Holding tight to Justin, I did my best to calm my nerves as we rode to his house. Lucas never let go of my hand, and Tyler never stopped massaging my legs. It would've been nice to enjoy the moment, but everything was still fresh on my mind.

I was scared to be energetically attacked again, and I was utterly exhausted from the emotional trauma of the day.

After a few minutes, my swollen eyes shut, and I must've drifted off to sleep because the dreams started up.

"No!" An angry voice bounced off the walls as chains clinked. "Get the Sun Guardian and bring him to me."

"Yes, master." A scratchy voice replied. It sounded just like the thing that had been trying to get inside me. The Whistler.

My eyes were closed in this dream, and it was irritating. I desperately wanted to see the asshole that attacked me.

Willing my heavy eyelids to open was nearly impossible. When I finally opened them, I wasn't in the dream anymore. I was in a dark room. I'd forced myself to wake up for real. Damn.

Someone had placed me in a soft bed, and after gaining full consciousness, I realized it was Justin's smell that surrounded me. This was his bed.

Turning to my side, I searched for him, but I was alone. A thin strip of light ran up the wall, telling me somewhere there was a door slightly ajar. Flipping to my other side, I hugged my pillow as I stared at the door. Where were the guys?

There was no way I was going to walk around the house to look for them, especially after being in Justin's bed. What would that say about me? His parents might hate me right away.

Somewhere in the house, people were talking. I tried to make out what they were saying, but it was impossible. Wondering if the guys were speaking, I willed myself to hear the conversation, and suddenly the voices were in perfect earshot. I could hear them even though they were far away. That had been happening a lot.

"He hid her? How's that possible? We found the bodies." An older male said.

"He must've staged it. After everything that happened, can you blame him? You would do the same thing, my love." A woman with a soft voice said. "The girl must be so frightened. She's been alone among the humans for so long."

"I feel bad for her." A younger girl said.

"This is no time for feelings." The man cleared his throat. "We need to protect her. The future of our kind depends on it."

"If she's the Bringer..." A new female said sarcastically and scoffed. "Then she's heartless. Angels don't give one shit about us. I shouldn't have to remind you that her being here will start a war. We should just send her back to where she came from. If she truly is the Bringer, my Clan needs proof she is who she claims. To us, she's nothing but an imposter."

"How dare you question us." The older woman snapped.

"I'm just saying she can't charge into our territory and take over. That's not how we do things." The snippy female retorted.

"Silence!" The older man bellowed, and I could feel the immense power behind his command. "Deliver this to your father within the hour. Speak of this to no one."

A heavy door shut, and then the house was quiet, aside from shuffling feet.

Who the hell did they think I was? The Bringer? Yeah, that's what Justin had said in the truck earlier. What the hell was a Bringer?

My phone buzzed on the side table near me. Snatching it, I glanced at the screen.

Shit. I had a gazillion messages and missed calls. A lot of them were from Josh, Lucy, Faith, and some unknown numbers, but it surprised me to see one from Missy. I couldn't help but click on it.

: Sorry

I didn't respond to her as I squeezed my phone and did my best not to throw it at the wall. Fuck her. She wasn't sorry.

She'd gone too far by bringing up my father, and she'd caused me to have a mental breakdown in front of everyone. It took all my power not to text something nasty back to her.

After texting Lucy and Faith that I was okay, I clicked on the most recent text.

: We're on our way back now.

Relief washed through me as I typed.

: Why'd you leave me?

: ...

I played with the hem on his pillow as I waited.

: You're safe at my house. My parents know everything.

: So? They're strangers. I'm not leaving your room until you get here, and I really need to pee.

: lol we'll be there in ten minutes.

: lol? You're not allowed to laugh.

: I can't help it. I'm sorry, Angel. We had to get help.

Help? What kind of help was he talking about? And why did all three of them have to go get help?

Someone knocked on the door. I tensed as I glanced over.

A woman with thick blond hair stood in the light beyond the door.

She knocked again, and I had to answer. This was her house. "Yes?"

Pushing the door open quietly, she turned on the light and walked in. She looked like she was from another time in her long white wispy dress. "Oh, dear. I'm glad to see you awake. I was beginning to worry."

Under the light, I glanced around. Justin's room was spectacular. One wall was covered in black bookshelves lined with hundreds of books. The bed was huge with a black feather bedspread, and the bed's dark wooden frame had carvings all over it.

Two large leather sofas sat on the other side of the room aimed at a huge flat-screen television on the black wall with gaming consoles ready to go. Tingles swept over my skin as I realized Justin's entire bedroom was black. He hadn't lied.

Sitting up and throwing my legs over the side of the tall bed, heat rushed to my cheeks when I realized I still had the steampunk dress on.

Someone had set my boots perfectly by the nightstand. My eyes widened at how they were slightly bent at the knees. They were massive and unbecoming in the eyes of a parent. My mother would throw them away if she knew I had them, and Justin's mom was right here, most likely judging me already.

Running a hand over my messy hair, I timidly looked at the woman.

"We haven't met. I'm Dresella. Justin's mother." She sent me a tight smile as I took in her beautiful middle-aged face and long wavy hair. She was gorgeous, just like her son.

I slid off the bed. "I'm Ember. It's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too. Forgive me, dear, but you have something..." She winced sympathetically and gestured to her cheeks, trying to tell me something wasn't right.

"Oh," I touched my face and felt the makeup. I noticed a small mirror on the wall and rushed over to it. Holy shit. My face was a fucking natural disaster. My cheeks were covered with mascara.

Glancing at Dresella, I grimaced. "I'm sorry. This is an awful first impression. I don't normally wear makeup, and I was crying earlier."

Dresella's light brown eyes wrinkled with a grin as she shook her head. "No need to concern yourself with first impressions. From what I've been told, you've been through quite a lot, dear. Crying happens, and it's allowed. Every time we cry, there's always a good reason."

I chuckled nervously. "There was, but I'm still embarrassed."

"Don't be. I can show you to the washroom where you can freshen up. I'm sure that will make you feel better." Dresella opened Justin's massive wooden door and gestured for me to follow.

Reluctantly, I followed her and became completely entranced by their home. It was like a medieval movie set. They had modernized their home with artistic drapery, furniture and flooring, but from what I could gather, I was most definitely in a gigantic castle-like structure made of rock. The craftsmanship was out of this world.

Where the hell was I? Transylvania?

The ceilings had to be at least three stories tall, and there was a massive rock fireplace with an amazing mosaic embedded into the rocks above. It was a gargantuas creation reflecting the same wolf symbol on the guys' hoodies.

"Right through here, dear." Dresella led me down a long hall and opened a large wooden door. Her eyes drifted to something behind me. "Candice, please show our guest where the towels are."

I spun to see Candice.

"I'd be happy to." A girl a few years younger than me walked into the light and sent me a smile. Like her mom, she wore a long wispy white dress that went all the way to the floor and covered her entire chest all the way up to her neck. Her thick blond wavy hair was to die for, and her eyes reflected the same light brown as Justin's. Candice was breathtaking.

I walked through the rounded doorway into the washroom.

"I'll be here if you need me." Dresella waited for Candice to walk into the washroom before shutting the door quietly.

Candice was staring at me when I faced her.

I shifted uneasily under her assessment. "Um... towels?"

"Oh, yeah. Here," Candice rushed to a large linen cabinet behind me, opening the door. "Everything you need should be in here. I... uh... do you need clothes?"

Glancing down at my dress, I frowned. "What do you think? Will your father mind meeting me in this?"

Candice laughed, and it sounded otherworldly, almost harmonic. "Probably. My dad's pretty old school. If you know what I mean."

"Then, yeah, clothes would be great. I had some, but I think Justin or Lucas might have them."

"Justin took your clothes?" Candice's light brown eyes widened like Justin stole them from me.

I chuckled nervously. "No. I mean, I had a bag at the party, but I'm not sure where it is."

Candice nodded. "I have some clothes that might fit, but I'm not sure. You're taller than me. I can see if my mom has a dress."

"That would be wonderful." I smiled, trying my best to be thankful, even though I hated the idea of wearing a long dress.

"Awesome. I'll see what I can find." Candice's full pink lips lifted into a wide smile. "You know, I thought you were gonna be a bossy brat, but you're not."

I laughed. "Thanks?"

"I'll be right back." Candice giggled and hurried out as I faced the lavish mirror.

The faucet was a weird lever attached to the sink, which had obviously been carved from stone along with the counter. This place was crazy. After some trial and error, I figured out how to pump cold water onto a washcloth and washed my face.

Once I was done using the restroom, I washed my hands and noticed how swollen my eyelids were. I'd cried several times today, and it definitely showed.

My phone buzzed.

: We're here.

: Come to the washroom. I need my bag.

: Be there in a minute.

Releasing a shaky breath, I leaned against the stone counter. If I thought I was in the twilight zone before, I was definitely here now and completely out of my element.

A knock came at the door.

"Come in," I called out.

The door opened, and my heart fluttered when I heard the guys laughing. Justin stuck his head in. "You sure you want me to come in?"

I stalked over to Justin and grabbed his wrist, yanking him inside. Tyler tried to follow him, and I shook my head, pushing against his chest. "Uh uh. Not you."

Tyler's grin flattened before he nodded and shut the door.

I spun to face Justin in exasperation. "What the fuck?"

Raising his eyebrows, Justin's eyes searched mine. "I'm sorry we left, but you were exhausted, and we had to find the Timeweaver."

I reached for my bag, and Justin handed it to me. "I can't believe you ditched me! What is this place? Are we still in town?"

Justin watched me root through my clothes. "This is where I live, and yeah, we're about twenty minutes outside town. Other than Tyler and Lucas, no one can come here, but now you're here."

I glanced back to see him grinning. "I feel like I'm on a crazy-ass movie set. How old is this place?"

Justin sat on the rock counter. "Like over a thousand years old."

My eyebrows flew up. "How's that even possible? England didn't discover America until the late fourteen hundreds."

"We live in a different world than humans. Our kind have been around a lot longer. You're in the Guardian realm. Imagine it as a different dimension." Justin's declaration made me spin to face him. I guess the look on my face gave me away because he continued to explain. "We're Guardians, and... you are too."

The hell? I wanted to understand what he was saying, but I was totally lost. With all my clothes in hand, I gestured for him to turn around.

Justin smirked and hopped off the counter, facing the door as I changed.

"So, what's this about me being a Bringer or something? What the hell even is that? And let me tell you right now, I'm not that or a Guardian. I'm just a normal human girl." I zipped up my jeans.

"No, Angel. You're not." Justin chuckled lightly. I glanced back to see him still faced away from me as he stuck his hands in his pockets.

"Yes, I am. I'm just sensitive to energy like an Empath or something. I can feel certain people's energy when they touch me, and I've been taking medication for it." I pulled my shirt over my head and tugged my hair free.

"Does the medication work?" I could hear the smile in his voice.

"I thought my pills were working until I got here." I stuffed my dress, tights and jewelry into my bag before zipping it up. "Now, I'm not so sure."

"And the dreams?" Justin whispered.

At his request, my most recent dream came to the forefront of my mind. "I just had one before you guys got back. The Whistler was there."

Justin spun toward me. His eyes lit to a full golden glow before he was wrapping me in his arms and hugging me to him. "Don't worry. You're safe here. What did you see?"

Sliding my hands around his waist, I pressed my cheek to his chest. Inhaling his scent, my voice was shaky as I spoke. "Nothing. For some reason, my eyes were closed, or blindfolded. I was in the same place that I've been dreaming about since my dad disappeared. I think it's a dungeon. There are these things in black cloaks torturing people. The leader was demanding to see the Sun Guardian and the guy that attacked me, you know... the Whistler? He was there. He was helping them torture people."

Smoothing the hair away from my face, Justin tilted my chin up to look at him before he whispered. "Your dreams are real."

My gaze roamed over his face. "How do you know?"

Justin pointed at the mirror, and when I looked, I sucked in a breath.

My eyes were glowing gold, just like his.

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