Possessed Page 8

  “W-what’s he doing here?” Leslie asked.

  Sebastian wiped away his tears as a disbelieving laugh erupted from his chest. “You mean you recognize me? I’m the one who should be asking why you’re here.”

  “Sebastian, son, it’s been so long,” Martin said. “They’re part of the neighborhood. We couldn’t not ask them. And we didn’t know you’d be coming until last night.”

  He nodded at the explanation. His parents’ home was two houses down. “It’s fine. Tell Mike I’ll see him at his house.” He hugged Melanie and Martin. “It was good to see you again.” He brushed by his mother without speaking.

  He was almost at his truck when he heard someone calling his name. Pivoting, he saw his mother running after him. She stopped and stared up at him when she was an arm’s length away. “You’re taller,” she said in a quiet voice. “And so handsome.”

  Jaw clenched, he waited for more.

  “I can’t ever apologize enough for not standing up for you, but I want you to know that I…tried. Carl wouldn’t hear of it. Wouldn’t allow me to even mention your name, but I never stopped missing you…my baby.”

  Sebastian glared at her. “You were afraid of me.”

  “Only for a moment.”

  “Then why didn’t you ever try to reach me?”

  “I couldn’t. But I did keep tabs on you through Melanie and Martin. They showed me pictures from your prom and graduation. I know all about the Web site you sold and how you then went into web design. And then flipping houses in Vegas.”

  Though it should have mollified him that she’d made some attempt at keeping a connection with him, even if he hadn’t been aware of it, it wasn’t enough. He was her flesh and blood, her only son, and he hadn’t spoken to her in twelve years. They’d turned their backs on him and snubbed him at every opportunity. “Why are you telling me this? What do you want?”

  “Nothing. I may never get this opportunity again. I love you, Sebastian.” She took a large, awkward step forward. She kissed his jaw and gave him a quick hug. It was over before he could either reciprocate or push her away. He watched her walk back inside.

  Sitting behind the wheel of his truck, his gaze was drawn to his old house. It hadn’t changed much since he left. It was painted cream instead of white. There were more landscaping elements, such as a fountain in the middle of the front lawn and a row of plants lining the walkway to the front door. The bench he’d helped his father build out of wood was gone. In its place was a white plastic one.

  “Dude, I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know they’d be here. Are you okay?”

  Sebastian blinked. Mike stood next to his truck. He’d been so preoccupied with the past that he hadn’t noticed Mike come out of the house. “I’m fine.”

  “What did she want?”

  “Nothing important. Hey, so I think I’m going to head out.”

  Mike nodded. “See you at the house?”

  “Um, no. I should leave.”

  “Heading back to Nevada?”

  Sebastian shook his head. He’d arrived at Mike’s place late last night, so they hadn’t talked. This morning Mike had left early to put up decorations at his parents’. “I can’t go back there.”

  Mike frowned. “What about Keva?”

  “What about her?”

  “My God, man, you’re in love with her.”

  “And the best thing I can do for her is to stay away from her.”

  “Is that what she wants?”

  He thought of their last evening together. “Yes.”

  Mike made a frustrated sound. He twisted away from the car and swore. “You fucked that up on purpose, didn’t you? You love her and you pushed her away. Do you want to be unhappy? You were so close.”

  “Mike, it wouldn’t work. How long before I lose control again? That’s no way for her to live.”

  “Hell, it’s no way for you to live, but you choose it. Don’t you think she should have the chance to say no before you assume that’s her answer?”

  “Let it go.”

  “Hell, no, I won’t. You keep selling yourself short. In case you haven’t noticed, there are plenty of people who care about you who don’t give a damn about you being able to levitate a pencil.”

  “Mike, I don’t want to talk about this.”

  “Well, that’s too fucking bad because I think you’re about to make a stupid mistake. What your parents did to you was shitty. What you can’t seem to accept is that they’re the freaks, not you. What type of people would turn their backs on their own flesh and blood? They’re the freaks of nature, not you.”

  Sebastian hit his hands on the steering wheel. “Why are you doing this?” Mike never pushed. It was one of the reasons why he considered him to be his best friend. If he said he didn’t want to talk, Mike understood. Why was he pushing?

  “Because I love you, dude. You deserve to be happy and I think Keva could make you happy if you let her.”

  “I love you, too, Mike. I just need some time…to think.”

  Mike held his hands up and backed away from the truck. “Fine. Think, but make sure you think about what I said. Your parents fucked up your late teens. You don’t have to do the same to the rest of your life.”

  Sebastian’s head ached. He couldn’t meet his friend’s eyes. Instead, he nodded to acknowledge Mike’s words. “I’ll call you when I can.”

  ****

  Keva placed the grocery bag of drinks on the bench and pressed the doorbell. Sunday dinners at her mother’s house were important to the family. Before her move to Nevada, every Sunday after church she could be found at her mother’s dinner table. This week she’d been assigned the task of bringing sodas. Keva knew it was because they didn’t trust her with any of the more important items. She was fine with that since she had only been home for a month and a half. The pile of unpacked boxes in her kitchen, den, and bedroom taunted her.

  Her sister Lily opened the door. “About time,” she said with a disapproving frown marring her otherwise smooth brow. At almost forty, Lily looked half her age. “We missed you at church today.”

  Keva rolled her eyes as she picked up the bag. “I told you I had to buy the dress for last week. I didn’t have a lot of call for them in Nevada.”

  “You would have if you’d been going to church instead of associating with heathens.”

  She pressed her lips together. There was no point in arguing with her sister or her mother. They only heard what they wanted to hear. “Where is everybody?”

  “Kevin hasn’t arrived yet. He had to work. Mom’s in the kitchen icing the cake. Ambrosia’s taking a nap but should be up in time for dinner,” Lily finished. Ambrosia was her two-year-old daughter. Keva had to bite her tongue to keep from snapping at Lily. If Kevin and his family hadn’t arrived yet, why was she giving her attitude? Their brother and his wife were supposed to prepare the chicken. Dinner was not going to start without him.

  “Hey, Keva,” Jackson, Lily’s husband, said as they entered the den. “I’ll take those into the kitchen for you.” He kissed her cheek in greeting and took the heavy bags.

  “Thanks,” she said with a smile. She dropped her purse on the couch and followed him. Her mother was stirring a bowl of chocolate icing. The kitchen was warm and fragrant. Three thick layers of cake sat on the counter cooling. She gave her mother a quick hug and kiss. “Hi, Mom.”

  “Hi, Keva. Did you bring a diet soda for me?”

  “Sure did.” She’d only been reminded four times to purchase at least one diet soda.

  Her mom looked her over. “Why don’t you curl your hair? It’s so limp and lifeless.”

  Keva ran a hand over her loose locks. Her curling iron broke a few years ago and she’d never bothered to replace it. So unless she wanted a burned thumb, straight hair was her only option. “I like it this way,” she said casually. “It’s low maintenance.”

  “But it’s so bouncy when it’s curled.”

  Keva looked around the kitchen. “Do you n
eed help with anything?”

  “Nope, I’ve got everything under control here. Collard greens are over there. Ham’s in the oven. Potato salad is in the fridge. All we need now is Kevin. Why don’t you go see if Lily needs help setting the table?”

  She didn’t want to be alone with Lily because her sister was a nag. What was annoying, but acceptable from her mother, was doubly irritating from her sister. She supposed Lily felt like a second mom to her since there was such a large gap between their ages. That didn’t make taking her constant criticism any easier. When she entered the dining room off the kitchen, Lily was finishing up. She twitched the flowers in the vase and placed it at the center of the table.

  “Do you need any help?”

  Lily smiled and spread her hands out like a showcase model as if to display the gleaming silver and napkins. “All done.” Keva followed Lily out into the den. “How do you like your new job?”

  “It’s okay,” she said without much enthusiasm. She’d gotten a job in the billing department at the hospital. It was a job and it covered the rent, but she didn’t see herself working there forever.

  “Do you like your coworkers? Any cute guys there?”

  “Yes to the first question. No to the second. I’m off men for the moment.” She saw no point in dating when her heart wasn’t in it.

  “Really? Anthony made a point of telling me how pretty he thought you were last week after church. I almost invited him over for dinner.”

  Keva’s brows rose. She was glad that didn’t come to pass. She’d dated Anthony for about three days in high school before he went back to his old girlfriend. He’d never told her what went wrong. It might be spiteful of her, but she wasn’t interested in giving him a second chance. “Don’t bother.”

  “But he’s so cute.”

  A buzzing sounded from her back pocket before she could reply. Keva frowned at her cell. She didn’t recognize the number displayed on the caller ID. She answered with a cautious, “Hello?” The only reply was labored breathing. “Hello? Who is this?”

  “Keva,” a rough voice said. It was deep and dark, more of a growl than anything.

  She whipped around so that she was no longer facing her sister. “Who is this?” she repeated in a frantic whisper.

  A short, dark laugh met her ears. It was as if she spoke to Satan himself. “You know who this is.”

  “Sebastian?”

  “Bastian,” he corrected her.

  “What do you want?”

  Another laugh, more evil and polluted than the last. It held no mirth. It was a lazy, taunting expulsion of air. “You know what I want.”

  “Spell it out for me. Do you need to talk? We can perform a therapy session…”

  Restless shifting reached her ears. “Pussy,” he said the word as though he were savoring it like a fine wine. “I need pussy.”

  Keva stiffened her spine. Anger and fear threatened to break free. She would not let him affect her. Would not let him use her or manipulate her anymore. Straining to keep her voice as neutral as possible, she replied, “I’m no longer in Nevada.”

  “I know,” he drawled in that menacing tone of his. “I tracked you.”

  Keva tightened her hand around her cell to still her trembling. Her heart slammed against her ribs in panic. Bracing herself with the arm of the sofa, she found the seat cushion with numb fingers and sat down. “Y-you’re in North Carolina?”

  “Mmm.” His affirmative sound resembled that of a lion purring. “Greenville to be exact. I need you, Keva.”

  “Sebastian, I don’t do that type of work anymore.”

  “Bastian.” He couldn’t have given her a better reminder of whom she was speaking to. Sebastian was hesitant, almost shy, but when his power was riding him, he turned into the arrogant, demanding creature that was Bastian. “I need you,” he repeated.

  “You’ll need to find someone else. I won’t—” A loud rumbling interrupted her and she realized with a start that it was him. He was very displeased.

  “You. I want you.”

  “What the hell was that?” Lily asked behind her.

  Keva ignored her. “Bastian, please be reasonable.”

  “Be ready, Keva. I’m coming for you.” He disconnected the call.

  “Shit!”

  Of course her mother would choose that moment to enter the room. “Keva! This is not an outhouse. I did not raise you to use that type of language.”

  Keva considered her options. She couldn’t let him find her here. It was only a matter of time, and she didn’t want him terrifying her family. They’d never approved of her work and they certainly would not approve of Sebastian. “I have to go.”

  “What?” Her mother wiped her floured hands on a kitchen towel. “You just got here. Dinner will be served in twenty minutes. What’s so urgent you can’t even wait for dinner?”

  Keva grabbed her purse and dropped her cell inside. “It’s an emergency.”

  Lily placed a hand on her slender hips. “What type of emergency that you’d leave a family dinner for? You’ve already missed one since you’ve been home.”

  And they never let her forget it. It was her first week home and she’d been moving into her town house. She hadn’t wanted to join the family for one of the typically delicious but heavy Southern meals and then go home to a house left in chaos. “It’s a friend,” she said, moving toward the door.

  Lily’s eyes narrowed. “A friend or a client?”

  “As you well know, I don’t do that type of work anymore. It’s unadvisable to take sessions outside of a clinical setting.” She darted toward the door. “If I can, I’ll come back.” After dinner, they usually hung around the den discussing family, friends, and work. She bumped into Kevin on her way out.

  “What’s the rush?”

  “Emergency,” she yelled over her shoulder, waving at Kevin and his wife Lecretia as she got into her car.

  ****

  Keva burst into her town house. Everything was just as she’d left it. The lights were off. A few boxes sat on the coffee table. From the small den, she could see straight through to the kitchen. It was empty. She glanced up the stairs. It was dark and still. She stood still, straining to hear the sound of a violin. There was nothing.

  She couldn’t believe he had tracked her down. After leaving IOP in a rush, she’d called back as planned to tell them that she was called away on a family emergency. As she’d discussed with Dean, she’d resigned two weeks later. The thinking was that they wouldn’t be interested in coming out to North Carolina to interrogate her. Nor would they be interested in having her flown back to Nevada. Dr. Garcia would be forced to stop her investigation. Sebastian would be free. The only one who lost anything was her. She’d lost the job she loved.

  Reason asserted itself. She would have eventually found out what was going on at IOP and then she would have been forced to make a choice. She could join Dean and his cohorts to uncover IOP’s secret motives. Or she could quit.

  When she heard a knock sound at the door, she knew it was Sebastian and she was prepared to give him an earful. Her hand on the knob shook as she turned it. “Bastian, I—” The electric crackle stopped her. He wore shades. Over his face blue currents of psychic energy snapped and popped. Glancing left and right to ensure that no one saw him, she grabbed his jacket and yanked him into her town house. “I can’t believe you’re traveling out in the open like this. How could you let it get this bad?”

  He shrugged out of his jacket and took off his shades. His irises were silver. “I was in Alaska. I couldn’t get to you any sooner.”

  “Alaska? What were you doing there?”

  “Trying to be good.” He grabbed the back of his black T-shirt and whipped it over his head. His hair fell about his bare shoulders. “Obviously, I’m not very good at being good.”

  Keva gulped and backed away from him. The man had a body to die for. Just the sight of his abs made her knees weak. “We’re not—”

  “Keva, let’s skip t
hat part of the dance this time. We both know how it ends.”

  Her heart sped up as anger pounded through her veins. “Yeah, and then you walking out the door.”

  “Not this time.”

  She scoffed. “You’re like a split personality. I will not let you use me anymore. Do you even want to know why I’m here?”

  He toed off his shoes and shrugged. His hands dropped to his pants. He undid them and they obligingly fell to the floor. “You got sick of the heat and sand?”

  “No!” She jabbed a finger into the middle his chest. “I quit my job so that they couldn’t interrogate me with a telepath about you. Apparently they have some secret training program there forcing high-level psychics to become spies.”

  He arched a black brow. “I warned you about them. This can’t come as too much of a surprise.”

  She flopped down onto her couch and crossed her legs. “You’ve ruined my life. I’m not helping you this time.” He dropped down in front of her. A large hand rested on her knee. Warmth from his palm penetrated her jeans and seemed to radiate up to her core. She shifted, hating that she was still attracted to him despite everything he had cost her. He tightened his hold. “I loved that job. It’s what I’ve wanted to do ever since I discovered I was a Channel. You ruined that for me. I was helping people. It was exciting and it made me feel good to know that I was needed. Now all I do is push around paper and harass patients for payment.”

  “Then help me. I need you.”

  She scowled at his insensitivity. She should have known it was useless talking to him while he was in this state. He had only one interest when he was like this. Knocking his hand away, she stood. “You’re so selfish.”

  Slowly, he straightened to his full height. He emitted a sigh as though she were testing his patience. “Keva, I need pussy.”

  ****

  At her outraged gasp, Sebastian held up a hand. “I want to comfort you and give you some sweet, romantic spiel, but we both know it’s a struggle for me to even talk.” Thunder rumbled in the distance. Her big brown gaze flew the window. The clear blue sky mocked him. There wasn’t a cloud in sight.