The Last of the Old Ones

Colin

Chapter Eight

"Are you ready for the move son?" I heard my father calling to me as I finished tapping off my last box of stuff. I rubbed my temples, trying to push back the pressure in my head from the hangover I had given myself. I had finished a bottle of whiskey on top of the three drinks I had at the club last night. I took a bite from the breakfast sandwich Dillon had brought me this morning after he had come to brief me on some basic security procedures and realize just how hungover I was. I had told him about the stranger, and he told me the breakfast was my consolation prize as a joke.

"Yes Father, I'm ready, where is it we are moving to now?" I asked, I hadn't forgotten the name of the little town, but I hoped my faked interest would hide the fact that I had been there just last night. My father didn't need to know about my reckless behavior the night before. And he definitely did not need to know about the stranger that consumed my thoughts.

"It's called Skymoore Falls." My father reminded me as he helped me move my boxes to the car. "We are going to need your help moving everything and making sure everyone is comfortable and agrees on their room arrangements. Dillon went ahead to secure the location; he can help with boxes there. He added, reminding me of the responsibility that came with this move. I knew how important this was for our protection program that I would one day take over and how much it meant for our people who were dwindling in numbers. Amber's survival implied the possibility of continuing the Old Ones. Crazy how a couple thousand strangers in those war tunnels had dwindled down to just Amber and I able to reproduce, I thought to myself.

"I know father; I am ready to help. Does anyone else need help moving their boxes into the moving trucks?" We had decided that since fourteen people moving in one house would be a tad bit suspicious, we would have everyone's personal belongings delivered first so it just looked like the three of us had a plethora of items and have the members of the program move in at night so no one would be aware of them.

"No, everything is all set, your belongings were the last to load, now let's get on the road so we can get there and start unloading everything to make the new home inhabitable for bed tonight." My father said and I agreed.

It was an uneventful drive and an uneventful rest of the day. As soon as we got to the new home we began unloading and unpacking everyone's furniture so they would have somewhere to sleep, and they would only have to take care of unpacking their clothing and personal items. Although it was a lot of demanding work, the day went smoothly, everything was all set that night for everyone to move in under the radar. My parents reminded me of the story I would follow so I could be enrolled in the school and not draw too much attention. I was to cover my tattoos and blend in. Amber could have no idea what was going on yet, we didn't want to frighten her. The people with the blank masks were getting too close for our comfort though so they wanted someone there to watch over her and protect her, , as the heir of the protection program and the right age to fit in at the high school, I was the first choice. Tomorrow was my first day and I wasn't entirely thrilled because I had already completed my schooling, but I had to pretend like I hadn't. I was given a picture of Amber so I knew who I was protecting and a class schedule.

******

My first day of classes was uneventful, as planned I had several classes with Amber to make sure I was in an optimal position to watch over and protect her. I saw her in person for the first time that morning, she was a timid little thing. She accidentally brushed her shoulder past me in the hallway, she emanated the sweet smells of amber, ironically enough, and vanilla. That smell felt familiar, I thought I recognized it from the club the other night... It couldn't possibly be though, could it? The pressure must be getting to me already. I shook my head to clear the scent from my brain. She apologized, being too embarrassed to look up at me as she spoke. I'd never felt so drawn to comfort someone before. She was so innocent and unknowing of the dangers that lurked around her. In that moment, I was glad it was me here to protect her and not someone else. Now I just had to keep secret that Amber may have been my masquerade partner. I had balled my hands up at my sides to keep from reaching out to her.