Survival, a YA Paranormal Romance (The Guardians of Vesturon Series, Book #1)

by A.M. Hargrove

  “What happened to her?” I asked, interrupting her.

  Talasi squeezed my arm and said, “As best we can see, it seems she has been beaten. She is seriously injured. She has been shot in the leg and the chest, with arrows oddly enough, and we think she has injured her spinal cord. She must have fallen down the side of the mountain. Can the Guardians go to her?” she asked, placing her hand on his arm.

  “We are on our way now.”

  I teleported back home after telling Talasi that I would be in touch with her to let her know what had happened. I met up with my brothers Xarrid and Tesslar and after locating the female, the three of us teleported onto the ledge to the injured female.

  Initially, my mind could barely fathom what my eyes were seeing. The young female was lying on the ground, terribly broken and twisted. She had the face of an angel, but this angel had been severely beaten. As Talasi said, she had an arrow protruding from her left calf and a ragged, immense hole in her chest. In her hand, she held another arrow. She must have extracted it from her chest somehow.

  “Who the bloody hell could have done this to her?” I asked aloud.

  Tesslar replied, “This is critical, Rayn,” he claimed, as he began to scan her for injuries. “We must not spare a second; she needs to be moved quickly. She is suffering from hypothermia and shock.”

  Holographic diagnostic images appeared before us. She had a severed spinal cord, a fractured tibia, a deep chest wound into her lung, and significant bruising of the face. Her jaw was fractured in several places and a deep laceration nearly split her face in half.

  I heard a moan and looked in her glassy, opened eyes to see she had regained consciousness and had begun to mutter incoherently. It was obvious she moved her mouth with great difficulty.

  “Madeline. Do not fear us as we are here to help you,” I said. Her eyes were an unusual shade of amber, and they were watching me, widening in abject fear.

  My main goals were to make her understand she was safe with us and to comfort this poor creature.

  “Xarrid, do you have any morphine with you?”

  “Yes, one second. Here you go.” He fumbled through his gear and handed me a syringe. I popped the cap off with my teeth and gave her the injection; within seconds, I could see it take effect.

  When I looked into her eyes, I felt myself melting into them. The tendrils of my soul were reaching out and latching onto hers. Her mind was opening to mine and I felt my eyes widen in alarm. This should not be happening. This was a human female and because of that, it was an impossibility for me to be feeling this way. I heard four words pop into my mind: protect, honor, love and mate. What the bloody hell was going on here?

  “Tesslar, scan her body mass so that you can enter her statistics in the teleporter. We need to get her to Talasi, so she can start her healing magic,” I heard Xarrid say. I forced all previous thoughts away and jerked myself back to the present issue at hand.

  Tesslar entered all the information. When he was finished, I gathered her in my arms, and we transferred deep into the caves of the Nunne’hi.

  Chapter 4

  Talasi met us and guided us through a maze until we came to a separate cave. In the middle of it, a raised bed was placed, making it easier for the women to tend to her. Then they went to work. She needed the healing waters, but I didn’t know how they would remove that godforsaken arrow without causing considerable pain and damage to her.

  As I stood by, watching helplessly, I felt my chest constrict as I looked at this young woman. For some unexplainable reason, that urgent need to protect her became overpowering. It was embedding itself into my very soul and I didn’t understand this one bit.

  And then something else hit me, ferociously, like a jab in my gut. It was a feeling of utter rage, and it completely washed over me. I knew Talasi sensed this, because she put her hand on my arm and told me I needed to be in control now more than ever.

  “You will have time to pursue her attacker, but now, this child needs your presence when she awakens, which will be any time now.”

  There were other Nunne’hi in the room, and Talasi went in to check on the female. I stood right outside of the room, trying to reign in my raging emotions. After what seemed like a long time, I felt that I was in control again. It was then I heard her scream.

  I rushed into the room to see the young female trembling uncontrollably and screaming in terror. The women were trying to comfort her to no avail. I knew it was time for me to step in.

  I went to her and gently placed my hands her arms, not wanting to frighten her any more than she already was. My calming influence started to work almost instantly. I felt the trembling dissipate, and it was then, I looked into her eyes, reaching into her mind.

  I was completely unprepared for what I saw. She was lying there, her long slender fingers wrapped tightly around her cover, holding it to her chin. Her eyes, wide with fear, darted around the room trying to determine where she was and who we were. Her mind was filled with apprehension and questions. She didn’t know what was happening to her, and she wondered if she was safe with us. Her emotions exploded within me, and I felt myself wanting nothing but to assuage her fears. I have never felt anything so strong or feelings as deep as I did in that moment. They blasted through me, rocking me to my core.

  I was overwhelmed by everything about her. Her beauty was astounding. However, it wasn’t her physical appearance that was drawing me into her. Her soul was like a powerful magnet that had latched onto mine. It had wrapped itself around mine and bound us together. She felt something was happening, but she had no idea of what was occurring between us. Holy heavens above even I was shocked at this.

  In all the years of my existence, either here on Earth or on Vesturon, I had never experienced sensations such as these. I felt connected to this female. I wanted her as my partner, my companion, my equal, my mate. How could I even be thinking of this? This was insane, not possible. For the love of the Deity, this was a human female.

  I knew I was treading in dangerous waters. My father would never allow this as it was strictly forbidden. He would consider an Earthling below me, but none of that mattered.

  I began to feel an unrelenting anger building toward the monster that had injured this female. When I could no longer tolerate my emotions, I abruptly turned and dashed outside, with the need to scream overwhelming me. I was quickly losing control and needed to reign myself in. I raked my fingers through my hair and began pacing back and forth, hoping to calm myself. I screamed like an animal until there was no longer any air in my lungs and my throat became raw from exertion. I literally felt like I was being torn apart. I wanted to search out this beast and annihilate him with my bare hands. My breathing became more erratic as I continued to rage.

  Unknowingly, I had attracted an audience. Talasi and her mate had heard me roaring and came out to see what had happened. They were so concerned that they summoned my brothers Tesslar and Xarrid. I was not even aware they had joined me until they both grasped my arms.

  “Rayn, calm yourself. Take slow, deep breaths,” Tesslar suggested. “I have never seen you like this. What has affected you in such a way? What has happened?” he asked.

  Tesslar continued to hold onto me, waiting for me to regain control. I could feel him trying to tap into my thoughts, but my red haze of anger was blocking him. Xarrid was trying to get into my thoughts now too. Surely, they were wondering what had possessed me to get this kind of response. After some long and tortuous moments, I finally could feel my sanity returning.

  Xarrid started by saying, “What in the Deity’s name was that?”

  I didn’t quite know how to respond. “I do not really know,” I answered, still panting from the exertion. They looked at each other, and I knew then they did not believe me.

  So I continued, “I was listening to the injured female’s recounting of what happened, and I felt this anger, this unbelievable fury overtake me. I could not control it, so I left the cave so that
I could let it go. I was unable to stop or even control my reaction.

  They were both as shocked as I was. “I still do not understand. Was it just the fact that someone could have done something so heinous, or was it because it had been done to that particular female? If the latter is true, you may have a bigger problem than you think,” Xarrid countered.

  “Do you think I have not thought of that?” I started wearing a new path outside as I paced again. “I am feeling things right now that I cannot explain and do not care to even try. Do not ask me anything else because I have no other answers,” I said abruptly, hoping to cut off any more questions, flashing them a look that dared them to ask.

  “Well,” Tesslar began, “one thing is true my brother: we have to get the beast that did this. How do you want it handled?”

  “I am not sure I can be involved in the search,” I replied. “I need to be here in case Madeline becomes inconsolable again. She is going to be grief-stricken when she finds she is paralyzed. We have a true dilemma here. The other issue is that if I catch the monster that tried to kill her, I will tear him apart, with great joy. I never imagined anyone could be so physically cruel. We deal with evil forces all the time, but this has brought a new dimension to things.”

  “We will get Therron and Rykerian to join us in the search. I think we should leave now and use the night to our advantage. He would never expect that.”

  “Xarrid, Tesslar. Did either Rykerian or Therron find any tracks to follow?”

  “None at all. Unfortunately, the snow is gone, so we are out of luck on that account. This human is very good at this, which is a rarity. Humans are never this good at hiding their tracks.”

  “Talasi said she sensed an unusual evil presence. What if we are not dealing with a human here?” Rayn questioned.

  “Then, we have a bigger problem than even we can imagine. Or it may be that this monster is some kind of an expert. I think we need to get online and try to search databases to find if anything similar has happened in other places. We need to dig as deeply as we can on this, and the sooner, the better.”

  “Agreed. You must go back to the Compound and begin the search,” and looking at Tesslar, I added, “and you and the others can start out here. Start narrow and broaden out the grid. Do not leave one stone unturned, understand? And I want a thorough search of the lodge with fresh eyes, just in case. Sharra can do the database run. She is already searching for information on that vagrant that showed up in Sylva. Perhaps he is the connection. Go now.”

  “As you wish. Watch over her Rayn, but take care. She is a human after all,” Tesslar said. They hit the teleporter and vaporized into energy.

  As I stood alone in the dark, I had a moment to reflect on my emotions. I knew something had happened between Madeline and me, but I could not quite define it. From the moment I laid eyes on her, I felt this attraction, this magnetism from which I couldn’t escape. Even now the urge to run to her side was so strong I had to force myself to remain outside.

  What was this thing I couldn’t name? Was this how males felt when they found their own true mate? Yes, admittedly, my thoughts had been going there, even though I didn’t want that. I wanted to ignore this whole situation. Neither of us belonged in each other’s world. To allow myself to think otherwise was foolhardy. There could be no positive outcome of this; it simply was not allowed.

  Walk away and don’t look back, I kept repeating to myself. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t work. I continued to be in a state of indecision and uncertainty.

  Chapter 5

  Rykerian and Therron had reached LeConte Lodge the day Talasi called out to me. When they arrived, they found Madeline’s backpack, bloodied sleeping bag and nothing else. If her abductor had any gear with him, he did not leave anything behind. The brothers left all of Madeline’s gear alone so when the authorities found it, they would assume she’d had a terrible accident. I still wanted to know what happened to her abductor and how Madeline had been able to escape.

  The next day, I returned to Madeline’s side, to check on her progress. At least, that’s what I told myself. The truth? I just could not tolerate the separation anymore.

  As soon as I entered her quarters, the questions hit me. She was not giving up on finding the answers. So, I again was forced to give her vague responses. I knew she wasn’t satisfied, and I could see her fiery nature at war with my explanations. She clearly wasn’t accepting my vague answers.

  Maddie was a part of every thought I owned. I was tormented by her, as I knew that what I indubitably desired could never be. The kisses we shared, though brief, ignited something within me that I could not put out of my mind. I had never experienced such depth of emotion over a female. I was at a loss and unable to cope with it, yet I could think of nothing else.

  I finally did the impossible. I made the decision to leave her because of the feelings she evoked in me. I had no experience in these matters, but this was interfering with everything I did, clouding my judgment, rendering me ineffective. I had to back away in order to maintain my sanity. It was self-preservation.

  I ventured out on patrol, in a pitiful attempt at escaping from my situation, Maddie, my duties, my obligations, and myself.

  I also searched for that despicable barbarian. I wanted to be the one to find him, so I could mete out the proper punishment. This was completely out of character for me as I was usually the levelheaded pacifist. That I wanted to seek out vengeance for this wrong should have spoken volumes to me.

  I thought of ways I could get Maddie to Vesturon to be healed, ways in which I could do it undetected, and then erase her memory so no harm on either side would be done. Sadly, I could not find a way to do this. If I acted on this idea of mine, there would be a great price for me to pay. I just had to decide if the steep price was worth it.

  I wanted to confide in my family, but I knew that would only cause problems for them. I had to find the answer myself, and it would take some soul searching and discoveries.

  I finally made the decision to send her back to her world. I would have Therron, Rykerian and Tesslar return her and erase her memory from everything that happened after she went on her hike. I wanted them to dissolve her memory of her attacker. It would be better if she didn’t face nightmares of her captivity. They would take her to a hospital in Spartanburg, and leave her for the medical personnel to find her. She would be ensured of the best care there, and she would learn to function with her disability in her world—a world in which she was familiar.

  I could not be a part of this for I knew I would be unable to let her go when the time came.

  I made one final visit to her—to tell her good-bye and to apologize for any pain or misery I may have caused her. I still was unable to tell her the truth. It nearly killed me to do this to her. I could feel the depths of her emotions. I wanted so badly to stay, but that was not possible. I then did the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I turned and walked away from her, cursing the Vesturions and the way our souls latched on to their mates. I never understood how consuming and painful it could be.

  * * * * *

  Weeks passed, but instead of the pain diminishing, it worsened. She had unwittingly attached herself to my heart and soul, ever present in my mind. I had hoped her absence would absolve these feelings of mine. That could not have been further from the truth. She was like air and water to me, the basic requirements of life. Without her, survival would never be possible.

  I began to dream of her nightly. The dreams were vividly explicit, not like the normal dreams I was used to. I could feel her warmth when I touched her. I could see and hear her. I saw us with my family on Vesturon. I saw her with young children, and somehow, I knew they were ours. In one dream, I glimpsed her wrists and noticed they bore the markings of a Vesturion mate. I would awaken from these dreams shaken, disturbed and deeply saddened because they were only dreams.

  Finally, tired of trying to fool myself any longer, I decided to request assistance and guidance from t
he Divine Being. I would beg for His help if I must. I didn’t know where else to turn.

  That evening, after returning home, I went to my special place outdoors. It was high on a mountaintop with a staggering view of the celestial heavens. The night was clear and cool, with a slight breeze whispering through the trees. I knelt down, bowed my head and reached out to the Divine Being for answers. The mist encircled me, enfolded my spirit, and I abruptly became aware of His presence.

  “What is it that you seek, my son?” He enquired.

  “I need much assistance from You with a decision I have to make.”

  “I have sensed your troubled spirit. Does this decision involve the young female you rescued?”

  “Yes, and I am facing something I do not know how to handle. She has a severed spinal cord from her fall, and she is paralyzed. I would like to take her to Vesturon to be healed, but I would be breaking our Covenant.”

  “This is indeed a difficult choice.”

  “There is another integral part to this story which is much larger than that of her injury. I have become emotionally bonded to her. I cannot function without her as part of my thoughts. She is ever present in my heart, mind and soul, and I know not what to do.”

  “Your honesty is refreshing as I know of this bond. Rayn, this female is your destiny, as you are hers. This union with the human is going to cause you much pain and suffering. It is your fate, so you must make your decision in this matter very carefully.”

  “Can you not tell me what path to take? Am I to take her to Vesturon? Is she to be my mate?”

  “I have told you of your fate, but I cannot tell you more. You must find these answers yourself. She is a virtuous female with a strong and loyal heart. Follow your heart to the path that is as it should be. Remember, Rayn, life is and should be lived as a mystery, not something with all the answers you desire.”

  “But…”

  The mist dissipated, and I was left alone, still unsure of how to move forward. Evidently, Maddie was my path to the future, but, this was going to anger my family. What would my father say? I couldn’t begin to imagine, nor did I want to. I had always chosen the path that pleased him. Was this a kind of test for us both? I loved my father and did not want to cause any discord, but I could no longer continue on this path of mine.