Intuition (The Path to Redemption Series Book 2)

by Kimbra Swain

  “I’m sorry. I know I seem very manly at the moment,” I said half-heartedly.

  “You seem like the most wonderful man in the world to me,” she said.

  I couldn’t resist any longer. I pulled her to me and kissed her. My emotions flip-flopped from sadness to passion. She pulled off my tie, kissing my neck. While I played with her hair, I brought her lips back to mine. She unbuttoned my shirt, running her cool hands over my chest. I moved my hands under her sweater to touch her hips.

  She stopped and looked me in the eye, “Yes?”

  “You don’t have to ask,” I said smiling.

  The rest was a torrent of clothes being removed, hands searching, lips exploring, and utter pleasure. After making love, we laid on the couch, talking about Ashley and work. My life was complete in moments like that. I knew it wouldn’t last, but it was enough.

  We spent a year together in the lofts, after I moved back upstairs with her that night. I worked during the day at the office, and occasionally, she would come in to remind everyone that she was still around. We went to big Hollywood galas and charity events. She picked out various businesses for me to buy or invest in. Toward the end of that year, we couldn’t go out to eat without someone coming up to speak to me that I knew through the community. She had done, with little effort, everything she promised me she would do. Most of all, she loved me.

  She hadn’t spoken about leaving. The team set up a headquarters in the loft, and she based all of her business out of that office. When I worked, she worked.

  After the year passed, she told me one night in bed that Gregory had called. He was concerned about things not getting done, especially in Central and South America. “I may have to make a few trips down there to satisfy him,” she said, but quickly added, “but I won’t be gone long. I promise.”

  As much as it pained me, I told her, “I know you have work to do. Honestly I never imagined you would stay as long as you have.”

  “Why would you say that?” she sounded hurt.

  “Abby, I’m aware of your job, and how important it is for the Agency. I wasn’t sure how long you could stay. I knew there would be a day that you might have to go,” I said.

  “I may have to go, but I will come back to you. I promise.” She kissed me, and I believed her. “Please don’t worry or be upset. I love you, Lukas. I couldn’t stay away for long.”

  My heart wanted to believe her, but my head still said that I had to be logical. I accepted that she meant it with her whole heart, but circumstances weren’t always ideal to what we wanted. I held her tightly and fell asleep listening to her breathe.

  The next day I rode with her, Ashley and the twins to the Santa Monica Municipal Airport. We kissed on the tarmac, and she made me promise to call her every chance that I had. She told me she had powered the circle at home and was taking a teleport crystal to return if there was an emergency. She ran up the steps to the plane, turning at the doorway to wave. She had been strong until that moment. Somewhere from my arms to the airplane door, tears stained her face. I saw her mouth the words, “I love you.” I waved, repeating them back to her as she disappeared into the plane.

  While she was in the shower, I went into Ashley’s room next door. I decided to use her shower quickly and get back before Abby got done. I’m sure she could feel me moving around. I felt her trying to release her tension.

  The warm water felt excellent, but I washed quickly so I could return to Abigail. Tying a towel around my waist, I stared at myself in the bathroom mirror. My five o’clock shadow had turned into the midnight shadow and more like a beard. I’d shave it in the morning when I had more time. It was almost 2 am. I stepped out of the bathroom, and Cassidy sat on the bed with her long sleek legs crossed underneath her. She wore a pink lacy baby doll which displayed every inch of her body, concealing nothing.

  “Holy crap, Cassidy. What the fuck?” I said startled.

  “I was hoping that was you. Did you get my emails?” she asked.

  I closed my eyes and forced my second brain to shut up. “I noticed you had sent a few. I only opened one, and I deleted the rest,” I said firmly and hurried to the door.

  “I want you, Tadeas,” she said as I opened the door.

  “Cassidy, I’m with Abby. I will always be with Abby. And if you ever proposition me again, I’ll send you to your mother. Are we clear?” I said.

  “Yes, but you will change your mind eventually,” she purred.

  I walked out and slammed the door. Rushing into our room, Abby exited the bathroom feeling my tension.

  “What happened?” she asked.

  “I went in the next room to shower. It looked like Ashley’s room,” I said.

  “It is,” she replied. I felt her anxiety growing again.

  “When I got out of the shower, Cassidy was on the bed wearing almost nothing.” Before I got the last word out, she was storming to the door. I jumped in front of her. “No, stop, Abby!”

  “Get out of my way. I’m going to kill her,” she fumed.

  I grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to stop. “I told her I am with you. I told her if she ever propositioned me again that I would send her back to her mother. It’s handled.”

  “She’s Fae! She won’t give up,” she said.

  “Then we will deal with it. Abby, please, just forget it for now,” I begged. She relaxed and laid her head on my shoulder. “Thank you.”

  “I’m too tired to deal with it,” she said. Her cool hands rested at on my sides. The smell of honeysuckle wafted around us.

  “I want to do something before we go back downstairs,” I said, and it sounded a lot more like innuendo than I intended. She stepped back with her eyebrows raised. “I didn’t mean that. Let me put on clothes.”

  “How unfortunate,” she grinned. She wore shorts and a tee shirt like the day on the island when I first saw her office. For the second time in the last 5 minutes, I told my other brain to shut up.

  I slipped into the bathroom without shutting the door and put on shorts and a tee. “How is your hair already dry?” I asked.

  She grinned and whispered, “Assiccio.” A calm breeze swirled around my head and my hair was dry.

  “You have a hair dying spell?” I asked incredulously.

  “I have a spell for everything,” she said, and the innuendo was intended.

  I cleared my throat. My mind wandered to what kind of spell she could have for that, but I looked forward to finding out. I had an idea while in the shower to try to help her control her emotions and the shadow. I had to get both of my brains back to that thought.

  “Sit with me,” I said and sat on the floor with my legs crossed. She grinned and sat across from me the same way.

  “This isn’t what I expected,” she grinned.

  “I know! I must be insane, but I have an idea I want to test out. Then we can go talk to Jasper, okay?”

  “Um, okay,” she reluctantly said.

  I touched her leg, and said, “Trust me.” She nodded, so I continued. “When you were in my class, the night before I confronted you, I watched you from the observation room as you did your forms.”

  “When Meredith revealed to you that I was bound, right?”

  “Meredith didn’t tell me anything until that night, but she knew you were going in one of the rooms every night. She watched you for over a week before she told me. It’s extremely creepy now that I think about it, considering who she is and why she was there.” I felt her anxiety rising. “Beyond all of that, she told me that sometimes you would meditate.”

  “Yes, the separation from my magic took a larger toll on me than I expected. I had to take those quiet times to focus on my goals, and resist the urge to quit,” she said.

  “For all the craziness that ensued, I’m thankful you didn’t,” I assured her. She smiled and understood. “I said all of that to ask this. When you meditated in that room, what was your focus?” I was pretty sure I knew.

  “Home,” she said quietly. />
  “I was counting on that,” I smiled. She was curious and waited for me to explain. “Is it possible with your magic to show me what’s inside your head while focusing on the island?”

  “I could, but I’ve got this giant wall up, you know,” she freely admitted.

  “It’s time for it to come down,” I said.

  She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She shivered as goosebumps covered her arms and legs. I felt no different, but she bit her lip and looked away.

  “What?” I said grabbing her chin and forcing her to look at me. I could feel the small scar under her chin where Gabriel touched her.

  “Ashley was right,” she said.

  “Whatever it is, don’t tell her that, but tell me what you mean.” I felt heat rise up and radiate off of her. It was the warm sensation of being safe in someone’s arms. To love and be loved in return.

  “She said that you loved me from the first time you saw me, and that’s pretty much true. Isn’t it?”

  I blushed. “From the moment, you walked into my class, I considered you one of the most attractive women I’d ever seen. I wouldn’t call that love. And it wasn’t allowed, so I dismissed it,” I said defending myself.

  “It wasn’t long after that,” she continued to press.

  “Would you stop? I’m trying to do something here, and you are distracting me. And we need to go downstairs,” I protested.

  “I know,” she admitted.

  “Is it possible to show me?” I tried to refocus. I should have known once the wall came down, she would know everything. I didn’t care. I loved her, and it didn’t matter.

  “Yes, but I’m not sure if I can focus on it,” she said.

  “You mean, without it bothering you,” I said. She nodded. “You don’t have to worry. I’m here.”

  “Okay, we can try.” She took my left hand in her right. “Close your eyes and don’t open them until the vision is over. I don’t need your consciousness lost in my head.”

  I laughed at the thought and nodded. As I closed my eyes, she took a deep breath. We sat in silence for a minute. I got the sensation of being pulled underwater and resurfacing. I gasped for air.

  “You are fine. Just breathe. Whatever you do, don’t open your eyes. Follow my voice.” After a moment, it felt like I was standing. I turned toward the direction of her voice. My vision focused, and she blurred into view. She wore a long, flowing purple dress. It swayed like there was a light breeze. When I looked down, I was wearing black slacks and a blood red shirt. She smiled at me. I heard her voice again, but she didn’t move her mouth. “What you see is a construct of my subconscious. The clothes are part of that too. I’ve never seen you in red. It looks very nice. My subconscious has good taste.”

  “The purple is beautiful.”

  “Thank you. I’m going to try to focus on the island. Will you take my hand here in the vision? I feel better if we stayed in contact. I knew it was possible to co-meditate, but I’ve never attempted it.”

  I walked toward her and took her hand. I could tell she struggled with the fear of concentrating too hard on what she’d lost.

  “Abby, think about the stone patio. Can you hear the light sounds of water splashing in the fountain? The lights from the house cast a warm glow outside.” I tried to help her along.

  She continued, “The breeze is cool and blows the white curtains where the big double doors open up into the sitting room. The fireplace blazes.”

  The image of the island surrounded us as we stood hand in hand on the patio in the night. The image was out of focus, and she looked sad.

  “Now it’s my turn.” I reached out with my senses and felt the edge of the spirit world. I pulled the veil open and wrapped it around us. The house, the patio, and the fountain all snapped into focus. She gasped. It wasn’t real. Just a construct in her mind. However, it felt real, and I missed this place, especially George. Her eyes filled with tears. She spun around to look at it all still holding my hand. She laughed through the tears.

  “How did you do this? What made you think of this?” she asked as she pressed up to me.

  I put my arm around her.

  “Once I realized that the island was part of the spirit world it explained a lot about the sensations there. It was so easy for me to shift there. I just thought if we couldn’t go there for real, at the very least, I could make it feel like we were there by shifting us into that plane. I just didn’t know if we had to do it in my brain or yours.”

  “It’s brilliant. Tadeas, thank you so much.” She hugged me tightly.

  “We can come here anytime. I think it will help to control the shadow,” I said. I leaned over kissing her. “I don’t know how to get back though. I can only shift us back.”

  “I know we can’t stay. But this helps so much to just know this is possible. Shift us back, and I’ll do the rest.”

  She took one last look around and nodded. I shifted us back to our reality. I felt a tug like before, and I held my breath this time. I felt her touch my face with her lips.

  “You can breathe now,” she giggled. “Open your eyes.”

  I opened my eyes, and a rush of her emotions coursed over me. She had moved to my lap, and her lips were locked to mine. There was gratitude and trust. Mostly, I felt her passion. I was positive that I couldn’t talk myself down a third time, but someone banged on the door. I threw myself backwards onto my back which left her straddling me in just the right spot.

  “Go away!” I yelled. She covered her mouth and laughed.

  “There will be time for this later, and I have pressing matters that cannot wait.” It was Samara.

  “I changed my mind. I don’t like him,” I said bitterly. She still laughed like a teenager caught in the gym with her boyfriend. I grunted, “Get off of me before I die.”

  She laughed harder, but got up. I raised up, resting my arms on my knees. She tried to stop giggling. “You aren’t helping.”

  She bit her lip so she would quit laughing. It was sexy as hell. I put my head back between my legs and took a few deep breaths. I managed to calm everything down, but it was painful. She gave me her hand and hoisted me up.

  “Hey,” I said, and she looked back at me, “that is the last time I hold back. Everyone in this house can go to hell for all I care, do you understand?” I smiled even though I meant it.

  “You won’t get any complaints out of me. I warn you. Things never go as planned,” she said. I reluctantly went with her down stairs to talk to Samara.

  We went down the steps into the living area where the entire house waited on us. Lukas stood against the wall on the right. About four feet in front of him, Cassidy sat curled up in a chair. The couch in front of us was empty, except for Vince who sat on the right end. Tony and Tommy sat in chairs from the dining room on the left side of the room behind a couch where Ashley and Ichiro sat. Ashley diligently watched a laptop. Samara stood in the middle of all the furniture. Everyone watched Abby and I walk in. I slumped down into one end of a couch, and Abby sat next to me. She didn’t lean back.

  “It’s about time,” Jasper said.

  “Forgive me, Jasper. You never mentioned you were in a hurry or perhaps our showers could have waited,” she responded.

  “What you were doing was not showering.” he accused. Several of our wonderful friends giggled.

  “How do you know what we were doing?” she pressed him.

  “I assumed,” he said.

  “Know what that makes you?” I said.

  The whole room laughed, but Samara wasn’t amused. Abby played peacemaker.

  “Jasper, I appreciate your patience, but you were incorrect in your assumption. Tadeas has discovered a way for us to co-meditate. I was able to see the island and feel it like we were there. It was amazing,” she explained.

  “Co-meditate? I could use some co-meditating,” Ashley said and winked at Ichiro. He put his face in his hand because he blushed like a whore in church. It set off a whole new round of giggles.r />
  “We are all tired, Jasper. I apologize. Thank you for rescuing us tonight. I didn’t realize you would come to visit when I made the call to your answering service,” I said.

  “I came, because I heard about the incident in Paris. I came, because I heard about the Boulder Compound. I came, because you are in over your head!” he became frustrated.

  “Will you be willing to answer a few questions?” she remained polite to him.

  “Ask,” he responded, curbing his anger.

  “As you probably know, Tadeas is a jaguar guardian. He has shifted us into the spirit world multiple times. When we shift, I cannot pull magic. I was able to pull the veil once, when he was on the other side, I’m not sure if it was him pulling it or me. Beyond that, the only magic I’ve used in the spirit world was with the sword,” she explained.

  “You used the sword? Who did they have you kill this time?” he asked completely avoiding the main question.

  “I called the sword, because I had no other recourse. Nalusa Chito tried to take Tadeas. I called it, and it responded. It was like I knew its magic without being taught. I have not pulled it again. The way to the island was cut off when the Boulder complex imploded, and I can no longer feel its power,” she explained.

  “It seems there is a much bigger picture here than I realized. Perhaps you should start at the beginning of all of this. You may skip the part of how you met Tadeas. Lincoln told me about Tadeas many years ago. I am not surprised to see you with him,” he said.

  “If I hear one more person tell me that Lincoln chose Tadeas, I’m going to scream,” she said. Samara looked surprised and shook his head. “Could we please focus on the question about magic in the spirit world?”

  “The key to using magic in the spirit world is the same as the key to shifting into that plane,” he said vaguely. I felt her start to come unglued.

  “Abby,” I said just to settle her. She swallowed.

  “The key to shifting is Tadeas. Oh, bloody hell, are you serious?” she said. She turned around and took my hand. I knew what she wanted. The wall was down, and I could feel so much more than before. She continued to hold my hand, and I shifted us to the spirit world. As she held my hand, I felt it. Her magic flow through me. A warm steady ray of sunshine on a cool spring day. It rippled across my skin and gave me goosebumps. She opened her left palm and said, “Fulmen.” The purple flashing orb of lightning appeared above her palm. It hovered there steadily, continuing to flare.