Eternal Bond and Brimstone Read online

  When I didn’t respond, he drew me closer.

  “You choose now not to speak?” he hissed.

  His words yanked me from my daze. “You had to go there, didn’t you?”

  A long sigh escaped him. “I thought you were broken for a minute.” His hand gently ran over me, searching for injuries. I sucked air harshly when he found the spot Tyler’s iron grip had been.

  Jayson stiffened as he pushed my sleeve up, revealing the developing bruises on my forearm. His lips thinned.

  “That’s not from the earthquake.” They were shaped too much like fingers.

  Jayson clenched his jaw so tight his teeth ground. “No, it’s not.”

  “Why did he grab me?” I swallowed hard as Tyler’s black eyes flashed through my mind, and his chilling laughter replayed in my ears. “I was watching the lightning…” My sentence trailed off as my gaze drifted toward the window. No more flashes of crimson highlighted the street. “What’s going on, Jayson?”

  “Can you stand?” he asked, ignoring my questions.

  “Yeah, I think.” Before the words were completely out of my mouth I was on my feet, Jayson steadying me. “Geez, a little warning would be nice.” I glanced up at him. He didn’t seem to have a single injury even though tons of crap had fallen on him. “Are you—”

  “Stay here.” He darted around me.

  “Hey! You can’t just leave without giving me an explanation.” He knew more than he was letting on. I took a step, sliding on glass. Luckily, I caught myself on an overturned shelf.

  “Do not follow me, Lena,” Jayson called. “You’ll trip and hurt yourself.”

  I cursed. He was right. With all the knocked over shelves and electrical devices, I was standing in the center of a deathtrap. My clumsiness would have a field day.

  “Lena!” a female voice called.

  My heart shuddered. In all the commotion, I’d forgotten about my friends. “I’m over here.”

  Two familiar shapes emerged through the shadows. Glass crunched as Jessica and Sebastian made their way toward me.

  “Are you okay?” Sebastian asked as he took my arm.

  “Yeah. Are you guys?” I leaned on him for support.

  Jessica came on my other side and grabbed my arm. They knew I’d never make it out of this store without their help.

  “We’re fine,” Jessica said, carefully navigating around broken electronics. “We were outside looking at the lightning like everyone else when the earthquake started.”

  “How the heck are you still in one piece?” Sebastian asked, his voice a little shaky. The dim emergency lights danced across his mussed blond spikes. Had Jessica clung to him when the ground was trembling?

  “Jayson was here,” I blurted before my mind could catch up with my mouth. Great. They were going to read something into this.

  They pulled up short, their gazes burning into me. My cheeks were already flaming.

  “Is this like a hero, damsel in distress kind of thing?” Sebastian asked, wiggling his brows.

  “No,” I grumbled. It was a weird, something freaky was going on kind of thing.

  As we emerged into the front of the store, Jayson stomped out of a door marked Employees Only—except his feet didn’t make a sound. Something wet glistened on his shirt. He glanced up, his eyes landing directly on mine.

  Air caught sharply in my lungs. They were pure gold again. And that wasn’t all. A faint glowing outline encased his entire body.

  My brows shot up my forehead, and I swallowed hard. “What is that?” I mumbled under my breath.

  Jayson flinched as if he’d heard me. But he couldn’t have. He was too far away.

  The bell over the door dinged, shattering the tension around us. Kale barged in, his normally brown eyes molten gold.

  My jaw dropped. He was also sporting a hazy outline.

  What the chocolate-coated nuts was going on?

  Kale’s head tilted as he surveyed me. And then he turned his attention back to Jayson. “We need to go. Now.”

  Jayson gave a curt nod and marched toward his friend, his gaze flickering to mine. Once again, I was speechless.

  The two guys disappeared out the door, leaving me staring after them. “Holy hell. Did you guys see that?”

  A giggle slipped out of Jessica. “There were some serious vibes happening between you and your mysterious neighbor.”

  Sebastian grinned. “Seriously. Before Kale came in, I thought he was going to march over here and grab you.”

  I glanced between my two friends. “That’s not what I …” My voice trailed off as my stomach clenched. They hadn’t seen the burning gold eyes or the glowing outlines.

  Only me.

  Jessica and Sebastian slowly led me onto the street, letting go when they were sure I was safe from falling.

  I was never safe from falling.

  Sirens blared and tan Mystic Hollow Police cars were already parked along the street. My pulse spiked. “I need to call my dad.” I hoped he was okay. And his store. He’d worked so hard on it.

  “I’m sure he’s fine,” Sebastian said, taking out his cellphone. “It looks like it was a pretty minor quake on the seismic scale.”

  That sure as hell hadn’t seemed like a minor thing while the electronics store was falling apart around me. “Get a lot of earthquakes in Mystic Hollow?”

  The electricity was out. The one streetlight blinked and still swayed. Jimmie’s Diner & Pizzeria on the corner had a shattered window. The townsfolk standing around were shaken up. It wasn’t every day you got red lightning and an earthquake.

  “I think there’s been one or two before, but not within the last hundred years,” Sebastian said, scrolling through his phone.

  “And the red lightning?” I asked, glancing at Jessica.

  She shrugged. “That was pretty darn weird.”

  Sebastian glanced up. “Actually, red lightning can be caused by dust particles or smoke in the air.”

  “Uh-huh.” It sounded plausible. What did I know about the weather?

  A sinking in my gut told me it had nothing to do with any dust in the air though.

  Mrs. Gracin appeared in front of the books store again, her hands gesturing wildly as she spoke to an officer. The door of the shop was swinging open, part of the glass window glittering on the ground. A few benches had been overturned and trashcans were rolling down the sidewalk.

  I glanced back at TVs & More. It was in total disarray while everything else had minimal damage, if any.

  I jammed my fingers into my pockets to hide their trembling. A rotten stench suddenly swirled through the air, prickling my skin. I spun around just as a black shadow zipped by. Two more whizzed down the sidewalk across the street. Mrs. Gracin and the officer didn’t even flinch. I didn’t bother asking Sebastian or Jessica if they’d seen them either.

  I was the only one that had.

  Chapter 8

  The Froot Loops tasted like sand, but I couldn’t stop eating them. Cramming sugar in my mouth seemed to calm my nerves. At least a little. Of course, you couldn’t tell anything was helping from the way I sat on my bed, my knees curled into my chest and my widened eyes trained on the dark room across the street.

  Either some serious supernatural shit was going on with my neighbor and his friends or I was hallucinating.

  Sleep was not my friend tonight. I didn’t expect a visit from the Sandman anytime soon.

  I finally managed to swallow the mush of fruit cereal only to dig into the box for more. What if I’d taken one too many hits to the head, and it was starting to affect my brain? Isn’t that what happened to football players with all those concussions? It was making them crazy. And seeing golden eyes, fuzzy auras, and dark shadows could definitely be signs of a brain injury.

  “Slow down, Lena. You’re going to choke.” My dad set a glass of water on my bedside table. “I haven’t needed to do the Heimlich maneuver on you in a while. I’d like to keep it that way.”

  “You need to stay i
n shape, Dad,” I mumbled through a full mouth. “Practice makes perfect.” I grabbed the water, chugging the crisp liquid.

  He shook his head and gently took my arm, laying an icepack on it. “I can’t believe you were in the electronics store during the earthquake and only came out with a few bruises. That place is a disaster.”

  I took the icepack with my other hand and held it myself. “It’s a real miracle.” Little did my dad know, the injuries came from creepy Tyler.

  What happened to him after the earthquake? He never came out, and the firefighters cleared the shop. Jayson was giving Tyler that chilling stare down as he clutched my arm in a death grip. Had my mysterious neighbor gone after the jerk?

  “I’ll have to thank Max’s nephew,” my dad said, oblivious to my ominous thoughts. “I’ll get him a big steak from the butcher.”

  Ugh. Guys.

  “I’m sure he’d love that.” The Neanderthal might even eat it raw.

  After exiting TVs & More, Sebastian and Jessica took me to my dad’s hardware store. Like most of the shops on tiny Main Street, there was minimal damage. Our house was about the same with a few knocked over pieces of furniture and broken knickknacks. The electronics store seemed to be the only one in total destruction.

  Was it just another weird coincidence?

  “I’m off to bed, kid.” My dad roughly rubbed my head like I was a loyal Labrador Retriever. “You should do the same.”

  I shot him a halfhearted glare. “I’m not a dog, you know. No need to pet me like one.”

  “Oh, I know. You’d be so much more compliant if you were.” He winked and stood, sauntering toward my door.

  “Where’s the fun in that? Your life would be so boring.”

  “Touché.” He chuckled and disappeared, shutting the door behind him.

  I shook the Froot Loops in my palm like dice before tossing them down the hatch.

  My stomach clenched as Brenna’s words played through my mind again. She’d said something evil was coming. Inexplicable scarlet lightning didn’t necessarily hit high on the evil meter, but it did kind of feel apocalyptic. And didn’t every apocalyptic episode of Buffy begin with an earthquake?

  My cryptic classmates had also mentioned dwellers. Brenna called them hellspawn. Was that literal? Had hell opened up tonight in Mystic Hollow?

  The room suddenly spun, and my vision blurred.

  Woah. What was that?

  I set the box of cereal on the bedside table and dragged my fingers through my hair. My lids drooped as a wave of drowsiness folded over me.

  Son of a biscuit. It felt like I’d taken a sleeping pill.

  My eyes slid over to the glass of water, narrowing. My dad wouldn’t drug me. That was duriculous…

  The jumbled word slurred through my thoughts. My room twirled again, and dizziness swarmed me.

  I groaned and shimmied down my bed, my head hitting the pillows. Sleep quickly yanked me under.

  Only seconds seemed to pass when my fuzzy brain resurfaced from dark, murky waters. My lids were heavy as they slowly opened. The blanket from the end of my bed had been tossed on me, and it felt like a pocket of comfort was wrapped around my body.

  I tried to roll over, but I couldn’t move.

  Holy crapola. Why can’t I move?

  My pulse quickened. Oh, no. Was I having one of those paralysis nightmares? Was an evil, ugly hag sitting on my chest, sucking out my soul?

  A shadow moved along my wall.

  “I swear, this girl has secrets. There’s something strange about her.”

  My scream never made it out of my throat. I’d recognize that gruff voice anywhere.

  Jayson’s hulking frame stood in front of my dresser as his fingers dug through my jewelry box. Kale was next to him.

  Holy frijoles. Why were they in my room? If I could move, I’d throw something at them.

  “It can’t be a coincidence she showed up now when things are unraveling,” Jayson said. “And that dweller seemed way too interested in her.”

  “You took care of him, right?” Kale asked.

  Jayson gave a curt nod. “He won’t have the chance to hurt her again.”

  My heart crashed against my ribs. Again? Was he talking about Tyler? Was he one of these dweller things?

  “Are you sure she won’t wake up?” Kale began to turn, and I squeezed my eyes shut. “I could have sworn I felt her watching me.”

  “She won’t wake up. Trust me,” Jayson said. “You’re paranoid.”

  Kale scoffed. “I'm paranoid? You’re the one going through this girl’s stuff because you have some hunch she’s involved in this mess.”

  I chanced a peek. Kale had turned back around.

  Jayson gently closed my jewelry box and moved on to my junk drawer. Good luck making any sense out of that chaos. “She saw our eyes shift colors. Who knows what else?”

  He admitted it! Their eyes did change colors. I wasn’t hallucinating.

  “Maybe she’s a seer.” Kale picked up a perfume bottle, sniffing it. “Mmm. This smells good.” He shoved it under Jayson’s nose, but he waved it away.

  “She’s not. Brenna would know.” Giving up on the junk drawer, Jayson moved to another one.

  “I think it’s something more natural than super,” Kale said, opening my top left drawer.

  Oh, gawd. My underwear was in there.

  Jayson’s head swiveled toward him. “What do you mean?”

  Kale shot him a knowing smirk. “I think you like Lena.”

  My heart thumped against my chest way too hard. No way in hell did I want this Neanderthal liking me. Nope. Not one bit.

  He scoffed and turned away. “That’s not it.”

  “Oh, please.” Kale leaned over the dresser. “Every time she walks into the room, your eyes are laser-focused on her. And stay that way until she leaves your sight.”

  “That’s not…” Jayson shook his head. “I’m only trying to figure her out. That’s all.”

  “Right. And you teasing her in Theology the other day was just part of figuring her out.” Kale held up a pair of black lace panties. “Nice.”

  My cheeks flamed. If that perve didn’t put my unmentionables down, I was going to kick him in the family jewels next time I was able to move.

  Jayson snatched the panties dangling off Kale’s finger. “Don’t touch her stuff like that.”

  A chuckle slipped out of Kale. “Someone’s testy. And you say you don’t like her.”

  Jayson threw the scrap of racy fabric back into the drawer and closed it. “It’s not like that.”

  “What about Hannah then?” Kale followed Jayson to the other side of my room.

  The hair stood up on my nape. Who was Hannah? I already despised that name.

  “I don’t have time for this,” Jayson hissed. “This is serious, Kale. The lightning and the earthquake are just the beginning. Something’s coming.”

  Air caught in my lungs. Mother Nature hadn’t been the one at work tonight. I freaking knew it. Either the ground did birth a bunch of bloodthirsty monsters, or Hell on Earth was right around the corner.

  Kale lingered in front of the shelf jam-packed with my precious vinyl. He plucked a Fleetwood Mac record, examining it. I was going to cut his fingers off if he damaged my Rumours album. “Have you spoken to Nithael yet?”

  Jayson’s shoulders stiffened. “No.” That one word rumbled through my room like thunder. He certainly didn’t like this Nithael guy.

  My room began to grow fuzzy, darkening around the edges like a vignette in a photo.

  I tried to shake off the drowsiness. I didn’t want to fall asleep. I needed to hear the rest…

  Darkness came. And then my eyes snapped open.

  I bolted up, my pulse galloping. Daylight was beginning to leak through my windows. No one was in my room.

  I tossed the blanket off and stood, my legs trembling. Had it all been a dream? My gaze lingered over my dresser, searching for any sign Jayson and Kale had been there.

&
nbsp; Nothing was out of place. But a hint of that unmistakable salty ocean scent that clung to my enigmatic neighbor lingered in the air.

  Yellow caution tape surrounded the entirety of TVs & More Electronics, and there was a good reason for it. The place was a wreck. Several windows were shattered, and glass and debris were scattered across the floor.

  I sure as hell had no business taking one step inside. But that was precisely where I was headed. I needed answers.

  Images from the dream—or not-dream—plagued my mind. Was I going insane? Had Jayson and Kale really been in my room last night because the Neanderthal thought I had something to do with whatever craziness was happening in Mystic Hollow?

  The bizarre lightning and the earthquake had definitely been real. My fingers ran over the bruises on my arm from Tyler’s hard grip. Something was wrong with that guy.

  I slinked around the corner of the building, keeping to the shadows. Townsfolk were out and about, cleaning up the overturned benches, trashcans, tables, and other objects strewn along the sidewalk.

  School was canceled. That was one silver lining in this freak disaster.

  The back door of the shop was hanging open. Apparently, no one was afraid of theft in Mystic Hollow.

  I slipped inside, kicking a pile of glass. My mouth dried up at the sight before me. Geez, Louise. If I fell, I was going to be sliced and diced like a piece of meat at a hibachi restaurant.

  I lifted my head toward the ceiling, sending a little prayer to keep my clumsiness at a minimum. I carefully made my way through the store, my breathing echoing over the crunching of rubble beneath my boots. A trickle of cold sweat leaked down my nape.

  This must be how thieves breaking into high-security compounds felt. One wrong step, and I was toast.

  Finally, I made it to the door marked Employees Only Jayson had exited after possibly going after Tyler. I pushed it open, entering a small hallway. The power was off in the store so I grabbed my cellphone, using the flashlight to illuminate a path. A few ceiling tiles and some plaster had fallen but no glass.