“I’m surprised Henry’s being so nice,” he said. “After all that woman has done to me, I couldn’t do it.”
“That’s exactly why he can do it,” Elliot replied. “He wasn’t even under her control for a full day. He has few negative thoughts to fall upon while you have years. Now that she is in a condition of suffering and confusion, she has need for him and he recognizes that. It must be horrifying for her, to be in such a powerful position, and then to have that taken away so abruptly. I don’t know how being in this house will affect her.”
“Hopefully it will be a positive experience,” I said.
“That is up to her to decide.”
“It’s going to be weird staying here with her around,” Lucas said. “Did you really have to have her stay with us? She has a perfectly good home of her own.”
“I don’t want her alone,” I said. “And besides, if she stayed at her house, one of us would have to stay there too, watching her like a prisoner.”
“She’s a prisoner now.”
“But only because she tried to kill us today. As she shows more and more that she can be trusted, she will be. Think about it. I actually killed half the people in this house, and it worked out okay.”
“Debatable,” Elliot said, shaking his head.
“That reminds me,” Lucas said, “Elliot, I have something for you.” He reached under the table and produced a large cardboard box, “Yesterday I took a little trip by the hardware store. Got some materials. Noah was able to whip these into shape in no time with a little instruction. Here, open it.”
Lucas slid the box across the table, and Elliot opened the flaps with bored eyes. But once he saw what was inside, his eyes went wide like he just had a stroke.
“Hope you like them, roomie,” Lucas laughed, as Elliot reached into the box further, and lifted the gift for us to behold – a pair of wooden legs. They were a little crude, unpolished and basically round slabs of wood with makeshift feet at the end, but Elliot fell in love with it immediately. It was all over his face. He brushed his hand across the surfaces and smiled. He took a leg carefully in his hands, and then slammed it into his flesh, causing it to make a disgusting, sucking sound on impact.
We winced as Elliot fit it into place.
“You know there are hooks and buckles to secure that,” Lucas groaned, covering his mouth. Elliot chuckled and slammed the other leg in. I bowed my head towards the table and covered my ears. Elliot rummaged through the box and found the hooks and buckles. He worked on them as we talked.
“It’s sort of like your harness,” I said, my ears still covered.
“It will fall off sometimes,” Lucas replied. “I’m sure of it. But we’ll be working on better models.”
“Thank you,” Elliot said, smiling at both of us. “If I could spare the liquid, I would cry. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a whole new height to explore the world from. It has been far too long.”
Elliot pushed his chair back from the table and then slowly, but surely, wobbled onto his new legs. He cackled and stumbled around like he was on stilts for the first time, but he enjoyed himself. Walking out of the kitchen, he called out to Noah to take a look at him, and Lucas and I couldn’t help but laugh.
“And then there were two,” he said to me, taking my hand from under the table.
“My favorite number,” I said, leaning on his shoulder. “Be honest. You think all of this could work? This crazy house? A life together?”
“I have no clue,” he laughed. “But considering we survived a Siren, a zombie vampire, gang members and the wrath of Theresa within a week, I would say our odds are looking better.”
“Or we’re due for real trouble.”
“Trouble is all I’ve known,” he said, leaning over to kiss my forehead. A warmth came over me, and I nestled against his arm tighter. He was so cozy. “Trouble,” he said, “I can deal with.”
“I can’t promise that our life will be normal” I said. “Even if we manage to stay together…I still have this pesky Siren deadline thing to worry about. I don’t even know if there will ever be a time we could live on our own safely, have kids…I don’t know what immortality will bring us.”
“You’re not immortal yet.”
“Still, that’s a long time. I don’t know what we’ll have to go through. I just can’t believe you would want this. You’re in a human form. You could see the world and –“
“– we’ve already talked about this,” he said, pulling me closer. “I don’t want any of that. I want to see what happens here, with you, and nothing else. You’re all I want, and all I could ever need. Everything else is just an afterthought. Whatever happens, I’m here for you.”
“Thank you,” I said, unsure of what else to say. I raised my head and my eyes met his. He brushed back my hair and caressed my cheek.
“I love you, Alexandra.” I smiled and tried not to blush. I know I was failing.
“I love you too,” I said, and then I kissed him so hard, he nearly fell off his chair. It wouldn’t be the first time.
A clearing of the throat interrupted us, and Noah and Leroy were standing in the entrance to the kitchen. A suitcase was in each of Noah’s hands. I ran over and hugged him and he put down the suitcases to pick me up and swing me around.
“I’m going to actually miss you,” I said as I hung in the air, a foot over his head.
“I could hypnotize you to come with me,” he winked. “You’ll enjoy yourself.”
“No, thank you,” I laughed, and he put me down.
“For the record,” he said. “I’m going to miss you too.” He gave me one last hug, and then reached out to shake Lucas’ hand. “Take care of her,” Noah said to him. “She’s a handful.”
“I’m sure she’s not that bad,” Lucas laughed, but Noah just sighed and glanced back at Leroy.
“Well, I guess we’re off. I’ll be back to visit soon. Promise. I already said bye to the others.”
“Don’t be a stranger,” I said. He nodded, and then the door slammed open. A gust of wind flew in, but otherwise…there was no trace of Noah or Leroy. I shut the door and Lucas hugged me from behind.
“Let’s go upstairs,” he said into my ear, and I giggled – because it tickled. Lucas spun me around and studied me. “How are you feeling?” he asked, and I didn’t say anything.
I felt better than I had in a long time. I had some genuine friends, a link to my culture, and most of all, a man who loved me – and I didn’t even have to enchant him. He knew exactly who and what I was, and he accepted me. He wanted me. And what else could I ask for? What else could I possibly want?
So how was I feeling?
“Great,” I said to him with a smile escaping my lips. “I feel great, and free.”
“Good,” he said, and he kissed me again. He let my body go and took my hand. We had just begun walking up the steps when a knock came from outside. I rolled my eyes and gave Lucas a smile.
“Noah probably forgot his TV guide or something,” I said, walking over to the door and opening it wide.
“Ms. Cain?” the police officer said to me. I stared at him in horror, and nodded slowly. “Can you come with us to the station? We have some questions for you concerning a recent physical assault on Theresa Goodman. There have been some charges filed against you.”
“One sec,” I said. I turned away from him and jumped into Lucas’s arms. I hugged him tight as he chuckled into my ear.
“You’re a handful, huh?” he laughed. I snickered and gave him a quick peck on the lips. Satisfied, I nearly skipped out of the house with both of my wrists stretched out before me. The police officer gave me a strange look as he grabbed my arm and escorted me to the squad car. His partner laughed to himself as Lucas waved from the doorstep.
I took a seat in the back, scooted over to the window facing out towards the house and blew Lucas a kiss. He laughed, shook his head, and went back inside.
Once my door was shut and both officers were in their seats, I
took a deep sigh and stared out the window longer, enjoying the sunlight jumping off the colors of the leaves, still holding onto the branches. Suddenly, the town of Casper didn’t appear so dull and boring. It was vibrant, and bubbly and full of life. I don’t know if it was the town that had changed, or me.
But something had definitely changed.
I leaned towards the two officers as they pulled out onto the street.
“So what’s the worst thing that could happen to me if these charges stick?” I asked. The one in the passenger seat glanced back at me.
“I would make all inquiries to your lawyer, miss. But to be frank, I would say a fine. Possibly a little jail time considering the extent of the injuries.”
I leaned back in my seat and took a deep breath. His words had barely registered an ounce of worry, I was feeling so good. I sat back in the seat and closed my eyes.
“Excellent,” I said with no sarcasm whatsoever. “Excellent.”
Novels by Julius St. Clair:
The Last of the Sages
The Dark Kingdom (Sage Trilogy, Book 2)
Hail to the Queen (Sage Trilogy, Book 3)
End of Angels (Angel Story, Book 1)
Angels of Eden (Angel Story, Book 2)
A Dawn of Heroes (Obsidian Saga, Book 1)
The Deadly Ones
Rise of the Androids (The End Trilogy, Book 1)
Short Stories:
Face Punch
Shepherd of the Wolves
Sanctuary (A Short Love Story)
Reluctant Hero: A Superhero Story (Champion # 1)
Brothers of Fire and Rain (The Weather Brothers # 1)
The First and Last Kiss (A Modern Day Fairytale)
Static Rain
I saw God in a crazy dead toothed Hispanic kid
Girl of My Dreams
Check out my website!
http://www.juliusstclair.com/
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My Immortal Playlist (The Siren Collection #1) Page 22