Search (The Empire Chronicles #2) Read online

  “Yeah, I know how you feel.” He stepped out of the elevator on the top floor and unlocked his door. I walked in before he locked the door behind us. The sound of the lock turning was loud. I’d already added super hearing to my list of new abilities. The sound also signified I was alone with Toby. I shouldn’t have liked that thought, but my body’s response was out of my control.

  “Can I get you anything to drink?”

  “Oh. No, that’s okay.” I wasn’t sure if I could handle a drink—alcoholic or otherwise—with the topic I wanted to broach. I walked across the room, careful to step over the pile of books on the floor. Toby’s place was usually neater.

  “Are you all right?” His voice revealed a level of worry and nerves I hadn’t noticed before.

  “Yeah. I’m okay.”

  “Since when can you see in the dark?” His voice came from right behind me.

  “What do you mean?” I spun around. His face was inches from mine.

  “Are you really going to pretend you can’t see perfectly?” His eyes twinkled again.

  “I’m not going to deny it. It’s kind of a new thing.” I decided to lay it all out there. Putting off our conversation would only make it more difficult.

  “New as in…”

  “Last night.”

  He reached a hand out and touched my arm. I looked up at him. His eyes were kind, and it gave me the confidence I needed.

  “Develop any other skills you want to tell me about?”

  “I’m stronger,” I whispered. “And I can fly.”

  “So it’s true.” His eyes widened and he straightened his shoulders.

  “You knew?” I stared into his eyes, searching for the freak out that had to be there. I didn’t find it. He still looked at me with compassion and interest. “How long have you known?”

  “I found out last night as well. I guess it was a popular night for revelations.” He smiled. It wasn’t a forced smile. It was the natural one that always melted my heart.

  “I guess so.” I looked out the window. The city view brought me back to the fear I felt when I thought I was going to fall to my death.

  “Your wings are black.” He said it as a statement and not a question.

  “Yeah.” The color of a Pteron’s wings signified the bird they’re tied to. I’d never particularly liked crows, but they did have a certain spooky, ‘don’t mess with me’, feel to them I found attractive.

  “Did you know he was your dad?” Toby watched me carefully.

  “Robert Laurent? No. Of course not.”

  “I didn’t think so.” He stepped away, giving me some more breathing room.

  “I need help.” I let the words slip out. I didn’t feel like beating around the bush.

  “I’d like to help you. I know what it’s like to suddenly find out you’re not human.”

  “Wait. You weren’t raised by Pterons? What about your grandfather?”

  “I didn’t find out what I was until I was a teenager. My grandfather showed up with my cousins. They nearly beat me to death before I transformed.” His face didn’t betray any emotion, but the experience must have been terrifying.

  I decided to keep things emotionless too. “Murphy pushed me off the Empire State Building,” I said like we were discussing the weather.

  Toby’s eyes bugged out. “He what? Are you okay?”

  “My wings worked. That’s a plus, I guess.”

  Toby smiled faintly. “I’m glad you still have your sense of humor.”

  “If I lose that, then you know I’m in trouble.”

  “Then we’ll just have to make sure you don’t.”

  We’ll? I didn’t want to read into it, but did that mean he wasn’t going to shun me? Was he going to help even though I was a Laurent and related to the guy who took the love of his life? Did the fact that I had wings change the way he felt about me?

  “How did it feel?” His eyes widened again, but this time it was with excitement.

  “Amazing.” There really was nothing else like it. If I closed my eyes, I could relive that first flight again. I’d never felt so strong and free before.

  “Isn’t it? It’s like nothing in the world can stop you or get in your way. You feel powerful and limitless.” His whole body seemed to come alive as he described the sensation of flying.

  “Exactly!” Wow, it felt so good to talk about it with someone.

  “Are the other side effects messing with you? I remember it took me awhile to get used to the night vision.” He seemed lost in thought like he was imagining his own experience.

  “Does it always happen the same way? You get the new abilities after the first time you transform?”

  “From everything I know.”

  “This is all so crazy.” I smoothed out my t-shirt.

  “Have you told anyone else yet?”

  “No.”

  “Not even Jared?” His smile faded as he said the name.

  “No.” With all of the emotions I was juggling, could I handle that kind of rejection? “He’s going to flip out.”

  Toby balled his hands into fists. “He has no right to. You didn’t know what you were, and anyway, who cares?”

  “In his position, you wouldn’t care?” I hoped he understood I meant if we’d had sex. I refused to say the words.

  “Of course not.” He grabbed my arms. “Why would that change anything?” His eyes were so open and honest. He was pleading with me to believe him. He really wouldn’t mind dating a Pteron?

  “So what now? Do you think Levi knows?”

  “No. We’d know it if he did. I think we need to tread carefully, but we need to tell him. Keeping information from him will only make you look guilty, and you need him on your side.”

  “So you think I should see him?” The thought terrified me.

  “I’m going to call Allie, if that’s okay with you.”

  “Allie?” I’m sure my face looked exactly the way his did when he said Jared. I liked her, but I also felt so much jealousy it hurt when he spoke her name. “Are you sure? I know it’s hard for you to talk to her.”

  “Hard? Why?”

  “Come on. With your history…” Was he really going to make me pull it out of him?

  “So?” He dropped his hands but didn’t move away from me.

  “I know how you feel about her. Nelly told me.”

  “Excuse me?” His body shook. “What exactly did Nelly tell you?”

  I looked away. “That you’ll never get over Allie and that I remind you of her.”

  “What?” He stepped away and put his head in his hands before turning back to me. “When did she tell you that?”

  “In New Orleans.”

  “Is that why you ended things? Why you went with Jared?”

  “I’m tired of being unwanted, of being the girl that always comes second.” I looked away, hoping the tears I felt stinging the corners of my eyes wouldn’t fall. I didn’t need to show him just how vulnerable I was.

  He wasn’t having it. He cupped my chin in his hand. “I’m over Allie, and I like you because you’re you. I can’t believe Nelly lied to you like that.” He looked down. “Or that you believed her.”

  “Why would she make it up? It makes no sense.” I felt a twinge of guilt. Why had I believed her so easily? Was it because of Jared? Was I looking for a reason to date him instead?

  Toby groaned. “My cousin was right.”

  “Right about what?” I assumed he was referring to Tim. His other cousin, Tom, barely talked. I wasn’t positive what that relationship was, but they kind of seemed like his henchmen.

  “Nelly likes me. I know how ridiculously narcissistic that sounds, but it’s true.”

  I laughed dryly. “Your witch assistant likes you?”

  “Why are you laughing?” he asked with alarm.

  “Because of how dumb I am. I was so damn insecure I fell for it.” And so willing to. The self-loathing didn’t feel good.

  “So you believe me?” For the seco
nd time that night, his eyes pleaded with me.

  “Yes.”

  “Does that mean you’ll give me a second chance?” The hope in his voice was palpable. Was he really so quick to forget what I did? More and more, I couldn’t understand how I’d moved on from him so quickly.

  I dodged the question, because I couldn’t give him another chance. Not yet at least. “I’m sorry for hurting you. I was a bitch.”

  “No, you weren’t. Nelly can be pretty persuasive when she wants to be.”

  “I was a bitch, but we both knew that already.”

  “Do you love him?” Toby’s voice was low, vulnerable.

  “No.” I didn’t know what I felt, but it wasn’t love. It was more lust and passion. My feelings for Toby were passionate too, but they were twisted with friendship and companionship more than lust.

  “Good.”

  “Good because you know he’s going to break my heart, or because you don’t like him?”

  “Both, but if you don’t love him, he can’t break your heart.”

  “He can still hurt it.” I looked down.

  “Yeah, but a hurt heart is easier to fix than a broken one.” His lips quirked into a small smile.

  “Is that offer for a drink still available?”

  “I have a better idea.”

  “Yes?” I asked expectantly.

  “Let’s go for a flight.”

  “Really? Now?” I didn’t bother hiding my excitement. The thought of being airborne again thrilled me.

  “Yes, but let’s call Allie first. I want to get it over with.”

  As much as I wasn’t ready, I agreed. Luckily, the flight would probably make things better. I already sensed it would be like exercise and would help relieve stress. The difference was, flying was fun.

  I took a seat on the couch and waited nervously as Toby placed the call. “Hey, Allie. We need to talk.”

  I gripped the cushion below me. That phone call officially meant there was no turning back.

  Chapter Three

  Jared

  I’d just drifted off to sleep when my phone rang. I’d switched it to vibrate, but the vibration against the wooden nightstand woke me up immediately. I picked up quickly, hoping it was Casey.

  “Jared.” Levi’s voice bellowed at me through the phone.

  I dialed down my disappointment. I wanted to see Casey, but I wasn’t going to chase her. She’d have to come to me—at least for now. “Yeah, man.”

  “You need to get down here.”

  “Now?” I glanced at the digital clock. “It’s almost one a.m.”

  “That’s early for you. Get here.” Levi sounded crazed, so I knew I didn’t have much time to waste.

  “You know I’m in New York, don’t you? It’s going to take a while.”

  “Just get your ass into my office now.” The line went dead.

  I couldn’t afford to leave Levi waiting. Less than a minute later, I’d put on a pair of jeans and shoes and taken off. The nice thing about being a Pteron is you don’t have to worry about anything as annoying as a plane ticket to get places in a rush.

  The wind felt amazing against my wings, and I watched the city lights dance below me as I headed toward the country. Levi hadn’t told me anything over the phone, but I knew it couldn’t be good. Levi wouldn’t wake me up without a good reason. He also wouldn’t leave Allie in bed unless he had to, and he’d called from his office.

  I tried not to overthink it. He was still pissed at me for sneaking into Angola, but this couldn’t be about that mistake again. He’d already said his piece, and I was doing exactly what I was supposed to do—I was monitoring things in New York. Of course, sleeping with Casey wasn’t in the description, but as long as I didn’t let her distract me from my work, it was fine. I never let girls distract me, even ones whose bodies called to me in my dreams.

  Three hours later, I landed outside my house to grab a shirt before heading down to the hotel. The manager wasn’t a fan of us walking through the lobby shirtless.

  Owen was sitting on the couch when I walked in.

  “Waiting up for me?” I liked giving my roommate a hard time.

  “Only because Levi told me to.”

  “What, was he afraid I wouldn’t show up?”

  Owen shrugged. “I don’t know, he just said it’s urgent.”

  “It better be. I flew three hours to get here.” I walked down to my room and grabbed a t-shirt. I didn’t put it on yet since I knew we’d be flying again.

  “There’s only one way to find out what’s up.” Owen picked up his keys and phone and headed to the door.

  “Unless it’s the end of the world, let’s get a drink after. I could use one.”

  Owen smirked. “Trouble in paradise with Casey?”

  “No.” How did he know I was thinking about her?

  “But you’ve seen her. What’s the problem, bro? She too much for you?”

  I grunted. “Let’s get down to the hotel.”

  The flight took mere minutes, then we rushed through the lobby and down to the basement level of the hotel.

  Levi was pacing the marble floored halls around his office when we showed up. “Took you long enough.”

  “Flying halfway across the country takes a while.” I shifted my weight.

  “Yeah. I guess you’ve lost your speed with your old age.”

  “Don’t talk. You’ll be twenty-three soon enough.” I was only a few months older than Levi, but the joke was I was the old one.

  “I don’t fly as slow as an old man.” Levi threw around those sorts of comments all the time, but something felt off. He didn’t have his usual joking tone.

  “What’s so important you had to get us down here at four a.m.?” Owen asked. Pterons barely need sleep, but getting called in at that hour wasn’t ideal for us either.

  “Let’s talk in my office.” Levi turned and headed inside his cluttered space. He really needed to learn to clean up after himself.

  I took a seat in one of the extra chairs. Owen sat down next to me. Levi kicked the door closed before sitting down behind the large wooden desk. There was still something weird about talking to Levi with the desk between us. It emphasized the boss-inferior relationship we now had. I didn’t like it at all.

  Levi leaned back in his chair. “Allie got some insane news tonight.”

  “Is she okay?” If Allie was hurt or upset it explained Levi’s mood. He’d do anything to keep Allie happy.

  “Allie’s fine. This isn’t about her.”

  “Then who is it about?” Owen glanced at me to see if I had any idea what was coming.

  “Casey.”

  “What?” I coughed. “My Casey?”

  Owen laughed. “Calling her yours already?”

  “If he is, this is going to be even worse.” Levi looked away.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  He put his hands behind his head. “My dad’s an idiot.”

  “And this is news?” I grinned. Levi’s opinion of his father was about as high as mine was of my father. Pretty damn low.

  “He fucked around behind my mom’s back.” Levi practically spit the words. I understood his anger. Sleeping around on your mate was bad for a Pteron, but it was unheard of for a royal. It could also have huge consequences.

  “Uh…” Owen stared blankly.

  Levi closed his eyes then opened them. “It gets worse.”

  “Worse?” My voice wavered. I knew whatever was coming was going to be bad.

  He sat up straight. “He got her pregnant. She had a daughter.”

  “What?” This couldn’t relate to Casey. It couldn’t. “How long ago did that happen?”

  “Nineteen years ago.” Levi paused. “It’s Casey.”

  “No.” I shook my head. I refused to believe it.

  Owen stared at Levi. “Are you seriously suggesting Casey is your sister?”

  My head spun. This couldn’t be happening.

  “My half-sister. Toby saw
a paternity test. I had Georgina trace it. It’s legit.”

  I got out of my chair and tossed it into the wall. The wood splintered into pieces.

  “Whoa. Calm down, man.” Owen spoke to me, but I could only vaguely hear him over my anger.

  “Calm down? I fucking slept with a Pteron.”

  “You slept with her?” Levi pulled me back around to look at him. “You slept with my sister?”

  “Oh, get off it, asshole. You didn’t know you were related until a few hours ago. I’m the one who slept with the fucking girl.”

  “She didn’t know.” Allie’s soft voice surprised me. I hadn’t heard her come in.

  “How would you know?” I turned and glared at her.

  “She had no idea. She’s freaked out. She turned to Toby for help.”

  “That just makes it better. She lets me fuck her then goes crying to Toby. Fucking perfect.”

  “She’s a victim here too.” Allie crossed her arms. “If there’s anyone to be mad at it’s Robert.”

  The door burst open and Levi’s grandmother walked in. “Where’s that idiot father of yours?” Georgina glared at Levi. I don’t generally find old women scary, but Georgina was downright frightening when she was mad.

  Levi ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t know. He isn’t picking up his phone.”

  “Make him. I’m going to kill him.” Georgina curled her hand into a fist at her side.

  “Did you have any idea?” Levi asked more calmly than I could have.

  Georgina dropped a large handbag on the desk. “No, but at least we have answers.”

  “Answers?” Owen took a seat on the desk, careful to stay clear of Georgina’s overflowing bag.

  “In all of my research on Enchantresses, I never discovered any plausible rationale for their existence. I didn’t find any explanation for why a human sometimes picked the king instead of the crown staying in the same family.” Georgina paused dramatically. I resisted the urge to tell her to hurry up. Georgina wouldn’t take that well.

  “Now we have the answer.” She paused again.

  “And?” Levi didn’t have the same restraint I did.

  Georgina finally continued. “We’re always warned that if the king or crowned prince steps out on their mate, they’ll lose the crown—but it’s not instantaneous. Instead, it goes down to the next generation.”