Days of Fury (Future Men Series Book 1)

by B. J. Castillo

  Eve stayed stroking the outline of his face that brought back memories, even after removing the strands of hair. Although cold, Caleb's skin was soft. Evelyn slid the back of her hand down the curve of his temple, his cheekbone, his cheek and his chin... There she pushed her away almost immediately. Caleb's eyes were slightly open, he was watching her, undaunted, and he did not feel tense, but more relaxed. For a moment, Evelyn thought he was going to say something to her.

  Caleb closed his eyes, again, and Evelyn released her breath. She noticed that Caleb moved one of his fingers over his chest, and she slid her hands between hers, cold, and held them for a long time. She lay on his side, on the bend of his shoulder, looking at the bright ceiling above them; she quickly closed her eyes and dozed.

  * * *

  Evelyn would not know how long she was asleep. She awoke with a twinge of pain in the arm that had been hit when the avalh threw her against the floor of the club. Caleb was still resting. Evelyn got up, slowly and silently, and left the clinic. The corridors were dimly lit and silence reigned. She checked the time on a digital clock that was attached to the wall near the descent section.

  «5:41 AM», she observed.

  At least she had slept about three quarters of an hour, she thought. She lowered the spiral line to the Inferior floor, and followed silently to her room, almost at the end of the corridor. Surely everyone was sleeping, because that's how the atmosphere felt: exhausted, serene, harmonious.

  “... know...”

  Evelyn stopped immediately. He recognized Tadhg's voice, although it did not come from his room.

  “Yes, she... know... right ...” said another intermittent voice.

  The sound of the voices came from Becca's room. The door was open and voices filtered down the corridor through a narrow gap that separated. By the cuts, or lack of words that were in each phrase that were said, Eve deduced that both tried to maintain their voices in low volume not to alert the rest. Evelyn swallowed. She knew that spying was not right.

  However, it was Becca and Tadhg; she could not feel guilty or with remorse of conscience for spying on them a little. She sighed deeply, went to the door, and stuck her ear as much as she could, without pushing the door further inside.

  “... shouldn’t have told you,” said Tadhg, remarkably angry, although he controlled the timbre of his voice very well.

  “Yes. She deserved to know,” Becca argued. “After all, he will be your husband, right?”

  Tadhg made a little noise. Shhh...

  “The laws of the Agency say that you cannot reveal certain information from the past, and you know it.”

  “Yes. And yet, you gave me that information.”

  “No, you pulled it from me at a time when I was completely vulnerable to letting go of my tongue.” Tadhg grunted a curse under his breath.” I should have been loyal to me.

  “I am sorry.”

  “You sorry?”

  Becca did not seem to sorry it at all, opined Evelyn.

  “Yes. I am sorry.”

  “And still you want to become an agent of the future?” Inquired Tadhg sullenly, “breaking the laws by which it is governed?”

  “I said I'm sorry!”

  “That does not fix anything, Becca. You do not know the size of the mistake you made...”

  “But she is now one of you, and I...” she began to say.

  Tadhg interrupted her saying:

  “Evelyn White will be the founder of the agency. And therefore it is very important for us. A lot.”

  There was no response from Becca.

  “Evelyn will make all this possible at some point,” Tadhg continued, surely raising his hands to encompass what he meant by all this. “She will save many lives in the future. Right now our survival depends on it. There are many things you do not know yet about Evelyn, Becca, and that I was going to tell you at some point. I will not do it anymore.”

  “Tadhg...”

  “Do not.”

  “Seriously, I'm sorry. I did not know…”

  “Because you did?”

  Becca took a moment to answer.

  “I heard her talking to Rhys in your sister's room while she was getting ready to go to the club,” she said. “I heard her say that...”

  “It does not matter,” Tadhg cut her off. “The best thing is that we forget this. Although I doubt Evelyn will forget it.

  “What if you use ettalim?” Becca suggested.

  Evelyn wanted to strangle her.

  “You know how that works,” Tadhg answered. “If we use ettalim with it, we run the risk of forgetting these last days. —And there is nothing that can be more difficult than having to repeat everything again. Also, there is no time.”

  Evelyn wondered what he meant by that.

  Silence.

  “What can I do to compensate you?” Said Becca at last.

  “Nothing.”

  “Nothing? You’re sure?”

  Sudden silence Evelyn thought it was strange that they should shut up like this so suddenly. She took off from the door and opened a crack carefully. While she was doing it, she heard wet sounds and sighs contained. Evelyn stuck a third of her head through the crack in the door, enough to be able to cast an eye without being caught her in the act. And she watched Becca and Tadhg, frolicking. She sat on his lap, shaking her head slightly, while he ran her back with his strong hands.

  They were kissing.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Evelyn walked away from the door, her mind numb, and continued her walk to her room. Once she reached her bedroom, she heard a muffled sound that she attributed to the door of Becca's room when it was closed. At no time did she see Tadhg sneak out.

  Evelyn locked herself in and pressed her back against the door, leaning her head back and squeezing her eyes shut. She thought absentmindedly that Tadhg had been right; that had been a long day, and the night had been even longer. —And it would not end until she was on her bed.

  “She will save many lives in the future,” she thought in Tadhg's words as she denuded herself in the darkness. “Right now our survival depends on it.” She wondered what he meant by that.

  She stayed in her underwear, a fine, bold black lace lingerie that Rhys had borrowed from her collection, though Evelyn had taken the price tag from her before putting it on. —“There are two things a woman should never share: men and underwear,” Tabita had told her—. She smiled, and she thought about her friend. She wish Tabita was fine, safe. Barefoot, she gave a few pats on the cold floor to her bed and went under the coverlet.

  She rested her cheek on the pillow, no less comforting than the one in her room in Brooklyn. And suddenly she found herself thinking about her home. In her father. The stomach contracted. Something very similar happened in her chest, with her heart. What would her father be doing at that moment? She asked herself, —will he be sleeping and dreaming despite his desperation to find her? Or was he looking for her even at this time of the morning? Knowing her father, surely the last option was the most viable.

  Surely he had not slept for days, nor had he allowed himself any rest. He would be wondering where she was, if she was still alive, and if that was the case, who had kidnapped his beloved daughter. He probably reproached himself for having left her alone for so long, for allowing strangers to enter his house and cause incalculable destruction. But it was not the destruction that really mattered to him, but his daughter, his Evelyn.

  Evelyn felt the cold, cold brush of the collar chain Rhys had given her. As she stroked the pendant absently between her fingers, she thought about it for several minutes until the dream reached her.

  And she dreamed of her father and her mother. Yes, she was too. —And they were very happy.

  SECOND PART

  Secrets and conflicts

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  The next morning, Evelyn woke up with her head covered and aching. She straightened, stretched and got out of bed. She took a cha
nge of clothes from the dresser. The showers were at the end of the corridor of the rooms. Going to them represented a real challenge for Evelyn to avoid being seen crossing half-naked, so she had to act with caution. She opened the door, barely a crack, and glanced outside.

  Just as she did so, the door to Becca's room opened too. Evelyn noticed that the looming head was that of Tadhg. Clear; Tadhg had spent the night with Becca, she remembered. Noting that there was no threat, Tadhg strode out of the room and took a couple of strides to his room. And the corridor was empty again.

  Evelyn wrapped herself in the towel, stuck her change of clothes to her chest and left in a hurry.

  * * *

  Silence reigned in the dining room. Breakfast was simple: cheese sandwiches, cereal, milk, apples in a bowl in the center of each table, and orange juice. Professor Kerr, who presided over the table of the shelters, as usual, was more focused on his cereal and less on making cordial comments to break the silence that became more and more unbearable.

  The table the agents shared and Evelyn was no more agitated. Dawit ate his sandwich avidly; Juno did the same, but in a certain lethargic way; Rhys was spinning her cereal, distracted, and Tadhg had not tasted the first bite. Evelyn knew he was watching her, although she tried at all costs to avoid his contemplation. She felt the throbbing tingle of his gaze fixed on her.

  “Then you know the new sheltered, huh?” Dawit spoke to the first.

  “More than that,” Eve said sharply. “I will marry him in the future.”

  Rhys looked up, Juno mimicked her and squared her shoulders, Dawit began to cough, and Tadhg remained undaunted. She could not help but look at him that time, and strike him down. Eve remembered, with the bile in her throat, what she had seen last night. Maybe Rhys had lied to her and she also knew about his brother's relationship with Becca, for that reason she had gotten so stressed when she made the comment in front of the mirror.

  “So you know?” Juno raised an eyebrow at Rhys.

  “Becca opened her huge mouth,” Rhys said, without lowering her voice, and glanced at her brother. Apparently—Eve observed—she was not the only one who was upset with Tadhg. In addition, she confirmed that Rhys knew about her brother's ways. “Although I can’t imagine who said it.”

  “She spied on us, surely,” Dawit suggested with a full mouth.

  “Maybe she overheard when we received the mission,” Juno said.

  “Yes maybe.” On this occasion, Rhys better concealed her anger against Tadhg.

  This one lifted the sandwich and bit.

  “By the way,” Evelyn said, frowning. “Where is Caleb?”

  “Your husband?” Tadhg had already swallowed. “He's with Claire. She is telling you everything.”

  Evelyn flashed him again. “Be your secret, idiot,” she thought angrily. “Better shut your mouth.” She remembered what Rhys had said the day before: the agents could not relate sensually to someone who was not of their time. Tadhg had done it. Besides, Becca was younger than him.

  Eve looked at Rhys.

  “How old is Becca, by the way?” She asked in passing.

  Rhys opened her mouth.

  “Twenty,” Tadhg replied in her place. Eve did not expect it, but she concealed her surprise: she only slightly raised her bows. “She just completed them last month.”

  “Already,” Evelyn said. “She look younger.”

  “You are the youngest, Evelyn.” Tadhg raised an eyebrow and smiled sideways.

  “And you the most...”

  The dining room door opened. Claire entered smiling from ear to ear, wearing a beautiful ensemble under her white robe and her hair pulled back with a pen. The glass in her glasses gleamed as she cocked her eyes to the door, beckoning with her hands as if calling her shy pet.

  And then Caleb came in.

  His and Evelyn's eyes met fleetingly. He wore the same clothes from the previous night: dark jeans and a gray shirt stained at the neck, which were his; a brown wool sweater and sports shoes that were surely a loan from Dawit's wardrobe.

  Claire took Caleb by the arm, and led him to the shelters table to present him to everyone. Eve received some suspicious looks, giggles and eyebrows from Juno and Dawit. Rhys looked as still as she sculpted in plaster, and Tadhg...

  Tadhg got up from the table, looking angry.

  “Tadhg,” Rhys called, bewildered.

  Her brother rushed out of the dining room, enraged like a dog with rage.

  Everyone looked at each other.

  “What happens to him?” Dawit asked nonchalantly, taking the last piece of sandwich to his mouth.

  “You know what's wrong with him,” Rhys said contritely; her eyes were down.

  Evelyn, on the other hand, did not know; she had read in some magazine that people after a night of sex had better humor. But what did she know? She picked up her sandwich and gave a bite; she looked up and caught a glimpse of when Claire introduced Caleb to Professor Kerr. Kerr smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. Caleb was a little tense; scared, maybe. There was no way to know, he turned his back on her. Evelyn sighed slowly and tried to take another bite.

  “There comes...” Juno murmured.

  Everyone looked back. Dawit stood up with a smile from ear to ear. Juno turned, without getting up, and smiled slightly. Rhys threw Evelyn a nervous, muted look; Evelyn had not seen a less luminous expression on Rhys, it was like a shadow that made her shrink.

  Evelyn looked back, and there was Caleb.

  “Hi,” he said timidly. His complexion looked healthier; he no longer had dark circles and his lips were a little wet. His eyes were very open, and they were very gray, like a clear storm sky, and with a light blue ring barely visible around the pupil. He looked at Evelyn. “Evelyn...” he whispered with great familiarity.

  She swallowed hard, stood up and smiled.

  “Yes. It's me.”

  “How stupid," she said to herself. “Not that he was asking me.” Caleb sketched a smile.

  “Dr. Claire told me everything,” he began. “She told me that last night was not a dream. That you were also here, in the Agency, because they had to protect us.”

  “And he told you what should protect us?” She asked.

  Caleb opened and closed his mouth. He shook his head.

  Someone cleared his throat.

  Eve turned to the rest. Dawit was still standing and smiling, waiting for the presentation. Evelyn felt terribly embarrassed. Wish did not notice the blush on her cheeks, she thought. She turned to Caleb and signaled to the agents.

  “Caleb,” he said. “They are…”

  “I know who they are,” he interrupted absently. “The doctor told me.” He moved a little closer to the table. He seemed like a child who was trying unsuccessfully to control his emotion. “Agents of the future, right?”

  Juno moved her eyes from side to side.

  Dawit walked around the table, cheerful as ever, and approached Caleb to greet him with a friendly handshake. Caleb did not back down or blink. His eyes were very bright. He looks the dark blond hair back in a displeasing bun. Evelyn was the one who considered long hair to be attractive to men, and Caleb was no exception. While Dawit presented it to Juno, Evelyn was left glimpsing dumbfounded.

  “And she's Rhys,” Dawit was saying.

  Rhys got up, with a disturbed gesture. Suddenly she looked like a little girl. Eve wondered how old she was; twenty, maybe. Her timid eyes spotted Caleb slowly; she looked him up and down and sighed deeply. Evelyn wondered if it was her idea, or really seemed like she was going to cry. Rhys recovered quickly and extended her hand. Caleb shook it.

  “Rhys is very sentimental,” Juno commented, rigidly; she stood next to the one mentioned and looked at her with a raised eyebrow. “Right, Rhys?”

  She nodded tardily.

  “If you excuse me,” she said. “I would like to find out where my annoying and rude brother has gone.” She started toward the porch. Before cros
sing it, she turned and looked directly at Caleb. “Welcome to the Agency,” she said with a smile. And came out.

  A moment later, the four sat at the table. Caleb did it next to Evelyn and gave her a radiant smile. She could hardly believe that he was there, sitting next to her, and that someday they would be married and with children. Of course, the children's was a likely addition.

  “That was weird, even for Rhys,” Dawit told them. A sandwich had magically appeared on his plate. Evelyn barely stopped herself from laughing when she realized it was Tadhg's.

  “Shut up”! Snapped Juno, uncouth.

  “It's true,” Dawit defended. “And Tadhg is a complete bastard.”

  “What happened to Tadhg?” Evelyn asked, hoping that some of the agents would have an answer to the riddle that represented the arid personality of Tadhg. A part of her thought she knew the answer: she was jealous of Caleb. “Why has he come out?”

  Dawit shrugged.

  “Tadhg is a rock,” he said. He bit into the sandwich, swallowed, and added, “Hard, gray, and cold rock.”

  “I would like to see you saying that in front of him,” Juno challenged with a giggle. Then she turned his attention to Evelyn. “And good,” she said. “Why do not they tell us how they met?”

  Evelyn felt a tingling in the pit of her stomach. She and Caleb glanced at each other. Evidently, the question had caught them by surprise.

  “Well,” he began to say. “We have known each other since we were children. We were once neighbors, and our families were very close. Then my family and I had to move, and we did not meet again until high school.”

  “And they continued being friends?” Juno continued. “I mean, in high school. Did they continue their friendship?”

  Eve’s lips dried. She wanted to glare at Juno, but she had become too nervous, tense.