After another hour, the columns of glass were ignited by the rising sun. Rays of white pierced through, illuminating the elegantly floating dust motes in its path. Glowing yellow squares infringed upon the shadows, and soon the entire floor glowed and warmed with the glorious grace of morning light.
“Nina,” a voice called from across the room. Eli walked toward us, his eyes focused only on me. He was dressed in the same attire he wore the last time we met: The crisp, white shirt, the jeans and sandals, and the spiky blonde hair. He made a click noise with his tongue. “You aren’t getting enough rest.”
“But you knew that,” I smiled sleepily.
One corner of his mouth turned up, but it wasn’t quite a smile. “I’m sorry, Cupcake. I haven’t been much help.”
“Can you help us now?” Jared asked.
“We would love to, Jared. We’ve been instructed not to,” Eli said. Compassion was in his eyes, but not apology.
“But…why?” Bex asked, genuinely confused.
Jared watched Eli for a moment, and then frowned. “They won’t intervene unless The Balance is disturbed.”
Eli reached his hand to me, and I took it. He pulled me into him gently. He towered over me, and I felt like a child wrapped in his arms. Emotion overwhelmed me, and I let myself tremble and weep unreservedly in the quiet sanctuary of his embrace. Jared’s hand touched my shoulder; Bex’s smaller hand touched my back. A sob that had been hiding somewhere deep within me found its way to the surface.
It felt good to cry. I had just seen my father for the first time since his death. The pressure and horror of being the center of a story Hell took very seriously, and now hearing that Heaven was unwilling to help, hope was dwindling. Crying was a sweet release, and in Eli’s arms, it was natural, much like a tearful moment in my father’s lap when I was hurt or frightened.
Eli released me, and tenderly grasped a lock of my hair. “You have grieved for your former life, Nina Grey. It is time to rise up as the woman you are: Strong, determined,” he smiled, “and stubborn.” He walked away from us, looking at the sky through the windows. “Humans see life as so precious when it’s fleeting. Add in the defensive instincts of a mother, and you’re nearly unstoppable, even in your fragile shell. It’s more inspiring each time I see it.”
“You know she’s not pregnant,” Jared said.
“Yet,” Eli said, turning with a knowing smile. “Let us visit again when the time is right. At the time when you have no more questions to ask but one.”
“What question is that?” I asked, but he was gone. “Damn it.”
“We need to get Nina back,” Jared said.
“Back to where, Jared? Did you forget your house is toast?” Bex said.
I shook my head, still in disbelief. Jared enveloped me in his arms, warmer and even more inviting than Eli’s.
“You have three choices, Nina: Cynthia’s, Lillian’s, or Kim’s.”
“Kim’s?” I sneered. “Even if I did still consider her my friend, I have no desire to live in the dorms again.”
Jared grimaced. “She’s the safest, option, Nina, and yes, she’s still your friend.”
“Why is she the safest?” I asked.
Bex grinned. “They don’t mess with her. She’s like bug spray.”
I smiled. “She would hate that if she heard you.”
Bex pulled a gun from the back of his jeans and scratched his head with the barrel. “Okay. Where to, then?”
“I still have things at Cynthia’s. We’ll go there,” I said, taking in a deep breath. Luckily, Cynthia was consistently busy with charities, so she would be out and about more often than not.
“You’ll go there,” Jared said.
My mouth fell open. “I’m not going anywhere without you. You told me once you couldn’t go back to that, again. What happened to that?”
“It’s not my first choice, I assure you,” he said, an uncomfortable grin twisting his mouth.
“It’s my house, Jared. You’re coming,” I said. I looked at Bex, then. “And there’s a room for you, too.”
“I have a room, thanks,” Bex said.
“Nina,” Jared began.
I held up my hand. “If you make me go to that house alone, I will spend all of my time in Jack’s office. I'll move my bed in there. I swear to God.”
Jared had once told me that Jack's office was the only room in my parents' home that wasn't wired with microphones or cameras. Jared could still hear me, of course, but having to guess what I was doing drove him crazy.
Jared smiled. “Don’t swear at Him. We need Him on our side.”
I frowned. “You know what I mean.”
He sighed. “Cynthia’s it is, then.”
Chapter Nine
Killing the Messenger
Nothing goes as planned. People say goodbye. Buildings burn, and the impossibility of moving back in with Cynthia Grey after the age of eighteen can actually happen.
As I stood before the colossal home my father left to me after his death, I felt a bit nauseous at the prospect of walking its halls everyday again. Some of my best and worst memories happened within those walls: Jack chasing me down the halls, cooking my first meal, my father dying before my eyes, and everything I thought he was slipping away as I read a hidden file on the second floor.