Intuition: The Premonition Series (30 page)

“Is it night or day?” I ask, tryin’ to process what she is sayin’.

“I have no idea. There are no windows,” she replies.

“You said yer bein’ carried?” I prompt her.

“Yeah. I’m puttin’ up a big fight, but I’m bound up so it’s not working out so well for me,” she says. I see goose bumps risin’ on her arms and my wings move sharply inside my back.

I squeeze my eyes shut in concentration, tryin’ to calm my rapid pulse. “Wait a sec. Don’t tell me anymore,” I say, knowin’ that if I don’t manage to calm down, I will be kissin’ the steerin’ wheel ‘cuz my wings will fly outta my back. I take a couple of deep breaths, tryin’ to relax. When I think I can handle it again, I open my eyes and say, “Okay, go on.”

“There is not a whole lot more to tell. I’m shoved into an ornately carved chair in front of what can only be described as a mediaeval conference table and it looks like we are waiting for someone,” she says with some bravado. It makes me frown ‘cuz I think she’s doin’ it for my benefit so I can continue to control my wings from flyin’ out of my back.

“You said ‘they.’ Who are they?” I ask, grindin’ my teeth.

“I don’t know—they are really strong and fast—angel fast,” she replies, like she is rememberin’ somethin’ that hasn’t happened… yet.

“Shit! I was hopin’ for dumb ass human bad guys,” I say, feelin’ frustrated. “So they’re angels. Fallen or Divine?” I ask, holdin’ my breath. I don’t know why it matters; both kinds will get us killed deader than dead.

She doesn’t answer me. She looks confused. “I’m sorry, Russell, I have no idea,” she says plainly.

“You don’t know if they’re Fallen or Divine?” I ask.

“No… I don’t know if they’re angels,” she says slowly, and then my head hits the steerin’ wheel hard when my wings drive me forward.

After we establish all of the mundane necessities, like openin’ a bank account and gettin’ a couple of beds and beddin’, we move on to checkin’ out the town. We do a lot of recon on places we would like to go to in the future, like the library and the college campus. We are lookin’ for angels, specifically Powers or Fallen, but either we suck at recon, or this town just isn’t somethin’ they are into ‘cuz after bein’ extremely cautious for three weeks, we don’t turn up any enemies.

Things in Houghton have died down since we arrived ‘cuz a lot of the students from the school went home for the summer break. There are a sprinklin’ of tourists, which helps me blend in a little ‘cuz of my accent, but for the most part, Red has accomplished what she had set out to do. She has found us a safe, borin’ town in which to exist for a while. All of this should be a good thing, but the less danger we seem to be in, the more despondent she is becomin’.

We locate a place to train. It’s a secluded clearin’ a couple of miles off the Nara Nature Trail. It is very beautiful terrain, like what I expect a wild sort of Heaven to look like. There are rollin’ hills that shoulder thick stands of enormous trees and a rapidly flowin’ stream that is still carryin’ the icy cold water from the hills above. Some of the trees are in full bloom; the dogwoods and the redbuds each compete with one another to be more impressive. There are also thick stands of lilac bushes burstin’ with color and their scent is unbelievable. The open field that we found is dotted with wild flowers that poke their heads out above the long grass. It would make a decent postcard, if I had anyone I was allowed to send it to.

“C’mon,” I say in a low voice in Red’s ear as she picks up another marble and places it in the sling I had made for her. “I know ya can do this. Ya just have to focus on the target,” I coach her, havin’ just demonstrated several different ways to use the sling I made for her from some leather scrap pieces and heavy string. We are startin’ off by usin’ marbles for ammunition.
Maybe I should’ve started off by usin’ golf balls,
I tell myself as I see the marble fall out of the cradle of leather on Red’s second swing.

Red groans in frustration.

“All right, listen, yer really strong, so y’all only need one swing. Y’all can pick any swing yer comfortable with, the overhead, underhand, side—or I know, watch this one; it’s an overhead swing that’s kinda like a figure eight. I like this one ‘cuz it gains the most momentum,” I pull a marble from the hundreds I had bought at the dollar store in town. I demonstrate the swing and hit the target I had set up over a hundred yards away. The tin can all but explodes when the marble penetrates it. A slow smile touches my lips. It’s so much easier to do that with my improved eyesight.

I’m able to see things far away now with no problem. I woke up a week ago and the apartment, which we have spent a considerable amount of time cleanin’, looked even dirtier than it normally did. I told Red about it and she immediately knew what I was talkin’ about. She looked relieved that I now have angel sight, like she had been frettin’ about it or somethin’. I guess she is worried about bein’ able to protect me.

I made her go out with me that night, so I could walk ‘round under the stars. It’s like I can touch ‘em now ‘cuz they seem so much closer and it’s mad cool to be able to see everythin’ in the dark. I had to reason with myself that I couldn’t just reach up and pull Heaven down to me.

Now I can see all of the pollen in the air, floatin’ on the breeze and gently dustin’ everythin’ with its essence. Red watches me with a sour look on her face. “Wut?” I ask, but can’t hide my smugness from her. I have finally found somethin’ I am better at than she is.
Sucks huh? I
think, pickin’ up another marble and doin’ it again in a blink of an eye.

“Nice one, Hank. Let’s try Bruce Lee now,” she says in exasperation.

We had purchased a used television out of the paper and bought a crappy DVD player so we could get stuff that might be able to teach us somethin’ ’bout fightin’. Red is particularly good at emulatin’ Bruce Lee moves, ah let’s be honest, she makes Bruce seem like a little girl. She’s more Japanese animae than martial arts. The things that she can do only exist in the cartoon realm.

“Naw, Red. I want ya to learn how to do this. This is the easiest weapon y’all can fashion in a pinch,” I explain, frustrated with her ‘cuz she doesn’t even seem interested in this.

“Why can’t I just pick up a rock and throw it at my enemy?” she asks with her bad attitude showin’.

“‘Cuz yer enemy is wicked-fast and y’all will need the extra velocity that the sling will provide to nail them,” I reply, watchin’ her holdin’ the sling negligently with her hand on one of her hips and her leg cocked out to the side. She is as mean as a snake lately. I know its ‘cuz she’s hurtin’. She is always tryin’ to retreat inside herself and hide behind the little wall she has created. I won’t let her stay behind that wall for long ‘cuz it makes me nervous to see her sittin’ ‘round just starin’ into space like she doesn’t exist anymore. “If ya have nothin’ else, y’all just need to find a bit of fabric ya can punch a hole in on both sides. Then, ya just put a string on one side that’s a little longer than yer forearm and another one on the opposite side,” I say, demonstratin’ how I made the slings. “Y’all will be able to throw those marbles probably faster than if ya shot them out of a gun,” I retort a little meaner than I probably should, but she is pissin’ me off.

“FINE!” she grumbles, stompin’ back to the bag of marbles and pickin’ up another one.

“Wait. I’ll go set up another couple of cans. I’ll be right back,” I say, pickin’ up two empty soda cans we had brought with us and joggin’ out to where I had set up the other cans. Leanin’ down, I place the cans on the rock where the others had been. I hear the whistlin’ right before pain registers in my head and my leg buckles beneath me. Goin’ down on my knee, my hand flies to my hamstring where a marble has hit me square in the back of my thigh. I grit my teeth as I look over my shoulder to see Red holdin’ her hand over her mouth. Her eyes are buggin’ out of her head. She is behind me in the next second and before she can say anythin’ I snarl between my teeth, “Run.”

With her eyes wide, Red says, “I’m so sorry, Russell! I didn’t think I could actually hit you—I was just irritated at you for being so good at this…” she trails off as my shirt rips off my body, fallin’ to the ground in shreds while my wings come flyin’ out of my back on their own. I stagger to my feet again and turn ‘round.

“Y’all had better run, Red…” I warn her, clenchin’ my fists to keep from shoutin’ at her. My thigh hurts like it’s freakin’ on fire and I seriously want to break somethin’ and she is the only somethin’ around at the moment.

She holds up her hands defensively as I stumble toward her, still holdin’ the back of my leg with my hand. “You don’t really think I meant to hurt you, do you? I was just—”

“RUN!” I shout at her, watchin’ her back up from me. She is keepin’ her distance, but she’s not fleein’ like I told her to.

I launch myself at her and she manages to evade me by mere inches. Turnin’ away, she sprints to the top of the hill, but when she hesitates at the top of it, I am close on her heels. Shock registers on her face when she sees me just behind. She turns back ‘round, continuin’ to run from me. She runs all the way to the stream, and boundin’ over it, she stops on the other side of the bank to look back at me.

“I’M SORRY!” she shouts as she sees me runnin’ toward her with all the speed I can gather, which is substantial, since I’m now movin’ faster than I have ever dreamed possible. The wind is makin’ a soft whistlin’ noise that is resonatin’ in the back of my mind. It’s not hittin’ me as it probably should ‘cuz of the black rage I’m feelin’. I only have one objective in my mind and that is gettin’ to Red.

I don’t hesitate when I get to the stream, but jump to the far bank near where she is standin’. I must still have a murderous look on my face ‘cuz she starts runnin’ again like the devil is chasin’ her, and in my present mood, it isn’t far off.

She weaves in an intricate pattern through the trees, but I have no trouble followin’ her. When I lose sight of her for a second, I don’t worry ‘cuz I can smell her ahead of me. I don’t need to see her; my other senses take over to fill in the blanks.

She is ahead of me, and gainin’ some distance. I’m losin’ ground so I do what I have to do to keep up with her. Scalin’ one of the tall pine trees that is in my path, I am up it faster than any primate on the planet could climb it. Makin’ it to one of the upper branches, I dive to another branch on a different tree yards away from the one I had scaled. Glidin’ with my wings, I manage to catch the tree’s limb and swing myself up in it. I dive to the next stand of trees, glidin’ on the air currents and catchin’ limbs like I’ve been doin’ it all my life. I never even stop to think ’bout what I am doin’. I just want to catch up to Red and wring her neck.

I see a flash of red beneath the tree I’m in. It’s Evie. She has sprouted her wings, probably in fear ‘cuz she saw I wasn’t playin’ when I told her to run. Divin’ to the next stand of trees, I catch the branch, and then I just let go of it, droppin’ at least a story to the ground. Goin’ down on my knee, I spring back up, catchin’ Red ‘round the waist as she tries to run by me.

“WHY?” I shout at her, searchin’ her face that is pale and drawn from her flight from me. I don’t realize just how much I’m scarin’ her until she cringes and tries desperately to twist out of my arms. Her heart is beatin’ out of control and when she can’t break away from me she shrinks in my arms, tryin’ to protect herself from the fist she thinks might be comin’ at her from me. It is her fear that registers in my brain, calmin’ me down instantly. “OH SHIT! WHAT AM I DOIN’?” I yell, freakin’ out and huggin’ Red to me. “Shit, Red, I’m sorry—I think I just—I don’t know what just happened…” I trail off when her arms come ‘round me, huggin’ me back.

“I’m sorry, Russell, I didn’t mean to hurt you… I can’t do this anymore,” I hear her whisper as her voice cracks. She presses her face into my chest. “I feel like I’m dying. I can’t be an angel anymore. I have to be a human for a while. Please? Can we go back to being human? Please…” she begs me as if I have the power to make that happen. If I did, I would do it in a heartbeat. I would give her anythin’ she asks for, anythin’.

“Shh…it’s okay. We’ll chill for a while. I promise,” I say in a reassurin’ tone, feelin’ her shakin’ in my arms. I want to kick myself for what I just did to her. Losin’ control like that is so unexpected. It makes me ashamed of myself. I know that, no matter what, I would never hurt her, but she obviously doesn’t know that. The way I chased her was probably terrifyin’, especially since I had acted just like every other angel who has come upon her has acted. Every angel except for Reed. He never chased her down like she was a common criminal. He did sort of threatin’ her, but he never chased her.