"The boogeyman!"
We'd said that to one another since we were small. "It's just my sister. Let me get rid of her."
Yanking the door open, I grabbed Cassie's arm. "What are you doing here?" When I turned back, Christian was gone. He must not have wanted to be seen. "It's not the best time."
Cassandra wrung her hands. "It's important, can we talk?"
"Yeah." I looked around, no idea where Christian had gone. "Come on."
It was difficult not to be jittery. "I've been wanting to talk to you, too." I stepped into my bedroom and shut the door behind me, not even looking at my sister as I made a beeline for my closet and some clothes. "It's about Franklin."
"What about him?" she asked.
"He's bad news, Cass. Like, mega bad. There's some stuff going on and it is way too much to explain, but I want you to take the kids and go on a vacation for a few days." I walked into my closet to change, and thank all the heavens I did, because when I walked out, Cassandra was gone.
Franklin stood there, grinning at me in his slimy, toothy way. "You think you're so smart."
I swallowed hard and tried to keep my composure. I had to get away from him. He must've been under a glamour the whole time and I hadn't seen it. "What do you want?" I asked in a low voice.
"You know what I want." His eyes narrowed. "But you're not going to give it to me."
I shook my head. "I don't know what you're talking about."
He stepped closer, and I stepped back. "I want the world, Andromeda. And I will have it."
"No, you won't—wait, what?"
"The goblins, not those pansies you've been working with, the real goblins, they want to take this world and change it. It's overpopulated and full of idiots. They'd be able to do a massive reset on the world, Andromeda, imagine it."
It wasn't hard to imagine, and it sounded horrible.
Several things happened at once. I heard a scuffle outside the door, then it was thrust open. Franklin turned to look, but at the same time he shut off the light in the bedroom. A roar filled the air and I screamed. "Christian help!"
I should've yelled for him much sooner. Something hit me, like a linebacker sacking a quarterback. I went flying backward. My closet was behind me, so I should've hit the floor, which shouldn't have been too bad since there was carpet and a big layer of clothing I needed to hang.
Instead, in that millisecond it should've taken me to fall, I found myself standing upright in the center of a room lit from above with bright, fluorescent light. There was nothing else in the room. I blinked, and then Franklin was beside me.
"No shadows," he whispered. "Now we can really talk. Andromeda, I'm already married to your sister. You can fit right into our lives. As this all goes down, I can guarantee your safety." He squeezed my arm. "All you need to do is submit, finally, to me. Let yourself let go while I handle these things."
I looked around again, my mind spinning and a strong urge to vomit all over him nearly winning the war. "What is this place?"
"It doesn't matter," he said, his voice taking on a harder edge. "All that matters is what you're going to do."
Yanking me close, he pressed his lips to mine. I stiffened and yanked away before I could stop myself. F the best, actually, he wasn’t dumb enough to believe I would give in immediatly. I had to convince him that I would do what he wanted. Otherwise I'd never know where I was or how to get out of here.
14
ANDROMEDA
"Franklin,I don't know about being your side chick, not when you're my sister's husband." Like he'd ever believe me if I jumped right on that idea.
His face darkened, so I hurried to finish what I was saying. Pushing back, I put a little space between us. "But, that doesn't mean we can't be friends. I just wish you'd clued me in to all this stuff sooner. You stole my magic instead of partnering with me. I'm not saying we can't work together. I'm saying it has to be honest from now on, okay?"
He clenched his fists, but nodded. "Fine. I can see that's important to you. We'll do things your way."
His smile was pure evil, but I pretended not to notice. "Good. Thank you. I can't abide the idea of being subjugated by a monster." I spat the last word as if it made me want to vomit. "Bran came in here like he owned the place. I have to say, I prefer my men completely human."
"Bran is a fool," Franklin said, his voice dripping with venom. "He'll be dealt with soon enough."
