Dark Time 2 Page 3

  Carlie shut up her annoying brain and honed in on what Gabe had to say. They got a glimpse of who he was and what his purpose was.

  “I am a human, picked up by the Revenant just like the rest of you. Though, I have been here longer. They needed someone to talk to you, and I happily volunteered because I know what it's like to be in your shoes; to be scared and not know what is happening to your own body, your world, your life.” He sounded sincere, but Carlie couldn't help but feel it was a bit scripted. She tried to get Tanner’s attention but found he was hanging on every word this guy said, practically drooling. If she were in a mood to laugh, she would have, regardless of the setting.

  “I am not going to sugarcoat anything, though. You have all acted foolishly, even before you got here, but you continue to act that way. This is why you are still locked up, not trusted to know what is just beyond these walls. You all still seem to think you are some kind of heroes and that the Revenant is not necessarily on your side or that they will help you in some righteous mission. This is nothing like that. It is time to stop resisting and quit taunting the angels and be ready with open ears and hearts to hear what they have to say. Then you can move on with your lives and maybe find a place and purpose again.”

  “Do you get this guy?” Nick asked incredulously, pointing at Gabe with a strange look on his face. “We are kidnapped, and you want us to earn our way out by giving up hope? That’s what I am hearing. Is that what you are hearing?”

  Carlie nodded her head until Tanner slapped his hand onto her knee to stop her, scolding her with his eyes. “We don’t want to anger them anymore,” he spoke into her head. She sighed, wondering if it was more about his attraction to this guy or if he was right.

  “I say we hear him out,” Alex said, looking to Nick as if she were his mother. Carlie put her hand over her mouth seriously ready to crack up now. “Even if he does sound insane,” she added, turning her gaze angrily to the newcomer. This was getting good. Where was the popcorn when she needed it?

  “If you do not want to listen, I cannot guarantee you will ever be let out of here or anything about your safety even when the Revenant does what must be done. I am trying to help you,” Gabe spat passionately. Carlie could tell he meant what he said, but that didn't mean she understood it.

  “We just don't know what to believe. We have been told nothing. We want to speak to someone, plain and simple. Can you tell them that?” Alex requested.

  “I will try, but please, think about what I said. I know you have powers and want a purpose, but it’s not that simple. I will be staying with you all now, off and on, to try and help.”

  “Are we allowed to ask you any questions?” Tanner said, clearing his throat. Carlie could hear his voice threaten to crack. It was so cute, the way he was all tongue tied at the moment.

  “Yes, but I cannot promise I am allowed to answer them all.”

  “Why are we not hungry or thirsty, how long have we been here, and where are we?” Carlie asked straight up, not waiting on anyone else. They all stared at her, but she shrugged. “What? We all know those are the most important ones.”

  “At least those I can answer but not much else. You are not hungry or thirsty because the angels have made it so, so that you may stay in this room without the need for contact until they can get to you. I believe you have all been here for almost two weeks, though I am not informed of every little goings on. I am only human, after all. You are on a planet that is not your own, a planet that was recently destroyed. The angels have been staying here temporarily while they do their important work.”

  Carlie looked around at everyone to see what they thought, and most were stunned to silence. Two weeks they had been out of it and away from Kingsbridge with no progress to report. For all they knew, the planet they were from would soon look like what they saw out their window.

  Chapter 4

  You can be the moon and still be jealous of the stars. ~Gary Allan

  THAT night, Gabe left the room again, presumably to speak to whomever the heck was in charge of this strange place. Carlie felt antsy, and she couldn't sleep even though two out of the four of them were already sound asleep. She looked over to see Nick picking at his fingers and looking out the window at the desolation beyond. Why he insisted on having that open to stare at, she couldn't fathom, but there was also something in him, in his darkness and underneath that joking, cocky exterior that called to her, even if she wasn't ready to admit it yet.

  Carlie took a deep breath and decided to be brave and walk over to him, sitting down on the cot next to him. Nick glanced over at her for a moment, his eyes looking inquisitive and tired rather than holding their usual luster of mischief. She was taken aback by it and unsure what to say with his guard obviously down. "I thought you didn't like looking out there," he said flatly, turning back to the window again.

  Carlie shook her head, sure to look away and down at her feet. "No, I don't, but I can't sleep either. Why do you look at it?"

  "It keeps me sane." He said it as if it made the most sense in the world, but Carlie was a little lost there.

  "What do you mean?" she asked quietly, trying not to sound like she thought he was crazy, even if she was beginning to wonder. Not that she felt sane at the moment at all either. Tanner and Alex seemed to be the voices of reason, and even they were starting to falter. She could see the cracks around the edges, and she didn't know if her humor was enough to hold them together anymore. She was beginning to learn that the time for laughter may be far behind.

  "It's complete destruction and chaos out there; it's normal. At least, that's my normal. Much more normal than being locked in a room and hearing about angels every day and not even being hungry or thirsty."

  Carlie nodded, something inside of her trying to burst free that she had buried deep. It was never that she didn't hold any anger or pain for the things that had happened to her as a foster kid. She had just chosen to handle it a different way. She wanted to live a happy and fun life. She had fought back with humor and then had found the happiness she was seeking, at least a piece of it, when she had met Tanner. It had her missing home a bit, and she was scared that she and Tanner were growing apart here instead of together.

  "I can see why you would think that. I mean, I can't imagine you having anything calm considering you were running from the cops when I found you." She gave a half laugh, but it didn't reach her eyes. It was her version of praying, seeing if he would tell her anything.

  "It's a long story," was all he had to say, and she rolled her eyes.

  "It's not like I can go anywhere," Carlie offered him, and he sighed and looked at her again.

  "Look, you're pretty, and you brought me to others like me, saved me from a life in prison or a psych ward. I am grateful for that. I am sorry if I don't seem it. But as far as opening up. It will take time. All I ever had was my family, one friend, and myself I could trust. I don't know much about you either," he retorted.

  Carlie felt herself blushing at the mention of her being pretty. She hadn't expected it, but it wasn't necessarily wrapped up in a nice package.

  "I am sorry. When we met Alexandra, it was just like we had known each other forever. Because we were all in this together there was this instant trust. I didn't expect it to be harder with you, but if it makes you feel any better, I came from a long line of foster homes. Tanner and I were not rich by any means, in fact, he was about to get a job to support his younger siblings when we left for Kingsbridge to find Alex. I know things aren't always easy and sunshine, I just like to try and make them that way if I can." Carlie tried being honest, hoping it would help him feel better.

  "You don't look like a foster kid," he said, surveying her.

  "I was in a nice home this time, probably the nicest I had ever been in. An older woman with no kids and a lot of odd sales jobs," Carlie answered him. "Tanner was my neighbor."

  "What's up with the two of you anyway. Are you a thing?" Nick asked, raising his eyebrow at her and making C
arlie get goosebumps all over her skin. Why did she have to be so obvious? This was not the time to give away her heart and all that, not yet. She didn't know how he felt, and she wasn't about to end up in a situation like Alex. She didn't think she was strong enough to get through a loss like that.

  "A thing?" she asked with a giggle. Not only was it a funny way to ask if they were together, but it was also hilarious that Nick couldn't tell it wasn't even a possibility. "No way. Don't you know he's gay?" she clarified. Nick sat down, fully turning around, facing the same direction as her, as if the news had knocked him back.

  "No, I guess I didn't know. But now that you mention it, I did see him giving that Gabe guy the eyes." Both of them started laughing, and Carlie covered her mouth, trying not to wake up the others.

  ***

  This time, the door opened without any warning; no knock or anything. Gabe was standing there in the doorway flanked by an angel they had not seen before. Carlie got up behind Alex and the rest and followed them out, her eyes squinting shut in fear as she took that final step, over the line, where previously she had been shocked by the angel on guard. But she happily felt nothing, and they were all free on the other side. She looked around, but all she could see before her was an impossibly long, white hallway leading to nowhere. Was this some kind of fun house?

  "Well, hey there," this new angel said, winking at Carlie. What was it with everyone flirting with her lately? She had to admit, though, this angel was unbearably hot. He looked like something out of a Calvin Klein ad with white pants, pure white wings, and nothing more covering him beyond a small tattoo over one of his pecs. His hair was dark and shaggy, and he had these perfect dimples on his face that looked like God himself had put a finger in them to make each. "I am Cassiel," he continued. "The second in command of sorts around here. I will be showing you around the Revenant today," he said and looked like he was waiting for applause or something. Carlie rolled her eyes as she waited to find out what was next in this labyrinth of a place.

  "So....we're allowed to be out now?" Nick asked, scratching the back of his neck nonchalantly, asking the question that was on everyone's mind.

  "Yes, for now." Gabe was the one who answered, looking much more docile than when they first met him.

  Carlie followed behind Cassiel as he started the tour, and the hallway began to shrink as they went through it, unveiling a bustling corridor with many different paths to follow and doors to go in. There were angels everywhere, all looking much too busy to stop and even notice the humans in their midst.

  He began rambling off things about the place, which way was which, and Carlie tried to pay attention and log it in case they got the inkling to try and find a way out. There was no use. It was a big mess, confusing, and she was not that great with directions. She needed a GPS for this place.

  Movement caught Carlie’s eye as they rounded a corner. That strawberry blonde hair of Alex's was at their backs, walking in another direction. Cassiel said nothing and didn’t even look her way. She didn't know what Alex was up to, but she was absolutely certain that if anyone could get answers in a place like this, it was Alexandra.

  She had this intelligence and this charm about her that few could resist, like the allure of a princess mixed with the authority of a mother.

  Carlie’s eyes darted over to Nick who luckily wasn't looking her way as she thought of the fact she possessed nothing of the sort. She had never been jealous of such things before, but now she found herself wishing for those traits. In having them, she could get what she wanted the way Alex did, not still living her life like some foster kid.

  Gabe and Tanner had fallen behind as Carlie was pulled back to what Cassiel was saying. “So, I hear you all have powers of some kind like Gabe back there,” he said, nodding towards the odd one out. Well, at least he had been before. Carlie got the feeling Tanner would bring him to their side soon enough. Hopefully, he was worth it.

  Carlie turned back to Cassiel and nodded. “Yeah, I can move shit with my mind,” Nick blurted out, looking as smug as ever. Carlie gave him a sideways glance, and he shrugged at her.

  “I would appreciate if you didn’t use that sort of language in a place like this. I mean, God is not here with us, in fact, most of us have never met Him, but we still want reverence here,” Cassiel informed him as they continued along in the maze of corridors. Carlie had no idea how they would get back to their room if they got separated. Hopefully, Alex would find them again, so she could lead them back.

  “Whatever,” Nick said with an exaggerated eye roll.

  “So,” Cassiel said, glancing back at Carlie, “what's your power sweets?”

  Sweets? Really? Did an angel just call her that? He was openly flirting, and it was very strange, even if he was such a good-looking creature. The idea of being with an angel did not appeal to her necessarily. She didn't think she could handle that level of purity after all the dirt she’d been raised in and around.

  “Umm, I can astral project,” Carlie answered, not wanting to disrespect the second in command and get them in more trouble or locked up again. She just couldn't stand it.

  “I guess that’s pretty cool. Can you do it on demand, or does it just happen when it wants to happen?” Cassiel was uncomfortably focused on her now. No longer was he telling them anything as they whooshed by more white doors and more good-looking men with wings. How many angels were part of the Revenant anyway?

  “I haven't figured out how to do it when I want to yet,” she admitted, hoping the realization that she was nothing special would turn him off, but it only spurred him on and on.

  “So, what's the second in command doing demoted to a tour guide, then?” Nick butted in, and Carlie slapped the side of his shoulder hard. She couldn't believe he had said that to someone who might have been taking them to the leader this whole time.

  Cassiel suddenly stopped, his arms crossed over his chest.

  “The tour is officially over.” They were suddenly all back in their room, the same room as before with the window still open to show the dead world outside. Alex was nowhere in sight, and Carlie had no idea if and when they would be allowed out again.

  Chapter 5

  A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous. ~Ingrid Bergman

  CARLIE immediately walked up to Nick and pinched his arm. He screamed and looked at her. "What was that for?" he asked her in a loud voice, making the other two look at them strangely.

  "We'll leave you two alone to work this out, I think," Gabe said, looking at Tanner. "Why don't we get out of here. I don't really want to watch these two go at it."

  Carlie blushed, getting the duel meaning of Gabe’s words as they walked out the door, no zaps occurring. She was too frustrated at the moment with Nick, to even give a crap one way or the other.

  "That was for what you did back there! He could have been taking us to see the leader of the Revenant. We might have gotten to go home or something. We might have gotten answers," she scolded. "Why were you acting so dumb?"

  "Dumb?" Nick asked, popping out his shirt and looking around for support from invisible bystanders. He was frustrated now. He thought he had done them all a favor. The way Cassiel had been acting was way out of line. Angel or no angel, he was supposed to be showing them around, not flirting with one of them. He had gleaned nothing from that other than what he already knew; that angels were not so pristine as everyone thought after all. And how could they be if they looked just like humans, with white wings strapped to their backs? No, they were no different at all, just more powerful, in his opinion. They were jealous of what the teens had, these powers and a way to live and make choices for themselves.

  "Well, what else am I supposed to call it when you insult the second in command of the Revenant? It was our first chance to even be beyond these four walls since we got here. Didn't you learn anything from me getting zapped? Defiance will not be tolerated."

  Nick scoffed. Defiance. That was just a wor
d made up by authority that was scared of losing its authority when people got wise to its crap; it was a game.

  "What I learned is this place is full of jerks, we are being held prisoner, and white is nothing but a damn color," he challenged, crossing his arms as he looked her over. "You weren't sticking up for yourself anyway. Somebody had to. I am pretty sure flirting with a human on the job was not in his job description.”

  He watched Carlie as he hit the nail on the head, her cheeks turning red from the mention of her being flirted with. How could Cassiel not flirt with her? Her striking blue eyes and contrasting dark hair made her look like she could be Snow White. She was perfect, but that didn't make it okay. Not one bit.

  "He is an angel and holding us hostage. He can do whatever he wants, Nick." Carlie threw her hands up in the air. If Nick had to fight with someone at least it was someone with a lot of passion. She certainly knew how to stand her ground even if she was wrong.

  Who was he kidding? They were both wrong. It was all wrong. He had never lived in a world where he could be right anyway, so what did it matter?

  "No, I don't think that's the way it works. To just do whatever he wants. He has a leader, and I think it’s unethical to know that he was spending his time supposedly showing us around, flirting with one of us. In fact, flirting in a very disrespectful way for someone who is supposed to be angelic. The way he was acting wasn't right. It was all over your face. But why wouldn't you want me to stand up for you? Or was it that you liked what he was doing?"

  Carlie let out a guttural growl as if she was an animal. She put one hand on each side of her head and squeezed. She was really pissed off at him, didn't want to listen to him, and wanted him to back down. He just couldn't make himself do it, it was the criminal in him. "No, I didn't like it. What caused you to jump to that conclusion? This is completely offensive, Nick. And here you are telling someone else it’s offensive when you're being that way. This is utterly ridiculous. We may never get out of here if you keep disrespecting angels like that. You have got to get a handle on your attitude."