by Ayer, T. G.
"Out of respect to the Alpha. When she left the subject of your mother was taboo." He was still deeply hurt by her defection, and I had it in my power to relieve him of some of his pain. But not here, in front of Iain and Logan. Despite my anger I held my tongue. This was a truth between two people and I couldn't speak of it until we were alone. The silence stretched between us, almost palpable. At last he sighed and asked, "Where is she?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
"In Wrythiin."
"What?" He leaned forward intent on my response, wanting to hear me say it was a joke.
"It's where I went, to find Greer and Niko."
"And, did you find them?"
"Yes, only..." I rose and paced. How was I supposed to tell him his brother was killed by the Wraith-Lord? "Mom said she'd left for only one reason - to protect us from him...the Wraiths."
"Why? Why would he be after you?" My father had no idea of my mother's talent for delivering eternal justice to the soul-suckers.
"Because she's a Wraith-Hunter and she knew I had the same….ability." My voice was flat, because I still wasn't sure I believed it. She left me. That was that. No reason why a mother should abandon her children.
He rested his forehead in his hand and said nothing.
"She thought if she left I'd never find out I had the ability." I continued my mother's tale.
"She didn't count on your stubborn streak, did she?"
"Neither did she count on how you would treat us after she left." I had to say my piece. No matter I was about to bombard him with a triple layer of loss. "I don't think she realized she'd take your heart with her."
My father stared at me, shocked, and perplexed.
"Is that what you think?" His brow twisted in confusion.
"Of course. You avoided me. You're always in your own world. Always preoccupied, we never used to talk or spend time with each other." I fell into the whine of complaints, but I was still a lonely child. Even though my mother had her reasons for leaving, and my father's coldness had never been deliberate, I still hated the fact that, in the end, I was the one left hurt and lonely.
"I hadn't realized." The silence drew out longer than I expected. "I assume that's why you left?"
I nodded. "Greer didn't stay too long either, did she?"
Corin shook his head. "Greer's inability to change …. That was a shock, especially after Niko."
"Is that why you kept it from me?"
He nodded. "Greer was angry. So very upset. That's why she was so easily seduced by Niko's theories."
"You knew about that?"
"I suspected but there was no proof. I knew he was up to something, even went searching for him when Greer disappeared but I lost his trail."
I recalled my father's absence when I came to tell Iain about the first body.
"He was being influenced by Widd'en."
"What do you mean?" My father hadn't been exposed to any of the Wraith possession, didn't know much about how the whole possession thing worked.
"Mom told me that Widd'en is the leader of a faction who have been coming through the Veil to prey on Humans. She'd managed to fight many of them off but when I started Hunting, it must have tipped them off that another Hunter was around. So he was trying to find me."
My father's head jerked up and he looked at me in consternation. "He was after you?"
"Imagine that?" I said, dryly.
My Dad frowned. "What did he want with Niko?"
"I'm still not entirely sure what the Wraith was doing with Niko. But, Widd'en killed him, Father." I watched the grief on his face. Men show grief so differently from women. We were free to cry, such girls. Men, no matter the species, keep it inside. True to nature, my father clasped his hand in from to his face and closed his eyes. He looked a lot like a man deep in prayer, but I knew he wasn’t.
"How?" he asked, his head still bowed. When I didn't reply he looked up at my face.
I shook my head, hoping he'd take it as sign that I didn't know the method of the killing.
"Did you see him?"
"He was already dead by then."
"And Greer?"
"She tried to escape through the portal but Widd'en had moved the seal so the destination changed. She made a run for it and went through. Now we have no idea which dimension she is in." I was still not in the least impressed by my sibling's betrayal. Father was shaking his head again.
"Ah, Greer. She's been lost for a while now." It seemed somehow fitting she would end up in the land of neither living nor dead.
"Well, she’s lost good and proper now," I said, irony dripping thickly from my words.
"Can we find her?"
"I think so. We will have to get help from a few people but I think we can, though it may take some time." No prizes for guessing who would be the one trying to find a sister who was willing to watch you die.
"And where's your mother?" He voiced the question with such dread I was afraid to answer.
"The Guard caught her before she made the jump. She'd shoved me through because I was so weak after my fight with Widd'en. But she wasn't fast enough. They caught her just before the portal closed."
I couldn't say anything to make him feel better. What can you say to a man who loses three members of his family in one night, one of them for the second time? I rose to leave the room, leave him to think and pray and grieve and do whatever he needed to make himself feel better.
"Can we save her?" My father's eyes were shadowed as he spoke.
"I'm pretty sure I can. I have Iain and the Omega team." He nodded.
Then my father held me in his arms for the first time in sixteen long years. And I held back the tears of joy and grief and regret that pooled hotly behind my eyes.
"Let me know what you need." His voice emanated from somewhere above my left ear. "Anything and anyone. Iain will help, I'm sure."
I didn't pay much attention to his words. It was the feel of his arms around me I reveled in.
***
Chapter 42
Outside, splotches of bloody ocher etched the sky, which grew brighter as the night receded. I stood at my window for a long time, soaking up the silence of the house. Everyone had cleared out except for Logan. He'd insisted on sleeping on the couch in case I needed him. My heart warmed at the thought. I didn't like the distance between us, and I would soon rectify that.
The sun was rising.
Burnt orange flames bled into an inky night sky, bright yellow fingers of light followed eagerly. The new day was coming. Clean and bright. A chance to put things right.
My arm throbbed, but I ignored it to count my blessings. I hugged so many little gifts close to my heart. Held the hurts close too. My sister's hatred hurt me deeply, but I had to find her before she lost her soul forever. My uncle was dead, no redemption allowed to him at all.
And nothing I could do would change his fate.
Perhaps it was time he had some peace. At least Greer could try to make things better if we ever managed to bring her home.
The love that shone from my mother's eyes was a treasure I held closer. The woman I'd grown up thinking had abandoned me, who I'd half-missed and half-hated over the last sixteen years, who had proved to me that she possessed a love for her children that was self-sacrificing and altogether incomparable. My mother. And this whole disaster had brought my father closer to me than I’d ever dared to hope. It's not as if I suddenly stopped being angry with them. But I allowed myself to understand a little more why they did what they did.
I sighed.
A pair of strapping arms enfolded me within the warmest of embraces. I’d let Logan sleep. Now he was here, toasty warm. I turned in his arms, and stared into his eyes. Tiny flames flickered within their depths and I knew it wasn't just my imagination. His kiss was warm, and comforting. I'd held him at arm's-length for so long. It felt wonderful to be able to relax with him. The one person I could trust implicitly.
I snuggled closer, hoping to feel those flames again. I mov
ed my arm around him, careful not to jar it. I would never be sure what gave me away. Logan's fingers closed around my wrist.
"What's wrong with your arm?" He lifted my hand, staring at the bracelet as if it had come alive.
"Nothing. It's just a bit sore." I tried to pull it from his grasp but he held firm and I winced. Any pressure I used on the muscle would hurt like hell so I tried to keep still. I'd put the armor back on after showering, afraid to even contemplate what the blue-green stain beneath my skin meant. It looked menacing, spreading out like a thousand veins. Before I knew what he was doing, Logan turned my arm over and began to un-buckle the bracelet. It seemed odd to see him make such quick work of removing it when I'd struggled for days to simply open one buckle.
The bracelet clanked as it landed unceremoniously on the floor. Logan was horrified at the sight.
"What is this?" his face was like a marble statue, drained of every drop of blood. Only a few hours ago the blue-green veins had covered my forearm, conveniently remaining beneath the bronze metal. Now I stared at what had gotten Logan's full attention. My entire arm was covered with a network of tiny blue-green veins. My heart clenched and my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth. "What in God's name is going on?"
"I'm not sure." I stared at the spindly patterns, perplexed. The web of dark lines had spread so fast, I was now very, very afraid.
"Why didn't you say something?" Logan had gone from tender and loving to bristling and angry in the blink of an eye. "God, you are the most frustrating person I have ever met."
I wanted to say something smart or funny, but the pain had worsened. I could no longer ignore it. I’d assumed I was tired from my portal travel, not to mention the emotional and physical roller-coaster ride I'd been through over the last week or so. But now, the frightening state of my arm robbed me of anything smart or witty I might have said.
"Let go of me." Suddenly I wanted him to stop touching me. I was stricken with fear this may be contagious and Logan may become infected too. But he held on. The tug-of-war for my arm tired me out, and made it ache more. Logan was going to make his point even if I got hurt in the process. My arm began to blaze with warmth. It went from lukewarm to sizzling and I looked at Logan sharply. I gave my hand one last painful tug and he let go.
Logan blinked at me, as if coming out of a trance. I rubbed my arm, tracing the warmth as it wrapped around my wrist. I looked at it, expecting to see a purple bruise layered over the poisonous blue, and gasped with shock and restrained delight. Where Logan had held me within his heated grasp, was now a band of clean, unblemished skin in the shape and pattern of his fingers.
"What did you do?" I breathed, staring at my hand in fascination.
"I have no idea." He ruffled his hair, scratching at his scalp as he thought hard. "I was concentrating, trying to imagine how the lines were moving around your arm and why. I was a bit pissed off too. And then I must have blanked out for a bit."
Logan lifted my hand in his, studying the cured area in silence.
"Did you use your powers to heal my hand?" I went still, waiting for him to confirm my suspicion.
"It's possible the Fire-magic killed the poison. It's not all gone, though." He turned my hand over as he spoke.
"Try again." I stuck my hand out in front of his face.
"I don't think it works like that. The last thing I want to do now is fry your arm to a crisp." Logan let go of my hand slowly, and it grew cool from the loss. "I need to learn what to do, Kailin. I have to learn how to control this."
I understood. Pain etched his face. To force the issue would be selfish. He had an incredible power within him. A deadly power. I wasn't about to push him into using it to cure the sword's poison before he was ready. I wanted to be free from the noxious blackness seeping through my veins, but not at the expense of Logan's confidence and self-respect.
I would wait. Logan would learn as fast as he could.
"Trust me okay? It will work. I just need to know how to use the Fire." I nodded. I was worried, about my mother. About Greer. "Look, you are not alone. You have me, and your father and brother and the whole Omega team to support you. Once your arm is fixed you can go back to Wrythiin with your own army and bring your mother back."
His arms curled around me, comforting, caring, supportive. I liked those words – I was not alone. Not anymore.
---THE END---
***
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Like what you read?
Connect with Tee online at
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***
Acknowledgments
Skin Deep is the first book I ever wrote. Born under the name of Second Skin, it represented my first foray into the writing world, complete with the usual self-doubt and inability to trust the story. Eventually you learn to listen to the voices in your head and only when I did that, did I really love this book.
I've always wanted to write but I have to thank SF writer Julie Czerneda who spoke at our local library in 2010. She gave me some special words of advice – do it. So I did. Thank you Julie.
This novel received a Commendation Award at the 2011 RWNZ Clendon Awards. Before I received the award I'd been convinced that this MS was an awful mess. The Award gave me the confidence to believe I could actually do this- Thank you to Barbara & Peter Clendon who inspired so many NZ writers to achieve their goals.
To Cassie Hart, Leigh K Hunt & Melissa Pearl. My support team who are always there for me. You girls are amazing!
It seems Skin Deep is also entwined with more of the downs in my life than ups. The release was delayed six month due to my illness and I'm thrilled to finally have it out. My thanks to Patti Larsen, Kimberly Kinrade, Melissa, Cassie and Kate –whenever I needed you, you were always there. You kept me sane even in my hospital bed!
Thank you to Michael Dadich- a special head case who offered me words of advice and a ready shoulder to cry on. Some days were brighter because you were there.
To J.C. Hart. Editor extraordinaire. I really don't know how you do it. You are a total superwoman. Mother, writer, editor, counselor, teacher and friend.
To my amazing family. Mum & Dad, Vin and Namo. Thank you for your support and encouragement. For making fun of me when I needed it and for cheering me on when it was hard to put one foot in front of the other.
To Sel, Dharsh and Dhivs. Thanks for putting up with me, reminding me to eat, dragging me out of the house against my will, giggling when I'm grumpy. For looking after me for months and showing me just how much a family can care about someone they love.
To Eduardo Priego- for being the most amazing artist – you always seem to bring the pictures in my head to life. I wish I knew how you did it.
And to Leigh K. Hunt- for your tireless support and advice whether it be design or unrelated. Thank you so much for always being there for me.
***
More from T.G. Ayer
The Valkyrie Series
Dead Radiance – Book 1 in the Valkyrie series
Bryn Halbrook had always seen the glow. But it is only when her best friend dies that she discovers the meaning of those beautiful golden auras--Death. Alone, lost in the foster system, she struggles to understand who she is and why she was cursed with the ability to see the soon-to-be-dead.
The new foster kid, Aidan, isn't helping any. Mr. Perfect seems to fit in no matter what, making her feel even more pathetic. But when his affections turn to her, Bryn finds him hard to resist. Impossible, actually. A mystery himself, Aidan disappears, leaving behind a broken heart and a mysterious book that suggests Bryn might not be entirely human.
Bryn stands at the threshold of a journey of discovery. Will destiny help her find herself, find her purpose and her place in a world in which she'd never belonged?
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Radiance-Kindle
Dead Embers – Book 2 in the Valkyrie series
Valkyrie-in-training Bryn Halbrook just can't catch a break
. With her boyfriend stuck in Hel and the taunting laughter of Loki still ringing in her ears, she struggles to concentrate on her training and duties in Odin's realm. The last thing she expects or wants is more adventure -- but then treachery, a shocking abduction, and a chilling discovery send her forth on another perilous, globe-hopping mission.
As the ultimate battle, Ragnarok, draws closer, it's a race against time for Bryn, Fenrir and their team to discover who kidnapped her foster brother from the halls of Asgard and what's causing the mysterious deaths of so many of Odin's chosen warriors.
In the exciting sequel to "Dead Radiance," Bryn encounters dwarfs and dragons, new friends and old foes -- but the worst enemy of all may be the person she trusts most.
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Embers-Kindle
Dead Chaos – Book 3 in the Valkyrie series
Coming soon
Everything seems to be falling apart for Bryn. She's lost her wings and she's losing Aidan. He's no longer the boy she loved. And then there's Joshua. Why does it feel so right to be with him?
As if she doesn't have enough on her mind, Bryn learns of a prophecy that predicts that she will be the reason for Odin's destruction. Bryn is desperate to find a way to change her future, and sets of to Yddrasil to speak to the Norns.
Can Bryn change her Fate? Can she help Aidan find his path, while making the choice between him and Joshua? And can Bryn finally save Brody from the clutches of the Frost Giants?
http://tgayer.com/the_valkyrie_novels.html
The DarkWorld Series
Skin Deep – Book 1 Released 30th April 2013
Lost Soul – Book 2 coming late 2013
Second Chance Book 3 coming 2014
http://tgayer.com/the_darkworld_novels.html
The Hand of Kali Series
Fire – Book 1 coming mid 2013
Sixteen year old Maya Rao never wanted to wield FIRE. Gods and Demons were never part of her plan. She didn't even believe. Being normal was all she wanted.
