by Jenna Lee
My eyes go straight to the back wall. It is covered with a mural of Silvia. It shows the beautiful vibrant grass and the huge large trees with the detailed leaves. Looking up to the ceiling I see the bright blue sky that finishes off the room perfectly. A large king-sized bed sits in front of the wall.
I stand there thinking how amazing would it be to lay on that bed looking up at the sky ceiling. The rest of the bedroom walls are a light blue that match with the feature wall. There is a wardrobe door opposite the bed and an empty desk to my left. Right next to the desk is a door that I assume leads to a bathroom.
“Pretty cool, huh? Declan had it all made especially for you, but he would never admit it. But he did design the whole space, in hope that you would be back one day to use it. I know he’s the quiet one, but he actually has the biggest heart. Just don’t expect him to tell you that he did this for you. He would deny it. Trust me, he’s stubborn as hell,” Jolie admits.
I stand there in a state of shock. Declan…did this for me? I couldn’t believe it. This was mine? I walk over to the bed and lay down looking up to the sky-covered ceiling. I feel the bed dip next to me and look to see Jolie lying next to me looking up to the ceiling.
“Amazing isn’t it?” she asks, not taking her eyes away.
I let out a sigh as I snuggle further into the bed, “It sure is, I can’t believe this is mine, so cool,” I admit to her, enjoying her company.
We lie there in silence for a good thirty minutes, both in our own worlds. I notice that Jolie and I don’t even have to talk. We can just lay here in silence and it’s not weird at all.
You know the feeling with some people how the silence is awkward as hell? Well with Jolie, it’s the complete opposite.
The silence breaks when someone knocks on the door and Harlan comes in. He sees us laying on my bed. I notice a little smile creep up on his lips, but all too soon it’s gone, replaced with his usually serious face.
“Sorry to break up your girl time, but we need to show Dara around the rest of the house,” he explains. Rest of the house…he makes it sound like there is a lot more to see.
How could that be? Surely there isn’t much more to see, that would make the house even bigger than I imagined. It sure as hell didn’t look like that from the outside.
But then again, we are in Silvia, and I’m starting to learn that anything is possible here.
Chapter 16
Dara
Much to my disappointment I roll off the bed and follow Harlan out into the hallway. I wished I could stay on that bed for the rest of the day, I was exhausted. I think going through the portal knocked me around a bit.
“Yep. You are right, the portal does take away a lot of your energy. You should be right after a good night’s sleep. Don’t worry, I won’t take up too much of your time. I just wanted to show you the rest of the house and fill you in on what will happen starting tomorrow,” Harlan explains, breaking me away from my thoughts.
I was seriously sick of them reading my thoughts. I wonder if there is a way to block them out. I spin around putting my hand on my hip, confronting him, “You have to stop reading my damn thoughts. There has to be a way to block you all out, right?” I know I come across as rude, but whatever, I was so over it. Give a girl some privacy.
Harlan shakes his head at my outburst and continues to walk up the stairs. I reluctantly follow him. “When we start training, Jolie will teach you how to block us from hearing your every thought. But it is important to know how to release it in the instance you’re in trouble. That is the true purpose for it, so we can still communicate even if you’re miles away. It is reciprocal, you know. You can read our thoughts, but you won’t know how to until we teach you. Jolie is the master in that department,” Harlan explains, which helps me feel a lot better about it. It is pretty cool that we are able to communicate. I will just have to learn how to block them out from every other thought.
We make it to the next level, which Harlan explains is his parent’s retreat. It houses their bedroom and a luxurious living area. I take in the space and smile to myself. This is pretty bloody cool. They must come here a lot to get away from their kids. We don’t stay here long, for which I am grateful. It is their personal space and I don’t want to invade their privacy. We continue up the stairs again to another level. My god, there is more?
We reach a heavy looking door made from strong red oak wood. Harlan opens it, and we walk out into the space. I stop in my tracks and I am amazed at what I see. We are at the top level of the tree. It is like an outside retreat, more like a penthouse.
The tree’s branches surround us, reaching high up to the sky. The platform we stand on reaches out like a balcony. The ground is the same beautiful grass that seems to be a constant thing here. I walk over to the edge and hold onto the vine railing that continues throughout the whole space. I look out into the open forest; the views are breathtaking.
I think I have found my new favourite place. The tree’s branches block out anybody seeing us from the ground, but you can still see out and get an amazing 360 view of Silvia.
Harlan comes up and stands beside me, “Beautiful, isn’t it?” he asks. I take a few minutes to respond as I am too speechless by the views.
“Oh, my god, yes. This is my new favourite place,” I say back, not taking my eyes off the forest.
He laughs and says, “You may have to share it with all of the guys and Jolie. They love coming out here.”
I look around the rest of the balcony and notice five hammocks on the opposite side. They are made from the most beautiful vines and I walk over to touch them. To my surprise, they feel so soft like touching a baby’s bottom.
I hop into the hammock and let out a sigh. If this isn’t the most comfortable thing I have ever laid in, I will sell my body to a stranger. I open my eyes to see Harlan walking over to join me, he lays on the one next to me and relaxes. This is the first time I have ever seen him completely relax, and I honestly can’t blame him. This is pure heaven right here. I don’t ever want to move from here. I shut my eyes and enjoy the sound of the birds and nature.
All too soon, I hear Harlan getting up. “I hate to interrupt you Princess, but we must get moving, there is one more thing to show you,” he says, breaking me from my little daydream.
I reluctantly get up and out of the hammock and whisper to it that we will be meeting again, soon. Harlan shakes his head and I swear, I notice his lips form a little smile. He quickly turns around and heads for the door. We go back down to the ground level, and I follow him to another door that I didn’t notice before. It is in the living room, opposite the couch. He opens it and we walk down a set of winding stairs, until we end up underground in another space. I look around and don’t stop the groan that comes from my mouth.
Great, it’s a torture chamber. I quickly spin around ready to run back up the stairs.
Harlan’s arm shoots out, grabbing me and stopping me from my escape. “You’re not going anywhere, Dara. Please let me show you around. You will learn to love this space, just give it a chance. Starting tomorrow, this will be your training centre where you will learn everything you need to help with retrieving the stones. It’s not that bad, come on have a look around,” he explains, turning me around.
Fine, I think. I take in the space to humour him. The space is broken into five different spaces. It is huge, possibly the biggest space of the entire house. Starting to my left is a gym set up with everything you could possibly need from huge weights to treadmills to some weird machines that I have never even seen before. That area looks like it will be my worst enemy, wanting to stay clear from there I look to the next space.
This space has an archery set up with five targets lined on the back wall and a number of bow and arrows lined up in cabinets. I have never shot one in my life, so that was going to be interesting. I make a wish that Blair will go easy on me. On second thought, he was the sweet, caring one so I may just get lucky with my wish. Wh
o am I kidding? They will all be going hard on me. Can I just go and hide in the corner, never to be found again?
I continue to the next area that is similar to the bow and arrow set up. This one has five targets set up on the far wall and cabinets full of all different kinds of knives. From the smallest to the largest knives I have ever seen. Hmm, that looks interesting. I know Declan won’t be going easy on me in here.
The next area is simple with a huge red mat set up on the ground. This looks to be where Harlan will be teaching me combat and Oliver martial arts. That should be a fascinating session, since I have never fought anyone in my entire life.
I quickly look at the final area. It’s a huge blocked off dome that has only one entrance. It locks once you have entered, judging by the handle. It’s a completely blocked off area from the rest of the space. Interesting, I wonder what we will do in there. I walk over and peek inside. There is nothing inside. It’s completely empty. Weird as hell, I turn around ready to ask Harlan what that space is for.
He must have read my thoughts, as he answers me before I can ask him. “In that space, Jolie will be teaching you things, things that I can’t explain just yet. I don’t want to overwhelm you more than you already are. Jolie will explain it all tomorrow. Try not to worry about it too much,” he explains.
Try not to worry too much? Are you fucking kidding me? This is a torture chamber. I am beyond worried at what tomorrow will entail.
Not wanting to be in here another minute, I quickly walk to the stairs and run up them two at a time. I yank open the door and run straight into Blair. He grabs me before I fall over. I don’t even think about what I am doing. I hug him so tight that I swear he might pop. I don’t know what comes over me, but the need to feel someone hug me overpowers my thoughts.
Blair stands there shocked for a second, but he eventually hugs me back. The feeling that comes over me is pure bliss. His hug is the best I have ever had. I feel his hard abs beneath his t-shirt and his soft hands rubbing my back. I hear Harlan coming up the stairs and open the door behind me.
Blair lets me go and he lifts my face up to look at him, “Are you okay? What’s wrong my Princess?” He asks, with the sweetest voice I have ever heard.
I nod not wanting to talk, as I am afraid that the tears I am holding back will fall. One tear escapes, and Blair rubs his thumb over my cheek catching it. Not wanting to see the pity in his face, I look down and try to get out of his embrace. He holds onto me not letting me go, finally I stop struggling against him.
“Fine. I am not okay, please just let me go. I need some time alone, everything has been too much. I just need to have some time to myself,” I say. He lets out a sigh and lets me go.
I quickly run up the stairs to my new bedroom and slam the door shut. I walk over to the bed and lay down closing my eyes.
I just want to forget everything that has happened.
Chapter 17
Dara
I open my eyes to see the bright blue sky above me. It takes me a moment to realise where I am, then it all comes back to me in a rush. The past few days and the sheer volume of information that I have learned. I lay there for a few moments, just enjoying the view. I finally get up and make my way into the hallway.
Careful not to make much sound, I make my way down the stairs. I have no idea what time it is, as the whole house doesn’t have any windows to see what time of day it is. As I make my way down the stairs, I decide that today is the day where I get answers to all of my questions. I will demand them until I hear the truth about what the warriors are. What I am. After my long sleep, I am feeling great and refreshed. I reach the bottom and I see the guys seated around the dining table. They all look up as I enter the room and smile at me.
“Welcome back, sleeping beauty. We thought you would never wake up,” Oliver says chuckling, as he pulls out a chair for me. I smile and walk over to join them at the table. Declan brings a plate over and puts it in front of me with a large cup of coffee. I could literally kiss him right now, how did he know that bacon, eggs and coffee were my favourite?
“You are amazing. Yum, just what I needed.” I admit, as I dig into the eggs and bacon. I devour my breakfast in record time and down my coffee. It tastes so good, and it has been too long since I had one.
Someone clears their throat and I don’t have to look up to see who it is. Of course, it’s Harlan. The guy can’t sit still for longer than five minutes without asserting his dominance.
“Sorry to interrupt Dara, but we have a big day ahead of us. We need to...” I raise my hand and cut him off.
“Oh, give me a break and let me finish my coffee in peace, would you?” I snap at him, causing everyone to laugh out loud.
Harlan rolls his eyes and continues talking as if I didn’t even interrupt him, “We need to start training as soon as possible. I got word from the castle that James is getting worse. He is going crazy trying to find the stones. Now that he knows you’re here, he is sending out Slayers in huge numbers to hunt you down. Now please Dara, stop with the attitude and please start listening to me. A lot falls on your shoulders, Dara and you must be ready.”
I sit there in silence taking in what he said, and I start to feel bad for my antics. “Fine, I will start this training shit. But only after I have a shower and put on some clean clothes. Jolie, I may need to borrow some of your clothes,” I say, as I get up and take my dishes over to the sink.
Jolie gets up, walks over to me and links our arms. “Come with me sis, you won’t need to borrow my clothes. You haven’t looked in your wardrobe yet?” she asks. I shake my head. “Oh, you’re in for a shock,” she reveals, which gets me all excited to find out what’s in there.
Jolie drags me upstairs and we go into my bedroom where she pushes me onto the bed. She struts over to the wardrobe, opens it up and starts rummaging through the space. I lose sight of her, I lean over to look inside. Oh my god, it’s huge! A complete walk-in wardrobe filled with clothes and shoes, and they are all for me? I sit there on the bed in shock that someone would be so kind to buy all of this for me. Jolie finally appears carrying two piles of clothes in both hands.
She throws them all out onto the bed. “How in the hell did I obtain these clothes?” I ask her, while I look through the clothes she picked out for my training session.
“From me, of course. Do you see any of the guys being able to pick out such a collection? I think not, this is my department. That’s what girlfriends are for, right?” she replies.
I could literally hug her right now. I think I am going to love having this girl around. I pick out some workout tights and a tight mint singlet. Jolie comes back out of the wardrobe with a pair of super cute mint and black runners, that match my outfit perfectly. I take them off her and bring her in for a hug and whisper in her ear.
“You are seriously the best,” I admit to her.
She pulls back and smiles brightly. “I know right, now go get into that shower you smell really bad and have the worst breath,” she says, as she smacks my arse walking out of the room.
I grab the clothes off the bed and walk over to the door that is next to the desk. I open it and my suspicion was right, it’s my own private bathroom. It’s huge, with a large bath to the right and to my left there is a massive shower that could house ten people at once. I have a dirty thought. Thinking how I could have all my Warriors in there with me at once.
Oh man, I had it bad. I had feelings for each of my Warriors. More than I would like to admit. What was wrong with me? I couldn’t fall for them all at once. That wasn’t fair, to them. I would ruin everything. But I just couldn’t explain the pull I had toward each one of them. Even Harlan. My body was drawn to them all and that scared me. I needed to sort my shit out before it was too late. I couldn’t fall for them all, it would ruin their relationship.
I put my clothes on the vanity, touching the beautiful wooden detail that is on the front of it. After turning around and locking the door. I take of
f my clothes and throw them in the corner. I turn around and look at the mirror and am shocked at my own reflection.
My eyes are crystal blue. Bluer than they have ever been. I take a closer look at my eyes and see to my surprise that the blue is swirling. I step back in a state of shock. What in the hell is going on with me? I look back and my eyes are normal again. I must be imagining things, because they are now completely normal.
I face my back toward the mirror and turn around to look at my tattoo, as it has been a while since I had seen it. Much to my disappointment it’s still there, looking the same, but when I think about it, it’s a pretty cool design. I turn on the shower and wait for it to warm up. I step inside and enjoy the hot water on my back.
I stand there for a good ten minutes, loving the way the water calms my thoughts. Finally, I get a move on, as I bet Harlan will be banging on that door very soon. I wash my hair and get out drying off my hair with the towel. I chuck it up into a high messy bun and step into my new clothes. I look at myself in the mirror and can’t believe how well the clothes fit me.
I will have to thank Jolie again later, she seriously is the best. But she does make me think of Kayla and miss her even more. I wonder what she is doing now, probably having the entire police force out looking for me, no doubt.
I am interrupted by my thoughts, as I hear someone knock on the door. One guess as to who that will be, I think as I open the door. Yep my guess was right; It’s Harlan, looking all bossy in his workout gear. I walk toward the door and push him out of my way.
“You come to tell me to hurry up, as I am late for training? Well, am I right?” I ask, as I put on my runners and tie up the laces.
