Birch & Bone

Real as Sin: Sloane

Silas’s voice sounded like a tinny toy coming from somewhere far away. I couldn’t even look at him. My world had narrowed down to the amber irises of the man looming over me.

“How do you know my name?” I whispered, my voice unsteady. My heart was a frantic bird trapped in my ribs, and I was struggling not to let him see me flutter.

“I know many things about you, Sloane,” he said. The way the ‘n’ rolled off his tongue made a shiver race down my spine that had nothing to do with the draft from the door.

“Okay, this is getting weird,” Thea murmured, her knuckles turning pale as she gripped her wine glass. “Silas…”

Silas stood up halfway, trying to puff out his chest. “Look man, we’re just trying to have dinner. Why don’t you head back to the dressing room and take the contacts out? You’re creeping out the girls.”

The man didn’t even blink. He didn’t look at Silas. He didn’t move an inch. He just kept his eyes on mine while a dark, knowing smirk played across his lips. It was as if he saw Silas as an annoying fly he simply hadn’t decided to swat yet.

“Creeping out?” His voice dropped even lower, vibrating through the table and into my very bones. “Is that what you feel, Sloane, creeped out?”

“I feel like you’re standing in my light,” I lied, my voice dropping into that low, bored tone I used when I wanted to hide how much someone was actually affecting me. “And you didn’t answer my question. How do you know who I am?”

Instead of answering, he did something that made the whole table go dead silent. He reached out, though not with a clawed glove this time, but with a bare hand, and picked up my whiskey glass. His skin was tan, his fingers long and calloused. The heat radiating off him felt like standing next to a furnace. He took a slow, deliberate sip, then set the glass down exactly where it had been before.

“I am Kaspar,” he said, as if that explained everything. “And I know your name because you’ve been shouting it to the mountain ever since you stepped off the train. Your spirit is…loud.”

“Kaspar,” Eden repeated, her eyes wide as she sat her phone down. She was looking at him with a mix of terror and the same ‘t****k-brain’ fascination she’d had during the parade. “Are you a local? You were the big one, weren’t you? The one with the real-looking horns?”

Kaspar shifted his gaze to her, just for a second, and Eden visibly recoiled. It wasn’t that he was ugly - he definitely was not ugly - or that he was mean, his presence was just too much. “The horns are as real as the sins your friend is hiding.”

Kaspar turned back to me, and slid into the empty spot at the end of the both, effectively pinning me against Thea.

Silas looked as if he was about to blow a fuse. “That’s it, we’re leaving.”

“Sit down, Silas,” I said, my eyes never leaving Kaspar’s.

“Sloane, are you serious?” Thea hissed in my ear.

“He’s just a local trying to toy with us. Relax.” I leaned forward, resting my chin on my hand. I knew I was probably playing with fire, but I wasn’t sure I’d mind the burn. “So, Kaspar, since you’ve seen my sins, what do you plan to do about them? Give me a lecture? Or are you going to hit me with a bundle of sticks like the stories say?”

Kaspar leaned in so close I could smell pine needles and copper mixed with the cold wind. “The stories are for children, Sloane,” he answered, his breath hot against my ear. “For someone like you…the punishment is much worse.”

My breath caught again, and I swallowed. My heart hammered against my chest. Heat ran through me and I fought the urge to draw back.

“A much worse punishment?” Silas snapped. His hand slammed against the table, rattling the silverware. Kaspar didn’t flinch. “We’re done, Sloane. Get up.” He motioned and Eden started to scoot across the bench seat. “We’re going to find another place where we don’t have to deal with the local freaks.”

Kaspar finally turned to Silas, his movements slow and predatory. He looked at Silas as if he was watching a particularly dull insect. “You are worried about the ‘freaks,’ Silas?” Kaspar’s voice was smooth, but there was an edge hidden beneath it. “Perhaps you should be more worried about the things you hide from Thea. Like how you’ve already spent the money your uncle gave you for this trip on those debts you haven’t mentioned.”

The color drained from Silas’s face instantly. He froze.

Thea looked between them, her dark brows pulling together. “Silas, what is he talking about?”

“He’s-he’s just guessing, Thea. He’s making stuff up to be a d**k,” Silas stammered, but his eyes were wide.

Kaspar didn’t let up. His gaze shifted to Eden who was attempting to subtly record the interaction. “And you, Eden. You use ‘likes’ and ‘views’ to fill the hole where your loyalty should be. You don’t care who you’ll hurt just to capture a little drama on your glass screen.”

Eden gasped, her thumb freezing over her phone.

The atmosphere at the table turned toxic in seconds. The vacation was rotting right in front of me. Kaspar was peeling back their layers, exposing petty, human ugliness they tried to hide behind their family’s money and i********: filters.

I should’ve been horrified. I should’ve stood up and defended my friends. As I looked at Silas’s sweating forehead and Eden’s guilty eyes, a twisted sense of vindication settled in my gut. He was right.

Kaspar turned back to me and the coldness in his expression vanished. I felt a fresh wave of heat wash over me. “You see, Sloane? They are afraid of me because I see them. But you…you want to be seen, don’t you?”

He reached under the table, and I felt his large, warm hand settle on my knee. There was nothing gentle about the touch. It was a claim. The heat of good palm seared through my dark jeans, making my breath hitch again.

“I think your friends should go back to the hotel,” Kaspar suggested, though it felt more like a command I was forced to obey. “They have much to discuss, and you and I…we have a walk to take.

“Sloane, don’t,” Thea pleaded, her voice trembling. “He’s dangerous. Let’s just go.”

I looked at Kaspar, really looked at him. There was a hunger in his amber eyes, and the shadows seemed to curl around him like they were a part of him. I felt the weight of his hand on my leg, and felt something I couldn’t explain. Heat pooled in me, and I knew this would either be the best decision I ever made, or the stupidest.

“Go ahead,” I told them, my voice sounding strange even to me. “I’ll be back in an hour.”

“Sloane,” Silas started, but Kaspar simply shot him a look. It was a flash of something so primal and dark that Silas pressed back against the booth.

Eden stood, and Thea pushed Silas out of the booth behind her. Silas practically hauled Thea through the door, but Eden lingered for a second, looking at me with pity and envy.

The heavy door thudded shut behind them. The tavern noise seemed to dampen, leaving just the crackle of the fire and my pen thudding heart.

I was alone with him.

“You dismissed them quite easily,” Kaspar murmured, sliding closer until our shoulders touched. “Does it not bother you that I know their secrets?”

“It’s their secrets, not mine.” I shifted, turning to him. Our noses were inches apart. “You said you saw my sins. If you’re going to judge me, Kaspar, stop talking and do it.”

A low rumbling came from his chest. Something like a growl. “Judgement is for the weak. I prefer a reckoning.”