Chloe seemed dead to the world, her skin pale and dry now, and her breaths were shallow and uneven. She looked deep in sleep, so I turned off the lights and snuggled into bed with her, draping an arm around her waist and pressing her into my chest.
As long as she was here, with me, she was safe.
And that was all the reassurance I needed to fall back asleep.
Chloe's POV
I woke up pressed to something extremely warm, and it was making me sweat. I tried to roll away but it was holding me in place. I breathed in through my nose and smiled.
Alek.
I opened my eyes and saw that I was so close to his face that I could see the little peach fuzz on his cheeks, and the tiny birthmark under his ear. My whole body ached, and my face was all sticky. Alek was still sleeping, crushing me to his chest, and I was curled up into a ball, my knees up to my stomach. I touched his cheek and his warm brown eyes fluttered open, and he groaned.
I laughed.
"Wakey-wakey," I said.
"No wakey-wakey. Sleepy-sleepy," he pouted, coming closer and burying his face into my neck.
"Alright. I'm just gonna go shower. Then you have to wakey-wakey, you hear, you lazy Brit?" I teased.
He shook his head. "You sleepy-sleepy too?" he whispered, already drifting out of consciousness. I laughed at his childishness. I kissed the top of his head and slid out of his arms, making my way over to the bathroom. I looked in the mirror and groaned. There were deep bags under my eyes, my skin was pale and dry, my lips chapped, my hair a rat's nest, and there were scrapes and bruises all around my body.
I got in the shower and shampooed my hair twice, and conditioning it three times to get the curly tangles out. I used Jasmine's flower scented body wash and stood there in the perfume-y air, hot water calming my sore muscles, in complete bliss. I sighed in relief, but I guess I stayed in there a little too long. Pounding came from the door, and I jumped and knocked some bottles off of the shelf, making a loud clattering noise. The pounding became more prominent, agitated.
"Chloe, are you alright? You've been in there for two hours," Alek shouted. "And what was that noise? Did you slip and fall?"
"No, it was just some shampoo bottles! I'll be right out," I shouted back, turning off the water and placing the bottles back. "Sorry."
"It's alright, love. Just come out when you're ready. Valentina and Jasmine had to go off to a meeting concerning your...er, back problem, and they don't know when they'll be back. So I'm going to go make breakfast and...yea, I'm rambling. I'll go now," he muttered.
I laughed. He was so cute sometimes. I stepped out of the shower and into a warm fluffy towel, which was probably Alek's because it smelled a lot like him and his body soap. My cheeks flushed at the thought of Alek stepping into the same black towel after he was done showering, too, and I quickly dried myself off with it and wrapped it around my head.
I wiped all of the moisture fogging up the mirror, the mist floating around in the bathroom kind of creeping me out.
Crap. I didn't bring clothes.
Why did this always happen whenever Jasmine was gone?
I unwound the towel from my head and felt my damp hair slap onto my bare back. I wrapped the towel around my body and peeked around the door. Alek was making blueberry waffles and orange juice, and right now he was squeezing half an orange into a cup, very concentrated.
I tip-toed out of the bathroom, hoping he wouldn't see me. He never looked up. So I gave up on the quietly-walking thing and made a mad dash towards Jasmine's room, when something suddenly grabbed me around the waist, nearly making me drop the towel.
"Caught you," he whispered in my ear.
My face went beet red from embarrassment. "Alek!" I was clutching the towel around my body, desperately looking for a way out.
"Yes, love?"
"Would you let go of me? I'm...I was going somewhere."
He cocked an eyebrow. "Oh? And wherever were you going, Chloe?"
"To Jasmine's room."
The damn bastard was stalling. I saw his eyes look me up and down, and I blushed even harder.
"Jasmine's gone, I told you," he smirked.
"I didn't go to see Jasmine," I muttered. He was still holding me to him, and his shirt got all wet from my hair.
He pulled back and suddenly kissed me, and I couldn't help but kiss back. I licked his bottom lip, asking for entrance. He groaned and opened his mouth for me, but I giggled and quickly sprinted to Jasmine's room, slamming it shut.
"You, Chloe King, are a tease!" he shouted at me.
"That's what you get!" I laughed.
I grabbed a pair of mint green skinny jeans, a long white lacey shirt, a cream cardigan with wooden buttons, and gold strappy sandals. Jasmine wouldn't mind me borrowing. I combed out my hair and let it fall into its natural curls, and did my make-up.
Jasmine's room was so neat and organized, it kind of scared me. I went over to her purple and black bed and sat down on it, rubbing her soft blankets. One of the shorter curls that always got in my face was already kinking up into a soft curl, and I blew it away impatiently.
My lips were still extremely chapped – Alek must have felt like her was kissing a crocodile. Jasmine must have Chapstick somewhere in her drawers, right? So I leaned over and opened one of her bed-side drawers. In it was a notebook, a bunch of pencils, mascara, hair-ties, a pair of nun-chucks, a book about the Mai, and lots of scraps of paper.
I opened the bottom one, and found candles, a flashlight, a picture album, perfume, nail polish, more paper, and a Swiss army knife.
No Chapstick. I stared at the knife and wondered why Jasmine had it. Probably for self-defense against Order members. I picked it up, the cold metal leeching warmth from my fingers. I popped it open and jumped to see a bunch of little knives and odd pointy things pop out.
I wasn't going to cut, I swear it. I was just curious, is all, since I've never actually touched a Swiss army knife before, and Alek was still making breakfast. And, okay, something in the back of my mind was telling me to, just to relieve some of the stress, and my fingers shook. I positioned the knife in my hands, but stopped. No. I promised Alek that I wouldn't. I ran my finger along the edge of one of the blades, until the door swinging open stopped me.
I jumped guiltily and put the knife down, eyes wide. Alek was standing in the doorway, frozen. Hurt and shock played in his eyes, and I bit my lip. He looked from the knife, which was sitting next to my thigh, to my wrists, and back to the knife again.
I held up my wrists to show him that they weren't bleeding, but he couldn't even look at me in the eye. He was looking down, clutching the doorknob so tightly that the door was being pulled down a bit.
"Chloe..." he choked out.
"I wasn't going to, I swear! I was just curious, is all. I was looking for Chapstick and I...I wasn't going to, Alek, I promise you." I spat out words, barely knowing what I was saying. Guilt and fear pinched at my stomach, and my hands were still shaking.
He just shook his head, clearly not believing me. He walked over and pressed the button to pull the blades back in, and threw it into the garbage bin. I landed with a violent thump, and I winced. He was staring at me disbelievingly, and he looked so betrayed.
For some reason, tears were filling my eyes, and that damn piece of hair was in front of my face again. I yanked it out of the way, enjoying the pain it caused on my scalp as I pulled it too forcefully.
"Believe me, Alek, I wasn't going to," I whispered, placing my sweaty hands in my lap and looking down at them.
"I mean, a part of me thought about it, but I would never..." I took a shaky breath. "I would never do that to you. I mean, I promised you, and I really am trying to stop, but it's just so hard and I think about it a lot, and there's so much going on, with my dad and this pain in my back and my mom and...and...and I feel like I'm talking too much and why aren't you saying anything? I'm sorry!"
I was sobbing now, and I brought my face down to my hands and pulled my knees up to my chest. I sat like that, curled up in a ball, for a few minutes, and I could tell he still hasn't moved. He took a deep breath, and I heard it shake.
I looked up and saw a tear streak down his cheek. That made me cry even harder. He sat down next to me and I crawled into his lap like a child.
"You scared the living crap out of me, Chloe," Alek breathed. "I thought you were...oh my god."
He forcefully ran his hand through his hair and brought his hands up to my face, wiping my tears away. They slowed down, and I sniffled.
In turn, I kissed the few tears he had away, mumbling 'sorry's against his flushed skin. I ran my fingers soothingly through his blonde hair, and then wrapped my arms around his neck and clung to him.
"I swear, though, Alek. I'm trying to stop. I'm really trying. It's just hard sometimes, and I needed to...I don't know," I whispered.
He shook his head. "It's okay. I understand, love."
"Are you still crying?" I asked.
"No," he said.
"Good," I said back.
"Are you?" he asked.
"No," I answered.
He pulled away and smiled at me. "Good."
He kissed me and then rolled over to the other side of the bed, opening the drawer there. He pulled out a strawberry chapstick and handed it to me.
"I believe this is what you were looking for, my queen?"
Amusement flickered behind his golden-brown eyes, and I played along.
"Why, my good sir, it is exactly what I was looking for! However did you find it?"
"I have a good nose," he smirked. I applied some on my lips and put it back in the drawer. Suddenly, Alek's phone started ringing. It was listed as unknown, but I recognized the number. I stared at it in shock.
"Why is Amy calling you?"
He looked at the small cell phone screen, bewildered.
"...I have no idea. You answer," he tossed the phone to me.
"Hello? Amy?"
"Chloe? I was hoping you were with Alek..." her voice sounded less chirpy today, less happy.
"What's wrong?"
"I...well, my cell was dead, so I looked through the student directory for Alek's phone number. And...I was just calling to tell you some news."
"Good news?" I asked hopefully.
"Unfortunately not," Amy whispered.
"What is it?"
"It's...it's your dad, Chloe. The grave...his grave. They can't...his body's gone."
I let out a nervous giggle and glanced at Alek, who could of course hear everything due to his Mai hearing.
"What do you mean his body's gone? I mean...he was buried. They can't exactly...take it out," I said.
"No, I mean that someone literally dug up his grave and took his body out, and the only thing that's left is the coffin and a huge empty hole," Amy explained slowly.
My eyes widened and my breath quickened. "What? Why? Does my mom know?"
"Yea, she was the one that told me," Amy said. "She's coming home from her business trip early – she's on a plane right now. Paul, don't touch that!"
"I...I need to get to the cemetery. I'm going to the cemetery!" I announced. I flew out of Jasmine's room and heard Alek follow me. I ran into Alek's room and grabbed my long brown bag, and looked at him.
"Let's go," he grabbed my hand and we sprinted out of the apartment.
"I went there already. There were a bunch of yellow caution tapes, but by then most of the police were gone. The cemetery security guards are taking care of it now, but if you tell them you're his daughter they'll probably let you through. They found out the body was missing late last night, and they're not even going to put the dirt back, because doing anything to a crime scene could 'wipe away any trace of evidence'. Which make sense, you know, but when I was there I was practically in hysterics and I couldn't even hear what the police was telling me, and-"
"Amy, breathe!" I reminded her. She was panting on the other line, and I could practically hear Paul rolling his eyes at her.
"Alright. I'll call you later, Amy. I have to go see this for myself,"
"Be careful," she said.
I rolled my eyes. "Always."
Alek and I figured that it would be faster if we ran there, so we jumped rooftops, holding hands, hair streaming behind us, cold sweat trickling down our necks. It was a sunny day, but it was windy and cold, the sunlight providing next to no warmth.
The cemetery was about six miles away, and the time we got there I collapsed onto the soft grass outside its black, tall gates.
Yes, our cemetery had black gates around it, and looked extremely creepy from the outside. But one you got in, there were tall oak trees growing everywhere, and in the spring the cherry blossom trees turned the ground pink with its petals. There were stone paths and flowers, and delicate little plates in the ground with the gold carving of the person's information on it.
"Why?" I suddenly sat up. "Why did they take my dad's body out? That's just...that's just so sick and twisted and..."
"I know, Chlo. I know," Alek sat next to me and rubbed my back. But I wasn't going to cry. Not anymore. It was time for weepy Chloe to say her goodbyes, and angry, determined Chloe to make her way in. So I abruptly stood up, startling Alek, my hands clenched into fists, and I pushed open the creaky gate.
"Let's go," I said. He nodded and held the gate open for me, and I heard it clang shut with a little rattle once he let it go.
I speed-walked over to where my dad was buried, Jasmine's sandals making a loud clack with every step I took. The cemetery was unusually empty today, and it echoed around us eerily. My dad had been buried way in the back of the cemetery, under the tallest oak tree with the thickest trunk.
When we got there, Amy was right. There was a railing around the hole, neon yellow police tape wrapped around them, blocking our entrance. No security guard was in sight, though.
I saw the coffin in the bottom of the whole, splintered and cracked open. I squeezed my eyes shut and willed this all to be a dream.
Dealing with his death had been heard enough – seeing his body stolen away from me? Worse.
A lot worse.
"God, Chloe...we'll find them. I swear we will. We'll find whoever did this and tear them apart," Alek growled, wrapping an arm around my waist. I laid my head on his shoulder and nodded, suddenly very worn out. But as I moved my head up and down, something glittery caught my eye.
Something in the mahogany, polished coffin. I stiffened.
"There's something in there," I said.
Alek nodded slowly. "Well, yeah. We bury people with their more cherished belongings, so they could be with them in the afterlife, or something,"
"Yea. But then why didn't the grave robber take the belongings...? What did they want with a body?" I said slowly. I cautiously got on my hands and knees and crawled underneath the security tape.
"Chloe...I don't think that's a very good idea," Alek warned.
"Just be my look-out. Okay? This won't take very long," I said. He sighed and turned around, crossing his arms across his chest and scanning the area for any security guards coming our way.
"All clear," he said. I slowly made my way into the deep hole, and little flies and slugs were stuck to the sides. I almost gagged.
This was by far the most disgusting thing I have ever done in my whole entire life.
"Alek, this is so gross," I called. He chuckled.
"Wasn't my idea!"
I was stepping on the coffin now. Crap. How was I going to get it open while I was standing on it?
….I guess I didn't really think this through.
Hey. When you're a super-powerful teenage girl, gotta use 'em when you need 'em, right? So I shrugged and punched a hole through the coffin, splintering my knuckles. But I didn't care. I ripped the top half off, and carefully placed it behind me.
There were a bunch of little things in there – valuable things. I saw his gold wedding ring, a few watches, some dead flowers, a lot of little notes written by people, and one of Mom's pearl necklaces. But what really caught my eye was a letter.
A small, white, nothing-out-of-the-ordinary envelope.
Except for what was written on it.
Or, rather, drawn on it.
It was the Order's symbol.
Thank you guys so much for all of your reviews! :D Seriously, they were amazing and happy and encouraging and UGH I loved them.
I hope you liked this chapter! I made it pretty long...and tried to make it interesting? Ahaha? So it would mean a lot to me if you reviewed and tell me what you think! Thanks for reading! ^_^
