Joshua gave Avery a look — he didn’t particularly want to hang out with them.
Harlem patted Jaidas on the back, Avery and Aira sat down, and Jaidas and Joshua went to order them some food and drinks.
Avery smiled at Aira, and Aira smiled back. She seemed to feel a sense of relief.
Israel drove out to his house with Mary. She looked out the window at all the trees. The leaves were beginning to change color as fall was arriving. Israel looked straight ahead, almost zombie-like. He pulled into his driveway, put his car into park, and shut it off. Not saying a word, he got out and opened the door for Mary.
As she got out, Nehemiah was peeking through the blinds watching.
Abby walked in and seen Nehemiah watching. She walked up and looked through the blinds.
“I see.” They walked out into the kitchen and Abby continued preparing a meal. They heard the door open and the girl’s laughter. When Israel walked into the kitchen, his father looked him in the eyes. They looked cold. Mary stepped forward.
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs, Shaylam. It’s nice to finally meet you,” she spoke with a smile.
Nehemiah just stared at Mary. He couldn’t see Cleo, but he could sense something very familiar. His stare was making her feel somewhat uncomfortable.
“Israel, I’m making a nice dinner if you and your friend would like to join us?” Abby tried to break the awkwardness. Israel grabbed onto Mary’s hand and smiled at her.
“I would really love that,” Mary smiled at Abby.
“Great,” Abby responded as she looked at Nehemiah, then back at Mary. Abby smiled with a bit of discomfort.
“Is there anything I could help you with?” Mary asked.
“She likes to cook,” Israel added.
“Ya, that would be great, and please, call me Abby,” she smiled, grabbed an apron, and handed it to Mary, then she walked over to the counter. Mary followed. Abby opened the cupboard looking for something,
“I’m out of paprika, I can’t make my famous salad without it,” Abby said, looking at
Nehemiah.
“I’ll go get you some,” Nehemiah spoke up as he grabbed his keys, and made a head movement towards Israel to Abby.
“Honey, go with your father. Let us girls have some bonding time.”
Israel looked at Mary.
“I’ll be fine,” Mary said.
Israel walked over and kissed Mary on the head and he walked out with his father. They walked up to Nehemiah’s truck and Nehemiah waited for Israel to get in. Israel jumped in and shut the door. Nehemiah looked back at the house, and then he got in.
Most of the drive was silent. Israel stared out the window, and every once in a while Nehemiah looked over at his son. He tried to think of something he could say to him.
“She seems nice,” his father spoke to try and break the ice.
“Ya. She’s great, she’s perfect,” he answered, in a calm tone still looking out the window.
“Israel, I’m your father. I’ll always be behind you, and I love you no matter what.” Nehemiah kept his eyes on the road.
“I know,” Israel replied, and there was silence again.
They finally reached town, and as they drove past the coffee shop, Israel saw Jaidas, Aira, Avery and Joshua walking out. His vision went into slow motion as he looked at Aira. Aira looked up and saw him. He closed his eyes for a second and then looked away.
They eventually pulled into Cooper’s parking lot, the other grocery store in Hope.
David was walking with his mom to her SUV with a cart full of groceries, and spotted Israel while his mother was opening her trunk.
Israel and his father walked by them and David turned towards them. “Israel!” David shouted. Israel turned around and looked at him. Maddy watched, and Nehemiah stood there.
“You broke her heart,” David said as he shook his head. He looked sad and disappointed.
Israel turned around and began to walk away. Nehemiah still stood there and looked at David.
David reached into his pocket and pulled out a small rock. He then reached into his back pocket and pulled out his slingshot. He loaded the rock into it, lifted it, aiming for the back of Israel’s head. He slowly pulled the band back and let it go. It hit Israel, who stopped, put his hand onto the back of his head and rubbed it. He turned around and David just stared at him.
“David!” Maddy spoke. “What are you doing?” she asked him, completely baffled.
Israel turned around and walked into the store.
Maddy looked at Nehemiah, “I’m so sorry,” she mouthed to him.
Nehemiah smiled at her and he watched David get into the vehicle.
David looked out the window at Israel’s father. Nehemiah winked and smiled at him giving him a ‘good for you’ nod. Then he turned and walked into the store.
Maddy stood there in shock. She shook her head and then got into her vehicle.
Abby was chopping tomatoes, and Mary was chopping parsley. There was a quiet awkwardness.
Abby grabbed some pasta and threw it into a pot of boiling water.
“So how long have you lived around here?” Abby asked her.
“We actually just moved here,” Mary replied.
“Oh really? Where from?”
“Um…” Mary didn’t expect her to ask, she had to quickly think of something, “Italy,” she replied.
“I love Italy, what part?”
Mary got even more nervous, but the one thing Cleo was known for was her temper. She hated being put on the spot. She closed her eyes for a moment to compose herself, but was having a hard time.
“Are you okay?” Abby asked.
Mary looked up, “Ya, um…Tuscany,” she finally answered.
Abby just smiled to herself, “I’ve always loved Tuscany.”
“Ya, it’s beautiful.” Mary knew that they knew exactly what was going on.
Jaidas and Aira pulled into the school parking lot beside Aira’s truck and he turned off his car.
“Thanks, I’ll see you later,” Aira said while she took off her seat belt. She opened the door and Jaidas moved his hand to hold hers.
Aira turned and looked at him
“I’m sorry,” he said sincerely.
Aira paused, she was going to say something, but didn’t. She just got out. She looked at him for a moment remembering her dream, then shut his door.
She walked over to her truck and got in. Turning on her truck, she looked over at Jaidas one more time. He stared forward.
Aira put her truck in reverse and drove home.
Maddy pulled into their driveway.
Barry walked out to help them bring in the groceries.
“Grab your bag,” Maddy said to David, who didn’t look very happy.
“Hey bud,” Barry said as he walked up to them. David stormed past him, went into the house and shut the door.
“What’s wrong with him?” Barry asked. Maddy pulled out some groceries and handed them to Barry.
“We saw Israel. He used his slingshot on him. I don’t even know what’s going on.”
Barry sort of laughed, making Maddy smile. “Stop it,” she said as he smirked. She grabbed the rest of the groceries and they walked inside.
Aira pulled into her driveway and went inside. She poked her head into the kitchen. Maddy and Barry were putting groceries away.
“Hey,” Aira spoke quietly.
“Hey honey,” Maddy said, happy to see her. “What do you feel like eating for supper?”
“I’m not really hungry, whatever you decide. I gotta get some homework done.” She walked out of the kitchen, went upstairs and closed her door. Aira threw her bag down, crawled onto her bed, up to her pillows, and began to sob.
Maddy and Barry could hear her. Maddy closed her eyes, and put her hands on
the counter.
Barry walked over to her and hugged her from behind.
“Pain can only last so long,” Barry whispered.
Israel and his father pulled into their driveway. It was getting dark. They got out of the truck and walked inside to the kitchen.
Abby walked towards Nehemiah with a spoon full of pasta sauce.
“Here, taste this,” she said, smiling. It was hot. He tried to cool his mouth down. “It’s perfect, and I’m starving.” He was delighted. He kissed Abby on the cheek, handing her the grocery bag.
“Oh, you guys took so long, I just made a different salad.” Abby smiled at him and Nehemiah shook his head.
“Where are the girls?” Nehemiah asked.
They went to see a movie,” Abby replied.
“Well then, let’s eat.” Hungry, Nehemiah clapped his hands and rubbed them together, ready to eat. Nehemiah had a different energy about him.
Israel helped his mother take the food over to the table. Mary smiled watching him, then they all sat down.
Laying on her bed, Aira heard a light knock at her door.
“Aira? Are you hungry?” Maddy’s voice softly asked through the door. Aira stared at the wall and didn’t say anything.
Maddy stood on the other side of the door for a second, lightly touched the door and walked away.
Aira pulled herself up and got off her bed. She walked over to her wall and took down the picture Israel had given her. She walked back to her bed, and laid down staring at it.
While Israel and his family ate, Israel watched as Mary wiped her mouth and laughed while listening to Abby. All he could think about was being with her.
Israel finally just stood up, grabbed Mary’s hand and started to walk her out the back door.
“Israel?” Abby said confused. She couldn’t even finish her sentence, and the door was shut. Nehemiah just looked at Abby.
Israel walked a few steps, then slowly pushed Mary up against the wall and he started to kiss her. He took both of her arms, wrapped them around his neck, and then moved his hands down the sides of her. He put one of his arms behind her back, leaned down, put his other arm behind her knees and lifted her off the ground. He walked her down the deck, down the stairs, and out to his spot.
He took her one leg and wrapped it around him and she pulled off her shirt.
Slowly, he moved himself to the ground, and with his hand behind her head, he laid her down and kissed her. She loved the coolness of his lips.
Aira sat up instantly. She got up out of her bed and grabbed her sweater and her keys. She walked out of the room putting on her sweater, ran down the stairs, and out the door.
Maddy, Barry and David were all in the living room watching T.V. They looked at each other and knew exactly where she was going.
Maddy got up and tried to go after her, but Barry stopped her.
Aira jumped into her truck, pulled out, and began to drive as she wiped the tears from her face. She was not going to let this happen. Aira loved him, she loved him with every part of her being, and something in her told her that he loved her still.
Mary sat on the ground looking deeply at Israel. She grabbed onto his shirt and he leaned forward as she pulled it off making her way to lay back down. He put his hands down by her waist, moving them up to her sides, then taking the back of his hand and gently moving it up and down her stomach.
Mary grabbed the seam of his pants and he let out a very small devious smirk on his face.
He moved his hands down to the top of her pants and, on his knees, he moved backwards and pulled them off of her. He threw them to the side, grabbed onto her feet slowly moving his hands up her legs, moving them up into the inner part of her thighs, and moved her legs apart. He crawled in between them and leaned over her, grabbing onto both of her hands, he held onto them as he put them on the ground above her head and kissed her.
Mary moved her hands away from his, down to the button on his pants and she unbuttoned them. She moved her hands to his chest, and as she moved herself up, she pushed him back.
She grabbed his pants, pulled them off, crawled on to his lap and straddled him.
Aira eventually pulled into Israel’s driveway. She put her truck into park and sat there for a few minutes. She had no idea what she was going to say. She took one big breath, then got out of her truck and started to walk around the house. She decided that she was going to look out back first, as he was always out there. Nervously she walked through the dark. She could hear sounds and knew he had to be there. When she got close enough, she could see that Israel was sitting on the ground and Mary was straddled on top of him.
Mary sensed Aira. She looked over and gave a core splitting grin.
Aira looked helpless and hurtfully angry. She turned and began to run to her truck. She dropped her keys, stopped quickly and grabbed them. She couldn’t get into her truck fast enough, and could barely get her keys into the ignition. She dropped them a few times, then finally got them in, turned on her truck and reversed with speed out of his driveway.
The pain in Aira’s heart was so great that in that moment, her face flashed into Israel’s vision, a vision of when they had laid in the hammock together and he was playing with her hand.
He looked at Mary, and it was almost like he was trying to remember, but he couldn’t understand.
Mary looked at him, sensing something. She got off of Israel, grabbed her shirt and put it on as she walked over to his hammock and sat down.
Israel slowly got up off the ground and walked over to her.
“Do you love me?” she asked tentatively.
“Yes,” Israel replied.
“Israel… if you love me, just give him what he wants. It’s time. If you don’t… he’ll destroy what you love.” She made herself seem very pained. Then getting out of the hammock, she stood in front of him, her head down. She looked back up innocently at him. “If you do… we can be together, always. Fight for me.” When she said those words, for a split second she turned herself into looking like Aira. That’s how smart the Darkness was.
Israel couldn’t concentrate enough to know what was going on. There was so much static running through his head. He just stood there looking at her. It was like he was trying to figure out what was going on in his mind. Mary looked more intensely at him trying to figure out what was happening.
“Israel…Where is her heart?”
“I can’t see, the static is unbearable.”
“Look closer… It isn’t there.” The static remained constant, barreling through Israel’s head. Mary’s eyes stayed fixated on him.
“She has mine.”
“No.”
“She can hear you.”
“They can’t read your mind. Find your strength, remember what you’re doing.”
Israel closed his eyes and the vines around his heart instantly gripped tighter. Israel fell to his knees and confusion flooded him. In slow motion he lifted his head and looked up at her, clearly seeing the resentment. Light shimmered across the blackness of his eyes for only a second and she caught it.
“I have to go… for her.”
“Grandson, I’m here. I’m going with you.”
She knew he had now made the decision to go, but she was upset with her lack of ability to see anything. Something was impairing her vision into him. She could only seem to see pieces.
“I have to go,” Mary said, and she began to walk away. She walked faster until she was running.
Reaching his driveway, she had turned back into Cleo.
She ran out to the road, jumped turning into the raven, and flew into the trees.
Aira drove the whole way home with tears in her eyes, wiping them away as she pulled to the side of their driveway.
Barry was sitting on the porch with the light on. Aira put her truck in park, turned it off, too
k a breath and slowly pulled herself out and shut the door. Looking helpless and heartbroken, her eyes red from crying, she walked over to Barry and he patted the steps for her to sit down. She sat beside him.
“I know I’m not your father, but I love you, Aira, I love you like you were my own daughter.
“I know,” Aira said.
“Okay, so now I’m going to talk to you like a father would.”
“Okay,” Aira answered, dreading a big speech.
“I will spend the rest of my life preventing another boy from breaking your heart for as long as I live,” Barry said seriously.
Aira waited for more, but he didn’t say anything else. She looked at him, then smiled a bit and let out a quiet painful laugh.
“Thanks.”
Barry put his arm around her, gave her a squeeze and they sat in silence for a while.
Cleo was on the floor in her room in the mountain, throwing things out of her closet looking for something.
The dark man walked into her doorway and she could feel him. Cleo felt nervous and closed her eyes for a second. She slowly got up off the ground and turned around in fear because there was no telling what was going to happen.
The Dragon stood there for a second, then turned around and walked away.
Cleo put her head down and closed her eyes. In that moment, her face began to wrap in black vines, and vision after vision of Israel came into her. He was standing at an alter as if he was going to be married. Then another vision of him holding a child. She searched all of her visions trying to see who he had married, but she could not see. Her anger grew stronger and stronger, and she started to scream. She began to grab things around her and throw them.
The Dragon walked through the dark and lit up tunnels and pathways through the mountain. He could hear Cleo but just kept walking.
Cleo walked over to her closet and pulled out what looked like a large, ancient, silver drinking vessel. It was carved as a griffin (a mythical creature with the head and the wings of an eagle and the body of a lion) and there were three cups connected to each side of it.
Forbidden: Book One of Wild Sky Saga Page 13
