Enthrall and Destroy exchanged a glance before going back to their tasks. Enthrall filled a glass with cool, clear water, and Destroy lifted Rowan from the sofa, holding her whimpering form against him, as he gradually lowered her feet to the ground and tried to keep her covered at the same time because her dress was in shreds. He didn’t think she’d want anyone seeing her body — he knew he sure as hell didn’t want anyone else seeing his female’s body. He shot a glare at Enthrall where he stood behind the sofa watching Destroy try to help her stand. Rowan whimpered as he adjusted her position to try to block Enthrall’s view of her. Then lowered her feet closer to the floor, but the more he lowered her, the more she whimpered. Destroy stopped glaring at Enthrall and returned his focus to Rowan, “I can just carry you, will you allow me to carry you?” Destroy asked.
“No, thank you,” she whispered, “I need to try to walk on my own.”
Carolena walked into the living room and found that Lily was correct, Rowan was indeed awake. And Destroy was helping her stand while at the same time trying to keep the afghan around her shoulders and glare daggers at Enthrall. “Not too much too fast. She needs to get acclimated first, and you two need to stop,” she warned.
“She needs the bathroom,” Destroy said tightly, the strain of watching his woman hurting wearing his patience thin.
“And she’s thirsty,” Enthrall said from the kitchen.
“And I’m not doing anything, he is,” Destroy said.
Enthrall just smirked and shook his head.
Rowan, hearing the voice of another woman, tried to open and focus her eyes. She opened and closed them a few times. Focus finally beginning to give her realistic pictures.
Hurrying to Rowan’s side, Carolena said, “Rowan, here, let me help you.”
Rowan looked at the woman who had spoken her name and come to her side to assist the man at her other side, “Miss Carolena? What are you doing here?”
“Hello, Rowan — just Carolena, no miss, remember? And I’m helping you stand. How are you managing? You okay? Can we allow Destroy to carry you there?”
“Destroy? Who is Destroy? And, no, thank you, I really want to try myself.”
“Alright, then, come on. It’s just down that hallway,” Carolena said, pointing toward the hall.
It was then that Rowan realized that she was not in the home she thought she was in. Her head came up, and she looked around as best she could. She glanced around the room and confirmed that she was not where she thought she was. “Miss… I mean, Carolena, where are we? Why am I here?”
Carolena kept Rowan moving toward the bathroom, not wanting to give her too much time to think at this exact moment. “You’re in my home. You’re safe, no worries. Nothing will hurt you here.”
Rowan looked up at the man walking with her, supporting most of her weight. He’d snarled when Carolena had spoken of her being safe because no one would hurt her here. She took in the horns — her eyes widened — they were real! He was looking down at her feet as she walked, which gave her the opportunity to gawk a bit longer. He was dark-skinned, grey, but a dark grey, almost charcoal colored. He was tall and very large, lots of muscles. He had no hair, but instead had an imposing pair of horns. Rowan squinted her eyes, yes, there were horns on his head — and somehow they seemed familiar to her.
Almost as though he felt her eyes on him, he turned his face toward hers and smiled at her. Her heart sped up. He was a beautiful creature. Whatever he was, he was surely the best specimen of his species.
They were just outside the bathroom, and Rowan was doing a good job of keeping her balance and had begun to take on most of her own weight. Carolena said, “Destroy, I can help her from here.”
“But she may need me,” he objected.
“If she does, I’ll call you. She needs some privacy, Destroy,” Carolena said before brushing away Destroy’s hands and shuffling Rowan through the door.
Carolena took the afghan from her shoulders and helped Rowan over to the toilet to help her sit down. As Rowan sat down, she said, “He’s got horns.”
“Yes, he does. He’s also a very good male,” Carolena replied.
“Why does he have horns?” Rowan asked.
“All the males of his species have them. My husband is of the same species, and his actually curl about halfway up,” Carolena said, smiling as though it was the most natural thing in the world.
Once she’d relieved herself, she said, “Do you think that I could possibly clean up a little?”
“Of course, here, let me get a washrag, and I’ll help you. Then we’ll get one of my nightgowns on you,” Carolena told her.
As soon as Carolena started to run the washrag across Rowan’s forehead, she started shaking. Memories started flashing in her mind.
Carolena realized that Rowan was trembling, “It’s okay, Rowan. All is well, you’re safe,” Carolena assured her.
“He… he tried to… he hit me, he broke my ribs, he almost drowned me… the water, I couldn’t hold my breath much longer. He, he…” then she realized the he she was speaking of, was accusing of all these horrible things, was Carolena’s father. Her eyes rose up to Carolena’s pained face.
Carolena, her eyes filled with tears, nodded, “I know. I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry he hurt you. I wish I could have stopped him. But it’s okay. Destroy took care of it. He’ll never hurt anyone ever again.”
Rowan, still trembling, tears running down her face said, “I’m sorry, too. I’m sorry that…”
Carolena stood straight, wiping her tears away with one forceful swipe of her hand, “No. Not going to do that. What’s done is done, and he did most certainly deserve what he got. The man that hurt you was not my father. I don’t know who he’d become. In truth, I never knew him at all.”
Rowan just nodded her understanding, having seen even before the attack how cold and distant the man was with not only everyone he came in contact with, but his own daughter.
Carolena helped her stand and then finished cleaning her face and hands. Rowan was getting weaker quickly.
Carolena, instead of going for a gown, decided to put her robe on Rowan. It would open from the front, and they could dress her wounds more easily that way as well. She leaned Rowan against the sink and said, “Just a second, let me grab my robe.”
Carolena darted to the door where the robe hung on the back of it from a hook and right back to Rowan. She helped remove the rest of the torn dress from Rowan’s body and dropped it to the floor. Then she helped ease the robe on and got Rowan’s arms through it. By this point Carolena was taking most of Rowan’s weight, trying to keep her steady.
“Destroy!” Carolena called.
Immediately the door opened, and the giant with the horns rushed in and straight to Rowan, who tried to take a step or two back.
“Slowly, Destroy!” Carolena snapped at him. Then in a more kind tone, “I promise you are safe. He’ll never hurt you in any way. He’s a bit bold, but will never hurt you.”
Rowan nodded and tried to take a deep breath, but ended up whimpering, which pissed off Destroy. So he gently lifted her up in his arms, and said, “I will carry you!” He hurried her back to the sofa before she could object. He set her down among the pillows and baby dolls and little toy animals that Lily had brought for her.
She leaned slowly back and concentrated on taking little, shallow breaths.
“Your ribs are broken. You need to move slowly, take very small breaths and do not exert yourself. Lots of rest and you should heal with no problem.”
Rowan slowly turned to the man who’d just spoken to her from the kitchen. He was tall and blonde, appeared to be a true gentleman’s gentleman. He was very handsome and carried himself with a natural grace and confidence that had she not been suffering so, she would have found very attractive.
“Allow me to introduce myself. I am Enthrall. I ensure that Whispers and everyone in it is safe.”
Destroy, having seen the way she looked at Enthrall, hurried to h
is side, so that she could see their comparisons easily, “I am Destroy. I ensure that you are always safe and provided for.”
Rowan looked from one to the other of them.
She paused for a moment before asking, “What is Whispers?”
“Here, this community is Whispers. You are welcome to stay here as long as necessary. When you are ready to return home, I will ensure that you arrive there safely,” Enthrall explained.
“She can’t leave!” Destroy shouted incredulously. “She’s just like Carolena, she can’t go anywhere. I shall care for her here. I’ll protect her. She’s mine!”
Rowan’s eyebrows rose in surprise.
Enthrall turned to Destroy, “She may go anywhere she likes. And she is only yours if she chooses to be.”
“That’s not fair! You stopped Carolena from leaving so that Carnage had time to win her over. And you’re trying to help mine leave!”
Rowan turned her head, looking to Carolena.
Carolena was sitting in a chair across the room, flanked by Carnage and Lily. When Rowan looked to her, Carolena smiled and while indicating Carnage said, “This is my husband, Carnage, and our daughter, Lily.”
The huge blue-grey skinned creature bestowed a wide, toothy smile on Rowan, displaying his fangs clearly. Carolena had been assuring him that he had a beautiful smile, so he no longer tried to hide his fangs.
He waved at her, and she shakily waved back.
Rowan realized that another was waving at her. She focused on the little girl, Lily, who was indeed waving just as her father had.
Rowan waved at her and said, “Hello, Lily. I remember you — I think.”
Carolena sat forward, “From where? You couldn’t have seen Lily before — she’s never left Whispers.”
Lily got excited, jumping up and down and telling her mom, “I waked her up!”
Carolena pulled Lily in closer, “What do you mean you woke her up?”
“I waked her up. I called her and called her and her heared me. So her got up.”
Enthrall spoke from across the room where he and Destroy were still having a hushed discussion, “How did you call her, Lily?”
Lily shrugged her shoulders.
“Did you call her like Mama would call her?” he prodded.
Lily, smiling bashfully, shook her head no.
“Did you call her like Uncle Lore would call her?” he suggested.
Lily giggled and nodded, then, she wiggled her fingers in the air and a slight purple mist wafted from them.
Carolena was stunned, “Lily!”
Lily shrieked happily and went running off toward her room, cradling her horned babydoll.
Rowan felt as though she’d awakened in a place of dreams. Dreams she’d avoided all her life. Children who could call to her in her dreams, males with horns and fangs. But she had not long to dwell on it because Enthrall and Destroy were close to coming to blows in the kitchen.
“I can do whatever the hell I like! This is my community, my rules!” Enthrall yelled at Destroy.
Destroy yelled back, “Yes, rules that you bend whenever you think it convenient! I thought you were a fair leader, a just leader!”
“I am a just leader!” Enthrall shouted at him.
“Then why is my human allowed to leave and Carnage’s had to stay? I need her to stay longer, so she can see I am wonderful!” Destroy shouted back.
Enthrall, almost ready to punch the Goyle in frustration, bellowed, “Because yours isn’t human!”
Silence fell in the room. No one said a word, no one moved. Everyone but Enthrall slowly turned to peer at Rowan.
Enthrall looked around the room, at every single one of them looking at Rowan as though she would sprout wings or scales. “Oh, for goodness sake! She’s not a different species. You’re not going to see anything different about her. She is basically human, but she’s a Witch!”
Rowan’s head dropped, her eyes immediately on the floor.
“She is?” Destroy asked, surprise in his voice.
“She is,” Enthrall answered.
“Rowan?” Carolena asked. “Why didn’t you say anything? Surely you knew of their existence?” she indicated the Goyles in the room.
Rowan glanced up quickly, then looking back down at the floor, softly said, “Not exactly.”
Carolena got up, crossed the living room and sat on the sofa beside Rowan as she reclined propped on the cushions, “What do you mean, ‘Not exactly?’”
Chapter 6
“I’m not a Witch.”
“Of course you are!” Enthrall exclaimed, surprised she would even try to deny it.
“I’m not a practicing Witch. And can we call it something else. I hate that word,” Rowan said softly, since she was limited on breath.
Destroy hurried to her side, “She doesn’t have to tell you anything she doesn’t want to!” he said as he planted himself beside her, feet braced, legs wide apart, arms crossed as he stood beside her, glaring defiantly at Enthrall.
Enthrall rolled his eyes at Destroy, “Rowan, there is nothing to be ashamed of. Why does that word offend you? It simply indicates that you are one who has magic.”
“I’ve purposely stayed away from all things magic. I’ve seen too many things, too much darkness. The darkness is attracted to the energy the magic releases. My family has always had the gift to some extent. I fear calling it to me. I’ve not touched it since I was a small child. Please do not label me as a Witch. I’ve intentionally kept myself apart.”
Enthrall watched Rowan, her eyes downcast, hands nervously fumbling in her lap. “There’s more to it, isn’t there?” he asked.
“No.” she quickly denied.
Enthrall tilted his head ever so slightly, one eyebrow raised. Then, “Rowan, we cannot help you if you don’t trust us. We are all special, unique in our own ways. This community is a sanctuary for all supernaturals. What care we if you practice a little spell here and again?”
Rowan slowly raised her eyes to Enthrall’s, then very quietly, but very clearly, said, “I do not practice anything. It flows from me. I make every effort to keep it tamped down tightly. It is so erratic that I must keep watch over every thought I have. If I loose one thought carelessly, I have been known to…” but she didn’t finish that statement. Instead she said, “My parents brought me here to hide me away. This power — it brings evil, it never does good without bad, and I can’t control it. It always attracts evil. Creatures of every sort all wanting one thing or another. So I deny it. I’ve not used it since I was a child. I won’t use it. I’m not a Witch. I’m just like you.”
Enthrall was intrigued, a natural witch, who couldn’t control her own powers. One side of his mouth lifted in a smile, “Really? You’re a Vampire?”
Rowan gasped, “A…? No! I’m not… Are you a Vampire?” She peered closer, then said, “I’m just a human. Just like Carolena.”
“What happened when you were a child, Rowan? Why did your family have to hide you away?” Enthrall asked.
Rowan started shaking her head, her lips trembling, her hair falling in her face.
“Leave her alone!” Destroy shouted. “She owes you nothing! Leave her alone, stop upsetting her!” he demanded.
Destroy knelt down beside where she sat on the sofa, “It’s alright, sweetheart. You don’t have to be anything you don’t wish to be. Shh, calm. It’s okay.” Then he turned and shot Enthrall an angry glare.
“Enthrall, she is not recovered. Do not push her any further for now,” Carolena said.
“You’re right, I forget myself.” He bowed deeply, “My apologies, Rowan. It was not my wish to cause you distress, only to learn more about you.”
Rowan didn’t answer, but nodded her head. Her eyes remained on the floor, where Destroy knelt. She saw something, a shiny bit of fabric just peeking from his trouser pocket.
“What is that?” she asked him quietly.
He followed her line of sight, realizing that she’d spotted a purple ribbon sticking
out of his pocket. “Those are ribbons,” he answered, pulling them from his pocket and handing them to her.
She accepted them, closing her fist around them, reverently, her mouth hanging open, “It was you!”
“What was me?” he said, pleased that at least she was distracted. Enthrall wasn’t upsetting her any longer.
Rowan lifted the ribbons toward him, her palm open, displaying them for him to see clearly. “These were tied about your horns!”
Destroy smiled, “Yes, Lily likes to play dress up.”
Rowan looked at him, really saw his face. He was a beautiful male, fine chiseled features, beautiful, warm, deep amber eyes with long, feathery lashes. But he wasn’t human. Neither are you, her conscience answered. She ignored her inner voice and concentrated even more on Destroy, “You’d powdered your face, and you had lipstick on, too.”
“Lily,” was all Destroy said, smiling.
“You saved me.”
He looked at her, his head slightly turned to the side, “I will always save you. It is my duty. My honor.”
Rowan said nothing at first, then a quiet, “Thank you.”
“You are most welcome, my Rowan,” Destroy said.
Rowan’s head popped up; she certainly didn’t need this male calling her his. This couldn’t happen. It just couldn’t. She’d avoided this entire side of her being her entire life. She couldn’t allow it to be all for nothing now. And honestly, he was only drawn to her because of her powers. Even though she didn’t use them, they radiated out from her. Creatures of the other world were drawn to her. Always had been. So it wasn’t her he wanted, it was her power. That was what had called him to her to begin with — she’d called a curse on to Mr. Ashlar’s soul, and with it came this creature. Granted, he didn’t seem to be evil, and instead seemed intent on caring for her, but he came as a result of her call nonetheless.
“Destroy, may I have a word outside?” Enthrall asked.
Destroy looked from Enthrall to Rowan and back again, scowled at Enthrall as though he’d lost his mind, “No!” Destroy said.
Destroy, Book 2, Whispers From the Bayou Page 5