Page 12 of The Chosen Two

“Okay, George. It was really, really strange to meet you. See ya.”

I close the door behind him, make sure it’s double locked (wouldn’t want any Jinn sneaking in) and shake my head, a lot. I can’t make sense of this now. I lock the folder in the file cabinet that is part of my kitchen command center. I don’t need any of my kids finding it.

I grab my phone and try to call Jake. When it goes straight to voicemail, I remember he’s flying right now, so I send a text instead. I delete and retype my message six times before I finally send it:

I really need to talk to you later. Potential job opportunity/higher calling situation. Call when you can.

Then to Eliza:

Do me a favor? Add “Jinn” to this search you’re doing? Thanks, Love.

I’m looking through my bag for my keys when the phone chimes.

Ummmm, Jinn? Did you rub a lamp? I can’t wait to hear the latest. CALL ME WHEN THE KIDS ARE ASLEEP!

I definitely cannot commit to making that call right now, so I throw the phone in my bag with my keys, pause and grab a bottle of water, just in case Eliza is onto something with this dehydration theory.

I mumble to myself as I head out the door to pick everyone up. “Sorry George. The only monsters I have time to deal with today are the ones I created.”

Chapter 5

George

WhenIgettomy car, I’m exhausted. This was never supposed to be my life. This was my father’s calling, not mine. All I wanted was a boring life. But here I am, hopefully not leading this woman to her demise. I know the odds of that happening are far greater than I could possibly hope. And especially with this Guardian. I’m sure she’s a fantastic person. In fact, I know she is first hand. But she’s still forty-two. It’s just never been done before.

Most Guardians are fifteen or sixteen when they begin training. And not just because that’s when their predecessor is reaching an age when fighting off monsters is harder. Being a Guardian is an important role, and it’s draining in every way imaginable. Physically, they need to be able to fight. Hard. Against large, powerful, unbelievable foes. Mentally, they need to research, learn, and remember the ways to confront, fight, and defeat everything. While I know Miranda is brilliant, I also know from observing my own mother over the years that being one can be a big distraction when it comes to cognitive function. Being a Guardian is also emotionally draining. When it comes right down to it, if Miranda has to pick between saving the world or saving one of her kids, will she be strong enough to make the right call?

To say I was not happy when the League of Docents came to my father’s funeral and assigned me this position is quite an understatement. It was the height of the pandemic, and no one was going to funerals in person. But there they were. I tried to argue with them. I tried to fight their decision, for both myself and Miranda.

They asked me to accompany them into the library, although I didn’t have much of an option. There were six of them, and they directed me to sit down in one of the big leather armchairs by the windows. Then they surrounded me, making me feel outnumbered and trapped.

The Arch Docent, Perry Philips, is the most intimidating, the most powerful. So, if they wanted to scare me into compliance, it made sense to have him do the talking.

“George, you know why we’re here. This pandemic has people scared and returning to belief systems they had abandoned over recent years. We’ve heard grumblings that gods and creatures are beginning to stir. Joanna is fifty-seven and hasn’t had to fight in years, although Benjamin keeps her in good shape, as much as he can. Still, she deserves something no guardian before her has ever achieved: retirement, and soon. Benjamin and Joanna want to live out their lives together in peace. This means someone has to take up the mantle and train Miranda.” He talked to me like a boarding school headmaster would explain the rules to a transfer student with an unacceptable past.

“Miranda? Isn’t she too old to become Guardian? She’s pretty much the age they normally… Can’t you just move on to the next one?”

“No. We can’t. We tried. Suzanne…Suzanne was special. Even more so than Guardians are to begin with. Your father was not assigned to her, so you probably never even knew she existed, but she was a natural protector. At fifteen, before we’d ever talked to her, she signed up for the junior rescue squad at the police department. That’s when we decided to call her up instead of Miranda, when the time came.”

I looked at his face, full of regret and sadness. I wasn’t used to seeing the old curmudgeon feel so much. I was almost afraid to hear the rest of the story. But I had to know. “So, what happened to her?”

He smiled weakly, with no joy. It was more of a grimace of pain. He looked into the distance while pulling the memory to the front of his mind. “It was a freak car accident. It had rained briefly but very hard. She couldn’t tell how wet the road was, and she hadn’t had her license for even a year. Her car hydroplaned into a tree. She died instantly.” He gave himself a full minute to compose himself before forcing his eyes to look into mine. Back in his usual emotionless voice, he told me, “Miranda was chosen, and the time is coming for her to fulfill her destiny.”

He had to be joking. How could he possibly think Miranda Gold could do this still?

I was outraged on her behalf. “But she’s a wife. She’s a mom. We’ve never had a Guardian with her lifestyle before. We can’t expect her to just abandon her family to start the training.”

“No, you’re right. And we don’t expect that at all. You can run her training while her children are at school and her husband is at work.” He remained calm throughout his explanation, as if this obviously was just the way things would be. Forget that no one had handled things this way before, in the history of the Guardian.

“So, what? She’ll be a part-time Guardian? Doesn’t make much sense. Guardian isn’t a part-time job. We don’t have another one to cover her night shifts.”

“Not at all. You will train her during the days. When there are times necessary for her to leave her children, we will provide childcare. But who knows how old her children will even be when the time comes for us to call upon her? This entire conversation may be for naught, for all we know.”

Once again, there was no question. This was how it was going to be, and nothing I could say or do would change their minds. This was going to be my life.

It took them three more years to decide Joanna should retire. And they only did so when the grumblings they had been hearing turned into sporadic sightings. Before the pandemic, people had begun to worship consumerism in place of myths and religions, and as a result, the creatures associated with those beliefs began to fade away. When the pandemic hit, the entire world fell into chaos. Over the years, more and more people returned to those myths and religions, and their renewed belief has enabled the creatures of old to begin reclaiming their place in this world.

The League didn’t want to force Joanna to fight something big and bad, not now, not at her age, and not when she hadn’t fought in decades. The time had come for her to retire.

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