Appointed

by J. F. Jenkins

  Zes welcomed the numbness growing inside of him.

  No more thinking. It was easier to just be empty for the time being.

  Chapter Seventeen

  “I’m worried about him,” Anj said, and was grateful for Jewl’s strength. He needed as much of it as possible.

  “It’s been three days. Of course he’s going to take it hard. First love isn’t the easiest thing to get over. I seem to remember you didn’t eat for a week after our first breakup,” Jewl said as she squeezed his hand.

  “I ate, but alone in my room. My point is, I don’t know how to help him. At first I thought he wanted to talk to me about things, like he was finally going to open up to me. Now he’s more closed off than ever.”

  “Give him time. He’s going through a lot right now and needs to recover. They both do. Chey’s been bawling her eyes out. It’s kind of getting annoying because the sound carries down the hall. Even Halyn is getting fed up with it, and I didn’t think that was possible.”

  “Good. I’m glad she’s miserable,” Anj said, and clenched his free fist as well as Jewl’s hand.

  She breathed sharply. “Relax your grip. You’re going to break my hand. And no, I don’t have much sympathy for her since she made her own bed. Plus I—”

  “Saw it coming, yeah. So you’ve said. I can’t believe he was dumb enough to sleep with her. They’ve known each other for all of a couple of months? I just… he’s not supposed to be the reckless one. That’s my job.”

  “Jealous?” Jewl teased.

  “A tiny bit.”

  She touched his cheek. “Sorry, honey, that’s not changing any time soon. Something tells me you’ll live. Besides, you like that I’m hard to get. If there wasn’t a challenge, you’d be bored.”

  “Sometimes, yeah. The bottom line is, I love you and respect your wishes. Deep down, I know your reasons are right, and this whole situation proves it. But it’s not easy. I can’t help how I’m wired, and it’s hard to not be a little jealous.”

  “He’s always been more passionate than you,” Jewl said softly.

  “So that’s the hang-up?” he teased.

  She snorted and completely dodged his question. “Don’t worry about not doing enough for him. Just keep being there when he needs you, and it’ll patch itself up over time. That’s what he needs most.”

  Anj nodded. “The thing I hate is, when he needs me the most, I never seem to be able to do anything but watch and wait.”

  “Can you look at me for a moment?” she asked, touching his cheek.

  Anj turned on his sight spell and gazed into her eyes. All the hard emotions he felt on the inside melted away. She was so good at making him so vulnerable.

  “I know you might not believe me, but you do a great job at being the best brother possible for him. No, you’re not perfect. Sibling rivalries happen. But don’t think you’re failing. Sometimes all people need is to know they aren’t alone. It’s definitely helped me through a lot.” She kissed his lips, and he was glad they had made up. He didn’t know how he’d have survived all of this without her.

  As he stared into her beautiful, pale eyes, his eyesight began to fritz like static. For a moment, he thought maybe his magic was running out. Instead of the picture going to black, however, he saw Kale and his father.

  “Not now,” Anj whispered.

  “What’s wrong?” Jewl asked, her voice sounding far away. Before he could answer, he was overtaken by his vision.

  “Thanks for meeting with me on such short notice, Ilo. I saw a window of opportunity, and I had to take it,” Kale said, and waved for Anj’s father to follow him down a park path.

  Anj’s father did so, sticking his hands into his pockets. “Your message confirmed everything I’d been fearing for a while now. The Fate massacre and my boys’ conception has always been a little too much of a coincidence to me. Francis predicted their birth, didn’t she?”

  “She places the strings of life onto the loom, so to speak, yes,” Kale said.

  “And Neil measures their length, and you execute. Those are your specialties. I remember. What I’m saying is, she predicted their birth so Neil could orchestrate the massacre, guaranteeing that the next in my line would get the powers of the ninety-nine slain,” Ilo said in a hushed voice.

  “You’re fast.”

  “I’m more than just good looks. What I want to know is why?”

  “Because the Divine have made a deal with the Devil.”

  Ilo frowned. “Why would they do something like that?”

  “Power. They want to be the gods and goddesses of the Earth again. Worshiped like they were in the ancient days. At least some of them do. Others, not so much. They’re split in two. The demons have convinced Neil to be on their side, though, along with a few other members of the Greek Divine. One of the demons has been chosen to rise to power and bridge the gap between the Divine and the spiritual balance in place.” Kale made eye contact with Ilo. “I don’t even want to think about what they’re going to do to your family. You need to be careful. Neil is not happy with you.”

  “Of course he’s not.”

  “You might be the one-hundredth Fate,” Kale said.

  Anj’s father didn’t bat an eye at the news. Granted, Anj didn’t know quite what that meant, not exactly, but through his past dreams, he didn’t think it was a good thing. Not with how Kale spoke of it. He knew that when a Fate gained power, another lost the ability. The energy of the Fatehood was like a constant cycle. Ninety-nine Fates died when I was created. I was born with the power of ninety-nine inside of me. One hundred would be how I became unlocked, so if my father was the one hundredth… Anj shook his head, tears welling in his eyes.

  “I’m not scared of Neil or his political games,” Ilo said firmly. “And if he wants to kill me and spark my son’s powers, then so be it. I’ll gladly give my strength to Anj because I know he won’t use it for evil.”

  The image faded to black.

  “Anj, are you all right?” Jewl asked, shaking his arm. The urgency in her voice and the roughness in her grasp snapped him out of the trance quickly, not giving him the time to linger over what he’d just seen.

  He closed his eyes and scowled when he felt tears trail down his cheeks. Instantly, he wiped them away. “I’m fine.”

  She smacked his arm. “You’re such a bad liar. Did you have another of those daydreams?”

  “Yes,” he said, and wanted badly to elaborate on what he’d seen. But who was watching him? He could tell Jewl about his dreams, but Anj had a sneaking suspicion the Elders didn’t know what he saw during these waking visions. If they were responsible for his father’s death, then Anj didn’t want them to know how informed he actually was. Not until he had more answers at least. But I’m going to need her help.

  Forcing a smile, Anj grabbed Jewl’s hands, kissed them, and then kissed her cheek before leaning into her ear and whispering, “I know why my father died. But act happy because I don’t know who is watching.”

  Her hands tensed up, but a laugh was what left her mouth. “Flattery will get you everywhere, dear. Do tell me more.”

  “With pleasure.” He practically purred and leaned in, as though he were going to whisper more sweet nothings into her ear. Instead, he told her the bare details of the dream, every so often placing a kiss on her earlobes. Jewl had always been a good actress, so she played along nicely, giggling and letting out soft moans every so often.

  She giggled one more time and then pulled away from him, holding his face in her hands. “I’ll think about it. But just because I’m Divine doesn’t mean you can take advantage of me. Unlike my mother, I still have morals.”

  “Divine you are but not only by blood. I will be more than happy with whatever you give me.” He smirked. Thank you was what he wanted to say. This was her roundabout way of saying she’d help him. Asking her to use her connections to the Divine was a lot, and it meant a lot that she would consider it for him. Jewl hated her mother along with being Divin
e.

  “I owe it to you after everything that’s happened,” she whispered.

  Anj shook his head. “No, you don’t.”

  But he understood exactly what she was feeling. Their love might have righted all past wrongs, but the desire to atone, to go above and beyond to make each other’s lives better, was exactly what he felt too. She is the one.

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Dear Mister Zesiro Willam, we thank you for your application to… blah, blah, blah… and are proud to offer you admission to our school.” Zes’s eyes bugged out of his sockets as he continued to read the letter he’d received in the mail. “Enclosed are all of your forms along with an information packet.… We hope to see you in the fall.”

  It was a nice perk on an otherwise gloomy Valentine’s Day. He’d skipped classes, calling in sick, and hid in his room eating microwavable pizza rolls and ranch tortilla chips, guzzling down soda in his pajamas. Anj had gone to class and promised to bring him any notes and homework he might have missed. Most of his time was spent playing video games and watching movies. He avoided the phone every time it rang.

  Four days had passed since his breakup with Cheyenne, and he’d made the mistake of answering a phone call only to find out it was her, wanting to talk. He’d hung up without saying more than hello. Anj called it harsh. Zes didn’t care. Granted, one of the calls today might have been his brother or a teacher checking up on him. He’d let them assume he was sleeping.

  For the first time since the breakup, Zes was starting to feel normal. He’d dutifully gone to his classes the other days, had suffered looking at Cheyenne from across the cafeteria as she sat awkwardly with Halyn, and had fantasized about pushing Denver off of a cliff every time he saw the guy in the hallway. Now, of course, Cheyenne listened to Zes and stayed away from the creep.

  It’ll only be a matter of time before she goes back, he thought sourly, and it caused his arm to burn. Ever since he’d distanced himself from her, the pain had increased, as if it were a fresh and new burn. Sometimes it happened while he slept, and he dreamed about being in the underworld again. The dreams were vague, thankfully, but one thing always stood out. Three words. You’re her gift echoed in his mind, as if someone were trying to get inside of his head. He rubbed his arm.

  You’re wrong. It’ll only be a matter of time before she goes back to you.

  Shaking his head, Zes sat back down on the couch. “Why would she come back to me?”

  Have confidence in yourself. It’s so much more attractive. Show her what she’s missing. Show her you don’t need her, and she’ll be all over you again. For real, and not simply because of guilt. Trust me. I know her far better than you. Something inside of him was insisting, but Zes shoved the voice aside.

  “I’m going crazy. Maybe I should go outside and get some air,” he said. The only time he had ideas and thoughts like that was when his arm burned again. Almost as if it were some kind of channel to somewhere else. The only somewhere else he could be connected to through it was the underworld, though, and that scared him — a lot.

  At the mention of outside, Guy’s ears perked up and the dog walked over, nuzzling his head under Zes’s hands, which still held his acceptance letter. He petted the dog, his eyes never leaving the paper.

  With a smile, he stood up so he could put on his slippers. “All right, I’ll let you go potty. It’s been a while, huh?” He checked the clock. Classes would be ending for the day soon. Anj should already be on his way back. His brother had been kind enough to leave the dog home for the day to keep Zes company. Anj knew how to get around just fine on his own anyway.

  He hooked Guy up to the leash, and they went outside through the back door. Zes stood in the cold in only his pajama pants and a t-shirt, but he didn’t mind. Snow was floating down in soft, gentle puffs. It was beautiful and not something he’d stopped to admire in a while. There were a lot of things he’d been missing and hadn’t even realized until now. Cheyenne had sucked up a lot of his life. He’d been happy but engrossed in her. Now that she wasn’t around him so often, he was able to see more than simply her.

  The snow brought peace, and the dry cool air helped clear his head. “What do I do, buddy? Should I stay here for college? Or go see what else is out there? What do you think?”

  The dog barked. Zes didn’t know what it meant, but it was nice to be listened to, at least. Once Guy finished his business, the two went back inside. Anj was back from class and shaking snow from his hair near the doorway.

  “Where were you?” he asked.

  “Piddle time,” Zes said. “Don’t worry, I wasn’t seen by the teachers or sneaking off for a secret meeting with the ex. I’m staying ‘sick’.”

  “How you looked earlier today, I didn’t think you’d be parading yourself around campus, but the secret meeting had come to mind. Wasn’t sure if she’d try to talk you back into anything.”

  “You say that like she’s manipulative.”

  “When it comes to relationships, all girls do it.” Anj said it trying to be funny, but it didn’t tickle Zes’s funny bone in the slightest. “Though I do have a number of cards to pass on to you from your adoring public. I’ll get them from my bag, hang on.”

  Zes raised an eyebrow. “Adoring public?” He rolled his eyes at the idea. Most of his friends were based on association. At least, he thought so. The students at Vala liked Anj, so they had to like him too, right? But getting some cards was pretty cool all the same and unexpected.

  Anj knelt down and dug around inside his bag for a moment before pulling out a small stack of cards and candy. “Yes, and most of them are from girls. Who are crafty, I should add, because I feel glitter and construction paper. My bag is going to be sparkling for the rest of my life.”

  Taking the cards from his brother, Zes settled back down on the couch with the dog. Sure enough, there were a number of cards that had been made by hand. “‘Happy Valentine’s Day, Z. You’re the best. Hugs and kisses from Noel…?”

  “She’s cute. And she smells like cheesecake,” Anj said. “Redhead, I believe, and petite. One of the witches.”

  “Oh, right, okay.” He half-smiled and looked at the next one. “This one is from Halyn. ‘Love you bunches. Don’t be a stranger.’” He’d need to call her. It wasn’t fair of him to punish her because of what Cheyenne had done. The girls were roommates and best friends, but if Zes could stay neutral every time Jewl and Anj had a fight, then Halyn could do the same thing.

  Zes picked up another card, reading it silently this time. “What are you doing sitting around anyway? Don’t you have some hot Valentine’s date to plan for like usual?”

  “Not tonight. We decided it’d be easier to go out another time. Restaurants are a pain to get into, I don’t feel like cooking or doing much of anything beyond studying for my test next week—”

  “It’s next week.”

  “—and I have six hours of lectures to dictate into notes I can use, again, and at least a hundred pages of reading. That’s only so far. I didn’t take slacker courses this semester like you did.”

  Zes snorted. “I don’t have my life planned out, so I didn’t take college-level classes. Not my fault I know how to plan ahead and get most of my required classes out of the way. Rather than break myself trying to get ahead, I filled up on electives. Sort of. Outside of Calc and Mythology, which are really hard I should add, I don’t have a whole lot to do. But I wouldn’t call it slacking.”

  “I was teasing anyway. Back on topic though, we decided to go out later. Besides, you know how I feel about Valentine’s Day,” Anj said with a wave of his hand.

  “You don’t need a special holiday to prove you love her,” Zes said, and went back to searching through his stack of goodies.

  There was a plethora of hard candies and chocolates attached to a number of cards, even a couple of small flowers, which he hated because every time Zes saw a flower all he thought about was Cheyenne. There was one card from Teague in the mix, which was a little a
wkward, but it was the type of card Zes would have picked out in elementary school, robot and everything. Most of them were from girls whom he didn’t know by name or sight. Anj had all of their details: which ladies were cute, which to avoid, and what they smelled like.

  With a scowl, Zes put the cards down on the coffee table. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were trying to set me up with someone.”

  Anj shrugged innocently. “A rebound might not hurt.”

  “Did you ever have a rebound?”

  “No, can’t say I ever did. Thought about it, but most of the girls here aren’t worth my time.”

  “But they are mine?” Zes shook his head, rolling his eyes.

  “I think you can do better, but for the purposes of a rebound, they’ll do fine.”

  “And why do I need a rebound?”

  “It’s only an idea, first of all, and the reason why I’m suggesting it is because you need to remember that you are awesome, can do better than Chey, and that there are girls out there who are interested in you. They probably have been for a while. I’m not saying go out and do unmentionable things with them, but it might not hurt to flirt a little.”

  Zes picked up the last card in the pile. It had a rose attached to the front of a shiny, red paper heart with lace around the edges. There was no name attached, but he recognized Cheyenne’s handwriting. “I love you.” He picked off the rose, touching the pedals tenderly as if it were her, then set it back on the table again.

  He ran a hand over his lips, trying to think. “Maybe it wouldn’t hurt, but I’m not sure I want to. We just broke up. It’s been four days. Can’t I take a break?”

  “Of course you can,” Anj said. “But don’t feel bad if maybe you do find yourself wanting to flirt a little if the opportunity arises. Don’t be afraid to move on. I don’t want you to be hung up on her.”