Forever Here

by Harold Wall

  an angry step forward, "I know he wouldn't! It doesn't matter how much he wants me back, he won't make me unhappy!"

  Furry overtook Alec's expression and he closed the distance between us, roughly grasping my chin between his thumb and forefinger. "You don't know what he'll do," Alec insisted,

  his voice angrier than I'd ever heard it, "I think he will comply to my wishes—you don't know the lengths a man will go to obtain the things he cares about. You might not have your

  say in this matter,"

  I pushed my hands against his chest, not at all liking the way he was looking at me all of a sudden. "Let me go Alec," I demanded, but his grip only tightened, "Let me go right now

  or you'll be sorry!" Alec stared at me for a long moment before finally to my relief he released me.

  "You have no idea," Alec whispered, "You'll see—Delos isn't the knightinshinningarmor that you seem to think he is." With that, Alec turned and strode out of the room, slamming

  the door behind him.

  The moment the door was firmly closed, the muscles in my legs suddenly gave out and I crashed to the floor, shaking and shivering uncontrollably. "Maggie, are you alright?" Rogue

  was instantly at my side, her hand on my shoulder, trying to steady me, "Are you ok? Do you need anything? Can I…"

  "I'm fine," I insisted, breathing in and out and trying to concentrate on my muscles to steady them. "It just…" I looked up into her concerned eyes, gulping with uncertainty. "Did you

  see the look he gave me? I've…never received a look like that." I slowly looked away from her and back at the closed door. Alec was planning something sinister, that I knew now.

  His look had been full of hunger, of desire…plus the additional anger that frightened me more than anything else. Whatever Alec was planning, it wasn't anything good.

  And Delos…if Alec's source was right, then I needed to get to Delos before he made any rash decisions. I needed to reach him somehow. I needed to let him know I was alright, that

  he needed to look deeper into the accident.

  I remembered the time Delos reached me using telepathy. I wasn't exactly sure how it worked, but I knew that somehow I needed to reach him…at least long enough to tell him to

  take a deeper look at all of this. And then…

  I looked back up at Rogue's concerned expression, remembering her words from before. "You said that you concentrate on the now," I whispered, resolve suddenly starting to form

  in my mind. Rogue looked at me cautiously, her dark eyes telling me that she thought I was getting off my rocker. It wasn't the first time someone had looked at me that way.

  "I don't see how that has anything to do with what's going on," She admitted.

  "You said that you concentrated on protecting those you love," She looked even more confused, but she nodded. I glanced at the door, remembering that there was a guard there

  and lowered my voice so that only she could hear it. "How do you feel about escaping from here and getting some help?"

  The look on Rogue's face clearly told me that she now thought that I'd gone insane. "That's not possible," She whispered back, her voice full of uncertainty, hope, and fear.

  I shook my head. "There is always a way—we just need to find it." I paused, then emphasized, "And we can find it—we just need to come up with a plan. It's time to stop playing

  trapped princess—it time that we took action. Are you with me?" I felt like I was talking to my soccer team again, encouraging them to face their fears and go up against a much

  stronger and faster team.

  And it seemed to work on Rogue too, because after a moment of hesitation, she nodded. "Let's do this." I smiled and got up, heading to my bed and sitting down on the edge of it.

  "Where do we start?" She asked, following me.

  I looked up at her as I reached over for the towel that was lying across the fur blanket from the last night's bath, quickly wiping my hands of the blood and handing it to her. "We

  contact Delos."

  Darkness surrounded him once more, just like it always did back before he ever met Maggie. But instead of feeling comfortable, it felt burdensome and claustrophobic. Delos

  walked through it, trying to find a way out and yet not even sure if he himself was getting anywhere.

  This is pointless, he thought, there's no way I can get out of here without Maggie.

  But Maggie wasn't coming back. He'd spent six months tearing apart any bit of evidence, searching the entire area for her and coming up empty. Everyone had tried, maybe not as

  diligently as he, Miles and Jeanne had, but they still tried. And they didn't find anything either. Maggie had simply just disappeared. He wanted to keep going, start to tear the world

  down trying to find her, but the rest of them were losing hope. Even Miles and Jeanne had lost hope of ever finding her.

  He couldn't do this alone, he knew—if he were to search the world alone, he might end up finding her about a hundred years later, buried in the ground. So he was now at a loss, all

  alone in his castle with no idea where to go now. Miles and Jeanne had returned home. Miles pretended that he had no idea that Maggie had left, and although their parents were

  happy to have him back from the dead, they were still upset about Maggie's disappearance. But they didn't do anything useful either.

  Delos stopped walking, glaring down at his feet as tears once again threatened to surface. Maggie…I can't do this alone…I don't know where to go now! He felt stupid talking to

  himself, but at the moment he didn't care. All he wanted was to have Maggie back safe in his arms. Give me some clue!

  That's when he heard it. That voice, faint but there, like a beacon in the night, shooting light into his darkened world—not that the scenery around him changed, but suddenly all of

  his hopes flared back to life.

  "So let me get this straight," Rashel spoke clearly, obviously frustrated with Delos's persistence. "You want us to drive you…where,

  exactly?" Delos looked down at the map of the United States that he held in his hands—one he'd snatched from the car before he started the conversation with these two.

  Texas….no, that wasn't it…Nevada? No, not it either….it started with a 'c', that much he did know…

  "Does either of the Carolina's have hot weather at this time of year?" He questioned, remembering that Maggie had told him there was both an ocean and that it was hot where she

  was.

  "No," Rashel answered as calmly as possible.

  "Then its right here," He pointed to the state of California. Rashel blinked at it for a moment.

  "You want us to drive you clear across the coast," She clarified, trying to keep her voice even, "California is still a pretty big state…do you have any idea where she might be?"

  Delos nodded once again, "Just outside of San Francisco; it's a place like where I live, but…sunny and it's by a beach." When Rashel didn't look convinced, Delos let out an

  exasperated sigh, "Look, I'd know it if I saw it; she's there, ok?"

  "And you know this," Quinn, who learned against the car, silent up till this point started, "Because you talked with her in a vision?"

  "Yes," Delos answered truthfully, looking directly at Quinn to show him how dead serious he was about it, "I know how it sounds, but it's true." Delos glanced at Quinn's skeptical

  soulmate, "If Rashel was in her situation, wouldn't you take the chance and go after her?"

  Rashel instantly snorted, "Like I ever would be," She mumbled, but both Delos and Quinn ignored her. Instead Quinn stood there, considering it seriously.

  "I'd rip the entire state up," He finally replied, his face completely serious.

  "So will you?" Delos, for once in his life, was pleading with another person, begging him with his eyes to help him.

  Quinn stared at him for a long moment before he sighed, "Alright—hop in."

  "What?" Rashel asked, whirling to give hi
m a look of confusion. Quinn shrugged his broad shoulders, opening up the driver's seat door.

  "Either we take him or he steals a car himself and it therefore a dangerous menace to everyone on the road."

  Rashel didn't argue with that—instead she nodded her head and climbed into the front passenger seat. Delos sighed, his entire body relaxing from relief and quickly climbed into the

  back seat. "Thank you so much," Delos gushed, "When do you think we'll get there?"

  "Oh no," Rashel groaned, "We're not going to play the 'are we there yet' game, are we? Because if we are, please drop me off at the nearest gas station so I can call someone from

  Circle Daybreak to come save me from this madness."

  Quinn ignored her, "If we don't stop, we should be there by early morning…maybe dawn if we speed." Quinn started the car and pulled away from the curb quickly, making Delos

  fall back against the seat from the thrust.

  They continued on in silence—Delos had noticed from his many trips with these two that they didn't really listen to music with one another—instead they normally touched each

  other's hands softly, communicating through their minds. Each time it gave Delos a pang as he wistfully thought of Maggie, and he quickly learned to stare faithfully out the window

  until they got to their destination. But I'll get her back by tomorrow, he thought, his eyebrows creasing over his eyes, no one will stop me. Quinn had been right—if they'd said no,

  he would have stolen a car and driven himself there himself. Rashel might think he was insane, but he didn't care.

  Now there was only one other person he needed to tell—he hadn't told anyone where he was going; he'd merely dressed in his modern outfit, got on a horse, and rode out to where

  Rashel and Quinn agreed to meet with him, where he explained everything.

  Miles.

  "Do you think I could borrow a…" He paused, trying to remember the word, "Cellular phone?"

  "A cell phone?" Rashel asked, not trying to mock him at all just clarifying it for herself, "Yeah, you can use mine." She handed him back her Iphone, and when Delos merely stared

  at it, she sighed and asked for the number. After giving her the number, she pressed the talk button and handed it back to him.

  A split second after he put the phone to his ear, Miles picked up on the other line. "Hello?" He sounded tired—he'd started college again and was probably…'studying'.

  "I know where Maggie is," Delos cut to the point, not bothering to greet him.

  "What?" Miles instantly perked up and yet Delos could hear the skepticism in his voice, "Where?"

  "Just outside of San Francisco."

  "Why would she be there?"

  "Because it was all a set up."

  "What was a set up?"

  "The accident." Delos was aware of both Quinn and Rashel listening in, but he ignored them. "Look, I don't know how it happened…but while I was asleep, we sort of…communicated

  to one another. I don't know how, so don't ask me how. But she told me things that, upon further reflection, led to a simple conclusion,

  "A few days before the accident, Prince Alec visited, requesting an alliance between our kingdoms. But Alec hates humans, so he wasn't at all happy with the way I ran things and

  who I had for my wife. So I basically told him to get out, but if Alec was desperate enough, he'd go to lengths to kidnap my wife."

  "But how do you know that it was a set up?"

  "First of all, because Maggie told me it was a set up, secondly because if anyone had any sort of motivation to do it would be Alec and thirdly, was there any dead animal at the

  scene?"

  "Well, not that I know of…"

  "Exactly. You hit it fast enough that even if it hadn't been instantly killed, it wouldn't have made it far—probably to the side of the road—before it killed over and died."

  Miles was silent for a very long time, "Okay, maybe you have a point," Miles agreed, "But I don't understand his motivation…."

  "He wants to make an alliance—he needs an alliance in order for his kingdom to survive. He probably thought that by kidnapping Maggie he could bribe me into agreeing to it."

  "But wouldn't you have heard from him sooner if he had?"

  Delos was silent, thinking it over. "Maybe," He admitted, "I'm not clear on all the details. But it's my best lead."

  Miles sighed on the other end. "Sometimes I wonder if my sister has really fallen for a crazy man," He mumbled, "Alright, when can I expect you to come by to pick me up? I

  assume that you're with Rashel and Quinn…"

  "We're not going to get you."

  "What?"

  "I called you to let you know what's going on…and to tell you that if you don't hear from me in a few days, call Thierry and ask him to give you some reinforcements."

  "But I want to help you!" Miles protested, "Besides, I can't ask a Night World elder that…"

  "Yes you can—tell him Delos is asking for it; he still owes me for saving the world."

  "I didn't know you had that deal with him,"

  "I do now."

  Miles was silent for a long time, and after a moment Delos wondered if maybe he'd hung up on him, but finally he heard Miles sigh in the background. "Alright—but you come back

  here with the both of you safe and sound, alright? I'd prefer it if we avoided a little miniwar."

  "I'll see what I can do." With that, Delos hung up.

  I pulled out the laundry bag, rapidly firing quiet instructions to Rogue as I did so, "Once I leave, take this down into the kitchen and stuff it with as much food and supplies as you

  can, enough so that no one will notice. Then stash it somewhere, somewhere where no one will find it. Then get the extra servant's clothes and wait for me. We're going to have to move fast once I do this…otherwise we might get caught." I stopped and stared at her straight in the eyes, looking completely serious. "I don't know what they do to runaways here —it might have been even worse than the Black Kingdom's. But whatever happens, don't stop moving unless captured. We'll deal with it if that happens."

  Rogue was frightened, I could tell. She stood there, staring at me with her wide, dark eyes. "I'm scared," She whispered, her voice shaking weakly.

  I nodded, "I am too."

  "I'm not ready to face this…."

  I sighed—neither was I. I'd done it before, but this wasn't like before at the same time. I didn't have a soulmate here who was guaranteed to protect me if I was caught. Here, I might actually get killed. "If there's one thing I've learned," I said, keeping my voice confident even though I myself wasn't sure if this plan would work the way I wanted it to, "It's

  that you don't get to chose when you face your fears—if you did, you'd never face them."

  Rogue stared at me for a long moment before she nodded. "Alright," She shakily said, "Let's do this."

  I walked away from the bed and used my strength to pick up a particularly heavy wooden chair, "Are you sure you can lift this?" I asked, feeling its weight—how was she supposed

  to lift this above her head?

  Rogue nodded and took the chair easily from me. "I've picked up and moved these things around many times since I've come here—I might not have the killer strength a vampire

  has, but I've got enough to knock someone out with a heavy object."

  I had to admit, at that moment I admired her. Sometimes I couldn't help but be reminded of myself whenever I looked at her—she was terrified to death, but she was willing to go

  along with my crazy plan. And I had to admit, it was a crazy plan. I'd broken into a castle full of Night World people, and now I was going to break out of one with a human in tow. I

  backed up and sat on my bed, pulling back my skirt to reveal my carefully shaved tan legs just above the knees. It might not have been something to impress a human boy who

  saw girls in miniskirts almost every day, but in a kingdom where the men thought it was sexy if
they saw a woman's ankles, it was enough to drive a vampire guard mad.

  Delos, I thought, trying to suppress an amused smile, would be furious with me if he knew what I was doing. But how else was I supposed to distract the guard long enough for

  Rogue to sneak up and hit him over the head?

  I nodded to Rogue, who had backed up into the dark corner behind the door before I broke out into a pained expression and cried out just loud enough to attract the guard's

  attention, my hand grasping my ankle tightly.

  I kept it up until a moment later the door opened and the guard walked in, his expression irritated….

  Until he got a good look, and then his expression went blank.

  I smiled weakly, "Oh good, you're here," I kept my voice strained, and I winced as I shifted my ankle a bit, "I was trying to reach for something and I fell… Say, do you know

  anything about first aid?"

  The guard said nothing, only gulped and nodded his head, his eyes glued to my exposed legs. "Oh, then I suppose I don't need to call for a doctor—close the door please; I don't

  want anyone else to know. I don't think it's necessary for them to know, don't you?" The guard mutely nodded and closed the door behind him and slowly made his way towards me.

  In my peripheral vision I could see Rogue moving a silent as a cat, but I refused to look at her. I didn't want to give the guard any reason to suspect anything other than I needed

  help.

  "Thank you so much," I breathed as he knelt down, taking my foot gently in his hands and started to massage the ankle—it actually did feel good. "I'm so glad that you're here to

  help me," it was then that I knew that Rogue was in the position, and I sighed. "It's just too bad…you really are such a nice guy." The guard looked confused for a moment and just

  then I yanked my foot out of his grasp and threw myself onto the bed, jerking my knees up to my body to keep out of the large wooden chair that Rogue threw down onto the

  guard's head.

  I heard a sharp yelp and then two loud THUMP's and I lay there for a moment, listening to Rogue's heavy breathing before I slowly sat back up. There at the foot of my bed lay the