Death's Exception

Chapter Twenty-Two

The snow falls into my hair. I run, barefooted, out to Titus, who is sitting in an old, falling apart treehouse. I try and control my breathing, but the cold air attacks my lungs, and the altitude stabs at my chest. I try to not sound winded as I sit down beside Titus, but he reads right through me.

"Are you okay? You really shouldn't be running in these conditions." I lean my head on his shoulder, and he rests his hand on mine.

"I am fine." I sigh, my throat closing in on itself. He breathes deeply, and I lose myself in the routine of the rising and falling of his chest. I close my eyes, focusing only on his breathing, and I work to match mine to his. He rubs his thumb on the back of my hand, and I smile. The warmth he gives me distracts me from this cold world.

"I used to study science in this." I look up into his brown eyes, the gold speckles burning brightly with amusement. "Did you know, Rory Destiel, that the human brain takes in 11 million bits of information but is only aware of comprehending 40?" Titus' goofy grin, prompts a laugh to spring out of my mouth.

"That is fantastic." I smile up at Titus. "You are adorable sometimes." Titus blushes, but he throws me a mischievous grin.

"Sometimes?! I have lost my charm, love." I overdramatically sigh.

"You are always annoying." Titus pouts out his bottom lip.

"Ouch." We both laugh, and I cuddle up against him again. I watch out a makeshift window, with snow overflowing its ledge. Trees tower around us, and snow falls hard against our fridged skin. I breath out, the warm air from my lungs intermingling with the cold, dry air around us. "We better go in and save Carter from Molly." I nod, willing him not to get up silently. Despite my unspoken objections, he stands, and holds out his arm.

"Shall we walk together, darling?" I blush, and loop my arm through his.

"We shall." My feet have become numb with cold. You think I would be used to it after being frozen for fifteen years. We walk into the room to see Molly standing in the middle of the room dancing, and Carter snapping pictures of her.

"Oh, simply fabulous. Give us a twirl, sweet." Molly twirls, and giggles. Carter looks up at us, and sits back. "You missed our photo shoot. We have a future model in our hands." I plop down in front of the fire, and rub my itching hands. Carter slams his hands on his knees.

"Rory, you are coming with me." My brow furrows as he holds out his bony hand, to pull me up.

"Uh, where are we going?" I grab his hand, and I jump up. Molly jumps into Titus' arms, but Titus is only concerned with where Carter is taking with me.

"I did some research. Looks like someone may know about your past, in this town." My eyes light up with a hope that I cannot restrain. My hope is an animal that will not be held back by mere chains. I look at Titus, pleading him to let me go. He gives me a hesitant look, but I beg him with my eyes.

"Fine, but, please be careful, love. This may be a trap." Carter simulates a puke, and Molly laughs. I roll my eyes, and kiss Titus on the cheek defiantly.

"I will. I promise." Titus' cheeks burn bright pink, and he locks his eyes with mine. His eyes are wide with his boyish pleasure.

"Gosh, I have to get you out of here before TItus blushes his face off." I laugh, but Titus glares at Carter. We rush out to the car, and I jump into the passenger seat. Carter drives to town, and I struggle to stand still. I lace my fingers together, and squeeze tightly, trying to release the nerves coursing through my veins. Carter looks over at me, and shifts his weight, uncomfortable. Carter doesn't handle emotions well.

"All will be well, mate." I laugh a bit.

"Thanks."

"I am really trying, you know. You Americans are ridiculously emotional." He sneers.

"Yeah, I know. Sorry for the ridiculous amount of nerves upon possibly finding out about my history." Carter laughs heavily.

"Sarcasm goes well on you, sweet." We pull up to a strip of apartments, and we walk up to a worn, white door with the number 4 barely hanging on a nail. Carter knocks on the door loudly. A man in a suit opens the door, his face cleanly shaven, and his eyes the brightest color blue I have ever seen. His hair is blonde and slicked back, and his eyebrows barely visible against his pale skin.

"May I help you?" Carter steps in front of me, barely taller than me, and breathes deeply.

"Yes, sir. You contacted me regarding information concerning this girl's past?" The man rapidly looks between the both of us, but seems to recover quickly.

"Ah, yes, yes. Come in. I have information." We both walk into the apartment. It is astonishingly clean, and smells of sanitizer. "Take off your shoes!" The man screams, as I almost step on the carpet.

"Oh, oh. My apologies." I slip off my shoes, and he takes them from me. He pulls out a wipe, wipes both of my shoes, and sets them down. He motions for us to sit on a couch. We sit down, and I feel so nervous that I cannot stop tapping my feet.

"My name is Mr. Lonest, and I have information regarding this lovely, young girl." I sit on the edge of the couch. Carter looks over at me and motions to let him do the speaking.

"I am Carter Rulley, and this is Aurora Destiel. We are eager to find out what you have to say, sir. But first of all, what do you do for a living?" Mr. Lonest scratches his ear, and winces.

"Currently unemployed. I just lost my daughter to a car accident. Couldn't bear to keep on."

"I am so sorry." I whisper, but Carter seems less than sympathetic. I glare at him as Carter leans back against the couch and sighs.

"Yeah. So what do you know about my girl, here?" Carter loops his arm around me, and I shoot him a glare. He rolls his eyes and takes his arm away from my shoulders.

"I knew her mom briefly."