Forged by Greed

  “Uncle Tyrrell!” Jatred yelled, running through the house. “Uncle!”

  A tall muscular man walked out of the den, his eyebrows raised.

  “Where is the fire? And where have you been, son?” His low, booming voice had a soothing quality. “If the mind-communication worked at a distance, we wouldn’t have to worry about the cell phone rule.”

  “I think I lost my phone. I… I… something weird is going on, I can’t remember. But I know something strange happened,” Jatred said in a hurry, stuffing his keys into his pocket.

  His uncle regarded him in silence and, after a few seconds, inclined his head in the direction of the den. “I found your phone on the floor. It must’ve slid out of your pocket, when you were leaving this afternoon.”

  “Oh, man.” Jatred sighed, relieved.

  Tyrrell picked the cell phone from his desk and handed it to Jatred.

  “You’re lucky I found it. The new one would’ve come out of your allowance.”

  Jatred tried to turn the phone on, but the screen remained blank. “Battery’s dead,” he murmured, plugging it in to recharge. After a moment he added, “Weird, it’s not charging. Nothing.”

  Tyrrell took the phone in his large hands, unplugged and plugged it back. “Hmm. That’s a new cell phone. Let’s hope you still have the warranty. We’ll swing by the store tomorrow, so they can test it.”

  “Okay.” Jatred shrugged.

  “Anyway, tell me what’s going on.” Tyrrell sat down in a chocolate-brown leather chair, interlacing his fingers in an inverted “V”. His tightly-curled black hair was cropped close to his scalp. A pale-green t-shirt stretched over his massive chest. Large muscles in his arms bulged under his dark skin. His whole body was a product of years of strenuous and rigorous exercise. The man was in his late forties, but only a few wrinkles attested to his age. His thoughtful eyes concentrated on the Jatred’s face.

  Jatred lowered himself onto a recliner, positioned in the opposite corner of the den. He said in a raspy voice, “Something happened to me. I kind of remember fighting one of Crystal’s Garhanans—”

  “What?!” His uncle leaned forward. “How did that happen?”

  “The Amulet. I don’t know, but there was something about it.” Jatred took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. “I think I had it with me. And then somehow I ended up with Crystal and that Garhanan.”

  “Impossible. You couldn’t have had the Amulet. But wait, the Goddess actually summoned you? I want to hear more about the fight with the Garhanan. Is that how you got the scratches on your cheek?”

  “I’m fine. I’m almost healed.” Jatred ran his hand over his cheek. “But I’m having a hard time remembering what happened today. It’s like small pieces of information are spinning in my mind, and I’m trying to puzzle them together.”

  Tyrrell stood up and slowly walked to the window. He crossed his arms and stuffed his hands in his armpits. He stood there silently for a while, looking at the softly illuminated garden. When he turned back, his eyes emanated warmth and parental concern. Tyrrell had raised Jatred since he lost his parents in a plane crash ten years ago. Despite Jatred calling him ‘Uncle’, he loved and cared for him like he would for his own son.

  “Do you remember what happened to the Garhanan?” Tyrrell asked.

  “No.”

  “The Garhanans are vicious creatures. They won’t stop until the task assigned by the Goddess is complete. I wonder what that task was.” Tyrrell walked back to his chair.

  “I just remember a lot of snow, like it always is in the Winter Realm. There was a clearing in the woods, and that’s where the Garhanan attacked me.”

  “Were you alone?”

  “No, Crystal was watching. And my friends were there. They kept a distance, but I think they wanted to help.” Jatred tried to smile, but he only managed a little grimace.

  “I hope they knew it wouldn’t be wise to interfere. Especially in the Goddess’s presence.” Tyrrell shook his head. “What else do you remember? Try to concentrate on the Garhanan, and not on how it looked but on its behavior.”

  “It was violent and didn’t hold back. It definitely wanted to kill me.”

  “This doesn’t make much sense.” Tyrrell rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Why would Crystal expose you to such danger? You’re the Winter Prince after all; the only one left from the immediate Royal family.”

  “I don’t know. I wish I could remember. It’s like a part of my brain got erased. ” Jatred squeezed his eyes shut and slowly rubbed his forehead against his fist.

  “You said something about the Amulet. I hope you didn’t take it from the vault?” Tyrrell’s black eyes shone with concern.

  “I think the Goddess was wearing it later. Everyone else was gone. She wore the Amulet. Yes, she did. I’m sure of it now.”

  “How could she wear it? The Amulet is in the vault in the basement of this house,” Tyrrell said in his booming voice.

  “I don’t know.” A look of hesitation crossed Jatred’s face.

  “Come with me. Quick.”

  They raced downstairs to the basement and through the gym. Mirrors lined three walls from the floor to ceiling. Weights rested on the racks, pushed against the fourth wall. In the corner was another door. Tyrrell opened it with a key he carried in his hand. He stepped close to the gate, letting his retina and his hand be scanned. When the heavy gate slid to the side he rushed inside the windowless chamber. The place was pitch-black.

  Tyrrell went straight to the large heavy-duty safe and entered a long combination, sighing nervously. The door clicked open. One look inside the safe confirmed his fears—the Amulet was gone. He turned slowly to look at Jatred. Disbelief and hurt etched deep into his eyes.

  “When did you take it? And why?” Tyrrell asked in a strained voice. “You know perfectly well not to touch it. Its value and importance is beyond measure—”

  “Uncle, I swear, I didn’t take it. Or… I don’t remember if I did,” Jatred interrupted. His head and shoulders sagged when he slumped against the wall.

  Tyrrell folded his arms over his muscular chest. A deep frown puckered the spot between his eyebrows. Inside the creases, the skin looked even darker than his normal mahogany color.

  “I’ve never lied to you. And I’m not lying now. I don’t know how to explain that the Amulet is not in the safe. I don’t even remember coming into the vault since last month, when I was here with you,” Jatred said quietly, his head hanging low.

  After a long silence Tyrrell turned to close the safe. “There is no way someone could’ve taken it from here. The vault wouldn’t open for anybody but you or me. The safe was locked, and no one except us knows the combination. Besides, there is no sign of a forced entry anywhere upstairs or downstairs.”

  Jatred chewed on his lower lip.

  “Well, as crazy as it seems, I believe you.” Tyrrell sighed.

  After securing the safe and the vault they went up the stairs to the den.

  “Tell me again what you do remember. Try to concentrate and recall all the details,” Tyrrell said. “Use mind-to-mind communication and keep your mental guards up.”

  Jatred related to his uncle the fragments of his memories from the earlier hours—the fight with the Garhanan and his friends’ presence, the conversation with Crystal and her wearing the Amulet, his sudden return to the Human World and the confrontation with two homeless men, the images of both Races’ Shifters popping up in his peripheral vision.

  The grandfather clock in the hallway sleepily measured the time. It was late at night, and all of the houses on the street were already dark. A dog barked somewhere in the distance, and another one, closer to Tyrrell’s house, joined in. They yapped for a while but after a few minutes got bored and fell silent.

  “I still don’t understand how you ended up with Crystal.” Tyrrell shook his head. “And how did she get the Amulet?”

  Jatred’s face looked blank. Tyrrell regarded him in silence.

  “What?” Ja
tred shrugged his shoulders.

  “Did you take Jasmira down to the vault, when she was here last time?” Tyrrell asked quietly.

  “Who?” Jatred looked confused, his eyebrows lifted.

  “Your ex-girlfriend. Or are you back together? I can’t keep up with you two.”

  Jatred’s eyes opened wide. “Who are you talking about?”

  Tyrrell sighed. “Okay. So you don’t remember who Jasmira is either?”

  “No.”

  “For real? You’re not playing some kind of a game with me?”

  “Uncle, I don’t know who you’re talking about.”

  Tyrrell’s eyes became narrow slits, and his lips pursed. Almost a full minute passed before he finally said, “Interesting. I think I have a pretty good idea why Crystal got the Amulet. And why she summoned you so suddenly.”

  “Then tell me!”

  “Our Goddess is able to mess with our minds, so to speak. She usually doesn’t intrude in our lives. But, when I think about the whole situation, it makes sense that she has removed a part of your memories.”

  “Wait a minute! How… I mean…. What?!” Jatred sprang to his feet.

  “I will explain. Just sit down and listen.” Tyrrell made a ball-bouncing gesture with his hand. “Pretend for now that you know who Jasmira is. She is, or was, your girlfriend. And she is the Summer Princess—”

  “What?”

  “Jatred, be quiet. Just bear with me. We need to get a time frame for all that has been happening since this morning. This is Friday night, so let’s see... today when I came home from the office Jasmira was leaving. She seemed to be in a hurry, but I thought nothing of it. I had some stuff to fix in the garage. It was the early afternoon. By the way, you’ve been dating, but then you said our Goddess made it clear she wouldn’t tolerate this any longer.”

  Jatred rested his forehead on his clenched fists.

  Tyrrell took a deep breath and continued, “For the record, I was against this relationship as well but, of course, you teenagers never listen to your parents. Finally, you two decided to be ‘just friends’.” Anyway shortly after I came home, you bolted out of the house, mumbling something about going to Jasmira’s place. Does this ring a bell?”

  “No.”

  Neither one of the Shifters said anything for a long time.

  Finally Tyrrell cleared his throat and stated, “When Jasmira was here, you must’ve taken her to the vault to show her the Amulet.” He held up his hand when Jatred tried to protest. “I don’t know how she convinced you to do such a stupid thing. But that’s the only logical explanation. She grabbed the Amulet, and somehow you didn’t realize it, as crazy as it sounds. You can be a bit of a fool around a pretty girl.”

  “Oh, come on. That’s hardly—” Jatred moaned.

  Tyrrell ignored him and went on. “When you finally figured out that she left with it, you took off after her to get it back. You went to that mansion that her grandmother owns and retrieved the Amulet. From what you just told me, you ended up with Crystal after you got the Amulet. The Goddess can’t touch the Summer people, since they have their own Goddess’s protection. A very powerful protection, as I know. So she waited until you got the Amulet back, and then she summoned you to the Winter Realm.”

  “And all of this happened in just an hour or so?” Jatred sounded doubtful.

  “You know that time in the Winter Realm is not the same as in the Human World. What seems to take hours there lasts only a few minutes here.” Tyrrell nodded.

  “Well, I knew that,” Jatred protested, his face scornful.

  Tyrrell looked at Jatred. “Too bad you can’t recall how Jasmira was able to snatch the Amulet. I’m dying to know for sure how this whole thing happened.”

  “Me too, since none of it makes any sense to me,” Jatred snapped, meeting Tyrrell’s eyes.

  “Maybe not, but listen. It’s time to get some answers. We need to talk with Andy and Ivona Tornwood. They are the Race historians. They know a bit more about the Amulet than I do.”

  “Bogdan’s parents,” Jatred stated, looking at Tyrrell. “You see? I remember them.”

  “Yeah, that’s cute.” Tyrrell snorted. “The Amulet is ancient and it has amazing powers. Nobody knows the full extent of its capacity. From what you told me, Jasmira was able to use it. Although without proper training I can’t imagine how. I wonder…” his voice trailed off. He stood up and walked to the phone on his computer desk. He stopped abruptly and slowly turned around, a look of shock on his face. “It was Amber! She had to guide Jasmira. This is more serious that I thought.”

  “The Summer Goddess? Wait, are you going to call them now?” Jatred protested.

  “Do you really think this can wait till morning?”

  “No. I guess not,” Jatred said quietly.

  “And it shouldn’t. Okay, let me talk with the Tornwoods. I’m sure they will be anxious to see you even tonight. But you definitely need some rest,” Tyrrell murmured, pressing a speed-dial button on the phone, his dark eyes pinched with concern.

  Jatred sat, leaning forward, his elbows digging into his thighs. He held his head in his hands, listening to Tyrrell’s brief phone call.

  “They wanted us to come right away, but we settled for tomorrow morning instead. We figured you are safe now. The Amulet is safe with the Goddess. There is nothing we can do… we just wait…” Tyrrell trailed off. He walked to the window and stood motionless, looking into the night.

  “Uncle,” Jatred said quietly. “I just remembered something.”

  “What?” Tyrrell quickly turned around to look at Jatred.

  “I was in the Summer Realm.”

  CHAPTER 24

  Human World, November 17, morning.

  “And that’s exactly what I want you to do,” said Amber, uncrossing her long legs and standing up. She picked up her small Hermès purse, opened it, and took a business card from it.

  “Here. When you are ready to leave, call my limo driver. He’ll take you back to my jet. I need go now to see our California Shifters and I’m running late.” Amber handed the card to Jasmira. She lifted Jasmira’s chin with her manicured finger and kissed her on the forehead. “Be strong, my child. I have a lot of trust in you.”

  She walked to the door, stopped, and turned to Jasmira. Her eyes were calculating, and her lips curled up in a hard smile. “You are the Summer Race’s Princess. Remember your responsibilities to your Race and to me. Don’t disappoint me, or there will be consequences.”

  Jasmira dug her fingernails into the flesh of her palms to control her rage. When the door closed behind the Goddess, she punched a beaded pillow that adorned a burgundy custom made sofa. Her eyes flickered to the authentic Ming dynasty vase placed in a thick-glass display case. She fought an urge to smash the vase, not because she was afraid of the Goddess, but because she knew its historical value. She gritted her teeth, looking around the beautifully decorated apartment for something less precious to destroy.

  The cell phone in Jasmira’s pocket shrilled. The sound brought her back to her senses. She took the phone from her skirt pocket and looked at it, trying to decide if she should answer. Finally, she tapped the screen and brought it up to her ear.

  “What took you so long to pick up, girlfriend? And why haven’t you returned any of my calls. First Jatred shows up in his wolf form; then he chases you around like a mad goat, and then you disappear without a trace. What the hell is going on? I’m going crazy here!” Penelope’s raised voice sounded so loud, that Jasmira pulled the phone away and made an unattractive face.

  “Stop yelling. I can hear you just fine. Anyway, I left you a note that I’m off to Santa Barbara,” Jasmira said evenly.

  “Yeah, yeah, a note. I got the stupid note. But I still don’t know what the heck you’re doing, flying on Amber’s private jet out of the blue. And last night we had company.”

  “What company? What are you talking about? Is my grandma back already from Hawaii?” Jasmira’s eyebrows shot up in surpris
e.

  “The Winter kids were, looking for you,” Penelope said in a much calmer manner. “They wanted to talk about Jatred. And no, your grandma’s not here. I thought she wouldn’t be back for another week.”

  “Are they still there? I’ll be on the plane to Seattle as soon as I can. That’s if I can get on it, being a minor. I’m not taking Amber’s stupid jet. Well, just keep them occupied somehow, I don’t know.” Jasmira shook her head.

  “Do you want me to play checkers with them?” Penelope snorted. “No, they are gone, thank Goddess. Well, I don’t mind Erik, of course. He’s a hottie.”

  There was a long pause, before Jasmira spoke again, “Uhm… Pen? Don’t do anything stupid.”

  “Like what?” Penelope sounded taken aback.

  “Like getting involved with the Winter guy.”

  “Look who’s talking—”

  “Pen, this isn’t the time to do that. We have a problem on our hands. I’ll tell you more when I arrive,” Jasmira interrupted.

  “They said Crystal made Jatred fight one of her Garhanans,” Penelope said somberly.

  Jasmira gasped. Her voice shook when she said, “I knew it. I felt something went wrong. We still have that bond, even after the break-up. I can easily sense his emotions. Is he hurt? Where is he?”

  “Jatred won. The Garhanan wasn’t so lucky. But Crystal was too angry about the Amulet. She froze Jatred. And now his friends don’t know what to do.”

  “What?” she screeched. “Froze him? What do you mean froze him? I’m catching the next plane to Seattle. I’ll see you guys in a few hours. By the way, things got really screwed up with Amber too. Sorry, I gotta go,” Jasmira said unsteadily and ended the call. She seized her overnight bag and jean jacket and left the apartment, dialing Amber’s limo driver.

  CHAPTER 25