by ID Johnson
"It's okay," he assured her, locking his eyes on hers and placing his hands on her hips. "Let me know if you need anything while I'm gone."
Sliding her hands up his chest to rest on his shoulders she nodded. "Be careful, okay?" she insisted. "No getting shot this time, not for anybody."
"I'll be careful," he assured her. "Nobody there worth getting shot for."
"And, was I worth getting shot for?" she asked, her voice just above a whisper, her lips dangerously close to his.
"Absolutely," he replied before finally giving in and kissing her, gently at first and then more eagerly.
Cadence slipped her hand up to the back of his neck, pulling him to her, returning his kiss and parting her lips. He was caressing her neck and jawline now, and she leaned into him, no longer capable of caution.
It took all of Aaron's self-control to keep from falling backward onto the bed, dragging her on top of him. He knew he couldn't stay, shouldn't take this too far, wouldn't want to cause her to do something she might regret, particularly under these emotional circumstances, but he was, after all, nearly human. Still, he somehow managed to pull back at last, putting a breath of distance between them, momentarily, before she leaned back in and slowly kissed him again. She seemed to be fighting her own battle with restraint, however, and eventually found a way to back off herself, though she did quickly kiss him twice more before finally taking a step backwards, leaving a wide enough gap between them now that the spell was temporarily broken.
"I'm going to go now," Aaron said quietly, staring in her eyes, his hand still resting on her face, his thumb caressing her cheek softly.
"Okay," Cadence whispered. "Bye."
He grinned at her, slightly amused at her awkwardness. "Bye. I'll talk to you soon," he replied, finally releasing her.
Cadence nodded, and dropped her hands to her sides. She took a few steps backwards before finally turning and walking into the adjacent bathroom, closing the door behind her. She didn't want to watch him leave.
Chapter 6
The trip from Lincoln, Nebraska, to Shenandoah, Iowa, should have taken almost two hours, but with Elliott behind the wheel, it took just over one. Cadence was finally starting to get used to traveling at such ridiculous speeds, and she was wondering if roller coasters might have lost their thrill forever.
Her friends from home had been slightly disappointed that she had decided not to make the journey back with them. However, they were starting to get used to Cadence not being around. As much as they disliked her absence, they were each aware that something was different about her now. It was growing increasingly more difficult to relate to her. They had been content with her promise that she would see them soon, however, and had promised to let her know as soon as plans for Jack's memorial were finalized. His mother was not doing well, the finality of receiving his ashes had been too much, and Mr. Cook had announced that it might be a few days before they were able to put a tribute together.
The conversation in the Enclave had been light, Hannah contributing very little to it, as usual. Elliott was his typical jokster-self, which Cadence appreciated. The closer they got to town, the more apprehensive she became. Her hometown now served as a reminder of the friends she had lost and the life she had left behind. Though she was happy with the path she had chosen, it seemed surreal to think that, less than a month ago, she had been an education major, pursuing a career as a teacher, not a Vampire Hunter. All of these people she cared so very much about now hadn't even existed in her previous world.
She had managed to keep from contacting Aaron, thinking he might want some space after the obvious violation of his "we-are-not-pursuing-a-relationship" clause, and she didn't want to seem too clingy. She had spent a few minutes assuring Christian that she was fine and letting him know that she appreciated his concern. She'd talk to Jamie and Meagan, two of her closest friends at LIGHTS, as well, and they let her know that the newsfeed was abuzz with chatter regarding her incredible talent. Though she was grateful and flattered, she didn't exactly know how to respond to such remarks. She wasn't used to being amazing at anything in particular, so being called the best-ever at anything was all a new experience.
Pulling into her parents' driveway, she took a deep breath; happy to be home, terrified of the memories being there would dredge up, eager to get this chapter of her life over with and to move on. Her parents met her at the door; her mother's arms open wide, as always. Cadence's younger sister, Cassidy, was there as well, and her tear-streaked face confirmed just how very much she had been affected by the passing of her sister's first beau. Cadence asked Hannah to do what she could to comfort her sister, though she knew it may not last forever, and the emotional healer began to relieve the teenager's grief almost instantly.
Alone in her room that night, Cadence sat on her bed, her body still exhausted from too many sleep-shortened nights, her mind still racing. Memories of both Jack and Drew had surfaced, particularly now that she sat in the room they had all hung out in so many times. The innocence of pink and purple flowered wallpaper, matching curtains, dolls, and knickknacks she's had since she was a child were replaced by visions of Drew sitting on the pink bean-bag chair, her arms crossed, a pouty expression on her face as she begged to go to the Eidolon Festival. Jack had passed the time here as well, occasionally in this very bed when her parents were out of town, and those presently unwelcome memories did not escape her either. Despite the strength of Hannah's talent, Cadence found herself in tears, no longer able to hold back the overwhelming despair she had felt since the day that Drew had been stolen away from her.
As she lay in her bed sobbing, feeling all alone and emotionally drained, her cell phone began to ring. She ignored it at first, but it did not stop, and after about the twentieth ring, she finally collected herself enough to glance at the Caller ID. She didn't recognize the number, which identified itself as originating in the Omaha, Nebraska, area. Absently wiping her nose on the back of her hand, she clicked the connect button. "Hello?" she said, both annoyance and exhaustion evident in her tone.
There was a lengthy pause before an eerily familiar voice said, "Cadence?"
She jerked the phone back away from her ear, as if looking at it would somehow let her know who was speaking. Putting it back to her head, she said, "Who is this?"
"Cadence, listen, I need to see you."
"Who is this?" she demanded. "Whoever you are, this isn't funny. It's sick."
"Cadence, look, I can explain everything. Okay? I'm on my way. I'll be there soon. You just... don't tell anyone, all right?"
"Stop calling me!" Cadence yelled, disconnecting the call. She stared at the phone for a second before tossing it away from her, watching it land at the foot of the bed. Moments later, it began to ring again. She was afraid to look at it, but eventually, she picked it up. She glanced down at the screen to see that it was the same number and that she now had four missed calls within the last three minutes. Thankful that her smart phone had the option, she quickly blocked the number, wishing that she could block every number from Nebraska.
Once the number was blocked, she went in and cleared all of the missed calls. Then, still treating her phone as if it was contaminated, she plugged it in to charge and flipped off the light on the nightstand next to her bed. She was hopeful that the darkness would block both the view and the memories.
"Are you busy?" she asked, using the IAC to contact Aaron, wishing she had taken the time to mention this insane prank caller to him the day before.
"While I'm never too busy for you, we are in the brief before the hunt. Everything okay?" he replied after about a minute.
Cadence could tell that he must be busy or else he would have answered more quickly. She knew he would take the time to calm her down if she asked him to, but she also didn't want to distract him. "It's okay," she said. "I'll just talk to you tomorrow."
Once more, it took a few minutes for him to respond, another indication that he was both busy and distracted. Finally,
he said, "Are you sure? Nothing I'm doing is more important than you."
While that bit of information made her smile, it didn't change the fact that he was clearly trying to do too many things at once. "I'm sure. Have a good night."
"You, too," he replied. Then, a few seconds later, he added, "I miss you."
Her smile widening, Cadence sent back, "I miss you, too."
Though the messages from Aaron did make her feel better, Cadence was still extremely upset about the phone calls. It seemed so odd to her that this impersonator could call her from a Lincoln phone number at a bar, and then an Omaha number. Unless, of course, the second number was a cell phone and the caller was a college kid. That would make sense. Still, what kind of a sicko did things like that? As much as she tried to put it out of her mind and go to sleep, his words kept crawling through her brain. "I'll be there soon." If she could deal with the likes of Barbarosa, she could handle just about anything. Nevertheless, the idea that some psycho pretending to be Jack was about to show up outside of her door was extremely unsettling, and she suddenly wished she were not alone.
She had some options, but in the end, the person to call on seemed obvious. "Hey, what are you doing?" she asked, utilizing her IAC once again.
"Just hanging out. What's up?" Elliott replied, instantaneously.
She hesitated, not exactly sure how to explain it. Part of her wanted to say, "I'm afraid of the dark!" but that wouldn't quite go with her new Vampire Hunter persona. So, she simply said, "I don't want to be alone. I'm sure you're back at the hotel. . . ."
Before she could even finish the message, her bedroom window opened and he was standing in front of her, across the room. "What's the matter?" Elliott asked, as quietly as he could with his gruff voice.
"Where were you?" Cadence asked, shocked, surprised, and relaxing from the defensive stance she had instinctively taken. It was difficult to keep her voice down, but she didn't want to wake her sister, whose room was right next door. Cassidy also had the ability to become a Vampire Hunter, but she wasn't one yet, and she didn't even know about the Clandestine Ternion. Like the rest of Cadence's friends, Cassidy believed that Elliott and Hannah were just friends of Cadence's from work.
Elliott sat down on the foot of her bed, his weight causing the mattress beneath her to shift a bit. "I was on your roof," he replied, as if it was the most natural and logical place for him to be.
She snickered. "Why in the world were you on my roof?"
"In case you needed me," he responded, keeping his matter-of-fact tone. "Came in handy, didn't it?"
"So, you weren't up there keeping watch out for Vampires?" The last time Cadence had been under heavy surveillance was when Holland and her team had threatened to attack Cadence and her family.
"Nope, not this time," Elliott assured her. "Just thought it might be handy to stay close by, in case I was needed." In actuality, his main purpose was to keep an eye out for Jack. He knew that, eventually, the newborn would show up in Shenandoah, at least if Cadence stayed there for any length of time. If he did so, Elliott wanted to make sure that the team was ready. At this point, he knew Cadence had not even been told that Jack had Resurrected, and he wasn't exactly sure how she might respond to seeing him.
"Awww," Cadence gushed. "You're so thoughtful!"
"I do my best," Elliott said, winking at her in gest. "So, do you want to talk about it or hug it out or what?"
Cadence couldn't help but chuckle at his attitude. Despite her disposition she said, "I just got another phone call... from the Jack impersonator."
Attempting to lighten the mood, Elliott responded, "Nicholson? Was it a good one? Because some people think they do a good Jack Nicholson, and it's just way over the top."
Shaking her head, Cadence said, "You're such a moron," as if she was talking to a brother. "No, not Nicholson. And it freaked me out because. . . well, for so many reasons. But this call was from Omaha. How did this dude get there, too? Or is it someone else? Or is this his cell? I just. . . it's creepy, and unsettling. And I don't like it."
"I'm sorry, kiddo," Elliott said, patting the blanket that covered her leg. "That is unnerving. Did you block the number?"
"Yes!" Cadence confirmed. "And deleted all of the calls. I feel like my phone has. . . .Cooties or something."
"Okay, well, whoever it was, he can't bother you again. So, let's just put it out of your mind, and try to get some sleep," he suggested.
"I tried that!" she stated emphatically. "This room is so hard to sleep in. I can't stop thinking about the voice, and about Jack, and Drew. " She left out "and Aaron" but that was a private thought, and Elliott could probably surmise that on his own.
Elliott seemed to consider her predicament for a moment before making a suggestion. "Do you want me to put you to sleep?" he asked. It wasn't something he did very often, but it was part of his talent, and if it would help her to finally get some long-needed rest, then he was willing to do it.
"What, are you going to read the encyclopedia or something? I mean, sometimes your stories are long but you're not that boring," she joked.
"Hardy, har, har," he replied, showing his true age a bit. "It's nice to know that your fear and desperation hasn't affected your ability to make sarcastic comments.
"Oh, well, nothing really affects that," she muttered, before asking, "Can you do that? Can you put me to sleep--I mean, not like a dog or anything--just temporarily?"
"Oh, no, this would be permanent," he teased. "I can, if you want me to. But, you will sleep for as long as you need to. I mean, if your body needs, like, fourteen hours of sleep to catch up, that's how long you'll sleep."
"What if I have a bad dream?" she asked, hesitantly. She definitely didn't want to be trapped in a nightmare indefinitely. Her life had resembled that enough lately as it was.
"You honestly won't have many dreams," he explained. "You may have a few when you first start to fall asleep, and then again when you begin to wake up, but most of the time you'll be in a very deep sleep. If you do dream, you probably won't remember it at all when you wake up."
Cadence considered the options for a moment and then, despite common sense leaning against it, she asked, "It won't hurt, will it?" Her experience during her Transformation and then again when she had her IAC implanted made her extremely cautious when it came to situations such as theses.
"It will be excruciating," he said, sarcasm dripping from each word. "No, it won't hurt. It'll be sort of like falling into a hypnotic trance. But you won't be hypnotized. I won't make you cluck like a chicken or eat dirt or anything."
Taking a deep breath, Cadence agreed. "Okay, let's do it. I just want to get some sleep."
"All right then," Elliott said, shifting his weight on the bed. Cadence lay down, pulling her blankets up around herself, trying to get comfortable. "Just listen to the sound of my voice. You are falling asleep," he began. Elliott's tone was soft and low, and Cadence immediately felt a rush of calmness overtake her. "You are completely relaxed. You're not worried about anything. Your mind is clear. You are happy and completely content. You are going to go to sleep, and while you are sleeping, your body will become refreshed and restored. You will sleep for as long as you need to so that you are reenergized and revitalized. You are starting to drift off now; the world is melting away. Go to sleep, Cadence; go to sleep." Her breathing evened out, her eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she was out.
***
Sylvia Grau was taking a break from nursing school, waiting tables at a truck stop on US 34, far enough away from her parents in Omaha that they didn't stop by the dingy little apartment she shared with two other girls, but close enough that she could drive up and drop off a lot of clothes every once in a while. Sylvia, named for her grandmother, was a beautiful, petite blond, much stronger than she appeared, in every way one could imagine. Over the years, she had learned to speak her mind, much like Grandma Sylvie, and most customers who dropped by the greasy spoon either loved her or hated her.
> Tonight, she had the luxury of serving two fairly attractive young men whom she found to be rather annoying. One of them, the shorter of the two, blond with a bit of a scraggily look and some foreign accent, was so loud he bothered some of her regulars, truck-drivers who stopped by here several times a week. When she had asked him to try to keep his voice down, he had become very rude, prompting her to tell him, if he didn't like it he could go back to wherever he had come from.
The other fellow, a taller man with dark hair, seemed a bit more compassionate to Sylvia's position. She had several tables and was the only waitress on the night shift. When she had brought his fries out cold and served him Diet Coke instead of regular, he had empathized with her frenzied state. Nonetheless, whenever she had told his companion to shut-it or get out, even the nicer of the two men had glared at her in such a way that Sylvia began to feel cold chills up and down her spine.
Sylvia, however, was not one to take guff from anyone. When she noticed they had left only five percent as a gratuity, she approached them at the door. "Hey guys," she said, "I have a lousy tip for you, too. Play in the highway."
The shorter of the two locked eyes with the feisty blond and said, "You should really be more careful who you talk to like that. One of these days, it might come back to bite you."
Sylvia scoffed at his remark. "Whatever. Just don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out." She turned on her heels, clicking away in her self-proclaimed ridiculous uniform, and went to refill coffee for her real customers.
Out in the parking lot, Giovani was miffed. "How dare that little bitch talk to us like that," he snarled.
Jack shook his head. "Some people," he agreed. "Well, like you said, one of these days, she'll get what's coming to her."
"Yeah," Giovani agreed. "And today is that day."
"What?" Jack inquired. "What do you mean?"
"She can't talk to us like that and get a way with it. As soon as her shift is over, we're gonna make her pay. Come on, Jack. Don't you want to teach her a lesson?