Destiny (Cornerstone Deep Book 3)

by Wilson, Charlene A.

  “What’s happening? Why do I feel like my veins are going to explode?”

  “You carry the child of a Meridian man, my little Terran butterfly. Your body is from a dimension with a much slower…metabolism.” A kind way to say their minds and bodies weren’t as advanced; and Vincent appreciated the candor.

  “Can you help her, Uncle Rhune? Will the Gift of Life enable her to settle down?” He lowered his voice and leaned close. “This can’t be good for the baby.”

  “Yes, I believe I can help to an extent.” He placed his finger on the clip to his cape, and it came away with a dot of blood on the tip. Touching it to Elaina’s neck above the jugular vein, he closed his eyes.

  Her lids flew wide with her gasp as a soft glow issued where his skin met hers. She gulped in air, threw her hands to her face, and then wrapped them around Rhune’s arm.

  Vincent scoffed his concern and looked at his uncle. “What’s happening?”

  “Firstly, I’m cleansing her blood of impurities not known of on Moraine. We can’t have her passing on sickness they don’t know how to deal with. Secondly, she’ll need the immunities the average native would have to protect her from illness unknown to Terra. In short, my boy, I’m preparing her for life here.”

  Rhune gently wiped Elaina’s brow. “Not to worry, my Terran butterfly. The discomfort will only last a moment. Once it passes, I’ll present the Gift of Life.” He smiled. “Which, by the way, has been described as one hell-of-a rush.”

  Rush or not, Vincent folded his arms, hoping it worked for Elaina’s specific needs. As far as he knew, this had never happened before; a Terran bearing a Meridian child. For that matter, personally, he knew of no Meridians who had a child in their first lifespan. It was all so unbelievable.

  He watched his love as her grip eased, and her jaw slacked. Small tremors shook her hands and legs, but the intensity seemed to have passed.

  “Ah, now,” said Rhune. “That’s better. Now, let’s get your system caught up with your new home.”

  New home. Did this mean she could never return to Cornerstone Deep? To her family? What was he thinking? Of course not. There’s no way to return her before the rest of them follow, and then, the portal will be closed.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Cole leaned back in his chair as he watched the hologram over the Utopian mirrors. A sneer twitched his upper lip and forced his mouth into a deep frown. James saw fit to place a barrier over the portal right after the man jumped through. A bold call, to say the least. Then again, James’s protective barriers left much to improve on compared to Cole’s. They had four hours at most to complete all that needed to be done before the barriers faded and the ingrates began removing the ruble. Perhaps the noblemen would leave by then, realizing the task was fruitless.

  He rolled his jaw and shifted his gaze to the side. Elaina had done the same as Lord Travis. Would she receive ill treatment? Though her desire was far from the nobleman’s; that of praise to her chosen god and want for children. Perhaps her position in the Sentinel family gave her power in the form of favoritism? Whatever the case, he hoped she was safely on Midway Summit.

  As he waved his hand at the door, it locked with a click. He did not need a disturbance during the final procedure, the procedure to call upon the Gods’ powers to join theirs. For good measure, he added the silencing charm, “Eko silyst. I’m getting these globes ready without interruption this time.”

  Stepping to the three globes on the bookshelf, he closed the space with determination. Bitter knots clenched his stomach. The final steps to prepare the globes for the sole purpose of closing the portal. Calm down Cole. If you prepare them wrong for the task…

  He didn’t want to complete that thought.

  He gathered the images in his mind, held his hand before him, palms outstretched to prepare the globes to seal the portal. He spoke the final command, “Optimal selentra!”

  The glow from the spheres increased. The light from each globe joined, washing out the color of the cherry-wood shelves. He placed his hand on Vincent’s orb and called on the spell that would join the Gods’ powers with it. “Triad of Power, parclainum.”

  The globe illuminated further, beams shooting through the space between his fingers. James’s center sphere received the same gift. As he rested his hand on the third, a familiar tingle tickled his palm. Cole caressed the smooth surface, allowing the warmth from within it to fill him. Closing his eyes, he opened his thoughts to cast the spell on his crystal.

  A sharp knock came at the door.

  Cole’s lids flew wide, concentration shattered. No!

  A loud pop filled the air, and a thin crack traveled the circumference of the magical sphere. Cole watched in horror as it split into a fork, and then again, until the body of the globe resembled crumpled leather, and the light within died.

  His gaze locked on the globe. Air refused to enter his lungs. Forcing his hands away from the dead orb, he raked his fingers across his scalp. He took a step back, and then another. He couldn’t remove his gaze from the unmitigated destruction before him. His heart hammered and sent a chill to his bones. His cry muffled within the silencing spell. “No!”

  “Hey, man,” came Jarrett’s voice from the other side of the door. “I just wanted to…”

  Cole’s mind spun. He whirled around, thrusting his hand toward the locked door. Fire pellets bulleted the ingress, the force blowing it wide open with the stench of burnt wood.

  Jarrett flew backward, tiny sparks bulleting his body. He landed on his butt with a heavy thud and barely caught himself from falling to his back. His eyes grew as round as saucers, but he finished his sentence anyway, all-be-it a whisper.

  “…use your phone to call Linda’s parents before we leave.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Cole glanced at Mianna as she placed clothes into a small duffle. Carriages clattered in his perception alongside the conversation she had in her head. How could she stand to have so much information from past lives always running through her mind? He grazed his chin with his nails and attempted to close off the communication coming into his thoughts. He had enough to worry about without more to press his anxiety further. How in the name of the Gods was he going to perform the Triad of Power without his globe? To be a conduit for the Gods’ powers was unheard of, but it would be the only way to complete the task.

  He lowered his gaze as a sick sensation sank in his stomach. He rubbed the spot. It wouldn’t take his essence. That much he knew. The spell was completely different than the one his father had used. But to be a portal in his own right; a portal to the unharnessed power the globe should control… The task would be a dangerous undertaking. Yet it was the only one available.

  Mianna’s brows jumped, and she mumbled something as she reached for more items.

  “My love,” he said, in an attempt to break her concentration. “How many piece of under clothes are you planning to bring? They do have such things we can purchase there.”

  She glanced at him, and then to her full hands. “Oh. Yes, well, I’m a bit pre-occupied. Did you know all creatures could be loyal to the point of death? I had no idea.”

  Huh. She garnered that from her conversation? “I can’t say I did.” He took the things from her grasp and returned them to the drawer. “Mianna, have I told you how relieved I am? How blessed I’ve become. When I was assigned to Midway Summit, all I could think was how I wouldn’t have you there with me. We would spend an uncertain amount of years apart.”

  “The Gods wouldn’t tie us together without preparing a way for us to accomplish our goal.”

  “I’m not speaking of a goal.” He took her hands in his and closed the gap between them. “I’m speaking of the heart. I’ve spent the last four hundred years in loneliness, pining for your return even when I believed there would be no rebirth here for your soul. I couldn’t bear a day of not knowing if I’d have you to share it with.”

  “Oh, my sweet led-by-the-heart man. I will always be by
your side, touching your soul, if you but call to me.” She gently removed her hand from his grasp and placed it against his cheek with a feather touch. A familiar verse dropped from her lips, sung with the most eerie, yet beautiful chord he’d heard.

  “Call me with thine eyes, my love.

  May thy kiss be mine.

  Fill my soul with Zephyr’s breath.

  Touch my heart alone.”

  Her fingers combed through his long hair and rested at the back of his neck as she guided his lips to hers. Warm breath bathed his face as she sang.

  “Bid the heavens part to we.

  Send grace from above.

  Arylin, Goddess of Love

  Grant me now my prayer.”

  Cole closed his eyes and leaned his head to brush his lips across her dainty wrist. The sweet scent of roses touched his senses.

  “Sanction this, our unity

  Free from life’s confines.

  Love shall last ’or life’s offing.

  Promises of home.”

  As his lids fluttered open, her brilliant gaze met his.

  “Come with me my destiny

  Free of all cares be

  See the love that harbors close

  Here for you alone.”

  Skimming his hand around her slender waist, longing for her escape pooled deep. Would he survive sealing the portal with only two globes to aid in the process? Would he make it to Midway Summit to be at her side?

  Time and questions ceased as she swayed, leading him into the center of their bedroom. Only Mianna existed. No portal. No doubt. He caressed her back, drawing tranquil circles on the fabric of her blouse. The soft material offered reassurance of her gentle spirit and love. “My soul is yours, my love. My eternity is yours. Just say the word, and your will shall be done.”

  “As shall it be for you,” she said with an airy breath.

  Only everlasting love in the vastness of eternity surrounded them. Love, the way it was meant to be, was theirs now and forever.

  Along with the myriad of conversations in her head. Would things ever be the same again?

  A knot swelled in his chest as he knew the answer. “Mianna, my love, how do you do it? I know you’re seeing more than what’s happening between us right now.”

  Sparkles danced in her blue eyes, and she nodded. “So much knowledge is pouring through me, Cole.” She motioned to take in the bedroom as a whole. “I see the wide fields of home. I see the geriatric ward I worked in as Airabelle. I hear the carriages of the eighteenth century.” She brushed his lips with her fingertips and dropped her voice to a whisper, “And then there’s you.”

  He had hoped he would be in there somewhere.

  She laid her head on the spot above his heart. “I feel your love so thick, it’s tangible. It heats the blood in my veins and tastes like the richest nectar.”

  “Oh, my love...”

  She placed her forefinger on his lips to hush him. “I knew you before. Did you know that?”

  “Before what?”

  “Before I was born I was granted a glimpse of my eternal companion. I knew you would find me, Cole. I knew as a child. I wrote that song when I was ten…I wrote it for you.”

  Chapter Thirty

  As the back lawns of Shilo Manor came to view, reality flooded James’s being. He paused. It had been eight hundred years they’d spent on these grounds; eight hundred years of tears, joy, failures, and exaltations. So many beginnings, so many happenings. He’d spent the evening with Sarah in the ornate belvedere, danced to the songs of blue jays and crows. Communed with the Gods in the topiary to his left, so many instances he’d forgotten the number, and refereed his brothers’ arguments countless times within the walls of Shilo Manor. And he’d lost those he loved. How could he leave this haven of memories?

  How could he not?

  Solidifying his form on the back yard terrace, he looked at the statues that dotted the landing border. The crystalline within the rock sparkled, an obnoxiously charming sight in the light of the full moon. He averted his gaze, and it fell to the center of the landing beyond. He’d danced with Linda for the first time there, before getting interrupted by her father, and then had presented her with flowers from the edge of the topiary. He wiped his palm down his chest to settle the nostalgia and vowed to always hold the memories in his heart.

  Linda and the twins sat quietly in the breakfast nook as James entered Shilo Manor through the back door. Mandy’s foot tapped the leg of her chair while Mechenzie poked at the sandwich before her with her finger. One of Linda’s hands clung to a mug of coffee while the other balanced a thin cigarette in her fingers. Smoke trailed into the magical conduit James had charmed the pack with, and he couldn’t help grin at the sight.

  “You three are uncharacteristically quiet. Are things all right here?”

  “We’re going to miss Grand Momma and Grand Daddy,” said Mandy, her little mouth barely moving.

  Linda leaned her head to the side, and her blonde hair skimmed across her lovely shoulder. “I was just explaining that we wouldn’t be coming back.”

  “I see.”

  “It’s the only thing that has me worried about all of this now. I know as long as I’m with my girls, things will be fine with us, but what about Mom and Dad? They have nobody.”

  James lowered to one knee before her and lifted her hand from her cup. “Leenja, they have each other.”

  “But they lived for the times we were all together as a family, James; Dad being all huffy, and Mom fussing over us. And we aren’t even able to say goodbye. Not properly. They both have important meetings today.”

  “No meeting is going to stand in the way of me seeing my daughters and grandbabies!”

  James swiveled to look behind him as Linda’s father stepped into the kitchen followed by her mother.

  Linda sobbed a happy squeak, and James stood to allow her to go to them. She darted for their arms. “Mom, Daddy! Oh, how could you have known?”

  Bethany fluttered her hand over Linda’s back. “Oh, you can thank Jarrett for that. We’d just gotten back from our meetings when the phone rang. We rushed right over.”

  Ben huffed and tipped to his toes. “Seems the boy did something right after the mess he’s made.” He turned to James. “Now what’s all this about you taking my daughters to live in some other dimension?”

  “I’m afraid it’s true, Ben. We’ve been reassigned to aide in the fulfilment of a prophecy. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you how important such an assignment is.”

  Ben growled under his breath, and James knew the covenant of secrecy the family took part in at Vincent and Elaina’s wedding would soften the stout man’s regard. “Of course you don’t. But why take my daughters with you?”

  James grimaced and set his hands at his waist. “Elaina has breached the portal and is already there on her own accord. She has selected a Goddess from that realm as her patron god, believing she would grant her the ability to bear a child. She wanted to be close to the Goddess Venus.

  “Oh my.” Bethany flushed and clasped her hands. “Is that acceptable in the eyes of Arylin, Taravaughn, and Gryffin?”

  “We’ve received no communication to the contrary, Bethany. And she’s made her choice evident. And Linda insists on being with Mechenzie, who plays a vital role in the prophecy and must be trained there. We don’t want to separate mother and daughter. I’m sure you understand.”

  Bethany covered her lips with her fingers. “So they really are going to be gone from us.” Tears brimmed her eyes. “And my baby is already gone. I can’t even say goodbye.”

  Linda tilted her head and her voice softened. “Oh, Momma, I’m sorry.”

  A muffled sob sounded in Bethany’s throat. “Linda,” she squeaked, and lunged for her arms again. Her shoulders shook as she wept. “I know the Founders work for the Gods. And…and I knew you two would be called on to work with them. But…all of you at once? To another dimension?”

  Ben opened his arms, and the tw
ins ran into his embrace. He cocked his head back and batted his beady eyes. “I’m going to miss you girls. I’m…I don’t know…what we’ll do without you two running around the house and leaving toys for me to step on in my bare feet.”

  Weak giggles muffled against his chest. “We’ll miss you too, Grand Daddy,” said Mandy.

  “But we’ll be back,” added Mechenzie with a strained cheerful soprano. “Uncle Rhune will bless us, and we will be able to come back some day.”

  Though true, James tempered the desire to clarify and let the grandparents know many years may pass before that could happen. The next time they saw their loved ones, they could be well into adulthood.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Elaina’s eyes flashed with panic as Rhune took the place of midwife. Vincent’s heart pounded against his Adam’s apple and made it hard to swallow, but he forced the act to calm his nerves. How in the Spectrum of Realms had he come to the point of being a father? For that matter, how would he be a decent father? He was too carless, too selfish, and far too out of sorts to handle all of this right now. But there he was, about to help Elaina deliver their baby. Their baby! Gods, I need a drink…or…a tranquilizer!

  Scooting behind her on the bed, he pulled Elaina against him to help her recline. Her jittery hands flew to her face as Rhune lifted her skirt to her waist and prepared for the new arrival. “Wait! Vince, I changed my mind. I can’t do this. I can’t go through with it!”

  Rhune chuckled, and his voice sounded far too calm for the situation. “My Terran butterfly, you’ll do just fine. Motherhood is the most noble of callings and most natural of acts. What you must remember to do is breathe.”

  Vincent took a deep breath at the same time she did. They both nodded, and Vincent wrapped his arms around Elaina to hold her hands. Whether to show support, or out of desperation to control the moment, he didn’t know.