by Tamie Dearen
“He told me my mother was lying about him. And then he said some crazy stuff about me being powerful and him needing to train me. Are you sure you couldn’t hear him?”
“No, I couldn’t hear anything. Nothing at all. I couldn’t see anything either, but I felt something. And so did Boze—he was growling the whole time.”
“He told me my mother hid me from him, and he didn’t even know I was alive. I did notice one thing. He said Wendelle was my mother. So, I guess she really didn’t make it after you saw her disappear.”
“That’s what I thought. If she’d been alive, I know she would’ve come back and found you somehow.” Charles averted his eyes.
“He didn’t really look like a drug dealer to me, not that I’ve ever seen one in person. I guess he could be some kind of gang leader. He talked about bringing me to his kingdom, whatever that is. I would’ve asked more questions, but I was so freaked out. I wasn’t prepared to meet my father.”
“I didn’t see him or hear his voice, but something felt wrong to me. Did you feel it? You said the boy didn’t feel dangerous. What about your father? Did he feel dangerous?”
“I don’t know. I can’t decide. It’s like part of me recognized him and wanted to like him. I know you believe what my mother said about him, but I can’t help wanting to believe she was wrong. I hope he’s actually a good guy. Maybe he’s changed.”
“Just be careful, Alora. I love you, and I don’t want to see you get hurt.” His brow furrowed as he reached out to take her hand. “I’m afraid you’ll get your hopes up and then find out he’s into something dangerous or illegal. What if you found out he’s into human trafficking or something like that?”
“I’m just going to make sure I don’t get back in the water anytime soon. No hot tub. No bathtub. Just quick showers. I need some time to wrap my head around all this before I talk to him again. Hopefully, he won’t be able to figure out where I am. I don’t want him to show up uninvited on the front porch.”
He squeezed his arms around her. “You know I love you, right? I love you even more than if you’d actually been my niece. You’re my daughter as far as I’m concerned, and you always have been. And now that Lena is gone—” He turned his face away, his eyes glistening with unshed tears.
“Uncle Charles, I love you too, and I loved Aunt Lena. None of this changes anything. I’m only curious about my father. Even if he turned out to be a great guy, he’d never take your place in my heart.”
She returned the fierce hug, and his hand made sploshy sounds as he patted her back through her sopping wet clothes.
“I’m almost as wet as you are, now. We should both go change into dry things.”
“And afterward, I’ll go tend the horses. I could use the exercise.”
By the time Alora mucked out the stalls and put out hay for the horses, she’d worked out a lot of her anxiety. Nothing like hard work and fresh, cold, country air to clear her head. She wandered out to check on the chickens and then on impulse she decided to climb her favorite tree. It was a pine tree that had fallen over against another tree, but maintained enough root system to stay alive. So she could scale the huge slanted pole at an angle into the second tree and then scramble up to about thirty feet before the limbs became too flimsy. From this vantage, she could see for miles. She used to sit on the limb and pretend she was a queen, surveying her kingdom, while imagining all sorts of great adventures that would take place if she traveled farther than she could see.
After descending from her throne, she decided to relive another childhood game. The fresh snow had left a beautiful undisturbed white blanket, a perfect palette for making a snow angel. She jumped out and fell on her back, swishing her arms to the sides and her legs below her. Then she climbed up carefully and jumped back to her starting point to survey the results, but her bulky coat had mussed the form so that the impression in the snow was anything but angelic. Pulling off her gloves to quickly unbutton and slip off her coat, she leapt out again onto a fresh patch of snow. Focusing on the warmth of the sun on her face rather than the chill of the snow, she swept her arms and legs in the snow to make the classic angel form. She laughed as the fluffy dry snow around her head collapsed on her face.
She flinched when a shadow passed over her. She squinted up, and a cry of surprise slipped from her lips. Her eyes latched onto the boy, standing in the snow, watching her with obvious curiosity.
“Hello.” He spoke in a low tentative voice. “I’m Kaevin.”
“I’m Alora,” she replied, realizing too late she’d given her real name. But somehow, it seemed okay to share it with him. She stared, drinking in his image, storing it in her mind to retrieve after his inevitable departure. She felt a warm fuzzy feeling in her stomach and resisted a sudden urge to giggle.
“Where are we?” asked Kaevin.
“We’re on my uncle’s ranch.” A shiver rippled through her as the snow began to melt and soak through her sweater.
“You must be cold. Would you like a hand up?” He reached down, offering his hand.
Moving slowly to ensure he didn’t somehow vanish, she stretched to take the proffered hand. When their fingers touched, a spark flew out between them, sending a shock down her arm. She pulled back reflexively. And he was gone.
*****
“Everyone step back,” shouted Graely, stepping into the fray. “He can’t answer all your questions at once. Give him an opportunity to tell the story.”
Kaevin was still a bit dazed from the shock of touching her. Someone handed him some water, and he drank it gratefully. Squeezing his eyes shut, he attempted to clarify the details in his mind.
“We were outside on the edge of a huge field. There were tall trees behind us.”
“What kind of trees?” asked Nordamen.
“I saw some kind of cone trees. And before you ask what was growing in the field... it was covered in snow, so I don’t know.”
“Snow? How cold was the air?” This question came from the weapons master.
“I don’t know. Well below freezing. The snow was dry and came halfway to my knees. And there was no sign of melting even though the sun was out.” He tried to suppress a smile. “She was lying in the snow—simply playing, I think.”
“With that much snow so early in the season,” remarked Morvaen, “she must be quite far to the north. Were there mountains nearby?”
“Possibly, but I didn’t notice. I was watching the girl.”
“Did she speak to you?” asked Raelene.
“She seemed really surprised to see me. I told her my name, and she told me hers.” He glanced about; everyone in the room appeared to be holding their breaths. “Alora.”
A rowdy discussion arose between the council members, but no one recognized the name.
“Go on. What else did she say?” asked Graely.
“I asked her where we were, and she said, ‘We’re on my uncle’s ranch.’ I don’t know what that word means. And then I offered her my hand to help her up. And when she touched my hand, it sparked. And it hurt a little, but then I was back here again.”
“Quick,” said Darielle, her eyes wide and bright with excitement. “Let me see if I can follow your link this time.” She placed her trembling hands on his forehead while everyone watched with wide eyes. The room was so quiet Kaevin could hear his heart beating in his ears. But her hands fell away as she sagged in defeat. “Nothing—still a wall. She must have a very powerful ward. Perhaps this uncle of hers has some strong powers.”
“Could it be because she’s so far away?” asked Graely. “She could be beyond the mountains with that much snow.”
“No,” Darielle replied. “Distance alone couldn’t cause a complete block like that. It must be some kind of ward, so I can’t see her. But we’d almost completed the drawing when Kaevin transported.” She handed it to Kaevin. “Do we have it now? Does this look like her?”
He stared at the picture, his heart warming at the sight. “Yes. This is her. This is Alora.�
� He liked the way her name sounded on his lips. When his father reached for the drawing, Kaevin found himself reluctant to let it go.
Taking it from Kaevin’s hands, Graely studied the graphite sketch. “Glare!” he exclaimed with wide eyes, handing the parchment to Raelene.
She gaped at the paper, which trembled in her hands. “It’s... it’s Wendelle.”
Graely retrieved the parchment, holding it high so the rest of the council could view it. All who were old enough to remember Wendelle agreed the girl looked much the same as Raelene’s daughter.
“Is it possible that she’s come back to life somehow?” asked Graely.
“But what about her eyes?” asked Kaevin. “Her eyes aren’t green. And she’s young—perhaps sixteen or seventeen.”
“Or fifteen,” croaked Raelene, dropping to a chair. “She must be fifteen. That’s the only explanation. Wendelle had a baby.”
Uproar arose between the council members. Graely’s hands were on his hips as his voice rose above the clamor.
“We have to find her. It’s even more important now. We must bring her home... to her grandmother.”
*****
Alora dreamed of Kaevin again. But Monday morning dawned, and the weekend was over. School and responsibilities intruded on her dreams and daydreams. Life as usual. Her uncle drove her to the bus stop. She hadn’t told him about seeing Kaevin outside in the snow, and it seemed too late to tell him now. Would she see a different man every time she got her hair wet? She chuckled.
“What’s so funny?” Charles asked, pulling to a stop beside the bus.
“I’m just glad I’m not on the swim team.”
“Yes, I guess that could be a problem. Especially if one of those guys showed up in bodily form.” He smirked, hugging her goodbye. “Seriously though, I hope maybe we can find a way to avoid all those visits. I’m thinking about you, okay? Have a good day.”
“You too, Uncle Charles.”
She jumped out and ran to greet her best friend on the bus. Close buddies for as long as she could remember, they were almost inseparable, although she’d outgrown her friend by about eight inches over the last four years.
“Hey, Beth.”
“Hey, Alora. Are you going to the dance on Friday? I know I said I wasn’t going, but Mom changed her mind and said I could go. So now you’ve just got to go. Please say yes.” Her imploring brown eyes, dancing with excitement, were framed by shoulder-length auburn curls.
“Maybe I can go. I’ll check with Uncle Charles.”
“You know your uncle will let you go. He’ll do anything you ask him to do. And guess who’s going to be there?” She lowered her voice. “Wesley Franks.”
“I don’t care whether he’s going to be there.”
“Last week you told me you thought he was the hottest guy you’d ever seen. And Riley said he said the same thing about you.”
“He said I was a hot guy?”
“You know what I mean.” Beth’s eyes narrowed. “What’s going on? You don’t like him anymore? Did you hear something bad about him?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I changed my mind. I think maybe I’d like an older guy.”
“But doesn’t your uncle have a rule that you can’t date a guy more than a grade ahead of you?”
“I’m only talking about what I like, not who I want to date.”
“There aren’t that many guys to choose from at our school. I guess maybe Justin; he’s a cute senior. I think he’s going with Shanna Wallace right now.”
“Uhmm, I don’t know. I think I’ve decided I like longer hair.”
“Like Eric Matheson?”
“No. Even longer than Eric’s. Long enough to put in a ponytail. And wavy. And green eyes.”
“Okay, now I know you’re just making someone up. Or are you talking about a movie star or some guy you saw in a magazine?”
“No, it’s just someone I dreamed up. And don’t roll your eyes at me.”
“Okay, but unless you’re on a date with Dream Boy, will you go to the dance Friday night?”
“Sure. Why not?” But she’d rather be with Dream Boy if she actually had the option. Kaevin. She’d never heard the name before, but she really liked it. She wondered, not for the first time, where he lived. And why wasn’t he surprised he kept materializing in front of her? Her life seemed a bit surreal after her strange weekend. On the one hand, she was a normal fifteen-year-old girl, awkward and embarrassed, having crushes and gossiping with her best friend. On the other hand, she’d been miraculously visited twice by some cute guy and once by her supposedly evil father, and had discovered she wasn’t related to her aunt and uncle. But that episode in the snow... now that was something.
“So, what’s his name?”
“Who?”
“You were smiling. You must have been thinking about your dream boy. Why did you suddenly decide you liked long hair? You’ve always said you liked it short before. Were you watching some movie that made you change your mind? No, forget that—you never watch movies. It must have been some book. Why am I not surprised?”
“You know me too well.” Alora scrambled to change the subject. “So, what are you wearing to the dance?”
*****
“Listen to me, Jireo. She must be my soulmate,” insisted Kaevin. “Why else would it spark when we touched?”
Jireo’s gaze rose to the sky as he crossed his arms. “Did anyone on the council say that’s what it meant?”
“No, but perhaps they simply weren’t paying attention. They were all excited about her being Wendelle’s daughter.”
“Yeah, about that. Who’s her father?”
“Well, no one said it out loud in the council meeting, but everyone thinks her father must be—”
“Vindrake? That’s what I thought, too. Who else could it be? Will that make her partially evil? Can you inherit that?”
“It’s not possible. She’s totally innocent.”
“And you know this because she spoke, what? Five words to you?”
“Seven words, actually. But I can sense these things with my gift, you know. And I could tell by looking in her eyes.”
“I thought you said her eyes were a weird color.”
“Not weird—just unusual.” Kaevin tried to squelch the urge to punch his friend. He imagined Alora in his mind and added softly, “Beautiful.”
“I think you like her because she’s the first girl you’ve ever seen without clothes on. And I won’t pretend I’m not a little bit jealous.” Jireo grinned. “Please, please... can’t you simply do a description so Darielle would add a little more to that sketch she drew?”
Kaevin started to give an angry retort, but when Jireo dropped to his knees and clasped his hands in prayerful pleading, he laughed instead.
“I don’t even think about that,” he lied, bending over to pick up a rock, hoping to hide the rush of blood to his face. He threw the rock as far as he could. “I’m angry they won’t let me go on the expedition to find her. I believe I should be the one.”
“You know why they won’t let you go. For one thing, you’re the next clan leader, so they have to keep you safe. And, if she transports you again, they need to question you. Anyway, we both get to go question the shires close by, even though we don’t have the minimum eighteen years. Arista threw a fit over that when I announced it at supper last night.”
“Ha! Your little sister could never stand being left out of a quest. Perhaps it’s because we teased her all her life with impossible stories of the great adventures we encountered every time we left the house together.”
“What? After she tormented me at every possible opportunity? You don’t believe she deserved a bit of teasing?” Jireo adopted an expression of deep injury, before bursting into laughter. Kaevin knew, for all his harsh words and bantering, Jireo was deeply attached to his sister.
“She shouldn’t be jealous of this particular journey, for we will find nothing in the nearby shires. I already know she’s located som
ewhere with a lot of snow on the ground. Alora can’t possibly be in any of the close shires. Wendelle probably hid her somewhere as far as possible from Vindrake.”
“Well, Master Soulmate.” Jireo bowed in mock humility. “We’d best get these snares set and hurry back, or we’ll miss the chance of going on even the close scouting trips. And I, for one, plan to make up a grand story to tell Arista if we don’t experience one in real life.”
*****
Alora made a new habit of wearing a swimsuit when she took a shower—just in case. But Kaevin didn’t appear during her brief showers on Monday or Tuesday night. She kind of missed him, although she was relieved her father hadn’t reappeared. She planned to wait as long as possible before deciding whether to meet with her father. After all, she was only a sophomore in high school. She wasn’t even close to being a grownup. She had plenty of time to make these adult-type decisions.
All this stuff hadn’t helped her confidence at all. She was already taller than all the other girls and most of the boys in her class. Her uncle wouldn’t let her date a boy who was more than a year older, so dating one of the tall senior boys was out of the question. Discovering her mother and father had a strange, violent background and she had some freaky power she didn’t understand only added more insecurity. Kaevin was the first boy who’d ever made her feel special, and he’d done it with hardly any words. It was in his eyes.
She’d developed a pounding headache that hadn’t responded to repeated large doses of ibuprofen. It seemed to be draining her appetite and energy as well. She reasoned that a long relaxing shower might make her feel better. If there was the added benefit she might get to see Kaevin’s beautiful green eyes again, that was okay with her.
She stood under the hot water, letting it pound on her tight shoulders. Then she moved to let the water flow over her head, trying to relax her body. She tried to empty her mind, but she couldn’t do it. Her head was flooded with memories of Kaevin standing over her in the snow and reaching out for her hand. She could picture him in exacting detail. The waves in his hair. The deep green of his eyes. Abruptly, she realized she was actually seeing his image, not imagining it. She kept her eyes shut, knowing he would disappear if she opened them.