The Keeper Set - Summer Spirit Novellas 7 - 9

by Samantha Jacobey

  Sighing loudly, Charlie made a quick inspection of the bedroom to find the bed was in fact made, and that dust covered any flat surfaces he dared to touch. “Great. Whoever lived here’s been gone for a while,” he muttered aloud. Finding nothing of interest in the bathroom or tiny closet, he decided that the place would do for the few weeks of his mission and he had more pressing issues to attend to.

  Crossing into the magical plane, he transported himself back to his previous location before Brett had arrived home and interrupted their reunion. Remaining on the other side, he could observe for as long as he liked, unbeknownst to Tabitha or her mate.

  “I don’t give a god damn who the hell he is,” Brett shouted as Charlie arrived, “I say who works in my shop!”

  “Brett, please,” Tabitha begged while bouncing their child lightly. “She won’t ever go t’ sleep with you yellin’ like that -” his hand cut her off as it made contact with the back of her head. Her hair floating around her before it landed, partially covering her face, it hid the tears that streamed down her cheeks. “You promised you wasn’t gonna hit me after the baby came,” she hissed.

  “Well, you shoulda thoughta that before you invited your ex-boyfriend back into our lives,” he shouted back.

  Clenching his fists, rage boiled within Charlie’s blood; I knew something wasn’t right! Drawing a deep breath, he fought to calm himself. He had to act, and he needed a clear head to do it.

  “I’m sorry,” she whimpered, moving towards the stairs. “Let me put the baby down.”

  “Hurry your ass up,” Brett bellowed, snatching a bottle of liquor from under the bar and pouring three fingers into a glass.

  “Great,” Charlie muttered to himself. “She went from bein’ raised by a drunk t’ married to one.” Watching from the security of the magical plane, he waited, knowing at some point his chance would present itself. First lesson, coming up! he taunted the other man with a smidge of pride.

  Several minutes passed before Tabitha rejoined them; long enough that Brett had finished the first glass and had started the second. “That little bitch’ll learn soon enough,” he muttered as she moved around the room, straightening things and cleaning up after her husband.

  “She’s your daughter,” she said quietly. “You could have a little respect for your own flesh and blood.”

  “Only been here a few days an’ already causing trouble,” Brett laughed out loud. “Does sound like my kid, now don’ it,” he raised his glass as if toasting his progeny before downing the golden liquid. “How soon before you can play wife?” he grunted, throwing his arm around her and pulling her firmly against him.

  “Six weeks,” she stammered, her face flushed. “An’ unless you’re wantin’ another one any time soon, you better keep to it until the birth control kicks in.”

  Dropping her, he turned his back, “Shut your yap, woman. I’ll take it tonight, if I like, an you’ll not say a word. You live in my house, off my family’s blood sweat an’ tears. You’ll do what your told for damn su-”

  Charlie mentally gave him a shove from behind, knocking him off balance as he reached the bar. Tumbling face forward, Brett reached for the structure. His hand failed to catch, and his jaw made contact as he fell all the way to the floor.

  “Brett!” Tabitha screamed in genuine dismay. Dropping to her knees beside him, she used the receiving blanket from her shoulder to dab at the blood. “Baby, are you ok?” She obviously had either forgotten their conversation or had totally dismissed her husband’s demeaning remarks.

  Grunts and groans his only reply, she tended to Brett’s wounds. When he could speak, he muttered, “You’re a good woman, Tabitha. That’s why he’s back in town. He thinks he can steal you away from me.”

  “Now, don’ go thinkin’ all that. He’s just lonely since his momma’s taken up with some guy. Besides; I’m your wife. I didn’ take that vow on a whim, you know. So, le’s get you up t’ the bathroom so I can have a look at that cut an’ get you t’ bed.”

  Charlie could hear her cooing sweetly to him the entire time she helped him up the stairs and into their bedroom. Son of a bitch, he muttered as they went. Her mother trained her well; she’s going to take his abuse and not think twice about it. It tore him up inside that she would end up in that circumstance; but then again Karma had given him permission to deal with the situation. Maybe having a heart of darkness could turn out to be a good thing after all

  The Blackest Rose

  Charlie woke early the next morning after a fitful night of rest. He longed to return to his wife once the couple he had been sent to deal with turned in for the night, but he didn’t dare to disobey Karma’s command. She intends for me to stay until the job’s complete. He knew he would do as she had ordered, no matter how badly he wanted to see his own wife. Besides, Clarisse’ll call if there’s a problem.

  Meeting Brett down below at seven a.m., the owner showed his new employee around while sporting a fat lip and a butterfly-bandage over his left eyebrow. “Wow,” Charlie commented aloud when he saw the evidence of his handiwork. “That’s some shiner. Fight or fall?”

  “None o’ your damn business,” Brett countered gruffly. Moving on, he directed Charlie as to his list of daily chores. “The shop officially opens at nine. You come in at seven each mornin’ an’ get everything opened. Then, take care of our customers until the mechanic arrives. People can drop their cars off an’ get in line for easy stuff, but anything not on this list they have to talk to Bill about an’ get a time for. He has three helpers, but since Ben’s shop closed down, we’ve been swamped.”

  “That why you got his truck?” Charlie nudged.

  “Yeah,” Brett agreed. “He had t’ retire; his health couldn’t take it anymore.”

  Something about his grin made Charlie wonder if that were the whole truth. Stealing a glance at his list of crimes after Brett had gone, he found swindling Ben Fields came third from the bottom. I’ll have to think of something special for that one, he chuckled as he admired Karma’s penmanship.

  Tucking the list out of sight, Charlie set about cleaning up the storefront that he would open and man each morning from seven to ten, and again from two to five each evening, six days a week. Stocking the shelves, running the register, and keeping the daily agenda for services didn’t seem too difficult. And it’ll make a nice cover as to why I’m here. It had all come almost too easy with Tabitha helping him get the job.

  His mind on his childhood friend, the shop appeared immaculate by the time Bill and his three hands arrived. As soon as they had the day’s tickets in order, he was dismissed, so he made his way up the rickety stairs where he would presumably eat and take a nap before his afternoon shift began. However, Charlie had other plans.

  As soon as he had slammed the door to his apartment, Karma’s Minion shifted into the other plane and transported over to Tabitha’s house to have a look around. Finding her sitting in her favorite chair once again feeding her infant, he sighed. I wonder if Clarisse will breast-feed our baby. They hadn’t had time to discuss exactly what a newborn Angel would be like, but he assumed they would be very similar to humans. They are in fact our surrogate parents, or have been in the past, he surmised.

  Leaving her when the time came to return to work, Charlie reversed the process, arriving at his apartment before shifting to the non-magical plane and trotting down the stairs. Three hours later, he had closed the shop and located Brett at a local bar, one of only two in town. “He’s making this too easy,” he mused as his target bent over a pool table with a mug of beer on the table behind him. Choosing a position so he could monitor the room, he observed for a while before he set to work.

  Borrowing a page out of Gous’s old book, Charlie set a few of the men at the bar against the bartender. Then, a few of the wait staff joined in, and within minutes a full-fledged brawl had erupted, landing the entire room in the small county jail a few blocks away. A smug grin on his face, he marked off the second item on his list before he left
the group to look in on Tabitha, arriving in time to hear her end of the conversation when Brett called to let her know he had been locked up for the night.

  Listening to her cry into her pillow after the call ended, Charlie longed to reach out to her; to comfort her somehow. But he knew that was not his place. He had been deemed her husband’s executioner, as it were, and many such nights lay ahead before his work was done.

  “I’m sorry, Tabs,” he whispered, knowing full well she couldn’t hear him from across the planes. Clenching his fists, he dug deep within himself for his inner strength. He had learned so much of Keeper and his people over the last week; he knew that dark days were coming, and he couldn’t change that fact. “You gotta hang on,” he implored her, “the blackest rose is about to bloom, an’ we all jus’ need t’ hang on.”

  Charlie had promised Karma he wouldn’t kill Brett, and that he would be ready to do her bidding when he had finished with him. He only hoped he could remain a man of his word. And of course, if he did kill him, that would leave Tabs to face raising their child alone; a sad conundrum to consider which future would be worse for her – having a man who abuses her, or no man at all.

  He was still considering Tabs and her infant when he arrived back at his small apartment. Stripping down and enjoying a cool shower, he tried to relax and prepare to get some sleep. Stepping out of the bathroom in his boxer-briefs afterwards, he yelped in surprise to find he wasn’t alone; “Karma!”

  “Hello, Charlie,” she breathed his name airily. “Nice work today; I’m pleased to see you so diligent with the task that I have given you.”

  Covering himself with jeans, while trying to appear nonchalant about it, he grimaced, “The sooner I finish, the sooner I get home.”

  “Yes,” Karma cooed, her hair bright red in the incandescent lighting that surrounded them.

  Pausing to study her, then turning to the kitchenette, he muttered, “Is this a social visit, or was there somethin’ you wanted t’ say to me?” His back to her as he rummaged in the fridge, his heart raced. Surely she’s ok with what I did! he mused. She had never interrupted him as he worked before, and the fact that she did so now put him on edge.

  Soft laughter tinkled from across the room, and he turned to face her. Seeing that her grin appeared genuine, he laughed himself. “I guess you’re jus’ wantin’ to watch from up close this time.”

  “Not exactly,” she held the smile. “I’ve never been more proud of you, Charlie. I’ve watched you deal with many targets, but no one that you were close to; no one from your past, up to this point.”

  “Well, it had to happen sometime, right?” he countered, toasting her with his can of soda and then popping the top open to down a long swig.

  “Yes, I know how much that girl means to you. And I wasn’t sure you had it in you to bold face lie to her. Your deception was without flaw, and I have no doubt you would complete this task to the letter, if I were to allow you to continue.”

  “What do you mean?” he stammered.

  “I mean, you have passed my little test. I sent you here to see what you were capable of, and I am satisfied with the result; your skills are impressive. There’s no need to continue at this time. But, keep that list handy; Brett will be a target in the near future, rest assured.”

  “What about Tabs?” Charlie demanded with a deep frown. “We jus’ leave her with him so he can beat on her whenever he feels like it?”

  “Yes, for now,” Karma agreed, cutting her eyes around to take in the shabby surroundings. “Don’t worry, hun; she won’t suffer for long.”

  His heart stopped cold in his chest, and he replied softly, “What’s going to happen to her?”

  “Nothing special,” the woman before him chuckled. “Relax, Charlie. You passed the test. Forget about them, for the time being, and let’s get out of here. We have a house to fill, and you have earned your place at my right hand.”

  His features still tight, Charlie nodded, leaving the apartment as he found it as he leapt back to Purgatory in an instant. Arriving to find the house quiet and dark when he landed in the atrium, he sighed heavily, hoping that Tabitha wasn’t too upset that he had disappeared on her… again.

  Flash from the Past

  “Don’ worry,” Charlie stated confidently, “you two are gonna fit right in here; better than you can imagine.”

  “I hope so,” Steven sighed, shooting his new roommate a half grin. Almost the same age, height and appearance, the newest male member of their gathering wasn’t sure what to make of the young man who so strongly resembled him.

  “Trust me,” Charlie continued, “everyone around here has powers. You’ll be able t’ toss things around with your head any time you like.” He gave the chairs across the room a mental shove closer to the windows for effect.

  “Wow, so your telekinetic as well!”

  “I’m… a lotta things,” Charlie chuckled, clamping his doppelganger on the shoulder. “Welcome home,” he added, releasing him and turning away to cross the hall. “Alice, have you met my beautiful wife yet?”

  Staring at Anna, Alice blinked a few times, realizing she was not the woman he referred to. “Uhhh…”

  “I haven’t introduced myself, yet,” Clarisse informed him from across the plane. “I’d rather not scare her away, if I can help it.”

  Her eyes moving to the ceiling and then around the walls of her new room, Alice’s lips curled into a small grin, “Are you on the other side?”

  “I’m afraid that I am,” Clarisse sighed. “I can’t materialize in the plane of the living. All I can do is speak to you from across the divide, and only those who are chosen can hear me when I do. Anna doesn’t hear me.”

  Charlie could feel the sadness in his mate’s voice. Portia’s leaving the room that they had shared had bothered her more than she let on, he was sure of it. “It’s ok, baby; we know you’re there.”

  “That’s amazing!” Alice smiled even wider, glancing at her own lover who had joined them. “Steven, can you hear her?”

  “I don’t hear a thing,” the young man confessed, shoving his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “I’m a little jealous of our new friend here; seems like he has an advantage, being able to move things AND visit the other side.”

  “Only for the time being,” Karma cut in, joining the gathering in the small space. “Soon enough, the planes will be merged, and no one will be caught on one side or the other. Be sure to join me in the lounge when everyone is settled in.” She disappeared as quickly as she had materialized, and the entire group stood motionless for a moment, her words having stunned them.

  “How is she going to do that?” Steven whispered, still in awe over how openly everyone used their powers in Purgatory.

  “I’m not sure,” Charlie admitted thoughtfully. “But, I’m sure she knows what she’s doing. I’ve only been here a little over a year, but I can tell you she has made a believer outta me. Karma can do anything she sets her mind to.” Nodding at Alice again, he announced, “I’m gonna join her downstairs, an’ let you guys finish getting unpacked; this room isn’ really big enough for a pow-wow. We’ll talk again after you come down.”

  Arriving in the lounge, the great room that took up half the ground floor, Charlie found Karma next to the vast windows, staring out at the shady side of the house, if there was one. Moving to stand beside her, he offered, “They’re a nice couple.”

  “You sound surprised,” she volleyed. “I’m glad you’ve seen fit to welcome them so generously.”

  “Well, I guess that I am,” he agreed. “Surprised, that is, but not in a bad way. After comin’ here, the way I did, I thought it might be nice for them t’ feel at home.” Glancing around to see that the room appeared deserted, he lowered his voice to continue, “Karma, when you have time, I’d really like t’ know more about this joining you’ve got planned. I’m a little worried…”

  “Worried? About what?” she faced him with lips drawn into a thin line, only slightly curled.<
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  “I’m not sure,” he exhaled loudly. “It’s more of a feeling, or somethin’ I can’t quite remember; maybe about the time I spent on the other side the first time, after my accident. It’s there, an’ I can almost see it, but not quite.”

  “And it scares you?” she mocked him with her tone.

  Blinking at her a few times, Charlie hesitated. “No, not like I’m terrified or anything,” he focused on keeping his words civil. “It jus’ feels outta place.”

  “Don’t let it bother you,” her smile shifted to genuine. “Again, I’m glad you’re here to stand with me.”

  “I’ll try,” he nodded firmly. Hearing the newcomers on the staircase, he knew the rest of the household, or most of it, would be arriving as well. Pushing his thoughts aside for a moment, he reached out to his bride. “Baby, do you want me to join you so you’re not alone over there?”

  “No, love,” she replied in the same covert manner. “I’m fine; I feel their acceptance of me, even though they cannot see me. It is a sincere and wonderful feeling,” she supplied; “The warmest I have felt since arriving here.”

  “I’m glad,” he agreed with her perception. Noting the tray laden with Champaign glasses that had appeared on the table, he helped himself to one and waited for their mistress to begin her address.

  A short time later, everyone had a glass and a seat. Karma stood, moving around the room as she spoke, welcoming Alice and Steven into their midst. Charlie watched her as she appeared almost cordial, and his mind drifted back to his own first night in Purgatory; it seems like ages ago, he lamented to himself.

  Like a flash from the past, his memories skimmed through his thoughts, and he recalled how he had ended up among the Forgotten Angels; a convict hoping to escape a heavier sentence. Karma had come down hard on him, and of course Phil and Dante didn’t make it easy, either. Still, he had earned his place among them.