Heavenly Hell (Heavenly Hell Book 1) Page 10

  After lunch I gathered my stuff and headed to class. Unfortunately for me, Nate was in every class the rest of the day. After the first class, I faked that I needed to use the bathroom. Naturally, Nate followed me. I went into the one I had used this morning and opened up the very last stall. I pulled myself up and out of the window and landed on the ground as quietly as I could. Then I ran as fast as I could to my car, which had been moved by Connor out of the car park and on to the street. He had done as instructed and left it unlocked with my key left in the glove box. Opening up the door, I threw myself in. I started the engine and put my foot down, getting away before Nate realized what I had done. Constantly checking my rear-view mirror, I made it out of town without a speeding ticket or my adversary chasing behind.

  After forty-five minutes of bopping along to the top forty countdown and enjoying the only time I had free to myself for days, I came to my destination. I was staking out a man whose girlfriend swore he was having affairs with numerous women. He was a working for a tire repair company. I sat on a park bench close by, watching all of his movements. Damn, he was fast in taking the tires off and putting on a new set. I could see why his girlfriend was worried. This guy was built like a gymnast. His large biceps stuck out each time he lifted one of the tires, not to mention when he reached up and grabbed tools, his shirt rode up to reveal a tightly toned six-pack. The view was quite nice from where I sat.

  The last hour of his working day I observed him personally giving the keys back to the owners. In this time, he had three female customers, whom he casually approached, gave them the keys, and then gave instructions to head over to the office for payment. Nothing indicated he was being anything but nice, and he acted in the same casual manner, regardless of his client’s gender.

  He was knocking off for the day and heading to the pub. He told his girlfriend he was going to the pub, but his car never went there. I drove behind him at a slow pace. We passed the pub, well three actually, to the opposite side of town. Then we pulled up at a lovely white western style home. He got out of the car and suspiciously stood looking around in every direction before walking up the stone pebbled path and quickly knocking on the front door. Damn, the screen door was a thick wire mesh with tiny holes for complete privacy. I missed out in seeing who had been on the other side of the door. I would have to get out and look through the windows and catch him in the act. This guy wasn’t appearing to be the person I originally thought he was. Opening up my car door, I scanned the area for any witnesses. Slowly creeping up to the bay window I looked inside. I could not believe my eyes. The occupant was definitely a woman, and she may have been many things, but a love interest was not what came to mind. Together they sat on a long stool in front of a piano, slender wrinkly fingers played an old time classic as the tone-deaf man sang along to “Goodnight Irene.”

  It was all clicking into place now. He wasn’t having an affair—he was receiving vocal lessons, and I didn’t think the song choice was his own. The oldie was over and the old woman turned to her pupil.

  “Did you get it, my dear?” asked the music instructor.

  “Yes, I did Mrs. Wheaters.”

  “Can I have a look?”

  “Yes, here it is.” He pulled a box out of his pocket that contained a ginormous diamond ring. This monster was a few carats and would have cost him a half year’s worth of wages, easily.

  “Well I think you’re nearly ready. I’m saying by next week,” said Mrs. Wheaters.

  Covering my mouth, I muffled my giggle. I turned and made the trek back to my car. That old lady must be hearing impaired because there was no way that guy could hold a tune. But the thought of him getting lessons to serenade his girlfriend was utterly hilarious. Sweet, but lame. Grabbing my phone from the glove box, I was surprised that Nate had messaged me. I didn’t give him my number, so I wondered who had. His message was short and simple: ‘sneaky cow.’ Oh, so now we have resorted to name-calling.

  I called the contact number for this case, and the woman I was working for answered.

  “Hi, I’m the investigator you hired,” I said.

  “Oh, I’m not ready to hear this … do I have to?” wondered my client.

  She sounded really worried, and if I had to drive all this way in a stinking hot car, sweltering like a pig, she was going to get her answers. Preparing to give the boring speech that AJ had organized for any case when the man in question was innocent, I cleared my throat.

  “Yes, you do. While working on this case today, I have found your boyfriend to be nothing but courteous and polite to all females, and to not have overstepped those boundaries. It has come to my attention, though, that this guy is a true gentleman and one of a kind.” With that, our conversation was over. This was a first for me. I had never had to say that … ever. The guys I had been sent to investigate in the past were very sketchy and none were remorseful of their actions. All of the men until now were far from saintly, and we always had a steady flow of clients.

  I didn’t get back ‘til quite late. Why rush back to my stalking shadow? I thought I would let him sweat it out. As I pulled into my driveway I was expecting him to be in his car, waiting. That petrol guzzler was empty, but the house wasn’t. Connor’s bedroom was lit up, and the TV in the lounge room was turned on.

  Sitting in my favorite recliner with a beer in his hand, eating my last packet of pretzels was the bane of my existence. I exploded with rage when I saw my little Lucky sitting on his lap, snuggling up to him. As gently as I could, I took the puppy and put him in the laundry. Now to deal with the person who had contaminated my beloved chair. Grabbing the back of the recliner, I turned it around so now Nate was facing the door.

  “What are you doing?”

  I ignored Nate’s question.

  Tipping the chair back as far as I could, I pushed it with all my might. He was struggling, trying to get out. His arms and legs were flailing everywhere. I couldn’t help the grin on my face, and I’m sure it looked sadistic. With one last all-of-my-might shove, I forced the recliner with Nate in it outside the door. I slammed my body against the door and locked up all of the latches. I’m glad the previous owner had been an extreme recluse; otherwise, I would have had to drag something over to the door to keep him out.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Nate

  I had been following Indy since this morning. She wasn’t happy about it, but she would have to get used to it. I didn’t know her motives concerning her ill treatment of men, how often she struck, or if she got anything out of it. I was worried that Connor, Mark, or any man would be the next victim, so it made sense for me to follow her. She walked just ahead of me and every time I matched her step she would walk just a little bit faster. She didn’t want to be walking next to me. I didn’t want to be next to her either, but it bugged her more than it annoyed me.

  This morning, she had stopped to go to the toilet, and I waited just outside the door for her. It made me feel like a real creep—like one of those dirty men waiting for young girls outside the public toilets at beaches. Some of our friends had passed and asked what I was doing. When I told them I was waiting for Indy, they gave me a funny look, especially Connor. For the rest of the day every time he saw me, I got the filthiest look. I honestly could not blame him, but he knew there was nothing going on between us.

  Indy came out from the toilet and walked in the direction we were headed. The hate was radiating from her. I didn’t think it would be long ‘til she got annoyed with this and ran. I was hoping that was the case. Her attempt in befriending me by saving my life was not going to work. The hard impact may have killed me, but I was hoping that my body was a little tougher than that. Then, to top it off, I was still being hailed as the hero. My popularity status had risen high.

  I followed her around for every class, only half aware of what she was doing. I mostly played games on my iPhone, and as long as she was in eyesight, I was happy. It felt a little like babysitting, and the comments from others around me confirmed this.
One boy said that I must be worried she’d trip over her own shadow and to stay a bit closer.

  When she headed to the toilet for the second time, the feeling of being a creep came back. I gave her a little more space this time. I waited over near the lockers. She was taking a little while, but I wasn’t going to run in there if she had unpleasant business going on. The corridor died down, the last students went into their classes, and Indy still wasn’t out.

  For the second time in two days I felt stupidity hitting me in the face again. I stormed into the bathroom and found all of the stalls empty. I knew she would be long gone by now. She could have jumped out the window ten minutes ago. I was really proving to not be as smart as her, and she knew this. I had to remember that she had been around for hundreds of years and had all of that knowledge to use. I had twenty-one years worth of knowledge, but that did not mean I could not outsmart her. I just had to play the game as well as she did.

  I continued my day, going to all of the classes. I didn’t want it getting back to her that I was stressed out. I would not allow that satisfaction to humour her. When school was finished, I went to the skate park with Brandon for a long time. He was getting a lot better and it was good to find a friend who I had something in common with.

  It was getting dark, so I started to wander over to Indy’s house. All of the lights were on, and the front door was wide open. I knocked and Connor came to the front door.

  “What do you want?” Connor said bluntly.

  “I’m here for Indy,” I said in the same manner.

  “Well she is not here, and I don’t know when she will be home. Was she expecting you?”

  “I think she was,” I said jokingly.

  She wasn’t necessarily expecting me, but Connor never asked me to explain further. He pushed open the screen door and let me in. I went to sit in the big recliner; it looked really comfortable. Better than anything in the house I was staying in.

  “I wouldn’t sit in that chair,” Connor warned me.

  Ignoring his warning, I sat in it and made myself comfortable. A little puppy came up to me, and his face nearly made me vomit. How can humans be so mean to animals? Weren’t we supposed to be the better of the two species? In this poor baby’s case it was hard to believe. I picked him up, and he curled himself around in my lap and rested his head against me.

  “Indy will kill you. First, you’re in her chair and second, you’re nursing Lucky. Together that’s enough to warrant murder,” said Connor.

  “I will be fine,” I said.

  Secretly that was a fight I was hoping for … kind of. The front door opened behind me and slammed closed. The puppy was pulled from my hands and put in the other room. I was hoping this would be the fight I had tried to plan. Instead, she grabbed the back of the chair and threw it outside—with me on it. I had struggled to get out, but it was hopeless. I had to give this round to her; she had shown tremendous restraint.

  The sweet rose signature that seeped from her had grown stronger after she threw me out—it was bleeding through the cracks of the front door—calling me to break it down. Now I was showing extreme restraint as my muscles kept on pulling me forward, but my common sense made me back away. The side of me that let the adrenaline take over was inhumane and was a dirty fighter; knowing that Connor was inside caused a problem.

  My mind knew this wasn’t the time or the place to complete this mission. I would have to wait.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Indiana

  The sun crested over the horizon and right into my window. I had been lying awake thinking of ways to get rid of Nate. Today I was playing a different game. One that I knew would work very effectively. One thing this little boy was forgetting was that I was thousands of years old and had witnessed the numerous games men played with women. He was a seventeen year old with exactly that amount of knowledge behind him. Who the heck did he think he was kidding?

  I changed into a cute floral corset style singlet top and black skirt that I purchased yesterday and grabbed a bowl of Coco Pops. While I ate, I flipped through the latest copy of Runway. I needed a dress for the graduation ball. The ball gown hanging up in my cupboard was a little dated and should have been thrown out ages ago. I hadn’t graduated for a few years, and I didn’t feel like making all that fuss over one night, but since I was here with Nessa and developed a strong friendship, I wanted some memories to take with me.

  Connor was sitting next to me eating his Pop Tart. We were going to run out if I didn’t buy some more soon. He grabbed my keys because he wanted to do the driving today. I didn’t mind being chauffeured around these days.

  Most of the gang was there when we arrived, and I mingled to the side with Nessa, gossiping about one of the girls.

  I was about to set my plan into action. The group was huddled outside the front entrance. Connor left my side to admire the new Birdman Board from Tony Hawk’s latest line. The bright blue and yellow graphics showed off the bird skull label. I had learned a lot in the last few weeks from just observing the boys, and their conversation now centered on their idol, Tony. I squeezed my body into the tight space between Nate and Mark. This was going to play out either one way or the other, and I'm hoping it was my way. I extended my arm, wrapped it around Nate’s waist and snuggled my head into his side. His body became rigid and stiffer than his skateboard. We were the centre of attention, and everyone's mouths were wide open.

  “Mate … are we missing something here?” Mark asked, a sly grin on his face.

  Nate threw my arm away and jerked his body from mine. He stormed off in the opposite direction of school. Phase one of my plan had worked. Hopefully I wouldn't have to implement phases two or three. Connor was looking at me strangely, and I knew he was going to ask, but he wasn't going to get any answers. Nessa grabbed my arm and led me away.

  “Spill it, Indy,” she demanded.

  I hadn't taken any of this into consideration. Damn, I only wanted to piss off Nate. What could I tell her? It was sure to be hot gossip and word would travel like fire around the school. Keep it brief, I thought.

  “Well, tell me.” Nessa was now standing in front of me with her hands on her hips.

  “It just happened.” Biting my lip, I begged internally that this would satisfy her.

  “Is he a good kisser?”

  Battling to hide my utter disgust, I tried to keep my face neutral. What I was feeling inside would be locked up behind a heavy duty door. I had to play this out ‘til the end.

  “I can't kiss and tell,” I played coy.

  I smiled and greeted Mr. Hopwood with a grin as I walked into class. “Hiding behind a seventeen year old is pretty weak. Grow up, become a man, and stay away from school girls.”

  I was still pissed about the failing grade and had been silently waiting to catch him.

  Today I would get two chances. Recreational Activities was my next period. If we had the luck of playing volleyball again, he had better stay clear of me. Reaching Rec Studies, my excitement was short lived. As soon as we reached the tennis court, we were instructed to run the cross country course. I dropped my bag and started to prepare my body for a sprint.

  “Indiana, if you can run the course in double the time as the other students then maybe you can do two laps,” said Hopwood.

  Hopwood didn't have his bodyguard, but he had the other teachers. They seemed to agree, but only because of my complete lack of interest to join the team. I started my jog slowly and kept a slow even pace. When I was halfway around the track I noticed others just starting. I found a large rock, sat down, and got myself comfortable. I was going to make another statement and come in dead last, and I would continue this until I decided otherwise. My first passer-by decided to sit with me and take a seat, also.

  “Indy, what is going on with you and Nate?” Connor finally got the chance to ask the million-dollar question.

  “Not much … we’re just having fun,” I said nonchalantly.

  “You can't fool me. I have seen
him outside our house at night watching you and you going outside to see him. You and Nate are glued together at the moment. Wherever you are, he is not far behind, if not right next to you, but the vibe I get isn’t exactly loving.”

  “Nothing, Connor.” I hated lying to people all the time.

  “You either tell me, or I will go ask him myself, and I'm sure the last thing he will say is that you’re dating, especially given the look of contempt that is written all over him when he stares at you.”

  “We’re not having this conversation here. Maybe tonight, if at all,” I said.

  I had broken most of the rules that were set for me by the angels when I fell, except to keep my identity secret from all humans. The punishment was said to be death—but to whom? Me? The human I had confided in? Maybe it was time to go—I just don’t know.