“Nothing would make me happier.” Adam liked Denise. She was very intelligent and full of good ideas, besides being very pretty.
“You’ll prepare brunch though,” she chuckled.
“It’ll be the best brunch you have ever had,” he smiled. “Ten?”
“That’s great. See you tomorrow.” Denise hung up. There was no way his brunch could be better than the one Phillip had made her a year ago, the morning after the only time they had spent a night together before everything started falling apart. She wished there had been more. Now it was too late for that. She dialed Alexis’s number.
“Hello?” Alexis answered.
“Hey, it’s me, Denise.”
“Hi!!” It was nice to talk to Denise. “Enjoying your new home?”
“Yes, and I’d like to thank the person who helped me find it. What about lunch?” Denise asked excitedly.
“Oh, I’d love that, but I’m already having lunch at a friend’s house today. What about tomorrow?” Alexis didn’t want to let Denise down; she sounded so enthusiastic.
“No problem. Noon?” Denise tried to hide her frustration. After all, it was expected that a teenager would have other things to do rather than spend time with someone she barely knew.
Alexis could identify some disappointment in Denise's voice. "Yes, that will be great." As she would hate to let Denise down, she chirped, "I can stop by this afternoon!”
“I’ll be waiting for you then," said Denise, thrilled. "Oh, one more thing, Adam said you can come straight here.”
“I’ll be there in about two hours.”
“See you then.” Denise called Adam again, explained that she wouldn’t be able to have brunch with him the next day and invited him for dinner the following night. He promptly accepted the invitation.
Alexis was glad that she would spend the afternoon with Denise. It would be great to direct her energy to something that was not Ethan-related. She had a lovely meal at Mia’s. Alicia was a great cook. She was also very talkative, and Mia seemed to be trying her best to talk about random topics to keep Alexis’s entertained. However, even with all the fun talk, Alexis had to make an effort not to keep staring at the living room corner where in her dream Ethan was lying rigid, stiff and still.
As usual, Alicia invited Alexis to watch a movie after lunch. They had done that a thousand times. It was the first time Alexis had to decline Alicia’s invitation. She wanted to go to Denise's.
Mia didn’t seem surprised. “Are you going to see him?” she asked curiously.
“No, I’m going to Denise’s. I’ll see him later tonight.” Alexis hoped that she wouldn’t have to tell Mia all her moves.
“Okay,” said Mia thoughtfully. She drove Alexis to Denise’s house. “Take care,” she said as she hugged Alexis.
“You too.” The last thing Alexis wanted was to have someone constantly worried about her. Even though she appreciated Mia’s concern, she already felt suffocated by it. She was glad her mom was busy solving things with Morgan because that took her mind off Alexis a bit. She rang the doorbell.
“Hey!” Denise beamed. “Come in!”
Alexis walked in. She was surprised to see few boxes in the living room. She expected Denise to have more things. “Are all your belongings here?”
“Uh, yes. I… I lost a lot of things in a fire.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Alexis felt bad for having asked. She didn’t want to hurt Denise talking about her past.
“It’s okay. I don’t mind talking about it as much as one would think.” Denise was glad to see that Alexis was worried about her feelings. Maybe revealing some unfortunate moments of her life would bring Alexis closer to her. “I bought us a cake from Martha’s.”
“Hmm. Yummy. Would you like me to help you with your belongings?” Alexis wanted to be helpful. She was sure Denise needed a hand.
“Yes, please. One of the boxes contain some books and pictures. I was told that there is a bookshelf here in the living room. Perhaps we can start with that.” Going through some pictures would be the perfect starting point. She was a bit skeptical that Alexis would ask any questions about the photos, but Denise would find a way of talking about them.
“Sure.” Alexis went through the boxes and found the one with the books. There were actually more photo albums than books. “I found them.”
“Oh, great. Can you tell me which ones I still have?”
“Uh, there is a blue photo album…”
“What’s the first picture?”
Alexis stared at Denise as if she could see her and tell she was uncomfortable with that request. She looked at the first picture. Denise seemed happy; a handsome man was hugging her. He looked at Denise in such a passionate way that Alexis couldn’t help thinking of Ethan. “There’s a man embracing you. You are wearing a short white dress, and he’s wearing jeans and a T-shirt. I guess you’re at a park.”
“Yeah, we were. That was my husband, Jack. We were newlyweds when that picture was taken.” Denise made a pause to make her next words more dramatic. “That was about a month before he died.” Saying those words truly hurt her. Her life had drastically changed after Jack was gone. They had been so naive to think that they would be able to have a normal life. She didn’t want Alexis to make the same mistake. “We failed to accept that we could not have some of the things other couples usually do.”
Even though Alexis was intrigued, she didn’t ask any questions. She had told Adam she wouldn’t inquire about Denise’s past, and she wanted to keep her word.
“Adam asked you not to talk to me about my past, right?” she asked.
“Yes,” Alexis answered bluntly.
“I want to talk about it, Al. Can we?” They needed to bond and getting emotional was undoubtedly the best way to do that. It could also be a good opportunity for Denise to give Alexis some useful pieces of advice.
“Sure.” Alexis pondered for a while. “What things couldn’t you have?” She was genuinely interested in the answer to that question, mainly because there were things that she would presumably never be able to have with Ethan or anyone else.
“Kids. Fixed residence. Stability. Peace.” She gave a long pause. “Freedom.” She closed her eyes. “Freedom was the thing we wanted the most.”
“Why couldn’t you have it?”
“Because you can’t free yourself from whom you are. Your nature will hunt you down if you turn your back on it.” Denise directed her eyes to Alexis’s face as if she could see her. She hoped Alexis would get the message.
Alexis was sure Denise was trying to give her some kind of warning. Alexis had gotten the message. She wanted to run from everything that was going on, but at the same time, she knew she didn’t have a choice. She wondered what Denise wanted to free herself from, what part of her consumed her so badly to the point that being happy was not a possibility.
“Telling right from wrong can be quite challenging, Al. Never let others guide your actions. Be true to yourself.” Denise hoped that Alexis’s heart would lead her to their side. Alexis didn’t know what to say. She had so little information about Ethan, the amulet and everything else that it was nearly impossible for her to have an opinion of her own. She was getting what she could from Ethan hoping that he was righteous. “What else is there in the box?” asked Denise breaking the heavy silence between them.
“Uh, there is a black photo album. It seems recent,” said Alexis touching its cover.
“Open it,” Denise commanded.
“There’s a house in the first picture.” Alexis looked at the picture carefully. There was something familiar about it. “Where is this?”
“Can you describe the house a little bit more?” Denise wanted to make sure Alexis was not neglecting the important details in the picture.
“It’s more like a mansion. It’s old, I guess. Dark walls, two-story, uh… there’s a fountain with an angel holding a sword. There are some gargoyles on the roof top. They look like demons with wings. The fountain ange
l seems to be looking at them.”
“There is an engraving on the front door, isn’t there?”
Alexis got her face closer to the photo to see better. “Yes. It’s a symbol.”
“Do you have any idea of what it means?” Denise asked curiously.
Again, the symbol seemed familiar. Alexis was pretty sure she had already seen it before, she couldn’t tell when or where though. “No.”
Denise pondered for an instant. She feared that telling Alexis the truth so soon could push her away. It was a difficult choice she had to make.
“Denise?” Alexis’s heart was beating faster than normal. Denise was hiding something from her, she knew it.
“Do you trust me, Al?” Denise asked seriously.
“Yes,” said Alexis promptly. She felt safe near Denise; she emanated calm and strength, and Alexis was bound to believe Denise had her best interest at heart.
“That’s the Elkavian insignia.” There was so much tension in the air that Denise could almost touch it with her hands. Alexis stood up; then she instinctively took her hand to her pocket to get her phone. “If you call him, he’ll come after me, and I’ll have to leave Grasslin. It’s up to you, Al.” She needed Alexis to know that she was free to do whatever she thought she should. “I’m not your enemy. Why don’t you go through the pages of that album?”
“Why would Ethan go after you?” Alexis didn’t want to see any other picture before knowing the answer to that question.
“He wants you to think that he’s all you’ve got… but he’s not. Please, see the next photos.” If Alexis left without seeing the other pictures, Denise’s chances of succeeding would drop to zero.
It was alarming for Alexis to think that Ethan could be manipulating her. She felt stupid and naive. She wanted to know more, so she turned the page. She stared at it incredulously. It was a picture of her father with Denise and Jack. They were at a restaurant. “Denise,” she murmured.
“We were friends.” Denise was going to continue, but Alexis’s phone rang. Alexis was so shocked that she didn’t answer. Her father had a secret life. He had not only hidden a story from them but also kept a whole life under his hat. Her phone rang again. “You’d better answer that, Al,” said Denise sweetly. “It can be your mother. She will be worried sick if you ignore her call.”
Denise was right. Alexis answered the phone, “Hello,” her voice trembled a bit.”
“Hey. Is everything okay? That was a weird way of answering your mom’s call.”
“Hey, mom. Everything’s fine. I didn’t see it was you. I’m at Denise’s.” She tried to sound cheerful.
“Okay. Don’t get home late. I need to talk to you.”
“I’ll be home shortly. I’m almost on my way out.” She didn’t want to hear another word from Denise. She was downcast. She never thought her father would let her down. Tears came to her eyes. “See you in a few. Love you,” she hung up before Anna noticed that there was something wrong. Her father was a liar. He used to say that there were no secrets between them while secrets were all she had from him. She looked at Denise. “I… I’ll have that cake tomorrow,” she said mutedly.
“Al, it’s okay for us to talk about it.”
“Not now, Denise. I… my father… I didn’t know him and that hurts me more than anything else. My life was based on lies, and so was my mom’s. I was here worried about Ethan manipulating me, but my father manipulated my mother and me all along.” She was fuming. “I could not care less about Elkavians, the damn amulet I’m supposed to protect, the Oren that has been hunting me down, Ethan, you, and everything else. I don’t care,” she said between her teeth. “The most meaningful memories I had were destroyed this week and no one gives a damn.” She took a deep breath. “I’m too bitter to talk about this now. I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon.” She turned around, “and no, I’m not mad at you.” She left the house leaving Denise completely nonplussed by her reaction.
Alexis slammed the door. She wanted to fall on her knees and scream her lungs out, but if she did that, she would probably have to take a toxicology test again and meet Marianne more often. She was drowning in tears when Ethan called her. She didn’t answer. “Not now!” she shouted. She didn’t want to hear his voice nor see him. She wanted to be alone.
“Alexis.” She heard him call her. She didn’t look. She kept walking. He grabbed her hand. “Don’t touch me,” she said pulling her arm.
Ethan was lost. He had no idea where all that anger came from. Things were fine between them until that moment. He wanted to insist, but respecting her will seemed to be the wisest decision, so he stopped walking and watched her go.
The more she walked, the less resentful she felt. She tried to put herself in her father shoes. If she ever had a child, she would probably not tell her anything about the Elkavians or the amulet. Certainly, not when she was little, maybe when she became a grown-up, after school. Her father didn’t have that opportunity. She stopped walking, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and tried to feel every inch of her body pulsing. She could feel Ethan’s presence, his smell, the heat of his body as if they were one. She closed her hands. She would find a way to get answers. No matter what it took.
She opened her eyes. She was a few blocks from home. She got her phone, put her earphones on, and chose a song to cheer her up. She didn’t want Anna to notice that there was something wrong. She started singing, “Oh, if there's one thing I hang onto, that gets me through the night, I ain't gonna do what I don't want to, I'm gonna live my life, shining like a diamond, rolling with the dice, standing on the ledge, I show the wind how to fly, when the world gets in my face, I say, have a nice day, have a nice day.” She repeated the same song until she got home.
Anna was waiting for her. “Hey, Al. How was the sleepover?” she asked affectionately.
“It was great. How were things between you and Morgan?” Alexis asked with a naughty smile on her face. She could see that there was something different in her mother.
“Oh, it was… okay.” Anna watched Alexis raise her eyebrows inquisitively. “It was great.” She was glad to share.
“I’m happy to hear that, mom. So, are you guys getting back together?”
“Uh… I… Wouldn’t you mind that?” Anna didn’t want to hurt Alexis’s feelings. She would wait for as long as Alexis wanted her to. It had been a bit over a year Scott had died. She feared it was too soon to engage in a relationship.
“Not at all, mom. Your happiness brings me nothing but joy.” She hugged her mother. In her arms, she felt the safest.
“Thanks, dear. I love you.” Anna was grateful for having such an understanding and loving child. She had a friend in Alexis.
“What happened to you two in the past?” she asked curiously. Knowing more about the past could help her understand her father’s choices. She wouldn’t discard anything as unimportant. The more she knew, the better. Lucky for her, Anna was willing to talk. She carefully listened to every word her mother said. If Anna had told her that story a week before, Alexis would have thought that Morgan was a filthy liar, but after recent events, she was certain that Morgan had been set up. “Do you think dad did it?”
“What?! Of course, not.” Anna was shocked. “Your father would never do anything like that. He was righteous, honorable.”
“Of course. I know.” Alexis had always seen her father like that, but at that moment she questioned his character. “Any idea who could have done something like that?”
“Do you think he’s telling the truth?” asked Anna, surprised.
“Do you think he’s lying?” Alexis was truly confused. She didn’t get how her mom could consider being romantically involved with someone she didn’t trust.
“I don’t know what to think. There’s one thing I know for sure though. Whatever happened, it has already kept us apart for too long. It has been too long now. I want to live this love.”
“You deserve it, mom. Go for it!” she exclaimed supportively.
“He wanted to come over tonight…” Anna hoped Alexis wouldn’t make her finish that sentence. In a way, it was a bit weird to ask Alexis for permission to have someone over.
“That’s cool. I have a lot of things to study. Mia gave me the school assignments, so I’ll be busy. Bring me some food and a bottle of water, and I’ll be forever thankful,” she said jokingly.
“Deal.” Anna smiled. She couldn’t wait to tell Morgan to come over. She bit her lips when Alexis left the room. Anticipation would consume her.
Alexis got to her bedroom and immediately closed the curtain. She didn’t want Ethan watching her. She opened her backpack and got her notebook. She did have a lot to study, but school was the least of her concerns. She was without question not going to finish high school anyway. Why bother then? She turned her laptop on. Doing some research about her father’s past seemed more productive than doing homework. She spent a few hours trying to find something bad about him, but there was nothing but good things. Competitions he had won, volunteer work he had done, and sad news about the day he died. She was weary. She needed a break. She turned off the lights, lay on her bed, and listened to music until she fell asleep.
Dinner was ready when Morgan rang the doorbell. Anna couldn’t control herself. She was more excited than she had been in years. She opened the door and kissed him.
“You’re ruining my career, Anna,” he said seriously. She stared at him. “How am I going to focus on work knowing that this is what I’m getting when the day is over?” He put his arms around her waist and smiled. When she smiled back, he passionately kissed her. She pulled him in and closed the door.
“As if you were not ruining mine,” she said jokingly. “Hungry?”
“I am ravenous,” he said lasciviously. His hands caressed the skin underneath her blouse.
“Alexis is home,” she whispered. “Dinner first.”
“Sure. I’m hungry for food too,” he said warmly. “Is Alexis okay with us together?”
“Yes.” She bit her lips and kissed his neck.
“Anna… you’re not leaving room for dinner.” His fingers went through her hair. He nibbled her earlobe. She moaned almost inaudibly.
The Defender (The Elkavians Book 1) Page 9