My mouth fell open.“He’s helping a priest?”I couldn’t see Darius anywhere near a church, let alone volunteering to help at one.
“In a roundabout way.One of the waitresses at Outpour volunteered Darius to teach a self-defense class offered by her church.Next thing you know, Darius is helping mentor fatherless kids, showing up at the shelters to fix the heaters every time they go out, and even offering our services when needed.”He shook his head.“He told us not to say anything about it, but geez, give the guy some credit.”
“Wow.”Darius, a Good Samaritan?
“Look, Samantha, Darius is trying to give you space to make up your mind about him.I told him he’s going about it all wrong, but would he listen to me?No.”
I didn’t understand.“Excuse me?”
Cad sighed.“Darius really wants to make a good impression on you.”
“So visiting homeless shelters and not telling me about them, not to mention avoiding me, is supposed to impress me?”
“No, no.What I meant was, he helps out with those in need because he can.He’s a warrior.Hell, we all are, and protecting those in need is what we do best.As for the shelter, think about it.That firepower of his makes warming those left in the cold a real gift.But he would never brag about any of it.He doesn’t like calling attention to himself.”
Another layer of Darius Storm slowly revealed itself.“He couldn’t have mentioned where he was going when I asked?”
“No.”Cad pursed his lips in disgust.“My brother may be the toughest of us, but he’s an idiot when it comes to women.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.“And you’re what, God’s gift to us?”
“Exactly.”His eyes sparkled, a rich brown that made me think of melting chocolate.“I told him to seduce you with words, to tell you how he feels.But he told me… Well, it’s not fit for polite company.”
“Right.”I laughed again, choosing my words carefully.“Why should he need to tell me how he feels?As I see it, he’s doing me a favor by protecting me from Sin Garu.”
Cadmus glanced down at his cup.“You could say you’re doing us a favor too, by staying close.The next time Sin Garu tries to attack, we’ll be ready and hopefully end him.”
“But why me?Why mess with my dreams?”
“Maybe because you can see what others can’t.”He paused then stared at me with an intensity that left me breathless.I could feel power radiating off him.“Even if Darius hadn’t told us about your visions, I’d know.I feel your gift.I know because I see as well.”
“You do?”Darius hadn’t mentioned that.
He nodded.“My elemental magic is my bond with the earth.But more than that, my powers of clairvoyance have grown.I dream of future events, some of which come to pass while others don’t.”
“Why?Because you’ve changed them, stopping them from happening?”
“Or because they were just dreams.I don’t think everything I see is a vision of the future.”He smiled wryly.“But then, I’ve been told to quit questioning my power and accept it.What about you?”
I stopped to think, admitting to Cadmus what I had yet to admit to myself.“I’ve always had strange dreams, most of which I force myself to forget since there’s little I can do to change them.The few times I actually intervened, no good came of it.”
He waited while I struggled to put into words the hopelessness of my talent.
“Two instances come to mind.Twice I tried to stop something terrible from happening, and both times I fell short.The first time my sister suffered a broken leg instead of the concussion I foresaw.”
“And the second?”
“The second time a neighbor died in a car wreck.”
“But if that’s the case, that proves they were meant to die, that nothing you said or did could have prevented it.”
“Right.”
“No, really.”He looked intent on clearing my conscience, and I was touched he cared enough to try.“What exactly made you think your neighbor would die?”
“I had a vision of Mr.Rumfeld clutching his heart.He fell to his knees all alone in his kitchen.The ambulance arrived too late to resuscitate him.”
“There, you see?”
