Journey 'The Chosen One Trilogy: Book Two' (31 page)

He shook his head. “No. The only crazy
woman left in my life now is you.” He reached to the floor, found
my ring in his pocket and put it back on my finger. His lips
brushed over my knuckles.

I grinned. “Alright, then. This crazy
woman is in the mood to claim her hard earned prize.”

He rolled us over so that he was on top
of me. He nuzzled my neck and I shivered.

“Since you worked so hard to win your
prize, why don’t you just lay back and enjoy it, Shlova?” His voice
was a whisper against my skin. I sighed and enjoy it, I
did.

*****

The following morning, I sat on a chair
in the back room of Marilynn’s shop. Hanna stood over me with a
needle and a vial of green ink. She had drawn the shape of the
leafy vine so that it ran under my right eye and curled around the
side of it. I kept my eyes closed and tried to focus on the feel of
Jasper’s thumb running over the top of my hand.

“There!” Hanna patted a cloth over the
whole thing and held it there for a bit. I opened one eye to look
at her. She had pulled her shoulder length black hair into a bun to
keep it out of her face. Her caramel colored eyes smiled at me.
“See, that wasn’t so bad.”

“No. I guess it wasn’t.”

“Alright. Just one more thing and we’re
all done.”

I closed my eyes again as she spread a
green wave over the tattoo and healed the skin.

“Done.” She handed me a
mirror.

“Nice. I like it.”

Jasper kissed my cheek and smiled. “It
looks good.”

Marilynn brought out four mugs of
sloan. “Let’s celebrate. To Hayden.”

“To me?” I blushed.

Hanna smiled. “To Hayden. May she stay
safe.”

I laughed. “Well, that, I’ll drink
to.”

We all took a drink.

One of Marilynn’s apprentices came
running into the shop, his light brown hair wind-blown, his dark
blue eyes wide. Teean was fourteen and had been under Marilynn’s
care since the age of six when the orphanage had noticed his
magical tendencies. His mother had passed away giving birth to him
and his father was rarely home due to assignments on
patrols.

“Marilynn! They found another one! Just
outside the keep!” He bent over, trying to catch his
breath.

“Calm down, Teean. Breathe.”

He nodded and tried to calm himself.
“Grant’s pack. They found it burnt.”

“Where?” She stood and pulled him up
into a hug. I realized he was crying.

“The meadow to the south.”

“Do they want me there?”

He nodded again and Marilynn hugged him
tightly.

“Alright. Hanna, can Teean go with
you?”

“No.” He shook his head. “I’m coming.”
He wiped his arm over his face and took a deep breath. “I…I have to
see.”

“I’ll come along,” volunteered Hanna.
“I want to see this also.”

Marilynn nodded. “Hayden?
Jasper?”

We both nodded and the five of us made
our way toward the gates that led out of the keep. Marilynn put a
hand on Teean’s arm.

“Are you sure?”

He nodded. “Maybe something happened.
Maybe he got away.”

Jasper swallowed hard and I took his
hand. I gave it a squeeze, knowing that he was thinking about his
own family being killed. Teean’s father had been running with
Grant’s pack for the past five years. I hoped for the young
sorcerer’s sake that he was right.

We continued in silence, all of us
dreading the sight we were about to see. The smell of burnt flesh
and fur got stronger as we got closer. I started to breathe through
my mouth.

“Identify yourselves!” A dark haired
man made his way around a bush and stood in front of us. His eyes
widened and he nodded. “Marilynn.”

She nodded back. “Who found the
pack?”

“Parker’s came across it. They were on
their way back out.”

“Is he still here?”

The man nodded.

“Alright.” She moved past him and the
rest of us followed. We entered the clearing. There were men
stationed around the whole perimeter of it. Some of them were
shifted, others weren’t. All of them were on edge. In the middle of
the clearing was a sight that made my stomach lurch. I swallowed
hard, trying to keep from throwing up.

Teean stopped short and Jasper went to
stand by him. He put a hand on the young Namael’s
shoulder.

“Straighten up, Teean. You’ve already
come this far.”

Teean looked up at my mate. He
swallowed, took a deep breath and the uncertainty left his face. He
gave a small nod before walking off again.

“Was that necessary? You could have
told him to go home.” I fell into step beside Jasper.

“It was. You know how it is, Hayden.
Next year he’ll become of age and he’ll be assigned to a pack. If
he doesn’t finish what he came here to do, he’ll forever doubt
himself. If he doubts himself, he’ll second guess every move he
makes. Not only will that get him killed, it will get others
killed.”

I nodded. “I know. He just seems so
young and his dad might be in there.”

“I’ll admit it isn’t the ideal
situation to start his pack training, but he’s here because he
wanted to be.”

We got to the middle of the clearing
and I scanned the scene before me. Parker stood in the midst of the
bodies directing his men who were cutting the burnt Namaels apart
and laying them on the ground side by side. When the last of them
had been freed, he came to join us.

“Marilynn, Jasper, Miss Hayden, Hanna,
young Teean.”

We all nodded.

“Any clues?” Marilynn was nudging the
bodies with her magic, trying to find a trace of the being that
might have done this.

Parker shook his head. “Nothing.” He
looked over the line of bodies. “It looks like they were all tied
and burnt alive.”

Jasper put a hand on Teean’s shoulder.
“Alright, man. Let’s go see if we can’t find your
father.”

Teean started at the word ‘man’ then
nodded, his eyes narrowed in determination. The two of them headed
to the first of the bodies on the ground. Teean looked carefully at
each one before moving on to the next. Every so often Jasper would
say something and get a nod or an answer in return.

They stopped to look at the body that
lay in front of us and I could see the tension in Jasper. His jaw
was clenched, his face white. It was the same look on all of the
other guards not shifted into cats. I knew that some of it was
sadness. Jasper had probably recognized a few of the men on the
ground. Another part of it was frustration. With no clues to go on,
there was no way of catching whoever or whatever was responsible.
The worst of it was the fear. It was clear in all of their eyes and
I knew it was in mine was well. Melana’s guard was a group of elite
fighters, trained to be the best by the best. Yet, whatever this
thing was, it was eliminating them one whole pack at a
time.

They had made their way three quarters
of the way down the line when Teean’s shoulders slumped. Jasper
spoke softly to him. Teean nodded, bent down, and lifted something
from around the man’s neck. He put whatever it was in his pocket.
He stepped back and all of the energy seemed to leave his body. He
fell to his knees, his shoulders shaking with the sobs I could tell
he was trying to stop.

Jasper knelt beside him and put an arm
around the young Namael’s shoulders. Teean leaned against him. I
swallowed hard, trying to get rid of the lump that was forming in
my throat. They stayed that way for a few minutes and I noticed how
everyone looked away to give Teean his privacy.

“At least if we knew what we were up
against we could deal with it.” Parker glanced at the line of
bodies and growled.

I felt a nudge and looked quickly to
Marilynn just as she glanced at me.

“It’s still here.” My heart was
pounding in my chest. I projected my surprise and fear to Jasper
who grabbed Teean by the arm and walked back to us, looking around
normally.

“What’s wrong?”

“We’re being watched. I felt it and so
did Marilynn.”

“If everyone leaves, no one else will
get hurt. It’s me he wants.” Marilynn had obviously recognized the
nudge.

“What? Who is it?” Teean’s eyes were
wide dark blue saucers. He wiped the tears from his face and I
could see him refocus all of his attention to the feel of the air
around us.

“Aaron. My mate.”

The only one who didn’t look surprised
was Parker.

“But I thought the two of you were
fated!” Jasper couldn’t keep the shock out of his voice.

Parker shook his head. “I thought we
had gotten rid of him.”

“So had I.” Marilynn took a deep
breath. “Aaron and I fated young and for a while, everything went
well. As time went by, he made it clear that he wasn’t happy with
the fact that my magic was stronger than his. When Melana appointed
me head sorceress in her court, he lost it. He took me out, making
it look like we were celebrating. We got to a secluded spot and
before I knew it he was trying to kill me.”

Parker growled low in his throat. “The
bastard waited until she was shifted so she couldn’t use her magic.
I happened to be walking to the creek to get some fishing in on my
days off.” He shook his head and took a step toward her but stopped
when she shook her head.

“I don’t think he’s recognized you or
you would already be dead.”

He frowned. “I couldn’t care less what
he thinks. Let the coward show his face and I’ll make sure I finish
the job this time.”

“Parker, please. He’s been building his
power for twenty years and by the looks of it, he’s done a good job
of it. If he goes after you, I’m not positive I can stop
him.”

“So I’m just supposed to let him keep
killing my men; to let him try and kill you? By the moons,
Marilynn, we may not be fated, but after twenty years together I’ll
be damned if I’m going to just let him waltz in here and take you
away from me!”

The two of them stared at each other,
jaws clenched. It was a battle of who would be more stubborn and at
the moment, no one was winning.

I looked to Jasper. He shrugged and
shook his head.

Parker took matters into his own hands.
He stepped to her with three long strides, took her by the arms and
pulled her to him. Marilynn’s eyes widened in surprise as he
crushed his lips to hers.

Within a few seconds the air was
rolling with magic.

“Teean! Shield!” I took my own shield
and pushed it out as hard as I could. I felt my magic hit Teean’s
then Marilynn’s who was glaring at Parker.

He shrugged and looked so innocent I
knew that, had I not been so scared, I would have laughed. I looked
around, trying to pinpoint where Aaron might have been standing.
The push sharpened and Teean fell to his knees with a cry. I spread
my shield over his.

Men and cats were falling all around
us.

“Hayden, can you shield these four?”
Marilynn glanced at me before looking to the far end of the
clearing. I followed her gaze and saw a tall man with a full head
of silver hair. Even from this distance I could see how blue his
eyes were. I heard Marilynn suck in a breath and Parker
growled.

“Fight him, Mare. Please, Love.”
Parker’s voice was just a whisper. Marilynn seemed stuck in place.
I remembered how Jasper’s gaze had pulled me after not seeing him
for two months and didn’t think I could come close to imagining
what Marilynn was feeling after twenty years. I wondered if Aaron
was being affected the same way.

“Hayden?” Marilynn’s voice trembled and
I felt her shield slipping.

Aaron pointed to her and crooked his
finger back, beckoning her. She took a few steps forward. Parker
put a hand on her arm.

“Mare?”

“I…I don’t…I can’t…” She put a hand on
his. “I can’t fight this. By the moons, Parker, I’m…I’m sorry.” She
shook her head like she was trying to clear it. She managed to tear
her gaze away from Aaron’s long enough to look at Parker for a few
moments. “I love you,” she whispered. Her shield dropped completely
and Aaron pulled back on his nudge as she started walking toward
him.

Parker took a step to chase after her.
Jasper put a hand on his arm and pulled him back. I looked at Hanna
who shrugged. Teean was still looking after Marilynn, shock clear
on his face.

Marilynn got half of the way between us
and Aaron and stopped. Her head fell forward and her shoulders
slumped. Parker tensed and Jasper let go of his arm.

I saw Aaron pick a silver wave from the
air. Teean was already a step ahead of me. I felt him throw his
shield to cover her and I picked one of my darker reds. I threw the
wave at Aaron. Jasper and Parker were shifted and running toward
Marilynn. Teean grunted as the energy blast hit his shield but
managed to keep it intact. Aaron managed to deflect my wave but
wasn’t quick enough to block Teean’s who had thrown his a faction
of a second after mine. He screamed in pain as the flame engulfed
his left arm. He patted it out and threw another wave at Marilynn.
This time I was the one to cover her. I felt the silver wave try to
pierce through the shield and I almost stumbled. Teean and I took
turns throwing waves and covering Marilynn.