Anything For Rachel – Episode 32

#Episode_32

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Running. I’m running and running but I’m going nowhere. I’m in a dark corridor, the sirens blaring in my ears, and the red lights strobing around me while at the end of the hall there’s a red rose floating in the air. I try to go for it, but I can’t. I need the rose. I have to get there. I have to. Screams go unheard. “Rose!” I shout, but my voice is nothing but more sirens. Suddenly I’m not alone anymore. There are men beside me. All of them have on white mask with eerie painted on black smiles. They look at me, then up the hall at the rose. “No!” I try to scream as they walk right passed me while I continue to try to move, but my feet won’t cooperate. They get to the end of the corridor, their fake smiles reflected by the red strobe lights as the man in front reaches out his hand and plucks the rose from the air, then tucks it into his jacket before the men run away. My feet break free from my hold, and I run as fast as I can in the direction the men went, but they’ve vanished into thin air.

 

“Rachel!” Calvin’s voice pulls me from the nightmare. “Rachel, wake up.”

 

I shot up in the bed, holding my hands to my chest and feeling the erratic beating of my heart. “Rose.” I whispered gravely. “Rose.”

 

Calvin reached out and took my hands in his, bringing them up to his mouth and kissing them. “It’s ok.” He whispered to me in the dark room, the only light coming from the living room through the cracked bedroom door. “She’s ok.” He told me. “I just spoke to Pedro. They are heading out to see a movie.” He said gently.

 

“Calvin, I can’t keep doing this.” I whispered to him, looking down at our hands. “I can’t.”

 

Calvin nodded his head. “I know, Rachel, but there is just a little while longer.” He sighed. “Two more weeks, Rachel, then I promise I will have it set up where you two can see each other, and possibly even better, you two could disappear together.” He said. “I was just about to go meet with the men. The storms have finally let up.”

 

 

I nodded in relief. They were supposed to have been going after the men in Britain over a week ago, but a blizzard had moved in the day before their operation was supposed to take place and there were no planes available to get them there. “Good.” I muttered, taking one of my hands back from him to chew on my fingernails. That had become my awful nervous habit now.

 

The first week of the competition, aside from the first night, had gone off without a hitch. I haven’t seen the man with the roses again, and since I have been so closely watched and kept locked away from the people pretty much all of the time, he’s had no way to get to me even if he wanted to. Calvin had been right. He probably was just part of the rebellion and trying to rattle me, which admittedly had worked.

 

Mine and Calvin’s first date had been a few days ago. The night before the council let us know that we needed to start letting the people see the riff between us so that they would root more for Lexton to win, rather than me. It had been pretty easy to do. Things with us have been weird since our fight the other night. We’ve been quiet. I hate it, but I also don’t know what we can do to make it better. It’s easy for the jealous side of me to decide that the weirdness is that he is getting feelings for Lexton, but the more logical side of me tells me that he is just trying to distance himself from me in preparation for me leaving again. I wish I could shake him out of the funk he’s been in, but at the same time, I’m still a little hurt from him throwing in my face that this whole plan was my idea. I didn’t have any other choices. Rose and I need to be free from this place and from vampires. If it were just me, I’d stay with him, but it isn’t just me. Rose is more important than what I want. I thought he understood that, but his cold words make me wonder.

 

“Are you ok?” Calvin asked, pulling me out of my own head.

 

I nodded my head. “Yeah, it was just a nightmare.” I told him. “I keep dreaming of roses.” I admitted. “Every time I try to get the rose, a stranger steals it from me.”

 

“Is that what you worry will happen to our Rose?” He asked gently and I nodded my head, tears filling my eyes. Calvin wrapped his hand around the back of my neck and pulled me over to him to lean my head into his chest and he held me while I cried. “What do you want me to do? Whatever you want, I will do it.”

 

“I just want my baby.” I whimpered. “I’ve never been away from her for so long…and I-I- just…”

 

 

He pulled my head back and looked down at me. “Rachel it’s your decision.” He told me. “If you want to have Rose brought here, we can, but that will mean that neither of you will ever leave again.” He reminded me. “If you want me to I will go get her myself, right now.”

 

I closed my eyes, trying to picture Rose growing up here, and eventually becoming the queen herself. My little Rose never seeing the sun, never having friends, never getting a normal life. I couldn’t do that to her, but I also can’t stand the thought of going another day without her. “I don’t know, Calvin.” I said lowly. “I don’t know what the right thing is.”

 

“Neither do I.” He admitted. “How about this,” He sighed. “I will go see if the men are ready to move out against the rebels, and then I will come back and see what you want to do.” He said.

 

“I’m worried too. Every second of the day and night. Pedro is the only one who knows where they are, but I still worry, especially after the man that tormented you, and your dreams. I don’t like it. If the men can’t go out by tomorrow night, then I am going to at least have Pedro move positions, just in case, unless you want me to bring her here.”

 

I nodded my head. “Ok.” I agreed. “If they can’t go, then I do want them to move. They’ve already been in one place too long.”

 

“I agree with you.”

 

He stood from the bed and began to glide effortlessly towards the door. “Calvin!” I called back to him and he dropped his hand from the door and turned back to face me with his eyebrows raised.

 

“Yes?”

 

I was so sick of all of the awkwardness. This is the man I love, and our time is getting spent without my lips on his, and that’s just a sin.

 

 

I pouted out my bottom lip dramatically and opened my arms for him. He chuckled, then disappeared for a moment before reappearing at my side on the bed, pulling me into him. “I love you.” I whispered against his neck.

 

“And I love you.” He smiled, leaning in to press his lips to mine.

 

“More and more every time I kiss you.” He laughed.

 

I gave him a coy smile and bit my lip. “Well, then you better kiss me again before you leave.”

 

“Of course, my queen.” He whispered, pressing his smooth lips against mine again, holding me longer. “You’ll always be my queen.” He whispered as he pulled back.

 

It was like he had read my mind. I had just been fretting over not being his queen anymore after he marries Lexton. “I must have a really readable face.” I laughed. “You and Octavia are always guessing what I’m thinking.”

 

He tilted his head to the side. “Yes, well, I think Octavia is actually a mind reader and doesn’t want to tell anyone, but I, on the other hand, only wish I could know what goes on in that pretty little head of yours.”

 

“Oh, trust me, you don’t.” I assured him.

 

He kissed my forehead. “You have no idea how badly I do.”

 

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Do you want to know what I’m thinking right now?”

 

“Tell me.”

 

I reached up to put my hand on his shoulder, acting like I was going to pull him into me, but pushed away instead. “Go have your meeting, then when you come back, I’ll show you just what I’m thinking about.”

 

He stood again, going back towards the door. He glanced back at me on the bed and I gave him a sweet smile. “You know, you really are a tease.” He chuckled, then pulled the door closed behind him.

 

 

Once he was gone, it was like the air in the room was gone too. Without Calvin to keep my mind busy, my mind easily falls into doom and gloom. I said a quick prayer Calvin was right about the storms being gone so that the team could move in on the rebels. It’s been way too long.

 

Sitting in the dark room only made me begin to think about my nightmare again, so I got up and went to flip on the lights. I went to the closet and looked through my things, but nothing was really looking like what I wanted to be wearing tonight until I looked over to Calvin’s side of the closet.

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I pulled out one of his usual crisp white button downs and put it on, then fished out a pair of thin fabric shorts that Octavia had given me and a pair of socks. I determined that I was going to have a lazy comfy day before the next day of the competition tomorrow. Knowing Marco and the rest of the council, I’d need the added energy to keep my cool. They’d been trying their best to make me as uncomfortable as possible at all times that I’m on stage. I have noticed though that maybe I got through to Marco at least a little because he doesn’t crowd me anymore. He stays a nice safe distance away from me and my groin killing knees.

 

Despite the annoyance they inflict, things are still working out in our favor.

 

I have no choice but to remain optimistic about things. If not, I will crumple into nothing. I went out into the living room and cuddled up on the couch with a blanket and flipped on the TV. Calvin had showed me how to put it onto regular human television, but I couldn’t exactly remember the exact buttons, so I just tried a few combinations until I got too annoyed with it. I was about to turn it off when I saw my own face pop up onto the screen. The TV was muted, but I read the caption.

 

Queen Rachel, moving out? Queen Lexton moving in?

 

 

I had to laugh at it. As different as this world might be from the human world up top, the dramatics on TV are pretty even with each other.

 

Mistakes that may just cost Rachel the throne

 

 

Lexton the leader

 

Sound off who you want to see as the queen?!

 

I watched as they took polls, asked questions of some of the members of the council, and regular citizens. I could let it bother me that Lexton was easily beating me, but I knew that was good for me. I needed her to beat me so that I could get back to my sweet angel.

 

The door swung open and I inched up at of the blankets to see Calvin sauntering back in.

 

“That was fast.” I said and he laughed when he saw me on the couch.

 

“You look like you’re in a cocoon.” He chuckled. “Are you cold? I can have some heaters brought in for you.” He was saying as he turned back to the door.

 

“No!” I called to stop him. “I’m fine, I just like to be bundled while I watch TV.” I told him.

 

“I guess I learned something new about you today.” He grinned.

 

“So, I have good news.”

 

“Oh really?” I asked.

 

“Indeed.” He smiled smugly. “The team just left.” He told me.

 

“They will be on the first flight out of here at dusk.”

 

“Thank god.” I sighed. “I needed to hear that.”

 

“So do we still have Rose moved or wait to hear from the men?”

 

“Do you truly think she’s safe wherever they are?” I asked.

 

 

He pursed his lips for a moment, rubbing his jaw with the back of his hand thoughtfully. “I really do.” He told me.

 

“Ok.”

 

“Ok.” He smiled, then looked over at the TV and gave me a look.

 

I laughed at his fake stern face. “Have you seen this?” I asked him. “They hate me and love Lexton.” I smiled. “It’s perfect. Our whole plan is working out.”

 

He walked over behind the couch and rubbed my shoulders through the blankets. “I have.” He said. “I’m glad you’re happy about it, but you still shouldn’t be watching this garbage.”

 

I leaned my head back on the couch and looked up at him. “Yeah, well, I was trying to watch Gossip Girl, not this, but I couldn’t remember the right buttons.” I smiled up at him while he gave me a look. “What?” I giggled.

 

“Gossip Girl? Really, Rachel?” He said in a monotone.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry.” I laughed. “Do you have a problem with my choice of mind dulling, drama packed, spend all day on the couch binge watching, show?” I asked him and he just shook his head at me. “Guess I learned something new about you today too. You’re a TV snob.” I stuck my tongue out at him. “Would you have rather I’d said I wanted to watch The Vampire Diaries?”

 

He leaned back with his laugh. “Yes, well, I guess that would be a little better.”

 

“Ok, Mr. Picky, what do you want to watch?” I asked him as I picked the remote back up from the coffee table and handed it to him.

 

“You want to know what I want to watch?” He asked, smiling slowly as he narrowed his smoky blue eyes at me.

 

“Tell me.” I whispered seductively, repeating him from earlier.

 

He dropped the remote back onto the couch beside me and lowered his head down to my neck. “I’d like to watch you get your perfect little self into that bedroom and show me what you were thinking of earlier as you promised.” He whispered,

 

 

running his hands down to untangle me from the blankets and lifting me easily to hold me in his strong arms. “I rushed back here for you.” He said before he started kissing me greedily.

 

I threw my arms around his neck, tangling my hands into his hair and arching my body into his, making him moan. “I’ve got a lot to show you.” I whispered into his ear and he started to stomp towards our bedroom but he stopped suddenly, his body going rigid. “What’s wrong?” I asked, leaning back to look at him, but he was pale and staring bleakly back at the TV.

 

“This can’t be…” He muttered shakily.

 

I followed his gaze and read the breaking news headline.

 

✒Competition OVER! Queen Rachel will REIGN!!

 

 

I had to re-read it multiple times to be sure that I was reading it correctly. “I-I don’t understand, Calvin.” I whispered. “What’s going on?”

 

There was a loud banging on the door and Calvin put me down on my feet to run to it. He pulled it open and Octavia stepped inside, the same look on her face as the one on Calvin’s.

 

“Please tell me you’ve heard?” She asked him.

 

He shook his head gravely. “What’s happened?”

 

Octavia looked over his shoulder and back at me before looking down at the ground. “The competition can’t go on.” She said. “It’s Lexton…”

 

✴✴✴✴✴✴✴✴✴

 

 

 

 

To_be_Continued

 

ANYTHING FOR RACHEL