Balance (The Balance Series Book 1)

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Balance (The Balance Series Book 1) Page 21

by Janelle Stalder


  “Or her, I’m sure,” Artem added.

  “Hmm, well yes her safety is a factor as well. More so for you I’m sure,” he agreed, sipping his coffee. He looked back up, and Artem was startled to see his eyes were much darker. “You see, we have our own reasons but our goals are the same. We both need them separated. And just think,” he added, his lips pulling up into another haughty smile. “With her away from Caleb, you can have her all to yourself.”

  Artem stiffened, but didn’t respond. He pushed back the thoughts of the two of them together that now flooded his mind. Dermot’s smile deepened and Artem knew he was playing a part in the sudden fantasies.

  “I just want her to be safe, this has nothing to do with me,” he protested.

  “But of course,” Dermot said, holding up his hands. “I didn’t mean to presume anything.”

  Artem shifted in his seat, his eyes scanning the area around them before returning to his companion. “What do you plan to do exactly?” he asked reluctantly.

  “I’ll make her believe everything you’ve been telling her. I’ll show her just how powerful and dangerous we can be, especially Caleb. After that, she’ll want to leave. She’ll be eager to get as far away from Caleb as possible.”

  “Will you hurt her?”

  Dermot’s eyebrows shot up. “Of course not. Why would I do such a thing?”

  Artem’s eyes narrowed. “I’m serious, damn it.”

  “Artem, you have nothing to worry about. I won’t hurt the girl. The problem I now face is that Caleb seems to be inconceivably connected to this mortal girl. If I was to hurt, or say kill her, he would know. He can sense things very well. The only way I can successfully separate them, and still keep him loyal to me, is to have her leave…willingly.”

  Artem couldn’t believe it, but he was actually finding himself buying into this man. He took a deep breath. “What will you do, exactly?”

  “Just show her what it is we do, images and such. I promise you she won’t be physically hurt in any way,” he said, taking another sip.

  “Why do you need my help?” Artem wondered.

  “She won’t come to me herself – we don’t have a very loving relationship. But you can get her and bring her to me, and then we can solve our little shared problem.”

  “I’m not sure how well you were just listening before, but we don’t have a very loving relationship either. I highly doubt she’d agree to see me again if I were to ask,” Artem pointed out.

  “Don’t be silly. If you tell her you want to apologize and blah blah blah, whatever you males say, I’m sure she’ll agree to see you. You have a better chance than I do.”

  The possibility of having this all come to an end was a tempting one. But the idea of teaming up with his enemy, mankind’s enemy, tore at him. The man sitting with him was the one cause of evil and unhappiness in the world, and now Artem was discussing a partnership with him.

  Nausea washed over him. He leaned forward, resting his forehead against the cold glass of the table. Dermot was infuriatingly patient, drinking quietly across from him as though they were having a simple meeting.

  “I can’t trust you,” Artem said without sitting up.

  “No, you can’t. However, I don’t usually lie when something is for my own benefit as well,” he offered. “Why don’t you consult with your little men on the other end of the phone, and get back to me?” He stood up and threw a business card down in front of Artem’s face. Artem reached for it with a shaking hand, looking up to see Dermot leaving.

  “I’ll talk to you soon,” he called over his shoulder, disappearing around the corner. Artem settled his bill and quickly headed to his hotel.

  As he walked, his legs became jelly, his forehead soaked with sweat. He felt seriously unwell. This day was not unfolding the way he had planned that same morning. As soon as he entered his room, he ran to the toilet and emptied his stomach.

  Sitting on the cold bathroom floor, he tried to think what the elders would say. He was afraid they would be horrified at even the idea he was presenting them, and would likely want to banish him from the brotherhood. Or, more frighteningly, they might actually agree, he thought with another wave of nausea.

  He couldn’t put it off for too long, or the anxiety would kill him. He got up and walked over to the phone, taking a deep breath before dialling Joseph’s number.

  Dermot smiled as he hung up the phone. Kellan had glanced over, catching his father’s expression.

  “Don’t tell me they agreed,” he said sceptically. His father just smiled and nodded. “After hundreds of years of trying to get rid of us, and now they just agree to work with us? Humans are so stupid.” He shook his head, looking back down at the book he’d been reading. He would never understand mortals.

  “My son, if mankind wasn’t as stupid as they are, we would have a much harder time existing. Be thankful He didn’t give them a great deal of common sense,” he said nodding his head upwards.

  Holding out his glass, Kellan reached for his own, clinking them together in victory.

  It was almost over.

  When I pulled up to my house, I didn’t see Caleb’s car anywhere in sight. With a relieved sigh, I sat back against my seat, allowing myself to become more composed before he saw me. I didn’t want him to know about my conversation with Artem. It would only make him hate Artem even more.

  That didn’t seem like such a bad thing any longer, I thought with a tired laugh. Closing my eyes, I breathed in deeply, pushing my irritation with Artem to the back of my mind. I just needed to forget the whole situation.

  “I’m back,” I yelled as I walked through the front door. My mom was busying herself in the kitchen when I entered, tossing the bag on the counter.

  “Thanks, honey,” she said, peeking in to make sure I had bought all the right things. “Are you here for dinner tonight?” she asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “What about Caleb?” she asked with a slight edge. I looked up to study her face, but she kept it perfectly composed.

  “I don’t know, I don’t think so. Is there something wrong?” I asked, leaning against the counter.

  “Not at all, I just wanted to know how much I should be making,” she replied, returning to her culinary tasks.

  “Mom, I’m not an idiot. Tell me what’s bothering you.”

  She huffed out a breath before turning back to me. “I’m just a little concerned about the amount of time you’re spending with this boy,” she said. I rolled my eyes, but she kept going. “You’re never with Blake or Amanda anymore; you’re just always hanging around him. It’s not healthy to spend so much time with one person.”

  “I haven’t seen Amanda or Blake lately because I’ve been sick, Mom. It has nothing to do Caleb,” I pointed out.

  “Make sure you make the time for all your friends. I know how it is when you get into your first serious relationship, and I don’t want to see you ignoring the other people in your life just for a boy.”

  “I promise you, I will not let that happen. There is nothing, and no one, who will keep me from seeing my friends and family.”

  She gave me a small smile, nodding her head before dismissing me by going back to cooking.

  I made my way to the family room, avoiding any other motherly advice she’d planned on bestowing upon me. Next thing I’d know, she’d want to have ‘the talk’. I grimaced at the thought.

  As we ate dinner, I could feel my parent’s eye’s on me, studying my every move. I could have ignored it, but my conversation with Artem that afternoon had left me more irritable than usual.

  I looked up from my plate, catching them red handed. They both looked away quickly, but they knew they had been caught.

  “What’s going on?” I asked, resting my fork on my plate.

  “What do you mean, Vi Vi?” Dad asked in his most innocent voice.

  “Why are you guys looking at me like that? What’s the problem?”

  “We’re just checking to make sure you’r
e feeling better,” he said, reaching over to pat my hand. “You were a little rough there for a couple of days.”

  It felt as though there was more to it than that. I narrowed my eyes as I studied my father’s face. He was definitely hiding something from me; I could tell by the way he wouldn’t fully meet my eyes. My mother conveniently avoided eye contact as well, her lips pursed as she pushed the food around her plate.

  They were locked up tighter than Fort Knox. I decided to drop the subject, and cleaned up my dishes instead.

  “I’m going to go sit outside,” I called over my shoulder as I walked out of the kitchen. They didn’t say anything in return. Why was everyone in my life acting so strange today? Knowing my parents, as soon as I was outside they would start whispering about whatever they were really thinking.

  The warm breeze swirled my hair around my face, instantly soothing my nerves. I swung rhythmically back and forth on the porch swing, my conversation with Artem replaying in my head. I had told myself I wouldn’t think about it anymore, but I couldn’t help it.

  The nerve of that man absolutely floored me. What person in their right mind would try to convince someone to go away with them, and leave the person they were romantically involved with? Not just that, but insinuate that the person is apparently a demon?

  Well that’s just it, I thought, no one in their right mind would do it, so Artem must just be nuts. He was part of some ridiculous conspiracy nonsense.

  I tried to go back over all the things I knew about Dermot. Sure, he was mean, and clearly persuasive, but he was a lawyer. That was what he was supposed to be good at. I had never witnessed anything supernatural or otherwise about him. He was just a normal jerk. The boys were the same, there was nothing superhuman about any of them. Kellan and Collin were perfectly normal guys.

  This brought me to Caleb, whom I could admit had characteristics that were more advanced than other boys I had known. I didn’t think any of these would be considered demonic though. Nothing about any of them was evil.

  I shook my head. I couldn’t believe I was even remotely considering it. It was silly to be trying to convince myself I was right and Artem was wrong, I knew Artem was wrong, and that was all there was to it. Demons didn’t exist outside of books and movies. This wasn’t Forks for crying out loud. Small town girls like myself, did not really fall in love with paranormal, gorgeous men.

  We wished we did, but that was just fantasy. I smiled to myself. The entire thing was laughable. I just couldn’t muster up my laughter for some reason. One day, I thought. When I wasn’t so annoyed.

  Caleb’s car pulled up to the curb, and I instantly felt better having him back with me. Not that I needed him around. I made a mental note to call Amanda and Blake and set something up with them for later that week.

  “Hey,” I called out as I continued to swing.

  He smiled that small, crooked grin, as he walked up to the large porch, coming over to lean down and kiss me slowly on the mouth. I moaned when he didn’t pull away, deepening it as though he was savouring me.

  “Hello,” he replied finally. I blinked up at him, trying to regain the part of my brain he had just turned to mush. “How was your afternoon?” he asked, settling beside me.

  I snuggled in against his chest as he draped his arm across the back of the swing behind me. “It was alright, nothing too exciting. What did you end up doing?”

  “Nothing really, went home and took care of some things there. Talked to Collin for a while, just to see what was happening over there.”

  The mention of his brother brought back Artem’s accusation about their mother. I fought the idea of asking him about her. If I did, I would be giving some credit to Artem’s stupid conspiracy theory, and I didn’t want to. Caleb noticed my silence and gave me a little nudge with his knee.

  “Something wrong?” he asked. I shook my head, smiling at him with what I hoped was a convincing smile. “Okay... What did you do all day then?”

  “I went to the store for my mom, and hung around here.” I shrugged. “Pretty boring, actually.” He watched me, his head tilted to the side. I stared up at the night sky, avoiding his perceptive, blue eyes. He knows something’s up, my conscience hissed.

  “How come I’ve never met your mother?” I blurted out. I froze as soon as the words came out. Idiot, I cursed myself. It seemed my brain and my mouth weren’t working together.

  Caleb lifted one brow. “What do you mean?” he asked.

  “Um, I was just wondering…you know…why I haven’t been able to meet your mother?” My cheeks reddened as I shifted slightly away from him.

  “Vivian, she lives in Ireland. How exactly would you have liked to meet her?” he asked, clearly amused.

  “Oh, well, yes I guess that makes sense.” I wanted to hit myself. I already knew this was the reason, why was I so stupid sometimes? “Do you think I’ll be able to meet her sometime in the future?”

  Caleb was silent for a minute, and then shrugged. “I don’t know, you’d have to go to Ireland,” he pointed out.

  “If I made a trip over there with you, would you introduce us?” I asked eagerly.

  He raised his eyebrows at the lift in my mood. “Why are you so insistent on meeting my mom?”

  “Because it’s your mother, why wouldn’t I want to meet her? She’s the other half of what made you.”

  He watched me through narrowed eyes. “This is important to you?” he asked.

  “Well, it would be nice to meet the woman who helped make you. I heard she’s absolutely gorgeous,” I said, remembering the description of her from the girls at work.

  “She was,” he said abruptly.

  “Is she not anymore?” I asked.

  He looked over at me, and tried unsuccessfully to smile. The subject of his mother seemed to hit a soft spot with him, and I kicked myself inwardly again for bringing the subject up.

  “She is still beautiful, in her own way. Not as she was when my parents first met, but you can still see it somewhere in there.” He looked away. “She isn’t well, Vivian. My mother’s illnesses have affected her, not just mentally, but physically as well. I don’t know, to be honest, if you will ever have the opportunity to meet her.”

  “You don’t think she would want to meet me?” I asked.

  He looked surprised at the question. “I think she would, yes. It isn’t that she wouldn’t want to meet you; it’s just that I’m not sure she would be very aware about what was going on. The hospital she lives in isn’t the type of hospital you’re thinking of, it’s one for people with mental problems,” he explained quietly.

  I froze in shock as I realized why the topic was a touchy one for him. His mother was in a mental institution. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize.”

  He chuckled, pulling me against him. “It’s okay, Vivian. I’ve lived with this reality my whole life, and it’s not a big deal. My mother has always had issues, so the hospital was the best choice for her. She is perfectly happy there, and a joy to be around, but I just don’t think she would grasp what you are to me.”

  I rested my head on his shoulder. “Well, what is she like?” I asked, unable to resist my curiosity.

  “Hmm, she looks a lot like me, I suppose. Or, rather, I look a lot like her I should say. She has dark hair, even now, and blue eyes like you’ve never seen,” he described. I could imagine perfectly what her eyes would look like, I thought looking into his. “She is very petite, almost frail looking, but she’s stronger than she looks. Her eyes turn into little slits when she smiles – her smile is so big. Her laugh is contagious when she really gets going. You can’t help but be happy around her.” He sighed. “She is truly a wonderful woman. Kind and generous to the core; she doesn’t deserve the life she’s had to lead.”

  I felt a pang of sympathy as I looked into his eyes. “She sounds wonderful,” I said. “Maybe one day I will get to meet her.”

  “Maybe.” He smiled and shrugged.

  “Have you heard anything further abou
t her?” I asked. Would he be leaving me soon?

  “I spoke to Collin, so he is going to go take a look at her and see how bad the situation is. He’s been too busy to go around there yet. He’ll be honest if he thinks I should be there or not. I’ve always been the closest to my mother,” he said. “I think it mostly has to do with the fact that I look a lot like her, it probably makes her feel more at ease. My brothers look too much like my father.”

  I thought about this. Apparently there was no love left between his parents, although I couldn’t recall hearing that they had been divorced, just that she happened to live over in Ireland. I wondered if I should even ask, but again my mouth had come to a decision before my brain actually caught up. “Do your parents get along at all?”

  Caleb laughed bitterly. “Not really. My father is kind enough to her, I suppose. But the damage had been done a long time ago. My mother doesn’t have kind feelings towards him. I can’t say I blame her.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “She wouldn’t be where she is, physically or mentally, if it weren’t for my father. Sadly, I would almost say it’s mine and my brothers’ fault as well, although we never did anything intentionally,” he said quietly.

  “Are they not married anymore?”

  “I suppose they are still married, but they haven’t been husband and wife for many years,” he explained.

  “What a shame. Someone so young and beautiful,” I thought out loud. Caleb just grunted, but didn’t say anything. “Do you have a picture of her?”

  Caleb stiffened but kept silent. I looked up to see what I had said, but he wouldn’t look at me. He tried to relax, unsuccessfully I might add, and answered quickly, “Not on me”, ending the conversation.

  We sat there and enjoyed the evening in silence, which suited me just fine. Something about Caleb’s reaction triggered an odd feeling in my stomach. Artem’s implications repeated in my mind, in spite of how hard I was trying to ignore them. Caleb definitely acted strangely when it came to his mother. It could just be due to the sensitive nature of the conversation, but I couldn’t help but let my mind run wild with ideas of its own.

 

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