Phroma chuckled, a strange husky cough when she picked up on Gredel’s thoughts. ‘Citaan seems to have noticed that’ she thought to Gredel, who gave her a dark look. The griffon chuckled again. She adored Gredel’s wife; a tall woman about Laura's size and build, but with mid-length, wavy, turquoise hair and striking light gold eyes, showcasing her water sprite lineage. Traits she’d received from her grandmother—a full blooded sprite. Thanks to that heritage Citaan had the gift of water and it made her one of the rare people who could tune into Phroma and communicate with her. It had taken a couple of years before it became second nature to her though, so they had a legitimate excuse to gossip—for practice!
Sabyn hunted out the pack of cards for the game while Gredel, Loi and Phroma looked for a variety of small objects; pebbles and snail shells. Having found a good handful of small pieces for the game, Loi went over to Sabyn, who worked at setting the cards out. 'Sabyn, look,' Loi held out her hand. 'I found these funny colored stones. Do you know what they are?'
Sabyn glanced into her hand while she prodded the green and pink spotted "stones". He studied them without saying a word then stood and walked to the tent.
Laura looked after him in confusion, as did Tomiar who thought to him. ‘What is it? What’s wrong?’ Tomiar could feel Sabyn’s amusement which confused her further, until Sabyn sent her an image of what Laura had in her hand. ‘Oh I see. Oops guess we didn’t think to mention that.’
Tomiar seemed to regard her in amusement which made Loi feel a tad uncomfortable. Then Sabyn came back out the tent, carrying something. He gave her a broad smile.
'Why don’t you place your findings over here,' he indicated and he dug a hole in the ground with the heel of his boot. 'Then I’ll walk with you to the river so you can wash your hands,' he waved the soap he’d fetched at her.
She gave him a long look, then gingerly dropped her findings in the hole, resisting the urge to wipe her hand on her pants. 'Okay what are they?' She demanded when he covered the hole over.
'Ifanip droppings. Rather noxious. Next time you spot funny colored stones, I suggest you leave them where they are and ask one of us to identify them for you first.' Her look of disgust made those watching laugh. Sabyn bowed to her and said. 'I would offer you my arm but…'
Rolling her eyes at his bad joke, she grabbed the offered soap. 'C’mon then, walk me to the river. You can mock me on the way.'
The others watched Laura stomp off toward the river while Sabyn teasingly left a safe distance between them as he followed.
‘Humans can be such odd creatures,’ Tomiar thought to Loushka who agreed, then let out a sigh.
‘I’m so looking forward to flying tomorrow, I know it’s only been a day without but it feels like forever.’
Kerak and Phroma agreed. Tomiar chuckled and flicked an image out of Catherine’s astonished face from the river incident. ‘I bet it’ll be an interesting flight for you, Loushka. Alek hasn’t appeared so interested in a female for a long time.’
Loushka agreed. ‘And I can’t wait to see the look on Rayna’s face.’ They turned, observing all the humans returning from the river, now in good spirits.
Gredel reshuffled the cards and divided them into four piles. He looked forward to the flight tomorrow as much as Phroma and the other griffons and, of course, it meant they’d be closer to Citaan. He wished again that they’d had enough time to fetch her, but she’d been at work in the Scrodian Mountains on a task Elena had set her. He let out a soft sigh at the thought of his golden eyed, mischievous wife. She would have loved to have been here to meet the women. She’ll demand all the details when I get back, he chuckled to himself. I’ll bet she even interrogates Phroma.
We wandered over to where Gredel had set out the cards. In his husky, surprisingly quiet voice Gredel said, 'I thought you’d want to pair up, so the girls can learn how to play.' The griffons dozed in the afternoon light and Audrey decided to help Gredel, though I don’t think she improved his game at all, but she did take great delight in somberly chewing any winnings he made; leaving the remains in a nice soggy pile for him.
In the heights of the sky far above, the air began to chill. Daron wrapped his arms about Sian, tucking his thighs around hers. They’d had a fantastic afternoon. Nesha's skills had astonished her and the breathtaking scenery—like nothing on Earth and yet so familiar. Daron had fallen silent for the past hour while they enjoyed the ride. At least with her back to him he couldn’t see her blush when he’d tucked her in. It was getting cold and she appreciated the warmth he radiated. Like a heater, she thought in amusement.
Breaking the silence Daron said, 'I think it’s time we headed back, it’ll be dark soon.'
Sian glanced back at him. 'Okay.'
A strand of hair fluttered around her eyes. Daron tucked it behind her ear, pleased when she blushed. ‘Nesha, let’s go home,’ Daron thought to his friend.
‘Good I’m starving and the conversation sucks, although some of your thoughts are certainly interesting,’ Nesha chuckled.
‘What? You weren’t supposed to be listening in on that!’ Daron protested angrily, embarrassed.
‘What else was I supposed to do? It's not like I could do the tricks I like to practice, what with you two lovebirds wrapped around each other. You’d fall off,’ Nesha snapped.
‘Sorry,’ Daron sheepishly thought. ‘I didn’t know it would be like this.’
Nesha swooped lower until he spotted the campsite then with careful strokes of his wings, lined himself up and dropped, all four paws hitting the ground at the same time. He lowered his upper body and Daron slid down, then turned to catch Sian. When Nesha went to walk to where the other griffons lounged, he heard Sian’s voice. 'Nesha, wait a moment.'
Nesha’s huge eagle head swiveled to stare at her and she felt that instant of astonishment at being faced by a real-life griffon. She shrugged the thought off then stepped forward and beckoned Nesha to lower his head. He did so and she placed a hand on his mane then cuddled into him. 'Thank you so much for that amazing flight. I can’t wait for you and Daron to show me all your favorite tricks.'
Nesha watched her curiously then headed to where the others lay in the sun, settling down next to Tomiar. He thought to Daron. ‘She’s not bad friend. Not bad at all.’
Daron and Sian appeared comfortable in each other’s company. I exchanged a look with Loi and Kassie. The trouble with sharing a tent meant we couldn’t grill her for information without the men hearing.
Alek touched my leg, bringing me back to the game and I frowned over the cards. We played late into the evening and when the symbols on the cards began to blur, I decided to call it a night. 'I’m done.' Audrey staggered up from snoozing beside Gredel and made her way over to me on wobbly legs. I bent down to give her a hug and giggled at her little kisses. Kassie, Loi, and Sian stood too, and the men escorted us to the tent. I pushed through the dividing curtain into our section and sat on my cot to undo my boots. I heard a loud meow from Lucky when Kassie greeted her. The cat had slept all day, not surprising I guess, she’d probably had enough excitement in the last few days to last a life-time—I know I had.
Sian entered the tent last and gave Daron a shy smile when she went to pass him. Reaching out, Daron grabbed her hand, making her look up in surprise. Feeling his stomach twist into knots, he decided against trying to speak and lifted her hand, pressing a kiss to it. Her eyes glowed and she flushed a pretty pink. She gave his hand a quick squeeze before ducking through the curtain.
Chapter Ten
The next morning Gredel woke us before dawn. The burly man had gotten over his nerves around us and we’d discovered he had a pretty good sense of humor. We simply weren’t in the mood to appreciate it first thing in the morning—sure, we may have had eight hours sleep, but a dozen more would have been nice. Waking to the sudden clashing of two tin plates wasn’t the best start to the day. Gredel retreated from the room at a decent pace when all our heads jerked up at the racket. Loi growled some no
t-so-polite words after him and a pillow flew from Sian’s direction but fell short, bouncing off the edge of my cot. I dropped my head back with a groan and grinned when I heard Kassie do the same. It took another five minutes of grumbles and groans before we reluctantly climbed out of bed and shuffled around our small tent space, getting dressed and packing up.
Keeping busy almost allowed me to ignore the annoying voice in my head that mumbled about flying and heights (and lack of safety belts, parachutes, and oxygen masks). My pack ready, I glanced at the others. 'I’m just gonna pop to the river to wash my face and,' I shrugged trying to work up a smile. 'De-stress for a moment.'
Kassie and Sian nodded while Loi gave me the evil eye.
'Just make sure you don’t try heading off down it. You know we’ll catch you!'
I sketched a salute to her. 'Yes ma’am.' Calling Audi, I ducked out of the tent.
Loi watched Cat disappear with a little trepidation. The last time they’d been on a flight with her she’d clutched the arms of the chair for dear life with an enormous insane grin, for the entire flight. Needless to say everyone had stared and even the flight attendants appeared hesitant to approach her. It hadn’t concerned Kassie and Sian; according to them she’d been much better this time. When she’d last traveled with them the grin had been accompanied by a constant nervous giggle.
Sian caught sight of Loi’s frown. 'Don’t worry, Loi. Cat appears to get better with each flight and this is quite different to what she’ll be expecting. She might even enjoy it.' Sian mentally crossed her fingers.
'C’mon,' Kassie said. 'Let’s take our stuff out and get breakfast.'
The three of them, with Lucky draped around Kassie’s neck like usual, walked out the tent to where the men waited. Or rather, where four of the men stood.
Sian’s eyes narrowed for a moment when she registered that Alek wasn’t there. 'Where’s Alek? He isn’t swimming again is he?'
Sabyn and Gredel laughed which caused Daron to look up from the packs on Phroma’s back. She flushed when he gave her a sexy smile, turning her attention to Rumal whose freaky gold eyes looked amused while he observed.
'No, I believe he saw Catherine head for the river and thought to spend a few moments with her to alleviate her concerns.' Rumal gave Sian a polite smile then moved his eyes to Kassie’s face, his expression softening. 'At least that was his intention.'
Alek strode down the path and thought over the assurances he could offer Catherine.
Loushka listened in while he mentally rambled away. ‘Why don’t you see how she’s feeling first and take it from there?’
Alek considered her suggestion. ‘Probably a good idea. Thanks.’ He stopped when he reached the river and spotted Catherine. She lay on her stomach on the bank that leaned out over the river and had one hand dangling down to the water. Her fingertips traced the surface, the ends of her long red hair trailing in it. Audrey, in the midst of paddling, let out a 'wooofwoff' in greeting when she caught sight of Alek which caused Catherine to look up.
Audi’s hello snapped me out of my daydream and I looked up to see Alek watching me. My stomach did a flip flop as I stared for a moment. He wore his armor again and damn, he looked good.
Alek saw Catherine’s eyes widen a bit at his outfit. He stepped closer to her and, after an instant of hesitation, lowered himself beside her. 'Good morning, are you ready for your flight?'
The words I wanted to say froze on my tongue so I lied. 'Good morning yourself. Yes, I’m looking forward to it.' I could feel his disbelief so changed the subject. 'What’s with the armor? Are we expecting trouble?' At least now I could check him out without seeming rude.
He smiled and leaned back on his hands, arms stretched out behind him. 'No. We always fly in our armor, just in case,' his sapphire eyes watched me. 'It’s best to be prepared.'
Catherine sat up and stretched, shaking her hair back. Alek reached out to catch a lock with his fingers and studied it. The hair glowed ruby in the morning light with streaks of bronze and copper. Staring into Catherine’s surprised eyes, he reached out and tucked it behind her ear. He felt a rush of attraction for this determined woman, she’d never allow her fear to conquer her and it surprised him. Many women might have pleaded their sex as an excuse, but not Catherine; this woman who was so obviously self-sufficient and independent. He never imagined he would find it sexy. It wasn’t what he had expected when Elena told him they were to collect four women. Catherine studied his breastplate then glanced up at him. He reached out to touch her cheek gently. 'I promise, I won’t let any harm come to you.'
Alek’s words flowed through me, at his touch my cheek flared hot. We stared into each other’s eyes and he gave me a quirk of a smile. 'And Audrey, of course.' He stood, offered a hand and lifted me to my feet. We stood about an inch apart, hands joined, his eyes on mine. My skin tingled at his close proximity, heart thudding madly, the air between us tense with anticipation.
'CATTTT? ALLLEKKK… Time to GOOOOO.' Loi’s voice bellowed from down the track. We jumped apart; dammit! Ugh, fantastic timing, Loi.
Alek made a courtly bow and offered me his arm. 'Shall we?' The intenseness between us vanished, his eyes sparkling with light-hearted mischief.
I laughed. 'We shall.' We walked back to the campsite to find it packed up, everyone mounted and waiting for us. Sian, rather daringly, sat in front instead of behind like Kassie and Laura. That’ll be my challenge, to be able to ride in front. The thought made me want to laugh. It brought back memories of squabbles with my cousin over who got to ride in the front seat of the car. An unexpected wave of homesickness hit me. I closed my eyes, swallowing hard and willed the nauseating thoughts away. As Alek and I approached Loushka, Gredel called Audrey to him. She whined at me. 'Go on then,' I said. The dog dashed across to Gredel who scooped her up onto Phroma’s back. Audi thought it great fun and began to pounce on Phroma’s saddle which caused the griffon to twist, this way and that, to see what the little imp was up to. 'Audrey, settle down,' I commanded in a stern tone, while everyone else tried not to laugh. Audrey looked abashed and whined at me, then inched her way forward to Phroma’s head to give her kisses of apology. 'How are you going to fasten her down?' I didn’t want to lose my furry rat-bag no matter how mischievous she might be. Gredel explained how he intended to belt Audrey to him and the saddle. I must have looked concerned at this as he again reassured me.
'It’s perfectly safe. I’ve done it with my niece and nephew before as well as my own dog.'
I looked across to Audi who sat nicely, pretending to be on her best behavior. 'You behave, little miss.'
Alek spoke to me and I turned my attention back to him and Loushka. Loushka bowed her front down so I could get up easier, Alek crouched to give me a leg up. I stared down at his hands.
I am not a chicken, I am not a chicken.
Swallowing hard, I placed my foot in his hands. He gave a quick heave when I pushed off and I flew into Loushka’s saddle. She really needn’t have bent down. I scrabbled around for a hold and pulled myself into the back seat as Alek made a smooth leap up, assisted by Loushka. Impressive, I thought, bet that took lots of practice.
Alek settled into the front seat and reached back to pat Catherine’s knee. 'Okay?' Two arms encircled his waist, he felt her press her forehead against his armor, mid-back.
She sighed. 'I’ll do. Are we ready to go?'
'Almost, Gredel is finishing strapping Audrey in.'
'Where’s Lucky?'
Loushka informed Alek that Kassandra had her in her bag. Just when he told Catherine this, they saw Lucky poke her head out the top of the pack and give a pitiful meow. Gredel then looked to Alek and nodded. Alek called out, 'All ready then? Let’s go.'
I felt Loushka’s muscles bunch and kept a tight hold on Alek’s waist while I watched the griffon tuck her wings in. Then whoosh, Loushka sprang off the ground, clear into the sky, snapping her wings open the moment we cleared the canopy.
Holy COW. Breathe, breathe
! My stomach felt like it shot to my feet. I pressed my head firmly against Alek’s backplate and held on tight. I heard the other griffons burst through like Loushka had and for a couple of minutes we just stayed there, in the air, like someone treading water. I kept my eyes squeezed shut, fighting that ridiculous urge to grin and giggle. Focus on your breathing; I counted my breaths in and out, mind intent on the numbers. Then Loushka started to move and the wind rushed past my ears.
About an hour into the flight Loushka spoke to Alek, ‘How’s she handling it?’
‘She appears to be better. The death grip she had on my waist has eased up.’
‘Is she looking around yet?’
‘Nope, not yet. I can still feel her forehead against my backplate.’
‘Then why don’t you start pointing out things for her to look at Alek? That way she can get more confident. Remember, we have several days of flying ahead of us.’
He rolled his eyes, like he didn’t know that. Turning and bending, Alek managed to get his mouth close to Catherine’s ear. 'Catherine, are you alright?'
Alek spoke close to my ear and even then it wasn’t easy to hear him with the wind. I sat up, he offered me his ear. 'I’m okay, but it’s rather cold. I can see why you wear the armor. Is my cloak in one of the side bags?'
Alek made an abrupt move that suddenly had him facing me.
Loushka registered his swivel. ‘What? What’s wrong?’
‘She’s cold.’ Alek growled, ‘I didn’t even think about it. Let the others know to make sure their women aren’t cold.’
‘Their women…?’ Loushka smirked at Alek’s flustered response.
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