Jess was by her side a moment later, radiating worry. “Are you all right?”
She sat up, wincing at the pain shooting through her bad ankle, which she’d twisted when she fell, and at the grass stains on the knees of her jeans. “Just when I was starting to think my luck had improved,” she groaned. “Yeah I’m okay, I just twisted my ankle a bit.”
Before she could protest Jess picked her up, as easily as she might scoop up their house cat. She made a slight undignified noise, which he ignored, as he began striding across the yard towards the house. A moment later Bleidd was coming out the door followed by Shawn, who looked nervous.
“What happened?” Bleidd said, his feelings sharp and intense.
Allie knew she was blushing. “Nothing. I tripped on the curb and twisted my ankle.”
“You tripped on the curb?” Shawn said, looking like he was trying not to laugh. She felt her own lips twitching in response.
“Yeah,” she said. “Go ahead and laugh Shawn it’s pretty funny I guess.”
Shawn glanced at the two elves who looked distinctly unamused, and shook his head slightly. “Ummm, that’s okay really. I mean, I hope you’re okay. You know. Ahhh. Anyway, I was just heading out to work. I’ll see you guys later.”
“Have a nice night Shawn,” Allie said, repressing a sigh.
Shawn headed towards his car and Jess carried her into the house with Bleidd hovering every step of the way. Allie gritted her teeth in annoyance. “Really guys I’m fine” she thought to both of them, hoping this method of communication would be more reassuring.
Jess set her down on the couch in the living room and knelt down to examine her ankle. “I long ago learned that your idea of fine and my idea are not the same concept.”
Bleidd snorted at that and Allie frowned. “It really is nothing though. I was on my feet too much today and I was feeling tired and not paying attention and I tripped. I feel silly enough without you making such a big deal about it.”
“Allie, with everything that has been going on recently can you truly blame us for worrying?” Bleidd said, still hovering next to her.
“It’s been better,” she thought back and was surprised by the unexpected surge of worry from him. Even Jess looked up at him uncertainly, his expression gently questioning.
Bleidd stepped away, his posture stiff. When he spoke again it was out loud, and Allie was not fooled by this sudden change – she knew that he, like her, tended to avoid mental communication when he wanted distance. Or when he was trying to conceal something. “As you say. I will go and get something started for dinner, although I lack Jason’s flair in the kitchen.”
Before Allie could push him on the sudden change Jess was speaking. “Is Jason working tonight then?”
“Yes,” Bleidd said. “He was asked to do a double shift and stay until midnight. I think he was pleased after being sent home early to have the opportunity to make up the time.”
“And our new roommate isn’t moving in until this weekend,” Jess said turning to Allie with a mischievous smile. “It appears we have the house to ourselves then. And your ankle is in need of healing…Certainly something we can assist with, yes Bleidd?”
Bleidd relaxed slightly, his eyes going to Allie reclining on the couch. She could feel his worry dissolving into lust. “Indeed. In fact I’m certain dinner can wait.”
“Guys,” Allie said weakly, already feeling her own resolve crumbling under their combined desire. “Not in the living room. This…my grandmother picked out this furniture for the Gods’ sakes.”
“More than time to make some new memories here then,” Jess said, grinning wickedly. Allie looked from one to the other and knew that on this issue she had no chance of winning.
Oh well, she thought as Jess leaned forward and kissed her leg If you can’t beat them, join them I guess….
Chapter 6 - Tuesday
“I never take time off Allie,” Bleidd insisted. “I don’t mind driving you.”
“I don’t want you to miss work because of me.” Allie said, pulling her jeans on.
“I will take you,” Jess said immediately. “I have never been to a Department of Motor Vehicles office, it may be interesting.”
“It’s going to be boring, and I don’t want to have to stress about not getting back in time for you to get the Outpost,” she said, feeling tired that this was becoming an argument. There had been too much of that lately. “And going fully into mortal earth will suck for you.”
“I don’t mind doing it for you.”
“Jason is going to drive me, I already asked him, and he said he had to run into Norton anyway so it’s not a major inconvenience,” she said stubbornly.
“You can’t keep relying on Jason for everything,” Jess said frowning.
“He’s my friend, and once I get this car straightened out I won’t need to rely on anyone to drive me around.”
“Why must you be so insistent on this obsession with not relying on anyone?” Bleidd snapped.
“What?” she said confused.
“Don’t push her, she’s having a difficult time right now,” Jess interceded.
“I can handle this,” Allie said, offended.
“You see,” Bleidd said, even as Jess gave her an annoyed look. “She won’t even let you defend her to me. To me. We’re supposed to be courting-“
“We are courting!” she cut in suddenly feeling like everything was spinning out of control.
“Then why don’t you let us help you?” Jess pressed.
She fastened her bra and said, “I am letting you help me! I let Bleidd buy me that car didn’t I?”
“Let me? You hardly let me Aliaine,” Bleidd said sharply. She could feel their emotions pressing at her, hard and cutting. “I had to all but force the keys into your hands after you tried to convince me you weren’t worth such a moderate, used car.”
She flushed, angry and embarrassed, pulling on her shirt. “I said thank you for that, and I am grateful. I told you I’m not used to letting people help me with things.”
“We aren’t just people,” Jess said, stiffly.
“And you should not be letting us, you should be looking to us, asking us,” Bleidd said, just as tense.
“I…I am…I’m trying….”she felt angry tears stinging her eyes. “Why are you ganging up on me about this?”
“No one is ganging up on you,” Bleidd said, his tone dismissive.
Jess gave her a long look, then sat back on the bed. “We should respect her feelings Bleidd, if we want her to be more open with us we can’t make her feel as if we are united against her.”
“And what good has our effort done so far? Four months with us all together, six months with you and she, and she can’t even let either of us give her a ride to register a car,” Bleidd said. His anger filled the air, and she couldn’t stop the tears from spilling over.
Even through her tears she saw the surprise on both their faces as she started sobbing. Jess looked alarmed; Bleidd looked slightly embarrassed. “Just stop pushing me!”
Bleidd made an obvious effort to rein himself in. “I am not trying to push you, but I don’t understand why you are shutting us out.”
“I’m not trying to, but you know it’s not like you’re including us in everything either,” she said managing to stop the flood of emotion.
He stiffened. “What does that mean?”
“It means that you’ve been acting weird and upset since I fell and hurt my hand but you won’t talk about what’s bothering you. So don't get self-righteous with me about shutting people out,” she said.
He looked from her to Jess, who sighed, “I will not press you to speak when you do not wish to, or to confide in us when you do not want to do so freely.”
“Right,” Allie said, her voice softer now. “We’ve both been giving you your space waiting for you to decide you want to talk about it. So in fairness, let me have my space on this too. I already feel as if I depend too much on other people, especially
you, both of you, and I-“
She trailed off, looking down. Finally Jess spoke into the silence. “What is it, my heart?”
She shook her head, but then looked at Bleidd and sighed, “I worry…that I ask too much of you…that I need to much…and that you’ll get tired of it.”
“That we’ll leave you, you mean,” Bleidd said.
She inclined her head in an elven shrug, then spoke through their bond “I’ve made that impossible haven’t I? Whether you want it or not you’re stuck with me.”
“I am here by my own choice,” Jess thought back, his resolve vibrating through her. “I have no intention of going anywhere.”
“Allie,” Bleidd thought to her, waiting until she looked at him and met his eyes before he continued. “I have been your friend for ten years. I cannot say that I knew what I was choosing when I chose it, but I regret nothing except that you are stuck with me, as it were, and I am no easy person to live with. As much as you fear we may tire of you I fear that you will set me aside.”
“I would never do that,” she thought back as Jess nodded in silent agreement.
“Perhaps not. But this is new territory for all of us.” Bleidd said, his emotions now a swirl of uncertainty.
An uneasy silence fell over the room. Finally Allie stepped towards the door and said out loud, “I need to go, but we’ll finish this later when we have more time to talk.”
She refused to look back as she stepped out, knowing that they were annoyed that she was choosing to leave. But she was tired of the fighting and tired of the pressure to give them more than she felt she could. She just wanted to get a little space to think without their emotions pressing in on her.
******************************
Riley sat on the bed in her hotel room staring listlessly at the television. Sitting next to the tv was a bag from Faye’s store, a silent reminder of how nice and helpful the girl, Allie, had been.
Why does she have to be nice? Riley though biting her lip. She’s his girlfriend why can’t she be horrible? She could remember the shock that had gone through her when Faye had led her into the store and she had realized that the person they were going to see was the same young woman she had seen so many times coming and going at his house, the one Riley assumed was his girlfriend.
She must know what he is, what he’s done and she’s with him anyway Riley kept worrying the problem around in her mind, hating the way she liked the other woman. A guilty part of her knew that if her magic was having any effect at all she must have been causing the book store owner quite a bit of misery lately. It was hard to measure that sort of thing with a brief visit in a public place, but she trusted fully in the power of her own magic and that meant that she knew what she had done was having some effect – and since the first part at least was aimed around him….and there was no telling what the second hex would do to someone he lived with.
Riley grimaced, staring at the ceiling. Why didn’t I think this through better? I want to punish him, sure, but the people around him, I should have realized they might just be innocent bystanders. She took a deep breath, trying to remember why this mattered. I can’t lose sight of my goal now. I didn’t want to hurt anyone else, but is it really my fault? She may seem nice but she’s still choosing to associate with him. If anything it’s his fault if that’s putting her in danger not mine.
She stood up, pushing off the bed and crossing the room to grab the bag. With this I can get the curse taken off, with or without his cooperation she thought. So now it’s not about making him remove the curse, it’s purely about justice. She looked down, biting her lip. He was never really punished for what he did, and he cursed my family besides, and look what it’s gotten him – a nice job, a nice home, a pretty, kind girlfriend. How is that fair? No, I don’t have much time left, but I can make the most of it. I can make him pay.
Nodding to herself she put the bag back down and crossed to the other bag of supplies she’d accumulated since she’d been there. She could start on the curse removal later, but for now it was time to make sure justice was done. It was time to make him pay.
She pulled out what she needed quickly, laying out the supplies and casting her magical circle in the bathroom. It was a simple matter to link this new spell to the one she’d cast on the hexed parchment she’d slipped into his pocket.
And this time she didn’t hold anything back.
******************************
“Thanks for this Jason,” Allie said, pulling the leather jacket closed a bit tighter. Bleidd had insisted she wear it when she couldn’t find her own coat that morning and despite her lingering annoyance with him she found herself relaxing as she breathed in the scent of him which clung to the leather.
“No problem,” Jason said with his normal cheer. They were a few blocks from the bridge that would take them out of Ashwood and into regular earth and Allie sat back, trying to relax and brace herself for the inevitable drop in ambient magic once they crossed.
“No really, I mean it. You’ve been driving me all over the place since my car died, and I know what a pain it is to go out to mortal earth, never mind to hang out at the DMV. It’s not anyone’s idea of fun,” she insisted.
“Maybe I’m just being selfish,” he teased, as they stopped at a red light. “I mean this way I won’t have to drive you around anymore.”
She laughed, “Well, when you put it that way…I was going to offer to buy you lunch when we were done, but-“
“Too late,” he interrupted grinning. “You said it out loud, you have to do it. And the DMV always makes me really hungry.”
“Hopefully I can afford you, or we may end up washing dishes,” she joked.
The light changed to green and he accelerated into the intersection. Out of the corner of her eye Allie saw a blur of movement on the driver’s side and turned her head towards Jason. She tensed and started to yell but before she could make a sound the car running the light in the oncoming lane had smashed into the side of the truck.
The truck spun wildly, glass flying from the shattered driver’s side window. The air filled with the agonized sound of bending metal and protesting tires. Allie smelled gasoline, blood, and rubber and struggled not to vomit.
And then everything went still as the truck came to rest facing the opposite direction they’d started in. For an instant she simply sat still, too stunned to even be afraid, then she felt Jason’s hand on her arm. “Allie! Talk to me, are you okay?”
She turned her head slowly, wincing as the muscles in her neck spasmed slightly. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m okay.”
“You’re bleeding. Fuck,” he started to search around the cab, and came up with a wad of clean napkins. He shook them out repeatedly, trying to get all the glass off. She realized there was glass everywhere inside the cab, and a moment later that the side of her face was wet. Reaching up her hands came away bloody. She carefully felt her way up to the cut above her eye; it was small but bleeding freely. She took the napkins from Jason and tentatively pressed them against her face, wincing.
“Are you okay?” she almost didn’t recognize her own voice, it was shaking so much.
“I think so, but I think my arm’s broken,” he said.
“Are you okay? Anyone hurt?” someone asked, and she turned to the right – slowly because her neck and shoulders were starting to ache – and saw a middle aged man standing next to the window, only then realizing that her window was also shattered. There was something surreal about the entire situation that her mind didn’t want to process. Distantly she heard Jason telling the man to call 911.
As she waited for the ambulance to arrive she felt utterly calm.
********************************
Allie sat in the clinic’s emergency room waiting for the nurse to come back in. They had taken what she thought was an excessive amount of blood to run a series of tests – for what she honestly wasn’t sure because she’d been unable to focus when the doctor was explaining everything – and they’d tol
d her she couldn’t go until the results came back. Her head and neck ached, and she was worried about Jason. She hadn’t seen him since he’d been loaded into a separate ambulance at the scene of the accident.
She reached up, tenderly feeling around the bandage that covered the gash in her forehead. They’d stitched it, and she’d actually taken comfort in knowing that it would be healed in a few days after some time with her bondmates. For the moment though it ached, and she really just wanted to find out if Jason was okay and then go home. She groaned slightly resisting the urge to bang her head on the wall when she thought yet again about how she was going to tell Jess and Bleidd about this. So far she’d simply avoided the issue by obsessively blocking them from her mind, but at some point she would have to tell them. Given how badly they reacted when I tripped and hurt my ankle yesterday they are going to freak right out about this she thought despondently. She was careful to shield them out and to keep her emotions relatively calm; the shock that was still lingering after the accident had helped her in that much. As long as she could keep her emotions fairly minimal she wouldn’t draw Jess or Bleidd’s attention, and she could temporarily avoid dealing with them. Unless she was upset enough that her emotions reached them through their bond, or one of them through sheer bad luck decided to reach out to her to see how registering the car was going, she had some time to decide the best way to break the news to them.
Finally the nurse, an older very sensible looking woman, walked back in. “Okay Ms. McCarthy, the lab has your results back. You’re slightly anemic, which I know you said was normal for you, but Doctor Brown is concerned that it might be contributing to your dizziness.”
Oh that’s right Allie thought nodding as she remembered I told them I was dizzy after I threw up on the doctor’s expensive loafers and they were all worried I had a concussion, then when they were fairly convinced it wasn’t that they thought it might be some kind of infection or disorder. Or something.
Heart of Thorns: a Between the Worlds novel Page 13
