Chapter 22

They had hair that was pulled back but not gelled in place. Their eyes were the most intense red that glowed, and their ears were full of piercings. They wore a dark suit with a red tie and kept a hand in their pocket casually. But the most mesmerizing thing about him was his tattoos. Half his face and entire neck were covered with them. I was too far away to see if they had any real shape, but from what I could tell, they moved.

“Who are you?” I asked.

“You can call me Draven.” They said.

“How do you know who I’m looking for?” I asked, gripping the edge of my shirt in a tight fist.

“Your homing beacons are very telling,” they said making a gesture with their head in the direction of the hand holding the dirt and hair tie. I looked down briefly at them, following the motion, before looking back at their now smiling face. “But also, I’ve been watching you for quite some time.”

I had never seen this spirit before in my life, and the fact that they had been watching me? I shivered. Taking a deep breath to ground myself again, I steeled my composure.

“Why?” I asked in an almost barking voice, startling myself to take a step back from Draven but refusing to actually show just how I had affected myself.

Draven’s smile deepened. “You’ve always interested me, Xiomara. I know you will be great, but you’ve been dealt heavy hardships, and I want to help you realize your true potential. At least, that was my initial reason, and while it is still very much true, there is more to it now. I was initially going to help guide you from behind the scenes, if you will. But I can’t stay hidden anymore. I don’t want to hide from you. If you allow me, I very much want to be a part of your life.”

“I don’t know anything about you, how can I tell if you’re telling me the truth or that your intentions are what you say they are?” I asked.

The harshness in their smile melted into something soft. “That is the one thing you will never have to worry about from me, Xiomara. I will always, without a doubt, tell you the truth and the whole truth. I can’t tell you my true identity yet, but soon you will know all.”

“So what can you tell me?” I asked.

They looked thoughtful for a second, even tilting their head to one side like a dog would.

“I can’t share much,” they said cautiously. “There are other factors at play that prohibit my involvement.” They paused for a moment, looking frustrated with something before a lightbulb went off behind their eyes, and they made eye contact with me once more.

“Sell your house, don’t keep it. I know you were thinking about doing this anyway but do it quickly, in fact make it your number one priority. Get rid of anything that no longer serves you and make sure to go through your parent’s things very carefully when doing so. Not everything is what it seems and even the most inconspicuous items need to be carefully looked at.”

What?

“Thats pretty direct for something you aren’t supposed to tell me. So I’ll find something in my parents’ things that tells me what I need to know?” I scoffed.

They looked a little embarrassed before shrugging, “I’m not into cryptic bullshit. I’m terrible at riddles. I only know how to be blunt and direct. All I can tell you is that the first string to unravel the situation you have been shoved in can be found in your parents’ belongings. You’ll know immediately once you find it.”

Fidgeting under their intense gaze as they paused, I tried to think of either another question or an excuse to get back.

Draven smiled slightly again, softening their expression. “I want you to survive this whole and intact, Xiomara. You are my favorite yet.”

“What do you mean favorite?” I immediately shot out before I could even think.

Their smile turned into a full, toothy grin. “That would be telling, my dear. That is something you need to figure out soon. I hate waiting. Do call me when you figure it out. I will be listening for you.”

They gave me a once-over before sighing, “but I did want to tell you on an unrelated note, and I approve. I approve of the mates you’ve decided.” They pursed their lips and rocked their head side to side in a so-so movement. “They can be assholes, but their hearts are good. Don’t take their bullshit.”

“Mates? I haven’t chosen a mate never mind mates as in plural.” I stuttered, eyes widening as their words registered.

They chuckled warmly, “don’t lie to yourself or me, darling. I can see right through that. It’ll be easier if you just accept it and save yourself the heartaches. Though from what I can see you do love your angst.”

My hand started to ache from holding the homing beacons and I remembered why I was even here in the dark.

Mom.

I looked down at my clutched fist and then back to Draven. “Did she really move on or is there something else going on?”

“Oh darling,” they sighed. “She loves you very much, even now. It was time for her to move from this plane but she would have stayed here with you if she could. When she pledged herself to the shadows to escape the dark she promised herself to become a shadow once she passed. She won’t be able to visit you in the way you were hoping, but since she has been already married to the shadows, she will always be there with you, for everything has a shadow. She will be checking in on you through them.”

Draven moved slowly over to me, placing one hand on my shoulder and using the other to wipe my tears.

“You don’t have to ever say goodbye, my dear. Just whisper into the shadows and she will hear you. If you focus, maybe you will even hear her respond. Shadow cores are not the only ones who can hear the shadows speak.”

They brushed a stray hair behind my ear giving my jaw a little caress as they moved their hand away.

“Come now, I’m sure your alpha is worried. You’ve been sitting in his lap for quite some time. You can always call upon me if you have questions or want to talk. I’m here for you and will always be.”

I nodded, taking a deep breath to try to ground myself again.

They smiled at me once more before flicking me in the middle of my forehead.

Squawking, I flailed in the arms of Silas as I felt like I was free-falling but I was still firmly in his arms.

“Mara, are you okay?” He asked as he tried to look at my face, my eyes especially.

Trying to catch my breath, I let go of the homing beacons before grabbing his biceps with both of my hands. He turned me around so I’d be straddling him instead of facing away from him. The intimacy from the position had me flushed as I tried to shove those kind of thoughts out of my head.

“Y-yeah. I,” I swallowed harshly. “I didn’t know spirits could fling you back into your body like that.”

“Your mom flung you back to your body?” He asked with both eyebrows raised.

“N-no. I didn’t see my mom.” I said feeling overwhelmed. “I saw someone else.”

“Who?” Silas asked when I stopped talking.

Blushing in embarrassment from zoning out, “someone named Draven. Said they’ve been watching me for some time and they wanted to help.”

Silas frowned. “I don’t like the sound of that. They didn’t say why they are there? That spirit could be anything, Mara. There are other non-human entities out there that parade themselves as human. Are you sure you can trust them?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know if I can. You’re right, I don’t know anything about them. But their advice was something I was planning on doing anyway. It can’t hurt to heed it.”

“What advice?”

“To sell the house and go through my parents’ things. I was planning on doing this before I went back to school anyway so I could graduate and not have to think about it afterwards. I was planning on using whatever money that was left over from paying off my parent’s debts to buy a place or use it for rent somewhere until school started.”

Silas nodded carefully. “I can help with that of course.”

I shook my head, “you don’t have to do that. I would never ask you to help me with this mess.”

Silas gave a crooked smile. “You forget, my love. You’re stuck with me so your mess is my mess.”