And it’s at this exact moment I feel him. Arlo’s here. How did I not anticipate this?
I pull away from James and turn to see him casually leant up against the wall across from us. He has a glow about him I’ve never seen before. And when his lips form into a smile, it does nothing to calm my fears about his reason for being here.
“Arlo,” I say breathlessly.
“Hello, Lucyna.”
“What?” James' confused voice comes from beside me.
“We should talk,” Arlo says.
“Talk?” I say incredulously.
“Yes, talk.”
“I don’t want to talk to you.”
I look of anger flickers over Arlo’s face. “But I want to talk to you.” His voice comes out measured, controlled.
“You heard her,” James says in a menacing tone. “She doesn’t want to talk to you, so why don’t you just disappear back under whatever rock it was you crawled out from.”
Arlo doesn’t even bother to acknowledge James. His eyes are fixed on mine and, try as I might, I can’t look away. I’m held in his stare.
“Who are you?” I ask.
Arlo looks confused. “You know who I am.”
“No.” I shake my head firmly. “I don’t. The Arlo I know would never have taken my memory without my permission and dumped me off ten thousand miles away from where I wanted to be.”
He presses his lips together and has the audacity to look forlorn. “I am sorry about that,” he offers.
“Sorry!” I jump out of my seat. “SORRY! You stole my memory from me! And if it wasn’t for Isabel I’d still be stuck out there now without a clue! How could you do that to me?” If looks could kill, Arlo would be dead to the ground right about now. If he was killable, that is. And my heart is pounding so hard it feels like it’s about to burst out of my chest.
“I said I’m sorry,” His tone is impassive, not really giving the impression he is, “but I was angry and it’s not exactly like you left me with any other choice,” he adds. “I couldn’t just sit back and let you come here to him –” I see his eyes darken as he gestures angrily in James’ direction, “and live in your little happily ever after, not after all the hard work I’ve put in.”
I stare at him, frustrated. “Hard work?”
He chuckles softly, an earnest look capturing his face. “Do you still not see it, Lucyna?”
I feel angry, small, stupid and his calm confidence is unnerving me. I grit my teeth together. “See what?”
“He’s in love with you.” James’ quiet voice comes from behind me.
Silenced, I glance down at James. His eyes are on Arlo. I follow his gaze over to Arlo whose expression is unreadable. But the moment my eyes meet his I see the adoration in them and the realisation comes screaming down on me.
I sink back into my seat. “You love me?” The words sound gloopy as they leave my mouth.
Arlo’s features soften. “How could I not?”
I stare at him, dumbfounded. I grip my fingers into the plush sofa, suddenly feeling off balance. “But all this time and you’ve never said anything –”
“I wanted to but there was always something, or someone, getting in the way.” I see his jaw tense up.
“But–but,” I rub my forehead, “why would you abandon me out there if you love me . . . I don’t under–” And just like that I get it, like a slap across the face. I can’t believe how stupid I’ve been. My whole body stiffens. “You did it to keep me away from James.” Then a chilling thought occurs to me. My eyes snap up at him. “Did you have anything to do with Arran leaving?”
He says nothing. He just mirrors my gaze. But then he doesn’t need to say anything. I can see the answer in his eyes.
I’m seething. White hot rage obliterates my common sense. “All of this has been because you love me!” I mock the word, wanting to sound as condescending as possible. But the instant it’s out I know I’ve made a mistake.
Arlo’s face hardens. His anger fills up the room. It’s suffocating. I hold my breath waiting for him to erupt. Then I feel James’s hand curl around mine.
“Don’t touch her,” Arlo says slowly, his voice cold.
James laughs, awkwardly. “What?”
I’ve heard that challenging tone in Arlo’s voice before and I ended up in Australia with no memory. I panic. I know Arlo’s capabilities and James is only human. For that matter, so am I. There is no way I can protect him. And even if I was still of my celestial form, I doubt I could measure up to whatever Arlo now is.
“It’s okay,” I say calmly. I slide my hand out from underneath James’. I can feel his eyes on me but I don’t look at him. Instead I hold my hands together, resting them on my lap, and ask Arlo in an even voice, “So why are you here? What is it you want?”
“Hmm, let me think, what do I want?” He thrums his fingers against his chin. “What I’ve always wanted!” he suddenly snaps. “For you to notice me. For you to love me.”
“I did.” I take a deep breath. “I do.” I try to say this with as much sincerity as I can muster.
Arlo appraises me with his eyes. “But not like you do him, Arran – James or whatever it is he goes by these days.” He waves a dismissive hand in James’ direction. “No, right from the start I was always Arlo the best friend, Arlo the confidant. And I bided my time, thinking things would change, that you would one day love me in the way I do you and just when it seemed you were beginning to, that my time was finally coming, Arran showed up. And that was it. I became invisible. You didn’t need me anymore . . . so I made it so you did.”
“He hurts her in the worst way possible,” James interjects, “so she turns to you, right?”
“Sharp, isn’t he?” Arlo rolls his eyes in James’ direction. “You think he’d have improved over the years – but he hasn’t . . . and don’t you mean you hurt her.” Arlo’s eyes narrow onto James.
“I just–I just don’t believe this,” I stammer, breaking into their angry stare.
Arlo raises his eyebrows at me. “Come on, Lucyna. I wasn’t going to give you up that easily. I had to do something, but unfortunately it didn’t turn out quite as I had planned. Instead of seeking solace in me, as I figured you would, you wanted to run away, to forget – to become a Bringer.” He shakes his head and quietly chuckles to himself. “I certainly did not see that one coming. But then that’s what I love about you, Lucyna, you never cease to surprise me, even after all this time.” The way he’s looking at me, with such intensity, makes my stomach curdle and it takes everything in me not to baulk.
“So I made the best of a bad situation,” Arlo says, shrugging lightly, “and I lowered myself to that realm to be with you, but that you know already. I always hoped you would one day feel again, but really I was just so happy for it to be the two of us as before. Then he goes and turns up like a bad penny and spoils everything.”
Arlo bends his knee and rests his foot up against the wall. He looks so casual standing there, like he’s merely a friend who’s dropped by for a quick chat, not a heavenly being with a hidden, not to mention very dangerous, agenda.
“I’d waited too long for you, Lucyna, invested too much time,” he continues. “Losing you was never an option. So I arranged his little car accident. And he was supposed to die there and be instantly reborn into another human being as always. You wouldn’t know where he was, problem solved, but then, for some reason, you were called to him. I still don’t quite understand how that happened because he should never have a Bringer. He can’t return to Heaven, you know this. But I knew that night in the stadium there was something wrong, I could tell by your reaction. And if I didn’t know better I’d think someone was working against me.” He smiles wryly. “So I followed you, and there you were, saving him. Then Isabel showed up to keep tabs on you both and I couldn’t do a thing. Seriously,” he adds, addressing James, “if there was some way for me to get rid of you permanently I would do it, and I mean that, sincerely, from the bottom of my heart.” He grins, menacingly.
“You’re fuckin’ insane,” James spits.
“When love is not madness, it is not love.” He taps his hand against the hollow expanse of his chest. “Pedro Calderón. Not that I’d expect you to know who he was.” Arlo looks back to me. “So where was I? Ah yes, I had to leave you here with him –”
“Why are telling me all of this?” I ask.
He smooths his golden hair back. “I’ve spent a long time pretending to be someone I’m not in the hope you’d one day love me. That obviously hasn’t worked, so I’m giving the real me a try.”
I honestly have no idea what to say to that.
“Do you wish for me to continue?” Arlo asks.
I nod.
“Right, well I wasn’t sure what to do with Isabel constantly around and, until I could figure it out, I thought I’d use his little friend Sara to keep things interesting.”
“Sara?” James splutters, aghast.
“Hmm, yes.”
James stands up. “If you’ve hurt her, I’ll –”
“You’ll what?” Arlo laughs, derisively.
My stomach drops hollow. I slowly stand up beside James. “Is Sara okay?”
He wafts a dismissive hand. “She’s fine. All I did was magnify the girl’s feelings for him, and I really didn’t have to work that hard as she’s already completely besotted with him.” His face turns serious and his green eyes pierce straight into mine. “He did kiss her back that day, you know, the day you caught them, and he’d have done a lot more if you hadn’t have interrupted, no matter what he says.”
James laughs. “Nice try.” He turns to me. “Don’t listen to him. He’s talking shit, and you know it.”
But Arlo’s picked at a weak spot in me and that is what he knows.
“No matter, I know the truth,” he hums knowingly, and winks at me. I feel like I’ve got bugs crawling all over my skin, “but that’s the problem with you, Lucyna, you’ve never been able to see straight when it comes to him. So I was forced to resort to desperate measures to bring you back to me.”
“What have you done, Arlo?” I rub my bare arms, suddenly feeling cold.
And for the first time since he got here, he actually looks uncertain. His armour chinks and I see a glimpse of the Arlo I used to know. There's a gap before he actually speaks and, when he does, his voice sounds tight. “I think you know.”
I swallow hard. “Oh no, Arlo.” I shake my head despairingly.
And just like that he turns black. “He owed me from a long time ago. I once helped him out of a tight spot,” he confides, trying to feign nonchalance, but I can hear the pride in his voice. “So I called in the favour to get rid of Arran the first time, but then I was all out of favours and you know he won’t do anything for free so . . .” He shrugs, leaving his words hanging in the air.