Panic began to build inside of Nicole. “How did he know I was watching? Oh crap, this guy is not just some thug. He has information on me that no one should know. How am I going to save Dad now?”
Ronald gave one last squeeze of James’ face and then stood. “Do you understand me?” James mumbled a weak agreement as he propped himself up against the wall. Nicole had never seen her dad look so defeated. She wanted to go to him and comfort him but she couldn’t. I have to get back so I can tell Luke what is going on. With that one thought, the room began to fade away. She started to feel the tingle of her body and the cool wind against her skin. With a big gasp, her eyes opened to find Luke staring at her intently.
“You ready to talk now?”
“There’s no time, they are flying out of Birmingham International Airport at 5:15. So we’ve got about an hour and a half until the flight leaves but it’s a two hour drive from here.” She ran to the Chevelle with Luke hot on her heels.
*****
As soon as they got on the highway heading out of town, Luke asked Nicole what was going on. She gave him every little detail she had seen and heard in the hotel room. Luke listened intently without interrupting her until she went into details about the email.
“Did you notice a name on the email? I mean, we know the thug that has your dad is Ronald but did you notice if someone else ordered the tickets for the man?”
Nicole thought back, trying to pull up an exact picture of the screen in her head. “No, I couldn’t see the first few lines on the page. Why?”
“This Ronald guy doesn’t strike me as the ring leader. He hasn’t killed your dad or made a ransom for him. That means he’s taking him to someone.”
“But who? Dad doesn’t know anyone in Ireland. Hell, neither one of us has ever been out of the South. This doesn’t make sense!” Nicole banged her hand off of the steering wheel as frustration boiled over inside of her. Images of her dad tied up and sitting on the cold bathroom floor kept playing over and over in her head. She felt a warm hand holding her shoulder, the contact made a calm wash over her and the fire inside her seemed to die down a little.
“It’s time we talk, Nicole.” Luke said with wisdom in his eyes. After a few moments he put his hand back into his lap, a soft smile stretched across his lips.
Nicole had never seen this side of Luke before. She was a little bit frightened seeing him like this but at the same time she liked the mysterious part of him.
“How much do you know about your family history?”
“Umm, well I know my parents were born and raised in Alabama and my grandparents on dad’s side were from Georgia-”
“No, I’m talking about before your people came to the United States.” He took her puzzled look as a big no. He gave a frustrated sigh then continued. “Alright then, let me start with a little about me because our history is connected.”
“My family came here from Ireland and so did yours, but thousands of years before that my family was your family’s protector.” He paused waiting for her to laugh but she just stared at him with an unreadable expression on her face. “We were warriors…with a twist,” a proud smile stretched across his face. “We had special gifts that helped us, like superior strength and speed, making us perfect in battle. We also were able to control the element of fire and there was a few of us who could control the minds of others.”
“Um…okay this is getting a bit weird, Luke. You expect me to believe your ancestors were some kind of super warriors that could use mind control to kill people.” She gave him a weak smile as her stomach started to churn. Why am I listening to this, I must be going out of my freaking mind.
“We didn’t use mind control like you think. A warrior could use his power to project the feelings of hopelessness onto his foe so there would be no fight or the warrior might choose to give his target false memories. If he could convince someone they were longtime friends there wouldn’t be a fight. Some of the greatest battles were won this way before any blood was spilt.”
Nicole stayed silent while Luke talked. She was seeing flashes of a beautiful woman with curly waist-length brown hair standing on a balcony. Behind her was a large man. His chest was bare giving her perfect view of a long jagged scar running directly across his heart. He was dressed in a green and blue kilt and had a long sword sheathed at his side. He had a confidence about him she had never seen before. He almost glowed with power. Nicole shook her head to clear away the images. Wow, I have one vivid imagination. She thought to herself as she tried to refocus her mind on Luke. “I don’t understand what your story has to do with my Dad. How’s this going to help us save him?”
“You can help your dad, Nicole, don’t you see? You have great powers locked away inside of you just waiting for you to call on them.”
“Okay, maybe I do have a little mind-reading ability but so do tons of other people in the world. This is nothing that…”
“It’s way more than a “little” mind-reading ability Nicole. You are descended from a royal line of fae. The line that was once the most powerful and noble of all fairies-the Gentry. They were known for being truth seers, much like you, from what I’ve noticed. But what you are goes far beyond just knowing if someone is good or evil.” He paused searching her face. “You see the warriors I come from vowed to protect the Gentry blood line until there were no more.”
“Well, some of the brotherhood didn’t feel that way and a war started to brew within my clan. It was made worse when your grandmother, Queen Titania, fell in love with her warrior, Alaois. Most of the fae looked down on the warriors. They were no better than peasants in their eyes. The ones within the brotherhood who were unhappy with serving the fairies saw this love as a slap in the face. They did not want your grandmother or any fairy to have a child with a warrior. They were afraid that it would create fairies that had all the powers of both races. The ultimate blood line.” Luke gave her a weak smile as he continued on.
“We caught the puppeteer of this movement, he was a Kerrigan named Loch, and sentenced him to death for plotting to kill your family. We did not catch him before he killed Alaois but he sent your grandmother into hiding before he was caught. Queen Titania was carrying Alaois’s child and when she gave birth, she hid the baby away. No one ever knew where that child was sent because the fae queen put a spell on him to lock away the powers, making him invisible to fea and warriors. She did it to protect her son from being discovered. The only way the spell would break is if her blood was threatened by a Kerrigan again. That person would be able to call upon the power to save herself from the evil.”
“You think I’m that person?” She laughed uneasily as she stared out the windshield to the dark road ahead. She had kept the Chevelle locked in at 80 mph so far. The story being laid at her feet had not made her forget her goal. “You really believe I’m the granddaughter of a fairy queen? Luke are you hearing yourself talk? This is craziness!”
“Nicole, stop trying to convince yourself I’m wrong. You would know if I was lying to you.” He raised an unimpressed brow as he rolled his eyes. “I’m sure you’ve noticed that since you were shot, your powers have been changing, growing stronger.”
“You expect me to just bow down to this wonderful tale you’ve woven just like that. I’m to believe I’m some fairy warrior hybrid with magical powers and that you are…” she scrunched her brows together as she tried to pin down a label for Luke. “Wait, this doesn’t make sense. I’ve known you for years. We have worked together, side by side Luke, and I’ve seen you in action. There is nothing supernatural about you.”
“You’re not very observant Nicole. I’ve used one of my abilities on you many times, like a few minutes ago when you were upset about your dad. Do you remember? I helped you to calm down by using my powers. Also you haven’t known me for that long. You only think you do because I put false memories into your head.” He grimaced as if saying that messing with her head caused him physical pain. “I came to you when your power called me, most l
ikely around the time you first started hearing inside people’s minds. I wasn’t sure if your power would ever fully surface so I pushed my way into the PD so I could keep an eye on you.”
“You did not! I know you Luke. I know that I have feelings…” She could feel her cheeks heat with embarrassment and her heart skipped a beat. Nicole didn’t know what to say so she just shut up. Melancholy began to replace her embarrassment. What if my feelings for Luke aren’t my own? Oh god, please don’t let it be true. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a glow of orange. Her eyes went wide as she realized Luke’s hand was ablaze.
“Two things you should know; I will never use any of my powers to hurt you,” he tossed the red flame from hand to hand as he talked, “and I will never do anything dishonorable. If you hate me it’s because you hate me and if you care for me,” he turned to look her in the eyes as the flame in his hand burned brighter. “it’s because you care for me.”
“Luke” she stammered, “Don’t set my dad’s car on fire, he will be pissed,” she said in an effort to change the subject. This was way too much information to absorb at once. To say she had mixed emotions right now was an understatement. I’ll just focus on getting Dad home safe then I can sort out all this with him. He’ll know what I need to do.
Luke chuckled as he let the flames go out. Nicole thought it was symbolic of what she had been doing to him for a long time. How long have I known him? she wondered. This is going to haunt me forever. I feel like I’m Neo hung in the matrix wondering if I would’ve broken that damn vase if he hadn’t said anything.
Chapter 8
The heavy traffic of Birmingham didn’t help Nicole’s mood. She was comfortable in her own small town traffic where she had only one red light to deal with. This was a living hell and she was running out of time. She began to tap her fingers nervously against the steering wheel, itching to blow the horn at the diesel truck in front of her. They had been stuck in place for almost five minutes.
“How about I drive the rest of the way?” asked Luke.
“You can’t move the traffic any faster than I can, so thanks but no thanks.” she said in a snippy tone. She waved her hand at the never-ending line of traffic in front of them. “We should have driven the police car, at least then we would have lights flashing so these people would move.”
“Nicole, please just calm down. Everything is going to be fine. We will make it.” He gave her a confident look as he laid his hand over her trembling hand.
A tranquil feeling began to course throughout her body. It was the same feeling she experienced after her last full body massage. She looked over at Luke, noticing how his face had a rugged look. The five o’clock shadow was deepening the contours of his sculpted features. She felt a burning start deep in her belly as her eyes lingered on Luke’s plump bottom lip. She wanted to feel it against her mouth and to feel the heat of his breath. She licked her lips in anticipation. She watched with eager attention as the corners of his mouth began to curl up into a cocky smirk.
A horn blew from behind her snapping her out of the trance. Nicole blinked her eyes in an effort to clear her head. Anger jolted into her as she realized what was going on.
“You egotistical asshole!” She swatted his hand away from her. “Don’t you ever do that again, do you understand me?”
“I just helped you calm down. I’m not responsible for where your mind goes when it’s not worried.” he laughed, rubbing his hand where she slapped it.
“I don’t need your help.” Another honk from behind her had her pressing hard on the gas again. Traffic had started to move forward. “You need to take this seriously!” She swapped lanes moving around the big rig that had been annoying her for the past half hour. The interstate was in sight now.
“I am taking this seriously and I know I’ve put a lot on you. I just thought that with you already upset about your dad and now this I would-” The Chevelle started to swerve cutting him off.
“Oh no!” she gasped struggling to regain control barely able to avoid sideswiping the car beside her. Her eyes were cloudy and unfocused. Her body felt like it was running on autopilot. “Dad has decided to chance it and run. They are at the airport now and he’s looking for his opportunity to escape.”
“Pull over. You keep track of James and I’ll get us there.”
Nicole knew without a doubt she could track her dad now. She felt like there was a rope tying her to him. She could hear his elevated heartbeat, smell the scents of the airport, and see clear flashes of the view through his eyes. “Yes, you driving would be the safest for both of us.” She stopped the car in the emergency lane and slid over to the passenger side as Luke ran around to the driver’s side. She leaned back into the seat and closed her eyes, letting her mind focus on her dad.
“What’s happening” Luke asked as he steered the car back onto the interstate.
“He is still with Ronald. They are waiting for their flight to arrive. He keeps looking at the security guards. He’s very nervous. I can feel the sweat beading on his face and the drumming of his fingers on the arm of his chair. Man, this is so weird.” The fast movement of James’ head gave her vertigo for a moment. Nicole could feel the pressure of fingers digging into her arm but she knew it was not happening to her. This must have been what had James whipping his head around.
“Don’t go getting any bright ideas. You better remember my warning. I don’t bluff.”
Ronald’s annoyed voice echoed in her head. She felt her dad’s heart sink as he thought about putting her life at risk. “She has been through enough. I’m an old man and I’ve lived a good life. I won’t do anything to get her hurt.” With that thought she felt her dad sink back into his chair. The defeat was almost tangible in the air around him.
Nicole watched through her dad’s blurred eyes as he nodded at Ronald, admitting defeat. “I wasn’t planning anything. I just need a bathroom, that’s all.” She observed the suspicion in Ronald’s eyes, as he gave James a hard look. Nicole could feel herself cringing back from the weight of his stare.
“You can wait until we are in the air. I'm not going chance you trying to make a nuisance of yourself.” He sat back in his chair satisfied that his prisoner wasn’t going to try anything.
“I don’t think he’s going to do anything. Ronald has threatened to hurt me if he does.” Nicole said with a relieved sigh. She wanted her dad away from that creep but she didn’t want him risking his own life to do it.
“Just keep your mind on him. We need to know exactly where he is so look for gate signs and anything that will help us to find him,” Luke said as he continued to maneuver the Chevelle around traffic.
“No problem. I wonder why it’s different this time. I mean, last time I connected with him it was like I was a ghost in the room but this time I’m seeing everything through Dad’s eyes.”
“I’m not real sure but it could have been because he was drugged before. You couldn’t get a clear fix on his mind. When you get a feel for all of your powers, you will be able to choose how you see things. You have so much to learn Nicole, and that’s what I'm here to help you with. You just have to trust me.”
Nicole wasn’t sure how to respond so she just nodded and continued to keep her eyes shut. Trust is something she had a hard time with and it wasn’t going to be easy with Luke either. I’m never going to be sure if I’m feeling my own emotions or if it’s some bull he’s feeding to me. Hell, I don’t even know how long he’s been around me. It feels like years but it may only be weeks or days. She let out a long sigh, and then began to rub her temples as she tried to refocus her attention.
“Okay, here we go. They are getting up and starting to walk. Damn it, they are calling for their flight to board over the intercom. It’s at Gate Sixteen.”
“Shit, hold on!” Luke said as he guided the car down the exit ramp at break-neck speeds. The airport was in sight now.
Nicole’s eyes bolted open when she heard the car’s wheels start to squeal as they raced over
the off ramp. Her heart started thumping hard in her chest and her palms began to sweat. Thoughts of failing her dad kept pushing their way into her head. What if I don’t make it in time? What am I going to do if he’s already on the airplane? What if Dad decides to run and gets hurt? She could feel the power inside of her building up as if it knew a fight was coming. It coursed through her veins like hot lava. Her vision became perfectly clear and her breathing increased to become rapid. Her whole body began to pulsate with power as her fingertips started to tingle with electricity.
“Nicole you’ve got to control it. Take a deep breath and focus. If you go into the airport like that, everyone will start running and we will lose your dad.”
Nicole looked down at herself and saw that her hands were ablaze. She lifted them to her face turning them from front to back. “Holy hell, this is amazing!” Luke’s hand reached past her to pull down the vanity mirror. Her mouth dropped open when she looked at her eyes. They were glowing bright red. “Kat is going schedule me for an exorcism for sure now,” she mumbled under her breath.
Burden Of Blood Page 8
