Intuition: The Premonition Series (24 page)

Unconsciously, I pull out the cell phone that has all of the angel’s numbers programmed on speed dial in it. When I notice it in my hand, I flip the phone open and my finger twitches on the power button as I stare at it intently.
If I turn it on and call Zee, then I will effectively be tossin’ away any hope I have of gettin’ Red back
—
but if she is in trouble and I don’t call them, then I may be killin’ her.
Somethin’ in my stomach twists as I hit the power button and watch the phone light up. The phone starts ringin’ immediately and I look at the caller ID, it’s Zee. Just as my finger shifts to answer the call, a soft tappin’ on the window makes me hesitate. I look over and see the most beautiful pair of eyes I have ever seen in any lifetime staring back at me from the other side of the glass.

I snap the phone shut and open my car door. Ignorin’ Red’s sad expression, I pick her up off her feet and hold her in relief. “Uhh… can’t breathe…” Red says, tryin’ to get me to ease up on the hug. I do, but it’s hard.

Murmurin’ near her ear, I say, “We have to get phones as soon as possible. I almost called Zee ‘cuz I was so worried ’bout ya and I knew ya weren’t takin’ yers with ya.”

“You weren’t supposed to take yours either,” she say. I set her back on her feet. She turns to the car, and leanin’ in, she picks up the phone that is now beepin’. “They can use a satellite to figure out what tower your phone is roaming on. They can find our general location that way. We can’t take this phone with us,” she says, turnin’ it off and tossin’ it back in the car.

“I know yer irritated with me already, but I brought it just in case somethin’ went wrong and we had to abort the mission,” I explain, studyin’ her face. She looks sick, like she is havin’ a hard time breathin’. “Y’all were late and I imagined all sorts of bad stuff happenin’ to ya so I was gonna call in the angels.”

“You can’t do that, Russell,” Red says quietly. “Even when bad stuff happens. We are on our own now: just you and me. We can never call them because they can’t be responsible for us anymore… at least, not until we can figure out a way to make it so that they won’t be traitors if they help us. If you can figure that out, then we can go back to them, but until that day…” she trails off, tryin’ to hide her pain from me.

“Are ya ready to go?” I ask, and I mean leave Reed.

I think she knows what I mean, but she ignores my question and says, “No. I have to go get the tickets inside so the angels actually think we boarded the train. I just wanted to put my letters in the car.” She pulls envelopes from the small backpack she has strapped to her back and puts them on the driver’s seat. “You wait here, I’ll go get the tickets, and then we’ll head to the bus station.”

“I’ll go with ya,” I reply, not wantin’ to let her out of my sight for a second.

“No, I have to do this fast because we’re late. I’ll just be a second,” she says, watchin’ me. She must have seen how concerned I am ’bout her ‘cuz she smiles a little and adds, “I’ll be fine, Russell—I mean, Henry. I’m pretty tough now.” She is gone then in a fraction of a second.

I turn to collect my small backpack I had stashed in the back of the Tahoe. I have one change of clothes and a few pictures of my family, but that’s ’bout all I can take to start my new life. I close the hatch of the car and head back to the driver’s seat to collect the keys and put them under the seat before I lock the car door. The envelopes are lyin’ on the seat in front of me. The one addressed to Reed is on top of the others. It’s Evie’s final goodbye to him. I pick it up. I know that I shouldn’t open it even as I begin readin’ her letter, but I must be a masochist or somethin’ ‘cuz I can’t stop myself.

Dear Reed,

I wish that you had taught me your lovely Angelic language, so that I could tell you all of the ways I love you and make them sound like the music of your world. But, I am not of that world and may never be. That fact is no more obvious to me than at this moment, when I have to apologize for the situation you and the other angels are in because of me. I know about Pagan and Dominion. I overheard your conversation in the library the other night. I refuse to destroy you by existing. I will not make you a traitor to the Divine. The only thing I can do is leave so that all of you will be safe. Do not mistake my intentions. It is not you that I am protecting because I am aware that you do not need my protection. It is myself I am protecting because I cannot exist if you do not, so I will do what I must to ensure that you remain alive. My only hope for survival lies in the knowledge that you are somewhere in this world, under the same sky, the same sun, the same stars.

If I had the art to say what I feel inside, then I would be certain that you would believe me when I tell you that I love you, but I am afraid that you will begin to doubt it when I am gone. I think Shakespeare said it best when he wrote: “Doubt thou the stars are fire; Doubt that the sun doth move; Doubt truth to be a liar; But never doubt I love…I love thee best, O most best, believe it.”

I have only one prayer now and it is that we will be allowed to be together again one day. I will hold on to that thread of hope until the currents shift again and I can come back to you. God’s blessings upon you Reed. Goodbye, my angel.

Always and forever,

Evie

I stuff the letter back in the envelope and place it back on top of the other letters on the seat. I feel ill. She means every word of that letter. Every stinkin’ word of it and the jealousy that I feel for Reed is reachin’ new heights.
How had he managed to win her heart so completely in just a few months? I’ve had lifetimes with her and it’s like that doesn’t even matter,
I think, tossin’ the keys under the seat as I lock the car door and slam it shut. I lean up against the Tahoe and close my eyes.
Time. I have time on my side. The more time I can get with her, the more of a chance I’ll have of winnin’ her back. She is gonna give me the time, so I have to make it work for me. The clock starts now; every moment is an opportunity he won’t have,
I think, and I almost smile in anticipation of the day she breaks down and lets me back in.

“You ready?” Red asks me in a soft tone. I hadn’t even heard her approach me; she is so stealthy now, just like Reed. They are like cats, one minute they are not there and the next second they are in front of ya, sizin’ ya up.

“Yeah, how far do we have to go?” I ask as we start joggin’ across the parkin’ lot.

“About three or four miles,” Red answers, easily keepin’ her pace with mine. She probably can run there in less than a minute, but she stays with me as I labor to keep a steady pace. It isn’t too hard to run it ‘cuz I’m still in good condition from football, but she is not even breakin’ a sweat as she casually lopes along beside me.

When we reach the bus station, we purchase our tickets to Mackinaw with cash. The bus is already boardin’, so we hurry over to the garage. Findin’ two seats together near the back, Red and I stow our bags under the seats in front of us. She takes mercy on me and my long legs, givin’ me the aisle seat as she slips in near the window. The seats are cramped and I don’t even want to think ’bout the pain I’m gonna be in when we reach Mackinaw ’bout six hours from now.

When the bus pulls out of the station, I look over at Red, seein’ tears slidin’ down her cheeks. She angles her face away from me, tryin’ to hide them from me. Liftin’ up the armrest that divides her seat from mine, I put my arm ‘round her shoulder. I pull her securely against me and stroke her hair as she cries. It is all I can do for now.

She finally falls asleep a couple hours into the trip. I watch the scenery slidin’ by us as I gaze out the window that has a layer of film on it. My head reaches over the seat, so I have a pretty good view of what is happenin’ on the bus. We are pretty safe here. It’s no miracle that there are no angels here, Fallen or otherwise. This sucks from a travel standpoint. We are all crammed into this bus like sardines. The seats look like someone has been sick on them at least a couple of times, and in general, the bus could use a good ol’ fashion scrubbin’ to get the layer of grit off of it. I haven’t ventured back to the bathroom yet, but judgin’ by the smell comin’ from behind me, I would rather wait until we stop somewhere to go.

I can see why Red opted to take the bus. I can’t envision Zephyr travelin’ on this bus if his life depended on it. He told me ’bout havin’ to drive the minivan, like it was the hardest thing he had ever had to do. Zephyr was kinda funny like that. He has told me ’bout havin’ to sit waist deep in mud, while in a trench in the middle of a monsoon one time, waitin’ for a fallen angel he had been huntin’ to show up and trip his snare. But, drivin’ a minivan is a hardship. I guess when yer huntin’, it doesn’t matter what ya have to go through. I shiver, thinkin’ ’bout what Red had told me ’bout Pagan.
I wonder how big a hole she’ll be willin’ to sit in to get us.

The bus makes its first stop in a small depot/convenience store gas station in a rural town. I think ’bout gettin’ out and stretchin’ my legs, but I don’t want to wake Red up. I also have to admit that it makes me uncomfortable to be anywhere near small convenience stores. I haven’t told anyone that, but I haven’t been able to enter one since that freakin’ night with Alfred.

A couple of new passengers board the bus at this station. It is a pair of teenage girls ‘round our age, but they are excited to be on the road. It sounds like they are headin’ up to Mackinaw to get jobs on the island for the summer. Since it’s almost May, the weather is warmin’ up and we would have been takin’ our exams in a couple of weeks, if we could have stayed in Crestwood. But that probably wouldn’t have happened anyway ‘cuz Red thought the angels were preparin’ to move us so Pagan couldn’t find us.

I don’t feel that bad ’bout leavin’ school. It just doesn’t seem important to me anymore. I know I will eventually need to go to school if I ever hope to make any money, but since I have either an eternity, or no time at all, I figure it doesn’t really matter. Plus, what kind of office job am I gonna get while lookin’ over my shoulder all day hopin’ an angel doesn’t walk in the office and try to mow me down? Naw, I’ll probably have to get some kind of job that has little or no interaction with the public. Somethin’ I can do in a back room or hidin’ somewhere. Stockboy in a grocery store would be a good job for me. Work at night when the store is closed, so no one walks in on me.
Say “hello” to minimum wage,
I think grimly.

The teenage girls who sit a few seats ahead of us are talkin’ so loudly, I hear every word they are sayin’. I shift ‘round in my seat uncomfortably when they notice me and begin talkin’ in lower voices ’bout me. They believe I can’t hear them, but with my new ability, I get to hear every word they’re sayin’. I wish I had remembered to bring my earplugs with me ‘cuz it’s embarrassin’ the way they’re talkin’ ’bout me. Some of the stuff they are fantasizin’ ’bout probably isn’t even legal.

“You have admirers, Henry,” Red says, lookin’ at me while sittin’ up and stretchin’ her arms above her head, tryin’ to work out the kinks that sleepin’ in one position created. I cringe, hearin’ her say my new name.

“Is there a nickname for Henry?” I ask, tryin’ to divert her attention from what the girls in front of us were sayin’.

“The French pronounce it, “On-Ree,” Red says, smilin’ and twistin’ to stretch her back out better. She looks sleek and sexy with her hair a little messy from sleep.

“No, that blows.” I reply, smilin’ back at her.

“Hank?” she asks, thinkin’.

“That could be tough. I would sound like a bouncer in a rough country bar. Hey Hank, toss him outta here!” I say, mimickin’ the deepest southern accent I know, testin’ out the name.

“You’re tough all right, Hank,” she replies, lookin’ at me. “Thank you for coming with me. I couldn’t do this without you.”

“You and me, that’s how it’s always been,” I smile, holdin’ her hand and givin’ it a gentle squeeze.

She nods her head as if she accepts my statement. She frowns then and says, “Listen, I have to start telling you about everything I’ve been trying to do to make sure you’re safe,” she says, while adoptin’ that tense face that she gets when she’s worried and upset. “We have to be really cautious from now on and I want to go over some rules that we need to follow so that we avoid our evil buddies.”

“Okay, I’m listenin’. Y’all don’t have to talk a million miles an hour; we have plenty of time, trust me. I don’t think this bus has gone a mile over the speed limit since we’ve been in it,” I reply, tryin’ to calm her down a little so she won’t stress out.

“Okay, you’re right. I’m kinda tweeked right now,” she says, takin’ deep breaths. “The first thing I want to tell you is that, since we have no way to reach each other right now if we are separated, I want you to know that I set up a covert way for us to communicate, if we lose each other for any reason,” she says, watchin’ my reaction to her words. I nod, but don’t interrupt so she goes on, “I created a profile on Facebook that you can check, if you need to find me. Just look up Aoibhe Campbell. The password to log on as me is Leander. I created a profile for you, too. Yours is Leander Duncan. The password is Aoibhe,” she explains. I grin at her because she is so cunning. “You can post whatever you want on yours. If we get separated, you can post where you are and I’ll find you. Check mine to see if I posted anything for you. I’ll make sure to include a smiley face at the end of whatever I write, so you know it’s from me. If there is no smiley face, then I didn’t write it and it’s a trap. Do you understand?” she asks. I nod. “If there is danger, you can go to any library and use the computer. Do you know how to get on Facebook?” she asks.