Revelations (Blood Bound Book 1)

by L. L. Wright

  Emmie nodded, unsure of what to say. I can’t imagine moving back and forth like that. She thought to herself.

  “It’s not as bad as it sounds,” Leo said, guessing at her train of thought. “I’ve spent time in England, France, Scotland, and Norway. Most people would kill for those experiences.” He smiled.

  “But not you,” Emmie asked, looking up from her coffee, trying to understand the boy behind the blue eyes.

  “No,” he replied, holding her gaze. “I’d be happy just staying in one place.”

  The bell rang, telling them it was again time to part ways.

  10

  Emmeline

  By Friday Emmie made her way through the halls absentmindedly, she no longer relied on a map to find the courtyard or her classes after navigating the school for a full week. When the second-period bell rang she was sitting on her usual bench flipping through her math textbook aimlessly. Leo had met her in the courtyard at this time, coffee in hand, for the last three days, and even though she didn't want to look like she was waiting for him, she was. He makes me feel so normal. For one hour I'm just a girl laughing and crushing on a gorgeous boy that doesn't seem to realize how out of my league he is. Her heart leaped and beat a little faster, and she fought back a smile as Leo's blue eyes and perfect smile crossed her mind. She turned another page in the book she was pretending to pour over and then she heard footsteps and saw shoes approaching from the corner of her eye. Her heart sank when she realized it was Lisa that stood before her.

  “What are you doing here,” Emmie asked, thinking back to the day they had exchanged texted photos of their schedules. “Don't you have world history this period?”

  “Yes, but we have a substitute and...” Lisa paused for a moment “I really need to talk to you,” she finally said.

  “Ok, about what?” Emmie asked, closing her book and patting the seat beside her. Lisa sat, looking around the courtyard before continuing the conversation.

  “Well, I was talking to Jenny at our lockers this morning. You know, they're right next to each other,” she began. Emmie could sense that Lisa was hesitating, uncomfortable with what she wanted to say. “And I just feel like juggling two friendships that are completely separate is really weighing on me, you know,” Lisa spoke quickly, sounding irritated.

  “What are you saying?” Emmie asked. She wasn't sure where Lisa was taking this conversation.

  “I just think you need to give Jenny a chance and put a little bit of effort into getting to know her,” Lisa said. “She’s really great and I don't have the energy for all of this drama right now,” she continued, shifting in her seat uncomfortably. She paused, staring at Emmie, silently.

  “Are you kidding me?” Emmie asked, her irritation mounting by the second. "A few days ago you were telling me that we're family and we're in this together. Now, me wanting space from your new friend is too much drama for you?"

  “Emmie! We’re best friends! If I say she's a good person why can't you just make this easy and take my word for it,” Lisa cried, clearly more than a little upset.

  “You know it's not about your word. I have to keep everyone at arm's length. I'm constantly lying and hiding things and making excuses for my slip-ups and accidents, and I don't feel like I can add another layer to that. I thought you understood that,” Emmie explained, looking down at her feet, feeling an odd mix of sadness and irritation. What does she want from me? She knows how hard this is for me.

  “You seem to be doing just fine with Leo,” Lisa said sharply.

  Emmie shoved her book and her headphones into her messenger bag. She stood up and slid her phone into the back pocket of her jeans before turning to face Lisa, still sitting on the bench.

  “You’re right, getting to know Leo has been great, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to put myself out there and risk my secrets. I thought you knew that, but then again I thought I knew you, and clearly I don’t.” Emmie said with a shrug, before storming away. Just breathe, she told herself as she pushed open the courtyard doors and hurried down the hallway.

  “Emmie,” Leo called as she rushed past him. “What's wrong?” He asked as he jogged to catch her. He grabbed her forearm and pulled her to a stop. “Emmie. What is going on?”

  This is it, I’m going to lose it and witch-out, right here. She could feel her hands growing warmer with every shallow breath, and she struggled to think clearly as Lisa’s words sank in like a venom, slowly poisoning her every thought. How can I even blame her for being over my drama? If I could check out of this, I would, wouldn’t I? She's better off without me. Jenny is normal, her hands don’t glow and she won’t accidentally break windows and destroy things when she gets overwhelmed. I should just stay away from everyone.

  “Emmie,” Leo's calm voice broke through her emotional spiral. “Just breathe, listen to my voice and breathe,” he said quietly, staring into her eyes like nothing else mattered, with an intensity that told her at that moment she was all he cared about. “Just breathe.”

  Emmie closed her eyes and relaxed into the firm grip Leo had on her arms. She noticed for the first time that he was gently stroking her skin with his thumbs, soothing her panic and anger with every motion. She let his voice fill her mind, pushing out Lisa’s toxic words one by one. Her breathing slowed, and she felt her hands grow cold. The magic settled, she thought as she opened her eyes and stared at Leo.

  “Do you want to talk about it,” he asked in the same warm voice he had used to calm her down.

  Emmie shook her head slowly, afraid that if she rehashed the emotional ordeal her magic would return with a vengeance.

  “Thank you,” Emmie whispered, biting her lip and looking up into his eyes.

  “Let me walk you to your next class, the bell should be ringing in a few minutes.”

  Emmie nodded, and Leo let go of her arms, placing one hand on her lower back instead as he guided her through the empty halls. They stopped at her locker and she exchanged her materials quickly. As she closed her locker a thought crossed her mind and she turned to face him.

  “How did you know where my locker was?”

  “It’s alphabetical. My locker is right down there,” he said, pointing to the end of the hall. “And I’ve seen you stop here like every day this week,” he smiled.

  “Duh,” Emmie said. Well, if he didn’t think I was crazy before, I’m sure he does now.

  They walked in silence, stopping at the door to Emmie’s creative writing class, and when she looked up into Leo's eyes she was surprised to find his gorgeous blue eyes darkened with worry.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked, needing to know what was going on inside the mind of the boy she couldn’t help but let down her walls for.

  “Nothing, I just,” he ran a hand through his styled hair. “Are you going to be ok?”

  “Yeah, I’m totally fine. It was just a minor meltdown. Girl drama, nothing to worry about,” she assured him, offering a half-hearted smile.

  Leo nodded and adjusted the one strap of his backpack that was slung over his muscular shoulder.

  “Leo,” the shaggy haired boy called from a few feet away where he was leaning against a locker with his arms crossed at his chest.

  “That’s Collin. I guess I’ll see you around,” he said, hesitating before he walked over to where his friend was standing. Emmie stood outside the room, watching their exchange with intense curiosity. The whole time Leo talked, his friend stared at her with a cold, blank expression. Collin Patrick. He doesn’t look like such a great guy to me, Emmie thought as a shiver ran down her bare arms.

  Ms. Gabriel was already behind her desk shuffling papers into several piles when Emmie entered the room and took her seat. She pulled out a notebook and a pen, and crossed her arms on top of the desk, resting her forehead on her arms while the noise of students filing into the room filled her ears.

  “Yo,” Collin said, and Emmie jumped at the unexpected words. She looked to her right and found Collin sitting in the previously empty c
hair, his body was turned in her direction.

  “Uh, hi,” Emmie said, looking around uncomfortably.

  “I want to get to know you, Clark.”

  “My name is Emmie, and why would you want to do that?” she asked.

  “Leo is my best friend, I make it my business to know the people he knows. You know, to keep an eye out for my bud,” Collin explained.

  That’s literally my worst nightmare, Emmie thought, wondering how diligently this kid was going to try to get to know her.

  “There's not much to know, I'm a bookworm, I eat a lot of take-out and I’m a huge Betty White fan,” she shrugged.

  Collin smiled and looked down at the floor before he leaned a few inches closer and whispered, “You know, I think there's more to you than that. Call it a gut feeling.”

  “Okay. Well, good talk,” Emmie said, taking a deep breath. She slipped the strap of her bag over her shoulder and moved two desks to the left with her notebook and pen in hand. She sat down and crossed her arms against the chill of the room. Note to self, leave a sweater in your locker from now on, this school is freezing.

  “Alright, today we’re going to do something a little different,” Ms. Gabriel said, walking around to the front of her desk. “We’re going to end this week with a partner assignment.” She clapped her hands one time and smiled. “On my desk, I have ten packets, on top of each packet are two names. Each pair of students has until Monday to complete their packet. This is one of two weekend assignments, and your partner work is worth fifty-percent of your overall grade in this class, so take it seriously.”

  Please, let me be partnered with anyone, literally anyone, except Collin, Emmie prayed silently. She looked around the room at the various cliques and personality types, the party crew that had been drinking every weekend since seventh grade, why are they even taking this class, the extroverted rich girls, the drama club gang, and Collin, who was still sitting sideways staring at her with his icy glare. What is with him? Is he really this overprotective of Leo?

  “Don’t be shy, come up and get your assignments,” Ms. Gabriel said excitedly.

  Collin practically leaped out of his chair, charging to the front of the room before anyone else was on their feet.

  “Clark,” he smiled from the front of the room. “You’re with me.”

  “Jesus Christ,” she muttered, slapping her palm to her forehead.

  “Woah, language,” he chuckled, sliding into the chair beside her, again. “This is going to be fun, it looks like we’re going to get to know so much about each other,” he said as he flipped through the packet.

  “Give me that,” she said snatching the papers from his hand. Oh. My. God, Emmie thought, write a poem about your partner's hobbies, write a short story about your partner's childhood, list your partner’s aspirations and fears. This is not going to end well.

  “You know, Collin, I’m sure you have better things to do with your weekend, so why don’t I just take care of this. You can just give me a few details to go off of and I’ll make up the rest,” Emmie said with a smile.

  “Nah, I don’t have any plans this weekend. My schedule is completely empty. But, I'll write a note here that you’re good at making things up,” he said, scribbling something in his notebook.

  “Great,” Emmie said, slouching into her chair.

  11

  Leo

  That was a close call, Leo thought as he walked toward his third-period European-history class. He had just left Emmie outside her creative writing class, a class she shared with his best friend, and Faction partner. Collin had agreed to get to know Emmie, to try to unmask the mystery that Leo couldn’t wrap his mind around. He had suspected that something was different about Emmie Clark from the first time he met her, but after seeing her today, emotionally unstable, hands glowing with a power she didn’t seem to be in control of, he was sure The Faction would want to know more about her. The question twisting and turning his mind into a confusing mess, do I want to tell them about her?

  Leo and Collin had been members of The Faction since its inception, loyal agents sworn to hunt down and rid the world of the demons that had plagued it since the day Lucifer and his followers were cast out from heaven. Those fallen angels had done the unthinkable when they paired with humans, the result, more often than not, was a wolf in sheep's clothes. On the outside, these creatures appeared to be human, flesh, and bone that could easily pass for a normal person. But, on the inside, they held the powers of their angelic parents and lacked the humanity and empathy to use it for anything other than their darkest impulses. A deadly combination. The union of dark angels and humans had created the first demons, and for centuries the angelic soldiers of The Faction had hunted them, almost to the point of extinction. Almost.

  I’ve always been loyal to The Faction. Even on my darkest day, I stayed loyal to the cause and followed protocol. Mostly. But now, now I feel like I'm losing my grip. I see this girl every time I close my eyes, and I hear her voice in my mind, saying things I wish she would say to me. Things I shouldn’t want her to say to me, because whatever she is, it goes against the oath I swore, and the code I follow and the laws of angels and demons. He sighed, and breathed heavily, rubbing his palm down his face. That’s why I had to involve Collin. I can’t trust myself right now, not when it comes to her.

  12

  Emmeline

  When Emmie got home she was surprised to find her mother sitting on the living room couch flipping through a magazine. She couldn't remember the last time she saw her this way.

  “Hey, Emmie, where have you been? I thought you would have been home a while ago,” Her mother spoke without looking up from her magazine.

  “Sorry, Mom, I decided to walk home. It took longer than I thought,” Emmie explained as she crossed the room and flopped down in her favorite armchair. She kicked off her flats and tucked her legs beneath her. “What are you doing home so early?”

  “I thought I'd take half a personal day so we could do a little shopping and have dinner together. We can talk about your first week of school,” she said, putting down her magazine and shifting on the sofa to face her daughter. Does she somehow know about my fight with Lisa? She always knows everything, Emmie thought to herself, trying to process the relaxed and casual version of her mother sitting in front of her.

  “Sure, that sounds fun, mom,” Emmie said. “So, the mall?”

  “No, I had something a little bit more special in mind,” her mother answered with a smile. “Pack an overnight bag.”

  Emmie narrowed her eyes and tilted her head to the side.

  “No questions, just throw pajamas and a change of clothes in a bag. We leave in half an hour,” her mother said, getting up from the sofa and climbing the stairs.

  She left work early. She's wearing jeans and she’s being spontaneous. What the hell is going on?

  Maybe spontaneous was a bit of an overstatement, Emmie thought as her mother backed out of the driveway exactly thirty minutes later. Some things are just hardwired into us, I guess.

  “So, are you going to tell me where we’re going?”

  “Nope,” her mother said pushing the Bluetooth button on the dashboard.

  “No way,” Emmie laughed, playfully swatting her hand away. “You planned a whole secret mother-daughter trip, I get the music,” she said, pulling out her phone and selecting the pop music she knew they both liked.

  “Fair enough.”

  Melody pulled up to the curb in front of the Goodwin Hotel in the center of Hartford. She left the keys in the ignition and spoke to the valet before they grabbed their bags from the back and headed to the front desk. Emmie was stunned by the suite her mother had booked. She had never known her mother to be anything other than extremely practical, but a two-bedroom suite at a five-star hotel in the city on a Friday night was not her definition of practical. Emmie dropped her bag on the sofa before flopping down next to it.

  “Don’t get too comfortable, we’re going shopping,” her
mother called from one of the bedrooms.”There's a little boutique a few doors down, and the restaurant downstairs is amazing.”

  Emmie checked her phone while she waited for her mother to unpack and freshen up. She rolled her eyes and immediately regretted giving Collin her phone number, though honestly he hadn’t given her much choice.

  “We need to communicate in order to do these assignments, so we can either text or I can show up at your house at odd hours, your choice,” Collin had said, placing his cell phone on her desk.

  Emmie had quickly typed her number into the new contact screen, and saved it under the name ‘Sonya.’ She smiled as she handed the phone back to him and said, “good luck finding me in there. I’m going to make a copy of these in the library, I’ll get them to you before the end of the day.”

  When she was alone in the hallway, Emmie took a deep breath and reminded herself of the obvious. He doesn’t know anything. He’s just a nosy jock trying to look out for his friend. Give him all the normal you’ve got and he’ll lose interest by Monday. She slid the original packet into the vent of Collins locker before the final bell and walked out to the school’s front lawn. When she saw Lisa and Jenny climbing the steps to the bus she decided that small spaces are especially bad for unpredictable flares of emotional magic, and walked home.

  Now, as she scrolled through Collins endless thread of text messages she wondered if it would have just been better to call his bluff and let him show up at her house, especially now that she was miles away in Hartford.

  Collin: Hilarious, Clark, I had to sift through two hundred contacts, twice before I realized I don’t know a Sonya.