“Yes to all of it. I’m dreaming, too. And I lied. I had a vision when we kissed. I did hallucinate. I don’t know why I didn’t fess up. I think I was scared. Did you…” I was afraid to ask, but I had to know.
“Of course I did! You were in a wedding dress, and I was all dashing in a tux. Then the wedding night? How we ever ended that kiss is still beyond me. I love you, November. I’m utterly mad about you.”
“I love you, too!” I shouted above the wind and the colors, relieved at the catharsis that came with our confession. “Where are you? Who’s got you?”
“I’m still Topside, not far from your house. No more than half an hour or so. It’s a handful of random Ekeks and Manas who jumped me. I don’t know them. They’ve got me locked up in a basement somewhere. What do they want? They’re not telling me anything.”
“They took you to get to me,” I told him, letting my legs touch the ground. I stood in Von’s arms, and despite the storm of wind and colors in our dream, and the horrors that would greet us when we woke, in that moment of moments, I felt safe. I hadn’t experienced a whole lot of that feeling in my life, and knew to cherish every second of it. “They want me to take the stone to Lumipad next, instead of Dagat.”
“Finn’s not going to like that.”
“No one’s too thrilled. We’re so scared for you, Von. We didn’t even know if you were still alive! Lang’s got his bug army looking for you, but I can tell him to narrow it down to a circle about half an hour from my house. That helps.”
A light shined in Von’s black eyes. “On the way here, they stopped for fast food. Blimpo Burgers. We’re about five minutes from that.”
“That’s even more helpful! Oh, that’s great. As soon as I wake up, I’ll run and come get you.”
“No! You stay far away from here.” He kissed my face, cherishing the curves and paying homage to each of my few freckles. “I mean it, Peach. I don’t want to scare you, but Ekeks and Manas are no joke. The only reason I’m alive is because I’m a bargaining chip. Bring Danny and a whole mess of Duwende fighters. There are at least nine of them that I could count, maybe more that I didn’t see.”
“Danny’s gone!” I cried, burying my face in his chest. Von’s body and his arms around my form shielded me from the colorful wind. He was my haven, and I clung to him as such. “Danny took Bev and the stone, and convinced Kabayo to port them down to Lumipad. Danny said it was too dangerous for me to go, so Bev would carry the stone. Said it all in a note after they sneaked off without telling Ezra or anybody. Mariang’s freaking out.”
“Whoa. How’re you doing with that? Bev really took the stone? Why?”
“Because she didn’t want me walking into a land filled with starving cannibals. She actually seemed worried for me. I don’t recognize her, Von. It scares me how much the stone must’ve warped her original personality.”
“Ollie told me how different she is now.” We’d gone too long without kissing, and I knew we were both starting to feel the buildup. “I love your lips. You have no idea how hard it’s been to keep things above board with you.”
“You love my lips, eh? Prove it, punk. Kiss me like you mean it.”
“Oh, sweet November. You don’t know what you’re playing at.”
I shrugged as if I was as of yet unimpressed. It was my best dare to date, and boy did I reap the rewards. My knees turned to jelly after Von’s tongue tangoed with mine, but instead of supporting my weight, Von lowered us to the grass. His body pressed down on mine as we made a perfect tangle of limbs, the wind egging us on. It was an amazing feeling to be present for a kiss of this magnitude, instead of the euphoria making my brain check out. This time I didn’t miss the details of what made us magical without the use of magic.
I lost track of the time, the day, the year. I lost my mind and my hesitation that had held me back for so long. I shed my OCD that would never have let me roll around on the ground and think it was the sexiest thing ever. In our fantasy life, I was free.
I’d never been free before, but beneath Von’s tantalizing and sensual caresses, that’s exactly what I was.
I wanted this in real life. As incredible as fantasy Von was, I knew that when we found each other again, it would be the kiss to end all kisses. Our passion began to shift from frantic to a slow, melty love without words. I felt how terrified he was, and how much he needed the comfort we somehow managed to find only in each other. “I’m scared,” he admitted in a whisper. I could only hear him above the wind because his lips were brushing my ear. “Tell Ezra to hurry.”
The kiss broke as I wrapped my arms and legs around him, trapping his body in a hug that probably looked more like a wrestling hold than anything else. “I will. Tell me anything you can think of. What about smells? Mason’s got that wolf sense that’s almost as good as your vampire nose.”
Von inhaled the scent in the crook of my neck, kissing me into near delirium as he pushed me into guttural moan mode. “I love that I do that to you. To watch you let go after you’ve bound yourself so tightly?” He stroked the outside of my thigh. “To know only I get to see you like that? I’m mad about you, darling. Solely and completely yours.”
“You’re scrambling my brains,” I admitted, seeking friction when I should’ve been talking business. “We have to do this in person. Help me find you.”
Von rolled off and lay beside me, knowing it was the only way either of us would ever be able to focus. “You’re dangerous, love.” He rubbed his toned stomach and then linked his fingers through mine as the wind brushed over our bodies, fluttering over our clothes but not whipping at us with its full force, as it had done when we were standing. The wind turned blue, and then lightened with brushstrokes of purple as Von collected his thoughts. “I smell leaves. Leaves and concrete. A little smog, but not enough to be near an industrial plant.”
“Good! Keep thinking. Give me anything you’ve got.”
“They’re starving me,” Von said, matter of fact. “It’ll make me too weak to fight back after a few days. I don’t feel hungry now, which is odd, since I’m short on blood, but I know I’ll feel it soon. When they get word from you that you’ve delivered the stone, they’re going to bleed me dry and leave me locked up here. Then you’ll open the door, and I’ll attack you.” He swallowed hard. “They’re counting on me killing you, Peach. That’s how they’re going to keep the other countries from getting their share of the stone without having any of the blood on their hands.”
“Jeez! Why? I don’t get why Terraway’s so vindictive. It’s like, get a life already.”
“The Ekeks hate Dagat. Most of us do, but they do in particular. They’ve had just as bad a drought as Silo, but Finn sent relief to Kabayo and not them. No one likes the Ekeks and the Manas much. They’re scavengers who do more harm than good when they visit the neighboring countries. Very few of us try to eat other Terrawayans, but they do when food’s scarce.”
“Oh good. They sound swell. Totally glad Bev, Danny and Kabayo are risking their lives for them. Do you think they’ll get eaten? Do you think they’ve gone off on a suicide mission?” I knew Von would tell me the truth. He was first and foremost my friend, and I needed a friend that night.
“I certainly hope not. I hope Danny’s smart about it. He knows the circuitous routes to take. But it’s a risk. The one thing they’ve got going is Kabayo. He’s a face the Ekeks and Manas will recognize, so if they know what’s good for them, they’ll back off.”
My shoulder bumped to his as we stared at the wind while it changed to a rosy red. “Thank you. That actually made me feel a little better. You always know how to do that.”
“That’s because I’m good for you. I was going absolutely insane down here before you showed up. Tell me we can do this every night.”
“I’m pretty sure you’ll get sick of me after a few months of this.”
“You underestimate the lure of your lips and appeal of your hips.” His dreamy face fell into despair. “I made you feel bad about tha
t sexy scar on your thigh. I took Katrina into your room and ruined your carpet! I’m sick about the whole thing.”
“Stop. Stop punishing yourself, stop being a d-bag, and stop kissing Katrina. Then we’re good.”
“You know I wasn’t kissing Katrina.”
I turned to him. “You know what I mean. I don’t want to kiss a guy who’s having sex with my friends. I don’t want to kiss a guy who’s fooling around with anyone, really.”
“You want me to only be a fool for you, then?”
“If it’s not too much trouble.”
Von looked up at the colors swirling and whipping above us. “I’m still not ready for something so serious. You and me? It won’t be dates and figuring things out. It’ll be forever from the first moment we dive in.”
I chewed on my lower lip, not having considered this. “And that’s not what you want?”
“That’s not what I can give you. It doesn’t matter what I want. One day I’ll lose control, and I’ll be gone. I won’t exist as I am now. I’m not eager to attach that weight to you.” He kissed my knuckles, closing his eyes as if his words that cut me also pained him. “I know that’s not what you want to hear, and I can stop fooling around with your mates easily enough, but a boyfriend/girlfriend arrangement? Give me time. Loads of time. Give me time not chained up in a basement where we can talk about this like proper adults.”
I swallowed the hollow feeling his words brushed over me and tried to be cool. “Since when do you consider yourself a proper adult? I only like the improper kind.”
He saw through my joke to the slice of a scar beneath. I loved him. I actually went for what I wanted, and got turned down. The worst part about it was that I wasn’t all that surprised.
Von’s eyes watched my veiled heartbreak with self-loathing. “Hani, I’m sorry. I’m temporary, no matter how much I want to stay with you forever.”
I pursed my lips as I put on a brave face neither of us believed. “I’ve never been fond of the word ‘boyfriend’, so it’s fine. You can see whoever you want, minus my pool of friends. You’re right. You should do what you like with your life.” I hated myself for caving, for not fighting for what I wanted. But I guess the thing I wanted was a man who wouldn’t think twice about jumping at the chance to be with me. Maybe that was naïve, but I didn’t want to settle for less than that. I wanted a man who didn’t have a list of reasons why I wasn’t worth the risk. I wanted things to be simple with us. I wanted Mr. Brady.
His voice was gentle, pleading with me for something more, though I’d already given him more than I wanted to. “I still love you. Just give me time. I gave up on considering all that ages ago. It’s a whole new language for me to see if I can learn.”
I ignored the lump in my throat, sizing up the very big thing we were discussing for the mountain it was. “I love you too, Von. We can keep things friendly, then, if that’s what you want. Do what you like.”
“It’s what I need. Thank you.” He squeezed my hand, clearly pleased as a relaxed smile fluttered over his features, making him, if possible, more stunning as the red wind turned a dusty pink.
Six.
Mason in the Nude
I awoke when Mariang shook me out of my shared dream with Von, breaking me into the harsh reality of her tearful eyes, with Mason nowhere to be found. “Wake up, honey.”
I felt like my lips were swollen, and I checked my clothes to make sure they were decent. “Hey. What time is it?”
“It’s eight in the morning, but you looked like you were having a nightmare. You were tossing and turning and mumbling something.”
I didn’t have the heart to tell her that the things I had been moaning were not for her ears. “Oh. Sorry about that.” It took me a solid ten seconds before my two realities caught up with each other. “Von! I can help find him!”
She wiped a tear from her cheek. “They want us to stay here where it’s safe.”
I ripped the covers off of me and ran for the door. “Screw that. Come on! Von gave me clues to help find him. Mason!” I called through the house, no doubt disturbing everyone who’d barely indulged in half a night’s sleep. I bolted down the steps, tripping and righting myself on the wood banister as I called for Ezra, Ollie, Mason and anyone else who was in shouting range. “I found Von, sort of!”
Ezra stepped out from where he’d been eating breakfast in the kitchen, and Lynna came running after him. “You found him?” Lynna asked, her wrinkled face streaked with tears. She looked like she’d been up all night crying. “Where! Where’s my boy?”
I relayed everything I knew from the logistics of my dream, bringing about looks of confusion instead of them getting their shoes on to go look for Von. “Well? Let’s go! Call Lang and give him the specifics so he knows where to send his minions. Then once they find the house, we can go bust him out.”
Ezra put his hand on my shoulder as Mariang came down dressed for the day. “Darling, it was a dream. That’s not reality.”
“No! It was a psychic dream! We were dreamwalking! Ask Mariang. She can tell you more about it.”
Mariang was patient, as if explaining the truths of the universe to a small child. “You know dreamwalking only happens after the Omen and her Reaper make love. You and Von only kissed. What you’re suggesting? It’s not possible.”
A light turned on in my brain. “But we had our honeymoon in our vision when we kissed! I don’t know how it happened, but I know it was Von, and I can narrow down where he is!”
Ezra was firm, his chin raised as he laid down the law. “I’m sorry, but no. Lang will find him. We have to be patient.”
“Screw your patience!” I spun on my heel and made my way for the stairs. First Von asked me to be patient, and now Ezra was banging that same stupid drum. “You have until I get dressed to lift the spell that keeps me locked inside here. ‘Be patient,’” I scoffed. “Their plan is to bleed him dry once they get word I’ve given them their piece of the stone. Then they’re going to give me the location and set him loose on me. They want him to kill me so the other lands that didn’t send aid to Lumipad won’t get their slice of the stone. Von told me all of it!” I stomped up the stairs, not caring to hear another argument on the subject. I knew what I’d experienced, and I wouldn’t question my sanity over it. Not now. Not when Von needed us.
I threw a clean blue t-shirt over my head and tugged on my jeans. I pulled my hair up into a haphazard ponytail and ran back down the stairs to find that the others hadn’t moved from the spot I’d left them. “Is the spell lifted?” I asked, miffed.
Ezra was unapologetic. “No. You’re staying here. Lang will find Von. Be patient, dear.”
I was fuming, my fist clenched at my side. “You call me ‘dear’ when you’re holding me prisoner? Do you think I’d sit down and twiddle my thumbs if it was you they were keeping locked up? I’d tear down any stupid enchantment I had to and bust down as many doors as it took to find you. What makes you think I’d do less for my Reaper?”
His stalwart gaze shifted to a softer emotion at my declaration of loyalty to him. “And I appreciate that. But you’re acting on a dream, sweetheart. I won’t risk your life so easily.”
I was desperate. “Fine. You won’t let me out the door? I’ll break your windows.”
“The charm extends to the windows, October Grace.”
I shrugged and marched to the kitchen, picking up a stool from the counter and lugging it to the front room’s big picture window. “Then I’ll bust out your windows for the fun of it. Let me out, Ezra!”
“Dad, do something!” Mariang fretted as I lifted the stool as much like a bat as I could manage.
“Stop her!” Lynna cried, wringing her hands.
It was Mason who came barreling toward me in wolf form, leaping up and knocking me backward just as I started to swing the stool toward the window. He stood over me and growled, his teeth barred as the stool toppled to the floor.
I was furious. “Seriously? You’re going to stop me
from trying to find Von? You should be that much more on top of this! Without him, you’re stuck with me twenty-four seven until I die. You’ll never get to go back to your life without Von! Help me, Mason!”
For a second his slate eyes looked conflicted as he stared down at me. Then he shook it off and maintained his dominant position.
“Oh yeah? Two can play this game. Bite me, you jackwagon! I friggin’ dare you!” I shoved him off of me, ambled to my feet and grabbed up the stool again, aiming it to give the picture window my best assault.
I didn’t expect Mason to transform into a man again, and I surely wasn’t anticipating him being naked. Though, on second thought it made sense. He hadn’t been wearing any clothing as a wolf.
Mason tackled me to the ground, wrestling me into a hold I couldn’t get out of as I shrieked at his sudden nudity. “Calm down! Destroying the house won’t get you to Von. Think it through, October!”
“Get off me, you d-bag!”
“I will if you’ll settle down and have a conversation with me about this whole dreamwalking thing. I’ll help you, but I can’t let you leave the house. Ezra’s right. If the Ekeks catch wind of you not being on the job in Lumipad, who knows what else they’ll do to Von to make you obey? We have to make them think you’ve already gone to Terraway on their mission.”
I hated that he made sense even more than I loathed his hairy mess on display and touching my leg without my permission. I knew he’d transformed on a dime out of desperation to keep from biting me, but dude. Not cool. “Fine! But put on some clothes first. You’re freaking me out.”
Mason got up when I stopped struggling in his arms, totally unashamed of his nudity as he stood in front of Ezra, me, Mariang and Lynna. The girls turned their eyes, but I saw them both sneaking curious peeks at the painfully obvious point of male pride on Mason.
Ezra glowered at the both of us. “Mason, come back down when you’re dressed. October Grace, I hope you’ve calmed down.” He helped me up off the floor and led me to the dining room where he requested breakfast and tea be brought out for Mariang and me while we sorted things out.
Treat (Terraway Book 5) Page 3