by Missy LaRae
He thought for sure that the twins would be so meek and submissive from their years of abuse they’d be able to take them easily to the compound. It was unfortunate that Tyler had overheard his conversation, but it wasn’t insurmountable.
“We don’t know, General. One minute we’re walking them along fine, and the next thing I knew the girl fell to the ground and let out a scream that made me shake in my boots. I’ve never heard anything like it, sir. Then her and her brother broke free of the ropes and went crazy.” The soldier was visibly shaken, twisting his fingers behind his back. He knew that he’d screwed up royally.
“Once we came to we made it back to the truck and followed them, the path the Syren male who helped them escape made was very evident. We tried to cut them off at the house, but they must have sensed us coming.”
“I see. So rather than wound them or kill them you let them go?” If they weren’t able to absorb the power the twins possessed they were expected to exterminate them by any means possible.
“I didn’t have a choice, General. By the time I was able to do anything I was on the ground. I’m not even sure what happened. I’ve never seen Syren that young able to move like that.” He was literally quaking in his boots. Everyone was afraid of General Argen. He was legendary for being a ruthless leader.
“We tried at the house, sir, but whatever power they have is definitely working. They knew we were coming.” He felt sick to his stomach.
Mikel looked over at the soldier in front of him. “No excuses.”
Mikel walked up to him and looked him in the eye. “If I wanted those children let go, I would have done it myself, as of right now you’re relieved of duty.” He looked over at the sentry by the door.
“Take him into custody, and the other soldiers who were with him. They’re all relieved of duty as of right now.” Mikel wasn’t going to exterminate them, but they deserved the heavy amount of shame that was due them for being beaten by two children.
The soldier hung his head as he was lead out of the room, and Mikel walked to the window. He knew that the children were out of his reach for now, but in the stars he would be able to find them. There was no way he was going to give up on owning their powers. He wasn’t the one fated to absorb their powers, but he’d dedicated the last fifteen years of his life to this mission, and seeing that it was done right, and he deserved to have them. The fire in him raced down his arms and he swelled with energy and power. He wanted that power, and he’d stop at nothing to get it. It was time that The Order had a new leader, and he knew the perfect man for the job.
Chapter 13
Tyler stared at the ceiling. After getting
back to the hotel room, he’d been relieved to see that he was alone in his room with Lily. Lily had tried to talk to him, but he’d just ignored her. He didn’t know what to say. He saw her getting closer to Talon every second, and it made him jealous. He’d never had anyone else share his sister’s attention, and he didn’t know how to deal with it. He was angry that they’d followed him outside like he was a child. Lily knew better than to act that way towards him, and he didn’t understand why she was all the sudden acting like she had to take care of him when their entire lives he’d been taking care of her.
He folded his hands behind his head and let out a sigh.
“I know you’re not asleep Lilybelle.” He could hear the rapid beat of her heart as if his ear was pressed against her delicate chest. He heard her breath hitch, and knew that she wanted to talk to him about what had happened.
“I don’t like this transformation, Tyler. It’s makin’ me feel really weird. Now you look all different from me, and we don’t even look like twins anymore!” He could hear the fear and anger in her voice, and he got up from his bed and went and sat next to her. They’d always been extremely close, and the changes that they were going through scared him too. His sister meant more to him than anything else in the world, and he wasn’t going to let the changes in their lives tear them apart. He stroked her weird hair as she buried her face in her pillow and cried. He knew that her tears were for more than just his transformation. He knew they were tears of frustration, fear, and anxiety.
Tyler let Lily cry it out for a while before he pushed her shoulder to get her to turn over. He couldn’t believe the change in his sister’s appearance since she’d transformed. It was as if she’d become a woman overnight.
“Listen, Lilybelle, there’s nothin’ in this world that’s more important than you. I know I don’t tell you all the time, but I love you more than any person in the world. If it wasn’t for you I don’t even know what I’d be doin’ with myself right now.” He looked away. The moon was shining through the window, and his heart called out for it. He felt the power of it invading him, and he relished the fierce heat that it drove through him.
“We’re gonna be meetin’ our real parents soon, and I don’t know about you, but I’m excited. I always thought Daddy was dead, but knowin’ that we have real parents out there just makes me want to stay alive, and figure out what’s been goin’ on all these years.” He stopped as Lily looked him in the eye.
“But what if they don’t like us? What if they don’t think we’re good enough for them? You know we’re not educated like Talon is, and I could tell he was surprised when he met us by the way we talk. What if our parents are ashamed of who we are?” She knew the only person she could confide in was Tyler. While she was powerfully attracted to Talon, she knew deep down that the one person who understood her better than anyone else was her twin brother.
“That’s what you’re afraid of?” The question rolled off of his tongue before he could catch himself, and he saw that it hurt her feelings that he’d said it.
“I didn’t mean it that way. You got nothin’ to worry about Lilybelle. You’re pretty, smart, and you’ve got more courage than anyone else I know. Well, it’s not like I know that many people, but you’ve got a lot of courage. The way we took out those soldiers today was amazing. I don’t think you understand what we really did,” he knew that she was still in a tremendous state of shock because of everything that had happened to them.
Reaching down, he brushed her hair away from her face and watched as it curled itself around his hand. He put his cheek next to hers the way he had when they’d been really small. “You’re going to make them love you Lily, no matter what. There’s nothing in the world they could possibly not love about you besides maybe your accent.” He smiled as he felt her pull away from him and smack him on the arm. She’d always been self conscious about her deep southern accent, and he knew it would lighten her mood a little if he talked about it.
A knock sounded on the door and looking through the peep hole Tyler saw Talon, Kellen, and Timothy on the other side. He pulled the door open and motioned for them to come inside. He knew that it was almost time for their transport ship to arrive, and he was getting very nervous thinking about it.
“The immigration commander called to let me know the transport ship is going to be here in about thirty minutes. We need to get our things together and meet them. It’s going to be a little tricky disguising their landing, but we’re going to be far enough outside of town that it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.” Kellen looked at both of the scared teenagers in front of him, and knew that they had no idea what to expect.
“I know that this is all different for you, and you’re just seeing and learning things for the first time, and so fast. Trust me when I say that your safety is more important at this point than anything else that I have ever done in my entire Syren existence.” Kellen paused. “I truly believe that you both will be two of the most powerful Syren twins ever born to our species. I am honored to be able to serve you at this stage of your life and ask that you never forget what I or my sons have done for you and your family.” Kellen stopped as a knot of pain lodged in his throat. He knew that his family’s time here on Earth was over, and he had mixed feelings about going back to Amatia Prime. All he could think of was his beautif
ul mate, and of his failure to protect her. The shame of his failure would haunt him all the rest of his moons.
“Kellen, we will never forget anything that you’ve done for us. Truly, you’ve shown us a kindness that we’ve barely known our whole lives. We’ll always be grateful to you.” Lily stepped forward, and before he could protest she wrapped Kellen in her arms and hugged him.
The weight of her emotions crashed into him, and he staggered with it. He’d never been hugged by a Daughter of the House of Dreams before, and her emotions were raw; wild. He felt the truth of her statement, and he couldn’t help the tears that rolled down his cheeks. He hugged her to him, vowing that he would do whatever he could to protect her. Her emotions tangled with his and he pushed his understanding, and desire to protect her and Tyler into her. He felt her shock at receiving his emotions, and then her grip became nearly painful it was so strong.
Tyler stepped forward to pull Lily back. He didn’t know what was happening, but he knew that Lily was going to break Kellen if he didn’t unwind her arms from him.
Lily staggered back into Tyler’s arms, and sucked in a breath so deep she thought her lungs were going to explode. The fierce heat swallowing up her skin was from the heat of Kellen’s body pressed so tightly to hers. She couldn’t get the feelings that he’d pushed into her out of her. She wanted to feel that
protectiveness, and know that it was truth. She’d never felt that anyone was protecting her but Tyler her entire life, but she knew without a doubt that Kellen would give his life for her, and that he truly cared about what happened to her and Tyler. The feeling was overwhelming.
“What did you just do to me?” Lily looked up at Kellen with intense eyes. He stared back at her with eyes filled with a deep seated sadness.
“Nothing, Highness. I merely gave you my emotions. All Syren can push their feelings into one another. It is how we speak the truth to each other. It is the way of our species. You can not deceive a Syren. With the power of touch we are all able to discern truth, all able to feel the wrong or right in what another Syren is feeling or saying. Have you never pushed your emotions into your brother or had the same done to you?” Kellen was surprised, again, although he knew that he shouldn’t be. Nothing about the twins life should be a surprise to him, but he had to mentally hold himself back from asking them more questions. He knew that their life to date had not been easy, and he did not want to pry into affairs that were none of his to know.
“No, I’ve never felt that before, ever. It felt so right. I didn’t think I would ever feel that way or know those kinds a feelings from anyone but Tyler.” Lily wiped her hand under her nose, and turned her head into Tyler’s chest, and leaned into him. The rush of Kellen’s emotions into her had left her trembling slightly with the power of it. She didn’t know what scared her more, the fact that he was able to do that, or the fact that she really did trust him now. Someone else who could betray her, or worse, hurt her.
“I offer you my sincerest apology then, your Highness, it was not my intention to make you feel uncomfortable.” Kellen looked straight at Lily and sighed. He’d never felt so out of his element with Syren children before. It was as though everything he did was something they had never experienced, and never known.
“We need to leave though, please both of you use the restroom, and do what you need to do. We leave in five minutes.” Kellen closed the door to their room behind him as he ushered Timothy and Talon out of the room in front of him. It was time for them to go. He just prayed that everything would work out the way it was supposed to because he had a feeling that something was going to happen that none of them was prepared for.
Chapter 14
Jackson opened his eyes, and felt the
sleeping form of his mate next to him. He felt her softness, felt the weight of her on him, and knew that the next few hours were going to be the most crucial hours of his entire existence. He needed to see the light back in his mate’s eyes. He’d lived with the weight of his failure to protect his children on his shoulders for so many cycles of life that the possibility of seeing them again left him feeling anxious and empty at the same time. He was empty of the feeling of hopelessness that had consumed him for so many cycles of his life. He was empty of the feelings of inadequacy. He was now filled with a sense of purpose, and duty, unlike anything that he’d felt in more moons than he could recall. He wanted to see his mate’s arms wrapped around his son and daughter. He wanted to feel the three of them pressed against him, safe. He knew that if he was reunited with his twins again, that there would be nothing short of the end of his life that would separate them.
He gently pushed the top of the sleeping pod open on his side and slid out, laying Alexia in as softly as he could. She had always been a hard sleeper, and sometimes not even he could wake her when her body called her to rest. They had both been under tremendous strain since the moment Asrah had appeared in their lives again, but filled with an unwavering purpose to see their children again. He saw the lines of worry disappear from Alexia’s face that had grown there in the last few moons. He wanted her to feel the lightness of life once more.
He walked out into the hallway and made his way back to the command deck of the Aeroship. Everyone who passed him bowed their heads in respect and greeting as he passed and offered him a good moon. He returned the greeting, knowing that this moon would be the best that he’d ever experienced.
“How much longer until we reach the rendezvous destination, Captain?” Jackson asked as he sat in his flight chair.
Lukas turned his chair slightly as he heard Jackson’s voice. He’d known Jackson wouldn’t be able to stay away for long, but had been surprised that he’d stayed out of the command deck as long as he had. “We’ll rendezvous with them in approximately forty five minutes, Highness. The transport ship was successful in retrieving the twins and the family of Syren Kellen Tedor. Immigration has requested that he be transported back to Amatia Prime via Avedal One. We do not have adequate space to accommodate them, and I was waiting for your approval before giving acceptance of the transport.” He finished reciting the new developments to Jackson, and watched as the stars flew by. In the upper atmosphere of Earth they flew over the oceans and land with amazing speed. No human radar, or satellite was able to track his craft.
“That is acceptable to me. We may not have enough pods, but there are enough flight chairs. Please send a wake call to my sleeping pod. Make it a rather loud and annoying one. She was sleeping very hard when I left. Notify General Vallen that we are approaching the rendezvous, and have him and his team meet me at the external ramp when we land. ” Jackson knew that he would catch a little grief from his mate for waking her with a wake call, but he did not want to leave the command deck.
The stars flew by as he sat back and drummed his fingers on the cool metal of his chair. His heart began to race a little faster, and he felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up as he felt his mate’s presence next to him. He looked up at her, and could tell by the set of her mouth that she was none too pleased with him. He pulled her hand free from her crossed arms, and laid it against his cheek. He sent her his apology, and gave her the knowledge that in a mere thirty minutes they were likely to be reunited with their children again.
Alexia sat next to Jackson in her flight chair, and drew in a deep breath as she felt Avedal One descending rapidly through the atmosphere of Earth. They were so close, she could almost feel her children. She wondered what they looked like. She’d been given brief glimpses of them from the memories and emotions that had come from Asrah, but Jackson hadn’t permitted her to cling to her sister for long, fearing that the pain of Asrah’s memories would invade her too much. She reached back over to Jackson and took his hand in her own. Although she didn’t appreciate the way that she’d been woke up, there was no time for her to harbor ill feelings towards him. Now was a time for love, and rejoicing. She squeezed his hand, and looked over at him. She remembered the day that he’d come into her life, and kn
ew that whatever it took, he would take care of her, and their children. She knew that he blamed himself for the loss of their twins, and there was no way to convince him otherwise. In his heart, he felt his responsibility more deeply than any Syren that she knew, and that was one of the reasons why she loved him so much. They had met during her eighth cycle of life at her Fut’uah ceremony, and she knew Jackson more deeply than any other Syren in the galaxy. Her heart began to beat rapidly, and her breath hitched in her throat as Avedal One started to descend into the upper skyline of Earth.
“This is the rendezvous location, Highness. I’m forgoing contact until their vessel is detected. I don’t want to have any
unnecessary communication over the air waves. We don’t know who’s listening,” Commander Lukas informed them.
“A wise decision. Please dim all externals as well. We don’t want anyone in the area to be able to see us, and I don’t want anyone in the sky to be able to discern our location either.” Jackson gripped the arm rests of his flight chair as Avedal One settled comfortably among the trees in the forest. Pushing to his feet he walked to the descent pad, and pressed his hand to the wall. The shift in the air was minimal as the door dissolved, and a smooth ramp descended to the forest floor. He turned his head before he walked out.
“Lukas, please keep four soldiers around your Queen, and seal the door after we
disembark. Keep all externals on dim, and leave the voice detection activated. I want you to be able to hear me, but I do not want any noise to penetrate outside.” Lukas nodded, and he glanced at Alexia and met her eyes.
“I’ll be just moments, my love.” He looked to the right at General Vallen and his team, hands pressed to their hearts. He returned the salute and strode down the ramp and into the steamy Florida night.
