Amaretto Flame (28 page)

We were all going to be okay! I struggled to
open my eyes. I wanted to see my family. I was back in the guest
bedroom in Claire's house, but the curtains were open, letting
bright sunlight filter in. Immediately, I felt that my arms and
legs were stiff. I wasn't in pain, but my muscles felt like they'd
been locked in position for too long. This was the first sign that
I'd been sleeping for a long time. Judging by the daylight, at
least all night and well into the day. Also, I had been cleaned up.
My hair was soft and brushed out and smelled of jasmine. There was
no trace of the blood I'd been covered in when I had lost
consciousness, and now that I was looking, I noticed that the
wounds had been healed. Jackson had somehow managed to reach
through my guards, then.

The room was filled with wildflowers in every
color of the rainbow, stuffed into vases, glasses, and tied in
bundles sitting on nearly every surface. Smiling, I sat up on the
edge of the bed, stretching my arms and legs. I could hear the
voices of my family downstairs, and I allowed myself to enjoy that
for a few minutes; to absorb the fact that we had triumphed. Then I
quietly made my way down the stairs and through the small hall that
led to the kitchen. I stood, just outside the doorway for a moment,
listening to the sounds of their chatting; comfortable and safe.
Then, I stepped into the kitchen.

“I sure hope there's food in here. I feel
like I've been brought back to life,” I said, smiling and looking
around the table. Immediately, chairs were being pushed back and I
was being embraced. I laughed and allowed my family to smother me
in their affection for a few moments. It was bittersweet, because I
noticed with a painful longing that Jackson wasn't there.

“There's plenty of food,” Claire said, giving
me a warm smile. When I sat, she and Charlotte kept handing me
various things to eat, and refilling my glass of iced tea. No one
said anything about the fight, and I wondered if they thought they
should keep quiet about it in front of me. Maybe they thought I was
traumatized.

“Thank you,” I said to Everett, who looked at
me in surprise. “I know it was you helping me when the hunter
caught me.” He nodded at me, and gave me a sweet smile.

“Actually,” Sylvia said, “it was all we could
do to keep Everett where he was supposed to be. When that hunter
got you with the hook, Everett started after you. We tried to
restrain him, but he was too adamant. Joshua stepped in,
remembering he had Perry's powers. That's the only way we were able
to keep him from running to you.”

Everett didn't look too happy about the fact
that he was 'restrained.' I put my hand over his on the table for a
moment, and then I looked at the others.

“Thank all of you, actually.” I wanted to
thank Joshua and Perry separately, and then the others, but tears
started to well in my eyes, so I blinked furiously to get rid of
them and took a deep breath. “Where's Jackson?”

Claire and Ivanna exchanged glances, and
Sylvia pointed toward the back door. “When he wasn't in your room,
he was out there,” she said.

“Olivia,” Ivanna said. “We've got everything
ready to return home. I know there probably some things you need to
get from the safe house, but I thought we'd leave before
nightfall.”

I nodded. Some things I needed to get. Some
things I needed to do. Some goodbyes I needed to say. The room was
quiet for a moment, and then Sylvia said, “Unless of course you're
staying in Staves.” Something that had probably not even occurred
to Ivanna, Charlotte, or Perry...the fact that I
could
stay
in Staves.

So, this was it, then. This was where I had
to make my choice. It had happened far faster than I'd thought. I'd
imagined having a few days to explain my decision, to think about
things more in-depth. It didn't matter. I thought of Jackson's
face. I knew what my decision was, anyway. If I'd had more time to
think about it, I would only be thinking of reasons to justify the
decision that I'd already made.

“Nice try, Sylvia,” I said. “But you're not
getting my room.” I chuckled at her. “I belong in Eagleton.”
Perhaps she was the only one that caught the sadness in my voice
when I said it, but it didn't matter anyway. It was true. Eagleton
was my home. Sure, I'd miss Erika and Jenny...and Jackson, but I
didn't belong here. I looked down at my empty plate and forced
myself to be honest, even if it
was
quietly, and in my own
mind.

I couldn't stay with Jackson. I'd had a taste
of how amazing he was, and how wonderful it felt to be with him.
I'd also had a taste of the betrayal he was capable of. He didn't
really do it, but the possibility was always there. How long would
it be before he grew tired of me, just like Paula said? How long
before he got sick of keeping my secrets? I'd had enough betrayal;
I'd been shunned enough in my life. I could handle all the Venator
the Goddess wanted to throw at me, but not that.

Without meeting their eyes, I stood and
walked out the back door. He was sitting on the edge of the well,
his guitar in his hands. The music stopped when I closed the door
behind me, and I had a moment to admire him before he looked up at
me. His hair was as messy as always, golden eyes looking at the
strings of the instrument. He was wearing jeans and a black
button-up shirt, the collar brushing the tan skin of his neck. I
realized I was holding my breath and exhaled slowly. Jackson was
right. James Dean wasn't
that
gorgeous.

When our eyes met, I was overjoyed to see
him, but I hurt at the thought of leaving. Smiling, I walked toward
him. “What are you doing out here?”

“Waiting for you,” he replied, looking up at
me. Crimson caught my eye and I was distracted momentarily. The
well was covered in bright red stains. It was blood, I realized. My
blood. Soaked into the stones, splattered here and there. I even
spotted the dark stains on blades of grass nearby.

“I guess I made a mess,” I said. Then I met
his eye again. “Thank you...for healing me. I wasn't conscious but
I remember the light; the healing. It felt like it went on forever.
You must have had to heal me more than once.”

“I didn't stop,” he said, looking back down
at the guitar. I sat beside him and took his hand in both of mine.
It was so warm, and the tingling was stronger than ever.

“How did you get through the guards?” I
asked.

“You were barely here, Slayer.” His eyes
narrowed and he said, “For a while, I thought you might be gone. I
fed you my energy until it was gone and then when it built back up,
I did it again. Eventually, you grew strong again, but in the
beginning, you barely had enough spark in you to hang on to life,
much less the guards.”

“How long was I out?” I asked, looking at the
sky as if it might give me the answers.

“More than two days,” he answered. This gave
me a slight jolt of surprise. I had really burned through the
energy with those hunters.

“You sang to me, too,” I said.

Jackson's mouth turned up into a small smile
and he shrugged. “A little.” He moved the guitar from his lap and
turned to face me. He looked into my face for several heartbeats as
I tried to think of what to say to him.

“This is the part where you tell me you're
leaving now,” Jackson said, his eyes never leaving mine.

“Yes,” I said. He nodded slowly.

“I guess the real question would be whether
you'll be leaving anything behind when you go,” he said, his brows
drawing together over those amaretto eyes. I looked down at his
hand in mine; the tanned skin, the fingers that so elegantly
brought his music to life, that reacted with my own skin in a way I
would have never believed possible.

“I'll be leaving behind the friends that I
made at Stallott's,” I said lamely. “I'll be leaving behind the
only place I've ever felt like I fit in, other than Eagleton. Yes.
There are things I'll leave behind.”

“That's not what I'm talking about and you
know it,” he said.

“Eagleton is where I belong, Jackson. I
wasn't made for...for
this.
” I gestured to the space between
us. Jackson exhaled loudly and ran his hands through his hair.

“The least you could do is give me a straight
answer,” he said. “Look me in my face and tell me why. Why you're
willing to offer up the very blood that is flowing through your
veins,” - he inclined his head toward the blood stains on the well
- “to keep me safe, but you're not willing to offer up the part of
you that I want most; the part that will keep me sane.”

I owed him this, didn't I? I at least owed
him the truth. I raised my face to his. “I can't help it. It's part
of who I am. I'd rather take the memories I have of you now and
keep them for the rest of my life than attempt...something else and
have to live with the memories of you growing tired of me, or you
failing me in some way. I know that sounds self-righteous, but it's
the way I feel.”

Jackson looked at me for a moment and then
said, “So then you do feel for me.” His face looked pained. “Tell
me you love me in the same way that I love you, and maybe that will
provide some relief to hang on to when you're not here. Tell me
that you will be tortured because you're not with me, and that
you'll spend hours trying to think of what you could have done
differently. Tell me you'll see my face when you close your eyes at
night and that I'll haunt you until morning. Tell me,” he said, his
voice louder now. His eyes were flashing, hot and angry.

“I can't do that,” I whispered. His struggle
for control of his emotions was visible only for a moment or two,
and then he was composed again, his eyes searching mine for...for
something. “I have to pick up some things from the safe house and I
want to say goodbye to Jenny and Erika,” I said. “I won't leave
without saying goodbye to you too, Jackson.” With that, I stood and
walked back toward the house with legs made of rubber and a heart
made of lead.

Everett had already been to the safe house to
repair my car and bring it back to Claire's, so that I was able to
drive it. Getting in touch with Jenny and Erika wasn't hard, since
Jenny had been waiting for my call anyway. I asked them to meet me
at the house, and as I drove over with the sun shining on my face,
I tried to come up with some lie to explain my strange behavior.
They were waiting on the front porch steps, Jenny chewing bubble
gum and blowing bright green bubbles every few seconds. I smiled as
I got out of the car. I really would miss them.

As I was gathering up my clothes, I explained
to them that I was leaving.

“Wait, you can't just leave,” Jenny said.
“What about us? What about Jackson?” She frowned and then added,
“What about my ass-kicking lessons? You never really even showed me
anything.”

A corner of my mouth turned up and I said,
“What if I decided I'd just be your personal bodyguard? If you have
any more problems, you just let me know. I'll take care of it.”
Jenny was quiet for a few moments.

“Thanks, Olivia,” she finally said.
Obviously, this was meant to be a thanks for the offer of being her
body guard, but her eyes lingered on me a few moments longer than
necessary and I wondered if she knew more than I might have
guessed. I smiled at her.

“No problem,” I answered.

“But seriously,” Erika said. “What about
Jackson? I mean, I thought you two were...” She let her sentence
trail off.

I shook my head. “Jackson's a really great
guy,” I said. “But we're just friends.”

The two of them looked as though they wanted
to ask more questions, but they didn't. Erika was too tactful and
Jenny probably just couldn't decide which question she wanted to
ask first.

“Promise you'll come and visit us,” Jenny
said.

“I promise. And we'll have amaretto and
pineapples all night long,” I laughed. After hugging them and
loading my things in the car, I drove back to Claire's house with
such a heaviness inside of me that I thought perhaps the effects of
the fight were finally catching up with me, and that I might truly
be damaged. The group was already saying their goodbyes when I
pulled in.

“Claire, please know that you and Jackson are
always welcome in Eagleton. Should you decide that a group would
better benefit you, you have my number,” Ivanna said, giving Claire
a warm embrace. I didn't see Jackson anywhere, and standing on
Claire's porch, I kept watching the door and waiting for him to
come out.

“Thank you,” Claire said. Then she looked
pointedly at me. “You should also know that you're always welcome
here, Olivia.” I smiled and nodded at her. She paused and then
said, “Jackson told me to tell you that he had some thing or
another to take care of, but that he was thankful for the
help.”

I stared at her a moment and then swallowed
the lump in my throat. He hadn't stayed to say goodbye to me. I
could feel the tears welling in my eyes but there was nothing to be
done about it now. I simply smiled and said, “Thank you. Please
tell Jackson that I'll try to visit soon.” With that, I hugged her,
turned away and got back into my car. Ivanna and the others pulled
out ahead of me and with a last glance back at Claire's house, I
pulled out too...homeward bound.

Fifty-four days. Nearly two months. That's
the amount of time that had passed since the Venator attack; since
I'd come back home to Eagleton. For the most part, things were back
to normal. Margaret, the oracle from the Moss Point coven, had left
the day we'd returned. Max still wasn't happy about the fact that
he'd been left out, but he understood the reasons. We were back in
the rhythm that we'd always been in; lots of training, studying,
and of course celebrating nature and our Goddess.

Nothing had seemed to change much in
Eagleton. Ivanna still stalked the newspapers and television for
signs of Wise Children that might be in trouble. I was still
comforted by the fact that my family was safe and secure. The day
still turned to night and the night to day. Nothing was changed
except me. The first different thing I did was enlist Max and
Everett's help to take Joshua and Sylvia out into the world. Each
weekend, we'd do something different. We went to a theater and
watched a cheesy horror movie, eating buckets of popcorn and
listening to the humans in the theater scream.