Discern (23 page)

“That doesn’t make any sense.”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“He isn’t a bad person. He has pretty much kept me sane and safe,” I sighed.

“No he isn’t a bad PERSON at all,” he said, exaggerating his words.

It was obvious that Mr. Mitchell was aware of what Andrew was. “Are we done?”

“For now, but you should really keep your distance from Mr. Alexander. I’d hate to alarm your father,” he threatened.

“My father doesn’t think highly of your family at this moment.”

“Haley, my son’s actions have nothing to do with my visit. Please take my warning seriously, or I’ll take certain measures to ensure you do,” he threatened once more.

“Don’t make threats that will put you in danger,” I warned.

The sound of a ringing phone interrupted our stand off. “I have to take this, please don’t leave,” he said, flipping open his phone and motioning for me stay put.

“I know, but I won’t budge on this. She isn’t an option for him. She’s practically like a daughter to me,” he said angrily.

It was apparent the conversation was about Andrew and me. I stood there shaking my head. No one was going to stop me from seeing him. I had spent too much time pushing him away, and now my feelings were too strong to deny. Nothing would come between us.

“There isn’t anything to talk about. No, I won’t allow it. Fine, I’ll be there in a few minutes,” he said, slamming his phone shut.

“I have to go, but you must promise me that you’ll stay away,” he begged.

“I told you I wouldn’t do that,” I reminded.

“Haley, I’ll do everything in my power to prevent this from happening,” he warned. “Don’t test me.”

The squeal of his tires sent my hands flying to cover my ears. Standing there alone made the uncertainty of the situation worse. The ache of my heart would not allow patience with this situation—I knew what I had to do.

11

Espionage

I drove as fast as I could without alarming any patrolling cops. My thoughts raced. I had nothing actually planned out. I was running off pure emotion. Rolling down the dark street I noticed Mr. Mitchell’s truck and another vehicle outside of Andrew’s house. The car had the appearance of an unmarked police car. After parking my car about a quarter-mile away from Andrew’s house, I started walking, still undecided of what actions to take. The cool breeze whipped against my face as the leaves on the trees rustled above.

 
As I crept closer to the house, I noticed the garage door was open and Andrew’s car was parked inside. I bent down and crawled below the front windows and slid inside the garage. I could hear the sound of a few voices. I could make out Andrew’s and Mr. Mitchell’s, but the other voice was foreign.

It was difficult to discern their location. I was guessing—and hoping—they were in the living room upstairs. If this was true, I could easily sneak in to his guest bathroom—which was located right on the other side of the entry door from the garage—without being seen.

I slowly turned the knob and quietly pushed the door open. I stood still, gauging their location. The coast was clear. I could now make out where the voices were coming from. I darted into the bathroom.

I tiptoed to the farthest wall and sat down, crossing my legs on the cold, linoleum floor in the completely dark bathroom. Their conversation was crystal clear.

“Mr. Mitchell you need to leave. This isn’t your territory and you haven’t been involved in this operation for several years,” the unfamiliar man’s voice insisted.

“I’m not going until he agrees to sever all ties with her,” Mr. Mitchell threatened.

“Not an option,” Andrew replied sharply.

“She’s too innocent in all this. I don’t know what you have up your sleeve, but with your kind, it’s never good,” Mr. Mitchell snapped.

“You need to stay out of this,” Andrew snarled.

“Mitchell, please stop this before you say something you’ll regret. You can’t dictate whom he dates. Just go, and I’ll handle it,” the man spoke again.

“Ted, she means too much to me, and he’ll end up hurting her or possibly worse,” Mr. Mitchell begged.

“I would never hurt her. You and your son are the last ones that should be worrying about someone else hurting her. Your son already did a hell of job,” Andrew said.

“You know nothing of their relationship,” Mr. Mitchell gritted his teeth.

“I’ve seen first hand all of the pain your son has caused. I’m here now and can take all of that away,” Andrew assured.

“Yeah, by killing her,” Mr. Mitchell snapped.

“I would never lay a hand on her, but you and your son—I could definitely kill,” Andrew threatened.

“Mitchell, go now!” Ted shouted.

“Fine, but I don’t care if he threatens to kill me. He’s going to have to kill me if he thinks that I’ll ever let him hurt my son or Haley,” Mr. Mitchell warned.

“Test me,” Andrew scathed.

I heard footsteps trailing off and then a door slam. Mr. Mitchell was gone.

“How are we going to handle this, Ted?” Andrew’s voice was flat.

“I’d normally ask you to discontinue seeing her, but I don’t believe I have a choice in the matter,” Ted explained.

“I’m glad you understand, but I believe they’re forgetting who’s in charge,” Andrew reminded. “And you need see to it that they do understand this or there will be consequences.”

“I’ll make sure they are all reminded of this, but may I ask one question?”

“Go ahead,” Andrew said irked.

“You can have any woman you want, why this one?”

“I’m not at liberty to explain.”

“She’s a well known local, and we need to maintain a level of anonymity. Her ties with the Mitchells are only one of the issues,” Ted noted.

“She doesn’t know anything, and she never will,” Andrew promised.

“If she does become a little suspicious, she’ll start asking questions.”

 
“I’ll handle her. She is no longer a concern for any of you,” Andrew said sternly. “Understand?”

“Yes, Mr. Alexander,” Ted’s voice quivered.

“And remember, this mustn’t get mentioned to Alec, or there’ll be hell to pay. Not only for the one who speaks of it, but for the one who didn’t stop it from happening,” Andrew threatened.

“Message loud and clear,” Ted’s voice cracked.

A set of footsteps headed toward the garage door and quickly exited. I took a deep breath and tried to relax. I still wasn’t sure how I was going to explain my break in or the conversation I had just overheard.

The bathroom light flipped on ending my speculation. Andrew stood glaring down at me. “What the hell are you doing here?” he fumed.

I hid my face in my hands, trying to hide the embarrassment and fear. Tears ran down my face. “I’m so sorry. I promise I won’t say a word.”

He effortlessly pulled me off the floor with one tug. “Haley, what were you thinking?” He now sounded much more worried than upset.

I cleared my throat “I just…just needed to understand.” My eyes slowly searched his face.

The pain in his eyes was evident. “I should’ve reacted differently earlier, but I had to clear things up.” He shook his head and released my arm.

“I know you’re really upset with me. I shouldn’t have snuck into your house, but I h-had to know what was going on.”

“Surprisingly, I’m not upset with your actions,” he said softly.

“I couldn’t imagine not seeing you for days. Those two days before, when I didn’t know where you were, were unbearable, and I couldn’t do it again,” I admitted shamefully.

“To be honest with you, I couldn’t have waited days either. I didn’t want to disappoint you, if there had been more resistance to this situation and time had to pass,” he sighed. “It took all I had to drive away from you in parking lot.”

“Are we in the clear?”

“As clear as we’ll ever be,” he half-smiled.

“That doesn’t sound promising.”

“It’ll be difficult, but I can’t go without seeing you. Thomas Mitchell will just have to deal with our relationship.”

“You won’t really hurt or kill him or Braden, will you?” I asked hesitantly.

“No, but his attempts to control our personal life will not be tolerated. If it comes to a fight, then so be it,” he warned.

I refused to imagine their confrontation—Braden or his father wouldn’t have a chance in hell. “I hope it never comes to that. I don’t think either of them would fair very well.”

“No. They wouldn’t.” His voice was cold.

“I didn’t think so.”

“I wish you would’ve waited for me to tell you properly. I’m sure the conversation you overheard was disturbing.”

“Tell me what?”

“The truth,” he sighed. “I should apologize first for not being honest with you, but…” he stopped as he searched my face.

“I’ve already figured it out.”

“Figured what out?” His forehead furrowed.

“You work for the government.”

“Yes.”

“Why? Do they know what you are?”

“It’s a distraction, just like teaching. They know of some of my abilities and my immortality, but I haven’t elaborated on much of my past.”

“Is this something I cannot speak of either?”

“There isn’t much you can speak about when it concerns me,” he grimaced.

“I understand. It really doesn’t matter.”

“Remember, I can always erase it, if it bothers you,” he reminded.

“No, thanks.” I shook my head. “How well do you know Braden?”

“Not well, but enough to know he isn’t one I’d spend any time with,” he said coldly.

“Did you work with him?”

“For a few weeks.”

“Did he ever mention me?”

“No. He never spoke about anyone. He would always suggest that we go hang out and …” he stopped. “It doesn’t matter what he said or did, I’m just glad I left when I did and had the chance to meet you,” he smiled.

“I didn’t figure he ever mentioned me. I was always an after thought.”

“He wasn’t a good person, and it was no reflection on you.”

“I know,” I murmured. “So what do you do for the government?”

“I can use my abilities to collect information for them secretly,” he answered uneasily.

“So you spy?”

“Yes. Missions that would take days or weeks for mortals only take hours for me.”

“Great,” I muttered. “I’ve never been a big fan of the government, and as you know, I’ve had my doubts about religion and, yet, someone with both affiliations stands here before me,” I smirked.

“I’m not really your type, am I?” he asked, seemingly disappointed.

“I wouldn’t say that.”

“That’s a relief.”

“Why don’t you want your brother, Alec, to know about me?”

“I don’t trust any of my family.” His face was a big enough indicator that this subject was fairly sensitive and should be tread on lightly.

“I see.”

Andrew lightly ran his finger along my cheek. “I didn’t realize you were such a celebrity around here.”

“I’m not.” I rolled my eyes.

“I beg to differ,” he smiled. “There were several men who are very aware of my abilities that had the nerve to come here to check on you.”

“It’s just Braden.”

“Braden doesn’t know about us, and I plan on keeping it that way.”

“Me, too.”

“I have a weird request.”

“Yes?” I asked nervously.

“I don’t want to be apart from you for any amount of time, but I feel a little insecure around you,” he admitted, so humanly.

“Why do you feel that way?”

“I don’t want you to be with me because you fear me or need someone else to place your feelings upon, because you haven’t healed.”

“Oh,” I murmured.

“I want you to go home tonight and sleep on all of this. I want you to take tomorrow to really grasp all of this. Then I’ll call you tomorrow night, and if you still feel the same, then we’ll figure out the rest together.”

I suddenly panicked—afraid that he would disappear, and I would never see him again. “No, I don’t want to leave.”

He smiled. “I love to hear those words, but I want you to really think about this. I don’t want you choosing something like this while thinking irrationally.”

“I’m not irrational.”

“Haley, it’s just one evening,” he said softly.

“It seems like an eternity.”

“I know what an eternity feels like,” he teased.

“Just one night—you promise?” I asked insecurely.

“Yes, one night and one afternoon for you to figure out what you want.”

“But, I already know.”

“Haley, please do this for me,” he begged. “You have much to consider.”