Authors: Laura Hawks
Clarissa swallowed as she listened to his heart wrenching confession. Lowering her eyes, her long lashes rested on her sex flushed cheeks, she thought about his words.
“Why could you not join me here then? Leave your realm and live your life here with me?”
He sighed and stood up, flashing black pants low on his waist.
“Like you, I have responsibilities that no one else can accomplish. If I choose you over my obligations, I would put you in greater danger as well as the universe, which could literally unravel. Consider me the fucking thread that holds everything together. Whereas your ward can unfold the universe depending on who might obtain it and how they wield its power, or start a war that will end humankind and its way of life, my duties will guarantee it would happen should I dispatch of them.”
Rolling out of the bed to grab a robe which had been pushed onto the floor and wrap it around her, she moved to stand in front of him.
“We are really that screwed, huh?”
Mel chortled. “Afraid so.”
Her heart ached but at least she understood so much more. As much as it pained her to say the next words, for her own sanity she had to, “Then you best leave now. Please don’t track me down again.”
Spinning on her heel, she lifted her chin prideful and headed out of the room to her kitchen. She could only be strong so much before she broke entirely. When she sensed he was no longer in her apartment, she fell to her knees and wept.
Chapter Nineteen
Nanaboojoo’s eyes were solid white as he sat cross-legged on the plush carpet in front of his flaming fireplace. The warmth the fire emitted didn’t affect Nana in his current hypnotic state. He was far too lost in the visions of the happenings which were converging, the paths some had chosen to walk to personally feel anything physical. It was a journey he had taken for eons of centuries, before time existed and man walked the earth. The path he traveled daily allowed him to see the past and present but never the future for it fluctuated constantly to be seen clearly. His own ancient wisdom would allow him to deduce much but not everything. What he envisioned today saddened him greatly as well as concerned him. A course was being laid, a trail being established which would shake the very foundations of the universe to its core and leave little else standing in the aftermath.
However, interference might not be the best course of action. He would need to convene the elder council and discuss these latest developments. He knew they were not going to be please. Hell,
he
wasn’t pleased, why should they be? His main concern was what they were going to do about the situation. Would they interfere in the life of the Guardian wolf? Would they attempt to obtain the stone for themselves and hope none become so desirous of the Gem of Avarice that they steal it and use it for their own nefarious purposes? What was the right path to walk? Which trail led them to the outcome with the least amount of resistance and harm?
Nana’s eyes returned to their deep, rich brown hues and he blinked starring at the dancing flames of the fire for a few more minutes. Slowly, the ancient being stood and mentally called to his brothers to meet in the sweat lodge. It was time they began to discuss what needed to be done versus what they could involve themselves with.
Within the hour, Nana entered the sweat lodge, his clothes instantly evaporating as a towel appeared around his waist. The other members of the council were already there. He greeted each in turn. Chipiapoo, the God of the Dead. Michabochel, God of the Water. Dahdahwat, God of the Animals. Ictinike, God of War. Deganiwada, God of Peace. Hamedicus, God of Time. Ockebewis, God of Messages and Genetaska, God of Justice. Nanaboojoo made the ninth elder, Protector of Humanity, God of the Forests, God of Gods.
Once all the formalities of acknowledgment were completed, Nana sat down on one of the logs around the fire pit, the steam creating adumbration coils that slithered about the gathered men.
“We have a problem,” Nana stated without further preamble. “The Gem of Avarice has been constantly resonating. The Guardian has been under attack almost daily and unable to secure it. Demons of every variety have come out of the woodwork tracking her. She has tried several times to hide the stone and has been attacked each time. Consequently, she has been prevented from completing the ritual ceremony to obscure the mystic vibrations.”
Ictinike leaned forward, his hands on his knees. His voice was a deep baritone which reverberated throughout the chamber, “What assistance has she thus received, if any?”
“None. Although, since Azamel trained her a few months back, her own powers have fully manifested and she has gained considerable control over them,” Nana responded.
Degan softly asked, “Is Azamel still in contact with her?”
“Not until today. He has reluctantly respected our previous instructions and once she was returned to the human realm, he has avoided all contact with her before just a few hours ago.”
Micha spoke up, “What did he do to break his track record of abiding our request?”
“He went to her to warn her of the impending war if she loses the battle for the stone.” Nana paused, his voice becoming somewhat fatherly as he resumed, “She is doing an admirable job of maintaining her responsibilities considering she was thrust into this duty without prior knowledge or training.”
An ominous voice spoke, belonging to Ocke from the darkened corner, “Who is behind the attacks?”
“Although I knew she was under continuous assault, the conductor of these offensive strikes was shadowed to me. It still is but I have uncovered some information which gives a strong indication it’s Jes’Sakkid. Activity by Azamel throws suspicion his way and Jes would benefit greatly if he gets his hands on the gem.”
Dah shook his head, his long dark hair flying across his face as he did so. “We cannot interfere.”
Chipiapoos, Jes’Sakkid and Azamel’s father grumbled lowly. “I don’t want all the extra work because we didn’t get involved. If a war begins, who gets the majority of the work? Me! Escorting everyone to the underworld, having charge over them. Really, I’m busy enough as it is. How can he be stopped without interference?”
Ham laughed darkly. “It can’t be done. The path has been drawn, the course set and without help the Guardian will succumb to the endless bombardment.”
“She has done extremely well considering all she has been forced to contend with. A fierce warrior, a true fighter. She could’ve thrown the stone at them and walked away but she hasn’t.” Ictinike added emphatically, “Very impressive.”
Degan laughed at him. “You find any woman impressive if they would sleep with you too.” He turned serious again and came back to the situation at hand. “So what do we do? Do we assist her in the stone’s protection? Do we confront Jes?”
“My son won’t be stopped and though he is my son, I’ll admit he is not playing with a full deck. He wouldn’t have thought of this on his own or been able to plan it so carefully. It’s quite obvious some detail and planning has occurred to have gotten this far. None I am cognizant of were even aware which family protected the stone. Someone discovered this information and made it available for the stone to become discernible to others, including Jes. Jes is only plugging up the current leak but it may at least be a start in preventing a war,” Chip asserted.
The council sat in silence for a few moments reflecting on what had been stated so far.
Genetaska had been quiet throughout the entire discussion. Clearing his throat, he finally spoke up, “If you approach the Guardian for the stone, she will fight to the death before she will give it up. She has proven her loyalty for protecting it over and over again. Once you have disposed of her to obtain the artifact, you won’t have even one here who could be entrusted with it to champion its cause of keeping it out of undesirable clutches. This is why we chose a family to do it for us. To keep temptation away from those whose powers are not as strong as ours and to keep balance. If we go the way of approaching Jes, he will be alerted to us and as Chip stated, he is not one to be smart enough to think there is a delicate way out of being cornered. He will attack and he has been building resources for centuries, loyalties he will bring together and use against us. A war will begin with just words as quickly as it would with circumventing him entirely.”
Nana spoke up, “Still better to deal with one of our own than open up a can of worms by attempting to get the stone from the Guardian and have the good and innocent suffer because of us. All agree?”
He lifted up the peace pipe and lit it. Taking a puff, he passed it around. Each in turn also smoked from the pipe, showing their acquiescence. When the pipe completed the circle, Nana stood and nodded. “This will need to be handled before the next full moon.”
As he headed out of the lodge, Nana was unaware he had a traitor in his midst, a snake who saw the perfect opportunity to show his loyalty to Jes. He would need to see him soon and give him not only a heads up warning but also provide him with the backup he knew Jes would desperately require if he were to come out on top. By doing so, he knew he would be the first to be heavily rewarded under the new regime of Jes’Sakkid.
Chapter Twenty
The raven flew overhead as the blond woman strode along the sidewalk. For some reason, its intense gaze caused her to stop and lift her head to watch it soar. The huge blue, black bird landed on a building across the street and three doors down. She admired the freedom birds had as they glided about on the air streams so easily. A carefree intent she once had when she was still a child. It amazed her how much had happened in the last two years since her families annihilation.
Clarissa sighed wistfully and continued ambling down the street. She kept her senses open for demons, especially any who were tracking her. She hadn’t had an attack in three days, not since Azamel visited her. Just the thought of him sent a tightening of desire through her womb. She knew they couldn’t be together but having him so blatantly voice it was something else altogether. She realized why it was so disheartening. By voicing it outright, it took any notion of hope she might otherwise have had. She lost the only thing she had to look forward to; possibly getting together with him, even if it was a hundred years down the road. All she had left was to try to survive and keep the Gem of Avarice out of everyone else’s hands. It was her duty but even she had to admit she was running on low fumes until Mel stopped by.
A small smile appeared on her lips at the thought of him. Despite everything, he made her smile, sent desire through her entire being with a single thought and her heart raced faster. She knew she loved him, a fact made very prominent just days ago when he appeared in her apartment.
As she turned the corner, the magnificent old 1924 Ambassador building, with its tan bricks and white moldings, old red and white vertical sign hanging from the side, greeted her warmly. She loved the old building. It was one of her favorite apartments she had ever occupied. The exposed brick walls in each of the apartments and the gorgeous hard wood floors appealed to her greatly. It reminded her of some of the quaint oldness she saw when she’d been in New Orleans. Again, she shook her head. Did everything remind her of him in some way or other?
It was while she was in New Orleans she first felt the pull of the stone being sought after from Xon, which caused her to go to the South American jungles to retrieve it from where it was hidden. It was that journey she came across Mel in a clearing where he had been waiting for her. She didn’t know what or who he was but he seemed to know almost everything about her except that she was the Guardian. Dawning recognition eventually occurred and he figured out who she was and why she was so important in keeping the protection of the gem out of the hands of others as well as how she was able to sense it better than anyone else he had come across.
The first time Mel tried to sexually touch her, she thought he was after the stone and rebuffed him. Actually, she threw him across the room, surprised at the sadness then harshness which came into his eyes as he realized she thought he was only after the stone and not just wanting to be with her. He was so hurt and angry with her, he sent her back to her small apartment across from the bar she had been able to get a job at when she had first arrived in the city months before she had met Mel in those jungles. It was also the first place she felt at home. New Orleans was the first place where she felt comfortable since she had started running from the horrors she experienced with her own home.
Mel came back with her to the New Orleans apartment when she needed to pack up some things as a result of being willing to stay with him and train. However, the most important thing he had done for her was save the bar and the people she had worked with when Xon tried to burn it to the ground in an attempt to flush her out.
Azamel didn’t tell her everything but she knew. Shara told her how Mel had gone in and saved some of the patrons and workers, making sure they got out of the flame engulfed structure. She had wanted to go herself, leave the safety of the Nether Realm and Mel’s home but he refused to allow her to leave. Mel knew it was a trap and he wasn’t willing to expose her in any way until she was ready to face Xon and beat him. So the judge went in her stead to rescue what she cared about the most at that time: a building, a sense of the city’s history and the people who were actually the first ones to be nice to her since she had been on her own.
She thought maybe one day she might actually make it back there to visit them. Apologize to them for leaving so quickly without even saying goodbye. She hoped there would be a time she wouldn’t have to worry about their safety as she renewed broken ties she once had a chance to establish.
Breaking her reverie, she entered the Ambassador and took the stairs up to her room on the fourth floor. Letting herself into the apartment, she shut and locked the door behind her. Turning towards the window, she was startled to see the raven sitting on the ledge and starring at her. She chuckled softly at herself for being so jumpy that a bird made her heart skip a beat. Shaking her head at her own silliness, she headed towards the kitchen to make a pot of tea.
Once she was out of sight, the raven allowed the glass window to coalesce around him as he entered the apartment, his feathers lengthening as his body shifted to elongate into a male human form. Dahdahwat was bare-chested, his long, black hair braided down his back with one loose feather hanging from the side of his head. He wore beige buckskins and matching moccasins. His eyes though striking showed a swirling amber. The gold’s, browns and red flecks intermingling as they shifted about his irises.
He moved silently as he came up behind the woman wolf. Clarissa spun the teapot in her hand and knocked it hard against the intruder. While he was disoriented, she kicked him away from her then scissor kicked him again. The second time she clipped his jaw. She could tell he was slightly stunned and she grabbed his arm and flashed out of the apartment, taking him with her. She would be damned if she allowed a fight to occur there in such a beautiful old building. She couldn’t allow for that to happen, so she took it to a more isolated area.