Coexist: Keegan's Chronicles (8 page)

“Why did you stop running and climb the
tree?”

Thaddeus smiled, “I knew you were done
playing and were about to capture me after you faked a fall.”

Speechless, Rourk just stared at him.
Finally, he said, “So you’re the son of Richard. I have heard much
about you. I’ll tell your father that he should be proud to have
such a remarkable son. No student has ever come close to catching
me.”

Thaddeus looked up at him. “I’ll get you next
time,” and after a slight pause added, “probably,” with an impish
grin.

Rourk laughed, unable to help himself. He
wasn’t supposed to form relationships with his students, but he
liked Thaddeus.

All at once, it dawned on him. The man who he
looked up to the most was Keegan’s father, but how could that be?
Richard had never treated him any differently than the others.
Rourk was grateful he hadn’t learned of this when he was younger.
Over the years, he’d proven himself to Richard without the added
stress of trying to impress the man who would someday be his
father-in-law.

“Have you told her anything about me?” Rourk
asked softly.

He replied, “Only your name.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Someday she will be in danger, and that was
the only way I could think of for you to save her.”

This rattled Rourk to the core. He knew
better than to ask for more details even though he wanted to grab
the boy and shake it out of him. He knew he couldn’t ask this of a
seer. The fact that he told him as much as he did and allowed his
sister the ability to pull him towards her when she needed help was
unbelievable enough. Rourk looked him in the eyes and said, “Thank
you, you have my word that I will do everything in my power to keep
your sister safe. Can I ask you one thing?”

Thaddeus shrugged, eyeing Rourk with
interest. “That depends.”

Meeting his eyes, Rourk asked, “What’s her
name?”

Thaddeus laughed. “Her name is Keegan.”

Rourk said the name in his head a few times
getting use to the sound of it.

“The name suits her,” Thaddeus said. “It
means ‘little fiery one’.”

“Why am I pulled to her, but not her to
me?”

“Magic, of course. Partners are cloaked from
each other until they turn eighteen. I had yours removed.”

“How did you manage that?”

“That’s two questions, Rourk. You know I
can’t disclose that information. But I will tell you this. Once it
was known that I was the child in the prophecy, my reach was pretty
much unlimited. I have at my disposal anything that could allow our
race to live on.”

Rourk nodded his head at the boy in
understanding.

***

Keegan was walking out of school when her
phone went off. She grabbed it and looked at the caller ID; it was
her Aunt Kat.

“Hey, what’s up?” Keegan said.

“Can you babysit tonight? Drew and I need a
date night.”

“How could I say no to my favorite aunt?”

“Uh, huh. I thought Brigid was your favorite
since she spoils you.”

“Fine then, it’s a tie.”

“Well, hopefully I will be your favorite
after you see the present I got for you.”

***

Later that evening, Katrina walked through
the door with the biggest grin on her face. She was obviously
rather proud of herself for something. “Guess which of your
favorite aunts has four tickets to 30 Seconds to Mars?”

Keegan squealed with delight. The concert had
been sold out for weeks.

“Just make sure to tell those girls that
there will be no making out with their boyfriends on my watch.” Kat
took them to many concerts, and the last time she got mad at Lauren
for meeting up with Josh and making out most of the time. She’d
said they had plenty of time for that on their own time.

Keegan called Anna and Lauren right away and
had them all on the phone on a three way. “Kat just hooked us up
with 30 Seconds to Mars tickets,” Keegan said.

She had to move the phone away from her ear
when the other two girls started screaming. “I know, she’s the
best. I have to go; I’m watching Merrick and Mackenna tonight.
We’ll go over what we’ll wear at school.”

The girls said their goodbyes and Keegan
turned to face Katrina.

“They say they love you and that you are the
most amazing person in the world.”

Kat smiled, causing her face to glow.

T
he next day, their father walked in while Thaddeus
was training Keegan. They were in the middle of sprints and he
yelled, “Vanish Keegan.”

She hesitated, which of course was a mistake.
She hated to disappoint him.

He called them over and told Thaddeus he
needed to work on her reaction skills. “She needs to be able to use
her gift without hesitation no matter what her surroundings are,”
he said.

Keegan hated when they talked about her like
she wasn’t there.

“Keegan, you have a skill that any soldier
would kill for, but it does you no good if you’re not able to use
it when needed. If a knife is coming down on you, a bullet is
fired, or someone is strangling you, you should be gone. Of course,
it’s only to be used in a life or death situation, and until then
you fight. We cannot give away our secret. If you went invisible in
front of a human, it might draw some attention. However, if your
life is at stake, you never hesitate.” She was about to say
something about those scenarios being ridiculous, but the
seriousness of his expression stopped her.

Her brother drilled her for hours after her
dad left, and she didn’t feel as if she’d improved at all. Keegan
had only used her gift for fun before, and it had always been at a
leisurely pace. She wasn’t sure she was going to be able to do what
her father wanted.

***

Rourk sat in his room staring at the wall.
His mind raced.
How
had the boy even been assigned to him?
If Richard really was
Keegan’s father, he’d want to keep them separated. The only logical
explanation was they wanted him to know, maybe having faith in him
that he could change the future. This made him sure there had to be
some threat to Keegan that would lead to her death and that they
were trying to intervene in the natural course of destiny. This was
not something that was done lightly. It had to be happening soon
because it was to be before they were to meet. Could it be
something to do with the great battle? Why else would they
intervene?

Rourk didn’t want to overstep his boundaries,
but he had to talk to Richard. Once he reached the camp, he went
directly into Richard’s office.

When Richard saw Rourk, he broke into his
easy smile. “I have been waiting for you,” he said.

Rourk was always surprised how this man could
put people at ease. It was one of the traits that made him an
exceptional leader and the reason why men were so devoted to
him.

“I wasn’t sure if I should come talk to you
or not. However, after going over it repeatedly, I had to. There is
a flaw in this plan.”

“There is a flaw in every plan, but we must
make do with what we have.”

Rourk asked, “Can I war game this out with
you?”

Richard sighed, “Very well, I will hear you
out.”

War gaming was when they thought through the
outcome of a mission beforehand, and it was a way to make sure they
were aware of different possibilities and variables that could
affect the outcome.

“I don’t think this will work without Keegan
being aware of the plan. How can we be certain that she will even
think of me if she is in danger?”

This brought a loud laugh from Richard. “Son,
you have a lot to learn about women. There are many flaws to our
plan, but that is not one of them.”

His reaction surprised Rourk. “How can you be
so certain?”

Richard smiled. “As warriors, we do not fear
death. We couldn’t possibly do our job if we did. That’s what makes
us different from the others. All we wish in death is to die
bravely. However, on every occasion that I have come close to death
I have always thought of my wife. So you can imagine a
sixteen-year-old would think of the one she has yet to meet.”

Rourk stared at him trying to hide his
astonishment. “I am to meet her before she turns 17?”

Richard put his hand on Rourk’s shoulder.
“This is why you’re good enough for my daughter and the reason why
I am relieving you of your training duties. Now your job is to
protect my daughter.”

K
eegan walked outside and saw her mother swinging on
the porch swing. She walked over and sat down next to her.

The day was another of sunshine, but the air
held a chilly breeze. Emerald was wrapped in a brightly colored
shawl, her feet planted firmly on the wooden boards of the porch as
she swung.

“Mom, I keep thinking about Anna’s mother. I
really think you should give her a healing.”

Emerald looked over at her daughter. Keegan
had never asked her to give a healing before. “I guess I could call
her. I think she’d be surprised though. It not like we talk on a
regular basis.”

Keegan smiled and said, “Thanks, and try not
to let on that Anna told you about it.”

“Well, that is going to be almost impossible
Keegan. I’ll figure something out so Anna doesn’t get in trouble
for confiding in you.”

After Keegan walked away, Emerald could not
stop thinking about her conversation with her, and she felt the
need to help Anna’s mother. Anna was one of Keegan’s best friends.
If Anna’s mother were suffering, Anna would also be affected. She
hesitated and then headed inside to the phone.

“Hello, Jennifer, I know this is unusual, but
would you mind if I came over to visit?”

There was a brief silence; the woman was
probably surprised. “Ah sure, of course, you can come over.”

A little while later, Emerald arrived at
Jennifer’s house.

Anna’s parents lived modestly in a small
stone ranch house not too far from Keegan’s own home. Jennifer was
a tall, thin woman with dark circles under her brown eyes and her
long brown hair pulled into a messy ponytail. She was dressed
casually in jeans and a plain white t-shirt, pink flip flops on her
long feet. She met Emerald at the door with a tentative smile.

When she walked in, Emerald decided not to
beat around the bush.

“I overheard the girls talking and understand
you have problems with depression.”

Jennifer was clearly uncomfortable. She
looked down at her feet and said, “Why would Anna tell them
that?”

Emerald reached out and put her hand on her
shoulder. “There is nothing to be embarrassed about. I think I
might be able to help you.” Emerald explained that she was a second
degree reiki healer; that was how she explained her healing
powers.

Jennifer seemed interested, and almost looked
hopeful “It’s worth a shot at this point.”

Emerald said, “We’ll need a quiet place where
you can lay down.”

Jennifer led her into the spare bedroom. It
was a quiet room in the back of the house with soft blue walls and
minimalist furniture—a twin bed with no headboard but a pretty
floral quilt and a white chest of drawers holding a single vase of
fresh roses. It was cool and dim.

“All you have to do is close your eyes and
relax,” Emerald told her as Jennifer slid on to the bed. “You may
or may not feel heat coming from my hands, but even if you don’t it
will still work.”

With a serious nod, Jennifer settled against
the pillow and closed her eyes.

“I’m going to turn on some relaxing music,
and then we will start.” Emerald pulled her iPod from her back
pocket and connected it to the small radio sitting on the bedside
stand. The light sound of flutes and chimes filled the room.

Moving her hands over Jennifer’s body,
Emerald quickly realized something was not right. Humans have a
certain type of energy and Jennifer’s was not human. Still, Emerald
gave her a complete healing.

Jennifer was amazed at how happy she felt
afterwards. “I don’t recall feeling this normal in a long time.
It’s as if a cloud has been lifted from my soul.”

Emerald knew exactly what she felt, because
she could feel what the individual felt during a healing. Humans
believed healers were drained after a healing which was far from
the truth. Every time Emerald gave a healing, she felt as renewed
as the person who received it. She almost felt selfish when using
her gift on others because she received so much in return.

As she was walking out the door, Emerald
handed Jennifer a St. Dymphna’s medallion. “Have this with you
always.”

Grasping it in her hand, Jennifer said, “What
is it for?”

Emerald was silent for a moment and then
said, “She is the Saint of emotional and mental disorders, and the
medallion will help ward off the depression.”

Jennifer’s eyes teared up. Already, the dark
circles that had been under them were fading. She sniffed, brushing
away a tear before it could fall. “Thank you. I can never repay you
for this.”

Emerald smiled. “There is nothing to repay.
Please call me if you feel it is coming back.”

Emerald was not sure what kind of creature
she was, but she was certain Jennifer was on the side of the light.
She also knew that there would be no need for her to call. During a
full healing, all the blockages are removed and Jennifer would be
the healthiest she had ever been in her life. The medallion had
been energized with healing properties.

Jennifer shut the door and thought
Reiki my ass! That
woman was gifted
. All these years and she had been clueless
that they were not human. Whatever Emerald was, she now was in her
debt. Jennifer had lost her will to live and had been walking
around like a shell of a person. Now she felt energized and more
alive than ever. Her husband would come home to a different woman.
She wondered if it would be enough to save their marriage. She
realized even if it wasn’t, she would be fine. She was strong
enough to be on her own. She should have known marrying a human
would be bad for her soul. Jennifer debated asking Anna if she knew
anything about Keegan’s secret, but she decided against it.
Ultimately it was Keegan’s secret to keep.