* * *
“Are you ready for this?” Nathan waved the tape at me.
It was early afternoon, and I just got off the phone with Carrie’s mom who invited Nathan and me to her house tonight for a fish fry, along with Tree and his mom. I told her we’d be there around six and thanked her for everything she had done for me. She blew it off like it was nothing and told me she loved me. I told her I loved her too before hanging up.
“We’ve been invited to Carrie’s house for dinner tonight,” I told Nathan, staring at the tape in his hand. “Tree and his mom will be there too.”
He took my hand and led me into the living room, then closed the curtains and turned the TV and VCR/DVD player on. He popped the tape in and picked up the remote before sitting next to me.
My stomach rolled, and I groaned. “I don’t know about this.”
Nathan rubbed my shoulder. “It’ll be okay.”
I sat on the couch and held my face in my hands. My knees were bouncing, and I blew air through my fingers, then dropped them to my lap. “Okay, turn it on.”
He pushed a button. The TV came on, and my father’s hand was adjusting the camera.
When he sat back and smiled, a weird choking noise escaped my lips.
“Daddy.” I covered my mouth and felt Nathan’s hand on my leg. My father looked so young and still had the James Dean look going on, with his tousled auburn hair and white turtleneck sweater. “I miss you so much, Daddy,” I cried inside my head.
“Hi, my little peanut girl,” he said, and I exploded into tears. He had a silly smile on his handsome face and looked down, pausing for a minute before facing the camera. “I know you’re probably too old for me to call you that now, but you’ll always be my little peanut girl.”
“I’ll never be too old for that,” I half cried and laughed. Nathan scooted closer and squeezed my leg.
“If you’re watching this tape,” he continued, “Then the dreams I’ve had of you being marked for immortality have come true, and I’m sorry the weight of the world is on your shoulders now.” He shifted in his chair and took a deep breath. “I’m also sorry for not being there while you were growing up. But I assure you, in spirit, I’ll always be with you and your mom.”
I nodded and a sob escaped my lips when I noticed his own eyes were brimming with tears. He looked away and moved his fingers across them.
“I’m sorry if I’m upsetting you. It’s not my intention here,” he said to the camera. “There are some things you need to know. First and foremost, I didn’t take immortality because I didn’t want to lose the two loves of my life. I couldn’t do it, and if that’s a selfish act on my part, so be it, and I’m sorry you had to suffer because of my decision. But one day your mother will be with me, and both of us will look after you.”
Nathan pushed the pause button because I was sobbing in my hands. I got a Kleenex and wiped my nose, staring at my father’s frozen image on the TV.
“Do you want to continue watching this?” His voice was soft and sympathetic.
I leaned forward and nodded. He pushed the button again.
“The second thing you need to know is I think you should choose immortality. I know eventually you’ll have to leave your mother, unless you tell her, but that’s your call. But I think this world needs you to help protect it. You need to be strong, Paige, even if the road you travel on gets lonely at times. I spoke to my friend Anwar, who is immortal, and he promised me he’d help and guide you through all of this. He saw you once and told me the oddest thing”–he moved his finger up and down at the camera and smiled–“He said there’s a powerful light within you, and he can see energy vibrating around you.”
I grabbed the remote and paused it, turning to Nathan. “Can Anwar see energy?”
“Yes, he can. Remember he’s from the jungles of Africa where they practice mysticism. He has an uncanny keen awareness of the energies in this world. He can also see people’s auras.”
“That’s crazy. The more you talk about him, the more I can’t wait to meet him. He sounds like an extraordinary person.”
“He is,” Nathan said as I restarted the tape.
“I think he’s right,” my father went on. “You need to take this opportunity. Another thing I want to mention before I go is a ring the dark spirits are after. Anwar told me he’d tell you about it so I didn’t have to explain to you what it is or the importance of it. Some people don’t even believe it exists, but I think it does, and if they haven’t found it by the time you’re watching this, then you need to find and destroy it.” He stopped for a moment. A strange look came over his face, and he began to speak in a cryptic tone. “The way will be written within the boards in the dwelling of one’s mind. The iron cap keeps your thoughts and ideas hidden from the eyes of the world.”
“Holy crap!” I looked at Nathan, and he was grinning. “That’s why I’ve been getting those damn premonitions, to prepare me for this and what’s to come.”
My father’s voice went back to normal. “Follow my footsteps and finish it. I know you’ll make me proud.” He kissed his fingertips and touched the lens. “I’ll forever love you and be with you in spirit. Be strong and never give up on yourself and what’s been given to you. And most importantly, grow your mind so your intellect can be your shining light to guide you through this world and bring all truths to you.” His hand went to the camera. Then the tape went blank.
Nathan ejected the tape from the VCR and opened the curtains, allowing the gray light to flood into the room while I sat zoning into space, thinking about what my father said. He wanted me to become immortal and seemed to think I could find the ring, like the dark spirits thought. But what if he was wrong? The last thing I wanted was to fail my father. I leaned forward and held my head in my hands as the doubts took hold of me.
“What’s wrong?” Nathan asked, sitting beside me.
I lifted my face and dropped my hands. “My father has too much faith in me when it comes to finding the ring. I mean, what if I can’t?”
He took my hand and rubbed it. “You know what I think?” I shook my head and stared into his dark blue eyes. They were so serious and honest. “I think you have abilities within you you’re not aware of, and once you stop over-thinking things and trust in yourself, those abilities will start to flow through you.”
“So you think I can find the ring as well?”
“I do,” he said. “But only if you believe you can, because if you take a self-defeatist approach to this, then you’ve already failed.”
I sighed. “You’re right. I need to change my thinking.”
He stood. “I’ll tell ya what. I have some books at my house that might interest you and ease your mind.”
I pushed myself off the couch and got my purse and house keys. “Okay, let’s go.”
Beyond the Eyes: YA Paranormal Romance Page 52
