Lightning Sealed

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Lightning Sealed Page 10

by Lila Felix


  My heart sunk as I realized this day would’ve been officiated by Rebekah had the woman standing not intervened.

  The first of many tears welled and then streamed down my cheeks.

  In Rebekah’s stead, my mother quivered with the task at hand. My mother had rushed to the Synod, uninvited, and practically begged for the chance to seal us in Rebekah’s place. I didn’t know whether it was their guilt or my mother’s unwavering pleas, but it worked.

  I was grateful they didn’t kill her for doing that.

  “Colby and Theodore, please approach the altar.”

  Theo’s father kissed my cheek and winked at his son before leaving me there, exposed and alone. Theo was still waiting near my mother.

  Even her voice quaked with the announcement. Speaking words written by the Synod, she looked over the crowd and with each breath calmed and slowed. I took several steps toward her and as Theo sidled up to me, I was instantly calmed.

  I heard every noise, felt the rift of every breath in my lungs, and counted every beat of my pounding heart.

  She wrapped a white ribbon around both of our wrists after telling us to face each other, binding us together in the light, as though the light of the Almighty bound us, my right hand to his right hand. I felt Theo’s pulse against mine as it frantically searched for what we’d waited for so long.

  I wondered in that moment if I was what the Almighty wanted for Theo or was I just the girl who lived near him—the one he fell in love with.

  If that was so—that other girl couldn’t have him.

  “In the absence of the true and last prophetess, I will be officiating this sealing. I have gained permission from—” she cleared her throat and swallowed the same rage that constricted in my chest “—the Synod.”

  The rest of the audience quieted down, but the vows that were spoken between Theo and I would never be divulged. Unless you were the Synod, who wrote them, or someone who had officiated a sealing, you wouldn’t know the words—and they were never to be repeated outside of these occasions.

  There were some things still sacred in our race.

  Tears rivered down my face with every promise Theo breathed, his gray eyes stilled on mine. I held my breath while he committed his life and his soul to me—and repeated the words with a fervor and confidence from a hidden place in my heart—a place reserved only for him.

  “Who will witness this sealing and who is opposed?”

  Regina and several members of the Synod along with Theo’s parents stood, and as I looked them over, Torrent stood, buttoning his jacket.

  “The opposition will have a chance to speak at this occasion once and then forever be bound to silence on the issue. Every good thing under Paraiso must have an opposition. What is your argument, Torrent?”

  I was surprised she didn’t call him Sanctum. The Synod was present and so was the Eidolon. There wasn’t really any denying his presence in our lives anymore. Torrent’s hair was slicked back again and as he ground his jaw, I saw a fleck of who he used to be.

  Theo grabbed my hand, though we were still tied together, and squeezed. I didn’t want to hear what Torrent was going to say about his brother. I had no use for his foul words this day. I concentrated on the ribbon and what it meant. It was pure love that tied us together—not words—not a ceremony—not the witnesses and what they had to say. I allowed my tear-filled eyes to look at my mate and he winked at me.

  The first time Theo winked at me was in the third grade when another girl kissed him on the cheek. He’d paid her to do it in an elementary attempt at making me jealous.

  It worked.

  I knew it then, even as a child, somewhere deep down inside, that Theo would be mine for the rest of my life and maybe more than that.

  That little girl went home with a black eye courtesy of me.

  He chose that moment to mouth ‘I love you’ and gave my hand another squeeze.

  I laughed and looked down, attempting to tamper down my growing blush when I heard my name and remembered that Torrent had something to say.

  “Colby is not good enough for my brother. She’s selfish and mercurial. She endangers the life of herself and others without a second thought. Her choices are immature at best. She’s not fit for being the mate of someone so important to our race. The Eidolon needs a mate who is worthy of the station. That is my official opposition and I will not speak again of it.”

  My knees buckled. They gave under the weight, not of his dishonesty, but of the truth being spoken somewhere other than in my head.

  Theo’s grip tightened to the point of strangulation. The rage was written all over his face, anyone could see it.

  “It’s okay.” I pleaded.

  “The witnesses should stand for the remaining of the ceremony. With sealing vows said and the opposition heard, I now pronounce these two people sealed as male and mate for all eternity. Let the Almighty acknowledge this union.”

  That last bit was just a formality. The heavenly father didn’t really clap or give us a thumbs up. I don’t even know why they still kept that in the ceremony at all.

  At least, that’s what I thought.

  As the thought faded, the heavens opened before us. The clouds parted as Moses had once parted the Red Sea and the sun shone brighter than it did when the beams skittered along the oceans of the world. There were no dark clouds, not a hint of rain or thunder. The roses and flowers, all out of season, reached for the sun, blooming and blossoming out of turn. The leaves turned green and the grass grew beneath us as though a breath of life had been blown over the entire place.

  “This is His blessing.” My mother’s voice was no longer her own. It boomed with otherworldliness—with a power she’d never known.

  But I knew that voice.

  It was Rebekah’s tone, not my grandmother, but the blessed Prophetess.

  And then, just as I’d taken the sky and the words as a sign and gasped at the wonder, a single stroke of lightning came down from above, whiter than any light I’d ever known. Instead of striking the highest point on the land, it slowed to a crawl as its point reached for Theo and my hands, still tied together by that white ribbon. Every pair of eyes was trained on the light. It didn’t cause destruction, but wrapped around our hands, singeing the ribbon to shreds, but never burning either of us.

  It swirled around us like a hurricane, filling me with warmth and grace.

  It wasn’t His blessing. It was His approval. The bright light tickled my hair and wove itself through every strand finally making a crown on my head.

  As it whooshed around us for the last round and disappeared back into the heavens where it came from, I dropped to my knees, taking my mate with me.

  Never in my life had I felt such love—not even from Theo. That light was approval. That light was forgiveness. That light was redemption.

  That light was the same that had touched Xoana and blessed her not only with a gift, but with a race of her own—females that could never be tied down unless they chose to be as I had chosen with Theo.

  After I regained my breath, Theo grabbed my arms and hugged me against his chest, his sobs as uncontrollable as mine now were. His arms caged me in and held me together as I fell apart. I looked around, still in my mate’s hold. The flowers were still in bloom. Everything came to life and was living on the wake of that blessed lightning.

  “Looks like my brother was wrong again. I told you. You were made for me—forever and always. Time and space can’t separate us. Nothing can separate us now.”

  By the time I unleashed myself from his embrace, we were alone in the garden.

  “How long have we been here?” I asked, noticing the sun had ducked behind the landscape, but still showed some of her rays.

  “For hours. It doesn’t matter. I wouldn’t take that moment away from you. No cake or celebration could replace that.”

  “I thought the things your brother said were true. I almost expected you to agree.”

  He chuckled at me, but I didn’
t see the comedy. “For someone who shows the world who she is, you sure aren’t very confident. I guess they only get to see who you want them to see. Don’t worry, mate, I know you by heart.”

  ***

  By the time we got to the reception, the place was in full swing. We hadn’t had time to put together much, but our parents had managed a cake and music over the outdoor speakers.

  They didn’t even notice us when we walked up.

  That’s how I wanted it, although I hadn’t realized it until that moment. A gathering of the people I loved, and a handful of those I didn’t, having such a good time that they didn’t hover around us was perfect.

  On the far side of the dance floor, I saw Ari teaching Collin to do something that resembled a line dance. He was actually smiling at her and mimicking her moves.

  Pema was at the bar doing that thing where she looked around at every person. She was our own personal information gatherer. Too bad she never shared most of it.

  “You know what the great thing about this party is?” Theo wrapped his arms around my waist and whispered into my ear.

  “The music?” I nudged him with my shoulder.

  “No.”

  “It must be the cake then.” I looked over at the tiers of cake that, in our absence, had already been dug in to.

  “No.”

  I knew where he was going with the conversation, but I wasn’t letting him off that easy.

  “It must be that everyone is so distracted that they won’t notice we’re gone.”

  Theo placed light kisses along the curve of my neck until he reached my earlobe. When I felt his teeth on that sensitive lobe, I pulled away.

  “Not yet. Come on, Theodore. I know you love to dance with me.”

  He looked around the room at the people who had finally noticed we had arrived. Torrent saw the exchange and in true form, interrupted, asking me to dance, challenging his brother.

  Theo took my hand and pulled me onto the makeshift dance area, not even bothering to respond to Torrent’s antics.

  A sappy song from our high school years came over the speakers and I heard Ari’s audible sigh.

  From the corner of my eye, while Theo was whispering more of what I love to hear, I saw Collin get up and ask Ari to dance.

  The whole day was a miracle.

  “Today couldn’t have been more perfect,” Theo said, nuzzling my neck. He knew what it did to me.

  Theo was bonded to my soul now. What happened in the garden was more than a wedding ceremony. When the lightning wrapped around me, the ceremony held the true meaning of its namesake—a sealing.

  It wasn’t like a human marriage.

  Our sealing could never be undone.

  “You’re stuck with me now,” I pulled back and said.

  He searched my eyes for sarcasm, but there was none to be had. He smiled and squeezed my waist. “It’s about time, Querida.”

  ***

  The word nervous shouldn’t be used for nights like this. There should be another phrase. Blood-curdling, limb-shaking, hair-raising fear and excitement.

  We hadn’t gone to any exotic location for our honeymoon. Imagine that—I could travel the world in one second, but here we were in the same bedroom we’d slept in for weeks on the most important night in our life.

  It didn’t matter where we were—it mattered that he was here with me.

  With my thumbs tucked inside the cuff, I pulled down my thigh-highs that Ari made me wear little by little, knowing full well that he watched me. Theo watching thrilled me—egged me on. After all, it felt like he’d been watching me my entire life.

  He growled, “You’re doing that on purpose.”

  I smiled and continued until both legs were bare, one sticking out from the long slit of my dress.

  “Be patient, Theo. You’ve never been impatient before.”

  “You’ve never been my wife before—all bets are off.”

  I giggled. “If I had known that…”

  “You would’ve sealed yourself to me years ago. Admit it.”

  There was no way I was admitting that, no matter how true it was. My only regret in this life was not spending enough of it with the man who made my heart stammer with just one look.

  He turned around, making himself wait, but I could see what he was doing in the mirror, the same thing I was playing at. He smirked while he tugged at his tie—unbuttoned his white shirt—slowly let his jacket fall from his shoulders and down his arms.

  After kicking off his shoes, he sat down beside me, mocking me by taking off his socks extra slow.

  “Stop. It doesn’t work on you.”

  “No?” He chuckled and nudged me with his shoulder.

  “Well, maybe a little.”

  I turned and scooted back so he could unbutton the dress. He ran one finger down the length of buttons. I felt his breath on the back of my neck—along my shoulders.

  Two strong arms wound around my waist and tugged me closer to him. They weren’t as strong as they used to be—the weeks and months of chaos had taken a toll on his body.

  “This dress is amazing. I wanted to hide you from all the males around me, especially Collin and Torrent.”

  “Your mom had to fix it. I’ve gotten chunky.”

  He pinched at a stomach roll I didn’t realize I’d grown and I cringed. “This is what we’re calling chunky? I can’t imagine this is what qualifies as chunky. But even if it is, I love every part of you.”

  I leaned my head backwards and thumped it on his shoulder. Letting out a pent up breath, I allowed everything to settle within me.

  And just when I’d calmed down to the point where my heart wasn’t ready to jump out of my throat, Theo began his slow torture.

  He started by kissing his way up my neck to my ears.

  And then I was done for.

  I’d said it before—Theo Ramsey’s mouth is lethal.

  The morning after our wedding, I felt the pull of the souls as soon as the sun begged me awake. It reminded me of the unknown draw I felt to them in New Zealand and more as we got to know Pema.

  “What the…” Colby rolled over and, doubling into a fetal position, palmed both of her temples.

  “What is it?” Her shoulders bunched into knots and I could see her muscles protest whatever was strangling her.

  Her body stilled. Her shallow breaths could barely be seen moving her form.

  “Querida say something. You’re killing me.”

  Not knowing what else to do, I covered her back with my body, trying to blanket what was now muted trembling. She was trying desperately to hide from me whatever was causing her soul to quake. I pushed aside a chunk of her wavy, sandy hair and whispered in her ear. “Talk to me. You’re scaring me, meu amor.”

  “I can—I can—I can hear them.” She struggled over an uncharacteristic stutter.

  “Hear who? I don’t hear…”

  No. This wasn’t happening. Please, Almighty, let this not be true.

  “No, Querida. You must be mistaken. It cannot be.”

  “There’s a million of them at once. I can’t stand the sorrow.”

  Her chest wracked with sobs and I knew that she was truly feeling them.

  “Come here, love. Let me calm you.” I didn’t even know if I could stop them. Complete desperation and helplessness consumed me as I turned her limp, still trembling body over and rumpled her against my chest, holding her as tight as I could. The only thing we wore were the crinkled sheets around us and the sun’s rays warming our skin. Colby was freezing, from the shock or the morning, I didn’t know.

  She nodded, her cheek still clammy against my bare chest.

  “Is this working?”

  Another nod.

  I pulled the comforter and every blanket within my reach around us both while I silently begged the Almighty to free her of my curse.

  I shouldn’t have sealed myself to her before I got a handle on my role.

  She should be free like she used to be.

&n
bsp; She should be wild and unchained like the lightning she was blessed with.

  And now her soul was chained to mine and every punishment that came with it.

  I didn’t know. I swear, I didn’t know. She should be free. This doesn’t belong to her. Give it to me. Give it all to me. Don’t let her suffer one more second. Don’t do this to me—I beg you.

  The moment the prayer and plea was over, her body went limp in my arms. The air was sucked from the room by my split-second reaction that it had all been too much for her. That the Almighty had indeed relieved Colby of her suffering by doing the unimaginable—taking her away from me.

  And for a moment, I implored on how I would soon join her.

  “Talk to me, Querida.”

  “I can still hear them but they’re far away.”

  She was barely conscious. Her cheeks had been stripped of the blush I’d been witness to so many times during the night before. This wouldn’t stand. I couldn’t have her suffer because of me. Tears welled in my eyes as I thought of Colby, of her entire life, withering before me as I’d withered before her. I wasn’t that strong. I wasn’t as strong as she was—I wouldn’t be able to handle it if something happened to her.

  I had held her for hours watching her anti-climax deep sleep. I knew that sleep. It was the sleep of peace. The sleep of bliss after immense pain. The sleep of the dead.

  I ground my jaw back and forth knowing what had to be done. In my arms was my mate, my purpose for being on this Earth, the life I knew waited for me on the other side.

  She couldn’t hurt.

  She couldn’t be like me.

  There was only one choice.

  “I have to leave you now, my love. I have to rid us of these tethers. I won’t have anything holding you down—including me.”

  She registered my voice with a weak nod and then I had to leave my beloved—my reason for breathing—right there on our wedding bed—alone.

  ***

  “Isn’t this a little soon, brother? I thought for sure it would be at least two weeks.” I hated the way Torrent’s voice slithered over my face, cold and slimy.

  I paced the room, only concentrating on one thing—protecting Colby. “We have to do this now. I want it finished.”

 

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