Allegiance (17 page)

‘Your reasons are stupid.’

He stopped kissing me and caught my eyes. ‘Please believe me, Marla, I ache
not
to stop. If it is your wish, we will marry the day you turn eighteen.’

I frowned at him. ‘That again? I feel like that’s an excuse. If you didn’t want me you could have just left me with Jack.’ As soon as the words were out of my mouth I realised how bad they sounded. I bit my tongue. ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that!’

I clutched at his arm, but it was too late—he was peeling my hands from him and climbing off the bed. Then he was shutting himself inside the bathroom. I heard the click of the lock. I threw my face into the pillow and groaned. When he came out half an hour later, he’d showered and changed into jeans and a T-shirt. He went straight to the computer without saying a word.

I watched him tap away on the keyboard. He was so beautiful, amazingly graceful despite his size. His shoulders were broad, his dark hair—wet from the shower—in mouth-watering disarray. I wanted to run my fingers through it.

I tiptoed over to him and pushed my hands between his arms and sides. He squeezed his arms tight against his body, but I persisted, wriggling my fingers until he relaxed enough to allow me entry, then I wrapped my arms around him, flattening my palms against his chest. I wondered whether I should slip my hands beneath his shirt, but decided not to push my luck. He was tense all over.

‘I’m sorry, Leif,’ I murmured, dropping kisses on his neck. ‘I really am. Please don’t be mad.’ More kissing, nuzzling, the
whisper of my breath into his ear, goose bumps on his skin. ‘You know I didn’t mean that, right?’

No answer.

‘I’m so awful—I don’t even know
why
you put up with me.’

He sighed and, without looking away from the computer, said, ‘Yes, you do.’

He kept on with whatever it was he was doing.

‘I really don’t,’ I said and meant it. ‘That was just
so
mean.’

‘It was,’ he said. Then he turned in the swivel chair and pulled me into his lap. ‘But luckily for you, it does not stop me from loving you…
However,
there will be some new rules until we are wed.’

‘What rules?’ I asked.

‘One rule actually,’ he clarified.

‘Which is?’

‘That your hands remain above your waist.’

I blinked slowly—twice. ‘And must they remain above your waist too?’

He laughed and kissed my nose. ‘Ah, but you are exquisite, my Marla.’ Then he stood and said, ‘Come, let’s visit Claudette.’

Arelle and Elad had chosen well for the changeling. The suburb was in a clean and affluent part of Los Angeles and the house was immaculate. We walked down the long driveway and knocked on the door. A girl around my age opened it. She bore a striking resemblance to Ameyah and could only have been one of the human changeling’s older sisters. She looked from me to Leif, and that’s where her attention remained. ‘Back so soon?’ she asked.

A younger girl appeared beside her. Bubbly and petite, there was no mistaking her origins. Her skin had the Fae gleam, and
living in every crease of it were the painful eczema rashes I’d become long accustomed to. Not only that but her ears—visible because her blonde bob was tucked behind one of them—were as pointed as mine.

‘Annie, stop ogling the royalty and invite him in,’ the girl who could only have been Claudette said as she pushed the other girl out of the way. She opened the door and stood aside to let us in. Annie gave her a look before disappearing into the room that led off the entry.

We spent a moment on introductions and then Leif said, ‘Did you speak with the boy?’

I looked at him to ask what he was talking about but she answered right away. ‘Sure did, he’s online now. Come on.’ She turned and headed for the stairs. When we got to the top we followed her down a long hallway and into a study at the end, Claudette chatting away like she’d known us forever. I wondered what it was that made some people so confident. I sure wished I had some of it. She sat at the computer desk and typed a message to a guy called Grant Logan, whose avatar was a picture of some game I hadn’t heard of.
‘I’m back and that Leif guy I told you about is with me,’
she typed.
‘He’s got a girl called Marla with him.’

‘Is she hot?’

‘I’m sure he thinks so. They look like a pair to me.’
She turned and looked at Leif. Leif nodded.
‘Confirmed,’
she typed.
‘Anyways, what would your girlfriend say about that?’

‘Probs nothing good.’

‘She sure wouldn’t,’ Claudette mumbled as she vacated the seat. She turned to Leif. ‘Jump in.’

Leif looked at me and indicated the chair with his hand.

I looked at the chair for a moment then turned back to my betrothed. ‘What’s going on?’

‘Yesterday as I was leaving, Claudette mentioned she knew a boy with problems similar to her own. It was late so I didn’t have time to stay and investigate but I asked her to contact him and—’

My heart began to pound and I felt my eyes grow wide as I fell into the seat. ‘You think he’s Lysander?’ My voice was a choked whisper.

‘It may be so,’ Leif said. ‘He’s adopted and gives his birth date as close to yours… but please, don’t get too excited yet.’

That was like asking the ocean not to make waves. Everything inside of me was crashing and tumbling all around. I turned to Claudette, ‘Where is he?’

‘Washington state somewhere—not sure exactly, he was on holiday when we met. His mum was really sick—wanted to give him a treat while she… you know… still could. But he had an allergic reaction and ended up in hospital at the same time as me.’ She pointed at the computer. ‘Ask him his address.’

My fingers flew across the keyboard. His address arrived as I began flicking through his photos—a picture of a dog wearing sunglasses, another of a snowy sunset and the third a woman with an arm around a smiling boy. I gasped. It was like looking at a younger, male version of me. I looked up into the eyes of my betrothed and whispered, ‘It’s him.’

Leif smiled.

I typed a new message to my brother.
‘Hey Grant, don’t freak out, but,’
I paused, fingers hovering over the keypad. I took a deep breath and continued.
‘I’m pretty sure you’re my twin.’

‘Really?’ Claudette asked.

I nodded, heart pounding and eyes fixed to the screen.

‘Actually there is a resemblance.’

My brother’s response was a long time coming.
‘Funny.’

‘I’m not joking,’
I typed, then added,
‘Can I come see you?’

‘When?’

‘Now.’

‘You’re at Claudette’s, right?’

‘Yep.’

‘Ha sure, knock yourself out.’

I said goodbye and Leif looked up the address. I was surprised to see it wasn’t too far from where Jack and I had met Mona.

‘How will you get there so fast?’ Claudette asked.

‘Fly,’ I answered.

The hour it took to get to Grant’s place was both the longest and shortest of my life. The longest because a minute’s wait to meet my brother would have been too long, the shortest because the time passed quickly in a whirl of silent conversation. Me:
What do you think he’s like? Do you think he’ll like me? I wonder if he’s excited.
Leif:
We’ll soon find out. Yes of course—he’ll love you! He might feel a little stunned.

We finally alighted on the road out the front of a ramshackle weatherboard house. It was overcast and drizzling and the cold air turned my skin to ice the moment my wings stopped beating. But I couldn’t have cared less because I could see my twin and never in my life had I seen a more beautiful sight. He was waiting on the top step of a junk-laden veranda, forearms resting on his knees. I watched him spring to his feet at the sight of us, the bottle of water dangling from his hands falling to the ground. He stayed frozen in place, his mouth hanging open. My heart beat double time against my ribs.

I started walking down the path towards him, my whole body electric as the thrill of what was happening took me over. I’d found my brother and I was about to meet him. Suddenly he held up one hand. ‘That’s close enough.’

We stopped halfway down the path. From this distance I could tell he was far too thin for his height and build and the hands that poked through the sleeves of his jacket were completely red with rashes.

After a moment’s silent staring, he said, ‘What are you?’

‘We’re Fae,’ I told him, wishing I’d known he would be waiting outside.

Another long silence passed. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’

‘It means we’re faeries,’ I said, cringing a little bit as the words left my mouth.

‘This is a joke, right? Claudette’s got something to do with it.’ He started looking around like she might pop out from behind a tree.

‘It’s not a joke,’ I said.

‘Don’t move,’ he said. Then he came slowly down the path to meet us. When he was about a metre away he walked a wide circle around us. I turned to peer over my shoulder when he was behind us. He was studying our backs, first mine and then Leif’s. ‘So how’d you do it?’ he said when he stood in front of us again.

‘Stand back,’ Leif said, giving my brother time to prepare himself.

Lysander took a few steps back, then Leif released his magnificent wings.

‘Whoa,’ Lysander cried, stumbling backwards and tripping on a clump of weeds. He landed on his backside and scooted further away still.

‘We are Fae,’ Leif said, extending a hand to him.

Lysander ignored the hand and clamoured to his feet, backing away from us as he dusted himself off. We spent the next few minutes attempting to calm and convince him, explaining about the world beyond Earth and all we knew of how he came to be
here instead of there. He wasn’t buying any of it, he just kept shaking his head and muttering he had to be dreaming.

Frustrated, I said, ‘Everything we’re telling you is true! You
are
my brother!’ I felt it in my bones, so why didn’t he?

‘What do you want from me?’ His eyes were narrow and wary and my heart plummeted in my chest.

‘Just to know you, Lysander.’

He scratched his head. ‘Can you stop calling me that—it’s kinda weird. Anyway, you don’t know for sure I’m your brother.’

‘But everything matches—your adoption, our birth dates. Besides, I
know
you can see the resemblance.’

‘But none of that’s proof, is it?’

Ruby popped into my head at that moment and, with it, the realisation that my brother must have a Ruby of his own somewhere. Perhaps his mother had a phone number, like mine had kept for me. ‘Have you asked your parents about your identity?’

‘What parents? Mum’s dead and I hardly remember my father—not that you can call him a father. He took off when I was six.’

‘I’m sorry,’ I murmured.

He shrugged. But the way he watched his feet as he said, ‘That’s life I guess,’ made it clear he was a lot more affected than he was letting on. He glanced up again. ‘Look, I’m supposed to be meeting my girlfriend about now, so… I gotta go.’

This reunion was nothing like I’d imagined. I’d known it would be a huge shock for him, but I thought once that had passed, my twin would be as deliriously happy to meet me as I was him, that he’d be planning with Leif and me a way to get to Faera. ‘So… can I come back another time?’

‘Um…’ Grant said, and the last bit of the joy I’d felt upon discovering him slipped away.

Leif reached out and offered my brother a hand to shake. Grant hesitated for a couple of seconds, then stepped back, shaking his head. Leif let his hand drop, and through my disappointment I felt a surge of pride in my betrothed. I knew he could have made Grant shake his hand in a heartbeat, and it was almost as though he were honouring my brother by not doing so.

‘We are returning soon for Claudette,’ Leif said, ‘When I know the day, I will tell it to you so we may visit with you also.’

Grant nodded his agreement after which there was a moment of awkwardness.

Embrace him, Marla,
Leif told me silently.