by M. R. Polish
They were so happy in the photograph. I stared down at the picture for what seemed like forever, focusing on their faces and how he held Meadow around the waist.
Tears threatened to surface. “I wish I knew the truth,” I whispered to the picture. Somehow, I believed that it heard me.
Looking up, my eyes adjusted to my surroundings, noticing that the sun began to set.
I still fidgeted with the picture, and daydreams followed as I stared off into a void. A shadow crossed my vision, interrupting my thoughts.
“Hey,” I managed to murmur.
“Did I scare you?” Jarak raised his eyebrows. “You seem tense.”
Psh. “No,” I lied. Heck yes, he scared me—in more ways than one.
His smile was wide and he chuckled. “Sure. Okay, come on, you haven’t eaten anything since coming here. Let’s go make something together because I’m starving.”
My stomach growled again in response, and my cheeks warmed in embarrassment. “Dinner sounds good.”
Jarak held his hand out for me to take and I eagerly accepted it. Somewhere in this house lurked vampires, and I wasn't too sure if I trusted them yet. Not that any movie or book in history gave me a reason to trust them. And, Jarak’s protection offered me a small sense of security.
In the living room, I considered myself safe because it was large and spacious with enough room to move around in—enough room to run. Even though I was sure vampires were faster than me, it still gave me a feeling of security amidst strange new surroundings.
I watched Dracula for a project in high school. And, I didn’t care what Hollywood wanted us to believe. Vampires were not sparkly and clearly not meant to be trusted. It was hard enough to stay in the house without worrying if I would wake up to fangs in my neck.
I shivered.
Concern crossed Jarak’s face. “Are you cold?”
I shook my head. Deep inside I knew I could trust him with my fears, but I was afraid of being wrong. The thought of Meadow wanting to become a vampire made my stomach roll again, and I suddenly lost all of my appetite. She might not be my biological mom, but she raised me, and that counted for something. I hoped there would always be a connection between us. It was hard to think that just because I found out she wasn’t my real mom that she wouldn’t want to be my mom.
I lagged behind, stopping us both. “I don’t think I’m hungry anymore.”
He gave me a gentle smile. “I think I know what’s wrong.” He nodded his head toward the front door where we just passed. “Come on, let’s go. I have the same problem.”
I highly doubted he had the same problem. “Go?”
“Trust me.”
There was that word again, as if it hung on a sign in front of my face. Trust.
He tugged on my hand and pulled me to the door. Opening it, he ushered me outside quickly, running hand in hand out into the dusk.
We ran down the driveway, and he kept hold of my hand, stopping at one of the two cars parked in front of the house. He opened the passenger side door for me to get in and then dashed over the hood, sliding across to the other side. I tried my best at a fearless smile, even though my heart raced inside.
He landed in the driver’s seat so fast that it surprised me.
“So, are we going somewhere?” I tried not to sound too hopeful, but my plea was threaded through each word.
“That depends.” He patted around the dash with his hands, then flipped open the visor only to shut it again.
“Depends on what?” My heart raced. There was a possible way out of Dodge? I didn’t care what we had to do. Sell a kidney?
“Well, we don’t have keys. My truck’s at home, not here.” He stopped searching and looked at me; a playful grin raised the corner of his mouth. “Would you do the honors?”
Um… Wouldn’t selling my kidney be easier? “How am I supposed to do that? I don’t have keys.”
“Okay, indulge me. Close your eyes and imagine the car starting, hear the engine come to life in your mind.” His hands rested on the steering wheel.
“You’re crazy.”
“Maybe, but I’m right. After these last couple days, you won’t even play along?”
This was nuts. I couldn’t believe I was going to listen to him. “Okay, but you can’t look at me, I get embarrassed easy.”
He made an X over his heart. “My honor.” Then he closed his eyes.
Willing my eyes shut, I tried to relax and envision the car. Like a bright light radiating rays out around me, I poured all my hope into wanting the car to start.
The roar of the engine startled me. My eyes flew open, and I looked at Jarak.
A cocky grin and a quick eyebrow lift held more satisfaction than his words. “Told you.”
My eyes darted to the ignition where no keys dangled from the key lock. “How did you do that?”
“Not me. You.” He pulled the gear shifter back and placed it in drive. “Ready?”
“That wasn’t me.” Call it denial, but there was no way I started the car just by hoping it would start. Nope. Not this Nevada girl.
“You’ll get used to it. Then it will come naturally and you won’t even have to think about it.” Pulling out onto the residential road, he glanced at me. “You don’t believe you’re a witch, yet. Do you?”
All I could do was shake my head. “I don’t know what to believe. The last few days still feel like a dream or something. It’s weird, you know, having magic. I’m still unsure about it. I’m not sure I’m ready to call myself a witch.” My gaze went back to the keyless ignition. It was bizarre, but so awesome at the same time. It was like the night before Christmas as a kid, and you just knew good things were to come. It gave me that kind of an excited feeling.
“You think magic is weird?”
I shrugged. “Yeah, sort of. I mean, it’s cool and all, but it’s hard to comprehend. What about you, wasn’t it weird when you found out?”
Jarak straightened his back. “I don’t have powers like you.”
“I’m sorry, I just thought—I’m stupid for assuming.” I glanced out the window, sure that my cheeks were brighter than a cherry.
He reached over, turning my face toward him with his free hand. “Don’t ever call yourself that again. It’s okay, because you don’t know much about this part of your life. I’m a Guardian, and that is an incredible gift. I don’t need magic.”
“A Guardian? I heard Victor and Ree mention them, but I’m not sure what they meant.” Was it like the secret service? I’d never heard of Guardians in mythology, but I remembered hearing Victor saying he paid Jarak to keep me safe.
Having my own bodyguard could be kind of awesome.
Jarak turned the car around the corner and headed toward the city. “Guardians are connected to the spirit wolves.”
My mouth dropped open. All I heard was wolves. “So Guardians are Werewolves?” All my thoughts of trusting him fled. Werewolves were a legend that I knew. The reality of being in a car—alone—with a possible werewolf, made my breath freeze in my throat.
He chortled a little. “No.”
“I don’t understand.” Should I breathe again, or no?
He drummed his fingers on the wheel. “Guardians aren’t exactly an old mythical legend; in reality they are very new. We’ve only been around for about two hundred years or so. We were created from a time of war and because of love.” He paused, taking in a ragged breath. “We are actually a part of your family history. To understand this, I’ll start at the beginning. Torres loved his wife, Adonia, more than his own life.”
He stopped as if to let me take in what he’d just said. I sucked in a sharp breath. There were those names again. Torres was the name Ree used when she spoke of my real father.
“Torres wasn’t born with magic, or power of any kind, but Adonia loved him regardless. Because of her immortality, after becoming one with her husband, he was also bestowed the gift of eternity with his beloved.
“But, the war had already star
ted between Nicholas, all magical beings, and the human race. Nicholas took Adonia as a hostage before you were conceived. He tossed her into a voided area so she couldn’t use her magic to help herself. Torres had nothing to save her with and his grief tore him apart. He went deep into the woods, and it was there that he sacrificed himself to the wolves, calling on their power to save his wife. He’d have gladly given up his life for her.”
“Why did he go to the wolves?”
“He went to the wolves because Adonia once told him that they carried the most spiritual powers in nature, and with all his heart he believed they could help.
“But, the strength of his love was so strong that the wolves sensed it. The Alpha wolf understood Torres’ pain and vowed that he would help Torres throughout his life to protect his beloved Adonia. Hela, the alpha wolf, and Torres made a pact that night.” Jarak stopped drumming, and his voice calmed as he finished his story.
“As Torres lay on the ground, wounded and bleeding after the Alpha sank his teeth into Torres’ chest, binding the wolf’s powers with the man, thus creating the Guardians.”
I gasped. How horrible it would be to be mauled by a wolf in order to bond. Torres must love Adonia an awful lot to do something so unselfish.
“When Torres awoke the next morning, to his amazement, his wounds were healed. The large white wolf lay next to him, sleeping. He could feel the wolves all around, calling to him in his heart. At first, he heard a garbled voice in his head, and then it became clear.
“He was able to communicate with the Alpha who bonded with him. The wolf became Torres’ spirit wolf. Torres’ strength increased because he was able to call out to his wolf for help. Together they were able to save Adonia because the magic from the warlock had no effect on him.
“A chosen wolf will fight next to their human when needed. Many things came from that first bonding. Some attributes from the wolves are embedded into our souls.”
I leaned forward and listened intently. This was the best story I ever heard. I felt as if I knew this somehow, like I’d heard it before, but my mind suppressed it. “What else?”
He reached over and took my hand. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach, and my skin flushed. I glanced away, hoping he wouldn't notice. “One is that once we love, there is no stopping it, like the bond between the Alpha wolf and his mate. It will become forever. When a wolf mates, they mate for life, it’s a bond so strong that it is never broken.”
He smiled and pulled his hand away. “However, some neat things can happen too. Because Adonia was so grateful to the wolves, she bestowed a gift upon all the chosen Guardians. Each of us can be gifted a power, but it has to be from the heart. One of the greatest gifts we have is that magic has no effect on us. And, those of us born as a Guardian, just have to be around their chosen wolf to bond, it’s spiritual with no process or pain.” He took a minute, letting everything he said settle with me.
“Oh my gosh. That is incredible. So, Guardians are like witch bodyguards, then?”
Jarak chuckled. “Yeah, pretty much.”
“What happened to Adonia and Torres?”
“The last time either of them were seen, was right after you were kidnapped, stolen from birth. It was sad to see them that way.”
His eyes glistened as he spoke of them as if it were a memory, something he’d seen with his own eyes.
I couldn’t help but feel miserable for the couple he talked about. I was their missing baby girl. It couldn’t have hit me harder if I’d seen my picture on a milk box. It gnawed at my insides with a force that grasped and squeezed my heart. I needed to clear my mind. All my thoughts jumbled together with my overflowing emotions. It was me. I truly was Esmerelda.
Okay. So witches, vampires, guardians. Got it. “So, no werewolves?”
He laughed. “No, the myth of the werewolf might be true, but I have yet to see one.” He tapped his thumb on the wheel and bobbed his head to music I could barely hear coming through the speakers. “Shape shifters are probably real, but they don’t turn into raging wolves on steroids, killing vampires or hunting on full moons.”
“Do you hunt vampires or change into a wolf on full moons?” The thought of Jarak hunting Meadow as a vampire pulled at my heart.
“No, we only protect witches. We don’t hunt vampires just to kill them. But, we would kill if necessary. Think of us as the secret service of the supernatural world.”
“So, how did you become a Guardian if it’s something that’s still relatively new?”
“My father was a close confidant to Torres, so Torres chose him to become one. After that, it was passed down to me and others... It’s like a family business.”
I settled back down with his lighthearted demeanor, wondering who the others were. He looked over, watching my expression. “So does that scare you, knowing that about me?”
Inside I searched for any signs of remaining fear. “No. Honestly, at first I was a little afraid because all I thought was werewolf, but after hearing the truth, I’m not scared.”
He smiled at my acceptance. “Good.”
“So, what about the vampires? I mean, I thought they couldn’t stand in the sunlight, but Ree’s house has so much light.”
“Another myth. They can walk out in the sun anytime, but they don’t have to worry about a sunburn. The sun has no effect on them.”
“When we first got to Ree’s house, Victor stopped me and said that I would be prey if she didn’t invite me in. What about that?”
“Some myths say that vampires can’t walk into a house without being invited, but that’s incorrect. It’s actually the other way around. A mortal can’t just walk into a vampire’s home, if they do without the invitation then they are considered instant prey. It’s a security for the magical world to have some rules. So, vampires have certain places they can hunt, their home is one of them. Some don’t abide by the rules and cause chaos for those that are trying to stay under the radar from mortals.”
“I see…” It was weird, talking to him about vampires and werewolves, so I let the conversation fizzle out. It was still hard for me to accept that the whole supernatural world was real, even though it was blatantly placed before me.
The trip to the city seemed shorter than when I’d first arrived, but the lights of the capital at night were breath taking and I was glad Jarak had brought me there. My eyes burned from being so tired, but I willed them to stay open and take in the sights. I hadn’t slept much since arriving. Every noise made me jump, and made me wonder who it was or if they were after me. The truth is, I’d have gotten better sleep if I shared a hotel room with a band of monkeys playing drums.
I watched the thousands of buildings as we sped past them. There were so many that they looked like they were on top of each other as if the Spanish crammed every possible outlet into one tiny space.
Beep beep. The sound of a horn honked before the little car rushed around us. The number of people crammed into the vehicle made me smile; it seemed the buildings weren’t the only thing lacking space.
Jarak parked alongside the road. Businesses had lights glowing from inside their windows. Crowds of people walked past them, talking amongst themselves. Just as before, Jarak ran around the car and opened the door for me before I could get out. Maybe it was Guardian speed?
The city was full of cars passing, horns beeping, and unfamiliar sirens in the distance. Excitement radiated from every passerby. I smiled up at Jarak as he offered his hand, helping me out of the vehicle. Recognizable, yet new scents surrounded me. Fried ham and grease filled my nostrils.
“Where are we going?” Now I was even more curious what we were doing on a crowded sidewalk.
“Right there.” He pointed to the corner of a large building on the corner of a cross road with lots of traffic.
I strained my eyes, looking for a sign of some sort. Summoning all my courage, I reached out and gripped his hand as we neared the edge of the road we had to cross. My smile became wider when he never pulled away. A
panhandler reached out with his hat, asking for our money.
Jarak glanced down at the old man. “Sorry, not tonight.” He pulled me closer and we continued to walk.
I sniffed the air. I’d know that smell anywhere. I hurried, almost pulling him with me. Once across the street, my nose served me right. A large moving truck hid the painted sign on the window. Even in Spain, I knew what it said. You can’t make the golden arches foreign.
“Seriously? We’re in Spain, and you take me to McDonalds?” Inside I was overly happy about seeing something familiar, but I couldn’t stop myself from goading him.
“Oh yeah, that’s how I roll, a cheeseburger in one hand, a pretty girl in the other.”
“Well then, lead the way. I hear the french fries calling out to my stomach.”
Eight
Esmerelda
B ack at Ree’s house, I sat down next to the pool, letting my feet dangle in the water. Kicking my legs back and forth, I watched the waves and ripples they created, as the light of the moon glistened on my skin. I tried not to concentrate on the trials life had thrown at me lately. Although, that proved to be harder than not.
A shuffle of quiet footsteps made me grin. Jarak hadn’t left. He guarded me. It comforted me to have a friend there, although he refused to call me anything but Es. But, even that was growing on me. I knew it was short for my given birth name, but it was still hard to hear anything else but Ara. I knew deep inside it was the truth, but it was still hard to accept.
I wasn’t sure who I was anymore. It definitely gave me an identity crisis.
I twisted so I could see him better. He was just ending a call on his phone.
At least I had great eye candy for a bodyguard. I watched as he leaned against one of the white pillars by the pool. He looked so relaxed, so in control, so sexy.
His blue eyes stood out with his all black ensemble, and under the moonlight, they had a silver glow. My mouth went dry as I let my eyes roam down his body. Something I caught myself doing—a lot. With just a black t-shirt, I could see his muscles in his arms were taut, and I had no doubt in my mind he would use his strength to defend me without hesitation.