“I’m not going without you,” I said timidly.
He sat up and moved to the side of the bed, then reached for his shirt. As he slid it over his head, I felt the room grow colder; I felt him closing a door.
“You need to.”
“Why?!” I protested.
“You have to take Monroe, get her there; we have to protect her. I don’t know why ... I just know that’s what we need to do.”
“We ... we have to protect her. I’m not leaving here without you,” I argued.
He squeezed his eyes closed. “Charlie, you can see your way to me anytime you want to. Take your body to Chara. Go to a place where you can’t be hunted.”
“I’m not hunted here.”
Abruptly his heated stare met mine. “Have you forgotten this morning? Do you have any idea how many Escorts could be here? Do you really think they’re going to stop?”
“No, but Silas will take care of them.”
“Silas...your hero,” he said shortly as he fastened his belt back into place.
“Don’t twist my words. If he’s killing them, he’s not killing you. He’s keeping me safe.” I argued as I put my clothes back in place.
“More like practice for when my time comes.” He sneered.
“Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” he asked in a solemn tone.
“Don’t slip back into that mood that I just pulled you out of,” I said as my eyes glanced at the bed behind us.
A smile threatened to invade his beautiful lips as the memory of my touch came to him.
“Look, we turned Britain into a friend instead of an enemy; we could do that with Silas. He knows stuff, past life stuff. What we are or were. I bet he knows more about this war than we could imagine. And I’d bet you money he knows where Monroe’s mom is. Maybe if we find her, we’ll have more answers.”
Even though he respected my nature to bring balance and peace, he didn’t agree with it. “Britain may be your friend, but he isn’t mine. I have no idea why you trust him. It’s his nature to be seductive and blind light.”
“I thought he was making Madison happy…”
“Now what do you think?” he asked, raising his eyebrows knowing that pushing ideas on me was a fruitless act. I never let anyone tell me how to feel about a situation. I went with my gut. So far it had not failed me.
I knew he was referring to the Prince, to how Madison connected to Willow. “I’ll let you know when I see the Prince and Madison side by side.”
His dominance and protective soul emerged in his stare as he flatly stated: “Well, that’s not going to happen anytime soon because you and Madison, along with Monroe, are going to Chara.”
I stood up as rage came over me. “No! Let Austin take Monroe if that’s what you’re worried about. Fine. You know what? I’m sick of this. When you wanted to go to Chara, I didn’t, and now that I want to go, you don’t. Seriously. This is old. I’m over it. Obviously, I’m fighting this on my own, and I’ll be damned if you close a door on me. If you’re locked behind a door I can’t open and we’re buried alive in ash and ...” Angry tears stopped my words. I was trembling with trepidation. I wasn’t going to let my nightmare come to life, to be symbolic of a future death or separation.
Draven was on his feet and had pulled me into his arms before one tear could fall. He rocked me from side to side. “I’m not going to let that happen,” he whispered. “No closed doors.”
I looked up at him. “In my dream, I can’t breathe, and when you leave me, when you walk away because you think you’re going to hurt me, I can’t breathe. You are my air. I’m not leaving without you – that would be my death.”
Compassion filled his eyes.
“I love you, Draven Michaels. More than I can tell you.”
A gaping smile came across his face as his eyes glistened.
“Why do you act so surprised when I say those words?” I whispered.
“Because I say them more than you do. Sometimes I think you’re going to wake up and realize that I’m the kiss of death and Silas is the breath of life. The less I give to you, the more you give back, and I don’t understand why.”
“Love. That’s love. You don’t love to get something back; you love because your soul has recognized its counterpart in another. You are me. You are the breath of life – do you understand me?” I said as my eyes searched his beautiful face.
He reached down and picked me up, wrapping my legs around him. As my lips found his, I found the passion, love, and security that gave me reason to fight, to fight for him. To fight for all that was innocent.
I heard someone clear their throat and knock on the wall. Our lips froze as Draven gently let my legs fall to the ground. My skin was beet red as I glanced at my bedroom door. Austin, dressed in black and looking like a guardian angel, was standing there.
“Bad time, guys?” he asked, grinning.
“No,” I said, looking at Draven, noticing the blush on his skin as well.
Austin cleared his throat. “Well, from what Wesley had to say, I was expecting you guys to be a bit unraveled, but I didn’t expect to find pentagrams chalked out on your floor. I really didn’t expect to see that,” he said, nodding toward us. “But, I guess, maybe it’s not as bad as I thought?”
“It’s worse,” I said, regaining my composure.
Austin grinned slightly at Draven and questioned him with his eyes.
“Making the best of peaceful moments,” Draven said as his skin blushed to a new shade of red.
Austin nodded once as he tried to hold back his grin. “What’s worse?” he asked, looking back at me.
I nodded for him to sit down.
“That bad, huh?” Austin said as he crossed the room and sat down on the leather couch.
Draven stared at me, wanting me to explain. I took in a deep breath and walked to where Austin was. I couldn’t make myself sit down. I didn’t know where to start.
“Man, this would be easier if I could just show you. I don’t know where to start,” I said to Austin, taking in the peace I always felt around him.
“I can’t see, but I got nothing but time,” Austin promised.
Draven walked to the window and looked toward his house. I’m sure he was trying to see if he could see Aden or the others over there. He reached for his phone and sent a text, then walked over and picked up one of my father’s guitars. It was a nervous habit of his; if a guitar was in his hand, he could explain or think through almost anything.
“Austin,” I said to get his attention, which Draven had stolen without knowing it. “Is Landen OK?”
He looked at me like I was insane. “He was three days ago. Why?”
“You talked to him? About us?”
He nodded once as his eyes grew curious and he leaned forward. Draven sat on the other end of the couch with his guitar in hand.
“What did you tell him?” I asked.
“I didn’t really have a lot of time. They were heading out to another dimension.”
“Esterious?”
“Um...yeah,” Austin said, looking to his side at Draven, then to me. “How did you know that?”
“Lucky guess,” I said as I started to pace. “I think he’s in trouble, and it might be because you told him to help us. It might be because fate has called us to the same darkness – but right now, we’re in the middle of hell.”
“Charlie, I’m sure he’s fine. I would have heard something from someone.”
“Even if it just happened, like just a few hours or so ago?”
“Maybe not if it just happened, but you don’t understand, Landen’s family is the best. They’re warriors, but they’re also peacemakers. They have strong allies in every dimension, especially Esterious. What happened here?”
I took in a deep breath. “OK, here’s the short version. Turns out Draven is an Escort. We stumbled onto a Realm that’s like a dream where evil is bred and fed. We can now appear anywhere we’ve been or seen in a memory. I’ve lived befo
re; so has Draven. We now have three others, two boys and a girl, with us. I think their father is a devil. There’s a boy named Silas that kills Escorts, that wants to kill Draven because he claims I loved him before. Madison and me are having dark dreams, but not as dark as Monroe, the girl that’s with us now. And I’m pretty sure that a demon has Landen and that he also has a prince – a guy that’s tall, dark hair and eyes, rules a gray dimension.”
Austin’s mouth opened slightly as shock filled his eyes. He glanced at Draven, who was quietly playing a gentle tune.
“True story,” Draven said, glancing at Austin, then back to his guitar.
“So,” I said to get his attention, “basically we’re like magnets for all things evil. We aren’t even in your world, and we’re hurting people. If you don’t want us there, that’s fine -- but I think you need to take the girl, Monroe, and if you know anyone that knows anything about this, send them to us.”
Austin let the shock in his expression fade. “OK, listen. I told Landen about you, and you know what? His only fear was that he’d bring darkness to you, that a demon he’s been fighting would be led to you. He told me he was going to work through the trial he was in the middle of, then he’d meet you. Sounds to me like you guys are fighting the same thing, and you don’t even know it. I’ll take that girl with me, but I’m going to do everything in my power to convince all of you to come. This has gone on for too long. You need help. I won’t be able to live with myself if I leave without you again.”
“It’s all of us or none of us,” I said, looking at Draven.
Austin followed my stare. “I take it that this time around, you’re the one that doesn’t want to go?”
Draven didn’t answer him; instead, he played his guitar. Typical.
Austin looked back at me. “What about the whispers, the shadows?”
“We’re helping them, but we’re outnumbered and a bit distracted,” I said, running my hands through my hair. I felt like a weight had been lifted from my body.
“Are these kids distracting you?” Austin asked.
“Not in a bad way,” I promised. “They need help.”
Draven stopped playing. “Austin, maybe you should just take Monroe. I’m a bit worried about her brother, Winston. He hasn’t decided what team he’s playing for yet, and if he picks the wrong team ... it won’t be good for Chara.”
“He can’t hurt us, Draven. Neither can you. If anything, there will be people who can help him pick the right team.”
“Maybe,” Draven said, looking at him. “I’m pretty sure that it’s Landen that’s in trouble. I want to help him, but I don’t know that I can do that from there.”
I threw my hands in the air, showing my frustration. “You said if you saw his body, you could see from their perspective, find him faster. There are no coincidences; Austin is here today because we need to help him.”
“I really don’t think he’s in trouble, guys,” Austin said, sighing. “And you,” he said, looking at Draven, “stop making excuses. If you don’t like it, I’ll bring you right back – but you’re going to let me clear my conscience and take you out of here, like I should have done months ago.”
Draven’s eyes locked with mine. “Let’s just think about this. If we’re leaving, we have goodbyes to say. Let’s sleep on it or something.”
Really Draven? Really? “We don’t have time to sleep. There’s a freaking devil’s trap in my living room, and I don’t know if that vision was clear enough for you or not – but I have my doubts that something that dark will be stopped by a pentagram for very long. If you think I’m sleeping on anything in this house, then you’ve lost your freaking mind.”
“Fine. Sleep in my bed,” Draven said, standing. “We’re going to eat dinner, and we’re going to sleep. When we wake up, if we want to go, we go. If we want to hunt in The Realm, we hunt.”
Oh like we were going to get any sleep at all tonight. “And while we’re sleeping, what happens to those boys?”
Draven sighed. “This involves more than us. We’ll talk it out as group.”
“OK,” I said as I let out a breath. I knew Aden and Madison would be on my side, and if Monroe was leaving, so was Grayson; in my mind, this had already been decided.
“I’m starving anyways,” Austin said as he stood.
I looked down at my running clothes, which I was still wearing. “I’m going to take a shower and pack a bag. We’ll be over in a bit -- at least Monroe and I will; Madison is eating dinner with her parents.”
Draven glanced at me. “I’ll wait on you.”
“I’m fine, Draven. Nothing is going to hurt me,” I said quietly.
His jaw tightened. “Right,” he said as he stood and put the guitar back on the stand, then walked over to me and kissed my forehead before he left the room.
Austin watched him leave, then looked back at me. “I walk in on a passionate kiss, and that was the kiss he gives you to say goodbye?”
I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. “He can read me like a book.”
“And what did he just read?” Austin asked.
“I want to ask Silas to look after Landen until we can help him. I want to ask him if he knows anything about the dreams – if they’re a warning.”
“Is this guy dangerous? I think I should stay with you.”
“Not to me. But he knows stuff. He may even know how dangerous it is for us to go to Chara.”
“I don’t care what he says. You’re coming with me, all of you.” Austin bit out showing a dominance I’d never seen before. Which told me he could handle Draven just fine.
“If you want to help, stay at his side. He has us all on edge.”
“Why?” Austin asked as concern filled his eyes.
“His emotions, the dark ones, open up that Escort thing in him. Sometimes he’s pulled into memories of a past life when he was a bad person. He realizes that we’re on guard, and that makes him mad. He’s fighting to stay who he was, but what he doesn’t realize is that person is gone. He has to push through this, balance who he is now.”
“If there’s anyone that can help him do that, it’s you,” Austin said sympathetically.
“That’s why I’m not leaving without him.”
“I’ll talk to his dad, and Nana. They’ll convince him to go,” Austin promised.
“Maybe if I’m lucky, by the time I get to his house, we’ll be ready to leave.”
“Let’s hope,” Austin murmured. It was easy to see he wanted to tell me something but couldn’t find the will right now. When I focused on him, all I saw was Madison’s image; I took comfort in the fact that it was a happy image, even though I knew it wouldn’t be for long.
He sighed, then left the room without another word. I walked over to my bed and grabbed my phone. I found my mom’s number and texted: Tell me where you are. Austin is here. I don’t know when I’m leaving but I want to know where you are.
I scrolled to Kara’s name, but I couldn't bring myself to text her. I doubted she’d made it to the city yet, and I didn’t want to ruin her weekend, at least not yet.
I took my phone with me down to my old room. Monroe was quietly packing her things, and Madison was sitting on her bed, waiting for me.
“Well?” Madison asked.
“Draven doesn’t want to go. He wants us to take Monroe.”
I stared at Monroe, looking for some kind of response, but she didn’t bother to make one.
“That’s not going to happen,” Madison said firmly.
“Right. Austin is on our side with this, too. I’m going to take a shower, then go over there. Maybe you should go spend some time with your parents. After your dinner, we’ll talk this out; with any luck, maybe we can leave in the morning.”
“I’ll go after you get to Draven’s safely,” Madison said as she laid back on her bed and prepared to wait for me to take a shower.
“And who’s going to make sure you get to your mom’s safely? I’m not the one that’s been ‘
called,’” I said, trying to find the words to tell her how bad this really was, how she was a bigger part of this, more than she could ever imagine. I tried to balance the anxiety that was building, but it was clear she felt it. She looked down at the necklace that the witch had given her that was laced around her hand.
“I’m not afraid of it, Charlie...of any of it.”
I tried to force the words, or at least open a door for her to see all that I knew, but I couldn't, and all that did was invoke the emotion of betrayal. I waited for her to feel that, to demand that I show her, for her to force me to let that wall down, but she refused to look me in the eye. That told me that she wasn’t ready to know.
“Pack,” I said as I went into the closet.
I grabbed one of my large bags and pushed a few outfits into it before I grabbed a change of clothes and went to the bathroom. In the shower, I just tried to breathe, tried to put everything in perspective, to understand if the one thing I’d been waiting on wasn’t Austin, my escape, but an elaborate trap laid out by the devil. I’d always been one that relied on my gut feelings, and my gut feeling was telling me that all hell was about to break loose. It was also telling me that I needed to help those boys, that if I helped them they would help me. That they were the missing piece to the puzzle. Holding the answers I needed to understand who I was.
I was putting away my blow dryer when my mother appeared out of nowhere beside me, still wearing one of her business suits.
“Did you just see your way here?” I asked breathlessly.
Her silence told me she did.
“You know, Mom, I still don’t get why you didn’t teach me what you know. Why you waited for me to stumble on it.”
“Charlie,” she said calmly, “we don’t have time to go over what I should or should not have done as I raised you.”
I looked down nervously. “I know. Are you upset?” I asked, looking up at her, noticing that she seemed more tense than usual.
“No,” she said as she tried to smile.
“Listen, if you come home this weekend, you may find some broken things in the house. I’m sorry about that. I’ll find a way to replace that stuff when I can.”