A Toiling Darkness (7 page)

“Fine.” He clenched his teeth and nodded. I
shook my head, wondering if he was always going to be so trusting
or if he lived long enough, would he grow as uncaring and passive
as me.

I hoped not. His passion was part of his
charm.

Since I had his permission, I was able to teleport
both of us out of the area. I pulled us into a dark shade of a
hedge maple, thought of a more peaceful, public area and enjoyed
the cold sensation of the shadows as it came alive and wrapped
around us. Kalen’s arm jerked uncomfortable with the foreign
feeling and then we were weightless, the laws of gravitation not
applying to us as we moved.

We stood in the shade of a large tour boat
that floated next to a large wooden dock. The boat rocked gently
with the waves that sloshed against the dock and left behind small
puddles of water at our feet. I had teleported us to the harbor on
the south side of the city. New Rheems stood on the other side of
the water, all the tall steel buildings acting as a contrast to the
rest of the historic city. It was one of the reasons it was called
New Rheems instead of North Rheems. The business district has
become an imposing force against the old harbor, proof of the
future’s encroachment. The harbor itself was filled with life.
Large boats made their way in and out, yelling at each other with
their horns. Small yellow taxi boats zipped around in the water as
people paid for rides across the harbor or for a little tour. A
gentle breeze tickled my skin, bringing with it the smell of brine
and seaweed.

I brought us here, to a public place, to
prevent any fights but there was only us two at the end of the
dock. There were others around, just not close enough to keep us in
check if we decided to fight. It was all up to Kalen. I knew I
wasn’t interested in fighting anymore. I went through a very long
phase of fighting and I was done with it now. These days, I only
fight to stay alive instead of going out to look for it. I expected
them still, I couldn’t help it. There was always a possibility of
fighting between any two beings. It could be something as serious
as being forced to do it like with Kalen or over the simple fact of
looking at someone funny.

There was a very basic rule that most beings
followed. If you couldn’t handle yourself, then don’t look them in
the eye.

I looked up at Kalen now as he briefly
glanced around and took in what I just did. He ignored the charm of
the area and focused on me after only a couple seconds.

“Why did we have to run?” he asked. “Why did
you bring me with you?”

“I’ve seen it all too many times. A child
dead only leads to chaos filled with quick irrational judgments.
That group would have seen us and turned into a lynch mob.”

“You could have left me.”

“Probably should have,” I grumbled and then
sighed. “I couldn’t risk them hurting or taking you. You have
information I want.”

Kalen raised his eyebrows. “Then ask.”

“Do you like McLaren’s Burgers?”

“McLaren’s…What is that?” he asked,
completely confused by the question. He was definitely not from
this city. Anyone local knew the place.

“A great burger joint. Best burgers in the
city.”

“And…you want to go eat some with me?”

“Their fries are good too.”

“A date?” He cocked his eyebrow.

I laughed. “Not in this decade. What about
hotdogs? Do you like hotdogs?”

He turned to me, completely suspicious now.
Good.

“Do you like to drive? Ride a bike? How
about running?”

“Is this an interview?”

“You said ask, so I’m asking.”

“I doubt my personal life is a concern of
yours.”

“Really? Are you sure? I’m always interested
in how humans like to live.” I smiled.

“Aren’t there more…I don’t know, more
important questions to ask?”

“You know, you haven’t answered a single
question yet.”

“Maybe because your questions are childish,”
he said with a glint in his eyes. He was totally amused now.

“Well, I’m not living a complete lie.” I
shrugged and when I moved closer to him, he stepped back. Still so
untrusting.

“So is that the kind of information you
want? Just some basic, personal bio stuff?”

“Who’s your master?”

His whole body grew still. “From one extreme
to the other,” he muttered.

“I like to cover all my bases.”

“I can’t tell you and even if I could, I
wouldn’t.”

“Why not? You easily told me what your
orders were. I thought that was nice of you by the way. Could’ve
just told me to scamper off, instead you answered me seriously. And
yet you can’t tell me who put this curse on you? Tell me, maybe I
can help you.”

“Look…Darkness, I don’t get what you’re
about and even though I’m curious, I don’t have time to find out. I
get the sense that you want something from me, but right now I need
to find who killed that little girl.”

“I told you, a human did. It has nothing to
do with you.”

He stepped towards me, his expression
twisted in anger. “It has everything to do with me. That little
girl is dead and her sister is missing.”

“Still nothing to do with you. A human
killed her. Not a being.”

“A being has to be involved.”

“Why are you so damn determined to blame a
being?”

“Because it is! I can feel is.” His anger
was barely contained now.

“Instincts?” I asked thoughtfully. “Those
have to be some damn good instincts.”

“I’m going to find her and you aren’t going
to stop me.”

“Actually, I can and I’m willing. You’ll
only get yourself killed and I need you alive for now.”

Kalen pulled out a ten inch silver blade. He
pulled it so fast that I ended up missing where it came from. To
think he was hiding that on him the entire time gave him brownie
points. He was more prepared than I thought.

My eyes trailed along the sharp edge of the
blade. Magic dripped off the tip and dissolved into the air. Only a
witch could make a blade like that and from the looks of it, it
could do some serious damage. The sun glinted off the blade making
it reflect the light into my eyes. I blinked against the glare and
got ready for a fight. No one but me could see his knife. He faced
away from the public’s eye and held it in a way so that only I
could see it.

“Is that supposed to scare me?” I asked,
unimpressed with his little show. He handled the blade well, moving
it about in a graceful way as it sliced through the air.

I’ll slice and dice you until your only one
inch squares. I bet you can’t come back from that.

I did. Took a couple of years, but I
did.

A blade was just not going to kill me.

“No, it’s supposed to kill you.” His voice
wasn’t as completely empty as he wanted it to be and he grimaced,
knowing he failed. Ah, he didn’t have the nerve to hurt me.
How…different. He fought with himself and the blade disappeared
behind his back. His body slowly relaxed as he released a sigh. “I
don’t understand what it is about you.”

“I can say the same about you.” The tension
I didn’t know I had in my neck and shoulders left. I knew exactly
what it was about me.

I was the woman he was supposed to kill if
he wanted to release his soul.

I’ve done a lot of bad things that probably
pissed off a lot of beings. I could come up with at least twenty
beings who wanted me dead and that was only a second’s worth of
thinking. I knew there was a reason I kept this form for so long.
Otherwise I would be fighting someone off every day.

But with Kalen, there really was something
about him I couldn’t understand. Something that sang to me like a
calming lullaby, keeping back the rage within me. Around him, I
didn’t need to work so hard in controlling it. He was relaxing,
whatever that word meant.

A boat horn went off, loud and obnoxious, as
the occupants on it cheered, excited to get out to the Atlantic
Ocean for a whale watching expedition. Kalen jumped a little at the
sudden noise. He blinked and watched the boat as it moved out into
the ocean.

“Why here?” Kalen asked, this time looking
around carefully. The place really did have its charm. This side of
the harbor was older, the history etched in the docks and buildings
surrounding the area. Vines were growing alongside the rusty brick
buildings and trees larger than those in the park towered around
the area in different spots.

“Why not?” I sat down on a nearby wooden
bench and just watching the view. Kalen’s backside to be more
specific. He was a nice view. I couldn’t even figure out where he
was keeping his blade.

He turned and gazed at me for a few moments
before shaking his head, perplexed. He always seemed confused about
something or another. What went on in that mind of his?

Whatever it was, I was unfamiliar with it,
which is saying something. I thought I saw everything I needed to
see and Kalen just kept proving me wrong in small ways. He didn’t
have the fear or anger that I was used to, making it harder to read
him properly. His belief in humans was another amazing trait. He
believed so much in those I couldn’t even look at without
distaste.

“I have to go. I need to find who killed
that girl.”

I resisted the urge to shake him and instead
huffed. “Fine. Just don’t get yourself killed yet.”

He smirked, making himself look boyish and
nodded. While he made his way down the dock, a group of women
stopped and turned to watch as he walked away. Their eyes were
definitely on those jeans and how they hugged him perfectly.

By the time he made it near the end of the
dock and turned north, I decided to follow him. What better way to
find information than to follow the man who has it all? I stayed to
the shadows, keeping them tight around me and just followed him
around the city.

For about two hours, Kalen just wandered the
streets in no particular order. He did manage to help in some very
weird situations.

He helped a mother with her groceries while
she held onto her crying baby to comfort it. She looked so
exhausted and tired, but when she smiled in gratitude she was
beautiful despite her rundown appearance.

He talked with a fae child and showed the
child where his home was. The fae mother was so happy with his
help. She treated him to one of those shaved ice-cream cones,
except she made it on her own with her powers.

He also talked to humans as if it was the
easiest thing for him to do. It probably was too. They told jokes
and laughed while slapping each other on the back. To them, he was
just one of the guys in a matter of seconds.

You know we aren’t normal. I’m a fire
wielding crazy ass elemental fae and you’re…well, you. We don’t get
that. We don’t get to be friends with the humans. I’m okay with
that though. Are you?

I agreed with Eithna then, but now…not so
much. They have this companionship with other humans that I’ll
never get to be a part of. They can talk to each other, make plans
for the future, and not worry about hidden blades and unknown
motives.

Eventually Kalen came to a decent
neighborhood, with some graffiti and homeless people, but the
streets were clean and people were happily out and about, not
worrying about having to be dodgy. He wandered around the
neighborhood aimlessly. I was about to just give up and go be
productive when he stopped and faced my direction. He squinted his
eyes, trying to see. It made his eyes even darker, hidden deep in
his face.

“How long are you going to follow me?” he
asked, looking in my general spot. He was about ten feet off.

I grinned and stepped out of my little
hiding spot, flinging the shadows away so he could see me. “When
did you know?”

“When I was helping the fae child.”

“He sensed me, didn’t he?”

He frowned. “Why? Is it so hard to think I
was the one who sensed you?”

I grinned. It irked him not being the one to
notice I was stalking him. I couldn’t help it, my grin widened.
Which irked him even more.

“You’re too human,” I replied.

“What’s wrong with being a human?”

“Nothing,” I smirked. “Just blind and
naïve.”

If I had super hearing, I would hear his
teeth grinding. He was getting angry or frustrated. I was betting
on frustration. He wanted to yell at me and yet I was just a kid
and he didn’t want to be seen yelling at a little girl. That was
definitely frowned upon among the humans.

“Do you hate humans?” he finally asked.

I cocked my head to the side, thinking of
the question. Did I hate humans? At one point it was an easy,
automatic yes. But now? I stared at Kalen for a moment and decided
to tell him the truth. “I’m more numb to them than anything else.
Sometimes they interested me but most of the time I don’t
care.”

Something in my voice must have told him how
hard it really was for me to admit something like that. His
expression softened a little, some of the tension leaving his jaw.
He was no longer grinding them together.

“So why are you following me?” he asked.

“Curious, I guess.”

“About what?”

Everything.

I smiled a little, looking around. We were
standing next to a little coffee shop, people giving us a wide
birth as they walked by. Some of them casted glances at us,
curious. Others ignored us the best they could, keeping their eyes
focused straight ahead. The rest made use of their little phones. I
think they were referred to as smart phones. Some of those devices
were definitely smarter than their owners.

“I’m curious about you,” I replied, watching
as someone ran towards us, a desperate expression on her face.
Kalen had his back to them so he didn’t notice them and no human
was in danger so he didn't sense anything.

Blood stained the woman’s cheek, a bruise
was forming around her left eye and her clothes were ripped, blood
staining the white shirt and plaid shorts. A boy ran a couple of
steps behind her, glancing behind him while pushing the woman
forward. And when I say boy, I mean a young adult. I think that’s
what they are referred to as now.