Chapter Three
Both Callysta and Jasmine woke late in the morning. They were still wearing their rumpled clothes from last night. Callysta woke first. She had band rehearsals in half an hour and then a gig that night at the Black Iris.
She assumed they were going to cancel since they had no bass player, which was an obvious setback. If she were honest, she would admit that she was slightly relieved. She was feeling slightly off balance.
She gave Jasmine limp body a shove. "Wake up," she said, prodding the blanket covered form with every syllable. "I've got rehearsal in half an hour and I want to get a quick work out in before I leave."
Jasmine mumbled and rolled over. "Wake me again once you've had a shower," she grunted.
Grabbing a towel and quickly changing into some clothes that didn't restrict her movement quite as much, Callysta left the room and jogged up the stairs of her expensive apartment to the home gym. The equipment waited and gleamed.
She ignored it and went straight to the punching bag. Punch after punch and kick after kick she drove on relentlessly. Her only focus was the red bag in front of her and the precision and strength of the blows that she dealt it.
Time had slipped by unknowingly and it wasn't until Jasmine entered the room, hair tousled from sleep and yawning, that she stopped.
"You said something about rehearsal?" Jasmine reminded her.
Callysta swore, wiped the sweat off her brow with the towel and jogged downstairs again to shower and change.
Jasmine handed her a steaming mug of coffee as she exited the bathroom that she took gratefully and began to drink.
"Come on, we'd better head off."
Jasmine grabbed her bag. "Who was that guy you were talking to last night?" she asked. "You know, that witch boy. He was quite cute."
"Helio something," Callysta answered while setting her alarm and pulling a maroon leather jacket on.
"Who was the guy that was with you and Helio then? The tall one built like a roman god? Ring any bells?" Jasmine's voice had now bordered over curiosity into full-blown interest.
"Brooks I think," Callysta scowled at the memory. "Asshole supreme."
"Just how I like them," Jasmine grinned maliciously. "Vamp or witch?"
Callysta frowned. "I actually don't know. I thought he was a vamp at first but then he's meant to be Helio's brother and he's a witch."
"It'd be a shame if he was a witch," Jasmine mused. "You know how I feel about that whole cross breeds thing."
Callysta wrinkled her nose. "Who wouldn't?" she agreed. "My parents would kill me if I tainted our blood lines with anything less than lamia blood. The Harman's," she spat the name, "Were the first and last to ever get that far."
They had now approached Callysta's sleek black Porsche and were getting in. "I saw Blaise Harman a few days ago did I tell you?" Jasmine said while buckling her seat belt. "The bitch is still acting as if she's worth something. Couldn't see Thea though or her ugly soulmate." Jasmine made a face. "Urgh, soulmates."
Callysta laughed. She turned down a street. "Tell me about it. Did you hear about that girl whose soulmate got staked by some wolves and she ended up dying of a," she cleared her voice, "I quote, a 'broken heart'."
Jasmine snorted. "That is truly sick and very, very wrong."
"I know. Going by my luck, I'd probably end up with a dwarf with an I.Q. lower than my dog's."
"Or a human."
"Yeah, a human would be pretty bad," Callysta agreed. "So would a witch or wolf or shifter."
"They're not as bad as humans though," Jasmine contradicted. "But could you imagine having to pro-create with a wolf?"
Callysta nearly choked with laughter. "Don't put thoughts like that in my head, Jaz," she pleaded half seriously. "That would be the ultimate sin."
"Yeah, the only one you haven't committed," Jasmine remarked slyly.
Callysta cast her a glance before pulling in front of the Abilene mansion. As she pulled the keys from the ignition, she noticed a car she couldn't recognize pull up to the curb. It was a dark, foreign looking model that looked new and modern.
Jasmine's eyes followed her own and they stepped out of Callysta's car at the same time. Callysta slammed the door shut as Jasmine shrugged at her then entered the house.
The red haired girl was tucking her keys into the back pocket of her pants when the owner of the car got out and approached her.
The walk was smooth and elegant, with a deadly type of grace that could easily turn lethal at the turn of a hair. He was wearing faded jeans and a leather jacket that was undone to reveal a fitting t-shirt that covered a muscular chest.
It was Helio's brother, Brooks.
He propped his sunglasses on top of his head and looked down at her. "What?" he said. "Are you waiting for Christmas or something?"
Callysta scowled. "More like an explanation."
Brooks' golden eyes looked slightly impatient. "My little brother is your newest sand pit pal. You know," he continued in a bored voice. "The latest member of the flower power band known as 'Dahlia'." He said the name with a mocking edge that annoyed the hell out of her.
"Regular comedian aren't you?" she snapped. She left him and began walking towards the house. He followed.
"Yeah but not right now. My last performance was last night but you were so far gone you missed it."
"I was so far gone so I would miss it," Callysta returned in equal tones.
"Yeah, anyway," Brooks' tone was dismissive, as if he was tired of verbal games already. "I need to see Helio now."
"He's not here."
"Yeah, sweetheart, he is," the guy agreed in tones that indicated she was at a kindergarten age.
Callysta spun round to glare at him. "You know what my name is and it isn't 'sweetheart'."
Brooks rolled his eyes. "Okay then. Fine, whatever. You can be whoever you want to be. Shall I call you Julia Roberts then?"
Callysta stared at him. "You really don't know who I am?" she asked, a mix between anger and shock reverberating through her.
Brooks looked more and more impatient. "Listen, you look like a nice girl okay and I know you're in this little band but I have no idea who you are okay? Is it a crime that I can't remember every girl I meet?"
Callysta ignored that remark and glared at him. "Helio's not here."
She opened the door and stepped inside. She was closing it when she felt the solid shoe of someone holding it open. She spun around again. "What is so important that you have to harass us for?"
Brooks was looking more and more impatient. "Listen, Julia-" he said tiredly.
"It's Callysta," she corrected lethally.
"Callysta then," he amended with a wave of his hand. "Just let me in to see if Helio's here or not. But for the record, don't bet on him not being here because I know you'd be wrong."
His confidence, cockiness and self-assurance were a mix that Callysta generally could not stand. She kept her mouth closed in a tight-lipped expression and allowed him to follow her.
Jasmine was in the kitchen making some breakfast when they entered. She looked up and as her eyes passed over Callysta's shoulder, setting on the proud features of Brooks, she almost swooned.
"Hi," she said, a little breathlessly. "I'm Jasmine Abilene."
Brooks glanced at her vaguely then looked around, ignoring her completely. Callysta had to hide a smile at Jasmine's furious expression. "Where's the studio?" he asked.
Callysta was about to open her mouth to reply when Phlox invisible voice rang around the room. "Jaz? Is that you? Is Lyss with you? Send her up if she is."
Jasmine rolled her eyes and reached over to stab the button on the intercom. "Brother dear," she said into the speaker with exaggerated patience. "Do I have to remind you yet again that I am not your secretary?"
They could hear Phlox' impatient sigh. "Yeah, yeah. Just tell her to come up."
Lyss was turning to make her way up the stairs when she heard Brooks speak again. "Phox?" he said into the intercom. "Is Helio there?"
He turned to look at Callysta with a raised brow and when Phlox said, "Yeah, come up," his smile grew so much that Callysta thought, and hoped, that his face would crack.
She didn't say anything and just made her way upstairs to the studio. Brooks followed and they didn't exchange one word during the walk there.
When they entered, Callysta sent Phlox a glance that said everything. She was pissed off that he hadn't told her that he had found a replacement and had made her look like an idiot. She looked at Helio as well but remained silent.
"Helio," Brooks said, strolling into the room with a casual ease as if he owned the place. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"
Phlox' expression was annoyed. He twirled a drumstick as Callysta flicked her microphone on and blew into it, testing it. Helio looked uncertain but before he could answer, Phlox answered for him.
"Can you save it for later?" he asked in a firm voice. "We have to get started. We have a gig tomorrow night."
Brooks stared at the vampire for a long moment and his golden eyes were narrowed. Finally, he broke the terse silence himself. "I'll be back in a couple of hours," he said to Helio directly. He left the room without looking at Callysta's smirking expression and slammed the door behind him.
Helio cleared his throat. "Uh, sorry about that," he apologized.
"Don't worry," Phlox replied. "Let's just get started okay?"
In the studio, his word was law so they obeyed. Helio caught onto the riffs of all the songs with ease and played as if he had been with them from the start. When Callysta asked him about it, he admitted that he had their album and played along with it sometimes.
They sounded tight and together and Callysta could tell from Phlox' expression that he was definitely pleased. The guy was almost smiling in fact.
They had been at it for two hours when Brooks re entered the room. Callysta was just letting the last note of a song trail out to die slowly when she felt his eyes on her. She hadn't even known he was in the room until she felt his presence.
The golden eyes were impassive. His stance was controlled, arms folded and one foot out to the side tapping. It was not tapping to the beat however, just impatience.
She took a breath and pulled her eyes away from him with an effort. Phlox took a final swing at his drums then broke off and nodded at Helio.
Helio lifted his guitar strap from over his head and approached Brooks. They conferred in hushed tones that not even Callysta could hear. Brooks looked up at her once before he looked away quickly again. She stubbornly refused to meet his eyes again.
While they were talking, at Phlox unspoken signal, they began to pack up. Benton quietly and with Phlox obeying his usual routine. Callysta merely flicked the switch on her mike and then went to pack up Helio's bass and leads since he was so busy.
Helio looked at her when she started to do that and smiled his thanks before Brooks snapped his figures so his brother's attention wouldn't stray again. Nobody had to guess which sibling was boss there.
Phlox came to stand next to his cousin. "What did you think?" he asked.
Callysta shrugged non-comittedly. "It went okay. Helio's good."
"Real good," Phlox agreed. "What's the deal with that guy?" he nodded at Brooks.
Callysta scowled and wrapped a lead in loops around her arm. "His brother supposedly. I can't see the resemblance though."
"Neither. And I can't figure out if he's a witch or a vamp." Phlox sounded puzzled. "Do you know?"
"No," Callysta responded in a similar tone. "I couldn't figure it out either. He looks like a vampire but he's got that witch thing as well. He's meant to be from England. The council recruited him over here."
"What's his flavor?" Phlox asked. "Assassin? Spy? Servant boy?"
Again Callysta shrugged. She was getting slightly irritated at how much she didn't know about this guy. "Could be either of the first two. The third? No way. He doesn't look like the type."
Phlox had to agree with his cousin there. The guy had something about him. It was like an aura of command and authority and it was even more evident while he stood next to Helio, who had nothing of what his brother possessed so effortlessly. Helio's posture was enough to say that he was feeling over powered by his brother.
"Try and found out would you?" Phlox said. His eyes were still on Brooks' figure and they didn't waver when they person in question turned to look back at them. "He pisses me off and I don't even know the guy. That can't be a good sign." He muttered the words as he turned back to his drums again.
Callysta smiled to herself and hung the lead on a hook on the wall. She flicked the amps off and then headed towards the couch to get her jacket. As soon as she approached, Helio glanced at her and Brooks went silent.
"Ooooh," Callysta mocked. "Are you trading FBI secrets? Are aliens really out there?"
Brooks glared at her. "No sorry. You're alone."
Callysta shrugged her shoulders elegantly. "Alone?" she repeated. "Could you explain that to me Brooks? I mean, you must have such a great understanding of the word when it defines you're whole life."
"It's too hard to put it into words you'd understand, sunshine." Brooks's eyes were like lasers. They bored into her with unrelenting force.
Callysta squared her shoulders. "I'm sorry Brooks. I shouldn't have said that. Being faced with the truth can be so painful. I apologize and I understand you're hostile reaction completely." She smiled sweetly and nodded with false sympathy.
Brooks now looked furious. Callysta looked smug. Helio was fidgeting madly and his eyes were darting between them in discomfort.
"Why don't you get your kicks else where?" Brooks suggested in a barely controlled voice. "I'm sure you'd be a welcome addition in the circus. Clowns are such a rare thing these days."
Callysta gritted her teeth and returned Brooks glare with strength. "Rare?" she repeated. "Like steak? I could do with some of that. Nice and bloody. Right now I'd just love to slice and dice you and throw you on the barbecue so watch it," she warned, "I don't always resist temptation." She let her canines retract and licked her lips.
Brooks rolled his eyes. "I'm shaking in my boots," he mocked. "Listen sweetheart, if you want a piece of me you'll have to wait in line. I'm a popular boy."
Callysta nearly choked on her laughter. "A popular boy? Well, well. Aren't you just the prom king, homecoming king and class president all in one. Congratulations little boy."
Helio was now looking extremely uncomfortable. Phlox was pretending that he wasn't listening but Callysta knew from the smirk on his face that he definitely was. Benton had as usual, left to avoid confrontations of any kind.
Brooks on the other hand was furious. His stance had turned completely aggressive. His eyes were liquid gold and shone with cold anger. He had practically forgotten Helio and anyone else in the room as well for that fact. Except Callysta.
He was focused on her completely. His eyes never strayed from her face and she felt his force like a harsh wind.
"Go and sing in the rain, little girl," he snapped. "And do the world a favor and catch hypothermia while you're at it."
"The world would be extremely grieved if that happened," Callysta replied, pulling on her jacket casually. "I'm the popular one. You can look at my fan mail if you want."
Brooks' face was one of aggravated fury. His perfectly chiseled features were sharp and tense as he faced her directly as if they were in physical combat. She thought he was going to say something because he opened his mouth as if about to speak, then just as abruptly he closed it and a devilish light glinted in his eyes.
He gave her one last detached and emotionless look before simply turning around. She was left facing his leather clad back.
It was that single gesture that sealed her opinion that she would never ever learn to like Brooks for as long as she lived. She was left to stand there staring stupidly at his back, still not believing what he had done. And not believe the arrogance in which he'd done it.
Helio was trying to catch her eye with apology settled in their depths but his bastard of a brother demanded his full attention. Callysta turned to look at her cousin. Phlox was watching Brooks with a concentrated frown on his face.
Brooks was ignoring all of them.
Callysta left.
