Time and Again

Ella smiled at him. "I want to pack you into my luggage and take you back to State."

"Or I could tie you to the bed down here," Dave offered.

"I thought you weren't into kinky stuff."

"If it keeps you here, I'm for it."

A brief lull punctuated by the tink, tink, tink of coffee being stirred in a mug stretched between them as they contemplated living alone once again.

"Do you ever dream about living in the south of France during the middle ages?" Ella asked.

"Where on earth did that question come from?" Dave frowned at her.

"I had a very vivid dream about it last night and not the first time either. I was wondering if our meeting triggered you somehow."

"I did have a weird dream. I don't remember where I was, but I was a woman. Does that make sense? And I remember that I had a message that I had to get to some people in the north. There was a soldier or a knight of some kind who was taking me to those people, but that's all I remember."

Dave looked over to see the man sitting at the table next to them sitting stock still pretending not to be listening in on their conversation. It took a moment for Dave to realize that it was the same man who had set next to them at the Mexican restaurant. Not only that, the whole restaurant had turned silent. Dave nodded to Ella in that direction. She looked at the man then nodded.

One by one, the patrons stood and began walking toward them.

"Well, I'm warmed up, and we need to get out of here." Dave jumped to his feet and scanned the room. Then Ella did something with her hand. It became encased in light and came to a point like a sword. He'd ask her about it later.

They zipped up their coats, pulled on their gloves and left with cup in hand. Ella scanned the room staring at people till they looked away. The crowd parted as they backed to the door watching the patrons.

They turned and left the shop quickly.

"What the Hell was that all about?" Jack asked as he scanned the street and led her down an alley next to the building.

"What are we doing?"

"The bridge we have to cross looks like the perfect place to kidnap up us. There's a van stopped at the far end." He turned to her. " That dark car over there is the same one that was parked down from the house this morning when Jack and I shoveled snow. What do we do now? We can't go home and we can't stay here."

"I need to get to a phone."

"We won't find many around here. This is the tough side of town. We need to get across the river."

Dave scanned the area. "If they have the bridge covered, we have to assume that all the roads are watched. I know a way to get across the river undetected, but it's going to take a little luck, there's a spot downriver where it freezes over. We can cross there."

He led her over a fence and down to the riverbank walking along to a spot where the snow covered ice extended across the river in the distance. The heavy snow slowed their pace to a crawl. They got to the spot by cutting through people's yards and hopping multiple fences. Dave scanned the ice in front of him. The sun had set and the temperature was dropping fast. It would be clear subzero night.

"Snow insulates the ice, so I hope it's strong enough to support us." Dave scanned both banks. "I don't think we've been spotted."

"We haven't. I've been using a 'look past me' spell to cover both of us."

"You're lighter than me. You cross first. Keep your arms out so you don't go under if you drop through the ice."

Ella stepped out on the ice testing each step before putting her full weight on it. Two thirds of the way across, the ice crackled. She stepped back and walked ten yards up river before attempting to cross again. This time the ice held. She completed her crossing.

"Come across," she shouted, "but be careful where I turned and walked up river. The ice started cracking beneath me there."

Dave stepped out on the ice following Ella's footsteps. Well before the spot where Ella turned and headed up river, Dave began a wide detour. He was beginning to relax when the ice gave way and he sank to his waist in the water not twenty feet from shore. When he tried to clamber out, the ice broke away.

The cold water was already beginning to dull this thinking and sap his strength when a tree branch appeared in front of him.

"Grab this, and I'll try to hold it while you drag yourself out."

He did as ordered suspecting that she would never be able to hold the branch when he pulled on it. He rested his upper body on the branch and began slowly pulling himself along it out of the water. Somehow Ella managed to hang on. When he got near the shore Ella grabbed his coat collar and dragged him to safety.

"I need a moment to sit down and catch my breath," Dave said between ragged breaths.

"We need warmth right now." She rubbed her hands together and then placed one hand on each cheek. A flood of warmth coursed through him reviving him.

She pulled him to his feet and dragged him one staggering step at a time up the hill. "We need to get going, the warmth will not last long."

"I'm too tired. Let me sit here while you get Jack."

"If I get Jack, you'll freeze before I get back, or the bad guys will see where you are and get you. You have to walk with me a little further."

She half pulled, half dragged him up the bank to the base of a brick building next to a metal door that led into the basement. Ella pointed at the lock which made soft clicking noises; when she turned the door knob, the door creaked open.
"How did you do that?" Dave asked between shivers.

"I'm a witch, remember? I know a few tricks."

She dragged him into the warmth of the building and pulled the door shut.

Dave slid to the concrete floor shivering violently. "I am so tired," he mumbled before closing his eyes.

"I need to go upstairs and make a phone call. I'm pretty sure by now the bad guys know what we did, and have followed our tracks."

Ella climbed the stairs and was happily discovered that they were in law offices. That would make their extraction easier. At a receptionist's desk, she found a business card with the address of the place, and a phone. She dialed the number she had memorized long ago.

"This is 47365. I need extraction for two from..." she gave the address. "It's a lawyer's office. I suspect the people trailing us are demonic."

When she was done with the call, she crept forward and peered out the window scanning the street. Two cars with tinted windows were parked one house down on the far side of the street.

She went back down stairs, helped Dave out of his pants, wrung them out as well as she could, then pulled them back on him.

"Things are going to get busy around her in a few minutes. Remember that all these people are here to help you. I promise that I won't leave your side until all this is explained."

She pulled him to his feet, and helped him climb the stairs. She sat him in a chair in the waiting room and peered through the window. Nothing had changed.

A few minutes later a police car pulled up to the curb outside the law office. First one, then the other car with the tinted windows pulled away and disappeared down the street.

Ella heaved a sigh of relief.

Right after that, a woman driving a Cadillac pulled up, stepped out and talked to the policeman in his car for a few moments before walking up to the front door letting herself in.

"There you are," the woman said pulling the door shut and throwing the dead bolt. "Some very convincing people called me up and informed me that I had clients waiting for me at my office. Might I inquire how you got in here?"

"Through the basement door behind the building," Ella said.

"That lock has been frozen shut for decades. How did you get it to work."

"I have skills," Ella said choosing her words carefully.

The woman nodded knowingly before looking at Dave. "You look soaking wet. Did you fall in the river trying to get away from the guys out front?"

Dave nodded.

"I could make coffee if you think that would help."

"Do it," Ella said.

The coffee revived Dave though he still looked uncomfortable in the damp clothing. An hour later, three people entered looking very official. While the man and the woman discussed rates and wrote a check to the lawyer, the second man, taller than the other two, handed a bag of dry clothes to Dave.

"We stopped by your house and got these," he pulled Dave and Ella aside, "by the way, your house mates appear to be demon infested. We have a special team that will cast the demons out when they get here. They should be fine by Monday. Your cover story is that there was a kidnapping attempt on the both of you and you have been taken into protective custody."

When Dave returned wearing dry clothes, the man who had given him his clothes looked him over and shook his head. "You're paired souls, right?"

Dave nodded.

"I've heard of cases where paired souls coming together triggers latent powers," the man continued, "but I never thought I would see it." He pointed at Dave. "Your power has to be concealment. For the life of me, I don't know how you managed to avoid our seekers. I could sense your aura from outside the building." He looked at his watch. "It's time we got going."

"Where are we going? I have classes Monday," Dave frowned at the man.

The man smiled at him, then looked to Ellen. "How much have you told him?"

"Not much."

"Okay. First of all, rest assured that we are the good guys. Those other guys are interested in a religious relic whose location may be buried in your memories of a past life. They would be more than happy to extract that information by whatever gruesome methods they needed. For right now, that's what you need to know. I can also add that your college career is temporarily on hold until we can figure out a way that both of you can finish your education safely. Right now, we have to get you to the airport so we can get you to safety."

"What about my parents?"

The man grinned. "Next week you're going to call them and tell them that you're okay. Then you're going to tell them of a wonderful opportunity that has been offered to you to work on a secret government project. You will write frequent letters and make frequent phone calls until we get you squared away. Several gifts that you send home will convince them that you are being paid incredibly well. Pictures will convince them that you are well taken care of. We've done this before. It works like a champ."

Without further ceremony, the two were whisked into the back of a rental car and driven to the city airport where a personal jet awaited them.

Once they were in the air, the tall man came back, loosened his tie, and took off his jacket. "You can take off your seat belts, we're in level flight." He smiled at the two of them. "Have either of you been in the pointy end of a jet? You can go up and sit in the co-pilot's seat if you want."

"Where are we headed?" Dave asked peering out the window.

"We're headed south to our organization's compound in the Bahamas.

"Why?"

"We have to keep you out of the hands of the bad guys. They would very much like to kill both you and Ella, and enslave you for the next three to four hundred years. You don't want that, trust me. I can't tell you much beyond that. Orientation on the island will make it all clear to you."

"You must think we're close to ascendancy?" Ella offered.

The man nodded. "Now why don't you two lay down. The couch folds down into a double bed. There's pillows and blankets in the cupboard over there. I'll have the pilot dim the interior lights. We'll be in the air for another two hours.

They landed in the small hours of the morning. A golf cart whisked them through the darkness to a hut near the water. Dave could hear the lapping of waves on the shore. They undressed and climbed into bed.

Dave awoke to sun pouring through the window onto the bed. He sat up and discovered himself in a room that looked a little to rustic to be a hotel or a resort room. He sat up looking for this clothing, but could find none. Ella was gone. He splashed some water on his face and then walked into the living room still in search of clothing. None there either.

He did see a laptop computer sitting on the coffee table. The note on top said: Fire up the computer and double click on the file labeled 'Orientation' when you have nothing else to do. There is snorkeling gear and fishing gear in the locker on the dock.

The refrigerator held drinks, cold cuts, condiments, and eggs. More than enough stuff for breakfast and lunch. He grabbed an iced tea, and walked to the door, opened it carefully and peered out. Seeing no one, he stepped out on the lanai.

"It's about time you woke up."

He turned to see Ella as naked as he was. She lay face up on a chaise, she skin glowing with a covering of sunscreen and tanning oil. It looked like if he jumped on her, he would slide right off.

He sat in a chair next to her. "I seem to have misplaced my clothes. You seem to be lacking yours too."

She sat up. "Our butler came by this morning. He said our clothing was totally unfit for wearing in a tropical environment. He said more clothing would be ordered for us, but in the meantime we were free to wander nude around our compound. He guaranteed our privacy." She reached for her drink making her breasts bob in a most enchanting way. He sensed a twitch below.

After taking a sip, she set the bottle back down. "Personally, I think they want to keep us naked so we'll have lots and lots of sex."

"You were telling the truth when you said we gain power through sex?"

She nodded. "Crazy isn't it? Religion has it all wrong. It isn't abstention that gives you spiritual power, it's lots of sex."

She rolled over on her back. "Right now I need someone to spread sun screen and tanning oil all over my back, and they need to be very thorough. We don't want sunburn interfering with our power acquisition activities. Do you know anyone up to the challenge?"

Dave picked up the oil. "I'm new to this, but I'm willing to give it a try."