Chapter Nineteen – Jenna’s Lie
Chapter Nineteen – Jenna’s Lie
After my shower, I texted the girls that it was clear for them to come back. By the time I made it downstairs, they were both there. As agreed, they entered the room with their guards down, just to see how I would feel, but I could shield myself from them.
“So, you’re good for now?” Cadence asked. “I mean, is it safe for you to go back to your normal life now?”
“She said to rest and give it a day, and then I’ll be good to go.” I nodded. “But I’ll still need to take it easy. Remember, she said there's more for us to do to make it permanent, and she's looking into that now.”
“Did she give you any other information? I mean, what about everything that happened between you? Did she explain what you felt when her barrier dropped, or even what she wants from you?” Tayvion listed off her questions.
“I didn’t think to ask her any of that.” I sighed when my friend rolled her eyes and plopped down on the couch. “Sorry to disappoint you.”
When I waved her off, Tayvion’s eyes lit up. She zeroed in on my finger, jumped back up from the couch, and grabbed my hand.
“And what the hell is this?” She lifted my hand, putting my finger on display for Cadence. “Do you see this?”
“It’s just a ring, Tay. This is what’s keeping my magic stabilized until we can fix it for good.”
“Right. Just one question.” Cadence lifted her finger and waited for approval. When I nodded, she proceeded. “Why is it on that finger?”
I looked down at my hand and realized what she meant. Left hand. Ring finger.
“Um…”
“Um, my ass!” Tayvion blurted out. “You’re sitting up in here wearing a damn engagement ring and acting like you don’t have anything new to tell us!”
“It’s not an engagement ring.” I snatched my hand away.
“Then put it on another finger, Shontae!” She challenged me. “Go ahead. Do it.”
“Well, she said I needed to keep it on.” I stared at the ring. “What if taking it off, even for a moment, messes something up?”
“Girl, get the fuck—” Tay started.
“Tay, she’s right. It could interrupt the magic,” Cadence said, but I wasn’t sure if she believed what she said, or if she was just giving me an out.
“See, Caddy understands.” I crossed my arms, tucking my hands out of view.
“Yeah, and Tay,” Tayvion pointed at herself, “understands you’re full of shit!”
“What if she did it on purpose?” Cadence frowned. “I don’t mean to be a downer here, but that is something we should consider. I’ve seen things like this, pieces of jewelry that keep you magically bound. What if there’s more to it?”
“Caddy’s right.” Tayvion nodded. “There could be more to this, but she said she needed you. Wouldn’t jacking up your magic be too risky?”
“Maybe she’s going for a psychological advantage,” Cadence hypothesized with wide eyes. “Why wouldn’t you want to help out the woman who fixed you?”
“I mean, I guess it's possible.” My chest tightened, because as much as I wanted to believe Likosa wouldn’t have done that on purpose, I knew it was still a possibility.
Anything is possible. You don’t really know her. Hell, you don’t even know what she is!
“So, are you going to help her?” Tayvion asked.
“Now it kind of feels like I would be playing the fool by saying yes, but I want to help her. There is a hollowness behind her barrier. It feels like there is a piece of her missing. If I can help repair that, shouldn’t I?
” I chewed on the thought. “And she was honest about what she wanted from me before this happened. If she wanted to trick me, she would have kept that to herself and dropped it on me later, after I was already indebted to her.”
“That’s logical.” Cadence nodded. “Shon, I get how you feel. Trust me, I do. Follow your instincts and help her if you feel that is the right thing to do, but you need to be careful. Keep a safe distance until you can be sure what her intentions really are.”
“Yeah, don't let her get too close,” Tayvion added. “That’s where people mess up.”
“To close meaning what, exactly?” I bit my bottom lip.
“Oh, God, I know that look!” Tayvion looked like she would burst as she pointed at me, eyes wide with glee. “Wait a minute. Did you two…did y’all get busy?”
“Did you?” Cadence stepped forward before I could even respond. She glanced at the stairs up to the bedroom.
“I will neither confirm nor deny that allegation,” I said, but I had to press my lips together to keep from laughing.
“That means you absolutely fucked her!” Tayvion clapped her hands. “Finally! Knocked the cobwebs off that coochie! How was it?”
“Two seconds ago, you were telling me to be cautious of Likosa and not let her get too close. Now, you want to know how she is in bed?” I scoffed. “Flip floppy ass!”
“Well, the deed was already done! Why should I go without the details?” She rolled her eyes. “You’re just being selfish right now, and you know it!”
“Tay, you’re a mess.” Cadence laughed.
“Technically, Shontae is the one who’s a mess.” Tayvion put her hand on her chest. “I'm just here to enjoy the tea.”
“Well, put your cup away, because I’m not spilling any.” I rolled my eyes.
“Fine, keep the details to yourself, but I stand on what I said, Shon. You need to be careful. She’s fine and all, but her energy is alien to me. Hell, she might actually be an alien for all we know. You know, more of those have been popping up lately.”
“Seriously?” I asked, not yet ready to let her know she was right in her assumption.
“Yes! Beings from other worlds and realms have found their way here for centuries, if not longer. Most of us are probably descendants of some alien. All supernaturals go with the assumption we’re a derivative of human, an unclassified evolutionary path, but I don’t think that’s true at all.”
“Never thought of that.” I huffed.
“Okay, conspiracy theorist.” Cadence rolled her eyes.
“There is proof. Hell, even our beautiful friend here could be one of them.” Tayvion pointed at me. “I mean, how many people do we know who are even close to being like her?”
“That’s true. She’s vaguely like a lot of other beings, but not exactly.” Cadence twisted her lips, as if she were suddenly on board with the theory.
“So now I’m the alien?” I laughed. “Okay, it's time for me to go home. Where is Sire? I haven’t seen her since yesterday.”
“I took her to spend time with a few other phoenixes. I hope you’re okay with that. She seemed lonely,” Cadence said. “Besides, you should still take another day or two off, just to make sure you’re okay. If you want to stay here, you can, and I can bring Sire back to you later.”
“No, I think I need to go home now, but Sire can hang out with the other birds for a while. I’ve been feeling bad about keeping her couped up lately.
She needs space to roam.” I nodded. “There’s some stuff I want to work on.
All that career stuff got my creative engine going.
I’m going to work on some backend stuff and let the sub take the classes for me for the next couple of days.
Maybe we give Sire another day to be free? ”
“Sounds like a great plan. Okay, let’s get out of here.” Tayvion clapped her hands. “This altitude is starting to mess with me.”
Returning to life as normal was more of a struggle than I thought it would be. Yeah, I felt fine and could regulate my emotions. I could even control my powers again, but something was still off. I thought it was paranoia until Cadence brought Sire back.
Never had that damn bird been so clingy. She flew to me instantly, nuzzling my cheek with her head.
“She must have missed you.” Cadence shrugged. “I think she enjoyed herself, but this morning, she started looking like she was over not being the only firebird around.”
“She definitely enjoys being the center of attention.” I tried to remove her from my shoulder, but she returned the moment I put her down. “Sire, what are you doing? You’ve been away from me longer than that before.”
When I tried to remove her again, she pecked at my fingers and squawked.
“Ouch!” I pulled my hand away from her. “I know you’re not yelling and pecking at me!”
“Well, enjoy the show of love!” Cadence smiled. “Before long, she’ll be mocking you and begging for food again.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
I worked from home the next few days, sitting in virtual meetings with Sire either in my lap, on my shoulder, or perched at the edge of my desk.
At first, Sire’s presence annoyed me. I wasn’t used to having her all up under me like that.
But soon, I welcomed it, because she became my little cheerleader.
With every task I completed, she tapped the desk with her talons.
Whenever a meeting ended, she sang. When I got off the big call with the PR person I hired, she did a dance, and it felt like a mirror of my internal joy.
The woman had already scheduled me for more interviews and lined up another television spot where I could showcase my skills.
On top of that, she had the details from another executive who wanted to talk about me doing a series of videos.
I knew that could lead to a full television show if it did well.
Suddenly, my plans were shifting to include a series, merch, and more.
“I might be able to move up the plans for building our perfect countryside home.” I fluffed Sire’s feathers, and she sang.
I was glad Sire was there to remind me to celebrate those moments, because if not for her, my mind would have quickly skipped joy and landed back on Likosa. She hadn’t returned, and I hadn’t called her. I felt fine, and I didn’t want to be a pest.
Oh, is that insecurity creeping up?
Twice, I met up with my girls. We talked, and everything felt normal, but just on the surface. I laughed and smiled as they told me about everything going on in their lives. I was happy to hear about the progress Cadence had made.