Slice (The Elledge Family #1) (9 page)

I should have gotten his last name but possibly there would be a chance later. Most people dived at the opportunity for a VIP pass to my club. Hopefully he would too, but he looked terrified.

Chapter Four

Cypress

The Publisher, had occupied my afternoons for the past two weeks. And my job was simple. I tutored the freshmen in English. Their first papers were all about cliché topics like Summer Vacations and Comparison Papers. I flew through the sessions in a breeze and even made a few new friends in the process. Then the final hour I had to help edit the actual Publisher. I was not one for journalism. I knew nothing about the town. I couldn’t write about student because I had no student life. Everything besides school and work revolved around Lucas.

“Okay, so here is the deal. We would like you to write a piece about the Summit across town.” Ginger, seemed to float around the room as her she wisped through her files. Her tall, petite stature made me envious for a few extra inches. It would be easier to kiss Lucas if I wasn’t so focused on reaching his lips sometimes. Though he made kissing me a habit. And it made me happy.

“Of course I could.”

“Awesome, you think you could even interview Lucas?”

It was apparent that Lucas was someone important to me. They could tell by the way he smiled when he walked in the room. Then there was the fact that when he was not here he called me. He worked here sometimes when he finished his school work. It was an honor for them to have such an established author on their payroll. So he wrote occasional spotlight pieces. “I could.” I grimaced.

“It’s just that he doesn’t really talk to any of the rest of us like he talks to you.

“Yeah Ms. Tucker, is he your boyfriend?” Brent had developed a crush on me. It was not cute to me though. He was annoying. He wanted more than the friendship that I had to offer him and unfortunately for him it was the only thing that was on the table for him.

“Just friends.” It was not a lie. Lucas and I had not laid a title to our new romance. Truth be told I wasn’t sure if I was ready to even step back into something. My heart was still a tad tattered from the battle of Philip.

“That’s good to hear.” Brent smiled his tight lip smile that made his slanted brown eyes squint together even more. He then pushed his stringy brown hair from his face and winked at me. Brent had potential to be handsome, but it would take years of molding and sculpting. “I’ve heard some bad things about that guy.”

“Like what?”

Brent cleared his throat and turned towards me. He shrugged his shoulders almost knocking the square rimmed glasses to the ground. “For one, all of his ex-girlfriends have either gone missing or have been found dead.”

I laughed at his tale. “You really are desperate aren’t you.”

Ginger corrected, “It was only two. They just found one of them the other week. She was killed with her boyfriend at a family estate.”

“You two are ridiculous.”

“Just a warning Cypress.” Brent grew quiet as he stared out the front window. “Speak of the devil.”

His Jeep whipped into the front parking spot by the door and he hopped out gracefully and made his way to the door. Lucas was effortlessly perfect. His white T-shirt fit tighter than normal revealing his chiseled arms and tattoos. I wasn’t sure how he was surviving without a coat on. The cool breeze of autumn had set in and it was not like home where a cool breeze just meant chilly weather for two or three months. It felt like the beginning stages of winter.

“Lucas!” Ginger said. Her voice too chipper for my liking. I ignored it and continued to organize the few papers I had left on my desk.

“Ginger,” He smiled. “How’s everything? I’m not bothering anyone am I?”

“You’re the Editor.” She giggled throwing her shoulder forward. Her hands touched his chest and I exhaled.

Lucas eyes locked on mine and his face lit up with amusement. “Busy Cypress?” Lucas nodded at Ginger and dismissed her with the quick look. He made his way to my small brown desk, shifting through the disarray of desks in the middle of the room. He perched himself on my desk. “How are you?”

“Good.” I said quietly.

“Are you liking it still?”

My eyes darted at Ginger who had gone back to her desk. The model everything it seemed. “Sure.”

“Ignore her love, you have me blinded.” His lips touched my forehead lightly. “What are your plans for today?”

It soothed me to know that he cared enough to ease a fear I hadn’t fully formed yet. “I’m meeting with Asher.”

His eyebrow shot up and he sighed. “The library kid?”

“The library kid, he said that he could help me with some theories.”

“I bet.” He smiled. “Could I borrow you after your lesson in personalities?”

“Yes.” I closed my laptop. “What are we doing?”

“Watching the stars’ weep.”

“What?”

“The shooting stars are passing through tonight.”

“I can’t wait!” I shrieked unintentionally. The eyes were all on me, and I could feel the heat racing to match my mortification. “I mean awesome.” I whispered.

“Perfect, and be careful with this Asher okay?”

“I promise.”

Asher was not as bad as Lucas liked to think. He was smart and handsome. He even reminded me of Lucas. “So what do you study?”

“I study and major in psychology. The study of why.”

I laughed. “I’ve never heard it put like that. I write books and it’s hard to write a book when you don't know anything about the human mind.”

“True. There are different types of people.”

“What kind of person am I?”

“The kind of person that wants more knowledge.” He said quickly. “I don't know. I have to listen and evaluate and then apply and blah. It takes too long. I really just like the studying part.”

“What are you studying right now?”

“I’m currently writing my dissertation on a psychopath’s decision.”

“Wow, sounds scary.”

“Not really. Psychopaths are closer than you know.” He looked down at his work. “They blend in… they are the masters of disguise.”

“Characteristics?” I asked. I stared at him. “They sound scary.”

“They are humans with little emotions. To be honest, they just don't care what the world thinks and they tend to blame others for their mistakes. For example, let's say that they cheat on a test. It would not be their fault. It would Susie's fault because she didn't make an effort to cover her exam.”

“Sounds like a little child.”

“Could be an accurate assumption,” Asher paused. “They seek out people and use and exploit them. They usually use them for their gain.”

“Are they dangerous?”

“Hardly, there are some public figures that are high functioning and then there is Ted Bundy.”

“A serial killer.”

“Exactly, but to the world he was normal until he was exposed. Up until his death, he still stated that it was not his fault and there was something dark in him he couldn't control.”

“Wow,” I nodded my head. “So a serial killer with conscience and no morality meter to let him know that he is wrong. Are they rare?”

“Statistically… there is exactly one in every hundred group of people.”

“Asher you love this don't you?”

“I love it more than you will know.” He paused. “I have been wanting to tell you this the entire time Cypress. Watch who you get involved with around here Cypress.” Asher ‘s voice was playful but I could sense the seriousness behind his warning.

“Are you warning me about you?” I pushed him playfully. “Are you dangerous for me Asher?”
      
“I'm warning you about someone else.”

“Lucas?” I looked at him.

“Yeah. He fits a lot of the characteristics on the checklist.”

“What checklist?”

“I’ll give you a copy.” He slid the thin sheet of paper across the library table. “A personality disorder that has often proved to be dangerous. I just wanted you to be cautious okay?”

My eyes glanced over the page. The Levenson-Self Report Psychopathy Scale. Psychopath. “Are you serious?”

“Yes.”

“Are you trying to hit on me? Is this some kind of psychologist pick up line?” I laughed it off and folded the test in half.

“No, I have my eyes on someone, but I don't think she has her eyes on me.” He chuckled. “I’m not that big of a nerd?”

“Someone else? Don’t make me jealous now?” I gasped jokingly. “Who is she Asher?”

“This girl named Whitney. It's so weird, she used to stalk me in Middle School and High School and now she is all I can think of. And I don't mean to be frisky around her. I just want her.”

“Make your move. You seem like a nice guy, tell me something about yourself...”

“What do you want to know?”

“Mainly what are you thinking in that big brain of yours?”

“I think geometric mean everything.”

I stared at him. “Okay. So you love math?”

Asher laughed as he pulled out a small metal box from his backpack, then out with a compass. “It’s not really what I meant Cypress.” He sharpened the pencil and turned to a blank page of his sketch book. “Everything starts out as nothing.” His hand flourished the page. “Then there is something created by some event in your life or you’re just something that has to happen. It stands for the beginning.” He drew a small circle on the page. “This is the beginning… of a relationship, of a job… of your life.”

I smiled. “I get it.”

“Let’s say that this circle was created by a pebble being thrown into the lake... It sets off reactions and causes more ripples, larger ripples. Did you know that the beginning circle's circumference is equivalent to the fifth circle's radius?”

“No.” I barely remembered any of these math terms.

“To me it simply means that any action you make... no matter how small in the beginning can cause a bigger problem in the end. I live by this. I live by trying to catch actions that are unjust by me and that need redeeming.”

“Wow,” I paused. “I didn't know that it was that much in shapes.”

“It's tied to everything and people don't use it normally. There are things like infinite numbers that mean nothing to some, but everything to others.”

“Like...”

“Pi and Phi… Phi is being the infinite number for the Golden Rectangle Theory.”

“Do you talk to your girlfriend about this stuff?”

“She is not my girlfriend. She actually has someone.”

“Oh, well don’t talk about this stuff on the first date unless they are equally attuned to your thinking.” I took the compass and rolled it in my hands. “What else do you like to do?”

“Yoga...”

“Yoga, like the lotus flower...”

“Definitely that position. I can meditate on it for hours. It's all about clearing the mind and knowing yourself. If you don't know yourself, you can't truly do anything successful in life. So I find my inner peace every morning. Even if it means I stay in the lotus flower for hours it helps. It calms me.”

“Could you teach me?”

“It's a discipline better learned on your own. Plus, I think your boyfriend might kill me.”

“So no?” I laughed.

“Right, just look it up. There are some great videos and then once you get it you will know. It starts off being the hardest thing that you have ever done and by a few weeks the sting will fade and the beauty of the quiet will take over.”

“You are different Asher.”

“Thanks,” he paused. “I think.”

“It was a compliment.”

Lucas

My notebooks were scattered around me and I was lost. There was something missing from my work. I inhaled and closed my eyes, releasing my breath slow and steady. I was the nucleus and all of this shit surrounding me was my electron cloud and something was out of place. It was throwing off my element. I opened my eyes and nodded my head. Writing was best done in messiness for me. And there was an idea in my mind and it begged to be released.

The campus was flooded with freshman ready to be disobedient and get into trouble and unlike normal it was loud. I could hear every footstep and cackle from them as they passed pass my array of mess. This was a bad an idea.

“Busy?” Persephone asked.

She was persistent. I smiled. “Yes, go away.”

“Why do you hate me so much?”

“I don't hate you. I find you deeply annoying. And you don't take hints well.” I had told this girl to leave me alone on more than one occasion. She was persistent and consistent. That I could say.”

“What are you doing?”

“I am trying to find something,” My head turned to her as my eyes stared intently. Irritation had started to kick in and she didn’t want to irritate me. I wasn’t in the mood. I wanted to know where Cypress was and why she hadn’t answered my call. “What are you doing here? Is there something that I can help you with?”