Dark Promise by Annika West

11

But that brother had died, right? His bones were found…

My heart skipped a beat. Bones. Not a body. Did they find his actual body and confirm it had been him?

His brows shot up. Then, he dropped his stance. His hands and arms melted back to normal. “He told you about me?”

I gaped at him. “Yes. That you’re supposed to be dead, mostly. And why do you look like him?”

He stretched his arms out wide. “A genetic miracle called…” he took in a deep breath and gave a dramatic pause, “twins.”

“Looks like only one of you got the brain cell,” I deadpanned. “So, why are you alive and sneaking into my bed?”

He smiled.

I took an unconscious step back. He had Hux’s face but none of the seriousness. It was so weird to see that brilliant, sunny expression when I was so used to smoky scowls and CEO voices.

“So rude of me. I’m Ozais Cayne. Huxley’s more-handsome brother. You can call me Oz.”

“Take it back,” I demanded.

He ran a hand through his loose hair. “Which part? I think you got mad at me a few times.”

I placed my hands on my hips. That should show him how serious I really was.

“Uh…” he floundered. “I wasn’t really looking to sleep with you. Today, at least.”

“Nope.”

“The drool isn’t that bad?”

“Wrong again. And by the way, you don’t actually sound sorry for any of this.”

He schooled his features and cleared his throat. It looked like the total act it was. “I’m very sorry for imitating my more handsome, very talented younger brother, Huxley. Very bad of me, very bad of me indeed.”

“I don’t care about that!” I replied with my chin lifted high.

He thought for a moment and released his faux-seriousness. Then, he gave me a look that I’m sure made all of his drug dealers fall in love with him. “I think your candle collection is lovely. I’m so very sorry for insulting it.”

I let out a heavy breath and nodded. “Okay. Now we can start over. But for the record, I do not trust your sketchy ass.”

This man, this two-century-year-old man, pouted. “You don’t like my ass?”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Why do I feel like the adult in the room right now? That is honestly the most terrifying prospect ever. So, so wrong.”

A yelp shot out of my mouth as Oz threw a muscular arm around me. “I think you and I are going to get along great, Aster.”

“Get off of me!” I grunted, shoving the block wall of a man. “Just because I realized who you are doesn’t make us besties! Get! Off!”

He yanked me tighter, oblivious to my struggle. “Just imagine! You help me irritate him. I tell you embarrassing things about his childhood.”

I froze.

My neck audibly creaked as I looked up at him.

He was nodding suggestively. “Oh yes. I’m talking puberty.”

“Oh my lanta,” I whispered. “Is this supposed to make me ignore the fact that you’re alive and obviously in hiding?”

“So, you’re in?”

“I’m in starting yesterday. Spill it. Now!”

He reached over with his other hand and pinched my cheek. “Such a greedy girl.”

“You will tell me everything you know about Puberty Hux.”

“Not until you help me first.”

He released me so suddenly that my knees buckled, and I crashed to the ground. Not that Oz noticed or cared. He was too busy talking and feeling important.

“Since you’re so eager, I’m sure you’ll have no problem hearing Lord Adair out.”

“About what?”

“Oh, you have to hear it from him. Important father-daughter bonding stuff. Braiding each other’s hair. I hear he makes a mean flower crown —”

He caught sight of me and frowned. “What are you doing down there?”

“I fell and got tired, so I stayed down here to rest.”

“What are you tired for? You were sedated by a faery spell. Should have gotten wonderful sleep.”

I groaned. “You are actively leeching my energy, and I haven’t eaten in way, way too long. I missed my midnight cereal and gummy worm buffet. Now, go get me coffee.”

“No can do, my love.”

“Then tell me how you’re alive.”

He gave me — I kid you not — finger guns. “I just keep on breathing, baby! Isn’t that how we all do it?”

Horrified, I whispered, “What the fuck was that supposed to mean?”

Oz seemed to only grow bolder with my growing terror, which meant he broke out into a really bad salsa dance that lasted about ten seconds but ended with a series of hip thrusts that would get him kicked off any stage except the ones with a pole.

Then he left my room, calling, “Breakfast is in fifteen minutes! Wipe that drool off your pretty mouth and be there!”

In the next five seconds, Willow stormed into my room. “You are an idiot.”

“What?”

She yanked me into the bathroom, shut and locked the door, and turned the shower on high.

“Please tell me you’re not trying to shower with me,” I groaned, completely drained. “I’ve had enough of being hit on for the entire week. I can’t do it again.”

Willow flicked my forehead. “Focus! That was Cayne’s brother.”

“Duh! I heard that whole thing.” Why did her whispers sound like screaming? Why did she look so weird this morning?

I feel like if I was properly fed, I’d be able to figure it out. But Willow looked really different right now.

“His supposedly dead brother.”

“You keep saying the obvious things like they’re new things.”

She gave me a look that told me I was supposed to get something I wasn’t getting. “So?!”

“So, what?” I screeched.

She shook me by the shoulders. “Cayne said that his parents died the same day that his broth — Ozais disappeared, right?”

“Uh huh.” It was getting super steamy in the bathroom.

“Don’t turn that off,” she hissed as I reached for the shower nozzle. “It’s for a sound barrier!”

“Sheesh.”

“Don’t you see the obvious problem? Cayne’s parents are found dead. The safe full of magical artifacts is busted open and sold to dangerous people around the world. Ozais is supposedly dead. Only he isn’t dead.”

“Right. It’s pretty weird,” I admitted.

Willow was clearly about to murder me. For what? Who could ever know. She was perpetually ready to toss me off the edge of a cliff, despite her deep, deep love for our friendship.

“Isn’t it obvious?” She looked away, angry, and to my surprise, a little fearful. “Ozais killed their parents and sold all of his mother’s artifacts, then escaped to Faery to hide.”

I smacked my forehead. Dread filled me. “Shit. You’re totally right.”

“And he totally just played you. Promising you meaningless stories about Cayne’s childhood. Acting all innocent and playful and buddy-buddy. Makes me sick,” she spat out.

Even more exhausted, I said, “I have to eat. My blood sugar is super, super low, and it doesn’t help me think straight. What do we do?”

It had seemed like an awesome idea to ditch Earth and come to Faery for a joyride. The perfect thing to make Hux absolutely infuriated and get me the much-needed space.

And, if I was lucky, I’d receive some semblance of an answer for… well, my entire stupid life.

Except now, it was as if I was dunked deeper into Hux’s life and problems.

Things just got so much more complicated. And dangerous.

Willow said, “We have no idea what they want. We can’t trust that your father or Ozais are interested in keeping us safe. They brought you here for a very specific reason. We have to find out what that is before it’s too late.”

“Ugh,” I groaned and cradled my head in my arms. “So much thinking. Not enough sugar.”

Willow grumbled something violent that definitely had to do with killing me if we ever got out of this alive.

She grabbed my jaw in a vice-like grip and snarled. “Your job is to keep your mouth shut and let me do the talking. Act like you always do, but say nothing important. Am I clear?”

“Shouldn’t we have a signal if I’m like… unclear about something?” I asked through my fish lips.

Willow bared her fanged teeth at me. “The normal signal, just give the normal thumbs-up signal. Only if you really need it, okay?”

“Okay. Can we go eat now?” I begged.

“You are pathetic.” She stood. “Wash the drool from your face. Be ready in five minutes.”

Everything in my body was dying for food. I gave myself a half-assed shower and found a weird set of clothing in the closet that made me look like a seventy-year-old human man in the Hamptons.

So much linen. So little structure.

Fuck, I should have made Adair stop off at Vulcan Corp. and grab some of my best T-shirts.

And now, I had to uncover lies that outdated my existence.

Here I thought I’d be escaping Hux in Faery. Turns out I just fell neck-deep into his problems all over again.