Portals

by Wilson, Maer

  Khadentok gave a short bark of a laugh. “Humans? They are only good at fighting each other. They don’t stand a chance against our superior people.”

  Belus smiled coldly. “You have not done your research then. Yes, they are good at fighting each other, but when threatened, they band together. They would join forces and turn on you if they felt you were a threat. They would spare nothing to eliminate you, including destroying their own planet, rather than let you have it.”

  The three daemons looked shocked. “Are they mad? And you judged us to be insane?”

  Belus shrugged eloquently. “Mad? Perhaps they are. But they are a young race. They will fiercely protect their own. You will not find them to be as easy to rule as you might think. Besides, the elves would assist them in their defense. We have descendants here. We would be obligated to protect family.”

  “That is not what Satorah told us.”

  Jones looked at the other three blandly. “Satorah was not truthful, nor was she sane. She was driven mad with her vision of vengeance. But even though her time here had not been very long, she still should have had a better understanding of humanity. She simply judged them as she had seen them in the past and saw no need to look at what they had become. Present day humans are much more than they were. They are evolving at an incredible rate.

  “As Belus says, they can be very violent. They are also clever and cunning. There is no way Satorah could have made her dream a reality. She may have succeeded on a small scale, but she never would have won over the entire world. That would require them getting along and that wouldn’t happen for any great length of time. Humans would have rebelled. And probably sooner than she would have expected.”

  “But you secretly rule them!” Trabohren exclaimed.

  “I?” said Jones with a smile. “I rule no one. Very few humans even know I exist and only a handful know I am a daemon. If Satorah told you this she was more insane than I imagined.”

  For the first time, the trio looked troubled.

  “Could this be true?” Khadentok asked silently.

  “We have only been here such a short while. Perhaps he is telling the truth. No one is speaking to say he is wrong.” Bhendaron seemed especially thrown by the information.

  Khadentok looked directly at Aela. “It is known that fairies cannot lie. Tell us the truth of this.” It wasn’t a request.

  Aela drew herself up and flew a few feet closer. “I am not one to be ordered about. Nor are you in a position to demand anything. Your position on this world is very precarious.” She looked at Jones, before returning her attention back to the trio. She inclined her head regally. “In spite of your rudeness, I will answer. Dhavenbahtek speaks the truth. Belus has also spoken truly. However, the elves are not the only ones who would help the humans defend their world. The peoples of Fairie will also defend them. We will not allow the portals to open, and we will ensure that we find any new ones you may create. Your force here is very small, easily eliminated. You will not be receiving the reinforcements you need to conquer this world. That is assuming you even have enough people on your home world. I recommend that you take one of the very generous options that Belus has explained.” She smiled, her mouthful of pointy teeth looking quite deadly. “We won’t let you have Dhavenbahtek either. He amuses us and we are partial to him.”

  Khadentok had a sour look on his pleasant face, brow furrowed, eyes narrowed. Clearly, he hadn’t expected Aela to confirm the others. And the idea that it was his people in danger had to be a rude awakening. I could see the war in his thoughts between what Satorah had said and the truth that Aela had spoken. He communed silently with Bhendaron once more.

  “We need to discuss this further, away from these creatures.”

  “Dhavenbahtek must still be made to pay.” Bhendaron said firmly.

  “We shall leave now,” Khadentok said to Belus. “Perhaps we will be in touch.”

  Belus inclined his head. “I look forward to it.”

  Khadentok gave him a suspicious look, but the three blinked out of sight. Jones closed his eyes, and I knew he was closing his defenses once more.

  “Lovely people, weren’t they?” asked Reo. The tension in the room relaxed.

  “We didn’t find out why they kidnapped Daria and shot Reo. Not that they would have told us the truth anyway,” said Thulu. I was glad someone else felt cheated of a resolution.

  Belus looked thoughtful. “However, we found out a great deal. And they now know they cannot win any war. This will suffice for now, and we will continue to monitor the situation. While you may not have had all your questions answered, the larger situation affecting your people as a whole has been addressed. This is not a bad thing.” He smiled his understanding at us.

  Jones crossed to the bar. “Would anyone care for a drink?”

  Most of the people in the room declined and asked for portals or to be teleported out.

  “I just wish we had found out who shot Reo.” I said. The shooting bothered me, and my mind kept coming back to it. There was something we weren’t getting, but I had no idea what.

  “It was probably one of their people here in San Francisco. We may never know exactly who it was. Nor does it really matter. Once all of their people have been removed from Earth, the threat will be gone.” Sloane sounded certain.

  That should have put me at ease, but it didn’t. I suspected Sloane was right and we’d never know who it was or why they shot Reo, but it bothered me all the same.

  The whole thing felt anti-climactic and unsatisfying as far as resolutions went. Not that I wanted a big battle or anything. Still, it made me cranky, and I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, but it was time to go back to our lives. I was ready for something mundane. Even laundry would be a nice change. Knowing who shot Reo would just have to remain a mystery.

  At least Sloane was probably right and the rogue daemons weren’t a threat. Belus and Aela had made some very telling points, and I hadn’t felt any big plans to destroy us from the three. Not that I was banking on that, but I wasn’t bothered by that aspect. Something else was nagging at me, but it wasn’t the three who had just left.

  I shook it off as Thulu asked if I was ready to leave. I was. We had a child to retrieve and barbeque to prepare for the next day.

  We made our goodbyes to the others and asked Jones for a portal. Within seconds we were back home. Alone. It was quiet, only the ticking clock on the mantle and the distant sound of city traffic to break the silence. I breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

  “You okay?” Thulu asked.

  “Yeah, just happy to be home.”

  “Let’s go pick up our boy shall we?” he dimpled at me. It had been a while since I’d seen that and I realized that I missed seeing those dimples. Not that I would have admitted it.

  “Well, we could take advantage of the peace and quiet. And alone time.” I said, looking up at him through my lashes.

  “Why, yes, La Fi. We could do that.”

  Alone time can be so very awesome when one spends it just right. Thulu and I were experts at that.

  Chapter 24

  Traffic was getting heavy as we drove to Erik’s later that day. Thulu’s sisters, Becca and Jude, were at the house when we arrived, helping Erik clean before the barbeque. The advantage of a gigantic family is that someone always has your back.

  Carter ran to be hugged as soon as we hit the door. I was happy to oblige him before handing him to Thulu for the same treatment. Seemingly satisfied with his hugs, he went back to playing checkers with Becca’s daughter, Kalie. Jenna and Sophie were both there, Jenna yelling encouragement to both sides. Carter dutifully passed on the cheers for Kalie, since she could neither hear, nor see Jenna.

  I smiled with relief that Carter didn’t seem the worse for having so little attention from me and Thulu the last few days.

  We pitched in and it wasn’t long before everything was ready for the Thulukan horde that would descend the next day.

  No one particularly
wanted to go home so we ordered in pizzas. Soon other family members drifted in, which meant more pizzas had to be ordered.

  Ally and Brent arrived and I heard squeals from all the kids to alert us. It sounded different from the usual greeting, so I wandered to the door to see Ally holding a small animal crate. She’d brought another of her patients with her.

  Jenna did somersaults in the air, something I hadn’t seen before, and squealed along with the living children. It was very noisy, and I resisted the urge to put my fingers in my ears.

  Thulu stood beside me and leaned over. “Is it like this for you a lot?”

  I nodded.

  “I knew it got loud, but it really does add to the noise level, doesn’t it.”

  “Oh, yeah, it does indeed.”

  Ally smiled as she saw us and motioned with her head for us to follow her into the family room. Brent took off in search of Erik.

  Carter squealed as Ally set the cage down and opened it to reveal a grey ball of fur.

  “Oh, it’s the puppy, Mama,” he said looking at me.

  I looked suspiciously at Ally, who only smiled in return. “This is Treya. She’s about five months old and is one of the dogs rescued from that puppy mill they raided last week. We aren’t sure what happened to her, but somehow her front leg was broken and it didn’t heal right. They simply put her in a cage to keep her for breeding.”

  The kids all crowded round the pup, who seemed quite placid with all the attention. Ally allowed them a few minutes to pet and make a big deal over her before shooing them outside while we had grownup talk. She stood the puppy on the sofa, and I could see that she favored her left front leg. It was crooked.

  But it was the face that caught my attention. “Oh good lord, Ally, it’s a poodle.”

  “Yes, La Fi, she’s a poodle.”

  “You are not going to pawn some foo-foo dog off on me. No how, no way.”

  “Now, La Fi, that is completely unfair. First of all, have I ever pawned off any dog on you?”

  “Not for lack of trying!” I turned to Thulu, who raised his hands and said, “I’m staying out of this one, ladies.” He was dimpling again. I didn’t find it quite as charming as I had earlier that day.

  “Traitor,” I mumbled under my breath.

  He simply laughed, sat on the sofa and picked up the dog, who promptly licked his face and snuggled in. I sighed and sat next to him.

  Ally smiled indulgently. “Actually poodles are quite intelligent. They don’t shed and have no odor. They were originally hunting dogs.”

  “I see. And exactly what is that” I pointed at the puppy. “supposed to hunt?”

  Ally shrugged. “No idea, but she’s a little love. And she’s dealing with her leg really well. I’m tempted to re-break it, but the break was done when she was quite young. I’m afraid it would cause more problems.” She reached out to pet the small head.

  “She’s a rather small miniature, so she’ll stay under twenty pounds, probably around fifteen.”

  The puppy had moved over to investigate me. I rolled my eyes as she sniffed delicately at my arm. She tentatively put a paw on my leg and hopped off Thulu’s lap and onto mine. I made no move to pet her, though. They weren’t going to sucker me in that easily.

  She sat on my lap and looked up, head tilted to one side. I saw trusting, dark brown eyes. And instantly was lost. I didn’t even think before I picked her up and cuddled her to me. Carter was right. She was unbelievably soft, her fur was like crushed velvet. She was just the sweetest little thing I’d ever seen. I wondered why I’d never had a dog before. What was wrong with me? Everyone should have a dog.

  I was lost in that bonding for several minutes. When I looked up from Treya, it was to see Thulu watching me with a big grin and Ally with tears in her eyes.

  “I knew she was yours the moment I saw her,” she said.

  I opened my mouth to say something several times, but nothing came out. Finally, I sighed and accepted the inevitable. We had a live dog. And I adored her beyond belief.

  “I brought her toys and her bowls and some food. It’s in the car.” Ally came over to sit on my other side, giving me a giant hug.

  “She’s had her shots, been spayed and everything else is fine with her. Only her leg is an issue.”

  I petted the small puppy who yawned hugely and snuggled into my arms.

  Thulu left and soon came back with Carter.

  Carter saw me holding the puppy and perhaps his empathic abilities kicked in because he squeaked out, “We get to keep her?” and climbed up onto the sofa to pet her.

  “We get to keep her,” I said as I reluctantly handed her to him. He was very gentle with her, cooing and talking to her.

  Thulu smiled at me. “Have I mentioned lately how much I love you?”

  I just smiled back. We left Carter talking softly to the puppy while we went outside to get Treya’s things from Ally’s car. When she opened the back of her SUV, my mouth dropped. She had toys, a doggie bed, puppy food and several books on poodles and raising puppies. Her own smile was quite smug.

  “Too bad you aren’t prepared for this, Ally.” I said sarcastically.

  She just laughed, a delighted tinkly laugh that I always loved. I sighed and started handing packages to Thulu and Brent, who had followed us. We got everything transferred to our own SUV and headed back into the house to collect Carter.

  We had shopping to do before we went home, so we made our goodbyes and collected Treya, securing her in her crate. Ally assured me she’d be fine in the car, as long as we kept the windows cracked a little bit. She did caution us to not take too long.

  I decided I didn’t want to chance it. I’d heard the news stories for years about people who left their pets and children in cars during summer. The heat of the day might be gone, but I started a list for Thulu. At the store, Thulu took Carter with him, while I remained in the car. When Thulu came back, I strapped Carter into his seat and helped Thulu unload bags into the car.

  At home, we reversed the process and unloaded groceries, boy and puppy. Jenna and Parker were home and Parker said that things were pretty calm. Jenna had already alerted him to the new puppy and he watched Treya with interest as we carried in her crate.

  Ally had recommended we keep her crate in Carter’s room, so she could sleep in it until she was used to her new home.

  Parker and Jenna drifted in to get a closer look as I let Treya out of the crate and set her on the kitchen floor. She turned around in circles for a bit sniffing the air.

  “She’s a little beauty,” said Parker. “Look at the shape of her head. Hey, what happened to her leg?”

  I told him about the break when she’d been younger. “And I kind of thought her head was a bit too big for her body,” I admitted. “But I love her anyway.”

  Parker looked up in surprise, but before he spoke I realized that Treya was looking right at him, her little head cocked to one side.

  “Thulu, do you see this?”

  “See what?” he asked as he brought in the last of the bags.

  “I think the puppy can see Parker.”

  Parker had drifted down to the floor and sat cross-legged a few feet away from Treya, who kept sniffing, perhaps enticed by Parker’s popcorn smell. Jenna followed his example and held out her hand to the puppy who actually went over and sniffed it. Sophie went right up to Treya who backed away before cautiously inching forward again. I sat down in the booth, surprise making my jaw drop.

  “I believe you’re right. Apparently Ally was right and this really is the dog for us.”

  I stood up and scooped up the little furball.

  “Is that right, Treya? You see the dead, too? What a good girl you are.” I hugged her gently to me, before relinquishing her to the others. I was smiling again as I put away groceries, got Carter bathed and settled in bed, Treya’s crate on the floor next to him.

  Thulu and I went to work on the food for the barbeque the next day. We sliced veggies, cooked the ingredients f
or the potato salad and I got the marinade ready for my Burgers à la Fi. We sipped wine and just enjoyed the evening.

  Before we went to bed, Thulu went upstairs and brought Treya down for a trip outside.

  She was pretty sleepy and I’d thought new puppies whined, but she didn’t. She settled in as if she were meant to be with us. Which she was. Sometimes life is just too good to be believed. And, of course, it never lasts.

  Chapter 25

  Everything continued to remain peaceful the next morning. Well, as peaceful as three kids and two dogs tearing through the house could be.

  Nana Fae floated near me as I made the potato salad to her exact instructions. I dutifully copied down other recipes from her and Mama Deb and emailed them to Becca and Jude, as well as Ally. My grandmother and mother-in-law had insisted on that as their contribution and a way to participate so the rest of the family would know they were loved.

  The morning kept the promise of lovely weather. Clear blue skies and a slight breeze to keep things from getting too hot. I even managed to upload the pictures we’d taken on Neva to our family website.

  After getting Carter and myself ready, Thulu and I filled our cooler with the veggie platter, my raw burgers à la Fi and the potato salad.

  Carter was excited to see the other kids and show off Treya. We were taking Jenna, Parker and Sophie, as well.

  Once the SUV had been unloaded at Erik’s, Thulu moved the car. Holding Carter by the hand and Treya by her leash, I went inside. The other kids crowded around and the two were soon swept outside to the backyard.

  “She’s still a puppy guys, so be very careful with her,” I cautioned, as I put the meat in the fridge. Not an easy task, as it was crammed with food. I helped the matter some and poured a glass of wine before I headed out to the patio where the grills were. It appeared that a lot of our enormous family had already arrived and the large yard was filling up. I scanned the area, greeting and waving to family members, but looking for Carter.