Discern (47 page)

“No problem.”

“Hey, I almost forgot to tell you that Braden’s dad came into the shelter this morning.”

“For what?” I gulped.

“He made a small donation, but it seemed a little odd. He spoke with my mother for a few minutes and then left.”

“Did you ask your mom what he wanted?” I pried.

“Yes, but she said he was just making small talk, nothing significant.”

“Braden isn’t coming to town is he?”

“No. I asked, and she said he hadn’t mention Braden at all.”

“Thank goodness,” I said relieved.

“It was a little strange, but then again he does make a donation once a year,” he shrugged.

“Okay, thanks for telling me.”

“No problem,” he smiled.

“I’ll lock the place up right at eight.”

“Call me if you need ANYTHING,” he grinned widely.

“I will,” I said, shaking my head.

He made his way off the porch and into his truck. I waved one last time before closing the door and locking it. I leaned up against the front door, wondering why Mr. Mitchell would make a donation to the shelter today of all days. He didn’t seem like a very generous man; at least that’s how Braden made him sound.

I pushed myself off of the door and headed upstairs. A thorough cleaning of my room was definitely overdue and a load or two of laundry wouldn’t hurt. Maybe take a shower and then get ready to lock up the shelter.

Clothes were scattered all around my bedroom floor. I scooped them all up and headed out into the hallway, making my way to the laundry room. I hated doing laundry. The sound of gushing water loudly filled the tiny room. I shoved a load of clothes inside the washer and poured in the detergent.

I began straightening out the bed and neatly stacking the pillows atop the comforter. I noticed the empty bowl of cereal and Andrew’s journal on top of my nightstand. I grabbed both and headed over to my bookshelf.

Setting the bowl down so I could place his journal right next to the infamous golden journal, I scanned the shelf and could not seem to locate the book that had caused so much pain and confusion. I remembered placing it on the top shelf in its usual place.

I panicked as I searched the three bottom shelves. Briskly walking over to my nightstand, I pulled out the drawers. I lifted up the bed skirt and frantically searched under the bed. I looked in all the drawers of my dresser and chest with no luck.

The book was gone. There were only two people that had come and gone from my house.

I began dialing my phone.

“Hello,” my father answered.

“Daddy,” I said breathlessly.

“Haley, are you okay?” he asked alarmed.

“Yes. Did you take Mom’s little golden book from my room?” I asked frantically.

“Calm down, sweetie.”

“Did you?” I asked hastily.

“What book are you talking about?” he asked calmly.

“Mom’s book about Ancient Greece—you know the little gold one?” I described it hoping this would jar his memory.

‘Yes. I do remember that book, but why would I take it?”

“I don’t know. It’s gone, and I know I didn’t take it,” I said flustered.

“Are you by yourself?” he asked worried.

“Yes. I’ve been here alone all weekend, and I haven’t left the house much,” I muttered, frantically continuing to search my room up and down.

“Is being alone bothering you? Because if it is, I’ll get on a plane right now and come home.”

“No. I’m fine, but I just can’t find that book, and I-I was using it as a reference for one of my papers,” I lied.

“Well, I’m sure you’ll find it sweetie.”

“I better get back to my search,” I said agitated.

“Okay, call me later.”

“I will.”

I slammed the phone down. Andrew was going to be upset. This book meant everything to him. This was the key to our happiness. Tears began falling—everything he had hoped for would never come true.

I wiped away the tears and glanced up at the shelf one more time. There was an open slot where the book usually sat. If my father had not touched it, then there was only one other person who had access to it.

My body froze as I realized Andrew had been carrying an unusual black bag with him when he left. Why would he have taken the book with him on a mission? His behavior had been unusual. I was a little confused, as I thought about the timing of his departure.

I suddenly grew angry. He had lied to me. There was no mission for the government. It was just a cover so he could show the book to his other siblings. I stared at the empty slot on the shelf for several minutes trying to rationalize his thought process.

His insistence on me staying inside my house while he was gone made sense now. If the others found out about my existence they could not penetrate these walls. This gave me little solace as I worried now for Andrew’s safety. His love for me had driven him to make this rash decision. I only hoped that Alec and Holden were by his side, united in their confirmation of the book’s authenticity.

Pulling a towel from the cabinet, I hoped a nice, hot shower might console me. The warm beads of water did nothing to soothe. I was feeling more and more betrayed as the minutes passed. I unwrapped the towel from around my head and ripped a comb through my wet, tangled hair. I slammed the comb down on top of the vanity.

The ringing from my phone startled me as I walked back into my bedroom. I sprinted over to the nightstand. To my dismay it was only Braden calling. I declined the call, sending it straight to voicemail.

Braden’s call reminded me of the betrayal I had once felt from him. But somehow his deception, even though more severe and hurtful, did not feel as harsh as Andrew’s had. My safety was Andrew’s only concern, but I couldn’t understand why he hadn’t at least left a note explaining the truth of his whereabouts.

There was no one to impress this evening, so I decided against primping myself any further. I had a simple task to complete before returning home. The trip now seemed a little less innocuous as it had hours ago. There could be an immortal creature waiting right outside my door, but I was fairly confident that my abilities would keep me safe. At least I hoped.

I finished a few more chores before checking the clock. It was almost seven-thirty now. I hopped in my car, slightly on edge, but the ride to the shelter was short and, thankfully, uneventful.

Two staff members were impatiently waiting behind the front desk.

“Hi,” I said casually, walking toward them.

“Are you Haley?” the shorter woman with dark hair asked.

“Yes, I am,” I smiled.

“Good. It’s been a long day,” the taller, gray haired woman sighed.

They both seemed like nice women. I couldn’t imagine why Ryan’s mother did not trust them with this simplistic task.

“Will Ms. Scott freak out if we close a few minutes early?” I asked, aware they were ready to leave.

“A few minutes won’t hurt anything,” the shorter lady smiled.

“All right, let’s close up,” I smiled back.

They both retrieved their personal items from behind the gray door and whispered between themselves. I opened the door for both of them.

“You want us to wait for you out in the parking lot?” the taller lady asked.

“No. I’ll be fine,” I smiled.

They both hurried to their cars. I walked over to the alarm keypad and pulled the folded piece of paper out of my jeans pocket. I scanned over the note and chuckled as I read the last part. Ryan had begged once more for me to call him with any questions or concerns. I lightly padded my other pocket. A quick rush of adrenaline shot through my body as I realized I had forgotten my phone at home. ‘Great,’ I thought to myself.

Quickly pressing the numbers on the keypad, I heard the sound of the front door chime. I immediately looked up.

“Did you forget something?” I asked.

Three men wearing dark pants and long jackets stood glaring in my direction.

“We’re closed,” I said nervously.

A fourth man walked inside. I shook my head furiously. “What can I help you with, Mr. Mitchell?”

“I think you can help quite a bit,” Mr. Mitchell answered flatly.

“How’s that?” I asked. I began slowly moving toward the front desk.

“I wouldn’t bother,” Mr. Mitchell said, shaking his head. “We’re the authorities, and this is official business we’re conducting.” His voice was harsh.

“I’m not sure I understand,” I said, watching all of them closely.

Mr. Mitchell slowly walked closer. “Where is he?” he asked irritated.

“Where is who?”

“Mr. Alexander,” he said, gritting his teeth.

“I haven’t a clue.”

“When will he be back?” His voice was growing angrier.

“He didn’t say,” I lied.

“Haley, please don’t waste my time,” he snarled.

“I’m not.”

“Where did he tell you he would be this weekend?” He continued to interrogate.

“He was supposed to be on a mission.”

“What kind of mission?”

“For the government,” I answered, wondering if I was breaking any rules by answering truthfully.

“How much about his government involvement do you know?”

“Not much,” I lied.

“Will you be truthful if I ask you a personal question?” he asked uneasily.

“Not sure.”

“Does he force you to be with him?”

“No.”

“I’ve known you for years, why would you choose to be with someone so dangerous?” His voice softened subtly.

“He isn’t dangerous.” My voice cracked.

“Yes, he is, Haley. You can’t even imagine the sights we’ve witnessed. His brother, or whatever he may be, and he are ruthless hunters of humans. What they do to our kind is horrible,” he said, sickened by his own recollections.

“If he’s so dangerous, then why do you work along side him?” I challenged.

“They do help with certain tasks that no human could complete,” he explained. “But you—you don’t have to be around their kind. It’s our job to work along side them, but you have a choice.” His voice wavered from concern to irritation.

“You’re aware of what he is?” The tallest of the men asked.

“Yes.”

“What has he told you about their kind?” Mr. Mitchell stepped a little closer.

This was one question I could not answer truthfully. “I know they aren’t human, but they have no real purpose.” I swallowed hard, trying to lie convincingly.

“You’re comfortable being around a demon?” Mr. Mitchell scoffed.

“He isn’t a demon,” I replied angrily.

“He’ll kill you once he’s done with you.” He gritted his teeth in anger. “I’ve seen it many times. They both entertain themselves with human woman…pretending to have relationships with them…and when they no longer fulfill their needs, they simply suck the life right out of them,” he said disgusted.

Andrew spoke of never hurting his female companions. “Andrew isn’t like that.” I shook my head.

“Haley, this is a game to them. They feed off human love and desire. It fuels them. They aren’t capable of caring for anyone beside themselves. I’ve seen it, and I won’t allow them to destroy you this way.” His voice was dark and decided.

He gestured for the three men to head in our direction. I tried to squeeze out from between the wall and Mr. Mitchell’s body, but his strength far surpassed mine.

“Stop!” I screamed, feeling the hands of the other men grab my arm and pull me toward the door.

“Haley, this is for your own good,” Mr. Mitchell said as one of the men put his hand over my mouth.

“Grab the key from her pocket, so I can lock up,” Mr. Mitchell ordered.

One of the men dug around in my pocket and retrieved the key. He ripped the piece of paper from my hand and gave it to Mr. Mitchell. “Put her in the car. I’ll be there in a minute,” he said.

Two men escorted me from the building while the third opened the door. They pushed me inside the backseat of an unmarked, dark blue car.

“Sit there and shut up,” the shortest of the three men snarled.

The door slammed in my face. I watched as two of them walked to another car and drove off. The third man slid into the driver’s seat. He looked in the rearview mirror as he watched me carefully.

“They really are disgusting demons,” he said.

“They aren’t,” I said angrily.

“I don’t know why you’re so special that we have to save you from them, but you’ll appreciate this one day.”

“I’m not sure you’ll be alive to be thanked,” I muttered.

“What did you say?” he asked angrily.

“Nothing.”

A dark figure appeared at the window. I had hoped it was Andrew, but to my dismay, it was only Mr. Mitchell. He opened the car door and slid in the back seat beside me.

“I’m sorry, Haley, but you’ll thank me one day,” he sighed heavily.