Body and Soul (Body and Soul Trilogy) (11 page)

“Sure,” Kate said.

Adriana stretched this time. “I think I’m going to go take a bubble bath. I didn’t sleep all day like you did Rico. Why don’t you two go out and have some fun?” Adriana stood up and headed up to her bedroom. Kate heard the door close before Rico spoke.

“Do you still want to grab some coffee with me?” he asked. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to. I don’t want you to feel pressured since Adriana won’t be there.”

“That’s okay,” Kate replied. “I’m not afraid to be alone with you if that’s what you’re hinting at.” Kate got up and headed for the foyer, her navy sundress swirling around her legs. She waited for Rico when she reached the door, unsure of how they would get there.

Chapter 14

Rico walked up to the Ferrari when they got outside and opened the passenger side door for Kate. She got inside, feeling the cool leather against her legs. The interior still smelled new, and Kate wondered if it was new or if the owner took excellent care of it.

“Is this Donovan’s?” she asked.

Rico looked at her like she was crazy. “This is my car,” he said.

“How is this
your
car? Who bought this for you?”

“I saved up for it. It took me a while.”

“What do you mean it took you a while? You had to wait until you were eighteen to get your trust fund?”

Rico laughed. “Something like that,” he said to Kate before speeding off.

The coffee shop was a tiny place that sat on a boardwalk near the water. It was built out of a mixture of old wood and driftwood. A string of Christmas lights hung around the roof and wrapped around the supporting beams. There were four stools that stood in front of a wide counter that was rough, with splinters of wood sticking out. Kate was careful when she sat down on one of the stools, afraid that Rico would have to pull jagged pieces of wood out of her next.

A girl stood behind the counter. She was busy making another person’s order, her back to Rico and Kate. She was a small girl, shorter than Kate, and thin, with a tattoo that wrapped around her left ring finger; from where Kate sat it looked like a ribbon that was tied in a bow.

“What can I get y’all?” she asked when she turned around. The girl had a pretty face and exotic eyes; her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail, shorter pieces falling down to frame her round face.

“I’d like a coffee, black. Kate would like a Vanilla Latte,” Rico said, ordering for both of them. He smiled at Kate, and took the steaming mug that the girl set in front of him. He wrapped his hands around it even though it was still warm outside.

“Thanks for ordering for me,” Kate said. Wasn’t that something that people did on dates? Or did Rico somehow know that she wasn’t familiar with coffee?

“No problem,” Rico said.

Kate looked at him, sensing something different about him. He seemed calmer out here, away from the world of demons and alternate realities. She kind of liked this version of Rico. She didn’t have to worry about the probing questions. She didn’t have to worry about what she said and how she said it. She wasn’t even worried about a possible argument.

“I also wanted to thank you for speaking with Cole,” Kate added, making sure to say things so that no one thought they sounded odd.

“You’re welcome, Kate.  It wasn’t too bad, really. I don’t want you to think that it was a hard or dangerous task. It just took some time, that’s all.”

“Well, I still appreciate it,” Kate said.

The girl set a mug down in front of Kate and let her know that it was hot. Kate pulled it closer to her, but let it sit there so that it would cool down enough for her to drink.

“I think we should talk about other things,” Rico said. “I’m curious as to who you were before all of this. I’m sure you’ve grown since Adriana and I popped into your life.”

Kate sat back and looked into Rico’s eyes. They weren’t stormy today, she mused. When Rico wasn’t upset his cobalt eyes were tranquil, peaceful like the waters near Bora Bora or some other tropical place. She noticed that he looked deep into hers, waiting for her answer.

“Truthfully, I wasn’t really anyone before you came along,” she said.

Rico nodded, and Kate continued.

“I was a lonely girl that didn’t really know what life was. I spent my life living vicariously through the girls in movies,” she admitted, blushing. “I spent a lot of time arguing with my parents because it was the only dramatic relationship that I could have.” Kate blinked and realized that she was staring at the mug in front of her. She carefully took a sip of the still steaming liquid before continuing.
“I have grown because of you,” she whispered as she set it down.

“Kate, you don’t have to feel regret or shame for who you were. It’s made you strong and independent. Don’t fight that part about you. Don’t feel like you need friends to make you whole. Believe me when I say that friends come and go.”

Kate nodded, knowing that Rico was talking about what would happen when Kern didn’t want anything to do with Kate anymore, when he was ready to find another body.

“I wasn’t really anyone for a long time,” Rico admitted after a short silence. “I was alone until Adriana found me. I
guess you could say she saved me from who I could be right now.”

“How did you meet?” Kate asked.

“Adriana and Donovan like to travel the world. Adriana found me in India; I was into some pretty bad stuff back then. I don’t really like to talk about it. Well, she found me and showed me what it was like to be someone’s friend. You see, back then I disliked people quite a bit.” Rico smiled a slow, sad smile.

“Adriana’s changed both of us. She’s the constant in all of this,” Kate said.

“She is,” Rico agreed.

Kate pondered Adriana for a moment. Adriana was kind and honest; when she cared about someone, she protected them. Kate could see that part of her when it came to Donovan. Kate wondered, again, who Donovan really was. She considered asking Rico but knew that it would only cause an argument. It wasn’t right of Kate to try to place Rico in between the trust issues that she and Adriana had.

Kate and Rico walked along the boardwalk in silence after Kate finished her latte. She had enjoyed this drink much more than the coffee that Rico was drinking, and finished it quickly. Now Kate’s fingertips, nose, and lips were buzzing with energy. Her mind was enveloped in a feeling of calmness, and Kate relished in the feeling. It was nice to be able to push every negative thought out of her mind when she was with Rico.

Rico stopped suddenly and lifted his eyes to the stars. Kate followed his gaze.

“Do you think alternate realities are real places?” he asked. “I know that you didn’t see yours clearly, but I’ve always wondered if they were actual planets. You see, I’ve never been to one,” he admitted.

Kate knew in her heart that an alternate reality was a tangible place. Her other half was probably there right now, laughing and holding hands with Rico.

“I don’t know,” she said instead. She knew that she couldn’t tell Rico the answer he wanted to hear because it would give her secrets away. She looked at the ground, the feeling of calmness replaced with a feeling of guilt and shame.

“I’m sorry that I brought your thoughts back to that,” Rico said. “I never meant to take away your happiness. I don’t ever want to,” he added.

Kate looked at him, a weak smile present on her features. Rico mistook her small smile for fear and continued talking.

“You don’t need to be afraid. I swear that I’ll protect you, body and soul,” he said earnestly. “I won’t let him take you away.”

Kate finally found her words. “I’m not afraid,” she said. “And I am happy right now. I’m probably the happiest I’ve been since I met you.”

“Yeah, it’s nice to feel freedom.”

Kate gripped the rail that was in front of her, steeling herself for her response. She knew that if she planned on letting Rico know how she felt about him, she would have to do it now.

She let out a breath before continuing.
“It’s nice to feel the way I do; the way I feel with you,” she said, blushing fiercely. She sat there, staring at her hands, waiting for Rico to say something, anything.

Next to her, Rico ran his hands through his hair, lac
ed his fingers, and rested them on the back of his head. His breathing grew heavy, and Kate was afraid that she ruined their easy friendship, that Rico was growing angry with her.

“You shouldn’t feel that way,” he said at last.

Kate’s cheeks burned further and angry tears threatened to choke her. She looked up at him bravely, searching his eyes for something other than what he had just said, searching for what she wanted him to say to her.

Rico tousled his hair
and covered his face in his hands, hiding his emotions from Kate. She looked back down at the faded wood.

“I’m here to protect you. I can’t be anything else,” Rico said
when he was able to look at Kate. “I’m sorry, Kate, but it’s the truth. I’m just a soldier.”

“No you aren’t,” she said, her voice small. “You’re pretending that you don’t feel but I’ve seen you laugh. I’ve seen you when you’re angry or scared or worried.”

“I don’t feel the way you do, Kate.” His voice sounded like it was on the verge of breaking and Kate felt the need to comfort him. Instead, she stood there, stoic.

Kate’s thoughts tangled with her emotions. She could feel Rico’s tension; his muscles were flexed, his breathing loud and quick. Kate couldn’t believe that Rico felt nothing for her. He had freaked out after scaring her at the beach; he had talked with her about her appearance, clearly stating that he thought Kate was more attractive with her curls. Kate couldn’t let that knowledge go. She knew that deep down, there was something hidden within Rico, something that he wasn’t telling her. Kate guessed that everyone was hiding something; it was human nature, and like Adriana stated earlier, there was no reason for her to be hypocritical about it.

“We should head back,” Rico said finally, pulling Kate from her swirl of emotions. “I’ll drop you off at your house. I’ll let Adriana know you were tired.”

“I’d rather walk. It’s not far from here,” Kate said in response.

“It’s not safe for you to walk. I’m not letting you.”

“You aren’t my father, Rico. You aren’t even my boyfriend. I don’t think you have the right to tell me what to do right now,” Kate spat.

Rico took a step back, shocked at Kate’s outburst. He looked at her for a moment before trying to persuade her once more.

“Look,” she said calmly. “The only thing I have left when it comes to you is my pride. Please, let me keep just that,” she said, pleading with him.

Rico sighed, knowing he had nowhere to turn from here. He let her go and stood on the boardwalk watching her silhouette retreat, waiting until he could see it no more.

When Kate was gone, Rico got into his car and drove slowly along the road parallel to Kate, listening for her soft presence.

Chapter 15

Kate stumbled into her
bedroom thirty minutes later. The walk had been calming, yet eerie. Kate had felt the sensation that someone was watching her as she walked and shuddered at the thought of Kern sulking in the shadows somewhere.

When Kate opened the door, Adriana sat on the bed, an overnight bag next to her. Her dark eyes sparkled with knowledge but there was no smug smile on her face.

“I need to be alone tonight,” Kate demanded.

“No, Kate. I know enough about being friends to know that the last thing you need right now is a cry fest. You need to talk about it,” Adriana said, worry creasing her brow.

“What do you know about being friends with me?” Kate asked. “As soon as Kern is gone, as soon as he doesn’t want my soul any longer, you’ll be gone too. You aren’t my friend because of something natural. This friendship is an excuse to watch over me all the time.”

“That’s not true,” Adriana said in a small voice. “It may have started out that way, Kate, but I really like you. You’re the first person that I’ve actually felt a connection to.”

“Wrong,” Kate said. “You have a connection to Rico and your hypothetical father. I’m not the first person so don’t lie to me.”

“Believe me, Kate
. You are.” Adriana began muttering to herself about Rico and Donovan being angry with her. She was at war with herself for about ten minutes before she looked into Kate’s cloudy eyes, her dark ones determined.

“Kate, I want you to listen to me,” she said. “I don’t want you to interrupt me or ask questions; I just want you to listen. Do you understand?”

Kate nodded, a question rising in her throat already. What was going on?

“When I say that you are the first person I’ve had a connection with, I’m not lying. Rico, Donovan and I are not people.” Adriana paused to give Kate a moment to process the information that she was offering.
“Rico, Donovan, and I are demons.”

Kate stumbled backward and slammed into her dresser. She kept shaking her head back and forth, almost as if she couldn’t hear what Adriana was saying, almost as if she could shake her new knowledge right out of her memory. Kate wanted to talk, to ask a million questions, but she kept her mouth shut out of respect for Adriana’s wishes.

Adriana stood up, moving towards Kate. Kate kept backing away. She wasn’t exactly afraid of Adriana; Adriana and Rico had each had the opportunity to take her soul if they had wanted to. There was no reason for Kate to think that they would start trying now. But there was something different about Adriana now. Kate could almost see her unearthly beauty, the grace that accompanied each lithe movement. She extended her thinking and realized that she could see these same characteristics in both Rico and Donovan.

“Kate, I won’t hurt you,” Adriana said. She stopped where she stood, no longer aiming to comfort her friend.

Kate stared at her, the feeling of shock rushing through her veins.

“We might be demons, but we still feel pain.” Adriana whispered. Was she insinuating that Kate was hurting her feelings? It was Kate’s feelings that were crushed. She had been tricked this whole time, thinking that her friends were just like her, fragile and helpless when it came down to it. Now she realized that they were opposites.

Adriana moved on. “Rico, Donovan, and I are immortal. We have been alive since the beginning of time. We have seen every raging war, we have seen people possessed, and we have seen other demons murdered during exorcism.

In the beginning, I was alone. I fought alongside my brothers and sisters, destroying our planet, relishing in the destruction. I was a monster.” Adriana looked at Kate, her eyes growing sad.

“When Darkness put us here on Earth, I knew we didn’t belong here. I saw my brothers and sisters taking human souls, killing humans so that they could truly feel love. I wondered how demons could truly feel that love if it was stolen from someone. You can’t truly have something that you take by force; it will never be yours.” Adriana sighed and moved back to sit on the bed. Kate noticed that Adriana chose the spot that was furthest from her; it was as if Adriana knew that Kate didn’t want to be near her. Kate’s heart beat guiltily.

“I have never taken or tried to take a human soul,” Adriana said.

“Hundreds of years after inhabiting this planet I found Donovan. You were right, Kate, he’s not my father; he’s my husband. I thought that you and I could connect over the desire to spend time with our parents, so I pretended that Donovan was my father. I truly am sorry for lying to you about myself, about Rico and Donovan. We never planned on letting you know, but you took us by surprise, Kate. Before you came along, it was always just a job. We never actually cared about any of the people that we protected.”

Kate detached herself from the dresser. She moved slowly, cautiously toward the other end of the bed. She could see Adriana’s dark eyes lighten some, hope burning there. Kate sat down across from her friend, pulling her legs up to her chest and resting her chin there. She waited patiently for Adriana to continue her story.

“I found Rico later, in India. I had been searching for Kern for quite a while. You see, I lost his trail about fifty years before; Rico helped me find him again. We’ve been working together for about two hundred years now, but we haven’t been able to stop Kern from possessing the humans that he lays his eyes on. I think you’re different, though, Kate. I think you’re strong enough to resist him. You’re the first person I’ve met that truly doesn’t need another person to make her happy, to make her feel alive. You symbolize hope to me,” she admitted.

Adriana stared out the window for a moment before turning to Kate again.

Kate watched her, but couldn’t make herself say anything.

“I’m finished now, Kate. Do you have any questions for me? You can ask me whatever you want; I promise to tell you the truth.”

“How was Rico when you found him?” Kate asked, finally finding her voice.

“Rico needs to tell you his own story, Kate. The same goes for Donovan. I only have the
power to tell you mine.”

“Do you think they will tell me?”

“After Rico and Donovan get over being angry at me they might tell you. I think you’ll have more luck with Donovan, though.”

“Why Donovan? I don’t know him as well as I do Rico,” Kate mentioned.

“Donovan is very proud of who he is. He would love to share his story with someone new, someone that doesn’t already know him. For Rico, well, I’m the only one that knows his entire story.”

Kate pondered this new knowledge. Did that mean that Rico was ashamed of his past? Did that mean that Donovan wasn’t? Was that a good thing or a bad thing?

“Can you tell me about Lilith? What was it like over there? Do you remember?”

“I remember everything, Kate. Demons don’t forget their pasts like humans. We have excellent and extensive memories.”

Adriana didn’t get to tell Kate about Lilith. A crash from the hall stopped Adriana from talking further. She rushed to the door, quick as lightning and stood there listening for signs of movement. When Adriana thought the coast was clear she opened the door slowly and peeked into the hall. One moment Adriana was leaning over to get a better look around the corner, the next she was pressed against the wall, Donovan’s hands pressed on her throat.

“What did you do?” he spat. “How dare you tell a human what we are! Are you crazy enough to think that she
cares about you enough not to go running down the streets screaming about monsters?”

Adriana struggled against his hold, trying to speak. Donovan didn’t budge.

“I can’t believe you would betray your own kind like this. You’re despicable. You’re no different than a human.”

“Stop it! You’re hurting her!” Kate screamed.

Donovan turned to look at Kate. “I would never hurt her, but someone else will. Humans are not to know about demons anymore. That was part of the agreement.”

He let go of Adriana then, and sped out of the
room. Kate heard the back door close, thankful that her parents had gone out.

Kate watched as Adriana slid to the floor, her body trembling. Kate rushed over to her, trying to hug her, to comfort her somehow. Adriana pushed her away weakly.

“Don’t, Kate. It’s not your fault; it’s mine. I let this happen to myself. I’m sorry that he frightened you. I’ll make sure that Rico doesn’t do the same.”

“Rico wouldn’t do that to you,” Kate protested.

“Honey, you don’t know what Rico is capable of.” Adriana stood up then and straightened out her pants. She moved to the mirror and fixed her hair and the smudges of makeup.

“I should go,” she said. “You’ll be safe tonight. I promise you.”

With that she disappeared with her bag, leaving Kate alone for another sleepless night.

Kate was in the woods again. This time she stood in a meadow blooming with wildflowers. She turned around, gathering her surroundings. She knew that she had to find her way out of here. She had to find what it was she was searching for.

The burning world popped into her mind first. Was that what she was searching for? No. She had already found the burning world. She needed to find something else now.

She saw a small path at the edge of the meadow and followed it. There was a soft breeze that drifted in from whatever was on the other side. Kate walked along the winding trail, letting her fingers touch the rough tree bark and trail along the lush leaves. The dirt was dry and Kate kicked it up as she walked, the bottom of her ivory gown catching the clouds of it.

Kate began to hear a familiar sound. The smell of salt wafted up from ahead of her, and Kate instantly knew that she was on a beach somewhere. She rushed ahead, eager to feel the open wind caress her skin and comb her hair.

When Kate stepped into the fine sand she rushed forward, knowing that it was here, the thing that she was searching for. She slowed down, realizing that the sand around her wasn’t smooth like it was at home. She looked around her and searched for a pattern in the swirls that were drawn around her.

Kate’s heart stopped when she realized what she was looking at. It was the picture she had drawn in the sand the first morning at the beach. The image was drawn over and over again, covering the entirety of the beach she stood at now – a circle that was enveloped i
n what Kate now realized were flames. She screamed as terror claimed her heart.