He nodded. “Yes, but what does any of that have to do with me?”
“Their guardian angels just let them die!” she yelled in an exasperated tone.
“It must have been their time, Melina. I know it may be hard to hear, but guardians do have limitations and can’t interfere with certain situations.”
Melina shrugged. “Or apparently they must have been told to not protect them.”
Walter cocked his head to the side. “Why would you think that? And what does it have to do with me lying to you?”
A single tear slid down her cheek. “My parents… they were like me. Both of them.”
Walter’s eyes widened again as his mouth gaped open. “What—”
“It’s true,” Gwen said abruptly. “I knew about everything with Paul and Nora — the mindreading, the visions, all of the powers. The Noxin demons came after them, too. They caused the car crash that killed them.”
Walter stared at Gwen, taking in all that she'd just said. After a moment, he looked over at Melina. “You think I knew about that and didn’t tell you?”
She didn’t respond.
Walter gave her a wounded look. “I promise, Melina, I knew nothing about your parents. There must be a lot that Phinneas is hiding, but I’m not sure why.”
“I don’t think it’s just Phinneas,” Melina interjected.
“What do you mean?” Walter asked.
“Gwen said that a female guiding angel came to talk to Mom and Dad. Apparently she told them the same thing Adelia told me. You know, how the ability is rare and that it’s only happened to three other humans. So whoever the elder was, I think she’s in on it with Phinneas.”
Walter rubbed his forehead briefly and then looked up at Gwen. “Did Paul or Nora ever mention to you what the elder looked like?”
Gwen shook her head. “They never talked about her much. But I saw her myself once. It was only for a brief moment, but I remember she had long, shiny black hair.”
“That’s not Adelia,” Melina said.
“Helene,” Walter whispered.
“Helene?” Melina asked. “She’s the other female elder?”
Walter nodded.
“And there’s four of them total?”
“Yes,” he confirmed. “The other male elder is Cecil.”
Melina crossed her arms in front of her as her eyebrows scrunched together. “Are all of the elders in on it together?”
Walter stared down at the floor and shook his head. “I don’t know what to think anymore. I was always under the impression that if we encountered a human like you, we were supposed to go to Adelia about it since she’s the eldest. I didn’t know that any of the other elders were involved with it, but there are only two female elders, and Helene is the only one with black hair.”
He looked up at Melina. “I have to go and talk to the elders again, find out what’s really going on. I may be gone for a while, depending on whether or not I can get all of them together at once. But if you need me here for anything, just call to me. Okay?”
“Okay,” she said.
“And Melina, I know the news about your parents is a lot for you to take in, but you need to focus on helping Lee. The sooner you get to the root of his problem, the better.”
She hesitated and then gave him a small nod.
“But what about the demons?” Tessa piped up. “They almost killed Melina earlier. What does she do if they come back?”
Walter looked at Tessa and then back at Melina. “There’s no telling exactly what Henry did to the demons, but you should have at least a few days, if not a week, before they try to attack you again. I’m sure they’re either badly injured or scared out of their wits. Most demons would relinquish their task once a guardian angel got involved, but Noxin demons are the most determined of them all. They’ll keep trying. Their attacks just may not be as frequent now. And if you do encounter them again, I think it’s safe to say that Henry will show up again.”
Melina let out a long breath and nodded again. It was of some comfort to think that Henry would probably help her again when the demons decided to show back up, but she was still reeling from the revelation about her parents. She wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. She didn’t want to succumb to the same awful fate as they had, so she knew she had to deal with her powers.
She wiped the tears from her eyes and then stood up tall and straight. “If I only have a few demon-free days, then I need to get busy. I need to go see Lee.”
Chapter Fourteen
Tessa gasped as Walter disappeared right in front of them. Even though she had teleported with Melina and Walter before, it still must’ve been somewhat of a shock to witness. Melina glanced at Gwen and saw that she, too, appeared a bit surprised. She wished she could stay and talk more to both of them about everything, but her time was running out. Without saying anything, she rushed out of her bedroom and headed for the front door.
“Wait!” Tessa yelled after her.
Melina finished sliding her shoes on and then turned to look at her friend. “Please, Tess. Don’t try to stop me or tell me that I need to rest. I have to start gaining some headway with Lee, or the powers are going to start doing a lot worse to me than the demons did. I can’t let them destroy me.”
“I know,” Tessa said. “I wasn’t going to stop you. I just wanted to know if you needed any help?” Tears welled in Tessa’s eyes as she shrugged and gave Melina a sheepish grin.
Melina smiled back appreciatively, but before she could respond, Gwen spoke up.
“I think the best way to help Melina right now is to take care of the store for her.”
“Gwen, it's a disaster. I don’t even know where to begin with trying to fix or replace some of the items. I couldn’t possibly let you and Tessa be responsible for taking care of it all.”
Gwen shrugged. “It’s not like I haven’t had to put the store back together before.”
Melina’s brow furrowed, but then she realized that Gwen was referring to when it had happened to her parents. The store must’ve been trashed by demons then, too.
“Go,” said Gwen as she waved her hand at Melina. “Go talk to Lee. But might I suggest you pick him up a small gift before you go and see him?”
“Why?” Melina asked as she blushed slightly. “I’m not trying to get him to go out with me.”
“Well,” said Gwen with a slight grin on her face, “I would think that a small, thoughtful gift would help, even if you’re just trying to start up a friendship with somebody.”
“Okay, um, I’ll do that,” Melina replied, sounding a bit embarrassed now. She grabbed her coat from the hook by the door and slid it on as she turned to leave.
“Hold on,” Tessa said from behind her. “I have something that I think you might need.”
Melina turned and saw Tessa walking toward her with a thin, beige scarf.
Tessa held it out to her friend. “You know, to cover that up,” she said as she gestured toward the bandaged burn mark.
“Thanks,” said Melina as she wrapped the scarf around her neck.
“Are you sure you don’t want any pain medicine before you leave?” Gwen asked.
“No thank you,” she said. “The medicine might help with the pain from my burns, but I’m afraid they wouldn’t do much to help with the pain from these powers. To get rid of that pain, I have to help Lee. There is something else you can do for me, though. It’s a question I’d like to have answered.”
“What’s that?” Gwen asked as she raised her thin black eyebrows.
“Why didn’t you tell me the truth about my parents before?”
Gwen stared at Melina for a couple of seconds and then replied, “Would you have believed me?”
Melina paused for a moment and then shook her head. “No. No, I don’t think I would have.” She smiled at Gwen and then took in a deep breath. “Well, I’ll see you two later.”
She gave them both a quick wave and then moved as fast as she could down the stairs and out the back door. After climb
ing into her Jeep, she pulled out of the alley and onto the street. There was a stop sign ahead, and as she braked to a halt, she thought about which way to go. She could turn left to go to Lee’s jewelry store, but then she remembered what Gwen had said about a gift. What in the world was she supposed to get him? She had no idea what he liked. The mall was probably the best place for her to go, so she drove straight on through and headed farther into town. Hopefully, one of the various stores would spark some inspiration.
Ten minutes later she arrived at the mall. She parked in the first spot she saw and then hurried up to the door. As she grabbed the handle, she paused for a moment, thinking back to what had happened the last time she’d been at a mall. She remembered the young girl and the painful vision she'd had of her. Good thing it was a Monday and all the kids were in school. She pulled the door open and walked inside.
Since it was still pretty early, the number of people walking around was small, so Melina didn’t bother with blocking out people’s thoughts. She was careful to keep her distance, though, to avoid any accidental run-ins.
The mall was two levels, and after nothing caught her interest on the first floor, she decided to explore the lower level. A small store that specialized in engraving was the first place she saw as she made her way down the stairs. She didn’t know why that particular store was intriguing to her, but she decided to check it out.
As she entered, Melina saw that there were no other customers and only one employee, a woman, standing up by the cash register. She was pleased that she could focus on finding a gift rather than focus on blocking out thoughts or trying not to touch someone.
When she scanned the shelves lining the walls and the various displays around the room, most of what she saw appeared to be more fitting for bridal party gifts. She headed toward the front of the store, which she had been avoiding so she wouldn’t hear the cashier’s thoughts, and saw a small display setting with shiny metal squares on it. A closer look showed the little squares to be business card holders. She frowned and turned around to leave when inspiration finally hit her. A business card holder might not be such a bad idea after all.
Thirty minutes later, Melina pulled out of the mall’s parking lot and headed back in the direction of Lee’s jewelry store. The engraving had taken a little longer than she had hoped, and now she was a bit nervous. She wanted to arrive at Lee’s store as early as possible, hoping that the lack of customers would make him more prone to stepping out with her. Now she was worried that he’d be too busy.
She glanced down at the clock on her radio and saw that it was almost eleven thirty. Maybe she could convince him to go for an early lunch. She tried to think if there were any restaurants nearby, but nothing came to mind. It was a nice day out, though. Not too cold. Maybe he’d want to go for a walk with her instead.
Melina continued to think of different options, and before she knew it, she was in front of Lee’s store. She almost had to drive to the end of the block before she found a parking space. Apparently the store was pretty busy. Great. Just what she was worried about. Time was of the essence, though, and she needed to try to talk to him, busy store or not.
She made her way up to the front door and quickly saw why the place was booming with so many people. They were having a huge sale on every item in the store. None of the signs said anything about it being a closeout sale, but the high price cuts being advertised certainly hinted at it. As a business owner herself, she couldn’t help but wonder.
Melina grabbed the door handle, but before she opened it, she prepared herself for the wave of thoughts about to crash into her mind. She pulled the door open and immediately closed her eyes. Blocking out that many thoughts all at once required more concentration than a smaller group of people did… at least at first. She was getting quicker at it with the more practice she had.
Once she had dulled down the thoughts to a tolerable volume, she opened her eyes and looked around the store. Rows of glistening glass countertops displaying an array of sparkling jewelry lined each pearl-white wall and filled the open floor with intricate square formations. There was one employee stationed in the center of each one of the squares, and two employees behind every wall case. They were all dressed in white, long-sleeved shirts. The men wore black slacks and loafers, and the women wore black skirts and heels. The store was beautiful and classy, just how she had remembered it.
She took a moment to admire the place and then searched around the store once more for Lee. He wasn’t anywhere in sight. The store was a decent size, though, so maybe she had missed him.
Being careful not to touch anyone, she weaved her way in and out of the crowd, scanning the store as she went, her head turning from side to side. She made her way around one of the counters and over to the other side of the store, but she still didn’t see him anywhere. Maybe he was in the back.
She started off in that direction, and she was almost there when she heard a woman’s voice behind her. “Is there something I can help you find, miss?”
Teetering back on her left foot, Melina swiveled around and came face to face with a petite young woman with short blond hair. She looked into her light brown eyes and said, “Actually, yes.”
The woman perked up, eager to make a sale. Melina smiled at her, not wanting to hurt her feelings.
“I’m not looking for something, though,” Melina said as she motioned toward the case in front of her. “I’m actually looking for someone.”
“Oh,” the woman replied. Her excitement vanished. Another no-sale customer.
Melina looked at the woman carefully after hearing her thoughts and took note of how upset she appeared. Maybe the store was in some sort of financial trouble.
“Who is it you’re trying to find?”
The woman’s voice snapped Melina out of her thoughts. “Oh yes, I need to speak to the owner, Lee Atwood. Is he here?”
“No, I’m sorry. He stepped out awhile ago to run a few errands.” She glanced up at a large clock hanging on the back wall. “He should be back soon, though. Would you like to leave a message for him?”
“No,” said Melina. “Thank you for your help.” She turned around and headed back to the entrance, carefully making her way through the throng of people once more.
Once she was back outside, she noticed that her head felt like it had been relieved of a substantial amount of pressure. She sighed, both in relief and in frustration. What was she to do? She needed to see him today. Maybe she should wait for him in her car.
Melina turned to her right to walk back to her Jeep and slammed into someone coming from the other direction. She didn’t even have time to see the person before she was sucked into a vision.
She was standing at the back of a room where she saw two men sitting across from each other. The man facing her was an older gentleman, his wavy, white hair combed over with care, his gray suit looked crisp and clean. The other man, whose back was to her, appeared to be younger. He was dressed more casually in a white linen shirt and dark khakis. The man in the suit laid some papers out on his big wooden desk and then gazed up at the younger man, a sympathetic look on his face.
She saw the young man lean over to read the papers. After scanning them over, he slumped back into his chair and lowered his face into his hand. The man started to shake, and Melina wondered if he was crying. She stepped closer to investigate, but just as she did, she was filled with an overwhelming sense of failure and despair. The feeling was so intense that she felt like crying herself.
Melina closed her eyes for a moment and then looked back over at the young man. For the first time she noticed the distinct copper hue in his hair. She took another step toward him, but before she could see his face, she was jolted back to reality.
“I’m so sorry, excuse me,” she heard the man say.
Holding her now aching head, she took a step back and looked up at him. It was Lee.
Chapter Fifteen
“Melina?”
“Lee.” She lowered her hand
from her head and stared up at him. He was wearing a light gray, button-up dress shirt and black slacks under his black dress coat, not the white linen shirt and khakis she'd seen him wearing in the vision. She hoped that meant the vision wasn’t of any time in the near future.
He looked over at her, a worried expression on his face. “Are you all right? You look like you’re about to cry.”
She lowered her head as she wiped at her eyes, muttering a quick “I’m fine,” before raising her eyes back up to meet his.
He continued to stare at her as if he wasn’t sure if he believed her. Finally, his face relaxed a little. “So what brings you by here?”
“Well, you didn’t exactly say no when I suggested we go out for a cup of coffee or lunch sometime. Oh, and I got you a little something that might help cheer you up.” She dug a small black box out of her coat pocket and held it out for him.
He took the box from her and examined it in his hand and then gave her an apologetic look. “Sorry, but I’m really not in the mood to eat right now.”
“Oh. Well, we could go for a walk then,” Melina said as she looked at him expectantly.
“I’m sorry,” he said again as he glanced back down at the box and then back at her. “I need to get back inside, but you can come up to my office to chat for a bit.”
“Sure. Lead the way,” she said as she gestured toward the door.
Lee opened the door for Melina and then led her toward the back of the store. They made their way behind one of the glass display cases and turned into a doorway in the corner, which led to a flight of stairs. After climbing the steps up to the second floor, they arrived at a long hallway with several offices lined along both sides. They walked all the way to the end of the corridor before reaching Lee’s office.
He pulled his keys out of his pocket, unlocked the door, and then pushed it open for her as he motioned inside. “After you.”
Melina stepped across the threshold and wasn’t surprised to see that his office was as elegant as the jewelry store downstairs. A beautiful glass chandelier hung from the middle of the ceiling, the light sparkling off of it dancing around the room. The two sidewalls were lined with a couple of cabinets and intricate paintings of various musical instruments, one in which Lee himself was pictured playing a guitar, and the back wall was consumed by an enormous window that granted a spectacular view of the city.