Page 42 of Changeling
Nathan basically did Jim’s pat down for him, from Jim’s chest, down his stomach, and then down his legs. Jim squirmed the entire time as if it tickled.
“Actually,” Nathan said, opening Jim’s jacket and reaching into one of his pockets. Jim usually kept extra weapons in more accessible places, and indeed Nathan pulled out a fairly good-sized knife.
Jim gaped.
“Don’t worry, Jim. You know I’d never let anything happen to you, right?” Nathan opened the glove box and quickly stored Jim’s knife in there.
“I know, Nate. You’re my brother,” Jim said in a small voice. When Nathan looked at him, Jim’s smile was wide and blinding, filled with the pure, untainted love of a child.
There was a sudden tinny thud from behind them. Nathan turned to look back and saw that Sasha was shaking, staring at the knife he must have just found and then dropped between the seats.
Nathan immediately reached to pick the knife up, looking on sympathetically at what was so clearly thelittle boyin the backseat. Sasha just looked so scared. Nathan hated to see fear on the face of someone he knew was usually so strong.
“Careful. Careful, it’s okay,” Nathan said slow and steady to Sasha. “I think this one’s iron so you gotta watch out.”
Those bright blue eyes stretched wider than ever, and Sasha gathered his feet up onto the seat, trying to hug himself into a ball. His body was too large for him to really accomplish that successfully, and he just looked so desperately sad.
“It’s okay,” Nathan said again, quickly disposing of Sasha’s knife in the glove box next to Jim’s. When Nathan turned back to Sasha, there were tears filling the incubus’ eyes and he was shaking harder. “Sasha…” Nathan tried, reaching for one of Sasha’s knees.
The redhead flinched back and pressed himself against the door. “I wanna go home…” he said pitifully, his tears breaking and finally falling freely.
“It’s okay, Sasha,” only it was Jim speaking this time instead of Nathan, “Nathan’s a good brother. He can help. You don’t hafta be scared. We’re friends in the picture, ‘member?”
The incubus stared at Nathan’s phone that was lying next to him in the backseat. It was still open. Sasha reached for it with trembling fingers and looked at the image again. “We’re…friends,” he said softly, touching the screen. “But I’m an incubus,” only the word came out sounding more like ‘inky-bus’ and Nathan tried not to laugh. “You don’t…you don’t c-care?”
Reaching back farther so that this time he succeeded when he grabbed hold of one of Sasha’s knees, Nathan forced his eyes to look as soft and kind as he could. “Not even a little, pal. In fact, I think it’s kinda cool,” Nathan admitted with a smirk. “Never been a doubt you’re a good guy. That’s all that matters.Friendsmean that’s all that matters.”
This time Sasha relaxed under Nathan’s touch instead of shrinking away. He nodded meekly and tried to smile back at Nathan, still so obviously timid. “Okay. Nathan. J-Jim. No need…to be scared.” Sasha nodded again as if he was convincing himself.
“No need to be scared at all,” Nathan affirmed. “Or any need to be all quiet, either. Hard to believe even a five-year-old incubus would ever be shy.”
A blush spread across Sasha’s cheeks. He uncurled and placed his feet on the floor of the car again, allowing Nathan’s hand to move to the top of his thigh where it patted a few times supportively. “My aunt says…she says I-I’ll…grow out of it.”
Nathan couldn’t help smirking at that. “You do. Believe me.”
“Nathan?” interjected Jim.
Pulling his hand back from Sasha’s thigh, Nathan turned to his brother.
“What’s an incubus?”
Crap. “Uhh…look. Let’s just get through closing things out at the motel first. We can talk more when we get to the new one. I just need to grab our things. You guys stay here.” Nathan was about to turn off the engine but, considering how cold it was this time of year in Maine, he decided to leave the car running.
“You’re leaving us?” Sasha asked in a small, breathy voice, frightened all over again.
“Just for a couple minutes. Can’t risk taking you in with me and having to answer questions. Now, I normally wouldn’t think it was a good idea to leave two five-year-olds alone in a car for evenoneminute, but you guys are gonna behave for me, right?”
Sasha and Jim looked too nervous to do anything but nod. Walter gave Nathan a pointed look that said he would come for him if anything happened.
“Good. And you don’t have to worry about anyone trying to kidnap you. Anyone looks in here, you know what they’re gonna find? Two tough-looking guys, that’s what. No one can tell you’re kids. Just give me five minutes. Look at the rest of the pictures on my phone. You just press the button there.” Nathan reached back and showed Sasha how, who still had the phone clutched in his hand. “You don’t have to tell Jim what an incubus is if you don’t want to,” he added to Sasha.
Jim pulled on an impressive pout.
“You already know, you just don’t remember,” Nathan said in exasperation. “Think of it as a big secret that nobody knows but us. Just likeyoursecret, Jim, understand? You can’t tell anyone. Normally, you know what an incubus is and you’re fine with it, so if he does tell you…” Nathan flicked his eyes to Sasha again who looked sort of frozen. “Just remember it doesn’t change thathe’s our friend.Five minutes,” Nathan reminded them, and got out of the car.
Nathanbreathedreliefassoon as he returned to the car and saw that Sasha and Jim were okay, with Walter now sitting in the front seat, patiently watching them. Jim had climbed into the back with Sasha and they were chatting excitedly while looking at the pictures on Nathan’s phone. Well, Jim was chatting excitedly. Sasha was smiling and saying things occasionally but still had his head slightly bowed.
As soon as Nathan got them to a new hotel and settled in, he would figure out how to change them back, and everything would be…
