by Crymsyn Hart
He curled his hand into a first and was going to swing at Belik, but he noticed Illiana. Ohanzee stopped himself at the last second. He shook his head, and offered Illiana his hand.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for you to get hurt,” he apologized.
She stared at him, and her expression hardened. “Leave me and Belik alone. I’m grateful that you led us here, but from now on, leave us be. If this is how you’re going to treat me and my mate, I don’t want to know you.”
“No. You don’t understand. It was a misunderstanding. Please let me try to explain,” he pleaded with Illiana. This was the worst thing that had happened to him.
Illiana went back into the hut, and Belik stepped before him. “I’d do as she says. You have no idea what she’s gone through. I’m sorry I hit you. It was wrong, but when it comes to her, I’ll do anything to keep her happy and safe. If anything happens to her the way it did the last time, I don’t know if I’ll get her back. Now back off.” Belik slammed the door, leaving Ohanzee to deal with the ridiculing stares of the villagers.
He picked up his scattered tools and clutched the wolf-raven sculpture in his hands, feeling the calming effect it had over him. His sister looked at him with questions in her eyes, but all she did was sigh and walk away. What is wrong with me? Something inside of him had awakened, and it frightened him. He was not sure he needed to be around people. He needed assistance from their shaman who was not going to see him until tomorrow night. If he could make it until then, then he might keep his sanity. Asha talked to him, but he could not hear the words. All he could think of was Illiana on the ground and how he had hurt her. Without even knowing why, it ripped him apart inside. It would take everything in him to make it up to her, but he would.
* * * *
“What was that all about?” Illiana asked Belik.
Her mate sat with his loom in his hands, but he was doing nothing with it. The redness of the broken skin on his knuckles concerned her. The silence made her uneasy. In all the time they had been together, he had been her anchor and gotten her through the worst of the times. Belik had been the one to get Christopher to realize that she needed him. Those two weeks had been scary for her because the wolf had disappeared into the darkness of her mind and she had not been able to reach it. She prayed that would never happen again. Then again, it had been strong emotions that had finally brought it out from the recesses of her mind. Maybe if something else traumatic happened to her, it might retreat again.
Now among those of her own kind, she felt more relaxed. The only one that was a mystery was Ohanzee. She thought about when he kissed her. After the second time of him kissing her, she was not sure what to feel about him. He had asked her how she felt. It was true Ohanzee stirred her heart, but she was not sure that was possible. It had shocked her enough that she had to get away from him. She had needed the air to think. Nothing else mattered, other than getting away from him. Seeing him beat up on Belik made her rethink Ohanzee, if he was going to cause such mayhem with her mate.
She went over to Belik and knelt before him. Illiana took his hands and kissed where his knuckles were raw. He winced and nearly pulled his hands away. “Tell me what happened. Was it something I did?”
He sighed. “What happened with him today? He came here with your dress and said that you kissed him. Are you hiding something from me?” The hurt in Belik’s eyes seared her heart.
“No. Nothing. He kissed me once before, and I pushed him away. My father said that Ohanzee wanted to talk to me today, so I went to find him. He was carving, and we started to talk. He said something about dreaming about me. I don’t know. He kissed me again, and it sparked something. I ran away and shifted to get away from him. I made a rash decision about how I handled it, but I didn’t sleep with him. You are my constant. You are the man I love.”
“I’m one of the men you love,” he whispered.
She was not going to deny that she still loved Christopher, but he was the past. Belik was her now and ever-present. However Ohanzee fit into her life, it was not for a relationship. “You are the only man for me. He means nothing to me. I admit there’s something about him, but from what I gather, he’s an outcast in the tribe.”
“I don’t blame any of them.”
“You hit him first.”
“I know. How does he fit into our lives? He certainly has some interest in you if he’s kissed you twice.”
Illiana was trying to figure out where he belonged in her life, but she could not deny that there was something that intrigued her. When she held onto the stone carving and had touched the ground with him holding her hand, she had felt the tingling in her hand. It had moved through her whole body similar to the way the energy of the fire did. The earth had grounded her as though she was being pulled into the dirt. When he had kissed her, that connection was broken. It was something she was going to talk to her father about tomorrow night.
“Belik, I don’t know what role he has in my life, in our lives. I haven’t gone looking to have a relationship with him. Even if I had your blessing, I’m not ready to have someone else in my life.”
He cupped her face in his hands. “I’m sorry for stirring up trouble and doubting you. It’s . . . I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you. Illiana, you are the most important thing to me. This journey has made me realize that. Not that I didn’t know that before, but with all the things we’ve been through . . .”
She smiled and saw the love he had for her in his dark eyes. It was difficult to believe that she had ever ignored him in the first place, but Belik had been so persistent in courting her that she had finally given him the chance to be with her. Now she would never give him up. “I know. You don’t have to tell me. I’ll speak to him tomorrow and make it clear there’s nothing between us and he has to back off. Okay?”
“No. I’ll speak to him. I should apologize because I struck him first. And you’re right, I am jealous. Because I want hang onto you so tightly and made sure nothing happens to you.”
“Nothing is going to happen to me. We’re safe here, and I love you.”
“I know. And I love you, too. I’m sorry for the scene.”
“You were defending my honor. And looking out for me the way you did when you went to Christopher because I was losing myself. Because of you, I had both men I loved in my life. Don’t worry about it. Let’s get past this. I spoke with my father, and he wants me to go to his house tomorrow night to work on my connection with the elements.”
“Do you think you have connection to the others?”
She grabbed a bowl of water and brought it over before them. Illiana set it on the ground. Belik flashed her a curious look. She smiled and put her hand over the water. “I’ve been practicing with the water.” The flat surface rippled. When she lowered her hand, the water rose up out of the bowl a few inches and brushed her palm.
Belik touched the bowl, and the liquid did not move. “How did you do that?”
“I’m still not sure. It doesn’t communicate with me all the time. I think I got lucky. Ranolo said that my air-bending came from his mother and it’s rare. I need to know what else he can do or if I can do the same thing. Many of the two-natured here have a gift for some element. It makes me wonder if all the two-natured tribes do.”
“Marta doesn’t seem to have any affinity for an element. At least not that we can see.”
“I don’t know how it works. Maybe it comes from this clan and her father didn’t have the ability. Or she takes after her mother more. She did talk about the earth. Maybe she’s just too young. We’ll see. But I need to do this.”
He nodded and kissed her. “Of course. I know. I’m proud of it. I’m proud of you.”
Illiana was glad she had his support. She prayed it would always be there.
The next day went by slowly. Belik went out early to gather materials to construct a loom. She was happy that he was keeping himself busy. Illiana ate a little, but her stomach jumped with anticipation of what she might
discover that she was capable of. What else could she do? Were the vibrations she felt from the earth the night before real, or had they been imagined? When it finally came time for her to go she walked to Ranolo’s house on the outskirts of the village—of that she was glad, for she prayed they would not be interrupted. That was all she needed.
She knocked on the door, and he opened it. Ranolo welcomed her and gave her a long hug. Her father reminded her of a bear even though she knew he was a large wolf. The others in the village did not seem to mind that she was also a wolf or a raven. Other villagers turned into some wolves, mountain lions, and other animals that she had not come across before. Nevertheless, the majority of the shifters’ forms seemed to be all land and air dwellers. There were not many wolves, but she had seen some coyotes and eagles. She wondered if the two-natured in other tribes in the desert could shift into snakes, lizards, or even something else that she could not think of.
“How are you doing?” Ranolo asked.
“I’m okay, but I wanted to talk to you about Ohanzee.”
He nodded. “I figured that you might, but I’m afraid that you might have to ask him yourself.”
She glanced over and saw Ohanzee sitting in one of the chairs in the small hut. “What is he doing here? I was hoping that we would be talking alone.”
Ranolo glanced between the two of them. “I think it will be helpful for Ohanzee to be here. He’s probably the better of the two of us to help you discover if you have the same abilities that I do. I know you have been working with water from what you’ve told me. But Ohanzee has a great gift with earth.”
“Excuse me, Ranolo, but are you sure that’s a good idea? After last night and what happened yesterday, I really don’t feel comfortable—” the carver stated.
“I really don’t care what you think, but this is going to happen,” Ranolo answered.
“I don’t think you understand. He kissed me twice after I told him that there is nothing between us,” Illiana explained to her father.
“That’s where you’re wrong, Illiana. Ohanzee, you have to tell her about your dreams. After what you told me tonight, I think that you’re both connected in more ways than either one of you knows. Illiana, I understand that this might make you uncomfortable, but you need to listen to him. Now please sit down.”
Illiana stared heart Ohanzee. His strong features were almost a reflection of hers, but he had sharper cheekbones and dark hair that fell down to the middle of his back. It had a few small braids scattered through it, but with no decoration in it. He was taller than her but not by much with strong hands. He was a nice-looking man, and the longer she was around him, the more she did feel some attraction to him.
Ohanzee glanced at her with expectation. Something about the way he held himself told her how tough it was for him to stay in the same room with her, but there was also loneliness. Illiana understood that because she had been so lonely for so long. Whatever happened, she would reveal to Belik what happened. She vowed not to keep anything else from him. She saw how it had torn him up the day before by Ohanzee’s actions.
Defeat washed over her because she needed to figure out if she had more abilities than what she already possessed. She sat on the other chair and her father settled on a stool he pulled out from underneath a table, jingling the jaws on the table. Illiana crossed her arms over her chest.
The silence grew thicker and thicker until her father finally broke the tension. “Ohanzee, why do you think I sent you to the lake?”
“I don’t know. To get my head straight so I could think. You didn’t want me to leave the village yet.”
“That was part of it. The spirits had come to me in a dream and said that someone would be arriving. I had been listening to the wind, and it also signaled that someone was coming. The air spoke of someone new who interrupted their normal flow. I wanted to be sure they had a guide to our village.”
“You knew I was coming?” Illiana asked.
Ranolo glanced at her. “I didn’t know it would be you. The wind doesn’t speak directly the way the fire spirits do. All I knew was that we were going to have visitors. In my dreams, I saw a raven and a wolf. I figured that we had a couple of shifters journeying into the village. Ohanzee was to be your guide. Tell her about your dreams.”
Ohanzee did not look at her but kept staring at something he had in his hands. He took a long breath and began to talk. “For months, well years I guess, I’ve been having these dreams about a woman with black eyes with the full silver moon captured in the middle of them. I could never see her face because she looked at me over her shoulder. Sometimes there was the sound of feathers in my dream. These dreams have been getting more frequent these past few months. I found this piece of onyx. I had no idea how or why I did, it but it’s the raven-wolf carving. When I first met you, I knew you were the woman in my dreams. I didn’t know that you would have a mate. I apologized to Belik and told him I did not mean to cause any disruption in your relationship. But there’s something about you I can’t shake. I was telling Ranolo that when I touched you the other night, something stirred in my mind.”
So he was dreaming about her, what did that mean? “Okay, so you were dreaming about me beckoning to you. That doesn’t mean anything. So you carved a piece of stone that happened to look like a raven and a wolf. It’s an amazing piece of work, but what does this have to do with me trying to be able to learn if I can control the other elements?”
“Illiana, have you noticed anything different about Ohanzee?” Ranolo asked.
“No one appears to talk to him. He’s a loner.”
“Do you know why people avoid me if they can?” Ohanzee spat.
“No, but being a visitor here, I’m sure some people don’t want to spread rumors. Why are you ignored then? Because you cause fights or that you kiss women who don’t have an interest in you?”
“No. And I don’t believe that you don’t have an interest in me. I see it when you look at me. There is desire there.” Ohanzee stared at her with sadness lingering in his eyes. Everything about his demeanor changed, and his voice lowered. He peered deeply within her eyes, and she felt some of the rage she had for him slip away. “They avoid me because they think my malady, my deformity, is going to rub off on them.”
“What deformity?” Illiana asked. “You look healthy to me. From what I can tell, you’re not any different than the rest of this tribe.”
“But I am. I can only shift into one animal, just the hawk. I should be able to shift into something else. I’m two-natured, but I don’t have another animal inside of me. At least I didn’t think I did until the first time I kissed you. When I touched you last night, while we were trying to connect to the earth, it amplified in me and I could feel something behind this wall that I’ve always had in my mind. The wall lessened, and I saw the glint of eyes in the darkness. The anger I felt when your mate hit me, isn’t me. All these years I’ve learned to channel the rage and frustration from being ostracized. You have no idea how that is, being with so many who are the same as you, but they treat you as if you carry some sort of plague.”
After listening to his story, Illiana felt a little more sympathy for him. She understood what it meant to be completely shunned by a community of which she was a part and have no friends growing up. “At least you had your sister, who stood up for you. Ohanzee, I’m sorry that you were treated that way. I completely understand how you feel. All my life, my flock has avoided me because of my differences. It didn’t matter that my mother was their leader. No one would talk to me. It wasn’t until my initiation that Belik was even able to speak to me because of his father.” His explanation of the darkness in his mind and the stirrings he had sounded similar to when she had uncovered her wolf. Maybe he was having a similar thing happening to him. Maybe that was the reason he was drawn to her.
“Now that we have cleared the air, I think it’s time that we get down to why you are here. Ohanzee has the ability to speak with the earth and with the water spiri
ts. Illiana, you have already been practicing with the water so I’m more concerned with the earth. He can help you with the earth.”
“You have the same abilities that I do. Why do you need me to help with this?” Ohanzee asked Ranolo.
“Because you have made more of a bond with my daughter than I have. We’re still getting to know one another. You need to work out whatever is in your system connecting the two of you.”
“Daughter?” Illiana saw the surprise march across Ohanzee’s face. “You’re his daughter? Why didn’t you ever tell me?”
“It wasn’t something that we wanted to make public. He’s the reason I came here. Well, one of the reasons I had to leave my flock behind. I had to . . . ” She shook her head and choked back the tears thinking about Christopher but found that the feeling of his loss was a little bit easier to deal with. Illiana hoped one day it would be completely wiped away. “Excuse me.” Illiana got up and went outside for some air. Both of her animals wanted to come out. It seemed she would burst at the seams, but she regained control. The wind wound around her and tried to give her some comfort. The fire burned hotter, lending her its energy. All the strength helped to ease the sadness in her heart. When she thought about Christopher, all she could envision was that he had moved on to someone else and forgotten all about her. She did not assume that he would wait for her. But she prayed that he would be happy.
“Are you okay? Was it something that I said?”
She felt a gentle caress on her arm and turned around to see Ohanzee standing behind her, Illiana looked down at his hand, but he pulled it away quickly as though he had been burned by her flesh. The look in his eyes was one of longing and a hunger. He had feelings for her, and she missed the absence of his touch, as brief as it was. Illiana shook the idea off and knew he was trying to apologize for his actions of the night before. “No. It wasn’t anything you said. It’s a sore spot that I’m still dealing with.”