by C. Elizabeth
Nathanael smiled. “Your parents just called me and told me to meet them here.”
“Nathanael, son, it’s nice to see you again.” Dad gestured his arm to the side. “Come, let’s sit down.”
Once we were comfortable, Dad started. “We did believe they had turned you, son. However, with Mora’s insistence...” Nathanael shuddered. Dad went on, “We found it very interesting that you actually left town so you could be true to our wishes.”
Nathanael looked as confused as I felt. “How did you know that, and how did you know where I was?” he asked.
Dad smirked slightly. “My boy, you know we have our ways.”
“Yes, I do.” He grunted.
I just sat there, moving my eyes from Nathanael to Dad then to Mom—who was smiling at me—back to Nathanael.
Dad sat back with his ankle across his other knee, cheek resting in his hand. “We’ve been watching you closely.”
That gave me the willies. “What? Why would you do th...”
Nathanael put his hand on my leg and shook his head.
“But they’re being...”
With tight lips, he closed his eyes and shook his head again.
I huffed and waited for Dad to continue.
And he did, paying no attention to my protest. “We came to realize you weren’t acting like a young man who was plotting his next move. Rather, you were acting like a young man who was extremely hurt and had no idea what to do next.”
Nathanael ran his fingers through his hair. “You’d be correct on all counts. I did come here because it was impossible to stay away from Saydi, but also it gave me space to think.” He clasped his hands together between his knees and looked to the floor. “Though I tried and tried, I couldn’t come up with a way to prove it to you and that scared me.” Without looking up, he put his hand on my knee. “Because the thought of not being with her...” he trailed off.
Mom reached over and touched his knee, getting his attention. “Nathanael, we know what it feels like not...” She lovingly looked at Dad. “John and I don’t want to keep you from Saydi. For her safety, we will do anything and for her happiness ...” Mom smiled at me. “We will do anything.”
He nodded and smiled. “Thank you for trusting me.”
Dad had a huge grin on his face. “You make it easy. You’re a trustworthy young fellow. Please don’t prove us wrong.”
“Sir, that will never happen,” Nathanael said with conviction.
With all the niceties out of the way, Dad nodded and went immediately to work. “We’ve been watching the papers. It’s starting to move to the small towns and hamlets, working its way out.”
“Yes, I’ve been keeping track, too,” Nathanael concurred.
“We have a lot of work ahead of us,” Dad said.
“What?” I breathed.
Nathanael sat back. “They’re advancing faster than anticipated, and more have been summoned.”
I shook my head. “More what?”
There was a hint of deep concern on Nathanael’s face when he spoke. “With us losing time because we haven’t been working on your Spirit Light, the word was sent out that more Pyre were needed to ensure victory.”
“Oh.”
“Father still wants me near you, and he was even helping me with ideas on how to get your blessing.” He nodded at Mom and Dad. “Because he’s sure the ultimate weapon to steal the Spirit Light is gaining strength right now.”
Dad spoke, “What’s that?”
Nathanael leaned forward and clasped his hands together, resting his arms on his knees. “Well, everyone knows what we’re doing here and everyone knows who the other is. We are also all playing nice at this point, because Saydi isn’t eighteen, correct?”
Dad nodded and leaned forward as well, wanting to hear it closer.
“I’m playing the biggest part. Father believes I’ve turned and I’m putting strong suggestions in Saydi, fooling her that I love her...right?” He cast a glance my way and put his hand on my knee again, giving it a little reassuring squeeze. “And we all know that for my suggestions to work, Saydi would have to have some desire to want to love me.” He lifted my hand to his lips and slightly snorted. “Father has no misconceptions that Saydi does desire to love me. However, he also believes she is stronger than that and when she found out who I was, she simply pushed those feelings aside and began to use me instead, not allowing herself to fall for it—keeping me close.”
It was all so confusing. “How does that get my Spirit Light?”
Nathanael rotated his head, eyeing me. “Sweets, what do you do when you’re using someone? You have to lie continuously, you play with their emotions, steal their heart, their feelings, and cheat them into believing you care. . . all those wonderful traits a Pyre loves in a person.”
Dad pushed against the back of his seat. “Whoa! That is a twist and a good one.”
Nathanael nodded. “Yes it is. Now when you forbade me to see Saydi, it cast suspicion on her, that perhaps her feelings were real, that she really did love me. It made no difference to them, because if that were the case, he knew I would be more able to tempt her with her guard down.” Shaking his head. “Either of those two scenarios works for them.”
Dad smiled at me. “Well, we know the whole truth.”
“Yes we do,” Mom agreed.
And it was back to work for Dad. “I know it’s impossible to know how many more Pyre have been summoned, but more Tovs have been deployed in the field as well. I understand the Pyres are a tad bit concerned with the amount of Tovs helping Saydi.”
I felt a little animosity toward my parents. “So, basically because you wouldn’t listen to me, we’ve added hundreds more to the battle?”
“There’s no blame here, Saydi, and I wouldn’t say hundreds,” Nathanael attempted to console.
Fine! I’ll give him the ‘no blame,’ but...
“Can I ask something?”
“Of course, honey,” Mom said.
“Can they not just kill me to get it?”
A couple of gasps later, Nathanael furrowed his eyebrows. “No, because if they do, your Spirit Light no longer belongs to you.”
“Oh!” Then I thought for a second. “How come they’re waiting to start this thing?”
Nathanael sighed with a hint of frustration. “Because you’re not eighteen yet, and also leading up to battle they gain many more Spirit Lights. That’s what’s happening right now as they work their way forward.”
Again, I had a legitimate question. “Do we know where this battle is going to be?”
Dad smiled nervously. “Not yet. It could be in the middle of Main Street, or it will just begin. There will not be any warning on the day of, but Nathanael might be able to get us a lead if his father is willing to divulge that information to him.”
So many questions still needed answers, so I kept firing. “Can’t we figure that out? Wouldn’t it be close to where the Rondure is?”
Dad nodded. “Yes, where the battle is, the Rondure will be close by.”
“Well?” I pushed.
“Saydi, honey, just leave it at that.” Mom was stern.
The tension was rising, I tried to lower it. “So much for shopping,” I joked.
They laughed.
Mom touched my arm. “Saydi, we’ll shop. Nathanael will go back tomorrow as planned, and we will return on Sunday, and then...let the games begin.”
Snapping my head at him, I asked, “You’re going back tomorrow?”
“I have to go back tomorrow. Father will know you were here...”
That made me shudder.
Nathanael squeezed my hand. “I’ll tell him we ran into each other and with some begging and pleading...” He chuckled. “And of course, a suggestion or two, I was able to obtain your parents’ blessing to see you again. It’s perfect.”
We sat in silence at his last comment, then Dad rested his chin in his hand and watched Nathanael thoughtfully. “Well, son,” he said, sitting up. “I’ve ma
de a decision.”
“What’s that, sir?”
“I’m going to trust you with my daughter’s life.”
Nathanael glanced at me. “And you can, sir.”
“What I’m about to show you will give her the death penalty if certain people were to find out.”
Nathanael strangled. “Sir?”
Dad dug into the inside pocket of his suit and pulled out the scroll. I gasped. Nathanael glanced down at me, then slowly turned back to Dad and took the scroll Dad handed to him.
“Read it,” Dad encouraged, and sat back, putting his hand on Mom’s leg, watching for Nathanael’s reaction.
Nathanael untied it and unrolled it across the table in front of us. I read it with him over his shoulder and when he was done, he peeked over at me with tears sitting on the brim. Then he rolled it back up gently, tied it and handed it back to Dad. He put his hands together in a prayer fashion against his lips, thinking.
From the depths of his chest a sob came forward so hard he couldn’t stifle it, even though he tried. He grabbed and hugged me. “It can be destroyed?”
I wrapped my arms around his head. “Yes.”
His shoulders folded in as his chest heaved and cried.
I soothed him while Mom and Dad looked on. You could see the approval in Dad’s eyes; he could trust Nathanael unconditionally. After a few minutes, Nathanael pulled himself together. Mom dug in her purse and handed him a couple of tissues.
“Thank you,” he sobbed, wiping his face and nose. “I’m sorry. That took me by surprise, as did the relief that came from knowing it.” He gave a half smile. “I guess the pressure about what could happen was more than I thought. That is good news.”
He let out a puff of air. “We have a chance now.”
“We hope so, my boy,” Dad said, standing and holding his hand out to Mom. “Safe road home.”
Nathanael nodded. “Thank you, sir.”
For a split a second, a fear from him ran through me.
Mom smiled at him. “Nathanael, just talk to her. You might be interested in hearing what she has to say, and besides, you might discover some things about yourself.”
Mom was talking about Mora and he knew it as he put his elbows on his legs and folded his hands together. “Maybe so.”
“Hmm,” Mom said. “Good night.”
Dad coated her with his arm and they walked away, speaking softly to each other. Dad kissed Mom’s forehead and smiled lovingly at her. It was probably the first time they’d had a chance to be alone.
Thirty-three
Nathanael came back to my room and poured himself a drink, then sat beside me on the couch. “Are you sure you don’t want anything?” he asked.
Shaking my head slightly, I replied, “No thanks. Can I ask you about something?”
“Shoot,” he said, then took a sip of his drink.
“Have you ever used your power of suggestion on me?”
He smiled. “No, I try not to use it on anyone. Sometimes it can’t be helped, but usually no.”
That didn’t make sense. “How can it not be helped sometimes?”
He swallowed. “I’ve never used suggestions for the forces of evil.” He put an accent on the word ‘evil,’ playing with me. Then he got serious. “No, I shouldn’t say that. I’ve had to at certain times in my life, to prove things to Father...”
You could tell he despised having to do his father’s bidding, but still, he had to do it. I kissed his hand. He smiled.
“Other than that, no, but I have used it to help someone if they were in trouble. Being who we are, you come across the paths of many people who think there’s no way out and have horrible thoughts on how to take their own lives.”
I couldn’t fathom always having such negativity in my life, and how he did it was beyond me. “How do you know they have those thoughts?”
He laid his head on the back of the couch and stared at the ceiling. “Depression, which is rampant wherever we go. However, it’s a different depression. Instead of simply being tired all the time or not wanting to be around anyone, some people go through their days quite content. But their mannerisms and some of the things they say give them away. Well, actually how they say it is usually what triggers my interest.”
There was so much about him that was deep, like his love of human beings and not wanting to see them suffer. He was surrounded by hate and darkness, yet he still found love and kindness in himself. “What do you do then?” I asked.
“Well, I give them small suggestions, really, and remind them of the small blessings that make life good.” He lifted his head and gave me a shy smile.
I loved him so much. “How come you’re so different from your brothers?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Always have been. All three of us are very close and I love my brothers very much, but Job and Joshua always had a tighter bond with each other. Many times through my life I felt left out, wishing I shared that bond, too. But as I grew up, I saw myself for who I was, different in a good way. I like helping people.”
“I like you just the way you are, too.”
Brushing his finger down my cheek, our eyes locked. The air in the room instantly changed and my heart skidded, tickling me on the inside.
Watching his fingertips, he softly moved them up my cheek and traced around the tip of my ear, then down to the back of my neck. His gaze moved back to my eyes as he cupped his palm behind my head. Putting his drink down, he shimmied right up to my side and leaned in until his mouth touched the corner of mine. “All I want is a kiss,” he breathed.
I swallowed hard in anticipation as my blood coursed through my veins like hot lava, igniting passion in every cell as it went.
“Just a kiss,” he whispered.
Our lips touched, our hearts immediately set on fire. Erupting, it intensified, forging a want, a desire... It was something I wanted from him and him alone. I pulled myself closer to him; he responded and held tighter. His hands rubbed my bare back under my shirt... He took hold of my waist and with a shove of his legs, we flew through the air and landed on the bed. The kisses were gentle but passionate, and the heat from his body sent tingles through my skin... My breath couldn’t catch.
“No!” he forced himself and jumped up. “Not like this!”
That response made me wince, thinking I wasn’t good enough. “Did I do something wrong?”
He shook his head, trying to catch his breath and sat down beside me, holding my hand. “No, you did nothing wrong. But it has to be perfect, especially for you.”
That made me feel better. “Nathanael, anywhere would be perfect with you.”
Sighing, he explained, “It’s not something I’ll take from you just for the sake of getting some.” He kissed my cheek. “I want to show you how beautiful it is, show you what it’s like to be truly loved.”
I knew it sounded like begging, but my mind, heart, soul and body wanted to be with him. “You can.”
“Not here, not with your parents in the next room. It would feel rushed so they didn’t catch us.” His breath was on my ear. “I want to take my time and love you all night and into the next day.”
“I want you to,” crept up my throat.
“And I will, but not here, not tonight. Good night.” He gently kissed my hand and stood with a smile.
I gaped at him. Sheesh, that was quick and simple.
“It’s best I go so things don’t happen. I may be strong, but my control isn’t very good in this setting.” He rolled his eyes around the room. “Good night, sweets, I’ll see you in the morning.”
That didn’t go so well. “Okay, bye.”
“Saydi, don’t be hurt.” He pulled me up and hugged me. “It’s the one and only thing I can give you that won’t be tainted by my father.”
It was a plea and well worthwhile.
“I understand, I do.”
“I hope so. I’ll see you in the morning for breakfast.” He kissed my nose, wrinkling his. “Good night.”
The door closed behind him.
Don’t you dare cry! He said in my head.
Oh, it was going to be interesting when we had a fight.
~ * ~
After a very sleepless night, knowing Nathanael was in the building, we all met for breakfast. There was no doom and gloom, wars or battles, Pyre or Tovs. It was simply a family enjoying each other’s company.
Nathanael talked about growing up and the fun they had as kids. One time they went camping with friends and Job was showing off on a dirt bike for some girl, doing wheelies, when he lost control. Instead of hitting the break, he hit the gas and drove right over a cliff into the river. Of course he wasn’t hurt, well, physically anyway, but it bruised his ego. Not to mention, Mr. Braxton was none too pleased when he had to buy a new dirt bike for their friend.
Nathanael had tons of those happy memories. I don’t know why I pictured his life as always being dark and covert, nothing fun, yet it was sad that all of those happy times were overshadowed by the ugly things they had to do for their father—those things he never discussed.
Nathanael left and we spent the whole day shopping. Dad spoiled me with tons of presents, much to Mom’s dismay. She kept scolding him, telling him to wait until Christmas. He didn’t listen, smiling and kissing her, making her blush. The whole time we were there Nathanael didn’t talk to me and I couldn’t feel him. He had closed me off completely.
~ * ~
Monday morning Angie, Becky and Norma met me at the steps. “So how was your weekend?” Angie asked, linking her arm in mine.
I wasn’t sure if I should mention Nathanael, because if he hadn’t talked to his Dad yet, it could get him to some hot water. So I opted to keep it to myself, letting them believe it was the gifts I got that had me so excited. “It was great! Dad spoiled me rotten, and I practically got a whole new wardrobe. Look!” I said stepping back and showing them my boots.
“Wow, those are gorgeous!” Becky breathed.
“I know!”
“What else happened?” Angie eyed me.
I smiled crookedly. “Why? What do you mean?”
The three of them jumped up and down squealing and making me jump in the process. “Come on, Saydi...Nathanael!” Becky was more excited than the other two. “Joshua told me how he won your parents over... Come on, you gotta be over the moon.”
