“You punched me in the stomach really hard and left bruises.” I know it wasn't him. It was Malphas. I wish I could tell him this. “But I know that it wasn't you doing it. It was almost like you were someone else.”
“That kid, he said the same words. He said he swore it looked like I wasn't controlling my own actions, like I had evil inside me.”
“Do you believe in that stuff?” I ask him.
“What stuff?”
I blink to Elijah and see he's still holding my hand, feeding me courage through his magical touch. I tell Elijah, “Get the necklace from my purse and put it on me.” A small white-gold pair of angel wings was a gift from my birth mother, a seraphim angel. It unlocks my gifts when I put it on.
He nods and I go back to Sam. I contemplate with great care what I will say to him next. The second Sam's thoughts start streaming to me; I know my gifts are back. Ugh, I remember how much I hated having the ability to read peoples thoughts and sway their beliefs. Now Sam will go along with whatever I say.
“I believe that you were possessed by something evil that night. I want you to go with me tomorrow and see this priest I met since I've been down here. We'll see what he says. There is no other explanation.” I say my last words slowly and watch as they sink in and hit home.
Sam looks as lost as a puppy in the snow. It doesn't take much of my gift to convince him that this is a real possibility. He's wondering if he's just psychotic. I give his hand a squeeze. I give Elijah a look that begs him to make the arrangements. He nods as if he understands my unspoken request.
“I don't know what happened that night Brennen, but I am so sorry I hurt you. I wish you would have told me sooner. You've been going around thinking I'm some monster. Earlier in the truck, when I went to take your hands, you flinched. You're afraid of me now. God, maybe you should be. I should just stay the hell away from you. I'd never live with myself if...” he starts to choke up. I can see the words he would have used in his head as plain as day. He crashes onto his knees in front of me, and I cradle his head in my lap as I gently stroke his hair. He pulls me into a hug as hard as steel and whispers,” I'm so sorry,” in my ear over and over again.
“I know Sam; I know you are.” Sam is as fragile as a new born right now, but the proverbial Band-Aid has been ripped off. Now we can heal together in our right time.
Since Lexi still hasn't moved her things into the other room, I let Sam stay the night next door so that we can go see a priest first thing in the morning. Elijah arranged “Father Max” to offer a blessing on Sam's spirit to make sure he has been cleansed. Max was my guard late one night after a hell hound tried to play fetch with my bones while I was still attached to them. Elena and Inara both needed to recover after that nightmare. Max babysat me for a few hours while they regained their strength.
We sit in his tiny office and wait for his arrival. I wonder where the real priest of St. Peter's is this morning. The snow swirls in gentle flurries outside barely visible against the gray soupy sky. This whole place reeks of incense and those weird holy balls of smoke they love to swing around before every mass.
Sam is nervously tapping his foot in the air as if it were on crack. I grab his knee. “Sorry.” He gives a helpless smile. Finally, Max walks in complete with a white clerical collar under his black shirt. He's the most gorgeous priest I've ever seen, and I try and stifle a laugh.
“Thank you for coming. Sam I presume. Brennen, it's nice to see you again.” He shakes Sam's hand and my own before sitting behind the desk. “So Sam, I'm just going to cut to the chase. Brennen here has told me what happened with you, and I must say while it is rare, possession is a very real element of this world. Some people are naturally susceptible to these things while most people never have a single brush with the other things of this world.”
“Look, I really don't know if this was a good idea coming here. I mean maybe I should see a doctor first and let them figure out if I'm crazy.”
“That is wise, I urge you to seek other opinions. It isn't until we fear the evil in ourselves that we search out a way to rid its stronghold over us. Remember, when we jeer at the Devil and tell ourselves that he does not exist, that is when he is happiest.”
“How can you tell if that’s what really happened?” he asks nervously.
“The one sure fire way is to see how your body reacts to holy objects like a crucifix or holy water. Demons will usually fight tooth and nail to hide, but an exorcism never hurt anyone who wasn’t possessed. So, I urge you to go through the ritual.”
Max has a gleam in his eye knowing his last sentence hit home for Sam. He rises from his chair and puts his hand on Sam's shoulder. “In the meantime, I can offer to bless your spirit after you confess your sins.”
“Thank you father, I appreciate you taking the time to help me.”
Max shows Sam to the confession booths that line the rear wall of the church. The two doors close, and I take in the historic old church. Magnificent stained glass windows rise up from their stone casings in jewel toned splendor. A large cross hangs over the pulpit with a carving of Jesus nailed to it. Red stains his hands and feet and sadness washes over me. I take the time to light a candle and say a prayer.
I look to Elijah, and he answers my unspoken question again, “You did the right thing.”
When Sam is done, they both walk over to meet me in the last pew. “Sam, if you ever want to talk more, here is my direct number. I hope you’ll agree to the ritual.”
“Thank you again Father. I'll be in touch with you.”
Sam's mind is a buzz with thoughts. He's thinking about breaking things off with me to keep me safe. He's thinking about dropping out of college altogether. He still wants a psychiatric evaluation, but he's half believing the priest’s possession story. My words, “There's no other explanation,” rings in his ears after every thought.
He drops me off at my door and hugs me good-bye. His hold is brotherly or even platonic. No kiss thankfully. I can't help but worry about him, but I'll let him work it out a little on his drive home before calling him.
The snow falls in hard sheets of white outside the window and makes me wish this fireplace wasn't blocked off. I can't wait to get a small apartment around here one day. Lexi is gone. A note on the mini fridge says she went to the movies with Asher. Elijah emerges from thin air, and I wonder if I'll ever get used to that. I lean my forehead against the cool glass, and Elijah glides up behind me and nuzzles my neck with his barely there stubble.
“He's thinking about ending things with me.”
“What do you want him to do ideally?”
“It's hard to just let him go, but maybe it's for the best… I love you.”
“I love you too. There is no rush to get out of his life for good. I think he needs you to help him through this time even though I know it’s hard on you.”
He presses his full lips into the base of my neck and peppers the length of my neck with soft kisses. “And you need me to get you into a better mood,” he says in a low tone. I turn and face him wanting nothing more than to enjoy this moment alone with him. Elijah's mouth hovers over mine for an eternity, teasing me with every hot breath. His lips curve up to reveal a devilish smile hiding underneath. I try and kiss him, but he moves just out of my reach, his dimples flare up as deep as wells in his cheeks.
Oh it's on now! I grab the belt loops of his jeans and pull him in so that our hips are touching. His smile dissipates, replaced by a fiery gleam of desire of the most rudimentary kind sparkling in his eyes. I brush my nails up his back in slow swirls. I stand on my toes and let my own hot breath out next to his ear as if I was just going to whisper a secret. His body ticks even closer in response.
A second later, he's picks me up so that my legs are wrapped around his waist, and he sears his molten lips over mine seeking out carnal revenge. His kiss goes on for miles, pulling me in deeper until I can't make out which way is up or down. His warm spiced scent makes its way into my senses and incapacitates me. I
love that trick of his. Elijah could make days disappear when he does that. I wouldn't care if we ever came up for air or food. It's like indulging in chocolate while drinking fine wine, and swimming with dolphins and hugging your favorite teddy all while cocooned in the arms of the sexiest man on the planet – hell the universe for that matter. Elijah's brand of drug would be illegal in all fifty states combined.
I pull his sweater off and run my hands down his steaming chest. His skin is so buttery soft. My fingers trace along the faintest of scars. Elijah's chest bears an expansive scar that resembles a sprawling live oak tree stark of leaves for winter. The faint white lines shimmer under the dew of his skin resembling a tattoo in white ink. I ease down from his waist and kiss the epicenter of the once grave wound. He hisses out a breath.
“Does it hurt?”
“Far from it,” he breathes out. “You take all my pain away.”
“Funny, I could say the same about you.” I smile up just as Elijah nibbles on my bottom lip with his teeth. That night Elijah helps me forget all my pain and worries just by simply being him, a man who draws me like a moth to a flame. When I’m in his arms my soul feels whole. A calmness washes over me satisfying the constant craving I have to be near him. I end up asleep on his chest while the late night news drones out over the television, just like old times.
Chapter 3 ~Valentine’s Day Massacre~
A few weeks have passed by since Sam's big date with faux Father Max, and he's been seeing the priest on a regular basis since then. Sam's been distant and withdrawn. Seeing him like that makes my heart hurt for him. Some days I wish I'd never told him. I could have just broken things off clean and let him go on with his life like I knew he eventually would.
I should have done just that, but I still get these weird premonitions telling me I shouldn't cut him out of my life completely. I haven't mentioned it to Elijah or anyone for that matter. It's just a gut feeling anyways. Those are normal for people to get. I keep having to remind myself.
Lexi bursts through my door and bounces her scantily clad buttocks on the foot of my bed. Elijah looks at me with shock as he lounges on Lexi's old bed. She's in some sort of red lace lingerie that looks straight out of Playboy.
“Happy V-Day!”
“God, I'm so not a lesbian Lexi.”
“Duh, I'd totally do you if you were though,” she laughs out. “But seriously, I need help picking the right outfit for Asher tonight.”
“Well, I think that one may hug his breast well, but it will make his ass look like a total hippo.”
She goes into a tirade of laughter and plops next to me on the pillow. I throw the blanket over her to keep Elijah from witnessing any more of her milky white flesh exhibit.
“Oh my gosh! I can't believe you’re not going to the party tonight. It's going to be so much fun.”
“Maybe we'll stop by after our date.”
Elijah and I have plans to drive to Boston and catch “The Notebook” playing at a historical movie theater, followed by dinner. He doesn’t know it, but I have my own romantic plans for him today. He's always doing things like this for me. “What can you get the man who can summon diamonds to appear in the palm of his hands?” I ask myself. The solution finally hit me this morning while I showered. I borrowed Elijah’s mystical cell phone, capable of calling other Keepers, to make the arrangements behind his back.
The day drones out in a never ending barrage of classes and lectures. Harvard is no cake walk that’s for sure. I can't wait for tonight, watching my all-time favorite movie, on the most romantic holiday of the year, with the man I love. Life could not get better.
That night Elijah knocks on my door to pick me up like any normal date would do. He greets me with a bouquet of peonies in the softest shade of pink I've ever seen. If I know Elijah, he probably handpicked them in Switzerland. “Thank you. They're gorgeous.”
To feel this loved by someone as amazing as Elijah is euphoric. He's dressed in a slim fitting suit, looking sharp with a tie the exact color of my eyes. His eyes graze over the length of my body as he takes me all in. The look on his face makes me want to forget all about going out tonight and make our own drama right here and now.
“You have stolen the breath right out of my body with your beauty.” His voice is low and sultry.
I blush a shade of red that wholly embodies Valentine's Day. I smooth out the lines of my black lace dress, and Elijah helps me into my coat. He escorts me to the metallic blue Mustang he used to sport around in so many years ago. It seems like a lifetime ago. My memory flashes back to the morning Grandma let me in on the fact that I was left in a basket on her and Dad's back porch. I remember how simple my life was back then. I had no idea what I was or who I was destined to become. All I knew was that I loved Elijah from the moment our fingers touched, and I still do.
“Where did you go just now?” he asks.
A warm smile washes over me as I take him in like this. What I wouldn't have given back then to have him the way I do now. I shift so that the hem of my dress rides up to my mid-thigh. “Oh you know, this car just brings back so many memories.”
His lids lower, and his beautiful smile flashes on his face lifting my mood to altitudes where the oxygen levels are low, and I grow dizzy under his playful gaze. “Your memories deceive you. I wanted you then as much as I do now.”
His words summon flames to my skin, and I shift in my seat wondering if he plans on putting this fire out anytime in the next few minutes. “And had you not been under strict hands off orders, what would you have done differently?” My gaze fixes on his darkening brow, moving to his mouth when he draws his lower lips in with his teeth.
His hand brushes across my knee soft as a feather and then hovers over my thigh. I can feel the heat radiating from his palm, and I ache for his touch again even though I’ve only gone seconds without it. I see the hint of satisfaction hiding behind his serious expression.
“I would have found any excuse to sweep across your silky skin because I just needed to touch you. I would have kissed away your tears that day. I would have breathed in the scent of your hair when you hugged me goodbye that night instead of holding my breath. There’s fifty eight things I would have done differently on that day alone. This being one of the many.”
His hand glides in behind my neck and guides me to his lips. Elijah’s kiss rocks all of my senses. I become acutely aware of every cell in my body, wishing it could fuse our bodies together and become one. This desire has been growing stronger with every kiss we share, each touch. I think he must feel it too, whatever this pull is.
We managed to pull ourselves apart and make it to the theater on time. It’s not an easy task to do when all I want is to share every part of myself with him. He is always the one to stop things, to never let it get too far. Elijah can’t break his convictions. They’re hard wired into his soul. He’s careful not to drive me insane with his touch, but that line is becoming grayer by the minute.
We step out of the warm theater, and a blast of Northern wind hits my bare legs. I brace myself for the dash to the car. “I can't believe you didn't cry.” I shove Elijah playfully on the shoulder. He hugs my waist and looks at me through half lowered lids.
“Movies do not make me cry, sorry. In Titanic, I was thinking to myself, girl let him on the board, there's room. At least take turns, but no, she let him go, she's watching him sink like a stone while saying I'll never let him go. But I’m thinking, you just did!”
“I know. You're absolutely right. Rose could have made out with a few less toes, just to save the love of her life.” We share a laugh as we walk to the car. Elijah looks dapper in his pea coat and scarf. I'm in my wool dress coat and black knee high boots leaving a nice vent for all my heat to escape. Every icy burst of air chills me to the core.
“Aw you're freezing just thinking about poor Jack, come here,” he teases and replaces my glove with his toasty warm hand instead, both go into his coat pocket.
“Much better thank you.
” I say rewarding him with a steamy kiss next to his Mustang. A glimmer of what will be coming tonight, flashes in my eyes, and I think he may have caught on to my plan. An understanding of some sort passes between us with a shared look of desire.
“Brennen?”
I instantly recognize the hurt in the man's voice before I turn. Sam is standing on the sidewalk with a few guys from his swim team just a few feet away. His eyes turned upward in deep-seated agony as if I held his still beating heart in my bloodied hand. He looks to me and then focuses on Elijah –– shit.
“What the hell?” Sam pushes Elijah hard. My adrenaline spikes with fear. Elijah doesn't fight back, not even when Sam cracks him in the jaw with a hard right hook. I jump away. Elijah never flinches. A small trickle of blood appears on his lower lip causing me to cringe. A look of guilt crosses his eyes, and I know he feels terrible that Sam had to find out this way. He knows all too well what if feels like to witness the love of your life in a heated embrace with someone who is not you.
“Sam, stop!” I foolishly jump in front of Elijah just as Sam rears back again. He stops just short of my head. I glance at his balled fist still held in midair. He thinks the same thing I do, “I can't believe I ever hit her.” Elijah pulls me away and places himself between us.
Sam bucks up to Elijah. “Cousin huh? How long have you been seeing him, Brennen?” His anguished eyes now affixed to me. “How could you lie to me like we don’t even matter?”
His words spear through me like a rusted blade shredding every ounce of conviction I had. What did I do to him? Too caught up in my undying love for Elijah, I was careless with Sam’s heart. He never deserved what I did to him. He’s only ever been wholly good to me.
“Sam you need to go cool off and talk to Brennen when you've collected your thoughts.” Elijah says – always the protector, even when I deserve to be strung up from the branch and branded a liar, a cheater.
Sam's friends try to help him leave the scene, but he brushes them off.
My Soul Laid Bare: Book 4 (The Soul Keeper Series) Page 3