Chapter 11
Dr. Trystan, who was normally the picture of calm, sat in Clare and Ares' living room as jittery as a child on sugar. The woman bounced her knee impatiently as Clare poured her a glass of wine and offered to take her coat.
"No, thank you," Dr. Trystan said. "Where is your husband?"
"He's dropping our daughter off at my parent's house," Clare took a seat. "We didn't want her to accidentally hear any of this. She grew up with Kiara."
Trystan slowly nodded.
"Dr. Trystan -"
"Please, call me Hannah," the woman said, taking a sip of her wine. "This is really good."
"Thank you, Hannah," Clare smiled. "It's from Dionysus. He has a habit of dropping off wine to piss off my husband."
"If you don't want them, send them my way."
"I'll keep that in mind," Clare nodded. "So tell me again....what makes you think Kiara was in your house?"
"Well, for starters, our baby monitor was turned off," Hannah shivered. "My daughter, Ava, she sleeps in the room down the hall from us and we never turn off the monitors."
"Could that have been a camera issue?"
"That's what I thought at first," Hannah shook her head. "But then I saw the bunny in the crib."
"The bunny?" Clare raised a brow.
"Yes," Hannah nodded. "During one of our sessions I had mentioned to Kiara that Ava likes bunnies. That is not true, by the way. I was just trying to get her to start talking to me about Lila. She's always in a good mood when she talks about Lila. But....this morning, when I saw the stuffed bunny in Ava's crib....I just...."
Hannah shivered once more. Her eyes glossed over for a few seconds before she composed herself.
"Clare....I know she was in my house," she said. "And she wants me to know she was there. She knows I'm trying to dig through her mind."
"It's okay," Clare moved closer and patted the woman's hand. "I understand. I know how frightening this is."
Just then Ares walked in through the portal in the living room. His eyes fell on the look of distress on Dr. Trystan's face and his wife comforting the poor woman. He cautiously made his way over to them and took a seat.
"I can't believe this is happening," Ares said. "Clare, we need to tell Tobias."
"Going to Tobias without a solution will be a mistake," Clare said. "He will whisk Kiara away to the underworld."
"And that won't help," Hannah said. "Because she can now portal without the rings."
"Oh for fuck's sake," Ares rubbed his forehead. "How did this go unnoticed for so long? How did we not pick up on this?"
"Because psychopaths are very good at imitating human emotions and empathy," Hannah explained. "They're charming and very adaptive to their environment."
"But surely I would have felt something," Clare frowned. "The girl grew up around me."
"Well, demigods are not usually like this," Hannah said. "Their minds are stronger than the average human. Kiara was able to glide by for so many years because she was functioning at a very high level. Demigod minds are strong and in this case it masked her true nature."
"So you're saying she was born like this?" Ares asked.
"Yes and no," Hannah sat down her wine glass. "Psychopaths are a combination of biology and the environment. Kiara would have been just fine if she had a normal childhood. Yes, she would still be very manipulative and cunning, but it wouldn't have escalated to this."
"What about Killian?" Ares asked. "They both grew up in the underworld."
"Yes, but unlike Killian, Kiara had Azazel's abilities running through her veins," Hannah explained. "She was already different to begin with and then to throw in violent death on top of that..."
"A recipe for disaster," Clare shook her head.
"Yes, exactly," Hannah picked up her wine glass once more and took a long sip.
"I just don't understand," Ares shook his head. "What are we going to do with her? What does she want? Can she and Killian ever have a normal life?"
"I'm not sure what she's planning," Hannah said. "She says very little about what's actually on her mind. But to answer your other question, yes. She can have a normal life with Killian."
"How?" Clare asked.
"Contrary to popular beliefs psychopaths can have a romantic relationship," Hannah said slowly. "Over time, the healthier of the two partners can teach the other empathy, trust, and deeper emotions."
"Oh god," Ares groaned. "Killian is the healthier of the two here, isn't he? God damn it."
"This is in some sense a train wreck of everything that can go wrong," Hannah said. "But I have faith in Killian. Yes, he has his own issues, but who doesn't? He loves her and i think he can truly help her."
"But does Kiara love him?" Clare asked.
Hannah once again grew a bit uncomfortable, "I think she does in some form....but from what I have seen and heard...her feelings for him are more like an....."
"Obsession," Ares finished for the woman.
"Yes, that's one way to look at it," Hannah took in a deep breath. "She's very protective of things and people she likes. I don't know if any of you noticed, but she never says our baby. It's always my baby."
"Why is that?" Clare asked.
"I believe she is harboring resentment towards Killian and her parents," Hannah looked at her empty wine glass. "She believes they could have done more. If they found her and saved her, she would haven't killed all those people."
"She's blaming us," Ares once again rubbed his forehead.
"But that's typical psychopath behavior," Hannah assured. "They blame others for their actions."
"Okay...." Clare took in a deep breath.
Ares flickered his gaze towards her and had the sudden urge to hold her in his arms. He could see the worry lines on her face and they made some part of the god's heart shrivel up.
"Let's continue to work with her," Clare said to Hannah. "Don't let her know you are on to her about the bunny and the house visit."
"That will irritate her," Hannah pointed out.
"I'll send some men to guard your hou-" Ares began but Clare stopped him.
"We don't need to send more lambs to slaughter," she said.
"Clare's right," Hannah nodded. "I'll try to keep our sessions light until we sit with Tobias and Posey."
"Thank you, Dr. Trystan."
_____________________
Hayden clicked the pen in his hand repeatedly as he stared at the file on the table. The summer sunlight was peeking in through the windows as the distant sounds of birds chirping filled his ears. The house was completely empty. Hayden's parents had gone off to take care of court duties and Birdie was off to see Kiara. The situation should have been ideal for Hayden to finish all his work. He had almost succeeded. But the last couple of hours had thrown him off his track.
Nora's silver watch sat on the table in front of him, almost demanding his attention whenever he tried to focus on his work. The sunlight bounced off the crystals marking the hours and created rainbows all over his walls. Hayden could almost feel the energy buzzing off of the thing as if it was alive. Out of curiosity, he picked it up and leaned back in his chair.
Despite the watch being an older model, it was in peak condition. The heart ran smoothly without any hiccups or missed beats. Every second ticked by without ever stopping. Hayden turned the watch over and read the words on the back again for the hundredth time. They were not only engraved on the silver, but also in his mind. He was so tempted to ask Nora who had gotten her the watch with such a heavy promise on the back, but he didn't quite know how to. It would be so odd and what if she said it was too personal to share?
Needing a break, Hayden shoved the watch into his pocket and rose from his seat. He ran a hand through his dark hair before grabbing a shirt from the closet and pulling it over his head. His head was starting to feel heavy, signaling to him he needed to get his cup of coffee asap. But just as he was passing the halls, his eyes caught sight of his mother's study. Hayden paused as he pushed the door open slightly and looked inside.
A huge painting of his mother in a red wedding dress hung over her desk. Small framed photographs of Birdie and Hayden from when they were younger were scattered around. Hayden walked into the study and picked up one of his favorite photos in the room.
It was of Birdie and him with their father. Heyder laid on his back as Birdie sat on his chest coloring his tattoos. Hayden stood by the jinn's head with a bow and arrow, grinning at his mother holding the camera. Heyder's head was turned, his eyes beaming as he laughed at whatever his son was doing.
Looking at the memory made a small smile appear on Hayden's face. He put back the picture frame and took in a deep breath of his mother's perfume lingering in the room. Leisurely he walked over to the window and looked out into the backyard for a few. No matter how many times Hayden looked at the forest and the mountains in the distance, their beauty still amazed him. Somehow the sleepy green giants were like the words on Nora's watch. Always strike him as if he was reading it for the very first time.
After several long minutes of watching the tree tops, Hayden turned to leave when his eyes caught the lower section of his mother's book case. He knew exactly what she kept behind the glass doors....Fey books.
Hayden stood motionless staring at the leather bound books. His eyes ran over the glass doors as his hands began to itch. It wasn't the first time he had thought about using the books. Did his mother say he could only use it with supervision? Sure. But then again she had set those rules when Hayden was thirteen. He was not thirteen anymore...
With a quick flicker of his wrist, the glass doors opened and the first volume of the fey spell books flew out. Hayden caught it mid air and moved over to the armchair by the window. His skin had begun to prickle as if he had plunged it into icy water. His jinn side didn't like what he was touching. His fey side was ecstatic.
Hayden flipped open the book and scanned the title page. His eyes roamed over his mother's hand writing as he began to search the colorful sticky notes she had stuck all over. He read through the spells aimlessly, feeling a part of him hum with excitement like a child. Hayden's hand ran over the words and pages as his brows knit and he rubbed his lower lip. He tried to convince himself he was not going to go look at that one spell his mind was urging him towards. But pretty soon he lost to himself as he turned the page and the spell he was so actively trying to avoid popped up.
Samsara...
The cycle of rebirth. The answers you seek linger in the moments forever trapped in the past. Steal a glimpse behind to light up the path ahead.
Hayden closed the book and tossed it onto the coffee table. His eyes stayed glued on the thing as his thoughts began to circle.
Mom almost got trapped in time. But then again, mom was an untrained thirteen year old witch. I know better. My magic is stronger than hers and she trained me. So therefore, I can do this. I should do this...
Hayden raised his hand and the book flew back to him. He turned back to the spell and sat up straight, just like his mother had taught him. Clearing his throat, Hayden sat the book down in front of him and read the words aloud.
"Aperi ianuam temporis. Et quaerite hic."
The trees outside began to sway.
"Aperi ianuam temporis. Et quaerite hic," Hayden repeated.
Suddenly, there was a sharp poke on the back of his neck before he felt his whole body be thrust forward through a vortex of immense pressure. Hayden's jinn side flared up, anxious and stressed about the surge of energy. But his fey side was grinning like a mad man. The pressure built behind Hayden's eyes until he was forced to shut them and cover his face with his hand. He was about to pull out of the spell when suddenly his feet landed on solid ground.
The voices of a crowd filled his ears. Hayden opened his eyes and realized he was standing in the halls of the dome. For a split second he was very confused as to why the spell had brought him to the school. But just then, from behind he heard a very familiar voice.
"I swear to the gods I better not get put into the same group as Hayden."
Hayden whirled around and came face to face with Nora.
Not quite Nora....a much younger Nora. Her hair was longer, her face thinner, her eyes bigger.
Hayden stared as the girl walked past him, clutching her books to her chest. She did not notice as the boy's eyes followed her to her locker before he himself made his way over to her.
"Why are you so grumpy?" A short girl with frizzy black hair and caramel skin asked as she leaned against the lockers. "Do you have any idea how happy I would be if I was in the same group as Hayden."
"Be my guest," Nora snorted. "He never does his work on time. Shows up to class late every day. Like, dude, come on. How hard is it to come to class on time for one day? And do you know the worst part of all this? No one says anything to him! I was two minutes late to English this morning and I got a whole lecture but Hayden came in late like he does everyday and not a peep!"
"Oh," the girl chuckled. "So that's the issue. You're mad that you got yelled at."
"Yes, I'm mad!" Nora stomped her feet. "I'm livid. I'm enraged! I want justice."
Hayden wanted to laugh. The way Nora's eyes narrowed and her cheeks turned red made him think of a cartoon character.
"Why does he get to get away with everything?" Nora shoved her books into her bag. "He's not even that smart. I don't know why everyone treats him like he's some kind of a god. Damn it, the boy can't even play sports properly!"
Hayden thanked his lucky stars a million times for Nora's inability to see or hear him. He was sure if she had any clue as to how much he was amused by her outburst, she would have blown up like a pressure cooker.
"But he looks really good in a soccer jersey," Nora's friend fanned herself.
"Pia, please," Nora rolled her eyes. "Don't fall for it."
"Too late," Nora's friend, Pia, pretended to stumble. "Oh Hayden! Catch me."
Hayden watched as Nora's face shifted from cranky to mortified. Her eyes stilled and her hands froze as she stared at the figure walking up behind her friend. Hayden looked up and realized he was staring at himself.
"Pia," Nora tried to grab her friend. "Come here, you dramatic whore."
"Hayden, save me!" Pia laughed, unaware of who was behind her.
"Oh lord, help this child," Nora muttered, giving up trying to rescue her friend. She turned away and buried her face inside her locker as the younger Hayden stopped behind Pia with a scowl.
Pia, who finally realized Nora was trying to climb into her locker, paused and looked over her shoulder. Her eyes widened slightly as she swallowed and tried for a smile.
"H-hi, Hayden," Pia said.
"You're in my way."
"What?" Pia blinked.
"Move," Hayden snapped.
Nora's head popped out of the locker with fire in her eyes. She whirled around just as young Hayden pushed past Pia. Her face twisted with anger as she swung her bag over her shoulder and took a step forward.
"What the hell is your problem, you dickwad?" Nora snapped.
Pia paled as Hayden looked over his shoulder. He raised a brow but didn't stop. Nora was about to go after him when Clare suddenly showed up at the end of the hall and called to the boy.
"You see this?" Nora asked her friend. "This always happens. Someone is always there to save poor little wonder boy."
"I'm sure Clare is not saving him," Pia patted her friend's shoulder. "There, there. You tried to fight the system."
"The system is corrupt. Throw the whole thing out."
Hayden, who had been leaning back against the locker watching everything couldn't stop laughing. His cheeks were starting to hurt as Nora walked back to her locker and leaned her forehead against the door.
So, she's always been this dramatic, Hayden thought, watching the side of her face.
Nora pouted as she flicked the post-it notes sticking out from her notebook. She mumbled under her breath about spoiled brats before rolling up her sleeves and aggressively pulling out her other books. That was around the same time the light in the halls bounced off the watch around Nora's wrist and caught Hayden's eyes.
Curious and amused, Hayden leaned in closer to get a better look. He felt Nora's hair brush his cheek as he looked over her shoulder at her watch. For a split second, Nora paused and shivered, feeling a sudden chill.
"The bell is about to ring," Pia said.
Nora looked up and checked her watch.
"Shit," she muttered. "Let's go. I can't afford to be late again today."
Hayden stepped back as Nora shut her locker and twisted the locker. He watched her rush off to class before the scene in front of him started to slowly fade like a movie. Hayden felt himself grinning as he traveled back to his mother's study and landed on the chair once more. But when he slowly opened his eyes, he almost jumped out of his skin.
"Why can't you or Birdie ever do normal rebellious shit?" Heyder asked from the doorway. "Why is it never drugs? Why is it always magic spell books and raising demons?"
"Just testing these," Hayden held up his hands.
"Do they still work?"
"Perfectly."
"Then put them back," Heyder pointed to the bookcase.
"Alright, alright," Hayden snapped his finger and the book flew back into the shelf. The glass door closed and the small lock clicked. "How come you're home so early?"
"My father senses were on fire," Heyder said. "I felt you being dumb all the way from the vail."
"I wasn't being dumb," Hayden said, walking to the door. "I know what I am doing."
"Sure you do," Heyder snorted.
"Nothing happened. No hell beast released. All is good."
"Don't let me catch you doing that again."
"Baba, I'm an adult."
"My house, my rules."
"I can move out."
"Take your sister with you."
"Boy, you're grouchy today," Hayden said, following his father down the hall. "What happened at court? Another elder broke their hip?"
"I wish," Heyder shook his head. "At least that would keep them at home and off my court."
Hayden laughed. He knew his father hated his job. He also knew the only reason Heyder was still head of court was because of his children and wife. The Tyveer would never allow a fey to be free. Maya was a constant threat. And so was Hayden. Birdie looking like a fey was just the cherry on top Heyder needed. If he were to step down, the whole court would come for them.
"I heard Nora gave in her two weeks' notice," Heyder said, stopping in the kitchen.
"Yeah," Hayden took a seat at one of the bar stools.
"When is her last day?"
"After she's released from the hospital."
"Okay," Heyder nodded slowly.
"Why?" Hayden raised a brow.
"I found a new assistant for you."
"I don't need a new assistant."
"His name is Enzo. He will start tomorrow."
"Who is this guy? Why do I keep getting unwanted assistants dumped on me?"
"Enzo is good, Heyder said. "He worked for Ali for a few years. He's just as capable as Nora. But less breakable. He's half jinn."
"Did you really take Uncle Ali's assistant?"
"He'll live."
"Baba..."
"Clare was right," Heyder looked at his son. "You need someone to help you with your job. And now with Nora quitting, Enzo will be perfect."
__________________________
Kiara used her toe to trace mindless patterns on the sand as she waited on Adeline's doorsteps. The moon was high in the sky, casting a silver glow all over the silent realm. She wrapped her arms around herself and gazed up at the night sky, taking a few seconds to fill her lungs with fresh air.
Slowly, the door behind her opened. Arla creeped out and stuck the doormat in the doorway to keep herself from being locked out. She found Kiara standing by the edge of the wooden stairs, with her head tilted towards the moon.
"Hello, dove," Kiara said, without turning around.
"I have what you asked for," Arla held up the external hard drive.
"Did anyone see you?" Kiara slowly turned.
"No," Arla shook her head. "I copied all the files from Ben's office while they were out for dinner."
"Good work," Kiara said, taking the hard drive.
As she reached out, Arla's eyes caught the blood on Kiara's fingers. She gasped silently as her eyes fell on the girl and she realized Kiara's dress was stained with blood.
"Kiara..." Arla tried to speak.
"I'll call you when I have something else for you to do."
"Are you..." Arla stared at the girl's blood stained hands. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
Kiara paused and slowly smiled.
"Oh I'm hurt," she said. "I'm very hurt."
"Should I call anyone?" Arla asked. "Should I call Killian?"
Kiara's eyes darkened, "Good night, little dove."
Arla shut her mouth and frowned. Kiara could see the challenge building in her eyes, but she knew the girl wouldn't dare risk losing her new family. Kiara finally had Arla where she had been waiting to pin the girl. With a small smile, Kiara opened a portal and walked through.
But just as she appeared in the bathroom, Killian's voice called out to her from the other side of the door.
"Kia?" he called. "Are you okay?"
Kiara looked around the small bathroom.
"Kia?"
Quick as a bunny, Kiara shoved the hard-drive behind the rolls of toilet paper just as the knob of the door began to turn. She jumped back up and turned around as Killian walked in and froze.
"Kia!" Killian paled at her appearance. There was so much blood. "What happened?"
"Killian.....I....." Kiara willed her eyes to water. She stared into his worry filled eyes and pictured what he was seeing.
A frightened Kiara, with her large brown eyes watering and her lips quivering. Her arms shivered and her knees buckled.
"What happened?" Killian asked as he dived in to catch her.
"I....I teleported," Kiara cried. She grabbed a fist full of Killian's shirt and pulled herself closer to him.
"Why didn't you wake me up?" Killian demanded.
"I didn't want to wake you," Kiara sobbed as she buried her face in his chest. "Killian, I...I think I'm going to be sick."
"It's okay, you're okay," Killian gathered her in his arms. "Let's get cleaned up and then back to bed, yeah?"
Kiara slowly nodded. She sat weeping silently as Killian undressed her and turned on the shower. He helped her in and washed the blood out of her hair and skin before wrapping her in a towel and carrying her over to the bed. Kiara's brown eyes watched Killian like a hawk as he moved around the room and grabbed a t-shirt for her.
"Try to close your eyes," he whispered to her once she laid back against the pillows.
"Come to be," Kiara said, pulling at his hand.
"Give me a minute," Killian brushed her hair off her face as he scanned her small face. "I just have to put away your clothes from the bathe-"
"No," Kiara tried to sit up.
"Kia, relax. Relax," Killian held her down.
"Don't do," Kiara's eyes watered once more. "Don't leave."
"I'm not going anywhere," Killian shook his head.
"Come to bed," Kiara pulled at his hand. "I need you to hold me."
Killian leaned forward and stole a small kiss, "Okay."
"Don't leave."
"Never."
And with that, Killian walked over to his side of the bed and switched off the lights. Kiara moved closer to him under the sheets as he wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly to his chest. Kiara held his hand the whole night as she watched his eyes close and drift off to sleep.
The next morning, at the crack of dawn, Kiara's eyes snapped open before Killian even got wind of the morning. She carefully crawled out of his arms and walked into the bathroom and pulled the hard drive out from where she had hidden it the night before. Tiptoeing across the room, she dropped the thing in her purse before climbing back into bed and letting Killian think he had the privilege of watching his sleeping angel wake up in his arms.
How do you think Nora feels about Hayden?