by Sasha Pruett
“Calynn?”
She actually jumped when he appeared behind her.
“Calynn,” he slipped his hands up her arms keeping his voice low. She could feel his breath on her cheek and she closed her eyes sinking back into him. He cleared his voice a little, straining to keep himself in check.
“Do me one favor please?”
“Hmm?”
“Don’t make it too difficult on me?” He lowered and kissed her neck gently, keeping his lips pressed against her skin as he talked sending chills throughout her body. “The only things that’ve kept me under control is my promise to you, the lack of privacy, and the work I’ve had to do. Now two of those diversions have been removed and I’m finding it rather difficult to hold onto my desire. Denial of what I’ve truly wanted has never been one of my strengths.”
Her voice was soft, but she knew what she wanted. “You don’t have to you know. You’re not the only one.”
He kissed her again. “I know, but I also know that you’re tired and you feel uncomfortable here. I don’t want that for you, for us. I don’t just want your body Calynn, I want every part of you and that includes your mind. I don’t want it wondering if someone is listening or watching or preoccupied in any way. I want all of you and if I have to wait for that moment I will.”
“You could make me forget.” She reached her hand up and dug it into his hair and he breathed heavily.
“Is that really what you want?”
“Sometimes, yes.”
He turned her around to look at him, taking her chin in his hand tracing every inch of her face in his mind. “I want to give you everything. The last time I gave into you, into my desire for you it saved both our lives, but I also thought our time was short. Now I know that I’ll have you for the rest of eternity and call me selfish, but I want more. Besides I promised, no more mind tricks. Or did you forget?”
She bent her head. He was right, she was distracted and using him as a way to forget her uneasiness wouldn’t be fair to either of them. They spent the night and each night while they were there pretty much the same way as the one before, with Drakon lulling her to sleep with his soft tones and the words of Homer’s Iliad.
Chapter Forty-One
They returned from Switzerland even closer than when they’d left and with better control of their telepathic link. All traces of Dr. Edme had been wiped from the mansion and the midwife that Drakon and Calynn had chosen to accompany them overseas continued on comfortably. The next couple of weeks they settled into somewhat of a routine. Drakon took care of choosing their trusted staff and monitoring his father and Rais. While Calynn spent time taking lessons on running a large house, looking over decorating and reception plans and doing fittings for Delphine whenever the mood struck her.
Devilicus had become her constant companion, never leaving her side even when she was in the house. He’d become inconsolable and irritable while she was gone and by the end of the week both his parents had decided to make a present of him to Calynn. Once a bond is formed between familiar and master only death can sever it and sometimes for the most dedicated animal, not even then. Many times, a familiar has been known to lay at the resting place of the deceased and simply let go of life; unless the animal had been charged to look after another. After the doctor had attacked Calynn something snapped in him and whatever bond they had been forming on their own was enough to push Devilicus into full devotion to her. He only left her side to relieve himself and usually he waited until she was with Drakon to even do that. No one came close to her without his approval and had Rais or Ivan come anywhere near her he would have bared his teeth at them for the first time in his existence. He slept at the foot of her bed, had to be fed in her suite, and until she gave him a direct order he even followed her into the bathroom. It soon became evident that he was acting on his own attachment to Calynn and her orders; no longer to Sir Drake’s. The only other person that could control him in any way was Drakon, but even Drakon could tell that if he did anything to harm Calynn in any way that would end and he would no longer have any sway with the beast.
His father took it as a sign of Calynn’s worthiness and her strength as a Valdi heir and happily handed over his prized familiar to her. For Drakon this wasn’t an issue, it only served as another barrier of protection for Calynn and over the next few weeks he became an invaluable addition to their conspiracy. Within days of Devilicus’ constant attention the pair discover he had the ability to sense when things were ‘off’ with Calynn. Much like when a regular dog can sense when its master was ill or about to have a seizure, Devilicus could detect when she was accessing one of her growing powers. Her senses had begun to heighten at an alarming rate from her eyesight, to her hearing, her sense of smell and even her intuition.
She no longer had to guess what was related to her pregnancy and wasn’t. Devilicus or Villie as she called him, would walk right beside her and sit, laying his head on her leg or nose her hand if she was unsure or uneasy and she’d know. It was the best present his parents could have given her. Now she could be with his mother, sisters, or any of them and not have to worry about showing any ability. Villie never failed to alert her when a power was about to kick in and she could quickly cover with an excuse of being tired or something pregnancy related. She was much more relaxed and when another new ability surfaced she was able to take it in stride.
Devilicus as it turned out, wasn’t the only animal that obeyed her. At first she thought it was just his presence at her side that was doing it, but she soon realized that she could control all of the dogs on the property. Though not just the dogs, but the birds and small woodland creatures as well. She giggled excitedly as a squirrel ran over her shoulders and buried itself in her hair. Wincing as its sharp claws pierced through her jacket while Devilicus sat nearby tilting his head in curiosity. Drakon smiled as he leaned against a tree watching her. These instances of happiness that she could find in amongst so much stress and organized chaos pleased him. Soon he’d be able to take her away from his family and she could be free to do anything she wished.
She was so amazing to him, Valdi or not it didn’t matter one way or the other. The only thing it meant was that he would be able to keep her forever and at this point he didn’t think he’d ever be able to let go, even if she decided she never wanted to see him again. He’d always be there, watching over her. Stalkerish he knew, but she was the most radiant creature that had ever lived and he was drawn to her like Icarus was to the sun and he didn’t care a bit if he burned. How had he changed so much? It was only a few short months ago that humans were nothing to him. Less than nothing actually. True, he had never delighted in the butchery as many of the others in his family, but he still had no affection for the race as a whole. His kills had been necessary on some level. A means to an end. He didn’t care about them, their pain, their fear, their family or their lives. They were nothing but another animal to feed off of, but now… now… everything was different. He was different. For over two hundred and fifty years he had led the privileged, selfish life of Drake royalty and in one instant he was a completely different man. Well… maybe not completely different. He would kill again without a second thought, as many as it would take. He would pull them apart and make them suffer, if his Calynn was in danger. Or his child. He would revel in the suffering of those that deigned to take or harm what was his. Yes, he was still a monster. Just one whose priorities has shifted.
If she hadn’t astonished him before, she would now. Her mastery of her new-found powers simply took his breath away and out of all of them this one she seemed to love the most, so he was content to watch her as long as she’d let him.
The weather had turned warm again and they were taking advantage to get out of the house while they could. Plus, it gave them time to work on her powers that were growing more and more every day and he was finding he enjoyed it much more than he’d anticipated. All those decades of honing his own skill made him an excellent teacher. Somehow seeing them come
alive in Calynn’s eyes made it fresh and new to him all over again and it made him even more excited for the birth of his child. If it was this enjoyable teaching her he could only imagine what it would be like to train his own children who would have no fear or worry to contend with. She had already given him so much and as he watched her smile and laugh every cell inside him flamed. Yes, he was positive, he was going to burn, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
More animals joined in and finally she looked up at him, birds perched on her arms and said, “Hey look, I’m Snow White!” making him laugh. He wouldn’t tell her that in the original story the evil queen devoured what she thought to be Snow White’s internal organs. They spent the rest of the afternoon hiding out on the bluff while Calynn petted and cuddled every animal that came her way. If only she took this well to every one of the powers that were surfacing, but that wasn’t the case. Three days later another one was triggered and she didn’t take as well to it.
She was tense after a morning of gown fittings with Delphin who was insisting on adding more and more embellishments to the design. It had nearly become a battle between the two of them over the dress. She didn’t know how far she could push Delphine before her sister-to-be’s bad side came out and her own excuse that the focus needs to be minimal was getting old. She could always mention it to Lady Anula, but that didn’t seem like a good idea either. She seemed to be losing interest in having a protégé anyway and it really didn’t hurt Calynn’s feelings any. It was only a ruse to placate the woman and it seemed to work. Once you get the basics down there’s not much difference in running a household than being an office manager. Even less when those under you are indebted to and dependent on you for their very lives. That does seem to simplify things a bit even if she still didn’t like it.
More and more of her time with Lady Anula had become about the ceremony dinner, picking out flower arrangements, place settings and so on. About the only thing she didn’t have much of a choice in were the colors that went along with everything. It was either red, blue, or purple all deep and rich in color. At first it seemed like an odd combination, but the more she looked at it the more it seemed too familiar to her. Then it dawned on her, those were the three colors of the human and animal vascular system. No wonder their kind were drawn to them. After that she tried not to think about it too hard. Instead, she came back to her rooms and slipped into a hot shower and let the stress melt as much as possible.
She would have run every drop of hot water over her back and shoulders if that were possible, but eventually she had to turn it off and rejoin the world. Her and Drakon’s relationship was still in the PG range so she dried her hair and pulled on the softest full-length robe like she’d only dreamed about in her old life. It was warm and comfortable and to be honest she could be content to live in it for the rest of her days. It was a gift from Drakon, mostly to save his sanity and her furniture, but she was more than happy with it.
She made her way to her dressing closet, her faithful familiar right beside her as always and grabbed her favorite pair of jeans and sweater. She was determined to be comfortable after the morning she’d had struggling with Delphine and her designs, but when she tried to button and zip her pants she found they were not as accommodating as usual. She huffed in aggravation and tugged and pulled determined to win the battle of the clothing. Someone must have shrunk the stupid things because they fit not long ago. She continued to dance and wiggle not caring that if or when she did get the things on they would no longer be comfortable.
She had become a mad woman on a mission, ignoring all else including the pacing and nudging of Devilicus. Finally she blew, it was more than she could handle. She danced and stomped her feet stripping out of her jeans, ready to tear them to pieces with her bare hands while crying uncontrollably when something flew past her head. It bounced off the wall with a ting, back out the closet door and landed several feet away in the middle of her bedroom floor.
The pants forgotten she closed her robe and slowly approached the small silver tea spoon laying on the plush carpet. Calynn bent down gingerly reaching out to touch it then changed her mind, part of her fearing it might take off again. She looked up at Drakon who had been sitting at the desk working, her eyes wide.
‘Did that just do what I think it did?’ She looked back down at it like it was a living thing.
‘Yes, it did.’
‘Did you do it?’
‘No.’
‘How’s that possible?’
‘I don’t know.’ But his reply was less convincing and more questioning. As if he was already working it out in his mind and knew more than he was letting on. ‘What were you doing when this happened?’
‘Nothing, I wasn’t even in here I was getting dressed in the closet.’
He furrowed his brow as Devilicus laid down placing his head in Calynn’s lap looking up at her with a low whimper. She reached down to pet his head wondering what all the fuss was about when realization struck her and her pulse instantly sped up. They stared at each other and Drakon nodded, she knew what she had to do. She looked back to the spoon and focused on it, shutting everything else out. Her heart fluttered in her chest like a frantic caged bird and the idea that she was responsible for its flight across the room was terrifying. The seconds turned into minutes with nothing happening and she was ready to give up when, without warning, the thing wiggled and spun around slowly. She fell backwards landing on her butt looking at Drakon in disbelief.
‘Is this… normal?’
He bent down to her holding her close.
‘No, only the elders and heads of the families have that ability and it usually takes centuries to develop.’ He wasn’t one for sugar coating things.
‘Then how?’
‘My father once told me that the Valdi line was so strong that even their servants had the power to control the forces around them.’
‘Drakon; what kind of monster am I turning into?’
He took her face in his hand staring deep into her eyes. ‘Now listen to me. You are not a monster and in no way are you turning into one. Do you hear me? You’re the same stubborn, intelligent, amazing woman you were yesterday and the day before that and the day before that. All the way back to before you came here. It’s simply one more power that is awakening within you and I can think of no better person to have it than you. You just need to learn how to wield it like any other weapon. Understand?’
She nodded slightly. She wasn’t all that convinced, but she wanted to believe him more than anything else; especially right now. He drew her closer, holding her tightly and wishing with everything in him that he could make all her fears and worries disappear. She didn’t deserve any of this, but he meant what he said. Out of every human he’d ever come across she’s the one that could master these skills without them destroying her. He looked over his shoulder at the setting sun and made up his mind.
“Come on, we could use some alone time. You get dressed, nothing too warm and I’ll inform Millie we’ll not be needing her tonight.”
They left everything as it was, the spoon, her clothes, even Devilicus; who though he wasn’t pleased, reluctantly accepted Drakon taking his mistress away. It grew warm and soon the familiar sounds of waves and frogs hit her and she was standing in the moonlight on the edge of a familiar lagoon. Without a word she rolled up her pants legs, kicked off her shoes and sat on the sandy rock edge, dipping her feet into the warm water. He didn’t need an invitation this time. He sat on the edge facing her, his back to the water wrapping his arm around her waist, her head resting on his shoulder. No one said anything, they didn’t need to. It was just the two of them, the rushing water from the waterfall and the creatures that sang in the night. Nothing else mattered.
At least that was his intention, but as the moments ticked by he could feel the worry surge like the surf beyond as Calynn’s thoughts plagued her. He gently stroked her back with his fingertips and hummed a tune from centuries ago almost as much for himself
as for her. The breeze may have brought the odors of the entire island and ocean beyond, but all he could smell was her, her shampoo, the salt of her tears, her blood. He could feel her heat radiating into him, her throbbing pulse calling to him. He could replay every second of their night here not so long ago as if he were reliving it, but he couldn’t let himself indulge. She was hurting and he had to do something about it. That’s what he had to concentrate on, but how?
He hadn’t expected it, but he found his own anger welling in him and he wanted to tear something apart just as he felt his own heart aching for her pain. Before meeting Calynn he’d never felt physical discomfort over anyone or anything else. Even if one of his own family had been wronged all he would have felt was outrage over the slight and nothing for his kin personally. It was that way with all their kind, but with her everything was different and it was frightening. His concern and empathy was so foreign that it would quickly turn to anger, add to it his feeling of helplessness and you had a dangerously explosive cocktail. What could he do to stop it, to ease her suffering? He’d do anything to save her from her own torment. He struggled to keep his temper in check, desperate that he not show the beast that grew inside him.
“I don’t know if I can do this Drakon. So much is going on all at once I feel like I’m being pulled apart and being pregnant isn’t helping. The hormones I mean, it’s like I’m not myself and I can feel bits of me slipping away each time something happens.” She took a deep breath. “When it rains it pours.”