Tainted Energy (The Energy Series Book 1) (18 page)

Lena

P
ounding on the front door made me
jump, my book falling to the scratched floorboards. Pacing for an hour didn't
help calm my nerves, but reading Shakespeare did. Call me crazy.

Wait,
no, don't call me crazy.

"Who's
there?" My voice sounded way too high. With Jake already gone, I'd have to
handle whoever was on the other side alone.

"Open
the door, Lena."

A
mixture of relief and irritation washed over me. I threw open the door, one
hand resting on my hip. "If the goal here is to curb fear, I'd suggest a
more pleasant knocking sound. Why'd you knock, anyway? Can't you like, I don't
know, teleport into the living room?"

He
stomped past me, dressed in jeans and a black V-neck sweater.

"What?
Leather pants dirty?"

Tarek
rolled his eyes, but the pain and anger that drove him away didn't shadow his face.

I
definitely didn't notice how my breath quickened when the scent of apples and
lilacs filled the room. Nope, I didn't feel anything–except for the electricity
he sparked inside my chest.

He
gestured toward the couch. "Can we talk?"

"Depends."
I hesitated by the door, refusing to give in to the urge to forgive him.

"On?"

"On
if this talk has anything to do with my love life."

His jaw
clenched, but relaxed in an instant. "It doesn't."

I sat on
the couch. He settled on the other end, bent forward with arms resting on his
knees. I had to switch to breathing through my mouth so the scent he brought
back didn't turn me into a sappy mess.

"I
never told you how we met."

Tension
and excitement tightened my shoulders. Even the morning's storm took a seat further
back in my mind. "There hasn't actually been a great time to bring it up."

He
smiled, his dimples making an appearance. "No, I suppose there hasn't
been." He brought his attention level to mine. "Remember when you
asked why I never chose to be your Protector?"

I
smoothed my hair, his attention making me self-conscious. "Yeah, something
about a conflict of interest?"

"That
wasn't altogether true."

"Okay…."

He
looked at his fidgeting hands, giving them his undivided attention. "Ah…okay,
so, when a new energy is created, it causes a...stir in our world."

"New
energy?" If I knew there'd be an intro before the good stuff, I'd have
grabbed some popcorn. Maybe a notepad and pencil, too.

"Yeah.
When Guides or Protectors...have relations…" His palms formed a steeple.

I nudged
his shoulder. "Are you giving
The Talk
? Because I learned about the
birds and the bees in fifth grade."

His face
reddened, but his smile came back. "Sorry. Anyway, it's rare when
our...togetherness...results in creation." He splayed his fingers. "You
see, a new energy in Exemplar is a...ah...highly evolved energy from another
dimension. When these energies are read, they're deemed privileged enough to be
cycled into Exemplar. Which then become newborn Exemplians…ah, after
these…relations."

I bit
the inside of my cheek. Tarek talking about sex was better than any
Saturday
Night Live
rerun. "So Exemplar is the end of the line, kind of the
height of evolution?"

He shook
his head, the corners of his mouth turning down. "So some say."

"Are
new Exemplians' past lives remembered? You know, from their old dimension?"

Sadness
tinged his eyes. "No. It's a fresh start, a new beginning."

"So,
what happens when Exemplians die and decide to go back to Exemplar for their
next cycle? Do they just appear or something, exactly as they were before?"

He ran a
hand through his hair. "Our DNA is harvested when we're born into our
first cycle. When our corporeal form dies, our energy is directed to the Synod
medics. Science isn't my thing, but simply put, we come back as a younger
version than we were at the time of our death." He hesitated. "We
come back with all our memories, too."

I stole
a few glances at my mother's door. "Christ, you're all a bunch of mad
scientists. That…it's not natural."

"Believe
me, I agree with you, but it's been that way for centuries. Even if it wasn't
natural prior, it's natural now."

This conversation
would take years, and it wasn't what I wanted to hear. "Enough. Tell me
how we met."

He gave
a small grin, his shoulders relaxing some. "When the word spread that
there was a new Exemplian born," he gestured toward me, "Protectors
fought for the chance to protect her, know her."

"Why?"

"You
can't imagine living the same life for centuries. Knowing the same things,
thinking the same things, never again living a childhood. It makes one...cold,
immune to the smallest pleasures. So when the Synod chose me to be your
Protector, I was excited, eager for the first time in years."

"What
would a young Guide need a Protector for? I doubt they traipsed around reading
energies at five."

"We're
full-cycle Protectors. We protect your kind from the moment of your existence."
He shrugged. "And a young Exemplian is just like a newborn here."

"And
so..."

"New
energies are curious, risking their lives to seek pleasure, knowledge, just
like young people here. Older people for that matter. Anyone who only remembers
one life, I guess."

"Okay,
okay… people are the same everywhere. So you protected me during my first go at
the whole life thing. I take it didn't go so great?" I gave him a light
punch on the shoulder. "Did I get killed off too soon by a giant hamster
in another world or something?"

He smiled
a little, though it looked forced. "We spent fifty years together that
first cycle. Your passion, your curiosity, it brought me back to life. I
noticed the colors, smells, everything you fell in love with or decided to
hate. I became too protective, too involved."

"That
doesn't sound so bad." I ignored the need to hug him.

"Yeah,
well, when a mission went wrong, and your corporeal form was found..."

The pain
racing across his face crushed my inhibitions. I slid close, wrapping my arm
around his back.

His next
sentence flew out. "When it was found and destroyed, I went crazy."

"I
don't understand. What do mean, found?"

He
sighed. "When you collect energies from Wardens in each dimension, your
energy leaves your physical form. It's just your energy that guides others
through the dimensions. Don't know why, but Guides can't transport energy
unless their corporeal form is in the dimension they're collecting from."

"Why
do you blame yourself?"

"Because
I wasn't there to protect your body as I should've been. We thought it was well
hidden, and I...had trouble letting you take the bad energy you'd collected to
a dimension that makes Arcus look like a playground." He scrubbed at the
scruff on his cheeks. "I knew nothing could happen to your energy form,
but...I became possessive."

"Oh."
What could I say to that?

He
scrubbed his face again. "And so, when you chose to return to Exemplar, I
stepped down as your Protector, and Wilma volunteered."

"Were
we, you know, more than friends the first time around?"

He
smiled a genuine smile this time. "No. That didn't happen until your next
cycle."

"Another
story?"

"Yes."
He laughed when I hunkered down, ready to listen. "For another time."

My
shoulders slumped. "So why tell me all this?"

He stood
and went to the window. "My way of telling you I won't get too involved
again. That my decisions will be more, ah, rational from now on." He bent
his head. "I'll follow the rules."

A smile
threatened even as disappointment crept in. Man, I so wanted him to kiss me
again. "Is this your long way of saying sorry?"

"Guess
it is."

"Okay,
well I accept."

"And,"
he cleared his throat, "just so you know…I was mad because he kissed
you
."

I folded
my arms across my chest and shook my head. "But it wasn't
me
you
kissed, right?"

We
stayed silent for a second, me looking at him, while his eyes went everywhere
but on my face.

"Well?"
I asked.

"I'm
trying."

"Good
for you." That excuse didn't make anything better. He could try all he
wanted, but he'd better be kissing me the next time–if there was a next time. "Anything
else you wanna share?"

He
cleared his throat again and nodded, his face reddening. At least he had the
decency to feel like an ass. "Now, believe me when I say, decisions from
here on out will be made with reason."

"Okay,
so you made a decision and..." I waved for him to get on with it.

"You
have to trust me."

"Don't
believe I have a choice."

"Wilma
and I…we've found something."

Excitement
sizzled in the room. I hopped off the couch, standing right up against his
chest. Maybe there'd be an end to this whole thing after all. "What is it?"

He
pursed his lips and arched an eyebrow. "It's about your boyfriend."

The way
he said
boyfriend
annoyed the shit out of me. "Reason, huh?"

"If
you just listen–"

"What
are you gonna tell me? That he's some sort of crazed animal from another world
come to kill me?" I tried to keep my voice low, but the conversation turn
made it get louder with every word. "I've known him for over three months,
and until two weeks ago, nothing's happened. Nothing." I don't know who I
was more pissed at–him for accusing Zander or me for not realizing Zander's
obsessive fascination for me was odd a long time ago. Hell, Belva even noticed.

Wonder
if STUPID could fit on my forehead?

His big
hand slid through his hair, but his voice never rose. "I know how it
sounds, but hear me out."

As I
opened my mouth, the bedroom door creaked. Mom, mussed from sleep and face
still swollen, came out of the room, a soft smile floating on her lips. "Hey,
honey." Her eyes darted toward Tarek, who gave her a glare that would have
had most people running for cover. Mom lifted her chin and stood taller. I had
to admit, she made me proud.

She
nodded her head his way. "Tarek."

"Jacie."

"Will
you be staying long?" Before he could answer, she answered for him. "Because
I'd prefer a night alone with my daughter."

I
intervened before he could get all mean. "He came by to check on us."

She
shook her head. "Well, we're fine for now, thank you."

I shot
him a look, and we had a whole conversation with our eyes. Mine telling him to
shut up and his saying he wasn't going anywhere. After about thirty seconds, I
broke the silent battle. "Why don't I walk you out?"

"Lena,
I–" I mouthed
trust me
, and his jaw relaxed with obvious effort. "Okay,
but I'll come by later," he glared at Mom, "to check on you."

"Not
too late, Lena has school in the morning–with
friends
who are still in
high school." She gave him a glare of her own and walked into the
bathroom. After a minute, the tinkling sounds of the shower ricocheted off the
bathroom door.

"You
expect me to leave when that woman commands it?"

"That
woman
is my mother, and I'm tired of reminding you." I grabbed his
arm, definitely not enjoying the rippling play of muscle, and led him to the
door. "Look, you asked me to trust you, and I will, with one condition."

"Which
is?"

"You
can't hurt Zander."