I needed to stay away from Boaz.
All night, I tossed and turned, my mind tortured with dreams of death and destruction. Boaz was there—the black conductor leading the symphony of carnage. I couldn’t escape him even as I slept.
“Eve,” I heard his voice say. The symphony played louder.
“Eve, wake up!”
His image left my dreams and appeared before my open eyes. Unsure of my surroundings, I recoiled in fear. I rubbed my eyes, but when I opened them again, Boaz was still there, looking more devilish than ever. His disheveled hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail; several strands fell into his face as if he’d been running only moments before.
“What are you doing back?” I asked, sitting up. It was barely eight in the morning.
“I never left.”
I furrowed my brow at him.
“I was going to, but a problem arose. I’ve been trying to decide how best to deal with it.”
“What sort of problem?”
“The Diablos,” he answered. He crossed the room to the window and parted the blinds to peer out.
“They’re still out there?” I threw back the covers and left the warmth of the bed.
“Yes, and they’ve multiplied exponentially. It’s only a matter of hours before they come into the house.”
“Why?”
He turned around so suddenly I stumbled back. “They’re coming for you.”
“Erik and Sable—”
“Are the ones who summoned them,” he finished. “I have confirmed it. They excused the staff and left hours ago. I’m all you have left.”
“I don’t believe you. They wouldn’t kill me, not after all they’ve put me through.” But even as I said the words, I didn’t believe them. So what if they exhausted countless hours trying to get me to use magic? I never gave them what they wanted. This made me think of something else, something Erik had said many times. “Besides, if they wanted me dead, they’d do it themselves.”
His left eyebrow rose. “And give anyone the opportunity to question them? When your body is discovered torn and mangled tomorrow morning, no one will suspect your parents. They will be far away from here, attending some charity event.”
And there it was: a dirty, ugly truth.
Boaz looked back out the window. “I argued with them well into the night, but they’ve washed their hands of you, said you were a waste to their kind, an embarrassment. Even Erik’s father, your grandfather, agreed. They all want you dead.”
My legs weakened, and I slouched onto my bed. I’d never met my grandfather. Why would someone I didn’t even know want me dead?
He stepped in front of me. “You need to come with me. It’s your only chance to survive.”
“Where would we go?”
“Just pack a few things and get dressed. Be ready in five minutes,” he said and left the room.
I sat there, stunned. This can’t be happening.
For a full minute I didn’t move, but after the shock, a new thought revealed itself like a shiny new gift. I didn’t have to stay here anymore. I didn’t have to see my parents ever again. I was free.
This discovery spurred me to action, and I packed quickly, my mind processing different scenarios. I could leave with Boaz and possibly talk him into giving me some money. Maybe he would even drop me off at the bus stop. And if he wouldn’t do any of those things, maybe he would let me work for him doing…what, exactly? I knew nothing about him.
I pulled on my favorite jeans. I could figure it out later. At least I never had to see my parents again. And I would be alive, thanks to Boaz. But why was he helping me? I would have to be extra careful around him.
I was just pulling a sweater over my head when I heard: “You are a work of art.”
I jumped and turned around. Boaz sat in the corner on a small chair, hidden within the shadows. Somehow, he had snuck back into the room, and my face reddened, wondering how much he had seen.
Swallowing hard, I said, “I’m ready.”
“Good. The Diablo’s are growing in numbers even as we speak.”
“How do you know?”
“I can sense it, and so can you.”
I shook my head. “But I can’t sense anything,”
Boaz appeared behind me, as fluid as water from a tap.
“Close your eyes, love,” he breathed into my ear. The breath from his lips warmed the skin on my neck, making me feel lightheaded. One arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me into him, and the other moved slowly to the side of my neck where his fingers rubbed up to my earlobe and back down to my collar bone. “Focus on the Diablo who tried to take your life. Picture what a vile creature he was, and how he deserved to die.”