Ethereal Ties

by Elara Skye

  Come to think of it, Amelia had never seen him pray before bedtime either, as one might expect.

  Then again, he’d also slept with a woman out of wedlock.

  Which of these rules applied to him, anyway? Which religions? Was he affiliated at all?

  Amelia tucked her legs under her, shifting to face him a bit. She rested her head against the seat, plucking her earbuds out, which muted the sound of the movie as she looked at him. Finn’s apprehensive eyes were glued to his cell phone screen, scrolling through a myriad of e-mails.

  “I haven’t prayed in a really long time,” she whispered. Finn’s gaze swept to her immediately. “Does that mean something?”

  He stared blankly for a moment—like he didn’t know what to say. Finally, he released a heavy breath, and his voice was dull as he answered, “No. Not really.”

  He was directly in front of her now, the dim light of the television screen casting shadows across his features. Amelia frowned. “Are you upset with me?”

  His eyes jumped down to her lips and back. “No. Not with you.”

  “I know we haven’t talked much these past few days...”

  “No one’s to blame for that.”

  “Do you want to talk about it?” she asked.

  “Not really.” Finn turned back to his cell phone, perhaps thinking that was all she had to say.

  “Finn,” Amelia whispered so as not to let the neighbors overhear. He slid his gaze back, studying her. “I’ve been wondering about the angel thing a lot...”

  Finn’s frown didn’t lift—if anything, his emotions surfaced further with a tired sigh. “Amelia,” he murmured, looking back at the screen. “I’m sorry, I’m really not in the mood to talk about it.”

  “Oh...” Amelia sank back into her seat, looking between him and his phone. Everything was suddenly aside, and all she registered was his sullen demeanor. “Is there anything I can do?”

  Finn shook his head but didn’t look at her. “It’s nothing to concern yourself with.”

  After a few minutes of watching him tap at his screen, Amelia finally pulled out her phone to write him a message, thinking it might lighten him up.

  Okay, feel better, it read.

  Amelia looked over in time to see the message appear, but her heart sank as she Finn swiped it away. She supposed it was unreasonable to expect him to be unaffected by the week’s events, but the gesture was inordinately cold, coming from him. It probably hurt more than it should have, and Amelia felt like melting into the soft cushions of her seat.

  Instead, she rose to go to the bathroom, grabbing a cocktail on the way back—the infamous cure for all ailments. Granted, it was also notorious for inciting chaos. Unfortunately, getting back to the window seat was a less-than-graceful endeavor, thanks to the small bout of turbulence that shook the plane. Amelia’s hand shot out to Finn’s chair for balance, and a respectable glob of her drink leaped out onto his phone, splashing across whatever e-mail he was reading at that moment.

  Finn dragged his eyes up toward her as she cringed, watching him wipe it off with his jacket. “Sorry,” she whispered as she quickly stepped over him, plopping onto the chair.

  Whatever Finn was working on, he was back at it immediately. Amelia dared a glance in his direction, feeling her heart sink again at the newfound tension in his features. Without knowing what was wrong, there was nothing she could think of to make him feel better. And in fact, Amelia felt like more of a nuisance than anything else.

  Settling back into her seat, she pulled out her phone to write another message.

  I’m sorry I spilled my drink. I keep trying to think of ways to cheer you up, but I’m clearly having the opposite effect, so I’m just going to go to sleep. If you want to talk, please wake me up. Otherwise, I’ll see you in the morning.

  Also, don’t feel pressured to put on a smile tomorrow. Things are hard and confusing for both of us right now, for different reasons. But you’re still here with me, under no obligation, and that’s the first thing I’m thinking of when I think of you. Try to get some sleep. xoxo

  Amelia pressed her lips together, hitting the send button before shifting to the other side of the seat. Tucked under the blanket, she closed her eyes and settled against the chair. The hum of the airplane continued all around her, without any obvious sign that Finn had read the message. Save for shifting around a bit, their private little corner was silent. At least, until her phone buzzed with a response.

  She looked at it, reading the message from Finn.

  You’re not having the opposite effect. Don’t worry about the drink. Thanks for trying to cheer me up, I’m sorry for my difficult mood. Sleep well.

  Her face relaxed, a lazy grin stretching across her lips. Looking back, Finn seemed more at ease as well. Amelia took the acknowledgment as a go-ahead to scoot back closer to him, though she remained in her seat—merely facing him. Sleep continued to evade her for a time, so she popped an earbud in and played the film instead.

  She meant what she said about him, though it hadn’t sunk in fully until she wrote it out. Human or not, he was there with her. No matter who or what he was, that was meaningful.

  Finn looked at her several times throughout the next fifteen minutes. He must have realized that she left one ear open for him, and finally murmured after several bouts of stares, “What’ve you been thinking about?”

  “What?” Amelia blinked up at him.

  “Before…” he murmured. “You said you’d been thinking about things a lot.”

  Right—she almost forgot about that. “Just questions, I guess.”

  “What kinds of questions?”

  Amelia looked at him, wondering if he really wanted to have this conversation now. She shrugged. “I guess I figured that if you’re real, then God has to be real too—right?”

  There was a flash of hesitance in his expression, but he nodded.

  “Makes sense,” she murmured. “And everything else in the world—is it really like it is in the Bible and stuff?”

  A minute grin tugged on the corner of his mouth. “And stuff?”

  “Don’t tease me,” she shied away. “I don’t know about these things.”

  “I can tell you not to put much stock into what others say.”

  “So, it’s all fake?”

  “I’d say it captures the spirit of certain matters, and with others, it misses the point. I fear it would do more harm than good to explain the specifics.”

  “What about big-picture things?” Amelia asked, swallowing a small lump in her throat. “‘Cause, you know, my mom died a couple years ago, too. I guess I’m wondering if she’s—”

  “—somewhere?” Finn said, though he still seemed reluctant to answer. “When you’re alive, you’re bound to this world. Afterward, you’re free to go wherever you please. If you’re lucky, you’ll have angel around to guide you.”

  It wasn’t much of an answer, but she took it. “Do you think my mom had one?”

  “I don’t know, to be honest.”

  She paused. “What’s it like?”

  “What’s what like?”

  “Being an angel.”

  Finn sighed. “Frustrating, at times. More like an ordinary job than you’d think.”

  “Nothing glamorous?”

  “Depends on how you define glamour.”

  Amelia thought about it a moment. “I guess I’d gauge it by the coolest thing you’ve ever done.”

  “The ‘coolest’ thing?” Finn’s eyes roved away from hers, toward the window. She waited for a time, watching his thoughts drift somewhere far and ancient, returning with a grin. “I suppose it’d be seeing Milky Way.”

  Amelia smirked. “I’ve seen it too. On television.”

  He arched a brow. “Yes, I’m sure the real thing pales in comparison. Edge to edge, in all its glory.”

  “Like in New Zealand?”

  “Think farther away.” He was the one being coy, this time. “It’s not hard to get there in the Ether. Mayb
e a few days.”

  “What? No—you’re kidding, right?”

  “I most certainly am not,” Finn’s voice hardened a bit, but still remained a whisper.

  “You’re saying you’ve seen the entire thing from space?”

  “Yes, exactly that. And it’s better than any captured image could ever convey.”

  “No way.”

  His lip quirked. “I can prove it you.”

  Amelia smiled. “Go for it. Last time you said that to me, I was in for something pretty damn cool.”

  “I’ll bet you I can top that.”

  “How?”

  Finn looked at her a moment, then glanced out the window. Amelia barely missed the glimmer of light around his pupils, as she was busy admiring the smile that stretched across his lips. “Why don’t you look outside your window?”

  Amelia blinked, her breath slowing just a bit. The plane creaked around them, trembling now and again from the turbulence. Finally, she shifted, inching to the other side of her seat. She turned her attention to the pitch-black night outside the plexiglass, unsure of what to look for at first.

  That is, until she saw the edges of a sparse, glittering body of stars, floating well beyond the airplane wing. The picture grew brighter as she neared the window, revealing glowing swaths of diamond dust brushed against the blackness of the sky. And at their center, a bright, white light encapsulated the surrounding space with its ambient glow. From where she sat, the picture seemed frozen in time, glinting around the dark, matte color of the trembling wing.

  Amelia squeaked a little, her hand flying to her mouth. She might’ve sounded distressed, but she was far from terrified. No, Amelia’s heart was racing—pounding against her ribcage—from a place of awe. She had never once, not even for an instant, witnessed something as beautiful as this.

  Her hand bumped against the partition as it searched out Finn’s, grappling onto his fingers when he reached out and brushed her skin.

  “Finn—” her voice came out louder than she’d intended.

  “Do I win the bet?” he whispered. She could tell he was smiling.

  “Is this real?” she breathed out.

  “Very real.”

  “You were right there?”

  “Yes. I saw it from this exact vantage point.”

  The awe shifted to excitement and wonderment. “How is that possible?”

  “It’s easy when you know where to go.”

  “You mean when you’re in the—”

  “The Ether?” he finished for her. “Yes, that’s right.”

  Her eyes began to water. “I don’t want to look away.”

  “There’s so much more to see out there,” Finn murmured, squeezing her hand. Her eyes locked onto him when she finally turned. “You’ll have your fill of it someday. When your time comes.”

  “Is that what you meant, when you said my mom went somewhere?” she asked. “She could be anywhere out there, seeing things like this?”

  “If she was anything like you, I doubt she created a cage for herself in death. I’m sure she’s free.”

  What did that mean for someone like her father? Amelia didn’t want to know.

  “Will you go with me someday?” she asked instead. “Show me things like this?”

  “Let’s not talk about that,” Finn’s response came quickly. “Try not to dwell on it, either. Eternity is a long time, but your life is happening now. When the time comes, you will have more time to think about that than you’ll know what to do with.”

  She eyed him curiously. “Finn?”

  “Yes?”

  I was scared of you, at first. Amelia was tempted to say it, but hesitated. She wasn’t afraid of him anymore.

  Instead, she glanced at the television screen once more, observing the in-flight map that replaced the movie as a screen saver. “We’re going to land soon.”

  “A few more hours, but sure,” Finn agreed. “We should probably get some sleep. We’ll need all the strength we can get these next few days.”

  She groaned. “Strength and patience...”

  “Precisely,” he said. Amelia watched as he reached out and dimmed the television. “Come on. I’m getting tired too.”

  “Alright.”

  Amelia clutched the blanket as she laid back against the reclined chair, and Finn’s blanket bag crunched as he tore it open. Once they were settled, exhaustion crept in with full force.

  “Finn?” Amelia mumbled.

  “Yes?”

  She reached out for his hand. “I meant what I said earlier, in the e-mail.”

  “I know.” He turned hers over in his grasp and kissed it. “Now, go to sleep.”

  She smiled. “You too.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  With the distance closing between them, Finn wasn’t sure whether to offer Amelia to come stay in his suite. He only knew that it was undoubtedly better than the one she had.

  In the end, he didn’t have to think about it. Upon their arrival at the hotel, she immediately accepted the manager’s humble condolences and hospitality.

  Though on the bright side, both their moods had considerably lightened since their flight—though they were both tired at first—and they would be seeing much more of each other over the next few days. Plenty of time to repair the cracks. At least, it’d be more than they had over the last few days.

  At this point in the year, nighttime continued to fall quickly over the region. Christmas was months ago, but it didn’t affect places this far north. Therefore, the sky was dark by the time Finn made his way down to the elegant lobby, on the night of the memorial dinner.

  The hotel itself was magnificent, more like a palace than anything else—a large, ornate structure nestled at the base of a mountain range, adorned with opulent ceilings and marble pillars. Even the staff was immaculately dressed, and Finn’s suite seemed flawless when he first arrived. Aside from luxurious furniture, there were paintings in every room, sheets of Egyptian cotton, and marbled bathroom floors. The whole arrangement was simply breathtaking.

  Finn wondered idly about Amelia’s suite while leaning against a pillar. He was curious to hear about the luxuries the hotel had afforded her—if any—and wondered when she might come down to tell him about it. Each time he heard the elevator ding, more people poured into the lobby, but none of them were her. Occasionally, someone stopped to say hello, but it was no one that he had a vested interest in talking to—least of all, the tall, slender woman that sauntered out from one of the elevators sometime after his arrival.

  Finn blinked once—twice—to make sure it was really her in the long, blue dress.

  Shit.

  Finn paled at first and then looked away, biting his lip and pretending not to recognize her. Her blonde hair tumbled over her shoulders on all sides, while she offered a charming, dignified smile to another group of equally well-dressed passersby. And when her eyes snapped toward Finn—the only person loitering near the doors—that dreaded look of recognition dawned over her features. He stood in place awkwardly for a moment, inwardly cringing when he saw her approach out of the corner of his eye.

  The last time he saw this woman was after a night of heavy drinking—positively killer, on Finn’s part—and a series of indiscretions that he couldn’t take back.

  “Hey, there,” she purred.

  Finn forced a polite grin. “Hi, Elisa. Good to see you.”

  “Good to see you too—I didn’t know you were coming.”

  “Nor did I. It was a bit of a last-minute decision.”

  “As it was for the rest of us. I’m sure Ruben would’ve appreciated it, though.”

  “Yes, I’m sure he would have.” His eyes flickered back toward the elevators, where Amelia could appear at any moment.

  “How’ve you been all this time?”

  “Good. I really can’t complain,” he said. “And yourself?”

  “A little bit shocked, but otherwise fine. I heard no one knew that Ruben was sick until hours before he died
,” she said.

  “Well, he never did like to talk about his personal affairs.”

  Likewise, he didn’t have much in the way of family to reach out to, either.

  “I also heard his daughter’s coming tonight,” Elisa arched a brow curiously.

  “Is she? Where did you hear that?”

  “The board.” She rolled her eyes. “Though I think they wished the lawyers would just take care of her.”

  “You disagree?”

  “Not necessarily. But if the girl doesn’t force her way in now, the board will choose someone just like Ruben to appoint by default.”

  “And that’s a bad thing?” he asked. “How can you know what they’ll do?”

  “I didn’t say it was a bad thing—Ruben got things done.” She shrugged. “And, you know, a girl gets around.”

  Finn felt a newfound disdain for her agreement with Ruben’s character. She was nothing like Amelia. “I see.”

  Elisa paused expectantly, then offered a comfortable smile. “Why don’t we get together after dinner and go out for a drink?”

  “Sorry,” he said. “I’ve got plans.”

  “Made some friends already?”

  “Something like that.” He arched a brow. “Believe it not, I’m here with Ms. Var Hart.”

  Elisa’s surprise was palpable. “Oh.” Her earnest tone was decidedly fake—shocked, if anything—but she carried on, “That’s interesting. For moral support, I assume?”

  “Of course. Amelia may very well need it.”

  “Well, I’m sure no one will come near Amelia while you’re guarding her,” Elisa mused half-venomously, masking it with a smile as she glanced behind him. “Is that her?”

  Footsteps were approaching, but Finn hadn’t noticed them until just then. True enough, when he turned, Amelia’s face appeared amidst the crowd. Finn immediately noticed that she wasn’t wearing a dress, like all the other women. Instead, she donned an expensive-looking suit and jewelry, with her hair arranged in an elegant, loose braid that rested on her shoulder.

  Even without the glamour and niceties, Finn found himself a bit tongue.