Falling Into Darkness: The Under Series Book 1 (24 page)

“There's no need for that.” The man grabbed the whistle from her.
“We just wanna talk. So what are you girls up to tonight?”
“Waiting for my boyfriend and his mates they just went to get takeaway.” Aimee said.
“We just came from that way didn't see anyone,” The other man smirked walking round to stand
next to his friend.
Maybe I could try punching him under the chin like they do on TV....
I heard Aimee thinking. I
looked over at her hoping she wasn't serious.
“So what do you girls say to coming back to mine with us for a few drinks I only live across the
street,”
“Maybe next time my dads expecting me home in ten minutes he's a police officer I'm sure you've
probably met him. Come on,” she grabbed my arm and tried to walk around them but one of them
moved in front to block her. He smiled an all teeth smile but all I saw was the large chip he had in
his front tooth.
“Ruby,” A voice said called from across the street.
It was Cam, a sudden rush of relief washed over me, I couldn't believe how pleased I was to see
him.
“What do you want?” The chipped tooth man asked.
“Go and get in your car,” Cam said to us.
“You need to leave before I turn you inside out.” The bigger man said to him. Cam laughed. I
wondered what was so funny Cam didn't stand a chance against these two men if it came down to
fighting, he was going to get hurt.
“I'd like to see you try. Girls go and get in your car.”
Aimee and I slipped away and and crossed the street.
We hurried as fast as Aimee shoes would allow us to move. I looked back over my shoulder before
we turned the corner. One of the guys was already on the floor clutching his head head and Cam
was holding the other one in the air by his neck with his feet dangling above the floor. I was
shocked Cam was that strong, I wasn't quite sure how he was doing it.
“Did you see anything? I can't believe Cam just tried to rescue us from those bullies, they're
probably turning him into pulp right now. And great timing your cell is back in service again.
Should we call the police?”
“I don't think we need to.” I replied watching Cam as he jogged over to us. He didn't look like he'd
even been in a fight, but I wasn't sure what I saw would be classed as fighting holding someone up
as if they weighed no more than a bag of sugar. He was wearing sneakers, jeans and a T-shirt with a
robot on the front. He didn't have his cap on tonight and his blonde hair glistened under the street
light.
“Um what happened to the other two guys?” Aimee asked shocked.
“They left. Don't worry they're not going to bother you again.”
“What did you do?” I asked.
He shrugged. “Just told them to leave.”
“And they left just like that?”
“Yep. Now what are you two doing out here?”
“Funny story, we went into the rental shop to get a DVD and I accidentally dropped my car keys in
to the popcorn bin. Then we went for a walk,” she said looking at me. “and when we came back I
realised my keys were missing but the rental shop was already shut so here we are. We've been
walking around trying to get signal to call for help.”
“You went for a walk?” he asked looking at us questionably.
“Yeah I just love fresh air.” Aimee said grinning.
Cam looked at me unconvinced with her story.
“Are you sure you dropped them in the rental shop?” he asked.

“Yep,”
“Have you looked round here you might have dropped them on the floor,”
“No, I'm a hundred percent sure I left them in the shop.”
“So if you knew they were in the popcorn bin why didn't you pick them back out?” Cam asked.
“I got distracted by something,”
“Okay how about we have a quick look around on the floor and if we don't find them I will drive
you home myself or if you'll let me I'll get into your car and hot wire it so you can drive it home
yourself. So you two go over there and I'll look over here.” He walked off with his back to us.
“I bet he's lived in the city,” Aimee said smirking.
“Shhh! He'll hear you.”
We wondered around the parking lot, searching the floor but it felt rather pointless.
“This is silly I know we're not going to find my keys on the floor.” She ducked down and looked
under her car.
“Well I dunno maybe we will, you were so busy chasing Mack down the street you might have
dropped them then.” I looked over the roof of the car looking for Cam but he had vanished.
“Pass me your cell I need the light for under here,” I vaguely heard her and pulled my cell from my
pocket holding it out for her. I was busy watching the rental shop something inside had caught my
eye it. I looked carefully and saw a shadow move pass the windows on the inside, like there was
someone inside the shop. I looked around for a Cam but he was still nowhere to be seen.
“No like I said they're definitely not under my car. Now where's Cam so he can hot wire this thing
and we can get out of here?”
“Found them,” Cam said walking over to us jingling Aimee's keys in his hand.
“No way. Where were they?” she asked catching them from him.
“Someone had handed them into the convenience store.”
“Huh, never thought of asking in there. Well thanks for finding them and saving us from those
thugs.”
“Anytime,”
“What are you doing round here anyway?” I asked wondering how he had found us the first time.
“I was on my way to see a friend, he lives round here.” I didn't know whether he was telling the
truth or not I just wanted to go. Aimee unlocked the car and I got in. I watched Cam as he walked
back across the parking lot and round the side of the building.
Aimee jumped in and started the engine.
“Engine on, check, heating on it's freezing, check,” she rubbed her hands together. “Well I wasn't
expecting to run into janitor boy tonight. Cam to the rescue, you could have said thanks you didn't
even say bye to him,”
“Cause I don't trust him.”
“What he just saved your ass from those tattooed brutes, he then helped us to find my keys and you
still don' trust him?”
“I think he was lying. I don't think he found your keys in the convenience store,”
“So where did he find them?”
“I dunno somewhere else.” I said looking at the dark windows of the rental shop.
“Stay here, keep the engine running.” Aimee said climbing out and slamming the door.
“What? Where are you going?” she didn't hear me though.
She walked into the convenience store. I looked around hoping those two men didn't come back. I
locked my door then reached over and locked Aimee's door, as I did I saw the raven sitting on top of
the newspaper stand in front of the store.
I slowly sat back up. It was the same raven with the white splodge and tag on its leg and it was
watching me.
Aimee came back out and started rattling her door handle. I unlocked it for her.
“Sorry I felt better with the door locked. What were you doing?” I asked unable to look away from
the bird.
“Well I went in there to prove you wrong about Cam seeing as you have it in for him, but I can't as I
asked the grumpy cow behind the checkout about my keys and she said the last person that came in
was a group of teenagers trying to buy alcohol and before that it was us two, she didn't have a clue
what I was talking about when I mentioned the keys. So yeah that's a little strange. What are you
looking at?”
“That bird, I think it's following me,”
“What bird?”
“The one on the newspaper stand.”
“Right, you didn't breath in any weird fumes while you were in that club by any chance? Cause
you're talking like a crazy person.”
“What it's right there” I said pointing.
“All I see is a newspaper stand, there's no bird,”
I sat back in my seat, wondering if I was actually seeing things. Why couldn't she see it? Micah had
seen it before. The bird ruffled its feathers and squawked.
“Right I'm putting my seatbelt on and I'm taking us home I think you've had to much excitement for
one night.” Aimee said popping a jelly sweet into her mouth.

We drove in silence on way back, I was lost in my own thoughts and Aimee was convinced I'd eaten
a taco crammed with magic mushrooms while I'd been in the club. I was glad when we finally
pulled up on her drive, we hadn't been gone too long but I was worn out from everything my mind
was busy trying to process, everything from invisible ravens to Cam and the shadowy figure I had
seen moving around inside the rental shop. Was it Cams shadowy figure? But I still couldn't work
out how he'd in and out so quick.
We found Caitlin curled up on the couch with her nose still in her book and her notebook next to
her.
“Caitlin what did I say, no more studying.”
“Well I got really bored again waiting for you two, you've been gone ages, what have you been
doing?”
“Sorry we got hung up at the supermarket.” Aimee used the word supermarket, hiding where we
had really been.
“Let me guess this hold up involved some boy?”
“Something like that. I got us a movie, which I think you'll like,” Aimee tossed the case onto the
couch next to Caitlin.
“Wait have you been to the rental shop down town at night?”
“No don't be silly, my mom picked that up the other day for us I just remembered it was in the car. I
wouldn't go down there at night I'm not stupid.” Aimee said looking at me shaking her head.
Aimee went over to the TV and I sat down next to Caitlin.
“What's this?” I asked picking up her notebook which had a list on it.
“Don't it's silly, you'll think it's stupid,” she said quickly pulling the notebook out of my hands.
“No I won't, come on show me,”
“Okay, so Mr. Stewart my history teacher is a big believer of the whole fallen angel thing like my
Grandma Dorrie, but I disagree. So I put together some questions for him to see what explanations
he can come up with.
“Can I see them?” I asked becoming interested.
“Promise you wont laugh,”
“No now give it here.” I said taking the notebook from her. Reading the first question out loud.
“Question one: If fallen angels exist what do they look like? What do you mean by what do they
look like?” I asked thinking about the question.
“Like do they look like us, obviously they would want to blend in but I can't imagine they're fat
slobs sitting around eating pizza. They were these angelic beautiful creatures so wouldn't they still
be beautiful or different in some way, wouldn't we notice them?”
I shrugged looking at the next question. “Question two: If they are like us or trying to be like us
humans, do they grow old and die like us?”
“Damn disks all scratched it wont even load up. Grrrr!” Aimee popped the the disk back into the
case. “I'm going to see if my mom has got any good DVDs under the stairs back in a minute and
would you please put that stuff away and get in your pyjamas.” Aimee walked out and I read the
next question as Caitlin packed her books away.
“Question three: Where are their wings?”
“Yes did they burn up on the way down?” she said.
“The way down?” I asked not entirely sure what she was talking about.
“Yes when they fell out of the sky, keep up. Or did they still have them when they got down here. I
mean that would sort of give them away so what did they do with them?”
“Do I even want to ask what you think they did with them?”
“I think they cut them off but can you imagine how hard that would be to do that to yourself, those
would be some nasty scars.”
“Wow Caitlin, that is pretty gory even for you. So while we've been gone you've been thinking
about people hacking their body parts off.”
“Not people fallen angels and only male fallen angels, same goes for the Nephilim all male
offspring apparently. Yep I know right my head hurts just thinking about. Anyway that's enough for
tonight I've got the rest of the weekend to study.”
She popped her notebook into her bag and jumped off the couch stretching her arms up. Aimee
walked back in with a different DVD.
“Come on, upstairs, pyjamas on, then it's hot chocolate and marshmallows time.” Aimee said
clapping her hands.
We all got in our pyjamas and I helped make the hot chocolates.
The movie went on late into the night well past midnight.
Aimee had fallen asleep on the couch so we decided to leave her covering her with a blanket.
I had a bed made up on Aimee's bedroom floor, Caitlin climbed into Aimee's bed and spread herself
diagonally and was a sleep in minutes. I lay there looking at the stars out the bedroom window, it
was normally too dull and cloudy to see them but tonight they twinkling brightly. I rolled over and
tried to sleep but I didn't even feel sleepy my mind was a mess.
I was glad Caitlin hadn't asked me about the movie afterwards it was a complete blur my thoughts
were elsewhere, I had no clue what I had just watched I didn't even know what the storyline was
about.
All I was thinking about was Cam and Aimee's magical reappearing keys, and an invisible bird that
only I could see which didn't make sense when Micah was able to see it before. Then there was
Mack and the fight club. Cole and he knew my brother and had called him a Neph and it wasn't the
first time I had heard that word. Neph – Neph-ilim! I sat bolt upright in my sleeping bag.
No that had to be wrong, that was a crazy connection there was no way my brother was a Nephilim.
I looked at my cell screen 1.15am, I really needed to try and get some sleep but I got the feeling I
wouldn't be able to sleep until I had looked at the book in Caitlin's bag.
I tip toed downstairs as quietly as I could, I hoped Caitlin wouldn't mind me going in her bag for the
book, I wasn't sure how I was going to explain this to her if she found me reading it.
I flicked the light on in the kitchen and pulled out a stool.
I opened the book and a load of loose pieces of paper fell out. They were articles Caitlin had printed
off from the internet. I carefully looked through the pages, most of the stuff was from random
websites. I picked out a few pieces that interested me.

they don't need sleep....
I thought of Micah I hadn't ever seen him eat anything since I had been here, all he ever did was
guzzle down energy drinks. Maybe just a weird coincidence.