No Quit

by Clover Autrey

  Abruptly, another dragon launched itself from the cliffs and streaked toward Dragon and the silverback; a glistening black male, clawing the air in agitation. His trumpeting warning sent shivers along Willec’s skin. The silverback bellowed at the male, powerful jaws snapped near his throat with a thunderous clap.

  Dragon raced across the air currents, streaming toward the ground, the silverback fast behind, her greater speed overtaking.

  Dragon turned, back flapping, wings rounded. His feet kicked forward and he slowed, touching the rocky soil with a gentle hop.

  “He landed!” Jase cried.

  Pulses of air whooshed over them as the silverback landed. The ground vibrated beneath them.

  “Don’t move,” Willec hissed.

  The silverback sniffed Dragon, arching her spine.

  Bouncing from foot to foot, Dragon looked at the boys.

  “Go on!” Jase rasped. “She’ll be your ma.”

  Dragon craned his neck toward the adult dragon. Her muzzle lowered to his. She sniffed, smoothing Dragon’s young scales, then moved over him, enfolding him in the protection of her body.

  The rocky soil shook. Pebbles bounced, clattering upon the ground. Air whooshed around them. The black dragon stood before them, puffing out his glistening body and fully extending his great leathery wings.

  The female rounded out her greater size. Arching her neck, she trumpeted through her nasal cavities before snorting a gale of steaming air at the male.

  Willec’s heart flew up into his rib cage.

  The black male dragon rocked from side to side, his head lowered toward Dragon who pressed back against the inside of the silverback’s legs. The male snorted a short puff of air. Gray eyes turned toward Willec and the boys.

  Dragon squealed and ran toward them, his body and tail circled around the brothers. The boys’ eyes were huge.

  “Remain still,” Willec whispered.

  The black dragon rumbled deep within like stones scraping inside a barrel, and inhaled through his nostrils. The silverback snapped her jaws at him just as his head swiveled toward the boys and Dragon. He hopped back, wings flapping wildly. She snapped again. And again, driving him back. He trumpeted, enraged. The silverback held her ground. The adult dragons glared at each other; muscles coiled, wreathing beneath their slick scaly bodies.

  Eyes narrowing to slits, the male snorted. A blast of steam rolled over the silverback and he turned away, walked several paces, and flapped into the tranquil blue.

  Her great neck swooping down, the silverback stepped toward the brothers. Her head lowered to their level, golden eyes studying.

  “It’s your ma, Dragon,” Cyle said. Dragon stepped hesitantly away from the boys. His snout met hers and she rumbled from deep within.

  Jase collapsed against Cyle. “I want to touch her,” Jase said, his voice barely audible.

  Cheeks moist with tears, Cyle nodded and lifted his brother to his feet. Jase’s hand lifted toward the dragon, then fell back to his side. Taking Jase’s hand in his own, Cyle brought it to the silverback. Together, they touched her jaw. The giant head flinched, then relaxed. Dragon’s tongue flicked across Jase’s palm. The silverback nudged her head back toward their hands.

  Frozen, Willec watched; his throat constricted, face wet with tears. A fountain of emotions flooded his soul. Here, in the majesty of two young boys, was all the meaning he had sought. There would be no journey to see an infant king. There was no longer any need.

  Jase’s head lolled forward, his shoulders went limp.

  Cyle sank to the ground, cradling Jase, and wept, the great dragon forgotten.

  Dragon whined, nosing Jase’s fingers.

  With rare gentleness, the silverback laid her snout against Jase’s chest. For a moment she stayed there. Hot exhalations washed over them. Cyle’s wet face turned up to her, staring into the shiny sphere of her eye. Then she turned to Dragon and nudged him away. Together they flapped into the air, trumpeting a long, mournful, piercing note. Gusts from their wing beats wafted over the boys, blowing through their clothing.

  Cyle smoothed the hair back from Jase’s smooth forehead before turning glistening eyes to Willec.

  Kneeling, Willec placed a hand on Cyle’s shoulder. “Let’s take him home.”

  Día de los Muertos

  The flowers were everywhere. Bright orange marigolds strung along tops of fences and bursting from pots grouped on porches and storefronts like little shrines. The moppy-headed fourteen-year-old stopped at one display and frowned at the brightly decorated sugar skulls sitting in prominence among the cheerful blossoms.

  San Miguel, Arizona was vibrant with energy, even on the outskirts of town where their current motel squatted, the streets were alive with celebrants. The Gillants had never taken a hunt this close to the Mexican border at this time of year. They wouldn’t be here now if Ruiz, one of the men in Dad’s 666 Ranger Squad, hadn’t called in a panic about a Chupacabra who had dragged two children off after it’d taken a bite out of Ruiz’s side. With Ruiz in the hospital, even though the Gillants were heading north, they were still the closest demon hunters available to get to those children quickly enough.

  Henry was adamant about not taking Cael on this one and Cael remained quiet, knowing it was no use complaining. He and Jake had only been with Henry a few months after their mom smuggled them out of Karavel. Jake and Dad still didn’t know the full of what happened the night of the so-called initiation, just that Jake had found Cael bloody and beaten. And Cael still wasn’t ready to talk about it.

  Before Dad and Jake left, Henry’s large palm curled around Cael’s shoulder. “Remember to keep the wards up. This shouldn’t take long, we’ll be back before you know it. And get some rest. You’re still recovering.” He smiled half-heartedly.

  Watching from across the SUV’s nose, Jake’s jaw clenched. He’d grown more tense with each mile headed southward.

  Cael had nodded, not wanting to talk about being left alone either. But days passed and Henry and Jake hadn’t made it back yet, and Cael had worried until he got the call from Jake. They were okay. The kids were okay, taken back to their parents, but the little toothy monster had gotten away and they were heading back out to track it.

  “Hopefully only another day,” Jake had said. “Um, Cael?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Maybe, uh…just try and stay inside tomorrow. You know, watch the tube.”

  “Okay, yeah.” Cael shifted from one foot to the other. He felt awkward. Neither brother knew what to say after that. He heard his father in the background, reminding Jake to tell Cael to double check the symbols of the wards they’d chalked on the door again.

  But he didn’t want to stay inside. So he walked around the area, looking at all the private altars and dolls that looked like skeletons in wedding attire. Though the excited people walking around thrummed with energy, Cael rode along a current of sadness. The entire city was celebrating. From a flyer, he knew that at midnight there would be a parade of sorts, the All Souls’ Procession, with people wearing skeleton masks to honor the dead and carrying urns with prayers written on slips of paper that they would burn.

  Cael rubbed his chest, feeling hollow inside, even though he’d just had a sandwich. Cael watched a couple walk by, laughing, enjoying themselves and Cael wondered how they could be so happy. Of course they couldn’t know the Mexican holiday caused a still tender ache inside his chest.

  Día de los Muertos. November Second. Day of the Dead.

  Less than five months ago Cael held his dead friend in his arms after Gregor had staked Iason out as juncoir bait.

  For Cael, he couldn’t spend a day thinking about the dead. He just couldn’t. Iason’s torn boneless form haunted his every already.

  Yet…Cael’s brows pulled together. Maybe, honoring those who died wasn’t a bad thing. Maybe if he did, he could get past this, stop seeing Iason in every waking moment. Certainly, holding everything in in silence, taking si
deways glances at each other like his father and brother, didn’t do anything to fill the hole in his heart left gaping and exposed.

  Cael walked past a little flower stand. He read the sign above the blooms. Flor de Muerto. Flower of the Dead. Cael knew they were meant to attract souls so they would hear the prayers and the comments of the living. On a whim, Cael turned back and bought a small bouquet of marigolds.

  He walked down the streets and into the little park close to the motel and sat at a picnic table. It was quiet here. The southwestern landscaping scheme of the park with mostly pebbled pathways wandering around sagebrush and tall sequoias was pretty, peaceful, empty of partygoers. The early evening was still warm so Cael laid his little bouquet on the table and shrugged out of his gray hoodie, placing it beside him on the bench. He picked up one of the marigolds, rolling the stem in his fingers and tried to come up with happy memories of Iason, except he didn’t have any, not really. He hadn’t known the kid all that long. He was shy, one of the few to befriend Cael at the Academy even though he was only half human, probably because Iason didn’t have that many friends either.

  “Cael.”

  He nearly jumped off the bench, rapping his knee on the underside of the table. His gaze jerked up to a woman, standing on the other side of the table, hands folded neatly together as she stared at him. She had dark sad eyes and long blond hair. Her pale blue sundress seemed to float around her legs in a breeze that didn’t really exist.

  “Hello,” he said hesitantly, alarmed that she knew his name. “Can I help you?”

  She smiled sadly. “Cael, don’t you know me?” She took a step forward.

  Turning sideways, Cael swung his legs out from under the table. He shook his head.

  The woman nodded her head forward. “You brought me flowers, sweetheart.”

  “Who…who are you?”

  She did look familiar. He looked at her through lowered eyes, studying her, remembering an image from an old photograph he’d seen only recently when he’d gone through his dad’s photo albums, trying to get used to his new life in this dimension with his dad. He’d only seen one or two pictures of his grandmother. They didn’t have many, and even though there were similarities, he didn’t think this woman…yet…seeing someone fully was different than viewing them on the flat dimension of an old photograph, right? “Are you my dad’s mom?”

  Her smile bloomed and Cael’s heart stuttered to a slow crawl. “Oh, Cael, I’ve missed you. I’ve missed so much of your life.”

  “But…” Still not convinced, Cael stood, shifted backwards, keeping the table between them. “How are you here?”

  Her gaze shifted to the marigolds. “Día de los Muertos. The veil is thin on this night.” Her head tilted, making her hair sway. “You were thinking of me. I felt it.”

  Cael’s throat grew tight. His vision grew hazy from a sudden press of tears. He wiped them away. He’d been thinking of Iason, not a grandmother he’d never known, only seen pictures of recently. “Is this real? Are you real? You’re…Mariam Gillant?”

  She nodded. “Oh, Cael. I’m your grandmother. I really am and I’ve missed you, sweetheart.” She came around the table, held out her hand. “Will you walk with me? Just for this one night. Will you walk with me?”

  Cael shifted back, afraid. Mariam let her hand drop, disappointment and sadness creasing her face. Cael couldn’t bear it. All the hurt and loneliness of surviving when Iason did not rushed to the surface. He swallowed and stepped toward her.

  Her smile was so beautiful it made something pull painfully in his chest. When she took his hand, a cool tingly touch, he let her lead him onto one of the pathways into the darkening evening.

  ~~~

  “Motel sweet motel,” Jake muttered as his dad swung the Ford Explorer into the parking spot. “I could sleep for a week.”

  Henry shut off the rumbling engine and glanced over. “You deserve it, sport. You did well. We’ll both have to make due with one night though. I want to be out of here before first light.”

  Jake couldn’t agree more. Although they’d come in through the back streets, the music and the merriment of what the citizens of San Miguel celebrated was a little hard to take when they knew what they knew about other realms and the reality of the dead and other things that go bump in the night. The people out there had no idea what their festivities could inadvertently be calling upon. With the celebrations continuing on through the next two days, lack of sleep would be well worth putting Arizona behind them.

  Jake swung the car door open, stilling upon hearing the music filtering from a few blocks away. He tried to make light of it with a quip. “I hope Cael’s not sprawled across the whole bed again. I got bruises from his flopping limbs last time, but that couch is really lumpy.”

  Henry chuckled, sliding the key into the doorknob. “Kid’s getting tall.”

  “And knobby.” Jake pushed inside behind his dad. Complaining aside, he was happy to get back to Cael, even if the kid was hogging up all the bed space. Besides, getting him to move to the couch would give him a good excuse to wake Cael up and see his younger sibling’s face light up at their return. That never got old.

  Except…Henry and Jake just stood there. Cael was not sprawled out on the bed. In fact both beds were neatly made. In three quick strides, Henry was at the bathroom, pushing open the door. The scowl stamping his features when he turned told Jake that Cael wasn’t in there either.

  Jake glanced at his watch. Ten-fifty.

  “Maybe he went out to grab a bite,” Jake offered hopefully. “You know how Cael is, he gets caught up in things and forgets to eat until he’s really hungry. I’ll try his phone.” He took out the new cell their dad had insisted they have once they came to live with him in this world.

  Frowning, Henry nodded. His gaze flicked toward the little table, absent of any books Cael might have been going through. “Check the wards.”

  Jake flinched. “You don’t think something got in here?”

  “No.” Henry shrugged a hand through his dark hair. “I just want to make sure.”

  “Yeah. Okay.” Jake checked the door while Henry went to the window. His father’s features had already lost that relaxed-hunt-went-well look and were hardening, shifting into focused Ranger mode, spurring a whisper of icy breath to trickle down Jake’s spine.

  Henry’s fists came to rest against his hips, elbows out to his sides like stiff wings, the old man’s stance when he was mulling over a problem…or worried. “Anything?”

  “No. It’s going to voicemail.” Jake frowned at his phone. “But you know Cael. He’s still not used to these things and always forgets to charge his.”

  Henry’s frown deepened. “Nothing’s been disturbed.” The weight of his gaze fell on Jake. “You told Cael to stay inside today?”

  “Yes, Sir,” Jake was quick to answer, then added, “Well, it was more like a suggestion.” Jake held himself still, prepared for all that tension vibrating beneath his dad’s skin to bark out at him, but Henry only nodded. His hands slid from his hips, lowered to his sides as he let a weary sigh escape.

  “I’m sorry,” Jake said.

  Henry wiped a hand down his face. For a moment it seemed to Jake as though the motion forged new worry lines into his dad’s forehead. “It’s okay, Jake. Your brother shouldn’t have to be on lock-down while we’re gone. It’s just…”

  “Yeah, I know,” Jake interrupted, not wanting to go there. Not now when they’d just gotten Cael out of Karavel and the kid’s emotions were still on lock-down, and definitely not when they didn’t know where Cael was. “Dad, he’s probably just down the street. You know how curious Cael gets about, well, about everything.” Henry’s tight lips quirked up into a hint of a grin at that. Encouraged, Jake went on. “I’ll bet Cael’s over at that little area with all the pretty painted girlie-type shops, just standing on the sidewalk with everyone else in this town, waiting for that weird parade to go by.”

  Henry nodded, t
he worry visibly leaching with a roll of his stiff shoulders. “All right, let’s go get your brother. But Jake…”

  Half-way to the door, Jake stopped at the authoritative edge of Henry Gillant’s this-still-is-a-hunt tone. “This is the Day of the Dead. You know what that means.”

  “Yes, Sir.” Jake nodded. Salt.

  ~~~

  “What is this place?” Cael looked at the little broken down shack within the dip of a hill. He’d walked with the spirit for a little less than an hour, moving into wilderness at the edge of the park. Arizona was like that, the cities and towns small pockets of civilization within vast swathes of desert and sagebrush. The moon gave enough light to navigate his way, but still Cael wished for his flashlight, if for nothing else than to warn away snakes and scorpions. When the first of the stars came out, he’d quickly oriented himself the way Dad taught him to, though the stars in this dimension were different from the constellations back home. They were also much farther away. He wasn’t worried about getting lost out here, besides the lights from town and the music that echoed loudly out in the quiet of the hills were an easy beacon to guide him back.

  He turned his attention to the shack, if it could be called that. There was really only two walls left and half of a third. Except for one corner of the roof, the tilting wooden frame was open to the sky. His grandmother’s cold whispery fingers tugged on his, drawing him down into the ravine until they stood within the shell of what once was possibly someone’s home. Maybe a hunter’s shed?

  Cael tried again. “Why did you bring me here?”

  The ghost shrugged. “It’s just a place.” She sat down on the rotted floor and patted the space beside her. “It’s peaceful here. We can talk. Be together, just you and I. Oh, Cael honey, tell me everything, all your hopes and dreams. I’ve missed so much.”

  Hopes and dreams. Cael’s heart did a little flip. He frowned. He had hopes. Or at least he used to. Becoming a demon hunter. Making his mother proud, showing all the Anointed what he was capable of even though he was a half-blood. He stopped his thoughts, no longer wanting those. Not after what Gregor had done. He didn’t know what he wanted anymore. He lowered to the floor and looked into those beautiful brown eyes, wishing so badly that he could tell her all of that, but some things are too deep for words.