While watching where she was going, Jade also kept glancing at Nic and Karl. They appeared fascinated.
"That’s why the woods are needed to hide the rift and keep people away. No one goes out that way. If you developed the area and people stepped through by accident? People would die. People would go missing. There’d be mass hysteria."
"But we went down a hole. If we just covered the hole, there wouldn’t be a problem," Nic asked.
"Um, well, no." Jade sighed in frustration. "Didn’t you hear me? It’s not just one hole. The cracks open up randomly all over the place. You can be walking along and just step through into another world. You might not even realize it at first. Actually, it happened to one of our friends. She walked through several dimensions without knowing it, and she brought creatures back into our world with her."
Wide-eyed, Karl appeared both enthralled and horrified.
"Don’t worry. It turned out fine. That time. Anyway, there are lots of these openings in a small area, and they move around." Jade bit down on her bottom lip. There was a dip in the ground, and she slowed down to navigate the steep slope with care.
"‘Turned out fine’?" Karl repeated, following her down the slope. His business suit wasn’t built for physical activity like this, and it wasn’t long before he gave up on appearances, shrugged off his suit jacket, and slung it over a shoulder. "You mean that you’d never been down that hole before? You didn’t know where it went?"
"Well, not really. Not when you put it like that." Jade reached the bottom of the slope and turned to check on the men who followed her.
She blushed. "I’ve never traveled between dimensions through holes before, but the man we saw in the woods? That was Autolycus, and I knew he was from this world; or at least, another dimension. I figured if it was safe for him to go down the hole it would be safe for us, too."
"So you’re fine with blindly leaping into a hole in the ground because you see someone else doing it." Karl didn’t sound impressed.
"You’re making it sound bad!"
Nic took her hand. "You worry me. You worry both of us." He glanced at Karl who nodded. "On the one hand you are fiery and brave, but on the other, you are just a little too fearless for your own good."
Jade clutched Nic’s hand, hesitant to let go. "I took a calculated risk," Jade said, defending herself, "and it paid off."
"You’ll get yourself killed one of these days if you keep taking risks like that. You need to learn how to be smart about what you put your faith in." As ever, Nic's voice was soothing as if she could melt into it.
"What would be the fun in that?" Jade walked on and guided them around a boulder.
"You’ll be a lot less likely to die that way." Karl reached out and took her free hand. Their palms met and their fingers wove together.
Jade stuck out her tongue. Now that they were over the initial rocky start, she was starting to think Karl wasn’t all that bad. Uptight? Yup. Too serious? Definitely. But maybe not so much the rotten bastard as Jade had initially written him as.
"Well, the most common side effect of life is death. So, if you think of it that way, then—"
"Watch out!" Nic called.
But it was too late. Jade's hands slipped from the men on either side of her.
She was knocked flat on her face by something heavy. Jade didn’t even have time to yelp in surprise. A huge weight crushed down on her back, pushing the air from her lungs. If it didn’t move soon, it would completely squash her. Jade started to panic. The thing was large, warm, and had Jade totally covered. She couldn’t see, and the way things were going, she wouldn’t be breathing for much longer, either.
"Holy shit! Go!" Karl roared, his voice loud and aggressive. He obviously hadn’t been knocked down and still had use of his lungs.
Whatever it was that weighed down on Jade moved, giving her a chance to breathe. She gulped for air, trying to fill her aching lungs, but then the thing returned and crushed her again. This time, Jade turned her head to find out what.
Dark fur blotted out the sky. Jade’s vision blurred, and she struggled to make it out. She saw Karl launch himself at whatever beast had her pinned down. The pressure eased. Jade drew in a ragged breath and scrambled forward. She wasn’t able to stand, but if she could only move, it might give her a better chance.
Finally, she saw it and promptly wished she hadn’t. The immense, giant monster with fur like a wiry forest and frighteningly large, sharp teeth must’ve been a cat. A giant cat. Jade knew cats. They were terrific hunters. She didn’t stand much of a chance.
She didn’t have time to think about her odds.
Karl had latched onto its leg—its paw had been crushing Jade into the ground—and was doing his best to keep the cat away from Jade. Jade watched, terrified, as the cat shook its paw. Karl swayed and clung tight, and Jade lurched forward as she rose to wobbling legs with Nic's help and she was glad of his support.
Nic held up a stick, which he jabbed at the cat in a most menacing fashion, but the scale of the man compared to the cat suggested a mere man was no match for this thing even armed with a baton.
A survival instinct gave her the boost she needed. Jade grabbed the back of Karl’s shirt. She tugged Karl free but didn’t have enough strength left to keep them both upright. They staggered backward and fell into a pile in the grass.
The cat screamed.
Jade was sure that if it were normal sized, it would’ve sounded like a simple meow, but when it was so huge, the sound took on a totally different meaning. What once would’ve been cute became terrifying instead. Jade scrambled backward, groping blindly to find Karl and Nic to make sure they were backing up, too.
The cat hissed at them. It bounded to the side to block their passage. Its tail flicked wildly back and forth, the shadow it cast plunging them in darkness for mere seconds before it passed and blinded them with light. Jade’s eyes ached. She squinted, trying in vain to regain her vision.
The cat leaped forward. It soared over their heads and landed with a thud, its back paws coming down only a few feet away. Its tail flicked aggressively.
"Here’s the plan," Jade whispered. She was too out of breath to speak any louder. "Run."
Already halfway to his feet, Karl reached for Jade’s hand. "I don’t like our chances," he whispered.
Jade grasped Karl’s hand and pulled herself up.
They were off. They sprinted through the grass. Karl dragged Jade along behind him, setting the pace. Nic was right alongside. If Jade’s lungs didn’t burst, it would be a miracle, and if the cat didn’t get them, that would be an even greater miracle.
The cat sprung around and pursued. The thump of its weight rattled the ground and shook Jade to the core. She struggled to keep pace with Karl, and it wasn’t long before their palms grew slick with sweat and Jade’s hand started to slip from Karl’s.
"Keep going!" Karl shouted.
"Come on!" Nic called.
But the burning in Jade’s lungs had turned into crippling nausea and shooting pain. The worst of it pierced her ribs and made her want to curl up into herself, and for a second, she was sure the cat had batted at them and had sunk its claws into Jade’s side.
"Keep going!" Karl shouted more desperately. His hand tightened, but it only served to squeeze Jade’s hand out of his grasp. Jade stumbled as their hands parted, and she fell to her hands and knees. The earth bit into her palms and scraped them, her knees faring little better.
"Jade!" Karl gasped.
The cat loomed over her. Jade saw its shadow long before she felt the warm puff of its breath. She squeezed her eyes shut. This was the end.
She should’ve listened to Lauren.
"Hunter!" A man’s voice boomed in the distance. "Hunter, come here!"
The death Jade expected never came. The warm puffs of breath heating her back ceased. Cool air flooded against Jade’s skin, chilling the fine sheen of sweat that’d soaked through her shirt and beaded on her forehead.
"Hun
ter, leave whatever you have found!"
Karl dropped to his knees in front of Jade and put a hand on Jade’s shoulder. Only then did Jade dare open her eyes. She looked up at Karl, utterly astounded that she was still alive.
"Hunter, leave and come here!" the voice commanded once again.
"It’s gone," Nic whispered in a voice which was considerably calmer than before as he slumped down beside Jade.
Jade collapsed. The last of her strength had fled now that the danger had passed. Nic looked shocked. Jade couldn’t speak but could only wonder at the giant cat called Hunter.
"It’s gone. We’re okay. There are trees in the distance. We should take shelter there, okay? It’s not a good idea to stay out in the field." Karl urged.
Jade barked a dry laugh that rattled in her chest. It hurt, and she winced. "Right. I forgot you’re an expert in other dimensional matters, now that you own the access land and all." Jade pushed herself up into a sitting position. She looked at her dirty, bloody palms. They felt tender.
"I’m no expert, but I think between the two of us, I have the most level head on my shoulders." Karl helped Jade to her feet.
Nic stood up too, and Jade leaned on him heavily.
"Until we’re rested, we’ll stay with something to our backs. Once you’ve got your wits about you again, we’ll head back through the door and go home, okay?"
"I…" Jade didn’t particularly want to tell them, but now they were in it together, they deserved to know. "I don’t think going home is going to be so simple."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that when I’ve been here before, I’ve always been the guest of some people who live here. It’s not so easy to just leave, I think." Jade looped an arm around Karl’s shoulders as they walked. "It might not be as simple as going back the way we came. The tunnel we slid down was so steep; I doubt if we could climb out of it."
"Then how did you get out before?" Karl asked.
"I have…never been here before, not here exactly, and I don't know how to get back," Jade swallowed the pooling saliva in her mouth. "There is a place where the rift between dimensions is worn down. I know without proper direction, you can get lost. Really, really badly lost. It might not go the way we want it to." Understatement of the century. Jade kept that thought to herself.
"And why the hell did you want to bring us here?" Karl demanded, furrowing his brow.
Jade frowned. "Because you wouldn’t listen when we told you that you needed to leave the woods alone."
Nic remained silent.
As they neared the tree, they saw it stood beside a huge lake. The sunlight glistened on the still water. It looked beautiful and inviting.
Without commenting on the water, Karl steered them to the tree. He helped Jade up onto a raised root, and she pressed her back against the thick bark. She closed her eyes as Karl and Nic settled in on either side of her.
"I want to chew you out for being irresponsible, but if I’m honest, I’d never have believed you otherwise." Karl sighed. "So, I’m sorry."
"I’m sorry, too. I promise it isn’t usually like this when I've passed across dimensions. I don’t have an experience of being attacked by giant cats or crawling through tiny doors."
"That's because you haven't been here before," a voice said from somewhere behind them.
Jade cracked open an eye and turned to look in the opposite direction to Karl, but all she could see was the back of Nic's head as he also looked away.
A man appeared from around the tree dressed in typical ancient Greek attire. Jade had seen plenty of people wearing similar white silk and cotton gowns when she'd passed through the dimensions before.
"I’d ask, is the problem that you’re here, or that you don’t know how to cope with the world you’ve been thrust into? Because there might be a difference."
"You’re the man from the forest." Karl’s eyes narrowed.
"Autolycus," Jade said.
"And you look very familiar." Autolycus leaned forward and squinted at Karl and then gave Nic the same scrutiny.
"You must be mistaken," Karl snapped, shaking his head. "I’ve never met you, and I've not been here before." Karl leaned over Jade’s lap. "But can you get us out of here?"
"No can do." Autolycus tilted his head to one side. "You come in; you go out. I don’t fit into that equation. But before you go, there's someone about these parts who wishes for an audience with you, Jade."
"Who?" Jade asked in surprise.
"Someone you know. You've met him before. And he's been very eager to meet with you again since the last time." Autolycus answered in the most annoyingly cryptic way possible.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Karl asked.
Autolycus peered closer at Karl. "A son of the god of fire, Hephaestus. Well, it's probably more relevant to mention him as the god of stone masonry and metalwork, in this precise instance."
"What are you talking about?" Jade asked.
"You know him as Philip." Autolycus pulled on the belt wrapped around his garment. "You must remember meeting him last summer. He certainly remembers you, and he talks about you every time I see him."
Jade closed her eyes again and rested her head against the bark. She'd met so many people when visiting Sparta and other dimensions accompanied by Lauren and her men. Of all the men, she remembered Philip, but she never imagined he'd remember her.
It had been a whirlwind relationship. She couldn't call it a romance, there wasn't any romance. They were two people who met and instantly clicked. It helped that Philip looked like he was in his twenties, not just his youthful face and fit body, but his clothes and the way he spoke were always contemporary, if a little strange.
His strangeness was part of the attraction.
Jade just knew he was a powerful and ancient god, an actual GOD, but it didn't make him act like an asshole.
He wore cosmetics, and sparkling nail polish and unisex androgynous clothing. He wasn't macho, but not exactly feminine either. He was unique, which was something Jade liked about him.
After an intense friendship, they'd kissed one afternoon. Like everything between them, it took Jade by surprise. They'd soon made contact with private places and made each other come with their hands while kissing.
For a long time after, Jade often smiled at the memory of a deity's jizz on her fingers, but she never saw him again. He was a god, and she was young, so she didn't get hung up on it. She never expected more.
"If we meet this Philip will he help us get back?" Nic asked. His soft voice sounded laced with apprehension.
"I suppose that depends on what you consider help." Autolycus scrunched his nose. "If anyone can help you on your journey, he can. Whether he will, I cannot say. Now, I’m very busy. Hermes is at odds with the gods and travel is about to become very difficult. I need to see to matters before it becomes impossible. I don’t have time to bring you anywhere, but when I find him, I will tell Philip he can find you here. I don't know where he is, but he's never far away."
"What about the giant cat?" Karl asked. "Will it find us first?"
"Ah. I called him off. Sorry about that. Hunter is here as a guard cat, and he does a good job of it."
Jade opened her eyes solely to shoot Autolycus a dirty look. "My chest hurts, I’ve probably got bruises all over my body, and my hands are sore and bloody. I haven’t dared check out my knees. I'll say he does a good job."
"Cat didn't get your tongue." Autolycus’ lips twisted with mischief. "But I digress. Philip will find you so you should wait here. Now, I will find him, and then I have someplace else to be." He took a few hurried steps back from the tree root. He winked. "Of course. It’s been a pleasure talking to you, Jade. I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for the time our paths cross again."
Then, with a skip in his step, he retreated among the trees.
"Can we trust him?" Karl asked once Autolycus was out of earshot.
"I don’t know. I have no reason to believe he'd lie. But we don’
t have much choice. I don't know the way out of here. I feel like a giant cat squashed me. And I'm sure Philip will help us."
Instantly, Nic stood up with a questioning expression on his face as he looked around. "I don't see where that dude has gone. Should we keep a watch out for someone approaching?"
Jade didn't have an answer. After the adventure and stress of getting this far, exhaustion suddenly overwhelmed her. "I gotta wash some of this disgusting dirt off my hands before we do anything else." She started to struggle to her feet.
Without answering, Karl nodded and slipped in beside Jade to help her to the water’s edge. They sat down by the still water. Jade braced herself for stinging cold pain, but the temperate water felt comforting on her sore hands. Karl washed his hands, too. Then Nic joined them.
They washed in silence but kept glancing at each other.
In these peaceful minutes, Jade reflected on the fact that these men had stuck with her since the Beaumont woods, through a perilous adventure until their hands were scratched and soiled with blood and dirt.
And, most important of all, Karl and Nic had bravely defended her against a monstrous beast. In conflict with what must be a natural human instinct to flee from danger. They'd put themselves at risk for her. They'd saved Jade’s life. There was far more depth to these men than most.
And still, every touch and every look that passed between them seemed to contain potent chemistry.
When Jade had washed most of the dirt and dried blood from her hands, she was ready to return to the tree where they could slump with their backs to safety.
Karl held out both hands and took hold of Jade’s. Instead of helping her to her feet, though, Karl examined Jade’s palms and gently ran his fingertips over the scratches. As always when Karl touched her, Jade felt tingling sparks of electricity play over her hands.
Nic put his arm around her waist offering to support her weight. In him, she detected a dependable strength. She was attracted to him too, but if a different way. They seemed opposite personalities.
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