Trevor would have if he'd lived to be this age," Toby said.
Matilda turned away, silent again.
Toby resumed sweeping, careful to keep his thoughts from straying too far towards the lovely, Jacqueline Huston.
Or his dead son.
****
"What are you doing!?" Jacqueline screamed as she rolled to the side of her bed. The knife Gabe held slid into the mattress instead of her.
"You should have died! I'm helping you!" Gabe pulled the knife free and turned to her. "Your kind should never have been born. It's an abomination!"
"I can't help that my parents conceived me, you freak!"
"I don't mean that kind of birth. I mean your half banshee nature!"
"I can't help that either!"
She screamed as he lunged at her again.
"Can't we just talk about this?" Jacqueline asked before ducking through the bedroom door. Trying not to fall, she ran down the stairs, headed for the front door. "Shit!"
Gabe materialized in front of her, a small smile on his handsome face.
"You can't get away from me. I know how to track you. We're blood, Jacqueline."
"Then why are you trying to kill me? I mean, family is supposed to be the one thing you can count on," she said as she backed away.
"That's why I want to kill you. Look at it as the ultimate family gift."
"Gift? How do you figure stabbing me is a gift?"
"Because then you'll be dead and we can carry on with our respective job functions within the family tree." Gabe tapped his foot. "Hasn't that wizard explained to you that you are too dangerous the way you are now? You are upsetting the balance! If you die, everything will be as it should be."
"I don't want to die!" Anger surged, bubbling up like a volcanic lava flow that had been repressed in the core of her being for too long.
Gabe's eye widened.
"What do you think you're doing," he asked. "You know you can't actually hurt me, right? I'm way too powerful."
"You're pissing me off," she answered. Energy pulsed beneath her skin and she raised her hands.
Now it was his turn to step back. Jacqueline thought she saw just a hint of fear in his eyes, and she knew instinctively that he was lying to her about his inability to be harmed. What else might he be lying about?
He placed the knife on the table next to the front door and held up his hands.
"Okay, look. I've put the knife down."
But the anger had taken hold and the energy she felt reminded her of the same strong feeling she'd gotten when the silver box was opened. Electricity sparked from her fingers.
"Why are you scared?" She narrowed her eyes. "After all, you’re already dead. It's only living people I can harm. You said yourself that you are a more powerful being. Right?"
He nodded quickly, but his eyes told a different story.
"Wrong." She moved to him with small slow steps. "I bet I can hurt you. Maybe even tear your pathetic spirit apart."
She lifted her hands, a part of her surprised at the crackle of energy that sparked from her fingers.
"I've wanted to experiment with my powers. Thanks for helping me out." The palms of her hands faced each other with just a small space in between. She focused her thought on that space, pleased when the sparks connected. Jacqueline glanced up at Gabe who watched in
Matilda turned away, silent again.
Toby resumed sweeping, careful to keep his thoughts from straying too far towards the lovely, Jacqueline Huston.
Or his dead son.
****
"What are you doing!?" Jacqueline screamed as she rolled to the side of her bed. The knife Gabe held slid into the mattress instead of her.
"You should have died! I'm helping you!" Gabe pulled the knife free and turned to her. "Your kind should never have been born. It's an abomination!"
"I can't help that my parents conceived me, you freak!"
"I don't mean that kind of birth. I mean your half banshee nature!"
"I can't help that either!"
She screamed as he lunged at her again.
"Can't we just talk about this?" Jacqueline asked before ducking through the bedroom door. Trying not to fall, she ran down the stairs, headed for the front door. "Shit!"
Gabe materialized in front of her, a small smile on his handsome face.
"You can't get away from me. I know how to track you. We're blood, Jacqueline."
"Then why are you trying to kill me? I mean, family is supposed to be the one thing you can count on," she said as she backed away.
"That's why I want to kill you. Look at it as the ultimate family gift."
"Gift? How do you figure stabbing me is a gift?"
"Because then you'll be dead and we can carry on with our respective job functions within the family tree." Gabe tapped his foot. "Hasn't that wizard explained to you that you are too dangerous the way you are now? You are upsetting the balance! If you die, everything will be as it should be."
"I don't want to die!" Anger surged, bubbling up like a volcanic lava flow that had been repressed in the core of her being for too long.
Gabe's eye widened.
"What do you think you're doing," he asked. "You know you can't actually hurt me, right? I'm way too powerful."
"You're pissing me off," she answered. Energy pulsed beneath her skin and she raised her hands.
Now it was his turn to step back. Jacqueline thought she saw just a hint of fear in his eyes, and she knew instinctively that he was lying to her about his inability to be harmed. What else might he be lying about?
He placed the knife on the table next to the front door and held up his hands.
"Okay, look. I've put the knife down."
But the anger had taken hold and the energy she felt reminded her of the same strong feeling she'd gotten when the silver box was opened. Electricity sparked from her fingers.
"Why are you scared?" She narrowed her eyes. "After all, you’re already dead. It's only living people I can harm. You said yourself that you are a more powerful being. Right?"
He nodded quickly, but his eyes told a different story.
"Wrong." She moved to him with small slow steps. "I bet I can hurt you. Maybe even tear your pathetic spirit apart."
She lifted her hands, a part of her surprised at the crackle of energy that sparked from her fingers.
"I've wanted to experiment with my powers. Thanks for helping me out." The palms of her hands faced each other with just a small space in between. She focused her thought on that space, pleased when the sparks connected. Jacqueline glanced up at Gabe who watched in
Similar Books
