by Sable Hunter
She took it with a bit of trepidation. “Don’t expect too much. I didn’t say I was a good poet.”
“Don’t sell yourself short. I bet you’ve written some good stuff.” He glanced over to where she was sitting. “I think that outfit looks good on you.”
“Thanks.” She tugged on the red baby doll top, then picked up a plastic bag from the floor. “I brought Cady’s stuff to return it to her.”
“Okay.” He grasped her hand while his eyes returned to the road. “The leaves will soon start to change colors. Winter will be here before we know it.”
“Yea, I’ve never really paid much attention to the seasons before. I’m looking forward to experiencing them firsthand – if I’m still here,” she added softly.
“You’ll be here.” He couldn’t fathom anything else. “We’ve got to figure out how to get you some form of identification.” Canyon frowned, roadblocks rising in his brain. How was this supposed to work? “You don’t have a Social Security card.”
“Or a past. Or a last name. Or parents.” She sounded worried.
“Yea.” He sighed. “I wonder about your DNA.”
“I don’t see how this will work, do you?” Seren felt more confused than ever. “Surely they have a plan for me.”
“I’m sure you’ll receive a…sign of some kind soon.” Even now, after everything, Canyon had a hard time digesting all of this. She’d become so important to him. He couldn’t imagine going back to the way things were – without her.
“Yea, I hope so. In heaven time, I’ve only been here a few seconds. I need to remember that.”
“Right,” Canyon chimed in as he took the road leading to Jonah’s shop. “I need to do some work on my metal art soon.”
“I put out some pork chops for supper. I thought I’d try my hand with some shake-n-bake, that shouldn’t be too complicated. While I cook, you can weld.” She shivered. “If you’ll be careful.” She could check on him periodically. “Maybe we should get some of those cameras you were talking about installed around the property. I could monitor you from the kitchen.”
“I’ll be fine,” he assured her. Seeing her worried look, he squeezed her hand. “I’ll be more careful than usual. Okay?”
“Okay.” Seren understood her abilities were limited at this point. Why, she didn’t know. “I can’t expect you to put up with me every second of every day.”
Canyon chuckled. “I don’t know. Doesn’t sound too bad. There are some perks to having you around.” He brought their joined hands up so he could brush his knuckles over her nipple.
Seren shivered. “I can’t wait till tonight,” she told him breathlessly, a rosy glow coming to her cheeks.
“Me either.” He shifted in his seat, his cock filling at the thought. He’d never felt more desperate to touch a woman. Never felt such an unstoppable craving for sex. “Remind me and we’ll stop for a bottle of wine on the way home.”
“Oh, that sounds good.” Seren smiled as she glanced up at the rising sun. “There’s so much I want to do with you. So many things I want to try.”
Yea, Canyon’s mind went straight to the gutter. “Sex positions. Me taking you from behind. Against the wall. Slipping my hard cock between your tits.”
Blushing, Seren giggled, her heart rate speeding up at the thought. “All of those sound exciting, but I was thinking of something more in the line of a picnic.”
“A picnic. Why, sure. We’ll do that on Saturday.”
She gave a tiny squeal. “Yay! I’ll make sandwiches and cupcakes!”
“You don’t have to bake,” he teased, recalling the Angel Flake biscuits.
Seren pressed her lips together. “If I’m ever going to learn, I need to keep trying.” Deep in thought, she glanced out the window toward the Guadalupe River which ran alongside the road a few dozen yards away. Immediately, her attention was captured by a bright shaft of light lancing through the atmosphere. At first, she thought it was a beam of sunlight cutting through the copse of trees – but…no. This was whiter, brighter. Leaning forward, she looked harder.
And then she saw it – an angel.
Biting back a gasp, Seren stared. The image wasn’t moving, yet it stayed within her sight. This wasn’t any angel, this was a powerful one of great authority. She swallowed a bit of anxiety, wondering why she was seeing Gregori at this point in time. There was no doubt he was here for her; the great being was staring right into her eyes. At well over six-foot tall, as muscular as Canyon, with black hair and purple eyes, Gregori was an intimidating figure.
And he didn’t look happy.
“Seren?”
Canyon’s voice caused her to jump and she glanced toward him for a second. “Yes?” A heartbeat later, she turned to look outside again and Gregori was gone.
“I listened to the weather this morning and a cold front will be moving in this weekend. Remind me when we stop for the wine to buy a couple of jackets for you. I don’t want you to be cold.”
“I’ll be fine,” she whispered absently as she stared out at the normal looking landscape. Seren knew firsthand there was always more to this world than met the eye, but this was unexpected.
The watcher was being watched.
“Weather in Texas is funny,” he said evenly. “The range in temperature is crazy. One week we may have sleet, the next a heat wave.” They made small talk until Canyon pulled into Jonah’s mechanic shop. “If you want, wait here. I’ll be right back.”
With her mind full of questions, she didn’t argue. With the bay doors wide open, she could see directly into Jonah’s shop and could keep an eye on Canyon from where she sat. “All right. I’ll wait.”
Not realizing anything was wrong, Canyon climbed from the truck to hail the big mechanic. “Hey, Jonah. Got a minute?”
“Sure!” Jonah waved his hand and laid a wrench down on the top surface of the work bench. “What’s up?”
“You lift weights and work out, don’t you?”
Jonah flexed his muscles. “Used to do it a lot. Now, I mostly lift cars.” He grinned and proved his point, picking up the rear bumper of a 1956 Mustang. “Why?”
“Tebow is putting together a team of power lifters. We’ve been challenged to a duel.” He chuckled. “A competition with X-Bar Ranch. I think D-Day is in a few weeks at Isaac’s Hardbodies. We’re allowed to ask anyone who has an association with the ranch and as Tebow’s mechanic, you qualify – if you can get away. I know how it is with your dad and all…” Canyon hated to mention his father’s condition, knowing how much it hurt Jonah.
Jonah shrugged, glancing up toward his house. “Sure, I don’t see why not? My situation has changed a bit for the better.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yea, I hope it has, anyway.” Jonah ran an agitated hand through his thick, long hair. “I picked up an old truck for Libby yesterday afternoon. She wants me to restore it for Aron. The old Ford belonged to his father.”
“Oh, that will be good. Extra funds.” Canyon could certainly see the benefit in a special project or two.
“True.” He shook his head. “Not what I meant, though.” He pointed toward the clapboard house sitting behind the garage. “I also picked up a woman at the truck stop last night.”
“You did?” Canyon’s face broke into a grin. “Why, you dog, you.”
Jonah shook his head. “Not that kind of woman, Brady. I sorta played knight in shining armor to a young woman and found out she had no place to go. Lucky for me, she has experience taking care of people like Dad.” He let out a tentative sigh. “We worked out a deal.”
“Is she pretty?”
Jonah jerked his head around, catching a movement on the periphery of his vision. “Shhh, there she is now.”
…Out in the truck, Seren kept studying a distant grove of trees, half expecting Gregori to reappear. She chewed on her lower lip, remembering what she knew of the mighty angel. He served as one of the High Guard. Gregori was an enforcer.
“Hey!”
; The sudden sound of a female voice startled Seren. Glancing through the front windshield she saw Jonah’s father, John, approaching Canyon’s truck with a young woman at his side.
“Hi!” She waved through the open window. The pair came to her window and Seren leaned out to greet them. “Hey, John!” She held out her hand to his companion. “Hi, I’m Seren.”
“I’m Delaney.” She accepted Seren’s greeting. “Nothing would do Mr. Callan except we come speak to you. I’m not sure how he knew you were here. We were in the back of the house.” She waved her hands in the air and smiled. “All of a sudden, he started saying how he needed to come out and see the angel.”
Seren wiggled a bit with unease. “Well…”
Before she could say more, John Callan patted the side of Canyon’s truck. “This little lady is an angel. Her name is Gail Russell and she played opposite me in Angel and The Badman.” He made eye contact with Seren. “Do you remember that, honey?”
“Well…” Seren was a bit relieved, but still didn’t know what to say.
“My role was a gunslinger, Quirt Evans. You played Penelope, a Quaker girl I fell in love with. Our future looked rosy until my past caught up with me.”
Having seen the old movie on Canyon’s television, Seren nodded. “I do remember. You had to choose between going back to your old ways or building a future with Penelope.”
John winked at her. “I chose you, didn’t I, doll?” He pulled an imaginary gun from an imaginary holster on his belt. “Only a man who carries a gun ever needs one.”
“That was a good movie and you remember my favorite quote,” she commented to Mr. Callan, smiling at Delaney’s indulgent expression. “I presume you’re catching up on all of the John Wayne trivia. Are you related to Jonah?”
“No.” Delaney shook her head. “He helped me out of a jam last night and I’m returning the favor by keeping company with this big, handsome cowboy for a while.” She patted John on the shoulder. “We’ve been having a blast.”
“How nice.” She leaned her chin on her folded hands. “John and I met over at Tebow Ranch the other day. He’s a joy to be around.”
Delaney nodded. “Do you live nearby?”
“Not far.” She let her eyes rove until she found Canyon. He and Jonah were slowly moving their way. “Canyon has a home near the lake.”
“Great! Maybe we can get together soon.” She winked at John, who was posed with his thumbs in his belt loops, grinning at them both. “Living with these big guys means I’m going to need some female companionship soon.”
“When you’re ready, get Canyon’s number from Jonah and give me a call. I…don’t know how long I’ll be here, but I’d love to get to know you.” Since spotting Gregori, she had an icky feeling in the pit of her stomach.
“Oh, okay.” Delaney nodded. “I won’t pry, but I’ll opt for sooner rather than later. Give me a couple of days to get my feet on the ground and I’ll be in touch with you.”
“Perfect.” Despite her worries, she felt proud of herself for making a new friend.
“Delaney, I see you’ve met Seren.” Jonah wiped his hands on a bandana he pulled from his back pocket.
“Yes, I did. Your father insisted we come down to speak to her.” She smiled broadly. “He’s quite taken with his angel.”
Canyon’s eyes widened to stare at Seren – just as Delaney continued her explanation. “Today, he was telling us how they starred in a movie together. What was it called, John?”
“Angel and the Badman, one of my favorite films,” John Callan told them all proudly.
“I see.” Canyon breathed a sigh of relief. “I’m Canyon Brady, Miss Delaney.”
“Delaney Ellis.” She shook his hand, then gave Jonah a cursory glance. “We’ll be getting back inside. Your breakfast is still in the oven.”
Seren and Canyon watched a variety of emotions flit across Jonah’s face. “Thanks,” was his only response to Delaney’s comment. Once she and his father had traveled back up the hill toward the house, he turned to Canyon. “Yea, I guess she is pretty.”
Canyon laughed. “Seems as if your dad likes her.”
“Yea, they hit it off the first rattle out of the box. He told her she looked like Ann Margaret, his co-star in The Train Robbers.”
“Well, you have to admire his technique with the ladies,” Canyon murmured. “You can’t beat his pickup lines.”
This tickled Jonah. “I guess you’re right. Miss Seren, how are you today?” he asked as Canyon was about to open the driver’s side door of his truck. “I didn’t mean to ignore you. Bringing Delaney home last night has made things a bit more interesting around here than usual.”
“I’m good. Delaney seems nice. We’re going to get together soon.”
Canyon winked at Seren. “I’d say your social calendar is filling up fast.”
Remembering Cady’s invitation, she nodded. “I guess it is. I’m popular. Who knew?” Seren felt quite pleased with herself.
“Well, Jonah, we’ll be going,” Canyon said, climbing into the cab. “I’ll let Jacob know you’re on board.”
“Hey, does this competition come with prize money?” Jonah asked out of the blue.
“I don’t know.” Canyon shrugged. “Maybe. I’ll ask Jacob.”
“Just curious. I’m in either way.” Noah raised a hand in farewell as Canyon backed out of his drive. “Stay safe!”
Canyon returned the wave, then headed on to Tebow. “John Callan is quite taken with you,” he commented to Seren. “His choice of a movies to relate to you was odd, don’t you think?”
“I almost bit my tongue when he mentioned it to me.” She laughed softly. “He’s so nice. I wish he could be helped.”
“Seren…” Canyon slowed down and put his arm in the window, staring straight ahead, deep in thought. “Why do things like that happen to people? Why do things like disease, war, and poverty even exist?”
“The age-old question, why do bad things happen to good people?” she rephrased his question before taking a deep breath. “Those things are the price humanity pays for living in a world of free will. Mistakes people make tend to compound. When there’s no correction, things tend to get out of control.”
Canyon considered her answer. “I can see that, so free will is the difference between here and heaven.”
“Oh, there’s free will in heaven, but when an action goes against the perfect will, there is an immediate and radical correction.” The thought made Seren shudder, especially in light of her glimpse of Gregori.
“Sounds ominous.” He thought for a minute, trying to reconcile what he’d been told with what had happened to Matty. “So, cancer is the result of a mistake?”
“Cancer is caused by microbes. The lack of a cure is the result of a mistake.” When he looked into her eyes, she gave him her answer. “Greed. There could’ve been a cure a long time ago if certain factions of society didn’t profit from the disease itself.”
This idea made Canyon angry. “I always figured that to be true. Dammit.”
Seren wished she had the perfect thing to say to make him feel better, but she didn’t. “Mankind will never come together for the world’s common good until they are threatened by something from outside.”
“Outside? Like aliens?”
“Maybe. I don’t have all the answers. There were some questions I wasn’t allowed to ask. Some things I wasn’t allowed to see.”
This gave Canyon pause. “As much as I’d like to rid the world of all pain and trouble, living without free will doesn’t sound like paradise to me.” When Seren didn’t immediately respond, he felt bad. “Sorry, I know that probably offends you.”
“No, it doesn’t.” She closed her eyes, hoping Gregori wasn’t monitoring her every moment. “I felt the same way. Caged. Robotic. Afraid to have a feeling, because it might be the wrong one.”
“Sounds…uncomfortable.”
“Oh, there was an upside.” She gave him a saucy grin. “In fact, I wrote a poem
about the perks.”
“Now, that I want to hear. Did anyone else ever know about your poetry?”
She shook her head. “No, being a watcher is a pretty solitary existence. I didn’t have friends; the others were more like acquaintances.”
“Bummer.” He reached over to squeeze her thigh. “I think you’re well on your way to having friends here.”
“True.” She pondered what these friendships could mean while they completed the journey to the ranch. Upon arrival, Canyon made sure she was comfortable and had something to drink and the tools to write down her poetry for him. “All right, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, dazzle me with your verse.”
“Why do you call me by that name?” Seren asked with curiosity as she took her seat with pen and pad in hand.
Canyon shrugged his wide shoulders. “I just remember she wrote poetry to her husband. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.”
Grimacing a bit, Seren giggled. “I’ve heard her say she regrets the poem. Elizabeth’s husband killed her, you know. Overdosed her with morphine.”
“Wow.” Canyon paused, completely taken aback. “That’s wild.” He put his hands on his hips to survey her. “I am endlessly fascinated with you.”
“Just because I know stuff?” she asked, a little peeved. Seren found she wanted to be liked for herself, not because of her knowledge.
Leaning down, Canyon placed a hand on either side of her chair, bracketing her between his powerful arms. “No.” He claimed a kiss, letting his lips linger to taste her sweetness. “Not just because you know stuff.” Another kiss. “Because you’re also cute, sweet, and sexy as hell.” The sharp inhale of her breath made Canyon chuckle. “I’m going to work now. I have to repair some cattle panels in one of the transport trailers.”
“Okay. Be careful,” she told him as her eyes followed his progress to the welding machine. “Wear your protective gear!”
He raised a hand in salute. “Will do.”
For a few seconds, Seren sat still, her eyes surveying the area, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Seeing nothing, she took a deep breath and began to write.