An Awakening Page 5

  “I have everything under control,” he says, as he approaches the chamber. He hears the hissing and still cringes at the sound. Oddly, there is no activity surrounding the chamber. It is usually bustling.

  “You lie!” He is seething. His outrage is obvious. The surroundings grow darker as he speaks.

  “I am going to ensure that she falls. I just thought I should bring her down hard to make sure she doesn’t recover. I also plan to bring down others with her.”

  “You cannot waste your time with her.” His voice is a growl. “She is too dangerous. He has sent a messenger to her. She has become top priority to Him, and so for me, as well. Do I need to take this one on myself? Perhaps that is what needs to be done. I will—”

  “NO!” Adrian shouts holding out both hands. “I want her. Please! I will pull out all the stakes on her. Please, Master, leave her for me.” Adrian begs his lord. He has never before been compelled to beg for anything.

  He contemplates Adrian for a moment. He stalks around the dark chamber and meticulously thinks of all the possibilities that Adrian could offer. He is one of the best in his specialties, which is why he was chosen for this assignment.

  “This one is different for you, is she?” He sneers.

  “Yes,” Adrian whispers.

  After pondering further, his decision is made.

  “Very well. Do Not Fail Me! Deceive her fully and completely. Then kill her quickly.”

  “There is one issue that has presented itself,” Adrian says hesitantly. As badly as he hates to report it, he must.

  He looks questioningly at Adrian.

  “Stephen has delivered Word that I am forbidden to kill her.”

  He growls, and yells in a deafening roar and rips his cloak, clawing at it. He stomps towards Adrian and grabs his throat, his rage building.

  “Wait! I can work around this.” Adrian grabs hold of the huge claws that completely encircle his neck. He is gripped not only by the claws of his master but by fear. It emanates from him. His master is ruthless. He will not hesitate to torture Adrian or anyone else. In fact, he would enjoy it.

  “You fool!” He picks Adrian up by the throat and shakes him. “How do you expect to deliver her soul to me if you can’t kill her?”

  “I can. Very soon, she will do anything I ask of her. I have it all figured out. I will deliver her to you and she will be perfect.”

  The last statement stops him suddenly. He stares intently at Adrian.

  “My lord, you know that I can win her over to you without causing her death. I have done it before.”

  “If you fail me, you will pay,” he warns.

  “I have never failed you, Master,” he says confidently.

  “No, Adrian, you have not. You have won me many.” He sets Adrian down and clenches his fists over and over.

  Adrian bows his head and waits for further instruction.

  “Go then and make this your greatest win yet.”

  With great relief, Adrian is back at the building in town in a flicker where he hovers and travels in and out of the offices. His scent will be faint to all but Jeriley. When she comes to work in the morning, it will be very distinct to her. He will be on her mind all day.

  He cannot interrupt her dreams tonight with Stephen keeping guard, but as soon as she wakes, she will be his to toy with. He is going to enjoy wooing her and her trust will be gained quickly.

  As Stephen stands by Jeriley’s bedside all night, she sleeps soundly and he ponders what it will be like to watch her salvation. He, like the others, marvels at redemption. They love to see this transformation take place, but having never experienced it, leaves them in awe. Each time a soul is saved, there is such a celebration. How amazing it is to see this wonder take place. It is the greatest of all miracles. It is when one chooses to accept the Gift and that life is changed.

  Stephen begins to wonder what Jeriley’s salvation will look like. He imagines many of the scenarios he has witnessed in the past centuries. Each one is so special. Not one has ever been the same. They are as unique as the person who believes. How wondrous it is to behold. He marvels as the sun begins to rise and he leaves Jeriley to begin her day.

  CHAPTER 5

  “This is going to be a good day. This is going to be a good day.” I keep repeating this as I walk out the door. I actually do feel like it will be a good day. I slept like a dream. I am beginning an awesome, new job. It has great benefits and better pay than I have ever earned. I live at the beach. I LIVE at the beach! I am finally making some headway with this life of mine.

  I arrive at the office within about twenty minutes and go inside to start on my first project. As soon as I enter my office, I can smell him. Adrian. It’s as if he is standing right beside me. How strange is that? He has a very unique scent. I would know it anywhere but, why is it here? I close my eyes and sit back in my chair, reveling in the fragrance. I begin to think about yesterday and the feelings come back over me so strongly that I begin to wish he would call. I am swept away in a daydream. I can almost feel him in the room.

  There’s a knock on my door, and I jerk myself up, bringing myself to attention.

  “Come in,” I croak, grabbing a pen and leaning over my desk.

  The door opens and Lydia walks in. She is my assistant. We have only met once, but I liked her immediately.

  “Good morning. I saw you come in but I wanted to give you a few minutes to settle in before I bombarded you.” She smiles cheerfully and stands in front of my desk with her fingers folded, hands hanging down in front of her.

  “Thanks. How long have you been here?” I know I wasn’t late. She must be one of those early birds.

  “Oh, I just came in a little early to get things ready for you since it’s your first day and all. Can I get you anything? I have to make a run into town for some supplies, but I won’t be long.”

  “I can’t think of anything right off hand that I need. Thanks for asking, though.”

  She takes a few steps backward towards the door when curiosity overtakes me.

  “Can I ask you a silly question?”

  “Sure,” she answers sweetly, stopping.

  “Do you smell anything in here? I mean, anything different than out there?” I point towards the outside of my office as I ask this and immediately feel stupid for asking.

  She sniffs the air and appears to be thinking about it.

  “No, not really. Do you want me to pick up some air freshener while I’m out?”

  “No! I mean, no. That’s fine. I just, never mind.”

  Lydia giggles and walks up to my desk picking up a pen and notepad. “This is my cell number. If you think of anything, just give me a call.”

  “Great. Thanks.” She walks out closing my door behind her as I slouch back in my chair, letting out a huffing breath upwards into my hair.

  “Jeriley, you are losing it. You are totally losing your mind and just when you were getting your mess together.” I have to admit, I do feel a little crazy sitting here sniffing the air and imagining the sound of my name being spoken by the most attractive creature I have ever laid eyes on. Oh, why can’t I go back and do yesterday all over again?

  I look around my office taking in everything before I attempt to focus on the task still on my desk. All the while Adrian is in my thoughts. By lunch, I am driven crazy with it to the point that I decide to go out for lunch. I have to get out of here if only for an hour. Maybe I’ll be sane when I return.

  I make sure to avoid the place where Adrian and I ate yesterday, thinking that would probably be a little too much to handle. I decide on a drive thru so that I can take my lunch to the park. I park my Jeep and find a table close to the water. It is so peaceful here. It’s another beautiful day. Once again, I find myself wishing I could stay out in it.

  “Jeriley? How’ve you been?”

  I look up
to see Stephen approaching from the direction of the boat ramps.

  “Stephen. Hey. It’s good to see you,” I say smiling sincerely. It is quite refreshing to be around someone whose presence allows me to breathe.

  His grin broadens and he sits across the table from me. “You don’t mind if I join you, do you?”

  “Of course not.” I am grateful for the company. Instantly, I am reminded of how calm and secure I felt with him the other day, as the feeling returns.

  “So what have you been up to?” He asks me this as if he is genuinely interested in what I have been doing since we saw each other last.

  “Not much. I started my new job today.”

  “Oh, yeah?”

  “Yeah. I think it’ll be a nice change for me.”

  “That’s good.”

  “I had a very nice day yesterday.” I decide that since I feel so comfortable with Stephen, I want to tell him everything.

  “Did you?”

  “I met someone interesting. It was unexpected, but we spent the evening together and he asked for my number.” I begin smiling at Adrian’s memory.

  “Wow. You have been busy. What’s the lucky fellow’s name?”

  “Adrian. I didn’t get his last name.”

  “But he has your number.” He looks at me admonishingly and shakes his head as he smiles down at his hands.

  “I know. I don’t know what came over me. It was like I was in a trance or something yesterday. He wanted me to ride with him to get a bite to eat and I almost got in the car with him until I came to my senses. I was just off my guard, I guess.” I suddenly felt like confessing all to Stephen.

  “Well, you’re still here so I guess there’s no harm done.” He holds my gaze for a moment. I like Stephen a lot. He isn’t in any way overbearing or pushy. Adrian wasn’t either, though, now that I think about it. There is definitely a difference in the relationships. I feel relaxed and steady with Stephen. With Adrian, I feel out of control and dangerously vulnerable. I should probably spend more time with Stephen. I have a very strong feeling that I would stay out of mischief that way.

  “Enough about me. What have you been up to?” I redirect.

  “I’ve been out on the boat mostly. It was the weekend ya know.”

  “Do you fish?”

  “I do. I guess you could say that’s a favorite hobby of mine.”

  We sit enjoying the breeze as I eat my lunch.

  He shifts on the bench, turning to face me. I swallow my last bite of food as he leans forward on the table tapping the wood with his thumbs. I catch on to the rhythm when he breaks the silence between us.

  “Would you like to go for a boat ride?” He ends his drumming and lays his hands flat out on the table.

  I am a little surprised by this invitation, but I answer without hesitation.

  “I’d love to. As long as you’re not going to take me miles away from shore and throw me overboard.” I say this with absolute sincerity.

  “Of course not. I would never do that. I was thinking about a picnic on the water. We could go whenever you like.” His voice is so pleasant. How could I refuse even if I didn’t want to go?

  “Well, I could go any evening this week or we could wait until Saturday. When do you want to go?” Please say soon. Please say soon. I really could use some safe company.

  He asks for my number, says he’ll call me this afternoon and we can go one evening this week. We say our goodbyes and I head back to work feeling grounded again.

  When I return to my office, I am blasted again by the feeling that Adrian is there. It is overpowering, but I manage to get in a good day’s work despite the constant barrage of thoughts about him leaving rabbit trails in my mind. I keep busy for a couple of hours and hear the email notification from my phone.

  Deciding it is a good time for a break, I check my email to find that Jackson has sent the details of the mysterious promotion he offered. I sit back in my chair and read the plea for my return along with the attached offer that is more than generous. I still can’t figure out what has gotten into him. I can’t go back now, can I? Should I? Why am I even thinking about going back? I sit back up, shaking my head and return to my work without answering the email.

  Just after five I stop at Lydia’s desk on my way out and notice her keys beside her purse. Her keychain catches my eye and I pick it up to read it.

  “The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me.”

  Psalm 138:8

  It is a small keychain made to resemble an old open book. The pages are blank except for the verse. It is the only keychain among the three keys on the ring. This tells me a little something about my assistant. The absence of bulk on her key ring could indicate that she doesn’t like clutter. She doesn’t carry a monogrammed emblem or a souvenir like a palm tree with the name of a city on it. Perhaps she chose this particular one to carry so that it could serve as a reminder. It would certainly be useful for that. I think of how often I handle my keys. That would be a great way to be reminded of things that I don’t want to forget. Too bad a notepad is too big to carry like that. I could just jot things down and have them in my hand multiple times a day.

  “You heading out?”

  I look up as Lydia approaches her desk. With a few clicks, her computer screen goes black. “Yeah, I guess.” I put the keys back where I found them.

  She looks over at the keychain and beams. “My grandmother gave me that when I got my first car.”

  “Aw. How sweet. You’ve had it a while then.”

  “Yeah. I’m surprised it hasn’t broken. I don’t know what I would do without it.” It appears that Lydia is also sentimental.

  “I like it,” I say honestly.

  “Yeah? I do, too. I look at it often. His purpose, not mine.”

  “His purpose?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “I guess your grandmother is a Christian.”

  “Was, yes. She passed away a few years ago. She used to take me to church and read with me. She was such a jewel.”

  “I’m sure she was. I’m sorry to hear she’s gone. I miss mine for sure. She was, too. A Christian, I mean. I didn’t get to spend much time with her after I got older, but she was pretty special.”

  “Well, look at us. We have found something in common on your very first day.” Lydia smiles brightly and stands to gather her things.

  “Yeah. Check that out.”

  We walk out together leaving a handful of others to lock up. We reach the end of the sidewalk and Lydia turns towards her car.

  “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow. We can grab lunch together if you would like to,” she offers.

  “That would be nice. Maybe you can show me a new place.” I’m hopeful.

  “Sounds good. See you tomorrow.” She waves and we go our separate ways, getting into our cars and heading home.

  It has been a really good day. I think I am going to like it here very much. The job is fun. The people are great. Even my boss seems exceptionally nice.

  I am relaxing on the couch about an hour later when the phone rings. I wonder who it could be and remember that Stephen is supposed to call about the boat ride.

  I answer on the third ring. “Hey, Stephen.”

  “Who is Stephen?” It’s Adrian. That voice. I can’t believe I forgot. I didn’t really think he’d call anyway. It takes a few seconds for me to grasp that he has actually called. “Jeriley?” Oh, my. The way he says my name— Stop it! For crying out loud!

  “Adrian. I wasn’t expecting you to call.” I answer, still in disbelief.

  “I told you I would. I’ve missed you.”

  “You just met me yesterday.”

  “And I thoroughly enjoyed it. When can I see you again?”

  “Don’t you have work to do?”

  “I have been working. I’m always on the
job. Been thinking about you today, though.” He sounds so serious. I think about this for some time until he interrupts my thoughts. “So, you never told me who this Stephen is.”

  “Oh, well, he’s a new friend of mine, I guess. I met him after I got moved in down here. I thought it was him calling. I told you I didn’t expect to hear from you again.”

  “Really. Well, you’ll find that I’m full of surprises, Jeriley.”

  “I bet you are,” I say sighing to myself.

  “How was work?”

  “It was great. I had a bit of a crazy morning, but the afternoon was better. I think I’ll get settled in nicely in a few days.”

  “I’m glad you had a good day.” I hear his grin on the other end as he speaks.

  “Is something funny?” I have to ask.

  “No, no. I just have the feeling you’re not being completely honest with me.”

  “Why would you say that? I told you, I had a great day. I just had a hard time concentrating, but after lunch, I was a little more productive.” I get the strangest feeling.

  “I have to ask.”

  “What?”

  “Did you think about me at all?”

  Oh, boy. How should I answer this one? “A little.” I lie.

  “A little.” He sounds skeptical.

  “I had a very busy day; however you did cross my mind a time or two.”

  “Is that all?” He seems to be expecting something more.

  “If I tell you the truth, you cannot hold it against me in any way or call me crazy.”

  “Never.”

  “I thought about you all day, so there. You have the whole truth. Happy?”

  Again, I hear him grin. He waits just a beat before he answers with an obvious smile in his voice. I’ve made him very happy, it would seem.

  “I’m glad to hear that and I don’t think you are crazy at all. So, when can I see you?”

  “Um. I don’t know. I have to work full days the rest of this week for sure. I don’t have plans for the weekend.”

  “I can’t wait that long. Let me pick you up tomorrow after work.”