The Light of Asteria (20 page)

I waved as I watched him drive away. The dust
from the gravel trailed behind his silver car. Trapped in grief, I
turned toward the house. The hair stood on the back of my neck. I
was farther down the hill than I had realized.

“Gavin?” My voice echoed off the trees.
Adrenaline combined with surprise. The door I left opened was now
shut.

Immediately, I searched with my mind, but he
wasn’t there. Desperately searching again, all I could feel was
darkness. My pulse pounded; fear coursed through my veins. I became
painfully aware that I was alone in the dusk. It was quickly
becoming dark, and I was on the wrong side of the door. I ran
toward the house.

Gavin? Can you hear me? I need you. I’m
outside.
My thoughts shouted as terror gripped my heart. A
black streak flashed before me. The colors of the mountain turned
to all shades of gray. My shield instinctively flew up.

This elf was black as pitch and seemed to
shine with evil. Almond white eyes were the only discernible facial
features, other than his ears, which were sharp, like daggers. He
opened his disproportional arms wide so I could get a full view, as
his eyes twinkled with vicious satisfaction.

Searching my mind for anything Gavin had ever
told me about them, I remembered they twisted truth and they were
fast; I couldn’t outrun him. I knew he was strong and could kill me
easily. I had no idea how many others were out here, and he was
mentally blocking me from Gavin.

Cold, rancid air circled around me. He stood
motionless and sniffed, his hideous features furrowed in
concentration.

“Hello Nora, it’s nice to finally meet you,”
he said. The timbre of his voice was like a whisper and a scream
churning together. The combination was the sound that nightmares
were made of. His jagged yellow smile demanded my attention.

“What do you want?” I asked in a hushed
voice, my blue shield steel hard.

“I came to warn you. The prince does not tell
you everything.”

Prince?
The shock of the word slipped
through my shield.

He sneered as recognition blazed. “Did you
not know he was the son of Queen Lera, daughter of Frey? Did he not
tell you he is already promised to another in his land? Has he
strung you along to make you think that you mean something more
than power?”

Red-hot pain seared, as comprehension burned
through me. Black shadows darted in and out of the trees, my pulse
pounded in my ears.

“Why has he not claimed you for his own? If
he truly loved you, he would claim you. Your life is but a short
snippet of time to the young prince. He will use you for some
pleasures, although not all, and take your power until your life
has ended.”

My heart stopped for a moment, as a tear slid
down my face. He took a step closer. The sounds of the mountain
muffled, like someone had put cotton in my ears, but the
white-noise voice of the Dokkalfar remained crystal clear as night
crept over the forest.

“Time here is like grains of sand through an
hourglass; the months are merely days to his people. His betrothed
will not have to wait long, and yet your life will be in vain,
waiting for your love to claim you. He will not.” I was now
completely deaf, except for the hideous voice that took pleasure in
taunting me.

“Why is his soul stone not on your wrist? The
woman who tended you had been given the leader of the guard’s stone
within a day, yet you have lived with your prince for over half of
the year, and still you do not possess the one symbol in the land
that would prove his devotion. He does not claim you when you share
his bed at night. You do not know what you’ve gotten yourself into,
child.”

Instinct cried it was critical to keep him
mentally at bay; that what I had experienced at this house had
information that could hurt my beloved clan. I poured all of my
concentration into keeping my shield solid. If I had to die out
here alone, so be it.

“He will abandon you. Maybe it will not be as
bad as your father. Maybe you have grown accustomed to rejection. I
do not know. Even I, one of the Dokkalfar, am not treated with such
careless disregard.” His voice rose into an unbearable sound, and I
bit my lip to keep from screaming. The attic light suddenly
illumined overhead, and I remembered the windows. Maybe they could
help. He started to circle around me, his eyes appraising my form.
Shadows grew near as other demons joined him.

“The sweetness of your flesh must be
extraordinary if you have held the attention of royalty, even if
only for a moment. It would almost be worth it to taste the
pleasures of your body.” Sheer panic ran through me. He seemed to
think for a moment, and then exhaled a repulsive screeching sigh.
“Perhaps another time. I did not come to take the pleasures and
then feast on your flesh—I came to warn you. You must leave; he
will destroy you. He will never claim you as his own. He has taken
control of your life, and yet you know nothing of him. He is your
world, and you are less to him than a mount to a rider.” The cold
became bone chilling; the breeze stunk of death. I inhaled through
my mouth, but even then I could taste the fetid smell of rotting
flesh. Six shadows now encircled me, slowly growing closer. His
face distorted with a sneer, and I realized if I didn’t do
something now, I was going to die.

Keeping the blue shield up, I concentrated on
everything I held dear—last Christmas, my Edna, her mountain, my
new family, painting with Rena in the studio, laughter—but most of
all, my love for Gavin swelled. The power surged, until it
painfully collected around my heart. With an unimaginable force, I
threw the orb of raw energy at the windows, screaming both in mind
and voice just one word.

“
Gavin!”

The webbing in the windows responded with a
brilliant blue-white glow. Six shadows crumpled to the ground. I
had never forced this power from me, always trying to contain what
little of it I understood, and the sharp, hot pain was surprising.
The sounds of life instantly filled my ears, and the colors that
could still be seen from the limited light came back in sharp
relief.

My clan bounded out the door, and I watched
in horror as Elias beheaded the demon that spoke to me. Black ooze
gushed from the lifeless body; his head rolled a few yards away.
Gavin crashed into me, gripped my waist, and then ran back into the
living room, slamming the door.

His panic knocked the breath out of me. He
touched and inspected my body, searching for some wound or harm.
Sharp whimpers of fear came in spurts, as I tried to calm my
breathing.

What happened?
My shield wanted to
come up, but I forced it to stay down.

“We were foolish, Nora. I didn’t know you
left the house. I wasn’t paying attention to your thoughts. It
wasn’t yet dark out, and I’m sure you didn’t think of the danger.
We were just starting to search when the window’s lit with power.
I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have left you alone—that won’t happen
again.” His eyes became round, worried.

I took his hands in mine, and searched those
clear, green emeralds. My mind opened, and the dreadful
conversation that had taken place replayed in gory detail. Gavin’s
emotions exploded from sheer rage to despair. Instinct refused to
keep anything from him, screaming the black elf had tried to
manipulate me into doing so.

Our circle intensified; the despair and shame
burning through the energy couldn’t hide that he was a prince, and
there was another.

I am of a world full of hypocrisy,
cynicism, lies, and deceit. It has surrounded me every day of my
existence.
Gavin’s emotions filled with self-loathing, his head
bowed in shame. I refused to shut down the circle, allowing him to
feel the pain and rejection I was experiencing.

Edna was the only person I’ve ever known
that wasn’t affected by the darkness in this world, and now she’s
left me too. It would be very easy to travel down that path and
start questioning you, Gavin. You need to trust me more. You need
to believe in us more. I cannot feel betrayed again.

The energy darkened. My muscles grew tired,
like I had been up for days on end with no rest. I understood
immediately.

Stop!

His eyes were full of despair. I laid both of
my hands over his heart and placed my forehead next to his.

Thoughts of Rena, Tark, Elias, and Elaine
stood strong in my mind. I would make sure they were safe. Even if
that meant letting Gavin go and sending him back to his world to be
with his betrothed, I would do it. If the black elf’s prediction
came to pass and he never claimed me, I would be grateful for
everything he had given me and forgive him for what he couldn’t. I
sent that message to him with all of the love and sacrifice such an
act would entail, filling him with energy.

The light in the room gradually brightened.
The current so strong, the webbing in the walls joined the window’s
glow, creating a room of pure, spun energy. Gavin and I stood
there, my hands on his heart, him holding my waist, as our stream
of power flowed between us. His warm lips softly found mine, and I
sighed, realizing that we needed to close down the circle if Rena,
Tark, Elaine, and Elias were to re-enter the house. Concern for
them made it easier than I thought it would be.

Rena was the first through the door, and I
ran and threw my arms around her, my blue fog forever in place.

“Thank God you’re okay!” I whispered, kissing
her cheek. Tark was behind her with a grin on his face, and I
reached for him as well.

“Where are Elias and Elaine?” I asked,
automatically searching their emotions for some untold horror.
Relief rushed through; there was no loss or grief in the room.

“They are sweeping the woods for more
Dokkalfar. There were only six in the pack, but we feel they were
scouting for Jakkar,” Rena said.

“They won’t be going back to join him,” Tark
darkly chuckled.

Elias and Elaine came through the door,
shutting it quickly. Relief caused my heart to steady, and I
considered becoming agoraphobic. Gavin searched Elias’ eyes, and
then Elaine’s. Rena’s darted from Gavin to Elias; Tark’s emotions
churned in anger. Elaine went to Elias and held his hand. Rage
flared in Gavin, and the other emotions in the room were restless.
I hated being left out, and I had had enough.

“
Stop it
!”

My voice echoed. Shock ran through the room
as five pairs of beautifully jewel-toned eyes stared at me.

“Are you going to try and lock me out again?”
Gavin’s features hardened; I turned to Elias. “It does no good to
leave me out of the discussion. How am I supposed to protect or
help Gavin if I don’t know what I am up against? Would you hold
your secrets above the value of my life?”

Gavin flinched and Rena kept her gaze fixed
on the floor, but Elias’ hard blue eyes burned with an expression I
didn’t understand. I glowered back, my brow furrowed, the hazel
almost green with the turmoil flowing through.

“I love you all, and I would die for any of
you, but I cannot help if I don’t know what I’m up against. And
that black elf was surprisingly educated about my life, Edna,
Michael, and everyone else here ... more so than I.” My tone was
unusually aggressive; the heat of my intent seeped through the
shield. Elias’ emotions exuded defiance. Elaine put her hand over
his heart, but his penetrating stare never wavered. He finally
relinquished, his gaze snapping to Gavin. He obviously was giving
his opinion about something, but as usual, I had no clue what it
could be.

Rena’s tears caused guilt to flare, but I
wouldn’t take my words back. Enough was enough. How was I supposed
to live under a roof full of secrets? The atmosphere in the room
rumbled with silence.

“You’re right,” Rena finally whispered. Her
resolve grew as she faced Gavin.

“We need council. The law that binds us did
not account for your falling in love with a human, Gavin. It did
not warn us of the power encompassing Nora. Our world has no idea
of the massive Dokkalfar inhabiting this place. You must go home
and take care of your betrothed problem, for it is apparent you
cannot be mated with Mia. We need council from the queen, and you,
as the rightful heir, should be the one to address her.”

Gavin furiously turned to Rena. His anger sat
on my chest, and I had difficulty breathing. My blue shield became
stone hard.

“You will speak in the way of your people,”
he arrogantly commanded. The hair raised on my arms with the
authority that emanated from him. He had never given an order to
anyone, and it seemed wrong and out of place for him to do so now.
My emotions, already raw from everything that had happened today,
ripped through me.

“I will not exclude her anymore … she is
right.” Rena’s voice cracked, and Tark pulled her to his side,
obviously mentally pleading with her.

“Will you defy me Corina, daughter of Rill?”
Gavin’s voice grew soft, foreboding. Rena flinched. From the fear
coursing through her, I understood Gavin could get her into real
trouble if he chose too.

“Gavin,” I scolded, my brow creased in
reproof. His anger pulsed through us both. It was apparent he must
have been in charge and giving orders all this time in the way of
his people, as he put it. The shield relaxed for a moment.

We will discuss this tonight; Rena doesn’t
deserve your wrath.
I’d never seen him so cold, but I stood my
ground, throwing my love for Rena and the purity of her intent to
the front of my mind. My filter, visible on the edges, did not do
as well to dissipate all of the power. It was strong, and I could
feel Gavin absorbing it as he read my thoughts. Gradually, his eyes
softened.

He warily turned to Rena, “I’m sorry. You are
correct, but I will not leave Nora. You must understand that.”