Second Sight (19 page)

I start shaking, and part of me that has
nothing to do with hitting my head hurts from the isolation I can’t
begin to shake. My whole body starts trembling, and I feel the rush
of heated emotions taking over me. No matter how fast I blink, I
can’t push back the tears. They pool in my eyes, the moisture
growing until it flows down my face in silent rivers.

“
I brought.…” Kane enters,
clothes in hand, but his voice abruptly dies as he sees my face.
His steps quicken and he strides to the bed and sits beside
me.

“
Hey, what’s going on?” His
voice is soft, and he looks at me with eyes that want to
understand. I’m expecting him to ask about my stupid head, but he
seems to realize what’s happening has nothing to do with the fall I
took. It’s all a part of something else which might, in its own
way, hurt worse than a bump on the head. At least that wound is
transient.

“
It’s nothing,” I manage,
my voice trembling with my body as I drag my hand across my face,
interrupting the flow of tears.

“
Like hell,” he whispers,
reaching for my hand. “I’d know that look anywhere. You must be
starved, right? I’ve been a bad host and all that.” He offers a
crooked smile that tells me he knows I’m hurting. But he also knows
I’m not ready to talk.

“
Oh, definitely. I always
do…this…when I haven’t eaten.” I try to put a lightness in my voice
I don’t feel, but it’s empty.

“
Well, woman, let’s hit the
kitchen and see what we can find to ward away the gloom and doom,
shall we?” He stands and reaches for my hand. My heart pauses for
seconds as I panic at the thought of taking it, remembering how Lev
and I seemed so eternal.
Yeah
, I think,
that eternity came to a screeching halt, didn’t it?

“
You can relax,” Kane says,
offering a smile. “I don’t bite, and I’m not expecting anything. I
keep telling you that, but I’m guessing there’s a bit of history
I’m not privy to.” He lowers his hand and nods for me to
follow.

“
Yeah,” I manage. “There is
a bit of history there. And I’d just as soon leave it
behind.”

As I follow, I realize the aura that hangs
around his back has returned, reminding me of Lev regardless of
whether I want to be reminded or not.

“
Consider it left,” he
says. We walk into the kitchen, and he motions for me to plunk down
at the table in the adjoining dining room while he sorts through
the refrigerator. A couple of minutes later he returns with a plate
of sandwiches and a can of soda, both of which he sets in front of
me. “It’s nothing fancy, but it’ll take the edge off.” He sits next
to me.

“
Aren’t you going to eat?”
I stare into his dark eyes, mesmerized.

“
Nope. Not
hungry.”

I take a bite and swallow hard, thinking
about the question weighing hard on my mind before asking, “Do you
believe in angels?”

“
Yeah. Why?”

The aura seems slightly clearer, forming a
more definite outline that tempts me to reach out and touch. Still,
I know better than to answer his question. Look what it did for my
relationship with Griffin and Jimmie.

“
It doesn’t matter.” I
force my gaze back to the sandwich. “You would just think I’m crazy
or that I’d hit my head a little too hard.”

“
You’re not crazy, and the
only thing that jolt on the head seems to have given you is some
slight pain and maybe a mild concussion.” He offers a smile, but
I’m not biting.

“
I….” I can’t finish the
sentence. Instead, I look down.

“
Go on.” He slips his
finger beneath my chin and lifts so I have to look into his eyes
again. His voice is rough silk that seems to wrap around me,
drawing me closer. I feel breathless and weightless. My eyelids
seem to be getting heavier.

“
I….”

“
You can tell me. I promise
I won’t think you’re nuts.” He slowly lowers my hand, and I can’t
stop staring at him.

“
You’re different than the
others.” My voice is a whisper, and I can’t believe I’m telling him
this, but some part of me believes he already knows the words in my
head. “You’re not human.”

I’m expecting him to suddenly stand and back
up. Instead, he smiles. “So what does that make me?” His slouched
posture hints he’s unaffected by my words, as though I were simply
stating facts, not crazy implications.

“
You’re an angel,” I
whisper. My head feels foggy. All I can see is Kane and those dark
wings that appear clearer each moment.

“
How do you know what I
am?” he asks, leaning toward the table to rest his chin on his
hands.

“
Your wings.” I reach out
and my fingers find his wing, tangling in the feathers I wasn’t
sure would be there. At the silken feel, tears fill my eyes again
as I think of Lev. But I can’t stop staring at Kane’s gentle
eyes.

“
What is it?” His voice is
quiet, but it reaches to the core of me.

“
There was another before
you.”

He nods slowly. “Lev, right?”

I take a deep breath, feeling the blood
pumping through my heart. “How did you know?”

He shrugs. “I didn’t. It was just a guess.
That’s all. What happened?”

There’s so much I could tell him, but right
now I’m tired. I can feel my body starting to float away like when
I’m on the verge of sleep, and it’s getting harder and harder to
shake it off.

“
It’s all right. You don’t
have to answer. But you do have to eat. And then you probably need
to get some sleep. You look exhausted.”

“
Yeah,” I finally say,
picking up the sandwich and eating. I feel his concerned gaze on my
face, and maybe sometime I’ll be ready to talk to him about Lev,
but right now, the pain is too fresh—too close to the
surface.

Chapter
Fourteen

I stand before the waterfall in Hauser’s
Landing, watching the violent churning of the water below. A fine
mist rises and sprays my face, delivering me from the heat. I look
down, thinking about the time I fell over the rail and Lev caught
me, wrapping those arms around me and furling his wings around my
body as a shield from all that cold water.

“
Elizabeth, I’ve been
looking all over for you.”

Speak of the devil, there he is. My angel
dressed in jeans and a white shirt. The aura of his wings brightens
the area behind his back. “Go away,” I snap, turning back to the
water.

“
I need to talk to you. It’s
important.” He walks up beside me.

“
Leave me alone.” I turn and
start to walk away.

“
I can’t. You’re in danger,
Elizabeth. Why won’t you listen to me?”

“
Why should I?” I turn
around. “You lied to me, and I trusted you. Worse yet, I loved
you.”

“
I didn’t have a choice, or
I would have been there.” His bright eyes burn through me, and he
reaches for me, but I jerk away.

“
Don’t touch me!”

“
Come on.” He grabs my arm
and I can’t break free.

“
Get away from
her!”

Both of us turn to find Kane standing there.
He wears a pair of khaki shorts and a red shirt. I can also see his
aura, but it is so much darker than Lev’s.

“
Kane?” I say,
startled.

I feel Lev’s grip waver, but he doesn’t
release me. “You’re not supposed to be here,” Lev seethes, the
color draining from his face.

“
Try to send me away,
Brother Lev. We’ll see what that gets you.” His eyes flash toward
me.

“
I don’t have to.” Lev tugs
me behind him despite my struggles. “Evan is not far away, and he’s
looking for you. You know what that means.”

Kane smiles and shakes his head. “We both
know he’ll be too late, that he’s already too late. And so are
you.”

Without warning, Lev rushes at Kane and
throws his fist across Kane’s jaw, rocking his whole body with the
blow.

“
Stop it, Lev!” I yell,
trying to throw myself between them, but Lev pushes me to the side.
My back hits a rock, and pain shoots through me, yet Lev doesn’t
even glance at me.

“
Stay out of this!” There is
a fury in his blue eyes, and his body glows with white brilliance
that illuminates the world around him. He keeps punching until Kane
lies covered in blood. Lev’s fists are bright red, and blood
spatters his face as he looks at me. Then I start
screaming.

“
Lizzie? Can you hear
me?”

Opening my eyes, I find I’m sitting upright
in bed with the covers tangled around my legs. I’m breathing so
fast it feels like I’ve been running, which only compounds my
headache. Kane sits beside me on the bed, one hand gripping my
elbow. His hair stands on end, and he rubs his eyes as though
trying to get the sleep out of them.

“
What happened?”

“
I heard you screaming, so
I came in. You were having a nightmare. You were crying in your
sleep.” His fingers gently release me. “You okay? How’s your
head?”

“
I’m fine,” I
manage.
Crap
, I
think, drawing my hand across my face to wipe the moisture
away.

He stands and paces around the room, and for
the first time I realize he’s wearing a pair of khaki shorts and a
red t-shirt. “You were pretty upset. You said a few things.” He
rakes his fingers through his hair.

“
I did?” My whole body
tenses, and chills sweep up and down my body. “What did I say?” Of
course, the minute I ask, I’m regretting it because I remember the
dream. The blood is unforgettable.

He turns toward me. “Several things. ‘Stop
it.’ You called Lev’s name and mine. Do you remember what you
dreamt about?”

I paste a weak smile on my face, but when he
looks at me, I keep seeing the image of Lev hunched over him,
pounding his cheek and jaw into a bloody mess. “I don’t remember,”
I finally manage. “That happens a lot with my dreams.”

Kane comes back to the bed and sits. “Can I
ask you something?”

“
Okay. So long as I have
the right not to answer if I don’t want to.” I push the hair from
my eyes, waiting.

“
What happened between you
and Lev?” He looks at his watch, checking the time.

“
I fell in love with him.
And I thought he loved me, too. But I was mistaken.” My voice
trembles violently, and no matter how many quick, sharp breaths I
take, I still feel like I can’t breathe.

Kane slips his finger under my chin and lifts
it again so I have to look into his eyes. “Did he hurt you?
Physically, I mean?”

Immediately my heart rate starts to slow, and
I feel the calm spreading over me. “No. He was an angel. Why would
he hurt me?”

“
There are all kinds of
angels.” His voice caresses me, and I try to look away, but he
holds me with his eyes. “And not all angels are pure, Lizzie.” My
heart starts to beat faster at that thought.

“
But Lev….” The words die
before I can utter them. The Lev I thought I knew died with a
bullet, and whatever came after that really doesn’t matter. Not
anymore.

Kane spots a stray strand of hair dangling in
my eyes and pushes it behind an ear. “Lizzie, even angels whisper
among themselves. Lev has hurt others before, even those of his own
kind. Some of them still suffer from his cruelties.” He frowns as
if in pain and strokes my face. “Whatever he has done, you don’t
have to think upon it anymore. He is best forgotten.”

I open my mouth to speak, but words won’t
come. Somewhere deep inside, this feels wrong, but I can’t seem to
help myself in believing Kane’s words.

He leans forward and lightly kisses my
forehead before pointing to the bed. “You should go back to sleep.
I’ll wake you in the morning.” He softly squeezes my hand and
rises. “If you need anything, just call. I’ll hear you.”

Then he slowly breezes out of the room,
leaving me to try not to think about his words and what they mean.
Was any part of the Lev I knew real? I shake my head, wondering how
I could have been so wrong. As I turn, I see the window is open and
the curtain lightly billows in the breeze. I never opened it.

Although it’s August, the breeze billowing in
chills me, stippling my arms with goose bumps. Taking a deep
breath, I force myself to get up and walk to the window. As I push
the curtain aside, I look out into the darkness spread across the
landscape save for the solitary streetlamp by the driveway. At
first, I don’t know why my gaze is drawn to it, but as I peer
closer, I see a lone figure standing there.

Lev. My throat tightens. His white wings
flash against in the night. He wears jeans and a white polo, just
like in my dream, and a shudder runs through me. I close my eyes,
trying to remember what I wore, but I can’t.

Lev sees me at the window and bends low,
preparing to fly toward the house. Shaking, I close the window and
draw the curtains before stuttering backwards until I accidentally
trip over the bed and fall across it. Panicked, I grab the light
chain from the ceiling fan and jerk it to turn off the bulbs. Then
I lie on the bed, not wanting to watch the window but unable to
look away.

The batiste curtains hide nothing, I realize,
as I see Lev gracefully land on the balcony. He stands before the
glass, and I see him raise his knuckles and softly knock. That is
when I clench my eyes shut.