Marked by Destiny (14 page)

“I’m sure you do.” The stranger stepped to
the side to let us through the stairwell. “This isn’t the best
neighborhood. I saw your Jeep outside. Might be better if I walk
with you.”

Michael held his gaze, even and hard. “Fine.
How about we get this fine young lady to the Jeep, then you and I
have a nice chat?”

The guy burst out laughing. “I’ll be up
shortly, Rob.” Marcus waved-off his friend like he couldn’t care
less.

We started down the stairs, Michael making
sure I was in front, then him and then the Grollic.

“Dude, I have no idea who the hell you are,
but you have a serious set a cahones’s on you. Why the hell would
you bring a sheep into the lion’s den?”

Michael didn’t stop walking down the stairs,
he kept close to me. “I didn’t know. We were trying to find
someone. It doesn’t matter… obviously a dead end.”

They arrived in the lobby. I had no idea how
my legs carried me across to the door that led outside.

As we passed the big, fat guy on the bench,
he suddenly came to life. “Marcus! Marcus Brutus! How is your mama?
I ‘aven’t seen her in ages!” The man stood and hugged burly
Marcus.

“Go!” Michael hissed, pushing me into a
run.

I raced to the car, the door already open and
the end running before I even reached it. Michael pulled into gear
and tore away from the curb, tires squealing, dirt and debris
flying behind us.

Chapter 13

“Holy guacamole!” I shouted, whipping around
to see if Marcus had turned into a Grollic and was chasing us
down.

Two figures stood, one with his hands on his
head, the other with his hands in the air. They grew smaller and
smaller as Michael pressed on the gas pedal. He kept checking the
rearview mirror and every window for a blind spot, obviously
expecting a Grollic to come out behind some building or house and
ram itself into the Jeep.

He took a hard right and shifted gears. “What
did you just say?” he asked a few minutes later, finally slowing
downing down slightly and rolling through a stop sign.

“I didn’t say anything.” I glanced all around
me again, my heart refusing to slow its frantic pace.

“
I believe you did.” He chuckled. “I think
you said
holy guacamole
?”

My eyes rolled toward the roof of the Jeep.
“I might have.” I punched him lightly in the arm. “It was an
intense moment. I wasn’t thinking straight.”

“You’ve got quite the foul mouth on you!” He
smiled and winked at me, then veered the Jeep toward the I90 and
took the on ramp to the interstate. “I’m just going to drive around
a bit. Make sure we aren’t being followed.”

“Sounds good to me. You can just keep driving
back to Port Q if you want. You won’t get any arguments from
me.”

“Till we’re halfway home. Then you’re going
to want to come back and find out what the heck just happened.”

“No. I think I’m completely fine with never
having to go there again. I have the file…” I glanced down on the
ground by my feet. “I can start – where is the file?” I shifted and
checked to see if I was sitting on it. I felt under the seat and
unclicked my seatbelt to check the back. “It’s not here!” Panic
found its way back into my chest. “Michael, stop the car! Where’s
the file?”

He made his way over to the right lane and
pulled off on the next exit. At the same time he checked his seat
and around him. He drove into a Walmart parking lot and jumped out
of the Jeep to get a better look.

I did the same. The file wasn’t there. A
shaky sigh escaped my mouth, and I could feel my lower lip begin to
tremble. I hated crying. Fighting the tears, my throat tightened
and throbbed. I couldn’t believe the file was gone. I’d just had it
in my hands, had read so little of it, and now it was gone. What a
day! What a freakin’ awful day!

Michael came around the Jeep and pulled me
into his arms.

I pressed my face hard into his chest, still
trying to fight the tears that refused to stop. “It’s gone,” I
mumbled over and over again.

He ran his fingers lightly over my scalp and
hair. “Shhh…” he said as he tried to comfort me. “It must have
fallen out when we took off.”

We stayed together, arms wrapped around each
other for a long time. Finally I straightened and tucked a lock of
messy hair behind my ear. “I have a name. It’s a start.”

“It is.” He wiped a tear from my cheek. “And
it appears you might have a brother.”

“Bit of an asshole, isn’t he?”

Michael eyes went big before he burst out
laughing. “Your foul mouth is progressing today.”

“Hey, if the word fits…” I smiled but it
quickly faded. “He called me Jamie. Maybe he thinks I’m someone
else. The name on my birth information that was in the f-file says
my mother named me Rouge.” I shook my head. “I don’t get it.”

“He probably doesn’t know who you are.”

“Yeah… Well, he did know what you were
though. He’s a wolf, so is that Marcus Brutus.” I sighed. “I wasn’t
expecting things to be peachy and pretty, but I didn’t expect
this.”

Michael put his arm around me. I savored the
warmth he offered and rested my head against his shoulder. “Maybe
we should just go home. Pack our stuff up. Let sleeping dogs
lie.”

He kissed the top of my head. His hot breath
sent a shiver down my spine, the good kind. “Let’s head back to the
hotel and decide from there.”

“Okay.” I let him help me back into the Jeep,
and we drove in silence back to the Holiday Inn.

In our room, I pulled out the Wolf Book and
the journal I’d been writing in. I sat on the bed, my back against
the headboard and stared at the ancient leather book. Tapping my
foot against the sheets, I straightened up and grabbed my pen. I
planned to write what had happened down in my journal, then turn
the page and never think of it again.

Except I knew I would never forget it. I
knew, whether I was afraid of the knowledge or not, there would be
no guarantee I’d have the chance to learn more later. I was furious
with myself. I should have taken the time to read the full file
before running off on any leads. Stupid, stupid mistake! Why had I
been so rash in my decision making? I stole a glance at
Michael.

He sat behind his laptop at the desk. We
worked quietly, completely comfortable in each other’s silence. He
had no idea of the inner turmoil going on inside of me.

He stood just as I was closing my journal.
“Do you feel like going out to eat?”

I shook my head.

“Why don’t I go grab some take out then? What
do you feel like?”

I shrugged. I felt drained. Disappointed in
myself. Tired. “I’m fine with anything. I’ll just chill till you
get back.” I pointed to his laptop. “Do you mind if I look a few
things up?”

“Go for it.” He grabbed the keys and his
wallet. “I’ll be quick.”

I jumped up and ran over to him. My weird
history and somehow Grollic related family wasn’t his fault. He
didn’t care, maybe I shouldn’t either so much. “I love you.” I
arched onto my toes and pressed my lips against his. “Very much.” I
kissed him again.

His hands cupped my jawline and his fingers
pressed against my neck just under my ears. His mouth opened to
deep the kiss, his tongue slipping into my mouth.

My hands curled into fist of pleasure against
his chest grabbing his shirt and gently tugging at it.

He smiled against my lips and whispered, his
breath hot against my skin. “I’m only going for dinner. I’ll be
back in less than twenty minutes.”

“I know.” I refused to let go of him.

“Or I could just stay here.” He laughed when
my stomach rumbled. “Duty calls.” He stepped back and saluted me.
“I need to feed my lady.” He stole a kiss before opening the door
and disappearing behind it.

I stood, my fingers pressed against my lips,
enjoying the bliss I felt whenever we kissed.

Finally I moved to the desk and sat down. I
opened up Internet Explorer and googled Gnowee.

I grabbed my journal and jotted down a
summary of the word. It was based on mythology of the Aboriginals
of south-eastern Australia. Gnowee was a solar goddess whose torch
was the Sun. I skimmed over most of that part of the information,
just writing down: Gnowee = Solar Goddess.

Reading more, I added other notes. Gnowee
was once a woman who lived
on
the earth at a time when it was eternally dark. One day she left
her little child sleeping while she went out to dig for yams. Food
was scarce, and Gnowee wandered so far that she reached the end of
the earth, passed under it and emerged on the other side. Not
knowing where she was, she could not find her little child
anywhere, so she climbed into the sky with her great torch to get a
clearer view. She still wanders the sky to this day, lighting the
whole world with her torch as she continues to search for her lost
child.

Some of the stories
said the child was a son, other’s didn’t mention a gender.

I liked the story. I
didn’t know why, but I did. It made me feel like maybe my mother
was looking for me. I’m sure every kid whose parents left them felt
like this.

I added some personal
thoughts into my journal after I wrote the story down.

Note to Self:

The story could
represent my mother. Like some mythology tale that represented
something in the far distant future. Maybe my mother never wanted
to give me up. Or maybe the life here was not what she wanted for
me. Or because I didn’t bear the mark on below my collar bone, she
couldn’t bear to bring me up.

I believe I have a
brother who doesn’t know I exist. My mother is gone. Did she die?
Was she murdered? What happened? What of a father? I always wanted
to find the woman who gave me up but never considered a father.
What if he wanted me and my mother did not?

These are questions
I am never going to find the answers to.

Michael returned with
two large carry out bags. He set them out on the dresser.
Appetizers, pasta, wings, pizza, chicken fingers, and four
different kinds of desserts filled the make-shift counter. “I
wasn’t sure what you wanted, so I picked up a bunch of stuff.”

I put my journal and
the Wolf Book into my back pack and grabbed a plate. “It smells
awesome!”

He turned the
television on to a movie and settled down beside me on the bed. “If
you spill, that’s your side,” he teased.

“Or I can just roll
on top of you.” I winked slyly.

The slice of pizza in
his hand slipped out, landing on the bed.

I burst out laughing.
“That’s your side!” I ate some of everything and then tried the
desserts. I had been starving, but now felt ready to burst. I
changed in the bathroom into comfy shorts and a top, and crawled
under the sheets beside Michael, snuggling close against him.

My eyes grew drowsy
as I fought to stay awake. We had a hotel room, alone, all to
ourselves, and I couldn’t stop myself from napping? I yawned. Some
amazing girlfriend I was!

Sleep won in the end,
and I let myself succumb to it. I decided I’d make up for it the
next night.

Chapter 14

Michael called my
name softly, “Rouge? Sweetie, do you want some coffee?”

I rolled over and
rubbed my face. “Did you make it?” I grimaced and then opened my
eyes a slit. I stared vacantly at him, trying to remember where I
was. It took a moment, but the memory of the previous day came
flooding back eventually.

“I went to
Starbucks.”

I sat up and yawned,
then inhaled deeply into the cup he offered. “Hmmm… smells
good.”

“You okay?”

I took a small sip,
enjoyed the latte foam on the top that seemed to clear away some of
the cobwebs in my mouth. “I’m okay.” I glanced over at the alarm
clock by the side of the bed. Eleven thirty. “You went out now for
coffee? It’s so late!” The thick curtain covered the window
blocking out the street lights.

“It’s eleven thirty
A-M.” He smiled, his eyes sparkling. “You were dead to the world. I
figured coffee was my only option.”

“It’s morning?!” So
much for the romantic, virgin-taking evening I had planned.

“Almost lunch.” Michael pulled the curtain
away from the window and the shade cover to let the sun in. “Is
there anything you want to do today?”

I sipped my coffee and stared blankly in
front of me. I’d dreamt about my invisible mother flying through
the sky with a bark torch lighting her way. I knew what I wanted to
do… getting Michael to let me do it was another question. “I want
to go to Saint Andrew’s Cemetery.”

Michael blinked several times but kept his
face unreadable. “No.”

I ignored his reply. “Then I want to find out
how she died.”

“No.”

I set the latte down and stood. “I’m not
going to let two Grollics stop me. You said yourself yesterday that
we came here to find answers. I’m going to find them.”

“Yesterday you wanted to go home.” He began
to pace, reminding me of Caleb.

“Today, I want answers.” I put my hands on my
hips. “And I want my file back.”

“We should check with Caleb, maybe get some
back up. Or plan this out better. Yesterday was my fault. I was
stupid not to think through everything that could happen.”

The thought of Caleb stepping in to help
annoyed me. “I don’t want Caleb here. This is my fight.”

“It isn’t a fight, Rouge,” Michael said
quietly.

“
Like hell it isn’t! This is
my
fight!” I grabbed clothes out
of the suitcase. “I’m going to shower and go. You can stay here or
you can come with me. I don’t care.” I did care, I just couldn’t
admit it out loud. I wanted Michael with me, not Caleb with his
condescending stare and annoyingly insightful, guilt-inducing
comments.