by C. D. Gorri
“Who the hell has been in my bedroom?” Silence greeted her. She slid her gaze around the bed, noticing other things out of place. Like a tray of food on her end table that had some fruit that looked as though it had been there for a couple days. Yuck.
Belle ignored the food, leaving it to toss after she did a few mundane humanish habits she’d discovered were actually quite relaxing after observing some of the females who’d come to Fey. Not that she’d spied on the Iron Wolves females, but they were quite loud and vocal when they talked about showers and bubble baths. Who’d have thought such things as allowing water to sluice over the skin to cleanse oneself was good for the soul? Walking into the adjoining bathroom, she made quick work of showering, finding relief in the feel of warm water as it eased her muscles. She’d gotten used to performing the everyday routine instead of waving her hand to get it done. Memories of the battle with a horde of dragons had her stalling for more time. In fact, she wasn’t sure what she’d be facing when she walked outside her home. Her daughter Lula wasn’t close, or else she’d have sensed her so, she wasn’t worried about facing her just yet.
A half hour later, with her hair up in a high ponytail and wearing a loose white skirt and a black tank top, she headed out toward the main house. She lifted her head toward the sky, scenting the air. She relaxed the closer she was to the kitchen where Asia and her daughter Egypt would be.
The mother and daughter duo came to Fey from Earth to heal a while ago. Fey time and Earth time flowed differently, but Jenna and Belle had been working to keep the duo on the same timeframe as Earth. They wanted to ensure neither female went back to Earth in a different century than when they left. If they chose to go back. No, when they went back, not if. Even though Belle and Jenna would be fine if Egypt and Asia stayed with them on Fey forever. She was such a dragon, collecting her precious things.
The atrocities the mother had suffered at the hands of the male made Belle and her dragon itch to kill. She’d seen what the male had done to Asia through the female’s memories, and they were terrible. And to make things worse, her child had suffered horrendous things as well, and the bastard made sure her mother was aware. Poor little Egypt was healing slowly thanks to Belle easing inside both of their minds without their knowing.
The first time Belle entered her subconscious, Egypt was sleeping peacefully or so she’d thought. It took a great amount of energy for her to create a link between the two of them. The young girl’s power, untapped was surprisingly strong and even more shocking, familiar. Luckily Lula was there and helped Belle the first night. After that, they were able to begin mending the teen as well as the mother. Her heart still ached at the knowledge that little Egypt had tried to commit suicide, which was how the Iron Wolves had found her to begin with, in a hospital recovering. She’d led the others to her mother who’d been close to death thanks to the vampire bastard who claimed her as his mate.
Belle wanted to kill the male all over again. If he hadn’t been dead, she’d have hunted him down and inflicted pain the likes of which he’d have begged her to end his miserable life. Instead, she focused her energy on healing the young girl from the inside out, doing similar exercises to the mother. She should feel guilty since they’d both denied her help when they’d arrived, spouting stuff about needing to handle it on their own. But Belle and her dragon couldn’t stand their pain. After the first night, she and her daughter created the links between them, she used the time the three of them cooked together, daily leaking healing powers into them. She figured within another month they’d be as good as new. Why the thought brought sadness to her, she didn’t know. Well, except for the fact they’d probably return to Earth, and she’d be left alone except for the Fey who feared her on most days.
“Belle, you’re awake,” Egypt yelled. Her excited voice carried across the rolling green lawn.
“I am, my little Feyling. Did you miss me?” Belle asked, catching the teen up in her arms and flying them upward with a little magic. At one time, Asia would’ve panicked whenever Belle exerted any show of powers since she’d only felt pain connected to such. Now, the girl’s mother just shook her head and smiled from the doorway.
“You were sleeping like Sleeping Beauty. If she would’ve had pink hair that is. I told my mom you needed a prince to come and kiss you, but she said princes suck,” Egypt said.
“That I did,” Asia yelled. Her smile came more freely now.
“Your mother is very smart, my Feyling.” Belle settled them back to the ground.
“One day, I want to be able to fly like you.” Egypt said, holding her arms out to the side. A wistful look crossing her smooth complexion.
Although she was a teenager, Egypt was small compared to shifters and even the humans that Belle had seen around her age. The male had done his best to keep both females from growing in powers and strength. Belle had no doubt that one day the girl would be a force to be reckoned with, once she was older and grew into what she was meant to be. Her mother was a panther, but Egypt, she was a hybrid. Only Belle didn’t sense any vampire traits in her, not like she did in Jenna’s mates. The girl was a conundrum.
“Oh no you don’t. You’re my baby and you need to keep your feet firmly planted on the ground, with me.” Asia looked up at Belle, worry etched on her beautiful face.
Belle wanted to reassure her that all would be just as she wished, but she wasn’t a liar, nor was she a seer. Instead, she sniffed loudly, her stomach choosing that moment to rumble. Goddess, she was starving.
“Mom, I think Belle needs feeding. She didn’t eat any of the food I left her. Bad dragon,” Egypt said, shaking her head.
“Egypt Keely. You were told not to go into Belle’s home. I’m sorry if she disturbed you.” Asia swept her daughter behind her with one arm.
As if the panther shifter could protect herself or anyone else if Belle was angry. She let out a sigh. “Asia, I would never eat you or your child, even if I was awakened from my sleep and a dream I was enjoying. I may huff and puff and threaten to burn the Fey if they disturb my slumber, but between you and me, it’s all just words.”
“I know that, but still.”
She walked into the kitchen as she spoke, hoping they’d follow without fear. The large room was big enough to seat twenty full-sized shifters if they came for a visit comfortably. The shiny, white cabinets always sparkled with tiny crystals embedded within. The gems were a layer of protection to the house should they need it, activated with a single thought. The counters she and Jenna had found were a work of art. The huge slab of stone that looked like a frozen rainbow. During one of their treks to the Goddess’s Garden, the piece had called to them like a silent song only they could hear. Neither of them could walk away from the smooth surface with the multitude of glittery colors threaded throughout, as if the stone had waterfalls flowing running within it.
Jenna had instantly agreed they needed to have the stone in their home, and just like that, it had been there, replacing the wood that had once graced their counters. Now, the wood was used as the tabletop. It too had fine lines running through it. Belle had a feeling it was a way for the Goddess to be present, power emanating through each piece. From every corner of the room, she was able to pick out where it had come from, between her and Jenna. This was home. A home she and her family and friends had built and created with loving care.
“Whatever you’re cooking smells heavenly, Asia.” Her mouth watered at the delicious scent of roasting stew with potatoes and carrots piled high in one pot.
“In my defense, you were asleep for days and days. I was afraid you were going to waste away to dust, and then I’d have to explain to Jennaveve what happened. Can you imagine how that would’ve gone? No thank you ma’am. I’d rather face the wrath of you than the crazy of her.” Asia lifted the lid off the stew, scooped out a small piece of goodness, blew on it, then popped it into her mouth.
Belle winced as the spoon sailed several feet through the air, clanging around in the sink before se
ttling in the bottom of a shallow pool of soapy water. Obviously, she’s been sipping on the stew a bit. Why the females didn’t just use the same spoon to taste each time she had no clue, something about double dipping they had told her. Weird human custom or something.
Egypt hopped onto the counter next to the stove. The gas stove with twelve burners didn’t scare the girl anymore, not like when she’d first arrived. Belle had seen a memory of why she hated fire and did her best to clear the memory from the girl.
“I’m not calling Jenna crazy, just saying she’d go crazy if something happened to you on my watch,” Asia explained, looking around the room.
“Belle, make a note if you will. My mother just called our venerable leader crazy. I, on the other hand, would never do such a thing.” Egypt reached into the boiling pot and pulled out a huge piece of stewed potato, popping it into her mouth without letting it cool first.
Belle and Asia both laughed, and for the first time since she’d woken up, she relaxed. Being amongst her friends, she could pretend she hadn’t just come face-to-face with Nikai and found out that what she’d thought for eons, was false. He’d never wanted her to get rid of their child. Fucking Nadim and his treachery.
“You look really angry, Belle. Are you mad at me?” Egypt’s dark eyes held fear.
Belle shook thoughts of black dragons away, trying to forget the past and stay in the present. “I’m sorry, hun. I’m not angry. Especially not at you.”
“So, does that mean you’ll take me flying again?” Egypt brought her clasped hands to her chin in a pleading gesture. She was a tiny little thing, reminding Belle of her Lula when she’d been a young dragon. When Egypt and Asia returned to Earth, the girl would be preparing for high school and learning to drive a car, not flying up into the sky amongst the clouds.
“After we eat, we’ll see how we all feel.” Belle gestured toward the large pot on the stove.
An hour later, Belle stood at the dual sink washing the dishes by hand, staring out at the beauty in front of her. She was sure the dragons back in her realm would have an apocalyptic fit if they saw her doing what they considered menial things, like getting her hands dirty and washing dishes. She could hear their gasps of outrage. Dragons were blessed with innate magic and the ability to cleanse oneself, along with dishes being two small things they could do without any effort.
“You’re thinking really loud. Care to share?” Asia asked, leaning against the counter with one brow raised.
Her first instinct was to dismiss the female’s question as outrageous. “What do you know about why I came here?”
Asia uncrossed her arms. “You mean a few days ago or eons ago?”
“Dear Goddess, I see where Egypt gets her sass from. Eons, pfft.” Belle shook the soapy water off her hands, making sure some landed on the other woman.
“How rude,” Asia said, laughing.
“I mean this last time, not eons ago.” Unable to find a towel close at hand, she used her powers to dry off, doing the same for the dishes before placing them into their proper places within the cabinets.
“I so love it when you clean the kitchen like that. Just puff, and everything is neat and where they belong. As for your question. The only thing I know is that you and the others were in some sort of fight, and you were injured. Jenna pops in daily to check on you, and Lula does as well. Other than that, I didn’t want to poke my nose into your business.”
Belle had already figured that out about the humanish female. Loyal and honest, and far from the nosey type was what she was. She really wished Asia could find her panther again, but the animal was buried so deep within the female’s psyche. Jenna and she had agreed to give Asia’s panther a chance to surface on her own once her mind and body were healed. Belle’s dragon didn’t agree, but she was willing to wait a little while longer.
“I don’t think you’re nosey at all. You’re family, both you and Egypt. The battle was against males from my realm. My one time almost mate, and his dragon guards to be exact. Well, not really him. Goddess, I’m not explaining this well at all.” In a brief description, Belle explained what happened and how Nikai saved her.
“Now, we are bound together for all time,” she growled and paced the length of the kitchen.
“Okay, first of all, wow! I wasn’t aware your mate was alive. I mean I assumed you had a mate, since you know...you had Lula. I just...never mind. That’s none of my business. Second, from what I’ve seen with the others who’ve come through here, like Jenna and her guys, Kellen and his mate, and even crazy Creed and the poor woman who took him on, the bonding was done long before that battle. I mean, look at me and he who we shall never name. Yes, he was demented as all get out, but for some ungodly reason, he and I were mates. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have Egypt, just as you wouldn’t have Lula. Humans, they can marry whoever they want and divorce without a problem. They don’t have the same innate being as we do. A bond, a soulmate bond is undeniable and almost unbreakable. Trust me, I know. Even when I was chained up in that cabin and he...well, when I was suffering terribly, I still ached. It was even worse, I think, because I knew he was disgusting inside, yet my heart reached for him.”
Belle stopped mid stride; her own heart ached for all that the young woman had lost, or rather never had. She had only been a teen in human years, far too young to have been taken against her will. Her mind bent by the vampire who’d compelled her.
“He was not your truemate, Asia. He used his powers on you. It was why you were so sick and weak when you were found. He kept you weak with blood loss and the fear of what he’d do to your child to control you. He knew you had a truemate out there, and that one day he’d find you. Yes, you were a truemate to someone, but not to him. He’d sensed that bond, and Egypt, she is the product of that bond, but not of the male who kept you.”
“What are you saying? I didn’t sleep around, Belle. I was no whore who didn’t know who the father of my child was,” she whispered, angry tears welling in her eyes.
The sound of Egypt coming down the hall made Belle tense. She lifted her hand, silencing Asia. A second later, she flashed the two of them back outside, several hundred feet from the house for privacy. “I need you to listen and hear what I’m telling you. I’ve been inside your mind. Both you and Egypt’s. Don’t. I can see the instant denial you are about to utter but please listen to me. You and she were broken. My dragon couldn’t settle with the pain you were both emanating. She, my dragon, is easily controlled mostly. But there’s always exceptions to the rule, like when those she considers hers are hurting. She and I cannot stand back and allow that to continue if we can help it. At first, I didn’t realize what my dragon was doing, even though she is within me. The second week you were here, she rumbled so low and guttural inside me, a hurricane wouldn’t have stopped us from trying to fix you.”
“What the hell does that have to do with what you said about my child belonging to another male? I was a...a virgin when Kenneth took me.” The words came out a hoarse whisper.
Belle wanted to cry and then kill the bastard all over again. “Yes, I can see that within your mind, but I don’t believe that was the true reality. He was a master, this vampire, and was obviously very good at illusions along with other talents, but he needed you to be tied to him. I believe he manipulated your mind into thinking it was he who was your mate. I don’t think he was a—functioning male, Asia. Do you understand what I’m saying?” Schooling her features, she took a calming breath and pushed it out hoping it would calm the other female as well.
“Oh, Belle, I prayed so many times it was a dream. Every time he took me, I prayed. I—I closed my eyes and went away until he was finished. It was him, not some fairytale male. As much as I wish what you say is true, I was there. I have or had the marks to prove it.” Asia’s voice cracked as she sucked her lips into her mouth between her teeth.
“You know I’m a dragon. I can become energy and enter others to heal what is broken, whether it’s bones or organs. In you a
nd Egypt’s cases, you both were not only physically injured, but you were also mentally battered. That male, he was evil through and through. He was old and very powerful, and he knew what he was doing. The fissures I found in your brain were deep, and there were a lot. He cultivated the reality he wanted you to believe, not the truth. I don’t know who your mate was, but it was not that male. I’m not saying you were that word you said, and if anyone dares to call you such, I’ll burn them to a crisp. What I do know from looking through your memories, is that he implanted himself over the ones of your mate. I can see a male. He’s handsome, young, and has dark hair and eyes. Nothing like the vile bastard we shall never speak of. I’ve been working to heal you, and if you allow it, I believe I can uncover the truth and possibly your mate’s identity.”
“He tricked me?” Asia put two fingers over one of her temples and placed the palm of her other over her stomach.
Belle let her words sink in before saying any more. To know you’d been raped in mind as well as body was something nobody wanted to learn, and to know you’d suffered such atrocities while under a thrall had to gut her. Sure, the male who had fathered her child had been her mate, but Asia had no recollection of the male. For all Belle and she knew, he could’ve been working with Kenneth, the bastard who’d kept her.
“I know it weighed on the both of you that he was her father and your mate, but now, you can have some solace.” She wasn’t sure if that was true, especially if the amount of anger and heat glowing in Asia’s stare was anything to go by.
“If my truemate is out there, he will want nothing to do with me or Egypt. Or maybe he was every bit as demented as the other male. We are damaged.” Asia swiped her hands under both eyes.