Broken Faith: Spiritual Discord, 1

by Brandy Nacole

  The worst memory I come across is of him standing in a yard as a small boy, watching a house burn with his mother inside. I find myself so involved in his life memories I almost forget what I came to do. The memories of him helping his dad, working in his dad’s shops, and enduring the pain of beatings when his dad got drunk are intriguing. To see such memories inside a person who still manages to hold so much faith and hope that things will get better, is astonishing to me.

  I pull myself out of his mind, careful not to touch his skin. Sudden contact would startle him. Before completely closing the connection, I surprise myself with what I say next. “You have such a kind heart. I’m sure that kindness will carry you greatly through life.”

  Chase keeps his stupefied expression when I break the connection. That’s normal. That expression will stay on his face for a short time. Briston and I walk out into the kitchen, and he pulls me to the side. “What was that last part? That had nothing to do with the sword.”

  “You presume to second-guess me? I promised Emma he would not be harmed, but in order to hide the truth, I had to work with what is in his mind. He’s been through a lot. You should be thankful. My words will stay with him for some time, and bring him comfort.”

  My explanation sounds good, but I still can’t quite explain why I did that. I just wanted to offer him a kind word after seeing all that pain.

  I walk upstairs, ready to take on Braylee. From what I can tell, the girl is going to be more difficult than Chase. Pictures of Emma and her family litter the hall. I follow the voices and enter the room slowly, knocking as I open the door. Her room is done in many colors with pieces of art hanging on the walls. There’s a beautiful white bed with a green comforter in one corner, with a matching dresser displaying pictures of Emma and her friends sitting beside the bed. It is a happy room, filled with love. The proof of that lies in the fact that Emma does not live here, yet her parents continue to keep it ready for her.

  Emma stiffens for a moment when I enter, but recovers quickly. “Oh, hi Sabrina. Braylee have you met Briston’s cousin Sabrina?”

  Briston’s cousin?

  “No, I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Braylee.” Braylee extends her hand for a friendly greeting. Now I’m cursing myself for not thinking things through a little more. If I don’t shake her hand it’ll look suspicious, and she may refuse to speak to me. But if I do, she’s bound to freak out at my corpse-cold skin.

  I choose friendliness—the lesser of the two evils—and extend my hand. As soon as she feels my cold skin, she jerks her hand back with a confused and suspicious look on her face.

  “God, your skin is so cold.”

  “I apologize for that. I have poor circulation to begin with, and the temperature dropped considerably outside as I walked over from Briston’s house.” I hope my excuse is believable. It makes sense, anyway.

  Braylee rubs her hands together. “I would consider gloves next time.”

  I try making eye contact with her but she’s scrutinizing me with her eyes averted. If I can hook her, we can get this over with, but until she looks at me, we’ll have to make do with some small talk.

  Braylee narrows her eyes as she looks at my hair and face. Not once does she look me in the eyes. “You don’t look like Briston or anyone in his family.”

  Emma’s eyes go wide with panic. She is being too jumpy. Simple questions like that can be easily explained away. As long as she stops having these reactions and keeps calm, we may get through this.

  “I take after my mother’s side.” I say dismissively.

  Braylee sends a questioning look to Emma. Cursed girl, look at me! Draining her is so tempting right now.

  Braylee shakes her head. “I’ve met B’s momma and her three aunts too, and you look nothing like any of them.” She takes another quick look in my direction, still avoiding actual eye contact. “And you have an accent that I know nobody else in the family has.”

  The girl turns to Emma for an explanation. “What’s going on Emma? Who is this girl?”

  Emma is rigid. Don’t blow this…she’s going to blow this. “She’s a long distant cousin. I never said she was a close cousin.” Emma explains to her friend with a shaky voice.

  Yeah, no stranger would have been able to pick up the tremor in her tone. I shake my head, letting her know she’s failing. Braylee picks up on that too.

  “I don’t know what’s up with you and Briston, and I don’t know what’s up with this girl at all, but I’m not going to stand here and take a lie in my face. I’m out of here.”

  Braylee turns to storm out of the room, but I stop her. I keep my eyes locked on her face, trying my hardest to will her eyes to meet mine.

  “What are you staring at?” Braylee says with frustration.

  “You have very pretty eyes.” As I expect, the odd comment stops Braylee, and her eyes finally meet mine. The connection is instantly made. I waste no time in getting my message across. This girl is a strong spirit and if I don’t hurry, she may be able to pull away.

  “You are amazing, Braylee. Emma has said so many great things about you, including your generous act toward your friends, the friends who mean so much to you. I’m glad you decided to lend Emma and Briston the sword. It was smart of you to realize it needs to be appraised by a professional, so they know what type of sword it is and how much profit you all can make from it. That was a nice thing for you to do.” As I describe the new memory to her, I collect the memories of her decision to keep the sword and shove them back into the farthest depths of her mind.

  As with Chase earlier, I get drawn into Braylee’s memories. Braylee holds great love for her parents, who have supported her even through all her crazy stunts. She has the same way of thinking as most insecure teenage girls, but as I see further in, I can see that her heightened insecurity has an ugly cause. It has been just over a year since a boy she was dating, Owen Brantley, took advantage of her in a locker room. His name is etched in her mind, an un-healing scar. Braylee has wanted to talk to someone about what happened, but the fear of looking weak has stopped her.

  Braylee always wanted to go to college. She had high hopes for her future until he assaulted her. After that she lost all focus on the future she had planned, while trying to deal with her own pain. Now she is afraid of the future, and the uncertainty that now comes with becoming close with any boy weighs heavily on her. Braylee doesn’t want to be scared of getting close to a boy.

  I see Chase’s face flash by, and push a little deeper. Chase is a sweet boy who treats her nicely. But no matter how much she tries, she still can’t find it in herself to trust him. The only two guys on the planet she trusts besides her dad, are Briston and Gaige.

  Emma places her hand on my shoulder. Miraculously, I have no negative reaction to this. Sudden contact usually startles the coercer and the one they are concentrated on. Thankfully, that doesn’t happen this time. I begin to pull out of Braylee’s mind, but keep the connection for a moment. For the second time tonight, I want to leave someone with a sense of hope. If only there had been someone to give me a kind word while I faced the horrors of my life. A part of me died after that fearful night with that monster, locked in a barn. And after that he took the rest. But no one was there for me. I still held resentment and hate over what happened to me, and what I had done after. I just can’t seem to walk away after viewing and sensing so much pain.

  “The future is full of surprises, Braylee. Stay strong but know that those around you can help guide you. Trust your friends.”

  I release my hold on the young red-headed girl and back out of the room. Emma gives me a questioning look about what I said, no doubt wondering the same thing Briston did earlier. Neither one of them can possibly understand the depths of what I can see and feel when I make a mind connection with someone. If they could only see and feel the agony in their friends’ unspoken past, they too would have done the same thing I did.

  I make my way back downstairs, followed by a dazed Braylee who is be
ing directed by Emma. Chase and Briston are sitting in the living area. Both are quiet as Chase stares ahead, focusing on nothing. Emma and Briston both seem to be a little reluctant to talk to their now-comatose friends.

  Once we reach the landing by the front door, I turn to Braylee and Emma. “It was so nice to meet you both. Do have a safe trip home.” Braylee nods her head, not really hearing what I have to say. Chase doesn’t say anything as he walks past. The two make their way to the car without a word. Emma closes the door and turns to me with anger in her eyes.

  “You didn’t tell me they would be zombies afterwards. Is it even safe for them to drive?”

  “Yes. Their motor skills are completely intact. Their minds are just trying to adjust after my invasion. The brain has to recover from the hyper-stimulation.”

  I sit in the lone chair in the corner, which seems to have become my customary spot. I like keeping my distance from others. I am not used to being around so many people for so long. I prefer to keep my eyes on everything around me so I can make a ready escape if need be. Right now, I am keeping my distance because of my sudden drain in energy. Kayson’s blood has been sustaining me well, but even though I still have more energy than I have in the last hundred years, I’m still feeling weakened. The psychic connection with Braylee and Chase took a lot of energy out of me. Normally, a blood child would never use that type of mind control unless they were preparing for a meal, and it’s even more unusual to use it twice in a day.

  “Hey, are you okay?” Briston scoots to the end of his seat, looking at me with concern. I am startled by the boy’s show of kindness. Though I suppose I shouldn’t be. He was kind enough earlier this morning when I spoke with him.

  “Yes, I’m fine. We need to discuss the plans for moving Kayson. The night is growing deeper and if we wait too much longer, I will not have a chance to escape.” I know I sound selfish, but my main concern is for Kayson. If I don’t have the darkness to run in, I won’t be able to lead the hounds on a false chase far enough away. That is a crucial part in my plan.

  Emma sits down beside Briston and looks at me expectedly. “So let’s hear it.”

  “First off, I’m going to lure the hounds away from their hiding hole. I know they are hiding within the confinements of your neighbor’s home. I can smell them.”

  Emma gasps, no doubt with fear for her neighbor. Before she can start coming up with some insane idea to rescue her neighbors, I put my hand up. “Your best chance for helping your neighbors, and everyone else, is for me to lure the hounds away, and for us to get Kayson out of here. After I have them on the hunt for me and lead them off, I will double back here.”

  Briston interrupts. “Won’t the hounds be able to follow your trail back here?”

  Smart boy.

  “There is a way to throw the hounds off the trail: Water. The deeper the better. It masks the scent that the hounds follow. Emma, you will need to keep that in mind.”

  Emma and Briston both give me quizzical looks. All in good time.

  “Once I have the hounds on the hunt, I want Emma to go west. I am going to be going north. Briston, as the person the hounds haven’t scented, you have to be the one to take Kayson to the new hideaway.”

  I had expected Emma to be the one going ballistic over sending Briston off alone with Kayson, but it’s the boy that surprises me.

  “No! There is no way I’m letting Emma go out alone with hell hounds following her on some chase. That is not happening.”

  Briston continues to shake his head with refusal. “I know it is a scary thought, which is why I am sending her west. Once she finds an adequate water source, she can mask her scent by taking a dip. But that’s only if they even follow her. If my plan works as I expect, they’ll only follow me. Emma is of no use to them.” My attempt at reassurance does nothing to deter him.

  “She’s not doing it. If you want to risk your life letting the hounds chase you, be my guest. She’s not doing it. I will hand the angel over myself if I have to.” Briston gives me a hard look, unwilling to back down. I ignore my gut reaction to his threat. I know he’s scared. But that doesn’t solve our problem.

  “Then what do you propose we do. The hounds already know her scent. They have been following her, have they not? If by chance one does decide to follow her and she’s with you and Kayson, the plan fails.”

  “How do you know they don’t have Briston’s scent? He was here last night when Falon came by and again today at the café.” Emma asks.

  I shake my head, dismissing her concern. “I don’t believe they are concerned about Briston. If a hound follows to many trails, they can get confused. They may be smart, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have flaws.”

  Briston scoots up a little closer to the edge of his seat. If he comes much further forward, he’s going to fall on the floor.

  “Let me ask you something. Why is saving the angel so important to you? Aren’t you two supposed to be enemies?”

  There’s that question again, the one I repeatedly ask myself. It’s a question I can’t seem to find an answer to that satisfies me. When I found Kayson in the woods, I gave into a moment of weakness because I remembered my own tragic history and reluctantly brought him to what I thought would be a safe enough shelter. Once Emma and the hounds showed up, I became determined to help him find safety away from the hounds to heal. I was grateful for having someone to talk to, but my urge to leave never left me. Then Kayson told me why he fell, and now I am more determined to help him than ever. Why? The answer that finally comes to me makes me consider the possibility I never thought I could.

  I look at Briston, wondering what he will think of what I say.

  “Kayson is the only being in Heaven, Hell, and Earth, who has hope for beings like me. Kayson believes that Lucifer’s blood children, and the halfs created by those blood children, can be saved. I cannot turn my back on the one person who has ever offered me hope.”

  If there is one thing I could wish for in my life or any other half whose life has been forever changed by a blood child, it would be redemption. Growing up in a Christian home, I knew the difference between good and evil. I feared what my soul’s fate would be if I didn’t stay true to God’s word. But now, now that I have been tainted by that which God despises, I can only assume that Hell must be my soul’s final destination. All that being said, if Kayson is determined to prove otherwise, I can’t leave him without making sure I’ve done my part to help him first.

  “I think he’s right.”

  I look at Emma, surprised. Did she really just say that? After all the grief she’s given me, and all I’ve given her, I would have thought she’d be the last to take my side. Briston surprises me further by agreeing with Emma.

  “They’re right. Look at the kindness you showed Chase. You didn’t have to do that.”

  “Or Braylee,” Emma adds.

  Their faith in Kayson’s belief is nice to hear. I hope with all my might that they are right. We will never get a chance to find out if we don’t save Kayson, though.

  Briston comes over and kneels before me. He looks up at me with desperation. “But there’s something you have to realize. Emma is important to me. She is my best friend. The person I go to when I’m having a bad day or have doubts about life. She is important to me, Sabrina, and I can’t just send her out to face such a threat alone.”

  As much as I don’t want to understand Briston’s point of view, I do. I remember the great links I went through to keep the people I loved safe, when I was a human. Traveling to go fetch the doctor in order to save my family was the obvious solution to me. I had no fear in going out alone to save them. I would have done anything for my family if it meant I could protect them, which is exactly what Briston is doing.

  I’m not happy, but I give in to his plea. I’m really getting soft.

  “Okay. Emma stays with you and Kayson.”

  I don’t like this idea at all. If one hound stayed behind to keep watch over Emma, he will alert the oth
ers once he has shifted, and they’ll soon figure out what’s going on. The only thing we have to go on is hope. Hope that the hounds will all follow me.

  Briston stands and walks back over to the couch. Emma smiles up at him, with a little flush to her cheeks. I’m sure she is pleased to hear he cares so much. If I still had the ability to blush, I would have done so when Kayson showed me how much he cares for my own safety. I expect the memory alone would make me blush again right now.

  “Where is this new hideout you found?” Emma asks.

  I tell them of the little cabin I found in the woods. I leave out the part about finding it by chance after barely escaping a hound. By the time I’m finished they both look like they have seen a ghost. I wonder if I’m close to the mark, considering what I encountered there.

  “You want us to take Kayson to Hollow Cabin?” Briston asks in disbelief.

  “If this is the cabin I’m describing, then yes.” Emma and Briston both regard each other with fear. “Is something wrong with the location?” If the cabin is unsuitable for Kayson, I don’t know what I am going to do. My plan hinges on the place I’ve chosen being safe.

  With a little hesitation, Emma says. “It’s haunted.” Briston confirms this with a frantic nod.

  Ah yes, the spirit presences. Obviously Emma and Briston consider the cabin an unwelcoming environment for this reason. I wave their concern off with a sneer.

  “There are far worse dangers in this world than angry ghosts. Once Kayson enters into the cabin and the ghosts see what he is, they will not cross him. You’ll be safe.”

  Even ghosts fear the angels unless they are kind spirits staying behind because they can’t let go of loved ones. Those spirits tend to cling to the earth just to stay close to those they cherish, and they bring no harm to others. The ghosts that scare people and try to harm others fear angels, even fallen angels. All angels have nobility, even those in disgrace.