Read Online Keepers: A Timeless Novella by Laura Kreitzer - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Laura Kreitzer
Ads: Link
Joseph
Carter! Over here, over here!”
Stupid vultures. They
wanted one thing: my life. It all came down to what they could get
from me, what I could offer them. What news story could they break
by recording and manipulating everything I said? Had I mentioned I
needed a vacation? I pushed and shouldered my way through the crowd
sideways, hoping they’d back off as not to jostle the sleeping
Jules. They threw question after question at me like tiny
missiles.
“ Was it arson?”
“ Who did it?”
“ How did it
start?”
“ Was anyone
killed?”
“ Is everyone
okay?”
“ Are you okay?”
“ What about the
angels?”
“ Why didn’t the angels stop
this?”
On and on and on . . . My
head spun, and I knew a headache was just around the corner. In
that moment, all I really wanted to do was curl into a ball small
enough to disappear. It wasn’t very manly of me to think that, but
a man could only take so much. Jenna reached for me and helped pull
me out of the crowd. Realization hit me so suddenly and swiftly I
nearly tripped. Jenna and Jules had become the most precious and
important people in my world, and if I had them, I’d be okay. As
long as I had them, I would survive this.
A magical bubble popped up
between the media and us. The outline of it caught the sun’s rays
and reflected colors all around us like a prism of light, all
rainbows and shimmering surfaces. When I glanced up, Gabby and
Andrew were grinning at us, pleased with themselves. Before I had a
chance to thank them, Lucia was there, forming a portal. I couldn’t
wait to step through it, not caring where it took me, as long as it
transported me far, far away from here. I didn’t want to look at
the ruins of my life anymore. I didn’t want to have to deal with
the press or my boss or protestors.
Once the portal was formed,
the media went wild. I didn’t waste any time stepping through,
leaving it all behind. Mentally, I was laughing. Hah, let the media chew on that! I wondered what the headlines would say. “The
Angels Disappear and Take Agent Carter With Them!” or “Angels Are
Actually Aliens, Here To Invade Earth!” or “Stay Inside: Angels
Will Kidnap Your Children!” Who knew what kind of spin they’d put
on it. Maybe they’d think I was dead. Now that I thought about it,
that wouldn’t be such a horrible idea if it would get them to leave
me the hell alone.
Before exiting the portal,
I made sure to claim my frequent flyer miles with Lucia. Hah-hah.
Once on the other side, I was greeted with the rhythmic pounding of
waves wearing at the shoreline. My feet shifted in the sand as I
took in the miles of beach, barely visible in the night. The sun
hadn’t risen yet here, and it was warm outside. We were far from
D.C., which made me smile. Jules was still asleep in my arms, and
it didn’t even surprise me. She could sleep through a marching band
doing circles around her bed.
“ Aloha, and welcome to
Hawaii,” Gabby said, gesturing behind me. She sounded just as tired
and exhausted as I felt, but relief underscored her
words.
“ It’s the best we could do
on short notice,” Andrew added. He said it as if apologizing for
bringing us to Hawaii. Was he crazy? It was Hawaii! How could you
do any better than that?
I turned; the rental house
she and Andrew had shared not long ago was a shadow in the night.
“What are we doing here?” I asked. I was nervous all of a sudden,
remembering the events that happened here before we
fled.
“ Well, seeing as how
everything’s gone to shit, I figured a vacation rental would do you
some good,” she explained.
I wanted to laugh, but I
was too exhausted to exert the effort. “You hit the nail on the
head with that one.”
Andrew shared a grin with
Gabby, actually able to decipher our strange language this time. I
caught Jenna’s weary and tired expression transform with a wide
smile.
“ What about the Empyrean
Guard?” I asked, my gaze suspiciously searching every
Carter! Over here, over here!”
Stupid vultures. They
wanted one thing: my life. It all came down to what they could get
from me, what I could offer them. What news story could they break
by recording and manipulating everything I said? Had I mentioned I
needed a vacation? I pushed and shouldered my way through the crowd
sideways, hoping they’d back off as not to jostle the sleeping
Jules. They threw question after question at me like tiny
missiles.
“ Was it arson?”
“ Who did it?”
“ How did it
start?”
“ Was anyone
killed?”
“ Is everyone
okay?”
“ Are you okay?”
“ What about the
angels?”
“ Why didn’t the angels stop
this?”
On and on and on . . . My
head spun, and I knew a headache was just around the corner. In
that moment, all I really wanted to do was curl into a ball small
enough to disappear. It wasn’t very manly of me to think that, but
a man could only take so much. Jenna reached for me and helped pull
me out of the crowd. Realization hit me so suddenly and swiftly I
nearly tripped. Jenna and Jules had become the most precious and
important people in my world, and if I had them, I’d be okay. As
long as I had them, I would survive this.
A magical bubble popped up
between the media and us. The outline of it caught the sun’s rays
and reflected colors all around us like a prism of light, all
rainbows and shimmering surfaces. When I glanced up, Gabby and
Andrew were grinning at us, pleased with themselves. Before I had a
chance to thank them, Lucia was there, forming a portal. I couldn’t
wait to step through it, not caring where it took me, as long as it
transported me far, far away from here. I didn’t want to look at
the ruins of my life anymore. I didn’t want to have to deal with
the press or my boss or protestors.
Once the portal was formed,
the media went wild. I didn’t waste any time stepping through,
leaving it all behind. Mentally, I was laughing. Hah, let the media chew on that! I wondered what the headlines would say. “The
Angels Disappear and Take Agent Carter With Them!” or “Angels Are
Actually Aliens, Here To Invade Earth!” or “Stay Inside: Angels
Will Kidnap Your Children!” Who knew what kind of spin they’d put
on it. Maybe they’d think I was dead. Now that I thought about it,
that wouldn’t be such a horrible idea if it would get them to leave
me the hell alone.
Before exiting the portal,
I made sure to claim my frequent flyer miles with Lucia. Hah-hah.
Once on the other side, I was greeted with the rhythmic pounding of
waves wearing at the shoreline. My feet shifted in the sand as I
took in the miles of beach, barely visible in the night. The sun
hadn’t risen yet here, and it was warm outside. We were far from
D.C., which made me smile. Jules was still asleep in my arms, and
it didn’t even surprise me. She could sleep through a marching band
doing circles around her bed.
“ Aloha, and welcome to
Hawaii,” Gabby said, gesturing behind me. She sounded just as tired
and exhausted as I felt, but relief underscored her
words.
“ It’s the best we could do
on short notice,” Andrew added. He said it as if apologizing for
bringing us to Hawaii. Was he crazy? It was Hawaii! How could you
do any better than that?
I turned; the rental house
she and Andrew had shared not long ago was a shadow in the night.
“What are we doing here?” I asked. I was nervous all of a sudden,
remembering the events that happened here before we
fled.
“ Well, seeing as how
everything’s gone to shit, I figured a vacation rental would do you
some good,” she explained.
I wanted to laugh, but I
was too exhausted to exert the effort. “You hit the nail on the
head with that one.”
Andrew shared a grin with
Gabby, actually able to decipher our strange language this time. I
caught Jenna’s weary and tired expression transform with a wide
smile.
“ What about the Empyrean
Guard?” I asked, my gaze suspiciously searching every
Similar Books
