Chapter Twenty – A puzzle to solve.
“Shon, why the hell is your ex knocked out on your kitchen floor?” Tay asked after she appeared. “I thought you'd cut things off with her.”
“I never actually got around to shutting that down.” I shook my head. “Look, I didn’t know she was coming here. I didn’t even tell her where I lived!”
“So how did she get here?”
“Bigmouth Milton!” I rolled my eyes when I mentioned our former friend. “He only had it because I ordered one of his custom chess sets for my father. That’s the last time I support his small business.”
“That man really needs help. You know he’s the one who told my father when I dropped out of school? And look at me now! No degree and still thriving. That man really ruined my life for a full year!” she huffed.
“Please, I beg of you, don’t rehash this again!”
“Oh, you shady!” She pointed at me. “You remember this moment the next time you want to repeat a story I’ve heard a hundred times.”
“I mean, you can tell me about it again…if you tell me who I heard in the background when I called you.” I poked my lips out. “So?”
“So, I think we need to do something about the unconscious woman on your floor.” She shook her head. “Really, Shontae, how could you get so distracted?”
“Right.” I laughed.
“So what do you want to do?”
“I want to get her out of here.” I sighed. “And maybe see if I messed something up.”
“Messed something up?” She kneeled beside Jenna. “What could you have messed up?”
“I tried to use my abilities to calm her down, and that’s when she attacked. It’s like she did the total opposite of what I wanted.” I sucked my teeth. “The girl told me she had lied about her mother being sick, as if that was going to make me want to be with her!”
“Get the fuck out of here!” Tayvion stood. “That’s sick! How could she put that on her mama?”
“That’s what I said!” I leaned against the counter.
“What else did she say?”
“She was talking about how she wanted to apologize for what happened in her hotel room. Then, she suggested we try it anyway, and I told her I didn't think it was a good idea. I should have sent her ass home, but no, I offered her to come in and get some tea. You know I wanted her to calm down before she had to drive. After I gave her the tea, she confessed to lying about her mom. I could sense she was getting upset again, so I tried calming her down, and then the next thing I knew, she was attacking me, telling me I’m full of shit for rejecting her.”
“So your powers backfired?”
“Yes.” Sire flew over and landed on my shoulder. “Even the bird feels bad for me.”
“Hmm. Try it on me now.” Tayvion held her hands out to her side. “I’ll drop my guard, and you do your thing.”
“Tay, that might be a bad idea.”
“It might, but I’m already riled up.” She winked. “Was having…fun when you called.”
Tayvion dropped her guard, and I felt exactly what she meant. “I wasn't going to ask about the fun you were having or who you were having it with.”
“Even if you did, I wouldn’t tell you. Now, try your power. Let's go.”
Once again, I found myself nervous about using my power. But I had to, and it was safer to try it with Tayvion than anyone else. So, I visualized the blanket, tuning it to snuff out her lingering arousal before pushing toward her.
It looked like it had worked at first. Tayvion looked relaxed for a moment, and then my friend’s eyes widened as sweat formed on her brow.
Her chest rose and fell quickly, and she fanned herself.
Then, she closed her eyes, as if transported somewhere else, and leaned back against the wall.
I watched in awe as her hand moved to the top of her skirt and slipped beneath the fabric.
“Whoa!” I yelled and pulled the blanket back. “Tay! Please stop.”
She froze, blinking rapidly, then looked down at her hand. “Shon, what did you just do to me?”
“I didn’t do that!”
“Clearly, you did.” She straightened and fanned herself again. “I don’t know what that was, but no one hears about that, ever!”
“Why would I want to tell anyone about that?”
“Good.” She pointed at my hand. “I don’t think that ring is doing a damn thing for you. It’s time for you to call Likosa and tell her to get her ass back here with your permanent solution.”
“Shit.” I nodded. “Okay, you’re right.”
“You do that, and I will take Jenna somewhere safe.”
“What are you going to do to her?” I asked.
“I have a friend who can help clean up her memory and maybe have her forget she ever came over here, and then this human will be out of your hair.
Don't worry about her; she will be okay.” Tayvion picked Jenna up from the floor in a rare show of her true strength.
“I know, even though you don't want to be with her, you still care about the girl. I get it. But right now, all I care about is you calling up Likosa and getting this settled.”
“Thank you.” I took a slow breath.
“Shon, you got this. I know this is a lot right now, but you’re going to be okay.”
“What if I’m not?” I looked at her. “What if my powers are broken for good?”
“Listen, you call Likosa, and I’ll handle Jenna. Then, I’ll grab Caddy, and we’ll come back here. No matter what happens, you always have us. We’ll make sure you’re okay. If Likosa can’t help you, we’ll find a way.”
She waited for my nod, a sign I would be okay, and then she disappeared. As I sat down, Sire flew across the room, landing on the table in front of me.
“I can do this.” I looked at her, and she whistled.
I called Likosa’s number, wondering how she would feel about not hearing from me for nearly two weeks.
Once again, I got her voicemail and left her a message, telling her I needed to see her.
I expected her to appear just as quickly as she had the last time.
But after ten minutes of waiting, I knocked back the cold tea and marched into the living room.
After plopping down on the couch, I turned on the TV and pulled the light-green blanket over me. Before long, I forgot about waiting for Likosa and fell asleep.
“Shontae?”
I thought the melodic voice was the beginnings of a sweet dream. A vision of her draped in pink lace faded, but the sound of her voice grew louder, until I realized this was no dream. I opened my eyes to see Likosa standing over me.
“Likosa?” I squinted against the light behind her. “You’re here.”
“You looked so peaceful, I almost didn’t wake you.” She smiled. “Sorry it took me a while to come. I didn’t get your message right away. Not a strong signal where I’m from.”
“Well, thank you for coming when you could.” I sat up and pushed the blanket from my legs.
“You said you needed to see me. I assumed something was wrong.”
“I didn’t want to bother you, but the temporary fix,” I held up my hand, “is already wearing off. And I haven’t taken this off at all, not even to shower.”
“Faster than I hoped, but it could be the way time moves here. For you, it’s been about two weeks since I was last here, but to me, it’s just over two days. It’s not unlikely it’s less effective here.”
I thought about what she said and felt instant relief. There I was, thinking she’d forgotten about me, but the truth was, it hadn’t been long enough for her to worry.
You thought she forgot about you? Aww, how adorable. You’re losing your touch. Since when do you sit around pining after someone like this?
“What should I do?” I quieted the inner shit-talker. I knew the way I was acting with ridiculous, but I wouldn’t let that voice beat me up about it.
“First, I can patch you up again.” She grabbed my hand to pull me to my feet before she examined the ring. “The flame is still strong.”
Likosa produced the bottle of her magical water and did the same as before: coated her hands and then my chest, this time skipping the barrier of water that surrounded us in the cabin. Her touch was careful, but it ended quicker than I wanted.
“So you’re going to have to keep doing that?” I asked as she withdrew her water. “That’s not feasible, is it? I can’t call you to my world to patch me up every two weeks.”
“No, it's not, but I’m close to a solution. It just means we’ll have to spend a little more time together until we resolve the matter.” She looked around the room. “Give me a moment, please? I need to pop out, but I’ll be back before you know it.”
“Um, yeah, okay.” I nodded, and she winked at me. I thought she would pop right out like she had before. Instead, she lifted her fingers to stroke my cheek. “So beautiful.”
And then, she was gone, leaving me standing there, mouth slightly open as if waiting for a kiss.
My heart raced, my stomach fluttered, and I couldn’t figure out what to do next.
Then, the doorbell rang. I welcomed the distraction and went to answer it.
Tayvion and Cadence stood on the other side of the door, emergency bags in hand.
“We’re here to troubleshoot!” Cadence cheered. “It's your turn to be on the whiteboard!”
“Actually, Likosa came and helped out.” I scratched the back of my neck as I stepped back to give them space to enter.
“So you’re fixed for good?” Cadence looked around me.
“Where is she?” Tayvion asked.
“She’s not here.” I shook my head. “She left but said she would be back soon.”
“Why is she coming back?” Tayvion asked. “Does she miss you? I mean, those two weeks must have been really tough on her.”
“Apparently, where she’s from, it was only two days.” Tayvion’s eyes widened, and I held up my hand. “Alien established. Please move on.”
Tayvion gave a tight nod. She’d drop it, but not for long.
“She said we’ll need to spend more time together. What she did is still temporary, but she’s close to a solution.”
“So…” Cadence looked at Tayvion, who shrugged. “What does that mean? How are you going to spend more time together?”
Suddenly, Likosa reappeared in the middle of the room, a whirlwind of motion. The sound of rushing air snapped our attention to her. My mouth fell open, because behind her, a mountain of pink luggage lay on the floor, ready to be unpacked.