by Amy Miles
“I-I.” Gabby didn’t know how to tell her that it wasn’t an option. “It’s not a good idea. There is too much to get done around here.”
Sammy stomped her foot on the ground and groaned. “Oh, shoot.” She hurried to the door, opened it and peered out at the pouring rain. “I promised to meet a friend at the mall. I’ll meet you tomorrow morning so we can start practicing. There’s only a couple weeks until school starts, you know. Don’t worry about getting stuff done, we’ll help.” Sammy took off through the rain before Alexander or Gabby could say anything.
Feeling awkward at having a guy alone with her in her house, Gabby watched Alexander from the corner of her eye as she closed the door, shutting out the rain.
He walked around the room, looking at the pictures hanging on the walls of her being given medals and trophies. The images were a chronological account of her life from the time she could walk. She’d only put them up because it reminded her of happier times when her mother was around, but now she wanted to hide them. It looked like she actually cared if she won trophies and wanted to flaunt them.
She wondered if he noticed no teammates were ever in the pictures and that there weren’t any names on the trophies. She was always alone, even in team sports.
“Who’s into boats?” Alexander pointed to the cluster of model boats sitting on a shelf.
“My dad. We went fishing and boating a lot when I was younger. We had so much fun out on the lake.”
“Do you still go?”
“No, we don’t have a boat anymore and my dad wouldn’t have the time now anyway.” Gabby winced at the sorrow in her voice. Crap, what was it about Alexander and his sister that made her feel safe enough to open up? If she told them too much, it could be dangerous.
“Do you think if you had a boat he might go again?”
“Maybe, I don’t know,” she shrugged.
“Follow me.” Alexander turned and walked to the front door. Throwing it open, he headed into the rain, as undaunted as his sister. She paused a moment then followed. She hesitated on the front porch, glancing down the drive. It was only when they rounded the corner of the house that she let out a deep sigh, not realizing she’d been holding her breath. She had to be more careful. If her dad caught a boy inside her house, they’d be packed and moved before dawn.
****
The rain slowed to a drizzle. Alexander lifted a tree branch so Gabby could pass. He couldn’t help but notice the soaking wet cover-up clinging to her skin. The steam rising from her body and the way her curves swayed as she walked mesmerized him.
He passed her, leading the way once more. Her alluring scent of fresh cut flowers and ocean breezes drifted in the wind.
His body trembled the way it did when he first landed on Earth, when he indulged in empty fleshly moments with human females, before he learned self-control. He shook his head and refocused on the task at hand, sending the impure thoughts from his mind.
Needing a distraction, he focused on the overgrowth ahead of them. It was thicker than he’d expected. Granted, he hadn’t come to the old boathouse since he’d lost the use of his wings. But when he saw the boats back at Gabby’s house, he knew exactly how to stay close enough to protect her without inflating her already growing suspicions.
Sammy could use cheerleading and cover most of the mornings. He would just have to be around in the afternoons. It wouldn’t be easy to keep Forras away, but together they could protect her.
Gabby stopped and peered through the brush. At the sight of her long legs and curves, he realized the challenge would be more difficult than he originally thought.
Several branches blocked their path ahead. “Here, let me.” He nudged past her, his skin brushing against her slick arm, sending a current through his body. He cleared his throat and pushed through the overgrowth, holding the branches to the side for her to pass. “It’s a place I found a couple years ago. No one knows it’s here but me.”
“Wow, I’m honored you’d share your secret place with me.” She smiled. It was endearing, the way her full lips parted and her eyes shone bright. Something inside him glowed with a sense of hope. Something he hadn’t felt in a long time, if ever.
The last branch was hard to pull back without tearing the tree apart. Instead, he cleared a hole through the vegetation large enough for them to crawl through. He shimmied around the old, rusting hulk of a car to the front door of a dilapidated building. She grabbed his hand to follow and the hair on the nape of his neck rose in response. Distracted by her touch, he accidentally pulled the small boathouse door off its hinges. After a second, he dropped the door, pretending it was too heavy to hold.
She stared at him, her mouth wide. Scrambling to make up an excuse, a lie, something, his mind went blank, so he quickly ushered her inside before she had a chance to question him.
“Merry Christmas,” Alexander teased, pointing at an old powerboat resting on an equally old trailer.
“Ah, it’s July.” Gabby raised a curious eyebrow at him.
“I know, but look. We can fix this up by Christmas and surprise your father. What do you think?” Alexander tapped his fingers against his legs, while fighting the itch of his wings to explode and surround her. All this would be so much easier if he could just tell her the truth and protect her instead of playing these games.
“I think you’re crazy. I don’t know anything about boats. Besides, that barely resembles a boat. It’s got a hole in the back of it, which I’m pretty sure isn’t supposed to be there.” Gabby brushed the hair from her forehead. Soft, light strands cascaded down her shoulder. For a second, he thought she looked…angelic. She walked around the building, studying the old craft.
He looked away and took a deep breath. “I do.”
She gave him a skeptical look. “In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t have money oozing from my pockets, and I’m sure this will require a ton of money to fix.”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ve got a lot of the parts we’ll need, and I know how to fix it. I just need some help.” Alexander’s stomach knotted. She had to agree. It was the only way he could think of to keep an eye on her while keeping his hands busy at the same time.
“I can’t accept a boat that you paid to fix. Besides, doesn’t it belong to someone else?”
“The old couple who lived here abandoned this boathouse years ago. They didn’t have any kids so when they passed away, the state auctioned off the property. Now that you’re here, I assume anything on the property belongs to you.”
“Still, if you spend your money on it, I can’t—”
“I’ll tell you what. I will help you fix it up if you let me use it. Deal?” Alexander had to convince her. He wasn’t about to let Forras near her.
She stared at him for a moment. “Deal,” she said finally. Looking at her watch, she headed for the door. “I need to get going.”
“I’ll meet you tomorrow after you’re done practicing with Sammy then.”
“Great. It’s a date.” Gabby’s face flushed. “I mean—”
“It’s a date.” Without thinking, Alexander took both of her hands in his and kissed her cheek. Quickly pulling away, he cursed himself. What was he doing? This was a job, a reason to keep her safe. There could be nothing else between them. He was an angel, not some horny guy. And Gabby wasn’t some object to temporarily rid his human form of loneliness.
He shoved his hands in his pockets, and they walked back toward Gabby’s house in silence. They were almost there when they ran into Sammy.
“Hey, I was just looking for you guys.” Sammy bounced up in a short skirt and tennis shoes.
“I thought you were meeting friends,” Gabby asked.
Sammy shot Alexander a side-ways glance. “Yes, but Avery is running late and needs a ride, so I came to snag my brother to take us since I don’t have a car.”
Alexander nodded. “Sure.”
“I’m so excited about tomorrow. We’ll have a blast practicing,” Sammy bounced between feet.
“I’m not sure about this whole cheerleading thing, Sammy.” Gabby’s eyes shifted nervously from her feet to Sammy’s clothes then she bit her bottom lip. “I’m not that… um… cheerful? I think I’ll pass.”
He watched as a darkness fluttered like smoke from Gabby’s chest. The type he’d only seen and felt from an old soul, not a young girl, one with a lifetime of tortured regrets and loss. “Don’t worry about that. My sister has enough team spirit for the both of you.”
Sammy slugged him playfully. “How ‘bout I come over tomorrow and teach you a few routines, just the two of us, and then you can decide?” Sammy’s pleading eyes fixed on Gabby. “You never know, you might find your inner spirit.”
Hair on Alexander’s arms rose in warning, but a quick scan of the surrounding area didn’t reveal Forras or his friends. Then the sound of gravel crunching under tires approached from the distance. He glanced at Sammy and she nodded, revealing she, too, heard the car with her angelic hearing. He waited a moment until Gabby’s eyes went wide, showing hints of fear in their depths. He felt the turmoil in Gabby strengthen and he longed to quiet her soul, the way he’d quieted her dream, but he couldn’t.
Gabby shuffled forward. “Okay, I’ll try. See you tomorrow.” She ran to the back door of her house and disappeared inside.
Tension radiated in the air.
Sammy and Alexander looked at each other. Something was definitely affecting Gabby.
They watched through the trees as the car continued down the drive, until it came to a grinding halt beside the house.
Her father. She didn’t want to introduce him to her father. His gut twisted at the realization that she didn’t want her father to meet him.
Heavy steps sounded on the front porch and Sammy pulled his arm toward the path home. “I know. I feel it, too.”
Anger, resentment, depression, concern, and so much more invaded his senses. But did it come from her father, or himself?
He shook his head and pushed the feelings away. The farther they walked, the more the feelings subsided. Human emotions were still difficult to process.
Maybe some time alone with his thoughts would be good. He needed to settle his emotions and focus on protecting Gabby. When they reached the house, Alexander turned to his car. A drive always helped clear his head. Well, when he couldn’t fly in fear of being spotted in daylight.
“What’s going on with you?” Sammy pulled on the back of his shirt. “We need to make a plan so you don’t go off like a cannon every time Forras is around.”
“I need some time. I’ll work on controlling these crazy human emotions and figuring out a plan. This figuring things out as we go is getting too messy.”
Sammy tucked her short dark hair behind her ear. “Listen, I can see you’re struggling. Talk to me.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
“Seriously? You walk around with the world on your shoulders. You think it’s your personal job to protect everyone. It’s not, I’m here and I’ll help with Gabby. I like her. She’s nice and I don’t want to see her fall into a world of darkness, but you need to work with me, not against me.”
“I’m not working against you.”
Sammy huffed. “You are. Every time you push me away and take on this role alone you take a chance with your soul. Do you want to end up falling to hell?”
“That’s not fair.” Alexander fought the rising sting in his throat. “I’m fine. You don’t have to worry about me.” He turned away from her and headed to the side of the house.
Sammy put her hands on her hips. “Where are you going?”
Alexander held up one hand. “I’m not going to pick a fight with Forras, promise.”
“Then where?”
“To get a ‘How to Fix Boats for Dummies’ book.”
“What?” Sammy asked.
“Nothing.” Alexander rounded the house to the front drive. The brown mutt crawled out from under his car and sat waiting for him.
He took pitty on the poor creature and patted him on the head the opened his car door. The dog darted inside and sat down in the back seat. “What do you think you’re doing?”
The dog barked his response.
“You want to go for a ride?” Alexander asked.
He barked again.
“Fine.” Alexander jumped in his car and headed to the road. The dog needed a bath, but even over his stench, Gabby’s scent still lingered on him.
He couldn’t give into temptations brought on by human emotions or he’d pose a bigger threat to Gabby than Forras did, and he refused to ever be a threat to her, or anyone, again.
****
Gabby sat down on the couch. Finding out she was going to attend school, meeting a new friend, and having a first date was all so amazing. Life had never been this kind. If her father found out, she’d lose everything overnight.
She fidgeted with a few items on the coffee table and tried to slow her racing heart.
Her dad flung the door open with a bang, making her jump. Blood seeped through his white button down shirt. A long gash from his shoulder down his bicep oozed, and his right arm was secured against his chest with a makeshift splint.
“Hey, Gabby,” he said, his voice husky from stress.
When his hair was messed up like that and his speech slurred, it meant only one thing. And the brown paper bag clutched in his left hand confirmed her suspicions.
Dread crept in. It’s going to be a long night.
Gabby grabbed his elbow to help him to the couch, her legs buckling from his weight. “What happened?” she asked with trepidation. The smell on his clothes of old rotten garbage made her gag. Was he left to die in a dumpster after being beaten?
“Just the job, babe. Got too close to a bad guy.”
“This is crazy. How many times do you have to get hurt before you quit? It’s not worth it.” Gabby trembled with rage, knowing he was lying, covering what he really did for a living.
“Don’t do this, Gabby. You know I have to work, and this is what I have to do. I’m doing it to keep you safe.” He raked a swollen hand through his greasy brown hair and slumped onto the old faded couch. When his six-foot frame shrunk down, she could finally see the extent of his lacerations.
“How is getting yourself killed going to keep me safe? You’re the only parent I have left. When are you going to tell me the truth? What are you really doing?” Her voice rose, anger seeping out of every pore of her body.
“Watch your tone, young lady.” His eyebrows lowered and drew together.
Her mouth opened and the shouts of frustration sat on her tongue, but she pressed her lips tight together knowing it would only make things worse. Huffing under her breath, she marched through the kitchen and retrieved the first aid kit from the hall closet. Returning to his side, she pulled bandages, thread, and a prepackaged sterile needle out of the kit while trying to steady her hands.
“I don’t understand why you can’t let someone else defend our country. You served your time in the military and as a civilian. How much more are you going to put yourself through?”
“Until we’re all safe.”
“From what? Terrorists? Criminals? There’s always going to be another bad guy, Dad. You can’t beat them all.” Her voice quivered despite her angry tone. She wanted to ask him if he was the bad guy. A hit man, CIA or possessed by some evil forcing him to ingest alcohol and pick fights, but she wouldn’t chance a first class ticket back to a hospital for paranoid delusions. Besides, if he was a hit man or some bigwig at CIA, certainly they’d be living better than this.
“I can try,” he said softly.
Her father threaded the needle as she cleaned his bicep with iodine, revealing a three-inch long gash. Blood didn’t faze her, not anymore, but the needle did. She flinched at the sight of her father pushing the needle through one side and pulling it out the other. The way his skin pulled with the thread made her queasy.
“I know there is more than what you’re te
lling me. I’m not a child anymore. Daddy, please quit. We can find another way to pay the bills. I can get a part time job to help. You’ve done enough.”
“What’s enough?”
“It already cost you your wife. Would you risk your own life, leaving me orphaned?” It came out so fast she didn’t have time to stop herself. It was horrible and untrue. He didn’t have anything to do with her mother’s death. He blamed himself because he was driving the car that night. But it wasn’t his fault, it couldn’t have been.
The hurt in his eyes broke her heart. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. She didn’t know what else to say.
The first aid kit dropped to the floor as she stood, once again feeling like her world was spinning out of control, and went to her room to sulk.
She retrieved the pill bottle from her top drawer and sat on the side of her bed, rolling the brown canister between her palms. To take or not to take? If she did, she’d be able to sleep. Of course, she’d be a walking zombie tomorrow. Tomorrow she couldn’t do that. She had a date.
She sighed in frustration. Her father had ruined everything, keeping her isolated for so long.
She took long cleansing breaths to stave off the inner darkness clawing to escape the little compartment she’d tucked him into. The creature that ate her courage and caused her heart to race, pulse to thunder, and muscles to cramp from fatigue. No, she wouldn’t let it out. Instead, she leaned back in bed and closed her eyes, willing herself to clear her mind and relax.
It took forever before she fell asleep, and even then, she tossed and turned restlessly. Visions of darkness and evil filled her dreams. Familiar monsters clawed and tore at her flesh. Bright lights exploded, smothering her in suffocating pain.
Her own screams startled her awake. It had seemed so terrifyingly real. She bolted up and instinctively grabbed for the pill bottle, but it fell from her nightstand and rolled across the floor. She curled her knees to her chest and rocked until the fear subsided. A glance at the clock beside her bed revealed it was only three in the morning, but she knew she couldn’t go back to sleep. Not with those visions fresh in her head. Releasing her legs, she swiveled and touched one toe to the floor, as if to see if a creature would lash out from under her bed to grab her foot and yank her into the nether world. She placed her other foot down then made her way to her makeshift art desk to draw, to release the beast onto paper.