Can't Fight Time Ch. 03

Hey Everyone!

So, I know a lot of you are mad, but the book is already out. This is just a revision, because my teacher encouraged me to do it and she was right. I'm adding a couple pages to the book, fixing some errors and what not. Anyway, if you're new, thanks for reading, if you are a returner, please don't hate me. I'm just a perfectionist and finishing correcting Time helps me finish Fate. Alright, I hope you like.

-Rosi

***

I'm gonna have me some fried fricassee when I get my hands on those damn birds! Nina thought aggressively as she opened her eyes and threw her pillow at the window. Said birds had been chirping for more than an hour while she struggled to get back to sleep. Of course, the stupid things hadn't stopped, and Nina had gotten tired of feigning sleep.

Turning onto her side, she read her alarm clock. Holy crap! It's six in the freakin' morning! Nina screamed into her head as she kicked her arms and legs and indulged herself in a brief tantrum.

Yesterday had been the best sleep that she'd had in a while. She didn't know why, but she'd felt safe, something she hadn't felt in a long time. It wasn't as if her father did anything that would endanger her; but she'd woken up one night to see him staring at her in the funniest way, like he wanted to do some 'not so fatherly' things to her. Even knowing he'd never do them, a part of her had insisted on the locks.

But it's Dad. And maybe it was that thought that kept her from calling the police. Deep down she wanted to believe that he'd never hurt her, but an even deeper part of her knew that that was a lie and it was only a matter of time before things escalated and he really did do something dangerous.

Swinging her legs out of bed, Nina got up and stretched before going to her dresser to pull out her clothes for the day. If she was going to be honest, being awake at six wasn't even a new phenomenon. Ever since her mother had passed, her body seemed to wake up with the sun as if seeking that form of protection. It was much easier to live and sleep in the daytime than it was at night. It was like her soul craved the warmth of the sun, because she couldn't find it at home.

Sighing, Nina pulled on her clothes as quietly as she could, still a bit cold despite it being early enough in fall that the chill hadn't really set in. Even now, she saw students wearing short-shorts, flip flops, and tank tops around her campus. But as she pulled on her clothes, Nina found herself reaching for a long sleeved pullover. Although the chill hadn't set in for most people, for her it seemed to be a constant.

"Freakin' cold as Hades," Nina muttered under her breath as she quietly, but quickly jammed her feet in a pair of flats.

She was quick as she dressed, grabbed her bag, and moved down the hall. It meant that she had less of a chance of seeing her father. Nina loved the man, but lately he'd become increasingly... strange, distant, and seemingly removed from reality.

Nina sighed again as she got outside and closed the door, then turned the knob to make sure it locked. It was only a ten minute walk, but it gave her time to reflect on her life. School had never been daunting; though Nina struggled in math and science she had ultimately passed those classes. Nothing had really been a challenge for her, well, except for her relationships. Most of that was because, after her mother had died and her father had become protective in the extreme, all of Nina's friends had disappeared.

The only friend she had now was Nicole, since it would take a natural disaster or death to separate them. They had become friends in freshman year,Nicole had a way of making the loneliness that seemed to perpetually claw at Nina fade away. She was one of the few people that Nina felt she could fully trust herself with.

Why is it so cold? Goose bumps rose on her skin despite the early morning rays from the sun.

Nina was passing through the gates of the university, headed towards the chapel, when the blinking lights of cop cars alerted her. Probably just a drunk girl? I mean Wednesday is the new Saturday. Nina thought, holding her bag tightly and walking with more caution towards the chapel.

But in the back of her mind, a gnawing persisted. Could it be one of the murders? But, it's never been on a campus before.

The murders had been around the city, in different locations. They had the same M.O., which had led people to conclude it was a serial killer, especially considering all the women had looked remarkably the same. Still, it was highly unlikely that the murderer had decided to strike on her campus. From the news, the places chosen were bars and clubs, not schools and universities. I mean I don't see a coroner tru—

Nina hadn't even finished her thought when the smell of blood and chemicals wafted towards her, making her want to vomit any leftover pizza in her system.

Turning her head away, she gripped her stomach and tried not to hurl as images assailed her mind. The morgue is sterile. But faint traces of blood are still in the air, not quite suppressed by the heaviness of chemicals.

"Stop," Nina whispered to herself as she fought back the memories.

"I want to see her. Pull the sheet back," I say and bite my tongue bloody. For a moment the smell overpowers the chemicals in the air.

"No!" Nina closed her eyes, fighting back more than her memories.

"Are you—?" the coroner is asking pityingly.

My Dad's beside me. Quiet, hasn't spoken a word. "Do it."

"Hey! You okay?" someone yelled near Nina, drawing her back to the present. "Can I get a medic over here?"

She was on her knees on the ground, shivering, goose bumps running like ants across her skin. An officer stood over her, a woman, soothingly rubbing circles on her back.

Pull it together! her subconscious yelled at her, smacking Nina out of the fog of depression and memories surrounding her.

"I-I'm fine," she forced out through chattering teeth. Breathe. "I just have, um, panic attacks... school and stuff." More like memory attacks, her conscience mocked.

Always the same memory, only longer and more detailed every time. It had started after her mother had died and she'd gone to the morgue; only her memory of the time was foggy, becoming clear in her visions. Nina's therapist said she was working through a traumatic experience and that, over time, the visions would fade into nothing or become crystal clear. Two years later, and the visions had increased in clarity, but become strangely disjointed, as if they were from different places in time.

"You don't look fine," the officer said, her voice sounding so familiar to Nina even though she'd never met the woman before. The officer had straight blonde hair, pulled back into a tight bun, with what looked like gel securing it. She couldn't have been more than five foot five and yet her mannerisms declared her to be a giant.

Sharp sky-blue eyes met Nina's as the woman assessed her for long seconds before turning to address a young man coming towards them. "Take a look at her for me, will ya? I got to finish up."

"Sure. No problem," the young man dressed in a medic's uniform chirped in a lightly accented voice as he helped Nina up and then moved her to the back of an ambulance waiting off to the side.

Was that here before? Nina wondered, trying to distract herself from the crime scene tape blocking off the maze to the fountain. "I was there," Nina muttered, dumbfounded.

"Huh?" the medic asked as he went about checking her. "You say something?"

Nina shivered again, as new goosebumps replaced the slowly fading ones on her skin. "Nothing." Her eyes strayed back to the maze officers were coming in and out of.

Is that a body? Oh my God! It is! Nina fought back revulsion as the medic finished up on her. He seemed to catch where her eyes were going and what they seemed to be glued on.

"My name's Liuz," the medic began as he took a seat beside her in the back of the ambulance. "You're probably wondering what happened."

"Nina," she supplied, keeping her eyes glued on the bustling cops and never looking directly at the man next to her. "Uh, yeah, what happened?"

"Well..." the medic dithered, obviously deciding how much to tell her. "At the moment, we aren't at liberty to say."

The way he phrased it sounded weird. Usually, when a student died of alcohol poisoning, the police were all about telling the community and making sure every student knew that drinking had consequences. But, he sounded like he was trying to hide something, trying to—

"She was murdered," Nina's eyes followed the black body bag as it was wheeled to the coroner's van and into the back. That was the only explanation for why he wasn't giving her the 'don't drink and don't do drugs' speech.

Goosebumps ran up her arms again, and absently Nina stroked her arms trying to warm herself up. "The Sweetheart Killer, right? Probably looked like all the other victims?" her voice sounded weird, like it was far away. It reminded her of another time when she'd been near a dead body. Nina rubbed her arms harder, until they began to burn.

"How the hell—" the medic began but was cut short by the female officer coming back to them and giving him a sharp look. "Uh, sorry."

She's a detective. Yup, same one on TV working the Sweetheart Killer case. That's how I knew the voice. Nina thought, turning to give the detective her full attention.

"You feelin' better, Hun?" the officer asked, her voice buttery soft with a hint of a southern accent. Nina was just waiting for the woman to bat her sky-blue eyes and offer her a glass of sweet tea. "You still look a little pale. Maybe I should call someone? A family member? Do you have a number?"

Nina opened her mouth to respond that she was fine, but something possessed her to close her lips right back up. Despite the woman's kind concerned words, there was something behind them.

Nina had talked with too many detectives when she and her father had been working on her mother's murder before the case had gone cold. After being surrounded by detectives for nearly ten hours out of the day, Nina had acquired a very useful skill: seeing under the concern and flattery to the real information they wanted.

This officer wanted to know about her. After the number, she'd probably ask her name, her address, maybe weasel out some classes and activities Nina participated in. But the biggest question was: why did the officer care? Simple. Because she suspects me of something. Maybe not murder, but something.

Nina turned away to glance at her watch. She furrowed her brows in what she hoped looked like worry over her classes and not fear at the detective's line of questioning. "I'm fine, really," Nina slid from the back of the ambulance onto the sidewalk. Nina chose her words carefully, giving no indication where her class was or when it started. "Thank you for the help, but I have to get to class."

"Wait." The simple command issued by the detective stopped Nina in her tracks. The air around them became a few degrees cooler, though that could have just been her imagination.

"I'm sure you could spare a few minutes to talk with us. Maybe answer a few questions—since you're feeling so fine," the detective's tone was flat and devoid of the buttery quality it had before.

So the gloves are off, then. Turning, Nina smiled, and inclined her head. "Of course, I'll be happy to help in any way I can."

***

Grim ground his teeth as he stood beside Nina and heard her answer the detective's questions. She's smart, Grim noted again as he watched Nina choose her words carefully and try to look like a freaked-out college student about to be late for class. Of course, he could see through the charade to the calculating woman who knew far more than she let on beneath, but so could the detective.

It had been twenty minutes of his immortal life, standing there and watching the two women talk. No pertinent information had been exchanged, though it was obvious both knew a great deal more than what they were telling each other. Like the fact that the detective won't tell Nina that she looks like all the other victims.

But Nina had her own secrets too. However, twenty minutes was long enough to ferret them out. If the detective didn't know by now, she probably wasn't going to know.

Grim took a few steps away from Nina, watching as she stopped shaking and her skin began to regain some color.

He grimaced slightly, feeling a tad bit ashamed. Reapers were naturally cold, but when they were in their transparent state, or as his brother liked to say 'ghostin', their temperature dropped drastically. It was only natural that Nina would be freezing and not know why. The sun was out, everyone else seemed to be unfazed, yet she was freezing, with her lips turning blue.

Grim continued to walk away from Nina and the detective, straight through a brick wall and into the nearby chapel. If he suddenly materialized in front of a dozen witnesses, that would mean trouble for the royal families and Council of Guardians in the Underworld. The last thing Grim wanted to do was break a rule and have all hell break loose. There were few rules in the Underworld, but those rules were absolute and could result in the 'true death' if broken.

Craning his neck to make sure no human was lurking around, Grim materialized himself. He looked down at his outfit, a dark green T-shirt under a leather jacket, and decided it was appropriate for the century. Quickly he walked to the door leading outside, but at the last minute he materialized a light grey scarf that matched Nina's faded blue jeans and dark blue pullover. She's probably freezing right now because of me, and it'll only get worse when I'm with her.

He continued without breaking stride, and pushed open the front double doors of the chapel with more strength than he intended. Grim heard them bang violently against the sides of the building, bits of brick flying off.

It's been too long since I've been a human and had to touch things. Grim continued to walk over to Nina and the detective, careful to make sure he didn't do anything inhuman, such as walk through walls or break people's bones with a handshake.

Oh, and don't forget to breathe. Humans breathe. his subconscious reminded him as he took a deep breath in, blew it out, and hoped it looked natural.

Grim was about 10 feet away from them when the detective noticed him. He saw her hackles rise, and had to wonder how he looked. But no one was screaming or praying, so he could only assume he still looked somewhat human.

"Amica," Grim said quietly when he reached Nina's side, surprising both her and the detective.

He watched as Nina whirled around and pointed an accusing finger at him, her voice reflecting surprise and wonder: "You!"

"Him?" the detective chirped, and brought her had to rest over her holstered weapon. She might not know him, and he might not fit the profile, but the detective wasn't taking any chances.

Grim just inclined his head to the detective as if saying hello and shook out the scarf before wrapping it around Nina. "Yes, Amica, it's me. Who else did you expect?" Grim gave her a lopsided grin as he watched goosebumps flit over her skin again as his hands brushed her arms.

Nina gave him a pointed look before quickly looking around and then looking back at him. He knew she was weighing her options, had seen the look countless times now. Grim could practically see the wheels turning in her head.

If Nina stayed any longer she could be called down to the station for questioning and miss class. If she feigned some kind of excuse and left with him then she could probably make it to class and get the detective off her back. There were many other possibilities that he watched cross her mind, but her eyes judged, calculated, and systematically dismissed them all. She knew just as well as he did that making up an excuse and leaving with him would be the best option.

Planting a bright smile on her face, Nina transformed into a flirty, smitten girlfriend. "Oh, you! I told you to wait for me in class. You didn't have to come all the way here to pick me up," Nina gushed, twining her arms around his torso and giving him a quick squeeze. Her body immediately stilled and gave a large shudder.

Grim was just about to pull her away when she burrowed closer and feigned another shudder, this one not about cold at all. "But I'm happy you didn't listen."

"I'm sorry, who is this?" the detective asked as Grim gently moved Nina to his side so that she wouldn't be as cold.

"I'm her boyfriend," Grim answered with a friendly smile, trying to look as non-threatening and casual as he could while simultaneously watching his strength to make sure he didn't accidentally bruise or break one of Nina's ribs.

The detective gave them both an incredulous look. "Can I see some identification, boyfriend?"

"No," he infused the words with power, suggestion. "You don't need my identification. In fact, you have to leave now."

A complacent look settled over the detective, and she nodded. "I'll keep in touch, Ms. Strathmore. But if you'll excuse me, I have to leave." The woman turned and unhurriedly walked away from them.

Grim felt Nina stiffen even as she continued to shiver next to him. "You're not human."

It was a statement, which Nina whispered lowly with a fear she couldn't conceal.

Grim frowned. I don't want her to fear me. The thought came unbidden and left a strange ache in his chest. He was about to break one of the laws of the Underworld, and yet did not know why. He was going to disrupt the balance, potentially destroy the tentative truce held between the three kingdoms of the Underworld for an emotion he could not even give a name. Perhaps it was instinct that brought him to Nina, and a strange sense of kinship kept him glued to her side.

"No," Grim answered after a moment, turning them in one swift motion away from the chapel, the officers, and the murder scene. "I'm Death."