"Right, I'm not that easy," I snorted. "I know you think you're all that, but that doesn't mean I'm just going to come jump on you." Of course, that's exactly what I was thinking. "What are you doing here anyway?"
"I missed you. It seems like ages since we hung out. You've been in no-man's land all day," he complained, swinging his legs off the side of my bed.
"We hung out last night," I reminded him, although I agreed with his sentiments. "Not to mention, everyone here would have a coronary if I went off with you again. Besides, I'm bushed," I said, feigning an over-the-top yawn.
"You sure?" he asked, slowly getting up from my bed.
I nodded my head, trying to ignore my throbbing body that wanted me to drop the towel and dive on him.
"Really?" he whispered huskily, a breath away from me.
"Uh, yeah, super tired…" I gulped, trying not focus on how close he was.
"Positive?" he asked again, leaning in and brushing his lips along my jaw line.
I shivered at his touch. His lips sent a ripple of awareness through me. My words were saying one thing, but my body was trying hard to divulge my secret.
"Well shit," he muttered, pulling back abruptly. Without another word, he disappeared in front of me.
Shocked by his sudden departure, I was ready to call his name when my bedroom door was abruptly thrown open. The suspect look on Mark's and Krista's faces was priceless.
"Gah, how 'bout a knock?" I said sarcastically as they stood in my doorway panting breathlessly. I made a point of clutching my towel tighter. "What's the deal?" I added as innocently as I could muster.
"Uh, nothing," Mark answered, looking suspiciously around my room. He looked at a mystified Krista who shook her head slightly.
"You were taking so long I thought maybe you were sick or something…" Krista answered lamely, still scanning my room as if she expected Emrys to pop out at any moment.
"The shower felt so good I had to force myself to get out," I answered truthfully. "But I would kind of like to get dressed now," I added, looking pointedly at my door.
"Right," Krista said, grabbing onto Mark's hand and dragging him out of my room. "We'll be in thekitchenif you need anything," she chirped, emphasizing their location.
"Thanks for the heads-up," I said as they reluctantly closed my bedroom door behind them.
"Frick," I mumbled, shaking my head as I hastily threw on some clothes in a rush. I kept the towel around me as I pulled on my yoga pants, not entirely convinced that Emrys wouldn't suddenly pop back into my room. Once I was dressed and could finally breathe easier, I walked to my patio doors and peered out into the darkness. As much as I didn't want to deal with "the no fun crew," I was disappointed that Emrys really was gone.
"Get a grip, Jordyn," I said to my empty room. One minute, I wanted nothing to do with the Soul Trader, and the next I'm ready to tear my towel off and jump his bones.
That was it. I was definitely disgusted with myself. I headed out of my room, closing the door firmly behind me.
Krista and Mark were talking in hushed tones when I entered the kitchen. Both of them looked at me critically when I walked in.
"Did you two take your weirdo pills tonight?" I asked, pretending that I didn't know I was the topic of their discussion. "Where did everyone go?" I added, opening one of the half-empty pizza boxes on the counter.
"They headed home after they ate. Everyone was pretty tired. Plus, Sam and Shawn wanted to straighten up their house before their caseworker shows up," Krista said, reminding me of the young charge that could be joining our ragtag group soon.
"Did they give them any indication when they could get him?" I asked, grabbing a can of Coke out of the refrigerator.
"No, these things can drag out," Krista answered.
"Well, hopefully they'll be experiencing the joys of parenthood like you two," I joked, sitting at the counter with my dinner.
"Oh, you are sooo right, princess," Mark said, patting my head before grabbing a slice of pizza from the box.
"Right. They could only wish the kid is half as sweet as me," I said, fluttering my eyelashes at him.
"If not, I'm sure you can teach him," Krista joked, putting an around my shoulders. "You still sore?"
"Nah, my shoulders are a little stiff, but it's all good."
"For such a tough chick, you sure have some spaghetti arms," Mark teased, squeezing my bicep.
"Please. Just because I don't have man arms doesn't mean I'm any less strong than you. Besides, my strength comes from here," I said, pointing to my head. "Not here," I said, giving his bicep a light punch.
"Oooh, smack talkin' me now. Come on, little girl." He countered my light punch with his own jab, which I deflected before it could touch me. He retaliated by sending another quick jab my way, aimed at my midsection. I danced back and countered by throwing a harder punch to his chin. He jerked back at the last moment so my fist just barely grazed him. He laughed and threw another punch my way. Ducking my head, I avoided the blow, while throwing my own, which landed with a resounding smack of flesh on flesh.
"Hey, not in the kitchen," Krista complained as Mark collided with the table while trying to step back. "If you guys want to spar, take it outside."
"Nah, it wouldn't feel right to whip my uncle's ass," I said, grabbing another slice of pizza.
"Always with the language," Krista chastised.
"Aw, come on, Krista, 'ass' isn't really a bad word, it's an animal. Besides, I bet even The Light drops swear bombs sometimes," I joked, balancing my plate of pizza with one hand and my soda with the other as I headed out of the kitchen.
"Regardless," she answered, trying to give me a stern look.
"Fine, killjoy," I grumbled.
"And don't leave your dishes in your room overnight," she called after me.
"Right," I answered over my shoulder as I closed my bedroom door behind me. I settled on my bed and switched on the TV to the History Channel. My obsession with the History Channel bordered on fanatical. I chalked it up to the fact that I had no idea about my own history. At least, anything prior to eleven months ago. I wished something would spark in my head. Anything that would add some light to the void that filled my memory bank.
Once I finished my meal, I set my plate on the bedside table and sank down under my blankets. Burrowing my head into my pillows caused a mental flashback of Emrys lying here not that long ago. I needed to stop thinking about him and focus on the job I had been given, but that was way easier said than done. He was like a drug. Mindlessly focusing on the TV helped, and after a few minutes, I stifled a yawn as the day's activities caught up to me. I knew I'd catch hell for it in the morning, but I let myself drift off to sleep with my dinner plate still on my table. Emrys was my last thought as sleep pulled me completely under.
My TV was still on when I woke several hours later. Grabbing my cell phone off the nightstand table, I squinted into the bright screen to check the time. "No," I groaned when I saw it was just past two in the morning. I set my phone back on my table and rolled over, trying to will myself back to sleep. After a few moments, the annoying voices from the infomercial on my TV started to grate on my nerves. I fumbled around on the bed with my eyes closed, searching for the remote. Finally finding it, I pointed it at the TV screen and sighed happily when the annoying voice of the girl trying to con shoppers into buying her closet organizer abruptly cut off. Several minutes later, I was still awake. "Damn." I switched on my bedside lamp, grabbed my dinner plate from earlier and headed out of my room. I was surprised by the living room light and low mumble of quiet voices drifting down the hall. I had no intention of eavesdropping until I heard Krista mention my name.
Unfortunately for them, creeping around without making a sound came effortlessly to me since Haniel and I had spent hours over the last year practicing.
"You can't keep all of us in the dark forever," Krista stated.
"It is The Light's decision. He will tell me when I can share what I know with all of you." I was surprised to hear Haniel's voice. "His word is my command."
"True, but you yourself have to admit that holding back crucial information can lead to disaster," Krista persisted. "Don't you agree, hon?"
"I agree that we can't be kept from the truth forever," I heard Mark say. "But I trust that The Light knows what's best," he added, sighing deeply.
"Obviously, you're forgetting how secrecy can blow up," Krista said, sounding pissed.
I would have voiced my agreement with her sentiments if I wasn't trying to hide my eavesdropping. I fought the natural urge to burst in the room and demand to know what The Light was keeping from me, but past experience held me back. Haniel never divulged information until he, or I should say, until The Light, was ready. It was bullshit if you asked me. Hell, you didn't even have to ask me. I would tell you.
"I know, honey, but this is a different circumstance. Let's give it a little more time. We have to trust that the higher-ups know what they're doing," Mark said.
I heard his chair squeak as he settled back in it.
"I'm assuming you had other things to discuss?" Haniel asked.
"I did," Krista answered, still sounding aggravated. "I'm concerned that Jordyn's gifts are getting her lumped into a category she doesn't belong in. This is partly my fault, and partly yours. No young girl, no matter what her place on Earth is, should have to dig graves. I was reluctant to have her join us yesterday on the mission, but you were right in your claims that she could handle herself in battle. Her gifts surpass even my wildest imagination, but I don't want her digging graves again anytime soon. We've already stripped her of any kind of teenage normalcy, but I'll be damned if I allow her to bury the dead again. I've seen the emotional toll it takes on the Protectors over the years. It's not right to include her in that duty," she said.
"I agree. It shouldn't have happened," Mark agreed. "It was a serious oversight on my part."
"On all our parts," Krista corrected him.
"No burial duty," Haniel repeated in his typical categorizing way.
"And you will speak to The Light?" Krista persisted.
"I will speak to The Light if he grants me an audience," Haniel stated.
Several seconds of silence followed his statement.
"I love him, but seriously, I could wring Haniel's neck sometimes," Krista griped, cluing me in that Haniel had left for the night.
"We have to trust him. He's never led us astray before."
"That's not entirely true. He let me think for several hellacious months that I had lost you forever," she complained as the lights in the living room switched off.
Backing up quickly, I headed back to my room and closed the door quietly behind me. I leaned back against the door with my eyes closed, mulling over the conversation I had heard. It was really nothing new. I'd known for some time that Haniel was keeping something from me. It was somewhat comforting that I wasn't the only one being kept in the dark, nor the only one that found it aggravating.
"Can't fall asleep?" A voice in my room asked. I bit back a startled scream as my eyes flew open.
"Seriously, dude. You need to stop hanging out on my bed," I hissed at Emrys, who was once again lounging against my pillows like he belonged there.
"But it's comfortable," he replied, folding his arms back behind his head. "You've got a point though. We have about thirty seconds before your aunt senses I'm here. Do you want to get out of here for a while?" he asked.
Ten minutes ago, I would have turned him down. I was convinced I owed it to everyone to take my duties seriously, but with the conversation I'd just overheard fresh in my mind, those duties almost seemed a mockery. If Haniel was going to treat me like a child, I was going to rebel a little more like one.
"Tick-tock, babe. What's it gonna be?" he asked, reaching for my hand.
"Wait, turn around," I said, snatching a clean pair of jeans from my drawer. In less than five seconds I had the yoga pants I'd worn to bed off and my jeans pulled on. I grabbed my boots by my bedroom door and turned back to Emrys only to realize he'd ignored my request.
"Seriously?" I asked, arching my eyebrows.
"I make it a rule to never turn around when a striptease is happening right in front of me," he smirked.
"Soul sucking perv," I said, reaching for his hand.
"Oh, that's hot. Say it again," he said, grasping my hand firmly in his.
My room disappeared around us just as my bedroom door opened. For a split second I saw the shocked look on my guardians' faces before I was whisked away.
The familiar catwalk appeared beneath my feet. I smiled, feeling liberated as I took in the sunrise that was just beginning to peek up over the horizon. I was sure to be in a shitload of trouble when I returned home, but at the moment, I didn't care. All the secrets and half-truths had worked me over like I just went ten rounds of boxing.
"Pretty spectacular, huh?" Emrys asked, coming up behind me.
"You seriously have a hard-on for this place," I said, trying for blasé since my pulse was going wild.
"Yeah, it's sort of special to me," he answered quietly into my ear. His warm breath sent goose bumps traveling up my arms.
"Why is that?" I asked, focusing on keeping my voice steady, even though I had the urge to shift my hair to the side so I could feel his breath on my neck.
"My dad used to bring me here when I was a kid. Of course, the skyline was a whole lot less cluttered. That was even before the World Trade Center buildings were built," he mushed, moving even closer as he pointed over my shoulder. "That's where they used to stand," he added.
I leaned back into his embrace, unable to resist the proximity between us. "How long has it been since your dad brought you here?" I asked, enjoying the way his voice rumbled up through his chest as he talked.
"Early fifties," he answered like we were discussing the weather and not the fact that he'd been around long enough to be my grandfather. "He passed away when I was fifteen."
"What about your mom?" I asked, curious about his origins since I couldn't remember my own.