I looked at her, conscious that my mouth had dropped open. My mother wasn’t telling me to pretend I was in love with my boyfriend. She was telling me to open up to him so that I could heal and maybe, eventually learn to love him. It probably wasn’t the world’s worst idea. But it definitely wasn’t the best.
Chapter 5
Truth
I was walking to my car after my last class on Monday when I became aware of a tall, well-built young man leaning up against the hood of my black hatchback. I pushed a stray lock of black hair behind my ear and proceeded to walk towards my vehicle. He wasn’t a student. The school was small, so I pretty much knew everyone’s faces. He gave me a half-smile as I stopped in front of my car.
“You Dawn?” he asked me loudly. The man obviously had no volume control.
“That’s me. What can I do ya for?” I asked cautiously, hoping that if something were to happen right now, someone would be brave enough to jump to my rescue before I had to pull out a flaming can of whoop-ass.
“Good.” His voice quieted down some, and his expression softened. “My name is Nick. I need to speak with you concerning a debt.” He winked at me.
“Okay…” I paused uncertainly. Why did he just wink at me? “A debt of what?” Where was he going with this?
“Perhaps I could speak with you in a secluded location where we can discuss this debt without others overhearing?” He winked again.
There must be something in his eye.
“There’s a park about a mile up the road where we can talk,” I suggested, confused, and not knowing at all what was going on.
“One more thing…” He looked at the ground.
“What’s that?”
“Can I catch a ride with you?” He smiled this huge, genuine smile.
I laughed back. “How did you get here in the first place?”
“I’ll tell you in the car.” He looked serious now.
“Okay, well, go ahead and get in.” I was motioning toward my hatchback when I heard a familiar voice behind me.
“Hey, Dawn, who’s this?” Aaron stared at the stranger as he got into the car. He looked and sounded perturbed. I cringed for a second then turned to face him once Nick had shut his door.
“It’s an old friend. There’s nothing to worry about.”
I let Aaron take my hand. He had confessed his feelings for me only the day before. I didn’t need him to feel threatened, even though if it came down to it this stranger could probably take Aaron out in one punch. Still, I had to play along for now, even though my feelings were not at the same level as his.
“You sure? He looks kind of rough,” Aaron said, looking toward my car.
“He’s harmless. I’ll call you as soon as I get home if it makes you feel better.”
He pouted at me. “Well… all right. Will I see you tonight?”
“Maybe.” I hated leading him on this way, but even my mother said it was best just to see where it led.
“Later then.” He gave me a big kiss, one that was a bit much for saying goodbye, but I suspected he was making a point to the male stranger in my car.
I pulled away and got into the driver’s seat.
“He always that affectionate?” Nick asked, looking rather grossed out.
I shrugged. “Yeah.”
“That’s the thing about you demons. When you have something good you want to throw it away,” he remarked, glancing out the window.
Did he just say ‘you demons’?
“Do what?” I asked, hoping that I had heard him wrong.
“You didn’t hear me wrong, Ms. Weathers. When we get to this park, I’ll tell you everything that I know.” He said it as if he had just been inside my head. Just like my father was able to do. I hated it when he did that. It was incredibly intrusive.
I parked my car in the parking lot of Midvale City Park and turned to look at my passenger. He had amazing green eyes and a friendly smile, but I was ready for anything he threw at me. If he was about to launch me into new perils, I only hoped they would help me to free Wesley from the grasp of that redheaded monster Miranda.
“Okay, we’re here. Spill.”
“First, let me apologize to you for what I said back there. I meant no disrespect by calling you a demon. I know your mother was an angel, so you aren’t completely muddied.” He gave me an apologetic smile.
“No, it’s fine. I understand what you meant.”
“Good. Most of the others don’t like to be called either one or the other.” He said it as if I was supposed to understand what he was saying.
Most of the others? I looked at him, confused.
“You’re not the only one, Dawn,” he continued, clearly picking up my thoughts. “There are several others on this Earth with the same blood as you. They tend to fall more to one side than the other. You have done well keeping yourself in balance.”
I pinched myself. I had to be dreaming.
“What are they like?” I asked slowly, intrigued by the way this conversation was going.
“Well, the two that I have met take on the light side of their blood. They can use the darkness in them, but they refuse to. I suppose it depends on who adopts them really.” He looked around the car, not looking all impressed.
“Adopts?”
“Yeah.” Again, he spoke like I was supposed to know all of this already. “You are the only one in existence with an angel mother. It was understood centuries ago that female angels were infertile to hybrid mixes, unable to procreate with man or any
