Protector (11 page)

“Okay.” I grinned right back, enjoying his little lesson.

He rubbed his chin, moving on to point out the left side of the continent. “This area belongs to Peacio and it is rich in copious minerals and natural deposits, particularly in the highlands. In the lowlands, we have rivers, lakes, abundant pasture and flat, fertile lands. Across the desert of No-Man’s Land, Dralion’s terrain is much more severe. Their land rises swiftly to snow-capped mountains, before plunging down into deep rainforests and jungles. They have a large central desert area, so it is only on the furthest outreaches from Peacio that their land is actually able to sustain habitable life.”

“So this is why the people of Dralion desire to take what is yours?”

“Yes.” He pointed to the central dividing line. “There is a protective energy dome that ensures we cannot return their constant attacks, a shield I briefly mentioned before, one that was created some forty years ago by Moyer under the instruction of the ruling family of Dralion. King Donaldo Wincrest insisted on its creation after his father’s early passing, and he and his son, Alexo, still rule strongly today.”

“How exactly was Dralion’s protective dome created?” Thumb on chin, I inclined my head to the side, not even able to imagine an energy field no one could safely teleport or even walk through.

“Forty years ago one of their finest warriors used his skill of enchantment, a man by the name of Gilles Moyer. This ability to enchant takes the form of spell-making. So, the last information passed on from our spies in Dralion during that time was of Moyer’s attempt at spell-enchanting an invisible field over their country using a deep, in-ground energy source. The spell he used to actually make that happen was lost to us after the dome became reality and we were denied access to both our spies and their country.”

“So you had spies in Dralion at the time? They were caught there?” That couldn’t have been good.

“Yes, we did.” He angled his head upward as he crouched over his scratched drawing. “As they had spies in our land and still do, to this day.”

“Although you don’t anymore?” My brow furrowed.

“No, it’s not possible, not since the energy field activated. Their spies though, as we unearth them on our land, are removed to a location similar to your prisons. We keep the warriors locked up within steel-lined and enforced cells.”

I gasped. “So they can’t return?” Now I hated that idea. “Why is it you rule so archaically?”

Jerking to his feet, he tossed his stick harshly out into the waves. “We do not rule archaically. The Loveria family rules with precision. I can guarantee you there is no nation on your Earth who’d allow their intruding enemies to go free. Neither do we. The safety of our people and of our lands is paramount to our continued survival. If not for the Wincrests, their spies and ensuing espionage, we would not have to defend ourselves to such an extreme. They attack and kill, unmercifully and arrogantly.”

I sifted through his thoughts with my forethought skill, searching for what would explain his anger. He threw up a fast block, and I cupped my hips. “What are you hiding from me?”

And then I understood.

“I get it–my father is one of Dralion’s warriors. He has access to their dome. Exactly how many warriors are there, who can come and go through such a protected entrance?”

His mouth pinched together, lips turning white, and in a flash, he was in front of me, his hand shackling my wrist. “There are thousands of warriors just as there are thousands of protectors. We protect our borders, our lands and our people.

I should have expected his answer.

I inhaled slowly, my gaze slipping down to take in Davio’s fierce hold. I noted every little change in his hardened body as my gaze traveled back up. “I’m sorry, but do you think I’m going somewhere right now?”

His brows slanted down in a hard line. “The Loveria family rules so tenaciously because forethought runs through our line. It can skip a generation, or even two as it has done with my father and I, but regardless, it is still acutely a part of our structured DNA.”

“That’s not what I asked.” I tugged on my imprisoned hand. “There’s more to it than that. I want the truth. I deserve the truth.” And he was clearly withholding.

“I can’t give you any more at present. It could cause you to run. I simply can’t allow that.”

I yanked on my wrist again and groaned. “Ah, we really need to talk about your control issues.”

“I won’t give you up.” I cringed as I heard the pain in his admission. “I can’t risk allowing your father near you. I do not have access through their dome, and if he took you I would never get you–” He stopped so suddenly and I registered his meaning, his pain killing my frustration dead in its place.

“You mean–”

“Yes. You would be gone. Forever. Don’t you see that?”

“But I have increased speed, and I mean more than just a fast sprint.” I hadn’t admitted to that skill yet, primarily because I felt it led to teleporting. Go the forethought.

Davio’s jaw dropped. “Then you’ll be able to teleport soon.”

“I hope so.” Seconds passed and he remained still. A wave crashed onto the shore and rolled with a frothy white-cap right up toward our feet before slowly receding.

His gaze sharpened. “This may give us some more options, but right now, I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

“I don’t believe I would risk what we have. In fact, I’m certain I wouldn’t.”

A low groan escaped him. “If you’re attempting to sway my mind, you won’t.”

I pushed my next point. “No one can keep that close an eye on another, no matter how many protectors you have.”

He half-growled, half-groaned this time.

I persisted. “What happens when I want to spend time alone with my mother? When you need to see your family? Attend to your duties back home as you have already stated will take precedence. You can’t be watching over me every minute of every day. You’ll have to concede somewhere. Why don’t you teach me how to teleport and then take a step in trusting me?”

He didn’t move.

Barely even breathed.

Nothing.

Okay, so I had to try another approach.

“What about my forethought strength skill? Surely once it starts to grow and I have visual images as Carlisio does, I’ll see the threat the warrior poses to me. Forethought is preemptive, right? So I can get myself out of trouble before it even begins?”

Nice thinking.

Only he didn’t think so–his throaty growl deepened even further. “Carlisio’s forewarning doesn’t apply to himself, so the same will no doubt relate to you. You won’t have a hope in hell of seeing any form of trouble before it comes for you.”

Dang it! But I wasn’t giving up that easily. “Well, there simply must be something I can do. Let’s begin with teleporting since I don’t have an able parent who can teach me, or should I say one you’ll allow me to meet so that he can teach me.” I shook my limbs, readying myself. “C’mon. Help me see what I can do?”

I gave him a quick little wink, trying to lighten the mood. “Your girlfriend wants you to teach her how to move through space and time–now don’t be an old-fashioned bore.”

“A bore? An old-fashioned bore?” He gave me one of his probing looks I was coming to know well. “I don’t like this, but I can see I have no choice.”

Ah, I was finally getting somewhere. “That’s right you have no choice, matey.” I touched the waistband of my soft-pleated, short yellow skirt, grateful I’d thought to slip my black bike shorts on underneath. I slid the buttons loose.

Davio’s gaze pinged downward, his eyes bulging wide. “Okay, that’s not part of the deal. What are you doing?”

“I have on running shorts. My tank top’s suitable for a run but not the skirt. I already told you I missed my run this morning. I popped on the shorts in case I was able to catch up with it sometime today.” I dropped the yellow cotton over my hips where it pooled in the white sand. I bent and grabbed it. “Is this small enough to fit in your back pocket?”

He held out his hand. “Just start running before I change my mind,” he grumbled. “I’ll be right behind you every step of the way, and of that you can be certain.”

Eyeing the beach toward the more isolated eastern end, I set out, keeping to the wet sand near the waterline as I ran.

“Pick up your pace,” Davio instructed from my six.

Without looking behind me, I followed his instruction, directing the energy driving through me straight to my pumping legs.

“Again,” he ordered curtly, ten seconds later. “Except don’t forget to cloak. It’s the same as when you block your mind to hide information. Think of blocking your entire body though.

That made sense. I cloaked, blocking my image now for fear of anyone seeing me. I grinned as I felt the increase in power surging through my muscles, my feet barely touching the sand’s surface.

For just a moment I needed to appreciate what was about to happen. On my left, I struck a quick glance toward the ocean, taking one second to notice its flat, blue-glasslike surface. Switching directions to my right, the dry grassy sand-dunes appeared nothing more than a haze of milky-beige, and I laughed with so much joy. “I love this.”

There was nothing but me, the wind in my face, the scent of salty ocean air and of course, the sound of Davio’s wicked growl from my rear.

“You’re almost there. Now visualize where you want to go. Aim for somewhere up ahead that you can see yet is still too far away. Bring the image into the forefront of your mind and think only of the jump. I promise I’ll be right behind you.” His voice almost whipped away on the wind, yet I sensed him there through the connection of my mind merged with his.

I grinned with abandon, allowing the sheer uninhibited moment to take me. A second later, I centered my sight on the image of beachside trees half a mile ahead, and with a burst of speed, made the staggering jump.

The flash of dark was over before it had barely begun–and I was there, the faraway stand of trees no longer half a mile ahead, but solidly in front of me, their wide trunks looming large as my legs still ran.

Oh no. This was gonna hurt.

Then a grunt from behind me.

Davio tackled and rolled us both, over and over, spitting up sandy white grains as we spun. “I’ve got you,” he grated in my ear as we plowed to a stop.

I couldn’t stop beaming. I pulled my hair from my face. “I did it.”

“You did it.” He was still squishing me. “The first time is always the hardest. Usually no one can stop running. It’s why I tackled you, so you didn’t try and take out the trees.”

I edged my head to the side, glancing in the direction of the native trees. “I’m most grateful. Thank you.”

“Let me check you over.” He gripped my hands, extending them as he examined them. “I hate this, although everything appears in order. How do you feel?”

I wriggled on my back into the sand underneath us and pulled my hands free to wrap them around his neck. “Like I want to do this again. Where to now? Can I try regular teleporting, do you think?”

He exhaled harshly and lowered his cheek to mine. “Once I get my heart rate back under control. Perhaps.”

I nuzzled my cheek against his. “C’mon, be happy for me. I can teleport.”

He grumbled again. “Teleporting means I cannot contain you.”

I didn’t want to tell him that teleporting or not, he didn’t have a chance of containing me. He’d learn that, regardless. “I promise I’ll be good and not go too far astray, but I want to try that again. You don’t go running off at high speed before you make a jump so you have a lot more to teach me.”

He moaned–kissed my cheek, and then pulled me promptly to my feet. “It took me a single speed jump before the knowledge of how to teleport meant I could move to standing motionless. Just remember, instead of using your speed to project the move, use your mind in its place. Bring the exact image of where you want to travel into the forefront of your mind, and then push a theoretical speed behind it. Give it a location and coordinates, if necessary.”

“Coordinates?” I asked as I brushed the sand off my bottom.

His eyes skimmed my movements, and he took my hand. “For example, some outdoor locations change images with the seasons, while some indoor locations change with items being moved. Take your living room for example. If your mother shifts a chair and disrupts the image, then you’ll never make the jump. You’ll stay right where you are because that location doesn’t exist in theory. Everything is always precise, so be sure to make a habit of attaching a location or a coordinate–a physical thought of where the image is from–to make the jump through space.”

“I get it. Let me try that.” It was so simple once explained that before I knew it the beach gave way to a moment of darkness, then my bedroom enclosed us in.

Grinning like a silly two-year-old, I spun around on the tips of my toes and dropped onto my springy bed. “This is sooo cool.” I beamed as I bounced.

Davio pulled me to my feet, a frown furrowing his brow. “One more rule. You will not be permitted to travel without me by your side. You are my mate and until I’m certain you can teleport without any physical mishap, you will follow my rules.”

I gave him a cute little curtsy. “Rules, smules.”