“You owe me nothing.”
“How did you know?” He searched her pale, exhausted features.
Lifting her head, Inca took a deep, shuddering breath. “When I touched Ann’s belly, when I laid my head against her to bless your baby, I saw it….” Her voice deepened with despair. “I saw all of it….”
Houston scowled. It was on the tip of his tongue to ask why she hadn’t told him, but he knew why. As many laws as Inca might break regarding the Sisterhood of Light, some she would never break because it would mean permanent excommunication from the village, and from the Jaguar Clan. She would be stripped forever of her guardian and become a rogue clan member, only to be hunted down by the Brotherhood of Darkness. Even she did not want to lose her status, though at times she fought against the elders of the village like a rebellious, headstrong child.
“I—I wanted to, my brother.” Her voice broke with fervency. “Believe me, I wanted to.”
Mike nodded and rested his chin against his hands as he held her glistening gaze. “So you did the next best thing—you teleported from Brazil and then came in and picked up the pieces?”
Her mouth stretched a little. “I did what I could within our laws, my brother.” She slowly sat up and pushed her thick, black hair away from her face.
Houston cocked his head, regarding her quizzically.
Inca laughed. The sound, faint in comparison to her normal husky laughter. But she seemed close to her old self. “Less than thirty seconds after Escovar threw Ann off that cliff, I took him down.” Her eyes glittered. Her voice lowered to a growl as she met Houston’s widening eyes. “He is dead, my brother. And so are the two thugs who were with him. I appeared there, ten feet away from them, right after they threw Ann off the cliff. They picked up their guns and shot at me.”
Stunned, Houston stared at her. The silence was like a sharp knife ready to fall between them. His mind whirled.
“Then that’s why the car was up there…but no bodies.”
Her mouth twitched. “I called in the jaguars. They disposed of the bodies. Fitting end, don’t you think, to this death spiral dance you’ve been in with him?”
Mike shut his eyes tightly. “Inca….”
Reaching out, she gripped his arm. “By the time Ann had stopped rolling, I was being fired upon. Escovar ran. His two henchmen hid and there was a firefight on the road. It took more than ten minutes before I could kill the two of them. I called the local jaguars, a male and female who own the territory, and told them to carry off their bodies. I didn’t care what happened to them.” Her eyes flashed dangerously. “Then I went after Escovar. I knew you were on your way to Ann. I saw your guardian with her and knew that what could be done was being done for her. So I set off after Escovar, to track him down and make sure he would not be there when you arrived. To take care of him once and for all.
“I tracked him down with my guardian.” Her green eyes glittered with satisfaction. “Escovar shot at me, missed, but I did not. He died with a bullet in his head.” She lifted her chin imperiously. “A fitting end to a brother of the darkness, do you not think?”
Mike was stunned. He could only nod.
She chuckled. “The local jaguar had her fill of Escovar, I’m sure. The rest of his carcass is buzzard bait out there right now. His men will never find him. That I am sure of. A good end for a murdering bastard like that, is it not?” She slowly flexed her hand, pleased with herself, and stared at Mike.
Houston lifted his head. He saw the glittering hate in Inca’s green eyes, and the satisfaction in them, too. “He’s dead?” Stunned, he saw Inca nod and then give him a lethal smile. It was the smile of a jaguar that had won a heated battle.
“If you think for one moment that I was going to let that murdering son of the darkness take Ann and your baby’s life, you are mistaken, Mike. The Great Goddess did not give me that vision of Ann’s future for nothing and you know it.”
“I didn’t know you had that kind of power,” he murmured, still shaken by the fact that Escovar was dead.
“Ahh, brother, you are so dense sometimes!” Inca slowly unwound, like a sinuous jaguar, from the side of the bed. Ruffling his dirty hair, she stepped over to him and slid her arm around his heavy, slumped shoulders. “If it had not been for the fact I gave Ann that jaguar claw, my guardian’s symbol, I would never have been able to do what I did.” She patted Mike’s shoulder gently. “You see, the last thing Ann did before she hit the ground was grab for that necklace she wore. She called you…and then she called my guardian.” Grinning tiredly, Inca held his gaze. “I did not break code for once, my brother. By giving Ann my second guardian, I made sure she had every right to ask for divine intervention and help from me—and them. I could come once she called me. Before that, I was helpless to intervene—even though I wanted to.”
“So she had two guardians working to save her?”
“Yes,” Inca said, satisfaction purring in her husky voice. “That is what saved her, my brother. Elder Adaire will not be appearing before me to chew me out over this mission.” Inca chuckled indulgently and raked her fingers through her thick, dirty hair. “I am filthy. I am going to take a shower and then I am going to eat. I’m starving! You, on the other hand, look like hell warmed over.” She slapped his shoulder and pointed to the other narrow hospital bed. “Go lie down. I’ll keep guard over your wife and daughter. After all, I am the little one’s aunt. And this is the first time I get to practice being one. You sleep. I will guard and take care of your family for you….”
Ten hours later, Houston awoke. He felt groggy, but he had much of his strength back. The smell of the jungle, the mud and dried blood, was too much even for him, so he stripped out of his fatigues, took a quick, hot shower, shaved, put on a fresh set of clothes and quickly headed back to Ann’s room. The watch on his wrist read 0300. The hospital hall was deserted except for one nurse at the desk. At both ends of the hall, Houston had stationed guards—his own men—in case Escovar’s thugs tried to make an attempt on their lives.
He had business to attend to and that had to come first, even though he wanted to peek in on Ann and their daughter. Using the telephone at the nurses’ station, he reported in to a top official in Lima that Escovar was dead. The satisfaction Mike felt was small in comparison to the relief. With Escovar out of the picture, that meant an end to the death spiral dance for him—and more important, for Ann and his baby daughter.
Finishing his call to the official, Houston ordered his two squads to fly back to Lima for a well-deserved rest. He himself had been given a month’s leave, on the spot, by the official. As he walked back down the hall, toward his wife’s room, his heart felt lighter and lighter. For the first time since everything that had happened, Mike felt joy replacing dread. Hope replacing fear. As soon as Ann was well enough to travel, he would take her and his daughter to the Village of the Clouds. Grandmother Alaria had promised them a month there, and he was going to take her up on it, without question and with gratitude.
Houston quietly opened the door to Ann’s room and slipped in. The harsh light from the hall flooded in around him. He saw that Ann was sleeping soundly, their baby daughter nestled in her arms. A soft smile tipped the corners of his mouth. Inca lay on the floor, next to Ann’s bed, only a blanket for a mattress beneath her. She, too, was sleeping deeply. Her rifle, which was never more than a few inches from her, lay at her side, her fingers draped across it. That was the way of Inca’s life: she was a green warrior in Brazil, a hit-and-run specialist against those who would destroy her rain forest home, which was really the womb of Mother Earth.
His gaze moved back to Ann’s shadowed face. Already she appeared to be stronger and have more color. He felt her growing strength as he unshielded to allow himself to feel her and their baby fully. Yes, life was pulsing through them once again. The ache to be with them overwhelmed Mike. Quietly crossing the room, he was careful to move slowly. If Inca sensed any danger, she’d snap awake and grab that rifle so fast that
he knew it would make even the head of a seasoned military man like him swim.
But he had jaguar blood and could pad so softly as to never be heard—not even by Inca. Easing himself onto the bed, Houston settled his bulk gently against his wife’s form. Sliding one arm beneath Ann’s neck, he lay on his side and placed his other arm across her until his hand closed over his baby daughter, wrapped in the fleecy pink blanket. Tiredness flowed over Mike once more as he pressed his brow gently against Ann’s hair. How good it was to feel her soft, shallow breath against him. An exhausted smile tipped the corners of his mouth as he closed his eyes and allowed the peace, the joy, to thread through him. In moments, Houston was asleep, with the woman he loved so fiercely in his arms and their baby daughter beside them.
Chapter 17
Ann shared a secret smile with Mike, who sat on the edge of her bed, his arm draped casually around her shoulders. Next to him was Grandfather Adaire, who had materialized before them little less than fifteen minutes earlier. Mike had warned her he was coming and how he would come. Teleportation was something that only a few of the Jaguar Clan could accomplish.
Grandmother Alaria had other duties to fulfill, so she’d asked her husband to come in her stead. Ann was disappointed, but knew that when they reached the village, Grandmother Alaria’s love and support would be there for their daughter. One of the many things Ann was getting used to was the ebb and flow of situations and not to assume or expect. As Mike always told her, “Expect nothing, receive everything.” And judging from Grandfather Adaire’s expression and tender regard for their new baby daughter, he was the perfect person to perform the ancient ceremony they had gathered together for.
Grandfather Adaire stood beside Ann’s bed, leaning heavily on his staff, which had colorful parrot feathers attached to it. Everyone’s attention went to the door as it slowly opened.
Ann held out her hand. “Inca…come join us.” She saw the woman warrior’s hesitation as her gaze settled darkly on Adaire. “Please,” Ann murmured.
“You are invited to the naming ceremony,” Adaire rumbled. “Enter!”
“I thought Grandmother Alaria would be here,” she said stiffly. But the flash of rebellion in Inca’s eyes softened immediately as she closed the door and centered her focus on Ann.
“It should not matter who is here,” Adaire said to her sharply. “We are gathered because of this child. That is what you should be focused upon.”
For whatever reason, Ann knew that Inca trusted her with the very core of her wounded being. And she could literally feel Inca’s distrust and dislike of Adaire. As Ann held out her hand, the woman warrior walked around the bed and grasped her fingers.
“I’m so glad they found you,” Ann told her.
“I was in the hospital cafeteria, eating.”
Houston grinned. “Is there any food left?”
Chuckling, Inca released Ann’s fingers, leaned over and very delicately touched the baby’s soft black hair. “I left you a little, my brother. Ahh, look at her. She is so beautiful!” Inca smiled up into Ann’s eyes. “She has your beauty and this ugly guy’s stubborn personality. What a combination!” She laughed fully in that husky, purring tone as she straightened up.
Ann cradled her daughter in her right arm. She gazed from Inca to Adaire. “Now we can begin, Grandfather.”
He nodded his aging head. Placing his staff against the wall, he drew out a small glass vial with a cork in the top of it. “Let us bow our heads in prayer, in grateful thanks for this child’s entrance into our lives, that she is alive and healthy.”
Ann closed her eyes. She felt Mike’s arm move comfortingly around her shoulders. This was all she wanted, all she would ever need: him and her daughter. Three days after the horrendous event, Mike had suggested the naming ceremony. She was still too injured to be moved, to make the trip to the Village of the Clouds. Another week here, in Tarapoto, was what the doctors recommended. Ann didn’t like the idea of staring at four white walls for another seven days when she could be “home” in the village, but she didn’t fight Mike on the decision.
Adaire’s low, rumbling tone filled the room. “Allow the light of the Great Goddess and her heavens to come through you, Catherine Inca Houston.” He reached over and gently touched the baby’s hair with the fragrant orchid oil. Moving it in a clockwise circle, he pronounced, “Your connection to this life, in this body, is now complete.”
Ann watched through glistening eyes as Grandfather Adaire rubbed a tiny bit of oil on Catherine’s brow, her throat, over her heart, stomach and abdomen. Adaire’s hands were so gnarled and aged looking against Catherine’s new, pink skin. The little girl slept as he touched her, as if she knew he would never hurt her. And throughout the moving ceremony, Ann saw tears in the elder’s gray eyes.
More surprising to Ann, as Grandfather Adaire called out the baby’s name, was that Inca’s head jerked up, her eyes widening in total surprise that her own name was part of it. Just as quickly, she hid her reaction by placing her hand across her eyes, bowing her head so no one could see how she really felt about it.
Adaire then raised his hand and placed a drop of the oil on Ann’s heart region. “From daughter to mother, the Great Goddess bless this union between you.”
He then moved around the bed in slow, limping strides. Mike eased off the bed and unbuttoned his white cotton shirt to expose his chest. Adaire placed a drop of oil above his heart and rumbled, “From daughter to father, the Great Goddess bless this union between you.”
Ann felt Inca stiffen. She hoped her friend would not rebel, would not refuse the gift that they had given her. Mike had told Ann earlier that those who accepted the drop of oil at a naming ceremony accepted an unbreakable bond with those who shared the oil; becoming, in essence, an extended family even if they had no blood or family lineage in common. For Inca, who was an orphan, and almost an outcast of the Jaguar Clan, this would mean that someone wanted her enough to invite her into their family unit. Honored and loved no matter how bad her reputation was, or what she had done in the past. Mike had warned Ann that Inca might balk and refuse to be part of the ceremony because Grandfather Adaire would be overseeing it, instead of Alaria. Inca had always gotten along with Alaria. Her quarrel was with Adaire.
Although it hurt to move her left arm because of her broken ribs, Ann reached out, entangling her fingers in Inca’s strong ones.
Inca snapped her head to the right, looking down at her.
Ann tried to smile through her tears, silently asking her to be a part of their family. She saw Inca valiantly try to shield emotions, but for whatever reason, she could not. Maybe it was the baby that had exposed Inca’s deeply hidden vulnerability. Ann wasn’t sure.
As Adaire approached her, Inca stiffened, but turned her attention upon him.
Ann squeezed her fingers in a pleading gesture. She saw Mike nod gently at Inca, as if encouraging her to allow the ceremony to take place. She also saw Adaire wrestling with his own judgment of his former apprentice. There was such bad blood between them.
Inca wore a sleeveless, dark green T-shirt. With her left hand, she yanked it down enough to expose her heart region between her small breasts. Her lips were set as Adaire moved forward to place the oil on her skin.
“From daughter to aunt, the Great Goddess bless this union,” he rumbled.
Ann closed her eyes as Adaire placed the oil upon Inca’s chest. She thanked her friend mentally. Little Catherine stirred and opened her eyes. They were so large and blue-green in color. Ann knew without a doubt that her daughter would have her husband’s deep blue eyes as she grew older. Smiling, she placed a soft kiss on her tiny brow. Catherine’s bowlike mouth curved in a smile.
Adaire moved around to the other side of the bed. He leaned down and carefully bundled Catherine into his arms. Ann watched as he cradled her daughter against his thin chest, his gray eyes glittering with tears as he placed his trembling hand upon her small chest beneath the blankets.
“This is
a child of our hearts. She has her family here with her now. She also has her extended family of the Jaguar Clan. May she be blessed by the Great Goddess to walk a path of light in harmony with her heart. May she always see through the eyes of her heart. Blessings upon her, her family and the Jaguar Clan, into which she is welcomed.”
Ann sniffed. She glanced over at Mike as he went and stood beside Inca. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room, though Inca tried to hide her tears. It was impossible. Adaire was beaming as he held Catherine, rocking her gently in his arms.
“Thank you, Grandfather,” Mike whispered, extending his hand across the bed. “Ann and I are grateful you could do this for us…all of us….”
Adaire carefully cosseted Catherine as he reached out and shook Mike’s hand. “My son, I would go wherever Alaria asked me to. This is a blessed moment.” He released Mike’s hand and turned his attention to Ann.
“It is a custom of our people for the elder who blesses the newborn to tell you something of her future. I know Alaria wanted to be here, but circumstances prevented her from doing so. She sends her love to all of you.”
Ann nodded and leaned back against Mike as he sat down on the bed and placed his arm around her shoulders again. “I hope Catherine has a good future, Grandfather,” she quavered, sniffing and blotting her eyes with a tissue.
Inca came and carefully sat down on the same side of the bed, near Ann’s blanketed feet, facing her. She placed her hand across Ann’s ankle and looked at her through tears that she refused to allow to fall.
Adaire sighed. “For once, I can tell you with great assuredness that Catherine Houston will be a catalyst in our world as she blossoms into an adult.”
“Don’t you mean Catherine Inca Houston, Old One?”
Adaire scowled and refused to look down at Inca, who had prodded him unmercifully, with blatant sarcasm in her voice.
Morgan’s Mercenaries: Heart of the Jaguar Page 31
