by Dale Mayer
Connor glanced over at him. “That would have been difficult, but not unusual. My situation wasn’t much different.”
“It’s what it was.” Matt shrugged. “But it cemented the relationship with Darbo in a way that I couldn’t have imagined.”
“Why, when I had abilities, didn’t I ever have a spirit pet? It would have made my relationship with Genesis much easier.”
“Would it?”
When Connor sent him a narrow-eyed gaze, Matt just grinned and said, “Maybe it would have.”
Ignoring the smirk on his friend’s face, Connor finally recognized the next tunnel. “It’s this way.”
The tunnel was short, the exit taking them to the bushes again. He stood at the edge of the massive green space and said, “This is the edge. Look at how big, how vibrant everything is.”
Matt gave a low whistle. “Something is definitely going on here.” He reached out a hand and stroked a palm leaf the size of a huge chair. “How is this possible?”
“I think it’s from Genesis herself.”
“But she has an affinity with water, not plants. I think that’s Tori’s affinity.”
“Right. Maybe they all have some abilities in common,” Connor said with a nod. “Are they all stargazers though? I wonder.”
“Likely. Different stages, different levels maybe. They are all so similar yet very different personalities. Different abilities overlapping between them make sense.”
“What about that damn parentage issue?” Connor brushed a large bush back slightly so he could walk beside it. There was no path here. The bush appeared to be so dense as to be impassable. Genesis’s work, no doubt. “Who the hell were their parents?”
“That’s the question, isn’t it?”
“And just how did they end up with Grandfather’s sister?” Connor asked.
“No idea. Just more mystery with those three,” Matt muttered. He stopped suddenly. “Jesus, we’re not going to get through this, are we?”
Connor stopped as well, feeling the sweat on his brow. “I’m thinking this is going to be impossible.”
They both stopped and stared as the wall of foliage fell back into place in front of them, thicker than ever. Connor had a thought.
“Can you still sense Darbo?”
Matt stopped and tilted his head. “Actually…yes. He is here.”
“Really?” Connor turned to look at him.
Matt’s grin widened. “And he’s answering. Not sure why he wasn’t before, but he is now.”
“Can you call him? Could he help lead us in?”
Matt frowned. “I don’t know. I haven’t ever asked much of him. He’s so tiny, he’s been more of a friend than a co-worker.”
“Sure, that makes sense. However…” Connor turned to switch his gaze from Matt to the foliage and back again. “Darbo is friends with Remi, right?” He lifted a hand to the bushes. “And Remi lives in this environment. Maybe you could tell Darbo and Darbo could tell Remi that we are here.”
“And tell Genesis?” Matt asked, curiosity in his voice. “Yeah. I say we ask permission to enter and hope she lets us in.”
Matt closed his eyes. Connor observed him carefully. He’d been honest when he’d told Matt he’d never had a spirit pet before. He’d had a dog he’d lost a long time ago. His beloved lab, Kona. He’d deliberately buried those memories. At least, he thought he must have. Everything was obscure. Foggy. Searching his past was even more frustrating now with his limited abilities. He just turned away rather than dig deeper. Still, it would be much better if he could at least see the animals.
Maybe he’d have a better understanding of Genesis. She’d missed out on so much. And he was only just realizing what he’d asked of her a year ago. It still hurt that she’d chosen to stay than leave with him but as he was just seeing for himself, it had hurt her that he’d taken off. He hadn’t told her about his job and travelling lifestyle when they’d gotten together a year ago – she’d been so young and innocent. Fresh to his jaded emotions.
He’d fallen hard, and with all the arrogance of a young male, he’d left with the tattered remains holding him upright, never thinking what it had cost her to stay behind.
Chapter 34
Genesis closed her eyes with relief as she slumped into her kitchen chair. Was there anything quite like being home? While Darbo and Remi raced through the place, chittering delightedly to be back, Genesis reached for a granola bar. She was tired. Hungry. Thirsty. And heartsick. Her body ached and her heart trembled. Something ugly was happening and she didn’t know how to stop it. She understood she was in the middle of several power plays and couldn’t for the life of her figure out how to get out.
She put on the teakettle and waited for it to boil. She was so tired; she planned to take her tea to the pool and climb in. Maybe after a long, long session there she’d come out clearheaded and able to cope with the sudden changes in her world. That Connor was back was tough already. That they’d returned to the same state as when he’d left in mere days said much about what their relationship was not. Yet she wasn’t quite sure what if anything other than her chaos was the problem. She hoped they could work it out, but from now on they’d have to work on it out of bed.
She didn’t want the distractions of their unbelievably hot sex life taking precedence over working out the bigger issues.
Although one of those issues appeared to be solved – if he indeed went to work for Matt, that is. She’d love for that to happen, for him to break away from Grandfather. Connor was a good man and he deserved a break – even if she wasn’t at his side.
In her position, there really wasn’t much choice.
The sound of the teakettle blowing off steam interrupted her musings. She made a cup of chamomile tea and carried it through to her pool. The room looked open and fresh, the water inviting.
For some reason, she only stripped to her underwear today. Normally she couldn’t wait to shuck her clothing. Maybe it was seeing Portman Junior so close, or the fact that both Matt and Connor could be on their way and arriving at any moment, that stopped her from going in nude. She didn’t know if any of them could find her, but she didn’t want to get caught without her clothes on if that was the case.
She slipped into the water, moaning with pleasure. The water rose up her thighs and cradled her as she stretched and sank into the welcoming waves.
She so needed this. At the splash at her side, she opened her eyes to see Remi diving and swimming around her.
“Darbo? Do you want to come in?” She turned to her to see Darbo stretch out a super-long leg and dip a toe in the water. The healing waters stretched up his leg to his knee. Darbo scrambled backwards. Still, he was intrigued. He couldn’t take his eyes off Remi as the plumer dove and swam, then floated in the water, obviously safe and equally at home in the water. Remi, noticing Darbo sitting on the edge, floated over and chittered at him encouragingly. Darbo wasn’t having anything to do with it. When Remi held out his arms, Darbo stared at him, undecided. Then in a move that made Genesis laugh, he jumped off the ledge to land on Remi’s tummy.
And that’s how the two of them stayed. Remi floating on his back, Darbo riding his tummy, long arms trailing in the water. They looked so peaceful, Genesis couldn’t help feeling the same sense of security slipping though her. The healing waters were doing their job. She felt better now. More rested. The aches and pains easing, the confusion clearing.
She was home, and that was the one place she wanted to be.
Even if she was alone.
For the first time, she could understand Granny’s reasons for avoiding the townsfolk and living out her life in seclusion. There was acceptance, peace, and tranquility to be had here. For Granny, who’d spent so much of her day, every day, on the star charts, it would have been a perfect existence.
Maybe that was what Genesis should do, too.
Just as she closed her eyes, prepared to sleep for a few moments, Remi bolted upright and chittered loudly.
&n
bsp; Genesis sat up and stared at him. “What’s wrong?”
He didn’t give her an answer. Instead, he slung Darbo on his back and bolted to the other room. She heard the door open and close as he left the cottage. Why? Where could he be going? There could be any number of reasons. But as he hadn’t been distressed or angry, it couldn’t be Portman Junior.
Anyone else she could deal with easily enough. She stood up and dried off, dressing carefully as she was still slightly damp. Taking her tea out to the kitchen, she looked out the window just in time to see Remi leading Matt by the hand, with Darbo on Matt’s shoulder. With his other hand, Matt led Connor forward.
Well. Wasn’t that great? Now she had the whole lot of them to deal with. She opened the door and grinned. “What took you so long?”
Matt laughed. “Without Remi, we’d be still struggling to find a way through, as you very well know.”
“I suspect it was more a case of you calling for Darbo, Darbo asking for Remi’s help, and then you bringing Connor through.” She shrugged. “Still, you’re here now. You might as well have a cup of tea.”
“Sounds good.” Matt entered the small cottage, instinctively ducking under the low doorway. He sat down across from her chair. She turned to study Connor. He watched her every move but had yet to say anything. He also hadn’t entered. He stood in the doorway and stared, a hard look on his face.
“Before we get too cozy, tell me why you left.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Meaning if we get cozy, I won’t tell you? How does that work?”
“I want answers, and I want them now,” he said in an aggrieved tone.
“You might get them. But only when I’m damn good and ready to give them.” She narrowed her gaze at him. “You don’t have to come in and have a cup of tea if you don’t want to, but you do have to drop the anger and the attitude. It’s not welcome in my house.”
And she turned her back on him and walked over to the teakettle. She filled it and put it back on the stove. There wasn’t a sound behind her. She bowed her head and groaned softly. Damn that man.
She turned around to find he hadn’t taken a step forward or back.
He glared at her.
She glared back.
“I came back last night to find that you’d moved out of our room, and then in the early hours of the morning, you pack up and sneak out of the building and drive away?”
The way he said it made it sound so much worse. Ignoring Matt, who was watching the exchange with interest, she snapped back, “I’m certain the old room had been searched. It didn’t feel right anymore so I moved next door. I also didn’t pack up in the middle of the night. I had nothing to pack, if you remember. Also, the damn men outside woke me up, and after I heard about their plans, I decided I wanted to be back home where I could look after the place and its very valuable contents. At the same time, I realized Remi was in danger.”
At his look of astonishment, she added, “And I was planning on coming back. At least until I realized Portman Junior had kidnapped both Remi and Darbo here and had plans for me. He’s still out there, you know. I don’t know why you didn’t see him, but that man is dangerous.”
On a roll now, she walked over to stand in front of him.
“And besides, if you knew I’d moved to a different room, why didn’t you come to my room then?” she demanded. “Or was it Grandfather’s warnings that kept you the hell away from me?”
Silence fell in the small room after her outburst. Remi swung up her body to sit on her shoulder. He chittered once at Connor.
She said, “Don’t bother, Remi, he’s not listening to either of us.”
*
Connor didn’t know what to say. He should have knocked on the door last night and actually talked to her. Not brushed off her concerns about their room being searched. So of course she’d taken matters into her own hands. Wasn’t that what Matt had said? She’d been alone a long time and wasn’t used to depending on anyone? Or having anyone there to help her. He’d expected her to come to him, but she likely hadn’t even considered the possibility.
Instead, he had done something about it but hadn’t told her.
“I spoke with Matt’s Head of Security,” Connor said. “He was going to check the video feed from the security cameras to see if there’d been any intruders in our room.”
“And?” she asked curiously. “Were there?”
He flushed. “I didn’t get a chance to ask him.”
She nodded. “There hasn’t been that much time.”
Of course she’d let him off the hook. That was the thing about Genesis. She was a peacemaker and so easy to get along with. Too easy. It had allowed him to forget about something that had bothered her. “I’m sorry.”
“You had a lot on your mind.”
She turned away to make the tea, once again forgiving him and letting him be in the wrong without the guilt. He felt guilty enough for a number of reasons.
“Maybe, but I should have checked up on it.” He stepped forward, grabbed a kitchen chair, and turned it around before sitting down on it. “I told Grandfather that I wasn’t going to work for him any longer.” He watched for her reaction.
She froze. Not turning around to face him, she asked, “And how did he take that?”
“Much better after he realized I had lost my abilities. Then he couldn’t get rid of me fast enough.” That was the truth as far as it went. He didn’t want to talk about what Mason had told him on the way out.
At least, not with Matt sitting there and watching.
“You didn’t tell him that your abilities were coming back?”
He shook his head.
“Why?”
“I wanted him to be happy I was leaving.” He gave her a small, crooked grin. “He would have held the door for me if he could have.”
She gasped. “But you’re family.”
“Very distant. I’m not one of his sons, and if I don’t have my abilities and can’t do my job, then I’m no good to him.”
“So you’re unemployed.” She frowned.
“Hardly,” he protested. “Matt has offered me a job, and I’ve decided I’d like to give it a try.”
“Damn glad to hear that,” Matt spoke up for the first time. Connor glanced over at him to see Darbo curling up against his neck. As the sight was such a surprise for him, he stopped and stared. The little thing was literally curled up on his shoulder, long arms wrapped around his ear, and it appeared that Darbo was sleeping after his ordeal.
“Why can I see Darbo here? The only other time I’ve seen him was at the pools,” Connor complained.
Genesis laughed, and even Matt grinned. “Probably because you brought his human back to him,” she said.
Connor slid her a sideways look. “Really?”
At her nod, he continued to study her but couldn’t see Remi. Finally, he asked, “And Remi, your spirit pet, why can’t I see him?”
She shrugged but answered in a low voice, “Maybe he doesn’t trust you.”
“Or,” he said just as quietly, “maybe he’s making a decision based on your emotions, and you’re the one who doesn’t trust me.”
And damn if she didn’t turn away.
Chapter 35
Genesis hated to think that Connor was right, but with the truth staring at her, it was hard not to see it.
Remi would pick up on her feelings and take them into account. But if Connor had his abilities and was working on gaining the rest back, he should be able to see Remi all the time after having seen him once. The same for Darbo.
For some reason, it wasn’t happening. She frowned, staring into her tea. Why not?
“Where did you lose Portman?” Matt asked gently, thankfully changing the topic.
She waved her hand outside. “Out there. He can see and track energy signatures, so he could still find us.” She started, staring out the window, suddenly realizing she hadn’t hidden the men’s tracks. Shit.
At that moment, a cacophony of soun
d filled the air as Remi and Darbo screamed in alarm.
Genesis bolted out of her chair as Portman’s dark form filled the doorway. He scowled, then yelled. “Shut them up.”
Instead of subduing the animals, the sound of his raised voice had the opposite effect. The animals went into overdrive, screeching and chittering loudly. Outside, the birds joined in, raising a raucous racket. Genesis tried to calm Remi down, and when that didn’t work, she sent him to the pool As he passed Matt, who had his hands full with screams of terror right at his ear, Remi reached out and snagged Darbo, then the two of them raced from the room.
Matt stood, his back straight and his face dark. “So you’re the one that stole Darbo.”
“Darbo?” Portman said. “Wait until the Council hears about your spirit pet. Hell, couldn’t you have at least found one that had balls?”
“I don’t need you to tell me who and what my pet should be,” he said with a murderous glare and no hint of embarrassment over Darbo. “That’s none of your business. Kidnapping – of people or spirit pets – is a crime you will pay for.”
“Oh really?” Portman Junior sniggered. “And what’s that going to be? Will I have to do community service with the local animal doctor?” He was obviously having too much fun laughing at the lot of them.
Then Genesis realized something else. As Portman was a man of power, he could have a spirit pet of his own. Given his comments, chances were it wasn’t going to be a small, sweet one like Remi or Darbo.
“What is your spirit animal?” she asked warily. She’d never seen the bigger, more dangerous ones, but she’d heard stories about them.
“I don’t have one,” he said dismissively.
Only it wasn’t that easy. And then she knew. “You killed it, didn’t you?”
He turned that cold gaze on her. She swallowed bravely but refused to back down.
“Why would you say that?” Connor asked. “I don’t have one, so obviously not all of us do.”
“The reason you don’t is quite different from the reason he doesn’t,” Matt said. “He wouldn’t like the connection. The dependency. He’d consider a spirit pet a weakness – not a strength.”