Vala Eminence (8 page)

“Who? Wait, I'm guessing your sister and her boy-toy and his brother?” Denver asked, referring to Jewl and the twins. Because Teague had no clue about whom he actually was. The story Jewl had been fed was that she was Teague's older sister, and both were a product of Aphrodite's love affair with Jewl's father. Denver liked Jewl enough to not shatter her world by telling her she would someday be a mother. From what he knew of her, Denver gathered she had some issues when it came to her relationship with Anj. Then again, who wouldn't have issues with Anj? He was annoying and a handful.

Teague went quiet again, but nodded after a few seconds had passed. “Mostly, uh, the Seer. I mean, Anj? Yeah, that's his name. He doesn't like you. Z is for Horns hasn't said much. He's so quiet now whenever your name comes up. I don't think he likes you either. Shiny Things, I mean, Jewl, she tells me I can be friends with whoever I want to. Then the brothers agree, and it's confusing.”

“It's simple, do you want to be my friend?”

“Yeah.”

“Then be my friend.” Denver waved a hand in front of him. “They're going to tell you what you should and shouldn't do a lot. It's what they're good at. In the end, you make your own decisions and judgments. If you think I'm cool to be around, then that's your prerogative, not theirs. You following? They may be onto something. I'm not a nice guy.”

“You're nice to me,” Teague said softly.

Shrugging, Denver started walking again. “It's as much of a mystery to me as it is to them. Probably because you haven't irritated me yet. No offense, you're dumb as a brick, but since it's not your fault and you're trying to get smart, it doesn't frustrate me too much. Besides, I like that you're probably the most honest person on the planet. Too many people lie. It gets old fast.”

Nodding, Teague's smile returned. “They think you're going to make me do bad things. That because I don't know a lot, you'll teach me to do things that aren't the best and disguise them as something that's okay. They use big words like manipulation and corruption, and have side conversations with themselves thinking I'm not understanding them. But I'm following along. I'm not an idiot. I'm just trying to reconnect with what I do know. Does that make sense?”

“Sure. You're trying to relearn everything in your brain. It's not like you're dumb and can't understand things. You just don't remember. I get it, you don't need to explain it to me again.”

“Sorry,” Teague mumbled.

“Chill, I already know you have the memory of a goldfish. It's part of dealing with whatever happened to you,” Denver said.
Note to self, do not go time traveling because it makes your brain like Swiss cheese.
He clapped a hand on Teague's back. “And that's why I don't mind hanging around you and helping out. Consider you my good deed for my homework this week.”

Teague scrunched up his nose. “So you're only being nice to me for school?”

“Nah, I'm nice to you because you don't annoy me. I told you that. When you do annoy me, trust me, I'll be just like I am to everyone else. But Mr. Thantos told me to do something nice for a change, and since I need all the extra credit I can get, I'm taking him up on the challenge. So what can I help you with?”

“I don't need help,” Teague said. “I came to you because I thought maybe you did since you were saying all of those bad words. Something made you angry or sad.”

“Angry, yes.” Denver let go of the teen and put his hands into his pockets.

“What's wrong?”

Denver growled quietly. He didn't want to, but his frustration with the whole Mr. Thantos situation was starting to get the better of him. “The homework I just told you about. I'll be honest and say it's not an assignment I'm looking forward to.”

Frowning, Teague glanced over at him. “Why not?”

“Because I don't like people all that much, and he's a stupid…” He met Teague's gaze and stopped himself. “He's right about too many things.”

“Then he's not stupid.”

“No, but he still makes me mad. I don't like it when he's right. It rubs me the wrong way.”

“Because that means you're wrong.” Denver shot Teague a glare and the kid bristled, putting his hands up defensively. “I just mean, that's why it makes you mad. I don't like being wrong either. It makes me angry with myself. I should have known better.”

Denver shook his head. How was Teague so good at hitting the nail on the head? “It's like I get that I've messed up big time. Him telling me to do all of this is like rubbing my face into the mud. It's not cool.”

Nodding, Teague returned his attention to his hands. “I know someone who needs your help. If you're wanting some ideas, that is. Because you can try and help me, but…”

“You're scared and not ready for all of the answers to come at the same time. Yeah, you've told me that before.” Denver couldn't help but wonder just how much Teague was holding himself back from returning home again with that kind of an attitude.

Another nod, and Teague exhaled sharply. “There's also a couple of other things I need to do first. Deep inside of me, I know I'm here for a reason, and my biggest fear is that if I remember everything I forgot and go back home… it'll happen before I do the thing I'm supposed to do.”

“That's a distinct possibility,” Denver agreed. “So who should I help if it's not going to be you?”

“Z is for Horns.”

Denver's fists clenched at his sides. “No.”

Gasping, Teague tilted his face up and looked at Denver with the most wide, confused and pathetic blue eyes. “No? Why not?”

“First of all, he's not going to want my help. Second, you know how I don't like most people? He's one of them I loathe with a passion. It goes beyond simple dislike, and that's saying a lot. His brother is annoying and I dislike him. Zes ignites violent urges inside of me. So unless you think helping him involves a good punch in the face, you need to give me a different idea.” Denver scowled.
Zes, of all people he had to name Zes.

Sniffles could be heard coming from Teague. When Denver risked a peek at the kid, he saw the teen boy wipe at his eyes. “Why are you crying?”

“My heart hurts,” Teague said. “I don't know why, but it hurts .”

With a groan, Denver raked his hands through his hair. “I don't know what he needs help with anyway. He seems to be recovering from his breakup just fine. Pretty sure he's going to be okay kiddo.”

“No, no, he's not going to be okay. I know it, deep down inside of me, I know. Maybe he's part of the reason why I've come back.” Teague blinked a few more tears from his eyes, and then laughed. “I know I shouldn't be crying, and that it's not a thing that men do, but whenever I think about him and how much he's hurting it feels like something inside of me has died.”

Denver frowned more. What was the future like? Was this Teague's not so subtle way of connecting to a memory from his other life? Of course Zes would be important to Teague, even if it was only in the boy's subconscious. The twins were close and nothing but death would ever change that, he imagined.
This has got to be connected with Lucien and what happened to Cheyenne and Zes in the underworld. If it'll help her, then helping him can't be a bad idea.

Pushing his pride aside, Denver sucked in a slow breath. “Okay, I'll see if I can do
something
nice for Z is for Horns. Only because I can't stand it when you cry, kid. It's like looking at a kicked puppy or a sad kitten or something. It's just not right. But you gotta learn to buck up. If you let sad things make you so upset, someone could use that against you. Plus, what if you have to be strong in order to fight? You can't fight if you're scared and bawling your eyes out. That could get you killed. The Dark doesn't care about how you're feeling. It's still after you right?”

“I still have nightmares about it and sometimes I hear whispers when I pass by shadows, but it isn't as bad as when I first got here.” Teague shrugged. “If the teachers can't help me, I don't think you can either. Because, the black angel seems to know everything about how to stop the Dark from getting to me. He can't do anything, and no one is stronger than him.”

“Yes,” Denver mumbled.

“Huh?”

Shaking his head, Denver tapped his chin as he tried to connect everything together in his mind. There was a reason the demons, the Dark, were so afraid of Teague or else they wouldn't try to attack or torment him so much. Just like there was a reason whatever was going on with Zes was so painful for the kid. There was also a reason behind why Cheyenne wanted Zes so much and why he was a part of Lucien's contingency plan.
He might be onto something with why he's been brought back to the past, but I don't think he gets why he scares Lucien so much. Lucien may be a monster, but he doesn't go through so much trouble to get rid of people he doesn't feel threatened by.
The idea of a demon being frightened of an innocent kid caused Denver to laugh.

Teague tilted his head to the side. “What's so funny?”

Denver smirked. “I just figured something out and I feel super smart. Look, buddy, I'll catch you later. Try to stay out of trouble until then.”

“I will. I always do!” And the kid beamed with so much pride, Denver wanted to give him a cookie.

Waving, Denver made his way back to Hermes Hall where his dorm room was. Once back in the comfort of his own territory, he kicked off his shoes and settled in on the couch.

With all of his new revelations on life came the difficult task of coming up with a plan to test all of his theories. If he wasn't the school jerk, doing everything he needed to might not have been so hard. Because practically everyone hated his guts, the hardest part would be to get the necessary parties to put their trust in him.
Being nice isn't the way to go. There's no way anyone will buy into that. If Cheyenne thinks it's weird when I compliment her or show her sympathy, fat chance playing sweet and nice is going to do much for Zes. It'll only make him more suspicious of me. No, I need to come after him from a different angle.

The only thing the two had in common was their love for Cheyenne, and that was not something they could talk about. Or was it? Zes had to have noticed all of her bizarre behaviors too. Maybe he was just as worried. Denver didn't know much about love, but he imagined that once a person started, they didn't just stop. At least, Denver couldn't ever stop loving her. Maybe Zes was different. Cheyenne talked about degrees of love and most of that went over Denver's head. Someday he might understand it better.

It would be a lot easier for him to talk to Zes if he had a school-related reason to do so. The two didn't share any classes or after school activities. For being so popular, neither of the twins participated in any clubs or sports. Even Denver played football, and he was the worst of all outcasts. School became so boring without anything to do outside of homework.

He checked the clock. “I think they said they were going to the Old Union one of these nights,” he mumbled. That was one place the twins frequented often. Anj lived to dance, or something equally as lame. He liked to think he was good at it, but the guy could use some formal training. For someone who was self-taught he was decent enough. The only reason anyone probably thought he was amazing was because he was so confident.

Catching Zes while his brother went out dancing was probably Denver's best bet. The Old Union was loud and had a number of places where the two could talk uninterrupted. Plus, Anj would be occupied with Jewl on the dance floor instead of looming around his twin like a bodyguard. Denver thought it cute that the guy wanted to protect his brother. Given all of the drama and adventures of the year, it seemed like a natural enough reaction. Seeing as how Anj was blind as a bat and worthless with his magic, however, the entire effort came across as vain.
Must be a sibling thing. I'm glad I don't have any.

Like usual, the first thing Denver saw upon entering the Old Union were the regular patrons hanging out around the bar. Most of them he knew by name. Some of the women had even been his conquests once upon a time. A fake ID and a good story got him plenty of “fun” once upon a time, but reflecting back on it he only saw how pathetic he was.
Just wanted to be another one of the cool kids in the demon club.
The change of heart had everything to do with Cheyenne; she filled his soul in a new way. It could have only been the newness of their relationship experiment, but he didn't even look twice at the people he used to get friendly with.

He was on a mission, and he was determined to not let anything get in the way of it. Instead of going to his lessons with Mr. Thantos, Denver canceled so he could practice his new soul-spying trick and plan how he was going to start up his conversation with Zes. It took Denver the whole two days to find a way to start talking that didn't come across as unnatural. He'd never been good at scripting his life. Everything was easier when he went with the flow — even if it did get him into trouble.

“Denver, babe, why aren't you coming over to hang out with us?” he heard one college-age woman call out. He wanted to say her name was Megan, but he honestly couldn't remember. She'd told him it one time, and that had been ten months ago.

Ignoring her was easiest. Engaging her in any kind of verbal exchange would result in her taking up too much of his time. Once she would start talking, she wouldn't stop and his window of opportunity to sequester Zes was small.

He found the twins sitting in their usual booth next to the dance floor. Anj had his back to the entryway with his arm around Jewl's shoulders. She was snuggled up with her back against his side and her legs spread out on the seat of the booth. Across from the “adorable” couple was Zes. He had himself squished into the corner with his legs slightly spread to give some boundaries to his territory. The Noel girl who bothered Cheyenne so much sat next to him. Her body language also suggested she was trying to maintain some kind of personal space because she sat with her arms in tight against her and her legs crossed at the knees.

Looks like they're on an awkward double date. How sweet.
Denver doubted Zes actually wanted to be on a date. Which was another reason Denver hated Anj so much, the guy always liked to do things that were more in his best interest than anyone else's. What the twins did was their business until it interfered with his own. Having Noel with the group would make it more difficult for him to get some one-on-one time with Zes.

It was a good thing Denver was patient. He found a place to sit in the next booth over from the twins, keeping himself inconspicuous as he sat down with his back to the group. After ordering a few appetizers and a soda, he was ready for a potentially long night.
Glad the food doesn't suck or this would be the pits.
He killed most of the time by playing games on his cellphone. Every so often he'd try to eavesdrop on what the twins were talking about. Like usual, Anj hogged most of the conversation.

“Prom is exactly two months away,” Anj said. Even if the twins sounded similar, Denver knew enough about their personalities to tell the two apart based on word choice and topic alone. Anj also had a firmer tone to his voice, exuding confidence.

Zes on the other hand almost always had a hint of uncertainty to everything he said. “It's the end of April this year?”

“That's what my calendar says,” his brother replied. Denver was glad he didn't have to be subjected to the conversation against his free will. Zoning out at the table was hard to do sometimes.

“Good to know,” Zes mumbled.

One of the twins sighed. Denver assumed it was Anj because it sounded rather irritated. There was some shifting in the booth, and then Anj spoke again.

“Jewl, I think we should go practice our spotlight dance for when they name us king and queen — again.”

“You mean prince and princess?” Jewl provided. “Because no matter how cool you think you are, you can't break the rules, sweetie.” There was sarcasm attached to her term of endearment. Denver loved it when she put Anj in his place. Perhaps that's what made them so perfect for one another. They acted more like an old married couple than sappy young lovers. Was that true love?
I need some better role models to examine. I trust Jewl, but him
—
not so much.

There was silence at the table outside of a few chomping and slurping sounds. Knowing Zes, he was probably practicing his usual food shoveling ritual so he could get out of talking. It was awkward enough to listen to, Denver couldn't imagine actually having to sit at the table to live it.
How could Cheyenne stand to date this guy for longer than a week?
Maybe I should go over there and invade just to make things less weird for them? Salvage his date before she runs for the hills or something.

Zes sighed. “I'll be right back.”

“Sure thing,” Noel said.

“I, uh, need you to move so I can get out. Unless you want me going under the table?”

“Looking for an excuse to peek up my skirt?” Her tone was teasing in nature. Denver snorted.
Ten bucks says he's redder than a fire truck right about now.

Zes actually laughed. “Caught me, next time I'll have to be more discreet. Seriously, though, I drank like seven cans of soda before coming here. It's kind of urgent.”

There was some more shifting and Denver watched as Zes breezed by his table. Once Zes was in the bathroom, Denver got out of his booth and casually followed. He stood off to the side by the bathroom entrance, waiting for Zes to finish doing his business. When he spotted Zes coming toward him from around the corner, Denver stuck his leg out just enough to cause the guy to trip. What he wasn't expecting was for Zes to not only stumble, but fall into one of the bar patrons before landing on the ground. Even more unfortunate was that he had landed on Paul, one of the more rough customers who came to the Old Union.

Paul wasn't the violent type, thankfully. He glared down at Zes before knocking over a water glass so that the contents spilled on the rather flustered teen boy.

Try not to laugh, try not to laugh, try not t
o laugh, ah, forget it, I gotta…
Denver burst into laughter, leaning back onto the wall behind him. Zes's dark eyes flashed with gold as his gaze caught sight of Denver.

“Ha, ha, ha,” Zes mumbled and stood up. He stepped away from the bar and shook water off his shirt before taking a napkin from a waitress. Shaking his head, he started back for his booth.

Quick like lightning, Denver grabbed Zes's arm. “Hold on.”

“Haven't you humiliated me enough tonight?” Zes groaned.

“I wasn't trying to humiliate you, just get your attention.”

“It worked, but I'm not interested in you like that, sorry.”

Denver narrowed his green eyes. “Don't flatter yourself.”

“What do you want Colorado?” Zes spat.

Being called Colorado was one of Denver's biggest pet peeves. He had a whole slew of nicknames for Zes, but none of them seemed to bother him as much as that one name bothered Denver. Biting his tongue, he took in a deep breath before he did something he would later regret, like slug the guy. There would be another moment to hit Zes again, and it wouldn't result in getting a ban from one of his favorite dives or an assault charge. Last time Denver got into a fight, he'd managed to slip away with a warning because he was a minor and provoked by a pretty nasty drug addict while in a bar. If he got in trouble with the law for fighting Zes, there would be no contest over who the cops would believe. Zes was too “perfect” and “innocent” to do wrong, with his straight-A's and preppy clothes.

Denver took a few more slow breaths before opening his eyes and locking his gaze on Zes's. “I just wanted to talk about something. Whether you like it or not, everything that's been happening over this past year has connected us. We've got to deal with it, or it's just gonna keep making things worse and more complicated.”

“I don't know what you're talking about,” Zes mumbled and tried to push his way past Denver. But Denver wasn't about to let him walk away. He grabbed Zes by the arm, the one where he had been branded by the demons in the underworld, and pulled him back. A small hiss left Zes's lips as he winced from the touch, like Denver was hurting him.

Narrowing his green eyes, Denver brought Zes off to the side so they could talk with ease. “Either you're a big wuss, or that burn is really burning, huh? And it's burning because of
her
. Like I said, we're all connected. Pretending it didn't happen isn't going to make things magically get better, man. You've got to face this, or…”
Or the world might end.
“Or you're going to be a lot worse off.”

Zes wrenched his arm free from Denver's grasp. “It's not your business, so I would prefer if you just butted out. I'm civil with you because I saw what you did to help my brother. I still don't know what happened with him exactly, but I'm grateful all the same. Don't make me regret it.”

“Ooh, I'll be outcast from the cool kids club again, I'm so petrified,” Denver mocked. “Get over yourself. And it is my business because Cheyenne is my business. If I can help her, I'm going to do it. If that means I have to help you too, then I'll bite the bullet and make it happen.”

“You've got it bad for her, huh?”

“You sound so surprised.”

“I am, because I didn't think you had a heart capable of loving. Or is it because you still haven't made her one of your conquests yet?”

“Still hung up on her?” Denver folded his arms in front of him, ready to stake his claim on
his
girlfriend if need be — again.

Shaking his head, Zes faced away from him. “No, I'm not hung up on someone who cheats. Once a cheater, always a cheater. I'd never be able to trust her again. I wish I could just write her out completely but… she's also the only person I can talk to and…”

“You're connected, and not just because you two decided to hook up.” Denver touched Zes's arm again, his fingers pressing over where he thought the demon's brand was.

Zes's dark eyes closed. “I don't know what you're doing but it…”

“It what? Hurts?”

“Tingles, actually.”

“Interesting…” Denver moved his hand away. “That
thing
is the problem and until it's gone, nothing is going to be better for anyone.”

Scoffing quietly, Zes held his arms. “You're sure sweet and all for wanting to fix things, but nothing can be done. Please,
please
, just leave me alone?”

“What if I could make it better? Destroy your connection, free you from the magical burden that keeps you from moving forward. Then what? Because I bet without it, you'd be able to find some other person to tell all your stupid secrets to. And I'll be happy because then Cheyenne wouldn't talk about you like you're some kind of a trophy. She'll be happy because…” Denver exhaled slowly, unsure of how much he dared to admit. “She'll be free.”

“Free?”

“Yeah.”
Free from you, free from Lucien, free from this whole mess. It wouldn't surprise me if that brand was some kind of a spell put in place to keep her hooked into Lucien's stupid plans. He certainly didn't brand you because he wanted her to be happy. Something else is going on. If I can get the brand off, maybe it'll stop all of the brainwashing going on with Cheyenne.
But as much as he wanted to spill his guts to Zes, he didn't know how much the other guy was informed. A massive info dump in the bar would get reported back by the demons who were no doubt lurking in the shadows.

Zes groaned. “Care to elaborate?”

“Free from feeling obligated to keep dealing with you. She's always so guilt-ridden over everything. Maybe if you didn't suffer anymore, she'd be able to move on. When she does, you do too. Duh.” Denver folded his arms in front of his chest, squaring his shoulders, and tried to keep his confident posture.

Frowning slightly, Zes shook his head. “Something else is going on. You mentioned talking about me like a trophy. I've never heard her do that.”

“I can tell you all about it another time then if you want to know and have your ego petted,” Denver sneered. “So do you want to do this or not? Because I can make it so we're all disconnected in a bunch of different ways, but the other ones might hurt more than what I'm thinking.”

“And what are you thinking?”

“Again, we can talk about that another time.”

“I'm not agreeing to anything if I don't know what it is.”

Denver nodded. “Just agree to talk with me on campus. I won't do anything but talk. Okay?”

“Um, okay?”

“Got it, I'll send you details later. Go back to your hot date before she thinks you fell into the toilet.”

With a roll of his eyes, Zes walked away. “She wouldn't think that if you hadn't come by.”

Whatever.
Denver threw a wad of cash onto his table where he'd been sitting and left the Old Union. His good-deed was done for the time being.