Love Immortal (42 page)

Jewell considered. The idea of giving
everyone immortality made her feel ill. Despite the loss of her
mother when Jewell was young, she had never wished that people
could live forever. There were so many negative ramifications. And
yet, she had to admit that if they could use it to help in the
healing process… She looked at Percy. “And you’re helping him with
this?”

Percy smiled, but his eyes were sad. “My
research is very similar to Dr. Babineaux’s. I too seek the reason
for our longevity, but I’m seeking a cure.” Jewell looked at him,
her eyes questioning. “Not all of us consider this to be a gift.
Many of us think of it as a disease. Something we’ve been struck
with that prevents us from living a normal life.” He looked at
Collin and Jewell sitting on the couch, Collin’s arm was wrapped
protectively around Jewell. “In more ways than one, I’m
afraid.”

Jewell looked at Collin. “What does he mean
by that? Does it have something to do with us?”

Collin squeezed Jewell’s shoulders. “Not as
far as I’m concerned.” Jewell noticed Gladys smiling.

Kendryck shifted in his chair and cleared his
throat. When he spoke, his words stung, but he didn’t speak them in
malice, but in pain. “We cannot have relationships with…normal
people.”

“What? Why?” Jewell looked at Collin but it
was Kendryck who answered.

“As our normal companion ages, we don’t. It
creates…problems.”

“What kind of problems?” Collin was
suspicious.

“Don’t you see Collin? When she’s eighty,
you’ll look like you’re thirty. It draws attention. You know that
we must be very careful about who we reveal our secrets to. As the
world continues to shrink due to more advanced transportation, and
the ability to communicate easily with anyone around the world, it
becomes more and more difficult to remain concealed. Look at how
quickly you were identified due to a simple accident. The more
chances we take, the more risk there is of exposure.” He looked at
Collin with hard eyes. “And exposure doesn’t just threaten the
individual, it threatens the Family. Sometimes, we need to make
difficult choices because our choices affect others as well.”

“Selfishness is not an option for us,”
Kendryck added quietly.

“So what you’re saying,” Collin spoke the
words Jewell was thinking before she could process all of the
information and form coherent thoughts, “is that because I’m like
you, Jewell and I can’t have a relationship.” It was a statement,
not a question.

Collin and Jewell both looked around the
room. Everyone except for Gladys was nodding in agreement, even Dr.
Babineaux and Sheriff Payne. Percy spoke. “I’ve explained to you
why this relationship is impossible. I tried to make it easy for
you, but you refused to listen. I thought that if Jewell was aware
of the ramifications, she could help you to make the right
decision. She’s not like us; her memory isn’t as long.” He turned
to Jewell, “don’t misunderstand me Jewell. You’re a beautiful,
wonderful person. I could easily love you as a daughter; but we
cannot allow this relationship to continue. You’re young. This is
your first love. You’ll remember Collin fondly, but the pain will
fade, you’ll meet a nice young man, get married, and have children.
You’ll grow old, and you’ll watch your children and your
grandchildren grow. Collin will become nothing more than a fond
memory.”

Kendryck spoke again. “We don’t like having
to tell this to either of you. I haven’t had the opportunity to get
to know you Jewell, but I truly regret any pain that this may cause
you.”

Jewell barely heard Kendryck’s words. They
were empty, meaningless. She could tell that none of them was
concerned about her. Their concern was the Family. She could feel
Collin’s arm pulling her in tighter, no longer protective, but
possessive. She looked over at Gladys who had not contributed to
the conversation. Her face was pulled tight into a forced neutral
expression. Jewell thought that the expression conveyed a
disagreement with the overall sentiment of the conversation.
Perhaps she and Collin could find an ally in Gladys.

Jewell looked around at the expressionless
faces surrounding her, “so that’s it then?” As she looked at each
person, they gave her a curt nod as they cast their eyes downward,
not willing to meet Jewell’s eyes as she looked at them. She
swallowed once and took a deep breath. “I see. Will you be
kidnapping Collin again, or will you actually give him the chance
to say good-bye properly?”

Percy looked at Collin but answered Jewell.
“That depends on Collin. We would all prefer a proper good-bye. Of
course, we will do what we have to.” He let the last sentence hang
in the air between him and Collin.

Jewell nodded again. “Can I have a minute
with Collin?” No one moved. “Alone?” She emphasized the last
word.

Gladys was the first to move. She took
Kendryck and Percy by the hand and started leading them out.
“Percy, Hugh, Nicky.” Nicky? Jewell suppressed a laugh at how this
apparently young woman addressed her superior.

When they had all left the room, Jewell
gently pushed herself away from Collin so that she could look at
him. “What now?”

“I don’t know. I’ll try to think of
something, but…” he looked around as if he was trying to ascertain
whether someone was listening. “Kendryck, is a telepath. Kendryck
is very talented. I’m not entirely sure that my thoughts will be as
private as I want them to be.” He kissed her, gently on the
forehead and pulled her head to his chest. “I can’t live without
you, I won’t. I’ll find a solution. I love you Honeysuckle.” Jewell
just nodded against his chest. He pushed her back a little bit so
that he could kiss her lips.

Jewell savored the touch of Collin’s soft,
warm lips, savored the taste of honey and almond on his breath,
breathed in his unique smell of cedar, rain and laurel. She tried
to think of what life would be like without him, but she couldn’t.
Her thoughts reeled as she thought about everything she had been
told, but primarily about the very likely possibility that she
would never see Collin again.

They were still kissing when they heard a
knock on the door. Collin and Jewell looked up in time to see Percy
opening the doors to the parlor. “Jewell, honey, it’s time to get
you home.” Jewell looked at Collin and tightened her grip on his
hand. “You’ll see him again. I will promise you that.”

“Do you swear on the Templar Cross that I
will see him again?” Jewell didn’t completely trust Percy’s word,
but she did know a little about the Templar Knights. If he made
that swear, he would do whatever possible to ensure that she saw
him again.

Percy looked startled for a moment as he
stood in the doorway. He sucked in a deep breath and whispered
quietly, “I swear on the Templar Cross that you will see Collin
again.”

Jewell nodded curtly and stood, still holding
Collin’s hand. She leaned down and kissed him again on the mouth,
passionately and not caring that Percy was watching. “I love you
Collin Sykes. I will always love you no matter what happens. Please
always remember that. I will always love you.”

“And I will always love you.” He reached for
a cane leaning on the edge of the couch. Jewell helped him as he
struggled to stand. By the time he was standing and leaning on his
cane, his breath was coming in sharp pulls. She waited until his
breathing returned to normal, and walked with him slowly across the
room. Percy preceded them down the hallway and out the front door.
When Collin and Jewell reached the stairs leading down from the
porch, Collin stopped. Jewell looked at Percy standing next to the
passenger side of the door. Collin dropped the cane and pulled her
close, holding her as if he was willing them to become one person.
Finally, she pushed herself away and started down the stairs toward
the car.

Jewell didn’t see Collin again for another
week. She had started back to work which helped to alleviate some
of the boredom she was experiencing at home. It also gave her less
time to think about everything she had learned in the past couple
of weeks.

Jewell had very strong feelings about the
idea of immortality. She definitely did not think that it was a
trait that should be explored and exploited. The fact that people
were now living longer thanks to better medicine and nutrition, and
the number of live births has increased, the world population is
exploding. Without new sources of nutrition and additional space to
house these individuals, immortality would lead to ultimate
suffering. Another problem was that despite scientific research,
progress is usually generated by new people. If people don’t die,
then there will be no progress, because new people are necessary to
create new ideas.

But she loved Collin. The fact that he
represented something that she found objectionable didn’t change
her feelings for him any more than finding out he had cancer would
change her feelings for him. And the thought of living without him
was almost unbearable.

As she worked, she mulled over the arguments
presented by Collin’s Family, Dr. Babineaux, and Sheriff Payne. She
understood their position. She was a threat to their existence, not
just Collin’s, but everyone like him. She also understood that as
she grew older, he wouldn’t age. Would he still love her when she
looked twice his age? Three times his age? When she appeared old
enough to be his grandmother? If he continued to love her, could
she stand to let him watch her die? Could she inflict that pain on
him? A pain that he wouldn’t carry with him for decades, but for
centuries to come?

“Jewell!” She glanced up to see Nurse Yohanan
standing above her. “Honey, you’ve been sitting there for over half
an hour without doing anything. I think that’s enough for tonight.
Why don’t you go ahead and go home and get some rest. You’re still
healing and it’s going to be difficult to get back into your usual
routine.”

Jewell rubbed her hands over her face. She
looked at the patient chart sitting on the desk next to her. She
had filled in the name on the computer screen but had not gone
beyond that. She glanced at the stack of charts sitting on the desk
waiting to be entered into the computer. “I don’t know,” she
gestured to the charts sitting in her in box. “I’m fine. I just got
distracted for a while. I just want to get these entered before I
leave.”

“Nonsense! I’ll get an intern to do it on the
day shift. You go home and I’ll see you tomorrow night.”

Jewell nodded and glanced at her watch. It
was only midnight. She hadn’t even finished half her shift. She had
driven herself to work since she hadn’t been working regular
shifts. It seemed that these first few nights back had been more
difficult than she had expected them to be and she found herself
leaving early every night. She hated to leave work unfinished, but
Nurse Yohanan was right. She wasn’t very useful if she couldn’t
finish her work. She called Ashley upstairs to let her know she was
leaving. She walked slowly to the locker room to gather her things
before heading home.

Ashley met her in the locker room as Jewell
was gathering her things. “Not feeling well?” she asked as she
waited for Jewell to change.

“That’s not it. It’s Collin. I don’t know,
maybe because I’m not one hundred percent I’m having trouble
concentrating on work. I’ve just got to focus.”

“I thought everything was cool between you,
now that he’s back and all.”

“It’s hard to explain Ash. I want so bad to
talk to you about it, but I just don’t know what to say. It’s
really hard to put into words.”

“That’s okay, I understand. I’ll be here
whenever you’re ready.” She reached over and gave Jewell a quick
hug as Jewell picked up her bag.

As Jewell walked to her car, she noticed
someone standing next to her car, waiting. She picked up her pace,
anxious now to meet the man waiting for her. “I needed to see you
so badly.” As she reached him, she fell into his arms, soaking in
the electricity that his touch generated. “Collin, I missed you so
much. I can’t work, I can’t sleep. I just keep thinking about
you.”

Collin pulled her closer, breathing in the
honeysuckle scent he missed so much. “I knew you needed me, I could
feel it. That’s why I’m here. My uncle has been…reluctant to let me
see you. He thinks that if I let you have your space, both of us
will realize that we don’t need each other as much as we think we
do.” He kissed her forehead. “I don’t think it’s working.” He
grinned sadly. “Jewell, can we talk?” he asked, suddenly
serious.

“Yeah. Of course. Do you want to go
somewhere, or you can come to my place, or we can go to yours?”

“I want to go back to my place. I know
everyone will be there, but I need you to know where I live. I want
you to be able to find me…in case.”

“In case of what?”

“I don’t know, just in case. The house isn’t
just used by my uncle and me. It belongs to the Family. I don’t
want what happened before to happen again. I want to be certain
that if something happens, you can always find me.” He left unsaid
that if they were ever separated, someone in the Family could
probably find him.

He opened the driver’s door for Jewell and
then went to sit in the passenger’s seat. He directed her to the
house while she tried to remember each turn as he pointed it out.
He showed her landmarks to help her remember the way. Finally, she
was driving down the long driveway that led to the house. He took
her into the servant’s quarters rather than the main house. “This
is where I’ve been staying. I think that I’m the only person who
really uses this part of the house. When we moved here, it was
being used for storage. I fixed it up so that I could have a little
more privacy.” He laughed. “It seems like no matter where we are
there are always at least five people living in the same place.
Even though the houses are big, and there are plenty of rooms, I
still feel crowded.”