Wednesday the 14th of June, 1989
Ominous grey clouds blanketed the sky as I drove along Balwyn Road. It was almost as though the day was warning me that nothing good was going to come out of confronting Catherine. But I needed to talk to her about the passe. I also wanted to see her again, the girl hard to get out of my head.
I drove past her house, swinging sharply onto Highwick Park Drive. I pulled over to the kerb and focused on the rearview mirror, waiting for Catherine to appear. She emerged from her property a few minutes later. She threw her hands up in the air, but not because she’d seen me. It looked like she was arguing with her mother. Then she was darting across the road, running a little way down the hill before slowing to a walk. I started up the engine and followed her, once more feeling like a stalker, but past caring.
A car came up behind me fast, blasting their horn at me to get out of their way. Unfortunately, it attracted Catherine’s attention. The next second, she took off, sprinting down the hill.
“What the hell?” I said, not believing she was doing this again.
Angry, I planted my foot on the accelerator, swerving around the corner onto Camdale Avenue. Ignoring the stop sign, I shot forward in an attempt to cut her off, but she predicted the manoeuvre, taking a sharp right. I yanked on the handbrake and jumped out of the car, sprinting after her, my long legs chewing up the distance faster than she could get away.
I grabbed her arm from behind, barking, “Stop!”
She yelled out and yanked her arm free. But instead of trying to escape again, she stepped into my personal space, looking on the verge of planting her clenched fist in my face.
“I don’t want to see you!” she yelled, her eyes darkening to a brown/black. The colour was so much like a Seraph’s it made me stare, the girl fiery enough to be one.
She continued to yell at me. “Nothing but bad things have happened since you arrived!”
I shook myself out of my stupor. “Why are you blaming me? I did nothing to you. No, I did. I saved you. Twice.”
Her jaw set. “While your grandfather murdered Sister Cecile, then came after me! And he won’t stop, so keep the hell away from me.”
“My grandfather didn’t kill her, he isn’t even in the country,” I said, leaving out the part where he had been at the time. Also leaving out the part where it had been my father.
“You’re lying,” she spat. “I saw him that night. He tried to pull me across the highway, probably wanting to get me run over. You had to have seen him. He was right across the damn road.”
“All I saw was you about to step into traffic. And I stopped you, yet you’re angry at me for what happened to that nun?”
“She wasn’t that nun, she was my teacher, someone who tried to help me, yet now she’s dead, and all because of me. No, because of your psychotic grandfather, so leave me alone!”
She went to walk around me. I grabbed her arm again.
“I told you to leave me alone!” she screamed, trying to pull free.
I tightened my grip and glared back at her, having had enough of her merda. “How about you use your rosary on me?” I growled. “Go on, use it to hurt me like you did the other night. Like that nun taught you.”
She went still, guilt crossing her expression. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, and Sister Cecile never told me to attack you. She wanted me to stay away from you.”
“What about my grandfather? Did she tell you to kill him? Because my father said she was training young Merges specifically to murder my grandfather.”
Her eyes widened. “He’s lying!”
“He has no reason to lie, and your nun was the one who told him that. It’s why my grandfather went after you. He thought you were being trained to kill him.”
Catherine shook her head. “She would never—”
“Don’t be so naive, Catherine,” I said, letting go of her arm. “She wasn’t teaching you out of the goodness of her heart. She was hoping you’d kill my grandfather for her father’s crimes.”
“What crimes?”
“Her father raped and murdered her mother.”
Catherine’s eyes widened. “You know about that?”
I nodded. “My father told me all about it. He also told me her father was responsible for getting my grandfather killed.”
She did a little confused headshake. “Wait, your grandfather’s dead?”
“Not in the way you think. Sister Cecile’s father stole my grandfather’s rosary, getting him killed in a school fire. As a result, my grandfather’s soul was sucked into the purgatory bead. Sister Cecile’s father eventually became a priest, raping a nun, who gave birth to twins, Sister Cecile being one of them.”
Catherine’s eyes widened. “I dreamt of that!”
“You had a passe?” I asked.
“More than one. But I thought it was your grandfather who attacked Sister Cecile’s mother.”
“Nope. His soul was trapped at the time. He wasn’t released until years later.”
“What do you mean his soul was trapped?”
“When a Merge dies their soul usually rises to Heaven or sinks to Hell. But when a Merge is murdered or dies before their time, they’re left in limbo—between Heaven and Hell, otherwise known as Purgatory. Or in layman’s terms—Earth. The wrongly killed will wander the earth or remain trapped within the purgatory bead.”
“What’s the purgatory bead?”
“The biggest one on your rosary. The star would be yours, while mine is the large ruby.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “I’m wearing a freaking cemetery?”
“More like a prison.”
She pulled her rosary out from under her Guns N’ Roses shirt and stared down at it. “Are the souls the ones swimming around inside?” she asked, holding it out for me to see.
I lowered my head to get a better view. What looked like minute schools of fish were darting around the blue star, her bead filled with souls.
I nodded. “You have a lot in there. Your rosary must be really old.”
She started to shake.
I placed a hand on her arm. “Are you all right?”
She looked back up at me, her eyes shifting from brown/black to brown/gold. “Are Merges able to see the souls who roam?”
“We feel them. Humans call them ghosts and spirits.”
“You sure you can’t see them?”
I shrugged. “Haven’t heard of it, but you never know, I’m learning lots of new things lately, so maybe. But I know one hundred percent you can feel them. One of my friends died and whenever I went to a place she loved, I felt her, her soul’s heat so strong.”
“Do you think I could sense my sister like that?”
“A Maris wouldn’t feel warm, they’d make you shiver with cold. Have you felt cold when you should be warm?” I asked, remembering how cold my bedroom had been after the passe. The rest of the house hadn’t been that cold, making me wonder... No, there was no reason for Catherine’s sister’s soul to be in my bedroom. It was probably just a draught.
Catherine shook her head. “I haven’t felt anything, and I thought you said my family are Stellas, not Marises.”
“Merges can vary within families, plus your sister looked like a Maris in my passe.”
“Wait, you dreamt about my sister?” she said, pointing to herself.
“It was a passe, not a dream.”
“I don’t care how you word it, why the hell are you having dreams, passi, whatever the hell, about my sister?”
“It was only one and I have no idea.”
She lifted her hand to her head, tugging on her white hair. “Well, it had to be a dream, because she didn’t have blue eyes. They were the same as mine.”
“It was too real for a dream. I smelt her burnt—” I stopped talking, the horror on Catherine’s face making me wish I’d never opened my big fat mouth. “Merda! I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to say that.” I reached for her, but she turned away from me.
“When?” she asked.
“When, what?”
“When did you have this passe or dream?” she answered, still facing away.
“Two nights ago.”
“What did you see?”
Her body tensed as I relayed the passe. “I’m so sorry,” I added, not knowing what else to say.
She shook her head. “It’s not your fault, I just...” A sob broke free. I placed a hand on her shoulder, ready to pull her to me, to console her, but she brushed it off and continued talking, her voice cracking. “I just wish that Vesna had told me what was happening. She shouldn’t have pulled away from me, I would’ve done anything for her. Anything.”
I stepped closer and wrapped my arms around her. She didn’t avoid my touch this time. Instead, she turned into my hug and buried her face in my chest, sobbing her heart out. A car passed, the driver giving us a strange look, but I didn’t care what he thought. Didn’t care if anyone else could see us, the shielding spell not necessary. Catherine’s emotions were no different from a human losing a loved one. Grief didn’t care whether we were a Merge or a human, we all had hearts that could be broken.
“I want her back so bad,” she said, her voice muffled by my chest.
I ran a hand down her white hair. “Maybe we can get her back. My grandfather returned, maybe your sister can too.”
She pulled away from me, her eyes going big. “She can come back?” she gasped.
I nodded. “If we find who killed her, we can steal their rosary and bury it. Once it’s buried, her soul will be released and she can merge with her killer, possessing his body.” My thoughts returned to the blond male in the passe, not remembering seeing a rosary on his chest. But that didn’t mean he didn’t have one on him; it could’ve been in his pocket ... unless he’d merged with it. Dio, I hope that wasn’t the case, because it would mean that Catherine’s sister would be gone forever, wiped out of existence, nothing but raw energy adding to her killer’s powers.
Catherine wiped her eyes, hope lighting up her expression. “Then we have to find out who killed her. She died at Buckland’s Reserve. We could go there, try to see if her soul is lingering.”
“It won’t be if she’s been sucked into her killer’s purgatory bead.”
“We have to start somewhere! And if we go there we might find some clues, possibly other souls that could’ve witnessed what happened.”
“Even if we did find some, they won’t be able to tell us anything.”
“We could still feel or see something that could spark another passe, which might reveal who the killer is.”
“Possibly.”
“Good, then let’s go.” She grabbed my arm and yanked me towards my car. “Let’s hope her soul’s in the purgatory bead so we can help her escape. I don’t care if she has to merge with a male, at least I’ll have her back.”
I yanked free from her grip. “As long as her killer’s not a demon, or she’ll take on his traits. She’ll become a demon.”
“The Merge who killed her might not be a demon.”
“But what if he is?”
“We won’t know unless we investigate, which means you’re taking me to Buckland’s Reserve. Now.”
“What about school?”
“Screw school!”
“Okay, okay, I’ll take you, just rein it in, will you?”
“Only if you get me there.” She ran around my car and jumped into the passenger seat, slamming the door so hard I winced.
I climbed behind the wheel. “Don’t slam the door.”
“Oh, boo hoo, hoo, I hurt your precious car.” She pulled on her seatbelt. “Just drive, you big baby.”
I shook my head. “And Nicky called me the jerk?” I said, starting the engine.
“She calls me one too.”
“That’s because you are one.” I pulled away from the kerb.
“Yeah, yeah, I know.” She turned in her seat to face me, her eyes a touch bloodshot from her crying. “So, did Sister Cecile really tell your father she was training me to kill your grandfather?”
“I already said she did.”
“I’m just shocked she would do that. I always thought she was a nasty cow, but I didn’t think she would do something that bad. I thought she’d changed, that she actually wanted to help me, but guess leopards can’t change their spots.”
“You knew her before?”
“Yeah, she used to be the headmistress of my primary school. She hated me, was so nasty. She even broke a ruler on my hand, hitting it so hard it snapped in two. How can a person of God do that to a child? I was eight years old.”
“Evil often hides behind unsuspecting disguises.” I stopped at the give-way sign, waiting for the traffic to clear, the highway jam-packed.
“I wouldn’t exactly call her evil. Nasty is closer to the mark.”
“She was training you to murder my grandfather. I’d call that evil.”
Catherine exhaled. “Guess so,” she said, looking resigned to the fact the nun wasn’t who she’d thought she was.
I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel, still waiting for the traffic to clear. “Where do I go? I don’t know where Buckland’s Reserve is.”
She indicated to my right, giving me a few instructions. After several seconds, a space in the traffic appeared. I cut across the highway and headed south, driving past the intermediate school, a small set of shops, along Stockade Road, its hill, and into Kiwoh. Agnaru’s neighbouring town was stunning, much prettier than Agnaru. A panoramic backdrop of sand, sea, and sky spread out behind the village. I could even see Star of the Sea school off in the distance, the Spanish-styled structure standing proud on its own hill.
Catherine broke the silence as we passed Star of the Sea’s church, the stone structure much older than Saint Dominic’s. “Do you think Sister Cecile could’ve done the same with my sister?” she asked.
“What do you mean?” I replied.
“Trained her with the hope of killing your grandfather?”
“I’d say so, because it’d be one hell of a coincidence if she didn’t.”
Catherine’s face twisted in anger. “I knew it! She claimed that she only saw my sister in passing the day Vesna died, basically lied to my face.” She paused for a moment, then grunted. “But that doesn’t make sense.”
I glanced at her. “What doesn’t make sense?”
She narrowed her eyes at me. “You said your grandfather wasn’t in the country when Vesna died. Why would Sister Cecile train her to kill him if he wasn’t even here? Or maybe he was, and you’re lying about him not killing her.”
“No!” I retorted, annoyed she was back to accusing me. “That witch probably knew he would eventually return. And stop blaming my grandfather, demons can sniff angel Merges out without even trying.”
“Quit assuming it’s a demon. A normal Merge could’ve killed her just as easily.”
“Angelic Merges can’t sniff us out like those demon dogs.”
She smacked my arm. “Stop saying that!”
I slowed down. “I’m driving, so keep your hands to yourself.”
“Only if you quit saying it’s a demon and driving like a grandma. I want to get to Buckland’s Reserve today, thanks very much.”
I threw her a scowl. “I don’t drive like a grandma, thank you very much, jerk.”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever, just keep driving, James.”
“My name’s Christopher, and you know it.”
“Not while you’re driving for me.” She flicked her hand. “So, onwards, James.”
I grunted at her and picked up speed. After about ten minutes of her obnoxious directions, the girl constantly making fun of my driving, I pulled into a long gravelly road that led directly into scenic bush. The bumpy road was framed by an array of native trees, the regal pohutukawa amongst them. I drove for a couple more minutes before emerging into an opening. I brought my car to a halt and climbed out, waiting for Catherine to reach my side. We slipped through a small pathway surrounded by manuka bushes and ferns, eventually emerging into a bright green field. I scanned the open space, checking to see if I recognised anything from my dream. I spotted a cluster of trees on the far side of the field that looked familiar, the large totara tree in the middle hard to miss.
I pointed at it. “Your sister was lying near that tree.”
Her gaze moved to it, a touch of fear clouding her expression. Or maybe it was grief, her eyes shiny once more.
“If you want, I can go check it out while you stay here,” I said.
“No, I need to do this.” She kicked into gear, power walking past me as though her sister was waiting on the other side of the field.
I followed her. “We’ll be more likely to feel a soul if I conjure up a shielding spell. Where humans disappear, souls sometimes appear.”
She turned to face me, slowing down considerably. “How come, Mr. Rhyme-a-dime?” she asked, walking backwards. Although her words sounded light-hearted, her expression was far from it. So serious, so sad. I wondered whether she was walking backwards so she didn’t have to see where her sister had died.
I answered her question, “Because we’ll be transferred to a plane that’s closer to Heaven, where only creatures with strong souls can dwell. Humans have weak souls in comparison to us. They’re weighted down to Earth since its their home, while we’re heavenly beings. Even the demon’s ancestors used to live in Heaven, just got kicked out for being nasty stronzi.”
“What are stronzi?”
“Arseholes.”
She snorted out a laugh, her serious expression cracking for a moment. “So, does that mean we’ll be able to see my sister once the shield is up?”
“Probably not.”
“But you said she might appear.”
“I meant sensing her. It’ll be stronger when the shielding spell’s up. Though, if we happen across other souls, be careful. If you suddenly feel hot, like really hot, run, it won’t be a friendly soul. Intense heat usually indicates a Seraph demon’s soul. But if you only feel warm, it’ll be a Seraph angel. Demons are more extreme.”
Her eyes darted about as though she was expecting a demon to jump out at us. “I didn’t think they’d be able to hurt us. Are they sort of like poltergeists?”
“They are poltergeists. That’s what humans call them. Be extra careful of the stronzi, they can possess you. Not usually fully, but enough for you to lose chunks of time. They can also affect your mind, making you think you’re going nuts. Possession is often mistaken for mental illness.” I reached out, stopping her from banging into the totara tree. “Careful.”
She turned around to look at it. While she was distracted, I dug into my pocket for my rosary and murmured the shielding spell. The air went still, no sounds, the seagulls in the distance going silent. I let go and pulled out the Halo rosary from my other pocket.
She turned back to me, her sad eyes instantly lighting up. “Whoa! Is that a Halo rosary?”
“You know about them?” I asked, surprised she did.
She nodded. “Since I’ve been off school, I’ve been reading up about the legendary rosaries. I got the books from Sister—” she stopped talking, the nun’s name not needing to be said.
“Yeah, it’s a Halo rosary.”
“Is it active?”
Nodding, I grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled it over my head, leaving it on, but my chest bare.
Catherine’s eyebrows shot up. “What are you doing?”
Not answering her, I slipped the Halo rosary over my head, hoping that its light would draw good souls to us. As soon as the beads touched my flesh, a bright halo lit up, circling my head.
Catherine’s mouth dropped open, her expression filled with awe. I looked around, my senses on high alert for souls. Catherine said something, but I ignored her, not wanting her distracting me. But I felt nothing, not even a slight breeze that could’ve indicated a Halo soul was around. No heat, no cold, no breeze, nothing.
“Chris! Answer me!” Catherine snapped.
“There’s nothing to answer, there aren’t any souls here.” I removed the rosary and slipped it back into my pocket, then went to pull my shirt back over my head, stopping as she placed a hand on my chest.
“I have something to show you too,” she said.
I dropped my hands to my sides, leaving my shirt as is. “What?”
Walking around me, she backed up a few steps, then took hold of her rosary and pressed down on the loadstone. I instantly went to grab my own rosary out of my pocket, but it was too late, a sudden pull enveloping my body.
“What are you doing?” I yelled, straining against the pull as she drew me closer to her, the smile on her lips almost evil. “Let me go!”
She shook her head. “You shouldn’t have trusted me, Chris.”
My eyes widened in disbelief. “I saved you!” I yelled, realising I’d walked right into her trap. My grandfather had warned me against her, but I’d stupidly ignored him, thinking I knew better, that Catherine was harmless. But, like with Levy, I’d been suckered in, letting my dick, and in Catherine’s case, my heart take control over my head.
She brought me to within an inch of her, so close that I could feel her breath on my chest. Unable to break free from her hold, I yelled out in frustration, the rosaries in my pocket for some reason not repelling her loadstone. Although it was better to hold them, they still should’ve resisted her pull. I just hadn’t felt a pull this strong since the Maris demon. Fear crawled up my back at the thought, sending tingles over the wing scars carved into my flesh.
“Not so easy to get free from a loadstone, is it?” she said.
“I don’t care, let me go!” I yelled, wild panic starting to set in. I wondered whether she was the one who would hurt me or if she was toying with me until a demon arrived, ready to skin me alive or claw my heart out, demons beyond sadistic.
Smiling, she placed a hand on my bare chest, slowly trailing her fingers down my torso, stopping just above my belt.
“What the hell are you doing?” I snapped.
“Just proving a point,” she said, biting her bottom lip.
“I don’t care what the point is,” I growled, still trying to fight against the bonds that held me in place. “Just let me go, you pervert.”
She laughed, her eyes sparkling under the sunlight. “You’re sexy when you get mad.”
I growled in response, only caring about her letting me go.
“Hmmm, you even sound sexy.” She flicked my belt with her finger.
I swore at her in both English and Italian.
“Sheesh, talk about oversensitive. Do you need a tampon? Because you’re acting worse than me on my period.”
“Let. Me. Go!”
She winced. “Okay, okay, just keep it down, you big baby.”
She let go of the loadstone, causing the hold to drop. Now free, I launched myself at her, knocking her down. She cried out, clearly taken by surprise. Before she could fight back, I grabbed her wrists and pinned her to the ground.
I glared at her. “Don’t you ever do that to me again!”
“It was just a joke!” she snapped back, trying to get free. “So get off me!”
“Why should I? You wouldn’t let go of me when I asked. More than once!”
She stopped struggling against me. “Oh, stop packing a sad. I was just making a point about the loadstone.”
“I thought you’d betrayed me!”
“It’s not my fault you took it too seriously. It was obvious that I was teasing.”
“Not to me!”
I pushed off her and stormed towards a grassy knoll, slumping down on it. I rested my elbows on my knees and placed my head in my hands, shuddering at the memory of what had happened the last time I was held against my will. As though in response, the scars on my back started to itch, so bad that I wanted to scratch them raw.
Muddied sneakers came into view. I looked up at Catherine, the sun lighting up her white hair, giving her Mother Nature’s own halo.
“I’m sorry,” she said, kneeling down in front of me. “I didn’t mean to upset you.” She placed a tentative hand on my leg. “You made fun of me for not being able to break the loadstone pull. It was payback.”
“I trusted you.”
She grimaced. “I said I was sorry, and it proves that I was right. If you couldn’t break the hold, then there was no way I could’ve. You shouldn’t have made fun of me, I didn’t even have my rosary on me at the time.”
“Then I guess we’re both sorry,” I muttered, me more so than her. I’d gotten lax in New Zealand, feeling safer than I should, something that wasn’t going to happen again. I removed my rosary from my pocket and slipped it on, drawing my shirt back over my head.
“Honestly, I didn’t mean any harm by it,” she said. “I also wanted to show you what I’ve learned.”
“By feeling me up?”
Her eyes went round. “No! I was teasing. Okay, more like flirting, so get over it. Not like you haven’t flirted with me before.”
“I’ve never felt you up while holding you against your will.”
“Oh, God! Don’t say it like that. I know I suck at flirting, but that ... that ... just sounds so horrible.”
“It was horrible.”
Looking mortified, she placed both hands on her cheeks, finally realising how serious it was. “I’m so, so sorry. I really didn’t think. I was trying to prove something as well as distract myself. It’s so hard being here. Please forgive me.”
I shrugged.
“Please, Chris,” she said, her eyes pleading with me. “I really didn’t mean to overstep the mark.”
I exhaled. “Just don’t do it again. I hate being held against my will.”
“I didn’t exactly appreciate it when your granddad did it to me, so quit making me feel so bad.”
“My nonno didn’t hold you down and carve wings into your back, while you screamed in agony for him to stop.”
Her face dropped. “Holy shit, I didn’t realise that’s how it happened.” She crawled around me.
I quickly turned to face her. “What are you doing?”
“I want to see your scars.”
“You’ve already seen them.”
“Briefly.”
“That’s more than enough.”
“Don’t worry, you have nothing to be embarrassed of. Despite how you got them, they’re beautiful.”
My eyebrows shot up. “You have got to be kidding me? They’re ugly as hell.”
“Is that why you didn’t take your shirt off fully? You think your back is ugly?”
I nodded.
She placed her hand over mine. “Well, it isn’t, so stop hiding it. Those scars are a part of you, something you got through, which has no doubt made you stronger. And honestly, people won’t think they’re ugly. Nothing about you is ugly, you’re beautiful both inside and out.”
I blinked at her, not expecting to hear that, especially after everything she’d said about me.
“I mean it, Chris. Even though I’ve been a right cow to you, and your family hates me, you have been nothing but lovely to me, okay, minus a few instances, but you’re still lovely.”
I didn’t reply, what she was saying stunning me into silence.
She smiled sadly at me. “So, don’t let what that stronzi did to you make you feel ashamed. Stand proud.”
“Stronzo.”
She frowned. “What?”
“It’s stronzo. Stronzi is plural.”
She blinked at me, probably not expecting me to be pedantic about grammar after what she’d said.
I pushed to my feet. “And that is why you’re not seeing my scars again. You may say the words but you don’t understand their meaning.”
She peered up at me with a look of disbelief. “You won’t let me see your scars because I don’t understand Italian?”
I shook my head. “I was using it as a metaphor. You didn’t experience what I did, therefore you can’t understand what those scars mean to me.”
She rose to her feet. “Okay, I won’t push again. You can show me when you’re ready.”
I didn’t reply, not sure I would ever be ready. Showing her that brief flash of my scars the other day was probably all she would get.
“If you hate your scars so much,” she said, brushing grass off her jeans. “How come you didn’t use the Halo rosary to heal them?”
“It can’t. The demon cast a spell over the scars so they won’t fade.”
“Then why do you have the Halo rosary? It should be with a Halo Merge, right?”
“I found it in one of my mother’s books,” I said, glad the subject had changed. “I took the book to find out more about your kind.”
“My kind, as in Marises?” she asked, looking like she was expecting some bigoted remark.
“I already told you that you’re not a Maris. They only have blue eyes, which can’t be hidden by contact lenses. You’re a Stella, meaning star. You’re a closer descendant to the angels than I am. Apparently, your blood is purer, allowing you to use all of the legendary rosaries.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “I can use your beads?”
“You can, but won’t. I’m not letting you touch my rosary. It’s too personal.” I removed the Halo rosary instead and held it out for her to take. “But you can try this on.”
“Later.” She spun around and walked off.
I ran after her. “Why are you getting mad at me? The Halo rosary is better than my Seraphim one. It can control air and—”
She cut me off, “I’m not mad, it’s going to rain and I read that Seraphim hate rain. So, if you don’t want to get wet, we should get back.”
I stopped in the middle of the field and looked up at the sky, not seeing any signs of rain, other than some fluffy white clouds. I couldn’t even smell any dampness in the air.
“Are you playing with me?” I asked.
She turned to face me and shook her head. “You should drop the shielding spell and run to the car before it starts pouring down.”
I indicated to the sky. “But the weather looks fine.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and cocked a hip, a Mona Lisa smile pulling at her lips. “Okay, let’s stand here and see how well your weather forecasting skills are. I reckon you’re going to get a zero out of ten. So, you better say hasta la vista to that shielding spell, because it’s going to come down in buckets.”
I muttered the words to break the spell just as a drop of water hit my cheek. My gaze flicked to the sky in surprise. A few more clouds had joined the others, these ones darker. Several more drops fell, then the giant tap in the sky turned off.
I looked back at Catherine with a self-satisfied smirk. “Looks like I get ten out of ten.”
She arched an eyebrow at me. “I’m so going to enjoy this.”
“Enjoy what?”
As soon as the words left my mouth the skies opened up, descending upon me like it was out to teach me a lesson. Taken by surprise, I sprinted for the car to avoid the sudden onslaught of rain, getting there in no time. I jumped into the driver’s side and looked out the window, watching Catherine walking casually to the car, the rain obviously not bothering her. She climbed into the passenger seat, much wetter than I was. My gaze dropped to her shirt, which was clinging to her chest, the outline of her bra and nipples noticeable. Outside, the rain picked up, bouncing off the car like bullets.
A hand brushed my cheek, Catherine drawing my attention back to her. She was staring at my face, drinking in every feature.
“You told me I was like a siren,” she said, grabbing my chin. She turned my face from side to side as though she was examining it. “I disagree, you’re the siren.”
I snorted out a laugh. “You’re saying I’m temping you?”
She let go of my chin. “That little display you gave me was pure temptation.”
“What display?”
“Showing off your six-pack.”
“I wasn’t showing it off, the Halo rosary works better against skin.” I quirked an eyebrow. “So, you think I’m trying to seduce you?”
“Pretty much.”
“Well, I’m not doing a very good job since I’m always having to chase you down.”
“Did you even consider that maybe the reason I run is because I’m incredibly attracted to you?”
I smiled. “I already know you like how I look.”
She shook her head, but still returned my smile. “You’re trouble, Chris, with a capital T.”
“You are too, believe me, you really are.” I placed a hand against her cheek and leaned closer to her, staring into her hazel eyes, surprised to see the colour going gold. “You have the coolest eyes,” I said. “They change from one second to the next.”
“While you have the most gorgeous face and body,” she replied, placing a hand on my chest. She ran her fingers down it, brushing the red ruby at the centre of my rosary. The stone lit up, glowing at her touch. I gaped, shocked that it wasn’t attacking her, like it would’ve done if she was a Maris. Sì, I knew she was a Stella, but still, I didn’t expect my rosary to react so well to her.
I watched as she ran her fingers over the other stones on my rosary, momentarily stopping on the loadstone. I looked back up at her face, surprised to see such hunger in her expression. With only that as a warning, she shoved me against my door and launched herself at me, planting her lips against mine. I instantly responded. I grabbed her head and kissed her back, feeling my rosary glow between us, joining our hearts, even though we hadn’t yet given them to each other. But I knew if we had more time we eventually would, the pull between us impossible to resist.
Still kissing me, she inched her hand under my shirt and caressed my stomach, her touch turning me on even more. Then her fingers crept around to my back, instantly turning me off. Upset she was touching my scars, I went to push her away, but stopped as something washed over me. Something so intense that my self-consciousness disappeared in the blink of an eye, the purest of energies mixed in with lust and longing.
She removed her hand and climbed onto my lap, her back hitting the horn on the steering wheel. She jumped at the loud blast and leaned closer to me, squashing me against the seat. I reached down the side of it and grabbed the lever, sliding the seat back as far as it would go so she had more room. She smiled and planted her lips against mine, sending a cascade of white hair tumbling over me. I ran my hand down it and returned her kiss, feeling like I was on a high, the girl like no one I’d ever been with.
Her breasts heaved against my chest, her excitement as strong as mine. I pushed a hand between us, slipping it under her wet shirt and over her bra, accidentally brushing her rosary. But instead of the beads biting my fingers, they warmed to my touch, the rosary realising I wasn’t a threat—or ever would be.
I continued kissing her, feeling her nipples harden beneath my touch, my dick hardening too. I wanted to merge our bodies together, to become one. She groaned against me, sounding like she wanted it too, her mouth so welcoming, her touch just as fervent.
A sharp rap against my window made her jerk away from me, the sudden noise also startling me. I looked to my side, seeing a hooded face peering in on us. Fear raced through me, the thought of the Maris demon having found me…
The thought instantly disappeared as the person pulled their hood back a fraction, the ordinary-looking human face worlds apart from the demon’s beauty. Catherine scrambled off my lap as I wound the window down for the man, annoyed he’d interrupted us.
“What do you want?” I snapped.
He placed his hands on the bottom of the window frame, his heavily lined face disapproving. “Why aren’t you kids at school?”
“What’s it to you?” I retorted, only just noticing the park ranger badge on his raincoat.
“I don’t appreciate having a pair of kids having sex in my reserve.”
“We’re not kids and—”
He cut me off, “And those school bags in the back seat with the Agnaru High logo on are briefcases, I presume?” he replied snidely.
“We have a practical period today.” I sneered at him. “Sex ED.”
His eyes went wide. “You little—”
Catherine cut him off, “He’s just joking, sir,” she said, her cheeks turning bright red.
The park ranger shook his head. “Just get to school. You’ll be lucky if I don’t report you.”
Refraining from flicking him the finger, I wound the window up and started the engine, backing away from him. I turned the car around, glancing at Catherine as I headed down the gravelly road. Her cheeks were now even brighter than a Seraph’s flames, her embarrassment in direct contrast to the way she’d climbed all over me.
“Take me home,” she said, not looking at me. “I need to change my shirt.”
“Just use the spare one in my bag.”
She reached behind her to grab my bag from the backseat. “Keep your eyes straight ahead,” she said, pulling my shirt out.
I took sly side glances as she removed her shirt, wetting my lips at the sight of her just in a bra, and a wet one at that, the lace almost sheer. She dropped the wet T-shirt on the floor and pulled my shirt over her head, glancing at me as she yanked it on, in the process catching me taking a sneaky peek.
“Oi!” she snapped. “Keep your eyes on the road, you pervert.”
“Takes one to know one,” I sniggered.
She narrowed her black-rimmed eyes at me.
I laughed and returned my attention to the road, grinning the rest of the way to school.