“Not now Calissa.” He suddenly sounds serious and it makes my smile drop. I scowl at the back of his head. I avoid Tessa's watchful eye as I continue to follow the two leading incubi.
The next four hours are pretty boring and uneventful. Tessa and I have countless chit chat and we discuss mediocre things like university and her wanting a cat to go with her witchy image. That made me laugh but apart from that, we walk silently behind Jaxon and Edward who I am positive haven't said a thing to each other.
After the fifth hour, my legs are killing me and I seriously need a Lucozade or something. Suddenly glad that mum shoved some small bottles into my pockets, I pull Tessa and I a bottle each from my jacket and I stop walking and sit on the floor, Tessa sits with me.
“Should we let them know we have stopped?” She asks.
“Nah, let them figure it out on their own.” I open my drink and practically finish the orange flavoured stuff in one gulp. Tessa sensibly sips hers and I wish I did the same considering I need to do an enormous burp now. I try to hold it in but it starts to ache my chest. Oh screw it. I let it out and it echoes loudly through the tunnels. Jaxon halts to a stop and spins around. I start silently giggling and bury my face in my hands. I turn my face so only Tessa can see me. She is gaping at me as if she has never heard me burp before. She has. Believe me. Oh and for the record, she is worse.
“Was that a burp?” Jaxon asks and oh noooo! He sounds close to me. He has walked back to us.
“Yep.” Thanks Tess.
“Was that Cally?” Oh the butterflies when he says my name.
“Yep.” Again, thanks Tessa. Bitch. I duck my head down in between my legs and wrap my arms around the top of my head. I am still laughing too. I think I am too embarrassed to be able to stop.
“Titch? You wrongen! You out burped me.” He sounds like he is smiling? I raise my head slightly to look at him and he is grinning from ear to ear and shaking his head.
“Why have we stopped? You girls can't be tired already?” Edward's voice breaks me from my embarrassed state and removes the laughter from my body. “What's wrong with the angel?”
“She is embarrassed because she just burped and it echoed down the entire cavern.” Tessa says in a small giggle.
“That was her? I thought there was a troll in here with us or something.” Oh kill me now please.
“Yeah. It was one to be proud of for sure.” Tessa laughs. Jaxon chuckles too and it makes my heart skip.
“Wow.” Edward says curtly. I take a deep breath and slowly raise my head fully out of my legs and I harshly rub my face in a downward motion. All three of them are staring at me in amusement. I pout and then bite my bottom lip. “So, I suppose we should rest here for a few hours then.” Edward says.
“Up to you, Sir.” Tessa says. Sir? Really Tess? This is Edward we are talking to.
“Well, we might as well. It's been a long day and a few hours rest and sleep will do us some good.” He drops the black bag on the floor and sits down beside me. I think I hear Jaxon growl. He plops himself down opposite me since there is no other sides of me where he can sit since Tessa is sat beside me too.
“Sooo, are we gonna sleep on this hard horrible floor? Or have you got a house stuffed into that bag of yours.” I ask Edward, finally having the courage to speak. He laughs and unzips the bag. He pulls out two roll out camping mattresses and two sleeping bags and tosses them over to me. “There are only two?”
“Jaxon and I don't require a lot of sleep due to being what we are. An hour a day, give or take will keep us going.” I look at Jaxon as if this is news to me. Well it is in a way. I knew he rarely slept but an hour a day? I can barely focus on less that five. Is that because I am female?
“As you get older, you won't need to sleep as much. Succuba are the exact same. Give it a few years and you won't need to sleep just like we don't. Also, the more lives you drain, the less you will sleep too.” Edward smiles at me. I don't want to know how many lives he has taken and I most definitely don't want to know the number of people Jaxon has killed. I look over at Edward with a frown on my face. “I will keep look out on this end, Jaxon you watch the girls while they sleep.” Edward gets up and sits about twenty metres away from us facing down the tunnel that we are heading. I look at Tessa who is already inside her sleeping bag and sprawled out on top of the crappy little mattress.
“What the hell Tess?” I laugh. “Tired are we?” She laughs and pulls the sleeping bag up to her nose.
“Kind of. This sleeping bag smells of perfume.” She scrunches up her nose.
“It was Caroline's one.” Jaxon says. Bless him, he has my bed all made up for me. I smile kindly at him and he gives me a stiff smile in return. Oh so it is going to be like that now is it? I don't think so.
I look to see if anyone is watching. “Tess, pretend to be sleeping please. I am shutting you out for a sec.” I think over to Tessa who turns her back to me. “Thank you.” I think again. Then I use everything I have to put a wall around my mind so she can't get in. “Tessa, if you can hear me. Make a noise.” Nothing. Sweet.
I look over at Jaxon who is unzipping the sleeping bag and opening it up for me. I bow my head down slightly and look at him through my lashes. I lean forward and crawl (what I hope is) seductively, ignoring the pain from my bad wrist. Jaxon's eyes fix on mine as I make my way over to him and stop in between his legs.
I place my still gloved hands on his knees and give him a lopsided grin. He doesn't smile back. He gulps instead. I crawl closer to him and then slowly lean and step over him, slowly, until I am laying on top of my make shift bed. I fold my arms underneath my head and look at him again. His green eyes have darkened into the misty grey I remember seeing before and he has a serious look on his face. Oh, maybe I shouldn't have done that.
He leans down so that he is level with my face. “You are going to get one of us killed. Stop it Calissa.” He snarls. He actually snarls at me. I narrow my eyes at him and my top lip curls up.
“No. You and I both know we cannot stop this now we have started Jaxon. Besides, it was you that said you loved me. You can't just unlove someone that quickly.” I whisper-hiss at him. He closes his eyes tight and pushes away from me.
“I know. I wish I could be what you need Titch. I really do.” He says a solemnly.
“You are what I need Jaxon.” I croak. He looks at me for a moment and doesn't say anything. It is like he is trying to see through my eyes into my soul. Well he can have my soul if it means I can have him.
“Don't tell me that.” He whispers.
“Don't tell me what to do you big oaf.” I frown at him and a hint of a smile plays at his lips.
“Or what.” Oh he is challenging me now.
“Don't test me.” He shakes his head and turns away from me. “I am going to sleep. Wake me up if something happens.” I sigh and turn over so my back is to him. I hate that he won't give this a chance. I hate that he is running scared because there is a possibility that our powers actually do work on each other. I hate that I am hurting because of him. Right now, I hate him yet I don't because I love him too. I hate that this sleeping bag smells of him. I feel his hand stroke my hair and instead of snapping at him for petting me like a dog, I enjoy it and eventually fall asleep.
I am woken up by gentle shoving on my shoulder. I open my eyes and see Edward standing over me. He was nudging me with his foot? What the hell?! I frown at him and sit up.
“We have to move now girls.” He says and walks off. I yawn and search the cavern for Jaxon who is nowhere to be seen. “Pack up now girls, come on.” I wriggle out of the sleeping bag and fold it away before shoving mine and Tessa's sleeping gear in the bag. Edward takes the bag and starts walking down the cave. Tessa and I, still half asleep, follow groggily. I am so grateful to have another Lucozade because the extra energy will help me right now. I split the last bottle with Tessa who silently thanks me and we walk on.
Six hours. We walk for six hours. We stop once for a toilet break
when we hit an underground stream and I made Edward go ahead without us so Tessa and I could pee. We manage to catch up with him quickly though. Still no sign of Jaxon. I ask Edward where he is and his reply is a blunt “He went ahead.”
Oh that tells me a lot mate. I sulk the rest of the way and not even in the mood to giggle with Tessa who is rambling on about when her ex-boyfriend Mike fell down a well on their first date and was stuck there for two hours and when he was pulled out he was covered in horse crap from the farm near by. Yes, funny story but I don't laugh. I don't even smile. I am pissed off and upset and my heart aches and I wish I could lock my powers away and be happy with Jaxon but I know that I can't. Without Lorraine.
My stomach rumbles and Tessa looks at me in horror. I am a right bitch when I am hungry. Everyone I know, knows that. Oh what I would do for one of my smoothies right now. Or a pizza. Mmm. Pizza. Oh great, now I sound like Homer Simpson.
Without stopping, Edward chucks Tessa and I a Mars bar each over his shoulder which I miraculously catch without hesitation. My reflexes are getting better. Go me. I wolf down the chocolate and regret it because like all girls, I crave more.
Ten more minutes pass and again, my legs ache so bad. I want to sit down. I want to have a hot bubble bath. Damn mission. If it wasn't Caroline or my life in danger, then I wouldn't have bothered. I would have sent someone else. Edward stops abruptly and turns to us with his finger to his mouth in a shushing gesture.
“We are here.” He whispers. My heart thumps in my chest and we tip-toe over to the end of the tunnel. Dim light fills the room on the end.
Where the hell is Jaxon?
Edward leads us through and I come to a halt when I see what is ahead. A type of camp or something, filled with sleeping people? No, I feel like I am in a Disney film now because these are merpeople.
TWENTY-SIX
Passing through the camp is easier than I thought it would be. Edward was right about them being heavy sleepers. Tessa sneezed and none of them stirred an inch. I wish dad could sleep that heavily, I wouldn't have been caught sneaking out so much otherwise.
He would always ground me for a week or two and then let me out after two days because I drove him clinically insane with my loud rock music and constant whining about being bored. In the end he would just be like “go out Calissa! You are driving me nuts!” Always worked like a charm. Best thing I used to do during punishments were, if dad confiscated my phone, I would take out the Sim card and put it in an older phone I have stashed around my room somewhere. I would obviously keep it on silent and hidden from dad, but Tessa and I would always have had a means of contact. Now I suppose, we don't need one. She lives with me.
The creatures here are actually beautiful to look at. Each of them have a vibrant colour for their hair. Not a blonde, brunette or black haired person in sight. Pinks, purples, blues, greens, orange, yellows... the list goes on. The only thing that does freak me out is the fact that they have gills on the side of their necks and spikes on their arms. Their hands are webbed too. They are all sleeping on the floor too. I thought merpeople had to be in water all the time. Guess not.
We make our way through a glass tunnel which makes me feel weak at the knees considering there is nothing but water on the other side of the glass. Tiny fish swim passed us and it makes me jump.
We pass through three more camps before we come to a huge rocky building. I am going to take a wild guess and say that this is the castle we are meant to be going to.
“The dungeon where Caroline will be kept is in the far left of the building. There is a window you can enter through. I cannot go any further little angel. They'll recognise me here. Don't worry though, the entire Kingdom will be sleeping right now so you should be okay, if someone sees you, Tessa, put them to sleep before they sound the alarm. I know you can do that, all witches can. Be fast. Jaxon will be there waiting for you for further instructions.” He places a hand on my shoulder in a fatherly manner. “Good luck girls.” He smiles and walks back to the tunnels.
Oh great, now we are on our own. The same panic I feel is all over Tessa's face when I glance at her. She takes my hand and we silently make our way to the castle.
Edward was correct about there not being anyone around. The place is quiet and creepy as we pass through. Too quiet. Something isn't right. I suddenly feel nervous and am glad I haven't taken the shield down on my mind so Tessa doesn't note how scared I am.
We get to the far left of the castle like Edward instructed and we come to a window. A large window. Big enough to be a door. I am guessing this is where we are entering. The window is about six feet up the wall. I hold my arm out for Tessa and she holds onto my hand. I pull her into me and then when I am sure she is secure, I jump and land inside the ledge of the window. I hop down inside and look around as I release Tessa. I heave.
There is blood everywhere. The smell in here is rancid and smells of burning bodies. Oh Lord, what have I walked into? Tessa gags too and covers her nose and mouth with her hands.
We walk through the bloody room and see Jaxon just outside leaning against a wall casually. He sees us and gives us a grin. “Took your time.”
“Not everyone can survive on an hours sleep dickweed.” I say harshly. He chuckles. I ignore him and walk passed him. “Where are we going now?”
“I think Caroline is in one of these dungeons, I can smell her. Just unsure which one. There are two guards on duty. Don't be alarmed by their looks either. They are demons like you and I but just can't hide behind a human physique like we can.” Hide behind a human physique? What the heck does that mean? I don't have a chance to ask because Jaxon grabs my bad wrist, and yanks me back into the rotten smelling room. Yes, tears prick in my eyes. It frigging hurts!!! He raises a finger to his lips to shush me and looks through the doorway to see if the coast is clear. His hand is still wrapped around my wrist, squeezing to the point of my hand turning purple and I open my mind to Tessa. “HE IS HURTING MY WRIST!!” I think-cry at her. She jumps at the sudden intrusion in her mind and then looks down at his hand. “He doesn't care! I don't think this is Jaxon!”
“Jaxon.” She whispers. “Let go of Cally. Now.” She tries to pry his fingers away but it is no use. I have no choice, the pain is making me sick as well as the smell of the room. I raise my good hand and using my teeth, I pull my glove off. I raise my hand to face him. I send a very small spark from my hand to his face and he flinches, releasing my wrist instantly. Surprised that worked actually.
“What the fuck Calissa?!” He snaps at me in a hushed tone. Tears running down my face, I use my good hand to raise the sleeve of my jacket exposing the now bruised flesh over my still broken wrist. His eyes lower to it then they flick between my tears and the bruises. When he catches on, he closes his eyes in shame. “I am so sorry Calissa. I didn't think. I thought you two were going to make a break for it and leave me if I let go. I- ah shit- Titch, I am so sorry.” He called me Titch. It is Jaxon. Thank God for that. I can't handle a Crillin encounter right now. He pulls me to him and holds me tightly against his chest.
We wait in the hidden room until the pain subsides a bit. When it does, I look back at Jaxon who looks so guilty he looks as if he is going to cry. “You okay?” He husks out, I nod, unable to talk yet and he gives me a sad smile, leans down and kisses my cheek.
Yeah and so you should feel guilty you over grown sexy man-beast! Tessa snorts and turns away.
“Um, Jaxon, why does it smell so bad in here?”
“This is the room where the tortured dead get burnt.” He states shockingly calmly.
“That doesn't bother you?” Tessa asks, her face scrunching up.
“Of course it does.” He clarifies. “I am just used to it I'm afraid.” He bites the inside of his cheek and turns to the doorway again. “Okay, coast is clear. Let's go.” He creeps out and we follow him. We check the first three dungeons and see that they are empty.
Tessa goes across the corridor to check another three out, I go ahead to chec
k more down this side and Jaxon goes further up on Tessa's side.
The four I check are empty, except for one. A man covered in so much hair he could be a gorilla for all I know, is laying on a blanket on the floor wearing nothing but a pair of boxer shorts and socks. He is laying on his front with his back to me so I can't see his face, but from the back of him, he looks tall and muscular. His skin is so pale; it is translucent.
I hear something that sounds like keys coming this way and I turn away from the door. Tessa looks at me with panic and runs over to me before we sneak into the closest dungeon. I catch a glimpse of Jaxon do the same to one he is closest to. We duck down under the barred top half of the doors so that the guard doesn't see us.
When the sound of keys and footsteps pass us, I let out a sigh of relief and turn around to take in the dungeon. Oh shit on a stick.
We came into the hairy man's dungeon. He is awake. He is looking right at us. With his bright yellow eyes.
“Mike.” Tessa gasps. Yeah, Tessa's ex boyfriend.
“Tessa?” He croaks out as he rubs his eyes with his dirty hands. He looks at me and blinks a few times before looking back at Tessa with his head cocked to the side. His eyes are no longer yellow, they are blue. “Who is that? Why are you here? How are you here?” He pulls his knees up to his chest.
“Mike, this is Cally, you know that. The why and how we are here don't matter right now. Why are you here?” Tessa hasn't moved from where her back is flattened against the door.
“I was captured because I bit what I didn't know was an elf. Stupid cretin brought me here two days ago. I haven't yet been seen to, or fed. The guard, the blue haired one, he snuck me in some water last night and again this morning but he isn't on shift yet today.”
“When you say bit, you mean?”
“I bit him. Cally, this is going to be hard to hear but I am not exactly human.”
Demonic Angel (A Touch Of Magic) Page 19