In the Olive Grove (eBook)

CHAPTER ONE

The Dagger

Daynia rushed out of the elevator, and excitedly pushed her way past the small crowd hurriedly heading in the same direction. “So sorry! Sorry!” she shouted, at the same time as she tried to stuff a handful of papers into her messenger bag.

Without missing a beat, she half-ran, half-skipped across the bright, sky lit lobby. Her spike heels clicked on the light-grey speckled granite floor, as she fought with the last few papers refusing to comply with her demands to stay in the bag.

The middle-aged security guard stood intently beneath the elegant 3D Global Timeline company logo, mounted on the aurora Marmarino wall. With a watchful eye, he scanned the dozens of people rushing to leave their workplace. His eyes crinkled in amusement as he noticed Daynia talk back to her unruly papers. He smiled at the dark-haired beauty as she hurried towards him. She is definitely in a serious rush today, he mused. But then Daynia was usually running off somewhere or another on an assignment as an associate writer for the world-renowned magazine, and she was his favourite.

From the day she began working as a junior writer three years ago, Daynia never once missed an opportunity to smile at him or ask how he and his family were doing. Many of the busy professionals who passed him each day saw him as a forgotten fixture as they busily fought deadlines in a world governed by expediency. But not Daynia, she made him feel his story was as important as the latest inventor to grace their magazine cover.

His eyes sparkled with genuine interest as the human whirlwind flew by. “Did they say yes?”

“Yes! Mr. Lagamme!” Daynia exclaimed excitedly as she grabbed the ID card hanging on her belt and tapped it to the turnstile screen. The double glass partition slid open smoothly.

“Congratulations! I’m sure it’ll be your best story yet,” Mr. Lagamme said with genuine interest.

“Thank you!” Daynia responded with a smile that beamed light as she sailed through the glass doors on her way out to the employee parking lot. She was just as excited about her assignment as she was about getting home to see her big brother.

* * * * *

Jake stepped into the living room of the home he shared with his younger sister when he wasn’t away on a tour of duty. He breathed in deeply, pausing just inside the door. The warm scent of lavender brought a smile to his lips. Daynia loved the soft scent and throughout the summer, vases filled with lavender flowers transformed their home into an indoor garden with a delicate scent; a scent that reminded him of love. He was home. Although it had only been the two of them for many years, this was a home suffused with love…and lots of lavender, he chuckled to himself.

Jake dropped his military duffel bag beside the soft leather couch. Still holding a bag of groceries in his left arm, he looked to the top of the mantelpiece, filled with family photos. He stepped toward it, always the first thing he did whenever he returned on leave. He stood quietly, gazing at every picture that lined the mantelpiece, grateful to be to be home. He missed Daynia and the comforts of home when he was away and this was his personal greeting ritual. He would stand in front of their life story, reliving moments of change, laughter, and even sadness captured in images over the last fifteen years. For a fleeting instant, his expression grew sombre. Their beautiful family of four shown in the first photos, tragically and too quickly became two, painfully evident in most of the later pictures. He noted Daynia had replaced a couple with newer shots from his last leave when they had shared her favourite treat, frozen chocolate yogurt topped with every possible kind of chocolate. Jake laughed out loud. His little sister could be such a gorger when it came to chocolate.

His expression grew serious again as he leaned forward to pick up a framed photo. It was the last picture they had taken as a family. Daynia was so young and his parents so happy and so in love. He sighed, realizing how much he still missed them. Yet, despite the hole that had ripped through their hearts when their parents died, he and Daynia had survived. Jake touched the faces of his parents. “You’d be proud of how Daynia has grown up,” he whispered, feeling like a proud parent himself. It was a role he assumed willingly the moment he and Daynia became orphans following the fatal car accident that had claimed the lives of their parents.

Jake ran his fingers through his dark crew cut hair, taking a deep slow breath, suddenly feeling exhausted from the last six months on duty and the long trip home. He turned to make his way to the kitchen when a particular photo of Daynia, taken the day they visited the Trapezium, caught his eye. In it, she was hanging upside down over the safety net. He smiled, remembering the incident and how funny it had been and how much he and Pastor Whelan had laughed hysterically.

The memory reminded him to make a mental note to visit the pastor, who had become Daynia and Jake’s family following the loss of their parents. Jake felt indebted and thankful for the pastor’s support and friendship over the years. Having just turned eighteen, he had pleaded with Pastor Whelan to help him find a way to stay with his sister. He couldn’t bear to lose her too. Pastor Whelan had been instrumental in keeping the siblings together, but more than that, he became a pillar of strength in the wake of their family tragedy.

Jake picked up the Trapezium photo and laughed out loud, recalling how Daynia, ever the daredevil, screamed at the top of her lungs when she managed, somehow, to get herself hooked upside down on the swinging bar, her foot holding her for a short moment before she lost her grip and dropped to the safety net.

Yes, Daynia could be a handful, Jake thought, affection for his sister sending warm pulses into his heart. His mood slipped over to the bright side as he set the picture down and walked into the kitchen, laying the grocery bag on the counter as he prepared to cook her favourite dish.

* * * * *

Daynia felt she was going to boil over with excitement. She just received a new assignment, one she’d coveted for some time. To top it off, she knew her big brother Jake would be waiting for her at home. She threw her messenger bag onto the passenger side and was just about to slide into the driver’s seat when she dropped her keys. She scolded herself good-naturedly. Nothing could upset her now. Not when Jake was home. She missed him terribly when he was deployed and worried endlessly.

Since the loss of their parents, he had become brother, mother and father to his little sister, forgoing his own dreams to provide for Daynia. Jake had always dreamt of studying architecture. Instead, he left school to work full-time when he was only eighteen, prior to joining the military – all to make sure he and Daynia remained united.

Daynia had been waiting six long months to see her brother, begging him to make the trip down when he was almost sidetracked with a special assignment. She chuckled as she drove out of the parking lot. Jake would make her favourite dish tonight – he always did. It had become their own special tradition to celebrate his return home. Daynia absent-mindedly bit her upper lip. The thought of his scrumptious lasagna casserole had her mouth watering. Glancing into the rear-view mirror, she caught sight of the police cruiser and immediately jerked the car to a slower speed. The chain of her colourful charms with the words FAITH, LOVE & HOPE, hanging from the mirror tinkled as the crystal charms knocked against each other.

“Whoops!” There was nothing worse than being obvious about slowing down when you’ve exceeded the speed limit, Daynia thought, but she realized she was too excited to be careful. “Rats!” She glanced in the rear-view mirror again and watched the cruiser turn off the road. She sighed with relief before pressing the voice activation system on her car.

“Call J-A-K-E,” she said purposefully.

The voice confirmed, “Call Jake. Is that correct?”

“YES!” Daynia shouted back at the voice from nowhere. “She” always asked that twice. “I couldn’t pronounce it more clearly,” she threw back at the mystery voice.

“C’mon Jake! Pick up!” But the ringing gave way to voice mail. “Hey J! I’m so, so sorry. Our meeting ran late but you’ll never believe where my next assignment is!” Daynia paused for emphasis before blurting out with excitement, “Israel! Can you believe it! It’s about tour security. Can’t wait to tell you all about it. Maybe you could join me, just like we planned. Can’t wait to see you! And BTW, I’m starving!”

As Daynia clicked the button to return to the music, her attention was drawn to a young boy standing on the sidewalk up ahead, staring at her as her car approached. He seemed to be holding something that glowed in his hand, his head turning to follow her as she drove past. Mesmerized, Daynia swung her head backward to look at him, nearly hitting the car in front attempting to change lanes. The driver blasted his horn as he sped up, narrowly avoiding a collision.

“Sorrrry!” Daynia mumbled, realizing how close and careless that was – and she wasn’t a careless driver. “What the heck D! That was stupid! Look ahead!” she scolded herself as she rounded the corner, approaching an intersection. Again, her attention was suddenly drawn to that same boy...