Tyrell grabbed the back of Jatred’s blood-stained shirt and pulled him to his feet. They ran parallel to the wall, away from the crumbling rock. Another large tree fell across their path. It bounced as it hit the ground. They yelled in terror, halted, and frantically looked around for the best path to escape. The woods in this immediate area were sparse, but the trees grew tall, their trunks thick. The space between the trees and the granite wall wasn’t wide enough to provide much safety. Tyrrell swore and pulled Jatred down to the ground, between two newly-formed gashes in the soil.
Jatred heard Tyrrell’s voice in his mind, “Listen, this must stop soon. We’ll be fine.”
“I know.” Jatred clenched his teeth.
Right then the grinding noise and the shaking ceased. The Shifters gaped at each other, their eyes wide.
“Is it… over?” Jatred asked cautiously, looking around.
Tyrrell slowly got up. “It seems to be over. Let’s get out of here. The back of your shirt is bloody. Are you hurt?”
“I’m fine.”
CHAPTER 43
Human World, November 18, late afternoon.
Tyrrell glanced at the screen of his phone. His nostrils flared, and he inhaled deeply.
Jatred turned to look at him, noticing Tyrrell’s clenched jaws. “What is it?”
Tyrrell dropped the phone to his lap and looked straight ahead at the road in front of the moving car. His hands clutched the wheel, the skin over his knuckles tightened. He was silent for a few heartbeats. His eyes flicked momentarily to Jatred and back to the road.
“What?” Jatred sounded impatient.
“A friend is at the hospital. Her best friend, Estelle, got hurt in the earthquake.”
“Who’s Estelle? And who’s your friend?” Jatred made an exasperated face.
“Estelle is a Summer Shifter. She’s been badly hurt. Kaliope just texted me—”
“Whoa! Wait a minute.” Jatred interrupted, turning to face Tyrrell. “Kaliope texted you?”
Tyrrell glanced at Jatred, his features composed. He didn’t offer any comment, despite Jatred’s expectant expression. After a few silent moments Jatred leaned back in his seat, smiling.
Tyrrell glanced at Jatred again. They both burst into laughter at the same time.
“No, it’s not what you think, you goofball,” Tyrrell finally managed to say. “We’re friends; very good friends. There is nothing romantic between us. Not even close.”
Jatred eyed him suspiciously.
Tyrrell shrugged. “You can believe what you want. Kaliope is a faithful wife and a great mother.”
“And you’re just such a good friend, for old times sake?”
“Yeah, something like that,” Tyrrell said in an indifferent voice.
Jatred made a sarcastic sound and rolled his eyes.
“I’m surprised the text went through. The lines were down when we tried to call before, remember? Anyway, we’re going to stop at the hospital. I want to see Estelle,” Tyrrell announced.
“What? Just say you want to see Kaliope, not Estelle.” Jatred shook his head and gave a small laugh. He obviously enjoyed taunting his uncle about his female friends, and Tyrrell seemed not to care.
“I hope the hospital is intact after the earthquake,” Tyrrell said.
“Which hospital are we going to?”
“Saint Andrew, of course. Where our Shifter-doctors are.”
Jatred looked at the side window. “It was freaky down there.”
“Yeah. We are lucky to be in one piece.”
Half hour later they found a parking spot about fifty yards from the small hospital. Security and police officers directed the car and pedestrian traffic in the parking lot and around the building. In a few spots the pavement had split into long gashes. Otherwise the immediate area didn’t look anything like the other places in the broken city that Jatred and Tyrrell just managed to drive through.
“This is weird,” Jatred commented.
“What is?” Tyrrell asked.
“It almost looks like this building is standing on some kind of an oasis. The mess from the earthquake stops right a few feet from the walls… you see?” Jatred pointed to the broken pavement. “Nothing there.”
“The Goddesses’ protection. This is the Shifters’ area. The Goddesses shield us from the Universal powers.”
“What?” Jatred stopped in his tracks.
Tyrrell sighted and turned to face Jatred, his dark face composed. “I am almost certain that this earthquake,” he gestured around, “is the effect of the ten-thousand-year mark. And so were all the other weird natural disasters in the last few days. I’ve spent a good deal of time discussing this with the Tornwoods. They are the experts, after all.”
“So the Goddesses can protect just one building, but the rest goes to hell?”
“Something like that. I’m sure they tried to protect a lot of places at once. Their tactic is, most likely to defend as many of us as they possibly can. But there are thousands of Shifters of both Races all over the world. Hard to be everywhere at once, even for the powerful Goddesses.”
“That’s just stupid.” Jatred kicked a piece of broken pavement. It flew straight ahead and hit an overturned STOP sign. “Let’s hope our house is standing.”
“It should be fine. After all Crystal knows that the most important item is hidden in there.”
“The Amulet,” Jatred finished Tyrrell’s sentence with his mind.
The hospital was crowded with patients and the medical personnel. Nobody paid them any attention, despite their torn, muddy clothes, and faces and arms smudged with dirt. They asked at the front desk where they could find Estelle, and were directed up the stairs. Walking hurriedly, they kept looking around, taking in the busy atmosphere and noticing a few minor signs of the earthquake. Small spidery lines were edged into the paint on the walls.
“How old is this place?”
“Over one hundred years or so. Old by American standards.” Tyrrell shrugged.
“It’s so much smaller than any hospital I’ve ever seen.” Jatred followed Tyrrell off the staircase and into a hallway lined with a few hospital beds.
“Yeah, it used to be a military hospital years ago. Doctor Bigbee and his partners bought it, renovated it, and got the place running as well as any other medical facility. But it’s more of a clinic than a full-fledged hospital. As you can see they are having a hard time accommodating all the patients today.”
Jatred grunted. “Why did so many people come here? Can’t they go to Swedish or Virginia Mason? Those are large hospitals with way more doctors than this.”
“Must be the proximity. After all we are right downtown. But then again, the other hospitals might be damaged. I don’t know. This one has Crystal’s protection.” He walked to a door at the end of the hallway, knocked quietly, and waited.
A few seconds passed before they heard soft footsteps inside, and the door opened slowly. Kaliope Stephanopoulos peered from inside and pressed a manicured finger to her lips. She let them into a very small room and quietly closed the door. Her copper hair was pulled into a thick pony tail at the nape of her neck. A few loose strands escaped from it, and she pushed them behind her ears.
Tyrrell opened his arms and drew Kaliope to his massive chest. She didn’t protest, but clung to him instead. She started to cry. Her whole body shook from sobs, her face buried in Tyrrell’s shirt.
“I was so scared. It all happened so quickly,” she whispered. “Penelope wasn’t with us and I… I couldn’t get a call through to her.”
“Shh. You’re fine; that’s what matters. Where is Penelope?” Tyrrell asked.
Kaliope stepped out of his embrace and sighed deeply. “She’s here, at the hospital. She was able call me just a few moments ago. But she’s not hurt,” the woman added quickly. “Just hit her head. Fortunately nothing happened, just a few bruises and a bump on her head. Oh, I wish Penelope had stayed here with us. But there is no talking to her. Such a rebellious child. Wel
l, an adult, after all.”
“An adult according to our Race’s laws. But not the laws of humans.” Tyrrell tried to console the distressed Kaliope.
“I said that once, and she laughed in my face.” She sighed.
The whole time Jatred stood by the door, leaning on the wall, his arms and ankles crossed. His eyes were narrowed. As soon as Kaliope looked at him, he rearranged his features, curving the corners of his lips into a smile. He looked rough in his dirty, torn clothes.
“Oh,” Tyrrell said, scratching his cropped curly hair. “Kaliope, you’ve met Jatred, right?”
She blinked a few times. “A few years ago.”
“Hi.” Jatred nodded in her direction.
“Hi, Jatred. I’m Penelope’s mother.”
“I know.”
“So how is Estelle?” Tyrrell walked toward the Native American woman sleeping in the hospital bed. Her jet-black hair was arranged on the sides of her head into two thick braids. She looked very small and frail. Her dark, leathery complexion contrasted with the white pillow case. Estelle’s left arm and leg were, each, enclosed in a long cast.
Kaliope moved to stand next to Tyrrell, her eyes on Estelle. “She’s on some heavy meds for pain, but Doctor Bigbee said she’ll heal quickly. The bones in her leg and arm are badly broken, in several places. But… you know… she will pull through.” Kaliope bit her lower lip, her brows knitted in a frown.
Jatred stood on the other side of Tyrrell, staring at the sleeping woman.
“Did something fall on her?” he asked.
“We were at her house. She got on one of those step-ladders, to put something in the china cabinet. When the shaking started, she lost her balance and fell onto her back, and a hutch from that china cabinet crashed down onto her,” Kaliope said. “She was pinned to the floor but my husband moved the hutch quickly off her. Then I went outside to find help, but it was no use. I was so scared and thinking of Penelope too.” She started to sob again.
“Where is your husband?” Tyrrell bent his head to look into her face.
“He went to find Penelope. She just called us and got through. She’s with some friends here, at the hospital. Oh, I already said that.” Kaliope shook her head and rubbed her forehead with her fist.
Jatred looked at Tyrrell. “I’ll be right back.” He turned around and quickly walked out of the room. He felt like running ahead, with no apparent direction, no goal in mind, toward… what? In a few long strides he was at the staircase, taking two steps at a time. He realized there was something, no—somebody—looking for him, and using an invisible source of some ancient power to bring him closer. The bond. I remember the bond with a girl. Who was that girl?
CHAPTER 44
Human World, November 18, late afternoon.
“We have to put you in a cast, Jousenne.” Doctor Bigbee narrowed his eyes at the set of X-rays in front of him. “I was afraid of that. The fracture may not heal properly if your hip is not immobilized.”
“Nonsense.” Jousenne snorted. “I heal quickly—”
“I insist. I’ve known you for a long time and yes, you heal faster than any other Shifter I’ve ever treated for injuries, but this,” he pointed to the X-rays, “can’t be left unattended. Trust me. You don’t want to limp for the rest of your life.”
Jousenne glared at the doctor, her chin lifted.
Jasmira stood next to her and chewed on her lip. “Grannie, it’s better this way. Let’s not take any chances.”
Jousenne sighed heavily. “Okay, Brad. Do whatever you need to do. Just hurry up, please. I don’t want to be stuck in here. Although I must say, I’m impressed with how well the hospital operates, given the circumstances.”
Doctor Bigbee pressed his lips together in a polite smile at Jousenne’s commanding tone. Despite being a Winter Shifter, he respected her position in the Summer Shifter community. She was, after all, a former Queen and the president of the Summer Historical Society.
“If it was any other place, we would have evacuated. But with both Goddesses’ protection this hospital is safer than any other in the whole state. The earthquake shook everyone up, but we had to pull through quickly, because new patients keep coming,” he said with a smile. “Anyway, in a week you should be back to normal; maybe even faster, since your healing ability is extraordinary, even for a Shifter. The nurses will be over to prep you.”
They watched him leave the room, and then looked at each other. Jasmira stooped down to hug her grandmother. Jousenne patted her hand in an affectionate manner.
“Oh, Grannie. I’m so glad nothing worse happened to you. What would I do without you?”
“Now, now. All is going to be fine. Don’t you worry.” Jousenne winced at the pain in her broken hip.
“But how about the house? The whole upper terrace is gone.” Jasmira wrung her hands and sat down.
The house should have been protected. Amber didn’t shield us from the earthquake. Why? Jousenne thought, and then said out loud, with a small dismissive wave of her hand, “Don’t think about that now. The house can be fixed. That’s the least of my worries. And most importantly, the secret chamber wasn’t affected. Let’s hope we aren’t harmed throughout this whole mess. This is not over, I’m afraid.”
“What do you mean, Grannie?”
“If this is what I suspect it is, we will face much more.” Jousenne looked away. “From what we know, or rather have suspected until now, the ten-thousand-year mark should start around the winter solstice. But, according to the opinion of some knowledgeable Summer and Winter Races’ Historians, it had just started.”
“It did? But it’s only November.” Jasmira’s eyes opened wide. “So now what?”
“So now we have no idea what exactly is going to happen,” Jousenne paused, meeting Jasmira’s eyes. “We don’t have any information on what the previous ten-thousand-year mark occurrences were.”
“Is this the Goddesses’ doing? Or something with the Amulet? Or the Dasht-e Kavir?” Jasmira asked with her mind, the mental barrier tight. Absentmindedly, she touched the front of her shirt, remembering that the Dasht-e Kavir was hidden under the fabric.
“I don’t know.”
Jasmira didn’t break the eye contact. Is this my fault? Did I cause all this to start early? Just because I took the Amulet before it was ready for the Summer Race to take? Her lower lip trembled, and her eyes darted down to the floor. She kept up a strong mental shield, so her thoughts remained private.
Jousenne lifted one eyebrow. “I didn’t mean to upset you, child. But we have to be ready; and I don’t even know for what. You have the Dasht-e Kavir with you. Protect it, keep it away from sight. And be very careful.”
Jasmira nodded, stood up, and walked to the window. There was a knock on the door. When Jousenne said, “Come in,” it opened and two middle-aged nurses strode in.
“Hello, Mrs. Rosewater. Jasmira, I haven’t seen you in ages. You grew so tall,” a petite, mousy-looking nurse said with a tentative smile. She was a Summer Shifter. The other woman, dressed in a white medical coat, was human.
“Good to see you, Nicole.” Jousenne nodded slowly.
“This is Amy.” Nicole gestured to the human nurse. “Doctor Bigbee is waiting for you. The procedure shouldn’t take long.”
“Nicole. Human nurses can’t be involved, you know that,” Jousenne snapped with her mind, keeping her face neutral. “Where are the Shifter nurses?”
“Amy is going to help out just a bit and then she’s going to assist the human doctors. Lauren will be here shortly; she’s a Winter gal. She’s finishing up with another patient,” Nicole explained in the same mind-communicating manner, smiling all the time.
Amy looked at Jousenne, unaware of the exchange between the other two women.
“Just make sure this one doesn’t see my X-rays,” Jousenne added scornfully in Nicole’s head.
“Of course not, Mrs. Rosewater. We keep our Shifter patients’ records in a secret vault. Only the Shifter doctors know a
bout them.”
“I’m aware of that.” Jousenne struggled to remain calm.
Jasmira stood by the window, quiet throughout the whole mind-exchange between the nurse and her grandmother. She heard them clearly in her head since they didn’t bother to keep their shields up. Jasmira struggled to relax. Jatred. My Jatred. Is he okay? Is he hurt? Where is he? Oh, Goddess, I have to see him. She turned back to the dark window and buried her face in her clenched fists.
Something prodded at her mind. Her eyes widened and her breath caught in her throat. She walked to the door and opened it. As if hypnotized, Jasmira stepped out into the hallway. There was something there. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but she was unable to stop herself. It pulled her in, spellbound her, and wouldn’t let go. She submitted to the strange energy that directed and overwhelmed her.
She just wanted close her eyes and tilt her head back. Jasmira had never felt so vulnerable and submissive before. The sensation was deliciously welcoming, stirring something familiar inside her, something fascinating.
“The bond… it feels so different than ever before. But that must be it,” Jasmira whispered almost imperceptibly.
She walked as if in a dream. She didn’t see anyone around, didn’t truly understand or care to understand why this was happening to her. Her heart pounded in her chest, her throat constricted. She could only take small gulps of air. A warm, sensual feeling rose within her. Something strong was calling her. Jasmira put the palm of her hand on the cold wall to steady herself. She threw her head back and closed her eyes.
She shuddered. Her body tried to shift to her animal form, but she managed to oppose its demands, to stay human. Jasmira didn’t want to lose that luscious feeling racing through her. Ever. She touched the front of her neck, sliding her hand slowly up, over her chin and to her parted lips. Her fingers lingered there, reminding her of Jatred’s mouth over hers; of his warm breath on her skin; of his strong body pressing against her.
***
A weird sensation enveloped Jatred. It felt like something clawing its way up from his stomach. His heart thrashed in his chest. Sweat trickled down his back. He was dodging the people around him, trying to get to the bottom of the stairs.
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