Eutopia (First version)

Chapter 27

‘Listen to your heart, Topi,’ Theresa said quietly, using the pet form of her name that Eutopia had always loved when spoken in her soft Irish tone. ‘There really isn’t anyone who can tell you what’s right and what’s wrong.’

The two women were sat in the small and sparsely furnished living room of Mike and Theresa’s house. Jinn, his hulking frame squeezed into the only armchair, sat watching the small screen of Theresa’s T.V that rested upon a low pine unit in the corner of the room. Mike was channel hopping in a seemingly mindless manner; short bursts of song mixed with the spoken lines and canned laughter from nameless American sitcoms. Eutopia was curled in the space between Mike and his mum, warm and cosy on the brown velour sofa that took up most of the remaining space in the room. Theresa’s hands were entwined with Eutopia’s and Eutopia rested her dark head against the woman’s small, bony shoulder.

‘But I don’t know what it is that my heart is trying to say,’ Eutopia practically whispered back, her sapphire eyes fixed upon Jinn’s emotionless face as his own gaze remained resolutely glued to the screen. ‘How can I do the right thing when I don’t even know what that is?’

‘Well, sometimes even our hearts don’t know what the right thing is until the wrong thing happens. It takes courage, so it does, to do something we fear to be wrong. But to make mistakes isn’t always a bad thing. God will forgive those who come back to his fold. Do what you feel you must, but don’t ever forget my door is always open to you.’ A thoughtful silence settled upon the room, broken only by Mike’s gruff chuckles as he finally settled on a re-run of a slapstick comedy Eutopia had never seen before.

Later, Jinn caught Eutopia alone in the kitchen after she had offered to make the next round of tea.

‘I will follow you,’ he said, leaning against the countertop with folded arms as she stood beside the white plastic kettle, waiting for it to boil. ‘I’ve waited too long for you to just let you walk away now.’ Eutopia avoided his eyes by searching the cutlery drawer for a clean teaspoon. ‘I know exactly what you’re planning, Eutopia, I know your heart inside out, and it isn’t safe. I will not let you go alone.’ She slammed the drawer shut and gritted her teeth to keep her anger in check. With the swift fluidity that betrayed his angelic nature, Jinn had scooped her up in his arms and was halfway up the stairs before she could make any sound of protest. Jinn pressed her gently onto Theresa’s bed, Eutopia’s back against the pillows and his face only inches away from hers.

‘Listen to me,’ he insisted, his eyes flashing with urgency. ‘I love you. I will protect you with every last breath I have in my body because I have waited an eternity in the darkest depths of hell just to be with you again. It is not safe for you to find Will. I thought it might have been different this time but now I know he’s Nephilim and he’s somehow connected to Petra, I’d be signing your death warrant just by letting you walk out that door!’

‘He’s my brother!’ was all Eutopia could manage, feeling like a stuck record. Jinn closed his eyes, fists clenched tight as he pushed himself away from her. He stood, his towering frame tensed for a moment before he turned his pleading indigo eyes upon her.

‘Don’t you see? This life, the one you’ve been given this time, it’s following the same course as the life you had before?’ Eutopia sat herself up a little more, drawing her knees up to her chest and pulling a soft cream coloured faux-fur throw over herself that Theresa kept at the end of the bed. ‘Each life you have spirals on from the one before, like a shadow. You are following in Eirene’s footsteps.’

‘Eirene,’ Eutopia breathed, her eyes wide and glassy at the strangely familiar name. Jinn softened at once and sat beside her, reaching out to stroke her dark hair.