The air around the car shimmered and then there was nothing. Sara scrunched her face in disappointment, “What’s wrong? Didn’t it work?”
Elizabeth smiled, “Yeah it worked but we can’t have you glowing like a unicorn driving down the road, now can we?”
“Unicorns are real?” Her friend asked with all the seriousness she could muster.
“Oh,” Elizabeth stuttered at the question, “no, well… I don’t know. It was just a way of saying that your car can’t shimmer the entire time you drive it. What they did was not only protect it but made it so that if anyone tries to mess with it… it leaves like a magical fingerprint.”
A bit disappointed to know that unicorns may not be real, Sara just replied, “Oh. Okay. That’s actually pretty clever.” Elizabeth could only laugh at her friend. The three women outside were done and came indoors to find the two younger girls sitting on the couch talking and giggling. Sari was glad to see her daughter laugh, genuinely laugh, again. The last few months had been so hard for Elizabeth and Sari wanted nothing but normalcy for her.
Sunday morning, Wesley sent Elizabeth a reminder text of lunch with his family and that put her on edge. She had overacted with his, their, departure and distance and they knew everything she had done since. She was embarrassed, ashamed, and not sure how things would be, but Elizabeth was determined not to make things weird. Her thoughts were everywhere and decided to take her chaos out on her closet.
With clothes strewn everywhere, Elizabeth could hear her phone ringing somewhere under a pile. She started to dig through them, tossing shirts and pants into new piles as she searched for the proverbial needle in a haystack. Nearly falling over, she grabbed the phone from the bottom of the jeans pile, “Hello,” she answered out of breath.
“What are you doing?” Wesley asked.
“Cleaning my closet. Why? What’s up?” She asked innocently.
“Um. Do you realize what time it is? Lunch was an hour ago, Elizabeth!”
“What?” She pulled the phone from her ear to look at the time, “Shit,” she called out under her breath. “Wesley, I’m so sorry. I seriously got distracted with cleaning out my closet.”
Although she couldn’t see his face, she could hear it in his voice, disappointment. “Okay then. Closet cleaning, huh?”
“Yeah. I am sorry. My mind was all over the place then I got in the closet and thought it’d be a good idea to sort it out. How can I make it up to everyone?”
“Dinner at 6 p.m.”
She sighed in relief, “Okay. I can do that.”
“Elizabeth.”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t be late,” Wesley hung the phone up after he spoke not giving her a chance for any replies.
Standing in the center of her room, Elizabeth turned in a circle and looked at the mess she had made. Her attempt to organize her closet only made things in life worse. She instantly thought the idea of cleaning was against her.
Downstairs her aunts were in the green room propagating some of their herbs for the new season coming. There were tiny pots everywhere with tiny stems of plants hoping for new life. Soil dusted the floor and the room smelled of deep rich woods. Sari knocked on the door frame, as she held a cup of hot tea, “You ladies should take a break. Come get some lunch.” The sisters nodded and brushed the soil from their hands and clothes. “Oh, and I’ll let Elizabeth know too since she missed her lunch date with the elves.” She raised a brow to her sisters giving them a knowing look of trouble.
The other two glanced at each other and shook their heads, “We’ll be right there.” Reba responded.
At the end of the staircase, Sari called up to Elizabeth, “Lunchtime. I know you need to eat, come on down.”
Elizabeth’s face flushed with embarrassment before calling back, “Okay. Be right down.”
All four women sat at the table, no one really saying anything, serving themselves bowls of vegetable stew and noodles that Sari had cooked that morning. Elizabeth barely looked at anyone and waited for the borage of questions as to why she didn't go to lunch at the elven home.
“Okay. The silence is killing me!” Elizabeth finally spoke when she was about done with her stew. “I was nervous. Decided to clean the closet and lost track of time.”
Sari dropped her spoon in her stew. This was no new behavior that her daughter had displayed. Elizabeth would randomly clean rooms when she was nervous growing up. “Well, at least I know you’re not leading him on.”
Nearly choking on some noodles, Elizabeth cut her eyes at her mom. “Seriously? I told him I wanted to go but today I started to think of my behavior and all the things that happened since they left. I guess my nerves were worse than I thought.” She looked to her mom hoping for sympathy but not honestly expecting it.
“Oh Elizabeth,” Sari replied and laid a hand over her daughters, “I know it had to be nerves to have you in that closet cleaning it out.” Her mom said then snickered.
“Hush mom!” Elizabeth smiled largely and the women all laughed. “Yeah, just laugh at me. Go ahead.” But she wasn’t upset cause she laughed too.
“You know we love you, but that closet was in desperate need of a good cleaning out,” Raina said between laughs.
“Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.” Elizabeth scooped more stew into her bowl, then looked back Raina, “Ya know, I hear you are really good at organizing.”
Raina held both hands up, “Oh no you don’t. That closet is your mess.”
Elizabeth tilted her a head just a tad and one side of her lip raised, “It’s not really the closet that is a problem anymore.” Her eyes widened as she envisioned her room, “It’s the rest of the room.”
Reba almost spit out the stew she had just take a bite of, “Girl. You didn’t do the pile thing did you?”
Elizabeth slowly looked up at her aunt, “Maybe.”
“Oh, no ma’am. That is all yours.” Raina declared.
Resting her head on her hand, Elizabeth just huffed, “My room is so messy right now.”
Sari glanced over at her, “So how are you making it up to Wesley and his family?”
“Dinner. He told me not to be late. Hell, I was embarrassed before and this is just making it worse.”
“Yeah. It does.”
“Gee thanks, mom.”
“No sugar coating. Remember.”
“Yeah. Yeah. Well, thanks for lunch. I have to go to my room now.”
Reba looked at her niece over her shoulder, “You sound like a little kid getting put on punishment.” Everyone just laughed. Elizabeth went upstairs and worked the rest of the afternoon on her room, but she also set an alarm for 5 p.m. She was determined not to be late or missing this time.
CHAPTER 8
The elven home was always welcoming and bustling with life when they were there. Driving up to their gates reminded her of when they were gone, and no one stood guard in the tower and how there was nothing but silence. Today, however, was not the case. The outside of the home was bustling with activity and Elizabeth could imagine how busy it was inside.
The elf in the tower looked down at Elizabeth as she walked up to the gate and called down to her, “You know you can park inside.” He motioned to her car that she left on the side of the driveway.
Looking back at her car, she shook her head, “Nah, I kind of like parking her there.” The elf shrugged and buzzed the gate open. Elizabeth waved at him as she passed through and went on up to the house. Rudolph was a kind elf and always very polite. He really didn't talk a lot but he saw everything. He watched the witch walk up to the elven home, he was hopeful for the couple. The bond that it would make between the elves and witches was important and could change everything for their futures.
The children were playing in the yard and when they saw her, they either stopped still or ran up to her, calling her name and hugging her. Her face lit up with excitement. She really had missed them and this place.
Looking up she saw Wesley leaning on the doorway, arms crossed and s
miling at her. Dressed in fitted jeans with a plaid button-down shirt, hair hanging down beyond his shoulders he almost looked like he belonged in these mountains. He didn’t say anything, only watched as Elizabeth played with the children. He always enjoyed watching her with the kids, she was a natural and the children were drawn to her.
Elizabeth had gotten lost in playing with the kids and currently was in a game of tag. She was massively outnumbered and greatly outmaneuvered by elven children who were shifters that were quick and agile. Finally, she fell to the ground looking up at the sky crying out with laughter, “I give. You win. You all win.” The children started jumping up and down cheering.
Her head rolled to the side and she could see the man who had changed her life so much still in the doorway watching her with a huge grin across his face. She looked back at the kids then a devious plot took form. Calling all the kids in close, they huddled around her. Every so often a kid would pop his head up and look over at Wesley. This continued until curiosity got the better of him and he walked over to them.
Suddenly he heard a loud shout, Now, and all the kids turned on him. He tried to escape but was quickly toppled from head to toe with children giggling and snickering. Elizabeth popped her head above the crowd piled on top of him, “Welcome to the game.”
Of course, he could do nothing but laugh as the kids wriggled and squirmed in the pile. To raise the excitement, he let out a low rumbling growl from deep within his chest and all the kids scattered. He hopped up laughing and took off chasing a few of the kids. Elizabeth chased some of the others and the ones who weren’t being chased decided to chase them. Everyone was running around in circles, laughing and having a good time.
Lady Doreen came to the door and stood watching two the young adults playing with the kids. Her heart was happy, and it showed on her face as it glowed. Her voice was soft but with the connection she had to all the elves in her house they could easily hear her speak, “Time to come in and get cleaned up for dinner.”
As each elven child heard her, they stopped playing and went inside. It looked like a line of ants marching in to complete their jobs. Elizabeth and Wesley rounded off the line and stood on the front step to speak to his mother. “Good evening,” Elizabeth spoke with a smile and slightly out of breath.
“Good evening, I’m so glad you could make it,” Lady Doreen said with a small smile and near emotionless expression. The elven woman was overjoyed that Elizabeth finally came over to their home. They had missed her greatly, even Sire Levi had mentioned the difference in the air when the young witch frequented their home.
Blushing, Elizabeth glanced to Wesley, “Yeah, sorry about that. I had a… a rough morning.”
Reaching out for Elizabeth, Lady Doreen pulling her by the shoulder then put her arm around her, “It’s okay. I knew you were stressed and got distracted.” Elizabeth turned to look at Wesley over her shoulder, he shook his head as if he knew she was asking whether he had told. “Oh dear, he didn’t tell me. I could see it. Remember I have a few gifts that help me out in that way. We have prepared a huge meal. We’re trying some new recipes we discovered while in Europe.”
“Sounds great,” Elizabeth said flatly. Her emotions were still not under control but much better than they were even two weeks ago. The mention of Europe seemed to bring to life the hurt she felt when they were absent, in the times she needed them most. The darkest times of her life but remembering that lately she had been feeling something new, an awakening of sorts. Maybe fate hadn't played such an evil trick on her after all.
As they entered the hall, Elizabeth glanced through the door of the library. It was empty due to mealtime being just moments away, but the sight of it was still beautiful and breathtaking. She could hear the kids coming back down the hall from the other direction, hands and faces washed, heading to the dining room.
Already in the dining room, the long formal table was nearly full. Wesley walked around and pulled out a chair for Elizabeth, then sat on her right next to his mother. Sire Levi stood and said a quick blessing that included a welcome back to Elizabeth, her face reddened. Traditionally, he had to serve the first dish and then everyone dug in, today was no different. Once Sire Levi served himself a slice of meat, he sat and leaned back in his chair. Each person helped themselves then passed the plate or bowl to the next person until everyone's plates were full.
Every person at the table was glad that Elizabeth was back with them. They all had grown to feel as if she was already a member of their family. The time they were away, left them with an empty spot in their hearts and being home, with her there, helped fill that void.
Dinner was delicious and everyone got their fill and went their ways. Elizabeth stood and started gathering the dishes to take to the kitchen, Wesley decided to follow suit. Lady Doreen watched carefully as the two young adults worked side by side silently, yet in unison. She turned to her husband and gave a knowing smile and small nod, he responded in kind.
The maid came out and quickly rushed to get the dishes from them, “Oh, no. I can do this.” She said.
Smiling at her, Elizabeth responded, “You have all these dishes to clear and clean. We can help.” The maid glanced at Sire Levi and Lady Doreen, both gave her an approving nod.
Turning to gather some herself, the maid replied, “Thank you.”
Once the table was clear the maid rushed them out of the kitchen refusing to allow them to help so they went to the library to talk to his parents. On the way there Wesley said casually, “You can’t avoid them forever.”
Elizabeth slapped at his arm, “I wasn’t trying to avoid them. I really felt bad for her. I never thought about it before but that is a lot of work to clean up behind all y’all.”
Wesley chuckled, “You do know we have more than one maid who does the cleaning, right?”
Cutting her eyes, Elizabeth replied, “Sure I did.” She had never seen but the one maid so in truth she didn’t realize it but now she felt quite foolish.
“It was a good gesture. It could teach the younger ones some kindness.”
CHAPTER 9
Elizabeth and Wesley sat across from his parents in the library. Sire Levi sat straight up and always looked official while Lady Doreen always glowed with elegance. Elizabeth felt very out of place with her jeans, t-shirt, and tennis shoes.
“I’m glad you were able to come to dinner,” Sire Levi spoke softly.
Blushing, Elizabeth replied, “Me too. It’s been quite a long-time sir.”
Lady Doreen looked at Wesley but spoke to Elizabeth, “I’m so sorry for the confusion of our actions. I thought the witches would have instructed you better. But now that things are cleared up, we’d like to offer a few things to you. With Wesley and you bonding and obviously working with magic together, we felt you needed to learn more about the elven history and traditions.”
“Oh. Well, thank you.”
Lady Doreen held a hand up to stop her, “We know Celeste taught you a great deal. We’ve gone over with her what you’ve learned and plan to expand on that. There,” she pointed to a pile of books sitting on the table next to Elizabeth, “is the best place to start. I’ve stacked them in the suggested reading order.”
Taken by surprise, Elizabeth could only respond by looking towards the stack of books. Reading the spines, she pulled one from the center earning her a smile from the Lady. The title of the book was simply, The Elven Life by Sire Eli Ruthers. Running her hand over the cover, Elizabeth could feel the raised letters and design that resembled the Pangea map on the floor in the foyer of the Roberts home. Slowly opening the cover, Elizabeth could smell the scent the paper and ink had soaked in over time. It was intoxicating and she was only that more eager to begin reading.
Closing the cover quickly, she looked up at Wesley’s parents. “Thank you. The more I can learn about both our people the better prepared I am for our… my future.” Elizabeth caught herself already talking of a future with them together but shouldn’t she since they now shared
the magical connection of their ancestors. With a quick glance to Wesley, her cheeks brightened, and she turned away.
Realizing what she said, Wesley quickly jumped to continue the thoughts, “Why don’t we go for a walk. The spring garden is coming together nicely, and I think you’d love it.” She nodded and they both stood.
Sire Levi and Lady Doreen stood at the same, “You two enjoy the gardens, we have some calls to make.” They excused themselves and left the two younger adults alone.
Elizabeth and Wesley walked through the home and out one of the many rear exits. As soon as they stepped outside, Elizabeth could see the many gardens taking shape. There were fruit trees randomly planted around the backyard and walkways that curved and twisted between them and the gardens making it quite easy to reach each plant in each section. The gardens here suddenly reminded her of the ones in her dream walks with her grandfather. Now she wondered if he’d been here and knew the elven family.
Even though the sun was beginning to set, the pollinators were busy at work and the blossoms seemed bright. As they walked around, Wesley described any plants Elizabeth was not familiar with. Since moving to her aunts home, she had learned a great deal about vegetables, herbs, and even fruits. She learned about the planting of seeds, to thinning out the plants, to defending them against invaders. But nothing was quite as rewarding as eating food you had grown and with as many elves who lived in the castle, she knew none of these would go to waste.
At the edge of the gardens facing over the side of the mountain, Wesley took in the glow from the sun as it set. “It's beautiful. Never gets old.”
“No, it doesn’t, and this view only makes it better,” Elizabeth replied as she stood by his side.
Awakening Fate (The Chronicles of Elizabeth Fairbairn Book 4) Page 4