The Shadow Stealer (Silver Moon Saga Book 3) (17 page)

“They weren’t lies.” Mom paused as Dad raised his brows. “Okay, the one about me being dead is a lie, yes. But Philip is my son. She wasn’t wrong about that.”

All of his rage disappeared as Dad deflated like a balloon. “So it’s true then.” His shoulder slumped and he sighed wearily. My heart ached for him. This was exactly what I wanted to avoid!
Then you shouldn’t have gone to the city in the first place, you idiot! If you’d stayed home,
none
of this would have happened!
But then I wouldn’t have known the truth. And I deserved to know the truth, didn’t I?

“Yes.” Mom gestured toward the house. “Look, can we have this discussion inside? I don’t really want the entire neighborhood knowing all of our business.” When Dad hesitated, she softly said, “Steven, please. Let me make things right.”

Dad swallowed hard, still uncertain. Surprisingly, he looked to me, and I nodded. To Mom, he said, “If you hurt us again—”

“I won’t. I swear I won’t.”

“Then, I guess… Come in.”

Chapter Twenty-nine

I covered my ears as I listened to my parents yell at each other in the kitchen. Huge mistake? More like, most epic fail Gabi has ever committed,
ever.

“Oh my god,” Chloe said from my right. We were sitting in the living room, her and Rafe flanking me as our parents fought. My little sister had surprisingly accepted Mom’s sudden appearance a hell of a lot better than I expected. I mean, she’d taken one look at Mom and stormed out of the room without saying anything, and then proceeded to throw some stuff around, creating both a huge racket and a mess in the process, but I’d expected… I don’t know. Hysterics? Threats? Maybe some screaming?

Instead, she was frowning at the TV (we had it on but muted so we could hear our parents better), looking more annoyed than anything. Turning to me, she said, “This is all the stuff we missed, right? The screaming and the fighting and you and me hiding upstairs in the closet, silently crying and hoping our parents wouldn’t get a divorce?” Chloe rolled her eyes. “God, maybe it was better that she just left! Who needs this crap?”

“Chloe!”

“What? It’s true, isn’t it?” She pointed at the doorway. “Do you enjoy hearing them fight? No? Well, me neither. So we’re lucky we missed all of that.”

“How were we lucky?” I burst into tears, surprising both her and me. I was too tired to fight my emotions any longer. “She destroyed our lives once, and I’m scared she’s going to do it again!”

“Gabi,” Rafe started.

Chloe held up her hand. “I got this, Rafe.” My boyfriend nodded and slid off the couch, crossing the room to give us some space. Putting an arm around my shoulders, my sister hugged me. I started crying harder, staining her shirt with tears and probably snot, but Chloe didn’t protest. “Gabi. Gabi, Gabi, Gabi. Since when are you the crybaby in this family? That’s my job.” When I didn’t respond, she hugged me tighter. “Well, since you always fix things for me, I’m going to help you now by telling you it’s not going to be the same this time.”

I rubbed at my eyes. “How do you know that?”

“Because we’re not little kids anymore, for one thing,” Chloe said. “And we’re not stupid. We know the world is full of crap. We know because we experienced it firsthand. So we’re stronger, because of what she did to us. Do you really think we’re just going to fall apart, now that she’s come back?” Chloe wrinkled her nose. “How long is she going to be here, anyway? She isn’t expecting to waltz back into our lives like nothing’s ever happened, is she?”

“No.” I pulled away slightly so I could see my sister’s face clearly. “She wanted a chance to explain things to Dad—and us—but I don’t think anyone is expecting her to, like, move in or something.”

“What is she explaining to him?”

Nervously, I played with the hem of my shirt. Dad hadn’t told Chloe anything about my phone call this morning. “She was with someone else, before she married Dad. And they had a kid together.”

“Holy shit.” Chloe’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. “Are you for real?”

“Yeah, and this kid—our brother—is Phil.”

“Shut up!” Chloe shoved me so hard I fell off the couch and landed hard on my butt. There was a moment of stunned silence—it really hurt, my poor butt—and then I started laughing hysterically. It was like all the stress and fear and heartbreak from the entire weekend had brought me to this moment, where I was sprawled unattractively on the floor, looking up into the shocked face of my baby sister. After a moment’s hesitation, she started laughing as well, sliding down the couch so we could hug each other and share all of our laughter and tears together.

Mom and Dad found us like that a half an hour later, still on the floor, watching TV (this time the sound was on) and quietly speaking to each other. Rafe had sat back down on the couch, and I would occasionally glance at him over my shoulder, as if to make sure he was still there with me. Each time, his eyes would be glued to me, instead of the screen, filling me with warmth. Things might not have been good, but at least right now, in this moment, I was surrounded by people who loved me.

We waited expectantly for our parents to speak. They’d stopped yelling a while ago, and while we heard murmurs coming from the kitchen, it had been impossible to make out what they were saying. We’d played with the idea of eavesdropping, but decided it wasn’t worth it. I already knew about Mom’s past (although I doubted she would fill Dad in on the magic stuff), and Chloe had proclaimed she didn’t care (although I knew she did).

They were both exhausted and pale, their voices raw with emotion. “Your mother is leaving now,” Dad said. “Rafe is going to drive her to a hotel.” I was about to protest when Dad sent me a look, telling me I better not dare contradict him. I sighed. I’d thought, for a brief moment, that I would be off the hook after my little stunt this weekend, but obviously I was very wrong about that.

While I remained quiet, Chloe, on the other hand, piped up. “That’s it? She’s leaving? Just like that?”

“It’s late,” Dad said shortly, “and she needs to go.”

Hurt flashed across Mom’s face, but she nodded. “Sorry, Rafe, I need to bum another ride off of you.”

“It’s fine.”

I stood when he did. Placing my hand on his chin, I searched his eyes for an answer to the question I was silently asking.

“I’m okay.” He kissed me softly on the lips, despite both of my parents watching. “Can I call her?” he asked my dad, and I groaned loudly.
God, Rafe, way to give Dad the idea to take my phone away from me!

Dad watched me thoughtfully. “I suppose that’s okay.”

Behind his back, Mom made a face. “Is he always this strict?”

“Yes,” Chloe and I said in unison. For a moment, everyone in the room froze. What were we doing? This was too normal, too much like a regular family. But then Dad chuckled, which he quickly tried to hide with a cough, and the tension melted away. My eyes were nearly bugging out of my head as I gave Rafe a “what the hell?” look. He smiled and shrugged in response.

Weird. This was too, too weird.

“Goodnight,” Dad said, a little too loudly and forcefully, and Mom and Rafe showed themselves out. After the front door closed behind them, Dad left the room and I looked at Chloe.

“That was totally bizarre,” she said. “We’re either really awesome at dealing with crazy stuff, or we’re just seriously messed up.”

“I’d like to think we’re awesome.”

“You and I are,” she agreed, linking arms with me, “but I don’t know about them. They’re weirdos.”

“Time for bed, girls,” Dad called from the other room, leading me to believe he had heard every word of our exchange.

But hey, Chloe was right. They
were
weirdos.

***

Oh, it felt good to be home, with my own bathroom and my own bed. Not that I hadn’t enjoyed waking up wrapped in Rafe’s arms. As I remembered the previous night my cheeks began heating up, and I scowled at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. It’s not like we’d
done
anything, so what was I getting so embarrassed for?

Because you’re probably imagining what the two of you could have done if the bed wasn’t so small.

“No, brain, do
not
go there,” I said, shaking my head back and forth rapidly. I knew I liked to tease Rafe, to see him blush, but the truth was I was just as nervous about that stuff as he was. Sure, I wanted to do…things…eventually, but right now? I was absolutely fine with taking things slow. For example, how
perfect
was his confession? All I had to do was remember the sweet things he’d said and my eyes would instantly well up with tears. I wished I’d been able to record that special moment, but that probably would have been both creepy and awkward. Oh well. I would have to rely on my memory.

After running my comb through my wet hair, I left the bathroom and sat down on my bed, my fingers immediately reaching for my phone. There was still no message from Philip, and I set the phone down with a sigh as I tried to squash away my fears.
He’s fine
, I told myself firmly. But I couldn’t help but picture a ton of situations where things had gone horribly wrong for my brother. I knew, despite my exhaustion, I wouldn’t be getting any sleep tonight until I heard from him.

When my phone began buzzing, my heart gave a nervous leap. Rafe’s name appeared on the screen, and I allowed myself one second of disappointment before answering. “Hey,” I said, a little breathless. “What’s the matter?”

“Nothing,” he said. “I just wanted to make sure you’re okay. Your dad said I could call, so I’m not breaking any rules.” Even though his voice was casual, I could definitely picture the worried look on his face. It was too funny that my boyfriend faced off against the nastiest creatures, no problem, but he was still deathly afraid of my dad.

“I think he meant tomorrow, but whatever. I’m not arguing.” I sat cross-legged on the bed, balancing the phone between my ear and shoulder as I reached for my blanket and draped it across my legs. “I’m glad you called. I’m trying not to go crazy with worry. Have you heard from them?”

“No, not yet, but I’m sure they’re fine. The hunters who found them at your mom’s building probably wanted to ask them a lot of questions. They have all these strict rules and protocols to follow. It would drive you crazy. So trust me; I’m sure Phil wants to call, but he can’t. Same with Alex. As soon as they get away, I’m sure we’ll both get phone calls. Unless they just want to wait until morning,” Rafe added. “Everyone knows how strict your dad is. Phil’s probably afraid he’ll get you in trouble if he calls too late.”

“I guess so.” It wouldn’t do us any good to keep obsessing over something we had no control over, so I decided to change the subject. “Did you get Mom to a hotel?”

“About that…”

I frowned. “Oh, god, what did she do
now
?”

“Um, well… She’s kind of staying here, with me.”

Chapter Thirty

I dropped my phone. One second it was next to my ear, and the next it bounced off my lap and landed on my carpeted floor. Rafe’s worried voice floated up from the speaker, calling my name repeatedly.

I stared at the phone, wondering if I should pick it up. Picking it up would mean hearing Rafe’s explanation, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to know it. If I just ignored him—

If I just ignored him, he’d probably race over here, thinking Silver Moon had just knocked on my front door. (Hey, it had happened before. The knocking, I meant.)

Grumbling to myself, I scooped up the phone and said, “You have two seconds to explain yourself.”

“What did you do, throw the phone across the room?” Rafe teased.

I didn’t bother telling him I’d dropped it.

“It was late when we left, and we were both tired, so instead of driving to a hotel, I just went home.” His voice was laced with guilt. “I knew it; I should have asked you first.”

“No,” I said. “I mean, this is weird as hell, but I get it. She’s tired, you’re probably in pain… It wasn’t fair to ask you to take her to a hotel. We should have called a cab.”

“I really don’t mind. I was going to give her Evan’s old room, but she collapsed on the couch and immediately went to sleep.”

She must have been a lot more tired than she was willing to admit. And yet she’d had no problem fighting with Dad in the kitchen…

I guess between HQ blowing up while you were still in it, seeing two of your children for the first time in years, having Silver Moon show up at your doorstep, casting a teleporting spell, and then seeing your other child and husband, it made sense that she was exhausted.

Still… “I hope her crashing on the couch means she won’t get up in the middle of the night and run away.”

“I don’t think she will,” he reassured me. “You heard her in the field. She wants to make things right between you two, Gabi. You just need to give her a chance.”

“You’re right. I know you’re right, but there’s a part of me that’s afraid she’s going to leave,” I said, repeating what I’d told Chloe earlier. “And I don’t think I’ll ever be able to not feel that way.” I gripped my phone tighter. “I just don’t want her to come back, after all these years, and leave again. I don’t know what I’ll do if she does that.”

“I know. And I’m hoping she meant what she said earlier and
doesn’t
do that to you, but you should keep in mind everything she’s done. She summoned a demon. We’re supposed to kill her for that without any sort of trial. She shouldn’t be around you. It’s not safe. So I understand why she left in the first place.”

“I do, too,” I admitted, “but I don’t like it.”

“You don’t have to like it. There’s nothing to like about any of this. It sucks.”

“But at least she’s not dead,” I whispered.

“And she sealed your powers.”

I curled a strand of wet hair around my finger. “Is it weird that I’m not exactly happy about that? It’s good that I don’t have to worry about that scary-ass demon coming to eat me, but what if one of you gets hurt? What if I need to heal and I can’t and something horrible happens?”

“We’ve been hunting and getting hurt long before we met you, Gabi,” Rafe said gently. “And no one ever expected you to be our on-call healer. It’s not fair to assume that you’ll always be there, ready to sacrifice part of yourself to help us. We just need to be careful.”

What he wasn’t saying was that they needed to be careful while also protecting me from Silver Moon. With the seal in place, it would be easier to hide my powers, but what if someone was able to break the seal? What then? It would be naïve for any of us to think this was over just yet.

“I’m sorry I’m such a burden,” I mumbled.

“Don’t worry. I knew what I was getting into when I started dating you.”

I lifted my eyebrows. “
Excuse
me?”

Rafe started laughing, and I glared at the phone, wondering if he could sense the death rays I was sending his way. When he didn’t stop laughing, I knew it hadn’t worked.

“I knew it; I’m corrupting you,” I said, fighting a grin myself. “That totally sounded like something I would say.”

“Uh, oh,” he said. “Should I be worried?”

“That you’re becoming like me? No! You should be honored! That’s a compliment!”

“Sure, whatever you say.”

“Ugh!” I rolled my eyes. “I can’t talk to you when you’re like this; it’s too creepy! It’s like I’m talking to myself! Goodnight!”

“Hey, Gabi?”

“Yeah?” I asked hesitantly.

“I love you.”

My heart did a happy little leap. “I love you too.”

We said goodnight and hung up. Smiling, I put my phone on my dresser and shut off the light.
I’ll take a short nap,
I told myself,
and then check to see if Philip’s called. If I can even fall asleep, all wound up like this…

But the moment I closed my eyes, I drifted off into a deep sleep.

***

I was back in Manhattan, except it wasn’t the city that I knew. Sure, the super-tall buildings were there, crowding over me and making me feel as big as an ant, but everything else was missing. No insane traffic, no sirens, and absolutely no one hurrying down the streets. It was just me, standing in front of Mom’s building, surrounded by silence.

Craning my neck, I looked up and up and up, wondering if anyone was in the building, staring down at me. Or maybe I was the only person in all of Manhattan. It was so weird, and too quiet—even my breathing sounded loud. I knew this was a dream—it had to be—and yet everything felt so real.

“It’s strange, isn’t it?”

I whirled around at the sound of a vaguely familiar voice, but no one was there. My heart was racing, my hands trembling, and I realized it was one of
those
dreams, where you woke up and you had no idea where you were, or why your entire body was coated with sweat. After everything that had happened, it made sense that I was having this type of dream.

“Just a dream,” I whispered to myself, tapping my hands against my thighs. “I’m going to wake up any second now…”

“Are you so certain this is a dream?”

That voice again. Okay, this was getting annoying. “Either show yourself or go away. I don’t want to have a conversation with an invisible person. Unless you’re invisible for a reason. Like, you’re missing your head or you’re naked or something. Then you can stay invisible. Just… tell me where you’re standing so I can at least pretend I’m looking at you.”

The voice laughed. “I’m right here. You can’t See me?”

I froze. Somehow, I instinctively knew he had capitalized “see.” Why, though? I turned in a circle, gritting my teeth when I saw no one, save for my reflection in the office building’s glass window. Except—

No. That was wrong.
That
didn’t belong there.

Trembling, I took a step closer to the window. My body was outlined in thick, black shadows. When I moved my limbs, the shadows moved with them. “What the hell?” I whispered. I looked away from the window, staring first at my arms, and then my legs. The shadows weren’t there. But when I turned back to the glass, I could see them encircling me. My eyes were wide with panic, and I felt dizzy with fear.

These were the shadows from my other dream—the one with Rafe.

“Why?” I asked, horrified.

What a stupid question. I knew why. The shadows stretched themselves into a new, now familiar shape, while the voice whispered next to my ear, “You are mine. You will always be mine.”

The demon, the one Mom had made a bargain with, appeared, wrapping its bony arms around me and grinning a hideous smile as it guided its open mouth to my neck. I struggled against its ironclad grip, screaming and cursing, but the demon only laughed in response. It had come to take me, to do what it had promised Mom it would do seven years before, and I was powerless to stop it.

Our eyes met in the reflection of the glass, and I knew I was about to die.