sedona files - books one to three

by Christine Pope

  I had no idea. Martin looked human, sounded human, felt human…tasted human. But despite all that, he wasn’t, and I found myself trying to figure out the best way to wrap my brain around that concept.

  “So,” he repeated, and sipped from his coffee. I noticed that he hadn’t put any cream or sugar in it.

  Right then I was kind of regretting not getting something hot to drink. My fingers felt chilled, and wrapping them around a glass of orange juice wasn’t going to help much. “I guess I’m a little confused.”

  “By what?”

  Everything, I thought, but I only said, “The aliens. I just sort of assumed we were dealing with the Greys here, but that — thing — in my dream was definitely not a Grey.”

  “No. There’s a misconception that it’s the Greys running things because they’re the most commonly encountered aliens.”

  “So they’re not actually in charge?”

  Martin ran a hand along his jaw, absentmindedly scratching at his stubble. It made me think that maybe he wasn’t used to having it, so I guessed he actually did have to shave like a normal man, even if he wasn’t one. “Not really. They’re — well, I suppose one way of viewing them is as biological robots. They’re designed to do information gathering, collect abductees, conduct experiments. Some of their brain functions are very high-level. But they’re not the ones making the command decisions.”

  “Who is?” I asked, but I thought I knew, recalling the touch of scaly alien skin with a shiver.

  “What you call the Reptilians. As I told you before, they’re an ancient race, but one that has learned very little about how to coexist peacefully in this universe. They only plunder and move on. There’s still enough left on Earth worth taking…which of course will be easier with the humans out of the way.”

  That remark didn’t do much to dispel the chill that seemed to have settled over me, despite the warmth of the room. Of course I knew about the Reptilians, had even met a few people who claimed to have been abducted by them rather than the Greys. I remembered now that those encounters were described as having distinctly sexual overtones.

  This time I couldn’t repress my shudder, and Martin watched me with both worry and understanding in his expression. “So you know something of them.”

  “Enough that I really wish we were being invaded by something a little more friendly, like Godzilla.”

  That actually elicited a chuckle. While he was laughing the waitress came by with our plates, and I was relieved that she’d showed up during a relatively normal moment and not when we were discussing how to welcome our new lizard overlords.

  She left, and I started to pick at my omelette, my appetite having taken a sudden tumble. But I knew I had to eat, so I scooped up a forkful of eggs and cheese and bacon, and put it in my mouth. It did taste good, so I ate some more.

  Martin followed suit, but then paused after one mouthful, hash browns dangling off the tines of his fork. “And you know why they’re here.”

  “You just told me — to take all the good stuff and leave scorched earth behind.”

  “No.” He ate the hash browns from his fork, then set it down. “I meant here here, in Sedona.”

  Two words came to mind immediately. “The power.”

  He nodded. “What does that mean to you?”

  I put down my own fork, my thoughts racing back to August, to Grayson’s look of anguish while he was under hypnosis, the truth being somehow dragged from him during Persephone’s questioning. Even now I could remember how the cords had stood out on his neck, the perspiration on his forehead, even though Paul and Persephone’s air conditioning worked great. “We thought it must be something about the vortexes, but we could never really figure out why.”

  “Why does it surprise you that the vortexes would be involved?”

  The waitress came by to top off Martin’s coffee right then, so I waited until she was gone before replying, “I don’t know.” I felt myself shrug, and added, “That is, they’re a great gimmick to bring in the tourists, and I guess you can get a natural high from being in one if you’re attuned to it or something, but it’s not like we’re sitting on a nuclear reactor or something.”

  “Really?” His tone was mild enough, but I thought I saw something challenging in the way he stared at me over the rim of his coffee cup as he held it to his lips and blew on it gently.

  “Well, I’ve been to most of the vortexes more than once, and I can’t say I felt much of anything.” Except a need to get away from the tourists who were trampling all over them, I added mentally.

  “I think you’ll find that you’ll have a very different experience now that your powers have begun to awaken.”

  I wasn’t sure I liked the sound of that. “So, what, are we going on a vortex field trip today?”

  He shook his head. “First things first. I have to make sure you can protect yourself before we go any further.”

  No way I was going to argue with that, not after last night. But I could feel the unease creeping over me all the same. Now it was Wednesday. It was going to be a bang or a whimper come Sunday, and I just hoped that Martin knew what he was doing, that all this zen stuff of the proper things in the proper times wasn’t going to end up with me being able to protect myself but unable to do jack shit to save anybody else.

  “Kirsten.”

  I looked up and met his gaze, saw the concern there. “You don’t think I would let anything terrible happen to you, to the people you love?”

  “I don’t — I don’t think so. But how can you help me and not interfere at the same time?”

  At that question he reached across the table and laid his hand on mine where it rested next to my discarded fork. Even with all the worry and doubt crowding my mind, still I felt a rush of heat go over me at his touch, at the warmth of his flesh seeming to soak into my own chilled fingers.

  “Do you trust me?” he asked.

  What a loaded question. I wanted to trust him — so far he had done nothing but protect me, be there for me when I needed him to quite literally preserve life and limb. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that he hadn’t told me the whole story, that he was still beholden to some unseen masters wherever he had come from, and I found that more than a little worrisome.

  Unable to hide my hesitation, I answered slowly, “…Yes.”

  “Not very convincing, Kirsten.” He didn’t sound angry as he said this, but calm, as if stating a simple fact.

  “I want to,” I told him. “I guess I’d be more clear about it if I didn’t get the impression you weren’t telling me the whole story.”

  A shadow passed over his face then, and he let go of my hand rather abruptly and went back to his neglected omelette. I did the same, forcing the food into my mouth even though my appetite, so hearty earlier this morning, seemed to have deserted me.

  “But which whole story?” he asked then. “There are parts of it that aren’t germane to the matter at hand.”

  I couldn’t believe he’d actually used the word “germane” in a sentence. I thought that was reserved strictly for vocabulary tests. “Okay, then, let’s get to something ‘germane.’ You and me.”

  His eyebrows went up at that. “I don’t follow.”

  “Why me? I mean, is this some alien La Femme Nikita thing where you seduce me into becoming your bad-guy killer or something?”

  For a few seconds he didn’t say anything, his face still as he apparently attempted to process the reference. “No, of course not. I’m here to help you defeat those who want to destroy your world. No secret subtext. As for the rest…” He let the words trail off, then lifted his shoulders. “Kirsten, you’re intelligent and courageous and beautiful…and occasionally funny. Why do you think it strange that I would be attracted to you?”

  This response was so not what I had been expecting that I only sat there and stared at him, stunned. Then I cocked my head to one side and asked, “Only ‘occasionally funny’?”

  “All right…often funny.”
Again he reached across the table, this time enveloping my left hand in both of his. “It’s not what I intended, if that makes you feel any better. When I first saw you last summer, I thought…” Again he paused. “That is, when I saw you again, I knew.”

  “Knew what?” Oh, how his touch made my blood race, made me forget that only thirty seconds earlier I’d been more than a little irritated with him.

  A disarming smile. “Knew that I was in a lot of trouble.”

  Somehow I knew that wasn’t quite it, that there was something else he wasn’t saying, but I decided to let it go. Really, sitting at a table at the Junipine Café probably wasn’t the optimal location for heartfelt revelations.

  “And how are we doing here?”

  I jumped a little at the sound of the waitress’ voice. Martin, though, only sent her one of his most charming smiles and said, “Great. I think we’re about ready for the check, though.”

  “Got it!” she chirped, and went on her way.

  Secretly I was glad that she looked to be only around sixteen or seventeen. That was a little too young to be ogling Martin the way the woman at the next table had been.

  He paid the bill as soon as she returned, laying down two twenties and saying, “Keep the change.”

  My eyes widened a little — talk about your forty-percent tip — but I refrained from comment and instead shrugged into my coat once again, and picked up my purse once I was all buttoned up again. Martin put on his own overcoat but didn’t bother to fasten it.

  Once we were outside, I said, “So what now?”

  “We go farther up the canyon, to West Fork.”

  I nodded, but then frowned a little. In a way it made sense. West Fork was one of the most popular hiking trails in the Sedona area, a stunningly beautiful trail that actually crisscrossed the creek at several points. In the summer it was definitely not the place for any kind of quiet meditation, as you were likely to get trampled by tourists while trying to reach enlightenment. On a Wednesday morning in mid-December, we probably wouldn’t encounter too much foot traffic.

  More importantly, it was supposed to be quite a vortex.

  “I thought we weren’t doing vortexes yet,” I remarked as I climbed once more into the passenger seat of Martin’s Taurus.

  “The vortex aspect is secondary. There’s a strong protective power in that spot. It should be the best location for today’s training.” He flashed a quick look over at me, his eyes now shaded by dark sunglasses. “But if you do really well, we may move on to vortexes.”

  “Gee, thanks, teach.” I reached into my purse and pulled out my own sunglasses, since the day was getting progressively brighter, even down here in the canyon.

  A head shake, and he piloted the car back up the road, past Forest Houses, twisting and turning and gradually moving higher. About five minutes later he pulled into the turn-off for the West Fork parking area, flashed a Red Rock pass at the Forest Service attendant on duty, and eased to a stop in a space fairly close to the trailhead. There were only two other vehicles there, a Jeep much more battered than the one I’d borrowed from Henry, and a sleek little Audi two-seater that looked distinctly out of place.

  We both got out and made our way over to the trail itself, which wound down away from the parking area, toward the creek. With so few cars in the parking lot, I guessed we wouldn’t have to worry too much about getting intruded upon by tourists, but even so, it seemed as if Martin was intent on taking me as far away from the sections where we’d be likely to meet people as possible. We actually did pass one couple in their thirties, who I guessed must belong to the Audi. They both wore new-looking North Face gear, and the woman’s expression told me that she’d much rather be back in town getting a massage or a facial.

  Wouldn’t we all, I thought, gamely plugging along the muddy trail in Martin’s wake, glad that I’d worn my heavy trail boots today even though they weren’t exactly the height of fashion. Too bad he was wearing that overcoat, though. It deprived me of the pleasure of watching his rear end in those blue jeans.

  But then we came around a bend and emerged at the first of the water crossings, and it was as if it hit me in a wave. A surge of life, of energy, wrapping around me, so buoyant and joyful I almost felt I could have fallen on it, and it would have lifted me up.

  “We’re here,” Martin said unnecessarily.

  “I kind of got that,” I replied, my voice breathy and not sounding much like mine.

  “So you feel it.”

  “And then some.”

  He looked pleased by that, as if he’d had some lingering worries about my ability to come up to snuff when the time came. “Good.” There was a fallen log sitting half in the water, and he pointed to it. “Go ahead and sit down there. It’s probably wiser if you don’t try to do this standing up.”

  Mystified, I did as he directed and sat down on the log, hoping it wouldn’t be too damp. Even while performing these mundane movements, it seemed as if clouds of energy swirled around me, a gentle cushion of light and warmth. Once I was seated, I noticed several pairs of tracks in the red mud of the creek’s bank, tracks that went into the freezing water and came out again on the other side of the shallow crossing. Apparently the occupants of that Jeep back in the parking lot were dedicated hikers. With any luck, we’d be done here before they came back down.

  “All right,” Martin said, looking down at me. The sun was almost directly behind his head, casting his face in shadow, but also making it almost look as if he had a halo. Which was silly. He was an alien, not an angel.

  …Or at least, I didn’t think he was.

  I told myself to focus. Not paying attention to what he was saying could have far graver consequences than blowing off an econ lecture.

  “I want you to close your eyes,” he went on, and I did as he said, making myself concentrate on the warm tone of his voice, as soothing in its own way as the murmur of the creek at my feet. “Imagine a white-gold light surrounding you, enveloping you, creating a perfect barrier against all harm, against anything that might wish you ill.”

  If it had come from anyone else, I would have probably laughed at such a suggestion. It sounded way too much like something one of the psychics-for-hire in town would say to someone who was having personal problems. But now I had that white-gold light all around me, the energy from the creek encouraging me, telling me that it wasn’t all woo-woo.

  It was as easy as resting my palms face up on my knees and letting the energy flow over me, wrap around every limb, drift across my face like the caress of a warm summer breeze, looking almost like an extension of my own pale blonde hair as it flowed around me. Encased in that cocoon of pure light, I knew I could come to no harm.

  Martin’s voice seemed to come from far away, as if transmitting from a distant radio station. “Very good. Keep that focus.”

  Not a problem. I can do this all day.

  And then I saw the same blinding blue-white light that had struck down the alien-possessed man who’d attacked me behind the Circle K — only this time it was headed straight for me. Without thinking, I flung up my hands, and a wall of white-gold light flared into being in front of me, blocking the bolt of energy and sending it skittering off harmlessly into the creek, where the water sizzled as if it had been struck by lightning.

  “What the hell?” I burst out, once I had determined that I hadn’t been flash fried. The wall of light sparked away into nothingness, although I could still feel the energy quiescent within me, ready to be called forth at a moment’s notice.

  “That was…impressive,” said Martin as he came toward me. He sounded almost breathless, as if he’d been the one fending off Emperor Palpatine–style lightning-bolt attacks instead of me.

  “Oh, really?” I planted my hands on my hips and glared at him. “You might have warned me that you were going to be trying to burn me to a crisp.”

  “I would have backed off if I thought your shield wouldn’t hold.” He didn’t appear concerned in the slightest; in
fact, he looked about the happiest I’d seen yet, the corners of his eyes crinkled in a smile.

  “Who put a nickel in you?” I asked, wondering why he should be so buoyant.

  “You did.” He reached out and took my hands in his. Again I wished it wasn’t mid-December, that it was a warm day so we could be touching flesh to flesh, not his leather gloves to my admittedly ratty cobalt-blue angora ones. “Kirsten, I’ve never seen anyone put up that kind of a defense on the first try. Frankly, it was…extraordinary.”

  “Oh?” His words mollified me…a little. “So I might have a real career as an alien ass-kicker after all?”

  “You just might.”

  “And that — that light you sent at me. It’s the same force you used against that guy behind the Circle K, isn’t it?”

  “Similar.”

  I slanted a look up at him. “Can you teach me how to do that?”

  He laughed then and pulled me against him, folding me in his warm embrace. “Yes. Soon. But not quite yet. Remember — ”

  “ — All things in their proper order. Yes, I remember.” I snuggled against his chest, glad to be in his arms, especially in this place where the air itself seemed charged with some kind of magic. Of course he wouldn’t have done anything to hurt me. And he’d said I was extraordinary.

  The feeling was definitely mutual.

  “Okay,” I went on, pushing away just slightly so I could look up into his face, “what now? Are you going to fling more lightning bolts at me?” I asked the question in a half-teasing manner so he’d know I didn’t really mean it. All right, only halfway meant it.

  “No, I think that’s enough for one day.” He studied my face for a moment, and his expression sobered, some of the light going out of those blue eyes. “No, your next exercise is not quite as showy, but no less important. While it’s always possible you’ll have to defend yourself from a physical attack, it’s more likely that they’ll try to approach you again as they did last night…through your mind.”