as I have.” His grip moved up my leg, reeling me to him like a rope. “I'm sure you're fun for Caleb and all, but he'll find a replacement.”
Screaming and kicking, I reached out for a weapon, a miracle, something. My fingers found the squared edge of Mom's nightstand. I remembered the blade Mom kept hidden inside. I pulled open the drawer, fished out the knife, and allowed Mr. Ross to pull me to him.
As he rolled me over, he yelled at the blade slicing across his face, neck, and arms. I carved and diced blindly; hoping disfigurement would erase the image of Caleb from his face. I knew I struck bone and a couple of good arteries. My shirt clung to my chest, damp and sticky with what I knew was blood. This was a good sign. If he could bleed, he was still human.
A human who could die.
While he wailed and cupped his face, I leapt off the bed and rushed to the door. The knife tucked firmly in my hand, I ran downstairs.
I tried to click on the light, but nothing worked. Judging by the lampposts and the tiny lights glowing through the neighbors' houses, my home was the only one affected. The power might have been out, but that wouldn't prevent the security system from operating. Then it hit me. I had disabled the alarm before I went to sleep, which explained how that monster entered undetected. I stumbled to the door and pushed the panic button on the security box when something caught my eye.
Outdoor light leaked through the living room, casting a glow over a pair of feet poking behind the couch. The pale skin told who it was immediately. Normally, I would have been halfway across town by now, but I couldn't just leave Nadine if she was hurt. With the knife stretched to the air, I slinked closer, all the while listening for movement upstairs. I peered behind the couch, then caught the scream before it escaped my mouth. The sight froze the blood in my veins and my heart plummeted to the center of the earth.
Nadine lay in the middle of the floor in a boneless sprawl. Her hair fanned across the carpet, her limbs bent in skewed angles like a discarded doll. I knelt down and touched her pulse. Everything was quiet, which was reason enough to stay vigilant. The night left shadows around the room that made the imagination run wild. The ticking clock over the fireplace pronounced the departure of time. Five after oneânot that time really mattered. There's no such thing. It's a device that keeps everything from happening at once.
In that moment, the front door swung open and a familiar form stepped into the foyer. “Sam!”
I yelped in surprise and pointed the blade at him, the blood-stained edge flashed in the moonlight. “Stay back. Stay away from me!”
He froze. “Sam. It's me. What happened?”
“Don't come any closer! You killed Nadine!” My clammy fingers began to slip from the knife's handle, but I wouldn't let go.
“What? I just got here. I was halfway to the airport when Nadine called me. We got disconnected. What happened?”
How could I believe him? Mojo or not, I had to defend myself. The man bleeding upstairs looked a hell of a lot like Caleb and almost killed me. Scrutinizing the man in front of me, I noticed his clothes and faceâspotless, with no trace of blood or injury. But I had to be sure. “How do I know it's really you?” I asked.
He reached out his hand in appeal. “It's really me, Sam.”
“Prove it!” I yelled, the knife wobbling in my hand.
He looked around the room, searching for a solution in the dark. As if one had appeared, he dove into his pocket and flipped a coin over to me. When it landed, I caught the shiny plate of a quarter lying face-up on the carpet. In light of my dilemma, I realized this was the second time I was scared out of my mind, holding a sharp object in my living room. Slowly, I lowered the knife and collapsed under the weight of grief.
Caleb joined our side and lightly touched Nadine's throat. “Her neck is broken. She's still alive.” He leaned closer tilting his ear toward her mouth. “Nadine, can you hear me?”
No response.
I just waited, each breath holding a prayer that Nadine didn't become victim number seven.
“She's still breathing; that's a good sign. Keep an eye on her,” Caleb instructed as he placed the cell phone to his ear.
I listened to Caleb's calm voice relay our crisis to the operator, glad that at least one of us maintained use of speech. After a series of nods and affirmatives, he snapped the phone shut. “The ambulance should be here in a few minutes.”
“How can she still be alive with a broken neck?” I asked.
“Not everyone dies from a broken neck like in the movies. It depends on where the spine is severed; she could be paralyzed. They said not to move her and make sure she's breathing or else she'll asphyxiate. You know CPR?”
I nodded, then jumped when the floorboard upstairs creaked.
Caleb looked to the ceiling and then back at me. “He's here?”
I nodded again as footsteps rumbled over our heads, slow and sluggish, but very much alive.
Caleb reached behind him and pulled the nine-millimeter pistol from the back of his pants. He slid the clip in the butt of the gun and unlatched the safety like a pro. Gone was the arrogant flirt with an eating disorder. In its place stood a livid demon hunter ready for action, and he had never looked hotter.
Pointing the gun ahead, he scanned the perimeter. “Does he have a weapon?”
I shook my head, brushing the strands from Nadine's cheek and forehead. “I triggered the alarm. Help is coming.” I pressed down on her chest, knowing that the force of time was against us.
My body shared her tremor when she tried to fight for one more breath. A hissing sound leaked from her lips as the breathing stopped altogether. The color leached from her face, her knuckles whitened, but managed a steady clasp to the phone in her hand.
I pumped her chest harder and began counting. “No. No! No, Nadine, hold on for a few more minutes! Just hold on.”
“Sam, come on, we should go. There's nothing else we can do for her. She's turning blue,” Caleb said behind me.
“No!” I yelled.
Caleb extended his hand. “Sam, let's go. We'll come back with help.”
“No!” I slapped the hand away, then buried my face in her chest. No man on earth could take me from her now. If this was how it was going to go, I was staying with her. She would not be alone.
“Fine. Stay here. Keep giving her CPR, but don't move her neck, just the jaw.” Caleb inched to the foyer, his head volleying between the door and staircase. “Where is he?”
“Mom's room.”
Caleb vanished from sight with a thunder of footsteps climbing the stairs.
I absorbed myself in my chore, pumping her chest and counting the seconds as they slithered along like tree sap. My eyes blurred with tears, my hands trembled, my throat scraped with every swallow.
I placed my mouth on hers to give her air. When her eyes flew open, my body halted and remained stationary throughout the most frightening part of the evening. Something cold and thick entered my mouth. It attained the material of vapor, but clumped and burrowed down my throat like a worm.
My eyes locked on hers, and I saw that peculiar swirl of light in her eyes, the same one I saw with Caleb. I needed air, but the force of what entered my body pushed back the oxygen. Whatever this thing was had me in a chokehold, and I couldn't move. Slowly, the light in Nadine's eyes vanished, taking her and the last thread of my reasoning with it.
Finally pulling away, a searing jab had me doubling over in pain. Grief, rage, confusion, and helplessness advanced to that of substance and could now punish within the laws of the flesh. A gut-wrenching scream echoed the walls, and it took a moment of me to realize it was mine. Every molecule ached as claws stretched and ripped at my insides. Hot and cold tangled knots around my spine, sending me into a full-blown spasm. Something invaded my body, angry, alive, and grappling for an exit.
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