Guardian Angel

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

I believe the saying is, psych!

No sooner had the thought of relaxation and peace crossed my mind before the sound of my phone went off, making me slam my eyes shut and screw my face up. The sound actually sparked a headache in the side of my head and I debated throwing the damn thing into the creek, but it would honestly be a fucking ecological disaster to make the fish listen to that sound.

Making a mental note to shut the damn thing off after this one last phone call, I reached into my pocket and pulled the thing out, swiping the image on the screen of dad's face.

"Salo Manta," he said in his native tongue that literally no one understood, save Rowan and I, "Ryk, what is wrong with you? I called your office, but your secretary said you took a vacation?" I pressed my tongue to the roof of my mouth, silently wishing I'd told Emira something else. Emira, of all people, understood my need for a vacation, but for some reason, the idea was foreign to everyone else.

"Mmhm," I said, pushing myself to my feet and dusting myself off.

"Vacation? Are... Really?" He sounded weirdly relieved.

"Yup," I said, pausing to squint against the sunlight pouring through the trees to see the wheel begin turning in the creek thanks to my presence, "Just needed to get out for a bit. You know. Get my shit together." There was a pause on the other end of the line and I took the opportunity to noisily begin moving things into the cabin. I coughed when I dropped the bags on the floor, stirring up the dust from earlier.

"Where are you?" Dad asked.

"Ah. I'm... staying with Niko," I said slowly. If anyone understood my current situation, it was Four-- Niko.

"Oh," wow, he sounded like he'd collapsed in a thick recliner, "Okay, that's good. I think some time away will help. Uhm... Did you stop by the house? To get anything? Clothes?" I immediately picked up on the hopeful tone asking please tell me you didn't hear daddy say he didn't want you around. A small part of me wanted to say, yes, so what if I was? Would that have changed anything Rowan said in the end? Not really. And, the most annoying part was that I couldn't find it in me to hate Rowan for it, any of it. Of course he was going to be stuck on Hades. The guilt he carried for not having been there for Hades had to be killing him.

"Ah, no," I said, moving to the front door to close it, "Nope, already had a doggy bag prepped at the office."

"Okay," he definitely sounded relieved, "Okay, very smart."

"Yeah, well, Hades always taught me to be prepared and have a doggy bag."

"Of course he did," he seemed content now and I could feel the relief rush through me as I leaned back against the front door before pushing off to head back into the small kitchen area, turning on the lights that flickered for a moment before settling, "So, do you have any plans on your vacation or are you just going to spend it sleeping?"

"Ah, not sure yet," I said, taking perishables out of the bags and sticking them in the fridge that coughed a little as it started up, "I might take up archery." Dad laughed as I turned to wad up the bags, opening a cabinet and tossing them in over my shoulder, balancing my phone on my other shoulder.

"Please don't let Niko near you with a bow, of any kind," Dad added and I could hear him shuddering at the thought and I smiled, "Source above, that kid is going to wreak havoc on this world. I appreciate his gusto, but maybe I'm just too old for that kind of excitement."

"Yeah, it's not like you're so old you're a whole universe older than us, or more," I said, walking into the living room to turn on the lights, waving my hands through the air, using a little magic to tidy things up. It was so weird using my magic for something that wasn't medical related. It almost took me a second to remember what I wanted to do and how to focus.