“Your reaction when your aunt said he was staying with her.” I was impressed. How had she noticed when she was trying to overcome her shock at finding out who I really am? She must pay me closer attention than I realised. The thought made me smile.
“Oh, that. You misunderstood. I love my cousin very much. We are roughly the same age so we grew up together. At times we are more like brothers than cousins, but there is one thing about him that I find really annoying. He is the male equivalent of my sisters.”
“Meaning?” The look on her face suggested she knew full well what I meant, but wanted confirmation.
“Meaning he is in love with himself and assumes that every woman he meets feels the same way. He believes that all he has to do is look at a woman and she will fall into his bed.” I was being a bit unfair on Ankou, but I was hoping Rachel would take my words as a warning.
“He is an incredibly attractive man,” she said. That was not what I wanted to hear, but I was not surprised.
“I know, but does he really have to flaunt it all the time?”
“You’re jealous,” she said. I wasn’t sure how to answer that. Was I jealous? Of Ankou? No. Of Rachel’s attraction to him? Definitely.
“Yes. No. Maybe a little. I just wish he would spend more time getting to know a woman before loving and leaving her. Every girl I have ever introduced to him has instantly become besotted. Even you.” The last two words had left my mouth before I realised what I was saying and I instantly regretted them. Rachel remained silent. “I notice you’re not denying it.”
“I...” She couldn’t finish the sentence.
“You’re going to get hurt, you know. We will probably see him again once we reach Death’s residence, if not before, and you are a very beautiful woman. I can almost guarantee he will seduce you.” I turned to look at her, my face serious. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
With that I stood up and went to my tent. I needed to put some distance between us before I said anything else I would later regret. I should have foreseen that Rachel would want to talk about Ankou and where that conversation would head. I was angry with myself for not avoiding it.
I went to see Death to give an update and thankfully my cousin was not there. I asked after him, but Death said he had no idea where he was.
Rachel was in her tent when I returned and from the sounds coming from within I guessed she was having trouble sleeping. I was worried that my words had upset her and contemplated going to see her, but it would be the wrong thing to do. Instead I stayed by the fire for a while, trying my best to think about something else and completely failing. When I heard her finally settle down I went to my own tent and eventually drifted off.
Turtles
As usual I was the first one up. Rachel was awake surprisingly early and I was still starting the fire when she emerged from her tent.
“Sleep well?” I handed her a steaming cup of coffee before she had chance to ask for one. I knew she hadn’t and would need the hot brew. She sat down beside me and took a sip.
“Not really,” she said. I had been expecting her to be unfriendly toward me and was pleased to find that she was still prepared to tell me the truth.
“I’m sorry if I upset you last night.” I had not slept much myself as I had been too busy worrying about how she was taking what I had said. “I was only offering some friendly advice, nothing more. I didn’t mean to be so hostile.”
“That’s okay,” she said. “I understand where you were coming from.”
“Good. Are you awake enough to make breakfast?” So far she had not cooked and it was about time she did.
“Me? Didn’t I warn you that I can burn water?”
I grinned, handed her a pot to make porridge in and informed her that everything she needed was in my bag. She had grown used to the idea that everything came from there and there was no harm in keeping up the illusion, even though she now knew it wasn’t true. Then I went to my tent to change my clothes, leaving her alone.
When I silently emerged from the tent I noticed that she had placed oats, milk, a jar of honey and a wooden spoon beside her, but she was still looking through the bag. What else did she need? Then I realised that she was snooping and couldn’t keep the smile from my face. Something about me obviously interested her.
“Looking for something?” I asked, failing to keep the amusement out of my voice. Rachel dropped the bag and blushed bright red.
“I was just looking for...” She failed to finish the sentence.
“Anything personal that you could sneak a look at?” She reluctantly nodded. “Did you really think I would carry personal items with me where anyone else could get hold of them? You really are an idiot sometimes.” I kept my tone light so she wouldn’t take offence.
I picked the bag off the ground and withdrew 3 bowls and spoons. Then I pointed to the pot. “Cook,” I instructed and Rachel instantly obeyed. The results weren’t great, but they were edible. I made a mental note that if I am ever lucky enough to have a future with her I will have to give her some lessons.
“What are the plans for today?” she asked as we ate.
“Let me guess, more walking,” Rob said sarcastically.
“For a while. Soon we will reach the great lake. You will have the choice of walking around it or crossing it.”
“What’s the time difference?” Rob asked.
“Circumventing it will take about 3 weeks longer.” It was an exaggeration rather than a lie, even if it was a huge one. I love crossing the lake and it was something I wanted Rachel to experience.
“Then we cross,” Rob predictably said.
“How do we cross?” Rachel asked.
“Can you swim?” I said with a gleam in my eye.
“Yes,” she replied, then glanced at Rob. “But Robert can only doggy paddle.” He glared at her.
“Then I suppose we had better ride. Come on. The sooner we get moving the sooner we will get to the shore.”
We decamped and were soon on our way once more. The sun was still rising when we reached the great lake and Rachel stopped and stared. It really is vast and stretched out in front of us till it met the horizon.
“Where’s the boat?” Rob asked, looking left and right along the shore and spotting nothing.
“Who said anything about a boat?” I whistled three times, loudly, and moments later the water began to ripple and a head poked up out of the water.
“What the hell is that?” Rachel asked, backing away.
I looked at her. “Really? You still insist on using that word? I’m going to stop answering you, you know.” I wasn’t serious, but she apologised anyway.
“Sorry. It’s a bad habit. I don’t realise I am saying it half the time. What is that thing?” she asked again, this time dropping the offending word.
“An alligator snapping turtle. You have them in your lakes and rivers, mostly in the south-eastern US, though those ones are much smaller.”
She watched in fascination as the creature swam to shore and crawled out of the water. It was huge, easily bigger than the largest giant tortoise on earth. Its shell was at least 2m in diameter. It walked up to my outstretched hand and began rubbing its snout against it.
“Please tell me that is not our lunch,” Rob said, staring at the ugly creature.
I was horrified. “Of course not. What a ridiculous thing to suggest. This is our ride.”
“What exactly does that mean?” Rachel asked.
“You’ll see.” My reply would irritate her, but she is even prettier when she is riled up so I couldn’t resist annoying her. I noted her look of concern as I took rope from my bag.
“What are you going to do? Lasso it and have it drag us along?” Rob joked.
“Something like that.” He stopped laughing and stared at me, trying to work out if I was being serious or not.
Rachel and Rob both watched as the turtle sat still, allowing me to loop the rope tightly around its shell. “You will need something to hold o
n to.” I had to turn away quickly to hide my smirk when I saw the look on Rachel’s face.
As I worked, two more of the creatures emerged from the water and lay down on the beach beside the first one.
“You may want to eat something before we set off,” I said as I started to attach a rope to the second turtle. “It’s going to be a long trip and eating while on the back of a turtle is not that easy.” I glanced at Rachel and she visibly paled. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all, but it was too late to change the plan now. Hopefully she would begin to relax once she found out how easy the creatures are to ride.
As soon as I had strapped up the third turtle I explained that the most comfortable way to sit was cross legged. One allowed me to climb onto its back as I demonstrated how easy it was to stand up and keep balanced. Rachel did not look convinced.
I then took sandwiches and bottles of water from my bag and handed them round. “Get some food inside you, then we will set sail.”
Rachel declined the food and I understood why. She was afraid of being seasick and I couldn’t blame her. She had never crossed water in this manner so she had no idea how smooth it was. I looked at her in concern, but I didn’t try to change her mind.
“The turtles know where to go and will stick close together so I will always be close enough to hear if you call.” Without waiting to see if they were happy with the travel arrangements, I instructed the turtles to enter the water and they obediently waded in.
They did not go far and Rob and Rachel managed to climb onto their backs without getting their feet wet. I watched as Rachel slipped both of her hands under the ropes and clung on for dear life. The rope must have been cutting into her palms and her hands would soon start to cramp, but I said nothing. She would soon relax her grip when she realised that she would not fall off.
When they were both on board, the two turtles started to swim. They must have been faster than either had been expecting as I noticed both of them tightening their grips on the ropes.
Once I saw that they were safely away I walked onto the remaining turtle and skilfully balanced myself as it started swimming toward them. I wasn’t showing off; well not exactly. I was merely demonstrating how easy it was, or so I told myself.
Time passed and Rachel began to relax. I was watching her closely and saw her release her grip on the ropes and look around. I glanced across at Rob and noticed that he had completely let go of his supporting ropes and had his hands behind him, supporting himself as he leaned back. Seeing that they were both going alright I turned my attention to the horizon.
“Any chance of some water?” Rachel called out a short while later.
I nodded and pulled a bottle from my bag. Without thinking, I threw it at her. She leaned forward to catch it, overbalanced and went straight into the water, striking the side of her head on the edge of the turtle’s shell as she fell.
Without hesitation I dived into the water, grabbed hold of her and pulled her to the surface. I expertly placed her onto the back of my turtle and pulled myself up behind her. I took her in my arms and examined her head. There was a cut and a bump was starting to form, but nothing I couldn’t easily deal with.
As I healed her she opened her eyes and tried to focus on my face. “I don’t feel so good,” she managed to say before passing out. Rob called out to me, asking if she was alright. I assured him that she was going to be fine then concentrated on drying our clothes.
Rachel’s turtle swam up to us, but there was no way I was going to let her out of my arms. I could easily have placed her back on her own turtle and she would have been perfectly safe, but having her that close to me just felt too good.
A few hours later she began to stir. “Welcome back,” I said when she opened her eyes. “How are you feeling?”
“My head hurts. What happened?” She tried to sit up, but I tightened my hold on her, preventing her from moving. I had been cradling her for a long time, but was not ready to relinquish my hold on her yet. She didn’t struggle and relaxed into me.
“You had a pretty nasty gash on your head and a large bump. I healed you, but it might be a good idea if you stay with me for a while instead of riding on your own.” I hoped she would not argue with my assessment. She didn’t.
Rob’s turtle swam close so he could make sure she was alright. She assured him she was fine and I instructed it to swim away again. I wanted her all to myself while I had the chance.
“You should sleep some more.”
“I’m not tired,” she said.
“Tough. Close your eyes and go to sleep.” Rest was the best thing for her, so I sent her to sleep. I asked my turtle to slow down, knowing that the other two would also do so. I wanted to savour the moment. Rachel would not wake until we reached dry land and I wanted to delay that for as long as possible.
All too soon we reached the other side of the lake and I carried her onto the shore, laying her down in the sand. I placed her bag next to her, made sure Rob wasn’t looking, then kissed her softly on the lips. She moaned slightly, but didn’t wake.
Leaving her to sleep in the still warm air, I went to help Rob set up the tents and prepare food.
It was a beautiful evening and the sun was beginning to set over the lake, casting a breath-taking glow across the water when I went to check on her. She had taken off her shoes and had dug her toes into the sand as she wrote in her book. I had seen her doing this a number of times and was curious about it.
Silently I walked up behind her and read a little of what she was writing. She had not heard me approach and jumped in fright when I spoke to her.
“What are you writing?”
“My diary. Ever since I was very young I have kept one.”
“It’s very detailed. I thought diaries were usually brief descriptions of the important events that happen during the day or a place where teenage girls put down all of their thoughts and feelings as they go through adolescence. That reads more like a story.”
“I find it easier to write that way,” she said. “I picture someone else reading it. That way I know I am not missing anything. I know that A plus B equals C, but a stranger wouldn’t. I always read it through as though I am someone else, someone who is hearing about events for the first time. That way, if anything is left unexplained, I can add it in. Maybe my grandchildren will enjoy reading about my life when I am old and decrepit.”
I laughed. “Can I read some more?”
“Of course not,” she said. “A diary is a very private thing.”
“But you just said that you hoped other people would read it.” She hadn’t reacted very well to my question and I didn’t understand why.
“But not now. When it is in my past, not my present.”
“But I already know all that has happened. What is the problem?”
“Think back to what you said about teenage girls,” she said, in a much calmer voice. “It doesn’t apply just to that age range.”
“What?” I asked in confusion. Then I understood what she meant. I smirked at her. “Oh. I see. Now I really want to read more.” I desperately wanted to know if there was any mention of me in there.
“Tough,” she said and made a point of packing it away in her bag. I eyed the bag mischievously. “Don’t even think about it,” she warned. “That would be a serious breach of trust.”
“I have no idea what you are talking about,” I lied as I sat down on the sand next to her.
We sat in silence, enjoying the gentle breeze that came in over the water. “This is one of my favourite places down here,” I said after a while. “Especially at this time of day.” I leaned in closer to her. “If you listen carefully you can hear some of the birds calling to each other.”
She did as instructed, cocking her head as she listened. A slight smile crossed her face as she heard them.
“This is the sort of place I want to end up living in,” she said dreamily as she relaxed back until she was lying down on the sand. “On a beach somewhere warm wher
e I can wake up to the sound of lapping water. When I’m rich and famous maybe I will buy a desert island.”
I eased myself down to lay beside her, our heads almost touching. I was more relaxed than I have ever been in her presence; while she was awake I quickly corrected myself. I felt comfortable being next to her. It felt natural, right, and I didn’t want it to end. “And how are you planning on becoming rich and famous?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I will become an author. I could write a great fantasy series based on my adventures travelling through Hell.”
I winced. “Please stop calling my home that.”
“I only did it to annoy you.”
“Now why does that not surprise me?” I had an overwhelming desire to kiss her, but fought it, not knowing how she would react. The last thing I wanted to do was spoil the mood.
We fell silent again, but it was not an uncomfortable silence. I glanced at her and noticed that she had closed her eyes. I was just beginning to think that she was asleep once more, when she spoke.
“Can I ask you something?” she asked without opening them.
“Sure. If you let me read your diary.” She hit me playfully and I rolled away, clutching my side in fake pain. “Go on,” I said when I rolled back toward her.
“You said that every girl you ever introduced to Ankou got the hots for him. I would have thought that most of the females down here are your family and I can’t imagine many humans entering this realm. At least not while they are still alive. So how did you introduce anyone to him?”
I didn’t answer immediately. I really did not want to talk about my cousin, but I was through with keeping secrets from her. “We have not been down here our entire lives you know. Most of my family have one human parent. Most, but not all. The children are often left on Earth until they have grown up. Hades decided to do things differently. He got married and brought his wife to live down here. War followed their example. Death, however, went the way of his uncles and cousins and impregnated a human while up above in your realm. She only came down here occasionally. I think he really loved her. He mourned her death for a long time.”
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