by Elana Brooks
“Yeah.” She shrugged and stared at her hands. “It’s okay.”
“Are you sure?”
She shivered a little, but raised her eyes to his for an instant before dropping them. “I admit, it wasn’t fun, but—it’s kind of like complaining about you dislocating my shoulder while yanking me out from in front of a bus. You know?”
“I guess.” The server arrived back. Adrian took the folder, shoved his card back in his wallet, and scrawled a generous tip and his signature at the bottom of the receipt. “But you still have every right to be angry at me.”
She shrugged.
Adrian fiddled with the pen, debating with himself. Finally he put it down and met her eyes. “The link I created… It’s still there. It always will be. I bonded our souls together, and that can’t be undone short of death.”
Her eyes got big. She put one hand to her temple as if feeling for the invisible connection. “I—didn’t realize.”
“Yeah, well, if there’d been any other way…”
“I know.”
“So I just want you to understand—it doesn’t mean anything. The bond served its purpose. I mean, usually people only choose to form one with their partner, their spouse, someone they—Like Rabbi Sensei and Keiko. They’re soul bonded.”
He thought of the way Beverly had looked at him as their astral forms floated together between Earth and space. The way her tongue had run over her full, inviting lips, the way his heart had raced in response. His urge to hurry them both back to their bodies for reasons that had nothing to do with saving her life.
That hadn’t been real, though. She’d thought she was dreaming. Right now her lips were pressed into a thin line, her eyes wary and cold.
And to be perfectly honest, he would never have looked at her that way if he hadn’t been forced to. Maybe it was shallow of him, but he’d always found fit bodies most attractive and extra pounds a turnoff. That flash of sexual energy between them had been a fluke, just a by-product of all the excess adrenaline in his system. Even if she’d still been interested, he wasn’t.
Was he? Physical attraction was unpredictable, after all, quixotic and contrary, not easily boxed up in neat little categories no matter how well you thought you knew yourself. Sometimes a body that by all his usual standards should be stunning left him cold. Would it be surprising if one that fell far short of perfection could draw him? He should know better than most how much difference the soul within the flesh could make.
He turned his thoughts away from such useless speculation. She wasn’t interested. He needed to reassure her that was all right. “But obviously that’s not how it is with us. We’ll probably end up working together, and maybe the bond will make us a more effective team. But that’s all it ever has to be.”
“Okay.” She nodded sharply once, then again. “Good.”
See? It was a big relief to her that he didn’t intend to try to use the link to claim more than he had any right to. It was for the best. She should be free to give or withhold her affections however she chose. And so should he. It was right that neither of them be forced into unwanted intimacy because of the unfortunate necessity that had joined them.
Still, as he escorted her out to the waiting cab and dropped her off at her door, a part of him wondered what might have happened between them, if things had been different.
Chapter 5
New York City assaulted Beverly’s senses in a way that was both thrilling and terrifying. Cleveland was pretty big, but it was nothing like this. It wasn’t so bad this morning, standing in front of the HBQ headquarters building, one among the endless skyscrapers that blanketed Manhattan. But last night when she’d ventured out of her hotel and walked down Broadway to Times Square, the lights and noise and people had been so overwhelming she’d lasted barely half an hour before she'd had to retreat back behind the safety of a locked door.
Last Tuesday morning, as soon as she’d finished reviewing the package that FedEx delivered to her desk and called HBQ’s personnel department to tell them she accepted their offer of employment, smoothly greased wheels had started turning. HBQ’s travel agent had arranged for her plane ticket and hotel reservations. HBQ’s relocation department had provided a moving van and a list of carefully vetted available apartments, all guaranteed to be located in safe areas within walking distance, offered by trustworthy landlords at reasonable rents. She’d picked out several that looked promising, and the assistant HBQ had assigned her had set up appointments to view them over the next few days.
Taking a deep breath, Beverly pushed the door open and entered. The lobby was spacious and friendly feeling, full of soft light, all wood and stone in cool neutral colors, with potted plants everywhere. They’d either hired a really good interior designer, or one of their psychics had a supernatural gift for decorating.
The woman behind the reception desk smiled in welcome. “You must be Beverly Jones. Mr. Mandelsky is expecting you. You can go up to his office.”
Beverly took the elevator to the floor the receptionist told her—the top one, naturally. She stepped out onto thick, soft carpet, facing a bank of windows that overlooked a spectacular view of the city spread below.
Spellbound, she approached the glass. It reminded her of how Cleveland had looked as her astral form soared high above it.
Would she soon be flying over this city, too? Several times over the past week she’d tried, cautiously at first, then with more determination, to reproduce the conditions that had freed her soul from her body. But nothing worked. Even when her frustration led her to buy a yoga video and follow an on-screen instructor—who wasn’t half as attractive as Adrian—through endless moves until she was at least as exhausted as she’d been then, even the most focused relaxation and most vivid visualization of floating had left her consciousness anchored firmly within her physical form.
Either it really was an elaborate scam, or there was some trick she was missing. She almost didn’t care which. This had been such a grand adventure it would be worth her piddly life’s savings just to have experienced it.
Although the whole modest sum was still safe in her bank account. Nobody had requested its number, or asked her to spend a cent of her own money.
Rabbi Sensei’s voice came from behind her, deep and relaxed. “We chose New York as the Covenant’s gathering place because of the ease of travel from anywhere in the world and the unremarkableness of a group of people from widely diverse backgrounds working together. Also the freedom to conduct our business without undue government scrutiny or restrictions, which many countries, my native Russia for example, couldn’t provide. But the atmosphere is an added benefit.”
Beverly didn’t turn around. “Yes and no. It’s amazing, but overwhelming, too.”
“True. For you probably more than most, because of your great sensitivity. Although you’ve learned to suppress the awareness, your mind constantly receives telepathic emanations from those around you. So many people packed into such a small area undoubtedly puts a strain on your defenses. Some of your earliest lessons will focus on learning to deal with that difficulty.”
“Thank goodness.” Anything that would help her feel less unsettled would be welcome.
“Come. I’ll give you a brief tour of the areas of the building you’ll be using. Then we can get started with your first lesson. If it’s agreeable with you, I’ll be conducting your instruction personally.”
“Sure. That’s fine.” It was kind of intimidating to think that one of the eight leaders of the whole deal would be teaching her. But Rabbi Sensei projected a calm acceptance that made you trust him immediately. Still… “Although, from something he said, I thought maybe Adrian…”
“Adrian will be joining us in two weeks. He’s needed to lead a few more screening workshops before his replacement can take over. When he arrives, there are certain specific areas of your training I’ll turn over to him. But I’ll remain your primary instructor unless we find that another of the Eight would prove a bette
r fit.” He gave her a mischievous grin. “Keiko fought me for the privilege, but my seniority allowed me to prevail. Her native culture emphasizes deference to one’s elders, and she’s never quite overcome her early conditioning. A weakness I take advantage of as often as possible—she has so few.”
“How did you two—” Beverly’s face got hot. “I mean, if it’s not too nosy…”
He spread his hands. “Not at all.” As he talked, he led her down the hall. “For many generations, one member of the Eight has come from the particular small community of Jews in Russia into which I was born. My father held the post before me. He perceived early that I had inherited the gifts, so he trained me almost from birth. We would travel astrally to visit each of the other seven. At that time they were spread throughout the world, most in the places where their predecessors had been based for centuries. One was my father’s good friend, Nomura-sensei, who dwelt in Japan. After I assumed the role upon my father’s retirement, I remained especially close to Nomura. He was my first instructor in karate, of which he was a master.”
Rabbi Sensei opened a door and motioned Beverly through. Inside she found a typical business executive’s office, with a luxurious leather swivel chair behind a massive desk. A credenza held a row of antique leather-bound books between a pair of bookends in the shape of lions, as well as a computer, printer, and various stacks of paper. Facing the desk were two elegant upholstered chairs. Their comfortable appearance was at odds with their position—the only time Beverly had sat in a chair like that, she’d been receiving a critical evaluation from her boss.
“My office. Some of our work will be conducted here, but most will take place downstairs. Let me show you.” He led her back down to the hall to the elevators, continuing his story as they went.
“As Nomura-sensei grew older, he became more and more concerned that he hadn’t yet located a protégé to whom he could pass his position among the Eight. None of his children were sufficiently gifted, nor any of the students he took on in hopes that they would prove able. He knew that it would most likely be within his successor’s lifetime that the aliens would return, so he was determined to choose only the most adept.
“In the early 1980’s I finally gained permission, along with many other Jews, to emigrate from what was then the Soviet Union. I traveled to the United States, where it had been agreed the Eight would gather for the final battle preparations. Nomura lingered in Japan. He was gifted with only a touch of precognition, but it led him to be certain his successor would be found there, where all his predecessors for many generations had been born.
“One day, a twelve-year-old girl appeared at the door of Nomura’s dojo. At this time it was already common for girls in Japan to receive training in martial arts, but Nomura was old and very traditional, and had only ever taught boys. The girl announced that she had surpassed everything her current sensei could teach her, and she would settle for nothing less than the greatest teacher of karate in all Japan to further her instruction. She had heard Nomura was that teacher and wished to evaluate for herself whether it was true.
“Both impressed and offended by her arrogance, Nomura consented to spar with her. He recognized immediately that she was controlling the flow of energy within and around her with a skill only possible for one with profound psychic gifts. For her part, she recognized in him one even more skilled in those arts than she. Nomura took her on and immediately began training her to succeed him. She was only twenty-five when he died, but none of the rest of us doubted her fitness to assume his place.”
The elevator opened at the fifth floor, and Rabbi Sensei led the way to a set of double glass doors. Inside was a spacious gymnasium that looked like it belonged in an expensive health club. Weightlifting equipment filled one corner. Another was taken up by treadmills, elliptical machines, and stationary bicycles, a number occupied by athletic-looking men and women. One side was occupied by a series of three mats, each about twenty feet square. On one, an older woman in a gi was instructing two earnest students. On a narrow balcony running all around the upper portion of the space, sweaty joggers circled.
Beverly swallowed. This was not her kind of place. In fact, she had a strong impulse to run away, as far and fast as possible. A gym like this was designed to make people miserable. This was where you got overheated and sweat ran into your eyes and soaked your clothes. Where you panted for breath and your heart pounded until you felt like you would faint. Where your legs and your arms and your belly and your back and your hands and your feet hurt. Where your fat bulged and flapped and jiggled and everyone stared in contempt or turned away in disgust. Where no matter how hard you tried, you were always too slow, too weak, too tired, too clumsy, too big, too ugly.
Rabbi Sensei glanced at her. Beverly tried to keep what she was feeling from showing on her face. Either she wasn’t very successful, or the telepathy he’d talked about betrayed her, because his eyes softened with compassion. “Later today we’ll return here and get you started on a training regimen. The mind and body are intimately connected. Strengthening your body will strengthen your mind and hone your ability to control your psychic powers.”
She shrugged. “I’ve never been very good at athletic stuff.”
“We will of course take your lack of experience into consideration and start very slowly. Often the most dramatic progress occurs at the beginning of a person’s training. I anticipate that you’ll be pleasantly surprised.”
Hah. Not in a million years. She’d heard all that stuff about how exercise made you feel good and happy and full of sparkly bubbly endorphins, but it was bullshit. All it had ever given her was blisters. If he expected to magically transform her into another kick-ass superwoman like Keiko, he was going to be sorely disappointed.
Rabbi Sensei headed back toward the elevators. “There’s another place you’ll be spending a great deal of time that I wish to show you. Would you like me to describe the training regimen you’ll be following?”
Please, anything but that. “Actually, I’d rather finish hearing about how you and Keiko got together.”
“As you wish. Although there’s little left to tell.” As the elevator doors closed, he went on. “I met Keiko astrally soon after Nomura began training her. She says she recognized me then as her future husband. She does sometimes get precognitive flashes, so perhaps she’s being honest, though I was already nearly forty, and surely held no appeal for one of such tender years. Yet when she came to New York, and we met in physical form for the first time, she immediately pursued me.
“I resisted, of course. I didn’t understand how one so young and beautiful could be attracted to me, when I was as old as her father, and even in my youth had never been considered handsome. I loved her almost from the beginning, but that only made me more determined to rebuff her advances. I knew she deserved to be paired with someone her equal. As I was not.”
Beverly’s throat tightened. Rabbi Sensei gazed into the distance with a look of gentle melancholy. After a moment of silence, Beverly cleared her throat and tried to keep her voice from roughening. “What changed?”
He flashed her a wry smile. “Time passed. We worked together a great deal, much of it in astral form. Keiko remained steadfast in her avowal of interest. Eventually our differences in age and appearance faded from my awareness, and I became more and more conscious of our souls’ affinity. There was great harmony between us right from the first, which only strengthened as we grew closer.”
He glanced away, and his expression took on a soft, distant quality, as if he savored some private treasured memory. “At last I capitulated to the inevitable. From that day to this she has made me the happiest of men. I only hope I’ve brought her one tenth the joy she’s given me.”
Beverly wasn’t sure if it was proper to ask, but she couldn’t help it. “Adrian said the two of you were soul bonded?”
His sharp look told her he understood exactly why she wanted to know. “Yes. Ten years after our marriage we chose to take that
ultimate step. It has allowed us to combine our powers and achieve strength far beyond what either of us possessed alone. We hope our love will be one of the factors that allows humanity to triumph in the war to come.”
“Oh.” Beverly blinked and looked away.
“Don’t grieve, daughter. I know that what transpired between you and Adrian isn’t what either of you would have chosen. But great good may yet come of it. I don’t know what faith, if any, you adhere to, and I won’t ask, for it’s not my concern. But my religion teaches that God Almighty reigns supreme over the universe, and all that occurs in the mortal realm is but a small part of his overarching design. Adrian’s action to save you was a mitzvah, a good work, and such will alway be rewarded in some fashion, though when and how none of us can know. Not even those of us gifted to see a bit beyond the ordinary world.”
Beverly was saved from having to come up with a response by their arrival at the tenth floor. When the elevator doors opened, she gaped for a moment, then stepped forward with a sigh of delight.
The whole floor was a garden. Thick tropical greenery mounded below and arched overhead. Stone paths wound among the beds. Flowers were everywhere, a riot of colors carpeting the ground and spangling the trees. The air was warm and humid, scented by dirt and blooms. Butterflies danced among the leaves. The soft gurgle of splashing water came from a fountain Beverly glimpsed through the foliage.
“This is where we practice meditation,” Rabbi Sensei said, sweeping his arm wide. Her eyes following his gesture, Beverly saw that the walls were riddled with alcoves shrouded behind curtains of vines. Within each was a low cot or two. As she ventured onto the beckoning paths, she caught glimpses of motionless bodies occupying a number of the cots. “There are several similar gardens scattered throughout the building, including one on the roof, but I find this the loveliest.”
Beverly had to agree. She explored the twisting paths, Rabbi Sensei trailing behind, until they led her to the fountain in the center of the room. Stone benches ringed it; she took a seat and studied the gorgeously asymmetrical stone mound. It rose like a miniature mountain, shrouded in moss and creeping plants and flowers. Water flowed or trickled or gushed from dozens of openings, feeding a network of streams that tumbled and fell, splitting and wandering and rejoining, until they spilled into the deep pool that surrounded the mountain’s base.
