Strange in Skin (19 page)

Emry immediately came over to me. He stroked the back of my head, his fingers running down the
nape of my neck. “I don’t understand.”

I turned around and looked at his beautiful face and all of its features that I had instantly loved. I
didn’t want him to see my pain, but I was tired of trying to be brave, tired of hiding what I was truly
feeling. “All of the things that were imprinted on me as a child, from being raised in the church, in a
religious family.”

“You’re doubting God?”
“If there is one.”

Emry looked horrified that those words had come from my mouth. “Anna, do you even realize what
you’re saying?”

 

I suddenly felt ashamed by his reaction, a sudden heat bursting forth in my cheeks. “You do believe
in God?”

“How could you not?” He put his hands in the air and turned around slowly looking at his beloved
Evadere, this world that had found him and attached itself to him. “Anna, just look around you. This
didn’t all just happen. Someone created it.”

The stars twinkled overhead at me, and I did feel foolish. Emry was right. How could I just turn my
back so easily on my faith?

“It’ll be hard to look at Earth in the same way after being here, but there’s beauty on Earth, too,
Anna, and again, someone put it there.” He hugged me against his chest. I pressed my face into his
bare skin inhaling the scent of him. “Nobody took me to church when I was a kid. You’re lucky in the
way that you have that background. Me, I don’t really know what I’m talking about when it comes to
that stuff, but you do. But I think I’ve really always believed. Sometimes even a guy like me prays.
Does that seem stupid?”

I smiled. “No, not at all.”
“Really, it’s not so hard to believe there’s a bigger power out there than yourself.” He smirked.

No, not after today especially
, I thought. My outlook on life had changed. There was this whole
other realm out there. There was more beyond just ourselves.

“I don’t know why I just said that. I think I was headed more in a direction of blaming God for
everything going on in my family right now. It’s like nothing ever happened to us. We were bound
together by an unbreakable bond, the kind of love that doesn’t falter. And now, one thing after another
keeps happening. We’re a mess.” I sighed, shutting my eyes as the pain returned.

“Listen, nothing can always be perfect. Maybe these things were always there, you were just
blocking them out. I could see you doing that. Now you see there’s more out there, and along with it
came the realization that everyone around you who you thought were perfect aren’t, and it seems like
a lot to handle all at once because you’ve let your walls down and along with it, reality has set in.”

I thought about what he was saying for a moment. Could that be true? Had my family always been
this way and I just sort of ignored it?

 

“So really, I’m a mess, too.”

“Well,” he said grinning. “Look what you’ve accomplished today. Pretending to be an attorney to
get to be close to an accused murderer, traveling to another world … seems normal enough to me.”
I laughed at his sarcasm. “You’re right.”

“I know I’m selfish dragging you into my world … bad choice of words.”
I laughed again. He always had this way of making me feel better even when I felt at my worst.
“I know you should run away from me, and if you want to go, I won’t stand in your way.”
“Emry,” I tried to stop him.

“Just please listen. I don’t want you to go, Anna, but I don’t know how this whole thing is going to
turn out. I mean, have you thought about it?”

“You didn’t do it, Emry. You’ll get out of there.” But the truth was I had thought about it. That’s
why I was so afraid this was the last time I’d be near him. That thought terrified me, but I wanted to
be strong for him and not give him any doubt that he might be in prison the rest of his life. I couldn’t
bear that sort of truth if it was what was headed in our direction next.

He took my hands in his and ran his thumbs over my skin. Then he released one hand to run his
fingers through his hair. “There’s more to the story than just accusing me of killing Wes.”
“What do you mean?”

 

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence that right after Buck gets magically thrown through the air and into
a tree I get arrested. Something else is happening. They’re afraid of me. Your dad’s involved, too.”
“Father …” The word stuck in my throat.

“I don’t know what exactly his involvement is. I don’t really know what’s going on or if they blame
me for what happened to Buck, but my suspicions are pointing in that direction. Something more is
going on, and Wes has just been a cover-up to get me locked up.”

He was probably right. What did they know, and why would they be afraid of Emry to have to
falsely accuse him of murder and even get a witness to say that she saw it, to make sure he wouldn’t
be able to get out of jail? And what exactly was my father’s involvement in this whole situation? It
sent a chill up my spine. “I’ll get to the bottom of it,” I promised quickly as my mind was suddenly
buzzing with how exactly I was going to be able to do this.

“No.” Emry pulled away from me so he could look straight into my eyes to get his point across. “I
don’t want you involved in this mess.”
“I’m already involved,” I argued. “You can’t expect me to just sit back and do nothing.”

He nodded. “That’s exactly what I expect you to do. This is a dangerous situation, I can feel it.”
His eyes were narrowed at me and he had a stern look on his face, making him look even more
beautiful. I didn’t want to make a promise to him that I knew was impossible for me to keep.
“You’re not going to listen to me, are you?” He had seen straight through it as if he had read my
thoughts that exact moment.

 

“I don’t know if I can stand back and do nothing. The feeling useless part will kill me.”
“Well, it will kill me to know you’re digging around in this mess and my not being able to do
anything to keep you safe.”

 

I could see his point. Maybe I could try to promise or cross my fingers behind my back or
something. “How much danger do you think I could get into?”

 

“I have a
really
bad feeling about it.”

“But, Emry, those involved are Buck and my father. They wouldn’t do anything to me,” I said,
thinking to myself that there was little if any danger involved.
He shook his head. My attitude toward the situation irritated him. “Buck Brady is a bad man. He’s
the type that wouldn’t hesitate to turn on a person, even a friend. And Pastor John James, I’m sorry to
say it about your dad, but there’s something off about him, too.”

“The affair?”
“No. Something else. Like I said, I don’t know what, but my gut tells me it’s bad.” He wrapped

both arms around me and squeezed tight. “I know you want to help. I know your intentions are good.
I’m going to miss you so much when we get back.”

 

“Let’s not go back,” I pleaded with him, tears streaming down my face. I felt like such a huge bawl
baby with him. “Please, Emry.”

“Shh,” he comforted me, stroking my hair, my cheek pressed firmly against his chest. “It’ll be all
right. It’ll all work out. You’ll see.”
I pulled back slightly to look up into his eyes. “Then why does it feel like this is it? This is our one
moment and then we’ll be torn apart?”
He wiped a tear away from my eye and tried to flash a smile, but he was just as sad as I was.
Maybe he felt the same way, that this was it, but now he was the one being strong, putting on an act.
“Nothing this strong can stay apart. Do you feel it?” He put the palm of my hand on his heart. The
thump of his heart beating on my hand sent a sensation throughout my entire body making my own
heart throb. “We are meant to be together, Anna James. And so we will.”

“Emry, I can’t bear the thought of being away from you again.”

 

He put his finger up to my lips, hushing me. “You have to believe that we’ll be together again, and
we will. Just try to stay out of trouble, please,” he begged.

 

“I promise I’ll try.” That was all I could give him.

 

He smiled, knowing that I wouldn’t be able to not get involved because he was involved which tied
me in as well, but being careful about what I was doing, and I would, was better than nothing.
“No matter what happens, we belong together. Never doubt that,” he whispered.

“I won’t. And I’ll never forget Evadere.” I was sad to leave. This place truly was an escape from
today’s pain.
“I doubt it will be soon to leave your imagination and you can revisit anytime you like.” He
smirked again and drew me closer, his finger tracing the outline of my lips.
“Just a figment of my imagination. How sad.” I smirked back.

“How crazy.”
“We are crazy.”
“That we are.”

He leaned in toward my face. I felt the warmth of his soft, gentle lips pressing against mine. I could
feel the intensity of his emotions being poured out in that glorious kiss, and I felt all of my own
anguish turn to mush in that instance as I moved my own lips hungrily against his and kissed him back.
It was almost too much passion to bear. My heart throbbed in one big ache. I could feel his heated
breath against my own mouth as he kissed me again and again, his fingers digging into the hair on the
back of my head as my own hands slid up and down the smooth, tan skin of his back.

“What’s going on here?” I heard an angry, unfamiliar voice shout out.

I pulled my head away from Emry’s and looked around. We were back in the courtyard at the
prison, our arms around one another as a small group of policemen stood at the door of the courtyard
watching us intently. At the head of the group of men stood a very outraged Buck Brady. He came
storming over to us, and I could only gasp in horror as he tore the blonde bob wig from my head, my
long brown hair falling down all around my face and shoulders, and the equally horrified look on
Buck’s face.

“Anna?” Buck asked, his tone one of uncertainty. He searched my face for a moment, realizing the
lengths I had gone to dress up as Emry Logan’s attorney. Then he glared at Emry and pulled violently
at my arms, tearing me away from him.

“No!” I screamed, panic stricken as I held one arm outreached toward Emry as the other was being
dragged away by Buck.
Chapter 9
I cringed in pain as Buck threw me carelessly like a rag doll down into a hard chair in one of their
interrogation rooms.

 

“Do you want her handcuffed?” I heard one of the officers ask.

 

“No,” Buck huffed. He crossed his arms in front of him and glared in my direction. “Give me a
moment, will you?”

 

“Sure thing.”

I was so angry that Buck had taken my absolutely perfect moment away with Emry that I could
swear I felt my blood boiling within my veins. I felt hot tears rush into my eyes as the other fact
entered my mind. I’d been caught. What would become of me now, and what were they going to do to
Emry?

Buck slammed his fists into the desk in front of me. I flinched at the noise. And here, I hadn’t given
him enough credit. I didn’t think he could find it within himself to have enough intimidation to be a
good cop.

“How could you do something like this?” he screamed at me.

I pushed my shoulders back and smoothed out the skirt of the dress. There was a slight tear up the
side of it. Carlin was going to kill me, though she was the least of my worries now. I straightened and
sniffled slightly trying to get my emotions under control. I would not allow Buck Brady to break me
down and make me weak.

“What were you thinking?” he yelled out again, his eyes dark and full of an intense hatred. Was it
me? Emry? Seeing the two of us together?
I looked him straight in the eyes. “I won’t answer to you,
Buck Brady
.” I put as much demeanor into
saying his name as Carlin did when she called me Annie. I knew he would feel degraded and hurt,
especially by someone like me saying it, someone he had once took out on a date and cooked dinner
for, perhaps even had feelings for.

It worked. His fists pounded down onto the table again, a growl escaping his throat in a sudden
fierceness that even shocked me.

 

“Then you can sit here!” he shouted.

I watched as he turned and exited the room. I lowered my head as all of the emotions I was
struggling to keep out of Buck’s sight came rushing to me just now, all at once, and my shoulders
heaved as my entire body shook with violent sobs. I let them come on, knowing that I was probably
being watched and yet, just as long as I wasn’t face-to-face with Buck, I allowed the sobs to take
over. I buried my face in my hands, looking down to see the black from the mascara and gray
eyeshadow covering my palms. I must look a disheveled mess. I could only hope that I didn’t look as
horrific as I felt.

I lifted my head as the sobs started to dissipate, and my eyes scanned the dreary, dull green walls of
the room I was in. So this is where they put suspects to drill them with questions. I’d barely been
questioned and already felt like a criminal myself sitting here like this. It was as if the room itself
toyed with your mind before the questioning even began, a prelude to what was to come.

So what was to become of me now? Would they transfer Emry to be away from me? Would they
throw me in jail, too? My parents would think the James name was forever ruined. I would surely be
scorned and never again be seen as the same Anna James. Then again, the Anna James they knew had
already been long gone. It seemed ages ago instead of months that the only thing I looked forward to
when I woke up in the morning was going to the antique store. What a sad, pathetic girl I’d been. At
least now I felt like I had a purpose. Love filled every empty void I had ever felt, thanks to Emry
Logan, an inmate I was almost certain that I had instantly fallen in love with from the moment our eyes
met. We were drawn to each other in a way that most people only dreamt about. And now, we were
connected too, bound together by his secret, by his magical strength and the intimate lovely world he
had accidentally revealed to me, his Evadere. I already longed to be back there and in his arms, his
lips against mine as a glowing sun with red hue behind it shined overhead. I felt as if his kiss still
lingered on my lips. It had only been moments ago.