Discovery (6 page)

“In your dreams, little brother,” Andrew yelled to them from the other side of the net.

Annie skipped over to side up with Andrew and was already in full flirt mode. Luckily for Annie, Andrew was no dummy and obviously receptive to her advances. He placed his large arm around her tiny waist and guided her to her place on the court near the net before he headed to the back line to receive the first serve. He crouched down into his tennis stance, racquet ready.

“Bring it on!” Annie yelled to Gregory before smiling back at Andrew. She bent slightly at the waist preparing to receive Gregory's serve. Grace knew Annie had not forgotten her choice of underwear. Her stance was simply enhancing Andrew's view.

Gregory looked over at Grace and his green eyes blindingly twinkled. “Come on. We can take them.”

Grace smiled and followed him onto the court. Even though she was absolutely positive she was getting ready to make a total fool of herself, she again felt unnaturally calm, as if someone had placed a protective blanket around her nerves.

Gregory aced every serve of the first game so Grace simply walked from one side of the court to the other side until their score reflected an official win. With Gregory's expertise on the court, Grace would not have to worry about the no-sweat rule in her tennis outfit. As Gregory had said, all she had to do was stand there and smile. Her hands started tingling in the middle of the third game but Grace bent down and pretended to tie her shoe until the feeling subsided. It passed quickly and Grace was grateful this episode was brief.

The serves went back and forth with Gregory and Grace winning almost every game. They were in their last game of the first set when Grace spotted Ben lurking behind an old oak tree near the court fence. His hands were shoved deep down into his jeans pockets and his face scowled as he watched the foursome play. When Grace's eyes met his, Ben quickly looked away toward Annie, but he did not otherwise move. He stayed behind that tree, watching the two couples out on the tennis court without saying a word to any of them.

Grace had hoped they could finish their set without anyone else seeing Ben spying but she soon realized it was too late for that. Gregory was getting ready to serve when he caught Grace looking over at the tree. His eyes followed hers and the minute he saw Ben, Gregory threw down his racquet and started to cross the court toward him.

“What
is
your problem, dude?” Gregory exclaimed.

Ben did not say a word. He just continued to stand there with his hands in his pockets.

“Hey! I'm talking to you!” Gregory's pace quickened across the court.

“Gregory, just don't pay any attention to Ben. Let's finish our set and then go get something to drink,” Grace said trying to diffuse Gregory's ire.

For the first time since meeting her, Gregory completely ignored Grace and walked right past her, his eyes focused on Ben and the tree.

Still, Ben did not move.

By this time, Andrew had caught up with Gregory and both brothers seemed intent on reaching the tree before Ben could get away. Annie glared at Ben and rushed around the net to stand near Grace. She was clearly not happy that Ben had interrupted their tennis game.

“I said I'm talking to you. Are you deaf?” Gregory yelled at Ben.

Ben did not say a word. His eyes just moved back and forth from the boys to Grace and Annie.

“Fine. You're not talking! I'll make you talk,” Gregory jerked the tennis racquet out of Andrew's hand. “Why don't you just get out of here?” He swung the racquet back and threw it directly at Ben and the tree.

But the racquet did not hit Ben or the tree.

Instead, the racquet slammed into the side of a large Range Rover sitting over fifty yards away in a parking lot on the other side of the Clubhouse. The force of Gregory's throw buried the steel racquet six inches deep into the Rover's thick metal, ripping a large gash in the front passenger door. The racquet now stuck out of the vehicle's side like a toothpick in an appetizer meatball.

Ben just stood at the tree, glaring at Gregory.

“How did you do that?” Grace came up behind Gregory. “How did you throw that racquet so far? And how could it rip into the side of that car?” She stood directly in front of Gregory, dumbfounded at his ability to violate the basic laws of physics.

Gregory's eyes widened at the site of the racquet stuck in the Range Rover. “I guess your friend Ben acting all weird like that pumped up my adrenaline.” He looked over at his brother and then back toward Ben who had now disappeared from view.

“Well, he's gone now so how about that drink you mentioned, Grace?” Andrew asked as he herded the group toward the gate in the fence. “It'll be our treat, girls.”

“Sure.” Annie put her arm through Andrew's and made her claim on him official.

Grace did not respond. She was still reeling. First Ben's strange behavior this afternoon in the dining room and now Gregory seemed to have a superhuman ability to turn tennis racquets into hacksaws. The boys in her life were driving her crazy.

But her craziness did not last long. Out of nowhere, Grace had that same unnaturally relaxed feeling she had earlier. Her nerves' protective blanket fell over her again just as Gregory's arm fell across her shoulders.

“Do you mind?” he asked nodding to his arm, his face so close she could feel his breath on her cheek. His eyes that were previously so angry with Ben had transformed back into the green twinkles that melted Grace's brain.

“No, not at all.” Grace smiled and nuzzled her head in the crook of his neck just as they reached the tennis gate. Her thoughts of Ben and the tennis racquet had already melted away with her brain.

• • •

“Answer me!” Ben was hidden in a cluster of pine trees near the Club's fourteenth green. “Have I been replaced?” Ben tried not to grip his cell phone too hard for fear of breaking the contraption in two.

“No.” Tom's voice boomed over his cell phone. “What are you talking about?”

“I just need to know. Would the Council replace me as Grace's Guardian without me knowing?” Ben nervously paced from one pine tree to the next, knowing his speed prevented anyone from seeing him in this state. His heart pounded so hard it hurt.

“Of course not. You're her Guardian. You're the only one in charge of Grace's protection team right now.”

“Well then, they're here,” Ben sighed in resignation. He stopped pacing to rub his temples. “Tell the Council to get ready because the Anti-Powers are definitely here and they're close to Grace. Real close.”

Grace burst into Ben's apartment like a hurricane. “We need to talk.” She pointed directly at Ben and threw her large purse on the floor with a thud.

Tom placed the book he was reading on the coffee table and slowly stood up from the couch. “Hey, Gracie. Good to see you too.” He nodded to her and then glanced over at his brother. “I was just leaving anyway.” Tom grabbed his car keys and exited the front door without waiting for a response from either of them.

Ben sat up straighter in the recliner where he had been napping only a few seconds earlier and took a deep breath. “Look, Gracie — ”

“Don't you ‘look Gracie' me.” Her eyes glared. “What
is
your problem lately?”

Ben should have seen Hurricane Grace coming. He had not taken any of Grace's calls after the tennis court incident so he knew she had been stewing for a couple of days. Apparently, she was now up to a full–blown boil. She stood in the middle of the apartment's small living room with both hands on her waist and her feet firmly planted in the worn shag carpet.

By the looks of her stance, Ben could tell he was in for a long afternoon.

“I don't have a problem. I … I'm just not too crazy about those Reich brothers, that's all.” Ben nervously fidgeted with a hole in the recliner's upholstery, diverting his eyes away from Grace's glare.

“Why? What business is it of yours who I date?”

Ben's focus immediately flipped back to Grace. He bolted up from the recliner, his voice cracking with incredulousness, “So now you are
dating
him?” His heart beat faster as each word left his lips.

Grace did not answer. The two friends silently stood in the middle of the living room, eyes locked on each other as if they were muted strangers. Neither moved. They were at an impasse and did not even know it.

Finally, Grace broke the awkward silence. “Dating. Hanging out. Whatever it is that Gregory and I are doing. You still have no right to act the way you're acting. I mean, what was with you at the tennis courts the other day? You looked like some creepy stalker standing there behind that stupid tree. And why haven't you returned any of my calls?”

Ben took another deep breath and stepped toward her. His eyes never left her face. He desperately wanted to put his arms around her and protect her from everything he knew was coming. From the hurt she would experience soon. From the truth that would overshadow all the anger she was feeling right now. He wanted so much to be the one to tell her everything. To tell her of her destiny, of her true place in this world.

To tell her how he really felt about her.

But to tell her all that would risk the Council taking Grace away from him forever.

And that was the one thing he could not let happen.

So he just stood there and said, “I'm sorry.”

“You're sorry?”

“Yeah. I'm sorry.”

“That's all you have to say after the way you've been acting?”

“I'm not sure what else I can say other than … I'm sorry.” Ben's cracking voice almost sounded like a whisper now and he tried to focus on the carpet below in order to escape Grace's eyes. Her big, blue, beautifully intense eyes.

Grace seemed to soften a little at the tone of Ben's voice. She sighed and relaxed her arms down at her side. “Are you going to explain why you've been so crazy?” she asked, now slightly calmer than before.

“No. I can't … I mean I … I don't know.” Ben finally looked up at her. “Can't we just agree to disagree on that Gregory guy?”

“Will you promise to behave in front of ‘that Gregory guy' from now on?”

“Maybe.” Ben did not know how to answer that one.

“Well, can you at least try?” Grace stepped closer to him. “Look. For the first time in a long time I really like a guy. I mean
really
like him. But you are my best friend and I kind of need to keep you around too.” Grace reached over and closed up the now small space between them with a hug, flinging her arms carelessly around his neck. “I hate it when we fight,” she whispered in his ear, “so you stop acting crazy and I'll stop getting mad at you and then we won't fight anymore. Okay?”

Knowing her lips were close, almost touching him, Ben lost his train of thought. He shouldn't be this close to her. As he reluctantly leaned out of Grace's embrace, their faces brushed against each other and he could feel her warm breath on his cheek. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, savoring her familiar scent before he finally stepped out of her arms completely. He looked down into her eyes again and knew what he had to do. “I'll try,” was all he said.

Grace smiled up at him. “Thanks. I really think once you get to know Gregory, you'll like him.” She leaned over to pick her purse up off the floor. “Okay. Now that we have that settled, let's go eat.”

Ben looked at Grace and shook his head. One minute she was full of fire and brimstone, the next minute painfully self-conscious, and then the next minute playful and ready for her next social engagement. Her mood swings would drive anyone crazy.

But sometimes Ben liked feeling a little crazy.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“
We're
going to the Cavern Café to meet Annie.” Grace began pushing Ben out the front door. “It's Wing Night and I'm in the mood for something spicy.”

“Of course you are.” Ben smiled and turned to lock the door of his apartment. “Is Gregory going to be there?” he asked with his back still to Grace.

“No. He has some meeting with his father.” Grace stopped in her tracks and turned around to face Ben who was now walking toward her. “But so what if he was going to be there. That's not going to be a problem now, remember?”

“Just getting myself prepared. I need to take baby steps with this guy. Okay?”

“Okay. Baby steps. But you won't have to start tonight. Tonight it will just be the Three Amigos. I promise.” Grace took Ben's hand and pulled him toward her car. But she didn't have to pull too hard.

• • •

“Well, boys. What do you think?” Jamison Reich sat behind his massive antique mahogany desk, the fingertips of each hand pressed together in contemplative habit. He looked at his sons seated in front of him with a mixture of pride and impatience. “Do you think you made a mistake? Answer me that one question.” He enunciated each word with razor-sharp precision.

Neither son replied. Both stared at the floor, avoiding their father's glare. Mr. Reich knew they weren't ignoring him. They were just too afraid to speak.

But Jamison Reich did not accept fear from his sons.

“I … said … answer … me!” Mr. Reich bellowed and slammed his fist on the desk. The entire room shook with his words and several books actually flew off the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves that covered the walls of the large room.

The stereotypical wooden paneling and shelving found in the classic lawyer's office surrounded Mr. Reich's study. This abundance of wood was a good thing considering one of his many powers was the ability to maneuver metal with his mind. A power he found difficult to control when he was angry. The few items in the study that did contain metal met Mr. Reich's wrath that afternoon and melted quickly as his frustration filled the room. Staples, paperclips, misplaced knick-knacks, all distorted into little, individual liquid messes throughout the study. Before the boys could answer their father, the stench of burnt metal flavored the air and Mr. Reich's anger escalated even more.