Between Shadows

by Joanne Durann

  “You mean to tell me first, that each time Celbris said something he knew he was going to be punished for it, if she didn’t become the strongest?” Miranda was curious, how could someone risk their life like that, “That’s why he was so ready to die, he said so in the secret room, that he would rather die than be caught.” She looked at Jared, “With all of that, can they ever get out?”

  Miranda had a very serious look on her face, “Yes when they are done their sentence, remember we are immortal, none of us will grow in age. Now with that said you imposed a penalty against them ever sitting in power again, but you didn’t take away the family seat, at least not yet. If you take that away no one in their family line will ever be able to take over, but if you let them keep it, well it could happen.”

  Jared wanted her to understand she had to power to change things and it was up to her if she wanted to even try.

  “You also can take the entire family line and force them to pay for what happened.”

  “Jared, I don’t think anyone should have that much power, do you? How would you feel if they had won, and they took our seats away from us? Do I have the power the change laws? I think the law should be written to keep any one faction from taken over permanently.” Miranda was sure that it was one thing she did want to do.

  Jared shook his head, “Only you could be worried about that right now, you should be passing judgment on the ones who tried to kill you and you want to make sure the world is fair. You can’t change a law by yourself, you can suggest but everyone must agree, this way the evil people can’t change it for their benefit.”

  “Ok so when we go in to pass judgment I’m first going to suggest these changes, their people will want them because, they don’t want to lose their seats. Then I listen to the suggestions and render my verdict, this way if they ever do take control they can’t change it back, because we won’t let them.”

  Miranda smiled she was very confident and happy with herself, “I want them to pay for what they have done to us, to everyone, but I can’t start my reign with revenge in my heart. It needs to be done right.”

  “So now what do you think is a suitable punishment for Triu?” Jared looked very seriously at Miranda, “Then think about Emina and Mical, the only one who made it easy was Celbris, he chose his own sentence.”

  Jared was angry that they all hadn’t made it easy. “I wish they all had died and gotten the punishment that they deserve. Why couldn’t they be brave and pick their punishment?” He laughed, it felt good.

  “That’s it! You just gave me a very good idea! I know that I have a punishment in mind, and I will listen to everyone’s ideas, but I will also ask each one of them what they think their punishment should be. I think that is exactly what I’m going to do, what do you think?” Miranda was very excited with her new idea, but Jared didn’t look as amused.

  Jared was upset, “What are you talking about? Why on earth would you ask them what they think, have you gone mad?” Jared didn’t understand Miranda and sometimes he really thought she was nuts.

  “Hey, I know what you’re thinking, remember! I am not nuts! If I asked them what they believe their punishment should be, number one I look like a great leader, because I am trying to not take this personally, even if they were trying to kill me and my family. Number two it also tells me if they are even remotely sorry for what they have done, the truth will be in their answers, everything they say tells a story. I know how I am going to punish them, at this point I am angry about the cottage, but it won’t change my mine.”

  Jared had a new look of appreciation on his face, he grinned, “How do you do it? You surprise me all the time, you have such a different way of looking at the world, you always seen to amaze me.” He grabbed her roughly and kissed her, held her tight and wouldn’t let go. She threw him on the bed and they stayed there for a long time.

  Someone knocked on the door, Jared got up first, because he wanted to greet this visitor. Carma smiled as she came in the door, “Sahen’s back and he wants to know if he could talk to both of you. They both nodded and Carma left to go and get him from the hallway.

  “Look; Carma, the others and I have been talking; we want to know if we can fix up the cottage before you two go and see it. We think that would be the best thing right now, and we want to do it, you guys mean a lot to us. It would take a couple of weeks, but by the time Miranda gets back from the human world everything would be done and ready for you guys to move in. What do think?”

  Miranda spoke first, “I think it’s a great idea and a wonderful gesture, but tomorrow Jared and I are going out there. We have already decided on the punishments for the three who were involved and now it’s time to get personal about it. I think you guys have done enough already, you have gone above and beyond the realms of friendship.”

  “Can we go a little further? If you wouldn’t mind, can we go with you, just to be supportive? Carma and I talked about it and we want to be there for you. By the way the others heard us, and they want to be there too, so I hope you don’t mind a lot of support?” Sahen wanted to be there because he knew how bad it was.

  Jared let them off the hook, “You can come but if we need time alone, you have to give that to us, we know it’s bad and we are expecting the worse.”

  He looked over at Miranda and then back to Sahen and Carma, “We are going tomorrow early, how about we meet at nine am for breakfast, is that ok for you?”

  Miranda called for Eve, when she got there Miranda asked “Can you ask the cook to have breakfast for nine tomorrow morning? Can you also ask my father to come and see me?”

  “Yes, no problem. Did I hear you say you were going to the cottage tomorrow? I have off and I would like to come and help you out,” she shied away just a little, “if that would be ok with you?”

  Miranda touched her, “That would be just fine. Thank you for all of your support Eve you have truly be a good friend to me. How can ever repay your kindness to me?”

  “You already have, you have been nice to me even when you didn’t have to and you have turned your father into the man I knew as a young girl. He used to be kind, and good hearted, until Emina and Mical got to him.”

  Eve knew all of the things that had happened over the years and she made no qualms about giving her opinion.

  Gage came in to see Miranda and Jared, he heard all about their plans to go to the cottage and who was going to be there with them.

  “I’m going to, you will need all of us, they were very evil in what they did to you.”

  The morning came quicker then Jared and Miranda expected and it wasn’t long before they were on their way. Fortuna had joined them, and of course the weather was perfect. They were very mystified wondering how bad it was, everyone wanted to be there to help them through it, what could they have possible done?

  Miranda whisper to Jared, “I saw some of it in their minds, I know it wasn’t great but what else could they have done? Everyone is waiting for us to lose control; I can’t image how bad it really is.”

  Jared shook he head, “I don’t know, this is all I’m going to say, Miranda we still have each other, we can rebuild the cottage. I have you and that’s all I need.”

  The cottage looked like a tornado hit it, although on the outside everything looked the same, the inside was another story.

  In the living room all of Jared’s photo albums were tossed everywhere, and the books had been destroyed. There were picture and pages all over the place, the furniture had been overturned and the walls were covered in wine blood stains. The group stared at Miranda and Jared as they took it all in. The book cases were ripped from the walls and it looked like they tried to set a small fire.

  Sahen pointed at the spot and said, “Sorry the guys didn’t get here earlier, they were in the forest trying to find them, but they did stop the fire before it really got started. They were mad they didn’t send someone here quicker.”

  “It’s ok,” Miranda looked at Jared, “Jared, we should go through a
ll of the pictures together, and then I’ll have a better understanding of your life. We need to make a list of the books that are destroyed and then I get to take you shopping in the human antique world.”

  She smiled because she knew they would get through it together, and to her it really wasn’t that bad, they had ruin things but nothing that couldn’t be fixed.

  In the kitchen all of the dishes had been broken and the cabinets had been emptied on the floor. The glass in the window over the sink was gone and outside on the ground laid pot and pans. They went to the wine closet in the hall, and that too had been empty, probably to paint the walls and ceilings in the other rooms.

  The bedroom is where they seemed to have the most fun, that’s when it hit her, the sheets they had on the bed in the secret room.

  “I knew I recognized them, they came from here, Jared they thought they were our sheets. He wanted to hurt me on those sheets because he thought we used them first, stupid fool, he really never got it.”

  They had destroyed the bed and ripped through the empty closet and drawers, punching holes everywhere.

  Miranda turned to the others, “We didn’t leave anything in here, so they were probably angry and destroyed the rest of the house because of that.”

  Jared walked over to the door in the hall that was locked. He reached out for the handle, his hand shaking as he tried the doorknob. It was still locked; he searched his pocket for the key, pulled it out and unlocked it. He turned to Miranda, “Funny when I locked this door I thought I was keeping my most prized possession safe, I knew when they took you I was wrong, and that I could never keep you locked up like all of this stuff. The door open and all of the things that he had saved for his own life were in there.

  It was a room of his own, “I use to sleep in here when I thought I was a horrible husband. All those years my wives would try to make me fall in love with them, and I would never understand what it is that they wanted from me, so I came in here to figure it out. It’s like when you were young and you had your own room. I don’t need this room anymore and this is the stuff they would have loved to get. Shame they could have had it!”

  Miranda looked at Jared, “If we start in the bedroom and the kitchen, and get that finished we could stay here a few nights to get the rest of it fixed up. Then when we do bind it will be more than ready for us,” she looked at her father, “We’ll stay here during the week and stay with you on weekends, and Jared said he would make it easier to find.”

  Jared laughed, “I’m not trying to hide anymore. I actually want people to find me now, so we are going to lift the spell on it, besides Miranda’s job demands that she can be gotten a hold of.”

  Miranda looked at Eve, “You are the expert here, where should we get started, and I’m putting you in control.”

  Eve grinned from ear to ear, “Who staying to cleanup?”

  Everyone was in, so she had control over all of them, even Gage. “Okay then, Sahen takes the living room, with Carma. Remember Miranda wants to take Jared shopping so she will need a list of books that we can’t fix, and just pile the pictures up so Jared and Miranda can go through them together as a couple. Now if anyone wants to do outside work, the path needs to be trimmed neatly and the gardens need to be taken care of, and the pots and pans need to get back in the house.”

  With that the werewolves, Mattis and Michael were gone they didn’t need any more words to get out; she was giving orders out way too quickly.

  “Miranda only you and Jared should clean up the bedroom that’s your private area. I’ll take the kitchen with Gage, now let’s get to work, if everything goes well we will be done today. No goofing around!”

  Eve was right, everyone that was there did a full day of work, and when they left for Gage’s house the cottage was better than when Miranda saw it that first day.

  It was wonderful that night, everyone relaxed and Gage threw an amazing party. Everyone came, the werewolves and their families, and all of Miranda’s and Jared friends, and their families. Miranda finally met all of Jared’s family and they announced that they would bind in six months. Someone showed up to speak to Jared alone. He motioned for Mattis and Michael and for the first time, since he took the family seat, Jared gave someone a job.

  Life was looking good and the future seemed beautiful, the past had only a few more bumps, the first one was judgment day and the second had to do with her parents.

  It wasn’t long before they had to meet back at the Concillium. “It seemed to go so fast, I can’t believe it’s been two weeks already. Funny, in two weeks, they destroyed our house, kidnapped me, one of them got killed, and we cleaned up everything they’ve done. I say we’ve been busy,” Miranda turned to Jared as they walked into the door of the Concillium, “will we ever have a slow week?”

  She laughed as they walked into a very somber room. She looked around and then walked with Jared to their seats.

  “We all know why we are here.” Miranda started, “Is there any other business before the Concillium, I would like to hear that before we get started.

  Carma and Sahen stepped forward, Miranda knew this was coming “Yes, what do you have for us,” she smiled as she watched her two friends ask for permission to bind. No one said a word, they knew that Miranda and Jared would both be offended and they knew that the rules in their world had already changed with their leader.

  “I guess since we have no objections, I need you to wait in the hall, after the meeting I will make the announcement to our world.” Sahen and Carma walked out hand in hand, and Miranda started again.

  “Now that we are finished with that, I have other thing to speak of before we bring in the guilty, it concerns our laws.”

  Miranda told them her plan to change some of the laws in order to make sure no family takes complete control and as expected the two evil family lines voted along with everyone to change things because at this time it was in their best interest.

  After that they all gave their opinions on the punishment that each felt Emina, Mical, and Triu should receive. Jared and Miranda kept their opinions to themselves they knew in their heart it would be something more like whatever the table told Miranda to do, she was already in touch with it and had an agreement ready.

  Jared called for Mical and Emina first, “You are being charged with a list of crimes, and you are now here to receive punishment for them.”

  Miranda stood up from her seat, Emina and Mical had only hate in their hearts for her, she had what thought of as their seat.

  “I want to know only one thing from each of you and you must answer separately of your own mind. I will know if you are answering together and then I will just pass judgment without the information. I hope you understand me, and you should know that the table is listening too.”

  Miranda paused before she spoke to them, “What do you think your punishment should be? What do you think I should do to you?” The whole room fell silent. Not one person could understand why she would ask such a thing, “I need to know what you think I should do to you and be honest.”

  As Miranda waited for them to answer she looked into their hearts, and their minds. She found what she thought she would; they were still calculating against her, there was no remorse in them.

  Their answers were the same and they answered together, “If you release us or whenever we get out your dead! We will kill you, your family, and your children.”

  It only took a second and the table reacted, and both of them were dead where they stood. The table left nothing behind. The whole room was speechless, they stared at Miranda. They suddenly understood how ingenious, as well as powerful, she really was.

  Triu came in next and Miranda believed that he had already shown her that he was sorry, but she still asked the same question, “How should I pass judgment on you? What would you do in my position?”

  “In your position, I would execute me, what I did was far worse than the others. I betrayed my best and oldest friend’s trust; it is something I will never
get back and something for which the punishment should fit the crime. I did not want Celbris to harm you, but I also did nothing to stop him. I did want you to die so I could sit at the table, a place I know now I am not worthy to be near, and I did it at the expense of my very innocent family. I would only like to plead for their innocents even though you have no reason to trust my words. Please understand I told no one, not just because they wouldn’t help me, but because I was ashamed of my choice. I except whatever you feel is right and just.”

  Miranda smiled she knew in heart that he was really was sorry for his actions, the table agreed, “I have spoken to the table about this, because I knew this could happen, and we both agree. Triu for your years of servitude to my father and this council, we understand that sometimes anyone can make a bad choice, so this is your judgment. You will never be allowed to sit at the table, you will also never be allowed to challenge for another’s hand and if your daughter needs to be defended the council will choose for you. For the rest of your sentence you can go home, the council believes your family can impose a better sentence at home. Good Luck.”

  You could have heard a pin drop, again the Concillium was left speechless by her action, but this time no one dared to even gasp. They stared at her until the table wrote on the board:

  perfect our business here is done.

  Miranda had been right. His family did impose a better sentence because he almost had them killed, he would pay everyday for the rest of his immortal life. The meeting was completed and the entire council went out to make the first announcement for Carma and Sahen and of course there were no objections or challenges. At this point in time no one dared to challenge anything that Miranda or Jared would say.