Nolan's Evolution (47 page)

“Badass?” Raina grinned, straightening her disheveled clothing.

“I was going to say kickass…but badass works too!” He gave her a wink. “You were fantastic, beautiful.” He plopped down on his usual spot of the big bed where he had slept the last few nights. He laid back, hands behind his head and sighed. “Can’t wait to be in my own bed tomorrow!”

Raina looked to Nolan. “We are going home?”

              Nolan gave her a smile. “Home.”

              She laughed and nearly clapped her hands. “What happened?”

              “Well, Richard is guilty, obviously. Because of the circumstances with Emmanuel they are holding both. They are hoping Richard says more so they have a solid conviction.”

              “Who decides?”

              Nolan sat up and reached for her hand. He nipped at her knuckles and smiled. “Obviously not us, we are too partial. Isaac and Titus will be holding a lot of meetings to select a jury of sorts. It’s the first time we’ve actually used a mortal judicial procedure. We’ve always had our own way. Our Sovereignty have always been fair and just. They cannot trust themselves…especially Isaac, to be impartial. Once the jury has been selected, there will be another trial.”

              “Will we have to be there?”

              Nolan shook his head. “Each trial is recorded. We will not have to sit before them again.”

              She sighed in relief, and then squeezed his hand. “What about David?”

              Nolan rubbed his thumb along her wrist. “He will be punished, but will not lose his immortality. They feel it was leadership that swayed him, and without those influences he can be redeemed. He showed this by speaking against Richard.” His eyes softened. “You must have gotten through to him.”

              She smiled and blinked tears. “There’s always room for redemption. Huh Thanatos?” She poked him with her foot, and he smiled without opening his eyes.

              “When do we leave?”

              “Tomorrow morning,” Thanatos mumbled. “I already ordered the tickets.”

              She smiled happily.

              Nolan kissed the back of her hand. “I will tell you more tomorrow, but I am really exhausted, my love.” He shoved Turk aside, and pulled her back against him, so he could spoon her. He nuzzled his face into her hair and sighed with pleasure.

              “If this bed starts shaking or bouncing there will be hell to pay,” Thanatos growled from the end of the bed.

              “Shut up and get the lights you so rudely turned on,” Nolan growled, his voice muffled by her hair.

              Raina giggled as Thanatos obeyed, grumbling the entire time. She liked the feeling of normalcy! At least what could be considered normal with these two.

              Being home was fantastic. Trying to decide how to settle into a regular routine….kinda sucked.

              A lot of things had changed from the time Nolan left until now. She had acquired a few more immortals in her life, she’d found David was alive, her best friend knew her secret, and Maxim was gifted to her. On top of having her own Protector…Our Sovereignty had decided she needed a Maxim as well. Joseph had agreed and released him.

              Her first order of business with Maxim was coffee. Yes, coffee.

Maxim looked enormous sitting in the arm chair beside the fireplace. He leisurely drank from a cup of coffee.

Raina had to restrain a giggle as she sat across from him. She lifted her cup to her mouth to hide her smile. She glanced about to distract herself and to grow accustomed to the large immortal she had accompanied.

She had agreed to have coffee with him when he insisted it was a good idea and that he might have something to tell her that would be of great interest to her. She had already decided it would be impossible because of the protective group of immortals with her. But Nolan trusted him since Joseph put so much faith in him and Thanatos gave in… begrudgingly.

“How weird is this…we’re a long way from Florida,” she laughed.

He smiled. “It is quite the change in the temperature and the atmosphere. I like it here.”

“And Thanatos is being kind to you?”

“You know…we’re room-mates now, and he will just have to get over it.”

She laughed at this. “He is all bark no bite.”

He lifted his brows. “Oh I’ve got the teeth marks to prove you wrong,” he poked back. He shook his head. “He’ll be all right. We are both working for the same team.”

Raina liked the sound of that.

"So, you have something important to say that cannot be shared?" She leaned forward.

Maxim gave a short nod. He rolled his broad shoulders and set his coffee aside. "I felt I should talk to you first. I didn’t want it looking all secretive. I think Nolan understands. He seems to trust me, which is a big deal for him.”

“Did you tell him anything of what you need to speak to me about?”

He gave a negative shake to his head. “You are the one that cares most about him and I just needed to know it would be right to bring it up to him." His deep voice reverberated in his chest. It was a booming voice yet gentle. It was gentle much like his light brown eyes.

Raina had known immediately that she could trust him. She was very good at reading people. Maxim was one of the good ones. She saw it even now in the smile that he was giving her.

"If anyone would know what's best for him than it would be you," Maxim continued.

"Nolan?" Like she had to ask?

"Nolan," he affirmed. "There are some things that I believe not even he knows about. These are things that could affect his future."

Raina’s mind began to race. What more could there be about him that she did not already know? That he did not know himself?

"I see things. Not like it's a gift or anything. Not something super immortalize. I've kind of picked up things by watching the two of you."

Raina tilted her head. "Like what kind of things?"

Maxim swallowed. “I guess before I tell you that I should explain why I have come to this conclusion.”

It had to be an immortal thing! They always felt it necessary to spell out their intentions. Maybe it was from a lifetime of having to explain themselves in order to not be misunderstood. Raina gave him a smile to encourage him to continue.

"He seems to be at war with himself sometimes. One minute he's crazy in a moment with you and then at other times he seems downright depressed. It's like he wants to enjoy life but doesn't feel like he deserves that. Or that it’s all going to be taken away from him. I understand that you've been going through a lot of craziness, the two of you, but he's definitely at war with something."

Raina nodded. She looked down at her hands. "Nolan has issues with his immortality. His transition as an immortal was not an easy one," she admitted. "He downright hated the fact that he was given this gift. He calls it his curse."

Maxim crossed his arms. "I'd still say he hasn't fully transitioned."

Her brows lifted. "What you mean by that?"

"He still hates it."

Raina sat back to consider this. "I guess he does. He fights within himself about it all. Titus had a talk with him and it seemed to help for a bit but he probably will never accept the beautiful thing he is. If he could just see himself to others eyes. He is so loved. I can't even begin to express to him how much he means to me. He is the greatest thing to ever come into my life."

The big immortal chuckled. "You mean that much and more to him."

She smiled. "If only that was enough Maxim. I just wish I could calm him or force him to accept his worth.” Raina sighed. “But how can I do that when I feel so unworthy of him?”

Maxim growled deep in his throat. “Don’t you understand that he would do anything for you? He has sacrificed to be with you…as you have to be with him! Do you think anyone would do so for something that was not of worth?”

She shrugged. “He is so torn over it all and that worries me. I feel like I may be more of a bother to him than anything no matter how much he loves me. He's always readjusting and making amends for having me in his life. I just wonder if it's too much hassle and that's why he gets so restless."

"No," the deep voice mumbled softly. "He is restless now for another reason." His brown eyes met hers, and he held the gaze, making sure he had her full attention.

Raina waited, toying with a handle of her coffee cup. She did not break the gaze that she had with Maxim. She willed him to continue.

"He's thinking about the future."

Raina laughed at this. "He has a long future ahead of him, Maxim."

"Hmmm, yes, he has a very long future. That is now what has him worried. The question you should ask is; how long of a future does he have with you? You are not immortal Raina. What is he going to do after you are gone?"

She bit her lip.

"This troubles him greatly."

She nodded still not letting go of the lip between her teeth. She was afraid she would turn into a blathering mess. Often that very question had entered her mind.

"If only both of you were immortal."

Raina wiped a tear from her face and shook her head.

Maxim leaned forward. His face was full of compassion. "You could always appeal to Our Sovereignty to make you immortal. You have much favor with Isaac and Titus! You would make an amazing asset to our society!"

Again she shook her head. "No Nolan would not want that. He's been more than adamant about that and I respect his wishes."

"He would get over it," Maxim grumbled. He ignored the shake of her head. "It should be your choice," he argued. His brow furrowed. “It should be what makes you happy too, Raina!”

She pulled in a breath to prevent tears. “Do you know what would make me happy? I want to go back to before Richard entered the picture! I want to take a drive to the spot Nolan and I call ours, and sit there for hours. It’s the only place he could find peace for so long. The place I learned so much about him and fell so much in love with who Nolan is! Immortality was never an issue when we are there. It was about us…learning about each other.”

“So go there, convince him you want this!”

“I don’t know if it would be the same. So much has changed since we were there last." She shrugged. “He hasn’t brought it up.”

Maxim sighed. “You don’t need a spot to share with him, or learn more about him! You could spend a lifetime learning about each other if you wanted to,” he said softly. “If you truly want it Raina…it should be your choice, not Nolan’s.”

Raina gave him a small smile and reached over to touch his hand. "We could sit here and argue about that all day. But this is not what you brought me here to talk about. Is it?"

He seemed to calm at her touch. "No," he said softly. "This is not what I came to discuss. It's actually the opposite of making you immortal. It’s another way for the two of you to be happy. It is probably the option that would make him the happiest."

She looked surprised. "And what is the opposite of making me immortal?"

He smiled. "Making Nolan mortal."

Raina felt adrenaline pumping through her veins at the thought. She felt her limbs trembling. "How? I mean how? Are you serious?"

Maxim nodded. "I am quite serious. Well, serious about the whole theory. I – I'm not sure if it is completely possible and it something that Our Sovereignty would have to sanction first. It would need to be tested. I don’t know if they would allow someone as valuable as Nolan to test it but it's very possible. I've only heard rumors of it. I didn't want to say anything to Nolan since it may lead to nothing at all. I wanted to tell you though in case you found any worth in it."

Raina was finding it a bit hard to breathe after his revelation. She held a hand to her chest and pulled in another gulp of air. "I think I might be having a panic attack." She moved her hand to her throat. “Is it getting hotter in here?”

Maxim handed over her cup of coffee so she could take a sip.

"I don't know what to say." She felt tears and a smile emerged at the same instant. "It seems almost too good to be true. This would be wonderful news to him if only…" She set her coffee down and pulled her chair closer to him. "Where did you hear this? How would it even work? What does that entail?"

He held his big hands up. "I really should not go in to details with you until I have brought it up before the leaders. I just know the rumors and being what I am I've seen things. You see Immortal Slayers…"

Raina shivered at the title and Maxim pause with amusement.

"Did I say something wrong?"

She blushed. "Sorry, it's just the first time I have heard what you are actually called. I suppose my immortal friends were yet again shielding me in some way." She lifted her brow. "Immortal Slayers? Really?"

He chuckled. "It does sound rather brutal doesn't it?" He shook his head. "I guess I never have tried to look at it through the mortal’s eyes. It's just common speak for us."

She gave another audible shiver.