“Were you going to head out right away?” Reggie asked concern making the wrinkles between his forehead a bit more pronounced.
Venus nodded silently, ignoring the stabbing pains of hunger and the ache in her bones from lack of sleep.
“Let's grab a bite and we can head back out right away,” Reggie offered.
Venus shook her head, stuffing her hands into the front pockets of her jeans. “It's on me, I insist.” Reggie said knowing why it was she refused.
He had heard her stomach rumbling hours ago. Venus hesitated a split second longer and gave in to the temptation. A slow smile spread across her face and Reggie felt himself smiling just because she was. He escorted her into the little diner and swore mentally at the idiots gawking at the poor girl. He ordered for her only because her choice when the waitress came was the cheapest thing on the menu, a garden salad. If it were at all possible, Venus' eyes got even bigger as the waitress came back sometime later with an enormous porterhouse covered in butter and oil and placed in right in front of her. Venus felt like she was drooling and had to slyly run her fingers across her lips to be sure she wasn't. For a few minutes, Venus just sat and stared and inhaled. Reggie almost laughed but knew it would hurt her feelings so her concentrated on his own steak. He was mesmerized once she finally cut the damned slab of cow and placed a tiny piece into her mouth. Her eyes closed and her head tilted back slightly. Her jaw worked on the piece of meat intently and as she swallowed, she let out a small sigh. Paradise, she thought. Venus glanced up and caught Reggie staring at her with an amused look on his face.
“What?” Venus asked a little sharper than she meant.
Reggie just shook his head smiling and stabbed another piece of meat with his fork. Venus was sure she was setting Reggie back on his schedule. Still, she couldn't help but savor each bite.
“Thanks Reggie,” Venus said as they walked out of the diner. He patted her on the shoulder gently.
“My pleasure,” he said still amused by her actions at dinner. When they were on the road again, Reggie turned serious. “How long has it been since you've eaten?” he asked her.
Venus' face scrunched up. Eaten, eaten? She asked herself.
“I've been without for a lot longer. I'm good Reggie. That meal will last me a while.”
“What about California? Do you have family there?”
Venus had hoped to avoid this line of questioning. Reggie had been so nice to her so far. A part of her was just waiting for the devil in him to rear its ugly head. She didn't want to see it in him. Reggie waited patiently for her answer. The way she stalled, he could guess the answer was no.
“Reggie, to tell you the truth, I don't really have anything or anybody.”
The lack of hope in her voice sent prickles of pain throughout his body. He didn't know where this sense of protection came from but he wanted to take her home with him and make sure she was safe. It was crazy. His wife would kill him but something in his gut said that he needed to. They were silent for quite a while. Venus glanced over at Reggie who seemed deep in his thoughts. Venus cursed herself for saying that. She had wanted to be truthful to him because he had been so nice. Now, she could feel him pulling away and that inkling of loneliness that had been kept at bay with Reggie crept back in. She put her earphones in and flipped through her IPod desperate to find a song that matched her mood. Before she knew it, Venus saw signs for Reno only a little over 60 miles away. There, Reggie would go back to his perfect family, and Venus would have to get back to her reality. She had to admit this had been nice, this break from the bad. She would be forever grateful to Reggie. As she stared out the window, she thought about the man in the SUV. Who was 'we'? Who was looking for her? She was an adult now so it wouldn't have been DFS or some other agency wanting to haul her back to her foster home. She was jarred from her thoughts as Reggie patted her on the shoulder and made a motion for her to take off the headphones. Venus quickly complied shoving them into her backpack. Reggie cleared his throat looking a little nervous. Venus wondered what was going on. Never in her wildest dreams was she expecting what came out of Reggie's mouth next.
“We have a good sized house in Reno,” Reggie started. “My wife could use some help around the house. Wonderin' if you'd be interested? I could probably spare a few bucks and there's a finished basement that we never use.”
Venus' mouth dropped open. Surprise and then complete and total dread flowed through her body. How could Reggie have known that his offer was equivalent to years and years of physical, mental, and sexual abuse? How could he have known his offer, which was harmless in itself would make her want to crawl in a dark, damp hidey hole and die? Reggie saw her face pale and how she bit her lip to stop it from quivering. He cursed mentally at having scared her off so quickly.
“Just until you have some money saved up to head to California of course,” his voice trailed off because she was fighting back tears. “Ahhh, forget about it...bad idea,” he muttered.
Venus fought hard against the waves of emotions that crashed into her. She didn't want to think Reggie had a bad bone in his body. He hadn't tried to touch her or make lewd comments to her. He even saved her from that trucker in Twin Falls that still sent ripples of fear through her. Maybe he was just offering out of the goodness of his heart. Could there really be someone out here that truly just wanted to help her? Against her better judgment, Venus let her guard down with Reggie, just a little.
“Would your wife mind?” Venus asked timidly.
Reggie laughed. “I'm sure she'll be happy for the help,” I'm sure she'll kill me, he was thinking. He felt a sense of peace fill him as he realized she was going to come home with him. She would be safe...for now.
2
Reggie’s home was a nice sized ranch, a perfect house in the suburbs of the desert. Getting a side glance at the house as Reggie turned into the driveway, Venus saw they had a nice pool, beautiful landscaping...a perfect home...a perfect life. She was starting to get butterflies in the pit of her stomach. She had to brace herself for what his family's reaction to her would be. His wife would no doubt be really angry. Venus negotiated with herself that if she was too upset, she would leave right away. He parked the cab on the empty side of the two car driveway and jumped out. Venus' hand froze on the door handle. I can do this, she chanted to herself. She blew out a breath and jumped out of the cab too. When Venus raised her eyes to the house, she saw Reggie's wife at the door a smile frozen on her face that was melting quickly into a frown. Reggie motioned Venus closer and she complied with uncertainty. Reggie saw the look of panic and regret on Venus' face and knew she was seconds from bolting.
Reggie's wife was a petite and attractive woman, had short cropped auburn hair and golden brown eyes. Reggie and her had been high school sweethearts and married as soon as they graduated. When Reggie had landed this job as a trucker, she was torn between sweet relief of a steady and well-accommodating income and anxiousness when he was away for days at a time. She trusted her husband implicitly and was in love with him as deeply as when they were kids. Yet, when she saw the beautiful girl hop out of the cab, her stomach twisted in knots of fear, jealousy, and anger. She felt that she was scowling and tried to force her face into a look of open curiosity. She held open the screen door and waited for Reggie and his guest.
Reggie knew Sheila was pissed. Her warm spirit always shone through on her face. It was what drew him to her back in high school. Now, she was all but unapproachable. This was a mistake, he groaned inwardly. He embraced her tight since he hadn't seen her in almost a week and brushed his lips across her forehead. She pulled back and peered over his shoulder.
“Who do we have here?” Sheila asked trying to keep the scorn from touching her tone.
Reggie cleared his throat and stepped aside so that Sheila had to gaze more closely upon a girl that was quite possibly the most perfectly formed creature she'd ever seen.
“This is Venus. She's headed to California. Venus, my wife Sheila.”
The look in Venus' eyes was playful and laughing and Sheila registered it immediately and allowed herself to drop her guards slightly. She accepted Venus' hand in her own and for some unknown reason, Sheila knew she had nothing to fear from this little one.
“Please come on inside,” she said stepping aside and letting the two in.
Reggie bent his head and kissed Sheila again lightly on the lips.
“Thank you babe,” he said softly so Venus would not hear.
Sheila nodded far away in her own thoughts and pushed him ahead of her. Sheila knew when she touched the girl that in many ways they were kindred spirits. She could feel her pain, her tortured soul, those awful memories. Sheila didn't know details but she could just sense it. Of course, she had quite the extensive background on painful childhoods to know the signs...eyes cast down, shoulders slightly hunched, hands clenched in fists so tight that she would have the crescent imprints of her fingernails in the palm of her hands. Sheila knew because she had been there before. She had gone through those same types of memories until one day she met Reggie, and didn’t have to be afraid anymore. When Venus looked into her eyes, Sheila saw a faint spark of hope. Whatever Venus had gone through, it had not destroyed her. There was still life in her, a strong will to live. A sudden foreboding swamped Sheila as she sensed that there was still more misery to come before Venus could find happiness. Sheila buried that piece of knowledge within herself and ushered Venus inside.
They sat down at the kitchen table and Sheila bustled around the kitchen pouring already made coffee in generous mugs.
“So Venus,” Sheila started as she said down at the table, her hands warmed around the heated ceramic mug. “Where ya from?”
“Montana...nowhere specific really.”
Sheila noted how Venus' hands tightened around the coffee mug and how she tried to feign indifference when she looked up, smiled and shrugged.
“We've been up to Glacier National Park a few times, haven't we babe? It's just plain gorgeous.”
Venus smiled at the honest and simple conversation and the way Sheila fought an internal struggle to remain the same with Venus.
“The kids should be home from school soon. We have a daughter who looks to be about your age. Christa is 17 and Toby is 15.”
“Yep, I'm 18. I graduated a year early though.”
Reggie chuckled. “Maybe we can enlist Venus as a tutor then!”
Venus smiled at the thought and felt her insides grow warm at the thought of being part of their family.
The “kids” showed up not too much later. The girl, Christa, burst through the door first with dark curly hair like her father and a bronzed tan from the desert sun. She was pretty.
“Toby you better get that trash out of my car!” she screamed towards the door. When she entered the kitchen Christa's mouth dropped open and her cheeks flushed with embarrassment at the outburst.
“Hey Dad!” she squealed jumping into his arms, forgetting her moment of unease. Venus watched them hungrily, feeling the tugging at her heart of how this was how it should be. Reggie planted a kiss on her forehead and turned her so she was facing Venus.
“Christa, this is Venus. She's going to be staying here a while and helping your mother out.”
Christa smiled timidly and extended a hand out in greeting. Venus' face relaxed into a smile and took the girl's hand in her own. “Nice to meet you Christa,” she said softly.
“How old are you?” Christa asked.
“Eighteen.”
With that fact out of the way, Christa grabbed Venus by the arm and dragged Venus to her room. Reggie and Sheila burst out laughing. A boy walked into the house and Venus stole a glance at him before Christa dragged her down the hallway. He too, took his father's coloring and indeed had a lot of potential. His eyes met hers and his mouth formed a little O and he dropped whatever trash was in his hands on the floor. Venus couldn't stop herself from snickering.
It felt so right, Venus thought after hours of gossiping with Christa. The girl was sweet and pretty. She had a boyfriend though her parents had yet to realize it. Venus almost wished she hadn't graduated early and she could go off to school with Christa and be a normal teen. But, she was no normal teen. Venus was sure of that and she was determined to accept this little blessing of Reggie and his family and not take any of the experiences for granted. It turned out that Sheila did need Venus and Venus didn't mind at all doing the chores around the house. She did end up helping tutor Toby and Christa, though it was starting to be too difficult to make Toby pay any attention to anything besides herself. Weeks went by in a flash...so fast that when Venus happened to look at the calendar, she had to double back and make sure. In just a few days it would be Thanksgiving already. Venus had originally planned to be in California by now though she couldn't muster any disappointment to her current situation. Reggie had said his younger brother was coming into town for the holidays. From what Venus could gather his brother Michael, was 26, lived in New York and was a successful stockbroker. He only got to visit on holidays and only could stay for a few days at a time. So, Venus worked hard to make sure the home was looking great so Sheila wouldn't be stressed over it.
Thanksgiving suddenly was here and both Venus and Sheila slaved in the kitchen all day.. The bounty that Sheila was preparing boggled Venus' mind. She'd never seen such a spread. Two enormous turkeys, corn, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, stuffing, dessert upon dessert. Surely this food would last at least a month, she thought amused. When she voiced her thought Sheila dismissed it with a chuckle.
“You’ll rethink that after you have seen Michael eat,” she said amused.
Venus had never eaten so well in her life and she was sure a few more weeks of this and she'd blimp up. When dinner time arrived, Michael still had not arrived though it seemed Reggie was not too concerned about that fact.
“Well let’s get going,” he exclaimed, rubbing his hands together greedily. “He’ll get here when he gets here.”
The family crowded around the dinner table and Venus bowed her head as Reggie said grace. She listened to his melodic voice, the soothing comforting sound of his praises and thanks so intently that she didn't hear the front door close or the greetings from around her. When Venus opened her eyes, she found herself staring into the pale blue eyes of an incredibly gorgeous stranger. He was tall, very muscular, with dirty blond hair cropped short. He looked as surprised as she felt and heat quickly flew up to her cheeks. He wet his lips with a quick dart of his tongue.
“You must be Venus. I'm Michael,” he said in a deep voice that curled its way into the pit of her stomach.
He offered his hand and she paused to look at it. It was large and masculine but soft. She placed hers in it and he brought it to his lips. God, the kiss he placed on the back of her hand send shock waves all the way down to her toes. Embarrassed by her reaction to the older man, her eyes darted back to the table. After greeting everyone else at the table, Michael took the empty seat directly across from Venus.
Michael was floored. The little nymph in front of him was gorgeous. Not to mention, the one that he'd been waiting his entire existence on this earthen plane for. Michael was the Michael, Archangel of the highest order. He had been sent here to earth, awaiting the day that she would walk into his life. Now that she had, human emotions tore through him, ones that he had never experienced until now. Angels in their true form were more androgynous and asexual than anything else. But in his present state, a vibrant, attractive, twenty something male, the sexual awareness he had of her was not only overwhelming but intensely embarrassing given the proof of his arousal was jetting out against the rough denim of his Armani jeans. Venus...she was breathtaking. Her role in the fate of the world was critical. She alone would determine which Vampyre bloodline would continue to exist. Choosing the wrong one would have catastrophic implications on th
e entire human race. Michael knew her fate was not sealed yet and it was his duty to guide her toward the correct path. Both bloodlines knew of her existence, though not of her name, nor what she looked like or where she lived. Both bloodlines had a prince of impeccable breeding ready to claim her as his own. The victor would be host of an heir that would be the equivalent of the second coming of Christ or in the eyes of the Descendants of Cain, the anti-Christ. The Talmidim, those that drank of the bloodline were bloodthirsty, mindless beings. They obeyed only those of their bloodline and had to be kept on a very short leash with the consumption of human blood. The thirteenth bloodline let their Talmidim have free reign, wreaking havoc and destruction in their wake. With a leader as powerful as an anti-Christ, the Talmidim of the thirteenth bloodline would threaten human existence.
After finishing his second plate of turkey and dressing, Michael looked up and met Venus' eyes. Hers were already taking him in with curiosity. Her enormous green eyes were focused on the piece of metal hanging on a chain at his throat. It was a plain piece of titanium inscribed with the words Warrior of God in Enochian. Her hand flinched a little as if she wanted to touch it and Lord knows that he wanted her to touch it just to feel the brush of her skin on his. Michael knew he shouldn't be feeling anything towards the girl. First, she was but a child. Second, as an emissary of God, he didn't have the luxury of finding or having love with a human. Third, when his mission was over he would return to the heavens where he belonged. He knew that the only reason he felt anything for her were the hormones raging through his body. Purely sexual tension, that was it, he told himself.
His sister-in-law, Sheila, pushed away from the table and started gathering dishes. Venus jumped up quickly and laid a gentle hand on Sheila's arm.
“Sheila, you relax. I'll take care of the dishes,” Venus said in a voice that was more torturous to Michael than a thousand lashes at his back.
Revelations Coming (The Dark Truth Novel Series) Page 2
