“Nice wheels,” Embry told me, looking around the inside of my SUV once we drove out of the small town I grew up in. He nodded appreciatively as he touched the leather and played with the settings for heated seats and sun roofs. We didn’t usually leave the estate when he came over, and I would never be the one driving. “Way nicer than my first car,” he added.
I could tell he was trying to get my mind off what we just escaped. “You mean your horse and buggy?” I teased, noting the tiniest of smiles on Gabriel’s face before he suddenly had to adjust his side mirrors.
“You know, being cute will only get you so far until you have to start relying on your personality. And that was mean,” Embry said, putting on his shades and placing his boots on the dash. When he leaned his chair back and folded his arms behind his head, he looked like the lead singer from a rock band of the 90s. He had the leather jacket, black t-shirt, blue jeans and Ray Bans. Looking at him you’d think he hadn’t a care in the world, not that he was hundreds of years old and on the run for my life.
“Is it still mean if you really are as old as I’m implying?” I caught Gabriel’s smile in the rear-view mirror before Embry turned back to me.
“For your information, I didn’t say the first thing I drove, I said my first car. And either way, yours is still nicer.”
“Sam chose it because it was the safest. If we crash, we have more of a chance of killing the passengers in the other car than of dying,” I explained, cringing like I had when Sam excitedly told me that fact.
“Comforting.” Embry’s sarcasm and our back and forth made this finally start to feel more like old times, before dangerous people were looking for me. Embry would come in the summers to keep an eye on me, then Gabriel would show up and even he would be singing along with us to the radio…
We drove for hours, with Gabriel eventually putting on the radio to drown out Embry and my singing a cappella. I think he was tempted to join in for our renditions of classic rock songs, so he switched it to some radio talk show. Embry and I had to find other ways to entertain ourselves, such as reading the car manual, to show Gabriel how even that was more interesting than discussing the lives of reality stars none of us knew.
At some point, Embry and Gabriel switched drivers, but I was in that land between sleeping and being awake, where your eyes are closed but your ears are listening. When I woke up, it was light again and we were stopped in the middle of a corn field.
“I thought you said we had to fly to Terrence’s?” All I could see for miles was a rickety old barn.
“We do,” Embry agreed with a smile.
“This isn’t an airport,” I pointed out.
“No, it is not.” His smile got bigger. “We can’t risk you being on the manifest and in the system. He would know where we were going.”
“Is it an invisible plane?” I asked, looking around and not seeing anything that could possibly take us up to the sky.
“It’s right over here.” He walked to the garage and pulled on a tarp to reveal what was once a bright yellow airplane circa Amelia Earhart, but now looked like a rusted pile of junk.
“That doesn’t fly,” I decided.
“Oh, but it does.”
“Maybe a few lifetimes ago, but…”
“It’s a cropduster, Luce. It goes out all the time.”
“For short trips. Close to the ground. Because of the multiple times it crashes. It can’t take us anywhere.”
“It’ll take us to Terrence,” Embry was way too confident.
“Where’s the pilot?” I asked. The barn looked as abandoned as the crop duster.
“Right here.” Gabriel walked past us to the plane and stuffed his duffle bag into a compartment meant to hold the water. Or the seeds? Whatever you dust the crops with.
“Since when can he fly?” Even before I finished the question, I knew it was silly. All I knew for sure since Gabriel found me at prom was that I didn’t know anything about him and Embry.
“The first world war? Maybe before, but we weren’t always in touch,” Embry said like trusting Gabriel to fly us was no big deal.
“Where’s my seat?” I asked once we got close and I saw one seat in the first cockpit and another in the second cockpit, but nothing else.
“Do you want to go on an adventure or not?” Embry asked like this was a fun activity I had wanted to be a part of.
“I don’t want to die, so this is the lesser of two evils,” I corrected.
“Let’s make the most of it.” He took my arm and led me to the second cockpit. I couldn’t tell if his constant smile was just him, or if it was all for my benefit, to keep me feeling safe and happy all these years. Either way, I followed suit.
“Is it a short flight?” I asked once I was as buckled in as I could be while sharing a seat with Embry. We were travelling so under the radar that Embry and Gabriel were more likely to kill me than the Big Bad was.
The flight felt like it lasted days. I was so cold by the end of it that even with Embry lending me his jacket and wrapping his arms around me, I couldn’t feel any of my extremities. We landed on what looked like an old baseball diamond. I could make out the white bases, but the lines had long ago disappeared, possibly around the time the grass yellowed and browned. Our makeshift runway became a cloud of dust once we got close, but it soon cleared to reveal a ranch in the distance. Big, brown cows and horses were grazing, but I didn’t see any fences or dogs to keep them shepherded.
“Are we sleeping in the barn?” I asked, judging by our method of transportation.
“I’m sure we can find you some room in the attic,” Embry teased before helping me out of the cockpit. The ground felt weird after spending hours up in the air. It was like my legs were still vibrating.
“You’re a sight for sore eyes,” a man, most likely Terrence, said when we walked up to the house with a large, wraparound porch.
“And you’re as charming as ever.” Embry went to take him in for a hug.
“I was talking to Miss Owens. The two of you look like death.” They did both look exhausted, but that expression meant something different now that I had seen one of them lifeless.
“This is Lucy.” Gabriel went and got a hug as well, making sure they both forcefully slapped the other’s back as a cover for it lasting so long.
“Nice to meet you, Lucy. I’m Terrence,” he told me, extending his hand once they pulled apart.
Terrence had maintained a thick Irish accent, but looked like a cowboy with his hat and boots, plaid shirt and jeans. I would put his age somewhere around thirty, but wouldn’t be surprised if he popped up in a John Wayne setting.
“Thank you for letting us stay here,” I said, not sure how much he knew. Neither of the guys had called to warn him we were coming, but he didn’t look the least bit surprised to see us on his field in the middle of nowhere.
“Any time,” he assured me.
“Five settings for dinner?” a woman asked, coming out in fitted jeans and a cream-colored sweater with gold accents, her long white hair neatly braided.
“Thank you, Angela.” Embry smiled, but she didn’t return it.
“You’re always welcome,” she said with a slight reluctance.
“You three can go get cleaned up, then you can tell me about the new pickle over dinner,” Terrence suggested.
I followed the guys through the house, walking like they had been through this many times before and knew exactly where to go.
“What did you do to Terrence’s mother?” I asked Embry, somehow making Gabriel smile.
“I didn’t do anything to Angela,” Embry said in a way that implied he was only right on a technicality.
“That’s not the vibe she was giving,” I argued.
“He’s telling the truth,” Gabriel told me before slipping into the second room on the right once we got up the stairs.
“Explain.” I stepped ahead of Embry and blocked his way. He had promised to tell me everything, and this didn’t seem like something he would have to lie to me about.
“Angela was sixteen the first time I met her, and her father didn’t explain it all to her until many years later.”
“That’s Terrence’s daughter?” I cut him off.
“That’s why it’s a curse. We still look the same, so you see us as this age, but I’ve raised children who’ve had children who had children…I’ve loved generations of kids who have all grown up, gotten older than me and died,” he said, putting a damper on what I thought was a teasing conversation.
“He’s eventually going to watch his daughter die. He’ll take care of her and do all the things parents shouldn’t have to do,” I understood.
“It’s a fate I wouldn’t wish on anyone,” he agreed.
I nodded, feeling bad, before I realized what he was doing. “You’re making me feel like a horrible person to deflect from whatever you did.”
“I did nothing,” he stood his ground before sighing. “She had a crush on me. I didn’t see her that way. I talked to her, I paid attention to her, I asked her about her life…”
“You fed into her infatuation,” I summarized.
“I did,” he agreed. “But I didn’t realize she saw me that way.”
“Until…” I pressed, but his face had gone red, which I had never seen before.
“She…made a move.” He was careful with his words, but the shade of his face told me her move was a lot bolder than simply telling him she liked him, and possibly involved minimal clothing. “I turned her down, she was deeply embarrassed and never forgave me, even after her father told her how old I was and how it was never even a possibility in my mind.”
“Does that mean you see me as more of a granddaughter than a little sister?” I asked, because I thought of him sort of like Sam. A big brother who always had my back, but would also play with me and tease me and stuff.
“I would have to say a niece, or a daughter. A sibling bond is similar, but you’re on a more even playing field, where you still fight. You shouldn’t be expected to raise your siblings unless a tragedy occurs. Keeping you safe and happy has always been my priority.”
“It’s unbelievable what you guys go through,” I shook my head at all of the realizations going through my mind.
“With great power comes great responsibility,” he teased before we got to the end of the hall. “This is your room.”
“Not the attic?” I asked.
“Even Gabriel isn’t allowed in the attic,” he hinted that it held Terrence’s secrets and treasures.
Cozy and welcoming would be the best words to describe the room I walked into. There were throw pillows and blankets in warm colors of the softest materials. Most of it looked like it had been knit or crocheted by Angela, or maybe her mother. There was a pile of towels at the foot of the bed, and some simple toiletries in the en-suite bathroom. They either knew I was coming, or were used to people showing up unannounced and in need of assistance.
I showered less forcefully than I had when I was covered in blood, but took the same amount of time, enjoying the warm water after the freezing plane ride.
I put on some of the clothes I had brought, but appreciated the warm wool socks and flannel jacket that were left on the bed, hopefully for me.
When I came back downstairs, Gabriel was talking to Angela while Terrence showed Embry something in a book. It was strange to see Embry be the unwanted one, while Angela’s face lit up talking to Gabriel.
“Does it fit okay? I thought you might be cold, now the sun’s gone.” Angela was the first to notice me.
“It’s perfect, thank you,” I assured her. “Do you often take in strays?”
“It’s my granddaughter’s. That’s the room she usually takes when we visit, but she didn’t come this month.”
“You don’t live here?” I asked, realizing I had no idea where ‘here’ was.
“No, we live in South Carolina, but I try to come check on the old man every month or so. My husband’s a pilot of real planes, so I flew in with him and he’ll come get me in a few days.”
“The Boeing-Stearman Model 75 is a real plane,” Gabriel argued. This wasn’t the first time they were having this conversation.
“You should have seen how beautiful she was when we first got her,” Terrence agreed.
“It’s both of your plane?” I asked.
“No, Gabe had his own.” Terrence had a look that told me there was more to the story.
“Had?” I asked.
“There was maybe an incident,” Terrence shrugged like it wasn’t worth mentioning.
“I knew the plane wasn’t safe,” I shook my head at the guys for having taken me up for such a long flight in an unstable machine.
“Come and get it while it’s hot,” Angela called from the dining room as she brought dishes from the kitchen. I went over and helped her carry everything out.
“Did you know we were coming?” I asked. Even though my shower was long, she didn’t have enough time to go get groceries, then prepare and cook everything for three extra people. Plus, Terrence called me Miss Owens when I arrived.
“Visitors are not unexpected here,” she smiled. “But I always overdo it when I visit my father. I know he can take care of himself, but I don’t think he ever learnt how to cook. If you’re going to eat something frozen, it better be homemade.”
“You remind me of the woman who raised me,” I declared, seeing Mrs. Boyd in her.
“Is that a good thing?” she asked.
“The best,” I assured her with a smile.
“Then I will take it.”
We put all of the dishes in the middle of the table and let everyone help themselves. I opted for the chili, then added some corn and shredded cheese to it.
“Have some corn bread. Angie makes the best I’ve ever had,” Gabriel encouraged.
“That’s saying something,” I smiled at her while the others agreed.
“More likely they’re going senile in their old age,” Angela dismissed the compliment.
“She’s modest,” Terrence told me. “And mean.”
It was interesting watching the two of them interact. Angela still teased her father about being old and behind on the times, but she was the one who was older-looking and getting frail. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to stay young and healthy while watching your child eventually wither and die. I could understand why Embry never had kids, and Gabriel always tried to avoid attachment.
When the meal was done the men offered to do the dishes, so Angela took me out onto the front porch.
“How are you holding up?” she asked me, like she understood a lot more than she let on, and infinitely more than anyone told her.
“I’m okay,” I told her. “How are you?”
“I’m old, but I’m not daft yet,” she told me. “Uncle Gabe comes by pretty often, and as far as I knew, you were unawares of any of it and he wanted to keep it that way,” she told me.
“Uncle Gabe?” I asked. This could explain how Terrence knew who I was earlier, but I couldn’t picture Gabriel taking my picture from his wallet to show all his friends.
“He’s my godfather. The only family my father has ever had, and the reason I got to have one,” she shared.
“A family?” I asked.
“I didn’t know any of this until I was in my twenties or so, but my father and Gabriel got close during the war, even before they found out my dad was like Uncle Gabe.”
“They met before your dad first died,” I understood.
“They fought battles, saved lives and my father spent 99 percent of the time he wasn’t listening to other people’s problems talking about how much he loved my mother and couldn’t wait to get back to her. When he got shot in the head and woke up unscathed a few days later, he left his dog tags and helmet on another fallen soldier. He knew they would assume it was him, notify my mother and give her his last letter and her picture.”
“It would be hard to explain surviving something like that,” I ventured.
“True, but he could have been MIA rather than dead.” I could sense some bitterness.
“He waited until the war was over to find her?” I asked.
“No, he meant it when he said goodbye to her in that letter. The war ended and he came to America, bought a piece of land and planned to live out his days as a hermit. Uncle Gabe confronted him as soon as he found out, and my dad told him that he had to leave her because he loved her, and knew this was no life for a mere mortal, and he didn’t think his heart could take losing her later. He felt she was better off moving on with her life and finding someone new.”
“The Gabriel way of no attachments,” I agreed.
“No, Uncle Gabe talked sense into him. Told him there’s no use in living forever if you never go after the things your heart wants. If you don’t have someone to share it with, you’re not dying, but you’re not living either. He said he would take any kind of torture if it meant he could have a lifetime with the one he loved. His Annabelle,” she rolled her eyes like she’d heard enough about this character. “My dad came back to Ireland, hoping to woo back my mum and found out he had a daughter. She’d only found out she was pregnant after he went to England and he supposedly died before she could tell him. He never would have known about me and I never would have met him if Uncle Gabe hadn’t interfered.”
“He always seems so distant and disconnected.” I tried to picture Gabriel waxing poetic about true love.
“I’d be slow to grow attached if I lost everyone I ever cared about,” she defended him.
“If you keep letting more people in, you can’t lose everyone,” I argued, thinking how I frequently lost people, but was never alone because I kept letting new people in.
“I didn’t mean…of course I know you’ve had a hard go of it as well,” she assured me. I couldn’t help wondering what Gabriel had told her about me. Was he complaining about me trying to be friends with him? Feeling sorry for me because I only had Keisha?
“I’m used to it now,” I assured her, sort of answering her initial question.
“It’s incredible what humans can get used to,” she sighed. “But it doesn’t mean we should,” she added before the others finished in the kitchen.
Terrence and Gabriel had a night cap while the rest of us enjoyed a tea Angela made from leaves Terrence grew and dried himself. It had hints of lemon and honey and berries and I couldn’t tell you what was in it, but the first sip warmed me to the bone.
“We should get an early night if we want to be out by sunrise,” Gabriel told Embry once he was done his whiskey.
“Where are we heading now?” I asked.
“You’re staying here,” Embry corrected.
“What do you mean? I thought you were supposed to protect me?” I did not like this new plan at all.
“We’ll be gone a couple of days, a week tops.”
“Where are you going?” I asked.
“We need supplies and information.”
“On what? From who? You said we were travelling light, but we had tons of supplies at the plantation. And at the manor.”
“You’ll be safe with Terrence. I promise,” Gabriel told me, so I understood this was one of those things they weren’t going to tell me. I wanted to remind them I was an adult now and keeping secrets wasn’t cool, but that would have been the perfect ammunition to prove they were right and I was too young to understand.