“She has a good point. She had trouble with the other college students which resulted in her moving… it makes sense she would be cautious.”
“Yeah, meeting us at our own place really is brilliant.”
The dogs finished their meals, and sat by the door waiting.
“I’ll go with you,” I said, grabbing a jacket from the coat closet, then walking with Miles to the door.
“Are you sure you want to get all wet? The rain’s really coming down,” pointed out Miles, as we stepped inside the elevator and began the descent to the first floor.
I smiled.
“I’m sure the guy who kept the entire estate dry for his little sister’s wedding, can manage to keep his wife dry on a walk with the dogs,” I pointed out.
“That’s right!” laughed Miles. “I’ll keep the dogs dry, too. And de-mud their feet and our shoes, before coming back in afterward. That’s a great idea, I’m glad you reminded me that I can do that.”
“You are so handy, Mister,” I smiled. “I don’t think there’s anything you can’t do.”
Trixie looked up at Miles briefly, then back at the elevator door.
“What did she say?” I asked. I wish I could understand her myself!
“She said that’s one of my jobs, to protect you,” said Miles.
“Well… keeping me safe has always been very important to you. And you’ve got these powers. I can’t imagine being able to be any safer than being with you.”
The doors slid open, and we waved to the security guard as we left the bullet-proof glass enclosed side of the lobby, and stepped outside and into the rain, which fell all around us. Not a drop touched me, Miles, or the dogs.
“Yeah…” said Miles. “I wish more than ever that we had all of our classes together, though.”
“Me too, but not because I don’t think I’ll be safe,” I said, tucking my hand in Miles’ arm as we walked. “And we do have some together, at least.”
“Those are the classes I look forward to the most. It’ll be a big relief to me once we find the evidence we need, and this guy is far away from campus and any classes you’re in.”
“Yeah, me too. Xander isn’t going to be happy though,” I said.
“Why?” asked Miles, puzzled.
“Because I’m determined to get this done as soon as possible, absolutely before the semester ends. So Xander’s going to have to re-take this class.”
Miles couldn’t help but laugh.
Chapter 9
I could barely eat, but it wasn’t because I was nervous. I was excited! Soon I’d try out my abilities on a real bad guy, instead of on our friends. I was really hoping that I’d get something right away that would be useful to our cause. And that I wouldn’t get dizzy and get “lost” as Trixie put it. I really hoped Miles could get to me fast enough if that started to happen.
I felt of the webcam which hung from the gold chain I wore around my neck. It was cleverly disguised as a pendant, so today I wore it rather than one of the necklaces I would ordinarily choose from.
Miles set up his laptop in the study lab and showed me the feed from the webcams. Mead wasn’t in the classroom yet, no one was.
I sat and held Miles’ hand, waiting until it was time for me to go. We saw a few students beginning to trickle into class, and there was Xander.
“Okay, I better go,” I said, kissing Miles goodbye.
“Good luck,” he said, and smiled encouragingly. I really appreciated how supportive he was of me doing this. I kissed him again, then left.
I walked the short distance down the hall, and chose a seat on the front row at an angle from Xander’s. I ignored him, and he ignored me. If we had any mutual acquaintances in class, they were going to wonder at our lack of acknowledgement!
More students entered the class. I looked around as the seats began to fill up.
I heard someone slide into the desk beside me, and turned to look.
“Delia! Hi!” I said, glad to have a friend next to me.
“Hi, Anika,” Delia said, smiling back. “That’s so great we’re in the same class! Several people from our old study group are here.”
I looked around again, and realized she was right. Well, having friends and acquaintances in the class wouldn’t be a bad thing.
“That’s cool, Delia,” I said.
A shadow was cast over the room. I took a deep breath. I was ready, and so far no dizziness.
“It always freaks me out a little bit when that happens,” said Delia.
“What?” I asked, surprised and really wondering what she was talking about. Could she see darkness too?
“Skylights,” she said. “Whenever clouds cover the sun, it makes it look like the lights in the room dim.”
“Oh! Yeah,” I laughed.
False alarm. I should have known, there was no Red Alert feeling… like there was now.
This darkness was no cloud covering the sun.
“Good morning, class!” said Professor Mead, as he entered the room breezily, setting his briefcase on the table at the front of the room and then taking a good look at the students. Picking out his next targets, more than likely.
“How’s Pete?” I asked Delia quietly, which surprised her. The teacher enters the room, class is starting, we’re on the front row, and I’m trying to initiate chit-chat.
“He’s fine,” she whispered, her lips barely moving.
“Still dating?” I asked.
“Mm-hm,” she said.
That’s all I wanted to know. I’d been struck with a horrible feeling that Mead might try to target Delia because she was sitting beside me, especially if he figured out we were friends. I could see him thinking that would make me jealous since he’s so hung up on himself, and thinks every woman in the world is, too. He might still try targeting her, but as she was already in a relationship, I’d have a better chance of talking sense into her if she didn’t have enough of her own.
“Let’s get started why don’t we,” said the Professor, exuding confidence. The guy was charismatic, like Miles said. I could feel the energy in the room, the students were perking up. This might be a morning class they’d stay awake for.
“Ah, Miss Bannerman,” he said, his intense gaze honing in on me. “How nice to see you again.”
“It’s Mrs. Bannerman,” I corrected him. “As in, I’m married to Mr. Bannerman.”
Miles was probably smiling right now.
Several of our friends from last year’s study group, including Delia, sounded as though they were stifling laughter.
Mead was undaunted. He laughed as though what I said was delightfully amusing.
“Very well then, Mrs. Bannerman, if it makes you feel better, then by all means that’s what we’ll use.”
I had all sorts of witty retaliations to choose from, but, I had a feeling that was what he wanted, so I remained silent. The guy better be careful though, or Miles would pull a Darth Vader on him.
Miles wouldn’t actually do that, but the thought, the knowledge that he could, if he wasn’t the good guy that he is, made me smile.
Mead was a little disconcerted by that, and waited a few seconds for me to respond.
I spent that time wondering how he knew my name.
Mead began to pace the classroom slowly, moving out of range of my ability.
“My name is Professor Ryan Mead, but let’s not be formal,” he said, smiling engagingly at the class as a whole, as I heard that faint out-of-range voice alerting me to the fact that he was lying. No dizziness though. “Call me Ryan, please.”
I used my laptop to message Miles “wrong name.” He’d know what I meant.
As Mead turned and stepped back in range, I asked, “What was your name again?”
He looked at me, that amused, smug look in his intense eyes.
“I hope you pay better attention to the rest of today’s lesson, Mrs. Bannerman, or you’re going to have a very hard time passing this class,” he said.
I knew ex
actly what he was doing. Mead thought his sudden switch in attitude toward me would make me want to regain his approval. I didn’t respond, but someone else did.
“Sheesh, she just asked you to repeat yourself,” Xander said. “I didn’t understand you either.”
“Yeah… what did you say?” asked another study partner from last year. I appreciated my friends standing up for me.
Mead laughed. Once again, we were all delightful. I was seeing a pattern here. That was his default mode when challenged or faced with disapproval.
“Very well then,” he said, maddeningly out of range again. “My name is Ryan Mead, but there’s no need for formality here. Call me Ryan, as my friends do.”
Just that faint voice again, alerting me that he lied, but not telling me what the truth was.
Class went on from there. Everyone was expected to introduce themselves, tell a little about themselves… it was my turn.
“I’m Anika Bannerman. I’m married to my best friend, Miles, the most gorgeous guy ever.”
Everyone who’s known me for any length of time has heard me say that about Miles, so our friends smiled, and some laughed.
“That’s important to you, isn’t it,” Mead said, his voice suddenly soft, and a look of tolerant pity in his eyes.
“It’s important to me that I’m married to my best friend Miles, the most gorgeous guy ever, yeah,” I said.
Mead shook his head and paced again, and I waited.
“You know, it’s just…” he looked down and held his hand to his forehead, then looked up again. “I’m sorry. It’s just a disappointment to me to see young people held back by such harmful, limiting, and antiquated ideas. I suppose you’re a Christian, too?”
“Yes, I am,” I said.
He nodded as if that explained the whole thing.
“What do you have against marriage?” Xander wanted to know. “And Christianity, sounds like you’re not a fan of that either.”
“Where do I even begin…” said Mead. “Christianity, in a nutshell, is judgmental and controlling. As for marriage… this isn’t a subject I intended to cover today, but the opportunity has so handily presented itself, let’s have a frank talk about marriage.”
The guy was lying, but I didn’t need the buzz of that distant voice to know that.
Mead sat on the edge of the table and began.
“Where did the notion of marriage even come from? Was it from a woman? No, no,” Mead waved that thought away. “Marriage was man’s idea, a clever way to control and hold back women and take away their freedom. How many women do you see sacrificing their own dreams and talents to support a husband in the pursuit of his own? Hmm?”
No dizziness, but that faint voice again.
He stood and began to pace.
“Ever wonder why marriages fail? If it was a good thing, a positive thing, a healthy thing that was mutually beneficial, then it stands to reason that it would succeed. But,” and here he looked pleadingly at the class. “It goes against nature, and anything that does, is doomed to failure.”
Is this guy for real? There was the voice contradicting him, but he wasn’t through talking…
“You may very well say, that there are other mammals that mate for life. Wolves for example. Well I ask you. Is that the example you want to follow? Do you want to live like wolves?”
The only thing this guy had going for him was that whole charismatic thing. What he was saying was ridiculous, and that part about wolves almost made me laugh out loud. Miles probably was. The crazy thing was though, no matter what it was that he said, he sounded very convincing.
He’s a con man! That’s it. And he’s good at it. I could see, looking over my shoulder, that some of the students were considering what he said, and not in a “that’s totally ridiculous” kind of way.
“You, Mrs. Bannerman…” he said, boring into me with that intense gaze of his. “Just how long has it been since your wedding?”
“Three months,” I said.
He nodded knowingly, pacing again.
“That’s right. The honeymoon phase. I suppose you believe it will last.” He shook his head sadly. “It won’t though, I assure you. Someday his good looks just won’t be enough for you, you’ll want more than that.”
Morals and standards and that contradictory voice in my head aside, did he not see my husband last week?
“You wouldn’t say that if you were a girl, and saw her husband,” said Delia.
The whole class laughed hard at that, and Mead laughed along. Because, after all, Delia was too delightfully amusing to take seriously.
“Okay, so enlighten me here, Ryan,” said Xander, as the laughter died down. “What does ‘ology’ mean, anyway?”
Mead raised his eyebrows and looked around, as if he and the rest of the class were united in their surprise and amusement at Xander’s question.
“If you don’t know what it means, perhaps you should look up the definition,” said Mead.
“I know what it means,” said Xander. “I’m wondering if you do, though.”
Xander was obviously delightful and amusing and entertaining, judging by the way Mead laughed in response.
“It means ‘study of,’” I said. “Not ‘sitting in judgment of’.”
“Yeah… doesn’t sound like you’re studying marriage in this class, sounds like you’re being judgmental, something you find intolerable in Christians,” said Xander.
I could see a thin crack in Mead’s façade. We were irritating him, and he was finding it difficult to consider us delightful anymore.
“So since that’s your view on marriage,” I said as he paced toward my ability’s range, “what do you think of murder?”
He stopped in surprise. Or else Miles stopped him, which would sure surprise him.
He managed to laugh, then responded sarcastically, that intense unwavering gaze focused on me.
“Really, Mrs. Bannerman. What do you expect me to say? If that’s what it takes to get what I want, I fully support it…?”
He’s telling the truth.
The rest of the class sort of chuckled, but I didn’t.
Mead stopped his pacing and his assault on marriage, and got down to the actual business of passing out syllabi. I found it a little odd that he passed them out himself. He started at the back of the class and moved forward, and as he did so he talked about the subject matter that would be covered during the course. I used my laptop to take notes.
Mead moved slowly down the space between the first and second rows. He stopped talking and came to an abrupt halt behind my chair.
I froze. I had a Red Alert feeling, but fortunately no dizziness. For several seconds nothing happened, and then Mead moved on. He reached over the shoulder of the girl on the other side of me, and gave her two syllabi, which was good, because he didn’t give me one at all. Not that I wanted him reaching over my shoulder. I was sure he did the handing out himself, and in this way, to get closer to the female students. He began to talk again, but he sounded like something had really shaken him up.
Mead finished passing out syllabi and sat on the table again, and that’s where he stayed the rest of class. Every time I looked up, I saw that he was watching me. He no longer looked as though I was delightful. He looked as though he was cautious, maybe a little afraid, and trying to figure me out.
I couldn’t wait to ask Xander and Miles what happened, because I had no idea.
Class ended, and Mead didn’t try to engage me in conversation, which surprised me. Maybe he was still trying to make me want his approval. As if that was going to happen! I noticed he seemed distracted and didn’t try to engage the other girls in class, either. That’s good, but… what was going on?
I ran down the hall and met Miles at the doorway of the study lab.
“Hi,” I said, throwing my arms around him.
“Hi back,” he said, holding his laptop under one arm, and hugging me with the other. I kissed him, then we turned toward the exit. I saw X
ander as he headed the same direction. He ignored us, as agreed upon, but he looked completely freaked out. I looked up at Miles, confused. He just smiled softly at me. He had something serious to tell me though, I could see it in his eyes.
We followed the rest of the students through the door, and outside. We didn’t get far before Xander grabbed Miles by the arm and dragged us off to the side.
“What—was that?” he demanded, his voice shaking and his eyes huge.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, genuinely confused.
Xander looked at me for several seconds as if trying to decipher me or something. I looked from him to Miles, completely at a loss.
“Come on, Xander, we need to talk,” said Miles, breaking Xander’s grip on his arm. Miles put his hand on Xander’s shoulder and guided him toward the parking lot. “Can you drive, Xander? Never mind. We can come back for your vehicle later. We’ll just do that, you look too stunned to be operating a motor vehicle right now.”
“What on earth is going on?” I demanded, trying to stop and insist on an explanation. My much stronger husband who still had his arm around me wasn’t stopping though, so neither was I.
We reached our SUV and Miles opened my door, then opened the door for our friend who looked like he was a walking coma patient, and encouraged him to snap out of it enough to get in the vehicle. We drove back to the apartment in silence. I was getting more irritated by the second though, what in the world happened back there? I looked at Miles every now and then, but he just squeezed my hand and didn’t enlighten me any. He looked… resigned, but to what, I had no idea.
“You know I’m on the verge of being really mad!” I said in frustration.
“Honey… please trust me, and be patient.”
I thought about that, and finally sighed.
“Okay. Fine. But if you were anyone else,” I said, pointing my finger at him, “I’d be smacking you upside the head right now, for making me wait.”
Miles smiled and laughed softly.
We reached our apartment building, and Miles led Xander inside. We greeted the guard briefly, and rode up the elevator in silence.
“Anika, will you see if Jenny’s in her apartment?”
Darkness Falls Page 15
