Capturing Caroline

by Anya Bast

Jessa tilted her head to the side. “Heaven?”

  “It’s a human concept,” said Logan. “A paradise you go to when you die.”

  Caroline understood that the Lycaon had studied human culture and customs closely. Of course the Magica would not bother with such a thing. That made something occur to her. “Hey! I understand why the Lycaon speak my language, but why do you speak English, Jessa?”

  The older woman smiled at her. “We are not speaking English, Caroline.”

  “What?”

  “It’s a function of being pulled through the veil,” said Torrent in a calming voice, like she would freak out at any moment. “We’re all speaking Lycaon, but your brain is processing it as English.”

  “Okay, that’s just—” She put her hand to her head. “You know, I’m just going to forget I heard that.”

  Jessa laughed. “You are quite charming, Caroline. A good match for our Torrent.”

  Caroline looked up to find Torrent smiling at her, though there was a heated, hungry look in his eyes.

  “Now, I have things I need to tell you and it can’t wait until I’ve rested.”

  “It can,” Logan insisted. “You need to sleep or you’ll get sick. It’s amazing you’ve made it this long.”

  She shook her head. “No, this is too important. Torrent needs to know these things and it’s more significant than my life.”

  “All right,” prompted Torrent. “I see I can’t sway you. Tell me what I need to know, and then you can go rest.”

  She gazed up at Torrent with large, pretty dark eyes that were moistening with emotion. “I have worked my whole life, as my parents before me and their parents before them, to bring some kind of peace between the Lycaon and the Magica. Barring peace, we worked to protect the Lycaon from the Magica’s savage tendencies. Centuries and centuries of bloodshed only make it clear that there will never be a peace, nor safety for the Lycaon.” She paused, drawing a steady breath. “So myself and the other Magica Sifta rebels have done the only thing we know how, we have devised a way to break reality itself and split our worlds forever.”

  “What?” breathed Torrent. “How can that be?” He straightened from where he leaned against the wall. “How can you have the ability to do something so powerful?”

  “What I am about to tell you no Lycaon save Logan has ever been told before. What we did, create this magickal switch, took us generations to accomplish. It wasn’t easy and many sacrifices were made to see it done. This is great and deep magick, magick of the kind that ripped us from the human world so long ago.”

  “So, you are the mystical Powers-That-Be?” asked Caroline. So much for Lycaon spirituality.

  She smiled. “My ancestors were, yes.”

  Torrent pushed a hand through his hair. “This is incredible. It was the Magica all along.”

  “Is this the same kind of magick that pulls part-blood Lycaon mates through the veil?” asked Caroline.

  Torrent looked at her in surprise, as if the thought hadn’t occurred to him.

  “Yes.” Jessa smiled. “Consider it a gift, of sorts. The Magica created the Lycaon and then tried to kill off the entire race. In order to ensure the Lycaon’s survival, Magica rebels from a time now long forgotten, created a pull between the worlds. It’s a magickal magnet, drawing mates together.”

  If the possibility of splitting reality wasn’t on the table, Caroline might have pointed out that the “magickal magnet” created a whole lot of chaos for some families. It might bring soul mates together…but it also created heartbreak. Having family members vanish without a trace wasn’t a pain that was easily erased for those left behind.

  Caroline cleared her throat. “I’ve watched more than my fair share of science fiction and splitting reality is dangerous. I’m right, aren’t I?”

  “A very good point, although I don’t know what this ‘science fiction’ is,” Jessa answered. “The switch we have created is safe, located in the heart of Titan, but does require a rather large sacrifice to make it work.” She paused and looked at Torrent. “A blood sacrifice. It has been keyed to one of Torrent’s ancestors. It works by his DNA.”

  Torrent looked at Caroline and held her gaze, hesitating for a moment before he answered, “I understand.”

  “Wait a minute. No!” Caroline walked over to stand next to Torrent, as if she could protect him. “You’re saying….what? That the magick requires the sacrifice of Torrent’s life to work?”

  Jessa nodded sadly. “The sacrifice is a life…and a love never fully realized. The sacrifice is not only his life but your mate bond. Life and love.”

  “Well,” she shot back sarcastically, “as long as it’s only that much.”

  Torrent put a calming hand on her shoulder. “Think of it, everlasting peace for the Lycaon.

  My people would never again need to fear, never need to run, never need to fight.”

  “But you’d be—” She choked on the words, amazed at the sudden flood of emotion into her eyes and throat. “You’d be dead.”

  He turned her toward him and drew her against his chest. She buried her face in his shoulder and fought a sudden uncharacteristic urge to cry. “And you’d be safe,” he whispered into her hair.

  * * * *

  "I don't care if I'm being selfish. I don't want you to sacrifice your life for the good of your people!”

  “I’m staring right now at the rigid set of your shoulders and the firm line of your chin. I care for you so much, but, Caroline, do you hear yourself?"

  She crossed her arms over her chest. "Yes. And I don't care how I sound."

  Torrent sighed. "I've known for a long time this was to be my fate."

  "Your fate sucks."

  "I think so too."

  Everyone had left. Jessa and Logan had gone into town. Apparently Logan had a house in the heart of the town. She had a feeling that he and Jessa had grown very close during their ordeal, or they'd been close before it, maybe.

  "So, I'm to be stuck here without you. Living where? Here, I guess, right? All alone. Seeing everything that reminds me of you, expecting you to walk back in through that door." Her voice cracked. "I sound petulant right now. I know I do. But you've got the easy part. You'll be dead. I'm the one who will be forced to live without you."

  Torrent crossed the kitchen and pulled her against him. "I'm so sorry," he murmured into her hair.

  She pushed him away. "Why did the Magica even bring me over? They must have known this would happen. Why couldn't they have just left me in ignorance, never knowing I even had a soul mate. This is just cruel. To you and me, both."

  "You heard her, it's a sacrifice of life and love. Anyway, you don't mean what you say. If you had stayed in the human world, you never would have known what happened to your sisters."

  She stalked away from him, into the living room. He was right, but she wanted to stay pissed.

  He followed her. "I said I was sorry you were pulled through, but I'm not. I would take knowing you and losing you over never having known you at all."

  There was an odd note of hurt in his voice. It was sort of crazy how a big, strong warrior like Torrent could seem so tough, yet be oddly vulnerable where she was concerned.

  Hell, it just made her love him more.

  She stood with her back to him. Her shoulders slumped. "I'm ranting because I'm mad, but you know I feel the same way."

  "Do I? We haven't known each other for long."

  She turned and walked into his arms. "We've known each other forever."

  She couldn’t deny it any longer. Her feelings for Torrent trumped all logic, but remained true. They were soul mates, damn it all to hell.

  Chapter Seven

  Torrent walked down the street of his village. There were thirteen villages in Lycaon Territory, all scattered in the deep wilderness, hopefully beyond the reach of the Magica.

  Caroline seemed awed by the town. He'd never been to the human world, but he knew that the differences were many. Human towns had concrete road
s, sidewalks, buildings, parking lots. They were not unlike the Magica cities.

  For the most part, the Lycaon villages were built into nature, itself. They did use concrete sometimes in their construction, but mostly they favored wood, building into the sides of hills and integrating trees right into the structures, rather than seeing trees as obstacles to be removed. If you weren't looking closely, you just might miss a Lycaon village. This, obviously, was kind of the point. Besides it being camouflage, the integration with nature just simply suited their culture.

  He could imagine how strange it must be for Caroline to be here, how alien, because he'd imagined visiting her world and how odd that would be. He prayed she liked it here, since it would be home for her long after he was gone.

  They'd come into town this morning to meet with her sisters and their mates. There was a meeting scheduled for all the village's decision makers. The leaders from the other twelve villages would also be in attendance. Once Jessa had revealed the full extent of her plan, messages had been sent far and wide for all to come and be informed.

  The last couple of days had been the best he'd ever experienced. Although they’d also been bittersweet, since he understood his time with Caroline was finite. He could see in Caroline’s eyes that this was true for her as well. That fact made him want to kill the world; it made him so angry.

  He only wanted her to be happy. Ironically, he would be the one bringing her the ultimate sadness.

  She pointed at a large oak tree with a door carved with an elaborate swirling design in the immense trunk. "What is that?" she asked. She'd asked about pretty much every building she'd been able to spot.

  He grinned. She was like a little kid. "That is a dress shop."

  Her eyes lit up. "Really? What kind of clothes do they sell here?"

  He shrugged. "The normal kind. At least, normal for this world. We don't have jeans here, or suits and ties, or fancy shoes. We have clothes that are durable and comfortable. Sometimes the women wear dresses, but normally they all wear pants."

  She looked him up and down. "I supposed most people go through a lot of clothes here what with the shape-shifting and all."

  He laughed. "Not usually. We're careful when we transform." He sobered as he realized that Caroline was a new shifter. These were all things he would need to teach her before he....left.

  "What's wrong? You got quiet all of a sudden." She caught his hand as they stood looking at the shop door.

  "Nothing. Let's go in. We have plenty of time before the meeting."

  "Oh, can we? I can't get enough of this place. It's like being in The Shire."

  "The where?"

  "Never mind." She squeezed his hand, and then ran off toward the clothing store.

  He watched her go, emotion squeezing his chest.

  She pulled open the door of the shop and disappeared inside. He followed her, taking a few steps down a short corridor and ducking his head to avoid the low ceiling. In a few moments, he was down into the earth far enough that the store opened up into an immense space. Racks and racks of clothes lined the shop. Somewhere to his right, he heard Caroline exclaim with pleasure to Madeline, the store owner. Following her voice, he threaded his way through the racks and found her in the shoe department.

  "These are just incredible," she said, picking up a pair of boots. "They're so soft, yet seem so tough."

  "They're made from an animal like a deer," said Torrent, walking up to her. "They are called elopes here. They are plentiful and, like your deer, have trouble surviving the winter. We hunt many of them, but we use every single part of their body, even their horns, so they are not sacrificed shallowly." He nodded at Madeline. "Hello, Maddy."

  "Hello, Torrent. I'm happy to make Caroline's acquaintance. Everyone in the village has been buzzing about her arrival."

  "It was...unexpected."

  Her expression grew sad. "I know."

  Caroline set down the boots and wandered off into the women's clothing. She was smiling with delight at her new discoveries.

  "Let her have anything she wants,” Torrent said to Maddy. “Anything she shows interest in. I'll give you her sizes. Those boots, for starters. Just have everything sent to my house."

  "Of course."

  He had only a short time to make up for a lifetime of gift giving.

  "And will a wedding dress be needed?" she inquired in a soft voice.

  Torrent pressed his lips together. "I don't know yet, Maddy. I'll let you know."

  She nodded.

  Torrent let her shop for as long as he could before they needed to leave and attend the meeting. He didn't tell her that Madeline was keeping track of every tiny thing she seemed to like. Sometime later that day, she would be surprised by a cartload of clothes, shoes and jewelry. The thought of her pleasure eased the ache in his heart a little.

  They left the shop and made their way across the village. It was deceptively big, nestled as it was in the forest. Finally they reached an entrance set into the side of a large hill. This building would certainly surprise Caroline if the others hadn’t already. One couldn't see from the outside that it was a cave. The inside was incredibly large and even contained a theater where they held plays, concerts and dances. In fact, Caroline’s sister, Paige, was a dancer and performed here from time to time.

  Once inside, Caroline gasped. "This world never fails to amaze me," she murmured, looking up at the huge domed foyer that had been painted with frescoes from Selaryica’s past.

  "I'm glad you enjoy it."

  "It's so strange, but this village just feels right to me, even though it's so different than what I'm used to."

  “It's not strange. This place speaks to your blood, the part of you that is Lycaon. Not even tens of thousands of years of human genes can remove that. It's too powerful."

  She looked up at him. "Kind of how I feel about you. My feelings for you are inexplicable. I've only known you for such a short time. Logically, I shouldn't love you as deeply as I do." She paused and swallowed hard. "But now that I’ve met you I know I've never known love before now."

  He dipped his head and kissed her softly. "I feel the same." He paused, fishing out a small box from his pocket. "I was going to wait until the meeting to do this, so your sisters could be there, but—” He dropped to one knee. He'd read that's how they did this in the human world. Handing her the box he said, "Please become my mate, Caroline Susan Gannet. For however short our mate bond may last, I want it to be official."

  She took the box and flipped it open, then drew a careful breath

  "Torrent, this thing is huge." It was a lavenstone. It looked a lot like a diamond from her world, but had a lavender tint to it.

  “Is that your answer?" He grinned up at her.

  "Yes. Of course, my answer is yes." She knelt and embraced him.

  He kissed her deeply, losing himself in the scent and feel of her. Somewhere above them people clapped and cheered. They looked up to find Caroline's sisters and mates standing at the top of the winding staircase looking down on them.

  "Paige and I can plan the wedding," yelled Kaitlyn.

  "We can’t wait!" chimed in Paige.

  Torrent helped Caroline to her feet. Tears were running down her cheeks. "This is almost perfect," she whispered.

  He agreed. Almost. They started up the stairs together. Now it was time to do the hard stuff, planning the salvation of his people...and his death.

  * * * *

  Caroline sat at the end of the long table. Her sisters, her brothers-in-law, Jessa, Logan, Torrent, and leaders from the other Lycaon villages were all in a heated discussion about how best to kill her fiancé.

  Looking down at the table, she swallowed hard and willed herself to keep it together. Selfishness was not an option here. If Torrent dying meant an entire race could survive and live in peace, then it would have to be done.

  Didn't mean she had to like it.

  All she wanted was to stand up, slam her fist on the table and yell, No! Not doi
ng that became harder with every word they uttered. She examined her hand. Torrent's ring sat nicely on her finger. Like it had been made for her. She twisted it back and forth, listening to them talk about the location of this "switch," and what would happen were they able to activate it. Apparently the reality would split forevermore. Lycaon territory would separate from Magica and be forever out of reach.

  "But wait," she said suddenly. The murmuring and private conversations all halted at her loud voice. "The Magica created this ability to manipulate realities. How do the Lycaon know that once the worlds are separated, the Magica won't just find a way to bring them back together again, or, worse, simply blink the Lycaon world out of existence? That would be easy for them. Get rid of the Lycaon in one blow."

  "It doesn’t work like that," answered Jessa, seeming exasperated.

  Caroline stared hard at her. "Paige told me about this woman, Alisa. She was born Lycaon, but brought up by the Magica. When her Magica adoptive parents were endangered, she was forced to become a traitor. She was the reason Paige and her mate Jarek were taken by the Magica and nearly died."

  Jessa's lips pressed into a thin line and her eyes narrowed for a moment before she replied. "What are you insinuating?"

  “Paige and her mates took Alisa in, but Alisa ended up betraying them.” She met Jessa’s eyes. “The same thing could happen with you. I’m sorry to say it, Jessa, but we need to be careful.”

  Torrent touched her hand. "Caroline, I understand you're angry about this situation, but I don't think that's a reason to make such an accusation."

  "I am angry," said Caroline, "and I don't necessarily believe Jessa is a traitor to the Lycaon. We have no reason to think so. But there are more Magica rebels involved in the creation of the switch, isn’t there? Ones we don’t know? I'm simply asking we examine this closely before we start sending people we love into danger and death. I don't mean any offense. I like you, Jessa, but how can be sure this isn't a trap?"

  "I think Caroline makes a valid point," added Kaitlyn. "And not just because she's my sister."