Steal the Sun: (Book 1)

by Stephanie Kelley

  I turned underwater and finally saw her fifteen feet away from me. Floating and unmoving. My heart froze with her. I swallowed the panic the best I could. If I let it drag me down, neither of us would make it through this. Slipping one arm around her, I hauled her back to the surface, my own breathing labored from the cold as we broke the slushy surface of the water. I expected her to be gasping for breath beside me, but she wasn’t.

  I hauled her from the water and I laid her on her coat. I mumbled prayers to whomever would listen as I started chest compressions. I tired to ignore the blue of her lips. Her hair was starting to become glossy from the ice crystals that were forming in her wet locks. The clothing she wore was freezing solid as I tried to revive her. This couldn't be happening. I couldn’t have lost her. I hadn’t even gotten her back. Had I really saved her those years ago only to have her slip away now?

  That damn loup garou howled its laughter in the distance.

  “Come on, Kodabear,” I whispered. “One more time baby.”

  I kissed her forehead and took a deep breath. My eyes stung as I started one last attempt at chest compressions. I made it to seven and she started coughing.

  “That’s my girl,” I heard how strained my voice was as I helped her roll to her side to spit out the water she had swallowed.

  I felt the tears behind my eyes as she tried to move.

  “Let me carry you.”

  She nodded up at me and I wrapped her tighter in the coat and scooped her up. My bitten arm screamed at me, and I almost dropped her. I needed to get her warm.

  I was cautious as we got to the cabin. There were blood tinged tracks that led to the door of the cabin that now bore deep gouges. The tracks disappeared up over the snowbank into the woods. I couldn’t worry about that now. I’d have its hide for doing this to Koda. Then I’d go after whomever had sent it.

  She shook uncontrollably as I sat her on her feet near the fireplace. It had burned down a bit since we had stormed out of the cabin and I needed to get the fire built back up.

  “Can you get out of your clothes?” I asked, not wanting to take my hands off of her for a moment. I was worried she would go into shock.

  Her lips were still blue. I wasn't even sure she understood what I was saying. She nodded but I didn't believe her.

  “Come on, baby, let's get those off you.”

  I helped her struggle out of her stiff clothing, wrapped her up in a quilt, sitting her near the fire so I could stoke the fire. I heard her damn phone go off again as I turned to build the fire back up. I was going to kill whoever was sending her messages after I got my hands on the loup garou.

  “Should probably check that.” Her voice was so soft I could barely hear her.

  “Not a chance. Fuck them.” I reached to grab more wood for the fire, but we’d already gone through what I’d brought in last night. “Shit, I have to go get more firewood and start the generator. I will be right back.”

  She nodded at me as I moved

  Hand on the door, my heart beating crazy, she called my name.

  “Yea?”

  “Thank you.”

  I could only nod and I slipped out the door into the snow. I wasn’t sure I was even breathing. I did what I needed to do. She had to be ok. I couldn’t lose her, not on my watch.

  I caught the shrieking sound of metal on metal. My head snapped to where my SUV was parked. A top it was the loup garou, a strange mark apparent on its face that wasn’t there when it chased Koda. It dug its claws through the sheet metal of the cab roof, gouging holes as it went as if it was opening a tin can. Damn it all to hell, it was trying to destroy our way out.

  “Last chance, selkie. Give me Lamb. I don’t want to kill you, you’re not who I was sent for.”

  “Never.”

  That hollow, howling laugh greeted me as it jumped off my vehicle to land in the snow before me.

  “So be it. You will force my hand the next time we meet, Dinner. ”

  I watched it saunter off into the woods. I wished I had grabbed Koda’s knife before I’d come out to grab firewood. That things still steaming hide would have done wonders to cure her hypothermia.

  I wanted to go after it, but she needed me more.

  She was huddled in the quilt, pulled up over her head, when I opened the door. Her lips were still blue and her golden skin pale, but she gave me a faint smile.

  “You’re still in wet clothing,” she managed before a coughing fit wracked her body and she moaned in pain.

  “Yeah, well, things to do.” I didn’t need her to worry about the creature.

  I reached over and rubbed her arms and shoulders while I waited for the fire to catch.

  “Can you feel your fingers and toes?”

  “Yeah, but I am so cold.”

  “We will get that taken care of,” I said as the fire began burning brighter

  She nodded and couldn’t stop shivering. “Can you please get out of those wet clothes?”

  “I will, I will.” I kissed her on the forehead and rubbed her arms again through the quilt one more time.

  I stripped off the wet sweater and tossed it toward her clothes. I reached to unbutton my jeans and caught her staring at my chest. I followed her gaze and saw my body covered with the remains of silver fur. I hadn’t even felt the partial shift in my rush to save her.

  “You look good in silver,” she managed with a smile, such a different reaction from such a short time ago. I didn’t know what I saw in her eyes, but it made my heart break. “Come hold me, please.”

  The wet jeans joined my sweater before I reached for another quilt to wrap around myself as I sat behind her, pulling her into my lap. We sat in silence, watching the fire. I rubbed her arms as I rested my chin on her head as she melted against me for warmth and comfort.

  She said my name twice softly before I realized she was attempting to get my attention.

  “Yeah, Kodabear?” I whispered back.

  “I thought it was Poppa that told me to run in my dream yesterday. But it wasn't Poppa. It was you. Even in my dreams you keep me safe.”

  I held her tighter and kissed the top of her head. I wasn't about to let her go.

  “Do you know when I fell in love with you?” she managed in the silence. I couldn't answer her question, my voice wasn't there. I braced myself for her to twist the knife that was still in my heart.

  “It was Kenai's birthday party. I must have been five, Momma was still alive. Willow was being her pretty princess self. You and Kenai came running through the living room. One of the dogs was following the two of you. It knocked me over. You stopped and helped me back up. I saw your scar, your amber eyes and thought you were a superhero. Just like my Poppa, because heroes have scars from saving people. You keep saving me, stealing me from death. Why?”

  I hugged her tighter, not wanting to let her go. I heard her tears but didn't dare look. I choked out the words as she wove her fingers through mine.“Because you're my sun and I am your raven. I will always steal the sun from the darkness.”

  I kissed her temple and buried my face in her still damp hair. It had always been her favorite myth about how light was brought to the world. The great raven stealing the

  “Just like the old tales. But that doesn’t really fit does it?” She managed after a long moment.

  “Why not? The raven stole the sun to bring light to the world. You are my light.”

  She twisted to look up at me, the smallest smile playing at the corner of her lips. ‘Yeah, but you’re a seal. I don’t think that fits, but I guess the sun is a big ball. You’re always trying to balance me so I don’t fall.”

  I chuckled and kissed her hair again. I guess even she got seals and sea lions confused. I’d let her win this one. “Fair enough, Kodabear. And if we run into someone that can time shift, we will go back and change the myth.”

  “Please don’t let time travel be a real thing.”

  “Pretty sure we’re good on the time travel. How are you feeling?”

/>   “Still cold. Can you run me a bath? Kenai fixed it so we’d have hot water here last summer. Finally.”

  I half chuckled. The hot water had always been a point of contention between the three of them. Glad to see Ken had finally given in and put in hot water since I was last here.

  “Anything for you, Kodabear.”

  For a relatively small cabin, there was a decent sized tub. But considering it was probably where Ken did laundry when he stayed here, it made more sense. I tried to keep my mind focused on the running water as the tub filled. I didn't need to think about how close of a call that was right now, I was happy she was conscious, talking, and not nearly as cold as when I pulled her from the water.

  “Is it ready?” she said from the doorway.

  “Why are you away from the fire?”

  “I just want warm.” She shrugged. “And you not to be out of my sight.”

  She dropped the quilt in the doorway and climbed into the tub, the water still running. I was worried it was going to be too hot for her. I did my best not to stare at her, but I caught the bite mark on the side of her neck and turned away. I was pissed at myself all over again. It had bruised badly already and after her dip in the freezing water, it actually looked worse.

  I turned off the faucet without a word and stood to leave the room. The water sloshed behind me and there was a tug at the quilt I had wrapped around my waist. I couldn't look back at her as I sat back down on the edge of the tub. I felt Koda’s fingers trail down my spine and I fought the shiver that rippled through me, the silver fur still slightly patchy on my chest. A partial shift had never lasted this long before, I didn’t like what that possibly meant, but I didn’t want to give it more than a passing thought at the moment.

  “Rhen,” was all she could manage.

  I bit my lip and waited, knowing my voice was gone. My emotions were starting to overpower my brain and I was fighting not to break down as I buried my face in my hands. The day on the glacier nearly ten years ago when I’d almost lost her before anything began came flooding back. The cold, the blood, the unrelenting blue ice that stretched into an abyss further than I could see.

  “Please. Get in here and warm up.”

  I shook my head no.

  “Look at me.”

  I turned meet her eyes words spilling from my lips. “Kodabear, I’m sorry. For all the hell-”

  She put a hand over my mouth as our eyes met. She had lost her contacts when she fell through the ice. Blue eye, brown eye. This was my Kodiak Sesi that I had fallen in love with and risked my own life for. This was my magic girl. My light in the darkness. My sun.

  “I don’t care what you did or why you did it. You’ve saved my life twice without a thought for yourself. I’d be willing to bet my life you would go back and change that day. Am I right?” She paused, moving her hand to gently trace the white scar on my cheek with the tip of her finger. I nodded yes. “You don't deserve this hate I have been holding. I don't deserve this hate I’ve been holding. You’ve given me something so precious that I can’t ever repay.”

  “Kodabear.” I managed, as I gently moved her hand, my throat tight as I spoke. “I'm not expecting you to forgive me.”

  “I saw my life flash before me when I was in the water. That didn’t happen when I jumped that day. Rhen,I didn’t like what I saw. I don’t want that life anymore. I want you to stay in Cordova and give us another try. You’ve had my heart. You’ve always been my home.”

  I remained silent as I turned away from her, processing her words. I felt her lips on the back of my neck. I didn’t deserve her.

  “Please, please get in this tub with me.”

  I left the quilt in a pile and joined her in the tub. She sighed heavily and laid her head on my chest as we got comfortable. The extra body heat would help her, at least that was what I kept trying to focus on.

  “There are things I need to tell you, about when I was in Washington after you left. But right now, its too much.”

  I stroked my hand over her hair, there was nothing she could say that I could not forgive, I owed her that. “Whenever you’re ready.”

  She kissed my chest and trailed her fingers along my stomach before sliding her hand further, wrapping her warm hand around me. I let out a satisfied sigh as she slowly stroked me, but in the back of my mind that damn loup garou was too close for comfort.

  “Kodabear, is this why you wanted me in the tub? That thing is out there still.”

  She raised her head off my chest and met my gaze. “I don't care about those footprints, I don't care about my brothers, I don't care.”

  “Then what do you care about?” I was almost afraid of the answer as she straddled my hips, water sloshing over the edge of the tub. Both our worlds had been up ended in the last few hours.

  “Pretty obvious.” She said with a slight smile as she leaned towards me. Her lips weren’t blue anymore and her wet hands slid up my chest to cup my face. She was starting to feel warm again. If this was a dream, I didn't want to wake up. “I want my Raven back.”

  “You’re not going to slap me again?” I couldn’t resist.

  “Not unless you want me to. Kiss me.”

  “Make me.”

  She raised an eyebrow at my words as she sat back on her heels. “That's my line.”

  I scooted down in the tub so my neck rested on the edge, throwing her off the balance, tipping her forward onto my chest.

  “I know.” I said as I wove a hand into her hair and pulled her to me to kiss her lips. I reached my free hand down between us, angling myself so she could slide onto me. She broke the kiss and leaned back, a hiss escaping those lips as she slowly settled around me. My hands went to her hips to hold her steady as she grasped at the edge of the tub. Her head thrown back in pleasure I couldn't help but stare at the line of her throat, her breathing rhythmic and timed with every move she made. Gods I missed this. I missed watching her enjoy herself.

  I let my hands skim her body finding curves and a softness to her skin that I had somehow forgotten. I wrapped an arm around the small of her back holding her tight to me as I kissed her bare skin, her fingers entwined in my hair. It didn't take Koda long to put my body on the edge. I felt the electricity building in my spine. It was hard to not let it just wash over me.

  I didn't deserve this. I didn't deserve her. But I’d stay as long as she’d let me.

  I buried my head against her skin as I took stuttering breaths, my hands running up her back. I didn't want to lose this again. My body jerked as she trailed her fingers along my jaw line, trying to get me to look up at her.

  “Rhen, please, whatever it is, let it go,” she begged, her voice barely above a whisper. “Kiss me.”

  How could I not indulge her with the way my name sounded on her lips? The hand that had been holding her so close to me, I buried in her already tangled hair and pulled her into a deep kiss. I let everything I felt towards her go into that kiss. Every hope I had ever had for us, everything I should have said, every I’m sorry, every I love you. I could have drowned in that kiss and not cared. Stars exploded behind my eyes as her tongue found mine and pleasure ripped through my body giving me release. Her hot breath came in pants against my mouth as she came, clutching at my shoulders and back. This was my Kodabear. I wasn't about to lose her again. She was a force just like the rolling ocean, and I was more than happy to let her crash over me.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Kodiak

  I rested my head on Rhen’s chest, the water had turned cold a bit ago, but I still was not ready to give up my warm spot on top of his body. I was still worried about hypothermia and really needed to get back to the fire. Sleep wasn’t far off and my thoughts drifted back to the past and lighter thoughts.

  “How did your parents end up with Rhen and Willow?”

  He laughed as he stroked my hair. “Funny story actually. Dad was working on a research paper for his doctorate at the time and was obsessed with the English folklore. It been Robin and Will ha
d mom not stepped in. Thank goodness for compromise.”

  It had been too long since I thought about his parents. They are sweet people, well, selkies. That was going to take some getting used too. His father had given up a career teaching Mythology and History at colleges and universities to move to Alaska. His mother had been an anthropology major. They had apparently met at a conference in Europe and that was that.

  “You mean like Robin Hood and Will Scarlet?” I raised my head up to look at him, I felt my eye brow raised in confusion. And I thought my parents had been odd for naming us after Alaskan cities.

  “Yeah. I think I got the better end of the deal. Will still got stuck with Scarlet as a middle name.”

  It wasn’t such a terrible name. Just unusual. A tiny part of me wondered if she had a use for an alias like Rhen had, but before I could ask cold air drifted under the door and I shivered hard. Rhen wrapped his arms around me, hugging me tighter for warmth, unwilling to move himself. Self preservation be damned.

  “I see clothes, the two of you must be alive.” A familiar voice bellowed as a door slammed shut. I was grateful it was only Kenai.

  “We’re back here -” Rhen paused as the bathroom door flew open and my brother stood backlit in the doorway. “So much for asking for a minute, Ken. What the hell are you doing here?”

  Us being naked in the tub did not phase him, it was like he expected it. He crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned against the door frame. Absently staring at us.

  “You gonna tell me why you were at Broken Tusk last night covered in blood?” I had to remind myself not to sit up and flash my brother.

  His mismatched eyes met my own, and I saw the confusion there. “I wasn’t at the bar, Bear. I left the mine and went to my place. But before I left the mine, I stopped back by your trailer and there were more scratches and tracks, Tulugaq. I followed them where I could but they disappeared. Dez called this morning and told me he sent you up here. When no one was answering their phones, I thought it best - “