Pulled to the Dark (The Siriena Series) (24 page)

"You'll see," Andrea said. "Petra, can you serve the wine? I'm going to check on dinner." She popped out.

"This is going to take some getting used to," I said.

"I know," Petra said. "You'll find a limit on how often you can pop back and forth, but it seems to be a lot. You'll start to get a headache, I think more from the changing pressure than anything else."

I took the opportunity to snuggle up at Petra. I kissed her neck. I think it amused her to no end when I did that. It certainly amused me. I loved taking in her scent.

"Petra?"

"Yes, Felicia?"

"Have I told you 'thank you' today?"

"No, I don't believe you have."

I waited a few seconds.

"Petra?"

"Yes, Felicia?"

"Thank you."

She laughed. "You're welcome. For whatever I've done now."

I laughed with her. "I have a job I love, with a promising future. I feel better about myself physically than I ever have. I'm in a relationship with someone who I love dearly, and who loves me. What else could I want?"

Before she
could answer, there was a small noise
. I turned to my right, and Kelly
walked in through the door she had just made
. She grinned at the sight of us being all lovey-dovey. I
playfully
clung more tightly to Petra.

"Someone is in love, I believe," said Kelly.

"Someone is in heat," Petra said. But she didn't dislodge me.

Kelly was wearing a dress, and it looked expensive. Her hair was done up and her makeup was perfect.

"You look great, Kelly," I told her.

"So do you, Felicia," she said. "I'm glad to see you. I wasn't sure we'd ever meet again. I'm so pleased it worked out."

"Why wouldn't we see each other? I'm at the office every day."

"Yes," she said. "But I'm not. I work directly for
Renea
now. I'm here all the time."

There was another "pop" and Andrea reappeared. "Dinner will be along any minute."

Petra dislodged me and poured wine for Andrea and Kelly. I tried to reattach but
Petra chided me.
"Down, remora. Down."

Kelly turned to Andrea. "Remember when I was like that?"

"You ask that as if you've changed," Andrea said.

"What can I say?" she said. "I get lonely here."

"You could come to our Sunday movie nights," I offered.

Kelly looked pained. "I'm sorry, I can't.
I can't go to Earth anymore.
"
She paused. "I have leukemia.
On Earth.
Here, I don't.
"

"Oh," I said. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," she said. "We'll all end up here sooner or later. For me, it was just sooner. It's a lot better for me than if I'd stayed on Earth."

Andrea gave her a hug and a kiss.

Andrea stared ahead for a moment. "Ah, our last guest is here."

The wall opened and a stunning woman in her mid-forties walked in. She was several inches taller than I was with shoulder-length black hair and dark eyes. She was dressed exquisitely in a flowing, black dress. I immediately knew whom I was facing.

Andrea stepped forward. "Good evening,
Renea
," she said. Andrea gave a kiss on
Renea's
offered cheek. "I'm so glad you could come."

Renea
laughed. "It was a terrible commute, and my schedule was bursting at the seams, but there is always room for one of your dinners, Andrea." Her eyes sparkled.

Petra stepped forward and kissed a cheek. "You look amazing,
Renea
," she said.

"Thank you, dear. And you are ravishing as always." She stepped back but held Petra's hands and examined her. "Or perhaps I should say, you look recently ravished, which is an even better look on you."

I immediately began blushing.

Kelly kissed the offered cheek next with a "Hello,
Renea
."

Then she turned to me. Petra introduced us. I kissed the offered cheek and assured her I was pleased to meet her.

"Well, let me look at you," she said. She stepped around me, eying me up and down. "Yes, child, I can see why Petra has been so distracted with you the last few months. And now she brings me my newest champion.
"

And like that, her focus was off me. Petra offered wine. Andrea popped back to her house to collect dinner, and soon we were seated.
Renea
took the head of the table. Petra and Andrea took the seats nearest
Renea
, and Kelly and I sat opposite each other at the end. I kept my mouth shut all night unless directly invited to join the
conversation
.
Then I kept my comments as brief as I could.

Mentally I was making a note of things I would be asking Petra later.
Words
like champions and new potential recruits, and Beth and Erika. If Petra thought I was going to get involved in a three-way or four-way involving my two oldest friends, she could take that thought and stick it somewhere dark.

The word I really liked was "war". Yes, that one I found very intriguing.

After dinner we moved to the sofas and chairs. I offered to wait on everyone. I took a list of drink orders Petra assured me I could fulfill in her liquor cabinet and Andrea gave me permission to come and go directly to her tower for the remainder of the evening. I popped up, found the proper bottles,
then
wondered if I'd be able to pop back and forth without spilling. I filled a glass of water and popped to my tower and back. No spilling. I filled four drink orders, set everything on a serving tray, and popped back. I set the tray down on a table and passed out the drinks,
Renea's
first. I let Petra grab her own from the tray, and I'd purposely set it down just a little too far from her so she had to climb out of her chair to reach it.

Then I turned to the dining room table. I collected the dishes and popped back and forth to the apartment, setting them on the counter. When I had them all, I washed and dried them, stacked them up, and popped back to Andrea's tower, setting the stacked dishes on the table. I took the leftovers back with
me,
slipped them all into
ziplocks
, washed the dishes, and then brought all of that back as well.

I ignored the entreaties
to come sit with them until I'd run out of excuses. I checked everyone's drinks, then popped to the apartment and returned with the bottles people had been served from. I refilled glasses, then brought the bottles home again.

I sighed and retrieved a ginger ale for myself and returned to Andrea's tower. I took an empty chair well away from Petra rather than sitting on the sofa next to her.

Everyone noticed, but no one commented.

I kept my mouth shut, but whenever someone's glass grew empty, I popped back and retrieved the bottle to fill it. After the third time, I started getting waved off. So then I brought everyone water glasses instead. I used the tray for that and again, passed all of them out except Petra's.

As soon as everyone was finished with
their
drinks, I collected the glasses and went back to the apartment to wash them.

When I returned next,
Renea
said, "Please, child, all this popping in and out is making me quite homesick. Please do stop."

"My apologies,
Renea
," I said. "I only meant to do my job."

She pursed her lips for a moment but didn't pursue it.

After that, I sat quietly, listening to the conversation just enough that I could respond halfway intelligently if I was asked.

I wasn't sure yet whether I should be mad, but I was pretty sure the answer was "yes".

Eventually the evening ran to a close.
Renea
took her leave. I immediately collected th
e water glasses and serving tray
and popped back to the apartment with them and washed them.
As Petra hadn't returned, I sigh
ed and popped back to Andrea's tower. The three of them turned to me.

"I think this is my
cue
to leave," Kelly said. "It was good to see you, Felicia.
Come visit any time, I'm only one tower away.
"

As soon as the door closed behind her, Petra turned to me and said, "What the hell is wrong with you?"

I offered an innocent expression. "Nothing. Did I do something wrong?"

"You've been in a mood since we got here," Petra said.

I tried to look like I didn't know what she was talking about. "I ate quietly. I was polite to the boss without being obsequious. Afterwards I washed dishes and served drinks, which is what I've done at every other party either of you has hosted. What exactly did I do wrong?"

"You were supposed to impress
Renea
," Petra said. "Not act like a sullen child."

"I'm sorry," I said. "I didn't even know who was going to be here
nor what my role was.
So I was being quiet to avoid saying anything stupid. Perhaps ask dumb questions. Like, '
Renea
, why did you call me your newest champion?' or 'Why are you talking about recruits and mentioning my two dearest friends?' or perhaps simply, 'War? What war?' Questions like those."

And with that, I tried to pop home. I didn't go anywhere. Petra narrowed her eyes at me.

"Seriously?" I said to her.

I turned my back on the both of them. Then I realized I still had two working feet and I stormed to the wall. I tried to open a door. That didn't work, either.

Neither of them said anything, or at least not loudly enough I heard. I stared at the wall and alternated between trying to open a door and trying to pop home. Neither worked, but I wondered whether Petra could tell
what
I was doing and whether it would grate on her nerves if she could tell.

I don't know how long I stood there. It was several minutes. I finally turned around in frustration. I don't deal well with nothing to do, even for only a few minutes. The two of them were standing together, watching me.

"Well?" I asked. "We're all going to stand around staring at each other all night?"

"We were waiting for you to either calm down or come after me with a sword again," Petra said.

"Neither appears to be happening," I said. "But if you like, I could throw things."

"I'd rather you didn't," Andrea said. "Kelly would be cleaning glass off the stones for weeks."

I stared at her. "I don't believe you just played the slave-girl-with-leukemia card."

"She's not a slave girl," Andrea said quietly.

"Then why is she the one that would have to clean up my mess?"

Neither of them had an answer for that. "Yes, that's what I thought," I said. "Slave girl."

"Is that why you were acting like a servant?" Petra asked me.

"No, actually, the thought I was a slave girl didn't occur to me until I found I was locked in and Andrea told me she makes Kelly scrub the floors." I said. "I was acting like a servant because I can't stand being idle and it gave me something to do that didn't involve screaming at anyone."

"I don't make her scrub the floors," Andrea said. "She's bored, too, but she's grateful for my saving her life. She stayed on Earth as long as she could, but she came out of remission and she didn't want to go through treatment again. So now she does what she can here, including cleaning everything in sight. No one is making her do it." She paused. "We used to be able to enjoy the woods.
And t
here's a town a couple of hours by horse. But you've had experience why that has recently stopped being such a good idea. Unlike you, Kelly can't pop home in the face of danger. Until the current problems are resolved, she's locked inside this castle. So is
Renea
."

I wondered whether Petra had stopped locking me in. I tried to pop home. I didn't get anywhere, but she narrowed her eyes at me
again
. Yes, she could tell when I tried. So I kept trying, over and over. I wondered if it gave her a headache.

"Do you expect that to annoy me?" she asked after a minute.

"I don't know," I said. "Does it?"

"Yes."

"Then I have accomplished something useful while standing here," I told her.

"You are acting like a petulant child," she said.

"You are treating me like one," I said. "I believe your behavior predates mine. All I've tried to do is leave so I don't make a bad situation worse."

Petra stared at me for a moment then looked away. "You can go," she said very quietly.

"So you would rather let me go then tell me what's going on?" I paused. "Fine."