by L. J. Amodeo
Kali watched patiently as these vile thoughts conjured in my head.
“Are you Ok, Elizabeth? Cause you’re kinda freaking me out a bit.”
“Yes.” I swallowed deeply. I stood up and reached for her hand.
“Come, let’s go for a walk. I want to show you the grounds,” I said leading her down the terrace steps and into the garden.
We walked side by side toward the lake. Her perfume lingered in the warm morning air, reminding me somewhat of Samantha. Thoughts of the She-Beast made me shudder. I eyed Kali suspiciously wondering if like Sam, her exterior masked what truly lay beneath her flesh. I quickly pushed my thoughts on to Freddie.
“How do you and Freddie know each other?” I asked curiously as we strolled toward the water.
“Phil always mentioned Freddie once he returned to our home. It seemed he loved him like a son, but I didn’t meet Freddie until my eighteenth birthday. He showed up at my party. It was almost a year after my parents were murdered. After that, we kept in touch here and there, but it had been some time since I saw him last. Then several months ago, he found me in Montana.”
“Montana? What were you doing there?” I glanced at her knowingly aware that Freddie left to attend school there.
“Getting ready to graduate college. After my parents died, I lived with friends. I had nowhere to go, so in my senior year of high school, all my friends enrolled in Montana Tech in Butte, and I decided to do the same. That’s when we all moved there. I’ve been there ever since.”
“Now it makes sense.”
“What makes sense?” she asked inquiringly.
“Freddie said he was accepted to school there, but in reality, he went looking for you.”
“Well, I'm happy he found me,” she winked, blushing under her creamy complexion.
Grazing the soft earth with her bare feet, she stopped walking to face me. “Um, were you and Freddie ever . . . intimate?" She hesitated a bit. My thoughts immediately floated back to our Valentine’s Day kiss. My belly fluttered as I unmindfully reached up to touch my lips.
It took me a while to answer. My emotions for Freddie were all over the place. I wasn’t sure how to respond. I honestly didn’t know what Freddie and I had—intimately that is. Kali watched me closely.
“He's always been my closest friend, nothing more.” I lied.
Kali seemingly satisfied, smiled and sashayed off toward the turquoise lake, swinging her sandals in her hand. “Good, makes me feel better!” She seductively waved her hands in the air in a sensual ballet. Whenever she looked at Freddie, I noticed how her eyes seemed to swallow him up with something more than just a friendly twinkle.
“He's changed since the last time I saw him—for the better, of course! He’s so funny and totally hot!” she moaned, gnashing her teeth like a tigress.
Inside my body, a storm brewed, forcing me to take deep, slow breaths. I knew I disliked her from the minute I laid eyes on her, and now I knew why.
“Beth, you look like you’re in pain. Is something hurting you?”
“No, not at all,” I said, crossing my arms across my chest.
“Freddie told me about your visions,” she replied with a cunning smile. I tilted my head curiously and completely bothered by this news. If I am under strict orders not to speak to anyone about the premonitions, why is Freddie free to spill such classified secrets to Kali? Did he truly trust her enough to tell her about my secret?
“What exactly has he told you?”
“That you’re being sought after,” she stated with a tint of sarcastic sorrow.
“Really? Huh!” I said, unable to give a better reply to Freddie's broadcast.
“So what will you do if he finds you? What do you have in mind?” Kali asked curiously, twirling a strand of her hair between her fingers.
My first instinct was to answer defensively, but quieted the fury inside my chest before I exploded with the many reasons why Luca wouldn’t find me. Taking deep breaths, I focused on the swells of ripples on the lake. Kali rested her hand on her hip, smirking as her self-assured attitude emerged in her ‘I’m waiting for an answer’-like-stance. Her debutante mannerisms were suddenly M.I.A. Instead, she leaned against a tree, playing with the straps of her shoes between her long fingernails, eyeing me from head to toe. A very different impression from the girl I met a day earlier.
“I’m not sure what I’d do. I know I’d fight like hell, even if it proves useless. But, I wouldn’t just sit around waiting for him to scoop me up like he was some sort of Prince Charming and me, a damsel in distress. No way would I allow that to happen!”
“It seems like you have it all figured out, baby sister.” Kali grinned.
“Far from it. I need to think about a way to fight him. Defeat him and keep him away,” I whispered, deeply distracted.
“You should think about hiding for a while,” Kali suggested.
“I am. That’s why I’m here. The Watchers can’t step foot on these grounds. It’s forbidden,” I informed Kali. She muffled her laughter, cupping her hand over her mouth.
“What’s so funny?” I asked chagrined, reconfirming my dislike for her.
“You honestly think you can keep them away? Beth, where there’s a will, honey, there’s a way! Your interpretation of your future is a bit amateurish, like it’s some sort of fairytale with a not-so-fairytale twist. You’re still young, and you have a lot to learn about this new world of yours, little sister.” She giggled again.
With anger, I watched the statuesque beauty walk to the edge of Lake Louise. She was not a good match for Freddie, I decided. She and Freddie were not right for each other—just as he and Sam had been totally wrong for one another.
A queasy, sickening feeling erupted in the pit of my stomach. Am I jealous? Have I always been jealous of Freddie’s love interests? I felt hatred for the dark-haired temptress. In fact, the feelings that stirred inside were precisely feelings of jealousy; I had loved Michael, I admit that, but having seen Freddie with Sam, I noticed brought out the worst in me. I guessed I was too focused on Michael and Sam to ever realize my feelings for Freddie. Now, his latest conquest jabbed at my gut with a vengeance. My nostrils flared in utter contempt.
“What makes you think you have all the answers? Twenty doesn’t make you a candidate for the Noble Peace Prize you know!” I responded with hostility.
Kali smiled impishly and looked at me with hopes of sparing my feelings about my inexperience and inept youthful knowledge. She put her arms around my slumped shoulders. “I’m no expert, but I know you can’t compare your story to that of the legendary Walt Disney, that’s all. I shouldn’t have laughed,” she said apologetically. I shrugged her arm off my shoulder.
I settled myself by the lake quietly for a bit, admiring the clear sky. Kali sat beside me. The radiant sun reflected off the warm crystal waters. In this somber moment of my difficult life, I thought about my mother, Freddie, and Michael, and how I missed them terribly. A single tear stained my cheek.
“Hey! No crying on my watch! What's wrong?”
“Nothing. I was just thinking of someone.”
“Your mom?” she whispered, standing up before me.
“Yes,” I wiped the tear from the tuck of my eye.
“Me too. I think of my mom and Phil every day, and wonder how my life would have turned out if they hadn't been killed.”
I cleared my throat as Kali’s lips mouthed Sam’s words when we first sat in the school’s library about a year ago. Sam’s voice echoed in my mind.
I tried to feel sorrow for Kali, but showing any affection and sympathy to a stranger was not my thing, especially due to my reclusive nature. Kali, however, didn’t have a problem expressing any kind of emotion or compassion. She did it with ease. She didn't need to think about hugging me. She just did it, almost like a great actress. I’d tried being affectionate with others in the past, but failed miserably at it, except when it came to Freddie, and recently, Michael.
“I feel so bad
for you, Kali.” I tried to sound sincere.
“Don’t. We have each other now.” She beamed a wide, warm smile. I didn’t want to linger on self-pity any longer. Instead, I promised myself to enjoy the rest of the afternoon. Even if it meant spending it with her.
“Did Freddie mention when he’d be coming back?”
“No, like I said, he woke up, got dressed, and left. He does that a lot. He’s so secretive about where he's going or what he’s doing. His mysterious side makes him such a turn on! Don’t you agree?” she growled.
It was astounding how differently she presented herself when Freddie was not around. She was not the quiet, shy girl we shared an awkward first dinner with last night. Her demeanor around Freddie was sweet and innocent, while in my company Kali was seductive, sarcastic and inexplicably similar to Samantha—a know-it-all.
She stopped to admire the scenery around us. “This place is beautiful. Is this where you come every day?”
“Yep. Pretty much. I love it here. It reminds me of a place back home where Freddie and I used to go as kids.” My expression softened.
Middle Falls was reminiscent of the wonderful days I shared with my best friend. Our childhood memories full of life and laughter. Each day, I’d lay by the lake for hours, thinking about Freddie and my mom during our trips to the waterfall, reflecting on how fantastic my youth was with both of them in my life. Now, everyone I’d ever loved was gone. Although Freddie was still part of my life, it wasn’t the same. We’d grown apart after my stay at Letchworth, and he was somehow different. Perhaps, it was because I knew his secret now and saw him in an entirely new light. I wondered if Kali knew his secret too.
“Has Freddie told you everything?”
“Just about. It’s amazing what you’ve been through. It would definitely make for a good headliner!” Her response troubled me. If my safety was such an issue, why could Freddie disclose all of our secrets and I couldn’t?
“Has he told you about—Mi . . .” I dithered for a moment before mumbling his name.
“Michael? Umm . . . Yeah! He also told me not to bring up his name. He said it was a sensitive topic for you,” she said, placing air quotes on the word ‘sensitive.’ “But I can tell you want to talk about him. You miss him, don’t you?”
I paused for a moment, feeling a fireball of emotions escalating for Michael again. I nodded. “I do miss him,” I whispered, staring at the snowcapped mountains with peaks in the formation of the letter V.
I really did miss Michael.
“When you’re ready to talk, I’ll listen. It’s good to get things off your chest,” she said, giving my hand a light squeeze.
An explosion of feelings suddenly unleashed like a volcano. I needed to release what I’d kept bottled up inside for so long. I found myself compelled to pour out my heart about Michael. It wasn’t what I wanted to do, especially with Kali, but my lips became loose cannons.
“I believed him. He said he’d never leave me—that we’d always be together. I was such an idiot to even believe that!”
“Elizabeth, I'm sure he loved you. He has to, he's an angel. Angels love everyone.”
“That's not the kind of love I thought we had, Kali. Michael’s love, I’m starting to believe, was an illusion. As if I made it up in my mind, mostly. It had to be. To believe an archangel could ever intimately love anyone, never mind me! Maybe, that repulsive excuse for a doctor was right—that it was all in my head,” I murmured begrudgingly.
“Is that what the doc told you? That all these events were only a mental forgery? Who’s this doctor? I’d like to give him a piece of my mind!” Kali gritted.
“Most of what happened between myself, Sam, Michael, and Luca had to be my psychosis—as much as I loathe the man, maybe Dr. Bates wasn’t so wrong about me.”
Kali took a step forward, so close to me I uncomfortably stepped back. Her eyes narrow and beady-like, held mine as a ghost of a wicked smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.
“Elizabeth, look around you—is this an illusion too? If they were all part of your psychosis, how are you here under the protection of the Blue Legion? Think about it! You are not the crazy one!” she gritted through clenched teeth, “the doctor is!”
The thought never crossed my mind. The ground beneath my feet swayed, and the throbbing in my head beat down like the violent pounding against a steel door. What is the truth? Who do I believe? Were the events that happened a year ago real?
“Look, there has to be someone out there with some answers.”
“Freddie already spoke with them, Kali.”
“Oh?” Kali’s eyes suddenly flickered. “What did they say?” she stated in a breathy voice.
“Freddie wouldn’t say. He only said that they told him what needed to be done when it was time. I don’t know what that means, but it sounds scary,” I replied.
“What if the Trinity is wrong about your fate, but not willing to take any chances?” her mouth smiled but her eyes did not.
“What do you mean? Wrong about me being the key?”
Kali stood still, staring into my eyes with a cool expression in the depths of hers. Staring as if she’d just discovered something magnificent.
“Not the key part, we already know you’re the Key Keeper. I’m talking about staying here. Your protection. What if these grounds aren’t safe? Off limits? What if it’s all a set up?” Kali narrowed her eyes.
“The Trinity would never set me up. Freddie would never allow that, Kali. How could you even think such a ridiculous thing?” I scolded her.
“Ridiculous? Perhaps, but remember, you are also the keeper of your destiny. However, I do know one thing; the Trinity will stop at nothing to protect their secrets, which means destroying anything standing in their way. They won’t stop until it’s done. It wouldn’t be the first time you know!” She spat her hostile words at me while jabbing a finger in my abdomen, before walking away. The realization of her words frightened me.
“What secrets? Are you talking about my bloodline?”
“You poor thing, they haven't been very truthful with you, have they?” She pouted, swinging her hips as she slowly walked back toward me.
“I know about my sacred bloodline and what’s been prophesied. My father explained it to me. Is there something more I should know?” Kali took my hand turning my palm face up. She slowly stroked my inner palm as if reading it.
“The Holy Trinity is a secret sect buried under the magistrate of the Vatican.” With her finger, she pressed the center of my palm. “Their mission is not only to protect the sacred bloodlines.” Her finger stroked my inner wrist, “—but to protect all fallacies and all their dirty little secrets,” she whispered in my ear, “that form under them, and if these screw-ups can’t be kept concealed under their jurisdiction, they will do everything in their power to silence it, including complete extermination, if necessary.” Kali stated coldly. She turned on her heels and walked away, leaving me with something else to worry about.
I stared blankly into the distance, horrified that she’d speculated this about the Trinity. The Holy Order was formed to protect me, not destroy me. How could this be true? The Trinity aren’t monsters, they are holy men . . . men of God. At least that’s what I was told to believe.
“That’s insane, Kali! How can you say such horrible things about them? They’ve protected the bloodline—my bloodline, for centuries. They would never hurt me!” My voice hung like an angry hiss.
“Dear sister, are you not prophesied to one day carry the Iblis child? Will you not be the one to break their blessed bloodline? Their existence is threatened by their own remaining descendant.”
Spoken like a scholar of secret sects, she knew too many details about the Trinity for my liking. It was uncomfortable. I didn't want to hear anymore, I wanted to be left alone to sort out my options.
“Kali, I'd like to be alone for a while, if you wouldn’t mind,” I urged her as I rubbed my aching temple. It's been a long while since I'd experienc
ed headaches and now they seemed to be surfacing, yet again.
“I’m sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. I only want to protect you. I can sit here with you and I promise I won't utter another word about them, ever again,” she pleaded with me.
“I appreciate it, but not this time. I’d rather be alone. I'll see you back inside in a bit.” Kali abided my request and began walking back to the house. “Kali!” I called out to her.
“Yes, Elizabeth?”
“Thanks for shedding some light and for not hiding the truth from me.”
“That's what sisters are for!” she replied, disappearing into the wooded path as I cringed at her casual use of the word ‘sister.’
If kissing was just two people touching lips, it wouldn't touch our hearts and bind our souls the way it does.
~ Unknown
The temperature increased by late afternoon, which surprised me since Lake Louise was always been spring in full bloom—day in and day out. The increase in temperature was most definitely odd. The unusually sweltering sun made it impossible to sit outside, even under the shady trees.
I walked over to the lake and waded down knee-high in the refreshing water. It instantly cooled my body from the blistering sun and the thick, swampy air. Slowly, I walked further into the depths of the vibrant blue water until I completely submerged my head under it. I remained under for several seconds and then surfaced, wiping the refreshing water from my eyes. Freddie stood watching me at the edge of the tarn. My heart skidded to a halt.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” I asked, a bit surprised but relieved to see him.
Freddie, whose stare remained stationed on me, didn’t utter a word. I couldn’t tell if he was still upset until his eyes swallowed my saturated outline with hungry and questionably parted lips. He grinned sinisterly.
I looked down at myself. My body was exposed from the waist up, realizing my white cotton tank top had become only a sheath of thin fabric, pressing against the visible silhouette of my breasts and abdomen. Immediately, I covered what I could of my exposed body with my hands, sinking slowly back into the water.
