Emily (3 page)

Vladimir woke with the sun streaming into the room through a crack in the curtains. It had been years since he had slept so soundly, Emily had made him feel safe. Before he opened his
eyes he knew she was gone and within a minute he was phoning Claire to get her number. Claire sounded amused when she gave Vladimir Emily’s mobile number but when he dialled it there was no answer, so he left a message.

Vladimir decided to go into the office and, as it was Saturday, he knew he would be alone. He sent a text to Eric letting him know his movements but the return text was terse; Eric was still upset. An hour later he again tried Emily
’s number and again it went to message bank. His next call was to Vince Haldane, a private investigator who worked for him, and within ten minutes Vladimir was in his white Porsche driving toward the Hunter Valley. He knew it was completely irrational but the need to see her was overwhelming and it took him just over an hour to reach her farm; he would deal with the speeding tickets later.

As he drove up the small road to the farmhouse, he saw Emily cantering bareback on a grey horse. She looked so beautiful and he admired her skill at riding with no halter or bridle to guide the horse with.

When she saw him she cantered over to where he had parked the Porsche and slipped off the grey stallion. Applejacks was not happy with her and when she enquired with her thoughts as to why, he had taken off, kicking his hooves and swishing his tail. Turning to Vladimir, she smiled and reached for his hand to lead him into the house.

After connecting with Emily, Vladimir knew he wanted her as a mate. For the last twenty-five years Eric had been, and still was, his lover. In that time, both had occasionally taken various women as lovers, but Emily was the only woman he had brought home to Eric.

Vladimir and Eric had lived in an apartment so the transition to Emily
’s farm had not been easy. Emily wouldn’t move to the city and Vladimir understood that she couldn’t leave her animals, but the first few months found him at odds with all the space, it made him uneasy. He liked an environment he could control.

For Eric, moving to the farm had been like coming home and while moving in with Emily was against his wishes, waking up to the smell of grass and soil and the sounds of nature filled him with a sense of security. At first, Eric had resented Emily
’s presence and firmly wouldn’t allow her to connect mentally with him. This had puzzled and hurt Emily; Vladimir and Eric were the only humans who she had been able to connect to and it felt wrong not to follow her instincts. The first six months together were rocky and tense, and only eased after an explosive fight them both. Emily had backed down from previous confrontations with Eric as it was her nature to be a peacekeeper, but on this day Emily had planned a picnic with Vladimir when Eric suddenly declared that months earlier Vladimir had promised to go to an exhibition with him. Vladimir, who realised that he was not going to make either of them happy, threw his hands up and walked out.

Emily had finally had enough and the two of them had a screaming match that lasted for an hour. Afterwards, Vladimir walked back in and announced that he was leaving them both. The declaration was so against his true wishes and Vladimir was in such a state, that Emily suddenly laughed. Within seconds Eric was laughing as well, the pair
were uncontrollable in their mirth. Vladimir, totally confused, went upstairs to lie down and Emily and Eric finally had a heart-to-heart. After that, Eric began to soften towards Emily and while he still wouldn’t connect with her, he found himself enjoying her company; she had a quirky sense of humour.

On the day that he finally allowed the connection to happen, Eric had just come back from a run around the farm. It was a warm spring day and the air was fresh and fragrant. Emily was sitting on the porch and before he went into the house, he sat down beside her to see what she was looking at.

‘See just over there, that small rabbit?’ Emily pointed to where it was. ‘Just watch it for a moment.’ As Eric watched the rabbit it began to hop, then it jumped and jack-knifed around to hop again, it looked like it was dancing.

‘
What’s it doing?’ Eric asked, amused at the sight.

‘
It’s having fun,’ Emily replied. ‘I can sense its happiness, all it’s really doing is being joyful with the day. Connect with me and you can experience it Eric, it feels so wonderful.’

Eric paused, he was tempted but he smiled wryly at Emily,
‘Maybe another time,’ and went inside to take a shower.

Later that day Emily asked Eric if he would help her cut some lavender. She wanted to drop it off to a neighbour who used the sprigs to make soap that they sold at the local market, and in exchange the neighbour gave Emily some of the soap that she made. But as they entered the field Emily gasped, there lay the rabbit they had seen earlier...with its throat ripped out.
’

‘
No!’ Emily cried and knelt by the rabbit, tears streaming down her face. Eric walked to Emily and placed his arms around her.

‘
Oh Em, I’m so sorry.’ Together they made a small grave. Eric watched how tenderly Emily laid the rabbit in the hole, her sorrow touched him, and in that moment he opened himself to her.

The connection was immensely strong and a wave of desire coursed through him; he wanted her physically. Running his hands along her body, he welcomed her softness and as he merged with her their minds blended completely. Moving back into the farmhouse they made love until it was dark and they heard the crunch of Vladimir
’s Porsche coming up the drive.

* * *

Moving to one bed was a relief for Vladimir as the bed hopping had caused him grief and had required an almost military coordination in order not to upset either one of his lovers. And now sometimes when he was at work he wondered what Eric and Emily were up to, as they both worked from home. He planned to retire soon and thought it would be good to travel with his lovers.

Eric
’s sculptures were of animals and his gift brought the marble to life; his work was much sought after and he found that moving to the farm had inspired his work. Emily would often come and sit just to watch him work, she loved how he could look at a piece of marble and see the creature inside it. Eric had painted an oil painting of the three of them together, just for Emily, and it hung over the fireplace in the sitting room. Emily loved the painting and rarely passed the picture without looking at it. Eric had painted her wearing a red ball gown with a ruby necklace that the men had given her for their first Christmas together. The necklace was beautiful. It had thirty rubies set in diamonds like small flowers, all linked in a chain. Eric had found it and together the men had bought the piece for Emily. And although it was not her style to have expensive jewellery, she loved the necklace.

Eric, like Emily, dressed simply for comfort. He was almost always in jeans and black T-shirts, unlike Vladimir who favoured designer suits. When Vladimir dressed for work, Emily always helped him with his cuff links just before he left the house; it was a ritual the two shared.

During their seven years together the trio had learned to talk without words, even when Vladimir was at work over a hundred kilometres away. Sometimes Emily wondered why she could communicate only with these two men but she guessed it was because of love, and that answer was enough to satisfy her.

Emily’s birthday dinner was a happy affair and with David there Emily felt her family was complete. Her farm was a haven to many different animals – there were a variety of cats, an old mule, a dozen or so sheep and twenty goats, some who came and went as Emily found loving homes for them. They came to her in many different ways; she found them or rescued them and sometimes people left the animals at her gate. People who knew her talent called her to help animals that were trapped or lost and various animal organisations called her as well and paid her with donations. And now, with Vladimir and Eric in her life, she needed for nothing.

One day Emily received a call asking her to travel to Sydney to help a small dog that had fallen down a drain. Vladimir and Eric still owned an apartment in Sydney and, as it
was just a couple of blocks from where the dog was, Emily decided to park in one of the apartment’s two car spots.

Early on in her relationship with Vladimir he had told her that he and Eric needed to spend some time alone every month. He had been very firm about it and the men had departed for their monthly retreat the night before. They had driven down together in Vladimir
’s white Porsche as he liked the way it moved in heavy traffic coming home at night. Eric drove a black Porsche, Cayenne Diesel, which was fitted out to safely carry his sculptures; it had been a gift from Vladimir on his last birthday. Vladimir had tried to give Emily a Porsche as well but she had insisted on an older, pale gold Jeep Cherokee, which could tow the horse float that she used. It also had a cage fitted in the back to carry the mishmash of animals that were her business. If it suffered a few dents or mishaps from the animals, she could live with that. Both men were particular about their cars, which amused Emily who was more relaxed about such things.

If they went out together they took Eric
’s car, which was bigger and the truth was, Emily preferred it to the others. So she took it now as it had the remote to the parking basement of the apartment and also had the apartment’s passkey on the keyring.

She was in a hurry and the trip was uneventful, it took her just over an hour and a half to reach the city. Vladimir and Eric owned a penthouse that had a private lift from the basement and only stopped at the concierge
’s desk, the pool and the entrance of the penthouse, and required a special passkey to work. Emily parked beside Vladimir’s Porsche and briefly wondered why she was shut out of the men’s life every month for a few days. Every time they left there was such tension between the two of them but when they returned they were at ease and more than happy to embrace her. But their homecoming satisfied most of her questions – they returned!

By the time Emily reached the site there was chaos. The little dog was a prized Shih Tzu with a grey face and silver body. Its owner, a chubby middle-aged woman, was sobbing and a small group of people had stopped to watch the scene. Mark, from the animal rescue team, saw her and motioned her over to the drain. Emily liked
Mark, they had a good working relationship. Years ago they had dated for a while but the relationship had really only been a friendship, which had disappointed Mark but he had moved on, and now was married with two children. Emily enquired after them before peering into the drain. She was dressed in black pants and a white shirt with her name and ‘Animal Rescue’ on it. She had learnt that people took her more seriously when she wore a uniform. The drain had a small opening that Emily could put her head into and she shone a torch that Mark had given her, seeing the small dog.

‘
What’s his name?’ Emily turned her head back to Mark.

‘
Barney,’ he replied, ‘short for Barnabus.’

Emily gave him a smile and thought what a silly name for a dog. Barney was scared and shaking all over and Emily could sense that he was feeling very sorry for himself. It took a few minutes to connect with the little dog and she had to ask Mark to move Barney
’s owner away as her cries were upsetting him.

Barney had fallen just over three metres but there had been enough rubbish to break his fall and Emily sensed that Barney wasn
’t hurt.

‘
I need a bucket and some rope,’ Emily called back up to Mark but he had already thought of her needs and handed it to her.

It took twenty minutes to explain to the dog what he needed to do and after a couple of tries she was able to slowly lift Barney into the bucket, sending images of food and cuddles if he would just stay still. Once free of the drain, Barney was ecstatic and jumped into Emily
’s arms, licking her face. By the time Emily released the animal to the owner, who was still crying but now with joy, she was covered in slime and smelled disgusting. After saying goodbye to Barney’s owner, who promised to send Emily an email with a picture of a clean Barney, Emily said goodbye to Mark, who would ask the owner for a donation for Emily at a later stage. This time Mark did not give Emily a hug goodbye.

Walking back to the apartment, Emily realised that she would dirty Eric
’s car in the state she was in. She usually carried a spare set of clothes, but as she had taken Eric’s car, she didn’t have a set. The thought of visiting the apartment to clean up was very tempting but Emily knew how Vladimir insisted she give them their space. She decided to call and explain, but after ringing both mobiles neither of the men picked up. This was odd as Vladimir was permanently attached to his phone and, because she rarely called him on his mobile, he would always take her call even if he was in a meeting. The stench around her was strong and her skin crawled with imaginary bugs.

Emily reached out with her mind to the men; if they were in the building they would hear her and she could ask for permission to enter. The response was puzzling, she could sense them but there was no clear bond, it was like they were far away.

Believing that they were not in the apartment, Emily got into the elevator, used the passkey and pushed the button to the penthouse. She would be quick; they wouldn’t know she had been there. The penthouse had three bedrooms and a study; the kitchen and lounge were one big room and the views from the balcony were amazing, especially on New Year’s Eve with a fireworks display over the harbour. There was basic furnishing in the apartment, as the men had brought all the pictures, rugs and furniture that they cared about, to Emily’s farmhouse. It was really just a shell.

She went into the main bedroom and saw the clothes that Vladimir and Eric had worn the day before lying on the floor in a crumpled heap. This surprised her as it was unlike the men; they were both neat. The bed had the rumpled look of passion and she could smell their fragrance. As she undressed, she pulled a crisp white shirt of Vladimir
’s out of the built-in wardrobe. On the rare occasions that she visited the penthouse she had not left any clothes.

The water was hot and felt good on her skin and she longed for one or both of the men to be
with her in the water. She scrubbed her body until her skin was clean, liking the smell of the soap Eric used, the scent of spearmint, lemongrass and rosemary. Again she pushed her mind out to the men but while the bond was there, she couldn’t sense any thoughts; the connection was peculiar and mucky.

After drying herself, Emily threw on Vladimir
’s shirt and ran her fingers through her hair. She picked up her dirty clothes and went to the kitchen to find a plastic bag to put them in. That’s when she noticed a strange smell coming from the smallest bedroom. The room was tiny in contrast to all the other rooms in the apartment, which were quite large. In the bedroom the odour was animalistic, like a damp dog, but she couldn’t see any signs that a dog had been in there as the bedroom was as neat as the rest of the house. The single bed had a blue throw on it and the only other furniture in the room was a small butter-yellow armchair with gold stripes. Emily decided she needed to go. While she desperately wanted to know why the men excluded her, she didn’t want them to be displeased with her. But as she turned to leave, she noticed the built-in cupboard’s sliding door was slightly ajar.

The urge to leave had become stronger and she thought she would just push the door shut. But instead of closing the door she opened it and found...nothing! The shock of the empty built-in made her laugh and she wondered what she had expected. Turning to leave a draught hit her leg, which was still a little damp from the shower.
How odd
, she thought and reached down to find where it had come from. Kneeling down, she reached into the back of the closet trying to find where the draught was coming from when her hand touched a small lever. Her mind screamed not to push it but her hand did not obey and she heard a click as the back of the closet swung away from her.

The smell assaulted her and it felt like time stood still. The light in the apartment had fallen with the late afternoon and her eyes struggled to adjust to the darkness of the room. Emily took a step forward and heard a low growl and then she was hit so hard, she fell to the floor and was knocked out for a couple of minutes. When she came to she found a big grey wolf standing over her with the darkest blue-black eyes, its face was up against hers, snarling, its teeth
bared. Emily froze knowing she was in mortal danger but pushing away the panic that was rising in her, she reached out to the wolf with her mind, trying to make a connection that would save her life. Effortlessly her mind slipped into the wolf’s, it was familiar. It took Emily a few seconds to realise that it was Vladimir’s mind and then she sensed another wolf in the room and knew it to be Eric.

Relief flooded through her and she projected this to the wolves; they backed away in confusion. Now focusing on Eric, Emily could feel the connection grow stronger, so she brought her mind back to Vladimir and the connection with him became clearer.

She spoke softly with her voice as well as her mind and repeated over and over again, ‘It’s me, Emily, we are family and we are safe,’ until the tension began to ease in the animals.

Slowly she approached Vladimir with her palms up. He had lowered his body to the ground but he was huge and even lying on the floor, his head was at Emily
’s waist. Eric’s coat was the colour of pale wheat just like his hair, his eyes as blue as his own. He began to edge forward and Emily realised her mistake; he was moving towards the open wall and she could feel his desire for freedom and his hunger for blood. Emily sprang back as Eric leapt and their combined weight pushed the wall into place. Eric howled with frustration yet he did not attack Emily, he knew her now.

Other emotions and images were pouring from them now, frustration for freedom, hunger and the need for blood. Emily threw image back at them, of the three of them together; her watching Eric sculpt, waking to watch Vladimir get dressed in his expensive suits and helping him put cuff links on his shirts, eating together, walking together, loving and laughing.

Eric was the first to come to Emily. He licked her face and nuzzled her and she ran her hands around his neck, giving him kisses on his head. Vladimir was still tense and his body shook when she touched him. She ran her hand down his back until he became accustomed to her and then he ran his nose against her, smelling her scent; he licked her hands and face. Finally both wolves lay down and Emily sat between them, resting her head on Vladimir’s neck and reaching her arm out to Eric. The room had been reinforced with no windows and the walls were soundproof, with ducted air-conditioning in the ceiling to provide the room with fresh air. Bolted to the wall were two troughs; one had water in it and the other was empty, covered in blood.

Although questions were forming in her head, Emily knew that she needed to focus on being calm, as the connection with the wolves had no language except that she could hear them call her name. Vladimir occasionally emitted a low growl but it was not aimed at her, it was more of a reflex. She kept sending out thoughts of love and that she was part of their pack, and as the night swept past she fell asleep.

Emily woke with Vladimir shaking her arms and for a moment she was confused, the previous night seemed like a dream. Seeing that Emily was alright, Vladimir rose. His naked body still had a grey tinge to it and he reached up to press a small button that neither wolf would have been able to reach, and stalked out of the cell into the apartment. Eric stood up and held his hands out to help Emily up. His mood was solemn and he seemed almost embarrassed.

‘
You shouldn’t be here, Em. We could have killed you. This is something we cannot control.’ Then he turned and walked out of the cell. She stood for a few minutes, bewildered at their reaction and surprised at herself how accepting she was of the situation. When she left the little cell they were both in the shower and as she waited for them she could sense Vladimir’s anger from the other room. Emily struggled to understand what had happened.
What are they
? she thought.

She had read all the vampire and werewolf stories, was that what they were? In a way it explained so many small things about them, the undercurrent of emotions that ran deep inside them that was almost primal, the way they would both just stop talking and listen for sounds she could not hear, how the animals on the farm sometimes shied away from the men who were so gentle with them, and whenever they had dogs at the farm they always obeyed both Vladimir and Eric without question. But most of all, it explained how she could hear their thoughts when she couldn
’t hear any other humans’ thoughts. ‘They weren’t human!’ Emily gasped.