Dancing With Monsters Read online

April stood frozen like a tiny rabbit that had been caught by a hunter. She was frightened, and I knew we'd get nowhere with her in that state.

  "Malachi, let her go," I said, with a shocked look and an arch of Malachi's left eyebrow.

  "Let her go?" He looked at me like I had gone crazy. "She's kind of important here, and you're letting her go."

  I stood as Ayil led Ezra to the bed. "Yes, but if she leaves, I can't speak for her safety. There are demons still on the loose and strong ones at that. She knows we are monsters like her, and mean her no harm, but if she wishes to go?"

  "You can't let her go." Malachi glared at me as if I had gone mad. "You got your girlfriend back, and you think that's all that matters here. Well that's?"

  "I know that's not all that matters here," I said raising my voice. "April has no warrant out for her capture or reason to be held." Force was not the way to get April to tell us what she knew, Malachi didn't understand that. "But she also has a spell on her-a love spell designed by the Fae and infused with the power of monsters." He crossed his arms and half smirked at me. "You can leave, April, but I don't advise you to. The demons that attacked you at The Ivy Inn are still out there."

  She looked away as tears streamed freely down her pale cheeks. She had been through a lot, and I knew if we forced her, it would be close to impossible to get anything out of her. Ezra had already risked her health by entering her dreams, and we barely got her name. April, just like a skittish rabbit, had to be coaxed, and I had the ability to compel.

  I let my eyes lock into hers. She was drawn in easily, either out of curiosity or fear. I gently took her by the arm and let my mind blend into hers.

  "Seth," I heard Nessa say my name beside me and I shushed her keeping my eyes on April.

  She let me in easily, almost as if she was begging for help, but didn't know who to trust and as a result, cautious. April was like walking into a spider's web-no matter how much you pull and push you aren't going to get anywhere by force. I had to remove strand by strand.

  "My name is April Snow," she said to me in her thoughts-she knew what I was doing.

  I smiled inwardly at her innocent and child-like manners.

  "My name is Seth Fairstone," I replied.

  "I'm scared," she said, with a tremble.

  "There's nothing to be scared of when in the company of monsters-we are the same as you.'" I tried to encourage her to keep going and not fall into the fear that had nearly taken her over.

  "No, I'm not,"

  Instead of words, April used emotions to tell me her story. Her mother had given her away in ignorant fear as to what had inflicted her daughter-April had been bitten by a demon. She lived in foster homes, and finally an institute where the people living in shadow reside. It wasn't until Ben found her did she finally felt a place had opened up for her-she belonged somewhere, and to someone. But that had been taken away by another demon.

  "What did the demon look like, say, and did it reveal its name?" I asked

  April paused, and I thought I might have lost my compelling connection to her.

  "The demon was Eveie, and she ran The Ivy Inn. She knew Ben and the serum he had created," she paused again. "He-he protected me?the explosion and he died so I could live?" She was beginning to fade.

  I released my hand from her as April stood with her dark hair curling around her face like black, frayed ribbons. Her skin was as pale as a full Iethia moon, and her child-like eyes peered up at mine.

  "Evie was after the serum and I have the secret ingredient in here," April said, lifting her left hand and revealing the sparkling ring on her third finger. "And I want revenge."