Hidden Realms Read online

  Chapter 23

  I passed the next several hours in an odd combination of joy and torment. I was exactly where I wanted to be, but watching the slow rise and fall of Adri's chest only served to remind me that my world would just destroy the sweet perfection dreaming only a few feet from me. I slowly moved further and further away in an effort to wean myself off her presence.

  My phone vibrated as Jasmin texted to warn me that Adri's mother had just turned onto their lane. I stood and walked back over to Adri's bed.

  "Adriana, it's time to wake up now."

  She made a tired, satisfied sound, but obviously wasn't ready to wake yet. I sat down on the edge of the bed and tucked a stray hair behind her ear and tried again.

  "Adriana Paige, your mother's on her way."

  I was on my fourth iteration when she abruptly sat up, nearly knocking me off of the bed.

  "You're still here."

  I'd hoped that her racing pulse had been excitement, or at least adrenaline from being woken before she'd fully rested. I hadn't realized it was unhappiness. I forced lightness into my words as I responded to her.

  "You sound disappointed. Do you want me to leave?"

  "No, not disappointed, just surprised. I figured I'd wake up and find everything had just been one amazing, crazy dream."

  I wasn't going to get a better opening than that. I took a deep breath and forced the words out.

  "Would you prefer things to take that course?"

  She looked too crestfallen for it to be an act, and I felt another selfish ray of hope that she might come to reciprocate some of what I felt for her.

  "No, how could you think that? Why would I possibly want to have you vanish when I've just now finally found out it's you who's been watching over my mom and me since we got here?"

  It was nothing more than gratitude. I looked away to hide my disappointment. When I still wasn't able to control my expression I stood and walked over to the window.

  "It would be for the best, you know. I could arrange for you both to leave the state, and never have to come back to Sanctuary again. You'd be safer."

  I heard her breath catch at my words, but couldn't bring myself to turn around and look at her face.

  "Is that what you want? Not what's best for me, or what you think is best for me, but what you really want?"

  Everything good and wholesome inside me demanded that I nod, that I drive her away to safety regardless of the price, but I couldn't do it if her hating me was the cost of the bargain. I stood motionless for several seconds and then finally shook my head.

  "Good, because I don't want to leave. You said last night that your life felt meaningless before I came here, well, mine was even worse. The only thing that's kept me sane has been your behind-the-scenes help. I want to stay with you. I want to be with you."

  I felt like I was sealing her death warrant, but I told myself I'd convince her to leave in a couple of days. I just needed a chance to spend more time with her.

  "Very well then. It's just after ten o'clock. Your mom is about to pull into the driveway. Do your best to convince her you spent the night safely at home. We'll stay here and watch over the two of you. Also, if you can convince her it's safe to leave on an extended trip, that would be very helpful. Once she's gone, I'll come back for you."

  The Jeep had pulled up to the house now. I had only seconds in which to leave. I looked back at Adri one more time.

  "You're sure this is what you want?"

  Her nod freed me to act, and I sprang from her window, easily landing down on the ground, nearly twenty feet below. I sprinted directly away from the house, aiming for a stand of scrubby trees that should be more than sufficient to hide me from Adri's mother.

  "Nice of you to rejoin us plebes down among the bugs and dirt."

  "Can it, Jasmin, I've only got a few minutes to do this."

  I pulled my phone out as I was speaking and dialed Isabel's number.

  "Buongiorno, Alec. Is it time?"

  "Yes, did Donovan get you the number?"

  "Of course he did. He's a wonderfully productive man, that one. Alec, are you sure there isn't anything else I can do to help from over here?"

  "Thanks, Isabel. You're already doing more than enough."

  Donovan picked up on the first ring.

  "It's time. Please set everything in motion, Donovan."

  "Yes, Master Alec. Mrs. Paige should get the call from the bank only minutes after she finishes with Isabel."

  "Thank you, Donovan. Everything's still okay there at the house?"

  "Yes, sir. James hasn't reported any kind of activity along the perimeter yet."

  After finishing with Donovan I slipped over to Isaac's position. He patted his backpack as soon as I came within sight.

  "I've taken care of everything I can without physically touching the hardware. As soon as her mom leaves the house I can have a redirect up and running. Shouldn't be anything more than just plug and play."

  I nodded my thanks and then settled back to wait out Adri's mother while Jasmin kept up a running commentary on just how stupid she thought the entire exercise was.

  "You realize that none of us have had any sleep yet? If Brandon's pack does happen to come strolling around the bend we're going to be outnumbered and fighting like drunks. Not to mention the fact we've got two noncombatants, one of which doesn't know anything about the moonborn."

  The monologue quickly turned into something that I could tune out completely. I was so far gone into my own thoughts that I almost didn't hear her expletive.

  "What happened?"

  "I just saw movement up on the ridge. I'm pretty sure it was one of Brandon's wolves."

  I could hear her dropping down to shift, but even as fast as she was, there was no way she could catch another wolf who had that kind of a headstart.

  "Hold your position, Jas, it could be an ambush."

  "We can't just let him go or we'll be neck deep in wolves inside ten minutes, fifteen at the outside."

  "I know that, but you running off and getting killed won't help matters any. We've got ten minutes, hopefully that will be enough."

  I pulled my phone back out and dialed James' number.

  "What do you want?"

  "I need you here right now. Jasmin thinks she just saw one of Brandon's pack and we're going to need an extraction."

  James was already moving towards his car by the time I hung up. He hadn't protested the order, but we both knew even on his best day the odds of him getting here before Brandon's people were slim.

  Isaac remained calm to all outward appearances, but Jasmin was bouncing around so much that I could clearly hear her even with the house between us.

  "We need to go, Alec. We need to go."

  Her mantra mirrored almost exactly the one inside my head, but there wasn't anything we could do but hope Adri was able to hurry her mother along.

  I watched our ten minutes slip away all too quickly, and was nearly ready to try something crazy when Adri's mother finally came outside with an impressive amount of luggage and photography equipment. We moved forward to the extreme edge of our various bits of cover and crouched impatiently while the gear was loaded up and Adri's mother hugged her goodbye two or three times.

  By the time the Jeep was finally headed down the lane eleven minutes had passed from Jasmin's sighting. There wasn't time to wait and make sure Mrs. Paige hadn't forgotten anything. I sprang from my cover as soon as she was out of sight and sprinted up to Adri.

  "We need to go. One of Brandon's people just got close enough to smell us. They left before we could tell for sure who it was, but the odds of them coming back with lots of help just went through the roof. If we're still around when they do, things will get ugly."

  I expected Adri to freeze, or maybe collapse, but instead she nodded calmly and turned as if to head back up to her room as Isaac ran into the house, already unzipping his backpack. I gently grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back around.

  "T
here isn't time. We have to go now."

  There wasn't time to wait for James to arrive, we were going to have to try and meet up with him on the road. I got Adri situated on my back and then took off at a pace that was only slightly reduced by my passenger.

  I could hear and smell Jasmin off to the left, playing free agent in an effort to cover both me and Isaac, but as I turned off of the lane and began paralleling the road, I heard Isaac exit the house. Things were starting to look up. I'd even begun wondering if Brandon hadn't sent anyone back to investigate when the first howl sounded behind us.

  Isaac had caught up to us. He and Jasmin paced me on either side in an effort to provide some security, but we could already hear our pursuit, and there were at least five of them. Even under normal circumstances, even if all five of our pursuers were just wolves there was no guarantee that we could take them in a stand up fight. Given that one or both of the other pack's hybrids might be back there, we simply couldn't allow them to pull us into a fight. Especially not with Adri present, she was just too fragile to risk it.

  All it would take would be one wolf slipping past us for her to become nothing more than a lifeless corpse.

  My human body was too close of a copy to the real thing. Parts of me were capable of greater speed, but it wasn't a form truly designed for covering distances. They were gaining on us, but as we rounded the first corner I heard the whine of a twin-turbo engine under hard acceleration. It was going to be close. Jasmin and Isaac had fallen back slightly, I veered up onto the road, dodging branches and roots with a speed the human mind simply wasn't capable of processing.

  James saw me and brought his heavily modded Accord screaming around in a blue and white one-eighty skid. There wasn't going to be time for all of us to pile into the car while it sat motionless, so I continued to sprint down the road. James correctly read my intentions and was already in motion towards us, overtaking with a speed that nothing living could have matched.

  As the Accord pulled up even with us I reached over and pried the passenger door open. Buffeting winds tried to slam it shut, but I held it firm and then reached back with my left arm and pulled Adri off of my back. She yelped a little as I slid her into the car, but the handoff was so quick there almost wasn't time for her to get scared before it was over.

  I looked back at Isaac and Jasmin and found that the latter was halfway to us already, but that Isaac had hung back far enough to serve as bait. Even as I turned back to call him forward one of Brandon's wolves appeared behind him and lunged.

  Demonstrating the grace and skill that had made him the pack's second most dominant member, Isaac reached out with his bare hands, plucked the wolf out of the air, and then spun around like a discus thrower and hurled it back into the rest of the wolves that had just come into view.

  I held the door open for Jasmin and then piled into the car as Isaac caught up and jumped into the other side. As soon as both doors clicked shut James wound the car up into triple digits before braking just enough to sling it around the first curve in the road. Adri went pale as she looked into the passenger mirror and saw the darting shapes of Brandon's wolves falling steadily behind.

  She looked back at me and I tried to reassure her with my expression, but found the truth slipping out despite my intentions.

  "They were pretty close. There weren't that many of them, but they could've decided to push the issue regardless."

  It wasn't until we were almost home that the adrenaline finally flushed its way completely out of my system. It had been a lot closer even than she realized. If Isaac had been one bit less graceful they would have ripped him apart and there wouldn't have been anything the rest of us could have done about it.

  We returned and I introduced Adri to Donovan. He was just as charming as always, which freed me for a moment to worry about all of the other things that could potentially be crumbling right now. Rachel's arrival heralded another duty.

  "Mother's been asking for you, Alec. I told her you'd be back soon, but she's worried."

  "I suppose this is a good opportunity to introduce Adriana."

  Rachel suddenly looked torn. Apparently she hadn't realized I would have to present Adri to Mother.

  "Are you sure, Alec? I could go help her get settled into the Lilac Room."

  My heart went out to Rachel but sooner or later Adri was going to meet Mother and if we didn't take care of it, Donovan was more than capable of making it happen when we weren't around.

  It was always best to control those types of things rather than let them develop in ways you weren't prepared for. It seemed inconceivable that Adri would hold our mother against Rachel, but as with so many things of the heart, her fear wasn't something mere logic could overcome.

  "No, Mother's still the mistress of this house. We've waited too long as it is. If we don't take care of it now it may be another week or two before we have a chance, and Donovan will be severely disappointed in both of us."

  Rachel grinned at the reminder of the way Donovan managed us despite supposedly being 'mere hired help' and I found myself returning her smile. Still, it was with a measure of apprehension that I knocked on Mother's door once we arrived.

  "Come in."

  I looked at Rachel but she obviously wasn't going to join us. It was a tough call. Be completely ignored or listen to Mother disparage her.

  Mother's rooms were spotless as always. Much as I might hate what James' mother did to him, I couldn't fault her care of my mother. Most of the pack hadn't particularly approved of Father marrying a human, but Addison had been one of my mother's two, surprisingly vocal supporters. Everyone in the pack had duties—Addison's revolved principally around caring for my mother.

  The suite was part of an addition my father had ordered constructed just after marrying Mother. The main room was principally encased in glass, providing excellent lighting and an incredibly open space.

  Mother loved caring for plants nearly as much as she loved her music. She'd quickly covered every shelf and stand with some plant or another. Donovan said my father had just chuckled and created more stands.

  I gently guided Adri over to the alcove that contained Mother's piano. As always she was seated at it, humming to herself in preparation for the next attempt at whatever piece she was working on.

  "Alec. I'm so glad you're safe. Rachel was going on and on about some kind of problem with the pack. She's so excitable. I told her everything would be fine, but she worries so. Your dad was the same way. Always going on and on about some crisis or another, but nothing ever really materialized."

  She'd lost weight again. There was only so much Addison could do there. I needed to find a way to spend more time with her and see what I could do to remedy the situation.

  I smiled at the cheery sun dress she was wearing and then nodded.

  "We're experiencing a time of more than usual difficulty, Mother, but that isn't why I've come by. I wanted to present my friend Adriana to you. She'll be staying with us for the next few weeks."

  She was already somewhere else. The smile she managed was extremely distracted. "That's nice, dear. You remind me so much of your father. So serious and worried all the time. Oh, how I miss him."

  "I know you do, Mother. Rachel and I miss him too."

  I winced even as the statement came out. It was one guaranteed to cause problems.

  "You barely remember him. Rachel's a good girl, but she was so young when he died. She can't really miss him. Not like I miss him."

  I wanted to argue, for Rachel's sake if nothing else, but there wasn't any point.

  "Will you play something for us, Mother? Adriana hasn't had the pleasure of listening to your songs."

  "No. You know it isn't ready. I'll tell you when I've perfected it. Yes, you can bring Rachel, but I can't let anyone listen to it before it's ready."

  The demands of propriety fulfilled, I bowed my head and then turned to leave. Mother grabbed my arm, attempting to stop me.

  "Don't be angry with me, Alec. Y
ou're all I have left."

  "I'm not angry, Mother, but you're wrong. You have much more left than just me."

  She shook her head with a youthful smile. "Such a good boy."

  I pulled Adri along behind me. Rachel was already crying by the time we exited the suite. She ran off as soon as she saw us. Adri started to follow, but I recaptured her hand and shook my head.

  "She just needs a little time. Donovan will alert Jasmin."

  Adri obviously wasn't convinced. It wasn't necessarily my business, and Jasmin had been nearly ready to send her back to Brandon, but I didn't want her to continue to think of Jasmin as some kind of loose warhead.

  "There's still a lot you don't know about all of the others. There's much I could tell you about Jasmin, but it isn't my story to share. Suffice it to say only Dominic has a greater capacity for empathy."

  We walked in silence to the Lilac Room, which was really a suite of rooms, and found Donovan finishing preparations for Adri's stay.

  "I trust your mother was well, sir?"

  My response was cut off by the sound of a cell phone. Knowing Isaac's usual efficiency there was no question but that the phone located on the bedside table was the one used to forward their landline. I handed it to Adri.

  "It's for you, probably your mom. Pretend you're home, I'll explain once you're finished."

  A split second later my phone started vibrating. I picked it up and stepped far enough away that I wouldn't disturb Adri.

  "Yeah?"

  "Alec, we need you over in my father's suite right now. He's reverted to his wolf shape and it's all Isaac can do to stop him from hurting himself."

  Jessica's normal dislike of me had been replaced by fear for her father.

  "I'll be there as soon as I can."

  "Please hurry."

  Adri was just finishing up her conversation as I hung up. She looked up from her phone with surprise.

  "You redirected our calls?"

  "Correct. That's what Isaac was doing in the kitchen after your mom left. I thought it might come to this, so I had him bring along some of his toys. You'll want to change the message sometime tonight, so you can let it roll to the voice mail if she calls while you're at school."