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WHEN I AWOKE, MY GAZE shot to the clock. It was nine a.m. I looked around for the diary, but it was nowhere in sight. “Where did it go?” I said out loud. I knew the book couldn’t have walked off on its own, and I was sure Ethan had somehow gotten his hands on it. In any case, I had more important things to deal with, like warning my boyfriend that his father was out to possess him.
With my heart racing, I rushed to Jesse’s room.
“Hey,” Julie said, smiling up at me. “Good morning. Look, we were just talking about escape plans, and—”
“Guys!” I shouted, cutting her off.
“Taylor?” she said.
“Baby, what’s wrong?” Jesse asked. “You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
I cupped his face. “We have to leave. We can’t stay here.”
“We know that. Like Julie said, we’re working on a plan now.”
Julie smiled. “Don’t worry. We’re safe for now, on the queen’s personal lockdown.”
I turned toward her. “We’re not safe at all! You don’t understand! It’s Ethan. He’s a liar, and he’s been fooling all of us.”
Jesse blinked. “You know I love you, but I don’t think you should talk about my father like—”
I turned to face Jesse. “Your mom knew all about him. That was why she left in such a hurry.”
“How do you know this?”
“Because I read it, in her diary.”
He raised a brow. “How did you find her diary?”
“The dreams led me to it, guided me through my powers. I know it sounds crazy, and I’m so sorry for reading her personal thoughts, but I thought it might be the only key to figuring out why she left and what the heck is going on.”
“Where is it, this diary?” Jesse asked. “Can I see it?”
“I’d happily show it to you, but it’s...well, it’s gone,” I said. “After I read it, I got this horrible headache that just knocked me out. When I woke up, the diary was nowhere to be found. I bet Ethan took it.”
Jesse cocked a brow. “Are you sure you read it right?”
“Jesse, I don’t know how to tell you this,” I said, “because it’s gonna kill you inside, and that hurts me more than anything, but...”
He gripped my hands. “Just tell me,” he said. “I can take it.”
My lips trembled, but the words would not come out.
“It must be big,” he said.
“Huge.”
“Take a deep breath and just tell me.”
I nodded. “Okay. Well, after the accident, Ethan slowly began to die, as you know. He became obsessed with finding a cure, to the point of being a bit demented, not at all the man your mother had loved. All he cared about was himself. He sanctioned experiments on innocent people that they kidnapped. When that didn’t work, he found another way to stay alive. His body was doomed, but he employed the help of priests who practice dark magic. Ethan discovered that his soul can be preserved, transferred into another body, but only a Leyna from his biological bloodline. It had to be a male child that he fathered.”
Julie’s jaw dropped. “Are you saying Ethan wants Jesse’s body?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying. Ethan tried it with Sam when he was little, did several test-jumps. Loraine caught on and learned that the ceremony would take place sooner than she thought. Ethan begged her to let him have a second chance at life, even promised to give up Mariah so they could be together again. He promised her more children and swore his undying love.”
Julie made a face. “Ew! He was going to sleep with his wife again, in his son’s body? That’s nasty. I’m pretty sure Loraine would not want to make out with Sam.”
“He was deluded, Jules. He thought of Sam as nothing more than a vessel, but Loraine saw it quite differently.” I turned to Jesse. “I know you have resented her for dragging you away from here, but she did it with good reason. She was trying to save your lives by leaving and going into hiding. She did everything to keep you out of the public eye.”
“My father’s a sick man,” Jesse said.
“Your mother loves her children, and she couldn’t allow either of her sons to become a vessel for their sick father. She still loved your father and wanted him to be cured but not at that price. She wouldn’t sacrifice one of her sons so he could live. He was livid that she wouldn’t cooperate, so he sent in the queen and an elite group to try and talk her into it. They told her it was very important for the general of Northwood Fortress to live, and they even had the nerve to say she could just have more children later. They said it would be a small sacrifice to save the husband she loved, the hero the gargoyles adored. ‘Do it for the greater good,’ they told her.”
“My mom refused to erase Sam’s life,” Jesse said. “What was my father thinking? Jumping into a child and stealing his life, expecting my mother to raise him, then be with him when he was old enough? I have never heard anything so...”
“Twisted?” Julie offered.
“Yes. Now I know why my mom left and wouldn’t let us have any contact with him. He’s a lunatic.”
“Yeah, can you imagine her trying to explain to you why she was making out with your older brother?” Julie asked.
“It’s too sick to think about,” I said. “Your mother was horrified. She couldn’t leave fast enough. When Ethan couldn’t find you, he must have resorted to testing more kidnapped subjects in his lab, his desperate Plan B. No matter how hard he’s tried and how many lives he’s ruined, he still hasn’t found a cure. All he’s done is leave a long trail of dead bodies in his wake.”
Jesse was disturbed. I hated being the one to break the horrible news to him, and I understood why his mother had never told him the whole truth: She could not bear to break her son’s heart like that. He’d put his dad on a pedestal, an honor the man did not deserve. “What else did the diary say?” he asked sadly.
“She said she would never talk to you about the gargoyles and hoped you would eventually forget about the kingdom. She didn’t want to trigger any memories that would lead you back to your father. She wanted you all to stay away until Ethan dies, and she feared the gargoyles might seek revenge for not handing her son over for their beloved general to inhabit.”
“How did she get away?” Julie asked.
“She played along and pretended to cooperate, but she had a few dear friends who helped her work out an escape. Ethan found out and moved the ceremony up. Loraine was horrified and left with nothing but the shirt on her back. She changed their identities and hid her family in Big Bear Lake. She was horrified that Ethan would steal Sam or Jesse’s body.”
Jesse let out a long breath. “Such a big burden for my poor mother. Now I understand why she always seems so frightened, terrified of even the slightest bump in the night. Kierra has always thought she is just too paranoid, but now I see that she isn’t. She has very good reason for being afraid.”
“We’ve gotta leave,” Julie said.
“The sooner, the better,” I said. “He’s already doing test-jumps.”
“He is?” Jesse asked, confusion flooding his features. “What are test jumps?”
“He has to establish a connection with your body so he’s not rejected for the final jump. So he has to have a few practice runs per se. He’s already jumped into you.”
“When?”
“At night when you wouldn’t realize it. Those incidents with you weren’t you at all. It was your father, jumping into your body. That’s why the dreams were so...brutal and forceful. I thought they were just dreams, but they weren’t.”
His eyes widened in shock and disbelief. “No, no, no! How could he?”
My lungs constricted. He was absolutely heartbroken and angry. It was just as hard on me to break the news as it was for Jesse to receive the news, but I couldn’t hold that vital information back from him just to spare his feelings. As awful as the truth was, I knew I had to be honest, even if it was the hardest thing I’d ever had to do. “Jesse, I’m so sorry,” I said, a tear rolling down my cheek. “I know this can’t be easy to hear.”
“I can’t believe my dad would do that,” he said, taking a deep breath as grief struck him. “I thought he loved me. But he just wants my body to be his vessel.”
“I’m so sorry,” Julie said. “I think you had a wonderful dad at one time. But this really isn’t him anymore. It’s the disease talking. Didn’t his mind get damaged with all that radiation that hit him full force?”
I nodded.
“He’s not thinking clearly,” she continued.
Tears welled in Jesse’s eyes as he contemplated everything. “Please tell me this isn’t true,” he said softly.
I hugged him tightly. “I’m sorry, baby. It’s tearing me up inside seeing your go through this much pain.”
“How did he make you think you were dreaming?” he asked, trying to believe it.
“I guess he put me in some kind of trance. That woman from my dreams wasn’t lying. She said it was real, and she was right. She even helped me find the diary.” I sighed. “I think she wants us to leave.”
“Of course she does, so she can get us closer to Big Bear Lake,” Julie said. “She knows we’re safer here, less vulnerable, and she’s trying to lead us away. I highly doubt she cares about Ethan jumping into Jesse, but she knows you care, and that might be her Trump card to make you leave the comfy confines of the Gargoyle Ranch.”
“It’s just so awful,” Jesse muttered.
It tore me apart to see him suffer so much. He had longed for his father for years, only to find out that the man was trying to use him for his own selfish gain. “I came here looking for answers, but I didn’t expect them to be so grim.”
“Do you know what this means?” Julie asked. She turned and looked at me. “It means Ethan was making out with you, Taylor. And me too. To see which girl he wanted.”
“What?” Jesse said, blinking.
I turned to face Jesse’s horrified expression. “I thought it was you!”
“How dare he touch my girlfriend?” Anger washed over Jesse, and his eyes started to glow. “This ends right now!”
I gripped his hands. “Jesse, please calm down, baby. We have to use our heads here, not our fangs.”
He took a few deep breaths and let them out slowly, until his eyes returned to normal.
Julie shook her head. “We’re better off facing the werewolves and witches than staying here, waiting for Jesse to be invaded by the body-snatcher.”
“We need to leave while it’s still daylight,” I said. “We have to rescue Fred and Grant and be down this mountain before nightfall.” I let out a long breath.
Julie left to work on some plans, and I talked to Jesse a little longer. As we stepped out, we ran into Ethan, who didn’t seem very happy at all.
“Why are you leaving?” he asked. “I was just informed by one of my guards.”
“Spying on us, are you, Father?” Jesse asked snidely.
“The door was wide open. I came over as quickly as possible. Have I done something to offend you, Jesse?”
“I miss Mom...and I wanna bring Kierra and Sam here to see you,” he lied, keeping a straight face.
“Leaving these castle walls is suicide,” Ethan said.
And so is staying here, you fiend, I thought, thankful that the Leyna could not read minds.
He crossed his arms. “You’re about a good liar as your mother was.”
Jesse crossed his arms, ready to confront his dad. “Don’t talk about Mom like that. I know everything, Father. You’re warped, and I want nothing to do with you. The smartest thing she ever did was to leave you.”
“My men heard that Taylor found your mother’s diary. Have you read it yourself?”
“No. It disappeared.”
“If it even ever existed.”
“Are you calling me a liar?” I said, stunned at the irony.
“You are prone to odd dreams and insomnia and sleepwalking,” Ethan retorted. “How do you know it wasn’t a figment of your lucid dreams?”
I looked away. “No.”
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“I remember how the pages felt in my hands.”
“This is not an accusation. I am simply asking that you think rationally. Dreams are powerful, and they can tap into your emotions. I know you are afraid I will rip Jesse away from you, but that is not my goal. He has room enough for both of us in his heart.”
I shook my head. “You’re suggesting that I’m crazy? Too emotional?”
“You dreamt that I jumped into Jesse’s body, and that symbolizes that you believe I’m taking over Jesse’s life, leaving you out. You’re hurt and confused, because you expect to be his top priority, number one in his life.”
I looked at him. “You kissed me.”
“Perhaps you have feelings for an older man than the one you are with.”
“No!” I shouted.
His gaze narrowed. “Dreams do not lie. It is nothing to be ashamed of. Many fair females find some allure in me.”
Jesse winked at me, then squeezed my hand to play along. I knew he believed me, that he wanted out of there as much as I did, but the time was not right. Ethan would never let us go, so our only option was to play dumb and leave the first second he wasn’t looking.
I cleared my throat. “I-I’m so embarrassed,” I said. “I’ve made a complete idiot of out of myself.”
Jesse played his part and acted surprised. He brushed a few stray strands of hair from my eyes. “So you were only dreaming?” he asked.
“I guess. I’ve just been so stressed out,” I admitted. “You know what I’m going through. It’s all taking a toll on me, and I guess it’s messing with my dreams too.” I took a deep breath, trying to relieve the anger that was quickly rising inside me like a volcano, waiting to erupt.
Ethan put his hand on my back. “It’s okay. We understand and will not hold it against you. I want you to know that I will never take Jesse away from you...nor you away from him.”
Liar! I screamed in my head. Spots danced in my vision, and I leaned against the wall. I took deep breaths and tried to stop it, but even my best effort was of little use. My legs felt like rubber bands, and my head began to spin.
“An attack,” Ethan said. “They’re getting more frequent. Let’s get her to bed.”
My eyes felt so heavy, and everything was a blur as they walked me to bed. “Don’t leave me, Jesse.” I reached for his hand and held it tightly.
“I’m right here.”
I lay down, and the spots started to fade, but the exhaustion was unbelievable. It was the worst possible time for an attack, but I was powerless to stop it. As Jesse stroked my hair, I almost drifted off to sleep.
“I’ll give Taylor some time to recuperate. I’ll check on you in a little while,” Ethan said, then left.
I waited a few minutes to make sure the coast was clear, then whispered, “We have to go.” I tried to sit up, but dizziness washed over me and I fell back in the bed.
Jesse scooped me in his arms. “I’ll carry you out if I have to.”
I touched his face. “Jesse, thanks for believing me. I would never—”
“I know. My mother mentioned her diary to me, but you couldn’t have known about it unless you actually found it. I believe every word you say. My father’s a sick man, and we can’t stay another second longer. I’m sorry I brought us here.”
“You were only doing what you thought was best,” I said.
“I’m not going to let my father break us up by taking my body.”
“I don’t want to lose you,” I said.
“Toi et moi, ça ne changera pas,” he said. (You and me, it doesn't change.)
“Mon amour pour toi est éternel,” I whispered. (My love for you is eternal.)
I yawned. “Gosh, I’m so tired.” I couldn’t fight it, and fell asleep.