Catching Stardust

by Heather Thurmeier

  Jude sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Like you’ve been having fun with that girl from the park?”

  “Absolutely.” Zander tried not to smile while Jude scrutinized him. It wasn’t too much to want his friend to be happy and find something better to do with his time other than study star maps, celestial bodies and data. There were so many better things to study. So many better bodies to study.

  “If that stupid grin on your face is any indication, you must have had a good date last night.”

  “We did until you interrupted us. But that’s okay. We’ll have to pick up from where we left off another time.”

  Jude studied him while Zander drank his coffee and tried to turn his thoughts away from remembering Maia wading into the lake completely naked. But nothing could pull his mind from those thoughts.

  “Boy, she must have really done something to you last night. Maybe I should have paid her a little more attention at the museum the other day. A girl like that is hard to find.”

  Zander clenched his jaw. Damn. He should have known better than to gloat about how amazing Maia was. Jude would never let a good girl go that easily. He’d better not try to become competition for Maia because there was no way Zander would let him anywhere near her.

  “Don’t even think about making a play for her.”

  Jude smirked. “Oh? Feeling a little territorial and nervous, are we? Don’t worry, man, I’ll only look, not touch.”

  Prickles of annoyance crept up Zander’s back. No way did he want Jude even looking at Maia, but keeping that from happening was going to be tough.

  “I assume I’ll be seeing her at the fundraiser?”

  Zander narrowed his eyes at Jude. “Yes, but if I see you do anything inappropriate to Maia, I’ll make you pay for it.”

  “Wow.” Jude laughed. “Whatcha gonna do, beat me up for looking? Seriously, you’re really hung up on this chick, aren’t you?”

  “What if I am?”

  “Then I guess you should hold on tight so she doesn’t slip away. It’s not too often—ever, really—that I’ve seen you get worked up over a girl so quickly. And you know, I think this might be the first time you’ve threatened to beat me up. I love it. I really need to talk to this girl again so I can figure out what’s so great about her.”

  “Well, you’ll be seeing her Friday and you can talk to her then, with my supervision. I don’t trust you as far as I can throw you. But I’m not kidding, be on your best behavior.” Zander rose from the table unable to sit still any longer at the thought of what Jude might do when he saw Maia again and realized how amazing she really was and how much he was missing out on.

  If it weren’t for the ache in his chest and the overwhelming desire to see Maia again—all of her would be nice—he might even regret having asked her to join him for the fundraiser. But regardless of Jude, Zander was anxious to see her again. He’d have to keep a close eye on Maia and an even closer eye on Jude.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Maia woke with a new determination to find her way home. What she should have been doing this whole time was concentrating on getting back to Pleiades, not spending time down here on Earth living it up, flirting like crazy with Zander.

  Incredibly sexy Zander.

  And yet even though she knew she needed to distance herself from him, she’d agreed to accompany him to the fundraiser Friday. She’d been too weak-minded from the wine and his ultra-sexy pheromones to tell him no. Too cloudy-headed by an amazing night spent in the cool lake water, under a sky full of stars and in the warm arms of a beyond-hunky guy.

  He had the good looks of a god among men. And she knew a thing or two about gods and their incredible looks. Thankfully, he didn’t have the usual arrogant personality to go with the looks. Nope, he was literally as down to Earth as he could possibly be.

  She couldn’t resist him.

  She wanted to see him again. She wanted to spend more time with him.

  Seeing him last night, naked and sexy and wrapped in a blanket, made it impossible for her not to imagine going to bed with him, being in his strong arms as he held her…as he kissed her.

  Sadly, for the first time in eternity, she could imagine a future with someone even though in reality, a future together was completely impossible.

  Damn it to Hades, she was royally screwed.

  She sighed, rolling out of bed and padding across the thick-carpeted floor to the bathroom. She turned the shower to hot and steam instantly filled the air. As she undressed and stepped into the shower, she realized what she had to do if she wanted to find her way home.

  If there was anyone on Earth who could help her figure this mess out, it was Castalia.

  ***

  Maia’s heels clicked on the hard cement as she walked along the sidewalk in search of Castalia’s place. Many of the building facades in the village all looked the same. And trying to see the building numbers was almost impossible if there happened to be more than one or two other people on the street.

  Today seemed especially busy. Could be it was lunchtime and everyone was out to find nourishment of some kind or another. Or it could be that the streets in Greenwich Village were always this busy and she just hadn’t been here in so long, she’d forgotten.

  Maia stopped in front of a black-sided building. The number 252 was etched into the door with a star positioned directly above it—The North Star—the symbol that represented being able to find your way.

  If anyone could help her find her way back home, it would be Castalia.

  She twisted the knob and pushed on the door, banging her knee into the solid wooden mass as it refused to budge. She tried again. But again the door remained firmly closed.

  Stepping back from the front door, she peered up to the sign hanging in the dust-covered window to double check she was indeed in the right spot. A neon sign reading Café Cosmos hung on a slant, switched off.

  Weird. It was a coffee house. It should have been open since breakfast and certainly at lunchtime. Another sign had been taped to the inside of the window beside it: Closed for renovations.

  Maia folded her arms across her chest. Something didn’t add up. Why would the shop be closed? Castalia kept it in impeccable shape. And the last time she’d been here, the place had looked amazing and had been packed with people.

  Not to mention Castalia’s was one of the only places in the city where people like Maia could meet and mingle with others from the universe. It was a safe haven for all celestial beings no matter where they were from. The fact that it was closed sent off warning bells the size of air-raid sirens in her brain.

  Something was wrong if Castalia would close up shop. Maia had to find out what happened to make Castalia close her doors on the visitors like Maia who depended on her.

  One side of the building butted up against the building beside it, but there was a narrow alleyway on the other side. Small enough that it was inconspicuous to passersby, but still big enough for a six-foot bodybuilder to easy pass through. She took a deep breath and said a quick prayer to Gaia that she wasn’t making a huge mistake heading into the alleyway alone.

  Maia stepped hesitantly into the alleyway, immediately feeling swallowed whole by the large buildings on either side of her. She glanced back over her shoulder almost expecting the entrance to have been magically sealed behind her. She breathed a sigh of relief when she still saw people passing by the opening.

  She crept forward. A fire escape hung from the side of the building, its ladder just above her reach. Good thing. Now she didn’t have to make up an excuse in her own head about why she shouldn’t climb up it and find a way into the building. Not to mention, she wasn’t the biggest fan of heights either.

  She might be stupid for venturing down the alleyway, but she wasn’t dumb enough to think she could go around scaling small buildings like Spiderman. That wasn’t on her itinerary while in New York. She might be a goddess and she might have already been around for an eternity, but here on Earth, she could stil
l get hurt doing something stupid—like falling off a ladder in an abandoned alleyway.

  Feet staying safely on the ground? Check.

  She crept further down the alley and peeked around the back corner of the building. A few feet away, a black door hid, almost unnoticeable, set back into the wall of the building by a few inches. With no window and no marking of any kind, the door was about as non-descript as you could get, but Maia knew it was right. She could feel it.

  Maia knocked on the door, the sound of her knuckles on solid metal louder than she expected in the quiet of the back alley. She waited. Nothing. No sounds of movement inside.

  Odd. It wasn’t early in the day by any stretch and since it was during normal business hours, even if the café was closed, Maia still expected Castalia to be awake. So where was she? A bigger question, was she okay?

  Maia knocked harder with her closed fist on the door, ensuring that anyone inside would hear her. Then she waited with her ear near the door. As fear began rising in her throat, a lock on the other side of the door slipped.

  “Like it says on the sign out front, we’re closed.” Castalia’s voice had an edge of annoyance to it that almost made Maia laugh. Castalia was about the most even-tempered person she could remember meeting so to hear her with emotion in her voice was unusual.

  “I saw the sign and ignored it.” Maia smiled as Castalia looked up to meet her gaze. “Nice to see you again.”

  Castalia stood in the doorway, her long hair a mess of curls bundled up on top of her head. A dark corset-style top hugged her slender frame and a long flowing skirt swept the floor around her feet. Even with an unexpected guest, Castalia looked completely put together and outrageously gorgeous. If Maia didn’t know better, she’d have guess Castalia was in her early thirties, not her late… Well, eternity really had no age.

  “Maia!” Castalia pulled her into a tight squeeze. “It’s so nice to see you again, dear. Come in.”

  Maia followed Castalia into the building, letting the door close firmly behind her. They’d entered into the kitchen of the small restaurant. The equipment and counters gleamed a perfect silver finish, obviously unused and waiting for customers. Customers that wouldn’t come if the place stayed closed.

  “Let’s grab a cup of tea and head upstairs.” Castalia placed a kettle on the stove and turned the dial. The stove clicked and a blue flame came to life. “I hope you aren’t looking for lunch while you’re visiting. I’m afraid my pantry is empty at the moment.”

  “I’m fine. Why aren’t you open for business?”

  “Renovations, like the sign says.” Castalia chose that minute to turn from Maia to retrieve mugs from the cabinet.

  Maia could tell Castalia was used to offering the lie to others, but it wouldn’t work on her. She knew better than that. Castalia’s place was one of the very few places in the city where people like Maia could go and be surrounded by others like them. Of course it was still open to the regular non-intergalactic public as well, so people still had to be careful with what they said here. But at least if you were lonely on Earth, you could always come here and find someone who would remind you of home.

  “What kind of renovations are you doing that you’ve had to completely shut down your source of income?”

  “Oh well now, dear. You know I don’t really need the Earth income. I have plenty of stardust to convert as needed. I simply felt the place could use a little sprucing up.”

  The kettle whistled. As Castalia scrounged through the cabinets looking for tea bags and whatnot, Maia slipped from her spot near the counter and quickly went to the door leading out to the café’s dining area.

  She pushed open the door and peered inside. As she expected, the place looked as immaculate and perfect as she remembered. Even with the place dark and unlit, Maia could make out her favorite feature. The ceiling was strung with dozens of lights. When they were turned on, the ceiling was transformed into a reflection of the cosmos, living up to the café’s name. Any regular patron would think the ceiling was beautiful, but to someone like Maia, it was so much more than beautiful.

  It was like being at home.

  A sense of warmth surrounded Maia, like being wrapped in a cozy blanket and snuggled on her couch. Maia flipped on a light switch to the side of the door, unable to resist the temptation. The ceiling lit up. Lights twinkled as Maia’s vision blurred.

  A lump caught in her throat and she swallowed hard. The overwhelming sense of loneliness she felt here on Earth, unable to contact her family, was worse seeing the lights. It had hurt her heart looking through the telescope with Zander but for some reason, it hadn’t hurt as much as this did. Maybe because the lights were so much closer, she felt as if she could reach out and touch home as easily as touching one of the little glowing bulbs that taunted her with every twinkle.

  Or maybe it was because everywhere inside the café she could feel the traces of others of her kind. Other travelers who’d lingered here for a cup of coffee and a feeling of familiarity. The scent of stardust still hung in the air here—warm and sweet like apple pie.

  If she closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around her body, she could almost imagine her sisters’ embraces.

  “This way, dear,” Castalia said from behind her as she flicked off the light switch with one hand, the other balancing a tray of cookies and tea. She started up a staircase Maia hadn’t even noticed.

  “I thought you said there were renovations going on?”

  “I did.”

  “It doesn’t look like there’s any work going on in the café or the kitchen, so why close? Why lose business?” Maia asked, taking a seat on a worn floral sofa, sipping her tea. The small living room was cozy and cluttered with little knickknacks on every flat surface.

  “Not all renovations are cosmetic.”

  “I know you’re an all-knowing kind of person and all that, and I’m usually pretty perceptive about things, but that was way too cryptic even for me.”

  “Why did you come to see me?”

  Maia sipped her tea again, hoping to gain comfort from it. It didn’t really work.

  “I need help and I don’t know anyone else in the city to turn to.”

  “Anything you need, dear. Of course I’m here to help the daughter of Atlas.”

  “I need help getting home.”

  Castalia leaned back in her chair and shook her head. “I’m afraid even I can’t help you with that.”

  Maia’s mouth dropped open. If Castalia—the wisest woman in the entire universe couldn’t help her, who could? “What do you mean? You can help everyone. That’s one of the reasons people come here to speak with you, and now you’re telling me you can’t help me. I don’t understand.”

  “I can’t help you. There’s not much more to understand. I’m afraid we’re all sort of on our own for the time being.”

  Maia could feel her panic level rising. “I can’t get home. You have to help me. First of all, I didn’t ask to come to Earth, I showed up here one day without warning. And now I can’t even call for a ride home because my call won’t go through. There has to be a way to talk to someone up there. You have to have some guidance for me.”

  The wrinkles in Castalia’s forehead deepened. “I’ve been cut off too. Everyone has. You’re not the first to bang on my door, you know? All I know is that I received a call out of the blue from Zeus. He said I’m to close up shop until further notice. He said it wasn’t safe and that I shouldn’t open my doors for anyone.” She laughed then, even though Maia didn’t see anything funny about the situation. “I guess I never was very good at listening to rules since I seem to be opening my door every five minutes.”

  “You were told to close? But why? Why is Zeus taking away one of our only safe havens here and why was he able to call but we can’t call him back?”

  “I wish I knew. All he told me was that there was an increased threat level and that we all had to buckle down for a while. Now why did you just show up here one day when you didn’t want
to come?”

  “I’ll give you a hint. Orion.”

  “He’s bothering you again, is he? Why won’t that boy ever grow up and be a man for a change. Why won’t he stop pestering you girls and finally realize the Pleiades sisters will never be with him?”

  “Because he’s a stubborn idiot who thinks with his club and not his head.”

  “But that still doesn’t tell us why Zeus would send you here when you normally push Orion away and be done with it.”

  “I don’t know. Zeus said something about this time being worse. I don’t know how it can get any worse than Orion hitting on my sisters and me all the time. It’s not like we’ve ever given him any indication that any of us might actually want to marry him someday. And we certainly don’t plan on ever having a fling with him so he’s not coming for a booty call.”

  “That’s it!” Castalia jumped up from her spot on the chair and crossed the room to an old cabinet that looked like it had seen better days—better centuries. She pulled open the doors and scanned the rows of books inside, the spines cracked, obviously older than the cabinet itself. After a moment, she chose a book and returned to her seat.

  “Yes, it has to be in this one.”

  “What?” Maia asked completely confused. “What are you so excited about?”

  The woman tsked and Maia fell silent, trying her best to be quiet.

  “Here it is.” Castalia’s voice was full of excitement. Instantly Maia felt renewed hope that there was a reason for all of this and that some way, somehow she was going to get back home.

  Then she’d kick Orion’s ass, which she should have done a long time ago.

  “Tell me.” Maia couldn’t hide her excitement any longer. Home. She was going to find a way home. She knew coming to Castalia was the right move.

  “It’s all right here. It all makes sense. Now I see why Zeus sent you here. I wonder what he did to protect your sisters.”

  Maia’s excitement crumbled. “Protect my sisters from what?” It hadn’t occurred to Maia that her sisters might be in danger. Were they alone and scared somewhere too?