Never Say Die- Chapter 8

 

Chapter 8

 

 

            I paced back and forth across the patio waiting for Rhys to come back, he had very helpfully purchased and started a prime rib on the rotisserie before he went home to change leaving Flan and I to work on the side dishes of baked potatoes, macaroni salad and corn on the cob. The salad was done and the potatoes and corn could be cooked after my parents arrived so all I had to do right now was pray that the evening went smoothly and that whatever (if anything) was special about Rhys wouldn't affect our relationship badly.

            I jumped as the doorbell rang and nearly ran to open the door, barely pausing to collect myself I threw the door open and my breath caught in my throat. Rhys stood there in jeans and a dark polo shirt that set off his olive skin perfectly, he had even cut his hair and styled it into a messy faux hawk similar to something I'd recently seen on David Beckham, and I found that I liked it even better than when it had been longer.

            “Wow you look...incredible.” I managed to get out as he smiled that absolutely beautiful smile at me.

            “I was going to say the same thing to you.” he replied closing the door behind him and leaning in for a quick kiss. I had chosen a simple white sun dress with a red floral pattern, white shell jewelry and flip flops with pearlized geometric stones woven on to the straps.

            I found that I couldn't quite stop moving, I was so nervous, he seemed to notice and put his hands on my shoulders, I relaxed immediately at his touch as I allowed my breathing to match the deep breaths that he was encouraging me to imitate. I had to admit I felt a little better as he led me back to the patio to check on the prime rib.

            Right at 6 o'clock the doorbell rang again and as I walked at a more normal pace to answer the door I caught a glimpse of the sleek, black Maybach 57 S in the driveway. I smiled to myself; dad always did have expensive but impeccable taste. I plastered a smile on my face hoping the nerves wouldn't show through as I opened the door to welcome them in.

            My mom looked stunning in a simple cream colored dress with a wide belt that accentuated her waistline.

            “Oh sweetheart it's so wonderful to be here, your house looks beautiful as always.” my mother gushed, she has a more down home decorating style where mine is more modern but I was glad that she made the effort to understand and appreciate my taste. She kissed my cheek and then passed me off to my father dressed impressively but casually in a gray linen suit with a white shirt unbuttoned at the top. “Ah my girl let me look at you!” was all he said for a moment as he stepped back with his arms stretched toward me and looked me over, “You look very lovely my dear but if you could try to relax I could appreciate your beauty so much more.” he winked at me, “We're not going to bite him you know.” I rolled my eyes, he was such a smart a*s sometimes.

            “Please, just be nice, he means a lot to me okay?” I pleaded, I had no idea how this was going to go since I'd never had a boyfriend to introduce my parents to before.

            “Of course darling, we'd never dream of anything otherwise.” My mother soothed me before I turned to see Flan just stepping out the patio with a large serving plate in her hand.

            By the time we reached the sliding door Rhys was just removing the prime rib from the rotisserie and putting it on the plate that Flan had brought out. I went to stand beside him as he wiped his hands clean on a towel and smiled at my parents.

            “Mister and Misses Mason, It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Rhys Davis.” He shook my mother’s hand first and she seemed absolutely delighted with him as she looked him over.

            “It's so lovely to meet you Rhys.” she replied sweetly, clearly taken by him.

            I was more wary of my father’s reaction and watched with a keen eye when Rhys turned and held his hand out for the very warm and friendly handshake my father gave him, lingering just long enough to extract the information he wanted while making Rhys feel comfortable and welcome at the same time.

            In less than 10 seconds I could see that my father had what he was looking for and I was going to have to suffer through the entire night before I could ask about it but he did look pleased which helped me relax a little as I headed into the house to grab the corn and potatoes while dad and Rhys made themselves comfortable at the table.

            My mother quickly followed me in to help shuck the corn, “Well my darling you certainly seem to have picked a winner, your father likes him immensely already.”

            “You think so? He's not just being nice because I asked him to?” the worry on my face made my mother laugh, “He's perfectly charming dear, there's nothing not to like.” I glanced at the men out on the patio; they certainly seemed at ease with one another, chatting away like old friends. I relaxed a little more as my mother patted my arm, “You have nothing to worry about sweetheart.” I smiled at her, “Thanks mom.” and gave her a kiss on the cheek before heading out to put the corn on the grill while she put the potatoes in the oven to bake.

            We all sat back from the table full from the dinner that was almost completely gone, it had all been cooked perfectly and tasted delicious. I smiled happily, very pleased that the night had gone better than I'd expected and saw Flan wink at me from the corner of my eye. I stood to clear the table and Rhys immediately stood to help, I smiled at him as we picked up the plates and headed into the kitchen, glancing out the window I noticed that my dad was talking to Flan about something that seemed very serious, maybe school or maybe she really did have a test coming up that she was worried about. Either way, I also noticed that the conversation was very short and she sat with a resigned look on her face. I would definitely be asking her about it later.

            As I loaded the dishwasher, Rhys washed the bigger dishes in the sink, “That was a really great dinner Say and your parents are awesome, I wish mine were more like that.”

            I smiled, “Speaking of which, when do I get to meet your parents?”

            He looked at me thoughtfully for a minute, “Well, I'm going home for Thanksgiving if you'd like to come with and your parents wouldn't mind.”

            “I'm sure my mom could live without me home for Thanksgiving for one year, it would give her and my dad an excuse to take a trip or at least go out to a nice dinner instead of cooking.” I replied.

            My mother had always been big on keeping human traditions, she loved to celebrate the holidays even after all the hundreds of years she'd been doing it and of course my father indulged her with traditional Thanksgiving and Easter dinners (Easter being ironic considering his position but it didn't seem to bother him) 4^th of July barbecues usually at my house, elaborately decorated trees at Christmas, rare and priceless gifts and trips to Aspen to enjoy the snow.

            We went back out hand in hand to join my parents and Flan again at the patio table, while I brought up Thanksgiving to my mother, Rhys and my father went back to chatting away over a couple Cuban cigars that my father had apparently brought with him. The evening was definitely a success as far as I was concerned and I relaxed in my chair, taking in the warm night air and the hint of cigar smoke that hung over the patio.

            “Of course I don't mind if you go home with Rhys this year darling, I've been trying to talk your father into a trip to the South of France and now you've provided an excellent opportunity, don't you think so dear?”

            My father smiled that loving smile that he reserved just for her, “Anything you'd like my dear.” I loved how everything was so easy between them, they almost never fought and if they did he always let her have her way, it made being around them very easy most of the time.

            As the sun began to set on the horizon some of the solar lights around the yard came on and I stood to turn on the Chinese lanterns but when I turned to go back to my chair, my father had risen from his seat and seemed to be preparing to leave.

            “You're going already?” I asked, disappointed, and both of my parents looked at me in surprise.

            It wasn't often that I spent a lot of time with them, not because I didn't want to, but because I lived my human life and being in my father’s presence for too long always had some adverse effect on me that took weeks to reverse but tonight I felt like I could hang out for just a while longer. Maybe it was the humanity of it all, just having my parents over to dinner to meet my new boyfriend, it was about as human as you could get and I found that I was extremely pleased to share it with them.

            “I'm afraid so my dear, I have some paperwork I need to look over for my meeting tomorrow.” my father replied.

            “You keep it up dad and you're going to work yourself into an early grave, maybe that trip to France is just what you need.” I winked at him and he smiled at the inside joke.

            “You know me, I'm just an old workhorse. Don't trouble your mind with such things my sweet girl.” he kissed my cheek and wrapped his arms around me.

            My mother gave Flan a hug and shook Rhys's hand; while she was doing this I noticed a very stern look cross my father’s face and that resigned look crossed Flans again. He gave her a warm hug before turning to once again exchange a warm handshake with Rhys.

            “It was lovely to meet you my boy, I see that you make my daughter very happy and sincerely hope that you should continue to do so for a long time.” Rhys smiled at him, “It was very nice to meet you sir, I hope to see you and your lovely wife again very soon.” I saw a faint blush cross my mother’s cheeks as she smiled at him, as far as she was concerned, he was a keeper.

            The three of us stood in the driveway, Rhys and I with an arm around each other, waving as my parents drove away. Rhys let out a low whistle and I knew what was coming, “Was that was I think it was?”

            I laughed, “If you think it was a Maybach 57 S then yes that’s what you think it was.”

            “Wow, now I see where you get it from.” he looked very impressed.

            “Where I get what?”

            “Your expensive taste.”

            “It rubs off I guess.” I smiled and led our small group back into the house to finish cleaning up from dinner.

            Rhys was outside scrubbing the grill giving me a few minutes alone with Flan in the kitchen.

            “I hope I'm not being nosy but you and my dad looked like you were having a pretty serious conversation, is everything alright?”

            She smiled somewhat awkwardly and nodded, “Yeah, I'll tell you about it later when Rhys leaves.”

            “You can't tell me while he's here?” I was confused.

            “I'd just rather not.” she replied and I shrugged.

            “Okay.” was all I said before heading back outside to relax and watch Rhys working his way around my “Man's Kitchen” as he cleaned the grill.

 

            A couple hours later Flan went up to her room leaving Rhys and I alone by the pool, it was a beautiful night out, the breeze was still warm and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Sitting completely reclined with the lounge chairs as close as we could get them, we took turns pointing out constellations and swapping stories that we'd heard about each one.

            “See Orion there?” I pointed and asked, he nodded, “I had someone tell me once that he reminded them of the little guy that was used as the symbol for their cell phone company.” He burst out laughing and I joined him but we were both silent after a minute or so and he stared up at the sky thoughtfully.

            “What are you thinking about?” I asked.

            “I was just looking at Orion; I think your informant was right about it looking like the cell phone company guy.”

            “I never said they were wrong, I just thought it was funny that they chose that comparison.” I smiled.

            We were silent again for a while, just looking up at the beautiful night sky, Flan had turned the patio lights off on her way in so it seemed like we could see stars for miles.

            “Do you ever wonder what else is out there?” Rhys asked suddenly and I turned to him, surprised at the question.

            “Like what?” I was curious to know what he thought existed beyond human life forms.

            “Well you know how you always hear stuff about aliens, or even creatures you read about in books or see on TV, witches, trolls, ogres, vampires, fairies, leprechauns and so on, do you think that they might actually exist? Something about looking at the stars always makes me wonder just what else could possibly be out there, I mean people have been writing about this stuff for years, is it possible that there might be some truth to it but we're so desensitized to fairy tales that we just write it off as fiction? I know it sounds a little farfetched but I just wondered what you thought.”

            I sat in stunned silence for a moment, shocked that he'd even considered that mythical creatures actually existed.

            “Well what you're suggesting does make sense and I think that you're right about being desensitized to fairy tales, the ideas had to come from somewhere so why couldn't it be possible? Ideas have become so wildly popular but it seems unlikely that they became so popular simply because someone thought up a creature and put a good spin on it. I think there are some creatures that are so farfetched that they could only have existed at some point in time for people to believe in them.”

            “I agree with that last part, for me I think it's vampires that blow my mind the most, the concept seems so beyond comprehension that they absolutely had to have existed for people to come up with some of the tales you still hear and read about.”

            Out of curiosity, I carefully chose my words before phrasing my next question, “How do you think you would feel if you found out that those creatures really did exist?”

            He sat thoughtfully for a moment and rubbed his chin, “Well if it was something that I had grown up with I think I would be more accepting of it than I would be if you told me that they existed now that I'm an adult, I think that it's just easier for children to accept such things because they have such active imaginations as it is. I think that once I adjusted I might be alright with it though.”

            I let out a breath that I didn't realize that I'd been holding and smiled at him.

            “What about you, do you think you'd accept it if someone said 'Hey witches, aliens and vampires do exist.' or would you have a hard time with it?” He looked at me with curious eyes.

            “I guess I've always been a bit of a believer of magic in the world and so while I think I may be surprised about their actual existence I think I'd be fine with it.” It was a reasonable lie.        In all reality some of those creatures actually did exist right among people just like demons and nobody was the wiser. Witches have been around for centuries but they have evolved just like everyone else, they blend in and do their gathering in secret.

            He accepted my response with a nod and then turned his eyes back to the sky. For a moment I wondered if he suspected something but I told myself that it wasn't possible. He took my hand and I turned my head to smile at him, he smiled back lovingly.

            “I love how smart you are and how open you are to things, a lot of girls I know are so narrow-minded, it's almost impossible to talk to them about anything interesting. I like to be able to share my ideas with you and know that you're not going to laugh at me.”

            “I would never laugh at you, I think it's interesting that you have views on the world unlike other peoples. It's good to have imagination and an open mind. It makes a lot of things much easier to accept, even the simplest things in life.” I knew he wouldn't understand the hidden meaning in my words but he nodded with a pleased expression.

            “That’s what I mean, I feel like I can just talk to you about anything and you'll talk to me about it without making fun of me.”

            “I just love you that much I guess.” I laughed and he joined me before leaning over for a kiss that deepened, filled with a passion that I thought would push me over the edge. I felt his strong arms pulling me onto the lounge chair with him, he pulled me closer and that feeling like I couldn't get close enough to him was wildly out of control. It took everything I had to pull my lips away from his and rest my head on his chest, I could hear the accelerated beating of his heart and continued to listen as it returned to a more normal pace.

            “I love you too.” he said placing a kiss on top of my head as I smiled into his shirt.

 

            It was the next morning before I got a chance to talk to Flan, Rhys had stayed the night with me, sleeping again, on top of the covers with a blanket to make me feel more comfortable even though I insisted that it wasn't necessary. When I opened my eyes and reached for him I found that he was gone but my phone was sitting on his pillow, I slid it open to find the expected text message that he sent every morning when he didn't wake up by my side. “Good morning beautiful. Sorry I couldn't stay, classes today, shoot me an e-mail when you wake up or stop by Marlene's after 3 if you want to. Talk to you soon. Love you, R.” I smiled at his attentiveness and consideration to make sure that I started every day with a message from him.

            I remembered that I needed to talk to Flan and I was about to climb out of bed to go find her when I heard her knock at the door, I sat up and called to her to, “Come in!” she opened the door with a smile and came to sit on the bed with me. I noticed that she looked the slightest bit nervous and wondered what that was about.

            “Saydie, I need to talk to you about something and I need you to promise that you'll hear me out completely before you make a judgment okay?” Now I was confused and curious but nodded my agreement.

            She took a deep breath and looked down at the comforter. “When I met you I wasn't completely honest about my situation, I figured at the time that there were things that you were better off not knowing, but the longer we've lived together the more I feel like I need to tell you what you don't know. Let me just start by saying that you are the very best friend that I've ever had and I absolutely love living with you, you took me in when I was going through hard times and it was like a miracle, you were the answer to my prayers.” She paused for a moment and while I was still confused, I nodded to her to continue.

            She looked me right in the eye, “Saydie I know what you are, I always have and like I said I've been debating on whether or not it was the right time to tell you what I am, your dad knew immediately and told me that it was the right time to tell you, that you need my support and honesty and even if you didn't accept me right away you would eventually.”

            I stared at her with my mouth hanging open for a moment while I collected my thoughts, “Then what exactly are you and what exactly do you think I am?” I asked suspiciously, I couldn't see this conversation going anywhere good.

            “You're a demon, of course, or rather a half-demon, I knew that the first time I laid eyes on you, I'm a seer...” That makes sense I thought as she took another deep breath, “and I'm also a witch.” She stared at me expectantly as if she thought I was going to yell at her or something. I mulled this information over for a moment and found that I was surprisingly alright with it. I'd always known there was something different about her and it didn't surprise me all that much that this was it.

            “Okay then if you're a witch then why didn't I ever sense you?” my thoughts were still a jumble in my head and I realized how dumb the question was the minute it left my lips. It was now her turn to stare at me in disbelief, “Really Saydie? I'm not evil.” The word “Duh!” jumped out at me from her words, of course she wasn't evil, that much was obvious in every aspect of her life. I sat back against the headboard with a small “Huh.” while she looked at me, waiting for another response.

            Seers are people who can recognize half demons or disguised demons for what they are, those who live more human lives will appear to be more human but we're still recognizable to those who can identify us. The fact that she was a witch just added to the explanation as things started to make sense.

            “You said you always knew, which means you knew when I asked you to come live with me, did you see me coming?” In my head I pictured her surrounded by bottles of random insect parts, looking into a bubbling cauldron with a bright fire underneath, a foggy looking substance pouring out of the top and seeing me in the liquid once the fog had cleared. I realized then that I had a seriously warped view of witches and how they worked, despite knowing that they existed for the last couple centuries.

            She nodded but didn't speak, she was unsure if I was going in a positive direction or not. “But why are you always so neutral to my Charisma? And why would you want to live with a demon anyway?”

            She finally smiled and answered, “I'm neutral to it because I cast a spell, when you came into the library I saw what you were going to offer me as soon as you made up your mind to do it, like I said before it was like a miracle, here I was freaking out over what I was going to do and then you walk in and I suddenly see that you and I would be great friends, all I had to do was get your attention and you would do the rest.

            So I cast the spell and blocked the information from you, not knowing how well you would handle it, you look so much more human than demon even considering who you are and I couldn't get an accurate vision about whether or not you would accept my magic so I decided to hide it until it was time to share it with you.” So she had visions, that explained a lot.

            “And my dad just told you that it was time? And how is it that you never freaked out around him, knowing who and what he is?” she laughed, “He looks about as human as you do Say, I think your mother keeps him pretty balanced, you know I can see something in her too, I know she's not a demon but the gift that she's been given gives her a kind of glow.” I raised an eyebrow; that was interesting information to have, “Can you see other humans who have been given gifts by demons?”

            “Sometimes. That guy in the library, the day we met, was lit up like a beacon, it's more noticeable the closer the time is to when the gift was given and particularly so when the gift is life. Your mom has been around for a while so her glow has dulled a bit but it's still definitely there.” Now I was intrigued, I'd never met a Seer before and I found that I was full of questions.

            “The reason why it was time for me to share these things with you is because things with Malcolm are going to get worse, your dad knew that I would be more help to you if I could use my power around you freely. I've also been getting glimpses of what's going to happen and while he warned me not to tell you too much I think it’s safe to say that you're going to need a plan.”

            I stared at her again and nodded silently while I went over the information in my head, this was definitely a lot to wake up to, I'd gone from my happy bubble of waking up to a message from Rhys to suddenly finding a way to make a demon back off, which suddenly gave me a terrible thought.

            “If it's going to be so bad that I need your help then what's going to happen to Rhys, or can you tell me that?”

            “I can cast a spell to protect him from general harm and demon influence but If somehow he ends up face to face with Malcolm I can only protect him so much. I wish I could tell you more but I can't.”

            “Do you see him coming face to face with Malcolm?” I demanded but she stared back at me with a tortured expression, I sighed, “You can't tell me that. Why is that by the way? Or do I already know?”

            She smiled “I can't tell you anything that may change the way things are supposed to happen.” I guessed that made sense even though the answer sucked.

            I guess I should have expected something to go wrong just when my life seemed like it was all coming together, there was always a kink somewhere. I sighed and slid back down on my pillows going over ideas in my head. Flan laid next to me and took my hand in hers, despite her supernatural side she was still my best friend and a genuinely good person so if we were doing this together then I wanted her as close to me as possible.

But what was I going to do about Rhys?