“You will not stop. You’ll never understand. Why? Why did you hurt me?” She gripped him hard, but now, with him gripping her arms, she also could not move. She could not break his grip. “Why!” she screamed.
He could not move. He could not stop. It doesn’t matter. I have to release her. I have to release her memory. He looked at her eyes, and let his flare back to blue. He looked deeply at her and held her close. “I release you from your pain. I free you from the pain. I release you from the pain.”
She saw his eyes, and slowly she watched them fade. Suddenly, she saw the fire burning in front of her. Inside the flames, she saw herself sitting in the same room that she was then standing. Two men, one Kalima, and the other her brother, paced around in front of her. They were talking to each other, and she heard them clearly, as they did.
“What happened to her?” Rochie asked Kalima.
Kalima shrugged hard. “I’m sorry Rochie, but Devish was able to block her before he was stopped. I could not stop him from doing it.” He bowed his head. “I failed.”
Rochie had tears in his eyes. “What do we do now?”
Kalima looked at her and smiled. “We let her live. You can give her a life. You can give her a life that she never had before. You can help her live.”
Rochie must have loved this idea because it did make him smile. “I can do that.” He added a nod.
Kalima placed his hands on his hips. “We do have a problem.” He looked worried. He looked scared.
The stress in his voice did make Rochie turn to him. “What problem? Devish is vanquished. The world will be calm again. The Walkers will adhere to the truce.”
Kalima shook his head. “I fear that he will rise again. I fear that we may have to head down this road all over again in the future. As long as he lives, we will never be safe.” He looked back at her. “She will never be safe.”
Rochie’s face went pale. “We keep him locked up. We will guard him. We will protect where he lies.”
Kalima must not have agreed, because it showed on his face and sparkled in his eyes. “It may happen centuries from now, maybe longer. Time is fickle. We will forget.”
Rochie obviously did not agree. “What should we do? How will it affect her?”
Kalima dropped his arms. “She is blocked, but if Devish does return, he will come after her. He will find her and undo what he has done. If he does, she will be in danger. She will know the truth, and thus, so will he.”
Again, Rochie did not agree, but in the end, he did. He did want to know what Kalima wanted. “What do we do then?”
“We block her mind. We protect her by locking away the truth. We lock away her memories of me—her memories of you and her.”
Rochie nodded.
Kalima continued. “You must be the one to do it. You must be the one to lock her away.”
Rochie now shook his head. “Why me?”
Kalima smiled. “I cannot be the one to be close to her. As long as I am away, she will not remember me. You know as I, if she sees me again, she will have it there. No block is perfect. If she sees me again, it will weaken. She will recall me, in some way, or in some time.”
Rochie did agree with this. He shook his head, but there was more. “What if Devish returns, and finds me first. He can read my thoughts. He will know.”
Kalima had already thought of this, so he shared it with him. “You will have to block yourself as well. It is the only way to keep the secret. It is the only way to keep her safe.”
Again, Rochie understood.
She watched all of this, and then saw the flames.
She then saw the moon. It hung in low over the trees. She saw Kalima standing there looking back at her. Seeing him, in the moonlight, feeling his love for her, and her for him, she truly did melt.
He looked at her with strong eyes. “I cannot stay here Rana. I love you, but I cannot stand with him. He destroyed my family. He killed her. He killed them.”
She had tears flowing down her face. “I understand.” She did. She knew his pain. She knew the truth behind it.
He also had tears strolling down his face. “Come with me.” He hoped she would. He would never be able to live without her, if she did not. He felt lost. He felt completely alone without her by his side.
She nodded, but she knew better than this. “He will never let me go. He will find me wherever I run.” She hugged her bare chest closely. Suddenly, she felt cold. She felt lost. She felt alone.
He nodded, understanding this, understanding her. “If you stay, what will you do?” he had to ask. Just one thought of her being injured would crush him. He would never live it down. He would never forgive himself if something were to happen with her.
She shrugged hard, but at the same time, soft. “I will stay. I will watch him. I will do what I must to keep him from doing you harm.” She bowed her head, as the tears continued flowing down her face. “I will destroy him if I must.” She nodded confidently. She meant every word. She meant every thought.
He loved her strength. “And if he discovers you? What will you do if he learns who you really are?” He shuddered with the thought. A cold chill flared down his back and went deeply in to his soul.
She shook her head strongly. “He does not know me.” She smiled, and used both hands to wipe away her tears. It took her several times to get her face dry again, but she did manage. Her face went dry. “I will keep him contained so you can do what you have to do. I will manage.”
He shook his head. He loved her more than ever. “I will go then. I will find your brother, and hopefully, I will be able to explain the truth to him. I will join them, and when the time is right, I will come for you.” He also wiped his face with the back of both hands. It took him three times to get it dry.
She smiled with another nod. “I will be waiting for you, my love.” She stared at his face, hoping to be able to remember it—to remember him. After all, it could be years before she would see him again. It could be an eternity at that. “Will you give a message to Rochie for me?” She took a deep breath that filled her body with such coldness that it caused another shiver to flow through her soul. It even forced her to hug herself tighter.
He nodded. “Of course.” He smiled.
“Tell him that I forgive him. Tell him, I understand why he did what he did. I understand the truth.” She smiled.
The flames came again, and this time, they went dark. She opened her eyes and saw Rochie still holding her still. Seeing him again, remembering what she now did, she released him instantly. She even gave him a smile. “Oh Rochie. I’m sorry. I’m so-so sorry.”
He saw her smile. He felt her eyes. He watched them turn brown and then felt her power release its grip. He didn’t know what just happened but didn’t care. The anger in her face was gone. The rage had vanished. The hate for him was gone with both, and with it, he felt completely and totally relieved. He felt complete with her again.
45
He managed to get back to his feet, but just as he did do it, Devish struck him down again. After recovering from the blow, Jimmy just stood back up. He was in even more pain than he was the last time he was. He was doing his job. He caused just enough pain, and that pain was keeping the wolf inside him.
“You are ridiculous my brother. Why fight? Why continue with feeling this pain?” Devish struck again, and watched as it impacted Kalima’s left ribs. He even heard several snap.
Jimmy felt the blow. He felt his ribs break. He felt the pain and then the cool air rush over his body as he flew to his right. After that, he felt the floor. He felt the heat of the pain as it flushed through him like fire. He also lost his breaths and it made him have to gather himself before he began. “You lost last time Devish. You lost to me. You lost the fight.” He rolled over again, and again, he pushed himself up to his hands and knees. “Why?” He spit some of his own bitter iron taste from his mouth. “Why did you lose? Why did you lose the fight?”
Devish groaned. “That no longer matters my b
rother. Only this day does.”
Jimmy laughed, feeling his ribs right again. Thankfully, he healed fast. “You don’t seem to remember do you? Why? What else have you forgotten?”
Devish stepped out on to the balcony and stepped to where Kalima had landed. As for what he heard, none of it made sense to him. He knew what happened. He knew that he woke up from the end. He knew everything that he needed to know and that meant that Kalima was toying with him. He was stalling for time. He was trying to trick him to make a mistake.
Jimmy laughed as he stood back up. “You never asked yourself that did you. You never asked yourself why. Why did you block her?” He steadied himself again, as Devish moved closer. “Why did you block Rana?”
Devish stopped. He had enough of this. “Why then? Why did I block her?” He let his true form come out again.
Jimmy watched his deep gray fur form over his pale grayish colored skin. He watched his face turn in to the half bat, half wolf again too. The deformity now stood tall in front of him.
Devish’s eyes turned red.
Jimmy took an elongated huff of wind. When he finished it, he looked out of the corner of his eyes to his left and saw Rana looking up to him from the first floor. He could see her standing there clearly. He saw her eyes. He saw her face. He saw her calm, and he realized what that meant. She remembers. She remembers me. She remembers the truth. He looked squarely back at Devish and their eyes met. “She was never with you.” He smiled.
Devish heard this, turned to his right, seeing Kalima looking that way, saw Rana staring at both of them, and then turned back to Kalima. He could not believe what he heard, and with it, he did not accept it. He just let his rage flare. He let his mind burn as he reached out to Kalima to vent that rage, but nothing happened. His body froze. His arms never came up.
Jimmy saw this and grinned. “That’s right Devish.” He moved closer to him and stopped only inches from his chest. Being in his natural form, he had to look up to see his face.
Devish could do nothing but look back.
Jimmy kept the grin. He stared at his face. He took pride in seeing the fear that was now flashing in his eyes. “You’re not the only one that can play with someone’s mind, Devish.” He called on his power. He let his eyes flare blue. He looked deeply into Devish’s eyes. “Remember, remember, remember the end times.”
Devish saw the flames. He saw his past. He saw what Kalima had blocked, and with it all, he screamed, “No!”
Jimmy smiled. “That’s right my brother. The truth is never what you think it is.”
Devish recovered some from the shock of seeing everything and remembering what all of it meant. With it, the shock also wore off some, but the fear remained. The pain stayed too. “You may have fooled me brother, but there are some things that you do not know. I know about your past. I know about your loss.” He watched Kalima come even closer. He could feel his body’s heat next to his. “I have answers to everything you are. I know who freed me from my prison.” He hoped this would be enough to stop him from finishing him like he now knew he would.
Jimmy just shook his head. “There is nothing that can save you Devish. As for me,” he paused seeing Brandon join his side.
Brandon came over to him and stopped. He looked at Devish and smiled. He looks scared. He looks terrified. Whatever Jimmy showed him must have been the worst thing he had ever seen.
Jimmy looked back to Devish and called on the eyes of Kalima. “I’m going to do what I should have done the last time.” And he turned, as his voice growled and moaned. His mouth protruded out with a powerful snout. His teeth grew long, and he grew tall, as tall as Devish was, as his eyes flared yellow. Black fur coursed over his black flesh.
Watching from the first floor, hearing everything he did, Robert looked back to Rana on his right. He could not believe what he saw.
She saw his face. “I forgave you a long time ago Rochie.” She held her hand to Devish and kept him locked. She kept him still. She did her job well.
Robert heard this and cried. Tears striped his face. Whatever happened, whatever he did, he no longer cared. The only thing that mattered was what she said. It was what she was now doing.
Kalima roared.
Devish’s hope vanished fast.
Kalima came in fast. His right clawed hand pushed in to his chest, did not stop until it pierced his flesh, and grabbed his heart. With it within his hand, he pulled.
Devish felt all of this. He felt the pain. He felt the agony as his own heart was torn from his chest. After it, he saw nothing. He just died. He just faded out to nothing as his body went limp. He then fell to the floor and would never move again.
Kalima pulled the heart out and brought it up to his face. Seeing it, smelling it, he roared again. Victory was sweet. The smell of Devish’s death was so much more than that.
Brandon watched all of this and smiled. He watched Devish die and felt pride for it. He felt at peace. He felt justified that his vengeance was paid in full.
Robert gasped. It was over. They had won, and he had trouble grasping all of this at once. He looked back to Rana and watched her arm come back down to her side.
When it was, she looked at him and sighed. “It’s done.” She smiled. “It’s over.”
He returned her smile, but inside, he felt more confused than ever before. “What just happened?” he asked. With his shock, he barely heard what he said himself.
She laughed, and took his right hand into her left. “Thank you Rochie. Thank you for everything.”
He squeezed her hand. He shook his head. “Okay.” He could say nothing else but that.
46
The fight raged. Devish’s forces had been cut in half as their numbers dwindled from the onslaught of the attack. The black wolves were too much for any of them. They were not even able to take one of them down. They were nearly at the door to the castle when suddenly it opened. A pin could have dropped, as just as suddenly, everyone stopped. In unison, they all turned.
Sharlia, Kenar, Sandra, and Sasha were closest to the door, so they saw Kalima walk outside first. They even saw something in his right hand. The black fur around it bled with red.
Kalima stayed on the landing, a large porch like structure at the top of the steps just before the door, and lifted his right arm. He then roared, as he squeezed the heart in his grip and crushed it in his hand.
They all heard the roar. They all saw the squeeze. They all collectively knew what it meant.
Kenar again heard his thoughts. “He did it.” He looked at the mighty beast and smiled. “He beat him. Devish is dead.” He almost could not believe what he just heard himself say. Seeing his friend, feeling his mind, experiencing all of it, he laughed. He could not help himself.
Sharlia stood there speechless.
Sasha let her human form reemerge.
Sandra smiled.
Finished with his loud victorious roar, Kalima threw the flattened heart at his feet. He then readied himself for a fight that he felt sure would come next. Devish’s people were still there. They would assuredly fight to the end.
None of them moved. They all stood there almost lifeless. They obviously did not know what to do, until one of them, a Nightwalker who just seconds before was struggling with a black wolf to the left of the steps, moved. She climbed the steps and came in front of him with her head down low.
He watched her come and was ready for anything.
When she stopped, she dropped to her knees.
He saw her do this, and truly looked shocked.
Sharlia could not agree more. “Kalima!” she shouted, as pride filled her soul. She could not help herself in repeating it over and over again. “Kalima! Kalima! Kalima!” It came out as a chant. It came out as a celebration that she never believed that she would ever have. It felt overpowering beyond words.
The feeling caught on.
Suddenly everyone there, every family member, everyone and everything, erupted with the exact same chant.
&n
bsp; They carried on until the sun finally came up.
47
All of the Walkers stood as one as they all formed back into their human bodies. Cassandra and her group joined Sharlia and the others in the main hall.
With the fight over, Robert was still confused. “What exactly happened?” He looked at Jimmy as he and Rana embraced again. It felt like an eternity that he knew anything at all.
As the embrace went, it felt like years that he held her like this. It felt like an eternity that he never wanted to let go again. “I’m sorry that I had to keep things from you, from all of you, but I didn’t have the choice.” He turned from Rana, and smiled to everyone.
They surrounded him and his friends.
Kenar did understand. “Devish read our thoughts, but he couldn’t read yours.”
Jimmy nodded. “I couldn’t risk him learning the truth.”
Robert shook his head. In fact, his head was starting to hurt some. Even having stairs fall out from beneath him didn’t give him a headache like all of this was. This made it hurt even more. “And what is the truth?”
Jimmy looked back to Rana as he kept her waist in his left arm. He would never let her go again. “Rana and I decided that it was best for her stay with him after I left. He found out. Devish discovered her feelings for me and tried to kill her. We couldn’t let that happen again if he were to get out.” He squeezed her gently.
She squeezed him firmly back.
Robert still felt confused. “We?”
Jimmy nodded. “You and me. We both understood that as long as Devish was still alive, even dormant, he would come back again. To prevent him from doing what he did, we decided to give him other memories. I gave him what he wanted. I gave him what I would know that he would do.”
Kenar laughed with all of this. He of course knew none of it but liked it anyway. “That’s why you knew what he was going to do. You put it in his head.”
Jimmy looked to his right at Kenar. “Yes. Before we locked him away, I gave him special memories. We, Rochie blocked Rana because we knew that he would come after her. If she carried those memories with her, he would know. She wouldn’t be able to hide the truth from him.”
A Werewolf's Saga Books 4, 5, & 6 (A Werewolf's Saga Boxed Sets Book 2) Page 61
