Wicked Whispers Read online

  Ivy yawned. This day seemed never-ending, and she hadn’t even met the vampire yet. She slid down until she was laying flat. She bunched two pillows beneath her head and then stared up at the ceiling. There, that was better. Her lids started to close. “Can you ever escape? Assuming you want to, of course.” Soft music played in the background of her mind as she let her tension go.

  And just before sleep claimed her, she thought she heard his whispered answer.

  “No.”

  Ivy woke to darkness and someone’s hand over her mouth. Terror widened her eyes as she stared into the darkness. Where? Not her room, not her bed. She started to struggle.

  “Shh, don’t move, don’t say anything.” Murmur’s whisper in her ear.

  She subsided, sure that guests throughout the castle would hear her thudding heartbeat.

  “We have visitors. They’re not dangerous, but they’re shy. If we make a sudden move, we’ll scare them away. But then they’ll be ticked off and get back at us in small, unpleasant ways.” His breath was warm against the side of her neck.

  What? Now that her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, she glanced around… and saw at least a dozen small figures with human shapes. Not more than a foot high, they danced as they scampered everywhere—on top of the furniture, in the closet, over the foot of the bed. She controlled the instinct to jerk her feet away. And they were… She peered closer. They were cleaning. She watched as one dragged Murmur’s discarded shirt over to the closet and disappeared inside. Ivy could hear scrubbing noises in the bathroom. Why were they dancing? She didn’t hear any music. And what were they?

  “Brownies.” He answered her unspoken question. “Just stay quiet until they’re finished. They won’t take long.”

  He’d moved close to whisper in her ear, and for the next ten minutes she suffered through his closeness. Okay, so “suffered” wasn’t quite the right word. Her body soaked up his heat while her mind played with possibilities. What if she wiggled back just a little? Would he wrap his body around her? Would he touch her?

  The brownies disappeared. Too soon, much too soon. At least that’s what her body was telling her. Her mind thought they’d left just in time.

  Murmur reached out to turn on his bedside lamp. He sat up and raked his fingers through his hair. “I don’t need this. I’m tired of wondering which freaking faery will turn up next.”

  Right now, she didn’t much care what he did or didn’t need. “Why didn’t you wake me?”

  “I didn’t want to. I liked how you looked sleeping in my bed.”

  She didn’t know what to say to that. Avoiding his gaze, she swung her feet to the floor and stood. He must have covered her sometime during the night, but at least she still wore all her clothes. She glanced at the narrow window where the pale morning light was growing brighter. “Why were they dancing? I couldn’t hear any music.”

  “Remember when you came to my room and demanded a rundown of all the nonhumans in the castle? Afterward you sipped a glass of water and watched while I sent out my music-gram. It was a request aimed at a particular group of faeries. Unfortunately, any random members of the fae who were in the path of my musical summoning will also follow it back to me. The brownies weren’t invited to the party. Neither was the ogre.” He shrugged. “Unfortunately for them, my music plays on.”

  “But won’t they die if they keep dancing?”

  “It’s not a death summoning. They’ll be able to rest, but the music will keep drawing them back until I end it.”

  She should ask him what was going on. Something obviously was. Maybe she didn’t want to know, because it seemed that in the Castle of Dark Dreams ignorance truly was bliss.

  Right now, though, she was feeling totally selfish. It really was all about her. “If I had Sidhe blood in me, wouldn’t I be spending all my time dancing in your room too?”

  He didn’t seem surprised by her question. “The thought intrigues.” His smile said it did a lot more. “I don’t know, because I made sure the music didn’t actually touch you. You only heard it.”

  She remembered the stickiness of the melody, the feeling that she didn’t want it near her. She shivered. “I have to go. I still have to talk to Sparkle.”

  He stilled. She sensed danger in that stillness and remembered. “Oh, that’s right. I saw the brownies, and I now know that you’ve invited some of the fae to the castle for a communal dance. Which will it be: memory loss or a can’t-say-the-word-‘brownie’ compulsion? Probably memory loss would be the most efficient. Then I’ll only be mad at you because I still can’t say the freaking word—” Arrgh! She was mad all over again.

  Murmur still didn’t move, didn’t speak. And that was just plain scary.

  No one does anything for me without wanting something in return. Murmur’s words. He didn’t trust, and if she’d lived his life, she probably wouldn’t either. Ivy had no illusions that he’d suddenly trust her, but what did she have to lose? Only her memories.

  “I won’t tell anyone about the brownies or your music-gram.” She held his gaze.

  “What will your silence cost me?” His voice filled with bitter scorn.

  “Your trust.”

  “Demons don’t trust.”

  “So you’ve said. Maybe you should this time.”

  The silence went on forever as he watched her, and she resisted the urge to glance away. Any minute now she’d find that she couldn’t say “brownies.”

  Finally, he nodded. “Go.”

  She just managed to control her gasp of surprise. Ivy sensed this wasn’t the moment to dissect his decision. He’d decided to trust her, and she swore she wouldn’t betray him, even if Sparkle yanked her fingernails out by the roots.

  Ivy usually controlled her impulses because they could be costly. But she couldn’t resist this one. Walking around to his side of the bed, she leaned down and kissed him. It was supposed to be a light thank-you.

  He thought it should be more. Reaching up, he tangled his fingers in her hair and deepened the kiss. For just a moment she savored the firm pressure of his lips, the texture and taste of him. And knew that something amazing had happened.

  Murmur released her, and she backed away from his bed. His gaze followed her, filled with heated promises.

  Wow, just wow. “Well, I’ll umm… I guess I’ll see you later.” She turned and made her escape.

  He’d kissed her. As she closed the door quietly behind her, she put her hand over her mouth to muffle a hoot of triumph. She wasn’t worried about torture. Her nails were safe. Sparkle had an unhealthy reverence for them. For whatever reason, Ivy felt suddenly… happy. He’d trusted her. He’d really trusted her. And he’d kissed her. “Brownies, brownies, brownies.” She said the word all the way to her room.

  She stopped in front of her door. How much had he trusted her? Should she try? She took a deep breath and said… “Ogre.” She almost did a happy dance before remembering. No, definitely no dancing. But ohmigod, she could say it. “Ogre, brownies, ogre, brownies.” She continued her litany of freedom as she unlocked her door.

  Once inside, she shut the door, and then laughed as she twirled in the middle of the room. Ivy wished she had someone to share this with. Cinn’s plant would have to do. “He trusted me, Whimsy. And he kissed me. What do you think of that?”

  If Whimsy thought anything, she wasn’t saying.

  Ivy showered, dressed, and then headed down to the castle’s restaurant. She needed a good breakfast to prepare her for Sparkle.

  She’d finished her second cup of coffee and was on her way out of the restaurant when her cell rang. She glanced at the screen. Mom? This early? She stepped out into the lobby. “Hi.”

  “Kellen is gone.” Panic lived in her mother’s voice.

  “What? When?” Fear for her brother choked her.

  “I got home late from work. Your father had gone to bed early. I thought Kellen was asleep too. But when your dad got up this morning, he found a note.”

  “Wher
e did he go? Why?” Ivy’s head was whirling with thoughts of where to start looking for her brother.

  “He said he knew we didn’t have a lot of money now that I had to take a pay cut.”

  Ivy could hear the tears in her mother’s voice.

  “He said he had a plan, somewhere he could go so I wouldn’t have to support him too. He said not to worry.” Her voice rose, hysteria close to the surface. “We’re his parents. How would we not worry?”

  Ivy collapsed onto the nearest chair and closed her eyes. “Did he give a city, any hint at all?”

  “No. But he took his phone, and he said he’d call as soon as he reached where he was going. I tried calling him, but he didn’t answer.”

  Where would he go? Ivy wanted to shake Kellen for doing this and then hug him to her so she could keep him safe forever.

  “We’re trying to find out if he bought plane tickets or…” Her voice died out for a moment. “Lord, he wouldn’t try to catch a ride with a stranger, would he? He’s only sixteen and…”

  Ivy understood her mother’s unspoken fears. Kellen was special. He’d not only gotten all the looks in their family, he’d stolen a bunch from at least fifty other families. Her little brother was beautiful, like people-on-the-street-turning-around-to-look-at-him beautiful. She didn’t even want to think about him on the streets alone. Any predator out there would… No, she wouldn’t go there.

  “What’s Dad doing?”

  “He’s contacting Kellen’s friends to see if they know anything. When I let you go, I’m calling the police. Kellen and you were always so close. Maybe he’ll get in touch with you.”

  Ivy spent a few more minutes trying to soothe her mother before shoving her phone into her pocket. The huge breakfast she’d eaten churned in her stomach. She stood, not sure what to do next.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Startled, she jumped even as she recognized his voice. Murmur. “How did you know?”

  “I have a vested interest in you now, so I’ve tuned in to your emotions.”

  Tuned in to my emotions, my foot. He’d probably been in her head to make sure she wasn’t running to Sparkle babbling about ogres and brownies. At another time, she would’ve told him what she thought of that, but not now. She needed someone. She needed him. Ivy didn’t question her reasoning. Maybe later, but for now it was enough that he was here.

  “My brother ran away. My parents don’t know where he is, and I don’t know where to start looking for him.” She blinked fast. She would not cry in front of Murmur.

  He didn’t bombard her with questions. “Come with me.” He led her into Sparkle’s office. “Sparkle’s a late riser. She won’t be up for a while. We’ll use her computer.”

  She didn’t question him. If he could help find Kellen, she could keep her mouth shut. Ivy sat beside him at the computer.

  “Brother’s full name?”

  “Kellen Patrick Lowe.” Ivy didn’t even try to figure out what he was doing. While she was at it, she gave Murmur her parents’ address.

  “Would he have plane fare?”

  She nodded. “He worked after school. I don’t know if he kept what he didn’t give to Mom in an account or not.”

  A short time later, Murmur leaned back in his chair. He looked at her. He didn’t look happy. “Your brother took a late-night flight to Houston’s Hobby Airport.”

  “That means?” She knew what it meant.

  Murmur glanced at his watch. “It means that—”

  The door swung open. Sparkle stood there with Ganymede beside her. Someone else waited behind them.

  “You have a visitor, Ivy.” Her smile said that Santa Claus had left her a late Christmas present.

  Sparkle stepped aside so the person behind her could move forward.

  Ivy’s world tilted ten more degrees off its axis.

  She jumped to her feet.

  “Hi, Sis.” Kellen smiled at her.

  7

  As he watched Ivy’s expression change, Murmur beat himself up over not compelling her silence. He’d allowed his emotions to rule. His emotions. That was something humans did, not demons. He’d have to make sure it didn’t happen again, or else his master would resort to more than visits from Klepoth.

  First she closed her eyes, and when she opened them, relief shone there, followed quickly by love. He’d never say it out loud, but he sometimes wondered what it might have felt like to have a family, people who would look at him like that no matter what he’d done. He took a deep breath. What was he thinking? Demons never craved love. It was a sticky rope of emotional taffy that eventually strangled you. Remember that.

  Murmur returned his attention to Ivy. Now she wore what he assumed was her angry-sister expression.

  He tried not to grin—demons stayed cool and detached in the face of human emotions—as she rushed past Sparkle and wrapped her arms around her brother.

  “I’m going to kill you, Kellen.” Tears slid down her face. “Never scare me that way again.”

  “I love you too, Sis.” Kellen hugged her back.

  Finally, Murmur dragged his gaze away from Ivy long enough to really look at her brother.

  Oh, crap. Kellen’s face had Sidhe stamped over every inch of it. Worse, he had a particular faery’s features, only it was a masculine version. Mab, the queen of the Unseelie Court, had no sons left, but obviously one had planted his seed in the mortal world before his destruction. He must have looked like his mother.

  Often unpredictable and always deadly, the Queen of Air and Darkness would want this boy to replace those sons. If Kellen was too human, she would quickly discard him once the novelty wore off. If he had enough of her blood in him, she’d keep him in Faery forever, molding him to serve her. Either way, things would end badly for Kellen and the sister who loved him.

  Ivy. Murmur studied her closely. Yes, he could see the resemblance now that he looked for it, though it wasn’t as obvious as Kellen’s. He should probably mind his own business and ignore his discovery. Warning Ivy would be considered a good deed. And bad things happened to demons who weren’t… well, bad.

  Pushing aside thoughts of Mab and what she’d do if she saw Kellen, he focused his attention on what was happening in the room. He allowed the music that always played quietly in the background of his thoughts to grow louder. Right now, he didn’t want to think too hard about things.

  Ivy stepped back from her brother. “You’re going to call—”

  “I already called Mom.” Kellen’s expression turned rebellious. “I want to stay here.”

  His sister’s expression softened. “I know why you left home, Kellen. Mom told me when she called. But you belong there. I can help with the money.”

  Kellen looked away from Ivy. “You don’t want me here. Hey, that’s cool. I understand. I’ll go somewhere else and—”

  “Of course I want you.” She reached out to touch him and looked hurt when he shifted away. “But what would you do here? You’d need someplace to stay. You still have to go to school. And you’d have to make new friends. Besides, Mom and Dad would worry about you.”

  Murmur could sense the tension in her. She wouldn’t want her brother exposed to demonic influences along with all the other crazy stuff going on at the castle. He understood that. Yes, he was taking her tension personally. And yes, again, that was bitterness he felt.

  Kellen glanced back at her, hope beginning to shine in those faery eyes. “I could work at the park after school, do odd jobs, help clean up. I could go to high school here in Galveston and not lose any time. Besides…” Whatever he’d intended to say died unsaid. He stared at his shoes. “Please let me stay.”

  Murmur didn’t know what Ivy would have said, because Sparkle took charge.

  “There’s no reason he can’t stay, Ivy. We can always use extra help. He can even have the room next to yours.”

  Ivy looked puzzled. “But Holgarth said the hotel was full and—”

  Sparkle narrowed her eyes. “I’m sure that H
olgarth was mistaken. February is a slow month for us, so we always have some vacancies.”

  He could see Ivy’s determination hardening. “No, I really don’t think he should stay.”

  “Yo, Ivy, we have a situation here.” Ganymede leaped onto Sparkle’s desk. “As soon as I got a look at him, I knew you needed us.”

  Kellen didn’t react, so Murmur knew Ganymede was only broadcasting to the adults in the room.

  Ivy narrowed her eyes at Ganymede, but Murmur could see the uncertainty in them.

  “Let the kid stay at least until you hear what we have to say and until he tells you the rest of his story. Because he hasn’t told you everything.”

  “You were in his head.” Ivy clenched her hands into fists. “I hate that about all of you. You have no right—”

  Kellen looked startled by her words, but he didn’t comment.

  “Look, it’s not about having a right. It’s about doing what I want to do when I want to do it. That’s me. I have a high guilt threshold.” Ganymede leaned over the edge of the desk and poked at a closed drawer with one gray paw. “Still got that Snickers bar in here, babe?”

  Sparkle took advantage of Ivy’s momentary distraction. “Kellen, go with Holgarth and he’ll show you to your room. Unpack and relax. Your sister will be along in a little while.”

  Holgarth seemed to appear out of nowhere to stand behind Kellen. The boy turned and gulped. He glanced back at his sister. “You’re joking, right?”

  The wizard whipped his robe around him and glared at Kellen. “Just what the castle needs, a teenager—rowdy, loud, and given to undisciplined outbursts fueled by an overabundance of testosterone.” He beckoned imperiously. “Come. I hoped to avoid ever having one living here, but I suppose no one really values the opinion of a wise and powerful wizard.”

  Kellen hesitated as he scanned the room, obviously looking for someone to save him. No one offered, so he followed Holgarth.

  Sparkle closed the door behind them before strolling to her desk. She sat on it and crossed her long legs. Then she stared at Ivy.

  “What?” Ivy looked as though all her thoughts were still on Kellen.