Inescapable (The Premonition Series) (31 page)

“Russell I can’t…” I say, rising to my elbows.

He interrupts me, saying in a serious tone, “Ya know, I’ve thought a lot about the first night we were here at the lake together.” He is not looking at me, but out at the tranquil water. “I always wonder what would’ve happened if I’d kissed ya then, before Reed had shown up. If I’d kissed ya, would ya have been less wrapped up in him?” he asks me rhetorically, while pulling his hand through his tawny hair. Then, he looks at me with his warm brown eyes and continues, “I know ya don’t know, but it’s just one thing about all of this that tortures me.”

“I’m sorry, Russell…” I say, wanting to cry.

“Shhh,” he says, picking up my hand and kissing the top of it. “Come on. Don’t let me ruin yer perfectly good war that y’all worked so hard on,” he smiles. He pulls me up and dusts the sand off of me like I am a child. “Red, yer a pretty good shot. I thought ya had me until y’all ran out of ammo.”

“Thanks,” I whisper, still choking on the guilt that hits me twofold now. I feel guilty for betraying Reed and guilty for hurting Russell again.
Does this never end?

Retrieving my gun from where Russell had thrown it, I walk with my head down, so I won’t have to look Russell in the eyes. When we get back to the main part of the beach, the war is all but over. Buns and Brownie are negotiating terms with Remy and a few other Delt officers. It is agreed that the Delts will get the last clue to the composite’s whereabouts tomorrow at their costume party.

Russell squeezes my hand as we near the girls. “I have to find Mason and get a ride back to the dorms with him. I’ll see you tomorrow at breakfast, okay?” he asks with concern clouding his eyes. I nod my head, trying to smile at him, but it falls short. “Don’t worry, Red, everything will work out. Trust me,” he whispers in my ear. His cheek brushes mine when he draws back to smile at me sweetly before jogging away with an easy grace to catch up with Mason.

Buns, Brownie, and I are walking back to the Golden Goose when JT pulls up next to us in a black Range Rover. “Hey, Buns!” JT yells as he stands up through the sunroof of the vehicle. We stop and stare at JT, or what we can see of him with all of the windows blacked out like a diplomatic vehicle. Hearing him is certainly a problem too, since the car’s stereo vibrates the pavement beneath our feet, drowning out everything else.

JT pops his head back into the car, turning the stereo down so that it is no longer sub woofing. “Want to go for a ride, ladies?” JT asks when he comes back up. “Pete and I are going to go to the Seven-Eleven—get slurpees—drive around—play some insane music,” JT says. The passenger side window of the SUV rolls down and Pete becomes visible in the driver’s seat.

“That could be gnar, what do you think?” Buns asks us enthusiastically.

“Sure, why not?” Brownie shrugs, engaging the safety to her gun, and then all eyes are on me.

I am about to decline and tell them that I would see them later. Reed had made me promise not to go to the 7-Eleven without him.
Reed,
I think and feel paralyzed. Intense pain that I have been keeping at bay rushes through me like a bitter poison. Then, the memory of Russell’s kiss assails my senses. A deep scalding pain pierces my heart as the angel and the soul that make up who I am tear at each other like vicious enemies.

I just want it to end; I want the pain to stop,
I think miserably. I am so tired, not in a physical way, but weary in a way that no amount of sleep or rest will help. Suddenly, I am in a rush to get to the 7-Eleven. I want to hasten my fate, not to run from it. I want it to be over.

“Let’s go,” I say, opening the back door of the SUV and climbing in.

“Tight.” JT says from the passenger’s seat as I slip over to the opposite door, allowing room for Brownie and Buns. Pete turns the stereo back up, but not as loud as before, and we head off.

Rolling my window down, I close my eyes, feeling the wind blowing on my face. Whatever is going to happen, it seems preferable to the constant ache in my chest. When we arrive at the 7-Eleven, I am the first one out of the car. Instrumental music plays softly as I move past the cash register and the clerk with the red smock uniform. I turn down the back aisle of the store, walking swiftly to the light that had given me the smack down and positioning myself directly beneath it.

I stand there waiting for something to happen…anything, because I just want this to be done. The light flickers once. Adrenaline flashes into my system, causing my heart to race as I flinch a little, anticipating the deafening blast of sound that is the prelude to the insanity. Seconds tick by, but nothing happens. I gaze up at the light, trying to stare it down and bend it to my will for once.

“Hey, sweetie, do you want a cherry or a blue raspberry?” Buns calls to me from the slurpee machine in the front of the store.

Crushing disappointment hits me then. Nothing is happening.
What do I want to happen?
I think, looking down at the floor. The color drains from my face when I think about what I am doing here.
Do I really want my premonition to happen? That would mean carnage and destruction for everyone in the store,
I assess and panic, looking from Buns to Brownie.

Intending to get my friends out of here immediately, I take a step forward, but a flash of red stops me. A teardrop of crimson stains the tile at my feet before a few more drips falling from above spatter onto the floor.
Blood?
I wonder in confusion.

As I freeze in indecision, something shiny drops from the light above to the floor. Going down on one knee, I pick it up from the ground. My hand shakes as I quickly turn the blood-smeared silvery pendants over in my hand. The circular pendant makes a soft sound as it rubs against the metal of the infinity symbol.
Russell’s necklace…
my mind races. I clutch the worn, leather strap tightly in my palm.
It came through the light
—
with blood.

Suddenly, I am moving to the front of the store. I have to get my friends out of here. “I’ll take a cherry, Buns.” I say, moving to her side and helping her put the arching plastic lid on the cup. I pull her along by the elbow, feeling relief that Pete, JT, and Brownie are already cashed out. It takes longer than I think it should for the cashier to make change for the ten I hand her for the slurpees.

“Sweetie, what’s wrong?” Buns asks me. “You’re sweating,” she observes as we leave the convenience store and get into the Range Rover.

“I’m not feeling very well,” I murmur. “Can you guys drop me off at our dorm?” I ask, wiping the sweat off my brow with the back of my hand.

“Sure, Evie, we have to get the car back anyway.” JT replies, and turns the stereo way up.

When I get back to the dorm, I say goodnight to Brownie and Buns, then head to my room. The second that I am in, I am on the phone dialing Russell’s number. My hand is shaking so badly, I can hardly hold the phone to my ear. Russell answers on the second ring, “Hello, darlin’,” he says with a slow, sexy drawl.

“Russell,” I say breathlessly as relief floods through my entire body. Sinking to my knees on the floor, I want to ask him if he is okay, but that would make me sound like a psycho, so instead, I say in a tight voice, “Uh, hi, Russell. I was wondering, did you lose your necklace?”

“Wow, yeah, I just noticed a few minutes ago that it was missin’, did ya find it?” he asks me excitedly.

I close my eyes as I think,
you could say I found it, or you could say something gave it to me.

“Yeah, I found it,” I murmur in a strained tone.

Russell sounds puzzled as he asks, “Was it at the lake?”

“Uh huh, I’ve got to go, Russell. I’ll bring it with me to breakfast tomorrow,” I answer him quickly. I don’t know what to tell him, or what not to tell him, but it is clear now that Russell is in this, no matter how much I wish it otherwise.

I need to protect him, but I don’t know how to do that,
I think, feeling utterly helpless. The only thing I am sure of is that I’ve been completely naїve, thinking that I am going to be able to save Russell from this.

“Sure, Red. Are ya okay? I mean, ‘bout the lake and the… kiss?” he asks with concern in his voice. “I didn’t mean to push ya, it’s just that ya looked so happy in that moment and…”

“I’m okay, Russell,” I reply in a gentle tone. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight.”

“Uh, okay. I’ll see y’all tomorrow. Goodnight, Red,” he says, and there is something in his tone that is like a caress. It makes my breath catch.

I end the call and sit on the floor, clutching Russell’s necklace in my fist. Finally, I rise, gather my toiletries, and I walk down the hall to shower. Standing under the raining water, I let it beat on me as I cry silently.
He’s okay, he’s okay, he’s okay,
I think like a mantra, trying to get the blackness of dread to leave my soul. I clean all of the blood off the necklace so that I won’t have to explain it when I give it back.

Returning to my room, I towel dry my hair and brush it out. I slip into a white t-shirt and some underwear. I am so keyed up that I need to find something to distract me from the horrible thoughts going on in my mind. I sit down at my computer and type an email to Uncle Jim.

Nearly finished with my correspondence, filled with disgustingly happy lies, I pause, feeling the first stirrings of butterflies in my stomach. My heart skips a beat, like it always does when I feel Reed nearby. Then my heart sinks again, because I know from the last weeks it won’t matter if he is near, he won’t unbend at all with me. So, when the fluttering grows in intensity with each passing moment, it becomes harder to concentrate on what I am doing.

I click the mouse to send my email just seconds before my windows open behind me. Not turning around, I try to remain calm as anxiety gnaws at me.
Why is he here?
I wonder to myself.
Don’t get your hopes up; he’s not here because he wants to be,
I tell myself as my stomach twists painfully.

“Genevieve! We have to talk.
Now!”
Reed barks from the fire escape. I jump in my seat. “Meet me in the parking lot,” he growls. “I will be in my Range Rover.”

“No,” I say, getting up from my chair and walking to the windows. “Goodnight, Reed,” I say, closing them firmly.

I see the look on his face; he is stunned. I glance down at myself, realizing I am only wearing my t-shirt and underwear.
I don’t care. This is my room,
I think, turning away from the window.

The windows open again, and before I can turn around, Reed is in my room. “We will talk about this,” he says in a low tone from just inside my window.

With his arms crossed over his bare chest and his arching, charcoal-colored wings exposed, he is every inch an avenging angel; he is also the most undeniably striking creature I’ve ever seen. My hands ball into fists, and I grit my teeth so that I won’t just cave in to his every whim. If he can be stupid and unreasonable, then so can I.

“There is nothing to talk about, Reed,” I reply, feeling raw and trapped.
I’m going to lose everything. I lost Reed and now I’m poised to lose Russell, too, because I don’t know how to save him.

Reed’s eyes narrow in a predatory way. “We could discuss your trip to the Seven-Eleven tonight,” he shoots back.

“We could, but there is really nothing to tell,” I lie, raising my chin a notch, but since I am a lousy liar, he must’ve read it on my face. His wings twitch, and his eyes scan me like he is reassuring himself that I haven’t been physically hurt. “I’m fine, Reed,” I sigh.

Reed’s jaw is taut as he says, “Tell me what happened, now, before I lose it.”

My eyes widen. “Are you okay?” I ask him, because I’ve never seen him this upset.

His wings twitch again. “No, I’m not okay.

Deciding that I have to tell him before he explodes, I outline the whole story. When I show him Russell’s pendant, his I-need-to-smash-something face appears.

His lips harden in a grim line. “You are not to go there again,” he says in a stern tone with a note of finality.

My eyes soften as I ask, “Do you honestly believe that will be an option for me? I’m smart enough to know that I have an appointment there, whether I’m willing or not. I’m also smart enough to know that whatever is warning me about what is coming wants me to be prepared for it…like there is an opportunity to change the outcome.”

“Evie, you cannot go to the Seven-Eleven ever again,” Reed says, but this time he uses his persuasive voice, and it slithers and echoes in my ears like an annoying itch that I can’t scratch.

I take a step back from Reed, frowning at him because he knows his voice doesn’t work on me. “Reed…” I say, holding my ears, trying to get the ringing to stop.

“We will go away, Evie. Just you and me…we can go anywhere you want to,” Reed says, but he doesn’t use his annoying voice this time, he uses his sexy voice, which is way more compelling. “I have a few houses in Europe and some in Asia…or, we could go to South America. We can leave tonight,” he says urgently.

“Reed…” I stutter as he moves around like someone on time-lapse film, packing my clothes into a bag he must’ve gotten from my closet. Picking up the necklace that is lying on the table next to my bed, I sit down, looking at it.
If I leave, Russell doesn’t have a chance.
My shoulders round as I murmur, “I can’t go with you.”