Waking Up Immortal

Waking up Immortal

Book 1-Universal Security Series

Rachel Carrington

Copyright ©2012 Rachel Carrington

ISBN Not Assigned

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and retrieval system-except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review to be printed in a magazine, newspaper, or on the Web-without permission in writing from the publisher.

All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.

Trademark Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank and acknowledge the following registered trademarks used within the body of this work:

Plexiglas® Owner: Arkema France CORPORATION FRANCE 420 rue d'Estienne d'Orves 92700 Colombes FRANCE

Dedication

To my friend, my confidante, my partner-in-crime, Debra Curwen. You’re my rock and motivator, but much more than that, you’re my sister. I thank God I’m not on this journey alone.

Chapter One

I wasn’t happy to discover my immortality. Others might have been exhilarated. Me? I only thought about how I’d have to watch every person who meant something to me die. You just told me I can’t die. How can you sit there calmly drinking tea?

My mother blinked up at me. It’s oolong.

Molars grinding, I considered hurling one of her prized vases across the living room. You should have told me this sooner. I glared at her as best I could because in the glaring department my mother had me hands down. She’d always been able to guilt me and my sister into doing anything she wanted us to do, and when that failed, she scowled us into it.

I would had it been necessary.

My mouth dropped open. I had to wonder what it would have taken to constitute a necessity in her opinion.

Why didn’t you think it was necessary, Mother? She hated when I called her that, but I don’t think anyone could blame me for being a little perturbed. I mean, seriously, I thought I was normal until I walked away from a front-end collision that should have been the end of me with only a few scratches and bruises. That was when my mother gave me the all the details.

Because you only gain immortality once you die. At least that’s how I understand it. I thought your heart had stopped beating inside that ambulance, and that’s the only reason I told you.

So if I hadn’t had the car accident, you wouldn’t have told me today?

She tipped her head to one side, a lock of dyed brunette hair falling to the left. Probably not.

Mother! How could you keep something like this from me?

You should be glad you’re alive, Chloe. Most people would be thankful to discover they can choose the age they want to stay forever. Just think. You’ll never develop wrinkles or arthritis. She paused. And you’ll always be able to feed yourself. She began a detailed inspection of her fingernails, a crystal-clear indication she wanted this conversation to be over.

Aren’t you forgetting something? My friends! You don’t think they would wonder why I don’t age? My voice went up an octave.

She waggled a hand in obvious dismissal before picking up her embroidery needle. In a few years, you’ll move. You’ll make new friends.

My head spun. Was she seriously suggesting I abandon my friends, the life I knew, because I was a mutant? Mom, I like my life, and by the way, if I’m immortal, why aren’t you? Clearly you’ve aged. I added the last part because, at the moment, I was feeling pretty mean.

Mom sniffed and gave me a look. That wasn’t nice, Chloe, but nevertheless, the immortality comes from your father’s side of the family. Her reference to my father still held that same level of distaste it always did.

My father? You told me he was dead!

She didn’t look at all guilty. Would you rather I have told you he insisted on running off to save the world instead of staying here with me and being your father? She slapped her needlepoint down and stood, brushing her hands down the front of her slinky black pajama bottoms. Yes, Chloe, your father left us because he believed saving the world was more important than raising a family. He should have told me before getting me pregnant!

My mother had always been a little hysterical, but this was way out of bounds for even her. I took a deep breath, but it didn’t help. So if I have to die to gain this immortality, what if I just grow older and older without dying first? Then what?

Her hands fluttered. How in the world am I supposed to know that? I think there’s something about all immortals dying before they’re a certain age or something like that. The hand waving intensified. This really isn’t my forte, Chloe, and my information is limited.

I wish she’d kept that limited information to herself. If she’d never told me, I wouldn’t have this heavy weight on my chest. So what about Rita? I’m guessing since we have different fathers, she isn’t immortal.

Of course not. How many immortals do you think I had sex with?

I didn’t want to know that. At that moment, I didn’t want to know anything else, either. Okay, well, this is great news. My words told her otherwise. I snatched my purse off the couch and headed toward the door. I’ll call you later.

Where are you going?

Somewhere to think. Though I wasn’t so sure that was the best idea. Who really wanted to think about eternity? An infinite eternity where the life you’ve known suddenly shatters around you?

There’s not much to think about, darling. You are who you are.

I gritted my teeth and made it look like a smile. Good-night, Mom.

Good-night, sweetheart. Drive safely.

Why?

She chuckled. Oh, sorry. Old habit. I’ll have to get used to not saying that now, won’t I?

My jaw aching, I stormed out into the pouring rain and slid into the driver’s seat of my aging Ford Explorer. Luckily, I’d been driving my mother’s car that morning when a sixteen year old kid decided to turn left in front of me. I wasn’t so sure my Ford could have withstood the crash. My mother drove a tank, though.

Hands clenched around the steering wheel, I sat there for the longest time. I wasn’t sure what to do. I certainly couldn’t tell my friends this. I mean, how was I supposed to explain this to them?

As I sat there with the rain splashing against the cracked windshield, I played the possible scenarios over in my head, each one ending with the loss of a friend. I certainly couldn’t blame them if they did walk away. How would I feel if someone I thought I’d known my entire life suddenly told me they were freakishly abnormal?

My mother might think this was no big deal, but she didn’t have to face the consequences of the future. And I was too damned young to be thinking about losing everyone I loved. Knowing I’d outlive them all.

I damned my genetics for several second before a light went off like a scene from an old movie. There had to be a way to fix this. Mom had said her knowledge was limited. So maybe there was something that could be done.

I was probably the only person who wanted to figure out a way to die eventually, but that was only because to me, life wasn’t meant to be lived forever. The circle of life involved passing on, leaving a legacy behind. I couldn’t do that if my heart never stopped beating.

I stuck the key in the ignition and turned it, waiting impatiently for the old engine to cycle through the usual coughs and sputters before it finally quieted to a low rumble.

There was only one person who knew about this immortality business. My father. If I wanted more information, he was the guy I’d have to find no matter what part of the world he was saving at the moment.

Days later I found myself sitting atop a barstool inside an off-the-road bar while an old Hank Williams song whined in the background. How many more dives was I going to have to go through before I found the man who fathered me? For crying out loud, I’d been up and down the entire east coast, following lead after lead, and my savings account had dwindled to practically nothing.

I could call my mother for some funds, but the idea made my nose wrinkle. The last time I’d talked to her she hadn’t sounded the least bit concerned that I’d taken off on a road trip before telling her. I guess she thought since she couldn’t lose me there was no need to be worried. The thought galled me.

I took another sip of my watered down coke and caught one of the guys at the bar eyeing me. Perfect. Over the past few days, I’d fended off enough men who hadn’t seen a woman in a while, and I was pretty sick of it. Apparently, in this part of the country, the female population wasn’t as boisterous as it needed to be.

My newest admirer slid off the stool and sauntered toward me, all legs and teeth. Thin as a stalk of corn, he had a pot belly that hung over his belt and a slick comb-over. Hey there, pretty lady. Can I buy you another coke?

The sigh that escaped my lips came from the very depths of my soul. No, thanks. I was leaving. I slid out of the booth, pulling my purse behind me.

Ain’t no need to be in a rush. He caught hold of my wrist.

I glanced at the bartender who didn’t look at all interested in my plight. This was another scrape I was going to have to dig my own way out of. I am in a rush, actually. I need to make Tennessee by dawn. Wasn’t that a song lyric?

Really? He grinned, and if those weren’t dentures he wore, I was mortal. Well, fancy that. I’m heading to Tennessee myself. That’s my rig. He jerked his head toward the glass-paned door, the movement dislodging his hair.

How nice. I parted my teeth in what couldn’t be described as a smile under any circumstance, but it didn’t seem to faze Lothario. I tried to tug my hand free, but his grip was tighter than a pair of new pantyhose. Look, Mr.—

You can call me Ben. Ain’t no need to be proper with me. Let’s you and me go outside and get to know one another a bit better. When he started towing me toward the front door, I figured I had to make a break for it the best way I could.

I lurched forward and stomped his foot. When he yelped and relaxed his fingers, I took off, my sneakers kicking up dust as I raced toward my trusty Ford. I got in, slammed the door, and shoved the lock into place, my shoulders sagging against the cracked upholstery.

Seconds later, after I’d searched through my purse, even dumped the contents on the passenger seat, all traces of relief disappeared. Apparently, my keys hadn’t joined me. Then I looked out the window and saw Ben holding my key ring, and he wasn’t looking nearly as friendly as he had in the bar.

Damn. I needed those keys, but I didn’t think for one second he was going to hand them over nicely. And to be honest, I wasn’t much of a fighter. I mean, I could hold my own, but this immortal thing didn’t come with instructions on how to keep from getting your ass kicked.

I rolled my window down a crack, thankful for once I still had the old-time system that didn’t require my car’s battery to operate the windows or doors. Look, Ben, I need to get on the road. So could you please give me my keys?

You ain’t even going to apologize for damn near taking my foot off?

That was a bit of an exaggeration. I weighed, at most, one twenty-five, maybe one thirty if I used my mother’s scale. So I doubted I even left a bruise, especially considering the thickness of his work boot.

I’m sorry I stomped on your foot, but you wouldn’t let me go. The sweet tone of my voice didn’t erase the glower from his face.

Ben stomped forward, but I didn’t get the suitor vibe from him anymore. His jaw clenched, and his eyes glittered. When he stuck the key in the keyhole to unlock my door, I squeaked and held the lock in place with my palm.

You’re gonna open this door, missy, and you and I are gonna have ourselves a talk. He practically pressed his face against my window, and if I had been the type, I probably would have fainted. I wished I could scare him as much as he was scaring me. What good was being immortal when it didn’t come with any superpowers?

The pointed lock pressed into my hand, and I shifted in the seat for better leverage. There was no way I was giving up. I’d hold that thing in place until it poked through the back of my hand if necessary.

Open the damned door! Ben growled.

Then a hand, quick as a rattler’s strike, snatched the keys from Ben’s grasp and tossed them in through the window. Wide shoulders blocked my view, but the scuffle in the dirt provided me with some satisfaction.

Ben sailed up into the air with a yelp, and seconds later, his bony butt hit the dirt with a thunk. He let out a howl like a wounded wolf and rolled to his side.

I looked up to thank my savior, but the man who’d saved me didn’t look pleased to have been placed in that position. He glowered at me, and all I could think about was how gorgeous his eyes were. Well, that, and how the sun glinted off his shiny black hair.

What in the hell are you doing? That deep, rumbling voice made me excuse his rudeness. It was difficult for me to take my eyes off a face that simmered with pure perfection. I’d never met anyone who’d taken my breath away, and as clichéd as it sounded, that was exactly what my savior had done.

His palm smacked against my window. Are you listening to me?

I rolled my window down a bit further and found my voice. I was trying to leave, but Ben there had other plans. I jerked my head toward Ben who’d now gained ground again.

That’s not what I’m talking about. You need to stop looking for your father.

Now he really had my attention. How did he know I was looking for my father? Who are you?

That’s not important. Listen to me and stop.

Who was this guy? I mean, sure he’d provided an intervention at exactly the right time, but it wasn’t like he’d saved my life. I didn’t need anyone to do that anymore. I’ll ask again. Who are you?

His eyes threatened to peel the imitation leather off my SUV’s bench seat. I’m someone who is trying to protect you.

My determination inched up a notch. Who told this guy I needed protecting? Especially from my father? What, exactly, was my father in to anyway? And does my knight in shining armor have a name?

If pissed had a look, it would be his face. Kier. Does knowing my name help you follow orders?

Orders? Did he actually think I was going to follow orders? The ludicrous thought almost made me laugh. Well, no, Kier, it doesn’t, but I do like to know the names of the people I ignore. Saves me time if I run into them in the future. Arrogant ass. Apparently, this town grew them by the bushels.

He stuck his hand in the window, and I shrank back. You can’t keep looking for your father, Chloe.

My skin chilled. The words didn’t warn me as much as his tone did. I pressed for more information. Have you been following me? I liked to think I would have been smart enough to realize I was being followed, but I never claimed to be a detective.

His lips curled into what I could only describe as a sneer. Are you kidding me? You’re leaving more bread crumbs than Hansel and Gretel. A near-sighted monkey could follow you.

I didn’t like his new tone…at all. Whoever this guy was, he needed a few lessons in tact. I’m trying to find my father, not discover CIA secrets. I didn’t see a need to be clandestine.

Ben had gotten his sea legs back and stumbled forward, his hands clenched into tight fists. I gathered he hadn’t gotten a real good look at the man who’d put him on his ass. Otherwise, he would have done the smart thing and stayed down.

Kier and Ben differed in height by about six inches—my knight having the upper hand—and muscle tone, Ben having none. So in a one on one fight, Ben was likely to lose those sparkling dentures.

Hey, you!

Kier didn’t turn around. Take my advice and go home.

Oh, so it’s advice now? Because earlier, it was an order. I’m getting a bit confused. My temper had started a slow but steady climb, and I’d never been good at holding it.

I’m talking to you, buddy! Ben shouted from a respectable distance.

Kier dropped his head for a second before spinning to face his adversary. This isn’t going to go the way you think it is. Just walk away.

Ben didn’t look like the type who took advice, either. He stood there flexing and unflexing his fingers as though the very motion might intimidate Kier. This wasn’t none of your business, but since you poked your nose in, I reckon I got cause to show you some manners.

Was he kidding?