I jumped on that, sucking in a deep breath. “Who?”
With gentle patience, he shook his head. “You shouldn’t get your hopes up. You won’t be able to find him unless he wants to be found.” Golden brows puckered, his gaze straying out the bay window while he thought. “Actually, he should have found you. He would have known you weren’t supposed to be here.”
I waved a hand. “I can find him like I found you.”
Clearly disbelieving, he muttered dryly, “I would enjoy watching you try.”
“It would mean you would see how I found you…”
He shrugged a shoulder. “I need to know so others don’t find me the same way.”
I didn’t glance about his place or say anything snarky, still being careful. “Do you give me your word you won’t try to take it from me?”
“You have my word, although, I really have no clue what I’m agreeing to. As I stated, I don’t believe you’re here with harmful intent, so I won’t steal anything from you.”
I eventually agreed. “Deal.” I opened my Core to use my power, and the Primal Diamond still in the form of my nose ring landed in my right palm. “I found you by using this.” I closed my hand after he peered at it with puckered eyebrows, studying it. “All I need is his name.”
Skeptical eyes peered into mine. “I believe you’re going to be dissatisfied with the results. But his name is Elder Harcourt.”
My head cocked, having heard that name a few times. “Thank you.” I placed the diamond to my lips, whispering against it, “Take me to Elder Harcourt.”
And…
Nothing.
No blinding flash of white light.
No change of location.
I blinked down at the diamond. It couldn’t be broken. I had just used it.
I again placed it to my lips, whispering, “Take me to Elder Harcourt.”
And…
Still nothing.
I pulled my hand away from my mouth, staring at the Primal Diamond as I slowly turned terrified. Without thinking, I swiftly opened my Core and tucked the diamond into my secret treasure trove. No matter what, I couldn’t lose the damned thing.
“What are you?” he asked deliberately, having moved on from the fact the diamond hadn’t worked. While I had not. His power pulsed through the room gently, chafing against my frame.
As he tested me and my power, which felt like sandpaper being rubbed over my body, I spoke breathless, choked words. “That’s not necessary information.” I placed a shaky hand over my mouth. “What about a spelled letter from you? Would that get to Elder Harcourt?”
His head was cocked, and he gently pulled his magic back. “No. As I said, he’s only found when he wants to be.” He was watching me closely. “And as I also said, he would have found you if he believed you shouldn’t be here.”
I shook my head in a hurry. “I don’t belong here.” I waved a shaky hand around the room. “This is all foreign.” A sob clogged my throat. I pushed it down, my heart rate nowhere near normal. “Someone else. There’s got to be someone else.”
He stared with tolerance. “I’m the second most powerful Mage in the world.” My stomach plummeted even further as I fell back against the couch. I gaped at him with swiftly tear-filled eyes, but he still continued. “I’m directly under Elder Harcourt in terms of powerfulness. If I can’t do it, no other can.”
My eyelashes fluttered in rapid motion, keeping the tears at bay. “How long before you can?”
His lips pinched. “Maybe in a hundred years or so. Time travel takes so long to manifest, we’re wise to use it with caution.”
My hand trembled as I covered my mouth. “No.”
“I’m sorry,” he hushed, pushing off the door and grabbing the tissue box. Like he was dealing with a skittish animal, he cautiously handed it to me. “I truly am sorry.”
I dabbed at my eyes, not about to really cry yet. When I did, I was going to crash. “I can’t live here. I don’t belong in this time.” I glanced out the window, green tree leaves swaying in a breeze. “I don’t even know where I am right now.”
“I’ll say it once more. If you weren’t supposed to be here, the wily bastard would have found you.” His brows lifted. “And if you don’t know where you are, then that’s a good thing. Where did you come from?”
“I was in Choep, New York. In an alley behind an old,” I paused, then I amended, “new furniture store.”
He quirked a brow. “I know the place. I like their pieces. Good quality.” He glanced down at my wet attire, parts of which were covered in holes and blood. “Should you go back there?”
I absently waved a hand. “The threat won’t be able to find me.” Simply because I was protected. But also because King Zeller had stated that Bossman had to store up the energy to make his freaky magic work. The Bossman had wasted it in not taking me where he’d wanted before going back to the future.
I fingered a strand of my hair, staring at it. Survival mode was kicking in. Always stay alive. My main goal in life. “Can you spell this for me? And my eyebrows and…lower region? Can you make it red like a fire Elemental?”
“Sure,” he stated gently. He tilted his head, and instantly the strand of hair I held was neon red. “It’ll stay that length and color until the spell is removed.” He flicked a finger at my clothes and still spoke softly, probably because my entire frame was trembling. “You’ll also want to buy different clothes to fit in. You’ll want to blend in.”
I glanced at his attire. Then out the window. I wasn’t about to dress like those people I’d seen today, or even like Elder Farrar. “I’m sure I can find something halfway suitable.”
Dry words. “You don’t have to like an outfit to wear it.” He bent, staring directly into my eyes, keeping his face level with mine. “I’ll warn you right now. Don’t fuck with time. It’s not something you mess with, so don’t give out any information that could damage the future.”
I nodded once. I was listening, but the words were jarring.
What I really heard was: I was stuck in 1993.
The rattle of keys had both our heads turning toward the door.
Elder Farrar’s golden eyes swung back to me. “Keep your mouth shut. She’s not going to like seeing you here.”
I kept silent as a lovely Shifter woman about my age, with a slightly swollen belly that hardly showed her pregnancy, walked inside. She kicked the door shut behind her. She held a large brown sack in each hand, keys dangling from her fingers. “Antonio, can you help—” She stuttered to a stop, noticing me on the couch. Her eyes scanned my face before her gaze instantly flew to Elder Farrar. Her lips pinched, her rosy cheeks draining of color.
“She’s here seeking my help,” he explained in an easy manner. He grabbed one of the bags from her and placed a soft hand against her back, herding her frame toward the kitchen. “You know I’m not lying.” He pressed his mouth against her left ear, whispering something I couldn’t hear.
The Shifter woman glanced back to me, but she quickly looked away and nodded to him. They disappeared into the tiny kitchen. Only the bitty table was visible from my viewpoint.
When Elder Farrar reappeared, he murmured, “She said you can have one of her shirts. I’ll try to find one small enough for you.” He disappeared again, leaving the front door accessible for me to leave without notice. But I only stayed seated, not sure where the hell to go even if I left. “Here…” He came around the corner holding a white t-shirt out. “I washed it incorrectly the other day and it shrunk. It should fit you.”
I graciously took the offering and stood, walking to the bathroom like my feet were made of bricks. “I don’t know what to do,” I stated from behind the closed door, discarding my bloody shirt and washing the blood from my chest at the antique sink. “I don’t know…anything.”
He was standing directly outside the door. “Think about what you did for a living in your time, and apply it here.”
I snorted. I didn’t think that stating I was the
Prodigy Elemental would be a grand announcement, and it was definitely not necessary. Plus, it would land me in a mental institution if anyone else heard it. “I don’t really think that’ll work here.”
A pause outside. “Are you good at anything else?”
My lips pinched. I had been a criminal before my ascension to the Royal life.
I stalled in my actions…before I laughed outright.
“What?” he asked instantly. “Are you okay?”
I snorted, laughing with a bloody, soapy hand in front of my mouth. “Yes, I was just remembering the other advice you gave me this morning. Other than the towel thing.”
Another pause. “Seeing as how that was accurate, I would probably run with that other advice.”
“I guess so,” I mumbled. “I don’t know what else to do, that’s for sure.”
It looked like I was going back to my ‘roots’. To the criminal I was at heart.
I had no clue what to say when Elder Farrar asked where I wanted to live.
I just kind of blinked. Eventually I decided Choep, New York—a place I knew.
At least the landscape, anyway.
Elder Farrar told the Shifter woman he lived with that he would be back before she had dinner ready, and he flashed us from inside his apartment to the alley I had disappeared from only an hour ago. The ride was much quicker and less desolate than Philip Masterson’s. When I stared at Elder Farrar with frightened, wide eyes, alone in this damn world, he didn’t abandon me. He gently led me down the sidewalks of the stores and helpfully supplied his input while I, for the second time that day, tried on clothing. I attempted to find something that suited my tastes but that also fit in with the norm.
I chose a bunch of holey jeans, and some black and gray and white t-shirts to layer. I was not really able to wear hot pink with my hair color being neon red. I stopped at the cashier’s stand and pulled out my credit card.
Elder Farrar coughed. He was reminding me it wouldn’t work.
“Shit,” I muttered, putting the card away before the cashier could take it. I stared down into my purse wide-eyed, not knowing what the hell I was going to do for instant cash. I mean, I could rob the place since I did have weapons in my purse…
Until my gaze landed on Elder Farrar’s envelope.
“Here, let me,” Elder Farrar stated, pulling his wallet from his back pocket.
I held up a hand, smiling. “You already did.” I lifted the white envelope from my purse, and for the first time I read the address line.
It read: Of course your credit card wouldn’t work. Duh.
Elder Farrar snorted, reading over my shoulder. “Apparently, I did.”
“Hush,” I murmured, opening the envelope. I kept it tucked close to my body so only he and I could see the contents. And yeah, it was a lot of cash. At least twenty grand, as I had guessed.
Elder Farrar whistled softly. “I must really like you.”
“That’s what I thought, too,” I muttered grumpily, lifting what appeared to be an odd-looking license from the middle, staring at it. “Until you started making sense about the damn towel.”
“That was excellent advice.” He chuckled and bent to read the license. I was pictured with neon red hair and it stated my address and that my name was Sadie Farrow. I lived in an apartment in Choep, New York. “I was actually going to suggest those apartments.”
“As you can see, you did,” I muttered. I dropped the license back into the envelope, next to what appeared to be some kind of auto insurance card with my name on it. I handed a few of my gifted bills to the patient cashier. “Thanks for the money. You know, an advance thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He grabbed my bags after the cashier loaded them up. “Let’s see about getting you transportation next.”
I stared like he was a loon. “That’ll take more money than I have.”
“I’m not talking a Mercedes.” His gaze held mine hard. “Your wish is to blend in, remember?” A shrug. “Since you stated there are no threats coming after you, we’ll find a nice, loyal car for what you can afford.”
“Okay,” I agreed. “I actually prefer shit cars. Makes you appreciate them more.”
He snickered softly. “I said a nice, loyal car…not shit.”
“I talk code, too. Don’t try to fool me.”
He was still laughing. “I’m beginning to see why I like you in the future.”
I wasn’t sure what it said about me, but the clunker I ended up with was definitely a ‘nice, loyal car’ and I was pretty sure I had driven older cars when in 2035, which some might think was damn sad. But driving in this clunker was a halfway smooth ride, and I just enjoyed being able to drive a car that didn’t jerk and groan when I pressed on the gas or stepped on the brake.
What I wasn’t thrilled about was when I had to pay six months rent up-front at the apartment complex, since I didn’t have any previous landlord references. I grumpily handed over a portion of my cash for the furnished apartment. As I signed away what seemed like my life on the rental agreement, it wasn’t really a shock when I was told that my new apartment was number 203. As my license stated. Elder Farrar hung around, snooping through my apartment while I did my own investigation. The place was small, with one bedroom and new—Elder Farrar stated they were—appliances and carpeting and paint.
His next action surprised me. He bent and gave me a quick hug. But his tone was serious. “Remember what I said about not messing with time.” His dark head of hair teetered back and forth. “I believe you’re here because you’re supposed to be. But for how long that is, you never know.” He straightened, thumping my nose with a pointed finger. “If you need me, you can obviously find me.” His eyes flashed golden…and he was just gone.
I was alone.
With the damn memory of him this morning telling me to have fun on my trip.
Tears instantly welled and I locked my front door to the world I didn’t know.
I wandered into the bedroom I was to call home. Fell onto a bed I had never slept in before. Sobbed in huge shuddering gasps and gripped my cold pillow tight. And wished this nightmare would end soon, as the 1993 Elder Farrar had stated it might.
It didn’t end soon.
The first week, I left my apartment only to buy take-out, purchase a few necessities for general living, and get my utilities turned on. The rest of my time I spent lying on my bed, praying this would end. I wanted Sin.
The second week, I went a little insane. I watched television when I wasn’t lying in bed crying and missing everyone, and I picked at the paint on my bedroom wall. I wanted Sin.
The third week, I bought a vacuum and trash bags and housework supplies to clean my mess from the previous two weeks—when I wasn’t watching television or lying in bed with my box of tissues. I wanted Sin.
The fourth week, I debated buying a dog for company. Except the landlady told me it was against the rental agreement I had signed. So I sobbed about that, along with everything else, while watching television or lying in bed or vacuuming the carpet. I wanted Sin.
The fifth week, the landlady dropped by with a very fake, concerned expression on her face and handed me a business card…then kindly reminded me I had neighbors beside, above, and below me. I tore up the card for the counselor and stuffed my head down on the pillow to cry, muffling the sound. I needed Sin.
During the sixth week, I came to the realization I wasn’t just depressed. I was becoming suicidal. Before I started debating Russian roulette too seriously, I pulled myself from the drudgery of my self-pity, tucked away the one person who meant everything to me but was wrecking my sanity from missing him so much, and sucked it up. My life sure as hell wasn’t getting any better.
But it was still a damn life.
The only plus during my single-handed downslide was that I had come to the decision that the One and I were attracted to each other. But nothing could ever develop from our attraction because the One lived at the Temple and was faithful to the Temple,
while I lived in this world and was faithful to this world. Both of us lived completely separate lives. Our attraction was mostly just attraction.
I didn’t want him. I knew that now.
Because of the lifestyle I had decided, living with the consequences of existing outside the Temple, I now resided in 1993.
I entered the first seedy bar I could find and started making friends.
While I listened. And learned.
Finally, I was ready to return to my roots.
Chapter Thirty-One
My plans moved slower than I’d expected, and my cash funds were dwindling, so I obtained a job at the apparel store I had purchased my clothes from. Every criminal needed a respectable daytime job—though a touch of my power was needed to get it. I didn’t have the tax documents required in this day and age.
It took two weeks of searching until I finally heard the names coveted by a few loners, the rich and the powerful names of the gaming underworld in this area. After buying more respectable outfits with my staff discount—a couple of pairs of black trousers I actually liked and a few cleavage-revealing, yet respectable, silk tops—I frequented different bars, the more reputable kind, making different friends. After that, it still took me a damn month, having been there for close to three months by that point, before I was invited to an illegal poker game with the wealthy and influential of New York City, not too far from Choep.
My nice, loyal car made the trip safely. I now stood inside the back room of a swanky dance club, weird music—oldies—rocking behind the closed door. I gave my name to the Vampire bouncer with a clipboard in his hand. I waited patiently, confident about my invite as I brushed wrinkles out of my new trousers. I also straightened the red silk top I wore, its color the same as my hair—very flattering. The bouncer flipped his sheet, eyed the page, then slashed a mark on it with his pen. He nodded to the Shifter in a tux behind him.
Chosen Fool (Forever Evermore Book 5) Page 28
