by Iesha Bree
I knew she was reacting to me the same way I was to her, as her nipples turned into hard peaks against my chest. Stepping back, I could now see the flustered red tint in her cheeks as she cleared her throat. I looked up to see her mother was staring at both of us with a knowing smile, which surprised me since she had been giving me a hard time since I’d been here.
“Is there a bathroom in here, Mom?” Noemy asked, looking down the hallway that resembled her home.
“Just like it was at home, everything is the same here. I made sure of it,” she responded with a smile.
Taking the first chance she could, she rushed off down the hall. This was going to be a long night, and not to mention I needed to figure out what the hell was going on. This was not the mission I expected to be on. I now knew that me making it back to Ruella was never Serafina’s plan, and someone had to have followed me here. Now more than ever, the words my father spoke were starting to ring true. But they could best believe I was going to protect Noemy with every breath in my body.
Back in Ruella
I paced back and forth in my bedroom. I still didn’t understand how the fuck she had gotten away. They had to make sure she was alone with the Soluu and take care of Topez! Storming out of my room, I rushed into the head overseer’s room. This was the main connection we had to earth, and how we were able to see what was going on down there. I walked down to the big fountain that sat in the center of the room. Waving my hands over the fountain, images of the incident with a Soluu came up.
The main doors flung open, and my son and daughter stormed into the room.
“Why are you still wearing those damn clothes up here?” I asked, Scrunching my nose up at their appearance.
“Just because you’re Amber and Jason down there, don’t you bring that mess up here. You’re royalty here! And go by the names of Ambrosia and Jaseon,” I stated.
Arms wrapped tightly against my chest, my foot tapped continuously as Ambrosia raised her hand with a snap of her fingers, dragging it down her side, changing her hair and clothes to our traditional garments. I glanced over at Jaseon to see he had followed her lead and was now dressed properly.
“That’s better. Now, tell me what happened down there! This should have been easy for you!” I threw my hands up with a wave.
“Do you know how hard it was to actually be certain it was her! She didn’t even take the bait! It was almost as if she didn’t know she could do anything!” Ambrosia exclaimed, following closely behind me to the fountain.
“Not to mention this sicko over here was trying to flirt with her. I told him it wouldn’t work. It made the whole situation awkward!” Looking in Jaseon’s direction with a point of her finger.
“It was better than what you were doing, trying to piss her off. She would have dropped her walls for me sooner than she would have for you.” They argued back and forth.
“Enough! You both failed!” I yelled at them both.
Pulling up the scene in the alleyway, I knew they hadn’t seen what I did up here. They both stood silently as we watched her levitate with lightning balls in her hands. My eyes grew large at the scene. I hadn’t seen it the first time I watched it. The only thing I could see the first time I saw this was that she had the power my children should have possessed. We continued to watch as Topez came out of nowhere and severed the Soluu in half. I watched as he got her to come back down, and she passed out in his arms, only for them to disappear into thin air.
“Where were you when this was all happening!” I yelled out in frustration.
Neither said a word as they glanced between one another because they weren’t doing what they were sent down there to do. Pushing my son out of my way, I made big strides out of the room because I would be visiting the one person I knew held the answers I needed. Topez was given strict orders to bring her back here, yet he seemed to be doing the exact opposite. I didn’t give a damn that he wasn’t supposed to make it back. If I gave an order, I expected it to be followed.
My daughter and son were grumbling behind me with their usual bickering back and forth.
“Get my chariot ready now!” I yelled in the direction of the two guards by the door.
Storming down the hallway, I made my way to my bedroom to make sure Ra stayed in bed. I didn’t need him finding out what I had been up to too soon. Strolling into our room, I walked over along the side of the bed, taking his hand into my own.
“How are you feeling?”
Peeling his eyes open to look up at me, he closed them once again, taking a deep breath before responding.
“It seems to be getting worse. I have been drinking the remedy you made for me from the garden, but it just doesn’t seem to do its usual trick. I need you to call in one of the healers. This is more serious than we expected.”
“I’m already ahead of you. Someone will be in soon to check you over, but in the meantime, it won’t hurt to take another drink of the remedy I made. It seems you still have some left over.” I strolled over to the end table to grab the vile.
Picking up the vile, I brought it up to my eye level to make sure the poisonous rubella flower was still inside. Poking the cork on the top of the vile, I grabbed a glass and poured some of the contents inside. Stepping back over to his side of the bed, I brought the glass to his lips, helping him swallow the remains of what was in the glass.
“You get some rest, and I will make sure everything is running smoothly while you get you to heal.”
Leaning down, I placed a kiss against his cheek before heading toward the side of the castle since I would be leaving the grounds today to visit Oren.
Leaning back in my seat, I glanced out the window at the many homes and people who lived underneath my family, as they should. This was our world, and they were all but pawns to the next stage. We had bigger plans than just ruling a place where no one knew of us but our Egyptian people. We had the power to become more, to show these humans how to live truly. But yet we stayed hidden like we were something to be ashamed of. Just thinking about the circumstances the previous leaders placed us in made me sick. My children and I deserved more, and more was what we were going to get. Even if I had to make it all happen on my own.
Finally, my chariot arrived at a small, quaint house. I waited briefly for the guards to open my door before I stepped out. I watched as a few guards walked ahead of me to knock on the door. Deciding we didn’t have much time for pleasantries, I waved my hand, causing the door to fly off the hinges. Walking ahead of them, I threw one hand up, stopping all movement within the house. I continued to stare into the faces of Oren and his two sons, who looked ready to tear me apart. I chuckled at the sight because I knew they couldn’t do anything to me, or it would be a death sentence over their heads.
“Oh, boys, relax. I’m only here for a small chat, if you answer my questions correctly, that is.” I smiled, walking further into the house.
I could tell they knew why I was there before I said a word by their facial expressions. I could see a lot of heart in this room, and trying to be a hero would do nothing but get you killed. Killing wasn’t easy, but someone had to do it. I laughed to myself, glancing down at my nails.
“Don’t all speak at once, but why is it that Topez is in the human world?” I asked, looking at each of them.
“Shit, what are you asking us for? I never knew we all could read his mind,” Raz spoke up.
I tilted my head to the left, nibbling on my bottom lip. Strolling over to the pictures they had adorning the walls, I ran a single fingernail across a picture of Oren with his sons, smiling at the camera. They all looked to be laughing. What a nice-looking family. Sadly, they are all going to die today.
“Serafina, cut the charades. You know as well as I do why he is down there. So how would you like to handle this? Just understand that this will not end the way you would like it to,” Oren stated, standing to his feet to step in front of his sons.
“Well, I’m glad we can cut all of the bullshit. Let me assume you
have no intention of telling me where exactly I can find him, do you?” I asked, turning away from the family portrait.
“You assumed just right, so let’s get on with this bullshit,” he stated.
Slowly his eyes turned a smoky gray. Turning his back to me, he whispered a few words over his sons then waved his hands until they disappeared.
Quickly moving into action, I snapped my fingers for my guards, who all ran toward him, only to be thrown from left to right. His hands lifted, practically ripping multiple guards in half. Grabbing the closest guard, I snatched him back with a roll of my eyes. Snatching the photo of his family from the wall, I slammed it to the ground. Shards of glass scattered all over the floors as my eyes turned a stormy violet color. Lifting the shards of glass into the air, I began to fling them in his direction to slow him down. Since my guards couldn’t handle him, I swear that they were all dead once we left this home!
The multiple shards of glass dug into his body, causing him to falter, giving my guards the right moment to drag him down. Grabbing a large shard of glass from the ground, I stormed over to look him in the eyes, placing the glass against his cheek.
“Where did you send them!” I screamed, dragging the glass across his face as he yelled out in pain.
I waited a moment for him to answer me as blood spilled from his face.
Laughing in my face, he gargled out, “Bitch, you will never know! Have a nice life in hell.”
Before standing to my feet, I dragged the same shard of glass across his throat. Smiling down at him, quickly, his essence left his body.
“You will regret this! And trust me, your family will pay for that little sacrifice you just made!” I yelled, storming out of the house, but not before telling my guards to discard his body.
All he did was make this a little bit easier for me, and his other sons were not trained like Topez to hide their energy. They would lead us right to where we needed to be! I laughed to myself as my chariot pulled away from the house.
Closing the bathroom door behind me, I paced back and forth in front of the mirror. All of this didn’t feel real. All this time, I thought I was just different from everyone else because I didn’t like the same things as them, but this was entirely different. I wasn’t even human in the first place. Come to think of it, I didn’t know what I was except for a woman. I sat down on the edge of the tub, placing my face into my hands, when I felt the ground shake underneath my feet. Before I could hop to my feet, there was a knock at the door. I knew who it was before I opened the door. The way my nipples immediately pebbled at his nearness told me everything.
Pulling back the door, he let himself in, looking all around the room. I watched as he pulled back the shower curtain, only to turn back to check me over and make sure I was okay.
“Are you alright?” he asked, still checking me over as if I had fallen or gotten hurt inside a damn bathroom.
“I’m fine,” I said, snatching my arm out of his grasp.
Before he could say another word, a knock resounded at the front door.
We both rushed out of the bathroom to see what was going on. I looked over at my mother to see her eyes were no longer her usual color, but they were now glowing, and her hair was floating above her shoulders like she was Beyoncé. I looked over to see his eyes were glowing as well, but he seemed a bit more dangerous than my mother. Slowly, he crept toward the door, only to stop abruptly. He looked over his shoulder at me, and his eyes were back to normal. Pulling the door open, two men who looked like Egyptian gods walked in. The minute they walked through the door, I heard my mother groan as she dropped to the ground holding her face.
Rushing to her side, I brushed her hands away from her face to reveal that it had become filled with perspiration. I glanced up at the two strangers to figure out what the hell was going on because my mother was fine until they showed up. I felt it overcoming me again, the same way it had in the alley at the club. Now familiar with the feeling, I knew my eyes were back to that turbulent blue. Slowly, Topez turned to face me as he walked over slowly toward me.
“Baby, relax. These are my brothers. They would never do anything to hurt your mother.” He spoke in a smooth, soothing tone.
“Well, what is wrong with her? She was just fine before they walked their asses in here!” I responded, moving the hair from my mother’s face as she stopped convulsing.
I watched as Topez turned to look back at his brother, who was just as shocked as we were until a knowing look came across their faces, followed by sadness.
“Loren and Raz, where is Father?” he asked.
They both held sympathetic looks at one another. I knew I wasn’t the only person in this room who was confused, and it excited me to know I wasn’t. But my main issue was, what did his father have to do with my mother?
“There was nothing we could do. Serafina burst in because she saw what you did at the club. Dad knew we weren’t going to make it out alive, so he turned around and transported us to you,” Loren proclaimed.
I looked down at my mother, who now had tears cascading down her cheeks. I helped my mother to her feet, walking her over to the couch before looking up at Topez.
“Can someone please explain to me what the hell is going on!” I yelled, standing to my feet, both hands on my hips.
I glanced over my shoulder at my mother, who was now staring into space. It was almost as if she was no longer her complete self, like something was missing, although I could see she was physically okay. I looked back up at Topez, who looked as if he would break at any moment but was trying to hide it.
“What does our father have to do with her mother? What the hell happened?” Topez croaked out.
“Father sent me to the palace. He felt that Serafina didn’t have pure intentions for sending you out this way. Well, it turns out he was right! She had someone following you, Pez. I’m sure a lot of shit has taken place since you have been here. You were never supposed to bring her back to Ruella safely. Serafina had planned on killing you as well,” Raz blurted out.
“Damn, I should have fucking listened when my father told me to watch out for her. I just wanted to do right by our people. I was given a task, and I was trying to do everything in my power to complete it,” Topez responded.
Slowly he stepped away from me as he took a moment to step off to the side.
“Wait, what do you mean you were trying to do right by your people? You came here to bring me to the person who has been trying to kill me since you stepped foot into my life?” I pressed.
“I didn’t know she was trying to kill you! Those were not my orders, and it was supposed to be a surprise for your father, nothing more. I had no clue of everything else. Although after tonight, I caught on to the fact that something didn’t seem right when people from our world just showed up, guns blazing.”
“So your people take orders without doing any research! What kind of bullshit is that? Let me guess. If she had given you the order to kill me, you would have done it, right?” I continued.
“I couldn’t have killed you even if I tried,” he responded.
“I don’t even care anymore. You’re just a stranger who will be leaving the moment all of this is over.”
Dragging my hand through my curls, I glanced down at my mother and back up at his brothers, still trying to understand what the hell was going on. It seemed to me that everyone was going all around the point of the conversation.
“I’m sorry to hear about your father, but what I am still confused on is what does this have to do with my mother?” I asked once more.
“Do you know what soulmates are?” his tall, lanky brother, with bright gray eyes asked, looking in my direction.
“Of course, but what does someone you think you’re meant to be with have to do with my mother? People around here use that phrase all of the time to cheat and get someone new a month or two later,” I responded with a wave of my hand because I was starting to get annoyed with all of this questioning.
“It’s much deeper than that. Our people of Ruella, we’re gods and goddesses. So when we find our soulmates, our souls recognize a piece of itself in another person. You feel an instant attraction to this person. They can be strangers to you, but your soul will recognize them immediately. When you have a love that is that deep, most soulmates cannot live without one another. Some, in the case of my father and your mother, did. They went on to lead two different lives with people who were not the other half of their souls,” he responded, taking a brief moment to get himself together.
“Well, before we came here. We have a council over our people, and for some reason, the head of the council’s wife wants you dead. She goes by the name of Serafina. Well, she showed up at our home. Let me say this. My father laid his life down for your mother and us.” He started walking away from me to look elsewhere.
Silence blanketed us as I thought over everything he had just told me. I didn’t want to recognize any of the signs he had just told me, but I knew better. I glanced over my shoulder at mother once more, who had finally stood up and started to head for the back room without a word. Turning to face his brothers, I pointed toward the rooms in the back.
“There is an extra room in the back. The second door on the right if this is anything like my old house. I think we have all had a long day and need the rest,” I stated as I walked over to Topez, taking his hand into mine, and led him to my room.
Closing the door behind us, I let go of his hand as I climbed onto the bed, pulling my pillows down flat. I looked up to see he was still standing next to the door. I could feel sorrow swarming my body, and I wasn’t entirely sure if it was my emotions. But at this point, I was drained, and all I wanted to do was be in his presence. I had tons of questions, but at this point, they would have to wait until the morning.
“What are you waiting for? Get over here. I know you need the comfort just as much as I do,” I said, patting the spot beside me on the bed.
“Only way I’m getting in there with you is if you understand that once this starts, there is no stopping it,” he responded intensely as his eyes watched my every movement.
