Drastically wanting to lighten the mood, I felt a joke here would help. “I don’t know, Penny. If you weren’t here, who would help me every time I spilled something on myself?”
Penny gave me a ghost of a smile. “I don’t know; I think you’d manage okay.”
I leaned back and looked around the coffee shop as I tried to think of another humorous anecdote, when Hauser spoke up.
“Look up now, Jack. Enoch is standing at the second-floor balcony!”
“I see him,” I said, raising my sight, focusing on Enoch’s face just as Hauser spoke.
“I’m sorry, what?” Penny said. “You see who?”
Crap, I thought. “I, um, was just visualizing myself spilling my next hot beverage,” I said.
“Excuse yourself, Jack. We need to move on this, and I mean now,” Hauser said as he disappeared from my side.
Suddenly, my vision blurred. The entire room faded in and out of darkness. An uncontrollable whirling sensation overcame me, and I felt as if the room was about to turn on its side. Just as panic was about to take over, all of my senses returned just as quickly as they’d begun to skew.
“I’m sorry, Penny, but I need to go the men’s room and check my… legs. I may have actually burned myself with that coffee spill,” I said, standing and walking toward the back of the bookstore until I was out of sight. The moment I was clear I vanished from the main floor and reappeared on the second floor right next to Enoch Gant.
Chapter 11
I dropped my coin into my lap and was brought back to the present. Wilson was staring at me expectantly.
“Why did you stop?” he asked. “Is there something wrong?”
“No, I just… wanted to see if that dizziness was part of the flash back or if it might somehow be connected with my injury,” I said as I caressed the tender mass on the back of my head.
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Jack. I didn’t experience any unsteadiness from my point of view. Can you explain it?” Wilson said, worry lines spreading across his face. He leaned forward.
“I don’t know. It felt kind of like when we travel and everything blacks out. But it was different somehow. It almost felt as if I’d had too much to drink and was about to pass out.”
Wilson leaned back in his chair and seemed to contemplate something as I explained the account. “I suppose it might be a carryover from the effects of caffeine on your system.”
“But you said you didn’t notice it from your point of view. Aren’t you seeing things as I am? I’ve only used the coin a few times since getting it from you.”
“You’re partly correct, Jack. I am seeing what you see, but not to the full extent. Because these are your memories and feelings, not everything translates the same way to me,” Wilson said. “It’s either that or your head trauma is causing interference somehow. Do you feel dizzy right now?”
I took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. I stood and walked around for a few moments. “No, I feel surprisingly well. My headache is even gone,” I said, delighted.
“Just to be safe, I think we should give your mind a short break before going back in. Just try and remember where you were when you left.”
I nodded and retook my seat. “I was standing next to Enoch on the balcony.”
“Precisely.”
I continued to breathe in the fresh mile-high air as a number of thoughts crossed my mind. “Tell me, Wilson. Do you have any regrets?”
“Such as?” he asked.
“I don’t know. Like do you wish you had just died back then? Do you wish that you would have just passed on becoming a soul collector altogether?”
“I think there was an immediate sense of regret early on. But the longer I did the job, the easier everything became,” Wilson said, looking at me suspiciously. “No lasting regrets.”
“I see,” I said, as I formulated my next question. I didn’t want to let out anything that might jeopardize my own personal agenda on Penny’s collection. “Wilson, can you… hear my thoughts while you’re experiencing my memories with me?”
“I don’t follow what you mean,” Wilson said, a quizzical look crossing his face.
“I mean, can you hear my internal thinking? When I think words to Hauser, I assume that those are in my own head.”
“No, no. Those are not just your own. I can hear all of your conversations just as clear as if you were speaking them out loud.”
“What about my personal thoughts? Can you hear those as well?” I asked, hoping to maintain at least a sliver of my deeper plan.
“You mean inconsequential thinking? Can you give me an example?” Wilson asked.
“For instance, when I had a sip of the coffee, I thought about the nutty, burnt flavor, and how much I missed drinking it every morning,” I said, hoping to steer the conversation in a safe direction.
“No, I’m sorry Jack, but I did not get any of that from your shared memories. Needless to say, it appears you are still privy to your own thoughts. Either that or you’ve learned to control your thoughts more efficiently since your training with the Sentinel.”
I nodded, thankful that not everything was being shared with Wilson. I wasn’t entirely ready to disclose my personal feelings regarding the afterlife, so I was relieved that I didn’t have to explain anything further.
“All right, then. Let’s get back to this,” I said, picking up the coin and flipping it in my hand.
Chapter 11.5
I stood to the right and slightly behind Enoch. I waited a few moments, trying to figure out the best way to administer the injection before he could jump. As I replayed our plan in my mind, Enoch suddenly turned to face me.
“So you think you can track me?”
Crap, I thought.
“And you think that the Sentinel would actually just sit back and do nothing?” I asked.
“No. Quite the opposite. I fully expected the Sentinel to react, but what surprises me is that they sent you, all on your own. You are alone, aren’t you?” Enoch asked as he looked around our immediate vicinity.
“Yes, it’s just me, and you’d be a fool to underestimate my capabilities,” I said, thankful that I hadn’t betrayed any more of our plan.
“Well? Give me everything you’ve got,” Enoch said, holding his hands in the air, tempting me to try and apprehend him.
I gripped the injector in the palm of my hand, but hesitated. “No, not quite yet,” I said. “I’d like to know why first. Why are you doing all of this?”
Enoch dropped his hands into his pockets and swayed, casually shifting his weight from foot to foot. “Why am I taking your souls? Or why am I focusing on you?”
“Both.”
“They sort of go hand in hand, wouldn’t you say? You are the newest soul collector that the Sentinel has, and you are weak, man. You’re an easy target for me, and it gives me the ability to take the souls that you’re sent to collect without resistance. How does that make you feel? Does that upset you?”
Don’t let him get in your head, Jack, Hauser thought to me. Keep him talking and I’ll try and sneak up behind him.
“No, it doesn’t. Honestly, I have far thicker skin than you might imagine. As well as a stronger passion for life salvation than you will ever have.”
“Ah, so there it is. You are in the Sentinel on false pretenses. Do they know that you’re reluctant to take all the souls that you’ve been tasked with?”