Boxed Set Page 31

  He scowled at her as they stepped out of the woods. "And what about you?" he demanded.

  She frowned as she looked at him. "What about me?" she retorted.

  He grinned at her as he slung his arm around her shoulders. "Boys?" he taunted.

  Isabelle laughed as she leaned against his side. "I wouldn't waste my time or my energy."

  "Speaking of time and energy," Ethan groaned as a pickup, laden with wood, pulled into the driveway. Another followed up the hill and parked next to it.

  Isabelle started to laugh as she slipped free of his arm. "It's for our house," she reminded him.

  "Does that mean you're going to help?" he inquired.

  "Yeah, right," she replied.

  She laughed as she skipped away with Ethan muttering behind her.

  Chapter Two

  Isabelle handed out bottles of water to Ethan, Aiden, Ian, and Jack. They eagerly accepted them, twisting the tops off as they tossed their tools aside. She glanced around the large frame structure they were building. The house would be two stories, with four bedrooms, a finished basement, dining room, living room, kitchen, three full baths, and a half bath; but for now, it was just an empty skeleton. When completed, it would be mostly hers and Ethan's, but when Aiden and Ian came home from school, they would also stay here.

  "It's coming along nicely," she said.

  "If you would help, it would come along even faster," Ethan said.

  "She'd have us cleaning up the sawdust as we went," Jack retorted.

  Isabelle made a face at him as she surveyed the mess surrounding her. Power tools, sawhorses, and pieces of wood littered the ground. Extension cords ran in a hundred directions, and tarps were spread everywhere. She stood in what would be the dining room, but right now it was completely unrecognizable. The basement was the only thing done, but she knew it wouldn't take them long to finish everything else.

  A little bubble of happiness rose inside her. She couldn't wait until it was done and they could move in. For the first time in her life, she would have some semblance of privacy. Plus, her mother helped her pick out most of the counters, flooring, rugs, tiles, and paint, and she couldn't wait to start decorating.

  "Where are David, Mike, and Doug?" she asked, holding up the three unclaimed water bottles.

  "They got smart and took off early to get a shower," Ethan muttered, taking another bottle from her. He dumped most of it over his head before squirting the rest into his mouth to wet his throat. Shaking out his wet hair, he sent droplets of water cascading over all of them.

  "Gross," Isabelle protested.

  He grinned at her and tossed the bottle into the trashcan nearby. "That's the closest I'm going to get to a shower for at least an hour, so leave me be."

  She smiled back as Ian and Jack grabbed the remaining bottles. "I guess I get left out again," Aiden mumbled as he rubbed his arm across his dirt and sawdust-streaked face. He looked amazingly like her father and Ethan, with his black hair and bright green eyes, but Aiden was taller and leaner, his nose a little larger, and his hair curly instead of straight.

  "Move faster next time," Ian retorted, smiling happily. Sawdust, sweat, and dirt caked his golden hair. Grime smeared his elegant face, and the goggles covering his blue eyes made them look even bigger. He was the most solidly built and tallest of them all at six four.

  "Where did your dad go?" Jack asked.

  "Mom," they all answered in unison.

  Jack shook his head, throwing water everywhere. "I can't wait to get this done," he mumbled.

  "Neither can I," Ethan agreed.

  "Bathrooms," Aiden said longingly.

  "Well, are you guys coming in, or are you staying out here all night?" she asked impatiently.

  "I'll come with you guys, maybe a shower's open," Jack said hopefully.

  "Doubtful," Ethan muttered.

  They raced across the open field and up the back steps of the porch. Willow was standing on the porch; she watched them until they made it to the top. "What are you doing out here?" Isabelle inquired.

  "Vicky and Abby are driving me crazy," she muttered. "And if you're hoping for a shower, forget it. They've been in the bathroom for over an hour bickering over who has better hair."

  "They're identical!" Jack muttered.

  "No, really?" Willow retorted sarcastically.

  Jack folded his arms over his chest as he gave her a stern look. "No need to be a wiseass."

  "I learned from the best," she retorted. Jack tugged on her hair as he strode past, struggling to hide his smile from her.

  Ethan opened the glass doors and stepped into the kitchen, everyone filing in behind him. Willow darted into the adjoining room and slid the wooden doors shut behind her. Almost immediately, Isabelle could hear her squabbling with Julian. The TV in the basement was blaring, and over the noise, she could hear Kyle and Cassidy fighting over what they wanted to watch. Above it all, she could hear Vicky and Abby arguing over the hairdryer.

  "There are two hairdryers!"

  Isabelle grinned as her father's voice boomed through the house. She leaned against the counter, folding her arms over her chest as Aiden, Ian, and Jack tiredly slid into the kitchen chairs. Ethan leaned against the counter beside her; he crossed his long legs before him as Isabelle’s mother and father strolled into the room.

  "Hi, guys," her mom greeted happily. "You're a mess."

  "And it doesn't look like we're getting a shower here either," Jack grumbled.

  "I'll get them out of there," her father told him.

  He turned and strode back down the hall, yelling for Vicky and Abby to get out of the bathroom. He came back into the kitchen to the accompaniment of pounding footsteps. "Dad!" they yelled as they burst into the kitchen. "We're not done!"

  "Get ready in your bedroom then," he told them, not deterred by their pouting.

  "But—"

  "No buts," he said firmly.

  They both stared at him with pleading green eyes as they lifted damp, light blonde hair and held it out. "The light isn't as good," Vicky protested.

  "Victoria, other people need the bathroom. Go ahead, Jack," Isabelle's mother said.

  "Hey, shouldn't your kids go first!" Ian protested instantly. "We're filthy too!"

  Jack was gone in a blur of motion before Ian could finish his sentence.

  "I have to learn how to do that," Aiden said in awe. Isabelle flashed past him, pulling his hair as she moved. "Ow! You witch! Not fair!"

  Isabelle laughed as she returned to her spot on the counter. She finally managed to master that particular power last year when she reached maturity. It aggravated her brothers she could do it when they couldn't. She loved to use it on them.

  "What about us?" Abby demanded.

  Her mother took a deep breath as she bit her lip and closed her eyes. Her father wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest.

  "Use the bathroom in the basement," her dad told them. The twins groaned in unison before turning and stomping down the stairs. "You really want more?"

  Her mother laughed as she shook her head. "Not for a long time."

  "Good," her father said.

  Isabelle watched as her parents grew silent, and then her mother burst out laughing and hit her father playfully. She had long ago adjusted to the soundless conversations they had with each other. Sometimes, when she watched them, she wondered what it would be like to meet someone who would make her so happy, but more often than not the idea frightened her.

  She couldn't imagine needing someone so much she would die without them; it terrified her to even think about it. It was the main reason she kept herself locked away. It was the last thing she ever wanted to happen to her.

  She would gladly stay here for the rest of her existence before she gave up her heart, her soul, and her freedom to someone else. Her parents couldn't stand to be apart for extended periods of time, and when they were apart, they were in constant communication with each other's minds. She knew their love was r
are and precious, but to never part with someone was something she didn't want to contemplate, let alone experience.

  "So how are things going with the house?" her mom asked.

  "They're going," Ethan answered tiredly.

  A knock on the front door turned all their heads around.

  "Who could that be?" Aiden pondered.

  "Probably some of the material I ordered for the new house, it was supposed to come today," her mom answered. She untangled herself from Liam’s arms, swiftly heading past the fridge and down the stairs to the front door.

  "I'll go help her," Isabelle said.

  She couldn't wait to get her hands on the new material. It had to be the paint they’d ordered, or maybe the kitchen cabinets. She smiled with anticipation when her father suddenly went rigid. His eyes flashed a vibrant red before he vanished. They stood gaping at each other before turning and running for the front door.

  Chapter Three

  By the time they got to the front door, her mother and father were outside, kneeling over a woman. Isabelle skidded to a halt when she spotted the middle-aged woman on the ground between them. "Kathleen!" Ethan blurted.

  Isabelle's mouth dropped open. "What happened?" Aiden demanded.

  Her mother looked up at him with unshed tears in her violet blue eyes. "She fainted," she whispered.

  "Mom! Mom!" It was then Isabelle noticed the young girl kneeling over Kathleen, lightly tapping her face and attempting to wake her.

  "Who is that?" Aiden insisted.

  "Kathleen," Isabelle answered.

  "Who?" Ian asked in confusion.

  She rolled her eyes at them. If it didn't have to do with a girl or blood, they paid no attention to anything. "Mom's friend from college!" she told them impatiently.

  "Oh," he said dully. "Oh shit!" He exclaimed loudly when the full realization sank in.

  "Liam, get her up, we'll take her inside," her mother ordered briskly

  Her father bent and scooped Kathleen up.

  "Put her down!" the girl screamed as she pulled on her father's arms. "Put her down now!"

  "What is going on?" Jack bellowed from the back of the pack still crammed in the doorway. "Is that... oh, this can't be good."

  "Get out of the way, Jack!" her father snapped as he quickly carried Kathleen inside.

  Her mother followed eagerly behind, her beautiful face pinched with apprehension. "Ethan, please take care of ah... Kathleen's daughter."

  They all turned to look at the young girl as she stared worriedly back at them with wide blue eyes. Tears streaked her pretty face as she tried to shove her way past them.

  Ethan gripped her shoulders and pulled her back from the doorway. "Just calm down," he said.

  The girl's sky blue eyes were filled with distress as she shoved at him again. He grabbed hold of her slender arms and pinned them to her sides. "Your mother is fine; she just went inside to catch up with her good friends." The girl's eyes began to glaze over as his power started to wrap its way into her mind. "You decided to stay out here with us while they catch up. Okay?"

  She nodded as he released his hold on her. Isabelle nudged him out of the way and took hold of the girl’s limp hands. "What's your name?" she inquired.

  "Delia," she replied numbly.

  "Delia, that's a nice name. How old are you, Delia?"

  The girl continued to stare at her dazedly. "Sixteen."

  "What brings you here?" Isabelle prodded as she tried to break the girl from her trance.

  Delia blinked in confusion, and then her eyes focused on Isabelle. "My mom wanted to see yours."

  Isabelle let out a small sigh of relief as the girl began to regain full consciousness. "I'm sure they'll have a good time."

  "Yes, they will. Who are you?" the girl asked.

  "I'm Isabelle, and these are my brothers Ethan, Aiden, and Ian. The ugly guy with the wet hair is Jack, one of The Stooges."

  "Hey!" Jack protested angrily at the same time Delia asked. "The Stooges?"

  Isabelle grinned at Jack as he scowled disapprovingly back at her. "Yeah, that's what we call our parents’ friends, Jack, David, Mike, and Doug."

  Delia’s forehead puckered as she frowned. "There were only three stooges."

  "You're forgetting Shemp," Ethan interjected. "Everyone forgets Shemp. Trust me, once you get to know these four they are just like The Stooges."

  "Hey!" Jack protested again as he frowned at all of them. "We helped to raise your ungrateful asses!"

  "Yes, and that's why we are the way we are," Aiden retorted.

  Delia smiled as she looked over Isabelle's shoulder toward the group gathered on the porch. She had delicate cheekbones and a full mouth. She was taller than Kathleen, and leaner, but with her mother's curvaceous figure.

  Another set of headlights flashed into the driveway.

  "Who is that?" Jack's kidding air vanished in an instant as they all stiffened in preparation for what was to come.

  "That's my sister, Jess; she rode up with her boyfriend. You probably remember Jess." She turned back toward Isabelle, her face eager as she looked at her hopefully. "She remembers you."

  Isabelle vaguely remembered Jess. The last time she'd seen her, she'd been eight years old. Jess had been a pudgy blonde, with blue eyes, and a zeal for mischief. They'd been fast friends then, as Jess had been the only girl for Isabelle to play with at the time, Abby and Vicky being newborns. To her surprise, Isabelle suddenly found herself looking forward to seeing her again. Jess was so much fun when they were younger, and it would be good to have someone other than her sisters for a change.

  "Oh wonderful," Jack muttered. "I'm going to get the others."

  "I think you should," Ethan said.

  They all turned as car doors opened and slammed shut. Isabelle's brow furrowed as the night air suddenly shifted and stirred. She glanced worriedly at her brothers; their casual postures vanished as they scanned the night. Ethan scented the air for the source of the sudden disturbance. Isabelle turned her attention back to the car. Two people stood in front of it; the shadows of the night hid them.

  "Do you feel that?" she whispered.

  "Yes," Ethan's eyes narrowed.

  Aiden and Ian stepped forward, their bodies tense, and their eyes locked on the shadows.

  "What is that?" Ian inquired.

  Isabelle didn't know, but it radiated through the inside of her, shaking her to the core. Something was off; something wasn't right. It wasn’t a scary feeling, but it upset her nonetheless. There was something in those shadows she'd never felt before, something she didn't understand.

  "What are you guys talking about?" Delia demanded.

  "Isabelle, go inside," Ethan commanded.

  Isabelle shot him a nasty look as her jaw clenched and her hands fisted at her sides. She wasn't going anywhere if it meant leaving them alone with whatever the strange presence was. "No."

  "Come on." A girl's voice, Jess's, cut through the air.

  Isabelle could tell she was pulling on the man's hand beside her, but he wasn't moving.

  "Stop."

  The command, issued in a deep, husky voice, stopped Jess's movements. It also caused a bolt of amazement, and something else, something she didn't recognize, to jolt through Isabelle.

  "Stefan," Jess said impatiently.

  Isabelle strained to see through the shadows. Her night vision was exceptional, and she could make out a small, thin girl with light blonde hair standing in front of the car. Her hand was on the arm of the man next to her. Isabelle's gaze sharpened on him. His shoulders were broad, his build large and muscular, and his hair the color of the night surrounding him. The disturbance in the air came from him.

  "It's him," Ethan whispered.

  "Yes," Aiden agreed, his voice barely audible.

  "Huh?" Delia asked.

  They all ignored her as they focused their attention on the strange man hidden within the shadows. Isabelle could barely make out the planes of his face and the firm set of his jaw
. He looked as cold as concrete, and he was as still as stone. His eyes were the color of onyx and focused on them.

  "Come on, Stefan!" Jess pulled on his arm again.

  He shrugged off her grasp as the shadows enfolded him within their embrace. Isabelle's heart leapt into her throat. She suddenly knew what was off, what he was.

  "Like knows like!" she gasped.

  "What?" Delia asked in confusion, as she took a quick step away from Isabelle and her siblings.

  "Shit," Ethan's stance became even more rigid as his hands fisted at his sides. Her brothers grouped closer.

  "You people are strange," Delia said as her eyes traveled fearfully over them. "I want to see my mom."

  "What do we do?" Aiden whispered.

  There was a shifting among the shadows, a small bristling as the man moved ever so slightly. "I wouldn't do anything," he informed them coldly.

  Jess had called him Stefan, Isabelle remembered as she took an instinctive step closer to her brothers. There was something about his voice, something strange, but not unpleasant as it enveloped her like a warm cloak. It did something inside of her, caused something to stir and shift in a way she’d never experienced.

  "Ethan," she whispered fearfully.

  Ethan stepped forward to shield her more.

  The man, Stefan, laughed faintly as he finally started to move forward. "I'm not going to harm you."

  Another shiver slid through Isabelle at the sound of his voice. The shadows parted around him as he moved into the light. Isabelle's breath froze in her lungs; the world seemed to rock on its axis as her eyes locked on him. The angles of his perfectly sculpted face were highlighted by the light playing off his strong face.

  His gaze traveled over her brothers before settling on her. His eyes were as black as onyx and just as cold. They penetrated through her, racking her bones as they seemed to steal straight into her soul. He was the only thing she could see and feel.

  Everything else disappeared.

  Then his gaze moved from hers, breaking the brief connection. Isabelle felt an incredible sense of loss as the breath rushed out of her, and the world slammed into place. With a startled cry, she turned and shoved her way past Aiden and Ian as she fled into the sanctuary of her house.