Palm of Destiny (7 page)

“Elijah…” Rosalie whispered, barely able to speak before he hungrily feasted upon her mouth once again. The orgasm was unforgiving, stealing from her every notion of maintaining control of her movements. The controlled rise, fall, and roll of her hips became jarring jerks, and her thighs spread wider in order to take more of him in. The muscular walls of her sex wrapped around him with near painful force, sucking him in hard and then letting him go to the point where he was sure that he would die like this. Pants, gasps, groans, and the occasional low cry were the only sounds in the small, extremely inexpensive apartment.

As Rosalie’s orgasm came to an end, Elijah’s was just starting. His bucks and jerks became even more out of control than hers had, and his seed flooded into her in spurts rather than a steady flow. The tension in his body, straining in his muscles to give them something of a shake, ceased abruptly. Endorphins made the world foggy, and the only thing that he could register for the next several moments was that someone was on top of him.

Panting hard, gulping for air, he allowed his head to fall back against the couch. Both of his hands were now on her hips, reveling in the feel of hot skin and sweat. Rosalie shuddered against him, her arms wrapping around his back as her head nestled in against the top of one of his shoulders.

Chapter Eleven

It was a strange and foreign feeling, to have those feminine walls sucking and pulling away from him at the same time until they were gone. With a quiet groan, Elijah stirred from his slumber. His eyes fluttered until they opened, and the stark, too bright light of the sun made him clench them closed again. He reached up with one of his hands and covered his eyes with it, managing yet another groan. This time it was one of protest.

“Elijah?” Rosalie’s voice was soft. She sounded as tired as he felt, and the couch cushion beside him shifted as she moved closer. “Elijah, wake up. It’s morning.”

What did ‘morning’ mean? He didn’t even recall falling asleep, and he certainly didn’t know what time it had been when they had… as the memories of what had happened between them showed themselves clearly in his mind, his hand came down abruptly from his face. He sat forward, then turned wide blue eyes toward Rosalie. She was still naked, and he felt the breath catch in his throat.

“Hey…” She offered him a confident smile, then leaned in to kiss his cheek. He started to get up, but she gently took his chin, turning his face back to her. “No…let’s just try and gather ourselves for today, all right? After everything that’s happened I think we can afford ourselves that.”

“Oh…um…” His brow drew together, and he felt immediate guilt. Swallowing thickly, he nodded and glanced down toward the floor. “Right…” He felt so lost and unsure of what to say. It barely registered when in his mind when Rosalie slid her arms around him and encouraged him to stretch out with her on that horrible couch. He shifted around until he was behind her, his arms moving around her instead.

The last time he had held a woman like this…he barely even wanted to remember. Angelique was gone now, dead in some kind of ‘accident’. As much as Elijah trusted Morgan, he wasn’t sure what he was supposed to believe anymore. The amulet was…

“Rosalie? What was your father doing the day that he died?”

Her head turned a little in his direction as she snuggled herself back into his body. Her eyes were half closed as she reveled in the safety and the warmth of his arms. “He was getting everything ready for my birthday party. He told me he had found me something that reminded me of my mother… oh my god.” She sat up suddenly, her eyes wide. “Holy
shit
. My mother’s favorite piece of jewelry was this really pretty dark amber pendant with a leaf in the middle of it. You know, one of those chunks of amber with stuff trapped inside! He had to go because he was driving home from work. He had been at some old rundown farm shed or house or… something, I don’t know. And he found it there in the attic!” Her eyes were wide as she scrambled to her feet. “That amulet is the reason why everyone is dying, Elijah. We
have
to get it.”

“Wait, hold on.” Before Elijah could continue, the phone rang. He stared at Rosalie a moment, then slowly drew himself to his feet and padded over to the wall phone. “Hello?” he answered.

Click
.

“Hello?” Elijah asked again. When nothing happened, he glanced at the phone before setting it back on its cradle.

“Was that Morgan?”

“I don’t know.” He shrugged, turning from the wall to face her. “They hung up.”

“We really need to get over to that shop. I mean now.” When she saw the hesitations on his face, she shook her head, quickly climbing into her clothes. “I know you’re afraid of what you saw, Elijah. But I’m not going to kill you. Okay? That amulet is.”

His lips parted in a slow sigh, and he had to keep himself from shaking his head. He hadn’t told Rosalie everything...not nearly. “Okay…fine.”

The splintering sound of a door being kicked inward exploded throughout Elijah’s crappy apartment. Several chunks of wood flew such a distance that they smacked into Rosalie and Elijah, the rest scattering across the floor like strange wooden snow. Two people dressed in solid white came rushing inside. One of them had a military style assault rifle, and one of them was wielding a terrifying curved knife with a serrated edge.

That knife was the first weapon to be used, the person—assassin?—hurling it right for Elijah. A swath of bullets came even as the knife was still in the air, but Elijah and Rosalie were already moving. Elijah dragged her down to the floor, and he was quick to follow. They both scrambled around the corner and into the kitchen, miraculously unharmed by both the knife and the bullets.

“Shh,
shh!
“ He pressed a hand over Rosalie’s lips just when she was about to say something. Wide eyed, he listened to the supposed assassins. One of them was coming closer, following the path they had both taken into the kitchen. The other was creeping semi-silently around the other way. His mind was racing, struggling to process what was going on. It wasn’t like he was a master assassin himself or anything. He was just some guy who read people’s palms!

Gulping for breath, he slowly moved his hand away from Rosalie’s mouth. She smacked him in the arm to get his attention, giving him a glare before pointing at the fridge. She made a few motions with her hands, but Elijah just looked at her like she was nuts and shook his head. She made a few more gestures, then finally just waved a hand in an ‘I give up’ motion when he clearly didn’t understand anything of what she was trying to get at.

“Follow my lead, Elijah,” she whispered.

“How was I supposed to get that out of…” He moved his hands around.

“Never mind.” She didn’t give him a chance to say anything else before she straightened to her feet and grabbed a plastic cutting board off of the counter. It still had food on it. Carrot tops and a few old slices of tomato slopped to the floor, and she gave him a narrowed eyed look. All he had time to do was shrug before she threw the cutting board as hard as she could.

He looked quickly to his right, spotting one of the white garbed assassins drawing a pistol. There was a
thump
as the cutting board cracked him directly in the face, dropping him almost instantly. As rifle fire exploded once again within the apartment, Elijah gasped and scrambled to his feet. He snatched a butcher knife from the same pile of dishes that Rosalie had gotten the cutting board and snuck around the opposite corner that they had gone into the kitchen from.

A scream from the other end of the apartment had Elijah turning around; but it was a mistake. There came the distinct
pop
of rifle fire. The bullet rushed through clothing, skin, and flesh so violently that a spray of blood splattered across the wall behind him. Elijah’s shirt was shredded where the bullet had both entered and exited. He barely had enough time or sense to register what had happened before he crumpled to the floor.

* * * *

Beep… beep… beep… beep…

That sound… it was driving him mad. It was all he had been able to register for the last hour, but his body wasn’t coordinated enough to even move his eyes open. He had been forced to stay there, enduring that horrible and annoying noise. What was it, anyway?

“Elijah… Elijah? Are you awake?”

Thank god,
Elijah thought.
Something else to listen to besides that constant beeping
.

“It’s Rosalie…are you awake? Elijah?”

Rosalie…what was she doing here? Wait, what was the last thing that he remembered? Something about his apartment, some people in white, and a knife. He thought he could recall a gun in there somewhere, too, but he couldn’t be sure. Were they still at his apartment? What had happened to those guys? A better question was, what had they wanted? As a soft groan parted his lips, he felt a rush of warm air against his face. He also felt the soft tickle of hair. The recognition of it drew a small smile across his mouth, as well as a flush of color to his cheeks. Now
that
he remembered.

“What happened?” His throat hurt as he spoke, and he weakly cleared it while he cracked open his eyes.

“Thank
god
! What took you so long to wake up?” Rosalie’s voice sounded just as hoarse. The sound that she made was one of pure relief as she pressed her forehead against his. It made Elijah wonder about their relationship—if it could even be called one. There was such a suddenness to it that he just…he just didn’t know.

“Did something happen? Where are we?”

“Yes, something happened. You got shot. They didn’t think that you would live.” She placed a hand lightly over the bandage on the left side of his chest. It was directly over his heart. “They said that if you didn’t have situs inversus, you
would
have died.”

“Situs what? And how did I get shot? I just… I remember there were people in my apartment…”

“Your heart…it’s on the right side of your body instead of on the left. But Elijah, I’m serious…for now just rest. I’m going to go let the doctor know that you’re up.”

Elijah gave her a small nod before he closed his eyes again. Warm darkness pulled at him, and before he could decide whether or not he wanted to sleep, he was drifting somewhere far away.

Chapter Twelve

“What do you mean, my apartment is gone?”

Rosalie rubbed both of her hands down her face as she sat next to Elijah’s hospital bed. “It burned almost to the ground a few hours ago. No one knows anything. The fire department says the fire was so hot that it couldn’t have been caused by a toaster over or a microwave. They found gasoline, Elijah…”

He was staring at her with his jaw partially open. He had been awake for only ten minutes, and Rosalie had decided to tell him this
now
. “So…you’re saying someone
deliberately
burned down my apartment…”

“Elijah, I’m so sorry. I don’t even know what to say, but…” She reached up to wipe tears from her eyes. “It’s because of me isn’t it?” Her voice was much softer now. “Those assassins came for you because of me. And now your whole apartment is gone because of the same reason…gods, I should have just stayed away from you.”

“Yes, Rosalie… because of you. Like I’ve been telling you from the start.” Elijah shook his head, knowing that had been callous. But they both knew it was the truth.

Hurt shone in Rosalie’s eyes for a moment, and she looked away from him. Fresh tears welled in her eyes, and when Elijah reached for her she shook her head and moved to stand. Then, when something orange in the sharps dispenser caught her eye, the breath caught in her throat. “Oh my god…the amulet.” Her eyes got wide, and she placed a hand against her throat. “It’s Morgan.”

Elijah snapped his jaw closed, his teeth clenching together. “
What
?”

She got up, waving the hand that wasn’t against her throat. “It’s Morgan, he’s the one who wants us dead. I can’t believe I didn’t see it before! He killed my father…he found the pendant in the first place, and I’m sure Morgan was looking for it for a long while before that. It was just pure, dumb, horrible fucking luck. And then Ang… I involved her, and then she died. And then he sent those people after us. Elijah, it’s not about
you
…it’s about the
pendant
. We need to get rid of it, or they’re just going to keep coming after us. Look what happened to your apartment!”

His blue eyes narrowed on her face, and one side of his jaw ticked with tension. It was rare when Elijah didn’t fumble over his words, but this time there was a clarity to them that surprised even him. “That’s quite the accusation, Rosalie. And you don’t even know if half of those things you just stated are facts. You’re just guessing.”

“I know.” She let out a slow breath before sinking back into the chair. “I know…but don’t you think it makes sense? He wants to get rid of everyone who knows about the pendant so he can have it for himself… for whatever reason. I mean, I haven’t even seen this pendant, but... it’s gotta be easy to spot if it’s so important, right? How many life threatening orange pendants are out there anyway?”

“Morgan took me in, Rosalie. He gave my life back to me. He would never try to… to
kill
me.
Or
people that he loves.”

“Well… why don’t we go there, then, and ask him about the pendant…and Ang. And even my father. We can go when you’re recovered enough. I’d go alone, but then I’m very sure that I would end up just like…” Tears shone in her eyes, and she had to look away from him. Closing her eyes, she tightened her fingers around her thighs and swallowed a sob. Now wasn’t the time for this. “Let’s just go together.”

* * * *

Elijah felt shell-shocked as he sat there in front of Morgan’s desk. The chair was small and felt shaky under his weight, but that was the least of his worries. Rosalie sat beside him in a similar chair, her hands clasped so tightly on the top of the desk that her knuckles were white. Morgan sat across from them, a grim frown on his lips. There were tarot cards, already spread and read, on the desk.

“How is this possible?” Elijah’s voice echoed within the narrow confines of the room. The walls were in beautiful dark orange wood of a tree species he didn’t recognize. The floor had deep red carpeting and was without dust or debris. Outside the room, in the main shop, he could hear the muffled voices of customers and the staff member on duty. But what he was really focused on was the spread of cards in front of him.

They looked so innocent and harmless. After all, they were just paper and plastic. It was the
meaning
behind them, however, that had the color slowly draining away from his face. He had done readings for people before, hundreds of times, and only once had he ever seen a result like this. Several days after that reading, or so Elijah had learned, the woman had died of unknown causes.

“Do it again. I…I want you to do it again.” His throat felt tight, like there was a hand wrapping around it.

“This is the third time.” Morgan’s voice was crisp and slightly annoyed. “Same result. Not doing it again.”

Rosalie let out a slow breath, then reached one of her hands over and placed it over Elijah’s closest arm. She squeezed gently, trying to comfort him; but the look on her face said it all. She knew that this was her fault. All of it. If she had just let go of the notion that he had seen her father’s death, none of this would have happened. Elijah would have been gone, and Angelique would have still been alive. Tears threatened to spill down her cheeks, and she took in a shuddering breath. She needed to stay calm, if not for her own sake, then for Elijah’s.

“Elijah. Morgan’s right. The results aren’t going to change just because you want them to. The cards don’t lie.”

Morgan and Elijah both stared at Rosalie as though she had just sprouted wings. The older man furrowed his brow, and a low snort of disbelief issued past his flared nostrils. Elijah just continued to stare at her.

“Hey…Angelique was my best friend. I may not have been that interested, but it was impossible not to pick up a few things along the way. Besides, after…everything...” She waved her hands, releasing Elijah’s arm. “I sort of don’t have a choice in whether I believe in this stuff or not. I’ve seen way too much now to dispute it. So, given that…” A slight nod was offered, as though to herself. “I no longer think it’s all a bunch of crap.”

“Oh really?” Elijah had that ‘I have a backbone’ tone again. “So you practically broke into my apartment, chased me around the ferry terminal, and followed me home because you didn’t believe that I had seen something?”

Rosalie felt her cheeks flush with color, and she ducked her head, her eyes casting over the table instead of Elijah’s face. Her upper teeth chewed slowly on her lower lip, and she lifted one of her hands to tuck a strand of hair behind an ear. After several long seconds, she released her lip and forced herself to look at him. “I just wanted answers.” There was a soft sadness in her voice. “No one had any, and you were my last option. I was trying to trust in my friend. I still don’t have any answers.” She looked away from him with a soft sigh, and gazed across at Morgan. “What should we do?”

“Nothing.” Morgan shrugged. “Nothing can be done. No matter what Elijah does, what the universe has in store for him will happen. Running and hiding will only change the manner in which the message is given. But the meaning will always be the same.”

Elijah felt a pang in his chest. Both for how he had just spoken to Rosalie, and for what was apparently going to happen to him. “I’m just fucked, then?”

“Yes.”

Rosalie gave Morgan a hard glare for that answer, then scowled and got up out of her chair. “The cards just told Elijah that he is going to
die
, and that’s all you can offer him? What is wrong with you? We have been through
hell
, and all you can do is tell him, yes, he is fucked. We already knew that, thank you very fucking much. Tell us something we don’t already know. Isn’t that why you agreed to do a reading for him?”

“To give him some answers and some clarity? We came in here an
hour
ago, thinking
you
had killed Angelique and
my father, and that
you
had sent some creepy crazy white garbed assassins after us, and this is all that you’ve got, Morgan?
Really
?! How the hell do you expect us to believe that you
didn’t
kill anyone when you’ve just told someone that YOU brought in off the streets x number of months ago that he’s going to fucking die? And now you—”

“
Rosalie
!” Morgan’s face was red with rare anger. “That’s
enough
! You have no right to accuse me of
anything
. If you’re going to be angry, be pissed at the cards.” He pointed at his chest, his teeth bared. “
Not
me.”

“Rosalie…” Elijah looked away when she turned a glare on him, then rolled his eyes toward the ceiling and allowed himself to lean fully back into his chair.

“The cards tell me the message. I can’t change it just because it isn’t what either of you want to hear.” Morgan began to calm himself, his fingers uncurling from the fists they had been growing into. “Something big is coming for Elijah. Something dangerous. Probably won’t be able to overcome it, either. Just the way that it is.”

“
No
. It’s
not
‘just the way that it is’. You have
no
idea the way things are, asshole.” Before Morgan could inquire, or really say much of anything, Rosalie grabbed Elijah by the hand and pulled him toward the door. Elijah looked at her and ripped his hand away with a jerk. He did stand, though, offering Morgan an apologetic glance before following her out the door and into the main part of the store.