Fall With Me (UIC 2022)

12 - A Promise

Naturally, Sawyer's mother was surprised to see them back so early. Upon noticing her daughter so distraught, Mrs Bloodmoon immediately set about fixing Sawyer a soothing cup of tea. She offered Caleb the same, but he declined, stating that he had to head back home to discuss what happened with his parents. After kissing Sawyer goodbye, Caleb left.

It was a good thing he parked the Charger at Lee's because if the sports car had been in the main driveway, he might have punched out a window or two in anger.

By the time Caleb reached the car, some of his rage had cooled. But that didn't stop him from fuming all the way home.

Grief was a powerful thing, he knew, but that didn't give his grandfather the right to hold an entire city of supernaturals hostage for forty years. Maybe that's why Hecate struck Owen with moonfever. Caleb didn't believe in wishing ill luck on people or reveling in others' misfortunes, but he was supremely glad that there were only two weeks left until the Festival.

Short of fleeing to Máni City in Washington State for those two weeks, there was little the Bloodmoons could do without attracting attention. Caleb prayed that Dan was actually on their side and hadn't said all those things by the tent to lull them into a false sense of security.

Slamming the car into park in his parents' driveway, Caleb marched to the front door, wrenched it open, and stalked into the house.

"I hate him!" he snarled, shutting the door so hard it rattled in its frame.

"Blessed Hecate!" his mother exclaimed, racing in from the kitchen. "What's with all the screaming?"

"Grandpa! Two enforcers showed up last night while Sawyer and I were camping by the hot spring."

"Oh, no!" Mom exclaimed, going pale. "Is Sawyer all right? Are you all right?"

There was the sound of feet rushing down the stairs. Out of the corner of his eye, Caleb saw his grandmother (she asked to be called "Nonna") and Artem appear.

"Is everything all right?" Artem asked, sparks jumping from his fingertips.

"I'm fine, but Sawyer's terrified," Caleb replied, pacing. "Just as she was getting comfortable being back home, that fuckin' asshole goes and does that!"

Nonna gingerly stepped up to Caleb's mother and laid a hand on her arm. "What's going on?" she asked carefully.

Caleb took a deep breath and faced his grandmother. "Sawyer and I were camping on Bloodmoon territory yesterday. In the middle of the night, two of Grandpa's enforcers show up and start sniffing around the tent."

"And?" Nonna prompted gently.

"They left." He shook his head, still unable to believe it. "One of them was Dan."

Nonna's eyebrows rose. "Dan? Jeanette's little boy?"

"Who's Dan?" Artem asked, confused.

"Owen's sister's son," Nonna explained. "He was such a sweet little boy ..."

Caleb snorted. "Well, Dan grew up to be Grandpa's top enforcer."

"But he left you alone? Knowing that you and Sawyer were in the tent?" Mom asked.

"Yes."

Mom exchanged a look with Nonna. "That's ... that's unlike Dan."

Caleb sighed and rolled his eyes skyward, seeking guidance. "That's what's confusing, Mom. Savvy thinks it was a ruse, but I don't know ..." He shoved a hand through his hair and scuffed a toe across the wooden floor. "Dan does anything Grandpa tells him to do. He had the chance to expose us last night, but he didn't."