Embody (25 page)

Confusion was all over my face. His father
kept him from me, so that must mean that I’m bad.
What did I
do?

“It’s my fault, isn’t it? If Drake hadn’t
wanted me, his father would be alive,” I said, trying to hold back
tears.

“It’s not your fault; you’re just as much a
victim as the rest of us,” Beth said in a sincere tone.

“’Rest of us?’” I repeated.

Beth looked over me and sighed. I felt her
struggling; she felt torn between two things that she loved. “I’ve
lost so much in my life. I’ve mislaid three of my sons, and the
only man that I’ve ever loved. Drake is all that remains. If betray
him, I’m telling the rest of my children that their pain was in
vain - and I cannot bear that.”

I stepped closer and put my hand on her
shoulder, causing her to turn and look at me. “I don’t understand
what you’re trying to tell me?” I whispered.

“Just know that the universe will never be
right if you don’t follow you heart. I followed fear and lost so
much; don’t make the same mistakes that I’ve made.”

“Drake said that fate brought me here,” I
alleged.

“Fate may have brought you here, but I fear
that fate will take you just as swiftly.”

“Why?” I asked.

“There’s a reason for everything...no matter
how painful it might be,” she continued.

I looked down, realizing that she was never
going to give me a straight answer.

Beth walked over to my painting and stared
at it with absolute disbelief. I walked to her side, inspecting my
own work; the daylight had brought out a few hair strokes that I
wasn’t fond of. “I’d be honored if you ever wanted to paint me,”
she said, looking back at me.

I smiled warily at her, then a sharp pain
suddenly ripped through the center of me; it caught me so off guard
that I couldn’t hold back the scream that came out. I fell forward,
and Beth caught me. I was panting, feeling another one come. I
squealed through my teeth, and sweat was all over my skin.

“Drake! Alamos!” Beth screamed.

As another pain ripped through me, I
squeezed her arm, trying to remember to breathe. I felt sick as I
watched the room spin. I heard a stampede of footsteps charging
toward me, then my relief came; Drake’s arms were around me as he
rocked me back and forth, sending a warm rush through me, filling
me with a sense of peace. As my breathing slowed, the adrenaline
rush left me limp. I wept silently on his shoulder. With my arms
wrapped around his neck, I pulled him closer, fearing the pain
would strike again.

“It won’t be much longer, love; I’ll take
all this pain away from you,” he whispered.

Drake picked me up, carrying me to one of
the chairs, then sat me on his lap so every part of me was touching
him. I closed my eyes, still feeling Beth’s horror lingering in the
room.

“I need you to stay with her tonight. We
have to go home and retrieve all that we need,” Drake said to Beth.
I could feel her sorrow; she was trying to find a way to stop him
from whatever he was trying to do, but her courage seemed to escape
her. I felt myself drifting into a blissful sleep, but I was
quickly rocked awake.

“You have to take your medicine before you
fall asleep,” Drake said, adjusting me to a sitting position.

As I opened my eyes, I saw Alamos standing
in front of me with five pills in his hand.

“Five?” I questioned.

“We’re giving you a supplementary pain
pill,” Alamos answered. I studied the pills, noticing that three of
them were identical and that the other two were different from one
another. I took them one by one, memorizing what they looked like
and fearing that they were a veil over my very being.

As I lay back down on Drake’s chest, Beth
covered us both with a blanket and sat in the chair next to us. I
stared at her, questioning everything. She was so remorseful. Then,
I felt her make a promise to me; she showed me her intent, which
was to help me in any way - no matter what it might cost her. The
grief that that promise cost her brought a tear to my eye. I nodded
in her direction, and she smiled warily back at me. My eyes felt
heavy, and I lost the battle to stay awake.

Chapter Fourteen

I was kissed awake again by Drake, and I
remembered my role and played my part - kissing him back. I opened
my eyes and found myself lying in my bed.

“You need to take your medicine, and you
need to eat something,” he said with a degree of authority.

I let my face show my defiance. He chuckled
and pulled me into a sitting position. I stretched my senses out
and found that Beth had left the room but was close by. It was dark
outside.

“Where’s Stella?” I asked, panicked.

“She’s monitoring the others downstairs
while they stock what they brought,” he answered, winking at me.
“Alamos.”

Alamos walked in the room with a glass of
water and reached his hand out with the same five pills that he’d
given me before. I sighed deeply and took them one by one.

“Have them bring her food. I want to make
sure she eats,” Drake said to Alamos.

Alamos bowed his head, then turned to leave.
Drake slid himself beside me on the bed, wrapping his arm around me
and kissing my forehead. “I have to leave tonight,” he
whispered.

I looked quickly up at him, protesting; I
knew that whatever he was doing, Beth didn’t approve of it. I
trusted her. Drake smiled, thinking it was his absence alone that
caused that reaction in me.

“Don’t worry, love, we’ll be back by the
dawn. My mother will give you your medicine throughout the night.
We’re giving you more so you won’t feel any pain in my
absence.”

“Where are you going?” I asked.

“I have to go home for something I need –
it’ll take your pain away forever,” he said as sympathy for my
agony filled his eyes.

“Isn’t your home on the other side of the
world? How will you be back before the dawn?” I asked, hoping I
wasn’t being too forward.

“I’ll show you how – when the pain is gone –
the universe is at our beckon call,” he whispered.

The woman who had served me for the past few
days entered the room, and her shock, embarrassment, and confusion
was apparent on her face when she saw Drake holding me. She quickly
regained her composure, though the emotions still ran through her.
Drake reached for the tray, letting the weight of it rest on him.
The woman bowed her head, then left in haste. Drake cut small
pieces of meat for me. The only thing that I’d eaten since I had
been here had been bread; I feared anything more would cause me to
be sick. I made a face, only to find him laughing under his
breath.

“Come now, I can’t fight this battle on my
own; you must at least to try to keep your strength up.”

“I really feel like you’re fighting a losing
battle,” I said quietly.

“I’ve been there before,” he said.

I questioned him with my eyes. He raised a
fork with a small piece of meat to my mouth; I opened and slowly
ate. It did taste good. He didn’t force me to eat the whole tray. I
lay back down, feeling my stomach trying to digest the food; it had
given me a sense of energy that I hadn’t had all day.

Drake rose from the bed, then leaned in and
kissed me softly, wrapping his arms around my frail body. I took in
the mesmerizing hum, hoping I wouldn’t need it throughout the
night; the memory of the pain was terrifying.

“I have to leave now,” he said, pulling away
from me. He walked over to the door, then said, “Mom,” in an
elevated voice.

I felt Beth approaching; she was still
trying to find the strength to stop him. She walked into the front
room. “She’s sleeping across the hall and will wake you throughout
the night to give you your medicine,” Drake said to me.

Beth smiled at me, then Drake walked over
and kissed my forehead. “I’ll be back soon...I love you,” he
whispered, staring into my eyes, waiting for me to respond.

Beth’s fear gave me the courage to stay
silent, not to lie to him. Drake looked away slowly and walked over
to his mother, then kissed her cheek; I could see her eyes pleading
with him, only to be ignored.

She followed him out of the room, and I was
all alone. I looked forward and saw a new canvas waiting for me. I
slowly rose from the bed, checking my balance and finding it well.
I knew what I wanted to paint; I wanted to see the sun. I grabbed
the brush without hesitation and began to paint an elaborate
display. I filled the top of the canvas with the colors of a
sunrise, a sun behind a blue sky, and a perfect sunset full of
purples and oranges. On the bottom, I painted a clear night sky
with a full moon and crystal clear stars.

I was admiring my work when I felt someone
approaching. I was almost sure it was Stella; the only confusion I
had was that she was near euphoric, as if she were in love. I
stared at the door and listened as she got closer. I could feel
someone else with her; they felt the same way, but they felt
familiar as well. One of them stopped entering another room, and
the one I thought was Stella walked closer. She crossed the
threshold of the doorway, and a smile filled her face; she was even
more beautiful now. I smiled at her and stepped closer. I knew then
what Beth was trying to tell me: if I loved Drake, I’d feel the way
Stella was feeling now. It was so beautiful coming from her, and I
regretted that my life wouldn’t be long enough to feel the way she
was feeling now.

“You’re in love,” I said to her.

Her eyes brightened. “You can feel it inside
of me?” she asked, surprised.

I walked over to her and hugged her tightly.
I knew that I’d served my purpose and had bridged the gap between
the real Evelyn and the one who’d be able to take care of her for
the rest of her life.

“Who is he?” I asked.

“I met him early this morning while I was
waiting on the boats to arrive. Evee, the first time I saw him and
he smiled at me - I lost my breath. He walked to my side, and we
talked for hours. He’s the most amazing person I’ve ever met. I
can’t explain how amazing this feels,” she said.

“You don’t have to; I can feel it. Are you
going to introduce me?” I said, tilting my head in his
direction.

“Is it safe? Is it true that Drake and the
priest left?” she asked

“It is. He’ll be back by the dawn. His
mother is across the hall,” I warned.

“Perodine is here?” she asked with a panic I
could feel coming from her.

“Her name is Beth,” I corrected.

Stella was immediately confused. “Are sure
she’s his mother?” she asked.

“That’s how he introduced her. I can feel
her; she can be trusted,” I promised. “Go...I want to meet him,” I
encouraged.

Stella smiled wildly, then walked to the
door, looking out cautiously in both directions before leaving. A
moment later, she came into the room. The young man was very
attractive with perfect features and dark brown eyes. As I stared
at him, I had the flash of a memory of him, with others laughing,
full of joy...I felt as if I loved him - not in the way that Stella
loved him, but like a brother, someone that I trusted and
respected. He looked deeply into my eyes, and his smile lessened a
little, almost as if he saw something he recognized there.

“Evelyn, this is Marc; Marc, this is my
older sister, Evelyn,” Stella said, proudly closing the door behind
them and pulling a chair to block the doorknob.

I nodded hello, still questioning who he
was. He looked past me at the painting I’d just completed. Stella
followed his eyes, and I could feel the surprise coming from both
of them and the joy coming from Stella as she gazed at the sun. She
walked over to get a closer look, shaking her head in disbelief.
Marc was at her side.

“And you’ve seen the sun before, too, I can
assume?” Stella said.

I could feel her grief as she recalled our
conversation earlier that day; she still had the same sorrow, but
the love she was feeling filled the hole it had made.

“You did this?” Marc questioned me, looking
deeply into by eyes, doubting himself. I nodded.

“Evelyn and I were caught out in the storm
two days ago. She hit her head twice; it took her memory but left
her unique senses,” Stella explained.

Marc’s fear rose, and his eyes widened as he
looked at the painting, then back at me. “What do you mean,
‘senses?’” he asked.

“Well, I certainly hope you have no intent
on lying to either of us – she’ll be able to see it. She can also
feel people,” Stella answered.

I could easily feel how much she trusted
him. Marc swallowed; he was immediately nervous. “You feel
emotions?” he asked.

“It’s flawed; I can’t feel everyone.” I
answered.

“You can’t feel Drake, can you?” he
questioned.

“Um...not in that way...I can’t feel the
ones with hoods either,” I summarized.

Marc walked closer to me. He looked
sincerely in my eyes, then past the surface. “Do you dream?” he
whispered.

I shook my head no. “The medicine I have to
take prevents them,” I said quietly.

“What about a man’s voice in your head?” he
asked.

As her fear piqued, Stella took a protective
step toward us. I knew that Marc meant no harm, though, and I let
my eyes tell her so.

“How did you know about that?” Stella
asked

“You do hear him,” he said, briefly
excited.

“I heard someone just after my accident, but
the pain medicine has shielded that, too.”

“Do you remember anything before you hit
your head? Anything?” he asked, now panicked.

“She has flashes of memories...blue eyes,”
Stella answered for me.

Marc gasped, then stepped back and started
to pace the floor. He was making Stella nervous, but I was calm. He
was a good guy; he would use whatever he knew about me to help us,
and I was beginning to think that he was the key to help unlock my
memory.