Marked by Destiny (6 page)

He slid his
arms around me and pulled me tight against him. “I think about that
night and what I did and it allows me to control the urges I have –
when my anger wants to win over reason. I’m different from Caleb
and the others that way, my conscience drives me and gives me more
control of my power and strength.” He shrugged. “I don’t know if
it’s because of that night or that I was always like that. I don’t
know.”

“You’ve never
talked about this before, have you?”

He shook his
head.

It made my
heart beat stronger knowing he had the courage to share it with me.
I wonder what Caleb would think if he knew Michael’s perspective on
what had happened. What would Grace think? Speaking of… “What
happened to Grace?”

“Grace didn’t
re-awaken for four days. I didn’t think she would, but Sarah was
confident. Grace woke terrified. She didn’t understand what had
happened or why her body was sensitive to. She didn’t move because
she thought she was paralyzed. During that time, Sarah taught and
explained to her what was going on and then took her away for a
couple of days. I never asked her what happened, where she went, or
what Sarah told her, and she’s never told me. All she remembers
when she re-woke was that I was there and she was not alone.”

“Wow.” I had no
other words to say… until another thought crossed my mind. “When
did you realize that you and Grace could communicate with each
other?”

Michael
chuckled and set be down beside him before standing up. “Why don’t
I make us some coffee? I think we’re only beginning to scratch the
surface of your questions.”

I jumped up,
slightly wary of his cooking and coffee-making ability. My birthday
being the exception, but the last time he’d made coffee it had come
out thicker than syrup. I did not have the heart to tell him. “I’ll
do it. You keep talking.” I slipped behind him and moved to the
kitchen part of the room.

Michael settled
back onto the couch, lying lengthwise as if on a psychiatric couch.
“Okay, back to the story. The first time I went off to hunt for
Bentos, I couldn’t think straight. I was driven by hate and anger.
Sarah told me I couldn’t go, so I snuck off alone with no clue what
I was doing. I had no idea how to hunt or track. I was also
terrified someone from town would recognize me since everyone
believed Grace and I had been killed, along with my parents, by the
fire in the house. So I took off running – and that is something a
newbie with super-fast ability should never do.”

“What
happened?” I grabbed two mugs out of the cupboard and set them by
the Keurig.

“I got lost. I
couldn’t believe how fast I could run and that I wasn’t getting
tired. I tested my limits and well, I got lost. Suddenly I heard
Grace calling for me and I thought she was right with me. Her voice
came through so clear I honestly thought she was right behind me. I
must’ve looked like an idiot turning around to answer her and then
found no one by me. She spoke again and I finally realized it was
in my head. I guess she told Sarah because a short while later
there were two of Sarah’s scouts leading me back to the camp. Of
course, Sarah was fascinated with our talent because she’d never
come across it before.”

Happy
home-maker Sarah used to be a tough military sergeant. No wonder
Caleb fell for her. “Did she train you and then send you off to
find Bentos?”

Michael shook
his head. “I did it on my own. She never stopped me or told me to
let it go. Sarah let me go, even when Grace begged me to stay.” He
huffed and let a sharp breath out through his nose. “I spent about
five years trying to hunt the bastard down. It became my complete
focus. I was close so many times but he eluded me or would send
werewolves in to attack and he’d manage to escape. It was consuming
me and Grace continued pleading with me to let it go. Finally one
day I just realized enough was enough. I needed to move forward
with my life instead of being stuck in the past.”

I poured milk
into the coffee and added a touch of sugar to mine. Walking back to
the couch, I set them down on the table to cool. “So you returned
and you guys have been together ever since?”

“I came back to
Grace, and talked things over with Sarah. We didn’t stay. Grace and
I went on our own for a few years but eventually came back. Sarah
knew we would; she was our home. We’d settle somewhere for four to
five years and then move to the next town and kept doing that so
the non-aging thing didn’t appear too obvious. When Sarah met
Caleb, he liked the idea of settling into one town and moving when
needed. He wanted to study and experiment without having to cover
his tracks. It was only about fifteen years ago that he figured out
how to clone human blood and plasma. It took the world by storm.
His company is the only one able to produce the cloned blood – no
human has been able to copy or repeat the process. It makes Caleb a
very, very rich man and gives him the freedom to do as he pleases.
Money can buy a lot of things – and not just material wealth. No
one knows that he is the owner; he is the unseen face of Fuilteach
Corp.”

I had seen the
Celtic looking FC symbol from the company on many things but never
realized who, or what, the company was. “So Caleb started the
company? Hasn’t it been around for like a hundred years or
something?” I remembered seeing commercials and some centennial
motto on it.”

“You got it.
He’s the original owner. What do you think Fuilteach means?”

“It is some
easy answer? Like the corporation want to the fuel to teach and
learn?”

Michael smiled.
“Most people probably assume that’s the explanation. However
Fuilteach
is actually Gaelic for ‘bloodthirsty.’ Caleb’s
mother was Irish and he uses a lot of Gaelic terminology. His sole
purpose for starting the company was to use science to figure out
how our blood changed when we died, and what made us continue to
live. Then he wanted to stop Grollics, and the company’s grown and
grown.”

Figures Caleb
would use a name so obvious, yet undetected to the human eye. It
also didn’t surprise me if he used the government to help fund his
research. He probably justified it by selling them the cloned blood
and plasma. At the end of the day, he was a business man – an
excellent business man. “When we were at the building today, Grace
mentioned that there are labs in the basement. Do you work down
there?”

“I’m upstairs.
My office is connected to Caleb’s. I have access to Caleb’s office
and through the hallway. You probably didn’t notice the door as it
blends into the wall. I used to work down in the labs. Caleb would
like me to do more but I just do not have the commitment to the
science that he does.” He shrugged his shoulders like it was an
argument he had daily with Caleb.

“I’m sorry
you’re stuck in a job you don’t really want to do.”

“Don’t get me
wrong, Rouge. I love my job. I hunt down the bad guys. I am set to
inherit a kingdom of a company.”

The way he said
it, I knew he didn’t mean the last part. He didn’t want the
corporation, but he felt obligated to follow in Caleb’s footsteps.
Hopefully that day would never happen. “What can’t you stand about
it? There has to be parts of what you do you wish you didn’t have
to.”

“So basically
you are asking me: What do I hate about being me?” A bitter laugh
escaped his lips.

I nearly
knocked my mug over as I reached for it. He had sounded like Caleb
when he had spoken then. “Sorry, that came out a lot harsher than I
intended.”

“Be glad you
are not one of us. It is hard to explain how I feel. I’m not
talking about
who
I am but
what
I am. I’m here
forever; not allowed to grow old, or die peacefully. I can’t have
children or grandchildren.” He reached for my hands and held them
tight. “I would trade this entire life of eternity to be with you
for the next fifty-sixty years –
that
would be enough of a
lifetime for me.”

I opened my
mouth to speak, but Michael didn’t let me.

“I have no
soul; I forfeited that the night Bentos walked into my parent’s
home. I have to live like a nomad, I don’t really have a place to
call home but for a few years and to us, it’s just a blink of time.
I have to watch where I go, watch my back, watch what I say or how
fast I move, watch this, watch that, watch and wait every minute of
every day. That was why I didn’t want you to get close when we
first met. It still tears me up inside. I love you and want you to
have every experience you are entitled to – the good and the bad.”
He stopped talking and turned to look out the window, torn by his
feelings and his wants.

“Michael,” I
said quietly waiting until he finally turned to look at me. “I’ve
had enough of being alone, of being an outsider, to know that what
you have and how you feel is more than I’ve had in my lifetime. I
can’t imagine my life without you, nor can I think for one moment
of you living your life without me. I also don’t believe that your
soul is gone or forfeited – what happened to you wasn’t by choice.
Maybe there is a real reason why you are supposed to be around this
long – possibly to help me or someone else.” He could die, I knew
because of what had happened to Tatianna. The thought burned in my
throat and cut through my heart. I wouldn’t ever let that happen
while I was with him. “I don’t believe you’re a nomad; you’ve had
more of a home here than I have my entire life. You have given me a
place to call home and I am not talking about here in this cottage
I am talking about here,” I pointed to his heart and leaned forward
to kiss him on the lips.

“Don’t try to
make…” he tried to stop me leaning onto him but wasn’t trying very
hard.

“You may not
think you’re alive but trust me Michael, you are. You feel love and
passion and I
know
you feel lust. I think you might need a
little reminder lesson in that area.”

“A lesson? You
think you can teach me something?” he teased, all previous
conversation forgotten as I watched his eyes turn to their familiar
shade of blue.

“I might be
able to teach you a thing or two. After tomorrow’s graduation, you
are going to be with a free girl, maybe we can work on making that
girl into a lady at some point.”

He chuckled at
my choice of words. I lowered my lips towards his neck, and quickly
cut off the laughter. It turned it into a groan as his arms came
around my body.

I had no
intention of working on the Wolf Book tonight and now we wouldn’t
be. Caleb would be disappointed but he could wait. That book was my
past, my future. It was none of his business unless I choose to
share it.

Michael
distracted me as his hand roamed over my thin shirt squeezing my
breast tenderly. My fleeting thoughts of the book were completely
forgotten.

Chapter
5

I woke, and
knew it had to early by the lack of light and the birds chirping
outside. Without opening my eyes, I knew I was alone. I enjoyed
nature’s sounds before finally opening my eyes and rolling over
toward Michael’s side of the bed. His spot felt cool. He must have
left a while ago. A note and an origami flower sat on the table
beside the futon.

Gone to get an
oil, lube and filter for the Jeep so it’s ready for travelling
tomorrow. I’ll bring you Starbucks.

I checked my
watch. Barley six. Michael would probably be an hour. Closing my
eyes, I inhaled and rolled onto my back.

Two minutes
later I kicked off the sheets, no longer tired. The Wolf Book lay
on the table, shifted to the far side and nearly falling off. I
might have knocked it last night, I couldn’t quite remember.

I poured myself
a glass of orange juice and came back to bed, grabbing the journal
and tossing it onto the mattress as I sat on the duvet cross-leg. I
drink and stared at the brown worn leather of the cover. “Screw it,
just do it,” I mutter.

I leaned over
to snatch Michael’s pillows, and then propped them up against mine
so I could sit on the bed and be more comfortable. Butterfly wings
beat against my stomach. I wiped my palms against my shirt and
tried to decide whether it was nerves or excitement going on inside
of me.

My fingers
curled around the top right corner of the book, and I flipped it
open to a random page. Why start at the beginning? It didn’t
matter. The flippin’ thing was written in a foreign language, some
kind of ancient dialect that nobody seemed to have heard of, like a
secret code.

I stared up at
the ceiling before finally glancing down to see where I had ended
up. The page has a rough drawing of a Grollic in human and shifted
form. The diagram focussed on the heart, showing how it moved from
the left to the right side of the body as it shifted. A note box on
the side of the drawing caught my attention. There was a flower
drawn beside the words. “Weird, never noticed that before.” I read
it several times before finally reading it out loud slowly. I
couldn’t seem to grasp the whole message.

“For Grollics
refusing to obey: Carry pen with a pure silver pointed tip. Grind
aconite. A knife or any extremely sharp point will suffice. Cloth
wet with aconitum, pen wrapped inside is perfect for travelling or
in a bind. Must be careful, it is toxic to all in large doses. Stab
Grollic and he will drop in pain. Prefer to stab in animal form but
it will work on human too. Stab or prick near heart and Grollic
will die too soon. Don’t kill immediately – first determine what
side they are on.”

I had no idea
what aconite was so I grabbed my phone and googled it. I sniggered.
Of course – it’s called wolfs bane.
The little drawing by
the box was an aconite flower. Pictures online showed it clearly.
My head popped up as my brain processed the last sentences. “Don’t
kill yet? Huh? Wait. There are sides?” Wolves had sides – did
Michael know that? Did Caleb?