“Liauna, you and your other companion are welcome to walk around and look at the camp if you wish, Callum will come find you once the tent is up.”
“Thank you for all you kindness.”
Taking Anton’s hand, we head to look around. There isn’t too much to see other than trees, tents, and homes. We walk the perimeter, hand in hand, all the shifters stop and stare. Well, that is until I wave, then I see a flush of their cheeks as they continue on with what they were doing. The far north corner is dedicated to a large garden. It is a wonderful sight to see something so green in all this sea of brown. A handful of shifters are weeding and watering the plants.
I take a few steps closer, smile and ask, “Do you guys need a couple more pairs of hands? Anton and I would be willing to help out.”
The oldest male sneers, “We need no help from outsiders here.” Turning from us, he goes back to work.
“Well, that’s just fine, sorry we bothered you.” I grab Anton’s hand and stomp off.
Taking a deep breath, I try to tell myself that they have been through a lot. It is hard to trust strangers. We continue our walk around the camp, until we are back to Callum and Evans. Both have a pleased look on their face, the tent is complete.
Still holding Anton’s hand, I walk up to Callum and Evans, kissing each on the lips and thanking them. When I take a step back, I see a look of surprise is written on Jaylin’s face.
“You’re telling me, it was a shock to us all. Thank you for letting us stay the night. I’d like to retire if that’s okay with you?”
“Have a good night, Princess.”
After she walks off, I enter the tent. It is lined with sleeping bags, I crawl in the first one and fall to sleep as soon as I do.
I wake up just as the sun starts to peek in the tent with Anton staring at me, as I’m cuddled between Evans and Callum.
“Good morning, handsome. Didn’t sleep well?”
“Oh, Evans, Callum, and I took turns keeping watch. We should be safe here, but as outsiders, it’s hard to feel completely safe anywhere.”
“Well, why didn’t you guys wake me? I could’ve taken a turn. Just because I’m a princess doesn’t mean I can’t.”
“Relax, Liauna. We all know you are more than capable, but you looked so peaceful sleeping, none of us had the heart to wake you.”
“It was a restful sleep, let’s wake up these beauties and go see that Priestess. I’m anxious to go back and check on Jaime. Almost as much as I am to find my father.”
“Maybe a little water magic? You’re supposed to be practicing right?” Anton winks.
I summon a small water ball over each palm, then direct them at the guys laying on either side of me. Both sit up in a flash, Callum with a grin and Evans with a sneer.
Smiling sweety, “Good morning Evans and Callum. Ready for the day?”
“Let me dry off, and I will be.” Evans growls.
Anton and I exit the tent and enjoy the rest of the sunrise. After a few moments we are joined by Callum and Evans.
Callum takes my hand and leads us back to the Priestess’s tent. He lets go and steps inside to greet her and make sure she is ready for us. Standing there, we discuss more about what we saw in the town, supplies we might need when we hunt the witch down.
I look back at the tent to see Callum’s smiling face poking out of the tent.
“Come on in, she is ready for visitors.”
I’m unsure of what awaits for us in the tent, but if Callum is smiling then it can’t be all bad right?
I have one foot in the tent, when I hear, “Welcome, Princess Liauna.”
I smile and look up to a beautiful tanned, older woman. Her long black hair is braided on the left side and loose on the right. Her eyes are almost the same amber color as Callum’s, but they have more of a brown tone. She has a sweet smile on her face; she looks nothing like I thought a voodoo priestess would look. I blame the movies.
“Hello, I am Liauna of the Western Fae. I am in need of your help. I need to find my father and stop the witch that took him.”
“Yes, Callum here told me, and I think I may be able to help. If you have something of your father’s, I can do a tracking spell. Also I have a binding potion for this witch of yours. Once she has taken it, all of her spells or curses will be null and void. This creeper plague will end, but it will not stop that mad king. You will have to face him, but you are stronger than you know, Princess. Trust and take the help of your three companions, you together will be a force to be reckoned with. Do you have something of your father’s?”
“Yes, I took his brush, hoping that you would be able to help.”
I hand her the brush, she sets it in the middle of her makeshift table and starts to chant. Her eyes glaze over, and she continues, until she scribbles down a location on a small piece of paper. The glaze disappears from her eyes, and she comes out of the trance. She smiles at me again and hands the paper to me.
“Take care, Liauna. You will be a wonderful leader when your time comes. Stay true to your heart and your men. They will never steer you wrong.”
“Thank you. I appreciate you taking your time to help us. I hope our paths will cross again, so I can return the favor.”
“I will hold you to it, Princess.”
Once we exit the tent, Jaylin is waiting for us.
“Princess Liauna, I know you’re ready to find your father, but would you and your men be up to helping me and a few others on a supply run? With your willingness to go back to town and stay, I thought maybe you were not just a princess, but a warrior. If it is too much trouble, I understand, but it would really help my people out.”
“Of course, we are willing to help,” I reply. “Do you have your lists, and are you and your men ready?”
Chapter Six
Evans and Callum take down the tent as we wait on Jaylin and her people to get ready for the run. The site where we camped looks as if it has never been disturbed. It’s amazing how fast and efficient they are.
Just as I roll up the last sleeping bag, Jaylin and the three guards from the gate arrive.
“Princess, when you are ready we are.”
“Jaylin, I think we’re done here, we just need to place these back where they came from, and we can go.”
Jaylin calls over a few pack members, and they take the tent and sleeping bags from us.
“Let us get on our way. I would like to be back before dark.”
“Don’t worry, it will not take long unless we run into trouble,” I reassure her.
Jaylin and her men lead us to the gate and our truck, which is parked right outside of the gate. I notice a car and another pickup are located there as well. I’m glad to see that they have transportation. It wouldn’t have been a comfortable ride in the lone truck together.
Callum and I are in the cab, Anton and Evans in the bed of the truck, ready to jump out at a moment’s notice. The ride was uneventful, maybe a little too quiet.
As we get to the outskirts of town, I start seeing random creepers here and there. I am on edge, I don’t like that our team is so big. The more people, the more chances for someone to get injured or bit. I fear that my tears will not work if needed again, that Anton was a one hit and I’m done. I’m so grateful to have him back, but I hate that their faith lies with me, and we don’t know if I could heal anyone else.
Our first stop is a dollar store, and I carefully open the old truck’s door. The heaviness of the door creaks, even though I am as gentle as I could be.
Fuck, I hope there are not any creepers close.
I jump down and join everyone at the back of the truck, tailgates down and ready for any goods we might find.
“Jaylin, first thing we need to do, check and clear any creepers from the store. Everyone grab a buddy.”
I have three hands on my arm as soon as I have spoken the words.
“You three figure it out, I’m not picking,” I say as I walk to talk to Jaylin.
Stepping up to h
er and her guards, I feel a little awkward. Clearing my throat, I get their attention.
“The best way to clear these aisle are to walk back to back, so you have a set of eyes on both sides of the aisle. That way there are no surprises to sneak up on you. The best way to stop a creeper is with a head shot. Do not let them bite or scratch you, if you do, then you will be infected and start to change. Also, hold your flashlight in one hand and weapon in the other. Sorry if you know all this, I just feel better knowing I told you.”
“Thank you, Princess, this is priceless information, and we will use it well,” Jaylin replies.
I turn back to my guys to see them battling over me with a game of rock, paper, scissors. I have to stifle a laugh. Evans looks a little lost in the game. I guess Fae don’t have it in their realm. As I get to them, Callum has a satisfied grin on his face, so odds are he won.
“So classy, guys, next time pick a game Evans understands. It’s not a fair game unless everyone knows how to play.”
Taking Evans’s hand, we walk to Jaylin and tell her we are ready.
Anton and Callum enter first, Evans and I on their heels. I glance back and see that Jaylin and her guys are doing just as I suggested. A smile crosses my lips for just a moment. Then the smell hits me and bile threatens to rise in my throat. I will never get used to this smell. Struggling forward, the thin beam of my flashlight stops on a pile of creepers. They were left there to rot, I wonder by who or if this is a trap.
I start to voice my concern when Callum does instead.
“L, I don’t like this. That pile of creepers over there has me thinking this is a trap.”
“I agree, let’s get out of here.”
Backing out the way we came, I’m glad we weren’t in the store too far before we decided to leave. I don’t want to think about what would’ve been waiting for us.
With a confused look on her face, Jaylin walks up to us.
“What is wrong, Princess? Why did we leave?”
“We had a bad feeling about that store, there would never be a pile of creepers like that just on the floor. Someone put them there. Let’s move to a different store and see if we can get what you need.”
We hop back in our vehicles and head to a bigger general store. Back in the same formation and same partners, we head in to clear any creepers and, hopefully, get the supplies we need for the pack.
After we pass the register, we start our sweep, Anton takes out the first creeper with his bare hands. He tosses the head then the body to the side, so we can make it through the aisle. There are bare shelves everywhere, most of the goods have been picked through already. We encounter a few more creepers, easily taken out by Callum and Anton. Going back to the front of the store, we each grab a cart. Two of us, grabbing what we can on the aisle we are on then moving on to the next.
Evans and I have full carts before we are even halfway through the store. We decide to head back for fresh carts. We get to the front of the store, when we see more creepers entering the store. Pushing the carts away from us, so we have enough room to swing our swords. We ready our blades and take each creeper out one by one. I take out five, and Evans has as well when two more enter. They are huge, the one that comes toward me is missing an arm and half his torso. His lumbering steps give me the advantage I need to drive my sword up through his chin into his brain. His body thuds to the ground, taking my sword with it. I go to remove it, but it is stuck. I pull with all my might, but it doesn’t budge.
Anton and Callum must have heard the commotion, I see them running and still pushing their carts. It’s so cute, they’ve come to my rescue and didn’t lose their goods. Evans is still taking the random creepers that pop up.
“Anton, can you remove my sword from this head please? It’s stuck, and I can’t get it to move. Don’t laugh at me, I just took out this huge creeper by myself. I just want my sword back.”
One yank and my sword is free, covered in creeper brain matter and black ooze. But it’s free. I’m glad it wasn’t lost forever in the brain of that huge creeper.
Anton, Evans, and Callum start moving the creeper bodies out of the doorway, as I start to bag the items we have loaded into the carts. I bag them and return them to the carts, once all the items are bagged, we head out to load them in the truck. Just as the last bag is loaded, I hear the hum of an engine. Fear runs through my body and questions run through my head. Who are they? Are they nice? Are they going to try and steal our stuff? Will they want to fight? Anton runs back into the store to get the others as we load up in the truck. We will not fight other people if we don’t have to, there aren’t many of us left.
I climb in the truck as my nerves threaten to get the best of me. Callum and I are in the cab, Evans in the back, but Anton is still in the store. As I start to concentrate, readying myself to teleport when I see him running back out, arms full of goods.
As the noise gets closer, Callum starts the truck and just as engine comes to life, I see them. A convoy of cars. Callum ignores them and throws the truck into gear. Slamming on the gas, the truck jerks forward, Anton and Evans hitting the tailgate. I hear them cuss, but they hold on tighter. Jaylin is leading us out of the town, but we have to make sure that the other vehicles aren’t following us.
Taking some sudden turns here and there, we finally are able to shake them and head back to the pack’s camp. The drive back seems shorter than the first time. The gates swing open, and we pull just inside them. The guys and I help unload the goods, they have a cabin a few feet from where we parked. They have an assembly line, so the unloading doesn’t take long.
I take my guys to the side for a chat.
“I think we leave the truck here for the pack. I can teleport us back to the Fae realm. I think that they can use it.”
“Yes, we aren’t in need of the truck in the realm.” Evans replies.
Jaylin comes over and thanks us for all our help.
“I just wish we could’ve gotten you more supplies. But a fight with other people over them just isn’t worth it. We have enough fights with the creepers.”
“Princess, what we got today will last us a while, besides all your tips were great advice we can use on future trips.”
“I hope so. Jaylin, we want you to keep the truck. I can teleport us where we need to go. I hope it serves you well. There is a war coming, I hope you and your people are safe.”
“You are too kind. Princess, we will fight by your side anytime you need it.”
“I hope I will not need it, if I do, I will come to you personally. Thank you Jaylin.”
Turning to my guys, rubbing my hands together, I ask, “Who’s ready to go first?”
Sighing, Evans steps forward. “Lets go, Princess.”
I step up to him, and I wrap my arms around him, and he does the same.
“Callum, Anton, I’ll see you two in a minute.” I wink.
I take a deep breath and focus on the castle, Kalli, and Zach. In a blink, we are back. No one is running around screaming, so I’m hoping that means no creeper attacks. Evans unwraps himself from me and kisses my lips.
“Be careful, I will be waiting for your return.”
“Aww, Evans you’re making me blush. I think you might like me or something.” I tease.
He shrugs his shoulders, “Maybe.”
Taking a breath, I focus on Anton and Callum, repeating the teleport until we are all safe in the kingdom. My first stop is my room for a shower, then to find Kalli. I enjoy the feeling of being clean, and the sight of Kalli’s smiling face. She was in the throne room, taking care of business just as I had asked of her. I smile back, mouthing I’ll talk to her later. I decide to go check on Jaime and she if she’s made any progress. I start the descent to her lab, breathing heavily when I reach the bottom. I remind myself cardio is evil but necessary.
I knock twice, then the door swings open. Jaime’s hair is disheveled, and she has bags under her eyes.
“Jaime, have you slept at all?”
“Oh h
ello, Princess. Sleep? I don’t need any sleep. I will get this cure ready. I will work night and day to get it ready, Princess. This is the part I can do to help, and I will do it.”
I grab her by the shoulders, looking her in the eyes.
“Jaime, I order you to sleep. You are no good to me or the fae if you are not rested. I’m grateful that you are working so hard, but I don’t want you to burn yourself out. I will send Zach to help you and aid you in any way you need. You will rest first.”
“Yes, Princess. A nap would be nice.”
She heads towards the bed in the far corner of the room, and I help guide her to it. She is out as soon as her head hits the pillow. I tuck her in and start up those evil stairs. I search for Zach to tell him about his new job when I find him in the courtyard training with Evans.
I stop and watch their exchange for a few moments, that is until a shirtless Evans realizes I’m watching. He motions for me to join them. Crap, cardio and now swordplay, this day is kicking my butt.
Once I reach them, I inform Zach that he is to report to Jaime after he is done training and to leave her sleeping if she is. Then I start with my warm-up stretches until Evans is ready to battle me.
Evans doesn’t go easy on me. He attacks like his life depends on it. I wouldn’t expect less, he is a great teacher and an amazing swordsman. I am holding my own pretty well, I’m almost proud of myself, that is until I let my guard down and take a blow to the ribs. He slices through my shirt and skin, his blade only stopping as it hit bone.
I give out a little cry in pain, and he realizes what has happened as a look of horror comes over his face.
“Evans, please get Kalli. She will be able to patch me up.”
Instead of listening to me, he scoops me up, carrying me to Kalli. Each bounce in his stride is like pure agony. I’m holding pressure on the wound, but my hands keep slipping because they are wet with blood. All the way to the throne room, Evans is apologizing. I try to respond as we enter, but the pain is too much, and I blackout.
I wake up with my head on Evans’s chest. I am in my bed, shirtless, but with my bra on still.
Redemption of the Fae Page 4