The Last Oracle (3 page)

After several hours, she realized that even Hemmingway couldn’t hold her attention today. Her mind kept wandering back to her dream the previous evening and the lioness’s response to her that morning. She took a nap and when she awoke, she realized it was dark again. No one had knocked for the evening game drive. She suspected Alex had called a halt to her participation in the drives. But it was her only opportunity to get out.

She was surprised that she hadn’t seen Alex at all today, except for a few brief minutes before the morning’s game drive. She had expected him to come by and gently remind her of the rules. She was certain that not seeing him was a bad sign. He had never gotten upset with her, but she had an inkling that this was going to be a first.

Rising, she went to shower and decided that she would face the situation head-on. As the water ran over her, she fought her insecurities, assuring herself that Alex loved her. Still, something was going on. His prolonged absences were getting even longer. And now, evidently, his work was calling him late at night.

After drying her hair, she pulled on her underwear and a blouse and, without buttoning it, stepped out of the bathroom. To her surprise, Alex was there sorting through some things on the bureau. He immediately turned to her and his grin expanded into a dazzling smile. She felt immediate relief.

Then she realized, a minute too late, that her shirt hung open and, although she was covered, it was more revealing than she had ever been with him before. He drew a deep breath as he reached for her and pulled her into him.

“Love the outfit,” he murmured into her neck, as his arms went around her waist.

Suddenly, she was pleased with the decision.

They were interrupted by a knock and a woman’s voice, “Dinner, mum, sir.”
 

She briefly wondered why Toma hadn’t knocked, but at the moment, she was entirely too distracted to care.

“Let’s stay here,” she whispered into his chest.

Alex pulled her in tighter and then released a tense laugh. “You know
it’s Caleb’s friend’s last dinner with us.”

“Caleb is 2,000 years old. He doesn’t really need us watching him 24/7.” She kissed his neck and brushed her hands down his chest.

Alex stepped away from her, but the glow was still in his eyes.

“So, no
game drive tonight, huh?” she asked, keeping the flirtation in her voice as a bulwark against any possible upset. 

Alex grabbed the open edges of her shirt for a moment, eyeing the uncovered skin across her stomach hungrily; biting his lip, he began to button it as he cocked an eyebrow. “It seems that my presence is required if you are to attend the game drives.”

“Toma! I knew it! I told him that there was no need to trouble you with it.”

She was fully aware that her lapse in his “rules” had very nearly cost them her life. In fact, if she hadn’t been so thrilled, she would have been terrified.

“Oh, Toma was only once source. It seems you are the talk of the camp,” he said, as his eyes focused with amusement on the buttons; finally, he hooked the one above her breasts to cover the temptation. He brushed the side of her face and then shook his head, pushing aside his thoughts of her and their closeness. His eyes became suddenly serious. “Beautiful, you do know that there is a lot of danger here…and not just from the council.”

“Yes, I’m sorry, Alex, but nothing happened and I wanted Caleb to have a chance to spend more time with Amy. She is such a sweet girl.”

“
And,
his interest in Amy keeps him from falling too far for you.” The single corner of his mouth turned up.

Yes, Valeria had thought of that. She was the only person in the world that Caleb could touch without wearing his gloves. Mani believed that because Caleb had revived her with his electrical force,
something happened so that she was no longer affected by it. Since then, Caleb had developed a major crush on her.

“By the way, where is Toma?” Valeria asked as she slid on her jeans. Alex continued to watch her as he leaned against the bed.

“Toma is fine,” he said, distracted by her. “He wanted to go back home to his family in the South.”

Valeria’s jaw dropped. “Alex, you fired him!”

Shaking his head, Alex glanced back to her. “No. He quit. Well, actually, it was by mutual agreement whereby Toma accused the guide of placing you in danger and the guide and tracker accused Toma of almost shooting them. I decided it was best if Toma left, and the camp managers agreed…and so did Toma.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, feeling incredibly guilty and suddenly understanding the closed doors at the main lodge.

“Don’t worry, I gave him a year’s wages. He left happy…and told me never to call him again.” Alex picked up a cracker from a tray and bit down. “I think you seriously took ten years off the man’s life.”

Valeria laughed as they walked to the door. But she wondered how Alex could pay all that money to Toma when they were obviously in financial straits.

The bonfire in the near distance lit the outdoor dining area. Caleb was already there with Amy and the Smythes. She also noticed a new couple who was sitting at their table.

Alex stopped, suddenly wary.
“Beautiful, why don’t we sit at a different table tonight? I thought we would give Caleb a bit of privacy with Amy on their last night together.”

“Okay.” She shrugged, and he led her to a table near the entrance of the dining area. They feasted on wonderful South African wines, delicious wild game, and fantastically seasoned vegetables prepared al dente.

One of the guides told a story in front of the campfire about a pregnant woman’s harrowing escape from her neighboring country and giving birth in a tree while the lions prowled below. As soon as the guide uttered the last syllable of the story, Alex stood.

“Would you mind terribly if we called it a night? I still have quite a lot of work to do. But I’d like to make certain you get back to the room in one piece,” he said and hooked her arm. Just then, Valeria saw
that the new couple, who had been sitting with Caleb and the Smythes, were walking toward them. Alex picked up his step and Valeria sensed the other couple picking up theirs as well.

“Professor Morgan, so this must be your lovely fiancée,” the man said, loudly enough so that Alex couldn’t pretend that he hadn’t heard.

Instead of stopping, Alex increased his pace even more, while turning his head slightly. He said over his shoulder, “Yes, Tom, I apologize but we are in a bit of a hurry.”

Glancing at Alex, Valeria wondered what had come over him. So as to not be rude, she stopped and turned. Alex’s face fell slightly.

“Hello. I guess you know, Alex. I’m Valeria.” She held out her hand to the man.

“Yeah, I’m Tom and this is my wife, Liv.”

Valeria glanced at Alex again. There was something odd about his reaction. She was certain the couple felt it, too.

“You’re from the states,” she said, feeling the necessity to overcompensate for what seemed like rude behavior from her typically gracious fiancé.

“Yes, Wheaton, Illinois, near Chicago,” Tom said.

“Nice to meet you!”
Liv gushed. “We’re so excited. This is our first safari.”

“Wonderful. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it here,” Valeria said.

“We never thought we would be coming to Africa. Then our daughter decided to marry our former youth pastor. He’s just taken a position in an orphanage here is South Africa and asked my husband to perform the ceremony in the wilderness.”

“Tom, you…you’re a pastor?” Valeria’s eyes lit with excitement. She squeezed Alex’s hand, but she sensed him tense even more.

“Valeria, Alex told us that you would be busy tomorrow, but I do hope you change your mind and join us. I’m certain Dave and Donna would love to have you there,” Liv said.

With this discovery, Valeria’s heart sank as Alex’s jaw tightened. Opportunity had knocked and Alex had not only backed down, he was avoiding it. She noticed his frozen expression as the words sprang from his lips lacking his typical cordiality, “Thank you.”

Liv went on, unaware of Alex and Valeria’s internal battles.

“I’m certain you both have planned something better than getting married here in the wilderness, but for Donna, it is the wedding of her dreams.”

“Yes. Thanks for the offer, Liv, Tom. I’m certain we will see you around the camp. Now, if you don’t mind, we really must be going,” Alex said as he grabbed Valeria’s hand and tugged her toward their hut.

“Goodnight,” Valeria mumbled, still stunned. Although it was dark, she could now sense that she was being watched by several guards.

The discovery that Alex was actually trying to keep her from meeting the pastor hurt. But she needed to put her hurt feelings aside and just ask Alex what was going on. It was a given that they would be married far away from their friends and family. Truly, she could do that. Even the previous year, when the plan had been to marry at the beautiful home in Greece, all she wanted was her family and friends from Morgana.

But she was prepared—and totally accepted—that they would be married in front of a herd of wildebeest at sunset, instead of her family and friends; wearing jeans, instead of the beautiful gown that they had selected. She accepted the idea that they would spend their wedding night in this luxury hut, instead of the comfort of their beautiful cottage where she had always imagined their first night of intimacy would take place…exactly as Alex had envisioned it 3,000 years before.

The troubling part was that she might never see her friends who, over the course of only a few months, had become the only family she had ever known. Now Valeria, Alex, and Caleb were fugitives from a council who believed in removing heads before discovering facts. And seeing their family again was a risk they couldn’t take.

Still, their previous wedding plans—the dreams they had of that ceremony and of their wedding night—were merely extravagances. The only thing she really wanted, and desperately needed in life, was Alex.

As they entered the hut, Valeria took his hand.

“Does your reluctance to marry have to do with Kristiana?”

“Kristiana?” Alex was taken back. “No. Is she an issue for you?”

“No, not really.
I guess I wonder if the reason you’ve been hesitant to marry me has anything to do with the fact that the council still considers you married to her. Please tell me the truth. Or is there something else?”

Alex switched on the light in their hut. It was already cool in the room. He brushed his fingers through his hair.

“Val, it isn’t an issue for me. I guess the question is, is it an issue for you?”

She was aware that he had once again turned the discussion around to focus on her needs. “I’ve accepted that it isn’t going to be resolved.”

“You do understand that my marriage to Kristiana was ended, as it was begun, by verbal consent, a very long time ago.”

“Yes, I do understand. But I know that something is going on with you. I think we need to talk.”

“Yes, you are right. We should talk.” Her eyes filled with dread, and seeing this, he took her face in his hands. “You are my dream. You are my happily ever after. And that, my love, will
never
change!” He kissed her gently. She realized that all there has been since arriving to Africa were gentle kisses. Alex lowered his brow and said, “Unfortunately, right now, I really do have to go. I have an emergency conference call on the other side of the world.” He started out of the room. “I love you!” he said again, with emphasis and left.

∞

Valeria sat in the bed in her tank top and pajama bottoms. It was a bit chilly except for the down comforter and the hot water bottle near her feet that they always left in the evenings. She didn’t seem to notice. She was wide-awake with her Kindle in front of her, but there was no book that could hold her attention right now. Alex opened the door and smiled softly at her, sensing her serious mood. She glanced at the clock. It was two in the morning.

“That was
some
conference call.”

“Yes. Yes, it was.” He went into the bathroom and came out in a T-shirt and pajama bottoms, and crawled onto the bed next to her. He pulled the Kindle from her and closed it. “I hope you understand
, I just didn’t feel that Tom was the right person to perform the ceremony.”

“Will anyone be right? Alex, we’ve been here for a month. Are you certain there isn’t something else?”

“There is nothing else, I promise you. I just want it to be right.”

“And is there anything that needs to be
right
…with us?”

Alex looked up and laughed, and then seeing the hurt in her eyes, his expression softened. “You and I are,” he pulled her into his arms and kissed her tenderly for the first time since they had arrived in Africa, “perfect,” he whispered seductively. “Well, except for the marriage part.”

“Please, let’s ask Tom to marry us. Let’s wake him up. He’s a romantic, I could tell. He would do it! It wouldn’t be…maybe what we imagined, but we would have each other.”

Alex drew a deep breath. “Val, we can’t wake them up. It’s the middle of the night.”