by Allison Rios
In fact, at the beginning of time, the Healers and Grims had worked to fulfill their destinies together and keep harmony within the world. It wasn’t until a difference of opinions and greed for power disrupted the balance and trust between them that the lines were drawn, causing both groups to be wary of each other.
As always happens when two groups are so different, a great war evolved. A group of Grims who had broken off from tradition believed that the Healers held too much power, and wanted to take back control. Many Healers lost their lives as the Grims brought terror and destruction to entire towns. When all was said and done, with the human populations decimated by plagues and conflict, the Grims had backed themselves in a corner. Any more terror and destruction could wipe out the entire population. Without having a target to utilize their powers on they would be useless, leading to their untimely demise. They retreated, a dwindling group.
Meanwhile, the Healers found that their strength wasn’t enough to bring back the masses. Some gave the ultimate gift of sacrificing their powers to marry and recreate the world, one child at a time. Thus, the Healer population grew tenfold over the Grims as the centuries passed. Many Grims lost their lives without the strength to search out the remaining humans and use their power.
To this day, although once in awhile there were storms and other venues of mass destruction that occurred throughout the earth, most often a Grim came to town with a specific purpose of taking a single person. They had learned from the past that they needed the human population for their own survival. As with any group, there were just a few bad seeds who wanted more.
There were also laws preventing Grims and Healers from attacking or destroying one another unless the other had broken ancient law.
While Grims did inflict much of the pain on the current populations, there were other reasons for pain and suffering encountered in the world: retribution to a group who had brought forth the Great War. The ancestors of the Grims who had begun the war were cursed with a lifetime of bad luck. While most were good people, born of a bloodline that had thinned so much over the centuries that barely a drop of Grim blood could be found flowing within their veins, the universe still had a score to settle in return for having ancient law broken. The cost was to the lives of their ancestors; often the young who were inflicted with illness, before the extent of their abilities might be discovered allowing them to fulfill their birthright of becoming a Grim.
So often when the paper reported that a good person had been killed by another, the truth was that a Healer had lost a battle against a Grim. AJ had once read about an elderly neighborhood man who shot a home intruder in self defense. He knew from the man’s photo that the story behind the story was that of a Healer who survived battle.
Although both groups were sworn to secrecy because of their ancient laws, they were both often in plain sight. It was only that the simplest explanation, the one that humans would see if they weren’t always trying to read so much into every event, was right in front of their eyes but far past their realm of understanding.
These are all things Max had taught AJ, instilling in him the constant need for fear of these rules. Yet the encounters were so few and far between that it hadn’t truly sunk in until now. AJ was genuinely scared at the thought of facing something that he had no control over, something which might potentially kill him. He could control his Healing and how much strength he used. What he couldn’t control is the power of another gifted group.
AJ walked over to his window, pulling down one slat of blinds enough to peer clearly through. Addie had just pulled up in her truck, Rose in the passenger seat. The two got out, a neighborhood dog running up to the child to entice her to play. He couldn’t shake the overwhelming feeling of something bad being just around the corner and thought perhaps it was simply needing to air out what happened last night with Addie.
He couldn’t help himself; before he knew it he found himself walking over to her. As he rounded the front of her truck he found Rose and Addie petting the dog. He felt the nausea before he could even see the obvious cause and he knew.
Around the corner stepped a man, at least a foot shorter than AJ and a third of his weight. From the black, pinstripe suit to the charcoal shirt, the gray hair to the shiny black shoes, AJ knew. Every hair on his body bristled, and a scowl covered his face.
“Addie,” AJ said, wanting to pull the beauty and her daughter behind him and protect them at all costs. They wouldn’t understand why he was doing what he was. “This guy touch you?”
“AJ!” Addie shouted, somewhat embarrassed. “Nobody touched me. Saw him up the street, he seemed lost. Seems like we have quite a few outsiders in town these days.”
She turned toward the newest stranger, moving her hand palm-up from one to the other for introductions.
“AJ, this is Devin. Devin, this is AJ. Sorry about that, Devin. AJ’s just a bit protective.”
“I see,” the new stranger said, a smile lurking across his face. “I’d be protective if you were my girlfriend, too.”
“We’re not together,” they said in unison, making it seem as though they truly were.
Devin could feel the immense power being emitted from AJ. He could sense what AJ was, which only served to make him more enticed by the girl between them.
“What’s your business here?” AJ asked, the strength and protection still evident in his growl.
“AJ, seriously, could you be any ruder?” Addie asked, trying to ease the tension. “Go on home. I’m going to take Devin into town, get him something to eat. I was going to see if Helen would cook but she’s out shopping, so that leaves the café. Devin’s just passing through. We’re kind to our guests around here.”
“Don’t worry, AJ,” Devin said, stretching out his name to add a bit of mockery to his tone. “I’m just here for a bit. I have some business. I don’t expect it to take long, so I don’t anticipate needing to stick around.”
Devin knew that in front of mortals AJ wouldn’t do a thing. While the Grims were a divided race, the Healers were typically a follow-the-rules type of group. He also knew AJ was a newbie since Devin had managed to meander all the way into town without the kid knowing what the hair-raising sense overtaking his body was.
With a hand tucked in one pocket Devin reached out with the other as if he might touch Addie, just falling short. AJ instinctively moved, stepping right in front of Addie’s face.
“Addie here was kind enough to say she’d take me to get some food and to visit Isabelle. I’m here to…check on her,” Devin smoothly said, his voice scratchy and unforgettable. His hair was somewhat straggly, a sharp contrast to the suit he had adorning his body.
AJ cringed internally at the thought of him there to see Isabelle; he knew the Grim’s purpose was to inflict the final pain that would cause Isabelle her life. He couldn’t stop it from happening, as that wasn’t the way the system worked and he knew he couldn’t heal Isabelle. He’d be forced – along with her loved ones – to watch an innocent child live out her last days of sickness. While he couldn’t imagine her parents’ pain, he knew his would also be intolerable because he couldn’t step in.
“AJ, seriously,” Addie said, now thoroughly annoyed by what she took as jealousy. She had been dealing with that type of guy her whole life and thought she had been a good judge of character. She always knew the guys she dated were terrible at best and she hadn’t cared until recently. She thought AJ was different.
“Then you’re leaving?” AJ asked, Addie stepping around him to get into the truck.
“Yes,” the shadowy stranger replied, still smiling in a way that made AJ completely uneasy. Devin walked to the passenger side of the truck. “Unless I find something I like. This is a beautiful little town. I might want to stay for awhile.”
He knew he could harass AJ. The kid seemed to be fresh faced with the Grims. To keep AJ from coming with, Addie looked at him as she stood behind the truck door.
“Keep an eye on Rose for me, would ya?” she
said, hoping it would force him to stay behind and leave her alone. She was annoyed at his treatment of this stranger. Everyone in Lee had been kind and accepting of AJ on his first days around, albeit a little nosy.
“Yeah,” AJ said, looking around and spotting Rose. He scowled in the direction of Devin who only smiled wider as Addie backed up the old truck.
The truck rounded the corner into town and AJ looked over at Rose. Her miniature frame with the gigantic brown eyes just stared back at him.
“Did he touch you, Rose?” AJ asked, trying to look a little calmer since he was dealing with a child.
“Nope!” Rose replied absently, still petting the dog. “What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know. What do you want to do? What do kids do around here?”
“We could play house.”
“I don’t play house,” AJ said, a little frightened at the aspect of donning an apron and cooking. “Want to see if Helen has any cookies inside?”
What he really wanted was to get on the phone to Max, who should have been arriving home by then. Cookies seemed like a sure bet for getting a kid to give in.
“Cookies!” Rose squealed, jumping up from her seat on the ground and running towards the B&B with AJ at her heels.
As he walked in the door the phone was ringing. “Damn,” he thought to himself, knowing from just a few days that Helen could talk on the phone for hours. It would be awhile until he could call Max. He knew the situation wasn’t dire – Devin was there for a purpose – yet he still wanted Max to ease his worry.
“It’s for you,” she called, handing him the phone as he rounded the corner in the kitchen. He grabbed it, shoving the cool plastic to his ear. He was sure it was Addie, calling to rip him a new one for his behavior a little earlier. If only she understood, he thought.
“I already know,” said Max’s voice, the concern blatant and loud, rendering words unnecessary. AJ looked at the table and saw Rose content with a cookie, Helen sitting next to her and basking in the glow of a child in the house. He ducked around the corner into the living room where he could have privacy.
“What do I do?”
“Not much you can do, unfortunately,” Max said, his voice becoming hushed as though Helen might hear him talking. “Any ideas as to who he’s there for?”
“Said he was here for Isabelle. Addie had picked him up in town, said she was helping a stranger. She’s gonna be pissed at me because I was giving this guy the third degree. Asked him if he touched her, but he didn’t. She thinks I’m just some crazy jealous fool who doesn’t want her but doesn’t want her to be with anyone else.”
“She’ll get over it. Does this guy seem like he’ll carry out his job and leave?”
“I’m not so sure about that. I don’t know if it was to get a rise out of me, or because he really meant it, although he said if he finds something he likes, he might just stay around.”
“Probably won’t stick around, but better safe than sorry. Keep an eye on him. They have rules they have to follow. With a history like theirs though, a Grim can’t be trusted to follow the laws that govern us.”
“It’s taking everything I have not to go check on her,” AJ said, the fear in his voice evident. He couldn’t stand the thought of this vile being standing next to Addie and getting close enough to touch her.
“I know, kid,” Max replied. “I can feel your anger from all the way out here. I’m going to head back. If there are two of us, it might deter him from prolonging his stay.”
“You think that’s necessary? If he’s here for Isabelle, shouldn’t he be gone by tomorrow?”
“Should be, but you can’t trust them to follow any particular logic. I’m heading back in, staying for a few days. Is there room at the B&B for me?”
“Are you kidding? Helen will be thrilled,” AJ said, peeking back around the corner to check on the ladies. “And I won’t have to eat as much. I’ve put on about ten pounds already. Seriously though, wait till tomorrow to come back. If I recall right everything you’ve taught me, he can only touch one person a day. I know he’s here for Isabelle, and I can’t heal her. Neither can you. So tomorrow is the day to worry.”
Max sighed knowing the kid was right. AJ was simply glad to see that after nearly 200 years Max still had a heart and a good soul. That boded well for AJ. “See you tomorrow then, friend.”
“See ya tomorrow.”
AJ clutched the phone in his hand, slapping it against his palm a couple times, before following the curly cord back to its resting place on the wall.
“How you girls doing?”
“Good,” they replied in unison, smiling sneakily at him. He raised an eyebrow, wondering what no-good scheme the two were about to throw on him.
“What’s up? You have a look like you’re trying to melt me before you say something.”
“AJ, will you take me into town, please?” asked Rose, her eyelashes batting as though she were begging him for a pony.
“Why? Your mama won’t be happy if she catches us. I think she wants to be away from me right now.”
“Puh-lease?”
“Nope. Nada. Not gonna happen.”
She looked up at him with big puppy dog eyes, her hands clasped in a praying position and her lips forming a big pout.
“Please? It’s really important!”
“More important than my life?” AJ joked. Although he wasn’t entirely kidding; he was sure Addie was mad enough to beat him.
“I want to get her a birthday present!”
“Her birthday? When is that?”
“Next week. Please AJ? Please, please pretty please?” she pleaded, still batting those mile-long lashes that she got from her mother. Helen watched the whole interaction with glee.
“Okay, let’s get you cleaned up and we’ll head out. One hour is all you’ve got. Get some running shoes on, because we’re gonna walk so if anyone asks, we can honestly tell them that we took a walk. That way, we’re not lying.”
“Deal!” Rose replied as she bolted through the door and across the street to change her shoes. AJ nodded to Helen and walked out after her, letting the rusty-hinged screen door creak back into position.
Rose’s shoes were worn out, obviously her most beloved pair. They were covered with what she referred to as bling. Little rhinestones and glitter circles adorned the entire surface and AJ actually laughed at himself for knowing what a rhinestone was. The shoes lit up as she walked, creating a non-stop lights show with every step.
“Don’t you have any other shoes?” AJ asked, teasing her a bit.
“Yep.”
“Don’t you wear them?”
“Nope.”
He could tell she was obviously not one for words. Since they’d met, she hadn’t spoken more than a sentence to him at a time.
“You don’t talk much, do you?”
“Nope.”
“Why is that? I would think a little girl would have plenty to say, especially one with the mom that you have.”
“Exactly. You’ve met her. She talks enough for all of us.”
Rose was brilliant, that was certain. Her mother sure did love to talk, although AJ couldn’t say he seemed to mind the sound of her voice.
“What are you gonna get her for her birthday?” AJ asked, the hair on his arms beginning to rise. He could feel how close they were getting to Devin, and it was making him uneasy. He walked a little closer to Rose, just in case.
“Maybe a necklace. Maybe a pet rock. I don’t know. I want to see what’s at the general store. Maybe she’d like a lollipop.”
AJ laughed at the innocence of the young. He knew the little girl could hand her mom dirt off the road and Addie would love it, the same way his own mother treated all the handmade gifts and cards he’d crafted for her over the years. His mom was never much for jewelry or fancy gifts; she was happiest when she had something in her hands that some thought and effort had gone into. They never had much money, and so those cards were little reminders of the lov
e between a mother and son whose greatest gifts were each other.
“Those sound like great ideas Rose,” he said, looking up from the dirt road as a car rattled up behind the duo. It slowed down as it caught up to them and he could see Isabelle and her parents inside. For a moment he felt a brief relief to see their faces, as though perhaps Isabelle had a few more good minutes before the pain foreshadowing the end of her young life would take hold. She smiled sweetly at AJ and nodded. It reminded him that of her whispers at the party telling him all would be okay.
“Afternoon,” Isabelle’s dad greeted them, leaning out the passenger window. “You two need a lift? We’re heading home but we could bring you wherever you’re heading.”
AJ looked at Rose. She shook her head yes with a pleading look. She was in a hurry so her mama didn’t catch them.
“Sure,” AJ replied, opening the passenger side back door. “That’s kind of you.”
Isabelle’s father smiled and signaled for Rose to hop in and she followed AJ. He squished into the middle between Isabelle and Rose.
Isabelle slid her hand over to AJ and set it on his arm.
“We’re going home to meet a doctor,” she said, a big smile across her face. “Mom and Dad hope he can help me. I know he’ll be the one to set me free from this cancer.”
The look on her face was one of faith - hope even. As he returned her gesture by engulfing her hand with his, the visions flooded through. He saw Isabelle hugging her parents and siblings. He got the sense that when she said “set free,” she wasn’t speaking of a cure. Rather, the words echoed a knowledge of the end to her suffering.
“Sure are!” her parents said excitedly. “Says he might be able to help us, give us some answers. Came here all the way from the big city. Never heard of him. He said he heard about our case from the hospital and wanted to stop by and see if he could do anything to help.”
AJ wasn’t sure what he hated more at that very moment: the fact that this Grim was about to take a child’s life, or the fact that he did it with a lie to her parents, a lie which instilled in them a false sense of hope. It was obvious which bloodline this Grim descended from. AJ wondered which was worse: not having hope, or having your hope crushed? Probably the latter he decided, as not only would hope be crushed; it would also be lost entirely.