by Tessa Cole
“You saved us,” he said softly. “You save so many.”
But not everyone.
A tear leak from beneath my lashes.
“How many?” I asked my voice strained and hoarse. “How many died?”
“Only a few.”
“No, Aethan, tell me the truth.” As much as it hurt, I had to know. I didn’t know why. It was stupid to punish myself for failing, but I couldn’t stop myself from asking. “How many?”
He gave a soft chuckle, and I couldn’t quite understand why he was so happy and relaxed. So many people were dead!
“No, truly,” he said, cupping my cheek and drawing my gaze from the sunset to him and letting me see the earnestness and affection in his soft brown eyes.
He still looked at me like I was a goddess, even though I’d lied to him and had to be a mess from having exhausted myself and sleeping in the sand and crying.
“You saved most of them, if indirectly,” he said. “One of those you healed was the healer woman for the village. She’d dealt with diseases similar to this one in the past and from those you’d healed she took blood to create a cure. It didn’t work on everyone, and some she didn’t get to in time, but most of the village is alive now, because of you.”
So I hadn’t failed.
I hadn’t succeeded, either. I just gotten really lucky by healing the right person at the right time.
“And what about this disease man you and the others were talking about?”
His gaze dipped away from me and he stared out at the sunset. “You heard that, did you? We tried to stop him.” He huffed a bitter laugh. “Keph nearly did, but it wasn’t enough. He’d already infected us and most of the village with that foul illness, and we just didn’t have the strength.” The muscles in Aethan’s jaw flexed. “He went into your world, Annie.”
“But I thought I was the only one who could go back and forth on my own.”
“It seems that’s not the case, and…” He drew in a long breath, grimacing. “We think we know why.”
“Oh?”
Aethan’s soft brown eyes were intense as he looked at me. “He’s not from this world at all, but from yours.”
Chapter 22
Aethan
“Mine?” Annie said, her eyes wide. The next moment they went wider still with realization. “That means he has powers. People from one world have powers in the other.”
“Yeah.” After we’d returned to our world, the guys and I had spent a lot of time talking about our adventure in the other world and our time with Annie and came to the same conclusion.
Which meant we knew Annie wasn’t a goddess. Though oddly, all of us still thought of her in reverent terms. We’d spent a lot of time talking about her and I smiled as I looked at her now, sitting in the sand as the last light of day, an angry red line at the edge of the horizon that was mellowed to softer pinks and oranges and deep blues, faded from the west.
Despite the dimming light, I could see the same shade in Annie’s hair, that pale red, fading to blond. Even if she wasn’t a goddess, she was still unlike any woman any of us had ever known.
Something about her was special, unique. Perhaps it was that pale skin and those many dark spots over her face, chest, back, and arms. Perhaps it was her hair like the dying embers of a fire, or perhaps her form, taller than most women here and with more curves. Most likely it was all of it and more.
I was drawn to her, all of us were, and I knew in my heart that it went deeper than just physical attraction, and none of us had been able to put her from our minds.
And once Rion had learned that a kiss on the lips didn’t mean the same thing for her as it did for us, all he’d wanted to do was apologize and try to win her back.
We all wanted her back.
I so desperately wanted her, but not just for sex. I had a deeper need that was more than my intense desire to be inside her, pleasuring her. I needed to simply be near her, make her laugh and smile and take away any fear or pain or heartache. I needed a connection with her that went beyond the physical.
The thought shocked me. I’d never felt that way for a woman before, and now I knew the other women I’d been with were inconsequential, meaningless sexual encounters, a way to bide my time while I’d unknowingly been waiting for Annie.
Of course, I wanted sex, too. And I was grateful that I was sitting at the moment, legs pulled up — mirroring her — and able to hide my raging erection.
I couldn’t stop from glancing at her full breasts, straining against the fabric of her tight shirt, or slide my gaze down her body, past her slender waist. Those short pants were also an incredible tease, showing off her long legs while concealing what was most precious.
Gods! I didn’t know why she wore so much clothing, but it drove me crazy.
Except now wasn’t the time for that. There were other things to discuss, to take care of, before we got to what my body so desperately desired.
“I think it’s time you heard the full story. I’ll get the others and get you something to eat, I bet you’re famished.”
“I am,” she said with a breathy bit of a laugh. “How long was I out?”
I rose, trying to turn to hide my stiff cock without making it obvious that I was hiding it. “Most of the day. You finished your healing by mid-morning and have been resting since.”
“Only one day?” She frowned with confusion.
“You thought it was longer?”
“After healing those people I felt like I was going to sleep for a week. Except it hasn’t even been a day and I’m feeling a lot better.” She grimaced. “Okay, I wouldn’t say I’m feeling good, but certainly far better than when I passed out.”
I resisted the urge to wrap her in my arms and offer her more comfort. She needed to eat more than she needed my touch, not to mention I wasn’t sure she wanted my touch. She’d seemed soothed when I’d rubbed her back, but that didn’t mean she wanted more.
I ran the short distance to the edge of the village, always making sure to keep Annie in sight, spoke to a man there, and sent him running to get the others. They’d been helping with getting the village back to normal. Many were still weak and the day to day tasks like cooking, hunting, and such, still needed to be done.
I returned to Annie. But I took my time on the walk back. She was looking away, over the dunes as the first stars of night came out.
Something about that peaceful image of her caught in my soul. Yes, what I loved about her went far beyond her features. It was her soul. That fire within matched with a kindness and a heart that cared for all beings. She’d passionately fought to heal the villagers when we’d first met her, staggering, sometimes crawling, from body to body, growing weaker and weaker, but still seeking the next person to heal. It had been awe-inspiring to watch, and my heart swelled at the thought of her passion and generosity.
Oddly, by the time I’d returned to her, my erection was nearly gone.
Then she turned toward me. The light of the new moon caught in her eyes turning them from a light brown to molten gold, and smiled, stealing my breath and my heart.
My cock swelled again, painfully hard, and I bit back a curse.
Except she didn’t seem embarrassed or look away. If anything, her smile grew, and she gave a mischievous laugh.
“I see,” she said raising an eyebrow. “Well, there’ll be time for that later. You said we needed to talk, right?”
Time for… for me?
As much as I — and all the guys — were still captivated by her, we knew we’d messed up — and immensely so — at her brother’s bonding ceremony. That couldn’t be undone. She’d been furious with us and rightly so. Had she so easily forgotten? Or more astonishing yet, had she so easily forgiven?
I stood there, stunned, for a long moment. “Annie, do you—”
“She’s awake,” Rion said, landing next to me with a whoosh of air. “Good. There’s no time to lose. Annie,” he said, rushing to her side and kneeling. “I’m sorry for how
I acted. There was so much I didn’t understand, and I know you can never forgive me, but we have to work together. We believe your world is in grave danger.”
Chapter 23
Annie
I sat in front of a fire made from driftwood, letting the heat wash over me. The temperature had dropped when the sun had gone down and I was chilly in just my shorts and T-shirt.
Del and Keph had brought food and water with them and I felt even stronger than when I’d first woken, stronger than I should have for just eating and drinking. It made me wonder if I could heal myself as well as others and if I was doing so on an unconscious level. Certainly, after having been out in the sun for an entire day, I wasn’t close to burned at all. Though my freckles were uber-visible.
“It was early in the morning, just as the sun was rising, as people were starting to go about their business,” Del said, finally deciding that I was strong enough to listen — and worry about — what had happened.
His voice was low, his baritone closer to a soothing base, like Keph’s, yet he retained his sing-song quality as if he was about to tell me a bedtime story or a fairy tale, not actual events.
“He came from the west, walking through town, a man in a white cloak. Some thought him a healer because of his garb, but that was far from the truth.”
“No, kidding,” Aethan huffed, making Del glare at him for interrupting.
“At his side was a naiad, with skin the color of a summer’s sky, as reflected in a still pool. Her hair was blue-white, like sea-foam. The man called out to the town, to bring him the healer who’d cured the sickness in the camp. He said he wanted to thank her for the work she’d done. That there was another such camp of the sick on the far side of the island who needed her aid.”
A shiver swept through me. Whoever had infected the village knew about me and had been looking for me.
“But the villagers said the strange woman had left, perhaps returned to her godly realm, and the man grew furious,” Del continued. “With each wave of his hand, he cast that dreaded sickness about the town. Those closest to him were more grievously infected.”
“He spared no one,” Rion said. “The only people he couldn’t infect were those you’d already healed. And this time the illness developed much quicker.”
“We were in the cantina,” Aethan said, his voice lighter and quicker than Del’s or Rion’s, but still filled with the same grim frustration. “We came out and saw what was happening. I raced to the man to try to stop him, thinking that if I could stop his hands, that might stop the disease. I caught one hand, then the other, but…”
“I saw him fall,” Keph rumbled. “The man seemed to push the darkness from himself into Aethan and Aethan screamed and—”
Aethan’s gaze dropped to his hands and his shoulders slumped forward with defeat. “I blacked out. I don’t even remember hitting the ground.”
“I was furious,” Keph said, his voice dark with a terrifying anger I’d never heard from him before and one I hadn’t thought the gentle giant was capable of. “I didn’t think I could get the illness. Stone titans are resistant or immune to most diseases. Yet he pointed at me, and I felt it—” Keph shuddered. “It was horrible. But it didn’t stop me. I hit him so hard he flew across the street, but it wasn’t enough.”
Holy smokes! Keph was strong. I wasn’t sure anyone could survive being punched, full out, by him and yet this man had.
“The damage had been done. The disease had already been spread to everyone,” Del said. A pain filled his blue-green eyes, and I couldn’t help feeling that same pain. We’d both seen something we’d never forget, something that would haunt our nightmares for years, possibly forever. “The naiad helped the man escape and all of us fell deathly ill.”
“I flew after them,” Rion said. “They were headed for the rocks. That’s when I knew he had to be from your world. I’d hoped to get to the gate first, to block their way out, but the infection moved too quickly through me. I blacked out and landed where you found me.”
“We assume he made it to your world,” Del said. “But we can’t be certain of that.”
“He did,” I said, recalling the footprints in the snow I’d seen coming out from the wall.
“And if he did, then we fear he’ll spread his disease in your world as well.” Aethan was somber, the most serious I’d ever seen him.
“But he won’t have powers,” I said.
“No,” Del said, his expression grim, his voice dark.
I didn’t like the way he said that, like they already had an answer to that.
“But the woman with him, the naiad, we fear she was immune to his disease and may be a carrier. If so, she could have taken it to your world with her.”
My pulse stuttered. I didn’t have magic in my world, which meant I couldn’t heal anyone, and even if I did, the man and the naiad were a day ahead of me. They could have come in contact with any number of people who then would have contact with more, and I had no idea how contagious this disease was.
“Fuck.”
Rion frowned. “You use that word a lot. What does it mean?”
“Well it…” How could I explain it? “It means…” My face heated, likely turning red with my blush. Jeez, and now, for no apparent reason, I was embarrassed to say sex in front of these guys. “It’s the act you and I did, in my bedroom.”
All of them raised their eyebrows in surprise.
“But it’s ah… it’s taken on more meaning than that. It’s hard to explain, but it’s also a curse we use.”
Aethan eyes widened in shock. “You curse on the act of mating?”
When he put it that way, it didn’t really make much sense. “I guess so, but I really don’t have anything against the act. It’s just the perfect sounding word for so many occasions.”
They all nodded at that with seemingly varying degrees of understanding.
“Fuck,” Aethan said, trying out the word. He nodded to himself. “It does have a good sound to it for cursing.”
“Exactly,” I said with a small laugh. I really couldn’t believe this was where our conversation had gone.
But as much as I’d rather talk about whether fuck was a good word for cursing or not, I couldn’t let myself get distracted from what was important.
The thought soured my mood. A potential carrier of a deadly disease was walking around Chicago and had been all day. “So what are we going to do about the carrier in my world?”
What could we do?
Maybe she wasn’t a carrier. Maybe she was just Disease Man’s friend?
Except I wasn’t willing to bet the lives of everyone in Chicago— hell, the whole world on that. I had to assume she was infected and going to infect others.
“We have to stop them,” Del said vehemently. “Whatever it takes. They could kill thousands in that well-populated city of yours.”
“More like millions,” I whispered.
That got a few surprised looks.
“There are that many people living there?” Keph asked in awe.
“Yep.”
“Fuuuuck,” Aethan said, drawing the word out.
I couldn’t agree more.
Chapter 24
Annie
“If we’re going to do this right, we need to get you different clothes,” I said, surveying the guys. We’d stopped at the stones before entering my world and I’d donned all my winter things again.
The guys had kept what they’d worn the day of The Incident and were now standing in front of me wearing them and looking ridiculous… well, everyone but Rion looked ridiculous. Rion looked hot in his slightly-too-tight borrowed suit — that, oh my God! Margie was going to kill me for not returning.
But the others were going to be a problem. Aethan looked like a punk who’d jumped into a vat of primary colors with his red mohawk, bright green pants, yellow hoodie, and blue and purple coat. And Del looked like a lazy goth with black sweatpants — with a rip in the thigh that I was sure hadn’t been there w
hen I’d bought them — a black long-sleeved T-shirt, black jacket, and his long blue-black hair.
And Keph… well, was Keph. Just by his sheer size, he’d ripped open both shoulders on his skin-tight five-times-extra-large football jersey. But given how tight the sleeves were, clinging to his massive muscles, they weren’t going to fall off any time soon.
Which was so damned sexy… if a little intimidating. I still couldn’t quite imagine sex with the stone titan. He was just… so… big. And yet I couldn’t deny the shiver of desire that always rushed down my spine when I thought of him.
I shoved those thoughts aside and drew in a long breath. “Here’s the plan. There’s a big and tall store not too far from the alley. We’ll go there and get you all outfitted so you don’t look like thugs—”
“Thugs?” Del asked.
“Ruffians? Thieves? Criminals?”
His eyes widened. “Is that why we caused so much trouble at the wedding?”
I sighed. “Probably, yes.”
“Oh.”
“That’s why, if you’re going to help out in my world, you need better clothes, otherwise people won’t take you seriously. Once we get you outfitted… well…” That was really as far as I’d gotten.
I wasn’t some mastermind planning genius. I had no clue what Disease Man and his accomplice would be up to in my world. But that thought did bring something to mind: powers.
“The woman— What did you call her, a nyad?” I asked.
“Naiad,” Rion said. “A river nymph, yes.”
“She’ll have powers in my world, like you did. Do you think it’ll be something to do with water?” I asked, wondering if they got magic in my world connected to who they were in this world… although if the opposite was the case, it didn’t make sense that I’d be able to heal people. That wasn’t really something that was fundamental to me in my world. Still, maybe if I knew what they could do, I’d be able to figure out what she could do. “What were your powers?”
