by Kimbra Swain
I slowed down as we got into Boulder. I didn’t want to get a ticket in her car. Abby looked more simply dressed compared to last night. I preferred her like this. Simple and beautiful. Parts of me wished our relationship could be more. I would be happy with whatever we had. The soul bond red strands were probably because somewhere inside me I wanted it to be more. I just didn’t realize how strongly I wanted it. The kiss was amazing. I had too many thoughts of doing it again. Maybe one day she would get to the point where she could conceive of us having a relationship, but until then I’d be whatever she needed me to be. It would probably never work out anyway. We seemed to constantly be at each other’s throats.
I found a spot for the car about a block from the tavern. I walked around the car as she got out. “I was going to get the door for you,” I said.
“It’s okay. I am not helpless,” she said.
“Of course, I know that, but this is supposed to look like a date, correct?”
“You are right. Shall we, Mr. Duarte?”
I took her hand, and we pretended to be in love.
I walked into the tavern. The same burly red-headed chap was behind the bar. He noticed me and nodded to a booth near the back. He gave me a thumbs-up and pointed at Abby. I gave him the confident look guys give each other when they appreciate the other’s woman.
“I had a booth saved for us,” I explained and we walked to the back. She started to sit opposite of me. “You aren’t going to be able to see the room over there.”
“I thought it was best I feel the room, and you watch it,” she said.
“If you say so,” and I sat down with full view of the door.
The bartender walked over with the menus. I noticed this time his name was Finn. “Good to see you again, Finn. This is Abby.”
“Hello Finn. It is nice to meet you,” Abby said.
“Good to meet you too, ma’am. Thanks for letting him out of the doghouse. Now what can I get for you two?” Finn asked.
Abby looked at me and laughed, “Doghouse, huh?”
I shrugged. “Give us two glasses of the Eagle Rare, and we will decide on food in a bit.” I handed him five one hundred-dollar bills. Abby’s eyebrows shot up. “Finn, we might be here a while tonight. This is to cover the loss of you turning tables, tonight”
“Thanks, Tadeas. Whatever you need, just let me know,” Finn said as he tucked the bills into his pocket and hurried away to get our drinks.
“That was awfully generous. But good thinking, if we are here a while I would hate to see him not get compensated,” she said.
“I learned that from you from our first date,” I said.
“I see. And how many dates have we been on by your count, Tadeas?” she said having fun with it.
“The horseback riding date. The visiting that old church date. We’ve had several dates where we had meals together, doughnuts, lunch, lamb, and spaghetti. Too bad we didn’t get that pizza date in.”
She laughed. “That one was a disaster.”
“It happens. We made it through it,” I said.
Finn showed back up with the drinks. We both ordered bbq sandwiches and fries. Finn hurried off to put in our orders.
“He’s a shifter. Wolf, I think,” Abby said in my head.
“Is he dangerous?”
“Not sure. He seems to be working and living a life, but he could be just the lookout for a boss. An informant. Just keep an eye on him.”
“I enjoyed the dancing date,” she said and smiled.
“Meh. I’m a terrible dancer,” I said.
“Actually, I thought you were an excellent dance partner. I can’t wait to do it again. Maybe there will be dancing on our trip this weekend,” she said. I got the feeling at this point she spoke sincerely.
“Maybe so,” I said taking a sip of my drink. I watched her close her eyes. I could just barely feel her power stirring in the room. “Anything else?”
“Not in the building, but something is approaching. Something close,” she said.
I heard a squeal from the door, and I tensed up and started to reach for the knife in my boot. I saw the source of the shriek, and sunk down in the seat.
“Samantha and Travis,” I said to her.
Her eyes grew wide, and she sat utterly still. It was too late. Samantha saw us and dragged Travis back to where we sat.
“I knew it. I knew it. You two are dating, aren’t you?” she beamed at both of us.
“Um, no. Well, we are just having a drink and talking,” I stammered. “What the fuck do we do?”
“Play the game, Jag,” she said. “Sam, it’s good to see you. Hello, Travis.”
“Hello, Miss Davenport,” he mumbled.
Finn showed up with our sandwiches.
“Just a drink, this is a date,” Sam said. “Can we sit with you? They have no tables available.”
“No,” I said.
“Sure,” Abby said and I gave her a dirty look. “Tadeas, it’s not like it’s our first date. I’ll sit with you.” She got up and moved to join me on the bench. My anxiety skyrocketed.
“What are you doing? We are supposed to be working. They are a distraction.”
“They are the work. They are the ones I felt coming.” She looked me in the eye, and I saw pain.
Samantha jumped into the seat on the other side of the table, and Travis sat down beside her. She went off with a barrage of questions, “I knew you were going to start dating. You look totally good together. How long have you really been going out? Were you together when you were in the class Abby? Oh my! This is exciting.”
I cringed and wanted to crawl in a hole. Abby took my hand and squeezed it. “Samantha, slow down. No, this is very new for both of us,” she said. Samantha started to continue on, but Finn brought them menus.
“I’m going to have to see some I.D. from the both of you,” he said.
They each produced I.D.s to show him. He looked at them closely. Then he looked at me. I just shrugged, again. I was tongue-tied at the moment. He handed back the I.D.s.
“Ok, what can I get for you?”
“I just want a coke,” Travis said.
“I’d like what they are having,” Samantha said and Finn walked off. “Please don’t say anything. Sometimes we just need to get out of the compound.”
“We can discuss it later,” Abby said. “Sam, tell me how things are going for you.”
“Oh, I’m fine. I love the new training. I hope you guys put me with Travis. I love him. I’d hate to be separated from him,” she said.
Travis turned red, and tried to look like he watched the baseball game on the television hanging over the bar. Occasionally he would look down at his phone. Looked like he played a game or something. He showed no interest in Sam’s excitement or any of the conversation at the table.
“You know we don’t have any control over that,” Abby said. I was glad she continued to talk. It gave me time to calm down.
“You should. Perhaps that’s something you could change,” Sam suggested.
“Perhaps so. Maybe I can look into it,” Abby offered. “Now let’s not talk about the compound. Tell me what you guys do for fun here in Boulder.”
Samantha went on a rant about the lack of good clubs in Boulder, and how they go down to Denver a lot hence the need for fake identification.
“Get yourself together,” she said, but she looked at me with a teasing smile.
“I was not expecting company,” I said.
“The whole point was to draw attention. We succeeded. Just be ready for anything, okay?”
“What are they?”
“Human, I think. It’s hard to tell sometimes. There are just too many possibilities out there, but they are bonded.”
“Like us?”
“Yes and no. They are bonded to each other, but each have tethers to something else. I just learned to see this with grandfather. I’m not sure exactly what I am looking at. Our bonds look red and purple to me. Theirs are green and black.” She m
oved closer to me in the booth seat, and I put my arm around her shoulders. “There you go, play the part.”
I was not playing. I wish she had sat on the inside next to the wall. If something came after us, it would get to her first. I should have thought of that. I knew she could take care of herself. I guessed I was just a chauvinist. It used to be called chivalry. Times changed, and no one liked a knight in shining armor anymore. I looked up, and Samantha beamed at me.
“Sam, what kind of clubs do you like? Any certain kind of music?” I could do this. Just keep them talking and see what happens.
Samantha started talking about clubs and music, and Abby and I just kept the conversation going. Occasionally Travis would speak up. We all ate food, but Abby and I both switched to water after the first bourbon. We both felt uneasy. I could feel the tension in her body as she sat next to me. I could feel the subtle power she pulled in and held it ready to unleash at any moment. I occasionally reached out to feel the spirit world to make sure I could pull us through if I had to. I tried to keep a part of me in contact with her at all times just in case if we had to, we could shift through quickly.
After about an agonizing hour, Samantha said, “We should get back before curfew.”
“Good idea,” I said giving them both my instructor tone. “You ready to go, Abby?”
“Yes,” she looked at them, “We will cover the bill. It was nice talking to both of you outside the compound.”
We all piled out of the booth. I stepped away to the bar, but kept them all in my sight. Finn gave me the bill. I gave him double what was on the receipt, “I’m covering theirs, too. Thanks, Finn. You ever need anything let me know, and I scribbled my phone number onto the back of the receipt.
He picked it up and looked at it, “Thanks, Tadeas. You never know.”
Abby came up behind me and put her arms around me. I turned around to face her and she smiled. Samantha and Travis had made it to the front door, but she looked back at us. I leaned down and kissed Abby on the forehead.
“Boring!” she said.
“Come on, let’s keep an eye on them for a minute,” I said.
“Good idea,” she said and nodded at Finn who watched us. We walked out the front of the building, and I held her hand. We looked both ways, and they were gone.
“Well, that can’t be good,” I said.
“Nope, let's get to the car,” she said and started pulling me that way.
“Why did you give the wolf your number?”
“Abby, I know what it’s like to be alone and a shifter in this world,” I said.
“What if he isn’t alone?” she said.
“Instinct. Please trust me,” I said.
“I do. I just try to be cautious with everyone,” she said.
“We are supposed to be helping people, Abby. You can’t help anyone if you are suspicious of everyone.”
“Okay, we’ll make a deal. You be the open one, and I’ll be skeptical. That way we have both bases covered,” she said not angry. She was serious. We made it to the car, and I started to open the car door when I smelled something off. It smelled like a dead body. I tensed, and moved closer to Abby. “Hold on a minute,” I said to her.
“What is it?” she said. I could feel her pulling more power.
“I smell death. Putrid rot.” I looked both ways up and down the street. It was darker now, and there were a few groups of people walking up and down the sidewalks. I looked through feline eyes to each of them. They all looked normal. I looked down at her, and she clutched my jacket. She closed her eyes as she felt around for any sort of magic around us. I put my hand over hers. “What do we want to do?”
“I feel something, but it’s not good. We might be better running in this situation,” she said. I could feel her tremble a little.
“Get in.” I opened the door of the car and practically shoved her in. I ran to the driver's side and got the car started. I pulled out as fast as I could. She directed me through side roads and before we knew it we were on the long road to the compound on the outskirts of town. The foothills of the Rockies rose along our right side. She sat with her eyes closed.
“Faster,” she said, and I slammed on the gas. The car lurched forward. I looked over to her again, and her eyes shot open. “Tadeas, look out!”
I looked back forward, and there was a black shimmer. The next few things happened very quickly. I heard the bending and crunching of metal, and the car started to flip. I reached over to her. I just needed to touch a part of her. As I felt her cool skin, I could tell that she had thrown a golden shield around us like a bubble. When I touched her, I ripped the cord between the planes and shifted us to the spirit world. We both tumbled separately from the car. I tried to wrap her up as much as I could with the momentum. If we survived this, we would both be bruised up pretty badly. She landed on top and quickly shuffled off of me and stood up. I stood up to look around. I could see the smoldering carcass of the car about 10 feet away.
“Damn, she’s going to kill me,” I thought.
“You hurt?” she asked.
“Not too bad, you?”
“No, but whatever it was isn’t on this side. I can’t feel it anymore. The moment there is danger we have to go back to our world.”
“No, we are safer here.” “No, we aren’t. I don’t know how to use my magic here. And I don’t want to use the sword unless I absolutely have to,” she said.
“Ok, but we are still a good 15 miles from the compound,” I said. Then I caught a flash out of the corner of my eye and dove for her. The report of the gun cut through the eerie silence of the spirit world. When I hit her body, I shifted us back, and she put the shield back up around us. Several more shots rang out, and I could feel their impacts on the shield. Then it was quiet. I put my hands on her face. She had gone pale. “Abby, talk to me.” She moved her mouth, but I couldn’t hear her. I looked down, and her chest was covered in blood. She started to panic. I heard her heart racing. She put her hand up to my chest and pulled it back red. I looked down at myself. It was my blood. It was all my blood. She pushed me off of her with effort and started ripping my shirt off. I could feel her pulling in power. “It’s not bad,” I said. I felt no pain. There was a hole in my chest, and I just didn’t feel it at all.
“Don’t you dare fucking die on me,” she cried in my head.
“It will be fine. It’s not bad.” She pulled off her jacket, and started ripping the bottom of her dress. In any other situation, that might have been extremely hot. She shoved the cloth down on my chest. She started to chant in Latin. I could not make out the words. But as she chanted out loud, I could hear her calling my name in my head.
“Tadeas, please stay with me. I can fix this. Just hang on. Tadeas. Please. Tadeas.” The sound of her voice faded. The light faded. The last thing I saw was her panicked face chanting and a swirl of golden light around her eyes.
A bright light blinded me, and when I looked I saw a beautiful angel with white glowing wings. The angel had piercing green eyes and golden hair. On her side, she wore a long sword. I knew it was a dream. Or maybe I died. I was just glad that whichever one it was, she was here too.
“How do you feel?” she asked.
“I’m not sure,” I said. “Are you okay?”
“That shouldn’t be your concern, you have to get well. She needs you.”
“You are her, aren’t you?”
“Not exactly, but you need to go back now. Thank you Tadeas, for saving her life.” The light around her spread, and I winced at its brightness. Once it faded I could tell I laid on a bed in a hospital room. Several monitors beeped around me. I had an IV in my arm. And sitting in a chair next to the bed, with her head down and asleep was Abby. I picked up my hand and touched her hair. She was real. I was awake now. She stirred and looked up at me.
“Maki, he’s awake,” she called back to the doc, “Lay still. You lost a lot of blood.” She looked tired, and her eyes were red. I looked behind her and saw Ichiro appr
oaching. Behind him Ashley and Jay stood looking concerned. Abby stood up and moved away to let him look at me.
“Hey man, you scared the crap out of us,” Maki said checking all the monitors and looking in my eyes with his light.
“I’m fine. Abby, are you alright?” she nodded at me, but didn’t say anything.
“He looks fine, Abby. Whenever he’s ready to leave, you can take him,” Maki said. He lightly pulled the IV out of my arm. I didn’t even feel it.
“What about the gunshot wound?” I asked and put my hand on my chest. I raised up to look. I was astonished. There wasn’t anything there. I looked up to Abby. She put her hand in mine, and I felt something metal. I turned my hand over. I looked at copper jacketed hollow point bullet charred around edges. It bloomed out like it had hit a steel wall.
“I am glad you were unconscious when I pulled it out, or you might not be happy to see me right now,” she said quietly. I realized that everyone else had left the room. “You threw yourself in front of it. I didn’t get the reinforced shield up fast enough to stop the first one. It cut right through the shield I already had up, but on the other side I haven’t figured out the best way to pull energy. Once you moved us back, I could to do more. I’m sorry I failed you. I almost lost you. You saved me.” She hung her head down like she had done something wrong.
I raised up to sit in the bed, and she sat down on it facing me. “Seems to me that while I bled out because of a gunshot wound, you pulled the bullet out of me, and somehow saved my life.”
“Once I pulled the bullet out of you, I could tell it had an enchantment on it. I started working a counter spell, and healing the wound up the best I could. You still had your cell phone in your pocket, and I called Jay to come get us. We collected the bullets that hit the shield. Aidan is analyzing them. They were all enchanted. We went asking for trouble and got it.”
“Seems like that’s what we would be doing in Paris, too,” I said.
“Yes,” she admitted. “Part of the reason I’m afraid. You can back out if you want to.”