Sweet Sleep (The Children of Ankh Book 1)

by Kim Cormack

  Kayn jumped as the barn door swung open in the wind. This felt horrifically familiar to Kayn who felt her adrenaline begin to pound as her memory flashed back to the night that she came home to a door swinging in the wind.

  The swinging door revealed Grey standing in the shadow. “Laura,” he screamed. His venomous tone cut through the thick moisture of the stormy night, “I saved you. I protected you … why?” Grey was speaking to nothing but air. He began to scream the name and light the hay ablaze with his mind.

  Kayn whispered, “Who’s Laura?"

  Lily said, “She was a mistake, a horrible mistake that he can't let go of.”

  Grey continued to search the stalls for the invisible Laura.

  Lily whispered, “Stay out of sight. He’s not in control right now, and he will light us both on fire. Trust me, it’s a level of unpleasant that you never want to experience.”

  The room became stiflingly hot. The humid air was suddenly dry as though all of the oxygen had been sucked out of the room. Kayn grasped her throat, panicking at not being able to breathe, frames of the forest floor flashed through her mind. Visions of the trees as they appeared to be alive and mocking her from above. Horrific visions flickered through her mind.

  Kayn heard Lily’s voice say, “You don’t need to breathe Kayn. Your body is somewhere else. This isn't real.”

  The barn’s walls burst into flames. Lily made her move and jumped on top of Grey. She knocked him onto the barn floor. The barn filled with oxygen and disappeared. Lily lay on top of Grey who began to sob beneath her. She stroked the side of his face, and she held him as his body convulsed.

  Lily whispered, “It’s Okay, it’s all in the past darling. You are in the here and now.”

  The rain fell through the barn’s frame, which had reappeared around them—the burned frame of a barn. The farm house stood in the distance looking abandoned, broken down. Kayn sat back down on the stack of hay that once again looked out of place. She didn’t need to ask what that had been about because by looking at the pain that Grey was in, Kayn understood that it was tragedy that created them all.

  Chapter 21

  Love, Lust, and the In Between

  They lay in the vibrant green lush carpet of heavenly grass. This was an exquisite place created from the most beautiful of childhood memories. The lush greenery was speckled with yellow buttercups. Chloe picked one and held it up to her chin and said, “So, do I like butter?”

  Chloe was met with a blank stare. “Don’t tell me that you’ve never heard that old wives tale,” Chloe asked, knitting her brows?

  “I have not had the privilege. Do tell,” Frost grinned.

  She said, “If you hold a buttercup up to your chin and you see a yellow shadow, then you like butter.”

  He picked a flower as well and put it to his chin whispering, “Do I like butter?”

  “There is a yellow shadow on your chin,” Chloe said in a moderately amused tone.

  “Oh, I see. Is that the reason that we are hanging out here in the grass? You were desperate to see if I liked butter? If you asked me, I would have just told you,” Frost whispered sweetly.

  Her blonde hair flowed over her shoulders into the grass. Frost reached out and touched one of her curls. He said, “You have beautiful hair.”

  Chloe looked at him and smiled. She put out her hand with her palm up, and a bee landed on her open palm. It walked with tiny tickling feet across her palm. “Bees were the first creatures I knew I could control. I was only a little girl. It was before I moved onto larger things, like people.”

  Frost said, “I knew I was different when I woke up in a pile of dead bodies at nine years old.”

  Chloe replied, “That is really messed up.”

  Frost grinned and said, “Very messed up.”

  Chloe said, “I bet you know a lot about life?”

  Frost laughed, “I know I was meant to be lying in the grass with you right now wondering what in the hell I’m doing?”

  Chloe smiled and said, “What are you doing?”

  Frost said, “I was just wondering, if your lips are as soft as your hair?” Frost touched Chloe’s bottom lip gently with his thumb. He said, “I wonder why I want to kiss you so badly it hurts. It would be stupid to kiss you. It would be ridiculously insane to fall in love with you.”

  Chloe winked at him and replied, “You realize you are saying all of this aloud. Perhaps you only want me because there’s no chance in hell of us ever actually being together. I know what you are … I am you.”

  Frost touched Chloe’s hair again and she inched closer to him. He said, “You know what I am, and you still want this to happen?”

  Chloe traced her finger along the outline of his ear, “I can't make you want me. That's why I want this to happen. I have never been in this situation with a man I couldn’t control. It’s exciting and dangerous feeling. What do I have to lose?”

  Frost pressed his hand to her back. He seductively ran his thumb up her spine to her neck. Then he slid his fingers into the soft delicate curls at the nape of her neck. His lips moved toward hers with a gentle caress that intensified into a burning passionate submergence of souls. Frost shifted on top of her.

  They jumped apart as Lily’s shrill, sarcastic voice cut through the pleasure of the moment like a knife, “Excuse me, I believe that we are saving the sex education training for tomorrow.”

  Grey sighed, “He never ceases to amaze me. He is like a self opening piñata of jokes. I don’t even know where to start.” Grey raised his hands in the air and began to slow clap. Lily elbowed him and Grey whispered, “Why not sleep with the dead twin? What safer relationship could he possibly find?”

  I’m right here Grey,” Kayn said.

  Both Chloe and Frost had stood up and brushed themselves off. Chloe looked happy.

  Kayn knew that her sister’s time was limited. She shook her head at her sister, “You’re dead and you still have cat nip on you somewhere.”

  “I found no cat nip anywhere,” Frost said, his voice laced with innuendo.

  Kayn hissed, “Oh please, Frost. It’s actually starting to get painful.” She shook her head and walked away with her sister. She looked into her sister’s eyes and said, “Are you happy?”

  Chloe grinned and replied, “I feel amazing.”

  Kayn hugged her sister and said, “Okay, I’m happy for you.” Kayn knew there was no point in lecturing her sister about things that she would never have the time to find out. She decided to just say nothing at all.

  They spent the next few days doing much the same, and enjoying every moment that they could together. Kayn had come to rely on the beauty of the shared moments with her twin as much as she relied on oxygen to breathe. Chloe and Frost took off together alone on every single break from their training. Kayn understood that her sister was discovering love. Her twin adored Frost and unless she was reading the situation completely wrong, he appeared to reciprocate her feelings.

  Kayn in turn, discovered that she was much stronger than she had anticipated. Grey had even begun to warm up to her a touch by the time they were ready to go home. Lily had begun to feel like a friend. Her new buddy Lily had assured her that Grey’s indifference wasn’t personal, it was in self defense. He didn’t want to care until he was sure that she was staying with Ankh. They could be taken by another clan and then prior friendships were impossible.

  Kayn was happy her sister was getting to experience something wonderful that she had died before getting the chance to feel, but with the most unlikely of men? Was it really that absurd? Had Chloe survived and not Kayn, Frost would have been perfect for her sister. Frost and Chloe were even holding hands.

  Kayn could see that it was upsetting Lily for some reason. At first she had believed that it was jealousy, but when Lily shared the story of Sam with her, Kayn recognized it was more out of fear that Frost would have to live forever, never being with the person that he adored. Her twin’s soul was an extension of her soul. It wasn’t lik
e Chloe would be reborn and they would see each other again. She would be absorbed into Kayn, and they would join as one. That was how the story had been told to her. The daydream was interrupted by Lily’s voice.

  “It is time to get back. We’re all beginning to lose touch. You two have had a good start in your training, but reality calls.”

  Kayn glanced at Chloe and held out her hand. Chloe took it. They wouldn’t be able to see each other once they went back. They had spent a week together. They’d had what other people never could in the loss of a loved one. They’d had the opportunity to speak the words that would usually be left unspoken. There was no ceremony this time, no stone tombs, no motion when they left. They all awoke abruptly gasping for air inside their tombs. It felt as though she were a butterfly preparing to emerge from a long hibernation in a cocoon as the tomb slid open. She opened her eyes to see Kevin’s smiling face.

  Kayn grabbed Kevin’s hand, and he helped her out of the tomb. She had a million stories to tell him. She could see something else in his eyes. He could tell that she had changed, in some way. Kayn knew she had grown. She felt stronger and less afraid of the unknown. She believed in magic.

  “You have to come next time, it’s absolutely amazing. Chloe was there, and I could touch her. I could speak to her. It was as though she’d never died.” Kayn’s eyes swelled with tears of pure joy. “I missed you,” Kayn said as she hopped into Kevin’s arms.

  “You were gone for an hour,” Kevin chuckled. He looked quite confused.

  “For us it was a week, but we didn’t have to sleep or eat, so it was like twice that time in training,” Kayn replied. A yellow light emitted from Kayn’s skin as she scaled the stairs.

  Kevin jabbed Lexy and said, “Kayn is glowing. I mean actually physically shining, not just happy glowing.”

  Lexy began to climb the stairs and casually touched Kayn’s shoulder, and the halo of yellow light disappeared. Lexy grinned at Kevin and said, “Good catch.”

  Kayn came back down the stairs. She stared directly at Kevin and said, “What did you catch?”

  Kevin answered, “You were glowing.”

  Lexy inquired, “What made you feel like telling me about it?"

  Kevin said, “She felt unsafe in that state.”

  Lexy smiled, “You’re a viable psychic after all. That burst of energy after we get out of the tombs is how Abaddon finds the unsealed clan members. Their halo of light keeps going just a bit longer. Once you are eighteen years old that disappears. The veil of light only follows the newly claimed. I always see that as a child’s halo. To me it’s that last touch of mortal innocence and purity.”

  Kevin said, “That’s kind of beautiful.”

  Lexy answered, “It is beautiful, isn’t it? If Kayn starts to glow again, make sure you call me.”

  Lexy smiled and disappeared up the flight of stairs.

  Chapter 22

  Evil Soul Sucking Demons

  Kayn, Kevin, and Frost walked across the backyard in search of Chloe. She had apparently changed back to her scary version. They had been told by Lily that she had disappeared into the bushes that separated the properties. The three of them walked through the woods together and Kayn felt like she should at least warn him. Kayn touched Frost’s shoulder and he stopped walking ahead of her.

  She said, “If she looks like she did when she died, you should be forewarned, it’s going to be difficult to see her like that.”

  Frost began to read the clipped newspaper articles on the trees aloud, “Local Brighton Family slain; one twin still alive in long-term coma. I saw you in the hospital. I know what you looked like. I had assumed that much.”

  Frost touched Chloe’s face on the picture. He said, “She was incredibly beautiful.”

  Kevin said, “Chloe was always a force of nature.”

  Kayn smiled and said, “Should I just leave you boys alone with my sister’s pictures?”

  Kevin put his arm around her and hugged her against him. He whispered, “I’m not sure you have ever fully comprehended this, but you and your sister are identical twins. That means you look exactly the same. “

  Frost said, “You are completely identical.”

  Kevin said, “Frost … Chloe is over there. Try to avoid reacting to what she looks like. She’s hiding because she probably doesn’t want you to see her.”

  Frost started to walk towards her.

  Chloe said, “One more step and the magic will be gone.”

  “I doubt that,” Frost replied. “I have seen a rather large amount of dead people.”

  Kayn could only see Frost’s reaction to what he was seeing. She couldn’t see her sister anymore. She had stuck around hoping that had changed.

  Frost froze mid-step as he took in the horror of what Chloe had endured in the final moments of her life. He was beginning to cry. Frost put his hand up to his cheek. He appeared to be in awe of the foreign liquid creating a salty river down his face. He stood his ground, shutting his eyes briefly, Kayn guessed, to squeeze the tears away.

  Kayn glanced at Kevin. She smiled and whispered, “I think he really loves her.”

  Kevin said, “I think he actually does and that she loves him back. I wasn’t sure she could love someone.”

  Old insecurities are hard to get rid of. Kayn couldn’t help it. She asked, “Are you a little bit jealous?”

  Kevin turned to look at her. He shook his head and said, “Do you really not know how I feel about you by now.”

  Kayn held her breath. He was going to tell her he loved her.

  He started to laugh and said, “I even got branded for you.” Kevin held out his gloved hand.

  Kayn took his hand and they began to walk back to her house together. She would obviously have to wait for him to be able to be serious for five seconds. The house was completely empty when they arrived home.

  Kevin said, “Should I take a quick look around?”

  Kayn said, “You could stay here with me?”

  Kevin replied, “I promised Jenkins we would behave ourselves.”

  Kayn began to walk up the stairs, and she said, “We could watch a movie and maybe order a pizza or something.” She kept walking up the stairs without looking back. Kayn knew he was coming. She grinned as she crawled up on her bed and grabbed the remote. She turned on the television and began to click through the channels. She had the pizza number on a flyer sitting on the bed beside her when he walked into her bedroom. She picked it up and passed it to him and said nothing at all. Kayn had her lips pressed together in an attempt to avoid the laughter that threatened to spurt from them.

  Kevin said, “I called and told my Dad I was staying at your house until Jenkins gets home at ten.” He sat down on the bed beside her and added,” By the way, there’s a note on the fridge from Jenkins. It says he won’t be back until ten.”

  Kayn innocently bit her lip and said, “That’s hours from now. We could watch two whole movies and eat a pizza by ten.” Kayn was beginning to feel nervous. It was strange to feel this way with her best friend. They had platonically watched a million movies. She didn’t want to platonically watch movies.

  She jumped up and said, “I’ll be right back. I have to run to the bathroom.” She glanced in the mirror, and she looked fine. She took the tube of toothpaste and squirted some on her finger and rubbed her tongue with it. She turned on the tap and took a drink of water. She put a dab of perfume on and opened the door to find Kevin standing right outside the bathroom door.

  He took a cautious step towards her and said, “I thought the next time I walked into this bathroom I would have flashbacks or something, but all I can see is you. The first day that we met, all I saw was you.” He took something out of his pocket. It was a tiny purple flower, and he bent down and tucked it into her sock. When they were only five years old, on the day they met, he had tucked a little purple flower in her shoe.

  Kevin looked up from where he was kneeling in front of her and Kayn could picture him there on one knee holding a
ring in his hand. For her that flower meant the same thing. It meant just as much. Kevin stood up and took a step towards her, and she met him halfway.

  She whispered, “That was pretty smooth Smith.”

  He cracked a giant grin and said, “Brighton you have no idea how smooth I can be.”

  He backed her up against the sink and leaned over and gently kissed her neck. She started to laugh, and he kissed her cheek. She quit laughing because she wanted him to kiss her lips. She bit her bottom lip and looked into his eyes. He went to kiss her and then hovered above her lips.

  A breath away from actually touching her, he stopped and teased, “Maybe we should go to my house. I promised we would behave when we were here. We can get off on a technicality.”

  Kayn grinned and teased, “A technicality, huh?” She ran her fingers through his hair and pulled him towards her. She kissed him seductively until he picked her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and he carried her back towards the bed.

  The bedroom door opened abruptly. He dropped her, and she landed on her butt with a thud.

  Jenkins began to laugh, and he said, “Seriously? … you kids didn’t last five seconds.”

  Kayn started to laugh, “You were never working late, were you?”

  Jenkins chuckled, “Nah, I was just messing with you. I ordered you pizza, and here.” He tossed a movie at Kayn. She was still sitting on the floor, quite crimson faced.

  She caught it in midair and said, “Thanks a lot.”

  Jenkins was still laughing as he left the room. He said, “Oh … don’t mention it.”

  Kevin sat on the bed, and they both started to laugh. Kayn stood up, and marched over to lock her bedroom door. Just as she reached for the handle, Jenkins opened the door again and passed her a pizza.