“Yes, ours is called the Order of Luxis. Those people at the diner are from the Order of Veritas.”
She snorted in disbelief. “How many orders are there?”
“Five.”
Emma’s eyes darted to me for a moment as if nervous. “What did they want?”
I didn’t answer right away. “They wanted to deceive me. Convince me to turn away from my Masters, away from the light.”
“So they’re bad guys.” Her fingers tapped along the steering wheel.
“No.” I shook my head, unable to look away from her tapping fingers. “They are not bad. Misguided. They are led by a different doctrine. My Masters warned me that one day representatives from the other Orders would perhaps approach me in attempts to make me deny my Order. They would use falsehoods and tricks to turn me against the Light for what they believe to be the better good. The Order of Luxis is the most powerful of all the Orders and has been for the last two hundred years, which makes us a target. It was just as my Masters told it.”
Emma laughed, weakly. “Guess that’s the second time you’ve been lied to then?”
I turned to look at her. The sunlight streamed through the car as it made its slow descent behind the mountains. It lit up the gold strands of her hair and turned her eyes a deep honey color that reminded me of the light of my powers, except warmer. She shot me a smile. I wished the moment would never end. That it could just be her and me riding through the red rocky expanse of Wyoming headed to wherever we wanted. For several long minutes, I allowed myself the luxury of thinking just that.
Emma and Travis begged for respite for three hours before I agreed to stop.
Because of the agents of Veritas, we would have to endure a longer route and I needed to be sure the agents weren’t still tracking us. At least this way, I could make sure we had truly lost them. Both Travis and Emma were weary beyond measure from the stress of the past two days. They took turns driving but both were unfocused, and I could tell they were nearing total exhaustion. Even I knew the value of a solid bed, a hot meal, and a couple hours of uninterrupted rest. As we drove up to the small motel I told Travis he could pull into, I knew rest would be a distant memory for me until we reached my safe house. I would have to remain on constant guard.
After paying for the room in cash, I took a turn about the premises for a threat assessment while Emma and Travis waited in the car with the engine on. Part of me worried Travis would use the opportunity to flee but he seemed to slowly but surely conclude I was his best bet at staying alive. I hoped after the brief respite, he would finally be mollified.
Once we got in the room, Travis flopped on one of the beds, heaving a sigh of relief.
“Sweet, sweet bed. You understand me.”
The wallpaper was of dark green foliage, making the room appear small and dark. The quilts on the two queen beds matched the wallpaper, giving the place a pseudo-jungle look. Every piece of furniture had signs of heavy wear and age, and a few stains remained in the thin Berber carpet despite someone’s best efforts to get them out. It smelled like mothballs and generic hotel soap.
Despite it being far nicer than my normal accommodations, claustrophobia fell over me like an invisible blanket bound by ropes. I fought it by taking measured breathes. Too many unknowns in one day. I had to stay focused and relaxed. I had to believe we were going to be fine staying here. If the agents of Veritas wanted to keep eyes on us here, I would be able to put eyes right back on them. I would not conclude our journey to the safe house until I knew they’d given up their pursuit.
Anxiety swelled up in me. If Order of Veritas discovered I had the Propheros under my protection, they would stop at nothing to obtain him. The Veritas also had interpretations of the prophecy and I couldn’t let them control the savior of the Light. Today’s deceitful attempt confirmed they couldn’t be trusted.
Emma rolled her eyes but couldn’t help smiling as Travis flailed his arms and legs open and close on the bed like he was swimming. Then she looked me out of the corner of her eye. “There are two beds.”
“Yes.”
Travis understood immediately. “As the guy who has to fight the coming darkness, I get my own bed. You two can share.”
Oh. Two beds. Three of us.
The image of sharing a bed with Emma flashed through my mind and sent heat shooting through my body. Her cheeks flushed in kind as if she knew what images had flashed through my mind in vivid color.
I cleared my throat. “The bed is for you.” I walked over to the mustard yellow chair with the threadbare arms next to the unoccupied bed and set my sword against it. “I will keep watch while you both rest.”
Emma set her hands on her hips. “You have to rest at some point, too. You’re not a machine.”
“Terminator,” Travis said from the bed with his arms still splayed out, eyes closed.
Emma cast a glance over her shoulder but didn’t elaborate on what he was talking about. Instead, she said to me, “Can I keep watch for a while, so you can get some sleep?”
A smile softened my face. No one had ever tried to take care of me before. “I’ll keep first watch. I’ll wake you when I need it.”
She nodded with a satisfied smile.
I didn’t further explain I wouldn’t need it. I would let her sleep through the night. It was more important she was rejuvenated. I was used to few hours of sleep when hunting, but I knew her urge to care for me was stronger than my reasoning. A pang went through my heart.
If only I were a normal man. I’d offer her my soul in a moment.
