Power (21 page)

HOPE (The Descendant Trilogy #2)

Chapter 1
Excitement

Responsibilities. That’s what I thought of when I looked at her now. Not my own responsibilities, but those she would inherit from me, through our blood.

Samantha, the angel faced, golden haired beauty was curled up in bed, groaning that she wasn’t ready to wake for the day. But as I looked down at her, the only thing I could think about was that she would turn six within the next several months. That would be a scary time for us. It was then that we would find out if she would inherit Power from me. I didn’t want to say it worried me exactly, but it was definitely scary. If she did have Power, like I do, then with that Power would come quite a lot of responsibilities. Responsibilities I was all too aware of.

“Samantha, are you still asleep? It’s almost time to go to church. We’re going to be late if you don’t get up now!” It had always been a struggle trying to wake her up.

Responsibilities.

If she didn’t inherit Power, than she would be the only Powerless one in the Compound, and when she turned six, she would no longer be allowed to stay. There was a time before, not too long ago that I thought I may have to leave her behind, when I first came here. Now that I brought her, I had to face that she may not be able to stay with me. And then what would I do? Leave with her? Leave my own responsibilities behind?

The Compound, where we stay now, is basically a hidden fortress located deep within the Sierra Nevada Mountains. All of the Order and the Council live here. The Order is what we are called. We are humans that have good Power and who are descended from one or more of the Primitus
[1]
. The Council are the people in charge of The Order. They are the most Powerful force of good, all gathered together at the Compound. Samantha was the first child allowed inside, and the first person who did not already have Power who was allowed inside.

This is what my life has become.

“Yes ma’am.” She shouted back at me. We all went to the chapel here in The Compound. They give you the option of leaving the Compound to go the Church of your choosing, but since coming here, I haven’t found anyone who wasn’t willing to go to the chapel here. We have lived here now for the last seven months. Back in March I had been tormented and hunted by the Leader of the Rising.

The Rising is the opposite of what we are. It is composed of all those humans who have descended from the demons that came to infiltrate the Earth and spread their wickedness. Damien was the leader. I killed him in a large scale battle between us and them. Now we are living in a period of peace, we hope. Of course, we realize that they are still out there, readying their forces for attack. But we have searched for them, and have come back empty handed. They have fled to the outer reaches of the Earth, places we haven’t been able to see. While we wait, we grow and we train and we live.

But that’s not it. Just because they are not attacking us, doesn’t mean they aren’t planning things. When Damien was alive, he was leading The Rising to unleash the demons and begin the Apocalypse. World War III has started. I don’t even listen to the news anymore, because it is depressing to hear death galore, bombings, and constant attacks. We know that Damien was planning on convincing the leaders of several countries to pollute the air with some kind of biological weapon, but as far as we can tell, it hasn’t happened yet.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse walk among us.

“Thank you.” I said as I walked back into my own room to finish getting ready myself and try to clear my head from what lingers outside this safe house. I had never been one of those girly girls, the girls who put on a lot of makeup and wear all the trendy clothes. I always wore what was sensible, easy, and comfortable, and even since I’ve been here, that hasn’t changed. However, a lot of other things had changed, so after throwing on a simple jean skirt and nice blouse, I went quickly to the restroom to throw on a little lip gloss, some earrings, and spray myself with some perfume. Since coming here, I have met and fallen in love with the most amazing man of all time, David Donnelly. He has brought me comfort, peace, and security and I cannot wait until the day that I can claim him as my own. It was for him, that I added a little extra touch to my ensemble today.

When I thought about my fiancé, all sorts of feelings rumbled through me. I sat down on the bed, waiting for Sam to finish up, and leaned back against the headboard. He knocked on my door, alerting me to his presence. He didn’t wait for me to invite him in, I guess because he knew there was no way I would tell him not to come in.

I saw his head come in first, followed by the rest of him. He smiled at me, and said, “Good morning!” Before I could speak, I had to just admire him. He was gorgeous; his eyes were a light honey colored brown mixed with shades of emerald green. His hair color complimented the shade of his eyes perfectly, slightly tousled and disheveled because, as he often said, it didn’t matter how many times he tried to comb it, it never looked combed. He had an open and engaging smile, his white teeth peeking out from behind full pink lips. High cheekbones and a pronounced jaw brought everything together to make him look like a Roman god.

His chiseled body topped the whole thing off. He was about 6’3 or 6’4 and maybe 200 pounds. That’s how he looked when he wasn’t using his Power, but when he did, he looked even more stunning. His eyes would turn deep emerald, all the honey color gone. The tips of his hair would turn with the wind, into a light green shade. Of course, when any of us used our Power, our colors changed. That was just a side effect.

I replied, “Good morning, babe,” before I got up to welcome him into my arms. He slid his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him. Every time we touched, since the very first time we touched, we both feel this jolt of electricity flow between us. I have decided now that it is because we are meant to be together, like soul mates, like destiny. I allow his warmth to spread over me and breathe in his rugged scent. It’s amazing that any person could smell this good. I leaned into him and he rested his head on mine, before leaning back to kiss my forehead. David is the ultimate good man. He has never been intimate with a woman, because he has never been married. It may seem old-fashioned, but according to Rick, my long time friend, mentor, and one of the Council members here, any person who has descended from Castafonda, one of the Primitus, cannot be anything but chaste until marriage. David calls it his super human conscience. I call it frustrating.

Despite this, I rose to my tiptoes to kiss his lips, because a kiss on my forehead just wasn’t enough for me. He complied with my request and allowed his lips to match mine, parting in unison. I could feel my heartbeat accelerate and I could feel my body start to warm. It was always the same when we kissed. My emotions always got carried away. But he pulled away, just in time, as Sam was running in to tell him good morning also.

I leaned back to look at them, as he picked her up in a bear hug and twirled her around the room. She squealed in happiness and I reveled in how my life was turning out. As long as you could ignore the impending doom and destruction the apocalypse would bring, my life rocked. Everything that I had ever hoped for was coming true. True love, great kid, happy family. It was perfect, minus my longing for my mother.

But really, I all I could think about lately was one thing: this week. I had actually been counting down the days. And now I could hardly wait for the next week to be over, because it was exactly six days from today that I would get to marry my amazing David!

***

“Ok, I’m pretty sure we have everything finished up.” Sharon said, as she sat down on my bed. “I am picking up the bouquets and boutonnieres tomorrow. The cake will be delivered right before the ceremony. Your dress is finished and we already got you fitted.” She continued rambling, going down the list she had prepared and checking off items as she went even though she had already checked the list twice. She kind of reminded me of Santa Claus, and thankfully I had been a good girl all year.

My nerves were all crazy and going haywire. It’s pretty weird to think that I had been engaged for years to Alex, Samantha’s father, and had never really even been excited for the day to come. And now, though I was getting married in only two days, it couldn’t come fast enough. I have been waiting for this day, for what felt like forever, though in reality things moved faster for us than they do for normal people these days. I know when a friend from work back in Texas got married, they were engaged for almost two years before they got married, because she said it would take her that long to plan for it. Thankfully I had Sharon, my very best friend, who had done almost everything for this wedding. Without her it would have been a disaster for sure.

“Your mom is going to be here tomorrow, and she will stay at a hotel in Winnemucca.” I started listening then. Of course she wouldn’t be allowed to stay here with us, so we had decided to not have the wedding at the chapel here in the Compound. There was no way that I would get married without my mother present.

“The rooms are already reserved, so we will head over there Friday night, so we can be ready for the next morning.” She looked up at me then, and smiled a wide excited grin. I wasn’t sure if I was more excited about Saturday or she was.

Since coming to the Compound, Sharon and I had grown extremely close. She had taken on the responsibility of watching Sam for me while I trained with David to learn how to control my power and strengthen my abilities.

It was her brother, Mark, who had been a traitor to the Order and told the Rising where to find me when I left the Compound for the first time. He had been having an affair with a Rising member who calls herself Lilly, though we had since researched her and come to find out her real name is Lilith Santoria. We think she may be the one who took Damien’s place as the new Leader of the Rising. But we aren’t sure, of course. This is the first time that the Order has been able to kill one of their leaders, and thus, there isn’t a straight shot as to his successor. It was also she who had been the one to kill Mark, and leave Sharon without any other family member in the world.

That’s when we decided that we would be family, not by blood, but by circumstance and love. She is the sister I always wished I had, and I hers. My sister from another mister. She has brought me more joy than I could have hoped for. A female companion, someone I could vent to that would truly listen to me. Not only listen to my spoken words, but listen to my inferences, the unspoken feelings one only hints at. I was so blessed and happy to have her.

“Does it feel strange to you, that we could be so happy, after all the things that happened recently?” I asked her, voicing my thoughts. I had to leave my mother behind, lost my daughter’s father, killed an evil man, and now, I get to marry the man of my dreams. It doesn’t seem real. Like those things shouldn’t all be in the same person’s life.

“Of course, Allison! That’s what makes all the bad things that happen in life worthwhile. What point is there to living if you don’t get to enjoy the good things? You are reaping the rewards of your hard work.” She placed her hand on my leg, comforting me. Though I wasn’t sure I needed comforting. I just couldn’t shake the growing feeling that there was something bad, just around the corner. Like this really was all too good to be true.

I shook off the eerie feelings and indulged in the wedding plans. I knew that tomorrow we were going to be staying in town, and that my mom would get here. Samantha’s dress was ready, as well as mine and all the plans were basically finished. All I had to do now was wait for the big day.

***David***

“David!” Rick called my name, bringing me from my thoughts. He walked into my room, coming towards me. He didn’t look worried or scared, he looked happy. As happy as any friend would be at seeing two people they care about getting ready to embark on such a wonderful journey as marriage. Rick has been my friend for many years now, he was my teacher, my mentor, my brother. I smiled at his entrance and opened my arms for an embrace. He walked to me and hugged me tightly. We were not like so many men these days, that didn’t think it appropriate to hug another male. I had no fear in admitting I loved him, as any man should love a brother.

“How are you?” He asked me. Though he didn’t speak it, I felt he was truly inquiring more than he was letting on. Did he think I had cold feet? I chuckled at the thought. Rick knew as well as I did how long life can seem when you are in the Order. We age so slowly that we could live to be hundreds of years old. And with as few of us as there are, we rarely get to find a mate. Allison was more to me than just my soon to be wife, she was my soul mate. I had no doubt that we had both been created for the other. I had been waiting for her for several decades now and felt as though time was suspended, moving reluctantly slowly. I could barely stand it. I was so close to the happiest day of my long life.

“I am very well!” I assured my friend, adding more truth to my words, “I only wish time would speed a little for me.” He nodded, understanding how I felt.

Rick had loved only one woman before, though he had been unable to pursue her, due to his duty on the Council and his duty to her daughter. The woman had lost her husband recently, and Rick had been able to comfort her in her time of need, though I could never tell if that was a blessing or a curse. To be able to get close to her, but still stay at a distance. Even after these many years have passed, I still see the sadness in him. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, that there couldn’t be another man alive happier for me now then he was. I was able to have what he always wished he could have.

“That is good to hear. I understand all the plans have commenced and everything is in order?” Though it was a statement, he spoke it like a question.

I nodded, “I believe so. Sharon has basically taken the reigns and brought everything together beautifully.”

He chuckled. We both loved Sharon. She was an amazing woman, honest, caring, and kind. She had been the first to truly welcome Allison and Samantha here, and make them feel at home. Though, her brother Mark had been a traitor, not one person held that against her. She was as honest as we all wished we could be.