Soul Thief (9 page)

I frowned at him as I let the meaning of his words sink in. A grin appeared on my lips.

“Well, Mom has been nagging me about why I never go out with anyone.”

“Sounds like a perfect excuse then. Let me get the check.”

I grabbed his arm before he could leave. “But she can't know you're my supposed psychologist. That's as bad as dating a teacher.”

Leander laughed and shook his head. “Not as bad as the truth though.”

I snorted and watched him walk back into the restaurant. Definitely not as bad as the truth.

* * *

About fifteen minutes later, we pulled up in front of my house. If I hadn't already known something was wrong, then the state of the house would've alerted me. The lights were on in every single room. The front door stood open wide enough to let an elephant pass through. Mom sat on the porch, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Dad lingered in the doorway, carrying Cassie on his arm.

“There will be hell to pay.” I sighed and turned to Leander. “You can stay inside the car. That's probably for the best.”

“But then they won't see how charming I am or how trustworthy I look.” He smirked, looking so devilishly cute my heart started thundering.

“They also won't notice that you look at least a few years older than me.” I tried to sound sarcastic to wipe that smirk off his face.

It didn't work. “Older and wiser. I'll just say hello. I want to get to know your parents anyway.”

“That's not a good idea.” But before I could tell him the million reasons why, he had already opened the car door and got out. I sighed and followed him.

Mom's face flared up with anger the moment she saw me. Then her gaze went from me to Leander and back to me, confusion written all over her features.

Dad, on the other hand, looked as if he was suppressing a laugh. His eyes sparkled as he came down the porch.

“Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Scott.” Leander held out a hand. “I'm Leander Pyne.”

Dad smiled at him while they shook hands. “Nice to meet you, Leander.”

Mom just stared at him wide-eyed, her mouth half open.

“I'm sorry to meet you like this.” Leander let go of Dad's hand. “I… well, I asked Riley out for a date. She didn't want to tell you because you had a lot on your plate this week.”

“You…” Mom struggled with the words. “You went on a date?” She looked past Leander, straight at me. “With a guy?”

“Um, yes.” I frowned and sniffed my nose. “Why does that surprise you?”

“We had a great time, Mr. and Mrs. Scott,” Leander said. “You have a very beautiful and intelligent daughter.”

I stopped dead in my tracks and stared at Leander's back. He thought I was… beautiful? And intelligent? Did he mean that?

Dad glowed as if someone had just told him he won the Nobel Peace Prize. “Why, thank you.” He pointed at Leander's car parked in the driveway. “Say, is that your car?”

My dad, the car fanatic. We drove an old Lexus, but if he didn't earn only a meager middle-class salary that could barely pay for the car, our home, and some savings for my college tuition, then he'd probably drive around in a sports car. He even bought those car magazines that came out every three months.

“It's my parents' car,” Leander lied flawlessly. “Want to take a look?”

“I'd love to,” Dad said, at the same moment as Mom said, “No.”

Everyone turned to look at Mom. Her expression had hardened. “If you don't mind, I'd like to talk to my daughter. I'm glad you had fun on your date, but she has some explaining to do.” She gave me a pointed look and then turned back to Leander. “Thanks for bringing her home safe and sound.”

“Any time.” Leander nodded at my parents. “Good bye, Mr. and Mrs. Scott. See you soon, Riley.”

And just like that, he vanished back into the car, leaving me alone with the crows. But he'd done his best. He'd certainly made an impression on Dad, who was still smiling from ear to ear.

Mom walked inside without another word and without looking back.

I took a deep breath and followed her. Once I was inside, I bent down to untie my shoelaces. “For how long am I grounded?”

“Grounded? I'm not happy you lied, but I'm not about to punish you for going on a date.” She rolled her eyes at me and put her hands on her hips. “Contrary to what you think, I was a teenager once. But if you lie to me one more time I won't be so nice anymore.”

I nodded. “Got it.”

Guilt soared through me the moment the lie had left my lips. I couldn't just tell her the truth. She'd never understand. But lying didn't feel good either.

“All right.” Mom nodded as if she'd accepted my words. “Now we'll go to the living room, have some chocolate fondue, and then you're going to tell me all about your date. “

I blinked at her and my mouth dropped to the floor. Had I just transported to another reality?

“You don't think I'd let you go on a real date without discussing it afterward?” Mom shook her head as if to imply I'd lost my mind.

“I went on dates before,” I protested while she ushered me into the living room.

Mom snorted. “Yeah, right. Going for ice cream with little Derek Greendale from around the corner doesn't count.”

I rolled my eyes. “Derek was nice.”

“He also ate his boogers, and you were both nine years old.” She pushed me down on the couch. “Now start talking.”

RAIN DRIZZLED DOWN,
forming
muddy pools on the ground. The people of Fairhaven formed a small procession as they walked toward the church. We were one of the last families to join the seemingly endless parade of black clothes and matching hats and umbrellas. Mom shivered next to me, her gloved hand curling around mine.

People buzzed inside the building, most of them with wet eyes, whether from tears or rain, it was hard to tell. Dad appeared in the endless row of people and we walked inside. Mom had wanted to bring Cass, but I was glad we'd dropped her off at Gran's. The church was too hollow, too lifeless for someone as small and vibrant as Cassie. The lights were dimmed. Muffled voices resonated in the background. We sat down in a random row of seats. Mom took my hand and I squeezed it lightly.

The church filled up quickly, as if the whole town had come out for Tara's funeral. This was the first funeral I'd ever been to, and even though I had nothing to compare to, I thought the service was beautiful. Tara's father read a psalm and talked about his daughter, all through a cloud of tears. Her mother didn't go up and read anything. She sat slumped down in the front row, hunched over like a broken doll.

To ease my own guilty feelings for not hanging out with Tara when she was still alive, I took a look around at the other people in the church. A mix of black suits and dresses was the most I could make out in the dim light.

Then an eerie golden glow got my attention. Someone stood in the back of the church, hidden in the shadows. If it wasn't for that glow only supernaturals could see, he'd be invisible.

“Excuse me,” I said to Mom. “I have to go to the bathroom.”

She moved to let me through but gazed at me with narrowed eyes, which meant I'd probably get a lecture afterward.

Thankfully I didn't wear heels, so I could make my retreat to the back of the church in silence. People were too occupied with the service taking place in front to notice me.

I vanished into the portal at the back, into the shadows. Then I almost jumped out of my skin when I bumped into someone.

“Are you all right?” Leander whispered. “I hope I didn't startle you.”

“What are you doing here?” Anger welled up in my throat, not just because he'd almost scared me to death, but because he was here. A funeral was sacred, not something to be disturbed. “If you're here to give me another lesson, now is not the time.”

“I'm not,” he assured me. “I go to most funerals in my area, if I can make it. It's a matter of respect for the deceased.”

“Why didn't you sit down like a regular person?”

“I would've, but then I noticed you and I figured you wouldn't be pleased with my presence.”

“You're damn right about that.” I rolled my eyes. “Angels of Death are real classy. You kill people and then you go to their funeral. Very serial killer-like.”

I was about to move away, leave the alcove and get back to the world of dimmed lights and depressing hymns, but he grabbed my arm in an iron grip. If he'd squeezed any harder, my wrist would probably have broken. I stared up at him and his eyes burned with something I'd never seen before until now. Red circles appeared around his irises.

“Don't say that, ever again,” he hissed. “We don't kill people. People die. That's out of our hands. We take their souls and bring them to Heaven, sometimes risking our own lives in the process. Do you know what happens to a soul when it lingers around on earth?”

I shook my head, unable to speak. In that moment he looked larger than life, a Roman statue, an Angel of vengeance.

“They become ghosts, trapped here forever — trapped in their own personal hell, forced to relive the moment of their death over and over again. And if they somehow manage to snap out of it, then they're still left here on their own, haunting places for centuries until their energy disappears and they fade away. Is that what you want for your friend? Is that what you'd want for anyone?”

“No.” My voice was as small as a child's.

“Then don't talk about things you know nothing about. Don't judge things when you don't know the entire story.” He let go of my arm and I stumbled back. “I've lost many friends when battling over a person's soul. To have you judge us like that, well, it hurts.”

“I'm sorry.” I rubbed my wrist. The pain stung. ”I didn't know.”

“There's a lot you don't know. It's time you understood that.” His gaze looked far away, as if he was staring into another world. “Are you okay?” he asked after a few minutes. “Your wrist.”

”I'll live.”

“I shouldn't have hurt you.”

“No, you shouldn't have.” I didn't move, even though I sensed he wanted me to go away.

“My best friend, Zeke, died on this day. It's a long time ago, but it still gets me every time.”

“I thought we were immortal?” I raised my eyebrows.

“We are. At least, almost. Zeke was killed by a Reaper who cut out his heart with a special blade crafted in the deepest reaches of Hell. We're not used to death, at least not among ourselves, so we take it hard.”

I looked him up and down. His pain seemed sincere. Even the golden glow surrounding him was paler than it had been last time I saw him.

“It's okay,” I said, holding up my arm. “It doesn't even hurt anymore.”

He smiled a faint ghost of a smile that barely lingered for a second.

“I have to go now. See you on Monday,” I said.

He nodded, and I walked out of the alcove and back to my seat. Mom glared daggers at me and her entire body seemed to be screaming, “Where the hell were you?” I ignored her silent question.

A few minutes later, the pastor asked us to stand up. We walked toward the coffin and one by one, put a flower on top of it. I took one of the flowers, a small pink rose. My hand trembled and my heart cringed, but I managed to put it down on the wooden coffin without a single tear.

I'm sorry, Tara. I wish I'd taken the time to get to know you.

A finger of ice trailed along the length of my back as if someone walked over my grave.

“EARTH TO RILEY,”
Katie
said, waving her arms in front of my face. “You haven't heard a word I said.”

“You were talking about how awesome your weekend was,” I guessed. It was true though, I hadn't heard a word.

“That too, but I also talked about my date.” She squealed and clapped her hands. “It was amazing!”

We were sitting in the school library, which meant we were supposed to be quiet. However, with Katie around, being quiet was next to impossible.

Michelle looked up from the book she was reading and sniffed. “Keep your voice down.”

The librarian glared at us. She was a pencil-thin woman with large owl glasses, who always wore grey clothes, as if grey was a fashion statement.

“Fine,” Katie continued in a whisper. “I went out with him. The guy I met last week.” She sighed dreamily. “We went to this bar I'd never been to before. Red Oaks, it's called, just out of town. We played some pool — he taught me — and had a few drinks.”

“You're underage,” Michelle said. “How did you get drinks?”

“He ordered and nobody made a fuss about it. Now back to the business at hand. He was amazing. I think I'm in love!”

“You say that every time,” I told her. “What makes this one so special?”

“You two are party poopers,” Craig chimed in. “Let the girl be in love. I saw a picture of this guy and he's hot.”

“That's right! We took a few pictures.” Katie produced her cell phone and showed us some of the pictures she'd taken. They weren't very clear because the room was dark, but it showed her and a guy about two heads taller than she was. He had dark brown, almost black hair, high cheekbones, and a strong jaw line. He had the faint outlines of a beard and that typical street-smart look that said he knew all the tricks in the book.

“I wish you'd taken clearer pictures,” Michelle complained. “He looks kind of hot, but I can't make out that much.”

“I'll bring my camera next time.”

“Will there be a next time?” Craig, Michelle, and I looked at each other, pleasure lights burning in our eyes.

“Of course. Oh, and he wants to meet you guys. But I told him that I want him to myself a little bit longer before I introduce him to the rest of you.”

“He's actually serious about this. Wow. Congratulations.” Michelle smiled. “Looks like you finally made a good decision when it comes to guys.”

“Ha ha.” Katie rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I'm not the only one with a great story from this weekend. What have you got to say for yourself, Riley?”

I almost choked from shock. “What do you mean?”

Katie raised her eyebrows. “Your Mom calling me out of nowhere asking when we'd be home, since apparently we'd gone on a ‘dinner date'. I don't remember even talking about a dinner date, so obviously I'm not the lucky person you asked out.”

“Yeah, um, well about that,” I started. I had no clue what to say. With everything that was going on with Tara's funeral and me playing catch-up on homework on Sunday, I was at a loss for what to tell my friends. Maybe it was best to give them the same story I'd given my parents in case they ever talked to each other about it. “I went out with Leander,” I blurted out.

“Who's Leander?” Katie asked.

“Your psychologist?” Michelle nearly dropped her book. The librarian shot us another murderous glare and we continued talking in hushed tones.

“Why in God's name would you go out with your psychologist?” Michelle asked.

“Oh, now I remember. He was hot.” Katie winked. “Nice job, girl.”

“Isn't he like a decade older than we are?” Craig asked.

More like a millennium. “No, he's in his early twenties.”

“Love knows no age,” Katie said.

“It wasn't a
date
date,” I tried to defend myself. “Just grabbing some food.”

“What food?”

“Is this an interrogation?” I frowned. “Italian.”

“Ooooooh.” Katie's face lit up as if she suddenly found out it was Christmas. “Italian food is so romantic. That means it definitely was a date.”

“How you can determine that based on just the kind of food we ate is a mystery.” I shook my head. “Either way, you don't have to search for anything behind it. He thinks it's important we become friends.” I lifted up my book and pretended to read.

Katie snorted. “Friends, yeah, right. You can't become friends with your psychologist. You can either have a professional relationship or you can date him. That's basically the same as a teacher. You can't befriend your teacher.” She wrinkled up her nose as if that was the most disturbing thing she'd ever heard.

“Well, now that we've established that, can we please go back to studying? I'm no genius, especially not at Spanish.”

“Changing the subject. Subtle.” Craig noted. “We'll find out your secrets anyway, Riles. You can't hide anything from us.”

I pretended to focus on Spanish. If they only knew.

* * *

“Why do you find this hilarious?” I sighed out loud and rested my head against the wall. Leander and I were sitting in classroom 217, both propped on the floor against the wall. We'd finished building a mental wall in my mind about half an hour ago, but it had exhausted me so much I couldn't even lift my head for more than a few minutes. Since time crept by at the slowest rate possible, I'd started to tell him about my friends' cross-examination this morning in the library. I wasn't sure if he was laughing at my story or at how much my voice slurred when I tried to talk.

“You're the worst liar in history. That's a great quality. And your voice sounds like Rocky Balboa's.”

“I never took you for a movie fan.” I raised an eyebrow and stared at him.

“I have too much spare time on my hands, an eternity to live and not nearly enough friends who know how to throw a party, so I took up about a bazillion hobbies. Watching movies is one of them.”

“What's your favorite movie?”

“That's like asking a parent who their favorite kid is.”

“Fine, be annoying. At least tell me your favorite genre.”

“You'll laugh, but all right. Romance.”

“What?” I grinned. “Why the heck would you choose romance? That's not very manly.”

“Well, it's the truth. I enjoy watching romance movies because they show humanity at its strongest and at its weakest.”

“You're as cryptic as a crossword puzzle.” I bumped my shoulder into his and let it linger there. I wanted him to believe I was too tired to move, but in reality I enjoyed the warmth of his body against mine.

“Love,” he said, his voice lower, “it's humanity's greatest strength, but also its greatest weakness.”

“Why?” I lowered my voice as well, although I had no idea why.

“People are willing to risk everything for love, including their own lives. Love makes humans better, but it also makes them worse when that love is put to a test.”

“You don't seem to be a huge fan of the concept.”

“Oh, but I am. It's just… well, Angels don't fall in love half as easily as humans do. It takes us years, centuries even.”

“Oh.” My heart gave me a painful stab but I ignored it.

“But then, when we love… it makes us a thousand times stronger and a thousand times weaker too. I just wish we could love sooner or love more.”

“Have you ever been in love?” My voice sounded hoarse now, as if I'd spend an entire night singing karaoke.

“Once.” Leander licked his lips and I wanted to kiss him right then and there. He looked so fragile, so heartbroken, as if even the memory of it could crush him.

“What happened?” I moved away to sit in front of him. I sat on my knees and he was still slumped against the wall, our eyes at the same height.

Instead of replying, he reached forward and touched my hair, letting it slip through his fingers. “She had blonde hair too, like flowing gold. A little darker than yours, the most beautiful color in the world.”

“Did she… die?”

“No. But after the war with Darius… it didn't end well. She lost so much and she decided she wasn't the same person she'd been before and so she couldn't be with me any longer. She didn't want to, I guess. Maybe she thought I betrayed her. Maybe I did.”

“I don't know you all that well, but you don't seem like the kind of person who'd betray anyone.” My voice was barely more than a whisper. His hand still touched my hair and I wished I had the guts to reach for him as well, but I didn't.

“I was different back then. Younger. Reckless. I thought we had nothing to lose, thought I could make the world a better place.” He shook his head slowly, as if the weight of the world rested on his shoulders. “I was stubborn and careless and…”

I leaned closer toward him, so I was almost sitting in his lap. It was as if the exhaustion of building the mental wall had eliminated any embarrassment I would've otherwise felt. “You did what you thought was right. That makes you one of the good guys.”

“You really think so?”

“I know you are. Heck, you've had more than enough patience with me.”

“But you don't know me,” Leander argued. “It's been what, two weeks? You can't know a person in two weeks.”

“I didn't need two weeks to figure that out, I knew it right away. It's more like a feeling, a sense of knowing.”

“So what's your favorite?”

“Huh?” I frowned, having no idea what he was talking about.

“Genre of movies,” Leander replied.

“Um…” This time I was struck with embarrassment. I was so close to him that I only had to move a little and I'd be touching him. If I turned my head, our lips would kiss. But he seemed unaware, or oblivious to what was going on. Maybe he really had no idea how these things worked and he thought we were just being friendly. But moving away now would be awkward as well, so I stayed rigid, unmoving.

“Horror movies,” I replied.

“What's so great about those?”

“They show how clever and brave people can be in the face of danger. I've always envied that.”

“You're brave, too.” Leander tucked a strand of loose hair behind my ear and a shiver went down my spine.

“I'm not,” I said, barely able to keep my voice from trembling. “I nearly chickened out when Diane brought me to the Council and I was terrified when they decided I had to be executed.”

“Being brave doesn't mean not being afraid.” His breath touched my cheek, almost like a kiss of air. “It's about being afraid but still doing the right thing. Still standing strong and fighting. That's what courage truly is.”

“And you think I'm brave? You barely know me.”

“But I knew that from the moment we met,” Leander said, using what I'd just said against me.

Well, if he thought I was brave then maybe it was time to do something brave.

I turned my head slightly, facing him. My lips were inches away from his. I looked at his mouth and every inch of my body wanted to kiss him. But my brain screamed at me, asking me if this was a good idea or not. He may not be my real psychologist but he was my mentor.

I could think of a dozen reasons why we shouldn't kiss and only one reason why we should. Because I wanted to… with all my soul, with everything I had.

“Are you okay?” Leander asked.

“Yes.” I pulled back a little. The moment was lost, forever vanished into the folds of time. “Sorry.”

“That's okay. Come on, let's get up. You already look like you have some color back.”

We got up and I brushed imaginary dust off my pants. At least he couldn't read my thoughts anymore, which made this a lot less embarrassing than it would've been otherwise.

“Now it's time for lesson two of the day,” Leander said. “We're going to collect a soul.”

I groaned, unwilling to hide my displeasure. “Do we have to? I have a Spanish test tomorrow and I really need to study.”

“It won't take that long. But this soul needs to be claimed today, and there's no one around to do it, so either way it's up to me.”

“What, did Diane take a day off?”

“She's being debriefed by the Council. Standard policy,” he added when he saw the look in my eyes.

“Never knew Heaven would be so… bureaucratic.”

“There are rules for everything. Probably best that way. Now, come on, grab my hand. It won't be as bad as you think.”

“Right. But after this, I deserve a nice night of movies and relaxation, so if there's some Angel spell to get rid of nasty Spanish teachers for a day or two, enlighten me.”

“We're Angels, not witches.” He held out his hand.

I hesitated for a moment before taking it. Collecting souls seemed like the worst thing ever. My stomach clenched at the thought of it. But either way, this was my number one job description, so I'd have to learn to live with it one way or another. His comment had given me an idea though — maybe Grandma had a potion that would temporarily render Mrs. Bloom, my Spanish teacher, unable to work. It was the least she could do after keeping my heritage a secret for so long. Or maybe I just had to do it the old-fashioned way: pray to God.

Before I could think anything else, the floor disappeared under my feet.