SWNOVELS Chapter 15
I'm shocked, confused, and conflicted. On the one hand, it's a relief to know AJ's mind isn't open for vampire business. On the other, my best friend for as long as I can remember, the godmother to my only child, the one person in this world I can trust--isn't human? What am I supposed to do with that information?
"What?" I ask Zev, ready to throw a massive fit if he doesn't elaborate.
"Yeah, what?" AJ echoes.
My head snaps to her, every sense I can control focused on studying her thoughts, expressions, and movements. I've always been able to read AJ's tells, knowing when she lied about where she spent the night, what was going on with her dad, which boy she was making out with. Throughout all of that, at no point did I think, hang on, I wonder if she's lying about being the same species as me.
Even as I look her over, getting close enough to take a discreet sniff and see if I can smell whatever Zev smelled--I definitely cannot--AJ keeps her eyes on the werewolf.
"What do you mean I'm not human? Bernie, what's he saying?"
AJ finally looks at me and sees how freaked out I am.
"Are you... Bernie, are you freaking serious? Do you not think I'm a person?" The look of disbelief on her face makes me wonder if I am being a little crazy about this. "We've been having sleepovers since we were like five. We've gone skinny dipping a thousand times." She's not lying, but I'm not sure if anatomy is the defining human factor. After all, I've spent a fair amount of time thinking about the anatomy of my visiting Sexies, and I don't want those fantasies to be dashed right now.
"Why didn't you fall under the spell, A? I'll believe whatever you say, but I need you to help me understand."
She looks at me, then at Zev, then back at Darius, who's still pretty steamed about having his mental advances rebuffed.
"I mean... I don't know. All he did was tell me to forget shit and it's like, why? So you're a gorgeous vampire, I don't have to hand you the damn keys to my mind."
The logic doesn't win me over, but analytics have never meant much in our relationship. Still, I need a second opinion.
"Zev?" I ask, still wanting an explanation from the doctor with K-9 smelling powers.
"Humans have a bitter smell," he explains, eyes wandering over AJ. "The toxins from your body, the harmful chemicals your brains produce, the scent is almost overwhelming."
He walks back to AJ, very much invading her personal space as he places his nose at the base of her neck and inhales deeply. She doesn't fight it at all, instead placing her hands on his hips to steady herself as she tilts her head to the side and gives Zev better access. From the way they're standing, you wouldn't know AJ's husband died twenty minutes ago and Zev's the one who killed him. As Zev takes in whatever otherworldly pheromone my friend's producing, he keeps his eyes locked with mine. For the briefest second I imagine standing where AJ is, Zev's face next to mine, his breath on my neck. A warm shiver runs through me and I shake my head to snap out of it.
Zev steps back, his gaze returning to the woman he just inhaled. "She has no such smell. You may have human blood, but there's more to you than that."
I need a break from this new reality, so I cross the room to take my baby back from Rune. She might be less than a day old, but she feels like the one constant I've got in life, now that I know AJ is an alien or a bird or a pile of crabs wearing a human suit. Darius comes in hot, wanting answers like the rest of us, but also with a personal bone to pick since AJ beat him in a game of mentalist. "Where are you from?"
"I'm from Rowley, idiot."
Her immediate snark is so common for people in this area, it makes me think either Zev can't handle the smell of New Englanders or I've grown up amongst nonhumans. Frankly, both options sound plausible.
Rune's been quiet to this point, observing with a blank face. When he stands and strides over to AJ, Zev and Darius clear the way, almost deferentially.
"I sense nymph."
He speaks with a quiet authority. It's a side of Rune I hadn't seen until this point. He stares into AJ's eyes while describing her to us.
"She attracts, clearly. There's fluidity, grace... and fire. That must be the human side."
Zev and Darius join the fae, the three of them all standing inches from AJ, whose body is tense but unmoving. My mind drifts again to a quick body swap, placing myself in the middle of that Sexy circle, but I push the thought out for fear of fainting. "It's on the father's side," Darius speaks barely above a whisper.
"How do you know?" asks Zev. It's the first time I've seen the werewolf seek knowledge from another, and it adds another layer to his intelligent charm.
"Because if the trait came from her mother," Darius says, turning away from AJ to show his inspection has concluded.
"...she'd know." Rune picks up the sentence where Darius left off. "She had no example of who she was. No role model."
"Hey, blondie, maybe stop talking shit about my mom." AJ's heart is in the right place, even if she misses the point.
I've still got no fewer than a million questions, but the Sexies seem pretty content with this reasoning. AJ's a nymph, not on her mom's side, case closed, I guess?
"Hang on," I finally chime in, not ready for this conversation to move to the next point. "How many nymphs and wolf people and, friggin', I don't know, orcs are living around me? Or is AJ, and AJ's dad, are they the only ones?" "Certainly not the only ones," Zev answers, reclaiming his role as the smartest man in the room. "But there are very few."
The werewolf walks into the attached kitchen, taking a glass and filling it with water from the sink.
"A small number of Earthlings aren't human," he continues, "many concentrated in this area."
"What, in Rowley?" AJ asks. I can hear from the tenor of her voice that she's not into the idea of other non-humans living in her town. She doesn't want anyone cheapening her Nymphness. "Your world has a long history with paranormals," Rune explains. "Centuries ago, when witches sought refuge in this region--"
"Quiet, Rune," Darius says with a roll of his eyes. "You sound like a tired professor."
"Someone had to pay attention during seminars, Prince Darius," Rune fires back.
"Hang on," I say, not wanting the seminar detail to slip through the cracks. "You two went to school together?"
"All three of us," Zev says, walking over with his glass and joining the conversation. "We have a backstory that predates your country, Bernie."
"That's right," Darius says, a menacing look in his eyes. "Our friendship started lifetimes ago. Or at least one lifetime."
"We don't need to have this conversation now," Rune says, his anger starting to boil over.
"Then when?" Darius asks. "Generations have passed. When will you feel comfortable talking about Cara's death? Or are you happy to silently blame me until the kingdoms collapse?"
A hush takes over the room, each man staring daggers at the others. It would appear that the Sexies not only have history, but some heavy history.
"Later," Zev says. "You deserve the conversation, Darius, but not right now."
And with that, the werewolf turns to AJ and shocks us all by throwing the water from his glass at her face.
"What the... you son of a bitch!" As mad as AJ looks, she's too startled to act on her anger, staying put while staring daggers at Zev.
Darius moves over to look at AJ. Rune also looks from her face to the floor around her, giving the scene of the crime a thorough inspection.
"Interesting," Darius says.
"Quite," Rune agrees.
"Water nymph," Zev announces.
"More like beat-your-ass-with-a-tire-iron nymph, you piece of--"
"A." I cut her off in part so she won't start a fight with three superpowered beings, but also because of the sight before me.
She might be livid, but AJ is completely dry. In front of her, there's a perfect ring of water. Like she had a forcefield that repelled it and, save a few drops on her clothes, kept her from getting wet.