Against The Odds

by Senna Fisher

  “Well, you never know. John is so gorgeous that straight men sometimes look at him. I find it quite disturbing.”

  “Oh Zane, he adores you. I don’t think you have to worry about that.”

  “I guess you are right. Anyway, how are things with you?”

  “Fine, Clayton drives me crazy sometimes, pushes me right to the edge, then he is sweet and gentle again, you know?”

  I do know, my dear, I do know, thought Zane.

  “Poor thing. He looks so ferocious sometimes.”

  Rebecca laughed.

  “No, he is very gentle, actually, but very naughty.” She was smiling.

  Jonathan was walking towards them.

  “Hello, my princess. I can’t call you that anymore. Clayton has taken over that. Thanks for everything.” He was hugging her.

  “No problem. I believe Clayton was a bit hard on Jackie?”

  “Yes, but it worked. She is like a gentle lamb now. I must thank him.”

  Zane’s eyes were wide.

  “What are you talking about? That sounds awful.”

  “Yes, it was.”

  Jonathan laughed.

  “Clayton knows exactly how to deal with Jackie. She had been giving me a really rough time, fighting all the time. Clayton has always known how to tap into her and has succeeded in getting her back to normal. He knows exactly what she needs.”

  “Yes, it is wonderful. Jackie also knows how to deal with Clayton. When he is out of control, I send him to Jackie and he comes back as good as new.”

  “My, that is very convenient isn’t it?” Zane was flabbergasted. They admit to all this? It is wonderful? He excused himself and went to find John.

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Clayton was tired, but he was a very happy man. He loved what Rebecca did to him at the party. She would attack him as soon as he thought she had forgotten. She really was full of surprises, this delightful woman of his. He had never expected to meet her woman who would deliciously shock him half to death, then gently make love to him inside his head, while he was trying to concentrate on some conversation. He loved the way she had taunted him, taking him so far, and then, when he thought he would burst, she would pull back again. Being a Protector had turned out to be a lot better than ever. He watched her, sleeping soundly. He really loved her, even when she treated him like an idiot who did not understand anything. He eventually slept thinking how great it was that tomorrow was Saturday and they would spend the morning in bed. I am the luckiest man alive, he thought as he fell off to sleep, his arm possessively over her.

  Rebecca was enjoying the depths of her sleep when she saw her Nana. Nana was not smiling. She looked at Rebecca, her head tilted to one side, a quizzical look on her face. She was in a large field, filled with bright yellow flowers. What flowers are those? Rebecca thought. Nana seemed confused. What is it Nana?

  Rebecca, why do you do nothing? Why do you let your friend pay the price of your love? Why Rebecca? When it is so easy to stop it? Why? There are two Protectors, remember that my dear. Why Rebecca?

  Nana was looking sad and confused. Then she started fading and in the field, she saw a little baby girl, wrapped in a soft blue blanket, with The Darkness flying around it. It went round in circles, flapping its wings. She could hear the flapping, the hissing. In the far corner, she saw a shadow, a woman. She tried to look closer at the shadow, trying to see the woman, but she was fading away. Her body was bent over, like she was crying. The images suddenly stopped. Clayton was saying something.

  “Rebecca, please, wake up.”

  “Clayton?”

  “Rebecca, what is the matter? You are crying in your sleep.”

  She realized that tears were rolling down her face. She turned away from him. Oh no, it was starting all over again. She was crying loudly now and Clayton tried to control his emotions. He was getting angry, because she was giving him the silent treatment, but he was so worried because she was crying so much. Control yourself, or she will just shut off. But he eventually lost it.

  “Rebecca, stop crying, now. Tell me what the fuck is going on. Now, Rebecca. Now.”

  She just cried. He turned her around and she closed her eyes.

  “Look at me dammit, look at me!”

  She opened her eyes and Clayton was completely astounded by the fear in her eyes. The Darkness is back?

  “Yes, Clayton, it is back.”

  She told him everything, every detail and every description. Clayton felt so numb. He could not think clearly.

  “Rebecca, are you pregnant?”

  “No, Clayton, of course not. What are you talking about?”

  “Where is the baby girl, Rebecca where?”

  “I don’t know. It was not my baby. I am sure of that, because it was outside of me, some distance away. Clayton, the woman, she was so familiar, her short gold dress, it moves with the flowers... she looked...”

  “A short gold dress?”

  Clayton felt his heart sank. There is no other woman who wore a gold dress with such remarkable grace.

  “Jackie,” they said together.

  “Oh God, No, Clayton, no, that cannot be. That is not fair. It is not right, no.”

  “How can it do that? Simply transfer to her? She is not related to you.”

  They talked and talked, asking many questions and answering none. The only thing they were certain of was that they would not tell Jonathan and Jackie. They had enough troubles already.

  “I think Jackie has known all along. When I spoke to her, she kept telling me that if something went wrong, it was on her head. She knew, deep down, that something was wrong. That is why she was so strange.”

  “But, Clayton, I think Jono feels it to. Do you remember he would not want her to leave the house and she could not go shopping?”

  “Yes, I remember thinking that Jono, the logical one, had lost his marbles. What are we going to do, Rebecca?”

  They sat on the bed, well into the morning, their despair and fear making them helpless to move. Finally Clayton phoned his friend and fellow-Protector.

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Jonathan was having a leisurely Saturday morning with his wife. They gossiped about the party and laughed at all the odd things people did. They joked about Clayton, how they were relieved he had not become a tiger and Jackie told Jonathan how Rebecca had seduced and tortured Clayton with her mind.

  “I know. Clayton called me outside. He said he needed to get away from her. It’s quite amazing, isn’t it, that she can do that to him? He was enjoying it at some level, let me tell you. He kept saying, ‘that incredible woman. Just when I think I know her, she pulls some surprise’. He was totally trapped in the power of her lust.”

  “Yes, it is too delicious.”

  But Jonathan was thinking how delicious his wife had been last night. He was beginning to really like her pregnant. She was so horny all the time and so creative. He wished she could be pregnant forever, because this pregnancy was certainly doing wonders for him in the bedroom department. He smiled, thinking how lucky they were.

  *****

  Chapter 28

  Clayton read the spell over and over. He had been initially shocked at seeing it in print, because it made everything so real for them. All along, he had tried to pretend it was not real, that there was a reasonable explanation for these strange events. Seeing it there, in print, coming from his printer, had made his hair stand up. Then as he read it again, he had been mortified by the evil of it, that way the words clever, calculated and deliberate. He had also never fully appreciated, before that moment, how powerful the hatred and evil had been which had created the spell. Now, his mind was reeling over the last part.

  Let this spell be so bound

  To invoke the evil sight and sound

  Of The Darkness which will give no love, joy or celebrations

  To all the allies and runt born of Portia McGuire for many generations.

  It took him quite a while to realize how significantly every carefully crafted w
ord was designed for impact. He had not been able, until now, to understand why Jackie, not related to either of them, could be affected by the spell. That witch had been very clever.

  ‘To all the allies....’ She had anticipated that others would try to help them and she had realized that, through love, the ‘runt of Portia’ would be strengthened. That is exactly what Jackie and Jonathan had done. They had given them so much support and help and had even come up to the mountain to them. Now they were being punished. He felt his anger rising again and looked at Rebecca.

  She looked like she was heavily sedated, sitting there, looking out the window. She had tried so hard, like him, to dismiss the curse and its implications. She was thinking how abnormal she was and he could see her guilt at bringing Double J into the mess. He saw her, sitting there, allowing her guilt to eat away at her. He could not allow it. He needed her as strong as ever now.

  “Rebecca, come sit here. Talk to me, let it out, Princess.”

  For once she did not argue. She told him her thoughts and Clayton, forever the Protector, talked her out of her fears.

  “Remember, Rebecca, that you are not responsible. We have no choice in these issues. And that is what pisses me off the most. You have never had a choice.”

  She stood up and rubbed his shoulders.

  “You are becoming a tiger, Clayton. Relax.”

  She kissed him on his cheek and rubbed his shoulders until she could feel his tension easing.

  “Clayton, we need to try and keep each other calm about this. We need to focus on the problem. Okay?”

  “Yes, I am glad your father sent this to us. It makes it easier to work through it. I understand why Double J are affected. What I can’t seem to work out, is this last part. What does it mean, Rebecca?”

  Rebecca looked at the words, unable to touch the page.

  “That bitch. She called me a runt?”

  “Yes, it is rather odd, so derogatory. But, Princess, stop fighting with some unknown dead witch. Every time you read it you get upset again. Focus, remember?”

  “Okay, but Clayton, I want to get her, that bloody miserable, vile animal.”

  “Princess, please. Please.”

  She read it out loud.

  Let this spell be unbound and apart taken

  Only by the energy of the power of love which remains unshaken.

  Let its power to drained and extracted

  Only by the power of two Protectors, together contracted

  “So we only succeeded in the first part. All we did was took it apart at the mountain. Clayton, I think my father was right. It does seem to be much weaker. I think that is why it attacked Double J. They are second prize. When you and my father were here together, it seemed to have disappeared. The key is ‘two Protectors, together contracted.’ That is what seemed to affect it the most. The two of you together. What does it mean?”

  “I don’t know. That is the part I cannot work out. How do we do it? Your mother says we need to invoke the power of light, which can destroy the darkness thingy. Rebecca, before you say anything, I want you to listen carefully. We are playing around now. We don’t have the time. Once that baby is born, we are back to square one and I don’t think we or Double J can live with that. None of us want to articulate the answer, but I am going to. We need to bring the light again, together with your parents.”

  “Oh Clayton, I know. I have tried not to think about it, but I know.”

  She covered her eyes with hands.

  “I hate when you do that.”

  “What have I done?”

  “You get straight to the issue, while I am trying to get my head to admit what my heart knows.”

  “I hate it when you stall like that, as if things will change if you pretend they are not there. It does not help, neither does your silence. You are afraid you might die again, so why don’t you say it? Why don’t you just let it out?”

  “Because it is hardly an easy thing to say, ‘honey, I might die, are you okay with that?’ Face it Clayton. That is not normal.”

  His eyes were an icy blue.

  “Rebecca, I am not going to say this again. There is no such a thing as normal. There is no such a thing. Will you give it up? What is normal is whatever we are.”

  He stormed out, and went into the garden. He was losing it, which was not helping. He wanted to shake her, get her to at least accept the basics so they could deal with the real problems. Normal? That had nothing to do with it. He was pacing up and down, trying to calm himself, but with little success. I want to shake her until she gets it.

  Rebecca went to the phone. I can’t deal with Clayton now. I need some sanity. She phoned Jackie, but she was out. She phoned her parents and spoke to her mother. Her soothing voice was so cool that Rebecca felt herself relax. Her mother was prepared for it, she could tell. She knew that she was the only one, the one they waited for and it bothered her.

  “Rebecca, darling, this is the only way. If one of us dies, then at least we have saved many generations. That is what your father and I say. It might be worth dying to save all the other children. So, if that is what you are worried about, we have accepted that one of us, or all have to pay that price.”

  “I know Mum, I know. Also, I am pissed off that it went for Double J. They have nothing to do with this. Nana was just giving them a wonderful gift and it turns it into something ugly. I know that you are right. But I am so pissed off.”

  “It will pass soon, baby. Think of saving the baby. That is the important thing. It will help you feel better. Where is Clayton?”

  “Pacing like a tiger. We are fighting and he paces out there.”

  “Call him to the phone. Your father will calm him.”

  “Clayton, phone,” she called and went to the kitchen. He glared at her as he passed and went to the phone. When she went back into the lounge, he was laughing at something her father said.

  “Yes, charm her, hmm, and then she will just do as I say? Okay, will do.”

  He was smiling at her.

  Is that all you think about?

  Yes, do you have an objection?

  Yes, no, oh go away.

  Come here.

  Okay, but only in the interests of peace.

  Really? I thought your body might be interested too.

  “Yes, I see what you mean. I will talk to your stubborn daughter and see if I can charm her to agree. I will call you later.”

  She was snuggling close to him now.

  “Clayton, sorry about that.”

  “Yes, me too. We are just getting stressed. If we fight again, you must do that mind thing. It will definitely calm me down.” He laughed.

  “You father says it is much weaker and that we should pounce now, because as the baby grows, so too does it grow in strength. We will do it on Wednesday night, because the moon is full and we are going to them. Your mother knows where the yellow flowers are. Some place called Ferncliff Forest. Also, no sex on Monday and Tuesday to build up our energy.”

  “What else, Clayton?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “What else did my father say? Well, he said we might not be able to shock each other afterwards again. Or even to talk with our minds.”

  “Are you sad?”

  “Of course. I quite enjoyed all that power. I liked the way you would shout at me and call me names. I will miss all that. It has been an incredible journey. Are you willing and ready to do it?”

  “Yes, I don’t see that we have a choice. There is no point in playing games, as you say.”

  “Your father said the fact that we never really considered not doing it is important. You know. The power of love.”

  “How could we have chosen not to do anything? We could never put Double J through all this. Clayton that is inconceivable.”

  “Yes, Princess, but that is the point. We acted out of love for them. That will see us through it.”

  “Yes, I see, but Clayton, I am not afraid of dying. It was not that bad.”
r />   Clayton was raising his eyebrows.

  “Really. I am afraid of living without you, that’s my reluctance. But mother says if we die to stop it, then we must accept that.”

  “Yes, if the only answer is that we die and then at least we have done the right thing with our lives. But, Princess, we must not think about that, not now, not ever. It will use it against us, remember? We must think of the power of love, how love has made us happy.”

  She nodded and he continued.

  “Now, can you make me happy, so that I will remember it in my hour of darkness and possibly excruciating pain?”

  *****

  Chapter 29

  The four of them arrived at midnight. It was dark and the wind was gently blowing in the trees. They made their way through the trees, both Protectors holding the women’s hands.

  “It is so beautiful here Clayton, we must come back in the day and have a picnic.”

  “Yes, I wish we had come earlier. It feels like such an unspoiled piece of the earth. Okay, will bring picnic basket and beautiful princess, deal?”

  “Deal.”

  Good, the kids are ready for it.

  Yes, I love the way they are helping each other, thinking about tomorrow.

  Yes, Rebecca is handling this very well. And you, my dear?

  I am fine. I need to do this, always have. You know how I lived with the guilt.

  Yes.

  “Mum, are you sure you have everything?”

  “Yes, your father made me check at least three times. That bag is full of all my magic tricks. He also made me pack a few other contingency items. We are good to go, Rebecca. Tell me about work.”

  “I have a new patient. He is very sweet. He has giggling eyes. He is nine years old, but has a terrible bed-wetting problem. When we talk, he simply stares at me in fascination and giggles. I hope he gets over it, otherwise I won’t be able to help him.”

  “He is very sweet. I like the way he held your hand possessively when I came in, as if you belonged to him. He has a major crush on you. He is going to try and stay in therapy for as long as possible. I can’t say I blame the boy, especially because the father also seems to want to ‘visit’ you all the time. They are patients for life, I’m afraid.”