by Sandy James
Clothes were quickly abandoned, and she found herself again settled on his lap, easing him inside her with greedy abandon. He groaned as he rocked his hips up, his body joining hers in the bliss she only found when he filled her, making her feel feminine, beautiful and so very loved.
Artair rolled to drop Rebecca to her back, never breaking the connection between them. With one of his naughty grins, he slowly withdrew before pushing back inside her. Nothing had ever felt so wonderful, so right, as making love with this man.
His rhythm grew stronger, faster, until she could only dig her fingernails into his shoulders as he forced her body higher and higher in a quest for release. At the pinnacle, she cried out his name as orgasmic spasms rocked her body. He hoarsely whispered her name and his love as he came, sending more waves of bliss washing over her when he bathed her womb in his heat.
Once the storm had passed, they quietly donned their clothing and settled back to spoon in their meager shelter. As his breathing grew slow and even, she let her mind wander freely down paths better left untraveled.
Where was Sparks? Where was Megan? Her gut told her they were alive, but little else. She reached out for them both.
They never answered.
Chapter Twenty-One
Rebecca swallowed the last of the sticky berries, grateful the changelings had scrounged up a breakfast, albeit a woodsy one. The only thing she truly missed was coffee, but she wasn’t about to criticize them. Beagan and Dolan had improvised a decent shelter, and they’d gone to a great deal of trouble to find things for all of them to eat. Licking the last of the berry juice from her lips, she smiled.
“Thank you so much,” she said, rising to stand beside the changelings. She kissed each on the top of the head.
With blushing cheeks, they both shifted into rabbits and hopped furiously toward the trees. Rebecca turned at Artair’s quiet chuckle.
“You flatter them more than they can stand. The lads think you hung the moon.”
He kissed her forehead as he stroked her upper arms with his calloused hands. “How do you feel, lass?”
“Look around. We’re still in the middle of nowhere. How do you think I feel?” She immediately regretted the flippant response, knowing it was misplaced. She wanted something caffeinated, some clean clothes and a long, hot shower. “I’m sorry. I’m just really hungry.”
“’Tis fine. I’m hungry too.” His face grew serious. “When I saw you grab the changelings, I feared I’d lose you. But you handled yourself well, like a true Amazon. I’m proud of you.”
The words pleased her. “They were trapped in the sandpit, and I was afraid you wouldn’t see them. I couldn’t just leave. They needed me.”
“I’m not scolding you. ’Twas brave, Becca mine.” He touched the brooch she’d pinned over her heart. “You always seem to put yourself between others and danger—a trait worthy of Earth.” A cocky smile crossed his lips. “Rhiannon will be proud of you.”
She couldn’t help but snort. “I’ll never make Rhiannon proud.”
“I think you might. She has great love for Beagan and Dolan. They’re the last of their kind. You saved their lives.” He grabbed his sword from where it rested and stabbed it into the ground next to the log. “We best be moving. We need to find Johann and the other Amazons.”
She closed her eyes, reaching out to find her sisters. Megan and Sparks were still off her radar, but she could feel Gina. Then Sarita came into her mind. “They’re close.”
“How close, lass?”
“Um…they’re not in these woods. I think they might have made it to the closest town.” She sensed them enjoying food as Gina greedily chewed on something sweet. A donut? Rebecca’s stomach grumbled. “They’re eating something other than berries. Artair, I’m really worried about Sparks and Megan. I can’t feel either of them. Do you think they’re together?”
“Aye, they might be. I think Megan followed Sparks to keep an eye on her. I worry about them as well.” After sliding his sword into his scabbard, he picked up her quiver and bow. “Best gird your loins,” he said with a wink. “’Tis time to be moving on.”
“What will happen to Avalon? Will we ever be able to go back?” She slung the bow and arrows over her shoulder.
“Aye. Rhiannon will re-create it so we have a home again. ’Tis not the first time it has been lost. The generation that helped end slavery also had to leave their sanctuary. ’Twas moved from Virginia then.”
The man said the oddest things. “End slavery? You mean like the Civil War?”
“Aye. The war between the states.”
“A demig caused that?”
“Nay. ’Twas humanity’s own folly. The lasses just stepped in to be sure the right side won. Didn’t Sparks teach you that in class?”
“No. The last generation she taught us was your first group.”
“You mean that wee trouble in France? She taught you about that, did she?”
Rebecca had to laugh at his description of the bloody horror that was the French Revolution. “Yeah. That one.” With a shake of her head, she asked, “Can we please change the topic? My brain’s already overloaded here.”
His deep chuckle was his reply.
The changelings came hopping back into the clearing. She bent to pick them up. With a sigh that she had no more comfortable way to carry them, she dropped the bunnies back into her shirt.
Artair gave her a smile so gorgeous it weakened her knees, then he led the way into the woods.
After a mile or so, Rebecca’s mind wandered. “You said Sparks’s sisters went back to the world to have a life. What did they do?”
“Do?”
“Yeah. Where did they live? Where did they work?”
He kept walking as she tried to stay close enough to judge his expressions. “Sparks left, but nae for long. I don’t think she ever fit in with people the way she would have liked. Maria loved the city, loved seeing the buildings. Especially the tall ones. I believe she worked as a security guard in the Empire State Building for a while.”
“What about Trishna?”
Artair grinned. “Ah, my Southern belle. She worked as a ranger at Okefenokee Swamp, trying to educate people about wetlands. A true Water. Only Sparks returned.”
“Why do you think she came back?”
He thought it over a good long while. “Sparks couldn’t separate herself from this world the way the others could. She’d have nightmares that made her shoot flames and set her home on fire. When she returned, she told me Avalon was the only place she ever felt as if she belonged.”
Rebecca dodged a branch that flipped back at her as he pushed his way past a tree. “And Helen?”
“She was much like you and tried to be a teacher. But she loved books as well. Helen was always reading. She worked in a library for many, many years. She loved to read more than anyone I’ve ever known.”
“What did she read?”
“Myths, histories, biographies, genealogies. She loved them all. ‘Research,’ she called it.”
Rebecca settled back into hiking. If she could figure out where Helen was, maybe together the two Earths could figure out a way to find Megan and Sparks.
* * *
Glancing over his shoulder, Artair had a surge of pride in Rebecca. Their hiking had been rough as the terrain grew rockier, but she never complained, matching each of his long strides with two of her shorter ones. He grinned when the changelings wiggled inside her shirt.
They finally came across railroad tracks that had to lead somewhere. She assured him they were drawing closer to Sarita and Gina. The trees cleared, and when they reached the summit of a large foothill, a small city came into view.
Rebecca must have sensed her sisters, because she picked up her pace, starting to jog. The poor rabbits were getting jiggled around. The tracks crossed an asphalt road, and they followed it. She let out a squeal of delight when the first restaurant came into view.
In a flash of bright light, Ix Chel popped up in th
eir path so fast, Artair was amazed Rebecca didn’t run right over her.
Skidding to a halt, she stared at the goddess.
Coming to stand at her side, he saluted Ix Chel. “We’re pleased to see you, m’lady.”
“As I am pleased you were able to flee Avalon safely,” the goddess replied. She reached into a deep pocket of her flowing red skirt, pulled out a fat leather wallet and handed it to Artair. “There are riches in here to aid you until Avalon is restored.”
He opened the wallet. A thick stash of currency was stuffed inside, more than enough to help them through this situation. “Thank you, m’lady.”
Ix Chel fished through her pocket again and pulled out a small plastic card. “This is where you may stay. Johann and the other Amazons are already there.”
“The Stay Inn?” Artair asked, reading the words on the keycard.
“Sí. My high priestess’s husband owns the company. A reward for her many years of service. I treat my followers well. One of his inns is very near.” She pointed up the street. “That direction. I have spun protective magicks around the place. For a short time, you may rest there undetected and undisturbed. There are clothes for you as well.”
Rebecca breathed a sigh. “I don’t care how far it is, we’ll get there. I need a hot shower and something to eat. Thank you so much.”
“I will take the changelings.” Ix Chel pointed to the movement inside Rebecca’s shirt. “Rhiannon will welcome them in her temple until they can be returned to your service.”
Rebecca pursed her lips before she nodded. Lifting the hem of her shirt, she pulled out the rabbits and handed them to the goddess. “They’ll be okay?”
“Sí. Rhiannon’s priestesses will care for the changelings. Rest your troubled mind, Rebecca Massee.”
Rebecca reached out to scratch each rabbit behind the ears. “I didn’t mean any insult. I just worry about them. They’re my friends.”
The goddess smiled. “You are a good Earth to worry about their safety.” She turned to Artair. “We cannot offer more help, Sentinel. It is up to you and the Amazons now. You must find Jin and his master and stop them. Lives are at stake. And not just the Amazons’ lives. More humans have gone missing.”
“How many?”
“I cannot help you, Sentinel.”
“Why not?” Rebecca asked, fisting her hands against her hips. “You’re just like Rhiannon and Freya. Your rules seem to change to suit your mood. You say the Ancients can’t interfere, but then you give powers to the Amazons and you show up here with money and a place to stay. If someone’s going to get hurt, why can’t you tell us who or where?”
Ix Chel narrowed her eyes at Rebecca. “Because I choose not to. I have offered help to humanity by giving them my Amazon. I will not anger the other Ancients simply to make your task easier. Humanity often faces consequences I cannot forestall.”
“But—”
With a shake of her head, the goddess and the changelings disappeared in a radiant shimmer.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the goddesses. They’re such a contradiction. First helping then refusing to help.” Rebecca sighed. “They could make our jobs so much easier. They just don’t want to.”
Artair patted her shoulder. “Perhaps they can’t. Don’t ponder their eccentricities. Your head will begin to ache.” Then he held up the keycard. “A warm shower, m’lady?”
She smiled and imitated his brogue. “Oh, aye. ’Twould be heaven for yer lass.”
* * *
Wrapping a towel around her head like a turban, Rebecca considered the face she hardly recognized staring back at her in the foggy mirror.
The days in the sun had tanned her skin, and the spray of freckles on her nose had grown in number. She’d lost weight. Those chipmunk cheeks she’d always joked about were gone. Her face held a mixture of high cheekbones and big eyes, appearing…pretty.
Tempted to drop the towel she’d wrapped herself in and check the rest of her body in the mirror, she bit back her vanity and chose instead to throw aside the turban and rub her hair dry. Having worn her hair in a ponytail or braid through her Amazon training, the length surprised her—it now reached her shoulder blades. Just as her skin had darkened, her hair had lightened.
The face in the mirror was a stranger.
Did changes in her looks reflect the deeper changes she’d gone through? There was a confidence she’d never known before, an assuredness that she’d found her place in this world.
It felt damned good.
Artair had showered first and had donned a fresh plaid when she came out of the bathroom. “Your clothes are on the bed.” He pointed to some clean workout clothes.
“Looks like they think we’re going to be busy.” She held up the soft, pink shirt. “I was hoping for something a little more elegant. For once, I’d like you to see me dressed in something nice. You know, a dress or a skirt, with some make-up and some hairspray.”
“Ah, but you look elegant in anything, Becca mine.” He brushed the back of his hand across her cheek then tangled his fingers in her wet hair. “You don’t need paint on your face or ribbons in your hair. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever known.”
The compliments squeezed her heart. “I love you, Artair.”
“As I love you.” He kissed her, his lips lingering. “You best get dressed. We need to be about business. Should you stay as you are, we shall not leave the room for a good long while.”
“Fine with me.”
* * *
An insistent knock ruined the intimate moment. Artair answered the door as Rebecca grabbed her clothes and retreated to the bathroom.
Sarita greeted him. “I knew she was here!” She craned her neck, trying to look past him. On tiptoes, she barely reached his shoulder. With a huff, she pushed him to the side. “Rebecca’s here. I just know it.”
“Aye, she’s here. She’s in the washroom.” He shook Johann’s offered hand, trying not to turn the firm handshake into a test of strength. “I take it you found her with your wee implant.”
“Nope. Didn’t need it.” Johann tugged on Sarita’s braid. “Sarita and Gina both knew she was getting close. We were getting ready to suck down lunch when Sarita popped up from the table, saying she felt Rebecca.”
“Good lass,” Artair said.
“Hey! I felt her too.” Gina folded her arms over her chest. Her dark eyes narrowed.
“Aye, I suspected as much. You both did well,” he replied, giving the younger Amazons the praise they needed. Seeing as the world didn’t have a way to thank them for the times they’d saved mankind, a few kind words from a Sentinel did wonders for raising their spirits.
“We need to make plans.” Johann’s tone was solemn, matching Artair’s mood. “Why don’t we all have lunch? Did you get some money, MacKay?”
“Aye. Ix Chel supplied us with money and this room.”
“She did the same for us. The girls and I are just down the hall.” His gaze wandered the small hotel room. “Our suite is bigger.”
“Damn right, it is.” Gina gave them a decisive nod. “She’s my goddess.”
The bathroom door opened, and Rebecca walked out. “I knew you were close.” She held her arms open and Sarita rushed to her. “I’m starving. Anyone for pancakes?”
“Pancakes?” Johann cocked his head. “Why pancakes?”
Rebecca shrugged. “Don’t know. Just wanted something different. And I’ve been craving maple syrup since Gina ate something sweet this morning.”
“Krispy Kreme with maple frosting.” Gina ran a tongue over her lips. “Warm Krispy Kreme.”
“See?” Rebecca turned back to Artair. “Told you she had something better than berries.”
He wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “Well then, let’s eat.”
* * *
“First thing I’m doing when we get Avalon back is upgrading,” Johann said as he scanned the menu.
“Upgrading?” Artair asked.
“Yeah.
If our enemies are into concussion grenades, then so are we. They’ve stepped up the game. We’re fighting something other than zombies now. We’re fighting technology.”
“Aye. You’re right, lad. ’Tis time the Amazons had help with modern things.” His voice was hushed with defeat.
Rebecca had no idea how to fix things. She reached under the table for his hand. Now that he’d decided to stay, would he be able to take a lesser role as Johann turned the Amazons into a modern fighting force? Could she possibly learn all the new weapons Johann continued to rattle off in a stream of words?
“Where in the hell did they get power like that? A helicopter? Semi-automatic weapons?” she asked Artair.
“People from all walks of life worship Ancients and demigs—even congressmen and generals. Perhaps some offered weapons to whoever started this nightmare.”
“May I take your order?”
No one looked up as they placed their orders. Crowded into a large booth, the five chose everything from pancakes to steak to strawberry shakes. The waitress had to clear her throat loudly before anyone finally paid attention to her.
“Oh, my God!” Rebecca squealed when she locked eyes with the woman. “Freya? Is that you?”
“’Tis about time one of you noticed. A goddess, and yet I am ignored,” she replied with a dejected huff.
Rebecca couldn’t think of anything more surreal than seeing the beautiful goddess dressed in a beige waitress uniform, a white apron tied around her hips and a bandana holding back her white-blond hair. “What are you doing?”
“I am here to help you find my Amazons.”
Rebecca wasn’t sure what to think. “But Ix Chel said—”
Freya gave a curt nod toward Gina. “Ix Chel is not concerned because her Amazon is not missing, is she? Ix Chel can do as she pleases, but I intend to help you in the quest to save Frida and Megan.”
Artair arched an eyebrow. “Do you nae fear retribution by the Ancients?”
“Nay. They would know I have my reasons. Good reasons. But this ruse will help me keep my assistance secret so perhaps the other Ancients will not care to notice.” She hurried away and shoved the orders under the clip for the cook before coming back to the table. “I bring you news. I have discovered where my Megan waits, and I suspect Frida is close as well.”