Slice (The Elledge Family #1), Page 6

“You have to be tougher than you are son. He can sense and read other people's emotions better than a normal person. He won't just kill you. Call me later on. I'm exhausted.”

  I flipped the card over and hung up the phone. I wrote down in my journal and exhaled.

  Lucas

  I was never threatened by any other guy when it came to relationships because I worked to make sure that no one was in my territory. This Asher character was not a threat. If anything he was a coward. His face looked white with fear when I approached him. The invite to the club was friendly enough for him to see that I could care less about him, but he was now in my sights. He had one job to do and that was to stay the hell away from Cypress.

  I sat down in my room and glanced over the letters in the box. I kept a list of them. There were now forty-four sets of initials, the lust to kill had receded. The past few weeks had been easier, but one fucking thing was liable to trigger it. I set the paper down and glanced through my plans. She wanted me to meet her mother and father in three weeks. It was a five-hundred-mile trip, eight hours in the car with her alone and we hadn't slept together yet. She was a good girl so that was fine with me. I just hoped that she wanted something. Why the fuck she was talking to this Asher character? It now irked my nerve and he would be kept in my eyesight when it regarded her. I dialed her number and she answered on the third ring.

  “Hey babe!” Cypress’ voice was light and chipper.

  “How are you? Are you home?” Slow down Lucas. Too many questions.

  “I’m actually headed back. I had to go to the writing lab and do some things and I met this psychology major named Asher. He said he would give me run through a course on personalities and behaviors for my novels. Does that sound like a good idea?”

  “Yes, you can always study and get more knowledge. My minor is psychology I could help you love.”

  “I don't want to depend on you for everything Luke.” She was climbing steps. Her breaths were short and I could hear the short tap of her feet on each step. “I want us to have balance and balance means that we have to have some free time. He seemed like a nice guy.”

  “I'm sure Ted Bundy was a nice guy too.” The irony poured out of me covered with humor. “I guess then Cypress. Call tomorrow morning?”

  “If you don't call me first babe. Don't forget to shop for furniture and food. The need is dire.”

  “I won't.” I smiled. “Talk to you later love.” I ended the call and pulled out my laptop. I typed in Asher. There were over one hundred of them in the state. And he appeared to not be from here. His accent appeared to be more West Coast.

  I should have gotten his last name but possibly there would be a chance later. Most people dived at the opportunity for a VIP pass to my club. Hopefully he would too, but he looked terrified.

  Chapter Four

  Cypress

  The Publisher, had occupied my afternoons for the past two weeks. And my job was simple. I tutored the freshmen in English. Their first papers were all about cliché topics like Summer Vacations and Comparison Papers. I flew through the sessions in a breeze and even made a few new friends in the process. Then the final hour I had to help edit the actual Publisher. I was not one for journalism. I knew nothing about the town. I couldn’t write about student because I had no student life. Everything besides school and work revolved around Lucas.

  “Okay, so here is the deal. We would like you to write a piece about the Summit across town.” Ginger, seemed to float around the room as her she wisped through her files. Her tall, petite stature made me envious for a few extra inches. It would be easier to kiss Lucas if I wasn’t so focused on reaching his lips sometimes. Though he made kissing me a habit. And it made me happy.

  “Of course I could.”

  “Awesome, you think you could even interview Lucas?”

  It was apparent that Lucas was someone important to me. They could tell by the way he smiled when he walked in the room. Then there was the fact that when he was not here he called me. He worked here sometimes when he finished his school work. It was an honor for them to have such an established author on their payroll. So he wrote occasional spotlight pieces. “I could.” I grimaced.

  “It’s just that he doesn’t really talk to any of the rest of us like he talks to you.

  “Yeah Ms. Tucker, is he your boyfriend?” Brent had developed a crush on me. It was not cute to me though. He was annoying. He wanted more than the friendship that I had to offer him and unfortunately for him it was the only thing that was on the table for him.

  “Just friends.” It was not a lie. Lucas and I had not laid a title to our new romance. Truth be told I wasn’t sure if I was ready to even step back into something. My heart was still a tad tattered from the battle of Philip.

  “That’s good to hear.” Brent smiled his tight lip smile that made his slanted brown eyes squint together even more. He then pushed his stringy brown hair from his face and winked at me. Brent had potential to be handsome, but it would take years of molding and sculpting. “I’ve heard some bad things about that guy.”

  “Like what?”

  Brent cleared his throat and turned towards me. He shrugged his shoulders almost knocking the square rimmed glasses to the ground. “For one, all of his ex-girlfriends have either gone missing or have been found dead.”

  I laughed at his tale. “You really are desperate aren’t you.”

  Ginger corrected, “It was only two. They just found one of them the other week. She was killed with her boyfriend at a family estate.”

  “You two are ridiculous.”

  “Just a warning Cypress.” Brent grew quiet as he stared out the front window. “Speak of the devil.”

  His Jeep whipped into the front parking spot by the door and he hopped out gracefully and made his way to the door. Lucas was effortlessly perfect. His white T-shirt fit tighter than normal revealing his chiseled arms and tattoos. I wasn’t sure how he was surviving without a coat on. The cool breeze of autumn had set in and it was not like home where a cool breeze just meant chilly weather for two or three months. It felt like the beginning stages of winter.

  “Lucas!” Ginger said. Her voice too chipper for my liking. I ignored it and continued to organize the few papers I had left on my desk.

  “Ginger,” He smiled. “How’s everything? I’m not bothering anyone am I?”

  “You’re the Editor.” She giggled throwing her shoulder forward. Her hands touched his chest and I exhaled.

  Lucas eyes locked on mine and his face lit up with amusement. “Busy Cypress?” Lucas nodded at Ginger and dismissed her with the quick look. He made his way to my small brown desk, shifting through the disarray of desks in the middle of the room. He perched himself on my desk. “How are you?”

  “Good.” I said quietly.

  “Are you liking it still?”

  My eyes darted at Ginger who had gone back to her desk. The model everything it seemed. “Sure.”

  “Ignore her love, you have me blinded.” His lips touched my forehead lightly. “What are your plans for today?”

  It soothed me to know that he cared enough to ease a fear I hadn’t fully formed yet. “I’m meeting with Asher.”

  His eyebrow shot up and he sighed. “The library kid?”

  “The library kid, he said that he could help me with some theories.”

  “I bet.” He smiled. “Could I borrow you after your lesson in personalities?”

  “Yes.” I closed my laptop. “What are we doing?”

  “Watching the stars’ weep.”

  “What?”

  “The shooting stars are passing through tonight.”

  “I can’t wait!” I shrieked unintentionally. The eyes were all on me, and I could feel the heat racing to match my mortification. “I mean awesome.” I whispered.

  “Perfect, and be careful with this Asher okay?”

  “I promise.”

  Asher was not as bad as Lucas liked to think. He was smart and handsome. He even reminded me o
f Lucas. “So what do you study?”

  “I study and major in psychology. The study of why.”

  I laughed. “I’ve never heard it put like that. I write books and it’s hard to write a book when you don't know anything about the human mind.”

  “True. There are different types of people.”

  “What kind of person am I?”

  “The kind of person that wants more knowledge.” He said quickly. “I don't know. I have to listen and evaluate and then apply and blah. It takes too long. I really just like the studying part.”

  “What are you studying right now?”

  “I’m currently writing my dissertation on a psychopath’s decision.”

  “Wow, sounds scary.”

  “Not really. Psychopaths are closer than you know.” He looked down at his work. “They blend in… they are the masters of disguise.”

  “Characteristics?” I asked. I stared at him. “They sound scary.”

  “They are humans with little emotions. To be honest, they just don't care what the world thinks and they tend to blame others for their mistakes. For example, let's say that they cheat on a test. It would not be their fault. It would Susie's fault because she didn't make an effort to cover her exam.”

  “Sounds like a little child.”

  “Could be an accurate assumption,” Asher paused. “They seek out people and use and exploit them. They usually use them for their gain.”

  “Are they dangerous?”

  “Hardly, there are some public figures that are high functioning and then there is Ted Bundy.”

  “A serial killer.”

  “Exactly, but to the world he was normal until he was exposed. Up until his death, he still stated that it was not his fault and there was something dark in him he couldn't control.”

  “Wow,” I nodded my head. “So a serial killer with conscience and no morality meter to let him know that he is wrong. Are they rare?”

  “Statistically… there is exactly one in every hundred group of people.”

  “Asher you love this don't you?”

  “I love it more than you will know.” He paused. “I have been wanting to tell you this the entire time Cypress. Watch who you get involved with around here Cypress.” Asher ‘s voice was playful but I could sense the seriousness behind his warning.

  “Are you warning me about you?” I pushed him playfully. “Are you dangerous for me Asher?”

  “I'm warning you about someone else.”

  “Lucas?” I looked at him.

  “Yeah. He fits a lot of the characteristics on the checklist.”

  “What checklist?”

  “I’ll give you a copy.” He slid the thin sheet of paper across the library table. “A personality disorder that has often proved to be dangerous. I just wanted you to be cautious okay?”

  My eyes glanced over the page. The Levenson-Self Report Psychopathy Scale. Psychopath. “Are you serious?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are you trying to hit on me? Is this some kind of psychologist pick up line?” I laughed it off and folded the test in half.

  “No, I have my eyes on someone, but I don't think she has her eyes on me.” He chuckled. “I’m not that big of a nerd?”

  “Someone else? Don’t make me jealous now?” I gasped jokingly. “Who is she Asher?”

  “This girl named Whitney. It's so weird, she used to stalk me in Middle School and High School and now she is all I can think of. And I don't mean to be frisky around her. I just want her.”

  “Make your move. You seem like a nice guy, tell me something about yourself...”

  “What do you want to know?”

  “Mainly what are you thinking in that big brain of yours?”

  “I think geometric mean everything.”

  I stared at him. “Okay. So you love math?”

  Asher laughed as he pulled out a small metal box from his backpack, then out with a compass. “It’s not really what I meant Cypress.” He sharpened the pencil and turned to a blank page of his sketch book. “Everything starts out as nothing.” His hand flourished the page. “Then there is something created by some event in your life or you’re just something that has to happen. It stands for the beginning.” He drew a small circle on the page. “This is the beginning… of a relationship, of a job… of your life.”

  I smiled. “I get it.”

  “Let’s say that this circle was created by a pebble being thrown into the lake... It sets off reactions and causes more ripples, larger ripples. Did you know that the beginning circle's circumference is equivalent to the fifth circle's radius?”

  “No.” I barely remembered any of these math terms.

  “To me it simply means that any action you make... no matter how small in the beginning can cause a bigger problem in the end. I live by this. I live by trying to catch actions that are unjust by me and that need redeeming.”

  “Wow,” I paused. “I didn't know that it was that much in shapes.”

  “It's tied to everything and people don't use it normally. There are things like infinite numbers that mean nothing to some, but everything to others.”

  “Like...”

  “Pi and Phi… Phi is being the infinite number for the Golden Rectangle Theory.”

  “Do you talk to your girlfriend about this stuff?”

  “She is not my girlfriend. She actually has someone.”

  “Oh, well don’t talk about this stuff on the first date unless they are equally attuned to your thinking.” I took the compass and rolled it in my hands. “What else do you like to do?”

  “Yoga...”

  “Yoga, like the lotus flower...”

  “Definitely that position. I can meditate on it for hours. It's all about clearing the mind and knowing yourself. If you don't know yourself, you can't truly do anything successful in life. So I find my inner peace every morning. Even if it means I stay in the lotus flower for hours it helps. It calms me.”

  “Could you teach me?”

  “It's a discipline better learned on your own. Plus, I think your boyfriend might kill me.”

  “So no?” I laughed.

  “Right, just look it up. There are some great videos and then once you get it you will know. It starts off being the hardest thing that you have ever done and by a few weeks the sting will fade and the beauty of the quiet will take over.”

  “You are different Asher.”

  “Thanks,” he paused. “I think.”

  “It was a compliment.”

  Lucas

  My notebooks were scattered around me and I was lost. There was something missing from my work. I inhaled and closed my eyes, releasing my breath slow and steady. I was the nucleus and all of this shit surrounding me was my electron cloud and something was out of place. It was throwing off my element. I opened my eyes and nodded my head. Writing was best done in messiness for me. And there was an idea in my mind and it begged to be released.

  The campus was flooded with freshman ready to be disobedient and get into trouble and unlike normal it was loud. I could hear every footstep and cackle from them as they passed pass my array of mess. This was a bad an idea.

  “Busy?” Persephone asked.

  She was persistent. I smiled. “Yes, go away.”

  “Why do you hate me so much?”

  “I don't hate you. I find you deeply annoying. And you don't take hints well.” I had told this girl to leave me alone on more than one occasion. She was persistent and consistent. That I could say.”

  “What are you doing?”

  “I am trying to find something,” My head turned to her as my eyes stared intently. Irritation had started to kick in and she didn’t want to irritate me. I wasn’t in the mood. I wanted to know where Cypress was and why she hadn’t answered my call. “What are you doing here? Is there something that I can help you with?”

  “Nope,” she sat down on the patch of untouched grass next to me and opened her book. “I just want to talk.”

  “
I’m not in the talking mood. We aren’t even friends like this Persephone?”

  “Where's your girlfriend?”

  “She just happens to be studying. We don't have to be with each other every waking moment. It's what makes us better.” It’s what drives me up a damn wall. She was so comfortable not being around me it made me wonder if we were doing things too slow.

  “She tell you that.”

  “She did,” I laughed. “Persephone there are tons of other guys that would like to have a taste of whatever you are offering. I however am not one of them. Could you dismiss yourself? Like now?”

  “I don't want them.” she answered bluntly.

  “You can't have me, seems like you have a problem. Find someone else. Get the fuck up.”

  “Lucas do you have to be so mean to me?” Persephone smiled and scrolled through her phone. “They are smoking at Genesis tonight, you should come. I mean ever since you have met her you just stopped coming?”

  Genesis was the spot where the college weed heads gathered and I had been there several times, but it was harder for me to control myself around a bunch of weed smoking hippies. I liked to be alone when I smoked. Most importantly, when I couldn't control my urges. “They are always smoking at Genesis. It is nothing new. And stop bringing up Cypress.”

  “You should come.”

  “I actually have plans tonight. There is meteor shower passing through.”

  “Aw, how sweet,” She mocked. “Should I come with you? Oh, I forgot, Cypress probably will be there.”

  “Jealousy does not look good on you.”

  “She looks good on him though. Asher is a nice looking guy. I hear he's hung.” She pointed to Cypress. She was so perfect. Her hair bunched in the messiest ponytail I had seen yet, her curls wildly bursting from it. And then there was Asher. The kid who couldn't take a break.”

  “Fuck off Persephone.” I moaned.

  Cypress spotted me and she made a B line over to me with Asher. Persephone giggled. “Here she comes.”

  “Why are you so amused?”

  “Why are you not? He fits her style more. He is so geeky. Look at those freaking glasses.”

  I cut my eyes over at her. “One more word and you are going to regret it.” I stood up as they grew closer. “What are you doing here babe?”