‘Wake up, Jena. Get out of bed.’
‘Hmm?’ She opened her eyes to find sunlight streaming into the room. How had that happened? She’d been so sure she wouldn’t fall asleep, not after last night.
Not after seeing Cade so thoroughly lose his shit. Not after finally accepting the situation.
‘What time is it?’ she asked.
‘After nine. You looked like you could do with a sleep in.’ Cade smiled at her softly, and for a moment she could pretend he was just himself.
‘Thanks, I did. Still can’t believe I managed that long, though.’ Jena scraped her hair back into a ponytail, and tied it with the band from around her wrist. ‘How are you feeling today?’
Cade sat back, and managed to look a little bashful. ‘You mean after I almost beat the crap out of Will?’ He scratched the back of his head and shrugged. ‘I guess I was jealous.’
It was Jena’s turn to frown. ‘Why?’
‘Because he knows more about your family than I do. We never talk about that stuff, and that was never a problem until we came here and I realised just how much I didn’t know.’
‘He doesn’t know me, Cade.’ She sat up, scooting over to sit beside him and cupping his cheek. She had to believe that her Cade was in there, somewhere. She wanted it so desperately. ‘He knows about what happened, he knows my grandmother. I’m not either of those things.’
He shrugged, slipping away from her and standing. ‘Either way, sorry I acted like a jerk. I’ll go and apologise to him. We can do the last of the garden and tomorrow the agent will come. We can start fresh.’
‘Yeah, that sounds good.’ Jena nodded as she stood, brushing her fingers over his cheek and smiling at him. He seemed like his old self, like the Cade she knew, and it made her gut ache to think he wasn’t. Not really. ‘Have I ever told you that I love you?’ she asked, feeling a tug in her chest.
‘I don’t think it’s a thing we say, is it?’ A wry smile tugged at his lips.
And it wasn’t. They’d stayed away from such big words. She wasn’t even sure if she meant it, but she felt like she needed to say it, hoped that it might help Cade cling to himself, to stay strong. Until she could find a way to save him.
‘Maybe it should be. Maybe it’s a thing I’ve been scared of, but I can’t spend my whole life being afraid.’
Loving people put you at risk, meant they could hurt you, or die and leave you lonely, sad. She knew all about that. Love wasn’t a safety blanket; it was a blank cheque for pain. And she knew this wasn’t really love, but she did care about Cade, she didn’t want him to be possessed and changed, couldn’t bear thinking about him taking the life of another or doing despicable things.
Worse things than he’d already done ….
When it came down to it, she had no idea what he might be capable of, infected by the watch.
‘Well, in that case, I think I love you too.’ He kissed her and she kissed him back, closing her eyes and leaning into it. It felt just like Cade, maybe it was still Cade, and yet she knew it wasn’t just him in there. Something else lurked, and she had to squeeze her eyes shut to try not to cry, because she didn’t want to lose him too. Even if he was an asshole sometimes. Even if he was greedy and selfish, he had still made her life better and she owed him for that.
He pulled away. She watched him leave the room and cursed herself for hoping that he was still there, that she could save him. Because that hope would probably lead to her destruction. But she had to try.
The knot in her stomach told her that even if they made it through this, Cade might not be the man for her, but she had to use that small sliver of hope, a life rope between them, to try and draw him back to himself.
Jena sighed and then got out of bed, pulling on her jeans and tee. She needed coffee and some toast, and then she had to go and lock herself in the room with Rose to get to the bottom of things once and for all. She’d been waiting a lifetime for this, and soon she’d know it all.
She rushed through her morning routine and took a steaming mug of coffee with her to Rose’s room. The door was unlocked, but she locked it behind her, the click making Rose turn to face her.
‘He said you’d come.’
‘And he said why?’ Jena raised an eyebrow. She crossed the room and sat in the chair next to the bed. ‘You know it’s bad when someone outside your family has to make you sit down and talk. Not that I haven’t tried, or thought about it. Seems he was a little more convincing than I was.’
‘Jena, it wasn’t like that.’ Rose sat up a little more, scooting back so that she was propped against the pillows padding the headboard. ‘I was trying to protect you—’
‘Will said. He made it really clear that was your main intention and I get that. Okay? So, let’s skip right to the bit where you tell me what’s going on and we figure out how to save Cade and get the hell out of here with our lives intact.’
Rose’s mouth opened in shock, then her lips moved, but no sound came out, as if she were trying to figure out how to respond. Jena almost smiled at having put Rose on the back foot. It felt good to stand up to her and have this response, but it didn’t really get her closer to her goal.
‘You did something to me. What?’ Jena sipped from her mug and watched Rose.
‘Our people held some deep spiritual beliefs.’
‘But not Christian ones, I know that much. So, what were they?’ Jena’s skin tingled, her nerves alight, waiting for Rose to speak.
‘We have Druidic heritage, and while most of those things haven’t been carried on, we’ve always had a deep respect for nature and all things in it. This … spirit, this evil that’s latched onto the pocket watch, it’s not natural. He wanted to manipulate the world to get what he wanted, to fulfil his hungers.’
‘And he hungered for you.’ Jena pursed her lips. ‘You killed him too, didn’t you? He was the first to be possessed by this man?’
Rose nodded. ‘I loved him. Ronaldo. But I couldn’t save him.’ The old woman looked into Jena’s eyes then. ‘You can’t save Cade, either. You know that, don’t you?’
‘I have to try. So, tell me. Tell me what you know. Tell me what you did to me.’
Rose pursed her lips, and then finally nodded.
‘I cobbled together the bits of my Druidic heritage, the things that had been passed down to me. I had to … I had to make it up because I didn’t know enough and had no way to search. I’d left our family spell book when I moved here. Hoped I’d left it all behind …. But the spirit followed me.’ Rose sighed, looking sad and old. ‘There was no one I could talk to. After Ernest, I kept the girls close, kept them from having a life among others. I tried to keep them safe too. Your aunt left as soon as she could, but your mother found a man who was happy to take over the farm, and so they started a life here.’
Rose paused and reached for her glass of water. A slight tremor made her hand shake, but Jena couldn’t tell if it was from emotion or just old age. Jena resisted the urge to help; Rose was a strong woman, it was bad enough she was stuck in bed for the most part; Jena knew that must grate something awful.
‘I thought I’d dealt with it, that I could just bury that damn watch and it would be okay. But on the off chance that it wasn’t, I took what I knew and I called on all the magic I could to protect you. Old gods and new, anyone who would listen.’
The hairs on Jena’s arms prickled and stood on end, and she couldn’t breathe for the anticipation.
‘Something happened,’ Rose continued. ‘I wasn’t imagining it. Your mother was there too, of course, she wanted to keep you safe as well. The birds came, they swarmed the sky above us, landed on the ground, and there was an incredible noise, a cacophony. I knew it had been done. I just didn’t know what it was. I always had the feeling, though, that when you needed it, whatever was inside you would come out; it would help you. The birds will help you.’
Jena laughed, though it came out choked and hysterical. ‘So, you don’t even know. You can’t be sure what you did to me, just that something happened.’
Rose looked up at her then, her gaze firm and steady. ‘I did what I could. And I had to trust it would be enough. You’re still here, aren’t you?’
‘And you didn’t think to protect my brother and sister too?’
‘We tried, trust me. It wasn’t the same, though. I don’t know what was different. Maybe it’s that you were the firstborn, they are always more powerful, but it was only you.’ Rose licked her lips before continuing. ‘I didn’t even know your father had the watch. Not until it was too late. At first, he just seemed stressed. Money had been a bit tight, but it was lean for everyone back then, and I had some cash stockpiled for those times. And then he started getting violent. Your mother brushed it off as stress. I tried to make her believe that it was more than that. And then the barn happened. And it was too late. They were all gone.’
‘Apart from me.’
Rose leaned forward, a fanatical gleam in her eyes. ‘You’d been saved. It was the birds. They stopped you from getting back to the barn. I knew then that you’d be okay, that you were looked after, and I sent you to live with your aunt because it terrified me, the thought that you might find that watch and be taken over as well. I’ve lost everything, Jena. I couldn’t lose you too.’
‘But you did lose me.’ Jena shrugged, unable to feel anything past her childhood hurt.
‘It was better to lose you that way than this. And now Cade ….’
Jena shook her head. ‘Will and I have a plan. We’re going to get the watch off him and destroy it.’
‘I’ve tried that.’ Rose frowned and slouched back against her pillows. ‘Don’t you think I’ve tried? The best I could do was confine it to the swamp, and as long as I was living, I could guard it.’
‘And what about the next poor sod who came along?’
‘I’d always thought that once I died, he’d give up too.’
Jena snorted in derision. ‘Really? He’d just give up and move on to the next life, or whatever waits beyond? Settle down and get a real job? Start a family?’
‘It’s always been me he was after. It made sense.’
Jena blew out her breath and shook her head. Her grandmother had always been strong, determined, but this was arrogant. She’d seen Cade’s face this morning, seen him last night. Whatever was inside him wasn’t going to go quietly to the afterlife just because Rose was dead, but she didn’t think there was a way to get that across. And the way he’d been acting towards Jena made her think that she was the more appealing snack now.
‘Why you?’ she asked. Two simple words, but the question weighed far more than six letters could contain.
‘Because I brought him here,’ Rose sighed. ‘Because of the light inside me; he wants to take it for himself.’
Jena scrubbed her face with her hands, trying to make sense of this. Trying not to be frustrated with the overload of information, with the tenuous nature of some of it.
‘Look, I don’t think we can hope that he’s just going to go away when you die. And I’m not going to let him take you. We need to plan for the worst.’ Jena swallowed hard, hoping it wouldn’t come to that. Hoping that they could save him, even if she couldn’t save their relationship. ‘Will and I are going to fix this. Please don’t hurt Cade. I need to save him, if I can save him … Rose – Gran.’
Rose levelled a stare at Jena. ‘I’ll do what I have to, to keep you safe. You’re the last of our line, Jena. If you die because I didn’t do what needed to be done, I’d never rest.’
Jena shook her head, suddenly scared of losing her, this woman who had caused her so much pain. Who she’d spent far too many years being angry at. ‘Gran, you’re too sick. You can’t take him on. I’m asking you not to try because I care what happens to you and I know you’ll do whatever it takes. That stubborn gene runs in the family, remember?’
‘And I’ve had more years of practice than you, young lady.’ It felt like Rose’s gaze was burning a hole in Jena. ‘I will kill him, or I will die trying.’
Jena’s mouth dropped open, the sincerity of Rose’s words hitting her like a tidal wave. This woman was for real; she honestly thought she had a chance and she would take it when she got it, even if it meant she died in the process.
‘Jena.’ Rose spoke again, but this time her voice was quieter, if no less firm. ‘You have to promise me you won’t ever give in to him. If I fail …. If you fail, never go willingly. There are more things on this earth than we know of and you must fight. You must stand up for those who can’t, but you must always look after yourself first. No one else will, not once I’m gone.’
Rose reached behind her neck and fiddled with the clasp of her necklace, which she then held out to Jena. It was the same pounamu Rose had always worn, so it had never seemed special to Jena. Never stood out.
‘Take it. It was given to me not long after I arrived here. It’s kept me safe, at least I believe so, and now I want you to have it.’
Jena took the necklace, noticing the details for the first time. The setting around the top was silver, which wasn’t common. It didn’t mesh entirely with the pounamu, but they were melded together as if two different cultures had a hand in its creation.
‘Gran. I can’t. It’s yours and ….’
‘And what if I die?’ Rose raised an eyebrow. ‘I’m going to die anyway. It’s got nothing to do with you. Take the necklace and put it on. Now. It will protect you.’
Jena hesitated for a moment longer, but then she grasped the black cord and tied it tightly behind her neck. The carved greenstone felt warm on her chest, the weight of it less than she imagined – and it might have only been in her head, but she did feel safer for it.
‘Thank you, Gran.’
‘It’s the least I can do. Never take it off. Never.’ Rose held Jena’s gaze until she nodded. ‘Good.’
Jena thought she saw a flutter of wings in her peripheral vision, but she turned to find nothing there. The window was empty; just the trees and the green grass spreading out until the expanse climbed into the mountain. And the sunshine. It was a lovely day, but that didn’t make her feel warm or happy. Sooner or later they were going to have to kick off their plan or the entity inside Cade might dig its claws in so far there would be no saving him.
‘I need some rest, Jena. Why don’t you go check in on the boys? Probably don’t want to leave them alone together for too long.’ Her words were heavy with meaning, so Jena stood and gave her grandmother a kiss on the forehead.
‘Thank you for the necklace, and for telling me what you knew. I’m glad we had a chance to talk.’
Rose gripped Jena’s hand harder, her thumb rubbing circles into her skin. ‘Take care. Promise me.’
‘I will, I’ll be as safe as I can, but we can’t predict what will happen and I’m not going to live my whole life in fear. Okay?’
Rose released her, a slight smile slipping across her lips as she leaned back and closed her eyes. ‘Lock the door on your way out, little bird. I don’t want to be disturbed.’
Jena watched as her grandmother appeared to fall asleep, and then she left the room, locking it after her. She couldn’t help but feel like they’d just said goodbye to each other, though it wasn’t that long until dinner and they still had time.
Didn’t they?
She walked into the kitchen and grabbed a couple of cans of Coke before heading outside.
The guys were working on the garden edges, making them all neat and tidy. Jena walked across the lawn to them and handed Cade a can of Coke, and the other one to Will. They both opened their drinks and sipped from them. Will’s gaze lingered on her and he cocked his eyebrow, as if asking whether she’d managed to talk to Rose. Jena nodded slightly, then refocused on Cade. If he’d been jealous before, there was no need to make that worse now.
‘I thought I’d get started on lunch soon, then I’ll get dinner in the crock pot. That way later we can just wash up and eat. It’s such a nice day, we could have dinner outside. Have a few drinks. What do you reckon, Cade?’
‘Sounds alright. I think Will needs a shower more than me, though. I can smell you from here man.’ Cade laughed and it took Will a moment to realise that he was messing around with him. He started laughing too, and Jena thought it might be the first time she’d heard him do it. It was a nice sound.
‘Okay then, nice to see you two getting along.’ She nodded as she headed back towards the house. ‘Oh, Cade,’ she said, as though it was an afterthought. ‘There are a couple of jars on the bench. I can’t seem to get the lids off. Could you help me with them?’
‘Sure, babe.’ Cade headed to the house, not bothering to see whether she was following.
Jena took a couple of steps back towards Will and whispered, ‘We have to do it today. We have to get this started or Rose is going to throw herself to the wolf to try and save me, and I can’t deal with that.’
‘What’s the plan?’ Will raised an eyebrow.
‘When Cade goes to have a shower, I’m going to take his clothes and tell him I’m washing them. The watch won’t be in the shower with him, and I’ll take it then. I’m going to throw it out the window and you’re going to smash it with the biggest freaking hammer you can find.’
‘What?’ His eyes went wide.
‘There’s an anvil, down by the barn. It survived fire and it’ll probably be there until the end of time. There should be a sledgehammer or something similar in the barn, and when you get the watch, I want you to run. Don’t think about what’s happening in the house; you run and you destroy the watch. Have you got that?’
‘Jena—’
‘No. Don’t say anything. This is the plan and we’re going to pull it off.’
Will didn’t look happy about it, but he didn’t protest again. ‘Which window?’
‘Huh?’
‘Which window are you throwing it out of? Is there one in the bathroom you can toss it out? Or are you hoping to make it all the way to your room? What if he figures out what you’ve done and comes after you?’
Jena’s heart thudded in her chest, but she kept her breath even, told her brain to focus. ‘Our bedroom window is closest to the barn, so that makes the most sense. You won’t have to go so far. You wait there, and you go as soon as you have it. Don’t look back. Promise me. Will, I have to try and save him.’
‘Okay. Right. Let’s do this.’ He took a deep breath, and it was only then that she noticed the slight tremble to his hands.