Ever: The Ever Trilogy, Book One (Volume 1) (34 page)

Her words had me feeling slightly disappointed that she didn’t want details about my kiss with Frankie, when it was something I’d anticipated for so long.

Obviously able to decipher my feelings from the expression on my face, she continued, “Oh, Ever, relax. Of course I want to hear all about how amazing of a kisser he is. Just, not right now. Seriously, stay focused. Tell me about the actual dreams. You said you never remembered them—except for one, right?”

Hearing Jessie tell
me
to stay focused was funny all in itself, but add to that the fact that she was trying to
not
talk about boys … our lives really
had
changed.

“Well,
two
technically. I can remember two dreams now. I can remember the one from last night. Or, this morning I guess. Whatever.”

“Okay, so what were these
two
nightmares about?”

I had no problem relaying every detail, as each nightmare was still vivid in my mind. First, the nightmare with Toby standing over Frankie’s bloody, lifeless body … and his words, the words that still haunted me:
‘You can’t save him.’
Then, most recently, Ariadne standing over Frankie’s body, her beautiful white dress ruined with his blood, taunting me with those same unforgettable words.

‘You can’t save him.’

The words ran through my mind again, followed by an image of Ariadne kissing Frankie. I shivered. I realized Jessie’s face had paled considerably since I began describing the details of my nightmares.

“Jess?”

She swallowed hard, placing both hands palm down on the table. Her napkin was under one of her hands, and I noticed that she had shredded it into tiny pieces as she listened to my story. She inhaled deeply.

“Oh, Ever, don’t you see?” she whispered. “Your dreams … they were warnings. About Frankie’s
soul
. It’s … it’s all … it’s all
real
then. Greg was telling the truth.” She swallowed again, and her face paled even further. She was almost a pale greenish-blue color.

“Jess, hey, they’re just
dreams
,” I said, even though I’d already come to the same conclusion about them. “Eat some more of your salad. Drink some tea. Do
something
. You look like you’re going to be sick. We’ll figure this out. I know we will.”

I reached across the table and squeezed her hand. It was ice cold.

“Jess? It will be okay. I promise.”

Something in my mind tried to tell me not to make promises I couldn’t keep, but right at that moment, I had every intention of
keeping
that promise.

For both of us.

A
riadne.

I couldn’t believe I was doing it, but as we walked up to Toby’s front door, and I watched my fist reach up and knock three times, I realized it was really happening.

I was going to Ariadne for help.

Beside me, Jessie tightly crossed her arms, and she tapped her pink toes in annoyance. Or nerves. But we’ll stick with annoyance. She exhaled a loud sigh, deliberately letting me know her strong opposition to my plan. I looked at her and shrugged. Too late to back out now. The door was opening.

”Oh. What a pleasant surprise. Have you come to thank me, or apologize for your less than hospitable hospitality earlier?”

“Oh my god, Ever. This is a mistake. Let’s go before I show Ariadne what
my
hospitality looks like.”

I placed my hand on Jessie’s arm and tried to ignore the smug look on Ariadne’s face. She was already winning by getting a rise out of Jessie. I ignored Jessie’s words and responded to Ariadne’s. “Neither. We have questions, and you owe us answers.”

“Do I now? How do you figure?”

“Look, Ariadne. Cut the crap. Will you let us in and talk to us, or do we have to keep playing games like we’re at the school lunch tables?”

“Well, I
did
warn you that I don’t play well with others.” She stepped aside and waved us in.

I had to practically drag Jessie inside. She was trying to play it cool, but I saw her gaze darting around, looking for Greg. Apparently Ariadne caught it, too.

“Relax, blondie. Your boyfriend isn’t here. In fact, neither of them are. They’re off with Ted somewhere. It’s just us girls. Who wants to paint my toenails?” She sat on the couch and raised the long hem of her maxi dress, wiggling her toes at us.

Jessie sat in the chair across from the couch, as far as she could get from Ariadne, which left me two options: sit down next to Ariadne on the couch or stand.

I chose option number three and paced the floor.

“Oh relax, Ever. Seriously, I’m not going to bite. You.” She winked at Jessie, and Jess looked up at me with pleading eyes. She was normally the one with all the moxie, but Ariadne really set off something in her. Maybe it was the connection to Greg. I looked at my best friend and realized she’d really felt something for Greg. I mean, I’d
known
she really liked him and that she was more serious about him than any other guy before him, but now I realized just how much she loved him. Being around Ariadne would make anyone uncomfortable, but Jessie’s agitation went far past uncomfortable. In fact, it seemed to match my feelings toward the girl.

Reluctantly, I sat next to Ariadne.
Only
because pacing wasn’t helping me organize my thoughts into actual questions. “Look, Ariadne, Toby and Greg have told us a little bit. We know you are … soul collectors.”

“Why, Ever, your pause tells me you have trouble believing that.” She tilted her head as she examined me. “Do you not have your own little secrets? How can you doubt what
we
are when you’ve been keeping a ghost as a pet for two years?”

“Hmph.” Jessie’s scoffing was quiet, as though she didn’t want to join in on the conversation but wanted me to know she agreed with Ariadne—at least on this one innocent statement. Jessie’s little way of saying ‘I told you so,’ after trying in vain for years to convince me to broaden my beliefs, was hardly consistent with her reaction to all of this. I mean, last night I was scared for her sanity. But I ignored the bait. Jessie’s beliefs—or disbeliefs—were not important right now.

“So, yes, we are soul collectors. That part is correct. What else did
my
boys tell you?”

Jessie cringed, her lip curling up ever so slightly.

“Well, I don’t know about Greg, but Toby explained it to me a little bit. Like, I guess you guys find souls that haven’t passed on, and you … I don’t know … guide them?”

“Indeed. To heaven or hell, depending.”

“On what?” I couldn’t help but ask with Frankie’s soul being the one in question.

“Don’t worry, Ever, your Frankie was a good boy. You should know that—I mean, you’ve been obsessed with him for … what … your entire life, haven’t you?”

“What about now?” Jessie asked.

Whoa.
I wasn’t yet ready to know about Frankie’s soul’s current status, so I quickly changed the subject. “So, you
guide
souls to their final destination. I guess I understand. Sort of. Why do souls get lost in the first place?”

“Not lost so much as stubborn. Frankie isn’t
confused
about where he’s headed. He’s just too stubborn to go.” She looked at me with mock adoration, batting her eyelashes at me. “He didn’t want to leave you. Aww.”

I got that she was making fun of me, but I continued anyways. No need to let her know she was making me want to punch that fire-engine-red pout of hers. That lipstick would probably stay on my knuckles for days. So I ignored the bait.

“You guys came here for Frankie?”

“Yes. In a roundabout way.”

“Ugh. Seriously? What the hell does that mean?”

“Oh, Jessie. I forgot you were here, hon. Well, what I
mean
is that Toby and Ted came here for Frankie. Greg came here because Ted called him. Apparently Toby was losing his focus.” She looked directly at me. “
I
came
for Toby.”

She made my skin crawl. Literally. Had it not been attached to my body, it would have crawled away from her. I was on edge just being near Ariadne. Her double entendre was tacky at best, but still managed to get on my nerves. Now, she looked at me like she was going to eat me, and I couldn’t help but squirm. Ariadne the Shark had returned. Fan-
freaking
-tastic. I got up and paced the floor again, ignoring the satisfied look on Ariadne’s face. She’d gotten a rise out of me. Fine. But she still hadn’t won the battle.

“So, Ted and Toby came for Frankie. Why two of them? Why not just one person, or … I mean, just
one
soul collector?” My slip of the tongue reminded me that I’d have to eventually ask her if they actually
were
human. A question I was not looking forward to asking.

“Ever. Don’t think I didn’t catch that. We are people. We’re just people with an actual purpose. Unlike yourselves.”

“How do people like
you
become soul collectors?” Jessie asked. “Did you do something especially nasty, because that I could believe.”

“The how’s and the why’s of it are unimportant. I think Ever has much more pressing questions for me, don’t you, Ever?”

“Why did Ted come?” Yes, I know, I was avoiding the big question. I couldn’t help but delay it for as long as possible. I was too scared of the answer.

“I don’t begin to know why Ted does what he does. And I don’t question him. He’s here, and he must have a reason for it. I’m sure we’ll all find out in due time. But to answer your question, Toby could have handled Frankie on his own. Had
you
not gotten in the way, of course.”

Me.
So, had I not gotten involved with Toby, Frankie may have just disappeared one day and they’d both be gone. I looked at Jessie, her wide eyes matching mine.

“Aha. I see the two of you aren’t as dense as you look. Had you stayed away from Toby, he would have been in and out in a matter of days. Frankie would be adjusting to his new home, and Toby would be off to the next town, actively meeting his quotas and staying focused. But he just couldn’t resist that silly little innocence thing you’ve got going on. He’s a sucker for wide eyes and zero world experience. You fit the bill perfectly. All naïve and clueless.”

“Ha! Listen up,
bitch
. Ever obviously has something
you
don’t have. And I’m not talking beauty, brains, or
class
, because those go without saying. I’m talking about the one thing you want most in the world.
Toby.”

Jessie was standing now, staring down at a very irritated Ariadne. I felt the tension building between them, and Ariadne had a weird twitch going on in her left temple. Jessie struck a nerve, and I could tell it was about to come to a head between the two of them. One point for our team, I guessed, but I wanted to prevent the two of them from coming to blows in Toby’s living room.

“Okay, okay, Jess. Thanks for defending me, but let’s all try to stay focused.” I was tempted to add that, for the record, Toby didn’t
have
me, but I withheld that bit to let Ariadne stew in it a little longer. Toby as leverage was the only upper hand we had. “So, Toby got distracted or whatever, and Ted called Greg. What was he supposed to do, come get Frankie?”

“Yes. And how hard could
that
be, right? Then he meets the bubblegum fairy over here and that plan goes to shit, too. I swear, it’s like the two of you dimwitted morons have magical powers or something.” The insults flew right past Jessie. I saw by the glimmer of hope in her eyes and the slight tilt of her head that all she’d heard was that she’d been the cause of Greg’s plan ‘going to shit.’ It gave me hope that even if my relationship with Toby had been ruined, maybe Jessie and Greg stood a chance at working things out.

“Somehow, both Toby
and
Greg came to get Frankie, and neither one of them succeeded. Because of us.” I found that strange, being the more insecure of Jessie and me, but I continued. “Why didn’t Ted just do the job himself?”

“Like I said, hon, no one knows why Ted does or doesn’t do things.”

“Then you showed up. Why?” I already knew the answer, but I wanted to hear her say it.
Because I’m a glutton for punishment.

“I came for Toby. I didn’t care why Toby was here—his jobs have nothing to do with me. I had some free time between gigs, and figured I’d seek him out. When I arrived … ugh. I couldn’t believe he was so hung up on you. I had to see you for myself, see what was so amazing about you. I followed you to the library that day. I watched you for hours, trying to figure it out. I couldn’t, obviously.” She waved a hand in my direction, as if it was so obvious that there was nothing to be hung up over. “And then I think, ‘hmmm, maybe she’s surprisingly intelligent.’ So I come a little closer, check out your reading materials. Is it Jane Eyre? Moby Dick? Or even Hamlet? No. It’s a freaking book about
vampires
going to a private
vampire
school.” She paused again to look up at me. “You do know there is no such thing as private vampire schools, correct? Ugh. I can’t even begin to tell you the horror of finding him all hung up on someone as simple as you.