The Dominant Demon (Finished)

6. Consumption

When I wake up, I see sunlight filtering through the bedroom window. "Wow," I mumble. "How long as I out for?"

"About ten hours," I hear a voice say from across the room.

I jolt up, startled, and I see Rory leaning against my door frame. "What are you doing in here?" I exclaim.

He gives me a kind smile. "We need to talk. I spent the night with Jade, and she left for class a few hours ago. I've been waiting for you to wake up."

I toss the covers off of me and sit up. "No talking. Coffee first."

I hear him chuckle. Rory and I may not be close, but he knows how I am before coffee in the morning. He steps aside to let me by as I make my way to the kitchen. Jade left the coffee pot on for me, so it's already ready. I pour myself a cut and then sit across from Rory at the kitchen table. "Alright," I sigh. "What is it?"

"You can't tell Jade," Rory says. "She can't be a part of this."

I scoff. "You expect me to not tell my best friend that the guy that she has been dating for two years has only been with her to watch over me?"

I watch as his eyes flicker down to his lap and his jaw clenches. "Salem, you don't know the whole story."

As he says my name, my mind drifts to my experience in Colvin's realm last night. Salem. That's my name in this life. Who Was I before though? How many lives have I lived between being Thara and Salem? I've never even entertained the idea of reincarnation. Suddenly, I glance back up to Rory. "Did you know me as Thara?"

A shocked expression crosses his face. "You're already remembering things?"

I shake my head. "That's the only thing I've remembered at this point."

"I'm surprised. I thought that your awakening would take closer to a week to start."

"So," I ask, again. "Did you know me as Thara?"

As I ask again, he glances away again and nervously rubs the back of his neck. "Well, no. Not as Thara."

My eyes light up. "Not as Thara? You knew me in a different life?"

He scoots his chair to the table, leaning in closer to me. When he speaks, his voice is lower this time. "Do you know why I was the person specifically sent to watch over you?"

I shake my head. "No, how would I?"

He nods. "OK, this is going to be weird to explain."

"Continue," I say, waking my hand as he spaces out.

He snaps back and looks over to me. "You name was Isobel. You were born in 1904, fourteen years after me."

"I thought Colvin said something about me only living every few millenniums," I interject, confused.

"The universe throws you where it wants you when it needs you. I guess that it needed you again a little sooner," he says, smiling.

"OK, so, who were you in this life?" I ask, curiously.

He shrugs again. "I was Rory. I've been Rory Malcovich since 1890."

"Sooo," I say, trying to make sense of this. "You weren't born human?"

"I was," he says, nodding. "Let me get to that part. I had a little sister. Our parents weren't in the picture much. I took care of her from the moment she was born. As she got older, she became my best friend and the most important person in my life."

"Is she still alive, too?"

A sad, nostalgic look crosses his face and his eyes meet mine. "She died when she was eleven from consumption. We were very poor, and I couldn't raise up enough money for a proper doctor visit. I tried my damnedest. I came home from work one day, and I found her laying on her little cot with the blanket that I made her clutched in her fist. She was dead."