by Jaymin Eve
I was just drifting off when droplets of icy water rained across my warm skin.
“Argh, what the hell?” I spun over, ready to retaliate.
The words died in my mouth, along with the saliva I needed to moisten my lips. Brace stood over me, shirtless and soaking wet.
“Enough lying around, Red,” he said.
And before I could reply, he scooped me up and ran at lightning speed into the freezing lake. I screamed as the water washed over me.
“Put me down, asshat.”
He grinned, looking good enough to eat. “As you command, Red.”
He dumped me straight into the deeper water. I came up spluttering before launching myself at him. He caught me easily, his muscular arms closing around my body, preventing further movement. I glared at him. It was about all I could manage.
“You have to admit, the water’s refreshing.” He kissed me on the lips, loosening his grip.
“Lucky you look so good in swim shorts,” I said, wrapping my legs around him.
We floated together for a while, not speaking, just enjoying the peace. And after the initial iciness, the water felt rejuvenating now. Eventually he broke the silence.
“So I was thinking that everyone deserves a few days away, some time where there aren’t a thousand Walkers following you girls around.”
Despite the fact the gathering wasn’t official for another week, Walkers arrived every day. And most of them were a tad curious about us half-Walkers. Fury, Talina and I spent a lot of time avoiding large groups and ignoring blatant stares.
“Josian suggested we all take a few days at the cave planet.” He grinned down at me again.
I was pretty excited at the thought of quality time with Brace. It was pessimistic of me, but I had a terrible feeling that our happy moments were coming to an end. I was going to cherish every single one I could get.
“Let’s go tell everyone,” I said, removing myself from Brace and dashing out of the water.
Two hours later Brace opened a doorway. Talina, Fury, Dune, Lucy and Colton were waiting to step through. We didn’t have any luggage. Josian had assured us everything we needed would be there.
“Where’s your sister, Colt?” I hadn’t seen the prickly Walker for days.
I wasn’t complaining. It would not have been a relaxing time if she were present. And I had avoided her ever since Brace told me that they briefly dated for ten years. Yes, he had said briefly. And despite the fact this was over two hundred years previously, it still had my temper as fiery as my hair.
“Catching up with old friends, ignoring me and playing her usual games.” He shrugged. “My sister is a complicated woman.”
“You mean she’s a bitch.” Lucy snorted.
He shrugged again. “Yeah, that too.”
Colton was nothing if not brutally honest.
“Word,” Lucy concurred.
Moving through the doorway was easy; Dune and Lucy were the only ones who needed assistance. We arrived on the other side into the large stone kitchen.
“So what do we do first?” Lucy bounced around.
We’d never had a holiday. Even if this one was to be only a few days’ escape, it was very exciting. My stomach chose that moment to grumble loudly.
Lucy laughed. “So that’s one vote for lunch. Anyone other than Abby’s stomach have a preference?”
“Don’t act like you’re not hungry,” I replied.
Brace was already moving. He opened the hinged door in the stone wall and inside the hole was a pile of wood. With a quick blast he had the flames roaring. It would take a while for the oven to heat. Which gave us enough time for one of my favorite meals.
“Are make-your-own pizzas okay with everyone?” I asked.
The enthusiastic nods said it all.
I walked over to the cold room. Josian had explained how it worked: something to do with cool water surrounding the stone creating an icy interior. The cave fairies had been and there was enough food inside the cold room to last us a month. While I gathered meat, sauces, vegetables and cheese, and set them out into little bowls, Lucy found the dry ingredients in the pantry.
“Since Mom isn’t here to help those of us cooking-disabled, we’re going to have to wing it and see how we go.” I was sorting ingredients and finding bowls, rollers and knives as I spoke.
“Something tells me we’re going to need Lallielle; I have a burnt thumb.” Lucy grimaced.
I laughed. “What do you mean?”
“Everything I try and cook ends up burnt,” she said.
“Imagine how I feel,” Fury said. “I literally have a burning thumb.”
“I think you missed my point, but that’s okay.” Lucy waved her hand. “So let’s get this party started. I’m hungry.”
Of course she was.
By the time we’d made and rolled our bases we were all covered in flour. But it had been fun, like having a big happy family. I actually couldn’t keep the smile off my face. I looked up to find Brace staring at me.
“What?” I said, rubbing a hand over myself. “Am I completely covered?”
He grabbed my hand. “You look beautiful, Red.”
He brushed his finger tips along my cheek, before shaking his head, the slightest grin crossing his face.
“What?” I said.
“You never knew me when I lived in the Abernath compound, but I was a different man then, not one that you would have liked and ... the reality is I’ve been trained as a warrior my entire life. I’ve seen some terrible shi ... things, done terrible things. But you ... you’ve given me something no one else could ever have done.”
“What?” I said again, my voice breathless.
“Peace,” he finally said. “For the first time in my long life I’m happy.”
“I wish the other Abernaths could hear this little speech,” Colton whispered. “Most of them are so afraid of Brace that when he enters the room they scream, piss themselves and run like little bitches.” He chuckled. “Now they’ll probably get him some flowers and hope he’ll be their poetry buddy.”
Brace never shifted his gaze from me, but his arm shot out, gripping Colton around the throat and launching him straight into the wall. He hit with a crash, before pulling himself up to stand. His grin never wavered.
“No need to get all hissy, peace-boy. Shouldn’t you be calm and meditative?”
“You don’t want me to step over there, Colt. Remember what happened in the Arcoia era.”
Colton’s ivory features went ghost white and a grimace spread across his face.
“You’re a sick man to bring that up. And on a side and completely unrelated note, you’re a dangerous Walker and can kick my ass any day.”
“Much better,” Brace said.
I had to smile at their fighting. It resembled that of close brothers who knew each other well and had a long and probably chequered history. Brace had told me recently that one of the hardest parts of being stationed on First World was the isolation from his friend; it was good for them to be reunited.
We finished making our pizzas and laid them out in the oven. They would take some time to cook, so we moved into the sitting room. Josian had this little black box in there. It held thousands of movies and with a simple remote device we could flick through and choose one. And then it would play on the huge television. Josian really enjoyed the technology he’d taken from each planet, mostly Earth, to deck out this cave.
We spent the rest of our first day eating, sleeping and watching movies. It was a fun. Fury was slowly starting to warm up to us. She had a wicked but understated sense of humor. It was amusing trying to guess if she was serious or joking. And adding in the language differences between all of our planets; we had some very interesting conversations.
Dune got along great with the other two men. I felt somewhere deep down that all of us had been designed to fit together as parts of a whole. It was pretty crazy, but somehow the seven half-Walkers were a single unit and I think our mates were as
well.
Of course that left Lucy and Colton, but they fit in there somehow. Especially Lucy. She was a soothsayer, and since they apparently didn’t exist on Earth, I was starting to think she was a First Worlder who had also been stashed on Earth. Of course I hadn’t shared this theory yet, but it was playing on my mind. All of us were parts of a puzzle. I kept trying to put it all together, but since I was missing so many pieces I couldn’t see the bigger picture.
It was late when we retired for the night. My heart started to race at the thought of being alone with Brace. We would finally have some privacy. The past few weeks we’d been in a tent next to my parents. Not exactly a romantic setting. I’d been tempted many times to trace us to my snow cabin, but because Brace was often called during the night to fix things, stop arguments and assist Josian with his million jobs, we couldn’t leave. But tonight he was all mine.
I’d stopped off in the clothes room and found a sleep shirt and shorts, although I doubted I was going to need them. We stepped into the bedroom, which held nothing more than a huge mattress stretched out over a stone slab. Mountains of pillows and a huge fluffy comforter topped it off. It would feel like heaven. My parents always had the softest fabrics.
And speaking of heaven ... Brace spun me around, pulling me into his arms. I lifted my face, expecting his kisses, but he held back slightly.
“The way you respond to me drives me insane.” His words started their job of seducing me.
And his lips finished it.
The next morning I woke slowly, stretching my body in a slow, leisurely arch. The silky soft sheets caressed my naked body, reminding me of the various events of the night.
One would think that after all of that I’d be too tired or sore for any more action. But the truth was I couldn’t get enough. The things Brace did, the way he made me feel, the chance to be as close to him a physically possible. I was lucky I could ever tear myself away. I glanced over to where he slept. He had one arm thrown across me, keeping me close. His features were relaxed, but somehow still hard. I knew that if he sensed danger he would be up and moving before I even realized it was there. I wanted to trace my finger tips along the perfect planes of his face, the full lips that almost didn’t fit into his masculine features but he somehow pulled them off. But I didn’t. He so rarely slept uninterrupted.
“I can feel you staring, little Red.”
Okay, apparently not asleep.
“Conceited much. I have better things to do than stare at you all morning.”
He opened his eyes then, the inky black lashes sweeping up like a curtain to reveal the chocolate goodness beneath. I wasn’t one to admit it, but when he looked at me like he was right now, I almost cried. His eyes were warm as they caressed my face, like the messy-hair tousled look was the most amazing thing he’d seen in all his years. He reached up a hand, tangling it in the hair at the nape of my neck, and pulled me down for a gentle kiss.
“I have lived over half a millennium without you. How can you question that I don’t know you’re the most perfect beauty in every world?”
“I’m just one person, Brace. Nothing special here. I just get up every day and do the best job I can.”
He laughed. “Well, actually my half-Walker conduit, you are special. But, more importantly, you don’t have to be every person’s most perfect beauty, the reason they get out of bed each morning and don’t destroy the worlds every night. You only have to be mine. To have just one person in the worlds who loves you as much as I do ... well, that’s enough, isn’t it?”
Damn, Brace was too freaking smart. He saw so much more than I did.
“And in reality, Red, you have a lot of people who love you almost as much as I do, so you must be doing something right.”
I threw myself all over his naked chest. “I love you like that, Brace. Thankfully I have a Walker heart. I think a human one would explode from this much emotion.” I pulled back to see his face. “You’ll have to put up with my immature insecurities for a while. I’ve got a few years to go to catch up with you.”
“Baby, it’s not time’s job to rid you of your insecurities. It’s mine. If a man loves his woman right, protects her, provides for her and cherishes every single facet of her complex personality, then there will be no need for insecurities.”
A soft smile spread across my face. “Now I understand why women date older men. You’re so wise.”
And suddenly we were very busy again.
Later that morning, after a leisurely rinse-off in the warm springs, I was dressed and searching for the others. I’d found a few more vintage tees that Josian had dug up for us. Considering how much he hated Earth, it must have been a sacrifice sifting through its clutter for our shirts. My dad was one of the good ones. I’d left Brace in the kitchen preparing food for breakfast. Lucky for me the boy could cook, because I didn’t have a clue. On Earth we’d been more into throwing knives than using them for dicing food.
The caves seemed so quiet. The last time I’d explored this place there had been so many Walkers filling it up.
Suddenly the golden cord that I now recognized as part of my conduit powers tugged at me, urging me to carry on along the corridor I was in.
Now, normally I would hesitate to follow directions from a golden cord, but for some reason a curiosity overtook me. I continued until I reached the garden. The urge persisted so I stepped out onto the soft dirt, careful not to crush any of the smaller delicate plants. Something powerful was on the other side. I don’t know how I knew that, but I did. I could feel the warm glow beckoning me, drawing me closer.
Once I was through the garden I noticed a small alcove hidden to one side. It was emitting a glow, subtle but alluring, and was definitely the source of the power. I slid my way along the rock wall, my soft steps slowing as I neared the opening. What the hell did Josian have hidden back here? I peered around the corner.
“Abby!” I jumped ten feet in the air as Lucy screeched in my ear. “What you doing sneaking around?”
I held one hand over my chest to stop my heart beating out of its cavity. Lucy, wearing a Mario Brothers’ vintage tee, was standing at my side.
“Could you give a girl some notice before you try to scare her to death?” I turned back to the alcove. “There’s something hidden here.”
She grabbed my hand. “What is it?”
“I don’t know yet.” I peered around the corner again, and what I saw brought a shocked gasp to my lips.
I yanked Lucy into the opening, both of us dumfounded by the vision before us.
“Are you seeing what I am, Abbs?”
“It’s a freaking fairy land,” I finally gasped out.
A miniature world was spread out before us, complete with forests, thousands of fragile little plants, a stream and tiny houses built into the hills and grassy land. And the inhabitants were peering up at us, their huge eyes watchful as they waited for us to move. Finally, the most delicate of all that I had seen stepped forward. She looked female, long wispy hair falling around her face, and a light cloth covered her body. Her head was large, disproportionate for her tiny frame. I couldn’t see any wings, but otherwise she looked like the epitome of a miniature fairy.
“Aribella?” Her delicate voice rang out, breaking our stunned silence.
I dropped to my knees, bringing my face closer to where she stood.
“How do you know my name?”
She danced closer to me and, as if sensing safety, the rest of the inhabitants followed.
“Josian speaks of you often,” she trilled. “Did we not stock enough food for you?”
So apparently it was cave fairies who had stocked the place.
Lucy and I walked back to the kitchen in silence. I wasn’t sure about her, but I felt like a little kid discovering fairy tales were real. Everyone turned as we stepped into the lit room. They were sitting around the table eating plates piled high with eggs and smoked meat.
“Where have you two been?” Talina asked. “Usually we
have to fight you off to get any food.”
“We were just in fairy land,” Lucy practically screeched. “Like tinka-bell, fairy godmother, grant-me-a-wish miniature land. They sounded like bells, freaking bells and tiny prancing feet.”
“Is this an Earth thing?” Colton side-whispered. “What are they talking about?”
Brace leveled his gaze on me. “You found the lalunas?”
I shook my head. “Lalunas are stones. These were tiny little people.”
“You know the lalunas are their own worlds? That’s what happens when one is broken.”
Colton launched to his feet. “No gods damn way. Josian has a functioning laluna world?”
Brace nodded. “Yes, they’ve been with him since the beginning of time. They chose to break free of their walls.”
“So, let me get this straight: that blue stone that follows Abbs everywhere has fairies inside?” Lucy crinkled her brow. “How do they fit?”
Brace tilted his head, his smile broadening. “More like the essence of ... fairies, as you call them. Once the stone is destroyed the power it contains will manifest into the laluna people and their world. You must be careful of them. They are ancient, powerful and dangerous. Josian is the only one they care for or are loyal to.”
“So if my laluna exploded –?” I started.
“You would be the only one to control them. You’re their bonded guide.”
“If they break free without a guide?” I watched him closely.
His eyes darkened. “You must hope that never happens. They are beyond our ability to contain, and they have no clear emotions or control without the help of a guide.”
Lucy sighed. “They seemed so cute and sweet.”
Brace nodded. “They have spent many years with Josian. He has tamed them somewhat. But never accept gifts or advice from them. You don’t want to owe them. Always seek Josian’s help if you need them for anything.”
“What can they do?” Dune asked.