Frog Hollow (Witches of Sanctuary Book 1) Read online

  His lips curve over his teeth with an increased air of smugness. “They look completely normal to me.” He laughs when he glances over at my scowl. “Okay, maybe they are a little surprised to see me. I just returned home for the summer.” He glances at me again, this time in hope of catching my reaction. “That, and I usually don’t hang with the Innocent.”

  I stop walking, and for a moment I have no reaction at all. My hand pauses with my cotton candy halfway to my mouth. He stops too, realizing what happened. His face holds a look like he is about to laugh but is waiting for the punch line. I swallow hard, my heart pounding in my chest. “Why not?”

  He walks back toward me, looking around to make sure no one in the crowd is paying attention. Luckily, I am still just another girl walking down the street. He wraps his free hand around mine, coaxing me to follow him again. “Let’s just say our families have a jaded past,” he says, dropping his voice. “They’ve known each other for a long time.”

  “Jaded how?”

  He slips his arm around my waist, pulling me against his side. “Not here,” he says lightly, turning to smile at the people walking past us.

  That’s when I see. The eyes on us. The stares that linger too long.

  It’s like one of those scenes in movies when the background freezes and the actor floats through it on display.

  “Okay,” I whisper back, my muscles tensing. “Then tell me something safe to talk about for now.”

  He makes a humming sound as he pretends to think of something to tell me. “I recently graduated from Tulane University.” He returns his voice to normal volume. “I was born in Charleston. My entire family is from Sanctuary, though. I moved back here when I was just a kid.”

  He pauses, waiting to see if I will comment. I give him a quick nod to let him know that was nice and acceptable. “I live on Raven Ridge, the opposite direction of Frog Hollow,” he says.

  A raven. His tattoo is a raven.

  “It’s the big brick house with a million red tulips in the yard. You can’t miss it.” He smiles to himself, because he knows I’m hanging on his every word now.

  “Go on.”

  “Now that I’ve graduated, I’m taking over my grandfather’s job at the bank, which is two streets that way.” He points his finger around my back to our left. The fact that he uses that as an excuse to run his fingers across my shoulders doesn’t go unnoticed.

  He’s smooth, I’ll give him that.

  “The bank,” I say, nodding. That explains why he was out on the balcony that night. “Sounds exciting.”

  He purses his lips, pleased with my reaction. “Almost as fun as books.”

  Despite the playful tone, I’m not oblivious to his motives. I know exactly what he’s doing. He’s attempting to gain my trust. Unfortunately for him, it takes a lot more than a few local connections to stop my suspicions.

  The crowd thins at the end of the street, and I take the opportunity to lean in close and repeat my previous question. “So why does it matter about our families’ past? Why don’t you hang out with the Innocent?”

  He turns around, walking backward down the street. He waves at someone over my shoulder, and I turn to see Abby and Sadie are very casually following us. Sadie smiles, too sweetly to be genuine. “I’m not really their type,” he says, grinning. “I’m not a high and mighty Prescott.”

  The name stings in my mind, and I know it’s familiar. It only takes one more look over my shoulder at Sadie’s face to recall my conversation with Cari at the diner that night.

  “You mean, like Ezekiel Prescott?” I ask, dropping my voice. “Sadie’s boyfriend?”

  Cari said Sadie’s boyfriend doesn’t eat at the restaurant. It was obvious Cari wasn’t fond of Ezekiel.

  “That would be the one.” Julien tries very hard to keep his features normal, but the contempt in his voice gives him away. “She’s been tragically in love with him for a while now.”

  “What about Reid?”

  “He isn’t an Innocent, and honestly, he’s not really my type.” He laughs at his own joke as he leans over to elbow me in the side. “C’mon, lighten up, Daniels. It’s a festival. We’re supposed to have fun.”

  I make a face to imply I am having a grand time, but I continue my questioning. “I was meaning to point out the fact that you make it sound as if you don’t particularly care for Reid or Ezekiel.”

  “No.” He looks forward, and for the first time, he isn’t smiling. “I do not.”

  “Why?”

  He comes to a sudden stop at the corner of the street. He steps forward and leans around the corner, and his original smile is back on his face. “How do you feel about heights?”

  Annoyance swells inside me, but I decide to let him off the hook. As he pointed out, Abby and Sadie haven’t run to my rescue yet, so he can’t be that bad. But it’s becoming obvious he is hiding something from me. “I’m not really a fan,” I say, answering his question. “I have a weak stomach for that sort of thing.”

  His grin widens. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

  He takes my hand, pulling me forward, and as I round the corner of the building, I see a sleek, jet-black motorcycle sitting on the sidewalk. I immediately halt. We haven’t been strolling around. He’s been leading me here the whole time. I throw an accusing glare at him.

  “You have questions,” he says evenly, taking the slightest of looks over my shoulder. “I have answers. Just not here. We don’t need an audience.”

  “I can’t.” I take second to gather my thoughts. “I mean, I won’t—I promised I wouldn’t leave their sight.”

  Julien’s eyes narrow at something behind me, and he curses under his breath.

  I look over my shoulder.

  Reid.

  Abby is obviously explaining everything to him, because you can see the anger building in his eyes. “Decide,” Julien says hastily, and I turn around to see him sitting on the bike, a shiny red helmet held out to me.

  “I can’t.”

  “Why? Because of him?”

  It strikes a nerve. “Why do you keep assuming that?”

  “Come with me, and I’ll tell you. Come with me, and I’ll explain anything you want to know about yourself, your mother’s death, and this godforsaken town.”

  I turn back to Reid. His face turns a ghostly white. I only have seconds to make my decision. It’s an easy one.

  I grab the helmet out of Julien’s hand and get on the bike behind him. The engine roars to life as I quickly push the helmet over my head. Reid crosses the street, shouting my name. I can read it on his lips, but I can’t hear him over the roar of the engine.

  “Hang on!” Julien yells, and my hands clamp around his waist as the bike lurches to life off the sidewalk, down the gray-clouded street, and into the oncoming darkness. I leave my family—and Reid—behind.

  The mountains engulf us as soon as we leave the city limits, the road narrowing, the curves becoming deeper and more defined. I cling tighter to him, ignoring the tiny hint of laughter I hear. We keep going higher, up into the mountains, the air thickening with the trees. That’s when I see it, the giant house built into the rocky mountainside. The sea of red tulips surrounds it.

  This is Julien’s home.

  We bypass his house, following the road all the way to the highest peak of the mountain. We finally stop, the road coming to a dead end. Julien cuts the bike’s engine and smiles over his shoulder at me. “Welcome to Raven Ridge.”

  I look around. My breath feels tight in my chest.

  He maneuvers off the bike in front of me. “You’re probably the first Innocent to set foot here in over two hundred years.”

  I slip off the bike, still eyeing him suspiciously. “Does that mean I’m stupid for trusting you?”

  “No. It means you’re not inherently judgmental.”

  I give him a confused look as I set the helmet on his bike.

  “Your little family back there is all hypocrites. The Haunted are all the same. Yet
they’ll trust the Prescotts and shun me.”

  “The Haunted?”

  Julien rolls his eyes, running his hands through his hair in obvious frustration. “They didn’t tell you anything, did they? Of course they wouldn’t want to ruin the precious Prescotts’ reputation.”

  “Why don’t you just answer my question?” I say, frustrated. “That’s why I came here.”

  He holds my intense stare and then finally nods. “Follow me.”

  He heads into the woods, up a worn path through the tree line, until finally we come out onto a gigantic boulder overlooking the valley. My breath jumps at the sight. I didn’t realize how high up we were until now. This isn’t just a rock. It’s a cliff. Julien casually walks out to the edge, looking over the steep decline.

  He turns around, his heels hanging over the ledge. “Ask me anything you want,” he says, motioning toward me.

  “What is the Haunted? And why didn’t Reid want me to leave with you?”

  “They are one in the same,” he explains, motioning me forward. “Come see.”

  I take few cautious steps but stop well short of his outstretched hand. He chuckles, pointing out at the vast lands beneath us. “Over there is Frog Hollow, the home of the Innocent. All the low-lying land to the left, that’s Shadow Bend. It’s where the Prescotts live.”

  “And you live here, in Raven Ridge.”

  “Yes. All of us divided. Just like it’s always been. You see, Wilhelmina, there is a legend in Sanctuary that locals know really isn’t a legend at all. Our families are connected, our lives all governed by this unwritten rule that we can’t be friends.” His features harden. “Except your family makes an exception for Ezekiel, like his damnation is somehow less than mine. I brought you here to tell you the truth before they can turn you against me.”

  I hear someone yell. Actually it’s a scream. Someone is screaming my name. Julien bites his lip. “It’s Reid,” he says, practically spitting out the words. “Come to rescue you from me. Do you see him trying to save Sadie from Ezekiel?”

  “I don’t understand, Julien. You’re only confusing me more. What makes you and Ezekiel so bad?”

  “No, not Ezekiel,” he says, laughing. “Just me. The question is—what makes me so bad?”

  When I don’t say anything, he shakes his head. “Don’t believe everything Reid tells you about me. I’m no worse than Zeke.”

  Reid bursts through the tree line, furious and cursing at the sight of me. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  I turn back to Julien, but he’s gone, the cliff’s edge empty. “Where did he go?” I say out loud, turning back to Reid.

  Reid grabs my wrist, his hand shaking. “Get in the damn truck.”

  ***

  The ride back to town is quiet. Reid is still visibly distraught. His hands grip so tightly around the steering wheel that his knuckles are white. I don’t dare speak again, but I can’t help but think about Julien. Where did he go? Surely not over the cliff’s edge? There must be another path, some secret way down the mountainside.

  When Reid screeches to a stop in front of the bookstore, Abby and Sadie are already there, standing outside with Sera. Reid jumps out of the truck, slamming the door.

  “Are you trying to get her killed?” he screams at Abby. “Because I could think of a less cruel way.”

  I exit the vehicle, following him. “We were with her the entire time,” Abby says, breathless when she sees me. “He wasn’t going to hurt her.”

  He gives Abby an incredulous look.

  “Let’s go inside,” Sera says. “Too many people are still out.”

  Reid swings the door open and stalks through it. We all follow him inside, and when the bell rings behind us, he turns around, his eyes on me. “Of all the people in this town you decide to hang out with, you choose him.”

  I open my mouth to protest, but he doesn’t give me a chance.

  “I thought it would be understood that if you stayed here, you wouldn’t put yourself at unnecessary risk.”

  “I don’t understand. What is so wrong with him? He seems nice enough to me.”

  The green light in Reid’s eyes fades to black. “Well, if that’s all it takes to—”

  I gasp as I watch my hand clench in front me. The air in Reid’s throat catches, rendering him unable to finish his sentence. I immediately let go, but he falls to his knees. I step forward, looking down at him as he tries to catch his breath.

  “I may have made a mistake,” I say through gritted teeth. “And if I did, I will admit to it. But let me make one thing clear to you, Reid Thomas. You will not throw it in my face or degrade me because of it.”

  His hand touches his neck, his breathing evening back out. The anger is still there, but the fire is gone. “You made one hell of a mistake,” he says slowly, opening his jaw to stretch out the muscles in his cheek. “Excuse me for losing my temper at the thought of him killing you while I watched.”

  “What happened?” Sera steps up, placing herself between us and then looking back to Abby and Sadie.

  “That’s right,” Reid says with a growl. “Ask your precious daughter that question. She is the one who let Wilhelmina run off on a date with one of the Haunted.”

  Sera raises her eyes in shock as she looks to the girls. “Mom,” Abby whines. “It’s just Julien Cote.”

  “He’s harmless,” Sadie adds. “We all know that.”

  “Wait,” I scream in the background. “Who are the Haunted? What does that mean?” But no one seems to hear me. My cracking voice fades into the far corners of the store without notice.

  “He’s one of them,” Reid interjects, yelling at Sadie now. “He could be responsible for Fiona’s death. Or have your forgotten about that? Maybe you just don’t care anymore.”

  Sadie leaps forward, but Abby holds her back. She steps around her, slowly stalking toward her brother, and I watch as the light also fades out of her eyes. “Don’t you dare accuse us of not caring about Fiona. I can’t help that you’re a hypocrite.”

  Reid’s gaze drops to the floor.

  “Your best friend is one of the Haunted. But I don’t see you flipping out because he’s at Sadie’s house every night.”

  My mouth is open now, speechless. Julien was right. They treat him differently than Ezekiel.

  “Zeke is different, and you know that,” Reid says. “But if I suspected his family had anything to do with Fiona’s death, I would have a problem with it.”

  “You have no proof Julien’s family did,” Sadie says. “You barely know him.”

  “I know enough.”

  I finally reach the limit of my mental capacity, and it is all I can take. My head spins, a thousand thoughts trying to force their way through for my comprehension. I begin screaming at them, begging for someone to please help me understand, but my voice is silent to their own argument.

  I need answers, and if they won’t give them to me, I know someone who will. I know where Julien lives. I’ll find him, and he’ll tell me what I want to know. I dart past them, but Reid catches my arm. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  “To find Julien.” I jerk my arm away and stare at him. “Maybe he’ll actually take the time to explain it to me.”

  “The hell you will.”

  “He won’t hurt me,” I say, but it only causes Reid to laugh.

  “No. He’ll just make you fall in love with him, then let you go so he can have the pleasure of stalking you until you fail to amuse him anymore.” He pulls me against his chest, holding me in his arms. “Then he’ll kill you.” His lips drop between us, whispering low enough that only I can hear. “I will not lose you that way. Choke me to death or not, I will stop you.”

  “All right,” Sera says loudly behind us. “That is quite enough.”

  I stay quiet, waiting for her to walk over and pry Reid’s hands from me, but she doesn’t come right away. “Wilhelmina will be staying with me for the remainder of the evening,” she announces to everyon
e, but Reid flinches as she places her hand on his shoulder. “You’ve done your job. She’s safe now. You’re free to leave.”

  “No. I’m not leaving.” He faces his mother. Stern. “No offense, Mom, but you never seem to see the danger in anything.”

  Sera sighs and drops her hand from him. “Then I guess you won’t mind helping her watch the tent?”

  “Not at all.”

  “Mom,” Abby says, groaning. “He’ll only torture her all evening.”

  Reid presses his lips into a hard line, straining to keep to his voice calm. “If torture means keeping her alive, then yeah, her evening is going to suck.”

  “I said that is enough.” The room falls silent again, and for the first time I sense the Sera’s raw power as the energy in the room changes. We all shrink away from it. “Now, Abby,” she says evenly, “why don’t you and Sadie go find Zeke? I’m sure he will be interested to know Julien is apparently home for the summer.”

  Abby is about to protest again, but Sadie tugs her arm. “Let’s go,” she whispers. “They need some time alone.”

  Abby glares at Reid. “Be nice. I know that’s difficult for you most of the time.”

  Reid makes a face in response, and we stand there and watch them all leave one by one. Once the door closes, I begin trying to straighten my shirt, but his arms are still on my shoulders. “Do you mind?” I try to shrug him off.

  “I do.” He spins me around until I look up at him. “I still have something to say to you.”

  He moves forward, and I retreat until my back hits the counter. My breath shakes at his intense posture in front of me. He is so close now his breath hits my skin. “You will not do that to me again,” he says in the same cool, controlled voice as before. “Do you hear me?”

  “I didn’t know I was doing anything wrong.”

  “Don’t lie to me,” he says, losing control only for a brief moment, but he quickly recovers. “You knew.”

  I open my mouth, but he cuts me off.

  “I don’t want to hear an excuse.” His voice is still harsh, but he leans in closer, and I finally realize he is hugging me. “You will not do that to me again.”