Everlasting Bond (8 page)

To her surprise, his focus was solely on her. He wasn't paying any attention to what Andrew or Jake were doing on her mother's porch. He interlaced his fingers of his left hand with those of her right and the current that flowed between them changed. It faded into a slight vibration rath
er than an overpowering storm.

Cole stuffed his right hand into his pocket and gave her a hesitant look. “Can I a
sk you to do something for me?”

“Sure.”

When he took his hand out there was something big in it. “Take this and keep it with you, always.” Resting between his pale hands was a small sized gem. It glowed like an amber sunset against the frosty background. Dangling from its end was a delicate silver chain. Katrina became lost into the curious item. She had never seen anything so beautiful.

“It’s an amulet for protection.”

“For protection against what?”

“Just promise me you’ll wear it always. Please?” There was a sense of urg
ency in his voice, as he spoke.

“I promise,” she answered, though not entirely sure why.

Looking down at the necklace, Katrina’s body tensed. She couldn’t understand it, but there was something familiar about that stone. It was hard to explain, but she knew she'd seen it before. Nodding her head in acceptance, she held out her hand. The gem’s smooth surface was cool to the touch as it rested in her palm. It was the perfect size for her hand, like it had been made for her. She was staring at it when a slight breeze burst through the night air and caused her to shiver. Katrina tugged her shirt against herself to block out the draft and realized she was still wearing Cole’s shirt.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Do you want this back?” She motioned to his shirt.

“No. You keep it. Khaki looks better on you,” he smiled, as his eyes quickly glanced over her.

“Thanks.” Out of things to say, she nervously bit down on her bottom lip.

“Until tomorrow then?” It was a question, but Katrina could feel a double meaning hidden behind it. At the moment she was too tired to decipher it and wanted nothing more than to go to bed.

She nodded. “Until tomorrow.”

Katrina’s heart stopped, as she watched him raise her hand to his lips. The way his lips lingered against her skin left her breathless. They were so soft and gentle. As soon as he let go of her hand, Katrina missed his touch.

Cole smiled and then nodded for Andrew to follow him. Katrina felt her body flush, as she watched Cole and Andrew walk towards their car. So had much happened in the past few hours and she never thought her night would end like this. She clenched the amulet in her h
and as they drove off.

“What are you smiling about?” Jake asked, from over her shoulder.

“Nothing.”

“Doesn’t look like nothing.”

“Let’s just say it has been an interesting night, for both of us.”

“Yes, it has.” Jake smiled in agreement. Her brother seemed different. Almost happy. “Ready to go face the music, sis?”

“As I'll ever be.” Katrina motioned with her hands for him to lead the way.

Walking inside, Katrina could hear the low humming of the television. That was a sure sign her mother had been up the whole night waiting for them. The moment she heard her mothers rushed footsteps, Katrina knew she was right.

“Where have you two been? I’ve been worried sick! I almost called the sheriff,” their mother demanded with her hands on her hips.

“Sorry, mom,” Jake began. “We had a flat at school, so we walked. I had to be at Trudy’s to make up for all the time I missed and Kat came to help me.
I guess we lost track of time.”

Katrina stared at her mother hoping she would leave it at that. She held her breath for what seemed like forever until her mom finally answered.

“Well, next time could you please make sure you take your phones with you? It’s why you have them!” Their mother's face softened as she began to calm down.

“Promise. We won’t let it happen again,” Jak
e said.

Katrina went to follow Jake up the steps, when her mother stopped her. “Kat, what happened to your face?”

“It’s nothing.” Katrina froze not wanting to rehash that moment in her long night.

“It doesn’t look like nothing.”

“I walked into a shelf. It was dark in the storeroom and I didn’t see it. Bam.” She motioned towards her cheek. “Got me right in the face.”

“What kind of shelf was it?” Her mother
said, folding her arms.
Dang it!
Katrina knew that look. It was an I’m-not-buying-what-you’re-selling kind.

“You know—a big one,” she forced out as fast as she could.

“Kat, honey, I think we need to have a talk.”

“No thanks, mom. I just want to shower and go to bed.”

“Now.” Her voice was stern and she motioned for Katrina to meet her in the kitchen. Sighing in protest, Katrina followed her.

Before she could sit down at the table, her mother had two mugs of hot tea waiting. She quietly sat down and played with the cup, while her
mother took a seat across from her.

“What’s his name?” Her mother's voice grew soft.

“Who?” Katrina looked up and tried to play dumb.

“I wasn't born yesterday, Katrina.” Her mom stared at her a second before Katrina saw the realization hit her. “Brody! I'm right aren't I?”

Katrina looked away. She wanted to deny everything, but she couldn't bring herself to lie to her. Instead, she simply nodded.

“I’ll kill that little son of a bitch!” She swore as she reached for her cell phone.

“What are you doing?” Katrina felt a sudden surge of panic.

“I’m calling the sheriff. He may think he’s untouchable, but he’s gone too far this time.”

“No!” Kat jumped out of her seat.

“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t?”

“Because you’ll make it worse. I just want to forget about it and move on. Please,” Katrina pleaded, fighting back tears.

Her mother gave her a long hard look and it felt like an eternity before she answered her. “I’ll let it go just this once, but if he comes near either of you again
, he’ll be very sorry.”

“Fine
. Can I go upstairs? I’m really tired.”

Her mother nodded her head. “Yeah, go on. It's late a
nd you've got school tomorrow.”

Katrina stood up and kissed her mothers cheek. “Goodnight mom.”

“Goodnight sweetie. Love you.”

“Love you, too,” she said. Then she headed towards the hall and up the stairs. As soon as she took her first step her legs cried in protest. The night had been one massive rush of adrenalin
e and Katrina’s body was exhausted. It took everything she had to make it to the top.

Holding onto the banister, Katrina debated on what to do. She was exhausted and anxious to go to bed, but she really needed a shower. Going to bed with the stench of Brody on her was the last thing she wanted to do. That thought was enough to make her cringe and decide for her. Katrina went into her room and grabbed some fresh pajama
s then headed for the shower.

Once the hot water hit her body, she knew she made the right decision. The steam sent her body into a deep state of relaxation. Every nasty trace of Brody was washed away and sucked into the abyss down the drain. Then her mind wandered to thoughts of Cole and the kiss they shared.

She smiled and began to relive each part. Images of his soft delicate lips touching hers sent shivers through her. It wasn't exactly her first kiss, but it was the closest to an actual kiss she ever had. Not that she had a lot of experience in that area. The only other boy she ever kissed was Todd Russo and it wasn't exactly in the same category. Kissing your childhood friend when you're thirteen is more awkward than anything else.

No this kiss was definitely on a completely different level. She wondered if it was normal to feel such intense feelings for someone barely knew. The more she thought about it though the more it seemed like it wasn't the first time they met. The way her body acted around him felt more like she had known him her whole life. Katrina started laughing at herself fro that thought. Sh
e sounded like a crazy person.

The sudden change in water temperature shocked her back to the fact she was still in the shower. That was her cue to get out. She reached for her towel and let out a slight wince. Soreness throbbed through her arm. She did her best to baby it as she attempted to dry off.  In all of the excitement that happened, her body hadn’t had time to recover and now it was prote
sting.

After she put on her pajamas, she headed towards her room. She couldn’t wait to pass out on her bed. It had been the longest night ever and all she wanted to do was sleep. On her way down the hall, a low hiss
ing sound caught her attention.

A quick glance revealed Jake standing in his doorway and gesturing for her to come in. Katrina hesitated because she really just wanted to go to sleep, but Jake's face looked like he might burst if he didn’t tell her something, and soon.

“What is it?” she asked, as she entered his room.

“I have to talk to you. I can’t go to sleep until I tell someone,” Jake whispered, as he shut his door.

“About what? Ouch! Damn it!” Katrina yelled, as the pain began to throb. “You really need to get rid of that stupid nightstand. That was my toe!” Sitting on his bed, Katrina caught her breath.

“It’s amazing you don’t trip over your own feet,” Jake teased.

“Likewise,” she cocked an eyebrow at her.

“True,” he suppressed a grin.

“What do you want?” Katrina asked, impatient and still rubbing her foot.

“To talk about everything that happened tonight.”

“Okay. How did you end up with Andrew?”

“He showed up while I was finishing up my work at Trudy’s. He didn't say much at first. He just sat down at one of the stations staring at me.

“What a creeper,” Katrina mumbled mostly to herself.

“I know that's what I thought at first too. I don't know how long he sat there, but then I asked him if he needed something because it was freaking me out. He smiled back with an apology saying he hadn’t seen me for so long, he couldn’t help it.”

“What did he mean by that?”

“No idea,” Jake shook his head. “I thought it was a weird thing to say. Then he grabbed my hand and boy, were his hands colder than a frog’s leg, Kat. I tell you what, if—”

“Jake!”

“Sorry, I know get to the point. Anyway he sat me down, looked into my eyes and said, ‘I have so much to tell you, in
so little time. You’re going to have to trust me and just listen.’”

“What did he say?”

“That’s the strange part. He didn’t exactly say anything. He grabbed my face and held me there, looking into my eyes. I couldn’t look away, but I didn’t want to either. It was strange. It was like I knew him. I mean really knew him. Then he did something that surprised the hell out of me. Kat, he kissed me. And I don’t mean a peck on the cheek kiss.

“When his lips touched mine I saw quick flashes of pictures run through my head. They were from a different place and a different time. We were smiling and splashing each other in a creek one minute and the next we were pulled somewhere else. This time Andrew and I were standing in front of a cottage helping you and Cole out of a small window. These wild beasts were trying to come out after you, but we shut them in. You and Cole left, while Andrew and I stayed preparing to fight. With what, I still have no idea.

“I saw a razor sharp claw break through the glass and that’s when it happened. A rage of fire burst through me. I felt my body change, sharp needles pressed into my bottom lip. Kat, I had fangs!”

Katrina felt her body shake.
There was no way. It had to be an odd coincidence, that they both had the same flashback.
Except she knew better than to believe in coincidences after tonight. Katrina stared at Jake and tried to hide her feelings, but it didn’t work. Jake picked up on them, as soon as she felt them.

“What are you not telling me?”

“Nothing.” Biting down on her lip, she couldn’t bring her eyes to look at him. If she did he’d know.

“Kat!”

“In Cole’s car I had a dream pretty close to that. Until now, I was willing to buy it as just that, a creepy dream.”

“I don’t think it’s coincidence.”

“Something tells me it’s not,” Katrina sighed.

“What do you think it means?”

“I don’t know, Jake. My head hurts from information overload and I just want to go to bed right now.”

“Fair enough, consider
ing everything you’ve been through. Just promise me you’ll think about it?”

“I will.”

Taking a deep breath, Katrina tried to process the overflow of information her brother just gave her. She was both physically and emotionally drained to focus on the importance of Jake’s revelation. But, if it were true, what did any of it mean?