Gods and Mortals: Fourteen Free Urban Fantasy & Paranormal Novels Featuring Thor, Loki, Greek Gods, Native American Spirits, Vampires, Werewolves, & More (204 page)

“I don’t know, Uriah. You might be right, but you might not,” Cole said. “You may want to think about that.”

“I don’t want to think about it, Cole.” I couldn’t think about it. If I thought about actually losing Claire, I might not think about anything else. Facing the possibility that I could lose Claire forever froze me.

“I know you don’t,” Cole said. After that he was quiet. Most likely he still had more questions, I certainly did, but what I had already told him would take some time to comprehend. I was glad for the break in the conversation. I pushed all my thoughts away and looked out at the desert.

The four lane highway wound through sand, the scenery changing little except for the piñon and juniper trees that slowly gave way to the solitary saguaro cactus. I watched the sandy wilderness for signs of the animals my mountain lion friend had promised would be watching over us. The landscape was so flat and open, spying a few animals should have been easy. I only caught brief glimpses of movement, though. Once I thought I saw a large, dark shape out of the corner of my eye, racing from cactus to cactus. When I shifted, hoping for a better look, it was gone.

A tingling sense of being watched persisted even after I gave up trying to see the culprit. A few small birds and skittish rabbits were the only signs of life I saw after that. The four hours drug on slowly, and mostly in silence. Cole knew what his father was like, but like me, he must have been shocked at what his father had done to his own child. I left him to his thoughts, grateful for the chance to think in peace.

As the rolling Santa Catalina Mountains began to rise in the distance, sweat that had nothing to do with the heat broke out all over my body. Tucson. This was where my Claire would have been stolen away from me one day. Now I came to this place willingly, seeking the man that would destroy my future. For the millionth time, I wondered whether I could really go through with this. Every time I faltered, remembering Claire’s body collapsing onto the couch renewed my determination. Any amount of pain would be worth saving her life.

T
he low profile
of the Tucson skyline grew quickly. The traffic picked up considerably as we neared the city. Moving up beside Cole, I watched the other drivers anxiously. The swerving and honking was a new experience for me, one I did not particularly enjoy. Cars of every make and model swarmed around me, some passing within a few feet of my bike. My hands gripped the handle bars more tightly with each passing vehicle. For all Cole’s supposed knowledge of the world outside San Juan Pueblo, his face was tight and his knuckles were pale.

I spotted a tall sign belonging to a Conoco gas station, and said, “Let’s get off the road.” Squeezing between two sedans, we barely made it into the turning lane before it ended. The large metal awning provided a welcome break from the sun’s searing rays. Cole rolled up to a gas pump and swung stiffly off the bike. Sidling up next to him, I took my helmet off and waited for him to finish.

“So, what’s the plan exactly, Uriah?” Cole asked.

I had been dreading that question. So far the only plan I had come up with involved using the strand of hair Quaile had given me, and that was one thing I never wanted to touch again. But even with that plan, I still had to find Claire’s Twin Soul first, and I had no idea how to do that yet.

“Uriah? Are we going to wander around aimlessly, asking guys if they’re Claire’s Twin Soul, or what? Somehow I don’t think that will work out very well,” Cole said. Ripping the pump handle out of his gas tank, Cole shoved it at me with an irritated grimace. I tried to remind myself that he was scared for his sister just like I was.

“All Quaile could tell me was that the guy’s name is Daniel, and at some point in her life Claire would meet him here in Tucson,” I said. His expression changed from irritation to confusion.

“Daniel what?” he asked. I said nothing. “You mean you don’t even know his last name? How exactly are we supposed to find one guy named Daniel in a city this size? We don’t even know if he’s in Tucson right now.”

“I know, Cole. Okay? I know it’s not much to go on, but we have to find him, somehow.” Silently, I cursed Quaile. She was the one who put this chain of events in motion, her and her visions. Now when I needed her most, the information dried up except for a few random details. The cougar had been more helpful.

“Well they’ve got to be close to the same age, right? Maybe we can start there. There should be records we can look at, birth records and stuff like that,” Cole said to himself. He began pacing next to his bike.

“Wait, why do they have to be the same age?” I asked. Cole stared at me, his eyebrows raised in disbelief.

“They’re supposed to be Twin Souls, right?” Cole said. I nodded. “Well, then, they would have been born within a few days of each other.”

“How do you know that?” He spoke as if this was common knowledge, but if it was, why would anyone have thought Claire and I could have been Twin Souls. I was eight months older than her.

“I get bored at my dad’s store a lot. He’s got a case full of really old books about the pueblo, and Tewa mythology. Sometimes I read them,” he said shuffling one foot back and forth.

Finally, at least one thing seemed to be going in my favor. Fate had never been given a place in my thoughts before, but I could definitely believe it was no coincidence Cole ended up tagging along with me. “Well, what else did you read about Twin Souls?”

Happy to know something I didn’t, Cole tried to keep the stupid grin off his face as he continued, sounding like he was reciting an old book report. “A soul is made up of two parts, the male half and the female half. In the spirit world the two halves reside together, completing each other, but human bodies can’t contain the true soul. Before birth, the two halves of the soul separate so they can gain a body. It doesn’t matter which half of the soul leaves first, the other can’t stand to stay behind for very long. Their human forms are born very close together, sometimes within minutes of each other.

“Twin Souls long for their other half, but very few find each other again. Twin Souls only need to come within a few feet of each other to recognize their missing half. Once the connection is made, it’s impossible to break it,” Cole said. Watching my reaction to his last statement carefully, he continued. “We may save her, but she’ll never love you again, Uriah.”

“I know that’s a possibility,” I said, “but I’m not giving up hope, yet.”

“You may have to give her up. Can you do that?”

“I’ll do whatever it takes to save Claire’s life, regardless of what might happen afterward,” I said. The look on Cole’s face was grateful, as if he had been wondering whether I would abandon his sister just to avoid giving her to another man. I would have hoped he held a higher opinion of me than that. Although, I had to admit that I’d had the same thoughts about myself several times.

I believed Quaile and Cole, but I had no intention of letting the connection form. I still had no idea about how to accomplish this, but I was determined to find a way. “What were you saying about records before?”

“Oh, yeah. Well, we should be able to go to the city or state offices and look up the birth records for the hospitals around here. If we can find a guy named Daniel who was born close to when Claire was, it will give us a good place to start at least,” Cole said.

“If he’s only seventeen and he was born here, there’s a good chance he might still live here,” I said hopefully.

“I hope so, Uriah, but I doubt Tucson is much like San Juan. People live in San Juan their whole lives. Before the casino, it was a big deal to have a new family move in. Tucson has hundreds of thousands of families that probably move in and out all the time,” Cole said. “He may not have even been born here. Maybe he was just here on vacation when they met.”

I frowned at Cole’s pessimism. “We both know it’s a long shot, but right now it’s all we have. If we can’t find anything in the birth records, we’ll just have to come up with another idea. We’ll deal with that when the time comes, okay? Just focus on the birth records for now.”

Cole nodded in agreement.

I noticed that the gas had stopped pumping a while ago and handed the pump handle back to Cole. I hadn’t realized that he had already paid for the fuel until he tore the receipt from beneath the pump monitor. “Uh, thanks,” I said gesturing at the pump.

“No problem,” Cole said with a smirk. “My dad pays the bill on this card. It’s the least he can do. And I mean the least.”

I couldn’t disagree with that. “So where do we find these records?”

“I don’t know. There’s a phone book over there. It should list the government offices.” Cole rolled his bike toward the convenience store. Following quickly, I felt the faint stirrings of hope in my heart.

Cole picked up the worn and graffiti-covered phone book, flipping through it until he found the blue pages of the government listings. Scanning the pages, he read the office names aloud. Neither of us was sure which office would be in charge of birth certificates, but we ruled out all the city offices and moved onto the county. The list was considerably longer but most of the offices were still in Tucson.

“Vital Records Office,” Cole said hopefully.

Vital records. Vital signs. It sounded better than anything else we had seen. “Where is it?” I asked.

“3950 S. Country Club Road Ste. 100,” Cole said, “here in Tucson.”

“Do you have any idea where Country Club road is,” I asked. Cole shook head. This was his first trip to Tucson as well.

“I’ll go ask the cashier,” he said. “You should call home. You’ll have to use the pay phone, though. I, uh, accidently ran over my cell phone last week and I haven’t gotten my new one yet. If my mom asks about me, do me a favor and tell her you begged me to come with you.”

“Yeah right,” I said with a smirk. I was not about to lie to Sarah. Cole would have to take care of his own messes. Digging some change out of my jeans pocket, I deposited them in the machine. The call was answered on the first ring.

“Uriah?” my mother asked hopefully.

“Yeah, Mom, it’s me. How’s Claire?”

“The same,” she replied. “She hasn’t moved or woken up. Sophia says she’s all right for now, but the longer she has to wait, the more intense the Shaxoa’s potion will become. She’ll start fading more quickly as time goes by.”

Fading more quickly? Was she fading now? I wanted every detail, but I feared I already knew the answer. Knowing there was no time to waste was hard enough to accept. Hearing the exact details of what the potion was doing to her would only make me want to be by her side even more.

“Sophia and Quaile are doing everything they can think of for her,” my mom said. Her voice was tired and emotional. She wanted nothing more than to make sure I was happy. I knew she was terrified that I would lose Claire and most likely myself in the process. I was determined that wouldn’t happen.

“We’re in Tucson now, me and Cole,” I said. “We’re heading to the Vital Records office to see if we can find out if he was born here, and where he lives now.” We both knew who he was, so there was no reason for me to speak the name.

“Good luck, Uriah. I’m sure you’ll find something there and be home soon,” she said. Her voice echoed my own mixed emotions. The pity was almost unbearable. How much more could she handle. The death of my father almost broke her. The mountain lion attack, and now Claire, was just more than one person should be asked to bear. In all reality, I had handled every tragedy with much less dignity than my mom. I knew that while my mom would weather whatever trials she faced, I was starting to lose my grip. Without Claire, I might not be able to hold on.

“How are you doing, Mom?” I asked. Everything with Claire had nearly pushed my concern for her out of my mind.

“Oh, I’m fine. Don’t you worry about me. Sophia is taking good care of me. You just focus on getting back here as quick as you can.” The sniff that followed her fierce words let slip how much she was hurting.

“I will. I’ll call you when we learn something new,” I said. She whispered a quick “I love you” before saying goodbye and hanging up the phone. I stood for several seconds with the dead phone to my ear. If I moved, my emotions would break loose, and I wasn’t sure I would be able to get them under control again. Slowly, I hung the phone back on the receiver. Focusing on the task ahead, I grasped for control. By the time Cole emerged from the store I was back to my precarious balance.

“
C
an I help you
?” Her sarcastic southern drawl was the perfect complement to her unenthusiastic expression. She couldn’t even be bothered to look me in the eye. Her gaze wandered from her fingernails to the small television mounted in the corner of the room. Cole rolled his eyes.

“Yes, thank you,” I said politely.

Her gaze leveled in my direction. She must have mistaken my tone for mockery, and scowled her disapproval. She was hardly qualified to be the manners police.

“Yeah, so what do you want?” she asked.

“I need to find a birth certificate for someone. Do you know how I can get that information?”

The girl’s scowl deepened briefly before mellowing out into semi-polite expression. Her manicured nails flicked a sheet of bright yellow paper off the top of a stack and set it on the counter. “Fill this out, and I’ll need to see two forms of I.D. proving that you’re related to the person you’re requesting the birth certificate for, as well as ten dollars. It will take about a month, or more,” she said, “before the request is processed. Then we’ll mail it to your address.”

The rambling set of instructions had tumbled out so quickly that I was still stuck on the I.D.’s she had mentioned. “Wait, we have to prove we’re related to the person? Why?”

The receptionist’s look took on a haughty overtone. “The state of Arizona respects the privacy of its citizens. We are a closed records state,” she said.

“There’s no way we can just look through the records?” Cole asked. “Don’t you guys have everything backed up on a computer somewhere? It would probably take a couple seconds to find what we need.”

“Yeah, that’s funny kid,” the girl said a little more seriously than before. “I’d get fired for even letting you near the records room. And I really need this job. I can’t help you.”

As if to emphasize her point, she shrugged an apology and spun her chair away from us. Cole looked at me and motioned to the girl, his eyes indicating I should do something. That he automatically assumed I had been able to convince his dad to let Claire and I get married gave a good idea of what he wanted me to do. I pulled Cole away from the counter before what he was suggesting had a chance to slip out.

“No way,” I whispered. Letting go of his arm, I continued down the hallway. Cole stood for a moment, wanting to turn back, but not quite brash enough to actually do it. His harried footsteps followed me.

“Why can’t you just convince her to let us see the records?” he asked.

I knew I could, and I wanted to. I couldn’t bring myself to walk back over there. “Because she’ll get fired. I don’t want to do that to her unless I absolutely have to. We’ll have to try to find a different way first.”

“What if we can’t get in? How else are we supposed to find out who this Daniel guy is?” Cole said. Despair was thick in his voice. “I mean, the hospitals would keep records of all the births, but we’d have to search each one individually. That will take weeks, if they’d even let us look through their records. Those are probably protected too.”

I realized he was merely talking to himself, working through ideas. We didn’t have the time to search all of Tucson’s hospitals, and Cole was probably right about those records being protected as well. “We’re running out of time,” I said. “Claire won’t live long enough for us to search through that many records.”

The plain brown sign with white lettering stuck out from the drab, grey wall just a few doors down. Birth Certificates. I wondered how many people worked in the building. The hallway was lined with cramped little offices, the doors shut tightly. The door under the sign was the only one standing ajar. For all the talk of privacy I would have expected the door to be locked. Cole was staring at the door as well. His eyes flitted up and down the hall.

“Do you suppose anyone is in there?” Cole asked.

“I don’t know, maybe.” The hallway was empty, but all it would take was one person wandering by to catch us. I was well aware that if we were caught, the police would be called immediately. I couldn’t afford to be arrested right now. My stomach suddenly growled, giving me an idea. “It’s almost lunch time,” I said, “and I doubt anyone here will be working through lunch.”

Cole scoffed. “Certainly not Miss High and Mighty at the front desk.”

“I bet no one will notice us hanging around, and once things quiet down for lunch, we can sneak in. Hopefully the records are organized by date. We should be able to get in and out before anyone notices.”

Cole nodded eagerly.

“There’s no need to go breaking the law, boys,” a soothing voice whispered behind us.

Cole gasped, turning to face the voice with wide eyes and a question on his face.

A strange compulsion to trust the voice flooded my senses. The feeling felt vaguely familiar. It almost felt like the sensations from the mountain lion, but vastly different as well. The mountain lion had been sharing information, while this felt very one sided. Despite the enticing quality of his voice, I knew immediately that this man was not a friend. Wary of his intentions, I turned to face him.

“Excuse me?” I asked, feigning ignorance.

“Sorry,” the man said, his angelic appearance drawing me to him. “I couldn’t help but overhear you.”

I was sure there had been no one near us a few seconds earlier. I couldn’t help but glance around. The man mimicked my movement. “I don’t think anyone else heard.”

“What do you want?” I asked. I glanced at Cole, hoping he was ready to run if the need arose. I was startled to see such an adoring expression plastered across his face. He couldn’t take his eyes off the stranger. Cole looked ready and willing to fulfill any request the man might make. My searing glare went completely unnoticed.

“I want to help you,” the man said. Cole nodded appreciatively. I had to restrain myself from knocking some sense into him.

“My name is Darren Johnson,” the man continued. He extended his hand in friendship, or at least he meant it to be in friendship. I could feel the threat underlying his smile. I stared at his hand. His nails were perfectly manicured, his skin flawless. Cole jumped to shake his hand vigorously while I folded my arms across my chest.

“Why?” I asked.

“I know how this office works. I work here,” he said with a laugh. “It takes forever to get even the simplest thing done, and it sounds like you two don’t have forever.”

“My sister’s in trouble,” Cole blurted out. “We need to find the guy that can help her.”

Now I did punch him, but only in the arm. “Shut it, Cole.”

I stalked closer to Darren Johnson. There was something wrong with this man. He was too perfect. Every hair on his head lay in perfect order. Not a single freckle, mole, or wrinkle graced his skin. Even the simple work attire he wore seemed way too good for this office. “Why would you want to help us?”

“I can assure you, I won’t tell anyone,” he promised. “I heard you say that the young lady didn’t have very much time.”

Cole nodded, obviously pleased with the man’s offer. I shoved my idiot companion behind me and stood blocking his view of the stranger. I wondered how he could not feel the evil pulse emanating from Darren Johnson, who no more worked for the office of Vital Records than I did. Still, I thought, if he could get us the information we needed, it might be worth whatever trouble he was brewing for us.

“No, we don’t have much time,” I said simply. I would offer no more than that, and if Cole opened his mouth again I would gag him with my fist. “We just need to find a birth certificate for someone, so we can figure out where to find him.”

Darren Johnson put his hand on my shoulder casually. His touch burned my skin. Shocked, I pulled away. A streak of irritation flashed across Darren Johnson’s face at my reaction to him. Just as quickly, the pleasant smile returned as if nothing unusual had happened. His pull felt similar, but different from the mountain lion’s, just as the burning touch I felt with him felt similar to touching Claire, but also very different as well. When I touched Claire, it almost felt like she was borrowing a part of me, but I knew I would always get it back. Touching this man felt destructive, like wildfire searing every sprig of green from the land. If he held on too long I feared I would smolder into ash and leave Claire to die alone.

“Just follow me,” the man said. His voice seemed a little tighter than it had before, but I couldn’t tell if that was just my perception or not. Cole, of course, was still staring at the man like a lovesick puppy. He wouldn’t have noticed if I had suddenly burst into flames and ran screaming through the halls. Panic rose in my throat. What was this man doing to Cole? I had no idea whether I could do anything to help him, either.

Darren Johnson put his arm around Cole’s shoulder. The touch seemed to thrill Cole. I didn’t understand why he was having such a different effect on Cole than he was on me. I wished I had the mountain lion by my side again. The mountain lion. He had tried to warn me, showing me the confusing shadow tailing us to Tucson. If this was the same being, we were in serious trouble.

I suddenly realized Cole and Darren Johnson had already started toward the records room. A few quick steps brought me to Cole’s side. A lanky woman with wavy red hair sauntered down the hall, her steaming lunch, hot from the microwave, balanced in her hands. She waved at her coworker with the same adoring smile Cole still wore.

“Good morning, Darren,” she breathed.

“Good morning,” he said with a dignified nod. The woman sighed and continued on her way. Stunned by the exchange, I stared at the man out of the corner of my eye. There was no way he was actually an employee of Pima County. The redhead had greeted him as if she had known and loved him all her life.

“In we go,” Darren Johnson said as if we were casually walking into a café for lunch. His smile sent tiny pinpricks along my arms. He pushed the plain brown door open just far enough for us to slip through.

I was surprised to see the bland, beige room was empty. The stiff commercial carpet ran the length of the room as well as about six inches up the wall. There were plain gray file cabinets galore that looked original to the building, but not a single person. No wonder it took a month to get a birth certificate. Nobody even worked in this room. Cole was ready to jump out of his skin with excitement. I stared at the cabinets, wondering if I was walking into a trap.

“So,” Darren Johnson said, “where would you like to start? The records are organized by year. I assume you have a specific name in mind as well.”

Cole opened his mouth, eager to offer the last bits of information he held. Pushing him away, I spoke up quickly. “We’d rather keep that information to ourselves, if you don’t mind.”

Darren Johnson’s mouth pulled into a thin line, briefly. “Of course, deniability and all that. I’ll just keep an eye on the door, then.”

“Thanks,” I said. My eyes did not leave him until he was firmly planted next to the door, his back to the files. “Start over there, Cole,” I ordered.

Cole suddenly seemed very confused. Glancing at our sentry, Cole grabbed my arm. “Who is that guy?”

My jaw unhinged. “What do you mean? You've been fawning over him since he walked up to us.”

An incredulous looked settled on Cole’s face. “Fawning? What are you talking about?”

I pulled Cole close to me, my voice lowering to a whisper. “You don’t remember him walking up to us, saying that he wanted to help us?” Cole shook his head. I clenched my jaw to suppress my frustration. “Just stay away from him. And don’t let him touch you.”

Cole opened his mouth with a million questions I had no answers for. Shaking my head, I nodded toward the strange man and held a finger to my lips. Grinding his teeth, Cole nodded and headed off in the direction I had pointed a few seconds earlier.

Darren had been right about the files being organized by year. I paid Cole as much attention as I could spare, hoping Darren Johnson hadn’t noticed his charm had worn off his new buddy. If he was paying attention to Cole, maybe he wouldn’t notice what I was doing. Searching the cabinet’s labels, I quickly found the right year. That year alone was repeated over three large filing cabinets. I groaned inwardly and tugged open the first squeaking drawer.

I found several Daniels, but none with the right birth date. I pulled open a second drawer. Realizing the files only covered the month of February, I closed the drawer and skimmed through the records until October births started to appear two cabinets over. Claire’s birthday was October eighteenth. If Cole was right, there should be a Daniel born within days of the eighteenth.

The quiet squeal of the door pulled my eyes away from the files. I watched Darren Johnson. His eyes had wandered to Cole, pulling him away from the door a little. At least I knew now that Cole was only affected by the man’s charm if he was close to him. That was the main reason I had sent Cole to the other side of the room. He had already given away too much information to the stranger. Cole would know nothing of what I found until we were well away from Darren Johnson. If we could get away.

Diving back into the files, I searched for Daniel. I was beginning to worry that he wouldn’t be in the records. It was possible he had simply been visiting Tucson on vacation when Quaile saw him meeting Claire, just as Cole had said. I had no idea how to find him if searching the records didn’t work. If Quaile had only been able to give me a last name, my search would have been much easier. With a last name I probably could have simply found him by Googling his name on the internet. Pushing away thoughts of what I didn’t have, I focused on the files.

Alonzo Sandoval, born October eighteenth. Conrad White, born October eighteenth. Daniel Harding, born October eighteenth, two forty-five a.m., at St. Joseph’s Hospital to Henry and Adelaide Harding.