Chapter 11
It’s early morning by the time we make it back to Kim’s house right outside the pack property. The sun is just coming up over the horizon. Instead of seeing it as the catalyst of my loneliness, because none of my baddies would visit me during the daylight, I see the beautiful way the early morning light twinkles on the slightly dewy grass, and the way it shimmers on Kim’s metal roof, causing a mirage of heat waves to rise up into the sky. I’ve seen all these things before, but before my vision was distorted with isolation.
Gunnar parks the car and Calix, who’s been very quiet since we left Torin’s, climbs out the rear passenger door. I open my door to find Gunnar standing just outside waiting for me, further proof I’m no longer alone just because the sun is out. I take his proffered hand, and we make our way up to the porch. The front door is propped into place from the inside. Calix reaches in and shoves it to the side, allowing us to enter.
“You didn’t have to kick the door down,” Calix scolds over his shoulder, stating the obvious. I’m sure Gunnar knows he didn’t have to do it. He did it to be an asshole, because Kim was being an asshole.
“But it was fun.”
Calix scoffs at Gunnar’s response but heads straight for the kitchen. Unlike me, none of them ate while we were at Torin’s. Blessedly, I never did get sick, not even a little, and I’m wondering how long it’s going to take before someone wants to talk about it. Thankfully, everyone still seems to be too engrossed in pack issues to worry about why I’ve suddenly developed an appetite.
I reach for Grim’s arm as he starts to follow Calix into the kitchen and release Gunnar’s hand, giving the Berserker a nod to go ahead without us. “Grim, can you show me how to release these souls or whatever?” I feel a little crazy asking, but maybe it has something to do with why my body is so fucked up right now.
He turns his arm over and reverses our hold, so he’s now cradling my arm. “Certainly, my apologies for the delay.”
“It’s not your fault. It’s just… yeah, I’m just ready now.” I push my hair back over my shoulder with my free hand. I don’t like knowing I have two souls cruising around inside me, nor do I want to be responsible for creating shades like Grim told me about at the Marshall House.
Grim looks around. “Come with me.” I don’t know why, but my stomach erupts in nervous butterflies. What if I can’t do it?
He takes us upstairs to what I think is just a spare bedroom. The bed is made up, but I don’t see anything personal, leading me to think no one sleeps here regularly. It makes me curious why Kim lives outside the pack land. “Should I change?”
Grim looks me over. “Yes, get comfortable.” I leave him standing in the spare room to go change.
“Have a seat on the bed,” Grim instructs when I return in yoga pants and a t-shirt. I hesitate for just a second. The reasons I want these things gone haven’t changed just because I’m nervous.
“Should I lie down?”
“Whatever makes you feel more comfortable, more grounded.”
“Grounded? Maybe I should just sit on the floor or outside.” I chuckle to hide the wobble in my voice and my uncertainty.
“This is fine, Omnia.”
I scoot into the center of the bed and fold my legs under me, placing my palms on my butterflied knees. “Okay, what next?”
“Close your eyes, relax.”
I do as Grim tells me and let out a long breath. I feel the bed shift as he takes a seat near me. I’m tempted to peek at him, but I fight the urge.
“First, I want you to think about your breathing: in through your nose, out through your mouth.” Grim’s voice is low, calm.
I try to forget why I’m doing this and just focus on what I’m doing. After a minute or so, he says, “Now I want you to envision yourself sitting on the bed. Imagine what you would look like, as if you could see yourself in a mirror.”
I think about the clothes I just put on, the way my hair looked the last time I saw myself in a mirror. It’s surprisingly easy. It’s almost like I can really see myself sitting on the bed. Grim is to my left, his gray eyes trained on me.
His mouth opens and I hear him speak. “Stop looking at me and focus on yourself, your aura. What do you see?” The fact that he knows I’m looking at him almost distracts me enough to snap me out of the vision, or whatever this is. How the hell does he even know I’m looking at him?
I force myself to look at myself sitting on the bed. My hair looks a little frizzy. “I don’t see my aura. It’s just me.”
“Shush,” Grim admonishes. “Keep looking, look past the exterior.”
I watch my lips poke out in a pout and immediately school my features. It wasn’t even intentional.
It takes me several more minutes, but after focusing on my breathing and just staring at myself on the bed, my features start to blur, and I notice a slight shimmering around my body, almost as if there’s a hidden light source coming from behind me.
Within seconds I can see the full effect. There are several colors swirling around the center of my body. I inhale sharply when I see a green glob that keeps darting all over and disappearing around my back. A more sluggish bit of orange is hanging around my feet. Instinctually, I know these are the foreign souls.
Another bit of bright yellow, almost gold, catches my attention, but Grim speaks and my incorporeal self almost jerks back to my body. “You see them, what doesn’t belong,” he mutters. I pull myself back again so I’m hovering far enough way that I don’t feel like I’m going to be pulled back into my body. Icansee them; how does he know?
