Hope (Book 2, Harvester of Light Trilogy; Young Adult Science Fiction) (9 page)

I sat down in one
of the four wicker chairs around a glass table festooned with small sandwiches,
a glass bowl of fruit and a silver ice chest filled with crushed ice decorated with
bottled soda pops.  I hadn’t had an ice cold Coke in a very long time.  It was
an unexpected treat.  Lucena played the doting hostess making sure we all had food
on our plates and something to wet our palettes.  She sat down and poured
herself a cup of tea from a white china tea pot and nibbled on one of the
finger sandwiches.

“Now, I know
coming here at this time is quite a shock to you,” Lucena said to me.  “To be
honest I hadn’t intended to bring you here for a few more months, but with
recent events it seemed prudent to bring you somewhere safe as quickly as
possible.”

“How am I safe
here?” I asked, unable to keep the disdain I felt for the woman across from me
out of my voice.

Lucena smiled but
it was strained.  “You may not believe it but this is the safest place for you
right now.  Very few people know I’m here, harvester or human.  And only those
I completely trust stay here with me.”

“Is Jace one of
those people?” I asked.

“Jace is loyal to
you which means he’s loyal to me since I’m the one responsible for your well
being,” Lucena’s veiled threat wasn’t lost on me.  She was still using my
safety against Jace.  “In fact he’s out running a rather important errand for
me at the moment.  I’ve made sure he knows you’re here to give him an added
incentive in completing his mission quickly.  I could swear he purposely drags
them out sometimes but it’s not really something I can prove since his ability
is so unpredictable.”

“I still don’t
understand why I’m here.  Why do you want me here with you so badly?  What’s in
it for you?”

“You’re my
daughter.  Why wouldn’t I want you with me?”

“So I’m supposed
to believe the reason I’m here is motherly love?  How stupid do you think I
am?”

Lucena smiled but
this time it was genuine.  “Of course I wouldn’t expect you to believe such a
simple answer, sweet Skye.  If you did, then I would have to second guess your
chromosomal composition.”

“Tell me why you
really want me here.”

“In time,” Lucena
said, shifting her gaze to Ash and Zoe.  “Anyone need anything else?  I have a
wonderful cook.  She can prepare anything you want.”

When I looked at
Ash, I saw him stuffing his face with a sandwich while Zoe was eating with a
little more decorum.  Of its own accord, my stomach growled.  It had been a
long time since any of us had eaten or drank anything, almost twenty-four
hours.  I took a sip of the bottled coke I had picked from the ice chest before
sitting down and found its bubbly sweetness like nectar against my tongue. 
Once I began drinking it I couldn’t stop until the bottle was empty.  I ate my
fill of sandwiches until I couldn’t eat anymore.

After satiating my
hunger and thirst, I leaned back in my chair and stared at Lucena.

“Thank you for the
food.  We needed it.”

Lucena grinned and
nodded her head in my direction acknowledging my gratitude.

“You can have
anything you want, Skye.  All you have to do is ask for it.”

“Then I want you
to have Freddy take Ash and Zoe back to my father.  You don’t need them.”

Lucena rose from
her chair.  “Oh, I’m afraid I do actually.”

“I won’t try to
escape if you let them go.”

“Skye…” Zoe and
Ash said at the same time but I held up a hand to cut off any of their attempts
to change my mind.

“I give you my
word,” I said, staring Lucena straight in the eyes.  “I won’t try to escape if
you let them go.  You can do whatever it is you want with me.  Just let my
friends go back.”

“I’m afraid I
can’t do that.  You see I have plans for them.”

“What plans?” I
asked, realizing my words came out slurred like I was drunk.

“Don’t worry,
Skye.  I don’t plan to harm them, just make them better.”

I looked at Zoe
and Ash.  They were both asleep and I knew I was on the verge of it.  Somewhere
in the back of my mind I remembered being drugged by Julia once upon a time. 
When would I learn to not drink things people who couldn’t be trusted gave me?

“Why am I here?” I
heard my self ask again, my eyes feeling like they had blocks of cement on them
forcing them closed.

I never heard her
answer.

Chapter 9

When I awoke, I
found myself completely naked lying underneath a silky cream colored
comforter.  I couldn’t remember undressing myself.  The last memory I had was
all of us sitting around the table eating the meal Lucena had prepared. 
Everything after that was nonexistent.  I looked around the room trying to get
my bearings and saw a folded note with my name written on it lying on the
bedside table underneath a green and white tiffany styled lamp.  The rock Jace
gave me was sitting on top of it like a paper weight.

I sat up pulling
the comforter up underneath my arms and reached for Jace’s rock, squeezing it firmly
in the palm of my hand to find a sense of calm.  Then I read the note:

Skye,

There are new
clothes for you in the wardrobe by the door.  Please come down

when you are
ready.

Your loving Mother

I wadded up the
note and threw it on the floor. The smell of flowers seemed to permeate the air
around me.  It took me a few seconds to realize the scent was on my skin.  I
held my arm to my nose and took a whiff.  It wasn’t that the smell was
unpleasant but not knowing how it got there was.  I ran my fingers through my
hair and found it had been washed and dried by unseen hands while I was
unconscious.  I curled up beneath the comforter feeling completely violated, mentally
naked not just physically.  

Having been placed
in such a compromising position without my consent was unnerving.  It made me
question what else had been done to me while I was asleep.  And where were Ash
and Zoe?  Waking up to find themselves in a similar situation was my bet. 
Whatever Lucena had planned for us, I knew I would win money if I betted it was
unpleasant.

Eventually, I let
my eyes wander around the room.  It was what you would expect from something
built back in the late 1800’s.  There was a lot of attention to detail from the
decorative crown molding to the exquisitely crafted leafy green wall paper on
the walls.  I saw a large, ornately carved cherry wood wardrobe standing by the
bedroom door and decided to get out of bed to find some clothes to put on.  At
least that would afford me some sense of protection.

As soon as I stood
up, I felt an excruciating soreness beneath my abdomen.  It was similar to the
cramping sensation I usually felt right before my menstrual cycle only this
pain was ten times worse.  After standing still for a few minutes, the pain
slowly subsided but the ache was still present. 

I opened the
double doors of the wardrobe and found an array of clothing inside.  Everything
from party dresses to blue jeans was available.  I quickly picked out a pair of
jeans and a long sleeved brown cowl neck sweater to wear.  From a chest of
drawers on the other side of the room, I found some frilly looking underwear
and matching bras.  They were way fancier than I thought I needed since I was
the only person who would ever get to appreciate the delicate lace creations.  After
I was dressed, I tucked Jace’s rock in the front pocket of my jeans.  Shoes
were the last item on my list and easily found at the bottom of the wardrobe. 
I chose a pair of brown suede tennis shoes which fit perfectly.  And that was
the problem.  Everything seemed to be tailor made for me.  How long had Lucena
been planning to have me join her?  And now that she had me, what did she plan
to do to me?

Just after I put
my shoes on, I heard the rumble of a helicopter fly overhead.  I walked over to
a door which led out onto a balcony at the front of the house.  It was a small
balcony but seemed sturdy enough since it was made of stone.  I peeked through
the white gauzy curtains of the glass door and saw a black hawk helicopter
swoop down into the courtyard onto the same helipad we landed on the day
before.  The door to the helicopter slid opened and Jace stepped out.

From that moment
on, the only thing I could hear was the hammering of my heart against the walls
of my chest.  I tightened my grip on the curtain in my hands, almost pulling it
from its rod. 

Jace turned away
from the helicopter and yelled to a harvester who was walking over to him from
the direction of the house.  Jace’s naturally curly hair was slicked back
giving him an almost sinister look if you didn’t know the kind heart of the man
standing in front of you.  He wore a thick black turtle neck shirt underneath a
black leather trench coat which hung down to mid-thigh and was cinched in at
the waist by a silver buckled belt.  Even from a distance I could tell he was
tired from the slight slump of his shoulders and the way he hung his head.  He
seemed to give the harvester some instructions as he pointed to the
helicopter.  For some reason, he stopped in what looked like mid-sentence and
looked straight up at the balcony as if sensing my presence. 

I practically
ripped the door from its hinges to get outside.  Even before I got to the stone
railing of the balcony, Jace was making a mad dash towards the house.  I
swirled away from the balcony and ran out of the room.  I ran down the long
hallway only to be met by another long hallway but I had to decide which
direction to go.  I ran to the left towards the front of the house and prayed
to the powers that be I wouldn’t get lost in the mansion’s maze of corridors. 
Every time I came to the end of one hallway I was always met by another
hallway.  I kept going until I heard Jace yell my name from behind me.

When I turned, I
saw Jace standing at the other end of the hallway I had just run down.  I was
breathing so hard my lungs hurt but I didn’t care.  I ran to him as fast as my
tired legs would take me and threw myself into his arms never second guessing
he would catch me.  I held onto him like he was the only life preserver in
ocean with no land in sight.  I let go of him enough to look into his eyes and
immediately felt my heart lurch unpleasantly in response.

He looked
disappointed.

“Why are you
here?” He asked me.  “I told you not to come.”

I let go of him
and took a step back.  My whole body felt like it was about to implode in on
itself.  Why didn’t he look as happy as I felt to finally hold him again?  Had
our separation tempered his feeling for me?  Had Jace fallen out of love with
me even though he said he would love me forever?

I felt the sting
of tears burn my eyes but forced them back.  I couldn’t think of any words to
say to make the moment right again.  I tried to hold back my tears but they
fell of their own accord.  Unable to hide my hurt from him, I turned away and
raced back down the hall, too ashamed to let him see the devastating affect his
words had on me.  Before I made it very far, I felt him grab me around the
waist with both of his arms pulling me back against him.

“Skye, please...” 
He begged tightening his hold, refusing to let me go no matter how hard I
fought for release.

My shoulders shook
as I cried but I couldn’t stop them from shaking anymore than I could prevent the
scalding hot drops of disappointment and heartache from falling.

Jace put his hands
on my shoulders and gently forced me to turn around and face him.

“Skye, why are you
crying?  Has she done something to you?”

I shook my head
unable to find my voice. 

“Then why are you
crying and running away from me?”

I looked up into
his face and saw his worry over my emotional outburst.

“Because you don’t
want me here,” I blubbered feeling completely stupid for not being able to
control the physical display of my heartbreak.

Jace pulled me
against him resting his forehead against mine closing his eyes and sighing
deeply.

“No, I don’t want
you here in her house.  You don’t understand how dangerous this place is for
you.  I thought you understood that when I asked you to stay in the Southern
Kingdom.  You’re all I’ve thought about since I’ve been here.  You’re all I
want.”

I closed my eyes
and breathed him in.  He smelled like leather and Jace.  I lifted my hands and
caressed the sides of his face.  He opened his eyes and lifted his head from
mine to look into my eyes.  It was then I finally saw what I had hoped to see
the first time: want.  He did want me.  He did still love me.  But he was
letting his worry for me override everything else.

“Show me,” I said.

“Show you what?”
He asked, not quite sure what I was asking for.

“If you still love
me, prove it,” I dared.

“Are you mine to
love?” He asked.

I knew what the
question implied.  He was asking me if being reunited with Ash had rekindled my
adolescent longings for my best friend.

“Kiss me,” I
begged, unable to give him an answer to his question.

Jace hesitated but
I knew it wasn’t because he didn’t want to kiss me.  I saw the same desire I
felt mirrored in his eyes.  I knew he wanted me to tell him whether or not I
had chosen between him and Ash yet.  I couldn’t give him a truthful answer
because my heart was still torn by the two men if my life.  But I needed him to
kiss me like I needed water to survive.  My body ached from wanting him to the
point where if he didn’t kiss me soon I might whither away like a flower left
in the sun too long.

“Kiss…,” I began
but wasn’t allowed to finish.

Jace quickly
pulled me against his torso.  He looked into my eyes like he was searching for the
answer to his question there.

“I love you,” he breathed
against my lips.  “I’ve missed you,” he said, continuing to plant light kisses.