Free The Timekeeper by Jordana Barber Page A

sixty-five, forced everyone participate if you wanted her to sign of on your attendance sheet for the court. The sessions were made up of a long, unbearable list of names and sob stories.
    I didn’t understand the point, most of the attendees left wanting to find the substance they were trying to get off of in the first place. Reminding someone of something they’d been aiming to forget wasn’t the way to kick the habit. Starting over seemed the best plan.
    Remove the problem from your life. Eventually the urge will go away. Then came the simple matter of avoiding the trigger became the thing to worry about. Not sitting in a church basement remembering the good and bad times with a large group of other drug addicts . When my Hell was finally over, I stood up and gave Ro a big hug.
    “Catch you later, chick. Be careful, Joe’s ghost may come back to haunt you.” I said as I strolled away, listening to her chuckle.
    “I ain’t worried about Joe. Man never did a damn thing for me but knock out some teeth and I don’t believe in no ghosts, Miss Thang. See ya.” I left with a smile on my face. These meetings always managed to make me want to start doing drugs. I settled for the next best thing, the bar.
    I walked down the street, enjoying how much everything I seemed to need fell within a couple of city blocks from each other. This wasn’t the best part of town, but the store was here, the club and yes, even NA . It made my life easier knowing the crack heads were more afraid of me than I was supposed to be of them. Hence the situation that had landed me Narcotics Anonymous in the first place, I should’ve seen that one coming .
    I was being followed, and the person following me felt like an all too familiar presence. I turned to face my stalker, and scowled.
    “I’ve been wondering when you planned on showing up. I have no desire to speak to you, so be on your way.” One of the most handsome men I’d seen in my entirely too long life sauntered toward me.
    It appeared he’d come straight through the Veil to find me and was slightly pink in the cheeks from the strain. His golden eyes surveyed my body, his black hair rustled in the breeze that came out of nowhere. He was tall and lean, and had a regal air about him. I couldn’t stop my heart from speeding up a little. I hated the way my anatomy betrayed me around him .
    “You are a marvelous specimen, my dear. Although, I think you look better in your true form. You’ve always been the most beautiful of our race.” I refused to talk to him, now or ever. I spun on my heels and started stomping away. I didn’t get far before he appeared next to me. Now that he’d found me, escaping wouldn’t be so easy . I blamed Echo for this, she jinxed me earlier and she would hear about it later .
    “I have nothing to say to you, Zev.” I was only a block away from the bar, and Zev could follow me in, but he wasn’t going to be staying long. Drake would call Darius, and he’d beat feet down here to deal with the problem. I managed to take another couple of steps before he grabbed my arm and stopped me from going any farther.
    I loathed the way the heat of his touch ran threw my body like an uncontainable wildfire . I would never stop wanting him , and my accursed body would always remind me. I bit my tongue, trying to control the hot flash.
    “Are you still mad at me, Azriella? You took everything the wrong way and you refuse to listen to me. I adore you and I just want to explain myself.” I had no desire to pay attention to his lies today, or ever.
    “You never loved me, Zev.” I attempted to walk away, but he refused to let go of my arm. Our eyes met, glaring at him and wishing for his death again at the same time I prayed he would throw me up against the wall and kiss me . Did I always need to be such a fucking mess around him?
    “I did love you, I still do. Yes, I wanted your kingdom, but there was more to it. I fell for you the night I met you, how could I