The Sun Angel

by Ashley Martinez

  “Goreg,” Dorin smiled.

  Goreg stood up on his tip toes and whispered something in Dorin’s ear then turned and ran away into the trees.

  “We have word from Mae!” Dorin motioned for Jenna and Will to get closer before whispering, “Mae’s expecting you in half an hour. She’s two miles north of here.”

  “Thank you,” Jenna smiled at him.

  “However, she does not welcome the Guardian.”

  “What? Why not?” Jenna asked surprised.

  “They have a history I’d rather not repeat,” Dorin shook his head. “Too much blood has been spilt.”

  “Oh. So what is she supposed to do?”

  “She’ll stay here.”

  “Will you untie her?”

  Dorin nodded, “Yes, but we will remove all weapons from her.”

  “Works for me,” Will nodded.

  “Also, be warned, there are many unpleasant things along the way who would wish to eat you,” Dorin whispered, “so be cautious.”

  “Dorin, look who you’re talking to,” Will gave him a pointed look.

  The dwarf laughed, “You’re right. We’ll see you back in a couple days.”

  “Days?” Jenna was confused.

  “You’ll find out why,” Will pulled her away from Dorin.

  “Wait!” Jenna turned back to Dorin. “Would you please tell Thrina I’m very sorry for whatever pain I’ve caused her.”

  Dorin nodded, “Very noble of you. I will pass on the message.”

  “Thanks,” Jenna sighed. She knew it wouldn’t change anything, but she still had to try.

  Turning she ran to catch up with Will who had disappeared into the thick brush, following an almost hidden trail.

  “Another hike, huh?” she smiled at him.

  “Actually, no,” he answered looking around.

  “Then how will-“

  “We’ll fly.”

  “No thank you!” Jenna stepped away from him remembering this morning. It frightened her.

  “Jenna,” Will sighed. “I’m sorry for earlier. I’m not proud of how I reacted and if I could I’d take it back.”

  “I’ll forgive you if you answer one question,” Jenna’s hands began to sweat out of nervousness.

  “What?”

  “Did I really break your heart?”

  Will looked down, “Yes.”

  “In order for that to happen that means we…”

  “We were in love,” Will finished reluctantly, watching her closely.

  Jenna felt a wave of shock and satisfaction course through her body. Will had loved her.

  “What happened?”

  “This is a long story,” he glanced up.

  “I want to know.”

  “You’ll remember soon enough,” Will sighed. “Let’s go see Mae and after your memories are back I’ll answer any questions you have.”

  “Shake on it,” Jenna held out her hand.

  “Really, Jenna?”

  “Shake!”

  Slowly Will brought up his hand and took hers. He shook her hand.

  “I like the way your skin feels,” Jenna blurted out. She gasped at her boldness and could feel the heat rise in her cheeks. “Sorry!”

  Will laughed, “I like the feel of yours.”

  Her cheeks reddened even more with pleasure.

  “Can I ask you something now?” Will said still holding onto her hand.

  She nodded.

  “Will you fly with me?”

  Unable to speak she nodded. Will pulled her to him and wrapped his arm around her.

  “Wait!” she said stepping back.

  “What?”

  “I want to see your wings.”

  Will rolled his eyes, but unfurled his wings for Jenna to see. She stepped toward him and slowly reached her hand out to touch his feathers. He shivered from pleasure.

  “They’re beautiful,” Jenna whispered amazed at how soft they felt. All this was completely impossible but here she was in the middle of a forest about to fly with a man who had wings.

  “Let’s go,” Will grunted hoisting Jenna up so he could fly.

  Bending his knees, he jumped into the air. Jenna screamed with joy this time; flying was exhilarating.

  Will sailed over the trees, taking his time. He liked holding Jenna close and this gave him an excuse to do so.

  “It’s so pretty from up here,” Jenna said looking around at the Earth below them. Even in the dark the trees were mighty and peaceful. The stretched out in every which direction seeming endless.

  “I agree,” Will nodded.

  “How fast can you fly?” She giggled. Jenna felt free, and she loved it.

  “Pretty fast.”

  “How fast?”

  “I’ll have to show you sometime,” he smiled at her, liking her when she was happy. “We’re here.”

  “Really?” Jenna whispered looking frightened.

  “Don’t worry, Angel,” Will held her closer, “I’ll be there.”

  “Promise you won’t leave me,” she begged.

  He chuckled as they landed. Jenna didn’t want him to let her go, and he didn’t. Feeling bold she leaned in and kissed his cheek. He held her gaze.

  “What was that for?”

  “Thank you,” she smiled shyly.

  Will put her down-- he was afraid he’d kiss her and never stop. Her lips were soft and her kiss felt hot on his cheek.

  “She’s this way,” he said pointing.

  “I can’t see,” Jenna squinted into the dark.

  “Take my hand.” Will grabbed her hand and led her toward the witch that would unlock their ugly past.

  Chapter Ten

  Will pushed a tree branch back allowing Jenna to pass into the small clearing ahead. Jenna gasped. In the clearing was a massive, very modern-looking house surrounded by towering pine and maple trees. Glass covered most of the front allowing Jenna to see right in, which allowed her to see that the house was spotless looking very clean.

  “She lives here?” Jenna asked in surprise.

  Will dropped Jenna’s hand and knocked hard on the front door. The door swung open with no one there behind it.

  “How…?” Jenna hesitated at the doorway.

  “Mae’s a witch. Always keep that in mind,” Will said then lowering his voice added, “And be careful of her words; they’ll come back to bite you.”

  “Not always,” a woman in her mid-thirties wearing a long red dress answered in a deep melodic voice. She was standing at the top of a winding staircase. Her hair was long and dark. Her ebony skin she flaunted in a low cut dress that had a high slit revealing one long leg.

  “Mae,” Will smiled.

  “Come here, Will. Give me a proper hello,” she opened her arms coming down the stairs.

  Will walked into them, and Jenna felt her stomach clench in jealousy as Mae planted her lips right on his.

  “Hmm,” she pulled back slowly, “you’ve got quite a bit on your plate.”

  “Tell me about it,” he laughed and moved to the side so Mae could see Jenna.

  “Ahh…I see,” she nodded looking at Jenna.

  Jenna was amazed to see that Mae had bright blue eyes that stood out against her dark skin. She was beautiful much to Jenna’s dismay.

  “Jenna, dear, it’s been,” she paused and looked her up and down before finishing, “awhile.”

  “Are you the one who blocked my memories?” Jenna asked.

  “Maybe,” she crossed her arms.

  “Jenna found a paper that had your name on it,” Will said. “Don’t waste our time, Mae.”

  Mae turned her hard gaze on Will, “So what if I am the one?”

  “Mae,” Will groaned.

  “What will I get in return?” she put her hands on her hips.

  Will’s eyes narrowed. He had his sword out and Mae up against a glass wall with the blade at her throat before Jenna could answer.

  “You’re getting slow with age, Mae,” he said.

  Mae smirk
ed, “Maybe I just like how you’re rough with me.”

  “Now is not the time,” Will spit. “Are you the witch who blocked Jenna’s memories?”

  “Always so curt,” she winced as Will put pressure on the blade at her throat. “Fine.”

  “Fine, what?”

  “Yes, I’m the witch,” she glared at Will, “now let me go.”

  Will stepped back, his sword disappearing, “Will you help us?”

  Mae cocked her head to the side looking first at Will then resting her eyes on Jenna.

  “Come here,” she beckoned.

  Jenna looked to Will for reassurance before taking the steps toward Mae. So far, she terrified Jenna.

  “I’m not going to hurt you,” Mae’s eyes sparked.

  “Mae, you do know that if you hurt Jenna in any way, you will be flayed,” Will leaned back against the wall smiling.

  Mae rolled her eyes, “I’ll try to act scared when that happens, and that is if it’ll ever happen.”

  Jenna was finally standing in front of Mae, who held out her hand expectantly.

  “I don’t know,” Jenna started unsure of what Mae was wanting from her.

  “I need your hand.”

  “Oh.”

  Jenna placed her hand in Mae’s, who closed her eyes. She stood like that for a full minute before her eyes snapped open.

  “Your eighteenth birthday is in one week,” she stated.

  Jenna nodded.

  Mae looked at Will releasing Jenna’s hand, “You have one week to restore her or you’ll have to wait another eighteen years.”

  “We can’t,” Will clenched his fists.

  “I know that,” Mae’s eyes narrowed in annoyance. “The signs are already happening.”

  “So it’s true then?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  Will nodded, smiling to himself.

  “This isn’t what you want, William,” Mae cautioned, “you need her more than you realize.”

  Jenna was watching them like a tennis match, her head going from side to side. But unlike tennis, she didn’t understand what they were talking about and was afraid to interrupt.

  Will shrugged his shoulders looking slightly uncomfortable. “I hear that a lot, but I’ve gotten this far without her.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “Excuse me,” Jenna butted in, “but can you restore my memories instead?”

  They both turned to her. Will’s eyes were hardened and Mae’s were softer.

  “I cannot.”

  “What?” Jenna said in disbelief. “But you’re the one who blocked them!”

  Mae was shaking her head, “You didn’t ask me to block them.”

  “Then what did I ask?”

  “You asked me to erase them.”

  “What?” Jenna gasped stumbling backwards.

  Will flashed to her side and helped her sit down on the floor.

  “What do we do now?” Jenna asked him, holding onto his arms.

  “Are you sure there’s nothing you can do?” he asked Mae.

  She watched them thoughtfully, “You didn’t have me erase all of them.”

  “And you didn’t think that would’ve been something to start with?” Will asked incredulous.

  “You asked me to save a few memories,” Mae ignored Will.

  “How many?” Jenna asked still sitting on the floor with Will crouched down beside her.

  “Five.”

  “Can you restore them?”

  “I can, but it won’t be pleasant.”

  “I don’t care,” Jenna used Will to pull herself up, stumbling slightly in her hurry, “I want them back.”

  “When I say unpleasant what I really mean is it’ll be the worst pain you’ve ever experienced. I’m not even sure your human form can withstand it.”

  Jenna stood up taller, glaring at the witch, “I don’t care. Just do it.”

  “You could die in the process.”

  “Jenna,” Will put his hand on her shoulder, “maybe you shouldn’t.”

  She turned her glare up on him, “I saved them for a reason, and I want them back. They’re mine.”

  His lips turned up in a small, sad smile, “I figured you’d say that.”

  “Alright!” Mae clapped her hands brightly. “Let’s do this!”

  “But-“

  “Have you eaten in the last hour?” Mae asked Jenna.

  “No, why?”

  “Good,” she nodded briskly. “I don’t want you to puke on my carpet.”

  Jenna’s stomach twisted with hunger and nerves, but she kept silent.

  “So, William, what have you been up to this last thirty-six years?” Mae asked conversationally as she walked to a wall that held nothing but a large painting of a wolf watching a deer in the middle of a snowy meadow.

  Jenna found it beautiful yet saddening at the same time. She wanted to call out a warning to the deer but knew it’d do no good. It was a painting, no one was hurt or would be hurt. The figures would be frozen for the rest of time in that position.

  “Tell me, Mae, do you always saunter around the house in an evening gown or were you expecting someone?”

  “I was expecting someone,” she paused long enough to give Will a meaningful look before pulling the large painting back revealing a door. Mae paused in front of the exceptionally wide wooden door. She smirked slyly at Will, “you.” Mae grabbed the handle and leaned her hip sensually into the door to push it open. In doing this, the slit in her dress widened giving Will a substantial view of Mae’s toned inner thigh.

  He rolled his eyes and pulled Jenna into the ill lit staircase. “To answer your question,” he continued as they descended, “I’ve been hunting.”

  “Oh?” Mae didn’t sound surprised... “What creature pissed you off this time?”

  “It wasn’t that kind of hunting.”

  “You’ve got me intrigued,” she grinned wickedly as she passed them on the stairs, ignoring Jenna completely as they entered a small circular stone room. It looked ancient and smelled it too.

  The room was quite empty, a couple chairs to their left facing a wooden table. The floor was carpeted though Jenna thought it was crazy to have carpet in such a dingy room. Behind the table was a counter with cupboards holding who knows what. Hanging from the ceiling but low enough to grab were dozens of dried plants.

  “That’s too bad,” Will smiled. “Because I’m not going to say anymore.”

  “There are ways to get you to talk,” Mae winked.

  “Does it involve that man in a suit?” Jenna asked curiously, remembering one of her strange dreams.

  Mae’s eyes never left Will’s face but Jenna could see the annoyance playing in them. Jenna knew Mae didn’t like her very much, which made her wonder why she helped her in the first place.

  Mae gestured Jenna to a lone table in the center of the dungeon feeling room. It all felt very Frankenstein to Jenna and while her peers had always made her feel like a monster, she wasn’t sure this was the treatment she deserved. "Lay down on the table." Jenna obliged quietly.

  “That was part of it, Angel,” Will answered, his eyes transfixed on Jenna who Mae was now strapping down with a series of belts and chains, which did little to help Jenna feel less like the creature in Mary Shelley's classic novel.

  Mae cleared her throat , “Shall we get this party started?”

  ***

  Five minutes later, Jenna was secured to the table, her body riddled with anxiety.

  “What’s with the ties, Mae?” Will asked as he leaned up against the wall, completely at ease.

  “She will be in a lot of pain,” Mae answered as she turned from one of the cupboards with three wooden bowls in her arms and placing them on a cart next to Jenna. “She’ll be thrashing around, and I don’t want her to knock over my stuff.”

  “How long will this take?” Jenna voice shook.

  “That depends on how long the memories are.”

  “What’s that mean?”
/>   “She’ll relive every memory,” Mae said looking at Will a little too long.

  Jenna cleared her throat, “What kind of pain will it be?”

  Mae looked down at her and smiled cruelly, “I can’t answer that.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I’m not dumb enough to get mixed up with Silas and have to go into hiding,” she said pulling a white flower off a stem she had from the one plant sitting on the counter and tossing it into one of the bowls.

  “Silas?” Jenna asked. “You don’t mean-“

  “The Devil, yes,” she nodded. “That’s who I mean.”

  “I…” Jenna was at a loss for words and looked to Will for help.

  “Nope,” he shook his head putting his hands up, “don’t ask me. I don’t know what you did with him.”

  Jenna put her head back and groaned.

  “You already started?” Will asked pushing himself off the wall.

  “No,” Mae said watching Jenna curiously.

  Jenna felt miserable, “I’m a terrible person.”

  “No,” Will said at the same time Mae said, “Yes.”

  “If I was the devil’s friend then I had to have been a terrible person,” Jenna mumbled.

  “You’d be surprised at what people do when they’re being threatened,” Will smiled trying to reassure her, even though he knew it was a lie.

  “Really?” Jenna asked looking hopeful.

  He was ashamed of himself for lying to her, but he didn’t like to see her sad. He could see this whole situation was wearing down on her. Jenna was kind and gentle now, so seeing her so upset about hurting someone’s feelings really bothered Will; it made him want to protect her.

  “Okay,” Mae said interrupting them, “I’m ready.”

  “Will,” Jenna choked, terrified, “I’m scared.”

  “It’s okay, Angel,” Will smoothed back her hair, “I’ll be right here.”

  “Promise me you won’t leave,” she started sweating.

  “I’ll stay here, I promise,” he leaned down and kissed her forehead gently.

  “Ahem,” Mae cleared her throat, “can we do this?”

  “I’m ready,” Jenna said closing her eyes. She had a smile on her face and looked determined.

  “I’ll need some of your blood,” Mae said. “Open your hand.”

  Jenna rotated her palm under the tight restraints, and Mae quickly slid a blade down the exposed flesh, holding a bowl underneath to catch the blood. Jenna winced slightly, impressing Will.