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Letting my head roll only a fraction of an inch, I turned myself away from him, refusing to play into his evasiveness any more than I already had. I was here for one reason, and one reason only- to see my uncle on his birthday. I needed to keepthat in my mind, rather than focus on the mindfuck that is this cemetery.
Or whatever the hell it is.
“Thank you,” I said with my back to him, facing the open entrance to the mausoleum. “I’ll be back on Thursday.”
And with that, I turned, walked up the remaining steps, and made my way into the open mausoleum. I breathed in the damp, fresh air as I looked around the inside, pulling the hood of my jacket off my head. It was serene and relaxing in here. It was nice.
Approaching the counter that held my uncle’s ashes, I eyed the beautiful black matte vase. It was still perfectly centered, and there was no doubt that no one had touched it since it was placed here. I laid the small bouquet of flowers on the surface, letting the petals rest next to the ceramic. I exhaled, feeling a small piece of satisfaction at the sight. If he couldn’t be here on Earth, at least he hadthisfor his birthday.
But soon, there was a presence at my back, one that I couldn’t ignore. It snapped me out of any trance I was lingering in.
“I’ll leave you to be with him, I will,” his voice rasped. “But let me say one thing.”
I turned to face him, only to see he was already up the steps and inside the mausoleum. The rain continued to pour behind him as he walked past the open doorway, blocking any dreary light that was trying to break through. The colored stained-glass windows illuminated his sides, casting a saturated, patterned glow.
He pulled his hood down, and that was the first time I saw all of him.
His hair was dark and rested neatly above his ears. His eyes were a light, piercing grey as they searched mine for any sort of reaction, or any bit of emotion. His cheekbones werehigh, and his jawbone was sharp, with short, dark stubble lining the bottom half of his face. His hand moved up to his forehead and brushed off any excess water from the rain.
Something in my body leaped at the sight of his hands, his fingers, and the way his motions were fluid and smooth. I tried to keep myself as neutral as possible.
“Those won’t do anything.”
His voice echoed through the stone walls and rang through my body as I stood there, confused. I said nothing, letting him continue.
“The carnations.” He nodded to the flowers on the table.
“Why’s that?” I asked, trying my best to push the shake out of my voice.
“Because,” he began, his voice doing more to me than it should, “those are the flowers of God. And God isn’t here.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he turned to leave, giving me my time with my uncle as promised.
Caius
The monitor that hung on the wall showed no movement. The rain bounced off the leaves, the wind gently pushed the blades of grass, and the iron gates remained closed. I glanced at my watch. It was almost seven, and she had yet to show up.
Leaning back in my chair, I grabbed my glass of whiskey and took a sip. She told me she would be here at exactly three o’clock, so why the delay?
Part of me wanted to get up and get her myself. Actually, every part of me was dying to, just so I could have my sights on her and know that she was safe.
Safe.
Just as much as I wanted her here, I also wanted her as far away from here as possible.
Which is why I kept my eyes glued to the screen ahead, waiting for her white car to roll up the hill.
Finally, a few minutes later, I saw a car on the screen.
But it wasn’t white. It was silver.
Fuck.
With a groan, I slammed my glass on the desk and leaned forward in my chair.
I guess today was going to be another one of those days.
With my gaze still on the screen, I watched the security cameras as Lawrence opened the gate for the car, not evenbothering to check in. He simply waved, flashed one of his sincere smiles, and closed the gate once the car was through.
