I snorted a laugh. “You can't keep me locked up anymore. In fact, it's better if I stay at my place. Then Silas could actually reach me.”
Jake growled.
“How am I going to unmask him if I never meet him?”
“Fuck,” Jake said again.
“I've already gotten close to him. I'd say maybe five feet.”
The men froze. Then, as one, they turned to stare at me.
“Oh, did I fail to mention that I had a stalker?” I inspected my nails as I went on. “It was shortly after I got here. I saw this guy in a bar and had this weird feeling about him. Then he stared at me as if I made him feel just as unsettled. I thought he was maybe a lover from a past life. But most of my past lovers are not souls I want to reconnect with. So I didn't approach him.”
“And it was Silas?” Lex asked.
“Yup. Later that day, I saw him standing outside my house.”
“Silas was outside your house?!” Cyrus leaned forward, looking as if he was about to get up and go on a Silas hunt immediately.
“Yeah, but he didn't do anything. He just stood across the street and stared at me.” I lowered my hand to my lap. “As I said, I thought he was an ex. I told him to go away, and he did. I only saw him one other time.” I paused to consider telling them about that weird card reading, then decided against it. They would not take well to the whole death-is-coming prediction. “He didn't approach me then either. And it was the last I saw of him until today. That's how I found out who he was.”
“Why didn't you say something?” Lex demanded.
I shrugged. “I wasn't sure how you'd react. I didn't want you going all alpha on me and locking me in a tower or something. And I can't be locked up. I need to save Ace.”
Jake growled again.
“Jake, come on.” Cyrus gave him a look.
“I don't like him.” Jake crossed his arms.
“Jake,” I murmured. “Oh, my God! I just realized where you got that name. Jacob Black! Did you seriously name yourself after the werewolf from 'Twilight?'”
Jake, who'd been glaring at Cyrus, spun to face me. “No.”
I snorted a laugh. “Yeah, you did. A Hound of Hades named after a wolf from the sparkly vampire story. Oh, that's rich. Are you disappointed that I didn't choose Bella as a name?”
“I chose the name Jake because I liked it and it's my favorite writer's name.”
“Your favorite author?” That shocked me. “Who?”
“Jacob Grimm.”
“Jacob Grimm?” I blinked. “As in Grimm's fairy tales?”
“Yes.”
“First of all, why am I not surprised?” I rubbed a hand over my face. “Second, neither Jacob nor his brother wrote any of those fairy tales. Theycollectedtales that had been passed down through the generations.”
“I know that. He's still considered the author. They had to write the book. They may have collected the tales, but they wrote them out. Gave them their own style.”
“So, what you're saying is that you like fairy tales. It has nothing to do with the Brothers Grimm.”
“I like their versions the best.”
“Can we move on?” Cyrus asked.
“No. Because liking fairy tales is almost as bad as liking Twilight.” I looked Jake over. “You are so disappointing.”
