“I’m free, but I need to know your name before I go anywhere with you,” I tell the guy who’s waiting on me, half joking.
“I’m Bennett. Bennett James. Shall we?”
I don’t know why I’m going with him or why I agreed to give him the time of day in the first place, but I follow him out of the coffee shop and down the street to the park. He seems harmless enough, and I have to admit I’m curious what an attractive guy in a suit could want to talk to me about.
He sits down at a picnic table not far from the park entrance. I follow his lead and have a seat across from him.
I take out my phone and send Shi a text letting him know I’ve finished work and will be having an early lunch with a friend.
“So, what can I help you with, Bennett?” I ask as I put my phone in my lap.
“Actually, it’s what I want to help you with. You’ll be eighteen in a couple of weeks, am I right?”
I sit up straighter, feeling a little caught off guard that he knows how old I am and that my birthday is coming up. I nod at him, but don’t offer up anything else.
He takes a large drink of his coffee, which I’m sure is cold by now, and then grins at me.
“That’s the perfect age,” he says.
“Perfect age for what?” I snap, getting irritated that he isn’t explaining himself. “Stop grinning at me like that. Tell me what you’re talking about or I’m out of here,” I say as I cross my arms over my chest.
He raises his hands up and leans back a little. “I’m not trying to upset you, Nat. This is just an exciting opportunity for you and for me. I’ve been trying to contact you for over a week.”
I raise my eyebrows in shock as I realize he’s the one who has been calling for me at Aunt J’s.
“Let me start by telling you that I’m a friend of Shiloh Smith’s. In fact, he’s been staying with me while we’ve been working in Seattle.”
He smiles at the look on my face as I put it together.
“Ah, so he’s mentioned me before?” he asks.
“What sort of opportunity could you possibly have to offer me?” I ask him.
“I’m here to give you the chance to come and work with me as a Protector.”
I laugh out loud when he finishes his sentence.
“I only found out what a Protector was last night, but I do know people can’t just choose to do what you and Shiloh do. Even if that were possible, look at me: I can’t protect anyone.”
“There is plenty you don’t know about being a Protector, Nat. Yes, Shiloh was born a Protector and we assume Macie will be one as well, but that’s not the case with all of us. In fact, most of us were chosen by other Protectors when we were eighteen.”
“How do they just become one of you? No amount of training is going to teach me how to feel someone else’s pain, Bennett.”
“I can explain all of that to you when you decide to join us. Until then, you’ll just have to trust me,” he says, sounding smug.
“I barely even know you,” I say, rolling my eyes.
“Yes, but you know Shiloh, and you trust him, don’t you?”
I nod. “I’ll have to talk to Shi about this. I’m not sure if it’s a good idea.”
“Wrong again, Nat. You can’t tell Shiloh I mentioned it to you. This has to be your choice and his opinion will easily sway you one way or the other.” He starts to stand so I follow his lead and do the same.
“If you decide to join us, you will be compensated for the rest of your life and a place to live will be provided for you in Seattle—not to mention, you’ll have much more in common with the guy you’re clearly pining over,” he says with a smirk before reaching out to shake my hand.
I glare at him as I feel my cheeks turning red. He chuckles as he walks away, leaving me alone in the park to make one of the hardest decisions of my life.
Shiloh
When I wake up the next morning, there’s a note on the table from Nat letting me know she had to go in to work for a while and suggesting I take Macie to a movie.
“Mace? You up yet?” I call down the hall.
“Sorta,” she mumbles from her bedroom.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, poking my head into her bedroom.
“I’m just tired,” she mutters.
“It’s almost ten o’clock; how can you still be tired?” I tease.
“I stayed up too late reading,” she tells me.
“How late?”
“Late enough to see you kissing Nat when I got up to pee,” she says with a grin.
“Mace, you know better than to stay up that late, and it’s rude to spy on people,” I scold her.
“I wasn’t spying, I was walking to the bathroom, and the two of you were kinda hard to miss,” she says, making a disgusted face and sticking out her tongue.
“Oh, good grief. I’m asking Guy to put a bathroom in your room.”
“Why? Do you plan on kissing Nat more often?” she asks in a teasing tone.
“You’re hilarious. Now, get out of bed and get dressed. I’m making pancakes.”
I’m cleaning up the mess from our pancakes when I hear my phone ringing in the bedroom; I realize I must have forgotten to take it off the charger this morning.
“Mace! Can you grab my phone? My hands are wet!”
“Got it!” she yells as she runs down the hallway.
I can hear her muffled voice coming from my room and wonder whom she’s talking to. I put away the last of the dishes and go to find out.
“Yeah, I’ll tell him. Love you, too,” she says before ending the call.
“Who was that?”
“It was Nat. She’s not feeling well so she wanted me to let you know she won’t be coming over until tomorrow before you leave for Seattle.”
“Okay,” I say, trying to hide my disappointment.
Macie hands me my phone before going back to the living room to work on her puzzle. I go through it and see I missed a text from Nat earlier.
Nat: I’m going to lunch with a friend, I’ll come over after. :)
I decide to text her and check on her.
Me: Was it something you ate? Do you need anything?
Nat: I’m fine. Going to sleep it off.
Me: You can come here to sleep it off if you want…
Nat: I’ll see you tomorrow.
I toss my phone onto my bed, not wanting to bother her any more.
“Want to catch a movie?” I ask Macie.
Of course she says yes and runs to put her shoes on. We stop for pizza and ice cream on the way home, and I try not to let it bother me that Nat doesn’t want to come over before I leave for another week.
Macie starts yawning on the ride back to the apartment. “Still tired?” I ask her.
“Uh huh,” she says through a yawn as I park the truck.
“Why don’t you go lie down? I’ll wake you up for dinner.”
She gives me a tight hug as I unlock the door to our apartment and then hurries off to her bedroom. I check on her ten minutes later and she’s already sound asleep. I probably shouldn’t, but I go across the hall and knock on Nat’s door.
“Who is it?” she asks.
“It’s Shi.”
She opens the door and I’m taken aback by how perfect she looks in her tank top and shorts. Her hair is wet like she just got out of the shower and she’s wearing pink house shoes with white polka dots on them. I can’t help but grin as I look her over.
“Can I come in?” I ask.
“Where’s Mace?”
“She’s taking a nap. Apparently she stayed up late last night, reading. I locked the door; she’ll be fine for a little bit.”
“Sure, yeah, come in.” She shrugs.
“Feeling better?” I ask as I follow her to her dining table.
“I’m fine,” she says quietly.
She sits down across from me and leans back in her chair when I reach for her hand.
“All right, tell me what’s going on,” I demand.
> “Nothing. What are you talking about?” she says, clearly irritated.
“Last night you were fine. This morning you text me and say you’ll be coming over after lunch. Then, you blow me off and now you don’t want me to touch you. You tell me what I’m talking about, Nat.”
“You were born the way you are, right? A Protector, I mean.”
I nod slowly, not sure what she’s getting at.
“What about the others? The ones that aren’t born that way, how do they become one of you?”
“One of me? What is it, a social class now?”
“That’s not how I meant it. I mean, all the people you work with in Seattle, how did they become Protectors? How are they able to do what you do?”
“They’re chosen by other Protectors, the ones that have been around for a long time. Where is all of this coming from?” I ask, feeling uneasy about where the conversation is headed.
“What if I wanted to be chosen?” she asks quietly without looking at me.
“No,” I snap, standing now.
“What do you mean, no? I don’t have to ask your permission, I just wanted to hear your thoughts,” she says loudly, crossing her arms over her chest.
“My thoughts? My thoughts are that this is a pointless conversation and I’m done talking about it,” I say before storming out of her apartment.
I sit down in the hallway and lean my back against her door, trying to gather my thoughts and calm myself down. I sit there for no more than a couple minutes before Nat opens her door and I fall backward onto her feet.
“What are you doing?” she asks, trying to hide the laughter in her voice.
“Thinking,” I mumble as I get to my feet.
“I didn’t mean to make you mad, Shi,” she says quietly while staring down at her shoes.
“I know,” I sigh.
She stands on her toes and pecks my cheek.
“Will you come with me tonight?” I blurt out.
“Come with you where? To work?”
I nod slowly, not sure if I will regret this or not.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” she asks with wide eyes.
“Not really, no.” I shrug.
“Then why do you want me to come?”
“I want you to see what I do. You’re obviously curious about this lifestyle. So, what do you say?”
“Sure, I’ll tag along,” she says, grinning.
I give her a quick hug to let her know I’m not mad at her before walking into my apartment. I call Lacey and ask her to stay with Macie tonight. After I offer to pay her twenty dollars extra, she finally agrees.
Macie is more energetic than usual after her late afternoon nap; she’s bouncing up and down on the couch as she sings along with one of her TV shows.
“Sandwiches for dinner okay with you?” I ask over the noise.
“Yep!” she says cheerfully.
I’m busy putting mayonnaise on four slices of bread and don’t hear Nat walk in. I don’t realize she’s in the apartment until I feel her arms slide around my waist.
“Why are you being so sweet all of a sudden?” I ask, chuckling to myself.
“I just feel bad for upsetting you earlier,” she mutters while squeezing me tighter.
“I’m not upset, Nat. You’ll see that there is nothing you should envy about my lifestyle, and then this bizarre idea will be out of your head for good.”
I can’t see her, but I’m almost positive she rolls her eyes at me before going to sit on the couch with Macie. I can see the look of disappointment on Macie’s face when I tell her Lacey will be staying with her for the night, but she doesn’t complain. I’m glad she doesn’t; I need Nat to see what I really do. I need her to forget about wanting to become a Protector, forever.
“Ready?” she asks after giving Macie a tight hug.
I nod at her as I grab my bottle of pills off the counter and walk out the door. I try not to show my irritation as she skips down the hall behind me.
“I wish you weren’t taking this so lightly,” I tell her once we are in my truck.
“Is it wrong for me to be excited?” she asks with raised eyebrows.
I ignore her and pull out of the parking lot. I drive us to the park and turn off my truck.
“Now what?” she asks. I see her lips twitching and I know she’s trying to hide her excitement from me.
“Now we get to work,” I say with a small smile.
I meet her in front of the truck and take her hand as we walk together on the sidewalk. She stands on her tiptoes and pecks my cheek, relaxing me a little.
We walk for a couple blocks before I feel it. Goose bumps prickle across my skin, and I try to brace myself for what I’m sure is coming next. I want to dull my reactions a little tonight for Nat’s sake, but I realize that’s not going to be possible the second I feel a skull shattering pain in the back of my head. I fall to my knees and squeeze my eyes shut as I try to feel which direction this is coming from.
“Shiloh? Shi! What’s happening?” I hear Nat asking. I can feel her hand rubbing up and down my back, but I do my best to block her out. When I know where I need to go, I grab a red and black pill out of my pocket and swallow it quickly.
“C’mon, this way,” I say, hopping to my feet. Nat is staring at me with wide eyes, her face a little more pale than it was a minute ago. She follows me without question. I stop running when I come to a small bar and wait for her to catch up with me. When she does, I grab her hand and we slowly walk to the alley behind the building.
I see the men fighting as soon as I round the corner.
“Stay here,” I tell Nat as I drop her hand. I know she wants to object; I can see it in her eyes. I walk away from her before she has the chance.
I walk closer to the fighting men so I can get a better look. The bigger man of the two is wearing a red shirt and currently has the smaller guy pressed against a chain link fence. I’m close enough to smell the stench of alcohol surrounding them and roll my eyes at their ignorance. I place my hand on the bigger man’s shoulder; he doesn’t even notice me in his drunken stupor. The other man is staring at me, clearly confused as to why I’m here. I grab his forearm just in time for the bigger man to rear back and head-butt him with extreme force. The man against the fence doesn’t even flinch as he watches the man in front of him fall to the ground, unconscious.
“You have five seconds to find a ride home, then I’m waking him up,” I tell the guy. He nods before staggering off as quickly as he can manage.
When Big Guy wakes up, he doesn’t have any memory of the fight or knocking himself out. I call him a cab and don’t leave his side until I’m confident he will stay put until his ride shows up. I know I should stay with him, or even drive him home like I would any other night, but tonight I’ve got to get back to Nat.
I go back to the corner I left her standing on and she’s not there. I hurry around to the front of the bar and expect to see her waiting for me there; she’s not.
I dial her number and pace back and forth on the sidewalk.
“Hi, ShiBaby,” Macie answers in a sing-song voice.
“Mace? Is Nat there?” I ask, confused. How did she get back to the apartment so fast?
“No, I thought she was out with you. I found her phone in between the couch cushions.”
“Oh, she must have dropped it. I’ll see you in the morning, okay?” I talk to her with a fake smile, hoping she can’t hear the worry in my voice.
The pill I took earlier won’t wear off for another thirty minutes, so I can’t feel her in order to find her. I start walking back to the truck, looking down every street and alley on my way.
I jerk open the truck door, hoping she’s inside. She’s is.
“What are you doing?” I ask, exasperated.
“Point taken, Shi. I don’t want to be a Protector. Just take me home,” she says quietly.
I let out a slow breath when I hear her say that. “You have no idea how happy I am to hear that,” I tell h
er as I drive to our building.
“Are you still hurt?” she asks.
“No, I’m fine. That’s what the pills are for. The other Protectors manufacture them in Seattle and we take them to get rid of the pain we can’t handle. They last for about an hour, which usually gives us enough time to gain control of the situation,” I explain.
She nods and looks out her window for the remainder of the drive.
“I can’t stay,” I tell her as I pull up to the curb to let her out.
“I know. Thanks for bringing me home,” she says, tucking her hair behind her left ear.
“Will I see you in the morning before I leave for Seattle?”
“Of course. Be safe, Shi,” she says, giving me a small wave before walking into the building.
Nat
I wake up in a truck, but it isn’t Shiloh’s; it’s newer and the seats are leather. I turn to see Bennett James in the driver’s seat.
“What’s going on?” I ask, sounding groggy.
“Look who decided to wake up,” he says with a smirk. “How is your head feeling?” he asks.
“It’s okay. Why am I with you? Where’s Shi?” I’m confused. Why can’t I remember anything?
“Shi got into a bind, so he called and asked me to pick you up. I’m taking you back to my place in Seattle so I can go back to help him.”
“Help him? Is he hurt? Why can’t you just take me to my apartment?”
“Nat, they know where you live,” he says simply.
“Who? What about Macie? Where is she?” I ask in a panic.
“Relax, I called her nanny and told her to keep her at her house until Shiloh can pick her up.”
“I need to know what the hell is going on, now,” I demand.
“The men you saw in the alley last night, they weren’t really fighting. It was a setup. They followed Shiloh after he dropped you off and took him. They would have taken you, too. Thank God Shiloh was quick to call me. I’ve got to get you somewhere safe and figure out a way to get Shiloh back.” He’s staring at me, almost as if he’s willing me to believe his story.
“Do you know who those men were? Or where they would take him?” I ask, even though I have a feeling Bennett is lying about something.
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