Kindred (The Watcher Chronicles #2) (2 page)

"Your mother had a hard life," my dad says.  "I can't tell you why she agreed to leave because she never told me.  I asked her once but she refused to say.  But during the time I was allowed to stay with you both, I got the feeling she didn't feel like she could be a good enough mother to you because of her past.  That's why she chose Mama Lynn to be your mother."

I open my eyes and stare at my dad.

"What do you mean she
chose
Mama Lynn?"

"God came to her and showed her a few people he knew would become foster parents to the Tear children.  As soon as your mother met Mama Lynn, she knew you would have a good mother to raise you.  Your mom had a hard life growing up.  It was important to her for you to have someone you could rely on.  I don’t think she ever felt like she was strong enough to raise someone who would end up saving the world one day."

"Why does it seem like the people who supposedly love me never want to stay with me?  Why do they keep leaving me because they think it's the best thing for me when it's the complete opposite?"

"People are complicated, Jessi.  We all do the best we can but that doesn't mean we don't make mistakes.  But you should never doubt that your mother loved you.  She just wanted you to have a better life than she did.  She didn't feel like she could raise you the way you deserved to be."

I stand up and start to pace out my agitation in front of the unlit fireplace. 

"It's just like Mason," I say.  "He left to protect me.  Mom left because she didn't think she could be a good enough mother to me.  You left because you wanted me to reach my destiny.  Who's going to be next?  Mama Lynn?  Faison?"

My dad remains silent, letting me work through the information he's just given me on my own because it's the only way I'll ever come to terms with it.

I stop pacing and turn to face my dad.  "So why are you here now?  Why did He let you come back?"

"Because you're set on the path to your destiny and He felt you needed my comfort tonight.  Let me help you," my dad begs.  “I love you, Jessi.”

I feel my agitation and anger fade away as I look at the earnest expression on my dad’s face.  I do need him tonight.  Of all the nights in my life, this is the one when only the comfort of my father will help heal my heart.  I walk back to the couch and let him fold me back into his arms. 

"How long can you stay?" I ask.

"Until you fall asleep."

"What if I stay awake forever?"

He chuckles and I know he's pleased with my suggestion.  "Don't worry, Jessi.  You can call me to come to you anytime you want."

"How?"

"All you have to do is say my angel name when you need me."

I pull away and look into his kind hazel eyes.  "What's your angel name?"

"Zeruel.  If you need me, just close your eyes, picture my face in your mind and say my name out loud.  I'll hear you."

"You promise you'll come?" I ask, my voice sounding like that of a child.

"I promise, Jessi.  I'll come."

I sit there silently, enjoying the warmth emanating from my dad.

"Were you the only Guardian allowed to come to Earth?" I ask.

"No, the seven of us who made the vessel souls were allowed to stay with each of you for the first seven years of your life.  After that time, we were ordered to return to Heaven. We all did except for one of us.  We just assumed God sent Remiel on another mission somewhere else.  The seven of us were responsible for hiding your crowns so you could find them when the time was right."

I pull away from my dad and ask, "Do you know where the other crowns are?"

"No, I was only in charge of the one you were supposed to find.  None of us told the others where the crowns were hidden.  It was against the rules."

"What about the talismans?  Do you know what Chandler's is supposed to be and where it is?"

My dad shakes his head.  "No, I'm sorry.  I don't know.  But you'll figure it out."

I lay my head on my dad's chest, smiling faintly when he tightens his arms around me.

The slow beating of his heart lulls my troubled mind and his warmth relaxes my body to a point where sleep is inevitable.

I find myself once again in my father's study.  Michael is standing by the only window in the room with the sun shining through the sheer curtains behind him giving him an ethereal glow.

"I wasn't sure you were going to speak to me again," he says.

"Me either," I admit.

"Have you forgiven me yet?"

"There was never anything to forgive."  I sigh.  "Apparently my soul knew what it was asking for.  It wasn't your fault."

"I'm glad to see Zeruel was allowed to come back when you needed him."

"Me too."

There's an awkward silence between us now that I know the truth of things.

"I can come to you now," he tells me.

"What do you mean?"

"The neural connections I told you about have been made.  If you want to see me when you're awake, just think about me and if I need to tell you something, I can come to you too."

"Will I be the only one who can see you?"

"Yes," a lopsided grin appears on Michael's face.  "I'm still inside your head, not physically real."

"I've been warned Lilly will want to talk to me about you."

Michael's gaze drifts to the floor at the mention of his daughter.  "Yes, I know."

"What do you want me to say to her?"

"I'm not sure yet," he says, looking back up at me.  "I guess we'll just have to see what she wants to say to us first."

"So I guess my next move is to find Chandler's crown, talisman and the next vessel?"

"And prove to Mason that you're supposed to be together, not apart."

I shake my head because I have absolutely no idea how I’m going to manage such a feat.  "I'm afraid that will be the toughest one to accomplish."

"I don't think it will be as impossible as you think. You'll prove to him that you belong together.  I know you will."

"Yes," I say, because any other outcome is out of the question, "I’ll find a way.  I have to."

Chapter 2

When I wake up the next morning, my dad is no where to be seen.  I hadn't expected him to be there and a small part of me is thankful he’s giving me time to digest everything he revealed to me the night before.  My mind is still reeling from all the information he dumped into it.  I lay in bed for a while thinking over everything and eventually allow my thoughts to wander into dangerous territory to think about Mason.  Just the thought of him makes my heart ache to a point where I'm not sure it will keep beating on its own.

My dad's advice was to fight for Mason, but how do you fight for someone who doesn't want you to?  Or did he?  I simply didn't know, but I did know I had to follow what my heart was telling me to do.  I would find a way to prove to him we belonged together even if it killed me.  At least death wouldn't hurt this bad.

My cell phone starts to buzz on my nightstand and I quickly reach for it hoping it's a call from Mason.  Unfortunately, it's Isaiah.

"Hello Isaiah," I say without much enthusiasm when I answer.

"Good morning, Jess.  Are you all right?"

I hear the concern in Isaiah's voice and can tell without him even having to say it that he knows what happened between Mason and me the night before.

"Not really," I tell him, not having the will to pretend otherwise.  "My father came to see me last night after Mason left."

There's complete silence on the other end of the line.

"I'll be right over," Isaiah says.

"Wait!"

"Why?"

"Give me 30 minutes," I tell him, sitting up in bed, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.  "I just woke up.  At least let me take a shower and get dressed before you come over."

"Ok.  I'll be there in 30 minutes."

When I get off the phone with Isaiah, I quickly hop in the shower and get ready for my day.  I immediately know I want Chandler to hear what I have to say about my dad, plus I want to check on him anyway to make sure he's all right.  After being so brutally assaulted by the Watchers the night before, I feel a need to make sure he isn't only physically well but mentally stable.  Plus, it would insure I only had to repeat what my dad told me once.

True to his word, Isaiah knocks on my front door exactly 30 minutes later.  Gotta love Watcher punctuality.

"Would you mind taking me to Chandler?" I ask him, putting on my leather Watcher jacket.  I'm wearing my uniform because I have no way of knowing what the day will bring, plus wearing my pistol on my thigh brings me comfort and a sense of security.  "I would rather not have to repeat the same story twice."

"Mason took him back to his penthouse suite in New York this morning," Isaiah informs me.

I nod.  "Good.  It’s better than the villa.  At least I don’t have to worry about running into Mason yet."

"Jess…"

I look up at Isaiah and see the concern he holds for me in his eyes.  "Mason told me what happened last night.  Would you mind me asking if you truly do love him?"

I'm surprised Mason told Isaiah about my declaration of love but see no reason to hide the fact.

"Yes, I do love him, and I don't intend to let him hide from me, Isaiah, no matter how noble he might think he's being.  You can tell him that for me if you want."

Isaiah smiles.  "Good.  I was hoping that would be your attitude.  Sometimes Mason can't see the bigger picture until someone slams it in his face.  It's only because of his feelings for you that makes him want to protect you no matter what the personal cost."

"I know," I say, resigning myself to the fact that the man I love is indeed a noble idiot.  "I just have to prove to him that leaving me doesn't solve anything."

"If you need my assistance, let me know.  I will do whatever I can to aid you in helping him see the error of his ways."

I grin at Isaiah as I realize I have my first official ally in my quest to get Mason back.

"Thanks.  I might just take you up on the offer as soon as I figure out what to do next."

"I feel I should warn you though.  Mason is very stubborn.  Once he gets an idea in his head, it's hard to change his mind."

"You know who you're talking to right?" I ask slightly amused by Isaiah's warning.  "There's no way he's more hard headed than I am.  I pretty much own the monopoly on being stubborn."

"I can't argue about that," Isaiah agrees, smiling.  "You are the most stubborn human I know."

I smile back.  "I will take that as a compliment.  Now, take me to Chandler so I can tell you both what my father told me."

Isaiah phases us and I find myself standing outside Chandler's penthouse bedroom door.  Isaiah knocks on the door and I hear Chandler call for us to come in.

When Isaiah swings the door open, I see Chandler sitting up in his bed with pillows propping his back up against the wall behind him.  He's bare-chested and the white down comforter on his bed is covering him from the waist down.  He immediately smiles when he sees me, and I instantly feel our close connection kick in, bringing me some much needed comfort after the night I just had.

"How are you feeling this morning?" I ask him, preceding Isaiah into the room and walking over to sit on the side of Chandler's bed.

A large white bandage covers the side of his neck where the Watcher bit him the night before.  I grimace a little inside but try to hide my sympathetic pain from him.

Chandler takes one of my hands into his and squeezes it.  "Better now that you're here.  And don’t worry.  It looks worse than it feels."

If people didn't know about the special bond between Chandler and me, they would probably think we are lovers the way we act when we're together.  But our relationship is more like that of a brother and sister, no romance, just a deep inseparable bond.

"So Mr. Moody didn't seem in a very good mood this morning," Chandler tells me, cocking his head to the side.  "What happened when you left me last night?"

I tell Chandler what Mason did the night before.

"If I know you," Chandler says, "you're not going to let him get away that."

"No, I'm not," I say.  "Did he say anything about me to you this morning?"

"When I asked where you were, he said he didn't know but presumed you would be at home.  He didn't seem in a very talkative mood so I didn't push it."

"Well, that's not the only thing that happened last night."  I take a deep breath.  "After Mason left, my dad came to see me."

Chandler's eyes open so wide at this news I almost laugh.

"My god Jess, what happened?"

I go on to fill Isaiah and Chandler in on my dad's revelations from the night before.

"As far as I know," Isaiah says, "a Guardian of the Guf has never been allowed to father a child."

"I'm not sure what he did would qualify as fathering," I say.

"That's exactly what he did," Isaiah retorts, like I should know better.  "He may not have created the body you have, but he gave you something far more valuable.  The Guardians are chosen because of their wisdom, strength and willingness to protect at any cost.  He shared with you the most important part of himself, Jess.  If that's not being a father, then I don't know what is."

I sit there silently considering what Isaiah has just said.  I realize he's right.  My dad did give me the best parts of himself.  He made my soul, the part of me that's always pushed me to do better, be stronger.  If not for that very important piece, I wouldn't be the person I am.

"Either way," Chandler says, "you finally got him back."

I nod.  "Yeah, I did."

"Did he say why he was allowed to come back now?"

"He said God told him it was time for him to re-enter my life.  I was so upset when Mason left I guess He thought I needed someone to help me through it and realize what my next steps should be."

"Did he say anything about your mother?" Isaiah asks.

I look at Isaiah.  "Only that he didn't know where she was."

Isaiah nods like he expected my answer.  "Joshua is still searching for her.  It's only a matter of time before we locate her for you."