Equinox (Beyond Moondust Trilogy Book 2)

by J. E. Nicassio

  My gaze swept across the room to Nathan Moore and Agent Harmon; they were standing in front of the world map, deep in thought, collaborating on something unknown to me. Their backs turned away when I entered the room, but as soon as Jordan said my name, their eyes were upon me. It was odd seeing them together and noticing that my presence was so significant to them, that they stopped what they were discussing to look at me.

  I broke free from Jordan’s embrace and went in Nathan’s direction, ignoring Agent Harmon. “You’re my father’s friend, or so I thought, right? How long are you going to let him think I died in that fire at Oakridge Estates?”

  “Samantha, we had to let your father think you were dead, just until we get Mr. Katz to where he needs to be; then we’ll think about telling him,” Agent Harmon said. He stepped in my direction, articulating his words carefully while keeping an eye on Nathan. I got the impression he wanted Nathan to keep quiet.

  “You’re telling me you’re going to let my dad go on thinking I’m dead until Dusty is taken somewhere? Oh God, you’ve got to be joking. What do I have to do with Dusty?”

  Cassiel interrupted our discussion and his cool voice diverted my tantrum. “Harmon, you implied you were going to take Dusty somewhere. Why? For what purpose? As hard as I try to read your thoughts, I can’t. You want to start explaining why that is?”

  “You won’t be able to. The Division’s new device blocks any ETBE’s interference. It’s a lithium barrier device blocking EMB’s. I can’t go into the specifics. It’s actually pretty amazing. You can try all you want, but you won’t be able to invade my thoughts, or Moore’s, or the thoughts of any member of the Division any longer.”

  “And you want to tell me why not?” Cassiel asked, a grimace washing across his face.

  “We just think it’s best to keep our thoughts to ourselves from now on. Do not take it personally. We have to think of others who are a threat.”

  By the look on the Fosters’ faces, they took it personally.

  “You think it’s best?” Michael said, standing. “Who decided this?”

  “ETBE, EMB?” I questioned. “I don’t understand.”

  “Extra-Terrestrial Biological Entities,” Cassiel answered. He was agitated and it was showing.

  “Like me, Yours Truly?”

  He nodded.

  “It’s a fancy term Division Six came up with for us,” Gabe said without taking his eyes off the screen.

  The room was suddenly stuffy. The Fosters didn’t seem comfortable with the agent referring to them as entities, and I didn’t blame them.

  “And EMB?” I looked at Agent Harmon.

  “EMB is an electrical magnetic block,” Nathan Moore interrupted.

  “Now that’s cleared up,” I said mockingly.

  Cassiel smiled. I hope he didn’t think of me as an ally now.

  “Okay, out with it, Harmon. Why the meeting?” Cassiel asked.

  Harmon spoke directly to Dusty and me. “You and Samantha are going to take Mr. Katz to West Virginia.”

  “Yes!” Dusty exclaimed.

  “No. That is not going to happen.” I looked at Dusty. The expression faded; in its place was shock. What did he think? That I would be ecstatic? How could he possibly think I would be?

  “Samantha,” Nathan said, seemingly concerned for my state of mind. “I never wanted you to find out like this. I’ve known about your friend Lucien longer than you’ve known me. I truly didn’t want you to think I deceived you. I knew about you before you were attacked at the state fair, back when you had the accident with your brother.”

  It was like I was hit with a poison dart; not only was I being stalked by an alien, but also by Nathan Moore and a secret division of the government. I felt my fist tighten. I wanted to stomp out of here, far from this place. Fate wasn’t going to continue to dictate my future, but my feet were frozen.

  “Uncle, did you know about this?” Cassiel paced.

  Now more than ever, I wished Lucien were here to explain what was happening to me. I tugged on his crystal; this time it wasn’t soothing me. Now it was just another reminder of his betrayal. A slap in the face from someone I naïvely gave my heart to.

  “Of course, he knows; it was his idea,” Harmon said.

  “Yes, Cassiel, I did,” Jordan spoke without hesitation.

  “You’ve got to be kidding.” Cassiel pushed Harmon out of his way.

  “We’ll discuss this at dinner,” Jordan responded.

  “I won’t be there,” I said.

  Dusty spoke up. “Come on, Samantha.”

  “If I were you, I’d keep quiet. Go gather your thoughts and cool off. This is a no-win situa-tion for you. I’ll take Dusty to get something to eat,” Eden said, taking Dusty by the hand, leaving me to my thoughts.

  42 Greenbrier

  I took Eden’s advice and went to their lavish latrine to throw cold water on my face. While walking back to the tech room, I overheard Cassiel say, “Will you explain to me again why Jordan wants us to break bread with Harmon and Moore?”

  “I don’t think it wise to question Uncle’s judgment. He must have a good reason for this.”

  Michael sat at his computer, punching numbers. I wondered what he was typing. What could be that important?

  “Samantha was drugged. The drug they gave her almost killed her. This is bullshit. How would we explain that to Lucien if he came back and she were dead?”

  If he came back. I was starting to doubt I’d ever see him again, that I would ever hold him in my arms again.

  “Did you figure out what was in the injection?” Michael asked, looking up at his brother.

  “No, but whatever it was, I’m sure they know about the blood transfusion,” Cassiel said.

  “What they gave me was some kind of a truth serum,” I muttered as I went into the room. “Oh, come on, I wasn’t eavesdropping. I couldn’t help hearing it.”

  “Yeah, and how are we going to keep her safe and take the kid to Greenbrier?” Cassiel said. “You know Lucien should handle this. It’s his mess.”

  “Well, we can’t do anything about that now. She can defend herself, so I’m told,” Mi-chael said.

  “Excuse me, I am in the room. Quit talking about me in third person.” All eyes landed on me. “So what are we going to do?”

  “Were going to have dinner and pretend everything is okay,” Michael said, smiling.

  “Dinner? You’re kidding?” I said, flabbergasted.

  “Samantha, you have no choice in the matter. If Jordan wants you to have dinner, you have dinner; if he wants you to go with my brother to Greenbrier, you’ll go,” Eden said, poking her head in the computer room. “Dusty is asking for you. He’s resting in Lucien’s room.” She approached me with a kiss.

  Cassiel spoke before I could respond. “What was that for?”

  I touched my cheek where Eden’s lips had kissed me.

  “I just wanted to before everyone else got a piece of you,” Eden said, happy with herself. I didn’t know if she was being smug or just plain Eden.

  “I take it you don’t have a change of clothes. How is it I’m always giving you my clothes?” she griped.

  I followed her to her room and waited outside near the bathroom until she came back. She paused a moment and turned to leave me at the entrance when I got an ache in my gut.

  “Eden, wait. Any news of Lucien?” I held my breath.

  She shrugged her shoulders, her expression grim. With hands on her hips, she shook her head and turned to leave me with my thoughts.

  43 Here We Go

  Eden’s clothes fit me a bit snugly but well enough. I undid the clip that she had left on the vanity. My hair fell to my waist. I combed it and struggled to get the knots out. My arms began to tremble.

  “Be strong,” Lucien spoke from a vision in the mirror.


  “Lucien?”

  The vision slowly disappeared.

  “Lucien, why are you doing this to me?” I said to the reflection. What if he’s a ghost and I’m seeing him because he’s dead? Exhausted tears poured from my eyes. I was not sure how long I cried, but I didn’t stop until there were no more tears left in me. I finally dried my eyes and looked at my red face in the mirror.

  I straightened up the bathroom and made my way down the corridor, passing the computer room. Eden was there, monitoring the computers. She had on oversized headphones.

  I strolled into the kitchen area. Jordan was on his cell, leaning over the granite island. His ice blue eyes met mine. He smiled and continued talking. I walked past him, opened the refrigerator, and scanned it carefully, making sure I didn’t take a bottled water marked with SALT on a label across the top. I decided the safest way was to take a glass from the cabinet, turn on the faucet, and drink it straight from the tap. This time I tried to eavesdrop.

  “…If they leave at sunup. I agree that my nephews are reckless. No, she is at risk. The underground, uh-huh.”

  The glass slipped from my grip, shattering all over the marble floor. Shit. Jordan immediately shut down his cell. He knelt down, picking up splintered glass at my side. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered.

  “For what? For being clumsy?” Jordan said.

  “I just want to go home. My father—” I managed to say, “he has to be sick with worry.”

  His ice blue eyes met mine. “In time. Be careful or you’ll cut yourself.” He stood and pitched the glass into the trash can and walked away.

  I took the broken glass, bagged it tightly, and ventured to find Cassiel.

  44 Enticement

  Cassiel was running shirtless on the treadmill in the exercise room. The area was dark except for the dim light above. If it were me running without a light, I would have tripped and landed on my butt, but it didn’t faze Cassiel.

  I tried not to blush. I let my eyes wander over his chiseled body. Little beads of sweat glided down his chest to his six-pack abs, and fell to his pelvis. His jogging pants fell much too low below his pubic bone. His eyes met mine, and he lowered his speed to a trot and motioned for me to come close. I was uncomfortable looking at him; it’s not like I’ve never seen a guy without a shirt. I think it had to do with the fact that he enjoyed me looking at him as much as I enjoyed looking at him. His body would make any girl weak at the knees. I didn’t like having these lustful feelings about Lucien’s brother. I struggled to keep my eyes steadily on his face. He picked up the towel that was hanging over the handrail. I couldn’t help but watch his bicep flex as he wiped his face and chest with the towel. I felt an unexpected flutter in my chest; it had to be from lack of food. I lowered my head and tried to focus my eyes onto the hardwood floor.

  “You can’t keep your eyes off me, huh?”

  “Cassiel, stop invading my mind, jerk.” I wanted to wipe that smirk off his face.

  “Hey, can’t you take a joke?”

  “But you’re not joking,” I said flatly.

  He stepped close. “You look beat. Why don’t you lie down before dinner? Jordan is ordering food from the Roswell Inn in town. It won’t be here for a while.”

  I raised my eyes. Cassiel grabbed the sweatshirt leaning over the other handrail, quickly lifting it over his head, messing up his black hair. I couldn’t help it; I couldn’t take my eyes off him. What the hell is wrong with me? Any living female with half a brain would find it hard not to flinch at his fine physique.

  “Come on, I’ll take you to Lucien’s room. You can rest there.”

  “Lucien’s room?” I’d never been there.

  He lightly touched my shoulders and led the way. I suddenly felt sad; it felt like years since he had left. We had to take the elevator down a floor to get to the bedrooms. Cassiel hit the red button on the metal door. I stepped in and he followed and leaned against the inside of the elevator wall. His sweat had almost dried. I caught him staring at me, but I guess that meant I had to be staring too. His eyes swerved ahead to the metal door in front. The silence was killing me.

  The elevator bumped and then shot down fast. I nervously hung onto Cassiel’s arm when the elevator stopped abruptly, but not before I was flung into his arms. He held me tightly against his chest. I expected to be overwhelmed with an unpleasant odor of sweat, but it was the opposite. Maybe it was pheromones that lingered in my nose.

  I pulled away, apprehensive about my feelings and the way Cassiel peered at me with a glazed-over look on his face. I blushed, not liking it at all. I moved quickly and hit the elevator button about three times. I needed to get out of here.

  “Whoa, relax. It has to be completely halted before it will open. Chill out.” He stood between me and the metal door. “What’s with you?”

  I backed up, not liking how close he was, or how I was beginning to feel toward him.

  “Nothing, I’m just tired,” I said in a quick, sharp tone.

  The door opened. I nearly ran into Eden who was standing right at the entrance. She gave me a once-over, and then Cassiel. Her eyes lit up, revealing much more than a surprise greeting.

  “Well, what are you waiting for?” she said, trying to make her way into the elevator. I scooted by her, and Cassiel brushed by her in the same awkward manner. The door closed, and we were left alone again.

  Everything about the ranch gave me the creeps except for the bedroom floor. There was a calm on this floor, maybe because the two-hundred-gallon salt water aquarium lit up the interior, and because of the low hum of its filter. Or maybe because I felt close to Lucien here.

  Cassiel showed me to Lucien’s room. I felt like I was invading his private space. Even before I walked in his room, I could smell Lucien everywhere. Just like in the bathroom, there was no door, just a corner to walk around to get to his room. Everything about it was Lucien, but the walls sent a chill down my spine.

  45 No You Don’t…

  Cassiel settled himself against a wall covered with black-and-white, poster-sized, candid shots. I was overwhelmed and speechless. The photos were taken during the last ten years of my life. My gaze went to each picture of me: on the first day of school, a writing competition, the soccer championship, drag racing tournaments. Lucien’s photographs caught my spirit and emotions. He saw me so clearly. I was amazed, but I had another reaction––fear. Those moments were all before the accident.

  Lucien’s room was all about me. I’m not saying it was a shrine, or that he had the makings of a serial killer. The pictures were elegant and professional, all in black frames. He caught me at my best, and at my worst.

  “Wow, I can’t believe this.” I plopped onto the simple bed, which had a navy bedspread without a headboard.

  “Doesn’t it freak you out? A bit obsessive, don’t you think?” Cassiel said with a wry smile.

  “Yeah, a little. If it were anyone else, it would.” I was motionless as I looked at the pictures again.

  “All those times I felt a presence. But those moments were before the accident,” I said, confused.

  “He did what Lucien does best. He altered time.”

  “You’re telling me he went back in time to watch me grow up? But why?”

  Cassiel shrugged almost apologetically. “I don’t know. He really shouldn’t have. It drains us. Makes us weak like you humans, but that’s my dear ol’ brother for you.”

  Lucien’s room was simple and alien, nothing like the person I’d grown to love. I really couldn’t figure out why Cassiel wanted me to see this. I mean, I could have slept on a couch on the main level.

  “I thought you’d like to see the other side of my brother. Why so glum?”

  “Cassiel, just go.”

  He stood there, looking at me, his face smug and arrogant. I wanted to go up and wipe that look off his handsome face.
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  “I’ll let you sleep.” He moved away from the wall.

  “Why don’t you?” I echoed, not caring if I sounded rude.

  He drew nearer, his shadow falling over me. His voice grew husky as he spoke. “Samantha, are you going to wait forever for your beloved Lucien to return?” His leg parted mine. My gaze quickly retreated to his leg. I drew in a deep breath to steady my voice.

  “Cassiel—what’re you doing? You’d better leave,” I said in a slight whisper.

  “What are you going to do if I don’t? Lucien can’t hear you now, can he?” His head bent down and nuzzled against my earlobe. I held my breath and closed my eyes for fear my body would betray me.

  I inched back on the bed to free myself from Cassiel’s spell. He must know I would never fall victim to his seduction.

  Read my thoughts, damn it.

  He continued to make his advance. I edged myself further up the bed, and Cassiel followed like a cat to its prey. I wasn’t stopping him as he crawled over me. My head fell back, looking up at his face, so much like his brother’s. He lowered his head, brushing his cheeks against mine, his flesh burning with an unnatural heat. I felt a stirring deep within me.

  My hands pushed his chest as he continued to explore the crook of my neck with his lips. His eyes returned to my gaze. His thick, dark lashes brushed my skin, sending shivers throughout my body.

  “Cassiel, stop,” I groaned in a husky voice that I didn’t recognize as my own. “Why are you doing this?”

  He paused. His lip curled up into a hint of a smile, and he lifted himself off me just enough so that I could free my arms.

  “Samantha, how long will you wait for my brother? Tell me how long.”

  I turned my cheek and kept my eyes closed.