Entrelacen (23 page)

I miss the bookstore a lot, but the boys love
that I’m able to stay home and play with them. I knew
I would be thinking about Logan quite a bit, even
when I'm trying not to, but I didn’t expect the boys to
ask about him. I wasn’t counting on that. They’ve all
asked a few times if he was going to come over to
play again, but I try to distract them with water
balloon fights. I get soaked every time. I feel like I’m
wearing a mask again. I’m happy because of the boys,
but it just isn't the same when I know I can't have
Logan.

I need to wash my sheets, but the smell of him
still lingers on the pillows and covers, so I haven’t
been able to convince myself to actually do it. The
boys are laying down watching some T.V. before bed,
so I’m cleaning and doing laundry. I’m picking up
clothes that are around the boy’s room when I see a
shadow pass the door towards my room. I walk over
there to see nothing, but I can feel a presence. I sit on
the side Logan sat on and can tell the smell is fading. I
should just wash the sheets, and get it over with.
There is no reason to keep torturing myself, right? I
get up to get the boys into their beds, so I can put the
last load in the dryer before heading back to my
bedroom.

I play some music because I can’t stand it
being so quiet. A random song by Taylor Swift is
playing. I don’t even put my pajamas on. I just take
off my pants and lay down. I grab the pillow he laid
on and hug it to my chest, inhaling his smell. I’m so
close to caving in and calling him, but I only have to
get through 4 more days of this. I wish I knew which
boyIt’s going to be. I already have an idea, but I don’t
want to make assumptions just yet.

I get up and take the kids to school. It’s a new
day, and I’m not going to let anything get to me. I’m
just going to get ready for whatever It’s that’s coming.
I only have 3 days left. That means I need to focus in
on whatever power lies within me. I’m still a little
freaked about the white light coming from my hands.
I’m more freaked out that my mind displayed some
weird language in my head, and I knew what it meant.
So what do I do now? Research. Learn.

After hours of scouring the internet, I find out
that the “symbols” I saw are the written language of
the witches, called Theban. I love the way it looks. I
used to write like this in my journals when I was in
elementary. At the time, I thought it was something I
made up in order to keep my secrets a secret, but as it
turns out, it was just my mind relaying a language I
already knew. I find out that when a person is born a
witch, the power in that family’s bloodline gets
stronger with each generation. That’s good to know.

My morning passed by really quickly since I
was kept busy researching. I pick up the boys from
school and let them go play in the backyard while I
fix dinner.

“Mom! Mathew found something, and he’s not
sharing,” Lee yells.
I drop the spoon I was washing into the sink
and freeze. I knew it. I knew it was going to be him. I
dry my hands and head out the back door. I call him
over to me and send the others inside to wash up. I
grab Mathew and hug him. He’s been through so
much already; he doesn’t need any more drama in his
life. He just needs to be a happy kid with no worries.
“Let me see it Mathew.” My voice sounds
tired.
“Mom, I swear I found it buried in the dirt,” he
says.
I know he says that because he thinks he’s in
trouble. The object is cold to the touch. I can tell that
it must have been beautiful once. The silver is dirty,
and the Onyx stone is dulled. The rubies and
diamonds that surround it are also dull in color.
“What is it mom?”
“I believe it was a necklace once kiddo. Now
it looks like it was worn and forgotten.”
“Can I keep it Mom?”
“I don’t see why not, but let’s put it up so your
brothers won’t fight over it.”
“Okay. Can I put it in my b
ackpack for now
until we can find a place for it?”
“Sure kiddo. Now go get washed up. Dinner is
ready.”
I guess I'll be stopping by the bookstore to see
Gran tomorrow while the kids are in school, so I can
see what this necklace means. Sigh, I hope he’s there,
and then I hope he’s not. I have too many raw
emotions right now. I would be hard to see him and
walk away again.
I serve the boys their food, and we eat in
silence. Either they’re tired, or they can feel
something bad is coming soon. It seems like kids can
sense things before the rest of us can. We finish, and
Lee gets the trash together and puts it in the garage.
Michael goes to the living room to sit on his bean bag
to watch some cartoons while Mathew helps me with
the dishes. Once everything is cleaned up, I send Gran
a text to let her know I would be coming by to see her
after I take the boys to school. We watch some TV,
then take baths, and head to bed.
The boys fall asleep quickly. I wait until my
mom gets home to let her know that I need her to take
Lee and Michael somewhere Friday after school and
wait until I call her to come back. She agrees with no
questions asked. Even she knows what’s going on. It’s
like this thick fog is hanging in the air around us,
begging to be unleashed and suffocate us.
I go back upstairs and lay down on the bed,
but the scent that has been calming me is gone. He’s
gone. The smell of him no longer lingers, and I miss
it. I miss him.

I’m walking in a field of Gerber daisies, one of
my favorite flowers. They’re all different colors. I take
a deep breath. The air always tastes better here. The
sun is shining bright, and there’s a slight breeze, so I
lay down in the middle of the field. I close my eyes,
and a feeling of tranquility makes its way over my
skin. “I know you’re here. I can feel you.”

“We see that you are learning to feel what’s
around you. That is very good. We also know you have
found out which child you need to protect.”

“I’ve been learning about my heritage, and
yes, Mathew found the object you said he would. He’s
very drawn to it.”

“We knew he would be, but it’s not worth
anything. It was just to show who was next to be
tested. Friday is close. Are you ready?”

“Well, I’m as ready as I can be considering I
have no idea what I’m up against, but I know I can
beat it, whatever It’s.”

“That is why you are the chosen one April, the
indigo child. You volunteered for this life, to do what
you are about to do. It’s a great honor to be working
with you.”

I chose this life? I’m
about to ask what they
meant, but their presence is no longer here. I lay back
down and enjoy the air. I enjoy the beautiful flowers
and the warm sun for as long as I can because when I
wake up, everything will be set in motion.

Even though I had such a peaceful dream, I
wake up feeling like I got no sleep. I repeat the same
mundane routine of getting the boys ready for school.
When I get home this time, I take a long hot shower.
If I run into Logan, I want to look good. I put on my
favorite pair of faded blue jeans and a pink tank with
a black one layered over it. I leave my hair curly, add
some lip gloss, and put on my black converses with
the pink laces. My necklace stays on. It’s the only
jewelryI’m wearing besides my lip and nose rings.
Off to the book store I go.

I se
e Logan’s car in the parking lot, but I don't
see Gran's.
Please let her be inside. Please let her
have ridden with him to the shop. Please Please
Please.
Taking a deep breath, I park and walk across
the parking lot. I walk inside and start toward the
back. I have the old necklace in my hand. Getting it
from Mathew was difficult. I had to convince him that
someone might take it from him at school. He was
worried, so he let me hold onto it for him.

While walking to the back, I think that if I
don’t draw any attention to myself, he won’t even
know I’m here. It would be so awesome to have the
power of invisibility right now. Yeah, I know. I’ve lost
it. I suppose It’s just hopeful thinking. I’m almost to
the door of the new age room when someone clears
their throat. My head drops, and I let out the breath I
was holding. Do I turn around and acknowledge him
or just keep going? Everything is screaming at me to
turn around. I’ve missed him. The logical side of me
says he can wait. Mathew is more important. That’s
the side that wins out. I raise the hand holding the
necklace to push open the door, and I’m stopped.
Logan’s hand is wrapped around my wrist.

“Where did you get this?” He sounds angry.
Great. Not only do I have to deal with
whatever this necklace means, but I have to face his
anger too? I can’t win, can I? It’s like everything is
stacked against me. Trying to rip my wrist free from
his grasp, I ask, "Why? It’s none of your business. I’m

While not letting go of my hand, he forces me
to turn around and face him. I see the hurt in his eyes
before it disappears. “Gran said you would be coming
in. She will be here soon.”

He pulls me up against him. My breath
catches, and my eyes drop to his lips. Too close. I
need to step away. I try to take a step back, but he
matches me. He still has my wrist in his hand, and we
keep backing up until I hit some books. His other
hand comes up to caress my cheek as he stares into
my eyes.

“April, where d
id you get this?" He shakes my
wrist, making the necklace jingle in my hand.
“I got it from my son. He found it out back in
the dirt last night. Why? What's the big deal?”
He still hasn’t dropped my hand, and his other
one is playing with my hair. His touch is intoxicating,
and I can slowly feel my guard dropping. The way
he’s looking at me right now is making it impossible
to focus. I just want to kiss him and act like the last
few days never happened. Why can't I just pretend
that today is the morning after our first time together,
and everything is just dandy? Too bad that its not the
case.
“This necklace is the amulet my mother was
supposed to protect," he says in wonder, like it was
the missing piece to all his problems. Maybe it was.
Gran needs to hurry up and get here, so we can
figure this all out. His hand is on the back of my neck
tracing the tattoos I have there. He’s focusing solely
on the one in the middle, the symbol that means to
‘choose life’. It’s causing goose bumps to rise up all
over me.
He scans my face and I bite my lip, not
because I’m trying to but because I'm torn. We both
have responsibilities, and I don’t need a distraction.
His eyes zero in on my lips, and the need I feel for
him causes me to gasp. The hand he’s holding is
pinned above my head as he leans into me. His eyes
are back on mine. I can see the same turmoil boiling
in his eyes that I'm experiencing, but his desire is
winning.
Just kiss me already,
I scream inside my head.
So he does.
The hand that was tracing my tattoo is now on
the side of my face making sure I don’t move as his
lips crush into mine. A moan escapes and is
swallowed by him. My free hand is fisting into the
front of his shirt. Every inch of my body is trying to
touch his. This kiss is even better than our first one.
It’s pure need, desire, and want. It’s love.
“I’ve missed you, babe," he says with
conviction.
I want to tell him I missed him too, but this
doesn’t change the fact that I have something I need
to do. This one moment of weakness is just that, a
moment.
“Logan, I know. Me too, but you know this
doesn’t change anything. I still have something to do,
and I have to walk away again.”
“April, you don’t get it, do you? The only
reason we had to be apart is because we both had our
own paths, two different destinies. Our paths are
entrelacen now. The person you are protecting is the
same one I’m meant to protect. Don’t you see that?”
“Wait, what? What are you talking about, and
what the hell does entrelacen mean?”
“My mom protected this amulet until it
was
taken from her. I knew I would have to protect
someone, but I didn’t know who it would be. I
thought it was you at first, but I found out I was
wrong. This amulet is my sign. The person who found
It’s the person I’m supposed to protect,” Logan says
excitedly.
He can barely contain himself. It’s like he’s
about to start jumping up and down like a girl. His
smile is wide, and It’s the most beautiful thing I have
ever seen. I’ve never seen him this excited. How
could I take that away from him? I can’t. If he’s right,
that would mean Mathew has more protection.
“Okay. I think I get that, but for us dumb
blondes,” I make air quotations “you failed to mention
what entrelacen means.”
He has the nerve to laugh. "April, you are far
from being a dumb blonde. Baby, entrelacen means 'to
intertwine' in French. It means that we started life in
two different directions, but they lead us here. You
know that song by Rascal Flatts, called Bless the
Broken Road?” He waits for me to shake my head and
continues, "Well, that’s us because we’ve both had
hard lives, heartbreak, and you name it, but we’re here
right now, together,” he says softly, reverently.
A tear makes its way down my cheek, and he
kisses it away.
“We're stronger together and I can't

I had no intention of making her
cry, but damn if she doesn’t look cute
doing it. Her eyes turn an emerald green
color with flecks of orange, and her glossy
pink lips turn out in a pout. Even her
shaking hands are cute because she’s
trying to hide them. I take the necklace or
amulet, whatever It’s, out of her hand and
place it on the shelf next to us. Taking her
hands in mine, I say, “Baby, no matter
what happens, we’re here together. We’re
in this together. No one is going to take us
away from each other or stop us from
protecting our boys.”