Flawless Read online

  That wasn’t true. In all the time they’d been sitting here, that was the first time she’d been untruthful.

  “Okay,” he said.

  Ms. Parker touched his shoulder, “Okay, what?”

  “I’ll stay. I like them. Plus…” he paused and turned to his caseworker with a slight smile.

  “Go on,” she prodded.

  “They accept my scars. I’ll give them a chance.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  Three Years Later

  Jaidon was nervous about starting high school.

  These last few days had been nerve-wracking, but he’d stayed under the radar. He knew that wouldn’t last for much longer. As he walked the halls to his locker, he had a hooded sweatshirt pulled up to partially cover his face. If someone looked closely enough, they’d see the dark blond of his hair sticking out from the sides, but he held his head down, avoiding eye contact with everyone.

  The sounds of yelling and screaming filled the hallways. Lockers slammed shut as the other kids made their way to class. His goal was to stay as hidden away as he possibly could. If he didn’t call attention to his face, maybe the next few years wouldn’t be so hard.

  Ms. Peggy and Mr. Dennis had dropped him off earlier today and he could tell they were as nervous as he was. They’d been with him as his middle school years had almost driven him over the edge. The viciousness of middle school kids was unlike anything he’d ever experienced before. He’d had to change schools twice due to fights. Only Ms. Peggy’s influence in the town had saved him from permanent expulsion and juvenile charges.

  The best thing to ever happen to him was when Ms. Parker had dropped him off at their home all those years ago.

  His school life might be hell, but his home life was anything but that. His parents—yes, he considered them his parents at this point—had shown him that the outside world didn’t have to rule him. His scars and the deformity of his features was a part of him, but it didn’t define him.

  If only everyone else had received that same message.

  He might not be able to change his outer appearance, but how he felt about himself and the strength of his body was something he could control. So he did. They’d gotten him involved in the martial arts, tae kwon do and judo to be specific, and he was now pursuing his black belt.

  When he’d exited the car this morning, Ms. Peggy had given him a hug and grabbed him under the chin. That motion was an amazing change for him. No one had been able to touch him in the past. He wouldn’t allow it. But this tall woman in front of him, who he could practically see eye to eye with, had only ever touched him with kindness and love.

  “Jaidon, it will be fine. Remember what we talked about. You can do this.”

  “Son, don’t let these kids rile you up,” Mr. Dennis joined in. “Take some deep breaths, remember the things you’ve learned in your classes and control your temper.”

  “I won’t. Not this time. I only have three more years and then I’m gone,” he said confidently.

  At the sad look that passed over his foster parents’ faces, he softened his words, “But this will always be my home. I won’t go too far.”

  “I know. Just know that we’re here for you. No matter what. Now, we’ll be here when you get out.”

  “You don’t have to be. I know how to get home,” he mumbled.

  “Let your momma do this for you.”

  The pregnant pause that came after that statement had them all looking at each other in shock. Jaidon looked at Ms. Peggy, who looked concerned that he wouldn’t be happy with the words.

  “Jaidon…” Mr. Dennis began.

  “No, it’s okay. I like it. I do think of both of you as my parents.”

  The sigh that escaped his foster mom almost had him laughing, “Oh, thank God.” Grabbing him around the shoulders, she hugged him tight as his foster dad came around the side of them.

  “I thought I’d screwed it all up. Now you both got me over here smiling like a loon. All right, son, now get in that school. I think today is going to be a good day. This is the start of something amazing.”

  *****

  “Watch where you’re going, freak show!”

  Just as he walked into his last class of the day, some kid had bumped into him and his hoodie had fallen back, exposing some of his face. There were a few kids around him and when the guy made the statement, they all turned to see who he was talking to. He heard the gasps of horror and then the low hum of laughter as other students began gathering around. His anger began ratcheting up and his vision began to cloud over. The heat waves coming off the students in the crowd were overwhelming. He could literally see their disgust come through as if it were a physical thing.

  Fists clenching, he ground his teeth together as he tried to remember the relaxation exercises he’d practiced over the years. The sounds began to increase as the laughter and whispers became almost deafening.

  Veins popped along his arms and neck as he tried to hold himself back. “Leave me the fuck alone.”

  He needed to get away before something happened. The last time he felt like this was over a year ago, when he’d beat up the eighteen-year-old who’d tried to rob his foster dad’s shop. No charges had been pressed since it was deemed self-defense, but there were a lot of questions as to how a fourteen-year-old boy could cause so much damage to someone so much bigger and stronger.

  The taunting continued and Jaidon’s control snapped. Just as he was about to stomp over to the guy who’d bumped into him, he heard a voice.

  “You guys are so dumb. Leave him alone.” The voice was sweet and strong, as the prettiest girl he’d ever seen in all his life, no taller than five feet five inches, pushed her way through the crowd.

  “Ah, come on, Kenya. Look at him. He’s ugly. That face of his could scare people on Halloween,” one of the girls in the crowd called out.

  “Tonya, if you don’t shut up…” Kenya yelled. “Why are you being so mean? You don’t even know him.”

  Then she did something he never expected—she turned around and stood in front of him. This slip of a girl thought she was protecting him.

  Crossing her arms over her small chest, her stance was wide as she continued talking to the crowd. “If y’all don’t shut up right now, you’re gonna have me to deal with. He ain’t done nothing to any of y’all and you’re acting like fools. Leave him alone.”

  “Damn, girl. It’s like that, huh?” one of the guys asked.

  “It sure is.” Turning to him, she asked, “What’s your name?”

  That’s it. A question. She looked straight at his face and didn’t flinch. Didn’t even try to avoid eye contact.

  After a few seconds of staring at her, he responded, “Jaidon.”

  A smile came over her face and he fell in love instantly.

  She was not like anyone he’d ever talked to before. Unlike his, her skin was smooth and beautiful. Her dark hair was straight, with little ringlets of curls at the bottom, and she wore designer clothes. He’d already gotten to know the different cliques at the school. With the way some of the kids deferred to her and began walking away when she stepped in front of him, he knew she was part of the popular crowd.

  She reached out her hand to his. “I’m Kenya. Nice to meet you, Jaidon.”

  Her aura.

  Damn. It was a fucking rainbow.

  After a pause, he reached out his hand to hers. “Nice to meet you.” As his palm touched hers, he felt a zing of electricity pass between them. She felt it, too, because her eyes went wide and she pulled away.

  “Wow,” she said with a laugh. “What was that?”

  He wasn’t sure himself, but he knew it had to be something major. “Probably nothing.”

  “Um. Are you okay? Don’t let those guys get to you. They’re just dumb.”

  “It’s okay. I guess I’m used to it.”

  Shaking her head, she disagreed with him, “Well, you shouldn’t be. I don’t like bullies.”

  “Me neither,” he
responded.

  Lifting his head to look around, he noticed that even though most of the kids had walked away almost as soon as Kenya had come by, there were some lingering. And all of them were staring at the odd couple standing in the middle of the hallway.

  “Is this your class?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Mine too,” she said. “I hadn’t seen you before today. Come on, let’s grab a seat.”

  “It’s cool. I usually sit in the back,” he resisted.

  “Not today you don’t.”

  “You don’t take no for an answer, do you?” he said, shaking his head. To be so small, she was a force to be reckoned with.

  “Nope. So, you should just accept that today is your lucky day.” She smiled and walked into the classroom, dragging him along with her.

  “Why would I think that today is lucky? I almost got into a fight in the hallway.”

  “Silly, today’s your lucky day because you met me,” she retorted while leading him to a seat near the front of the class, right next to her.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Present Day…Fifteen Years Later

  The blood splattered across Jaidon’s shirt as he snuffed the life out of the trembling mass of flesh beneath him. Tingling sensations rippled through his body as the life force drained from the man and transferred to him. Inhaling deeply, he couldn’t miss the smell of copper that filled his nostrils. City sounds faded into the background as he soaked in the essence of the vile man on the ground.

  A vile, but handsome man. Which is what sealed his fate.

  Jaidon didn’t like to kill. Wait…yes, he did.

  He didn’t like to take a life that didn’t deserve to die. Living in Washington, DC, there was never any chance of that. He loved this city, but damn, it was filled with the dregs of humanity. His parents had visited once, but he’d never wanted them to come back afterward. When he needed to see them, he went back to Piedmont, Delaware, to the home he’d grown up in until he left for college.

  His ears picked up the death rattle of the man he’d just killed and he gazed down at him. Jaidon could feel his skin changing, the puckered skin of the burns fading into smoothness. The scars that he carried for so long faded away as if they’d never existed. Stretching his neck, he welcomed the change.

  Some might disagree, but it was always a good thing for him when he allowed his dark side to come out and play.

  Just as he moved to stand, his phone buzzed. It could only be his mom. She always seemed to call him at the most inopportune times, and that gave him a bit of normalcy. Mothers loved their sons, no matter their faults. And Peggy Swanson was the one woman in his life who’d proven that time and again.

  And Kenya Norris. But that was a lifetime ago.

  Standing to his full height over the body lying in the gutter, he welcomed the crack and release of pressure in his neck as he stretched. He looked down at his shirt and cursed the blood staining the crisp white material.

  “Damn. How in the hell am I going to get this out? I knew I should have worn black tonight,” he mumbled.

  Then again, this hadn’t been a planned outing. He’d been leaving a restaurant after dinner when he’d noticed a man slapping a woman to the ground. Now, he couldn’t just stand by and let that happen, could he? His instincts had been triggered and his body craved the kill. His vision had gone hazy, but his other senses were heightened as he honed in on his target.

  The timing had been unexpected, but it worked for his needs. Earlier that week, he’d begun to feel the ridges and ripples in his skin as the burn marks returned. They always did. This time, though, it had been sooner than he’d expected. After a sacrifice, he usually had at least two months before he needed to seek out someone. Not this time.

  And that worried him.

  Stepping over the body, he picked up his long coat hanging over the empty boxes lying in the alley. Yeah, Washington, DC was his kind of town. It catered to people like him. Those who needed to live a life that was hidden away in the shadows.

  Buttoning up his coat, he covered up the red stains that would call attention to his presence and walked briskly to the parking lot where his vehicle awaited him. Other than the bloody shirt, his appearance was impeccable, and he got the looks to prove it.

  No matter where he went, women ogled him and men wondered how they could look like him. He wasn’t conceited. Hell, he couldn’t be. But the looks of appreciation were always welcome. Women of all races flocked to him and he accepted their bounty each and every time.

  Smiling as he caught the eye of several ladies who turned to stare at him, he almost laughed at the hooded gazes, the licking of lips, and the sensual moans that would fall from their lips as he passed them by.

  Making it to his sleek vehicle, he climbed inside. Unbuttoning his coat, he took a deep breath and rested his head on the seat. Taking a sacrifice in the middle of the city without the proper preparations was messy and not very smart. All he needed was for the wrong person to catch him and he would be toast.

  His lucrative career would be over. His parents would be mortified and ashamed. Nothing would ever be the same again.

  But that scumbag had deserved it—they always did—and his essence had tasted damn good. Leaning over to look in the rear view, his blond hair rested over his forehead. His eyes were a bright silver blue, having changed after he went through the transformation. Tanned skin and a chiseled jaw were the only things that met his eye as he looked at his reflection.

  “Maybe this one will hold you over for a while, buddy,” he said in the empty space of his car.

  Starting his vehicle, he made his way out of the garage and to his home in Arlington, Virginia. As a young, successful, single man, he’d been able to live the type of life he wanted. During college, after he’d first realized what he was capable of, and the resulting change to his features, he’d come to see that good looks opened doors that he’d never expected.

  Growing up, he’d gravitated toward computers. His looks, and the resulting shyness, allowed him to learn everything he could about becoming an ethical hacker. He’d spend hours in front of his computer coding, trying new and different ways to access complex, sophisticated systems. College had allowed him to explore his digital world even more, until one day when he’d gotten a knock on his door.

  That had been the scariest day of his life. He had no idea why those men in suits were after him. But he soon found out. His cyber-hacking skills were good—better than most—but the men standing in his dorm room let him know that they had people who were better. Jaidon had baffled them. He’d gotten into systems faster than some of their best cyber-sleuths, and they wanted to know how.

  Laughing to himself, he thought about how his intense curiosity and introversion had ultimately provided him with access to a world he never knew existed. And he loved every second of it. Now, when he walked into a billion-dollar organization and showed them how he’d hacked into all their secure systems, not only were they wooed by his words, but also his handsome Prince Charming-like looks. His attractive appearance seemed to provide him with additional credibility, which was a crock of shit. If his face was scarred with ragged, red skin, it wouldn’t make him any less of a genius.

  Arriving home, he made his way up to his luxury apartment. The sleek walls and lush carpeting in the hallways cushioned his footfalls as he silently made his way down the hall. For a second, he wondered how quickly he could take the lives of a few of his neighbors without anyone knowing.

  Shaking his head, he tried to get rid of the dark thoughts filling his mind. This curse had changed him. Not only his appearance, but it had altered what he thought was right and just. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever be able to go back to the person he was. Hadn’t he already changed too much? As of now, he’d been able to keep his parents in the dark, but soon enough, something would happen. He would make a mistake and then it would be too late.

  Entering his condo, he admired how his home was decorated. It reflected him. Dark
colors, no softness, and all male. His kitchen was only used as a decorative feature. The stove had only been used once, when he’d had a female guest over and she’d made herself more comfortable than he wanted. He’d kicked her out shortly after realizing she’d messed up his kitchen.

  Peeling off his shirt, he walked down the hallway to take a shower. He’d have to burn the garment in the fireplace. No way in hell was he going to try and wash this himself, or take it to his local cleaners. He’d learned a few things over the years and taking a blood-stained shirt somewhere it can be traced back to him was not the way to go.

  Stepping into the shower, he washed his body with the specially-made soap that he had shipped from some little boutique shop in California. Closing his eyes, he thought about his life up to this point.

  Growing up in Piedmont hadn’t been easy, but the six years he’d been there had been the best of his life. His parents had given him so much and he tried to be the best possible foster kid that he could. At the age of sixteen, they’d sat him down and asked him if they could adopt him.

  Him. A kid with a scarred body and a bad attitude. They wanted him. They loved him.

  He couldn’t say the words fast enough. After all the hugs and laughter and tears, the first thing he did was call Kenya.

  Kenya. The one who got away. The one who made him see that he was more than just a kid with a scarred face. After the day when she’d tried to protect him from the bullies, she’d taken him under her wing. He was her baby bird and she did everything she could to nurture him, protect him, make him laugh, and bring him into her world.

  She had been everything to him. His best friend. His confidante. The place he went to when the life of a teenager got to be too difficult. They’d talk for hours and hours. Hell, even when there was nothing to talk about, she would sit on the phone with him for hours, simply breathing and watching television. For a teenage boy in love, that was enough.

  Then she’d left him. It was like she’d pushed him out of the nest and made him fly on his own. Well, she’d been accepted to a college in Texas, but it was the same thing.