See How She Runs (The Chronicles of Izzy #1)(23)

Sometimes you will be pulled into the past. Things that have already come to be. Those are important though. You must stay there and find out why you are seeing it. Look for things, things that don’t seem right, things that are out of place. Most of all look for them. They linger in the past, in the present, and the future. They have changed so many things throughout the course of history. They have altered the future of this world in ways that may never be reversed. Find them, and perhaps you will find a way to stop them. Something that your father and I were never able to do.

As much as I want you to be safe, and as much as I want a peaceful life for you, I don’t think it is something in my power to change. I have watched you these past years. The fearless determination of a soul so pure it does not know to be afraid. I worry, but I also know that you will be smart. Be clever, my sweet girl. Don’t do the obvious thing. Don’t come for me, and don’t come at them head on. Find a way to reset the course. Fix what can be fixed, and leave me to the past.

I love you more than you will ever know. You are worth protecting. You may very well be all of our salvation, my dear one.

With all that I am,

Mom





Well, I suppose I was hoping for a guide book. What I had gotten was so much more. The information was overwhelming. At least I was not crying again. I had that under control finally. I pulled myself from my thoughts and looked over to find Kennan staring at me. I didn’t know how long he had been awake, or what he had seen pass over my face while I read the letter. Whatever it might be, he looked concerned.

“Why me? I don’t understand how she thinks I can make a difference, Kennan. I am one person against an entire evil empire." Okay, maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but that was precisely what it felt like.

“Evil empire, Iz? It is a small group of men that control the Corporation. If we can find a way to take them down, then the whole group falls." He rubbed his hands down his face, an all too familiar gesture of late.

“Well, tomorrow I need to start figuring this all out. I need to physically train, obviously, but I also want to figure out how to control my visions. There has to be some sort of meditation or something I can do, right? I mean you are kind of my guru, my Mister Miyagi, my Obi Wan."

“The force is strong with you, Izzy," he snickered shaking his head. I don’t know why he thought I was joking. I really needed some guru help right about now.

“No really, is there stuff that I can do to help with all of this?" I asked, making a circle around my head with my finger.

“Well, the insanity is permanent I am afraid, but the visions we can work on.” He smiled as he got up and headed toward the kitchen. The kitchen, where there was a cake. A cake, that I somehow had totally forgotten.

Quicker than I thought myself capable of moving, I was in the kitchen standing next to the cake in question. Kennan shook his head at my suddenly animated expression. But this was cake we were talking about here. Not just any cake, strawberry cake. Really, was there any other kind of cake worth eating?

“Maybe we should eat some real food first, what do you think?"

My face must have fallen because he started laughing at me. I could not help my smile. These moments, the ones that were so common and natural, were what had been keeping my head above water the past two days. These were the moments I had told him about earlier. The small things mattered to me.

“Fine, if you insist on me being healthy and eating balanced meals, I guess I must," I said petulantly.

“What are you feeling? I have some food stocked in here. I could make us some grilled turkey and cheese sandwiches. That would be fast, allowing you to scarf down cake more quickly.”

“Don’t you judge me, Kennan O’Malley. You know that you will eat just as much of that cake as I will, if not more! But the sandwiches sound fine I suppose," I sighed, gathering up the bread and stuff to prepare the sandwiches so that he could heat them up.

Dinner passed with easy conversation about normal stuff. I asked about Kennan’s childhood and how it felt to move through time without ever really aging. About his past, and how he had remained sane with all that he had seen. Apparently it was a lot easier than one would think.

He regaled me with tales of fighting the Roman Empire, of touring Europe and Asia, of all of the events in history he witnessed firsthand. By the end, I was convinced I would have gone mad had it been me in his place.

When dinner was over, the cake was finally ready to be eaten. Kennan put candles on the top. He walked it over to the table and whispered in my ear, “Make a wish."

His voice echoed through the darkest recesses of my being, igniting butterflies in my stomach. So I did, I made a wish. I wished foolishly that I would at least always have Kennan in my life. To pull me back from the edge of darkness when I needed it, to make me laugh, and to keep me safe from myself and those that might harm me. I closed my eyes and I wished with all of my might.





**********





That evening, we decided to call it a night early. I went into my room and decided to put away the contents of my pack. If I was going to be here for a while, I did not want to be forced to dig through the sack every time I needed something. I put all of the hiking clothes and workout clothes into the top drawer, and then moved onto my unmentionables and the pajamas he packed for me. My face started flaming as I stared at the lacy thing.