by Dee, Bonnie
“Yes, yes it did.”
“Then ‘tis a great and wondrous thing.” He laughed quietly. “And are you more her slave than ever?”
“Don’t you know it?”
“But a captivity you wouldn’t give up, aye?”
“Yes. I’ll never give it up.”
“Listen, lad, the troops are heading away on an outing and I hear dissension among the ranks. Tell my darling girl I send my love. And you, call back when you have something positive to report. Like perhaps Nimhnach’s location.”
“As soon as we know, you’ll know.”
“I’m counting on it.”
*
Dagda broke off the connection and turned to see Casey, Eileen and Mach followed by two of the newcomers. Of the eight Terran-mheasctha already at the Cave, three had proven to be quick studies regarding their Elemental talents. If only they were as adept in their fighting skills. They were in decent physical shape, but clumsy when it came to hand-to-hand combat.
What tickled Dagda’s sense of the absurd was that the females seemed more proficient than the men. With Eileen the quickest study, the three other females tossed their male counterparts to the ground so often Mach and Dagda had taken to betting on how quickly the men would eat the dirt.
The outer chamber was set up as a sort of barracks just before the final turn into the larger main cave. A canvas sheet separated the men from the women. Eileen’s status as chief of communications gave her the privilege of retaining Brigid’s private chamber. Mach kept to the small entry at the rear of the Cave that lay hidden from the woods, relishing the contact with the open air.
And Casey? Dagda wondered why he’d chosen a spot so far away from the others. But that was his choice. Right now, he had an unruly group of young ones to whip into shape.
* * * *
Casey had set up camp at the rubble-strewn alcove that once linked the Warrior Cave with the outside world. His choice had been deliberate. He still woke up screaming every other night. He couldn’t deal with the pitying looks he knew the other men and women would quickly conceal.
There were only three people with whom he felt at ease—Dagda, Eileen and Mach. And of the three, only Dagda didn’t get him horny.
He threw himself into training the other Terrans. He had no problem coming in close physical contact with any of them. No, only Eileen and Mach both offered the most serenity and the most sexual excitement.
Casey knew he was going crazy. How could he share a joke with Eileen one minute, and the next want to strip her naked and kiss every inch of that pale, pink flesh? Why did he want to impress Mach with his increasing ability to control his Fire Element and yet lose all control with him and go up in flames?
The waiting didn’t help any. He knew how the time ran between assignments. It tended to increase everyone’s sensitivity. All the training they did each day, both physical and Elemental, only served to accentuate the waste of their skills. They needed an enemy to confront.
Some of the group had gone into town, volunteering in the clean-up process the town was still undergoing since Ba’al’s lightning attack destroyed so many of the buildings. One of the men was a nurse and one of the women a computer technician. The rest used their Protector strength as surreptitiously as possible to speed up the rebuilding.
Casey used the downtime to sit and make the stones in his private den burn. As per his regular routine, he hunkered down and turned his concentration back to the ring of rocks before him.
* * * *
Eileen waved goodbye to the other men and women headed to the village. Maybe she should have gone with them. Mach and Dagda were working on some sort of incantation or spell or something that would increase Dagda’s memory of every interaction he’d had with Nolen back in the days when Nolen was called Nimhnach.
Eileen had no idea where Casey had gone off. She hadn’t seen him trudge down the narrow tunnel to his little hermit’s cell and she had been too involved in reminding the eager young men and women not to show off their Terran abilities and to come back to the Cave before dark. Sometimes she felt like the Mother Superior in The Sound of Music.
A full moon was coming soon and she knew that Brigid, Gabe and Ethan over in America were just as stressed as Dagda and Mach here in Donegal. Nolen would be planning a sacrifice for sure. She felt so helpless. If she didn’t do something to relieve the ache between her shoulders and the steady pounding in her head, she’d scream. Sometimes she’d go into her chamber and scream, knowing that no one would hear her frustrated cries.
Eileen cupped her hand and a bright blue flame danced upon her palm. Next she focused her control of the fire and sculpted its shape. A voluptuous female form undulated her fiery hips on the fleshy mound of her thumb and made her chuckle. If she showed off her new little trick would Casey laugh? She shrugged. There was nothing else to do right now so she might as well have some fun. And maybe Casey would allow himself to share in it.
* * * *
Casey concentrated his energy on the circle of smooth stones lying in a ring on the cave floor. Sweat poured from his brow and dripped into his eyes. He ignored it. He was in the zone and he found comfort in its familiarity. Before going out on a mission, he’d psych himself up, focusing on the task at hand. He had to treat this waiting period the same way.
He was having a hard time doing it. He sighed and refocused his attention on the glowing rocks. That’s when he knew he was going crazy. A petite blue flame, shaped like a female from some X-rated movie, danced in the middle of the circle. “What the fu—”
“Tsk, tsk. Watch your language. There are ladies present.” Casey whirled around. Eileen stood at the opening of his chamber, a wide grin plastered across her face. “I think you need a break. No, I know you need a break. Come on out with me. It’s a gorgeous day out there.”
Casey frowned. “I’ve no interest in going to town. They’ve more than enough help there.”
Eileen extinguished her flame and sighed. “Don’t worry. I wouldn’t saddle any of them with your scowling face. You don’t scare me.”
Casey swore under his breath and rose to his feet. “You should fear me, Eileen.” He took two steps that brought him within reach of her. He dragged her into his arms and crushed his lips on hers. He caressed her behind and drew her up close, his erection pressing against her. He wanted to devour her.
He pulled out the freshly laundered T-shirt from her waistband and moved back just far enough away so he could unzip her jeans, and thrust his hand beneath her panties.
They moaned into each other’s mouths. Casey tugged her back toward his cot, their mouths still clinging. His hands gripped Eileen’s, refusing to let her leave.
*
As if she wanted to.
Eileen knew this man better than anyone else before in her life. There was more to him than any of the men she’d been with. Not as if there’d been many. Her friends had told her many a time that she was too picky for her own good. Maybe so, but the men she’d known in the past became two-dimensional compared to Casey. After all, she’d held him when he was in pain and now she wanted to hold him when he was inside her.
He fell back onto the cot and she followed him down, rolling to her side to face him. For a moment, they just stared at each other, then, needing no signal, Casey pulled her shirt over her head and undid her bra.
Her nipples puckered in the cool air of the cave and she shivered while Casey gathered her in his embrace, her breasts pressing against his chest. He smoothed her cool flesh and murmured unintelligible soothing words.
But she didn’t want to be soothed. She wanted to seethe. With that goal in mind, she pushed him away and set to unbuttoning his shirt. Her fingers fumbled and she cursed.
She felt his rumbling laughter before she heard his words. “Hush, there’s a lady present.” He took over the button task and tossed his shirt to the side. Now their bare skin touched, melted together. Casey flung his leg over her thigh and rocked, imitating the more intimate moveme
nt they both wanted.
Eileen dug her hands below his waistband and squeezed his butt. “I’ve wanted to do that since the first day I saw you.”
He threaded his fingers through her unruly black curls and smiled. “I thought you wanted to hurt me.” She pinched his flat nipple and he winced. “Still do, I see.” She bent her head and took the same tender flesh into her mouth, laving the sensitive bud. Casey moaned. “Christ, you’re going to kill me by inches.”
Eileen lifted her head. She knew her smile was wicked; she’d practiced it in front of her mirror, hoping that Casey would respond to her blatant invitation. “I think you got that wrong. I think you’re going to kill me by inches.”
*
“Let’s see shall we?” Their jeans were discarded like unwanted rags and soon there was nothing between them. Casey was harder than he’d ever been, except those few times with Lark. He pushed the memory aside. He knew Lark would be urging him to do what made him happy. And here and now with Eileen, he was happier than he’d been in months.
It felt damn fecking fantastic.
Eileen took him in her hand, her small fingers barely able to circle him. Her pale skin against his ruddy flesh was so different from Lark’s last loving grasp. Lark’s rough, calloused fingers were the same shade as his cock and enveloped his flesh from base to tip. And when Lark played him… Christ. He closed his eyes.
“Look at me.” Casey opened his eyes and lifted his head. Eileen’s face was suffused with anger. Her full lips, a slash; her color, high; her eyes narrowed. Put her in the dictionary with the word “pissed” underneath her picture. “He’s dead. Don’t ever bring him into this bed. There’s no damn way I’ll share you with a dead man.”
“Fuck. I’m a bastard. And a fecking idiot on top of that.” He stroked the nape of her neck and drew her mouth to his. “There’s only you now. Lark isn’t here. Only his memory and I know he’d be the first to take himself out of the equation. But, he was the first person I ever loved and now…” His quiet words trailed off into an amazed whisper. “You’re the second.”
Their lips touched and their mouths opened, their breath mingling, tasting of the pure, spring water that ran through the cave. They rose on their knees, their bodies ground so tightly together, Casey’s cock was thrust between Eileen’s thighs. “Let me lift you so you can spread your legs and guide me inside. I need you.” His voice roughened. “Christ, if I don’t take you right now—”
“Look at me, Casey. Don’t close your eyes when you’re inside me. I want my name to be the one you scream when you come. Understand?”
Casey panted. “God Almighty, woman, just do what I’m begging you to do.”
Eileen smiled, and shifted. Casey’s big hands grabbed her ass and lifted while she guided him into her creaming pussy. And then they moved. Faster and faster until they shouted out their names as they came, Eileen’s soprano joining with his tenor.
Their cries echoed in Casey’s chamber and traveled to Mach’s preternatural hearing. The smile that appeared on his lips carried with it a tinge of regret. He had thought that he might be the first to bring solace to Casey’s wounded spirit. He would have to be satisfied with being second.
* * * *
Manhattan, East 92nd Street
“It’s clear as crystal. We’ve listed every site now and there are always one of two features that they share. Hell, in some instances, they share more than one.” Gabe strode back and forth across the rug in his office like one of those toys that you wound up and watched as it hit an obstacle and flipped around.
Ethan was getting dizzy looking at him, but couldn’t take his eyes away from the constantly moving Terran. He rose from his customary place on the loveseat and planted his body directly in Gabe’s path.
Gabe braked to a halt. “What?”
“Relax, man. Give yourself a break. Now that we know that every site is located either on or near a water system or a volcano, we’re one step closer to uncovering Nolen’s plan.”
Brigid uncrossed her legs and jumped up from the desk chair. “We have about a dozen places, and soon you’ll have the files deciphered and we’ll have all the answers.”
Gabe sighed. “We hope. Meredith’s copy will be here today and when it arrives, we’ll know if it’s the key to unlock the code.”
“It’s got to be. We have to believe that the Irish Seer foresaw these locations. Look at that underwater volcano near Sicily. When it was discovered they called it Empedocles. Didn’t you tell us that he was one of the ancient Terrans who wrote that all matter consists of the four Elements? It must mean something that humans named one of the locations after a Terran!” Brigid’s voice shook with excitement. As each site was noted, the pattern became more evident that they were guided by the Seer’s words. The last link was the book of Yeats’ poetry that they awaited with so much eagerness.
“The book should be here any minute, and we’ll know if I’ve steered us down a dead end.”
Ethan snorted. “I know you, Gabe. If you faced a dead end, you’d bulldoze your way through!” He smiled crookedly. “I didn’t think I’d ever say this, but, if anyone can figure out what the hell Nolen plans, it’s you.”
“Well, I’m happy to see you children are playing so nicely together, but I have something I know you’ve been waiting for.” Marty’s voice drew their attention and they turned toward her as she entered the office. In her hands was a slim, rectangular package.
Gabe’s hands trembled as he took the parcel from her. He placed it on the desk and carefully slit open the package. Bubble Wrap protected the book from rough handling. He sat down in his chair and wiped his hands before slipping on a pair of latex gloves, sliding the book from its swaddling and placing the slip case back on the desk. The copy was over a hundred years old and he didn’t want to leave any oils on it.
He slipped the book from its final cradle and let out his breath with a soft sigh. “Let me know when it’s lunchtime.” And with that, he bent to work.
* * * *
Boynton, New York
Nolen gazed at the drugged sacrifice. He had carried the limp weight, without any great effort on his part, to the grove he had created for his worship of Ba’al. The stone altar had been rebuilt from the remains of an altar unearthed in Israel and shipped stone by stone through various channels over fifty years ago to a warehouse in New York City. Once he had bought the property, the stones had been trucked to the grounds and set in place by workmen hired through a third party.
Once the three men had completed their task, he had made sure they met with an unfortunate accident on their way home.
He carefully placed the body catty-cornered across the altar horns so that they supported the offering above the depression where the fire would be laid. Branches from the trees of the grove had been stacked beneath the body, waiting for Ba’al to show his acceptance and light the pyre.
Nolen adjusted his robe and pulled out the scrap of Ba’al’s cock that he used on Lorraine’s body from the belted pouch he wore around his waist. Her blood and his semen mingled in the grooves and gouges of the shard. He reached into the pouch once more and withdrew his ceremonial dagger. The light of the moon flashed on the slick blade.
Next, he motioned Lorraine and James to draw closer and stand by the corners near the man’s shoulders. They wore similar robes to his own, purchased from a weaver who used natural fibers. He chuckled to think of her horror if she knew for what purpose her “Mother Earth” garments, as she called them, were to be used.
Now he raised the dagger and softly began his chant to invoke Ba’al’s presence. The words held no meaning for the two humans standing frozen in place, but he had drilled them in the appropriate responses to complete this special ceremony.
“Ba’al, Master of Fire, Lord of the Burning Domain, accept this first offering on the eve of the Full Moon. Let the crimson liquid that gathers on your altar wash across the feeble silver face of the moon. Hear my supplication and the words of my serv
ants as we open the door once more to you. Let this sacrifice be acceptable in your sight and give me a sign that it is so.” Without any hesitation, Nolen drew the razor sharp tip of the dagger across the man’s chest, incising into his flesh the words of power that were the key to unlock the portal wide enough for the blood to seep through to Ba’al’s eager maw.
Lorraine and James chanted the incomprehensible words Nolen had made them memorize as the blood collected beneath the awake and helpless male. The drugs were wearing off, as was Nolen’s Speaker control. If Lorraine hadn’t already cut out the man’s tongue, he would have been screaming in fear and agony.
As the final words of their litany ended, the blood flowed through a channel to the goblet Nolen had brought with him from Ireland, filling it to the brim with the man’s life-giving blood.
*
James watched Lorraine lick her lips as if in anticipation and longing to taste the sanguineous liquid that brimmed with power. The woman craved pain, luxuriating in the agony of others.
As for James, he feared he would puke up his lunch. He knew the sacrifice was a hardened criminal. Knew he deserved to die and believed that the power Arven would gain would aid him in his plan to cleanse the earth of pollutants, but somehow all he could think of was the man’s silent screams before he mercifully fainted. He grit his teeth, waiting for Arven’s final act.
His eyes were riveted to the bloodstained stone shard as Arven raised it high overhead and, with unerring aim, plunged it into the sacrifice’s heart. Blood spurted from the deadly blow and lightning appeared from the sky out of nowhere, striking the altar and the pyre beneath the man’s corpse.
A rush of flames roared upward, engulfing the body and the wood beneath it. The stench of burning flesh stung James’ nostrils and he fought not to vomit. He raised beseeching eyes to Arven, seeking some comfort. There was none. Only condemnation.
“You disappoint me, dear boy. I thought you were of sterner stuff.” Arven shook his head, and James cowered. He had failed him again.