they always do, but this time I stayed on the roof, and the Others, they surrounded me. Dozens of them, hundreds of them — I don’t know — they surged past me.”
Jared nodded, still waiting for an epiphany.
“…and then I fell through a hole, and I landed in the alley. I didn’t watch this time. I kept my eyes shut.”
“Did that help?”
“The noises were just as bad.”
He waited for something to come to him. Thoughts were clearly racing through his mind as he methodically checked off each scenario, each possible explanation, and then went on to the next. Frustration scrolled across his face and he stood, walking to the railing that ran along the edge of our bedroom. He looked down to the lower level, squeezing the metal bar so tightly it complained as he twisted his hands back and forth.
Coffee finally made its way through my body, rushing through my veins. I kicked the covers away and planted my bare feet on the cold floor. “Movie?” I asked, but he was lost in thought. In the subdued light, I could see his mouth moving, but he made no sound. “Jared?”
His lips continued to move, and the metal still whined under his grip.
“You’re going to break the railing,” I said, walking the few steps to reach him.
He stiffened under my touch. “They won’t answer.”
“Who?”
“Eli. Samuel. Anyone.”
“Maybe they’re busy.”
“Exactly,” he said, his shoulders falling. “I can feel how exhausted you are, Nina. I don’t know how you’re still functioning. I can feel the way your body tenses and panics when you’re having the dreams. I don’t want to frighten you, but this is…if you want to believe it’s Titan, okay. But I need to figure this out.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m calling Bex. I’m going to have him come in for a few days while I try to find some answers.”
“You’re leaving?”
“Just for a few days, Sweetheart.”
I grabbed his shirt, panic tightening my throat. We hadn’t been apart for so long, the thought of even a few days without him frightened me. I would feel naked…vulnerable.
“But you promised. You promised you’d never have to go away.”
“I did. I’m not going away,” he said, touching my cheek. “I’m a phone call away.”
“No.
“Bex doesn’t have my connections, Nina. Not yet. He doesn’t know what he’s looking for, he doesn’t know the right questions to ask. I have to do this.”
I shifted my weight to one leg, trying to relax and play off my fears. “You can’t go…you can’t.”
Jared touched the thin skin under my eyes with his thumbs, silently pointing out the darkened circles. Without another word, Jared pulled his cell phone from his back pocket and dialed.
“Bex. I need you to stay with Nina for a while.” He snapped his phone shut, keeping his eyes on mine.
“Don’t do this.”
Jared tucked my hair behind my ears. “You’re overreacting.”
“Please?”
“It’s only a few days.”
I frowned. “You don’t know that.”
“If I don’t find anything, I’ll just come back. Forty-eight hours, and I’m right back here. I promise.”
“You promised you’d never leave me.”
He laughed at my stubbornness. “I’m not leaving you. I’m going to work.”
One side of my mouth turned up and I sighed. Jared leaned in, kissing my forehead with his warm, soft lips.
The engine of a speeding motorcycle grew closer to the loft, stopping just outside. Within seconds of its silence, a quiet knock came from the door. My smile melted away, and Jared threw a few things in a duffel bag as Bex sprawled out on the couch downstairs.
“Mom wants you to call,” Bex said, holding the remote in front of him, flipping on the television.
“Keep it down, Bex. Nina’s going to try to sleep.”
I crossed my arms, angry that he refused to compromise. “I can’t sleep without you. You think I’m exhausted now? Forty-eight hours from now I’m going to lapse into a coma.”
His arms encircled me, kissing me once more. “At least you’ll get some sleep.”
He was trying to keep the mood of his departure light. Jared didn’t enjoy leaving me anymore than I, but he felt strongly enough about my recurring nightmares to break a promise. That realization only left me more unsettled.
Jared gently pulled each of my fingers from his shirt. Imprints of where I had crumpled it between my fingers remained in the fabric, and I hastily ironed it out with the palm of my hands.
“Come home soon,” I whispered, trying to keep my voice from breaking.
Jared touched his lips to mine, and then looked to his brother. “Bex?”
“Got this,” Bex said, lifting his thumb in the air.
Before my eyes finished blinking, he was down the stairs and out the door.
For a few moments I felt nothing, but the second air filled my lungs, an overwhelming sense of sadness came over me. Jared hadn’t been more than a block away from me since I came to my senses and begged him back last May.
The bed seemed miles away, but I slowly made my way to it. The moment my backside sunk into the mattress, I heard purposeful stomping up the stairs. Bex ran at me full speed, jumping up and taking flight, landing precisely one inch away.
I didn’t flinch.
“Hey,” Bex said, elbowing me. “Death Jungle is on. Come watch it with me.”
“Where is Jared going?”
“I dunno…come on,” he said. His voice was already deeper, and he had been taller than me for several months. If I didn’t know he was still a kid, I would have thought he was a fellow college co-ed. He still hadn’t quite filled out — the only thing that gave him away.
He tugged on me to follow him downstairs, and I reluctantly agreed, resting my head on the arm of the sofa.
A ridiculous array of mutilation and mayhem filled the screen. Bex watched with unyielding focus, but my eyes struggled to stay open. Shifting to find a comfortable spot, I settled in and let my mind drift into oblivion. In the darkness, with the screams of dying jungle wanderers in the back ground, I somehow stayed away from the dark building and my father.
Chapter Three
Four Feet
“Please?” Bex asked, holding open the passenger-side door.
I rolled my eyes. “Fine. Don’t tell your mom.”
“I won’t!” he said. He took my backpack and threw it in the back as I collapsed into the seat. Within seconds he was beside me, starting the engine.
“You’re so cool,” he said with a wide grin.
“The only reason I’m letting you drive is because you completed your driving course at Cleet. If you can out- drive cops, I’m assuming you won’t wreck the only thing I have left of Jack.”
Bex frowned. “Buzz kill.”
He pulled away from the loft, using his blinker and obeying every traffic law along the way. I watched the trees pass, the reds and oranges signaling the arrival of Fall. Jared’s whereabouts lingered in the forefront of my mind, but the wall I had learned to form around my feelings had long been routine. I didn’t want Jared to make a
