Grim Holiday (Aisling Grimlock Book 6) Read online

“Ooh, that’s right.” I rubbed my hands together. “Do I get anything I want now that I’m your favorite for the foreseeable future?”

  Dad did his best to remain stern … and utterly failed. “Pretty much,” he conceded. “What do you want?”

  “I want an omelet bar.”

  “Done.”

  “I want to be able to put bubbles into the Jacuzzi and not have to clean up the mess afterward.”

  Dad made a face, but bobbed his head. “Done.”

  “Wait, you have a Jacuzzi in that place?” Griffin was befuddled.

  I nodded. “Pay attention, dude.”

  “I want to play in the Jacuzzi, too,” Griffin admitted.

  “I’ll get some glitter bath bombs,” Jerry suggested. “I can pick up pajamas and clothes for the both of you from the townhouse. I can pack everything tonight and bring it tomorrow.”

  Griffin immediately started nodding. “I think that’s a good plan.”

  “So do I.” Dad turned his attention to Pemberton. “If she passes all of your tests, she can go home tomorrow, correct?”

  Pemberton took pity on my long-suffering father and nodded. “She can go home tomorrow morning if her scans are clean.”

  “Yay!” I clapped my hands, giddy. “Hey, Dad?”

  “Hmm.”

  “I want a pony, too.”

  Dad’s smile slipped. “This is not an opportunity to play ‘let’s see how far I can push Dad,’ Aisling,” he warned. “I have my limits.”

  And I had my doubts. “I want an ice cream sundae bar, too.”

  “Good one!” Braden high-fived me. “I think this is going to benefit all of us.”

  “That’s exactly what I’m afraid of,” Dad muttered.

  “WHERE DO you think you’re going?”

  I barely hit my old bedroom in Grimlock Manor before I ignored the doctor’s orders and headed toward the bathroom. I glanced over my shoulder, fixed Griffin with a bright smile, and batted my eyelashes for good measure. “I’m taking a bath.”

  “No, the doctor said you were to spend the afternoon in bed and only get up if you have to go to the bathroom,” Griffin crossed his arms over his chest. “Tell her, Cormack.”

  Dad, his hip resting against my dresser, looked as if the last place he wanted to be was in the middle of an argument. “I’m not getting involved.”

  Griffin shook his head. “The doctor said … .”

  “The doctor said she was to be kept calm,” Dad snapped, wading into Griffin’s overprotective babysitting pool despite clear misgivings. “Will fighting with her keep her calm?”

  Griffin swallowed hard. “No, but … there’s a mirror in there.”

  “Oh.” Dad’s expression softened when he realized the root of Griffin’s concern. “No, there’s not. We took all of the mirrors out of the house last night. We went room by room. We scoured every single inch of this house to make sure. Jerry is not happy about staying in a room without a mirror, but said he’s willing – and I quote -- to ‘take one for the team.’”

  I smiled. I could just see Jerry’s reaction to a lack of reflective surfaces. “He’s such a good friend. Just out of curiosity’s sake, where did you put all of the mirrors?”

  “The one place you’d never accidentally trip over them.”

  “Church?”

  “Ha, ha.” Dad wrinkled his nose. Despite his gruff demeanor I knew he was secretly glad to have me under his roof. He was going to spoil me rotten … and just in time for Christmas. Things were looking up. “They’re locked in the basement dungeon.”

  “Oh. That’s … handy.” It actually was. In addition to looking like a castle, Grimlock Manor boasted a legitimate locking dungeon below the main floor. I was frightened to venture down there because when I was a kid my brothers told me it was riddled with snakes. In my head I knew they were lying. That didn’t stop me from imagining phantom tails whenever I got up the courage to venture down there. “Do you think … um … .” I wasn’t sure how to answer the question pressing to the forefront of my brain.

  “Do I think that something will crawl through those mirrors and find you?”

  I nodded, pressing my lips together.

  “No.” Dad emphatically shook his head. “Your brothers set up a series of booby traps just to make sure, though.”

  “Really?” I brightened considerably. “Fire?”

  “I would rather not burn the house down,” Dad replied. “All of the mirrors are stacked on top of each other and facing the ground. Nothing will get through them. We took added precautions. The dungeon is locked. We also chained it shut from the outside. Your brothers strung trip wires with bells to alert us, and we put a security panel on the basement door and coded it. If anyone tries to open the basement door, we’ll know about it.”

  “You’re safe, Aisling.” Griffin’s expression was earnest as he slipped his arm over my shoulders. “I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise. I’ll be with you until I’m sure you’re feeling better.”

  “What about work?”

  “My boss has agreed to let me do a bunch of backed up paperwork for everyone else,” Griffin replied. “I will be working and saving everyone else from boring details. I will be close to you while I’m doing it.”

  “I’m giving him one of the libraries in case he needs to concentrate,” Dad added. “Jerry will be here when he’s not working. He can’t take off completely because his shop is so busy this time of year, but I’m giving him money to pay his workers quite well for extended overtime so he can be here as much as possible.”

  “You big softie,” I teased.

  “Our workload has been cut in half due to what happened,” Dad continued, ignoring my jab. “We’ll still be collecting souls, but I will be here with you all of the time. So will at least one of your brothers. They’re all fighting to see who gets the honors.”

  I knew better than that. “They’re all fighting to see they don’t get stuck with me,” I corrected.

  “That’s not true.” Dad’s voice was sharp. “You have no idea how much this upset your brothers. I know you can read Aidan well. He wants to spend some time alone with you. He blames himself.”

  I had the grace to look abashed. “I know. Griffin told me. I wanted to spend some time with him, but it was difficult given the size of our family and the smallness of my hospital room.”

  Dad’s expression softened. “You need to spend time with Braden, too.”

  I stilled. “What?”

  “He feels just as guilty as Aidan.”

  “He wasn’t there.”

  “He saw the creature in the mirror the night before and thinks he should’ve done something else to protect you,” Dad explained. “I’m feeling a bit of that guilt myself. I thought we had time.”

  “No one could’ve foreseen what happened,” I argued. “You guys need to let it go.”

  “When you’re moving without limping and moaning, we’ll see,” Dad countered. “As for the rest … well … I’m leaving Griffin in charge of your health for the duration of the afternoon.”

  “That sounds bleak.” I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing when Griffin scorched me with a dark look.

  “You’re going to bed,” Griffin ordered, pointing at the over-sized sleigh bed for emphasis.

  I knew without hesitation that it was finally time to put my foot down. “I’m taking a bath. I smell … and need to shave my legs and armpits … and did I mention I smell?”

  “You’re supposed to rest,” Griffin whined. “Please?”

  I felt for him. I really did. “No. Not only do I need a bath, but you do, too. You haven’t showered since I’ve been in the hospital. As much as I love you, you stink.”

  Griffin’s mouth dropped open. “I washed in the sink.”

  “It’s not the same. We’re taking a bath. We’ll do it together so you’ll be happy that I don’t accidentally drown, but we’re totally taking a bath.”

  Griffin made a disgusted sound in the ba
ck of his throat. “Fine.”

  “No sexy stuff, though,” I teased, sparing a glance for my reddening father. “Dad won’t like it.”

  Dad slapped his hand to his forehead, appalled. “What did I do to deserve this?”

  “Just lucky I guess.”

  16

  Sixteen

  “Jerry won’t be happy.”

  I stared down at my outfit and grinned. I went for comfort over style, opting for a pair of Hello Kitty fuzzy pajama pants, a tank top with a built-in bra and an off-the-shoulder sweatshirt with The Golden Girls plastered on it.

  “You look cute,” Griffin said, smiling as he finished braiding my hair and wrapped the end in a rubber band. He’d taken the opportunity to shave while we were in the bathtub, and while I was glad to have his smooth face back so I could rub my cheek against his to my heart’s content, part of me was disappointed I didn’t get to enjoy the beard for a romp or two. “Now into bed.”

  I locked gazes with him, briefly wondering just how far I could push things without risking an explosion. As if reading my mind, he immediately started shaking his head.

  “Please.”

  He almost sounded desperate. No matter how rotten I wanted to be, I couldn’t do it to him. “This being in love thing totally bites sometimes,” I grumbled, watching as he lifted the blanket so I could roll underneath it. “If you were one of my brothers I would badger you until I got my way.”

  “I know. That’s why your father put me in charge.”

  “I can get around my father.”

  “No, you can’t. I won’t let you.” Griffin shuffled to the opposite side of the bed and rolled in next to me, sliding close before resting his head on the pillow. “Take a nap.”

  I shifted my gaze to him, caught between the urge to kiss him until he squealed or smack him until he gave in and let me serve as his queen. “I’m not tired.”

  “You are. You just don’t know it yet. Come here.” Griffin slipped his arm under me and tugged me onto my side, making sure my head rested on his chest before closing his eyes. “Sleep for a little bit. It will do you good.”

  I had a feeling it would do him good so I didn’t argue. I also didn’t sleep. I waited until I was sure Griffin was down for the count to roll away from him. I wore a pair of thick socks, so my feet made no noise when they hit the ground. I cast a guilty look at Griffin’s sleeping form before shuffling out of the bedroom, momentarily wondering if I was going too far before discarding the notion. I was bored. There was no such thing as going too far. That didn’t mean I was an idiot. I wisely left the door open so I could blame one of my brothers for waking me should Griffin catch me up and about.

  Then I was on the hunt.

  I didn’t make it far until I ran into Aidan on the stairs.

  “What are you doing up?” Aidan made a disgusted face as he looked me up and down. “If Jerry sees that outfit he’ll screech as if they outlawed silk.”

  I pressed my finger to my lips and shot my twin a dark look. “Where is Jerry?”

  “At the bakery. He wanted to make you a special cake and he had a few things to do.” Aidan pointed at the top step and when I made as if I was going to skirt around him he arched a challenging eyebrow. “Do you want me to yell your name?”

  “Listen, you big tattletale, I don’t need any grief,” I complained. Aidan jerked his finger at the step again. I had no choice but to sit. I heaved a big sigh. “You suck balls.”

  “I don’t believe that’s a news flash to anyone,” Aidan deadpanned, causing me to laugh.

  I leaned over and rested my head on his shoulder. I wasn’t back to my normal energy level, but I wasn’t exactly tired. More than anything I wanted to take advantage of our private moment together. “It’s not your fault,” I whispered.

  Aidan linked his fingers with mine. “It is my fault. I shouldn’t have left you.”

  “You couldn’t have known.”

  “I still shouldn’t have left you.”

  He had his heels dug in. I could see it by the grim look on his face. The Grimlocks are famous for being obstinate … and snarky … and sometimes-delightful dinner conversationalists.

  “Aidan, you couldn’t have known,” I argued. “I’m okay. In another week we won’t even remember this happened.”

  “I’m the one who found you,” Aidan argued. “I saw the blood running down your face, and how vacant your eyes were before they closed. I thought you died right there on the floor.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “You didn’t do this.”

  “No, the thing in the mirror did this,” I pointed out. “You’re not to blame. You were with me. What would’ve happened if I was alone?”

  “I don’t want to think about that.” Aidan gripped my hand tighter. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  We sat in companionable silence for a moment, tranquil and happy in our solitude. Then Braden appeared at the bottom of the steps and glared.

  “She’s supposed to be in bed,” he growled, pointing.

  “Shh.” Aidan and I lifted our fingers to our lips in unison.

  “Griffin is sleeping,” I hissed, keeping my voice low. “Don’t wake him.”

  “He’s supposed to be watching you,” Braden groused, clomping up the stairs and edging me over with his hip so he could sit next to me. The staircase was wide but the three of us took up the entire stair as we sat huddled together. “How did you lull him into sleep? He’s been hyper vigilant since it happened, checking every corner. That is when he wasn’t crying and falling apart.”

  “Don’t you dare make fun of him,” I warned, flicking Braden’s ear for emphasis. “He’s been through enough.”

  “You don’t think I know he’s been through the wringer?” Braden arched a challenging eyebrow. “Who you think took care of him while you were out?”

  “Dad.”

  Aidan and Braden snorted in unison, taking me by surprise.

  “What happened?”

  “Nothing happened,” Aidan replied. “They didn’t fight. Er, well, they didn’t fight a lot. They had a few snippy words with one another. I thought there were a few moments when Griffin was going to fall down. The weight on his shoulders was too great.”

  “How did Dad take things?” I asked.

  “Dad was broken, too, but he’s had more practice dealing with stuff like this,” Braden answered. “He knew he had to keep it together for us. Griffin didn’t seem to care about keeping it together. Maya took care of him, and his mother … well … she just kept bringing everyone caffeine and sandwiches.”

  “I’ve wanted to ask about Katherine, but I wasn’t sure I should,” I admitted, glancing over my shoulder to make sure she hadn’t snuck into eavesdropping distance when I wasn’t looking. “Dad said she did the best she could and was a great help … and then he basically told me to keep my mouth shut.”

  “She wasn’t bad.” Braden vehemently shook his head when I shot him a questioning look. “She really wasn’t. I swear.”

  “He’s telling the truth,” Aidan interjected. “She was clearly worried about Griffin. She did try to get him to go home and get some sleep at night. When he screamed at her that he wasn’t going anywhere she had the good sense to back off. After that she merely tried to take care of everyone to the best of her abilities.”

  “She knew something odd was going on,” Braden added. “She could tell that we were worried for reasons we weren’t sharing. She never pushed us. She tried to do the best she could for us. I give her a lot of credit.”

  “That’s good to know.” I honestly meant it. “Griffin is … struggling.” I don’t know why I said it. Perhaps I wanted someone to commiserate with. Maybe I even wanted some advice. I couldn’t be sure, but I felt better when I uttered the words. “He’s terrified to leave me alone.”

  “That’s because he wasn’t there when you were hurt and he thought you were going to die,” Braden supplied. “I didn’t like him when you brought him
home. I grew to tolerate him after that. I even grew to like him at some point. But when I saw the torture he was going through sitting next to your bed, … .” Braden’s eyes glassed over as he shook his head. “Now he’s my brother.”

  “Mine, too,” Aidan agreed, bobbing his head.

  “I’m your sister, and he’s my boyfriend. That means I’m sleeping with my brother in your heads, you sick bastards.”

  Aidan and Braden chuckled, amused.

  “You know what we mean,” Aidan argued. “Don’t try to turn this into an us versus him thing. You almost broke him, Aisling. You need to understand that.”

  “I do understand that. That doesn’t change the fact that I thought I was lost in an old episode of Duck Dynasty when I saw that beard.”

  “You’re a pain in the butt,” Braden muttered, chortling as he poked my side. “I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

  “Me, too. I … .” The sound of footsteps on the landing caught my attention and I wisely snapped my mouth shut. Aidan, Braden and I tacitly lowered our heads, as if sensing we were about to get into trouble. We’d grown up in the house, so we knew that whoever walked on the landing couldn’t see us unless they turned the corner to head down the stairs. We weren’t caught yet.

  Braden leaned back just far enough to stare, keeping his finger pressed to his lips and only pulling back when the footsteps faded into what I was sure was my bedroom.

  “Who?” I asked, my voice low.

  “It’s Katherine.”

  “Oh, crap. I’m going to get in trouble for sneaking out of bed.”

  “Shh.” Braden admonished me with a harsh look as he leaned back to listen. I could hear Katherine rousing Griffin, and my stomach sank at the thought.

  “Where is Aisling?” Griffin asked, his voice tinged with panic.

  “I don’t know,” Katherine replied. “She wasn’t here when I stopped to check on you.”

  “I … why did you stop to check on me?” Griffin didn’t sound as if he was growing closer so I hoped we weren’t at risk for discovery.

  “Because the last time I saw you I was certain you were going to die on your feet,” Katherine replied. “That was before Aisling woke up, if you remember correctly.”