The Comyenti Series Book Bundle, Volume 1 and 2 (Epic Romantic Supernatural Fantasy)

by Natasja Hellenthal

  Sula sighed. Felix had been bit moody lately, like he too had felt this coming. But he had every reason to. He worked very hard on the land; it was harvest time so all the pears and apples had to be picked. The orchard had abundant crops, and everyone, especially Felix, worked from dawn to dusk.

  Their village had about ten fields all together with their crops and four orchards with just apple, pear and cherry trees; even raspberries grew in its hedges. Felix and his family owned one of those orchards with roses underneath, and they shared any surplus they had with the other villagers. Felix used the bruised fruit for his cider, and apple and pear juice. Although Valera helped him, he often couldn’t keep up with the girl and as soon as Felix hit the bed he was asleep. Sula and he hadn’t made love properly in ages because of it, but she wasn’t as bothered about it as he was.

  Sula started to follow Felix and soon caught up with him, but they didn’t exchange a word all evening.

  Chapter 17 Bonds

  Felix had left the house early that morning without breakfast. He had never done such a thing before, as he always said that he needed power first thing in the morning, but all Sula did was raise her eyebrows and started feeding the four cats by the door. After that she sat down by the table, staring out of the window whilst silently sipping her hot tea with honey. She turned and joined Almaz and Jolaz who already helped themselves to a big bowl of cereal and apple juice. She rested her gaze upon them as they were chattering and eating their breakfast. They were both nearly thirteen, but looked a lot younger than that. Both blonde children sensed something in the air, especially because their mother was unusually quiet and absentminded, and had blocked her thoughts from them completely which meant she wanted privacy. Jolaz poured Sula another cup of tea and Almaz made her another piece of toast, while it usually was the other way around.

  When Valera entered the kitchen, she called for her younger brother and sister. She whispered something to them, they nodded without complaining and grabbed their coats.

  ‘Where are you all going?’ Sula asked them, suddenly aware of her surroundings again.

  ‘Just to the orchard to help dad with the harvest,’ Almaz replied sweetly.

  ‘Alright, honey. Give him this will you?’ Sula handed her a hemp paper package with sandwiches she had made earlier that morning, which Felix had left untouched.

  ‘It’s enough for the three of you. I will be having some old friends over and we have a lot to talk about.’

  ‘Oh, I see so you want us to stay away?’ Almaz asked a little hurt, her mouth dropped.

  ‘No, I’d like you to meet them later, but help your father first. Have your lunch in the orchard and come back when you’re ready with the harvest. I’ll see you when you’re done.’

  The children left, but Valera stayed looking critically at her mother, with narrowed eyes.

  ‘So, will you tell me what’s going on?’

  ‘Oh, Val,’ she sighed, rolling her eyes in exasperation, annoyed with her always prying daughter who was so unlike adventurous Fay. Valera was much more a typical girl who loved to care for others, mothering and smothering them almost, always sticking her nose into things, and so domesticated that it made Sula worry.

  ‘I have never seen dad so upset before! He looked as though he felt like crying, but at the same time about to explode! I didn’t want to invade his thoughts, but who are these two men?’ And Valera sat down opposite her mother by the table, reaching for her hands.

  ‘Nothing escapes you, does it?’

  ‘Not much, no.’

  Sula smiled at her daughter, tapping her hand. ‘I can’t tell you about it yet, but I will…soon.’

  Valera stood, hurt at first, but then she nodded and her mouth showed a little smile.

  ‘Alright, I will leave you alone then.’

  ‘Just give us some time to recap and we’ll fill you in later. Will you do that for me please?’

  The girl’s face lit up. ‘Sure, I wouldn’t want to miss it for the world.’

  ~~~

  She saw him coming from where she stood in her garden, caring for the last roses, pruning away the brown shrivelled ones. There were roses of every shade of yellow, orange and red adorning the front garden. Rose bushes and climbing roses spanned the front of the house on trellises as well, giving off a lovely intoxicating scent.

  Not far behind Shazar, who was taking it all in she noticed, was her husband. She felt Felix before she saw him, not willing to meet her eyes. His anger radiated like lightning from him; something she clearly felt through their Heartmerge. Their empathic bond allowed them to feel each others’ feelings and emotions, even from a few feet away, sometimes further. Even Felix, who could not read her mind, could pick up on her feelings, but he had always been good at that anyway from the first day they had met. Sula thought that he would be working all day, but somehow she had expected this of him. She imagined that the twins had tried their best to distract him in the orchard, though they had obviously failed. That was probably why he had not objected too much to her to meeting Shazar in their house, so as to keep an eye on them.

  Sula stared at the two of them walking through their gate, Felix slipped in first, nearly knocking Shazar off his feet. But then the most peculiar thing happened; the gate closed behind her husband with a loud clang! It made everyone jump. Their gate, which was quite heavy and rusty, and had hardly ever been oiled, never did this! If anything, it would stay open and Sula always had to ask her children to shut it behind them. Most importantly, she saw that Felix left it open for Shazar. Felix glanced back, confused.

  Even Shazar looked just as puzzled at the closed gate. Sula gasped as she was the only one who knew what it could possibly mean: Feline. She had warned her before about his arrival, and now she was telling Sula again not to let him in…but why? Only her Shield Of Light would be able to spot his true intentions without fail. It would not have allowed him through and he was already in. Shazar opened the gate slowly and closed it behind him in silence, before walking over to Sula. Felix was standing next to her by now, brushing her shoulder with his.

  ‘Hello again,’ Shazar said as he tried to compose himself, visibly affected by her exceptional beauty, unable to not be affected by her. She had not changed much, even though she would be in her mid sixties, she did not look a day over forty. However Shazar himself was in his late seventies and knew he pretty much looked her age! Incredible.

  ‘Indeed,’ Sula answered softly, and she gazed questioningly at her husband.

  I promised you, remember? Felix thought, thinking only she would be able to hear.

  ‘You shouldn’t fear for me, I can handle him! And you should trust me,’ she whispered to him. But a bit louder she asked him, ‘Where did you leave Almaz and Jolaz?’

  ‘With Valera. They’re harvesting in the orchard,’ Felix answered.

  ‘Your husband seems to be my chaperone today, he won’t leave my side.’

  ‘You bet I won’t!’ Felix snarled and he let himself in the house, opening the door for Sula. He faced her, adding just for her ears, ‘He may be your guest, but I’m your husband.’

  Possessive! Shazar thought and Sula picked up his thought. Love should not be about possession.

  She widened her eyes at the intimacy of the thought, something she was only used to from her children, and bit her lip, embarrassed and knotted her brows. What do you know about love I wonder? She shot at Shazar and narrowed her eyes.

  ‘Sit down and make yourself comfortable,’ she spoke out loud to her guest showing him their living room when they went in. So far so good, he came in through the Shield, in fact he would have done so even before entering the village as Sula had cast it over the whole of Rosinhill.

  ‘But not too comfortable!’ Felix added from the kitchen, pouring himself a drink.

  ‘Felix, please behave!’ she mouthed at him, coming closer.

  Alright, I will shut up now.

  Shazar hadn’t noticed or had decided to ignore it and was
looking around the house.

  “Evil comes in many disguises,” she heard her mother suddenly speak in her mind. She hadn’t heard her talk to her in years! First Feline, and now her mother?

  Shazar tried his best to ignore Felix’ watchful eyes on him, and focus instead on Sula, who pulled herself a low chair out from the kitchen. All the furniture was hand-made by Felix, Sula explained, and Shazar could indeed sense his influence. It was warm and cosy, decorated with reddish earth colours. There were ivory plants hanging from the walls; Sula’s influence no doubt, as if she had brought the outside inside. There were many wooden carved figurines on the dark polished shelves, and children’s paintings pinned up on the orange walls. The wooden floor creaked slightly as it was walked on and the colourful woven round rug was worn by years of use. Many cushions lay spread about, one of them had a sleeping black cat on it, and the book shelf was filled with books. Shazar glanced briefly at the cup of herbal tea poured for him and sat on the floor on the cushions. Sula felt a bit silly as she looked at the less comfortable empty chair, but she wasn’t going to sit on the comfy cushions with him! She wanted to keep some distance between them.

  ‘So this is where you live,’ his jade eyes flashed from object to object and then rested on her. Sula sat down on her chair, sighing slightly. ‘and the children… of course.’

  ‘You’ve met Fay years ago,’ she answered courteously. She had decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.

  ‘Yes, how is she, she must be what; twenty-seven?’

  ‘Twenty-eight.’

  ‘It seems like only yesterday,’ he said dreamily.

  Sula tensed up slightly at that, not wanting to remember.

  ‘She left home years ago, visiting us only occasionally.’

  ‘Ah, that’s understandable. It’s a big world out there. I am curious how she turned out. I’m sure you trained and prepared her well for the dangers of the world.’ What he meant was of course humans instead of world. ‘How many children have you got?’

  It was just like that day, so long ago. He was interrogating her again.

  ‘Would you like something to eat?’ she quickly asked instead of answering.

  He raised one curved dark eyebrow, answering her solemnly, disengaging his eyes from her as if she had said something wrong, ‘No, thank you.’ And he sipped his tea. Oh yes, she nearly forgot; he didn’t need much food to survive, and didn’t seem to have a craving for it either.

  They both felt Felix’ presence from the kitchen; he was pretending to be busy preparing something. Sula tried hard to remember Feline’s exact words from when Sula lay in a comatose state, and although Sula never quite knew if it had been a dream or not, she did pay heed to the warning the spirit of her sister-in-law had given her. But would the Shield be enough? What if Shazar had known a way to break through it without her knowledge? Or perhaps he could hide his intentions so skilfully that she wouldn’t pick up on them? He was comyenti after all, but to her, he and even her ancient, alien species, was still so much an uncharted mystery. What she did sense was that he was hiding something from her, but what was it?

  ‘Why are you afraid of me, Sula?’ Shazar asked suddenly. ‘I sense fear from you. You know I’ll never hurt you or your children,’ he whispered, leaning forward, trying to read her deeper thoughts, which she just as skilfully blocked from him. She crossed her legs and leaned backwards, crossing her arms as well in an attempt to close her aura. But inside she fumed and knew it would be no point in blocking her thoughts from him. He needed to know a few things without her husband overhearing.

  ‘I do not fear you!’

  ‘But you wonder why I have come. Just to show you my son? To be honest, it was just to see if you and your children are safe. I’ve always wondered…if you’re truly safe here?’

  ‘Of course I am. You were hoping for something else, I can see it in your eyes. You know you cannot hide it from me and truth be told I’d like to know why that is! I think you have some explaining to do!’

  He swallowed hard, suddenly fearing something else she might read on his mind, something dark. His irises changed for a moment, from olive to bright apple-green, as he tried to block all memories of the young blond girl he had tried so hard to forget. Seeing her brother had brought it all up to the front of his mind again. Shazar replaced the memories with images of Ashanna, just in case Sula managed to break through his defences and pick up on his thoughts of Feline. That would risk everything!

  He nodded, ‘You know I can’t lie to you, but I have learned a great deal since last time we’ve met, and I now know that love is possible between the two species.’

  ‘I thought so when I saw you again. You radiate serenity. You seem milder, calmer. I’m intrigued though…Twello…is he really your son by blood?’

  ‘No, he is no comyenti, not even a halfling,’ he shrugged his shoulders. ‘He is adopted and human, but he’s got the gift. He is a seer.’

  ‘Well, that does surprise me of you!’

  ‘He lost his parents in a terrible way at a young age and my late soulmate, Ashanna and I, gave him a home. He is my son.’

  ‘So you have indeed learned something valuable.’ She nodded approvingly.

  ‘Something I always knew; how important family is, but also positive feelings for humans yes.’

  ‘Now you understand why I couldn’t leave mine.’

  ‘Hmm, I do.’

  ‘Did she… pass away… your wife?’

  He shuddered and the hurt, still fresh, washed over him. Surprisingly she felt it in her heart too! He didn’t have to speak for she knew.

  Sula nodded slowly with sympathy in her eyes.

  ‘I feel for you. But if Twello is not by your own blood…did you produce any children of your own then?’

  ‘Ah, you wonder why I didn’t?’

  ‘Why yes, that was the deal and this is very upsetting to us all-’

  ‘To Felix,’ he corrected her.

  ‘Look, my children…I was hoping you had some good news for them and our kind.’

  ‘Why can’t I just make a social call?’

  Sula gave him a stern look.

  ‘Alright,’ he raised his hands in surrender and sighed. ‘Unfortunately Ashanna was barren after a previous miscarriage.’

  He sounded sad mentioning her. He explained to her briefly under what unusual circumstances he had met her and Twello. That Ashanna had found out after her rescue that she had fallen pregnant as a result of the daily rapes she suffered. She had soon lost the baby after only a couple of weeks, perhaps due to the shock of finding out that her aunt had died in the cottage Ashanna had set out for upon opening the door. It had been another blow for the young woman. Twello had been distressed as well and had run away at first.

  ‘I was so occupied with my search that I did not join Ashanna and Twello after I met you. However, you taught me to follow my heart instead of my mind. So I did. I went back to find her, to see if she would still have me. Perhaps it was fate that we couldn’t have our own children. It wasn’t meant to be.’

  ‘And you stayed with her! My! You are indeed a changed man!’

  ‘I loved her,’ he responded a little hurt by her remark, but on the other hand proud as well to hear Sula say those words.

  ‘I tried to explain to you the power of love twenty-four years ago,’ Sula said back.

  He smiled defeated at her and relented. His irises showed specks of yellow and orange when he locked onto her eyes, and she heard him say clearly, as if he stood right next to her, ‘I have never stopped loving you…’

  ‘What’s this?’ Felix interrupted them crudely and came to stand in between. In a way she felt relieved he had. Perfect timing!

  ‘I hear nothing for such a long time and now I see you two staring at each other and both your eyes shift colours just like when you do when you’re talking to each other in your minds with the kids?’ He stared questioningly, and disgustedly at Sula.

  She looked back with a guilty feeling,
her mouth half open, not knowing what to say. She hated to keep secrets from him, but this was too painful.

  The look on her face and her silence was new to him and that surprised him, for he knew her face and her expressions so well. He wasn’t happy, to say the least, about this new finding.

  ‘Answer me, Sula, how is it that you can hear each others’ thoughts? You told me only blood-related or lovers could do that?’

  ‘Perhaps I should answer him that,’ Shazar interrupted courteously.

  Angrily Felix gazed over at him, his eyes shooting daggers, but at the same time full of questions and unspoken hateful remarks. Shazar tried to ward off all that anger, shielding himself from it, so he wouldn’t feel envy that Felix had her, and to not stand up to this man as he would have done years ago. Instead he tried to change the anger he was feeling in the air into something else; pity and understanding for this human man whose only ‘crime’ was clearly loving his very special wife. Something he could only honour him for really.

  Sula glanced warily at Shazar and she noticed his struggle to remain calm.

  ‘I thought you only shared a brief moment of a stupid kiss, and as far as I’m aware that doesn’t count as mating in the comyenti world, right?’ Felix desperately asked, directing the question towards Sula.

  ‘I’m responsible for this, it’s not her fault,’ Shazar proclaimed.

  ‘I know that you used pheromones on her that day, first drugging me with a spider’s sting and then her, you…you arrogant, heartless, shameless creep! And I know what you had in mind!’

  ‘You’re right, it was wrong of me, I admit it but I have already apologized for it a long time ago.’

  Shazar still stayed calm even though Felix was beyond rage, rising up in front of him, like a flame, with his hands on his hips.

  ‘She was drugged yes, but not unconscious, I wouldn’t have.’ He averted his eyes from Felix and Sula, embarrassed. ‘The reason why we can read minds is-’