Empyreal: Awaken - Book One (11 page)

“Xavier –” the young man filled in the
silence.

“Yes, Xavier ... it sure seems that
you have a strong head on your shoulders ... and that's just what
we need here –”

“Pardon, Sir...”

“Our eco-conservation team ... we need
a fine, young man, like yourself … now, of course, there are a few
fine points to discuss and a bit of paperwork to get you started
and worked into the program...” Cal said, shuffling paper along his
desktop, “... and if you'll give me just one, quick second, so that
I can locate them...”

“Sure thing, Sir ... take your
time...”

It took Xavier only a few steps to
reach the large book case on the wall that faced the Professor's
desk across the room. He scanned the spread of books that inhabited
the shelves. Some he recognized, some he didn't. There were some
decorative pieces –presumably placed by the professor’s wife, he
guessed – and a few strategically placed picture frames. His eyes
set on one, in particular. “Your daughter, I would presume,” he
said, plucking it from the shelf, and pulling it closer to get a
better look, though he had already memorized her face in every
detail.

“Pardon? Oh, yes ... yes it is...” Cal
said, still blundering through the random items on his
desk.

“Favors you quite a bit ... does she
attend the University?” Xavier inquired.

“Oh no, not quite yet ... she still
has another year at
Chelsea
...” Cal noticed that Xavier
whispered along with his last word. “Yes... Chelsea – how did you
know that?” Cal asked, suspicions rising.

“My apologies, Sir, if I have caused
you alarm – but it's really quite simple and harmless, even. I just
assumed that a man of your likeness would have someone who was so
special to him one of two places ... here, underneath his own
personal thumb, or a place such as Chelsea – a place with such
pristine surveillance and guardship...” Xavier explained, his eyes
never leaving Cal.

“Very observant, Xavier, you’ve done
your research...”

“Yes, Sir, I have...”

“You must have had some rare sort of
upbringing ... your father must be very proud...” Cal
stated.

“You could say that, Sir...” Xavier
added, allowing a villainous smirk to crawl across his
face.

* * * * *

Coralie took one last look in the
mirror. She continued taking inventory of her charcoal colored
blouse, which was hiding underneath a black cropped leather jacket,
her black fitted pencil pants, complete with a pair of black
peep-toe wedges … just for good measure.

She grabbed her outing bag from the
red, comfy chair that rested aside her bedroom window. She took a
deep breath and started out of the door.

Knock. Knock.

She heard as she descended the last
step of the staircase. “I got it.” She said, stepping in front of
her Dad, who reached the door at the exact moment she did, smiling.
He mouthed the words,
okay,
and backed away from the door,
in a dramatically joking manner.

She opened the door to Court's smiling
face. “Are you ready to go?” he asked.

“Yes,” she replied.

Court grabbed ahold of her hand. Her
breath caught in her chest. Never failing. They descended the steps
together and he walked her over to a black Jeep.

She grinned. “Where's the death trap,
I mean ... the motorcycle?”

“Hey now, take it easy ... I love my
bike ... but you on the other hand ... you'll learn to...” he
grinned, “... so, for tonight's outing, we have...” giving a waving
motion, “option two...”

“I have to admit, I like this
option...” she said, grinning back at him, as he helped her
in.

He closed the passenger side door,
then casually walked to the driver's side. Before sliding into the
driver’s seat, Court looked back at the house, only to see Cal
Collier standing in his office window looking down at them. Court
nodded at him, and then slid into his seat, closed the door and
cranked the engine.

“So, where are we going?” Coralie
asked with nervous excitement.

Court smiled. “You'll see...” he said,
as they pulled down the driveway.

* * * * *

Cal strolled out into the foyer. He
called out, not knowing exactly where his wife was hiding, but he
thought surely she could hear him if he spoke loud enough. “Honey,
the weirdest thing happened today – well, I guess I wouldn't say
the weirdest thing … I mean, we've seen some pretty crazy stuff …
but –” he stopped in mid-sentence, eyeing Katelyn, who sat in the
den, caught his eye.

She was sitting in the bay-window seat
and staring out into the night, watching the tail-lights leave the
driveway. Cal quietly entered the room. “You okay?”

“I just worry about her ... that’s
all...”

“She's with Courtland...”

“I know, and I trust him ... it's just
I want to make certain that we are the ones that tell
her...”

“Honey, we will...”

“I'm just afraid that if she finds
about any of this ... if she realizes what's actually going on ...
she'll hate us for it, she'll never trust us again.” Katelyn kept
her stare directed outside the window.

Cal tried to keep the frown from
spreading across his face. He was unsuccessful, because he knew
there was a chance she was right.

Court held the door for Coralie as they walked
into the restaurant,
Patras Place.
Coralie watched as Court
leaned into the waiter, whispering something to him. The waiter
nodded and motioned for them to follow as he turned
away.

Court took Coralie's hand with one of
his, and rested his other on the small of her back, escorting her
across the room.

They were seated in a private area of
the restaurant. Coralie looked around. The restaurant was decorated
in Grecian decor. An old wooden wine cellar storage had been placed
in the natural stone walls behind the bar area. The beautiful
architecture left her with an almost longing feeling, though she
hadn’t the fondest idea from where it came.

“I love this place ... but I never
realized how nice it was ... come to think of it, I don’t think
that I’ve ever been back here before...” Coralie spoke with
wonderment.

“They like to keep their most
recurrent patrons happy ... they tend to allow a favor or two...”
he said, smiling at her from across the table.

The waiter approached the table. He
was dressed in a black and white guise. “May I get you started with
something this evening, Sir?”

Court kept his gaze upon Coralie, but
started, “I'll have a glass of your finest soda, of course, and
she'll have water with lemon and lime ... and we'll both have the
usual...” he arched his eyebrows at her, adding to his
smile.

“Yes, Sir, Mr. Cumberlin...” said the
waiter, dismissing himself.

“The usual?”

Court arched his eyebrows again. “Yes
... the usual, my usual, I guess...” letting a chuckle escape
him.

“Which is?”

He stared at her for a moment, with a
wistful aching in his heart.

“What?”

“Maybe you should wait for it … enjoy
the surprise...”

“Or you could tell me … you know, just
so that I know what I’m in for...”

“You don't like surprises, do you?” he
questioned her playfully.

“Not exactly ... and how did you know
–”

“Water with lemon and lime...” he
leaned in closer to her, “I know more about you than you
think...”

“Research, huh? ... Have you ever
carried the name 'stalker'? “

“No, why ... are you passing out name
tags?” Court playfully teased.

“No, just wondering how would you know
something like that...”

“I know a lot about you, Coralie
Collier...”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, really...”

“Like what?”

“Aside from the uncommonly desired
citrus water concoction … I know that you love cold spaghetti for
breakfast, and that though you’d hate to admit it to Ms. Sieve at
Chelsea, Jane Austen is truly your favorite author because you love
her wit and romanticism.” Court leaned in closer, taking her hand
in his, his eyes never leaving hers. “I know that you always aspire
to be more than you are, but you never want anyone to
know...”

“Okay, so you do know a lot about
me...”

“I also know that you love to
dance...” He nodded toward the center of the restaurant.

Coralie looked around the room. “I do
… but, I don’t know … not here, not now...”

“Why not?”

“
Because there's no one
dancing...”

Court took her hand, guiding her up
from her chair. “That's only because we're not up there yet...” She
followed his lead, as he led her to the middle of the floor. She
looked nervously around at the tables.

Court's eyes never left her face, as
he escorted her out into the middle of the surrounding
tables.

They danced together in a surrounding
embrace. Suddenly, the entire world around them faded into the
background.

* * * * *

Court looked at her, her hair blowing
all around her face. The wind was nice up on the terrace of the
restaurant.

Patras Place
was beautifully
decorated on the inside, but the outside upstairs terrace was the
real gem of the place. The view was magnificent. Coralie could see
almost the entire city from where she stood. The University's
lights - as usual, left on - were so striking at night. They seemed
to illuminate the entirety of Thessla . She wondered why she'd
never noticed.

Court was not paying attention to the
lights. He could only see
her.

“It's ... It's ... I don't even know
what to say ... I've never been up here before ... the view is
absolutely –” Coralie stammered her words.

“Breathtaking –” Court said, finishing
her sentence.

When Coralie turned to look at him,
Court was not taking in the backdrop as was she. He was staring
directly at her.

“Yes ... I think that is an excellent
word for it ...,” was all she managed to get out.

“I wasn't speaking of the view of the
city...”

“Oh ... right...” she replied
shyly.

He took her hand slowly. “Coralie,
Thank you...”

“For what?”

“For accepting my invitation
tonight...” he continued, “I just wanted everything to be really
great, you know ... I just wanted to … I wanted to show you
something wonderful...”

“Well, really, I think that I should
be the one thank you for tonight ... it has been great and
wonderful and beautiful and –” she stopped.

“What? Go on...” he said, pining for
her to continue.

She took a deep sigh. “That's it ...
This is all a dream, I just know it...”

“What?” he asked with laughing
confusion.

“This, all of this ... it has to be a
dream ... it's all too perfect ... and in about an hour, I'm going
to wake up and all of this,
you,
of course, especially
you
... it will have all vanished...”

He let out his ever so handsome,
bellowing laugh, that it seemed only she could stir. “Coralie ...
you are one funny girl...”

Coralie beamed red at his
compliment.

He continued, first pausing to gently
lift her chin towards him with the calmness of his hand, “This is …
I mean, tonight is ... as I am ... very real, Coralie ... there’s
nothing that will change that and nothing that can take that
away...”

Coralie smiled with bright eyes. Court
could always make her feel safe. No matter what she said, or did,
he never made her feel out of place.

“So what now, may I ask, are your
plans? You know … what comes next for Coralie Collier?”

“I don't know ... why do you
ask?”

“Because, I have a feeling that you
and I, Miss Collier, are going to be spending
a lot
of time
together...”

Coralie smiled again, and then stared
off into the night from the terrace.

“I should probably get you home...” he
said, still holding her hand in his and with his eyes still on her
face.

“Yeah, you don’t want the parents
sending out a search party on the first date…”

“True … but what a story to tell the
grandkids, huh?”

“Yeah...” she said, with a
smile.

Court gave her hand a light squeeze,
and gently pulled her towards the terrace door.

“Wait –” Coralie said, stopping him in
his tracks.

“What is it?”

“What if I said that I wanted you to
prove it?”

“Prove what?” Court asked, caught by
surprise in her question.