by T. Jones
*****
"There, are you happy now? I told Eliot he could take me on a date." Natalie gave Callie a dirty look as she flopped on her bed. "Five bucks says he shows up with flowers and he's telling me he loves me by the end of the night. He just seems like one of those guys, you know, the ones that are convinced you're soulmates or some shit right away."
"Could be the fact that you screwed his brains out for six hours the first night you met him." Callie said laughing.
"Hey, so I'm good at it. Doesn't mean they have to fall in love the first night."
"Must be all the practice you do."
"Funny, bitch!" Natalie threw a pillow, Callie ducked, laughing more.
"Give this guy a chance, Nat. I don't know Oz very well, but he seems like too much of a player. It's fine to have fun, but I don't know if he's a keeper."
"You just want some of this yourself, I know." Natalie smiled suggestively, then chuckled. "Are you playing hard to get because of the mystery girl that keeps texting you? Do you have some little girlfriend at home that I should know about?"
"A friend, but nothing you need to know about. When's the date?"
"Tomorrow night, I guess. Haven't heard from Oz, so screw him. I'm going down to eat, you coming?"
"Bring me back an apple, would you? I'll eat later, I'm in the middle of a Calc problem." As soon as Natalie left, Callie picked up her phone. It was only Thursday and Jenny had sent five texts. She had only responded to the first one. She told herself that she needed to stick to the plan and give Jenny time to adjust. But the meeting with Teresa had shaken her resolve. Maybe the best thing was to run from the Sisters, run back to Jenny. She knew the redhead wasn't working, her last text said her shift started late because she was still new. Callie started to press the call button, then dropped the phone, turning back to her book. After another minute, she sighed and picked it up again.
"Hi Jenny, how's my favorite redhead?"
"About to call you and yell because you haven't texted me back. How many redheads do you know, anyway?" Callie laughed.
"Okay, so maybe you're just my favorite girl, is that better?"
"Since you don't like boys at all, that would make me your favorite person."
"Hey, I like Chester a lot."
"Okay, but he's a redhead too, so I still win. Why haven't you texted me, busy?"
"Yeah, mostly. It just seems like it makes it harder if we're always talking. Every time I hear from you, I just want to come home."
"I'm sorry. Seriously? How does not talking to someone you love, make you miss them less. That doesn't make any sense."
"Yeah? It made sense in my head, but not now, when I'm talking to you."
"How's your roommate, Natalie? Is she still being trampy? Should I be jealous?"
"Right, like that's going to happen. And stop acting like we're a thing. You're going to find some handsome guy and have ten kids."
"Nope, I think I'll just hang around here and wait for you. I think you flipped me, or whatever you call it when you seduce a straight girl." She laughed loudly.
"You're such a weirdo!"
"Okay, but you'll see. It's fate, I'm telling you." Fate again? Callie changed the subject.
"So how's the job, how's Holly doing?" They talked for twenty minutes, until Natalie returned to the room. She winked and smiled knowingly at Callie, tossing her apple on the bed. She sat down at her desk and opened a book. Callie finished her conversation and went back to her Calculus. Talking to Jenny was exhilarating, but within a few minutes she felt deflated again. She couldn't allow herself to hope for something that would never happen. She had seen a flash of Jenny's future, of the children and grandchildren gathered around. Where was the husband? Of course, at ninety-three, Jenny would have out lived him. She no longer doubted the visions, such things were beginning to seem commonplace. It seemed odd, that she never saw her own future. Maybe that was against some as yet undiscovered law of the supernatural. The thought made her laugh aloud and Nat glanced up at her for a moment.
"Wow, Natalie. You're actually doing homework, I'm impressed."
"Normally I'd just do the Professor, but with all the slut shaming you've been doing lately, I thought I'd give this a try." Callie still had her pillow, and threw it back at her, laughing.
*****
Eliot checked his shirt in the mirror for the fifth time. He had cleaned his old van up as best he could and hung a new air freshener from the mirror. He checked his profile in the mirror, happy with what he saw. He had shaved and man-scaped, just in case. He decided he shouldn't expect sex. The night they'd met, Natalie was obviously out of it, drunk and high. A woman as nice as Natalie would take a little wooing. Eliot had flowers, and a reservation at a very good restaurant. Eddie had left earlier, probably out partying by now, probably already hooking up with some girl. Well, Eliot didn't need to be jealous, he had his own pretty lady waiting for him. He whistled happily as he climbed into the van.
Eliot looked across the table at Natalie, smiling broadly. He looked around. She was easily the prettiest girl in the room. They were looking at the menu.
"Jesus balls, Eliot. This place is ridiculously expensive. We could have gone to Red Lobster, you don't have to spend this much. Let's sneak out, or I can say I feel sick."
"Don't be silly, I told you this was going to be a nice date. After this we're going to the Mall of America, I've got seats at the comedy club."
"Wow, that sounds like fun." Natalie tried, but it just wasn't happening for her. The comedy club was funny, but a couple of joints beforehand would have made it more tolerable.
They got in the van and found their way out of the huge parking lot. It was nearly one in the morning, and Nat faked a giant yawn. "God, Eliot, I'm really shot. I better get home."
"Friday night, you can sleep all day tomorrow. Quick nightcap at my house?" Natalie shrugged. He had dropped two hundred bucks on dinner, and he was trying hard.
"Alright, but I want to get home before it's too late."
Eliot dropped Natalie off at six in the morning. The sex hadn't been quite as outstanding as the first time, the blond girl had kind of just laid there. But he wasn't going to tell Eddie that! He knew Eddie would have some story about his night, some tale about an orgy or some crap like that. Eddie always scored, but sometimes his stories were over the top. He watched Natalie walk to her dorm door and when she turned and glanced back, he blew her a kiss. She waved quickly then went inside. She hadn't been nearly as much fun as the first time, but Eliot was sure that it would be alright. She had talked shit about Oz all night, and he figured that meant it was about over. She would be his girlfriend soon.
He drove home, tired and becoming a little angry. After the price of that meal, it seemed like Natalie could have been a little more enthusiastic. He went into the house and fell asleep on the couch. When he woke up his head hurt, and it was ten. He pulled out his phone and dialed his brother. As expected, Eddie had some fantastic story about the two girls he had hooked up with at a bar downtown. Eliot lied as best he could, but Eddie could read him like a book.
"So, did you blow it with this girl already? Flowers? She thinks you're a tool, ha, I think you're a tool! Girls don't give a shit about that stuff, it's all attitude. She'll go running back to that Ozzy guy, you watch, I know the type. She just wanted a fling and now she'll go back to that rich dipshit."
"Eddie, bullshit, she really likes me. She wouldn't sleep with me if she didn't. We were doing it half the night again."
"Yeah? You don't sound really happy about it. Girl like that, probably screws everybody she goes out with." Eliot's head hurt. He knew he might get his ass kicked but he didn't care.
"Fuck you Eddie. You think all those sluts you hang around with aren't banging half the city? I finally meet a halfway decent woman and you have to be a dick. Don't even talk to me, you prick." Eliot threw his phone down, walked into his bedroom and slammed the door.
*****
A week later, Eliot
was beginning to think that Eddie was right. He had texted Natalie repeatedly after their date. He had invited her out again but her reply was curt, she said no thanks. That was it, no thanks! It occurred to Eliot that possibly Oz had gotten wind of their dates, and that he was keeping her from seeing him. Eddie kept telling him to give it up, Natalie was just using him for a good meal. As usual he blamed Elliot.
"I told you this would happen. You treat these girls too nice, there's no challenge for them. You have to impress them right out of the gate, then pull back, make them come to you. I told you all the romance and flowers were a mistake, but you never listen to me."
"Well, let's face it Eddie, you're smoother, and better looking." Eddie laughed at him.
"I am smoother, that's for sure. But we're identical twins you moron, nobody can tell us apart, still. It's been that way all our lives."
"I don't care what you say. I'm going over to that drug house where she hangs out. If I can talk to her, just find out if she's okay, I'll feel better. I think Ozzy might be stopping her from calling me, maybe he's abusing her. I just have to be sure she's okay."
*****
Natalie had walked outside to smoke a cigarette. She found it hilarious that Billy let people smoke pot or crack in the house, but insisted that she go outside for her nicotine breaks. She hadn't been outside long when Elliot Nucci walked up to the fence, motioning for her to come over to him. She'd had enough of Elliot. The guy was turning into a real pain in the ass. Oz had told her to let him know when Eliot came around, that he would deal with it. She didn't like Elliot hanging around, but she really didn't want to see Ozzy and his buddies fuck the guy up. She decided to just try to get rid of him herself.
"Elliot, what the hell? Are you following me now? You need to give it up. You're a nice guy and everything, but I'm just not interested."
"I just wanted to be sure you're alright. Is Ozzy making you be like this? Is he jealous? Did you tell him about what we did?"
"Ozzy's not the jealous type, Elliot. It's not him, it's me. I don't want to go out with you again. Can't you just leave me alone?"
"Can you get me in? I just want to sit down and talk for a while. We can work this out. I just want to take you away from all this, take you to a place where you'll be safe."
"You know what? Okay. I'll get you in. Wait over there, I have to run to the can, okay?" Natalie shrugged. She had tried, but some people had thick skulls. Screw it, she would tell Ozzy and let him deal with the asshole.
*****
Callie spent the weekend on homework. The idea of not going home until Thanksgiving had gone out the window. She promised Jenny that she would be seeing her within a week, two at the most. The redhead's flirting was getting to her. She had passed it off as silliness at first, until the night they spent together. Much as she wanted to deny herself that, denying Jenny anything was hard for her. The vague feeling that being around Jenny might cause her more harm, had eased. She would go home, spend time with her family and Jenny, just see what happened.
The Sisters were leaving her alone as Teresa had promised, but the dreams were not. Natalie appeared often, and occasionally Oz. They were pursued by twins, men whose faces Callie couldn't see. In her dream, she was trying to stop them, trying to keep them away from Natalie. And always, just when she thought she could nearly see who these twins were, Danielle appeared, pulling at her urgently. Then darkness suddenly, and the dream ended.
She wasn't sure about the Sisters, about sharing this with them. For now, the group could go its own way. And since Teresa was one of the Elders, Callie didn't plan to talk to her either. She didn't strike Callie as someone she could trust. She had admitted there were things she wouldn't tell Callie. Danielle was an option. She'd only spent a little time with her since they'd slept together, and she didn't intend to let that happen again. Perhaps in the future, after Jenny found her farm boy and started her brood of children. The way things stood, it felt like she'd be cheating. She wasn't sure what had happened to her roommate. She was afraid she was back with Ozzy Marsh.
Sunday afternoon Callie wandered around the campus a little. Fall was settling in, and the leaves were beginning to turn. It was a relief to just walk the paths around the college with only the sights and smells of Autumn to think about. By early afternoon, she found herself hungry and near the food stand. Not surprisingly, she also found Danielle, sitting with a cup of coffee, reading the paper. She ordered a sub and a soda, then went to sit down with the tall woman. She unwrapped the sub, throwing the pickles to the side. Danielle grabbed them quickly. Callie looked at her smirking. "I thought you hated food thieves."
"Only when it's my food they're stealing. I've been known to hurt people."
"Funny, us both being here. Have you been waiting for me?"
"Just thought I'd check in. Been a few days. Not that I'm expecting a decision, just wanted to check on you. Here's something interesting in the paper. Isn't this that guy you know?" Callie glanced down at the newspaper article Danielle pointed out. There was a small picture of Oz, and the story talked about the fact that the young lawyer had political aspirations. He was expected to announce a run for office in the near future. Callie smiled at Danielle.
"Can't things just be random sometimes, Dani? Why do you people have to always have an agenda? Couldn't we just have a nice chat, you could steal my pickles, and then go our separate ways?"
"Okay, forget about the article then. Here's something random. Want to go to my place and continue where we left off the other day?" Callie blushed a little.
"Continue? Maybe someday, but not right now. There's too much going on, too many loose ends, too many unanswered questions."
"Jenny? Is that her name?"
"Do not mess with her Danielle." Danielle glanced up into Callie's eyes. The blue seemed to fade a bit and Danielle felt a chill run through her. Not much scared her as a rule.
"Easy Callie. We're on the same team here. I want nothing but the best for Jenny."
"And that can't possibly be me? Is that what you're saying?"
"I didn't say anything like that, but it seems to be what you're thinking." Callie stood up quickly, sliding the remnants of her sandwich over toward Danielle.
"When you decide to stop trying to mind fuck me, I'll have lunch with you again." She turned and walked quickly away. She knew full well that she might not be the best person for Jenny, but being reminded of it didn't make her happy.
Danielle sat quietly picking at the rest of the sandwich, thinking. She had seen Callie's eyes turn pale like that before, when she had forced her way into the group. She had never heard of, or seen anything like it before. Callie Fisher was much stronger than Teresa imagined, and that fact made Danielle uneasy. It was too late to change what she had planned. Teresa said that it had been foreseen by the group, and she had faith that they knew what they were doing. She could only hope that Callie would forgive her, and not turn against her.
Chapter 20
Callie spent the week avoiding Danielle. It wasn't hard, she just stayed away from the food court. She knew she would sense any attempt by the group to find her, and that Danielle wasn't strong enough herself. She had begun to think that none of the members, even the Elders, could enter her mind without her allowing it. She wasn't sure how, but she felt her abilities growing stronger. The dreams were clearer, if not perfect. She had no idea who the twins were that seemed to be involved somehow with Ozzy, but they were always together in the dreams, and sometimes Jenny was there. That scared her.
She was concerned about Natalie as well. The girl had started up with Ozzy again. From what she had said, Eliot was a nice guy. But nice was sometimes boring, and Nat was easily bored. She was ditching classes again and seemed wasted half of the time when Callie did see her. Callie tried again to rein the girl in a little.
"Hey Natalie, how about I call Chester, we could double date with you and Eliot. Chester's always good for a laugh. We could go bowling or something." Natalie rolled her eyes
.
"The only thing lamer than bowling, would be bowling with Eliot. No thanks. He's been calling and texting me all the damn time, he will not let it go. He's like, stalking me now. He keeps showing up at Billy's parties. Oz is getting sick of it and so am I."
"I'm going to call Chester anyway. Maybe I can talk him into going to Billy's party on Thursday night. He was all freaked out because you guys were doing lines last time."
"Yeah? Can't guarantee that isn't going to happen, but usually it's later. If it's crowded, just stay outside. People are careful about where they're doing that shit."
"Because of the cops, or a big wind?"
"You're a laugh a minute Fisher."
"Thanks, one of us has to be." Callie sat down on her bed and dialed Travis. It took some convincing but he finally agreed to pick her up in his old truck. Natalie was gone when Callie finished her last class and got ready. Travis picked her up about eight and they drove the few blocks to the party house. It was dark, and there were no street lights close by. The only light was that coming from the front of the house. As they approached the yard they heard a commotion. Someone was obviously in pain, and cursing loudly. As they got closer it was clear that there was a fight in progress. More of a beating than a fight. They hurried through the open gate. Four men, who Callie recognized as friends of Ozzy's had another man on the ground and were kicking him repeatedly, savagely. The man on the ground had his arms wrapped around his head and neck, attempting to protect himself from the barrage. Another half dozen people stood around, watching, making no effort to stop the melee.
"Jesus Christ, they're going to kill that guy!" Travis ran into the middle of the group, pushing at the largest of the men. "Enough, he's out, you're going to kill him." Within seconds, Travis had also been knocked to the ground. Callie ran to stand over Travis, eyes pale as the moonlight.