Out of Reach by Jocelyn Stover Read Free Book Online

in my reserved slot,
I take a few minutes to lovingly clean off the dust she’s
accumulated in my absence. I stow my helmet and follow the dim
lighting of the garage to the elevator. Punching the “Up” button I
wait for the lift, contemplating the future.
    A low-pitched ding rouses me from my
thoughts long enough to enter the elevator, make my floor
selection, and hold on until I reach the top. At some point during
the slow ascent, my energy flags, exhaustion accumulated over the
last few days finally overtaking me.
    I sluggishly enter the apartment—its open
layout, high ceilings, and wrap around windows greet me. Everything
from the furniture to the amenities have that simple, modern flair,
and I hate it. Some, I suppose, would consider it stylishly chic.
On the whole, it just feels cold and sterile to me, too orderly and
efficient to feel at home in. I vastly prefer old world comfort; I
own several other homes which are filled with warm woodwork and
vibrant colors, the furniture so soft and plush you’d swear you
were sitting on a cloud.
    Grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge,
I head toward the only piece of furniture at odds with the decor
around it. The recliner has been the only contribution I’ve made to
the apartment over the last three years. It’d been easier when I
first moved to San Diego to purchase a furnished penthouse. Three
years later I still haven’t gotten around to redoing the place.
Setting the water down on an end table, I ease my aching body into
the black leather Lazy Boy. I flip the leg-rest up, lean back, and
sigh; I’m finally able to relax.
    My cell phone goes off in my pocket and I
fish it out as quickly as possible.
    “Hello.”
    “Kade, I’m afraid the trip to London was
futile. Makeen and Rashid didn’t find anyone that can help us,”
Adil tells me, an air of defeat in his voice.
    Sitting up, I lean forward in my chair and
rest my elbows on my knees. I run a hand through my hair and ask,
“What are we going to do? There’s only a few weeks left before the
deadline.”
    “This time I’m not sure how it’s going to
turn out, my friend.” Adil’s admission of the cold, hard truth
we’ve all been fighting against the last few years sends a chill
down my spine. “In the end we’re going to have to try and do it by
ourselves. It’ll take everyone; we need to prepare. I expect you
and Z here within two weeks.”
    I sit dumbfounded for a moment while the
essence of what he’s saying sinks in. Then I see red.
    “You can’t be serious!” I yell at him. “It
can’t be done without angel blood.”
    “We can’t just sit back and do nothing,
Kade—we’re out of options and out of time,” he replies, his temper
rising to meet mine.
    “Out of
options! ” I scream, completely stunned.
“ We have Gwen! She’s untried, yes, but she’s our best option!” I shift in my
chair, uncomfortable.
    “Kade, I won’t risk the life of an innocent.
It’s safer for us to try this on our own.”
    Jumping to my feet I begin to pace in front
of the windows overlooking the city. “She’s Nephilim, and powerful.
I’ve seen—”
    Adil cuts me off before I can finish. “What,
Kade? What have you seen? A long time ago she might have
telekinetically moved an object. But what’s she done lately?”
    I hold my tongue, refusing to answer the
rhetorical question.
    “Nothing and you’ve been tracking her for
what, a decade? She can’t help us, Kade, and I won’t put her life
in danger needlessly.”
    Hanging up on Adil I shake my phone in
frustration, as if through the inanimate object I might be able to
shake some sense into my brother. Too amped up to sit still, I toss
the thing onto the couch across from me and step outside onto the
balcony to clear my head. Full of anger and humiliation in equal
parts, I grip the rails of the balcony with both hands and bellow
my rage to the stars.
    After all these years, the
bitter sting of my brother’s disbelief still cuts me deeply. I