Page 61 of The Beyond
“Sure, I…” Selene started. “I need some rest first. I figured we’d go tomorrow night.”
Tara nodded. “I’d better…” She motioned to the room, which was still full of customers.
“Sure. Great place, by the way.” Selene smiled. “You guys did it.”
Tara’s smile grew. “Yes, we did.”
CHAPTEREIGHTEEN
Beyond the pain, there was nothing. It was just the darkness and the pain. It shot through every fiber of his being. Bounced off every bone in his body. It was as if he were being ripped apart from the inside.
“Hold on.” He heard Lucas’s voice somewhere near him. “Almost there.”
Scott could have sworn he was being carried. He felt the bouncing, but the pain was too strong, and he doubled over. He felt something trying to claw its way out of him and instantly guessed that it was Moros somehow. He was desperate to hold him back, deep inside him. He knew that if he didn’t, he would never see Selene again.
Then there was a flash of light and all of the pain disappeared. He opened his eyes and realized Lucas was back in dog form and he was riding on his back.
The moment he opened his eyes, Lucas set him down and turned back into his human form.
“I guess that means we’re here,” Lucas said, looking around.
Scott saw where they were and gasped. They stood on a white sandy beach. Before them, crystal-clear emerald waters spread out for as far as the eye could see.
Women of all shapes and sizes stood before them in white flowing gowns, sipping drinks.
When they were noticed, everyone turned to them and cheered. They were welcomed and ushered towards a covered pavilion that held a large fountain, where people sat around eating and drinking.
“What is this place?” Scott asked. “Why is my pain gone? What the hell was that anyway?” he asked Lucas.
“Short answers. This is Elysium, or paradise. Your pain is gone because, well, hello, we’re in paradise. There is no pain here. And lastly, the pain was your father, Moros, trying to break free through you,” Lucas answered.
“What?” He paused and turned to Lucas, who was smiling and sipping a drink.
“Don’t worry. I’m going to fix this. But first, a toast.” Lucas held up a glass, and one was shoved into Scott’s hand. “Here’s to hoping Selene will take a lifetime to come save us.” He winked at Scott and then took a sip. “Damn, that’s good.”
Scott set his glass down, untouched. All he could think about was Selene. Even Lucas seemed to be preoccupied with something. Even though he flirted, drank, and ate, he continued to glance around as if waiting for something to happen.
This went on for… Scott had no idea how long. He lost track of time. Lost track of… well, everything. Time passed, but also it didn’t. He and Lucas speculated that time was irrelevant here. Since there was technically no day or night, they couldn’t tell if they’d been there an hour or a year. He supposed it was another trick of paradise to make its inhabitants more relaxed.
By his best guess, they had been there for a month now. Thirty long days and lonely nights without any word about Selene.
“Is this it then?” Scott asked Lucas.
“Not sure, bro.” Lucas slapped him on the back.
The only good thing about being stuck in paradise was that he and Lucas had become close friends.
Lucas had filled him in on his childhood, while Scott had told him all about his and Selene’s. It was as if Selene’s brother wanted to know but had been too afraid to ask, so Scott just kept telling stories of their past. After a few days of that, Lucas had started opening up about his childhood.
He’d spent the first six years in an orphanage outside of Boston. Then he’d been adopted by Leslie and Leif Romano. They had moved into a large house in upstate New York, where he’d spent his childhood.
When it first became clear he was different, his parents had accepted his abilities and allowed him to explore them in a safe place. By the time he was in college, he’d learned who he could trust and who he couldn’t.
Scott gathered there had been some hurt in his past, because he was very guarded about his college years and the time he’d spent working for his father’s company before the older man retired and he took over.
“I spend most of my time in New York,” Lucas said.
They were sitting in lounge chairs, sipping drinks while they watched a group of people play in the water in front of them.
