My Soul to Save (Soul Keeper) (9 page)

“Oh and Peyton, if you ever feel the need to touch any part of his inhumanly sexy body again, just know that you won’t have any fingers left after words.” She shrugs my hand off and nearly falls as she teeters off in heels way too high for her state of drunkenness.

“Where did that come from?”

“You don’t get to be the only one who’s not so sweet tonight.”

“So, you find me inhumanly sexy?” he asks looking down over me.

A smile grows on my face and I bat my lashes up at him. “Guilty.”

“Here’s your sissy drink. Enjoy.” Emily says shoving an ice cold bottle between Sam and me. Sam twists the top off and hands it to me.

“Thanks Em's.”

“So you’re leaving Monday for Europe?” I ask Emily.

“Yes I’m so excited I’ve been packed for weeks.”

“Tell me all about your trip.”

“Well I want to start out in the less touristy town of Bibury, England.” She pulls out her phone and shows me pictures from the hotel’s website. “It’s the prettiest town I’ve ever seen.”

“I wish I could go with you. It looks like fun.”

“I wish you could go too, but I’m sure interning for the Governor is going to be epic.”

“Yeah, I’ll learn just how he takes his coffee. Maybe they’ll even let me iron his newspaper each morning.”

“Hey gang, how are my fellow graduates?” Jesson asks, swinging his arm over Emily’s shoulder.

“We were just talking about Emily’s big trip.”

“You mean our big trip.”

“You’re going with her?” I ask. This was the first I'd heard about it.

“Jesson doesn’t think it’s safe out there for a teenage girl alone.”

“I can agree with him there. So you’re going to accompany her.”

“It’s my privilege.” He flashes a smile her way. I know she still has a crush on him but at least she’ll be in good hands.

“Jesson, Brennen thinks she’s just going to be preforming menial tasks at the governor’s office. We’re trying to convince her to blow him off and come with us.”

“Whoa, what’s this we?” Sam pipes up. “If Brennen blows off the internship, she’s coming to Texas with me for the summer. Ya’ll can go run around sipping tea and crumpets all you want.”

We all laugh. And then we all get quite. I assume it’s because we’re all about to go our separate ways soon, and that’s not very funny. Reality is setting in on our little group. I see why everyone talks about starting a new chapter in life. It really feels like someone just died. I think it was our youth.

Commencement speeches should be more like eulogies. A final farewell to acting immature, overly dramatic and lazy, should be emblazed across our diplomas. Here lies the youth of Brennen Elizabeth Hale. She raced crabs, tore out men’s hearts, and watched every lifetime movie ever scripted.

The bass of the music finally pulls us back to earth and Sam’s hips move against me to the beat. I wonder if Elijah is out there somewhere right now keeping watch. Jesson’s words have a way of haunting me lately. Perhaps it’s why I finally put an end to Sam and I’s status. I still can’t believe he’s going along with it. But it’s a trial run right? Even so, the choice I made tonight was pivotal in our relationship.

It will either be the best thing that ever happened to us, or it will rip us to pieces.

Sam’s truck idols in my driveway while he kisses me goodnight. I don’t invite him inside because as worked up as we both got tonight, I know there would be no going back once he came inside. “Why don’t we take a trip, spend our last week together.”

“I’d like that. Where do you want to go?  And please don’t say my bedroom.” I say only half joking. Of course I say that knowing full well that people would pay good money to vacation in my beautiful beach house. But in this house I still feel like my dad is watching over me and I can’t spend my last week with Sam under Daddy’s watchful eye.

“Will you fly with me? Please, it’ll be totally safe I promise.”

“Yes.” I say not even looking to Elena for permission.

“Really?”
he asks truly not expecting my answer to be yes. I nod and kiss him once more.

“You’ve made my day. Alright, I’ll pick you up around lunch.”
“We can eat here before we go.”

“See you at noon.” He kisses me once more. Excitement flows from his lips and I can feel his energy level and anticipation through the caress of his tongue. As soon as I shut the door, Elena starts in.

“So you like to make my job harder? Perhaps for your next trip you could parachute over an active volcano.”

“Elena there are three of you, I’m sure you could carry his tiny plane on your back if you needed to, really. Aren’t you always bragging about how you can go back in time? Speaking of which, I’ve been meaning to ask you. The night Malphas took me out of my hotel room, you said you got there seconds too late. Why couldn’t you go back in time then and save me? ”

Elena sighs and perches herself atop the kitchen counter. Her cool white shorts practically glow against her long tan legs. “Because, when it comes to the fallen and their agenda, that gift is useless. Believe me, if I could use it to reverse their evil doings I would never stop hunting them down. I would have saved all of those people on your plane. There’s lots that I wish I could go back and undo, but my gift can’t be used when the evil ones are involved. It’s like they have a protective hedge around the event. I can’t get in and alter anything. I’ve tried and failed many times.”

“So if they try and take down the plane you’ll stop them.”

“But if they succeed you be dead and I’ll be a failure again.”

“Again?” I ask suddenly panic stricken.  Inara puts a hand on my shoulder, subtly telling me I should back down on this one.

“No it’s okay Inara. She should know the truth.”

“Elena, I don’t think that’s a good idea
,” Inara speaks up, and now my interest is peaked.

“Tell me,” I say, trying hard not to sound too desperate. Elena paces away from me shaking her head like she’s fighting some inner argument. She pulls herself on to the counter with resolve etched on her features.

“I was once an Elite like Elijah. It took a lot for a female to make that sort of rank. Gender discrimination knows no species barrier. My title was short lived however, I had been put on the guard of your president. It was a simpler time then. He didn’t have evil ones to worry about. He received threats from his people, but they were easily sought out and squashed.” She closes her eyes, probably due to the weight of her failure crushing her with guilt.  Finally my brain snaps to where this story is leading. She confirms my thoughts with her next words.

“It was my fault your sixteenth president was murdered.

Lincoln’s assassination, was all my fault. I let Booth in, thinking he was just an actor and the President would enjoy meeting him. I didn’t have the gift to time travel back then. It’s something I was given much later to improve my skills. Brennen, he died in my arms. 

I couldn’t even heal him, he was always surrounded with so many and the wound was mortal. I tried all night, it’s probably the only reason he lasted until morning. He needed to go to the In-Between, but I couldn’t risk revealing our kind.

You’re the first person I’ve guarded since then. I’ve been too afraid to fail again.”

“Elena I’m sorry. I had no idea. I can call Sam and cancel. We can just stay here.”

This is unbelievable. And now it all made sense, Inara wasn’t here to keep Elena’s temper in check, she was here to make sure she didn’t screw up again.

“No Brennen it’s my job to keep you safe. My failure shouldn’t keep you frozen in time.”

“But Booth was just a man, I have supernatural creatures after me, roughly the size of Sam’s Cessna.”

“No, I need to do this
.” Elena says like it’s no longer up for discussion.

“Well I have complete confidence in you.”

“Glad somebody does,” she mutters under her breath before pulling out a cheesecake from the fridge. “Which one is this?”

“Um, that one is white chocolate raspberry truffle,” I say with a smile, knowing it’s her favorite.”

“See, this is the reason I can’t let anything happen to you.” she says serving us all a piece without asking.

“Glad to know I’m good for something.”

“One day you’ll be indispensable to the world, right now you’re just a brat.”

“You’re calling me names Elena? That’s so mature. Aren’t you several thousand years old?”

“Even God has a sense of humor.”

“Yes, that’s why he created you.” I retort and duck, already knowing it earned a whack. She bolts after me, and snatches me up by the waist. Crap. Before I can even call Inara’s name the glass door is flung open and I’m in the pool.

They smile standing over me. “Ah, yes I can hear him laughing now.”

“I just love his laugh, don’t you?” Inara asks Elena. They stride off inside leaving me fully clothed and wet and trying to get out of a swimming pool in a pencil skirt. I glare up at the sky.
You’re laughing at me? Wonderful.

*~*~*

The next morning Elena and Inara take me to Amorous to drop Brutus off at Elijah's house. They say his staff could use someone to take care of since Elijah will be gone for a while. When we arrive at his house, I'm met by his entire staff, I had no idea he had so many. About fifteen men and women line the circular drive to welcome the new addition. Elena slips the leash off and Brutus sniffs each one. They take turns loving on him and I know he's in good hands.

"By Brutus, be a good boy." The dog comes back over and jumps up putting a paw on each shoulder. I'm pretty sure he out weighs me but I hug him anyway. He rewards me with a wet kiss on the whole side of my face in true Brutus fashion.

"Maybe you can teach him a little self control while he's here. Oh, and he loves burgers."

A stout young woman takes his collar in her hand. "Don't worry Miss, we'll take good care of him until Sir gets home."

Why am I getting all teary eyed over a dog of all things. I guess the big oaf grew on me.

*~*~*

“Alright, you’re sure you’re ready? Do you need to take one of your sedatives?”

“No I want to be fully awake when I become one with the wall of water we’ll slam into if the plane crashes.”

“At least you’re staying positive.”

“Ha, ha very funny.”

“So your Pawpaw just gave you this plane?”

“Yeah, he said he couldn’t fly it anymore with his eyes
ight getting bad, and that if I agreed to fly him around once in a while, I could have it. This plane is worth like a quarter of a million dollars, so I was like, sure Pawpaw, I’ll be your personal on call pilot any time, night or day.” He laughs out looking adorable in the process.

This winged coffin was top of the line from what I could tell, buttery soft leather interior with all kinds of fancy screens and buttons on the control panel.

“This baby even has auto pilot.”

“Yeah, let’s not use that button this trip okay?” Auto pilot– with our luck it would be more like Insta-Death, stealthily disguised under one shiny chrome switch.

“Brennen, I love you and I will keep you safe.”
And the three angels encircling us will keep us safe.
I fasten my seatbelt and Sam begins taxiing the runway. Will and Elena fly outside the plane and Inara settles into the back seat fully alert – every hair on her head is twitchy as a colt.

I feel it the moment our wheels leave the asphalt. My grip tightens on the arm rest and Inara speaks in a soothing voice right next to my ear. “You’re doing fine, Brennen. Blue skies stretch out for miles, we’re flying, gliding through the summer air like the snow white wing of a dove. The plane is in good hands, inside and out.”

We climb higher and higher and I can hear the baby’s cries ringing in my head like they were right here in the plane with us. His mother calls out for someone to save them. Panic floods my heart. I’m starting to feel dizzy. Brain aneurism, that’s how I’ll go. Poof, just like that. I know it.

“Breathe Brennen, you’re fine. Sam is taking you to a beautiful place that’s not very far,” she continues in her same take-somebody-off-the-ledge tone. “Look at Sam, look how calm he is. Look how natural this plane feels to him.”
Look at the huge black demon bird just tackle Elena. Wait– what?

Bless me now. I bolt up, looking out the window while watching Elena struggle with the creature. Our plane begins to shake and shudder and I see one of the creepy monsters land on the wing. Sam checks his gauges but otherwise shows no concern. Or maybe he’s just hiding it. I blink into the other realm.

“Inara they’ve found us. You have to do something.”

“Brennen stay calm, they can handle a couple of demon spawn. Remember their just like ants under our shoe.”

“Those are some big ass ants!” I say as Will barrels into the bird creature on the wing sending it sprawling as it struggles to free itself. What if more come?

“You doing okay?” Sam asks as I blink back to my world.

“Never better. How much longer?” I say with an obvious edge to my voice.

“About fifteen more minutes till we reach Hatteras airport.”

“Awesome. Keep up the good piloting.” Sam laughs and shakes his head probably thinking this is the last time he asks me to fly.

I look around again to see where they went and if they’re alright.

“What are you looking for?” Sam questions again.

“Geese, ducks, giant black ravens, you know. I’ve heard that large birds can bring a plane down.”

“Don’t worry, it’s rabbit season,” he says in his best Daffy duck voice, and I can’t help but laugh at that one. I don’t see them anywhere. I glance back at Inara who still isn’t showing an inkling of stress or worry.

“They’re fine, Elena is above us and Will is below us.” Inara says like she just received a message from them.
Telepathy?
They are still such a mystery to me.

“So have you ever been to the Outer Banks?”

“No, but I hear it’s pretty.”

“It’s no Hawaii, but yeah it’s picturesque for sure.”

I lived in Hawaii with my dad for a short time and I immediately fell in love with the culture, the people and the beaches. He always made sure we were stationed in the coolest places. I think he must have been well connected when it came to that. Sam squeezes my hand. I’m sure he knows he just made me think of my dad with his comment.

“The airport is unmanned
, so I’ll have to keep a sharp eye out.”

“That’s awesome.”

“Don’t be afraid, that’s how most of these small airports are.”

“I’m sorry if I’m acting weird I just… Well I guess I never got over the plane crash.”

“That’s understandable. I think you’re incredibly brave for doing this.”

“Sweet Sam is back hm?”

“I plan on being sweet to you as long as you’ll let me.”

His words tug on my heart, Sam’s leaving for Texas and I start my internship. Not to mention we’ll begin being officially single. It’s terrifying knowing I gave him full permission to run off and fall in love with someone else. He agreed to it fairly easily too and that has me a little confused. What if he already has a plan B girl all lined up? Oh God what did I do?

“There it is straight ahead.”

“That’s our airport? It looks like an abandoned parking lot.”

“It’s a fine airport. Look they even have porta-potties.” He snickers out as we land. I want to get out and kiss the ground. I’ve never been so happy to have two feet on this earth before.

“Can you call us a taxi while I put her up?”

“Your plane is a female?”

“She most definitely is a female. Can’t you tell by her sleek body and quiet purr?” He rolls out a lazy smile that makes him look adorable. I cut him a sideways glance to let him know what I
think of him sexualizing an airplane. I head inside the small office building to sign us in, and dial a cab company.

Once we’re on our way again
, I ask Sam where he plans on us spending this week. He gave the driver an address so I don’t think it’s a hotel. He says I’ll have to wait and see when I get there. My heart is in flutters with excitement. The car meanders along the coastline and I get lost looking out at the infinite ocean pushing up against the coast. I relax into Sam’s chest and he pulls me in, kissing the top of my head.