Through the Looking Glass
Page 25
“You are home!” Nana wailed with her arms held up in the air. She moved her old body as fast as she could to hug Isobel as she was helped out of the cart. Nana embraced Isobel in a hug so tight that she had to tell Nana that she couldn’t breathe.
“I am so happy to see you! We have been so worried about you,” Nana said then pulled Isobel to her chest again.
Nyla buzzed around their heads chiming in with her own excitement. She whipped in and pecked Isobel on the cheek before she was squished between the two women.
“I am happy to be home. I’ve missed you two.” Isobel’s eyes brimmed with unshed tears.
Nyla was the first to notice Sasha still sitting nervously on the tailgate of the cart. “Who is this, Issy?”
Isobel turned to see who Nyla was talking about. “Issy is it?”
“Yes, I am going to call you Issy from now on. But, who is this?” Nyla flew around Sasha’s head then landed next to the new girl and looked up at her with curiosity.
“This is Sasha.” Isobel went over to the teen and helped her down. “She has come to stay with us and make a new life here. Sasha, this is Nana and Nyla.”
The teen blushed then said in a tiny voice, “Hello.”
“Hi Sasha!” Nyla shouted.
Nana held out her arms to the girl. “Come child. Let’s have a look at you.”
Sasha obeyed the motherly command and was soon wrapped in a bear hug.
“We are pleased to have you. You are going to love it here!” Nana placed a kiss on Sasha’s forehead.
“I see you have met Sasha,” Jakar said as he walked up to the group of women. “It is good to see you, Nana.” He hugged his longtime friend and gave her a kiss.
“It’s good to have you home, my boy! Come, we have been waiting you. I held off the evening meal until you arrived.” She let go of Jakar and moved to go inside.
Isobel had her back to the main door when she heard her name called out in a very familiar voice.
“Isobel?”
Isobel stiffened. It couldn’t be? She had to be hearing things. She must be mistaking another girl for Lizzy. Everyone around her had grown quiet and all eyes were on her as she turned around to find the face that went with the voice.
She had to squeeze her eyes shut to make sure she wasn’t dreaming or having a hallucination. There in the door way stood her childhood friend, Lizzy. Her heart raced and tears trailed down her face as she stood there staring.
“Lizzy? But, how?” she said in low, shaky voice.
Lizzy raced to her and threw her arms around her neck. Both began to sob as they held each other and laughed at the same time.
“How did you get here?” Isobel was the first to pull back to look at her friend up close.
“It’s a long story, but I had gone looking for you at Ackergill.” Lizzy answered.
“Ackergill? But, why were you there?”
“I got worried when I hadn’t heard from you. I booked a flight and headed out there to see if you were alright, but when I arrived no one knew where you had gone. I was frantic. I searched everywhere in the area and came up empty handed. Then I decided to break into the room they said you were staying in.” Lizzy relayed her story in a rush of words.
“But how did you go through the mirror?”
“I didn’t go through the mirror. Daniel happened to show up in there as well. We started to fight and somehow I ripped his shirt where he was hiding his way home. The vial broke and created this mist that made me feel as if I were falling and now, here I am.”
Isobel hugged her friend again. “Well, I have to say I am very happy to see you.” She paused before she asked the question that popped into her mind. “You…you do know we can’t go back.”
Lizzy gave her a lopsided smile. “I know. Brock told me. I can’t say I’m too sad about that. I kind of like it here.” Her eyes looked over Isobel’s shoulder.
Isobel turned to see who she was looking at then smiled. “Really? Brock?”
Lizzy nodded in quick succession.
“I am happy for you and I am so happy you are here! I just can’t say that enough!”
Jakar stepped closer to her and took hold of her hand. Brock did the same with Lizzy but added a kiss to her lips.
“How long are you planning on staying before you leave?” Isobel asked Brock.
Brock put his arm around Lizzy’s waist and pulled her close to him. “I would like to stay until the end of the month. If that’s alright with you, brother.”
“Of course it’s alright.”
“Good. That will give the women plenty of time to reunite and plan a wedding.” Brock looked down at Lizzy. “That is if Lizzy will have me.”
Isobel’s heart soared with happiness for her friend. “We can have the wedding before you leave!”
“Hold on, little one. Lizzy hasn’t even agreed yet. She may not want to be married to such a devilish man!” Jakar’s joking manner spread through the small crowd.
“Hey! I’m not that bad,” Brock said. “Well, maybe a little!”
Lizzy answered everyone’s question with a screamed “Yes”.
Isobel took hold of Sasha’s and Lizzy’s hands and called out over her shoulder as she tugged the pair away. “You too Nyla! We got a wedding to plan.”
******
Late that night after making love three times, Isobel lay with her head on Jakar’s chest. She was tired to the bone and was ready to fall asleep in her husband’s arms, but there was something that continued to haunt her and she had to find out.
“Jakar?”
“Hmmm?” he said as he ran his fingers up and down her spine, care of the almost healed wounds.
“What about Daniel?” She circled one of Jakar’s nipples and bit her lower lip as she waited for an answer.
“What about him?”
“Did any of your men ever find him?”
“No, but I will not stop until he is found.”
She raised up on an elbow and looked into his eyes. “But what if he comes back?”
“He won’t,” Jakar said simply.
“But how do you know that?” She never wanted to see the vile man again and was worried that he would try and get revenge on her again.
“My sweet, don’t worry about him. I have men out scouring the countryside and every village. He will eventually be found and when he is he will hang for his crimes.”
“Are you sure?”
Jakar placed a kiss on her lips that were swollen from his demanding kisses during their love making. “I swear on my life that you will never be in danger again. I should have listened to you when you tried to tell me where you were from. Till the day that I die, I will regret not believing in you. You are my life and nothing will ever change that. I wasted too much time ignoring the feelings that I fought to ignore and not trust. We will have a good, long life together.” He deepened the kiss this time. When it ended he pulled back and whispered in her ear, “I love you.”
Isobel looked into his blue eyes and whispered back, “I love you too.”
Epilogue
Daniel hid in a hole he had found alongside a tree that had fallen. He had travelled for days before he heard the sound of hoof beats echoing through the forest. He knew he was a wanted man and would have a price on his head.
As soon as the alarm had been sounded the night of Jakar’s attack, he had taken off. He wasn’t about to get caught and meet his end like Tuloch had. The man had been too stupid and too full of himself to realize that Jakar would stop at nothing to rescue his wife. He figured he would make himself scarce for the time being and when things died down some, he would work out a plan to continue on with the original plan of disposing of Isobel. He hadn’t gone through the hell of winning her over in her world to just give up now. Hell No! He would bid his time and wait for the opportunity to present itself. There was no rush since neither of them could leave Aslog again without the help of the old witch, and no one knew where she was.
For now thou
gh, he would make the forest his home and survive the best that he could. Keeping a low profile was detrimental in him surviving to eventually get his revenge. A revenge that would be so bitter sweet that he would be sad to see it end.
The End
Author’s Page
Rebecca Lorino Pond lives in Ponchatoula, La with her husband of 22 years, 2 children, 6 cats, and 5 dogs. She is a recent graduate of Southeastern Louisiana University with a Bachelor’s Degree in General Studies and 2 minors in English and History. Writing books has always been a dream of Rebecca’s, so in January 2013 she started to write and release her books. It is a job that she enjoys and loves to do.
Other books:
Theron Destiny (Brides of Theron 1)
Theron’s Hope (Brides of Theron 2)
Emma’s Heart (Brides of Theron 3)
Brides of Theron 4- coming soon
Stand-alone books:
Love across the Universe
When Worlds Collide