by Kimbra Swain
“Really?” I asked.
“It’s strange, but yes,” he replied. Titania watched both of us with a twinkle in her eye.
“You are under my authority now,” Titania said.
“Um, no,” I replied as she laughed.
“What?” Tadeas asked.
“Your godhead falls under the pantheon that I rule,” Titania smirked.
I raised up and stared at her. Laughing at me, she added, “But I defer my authority to Abigail.”
“That’s not any better,” Tadeas said, and I jabbed him in the side. “Ow!”
“Big baby!” I replied as I tried to poke him again. We wrestled for a minute, and it ended in a stalemate. Well, once he restrained my arms, I suppose he won, but I considered it a stalemate. His thoughts washed over me, and suddenly I wanted Tania to leave.
“Quit stalling and tell him,” she said watching us.
“Yeah, quit stalling,” he repeated releasing my hands from the wrestling match. I settled back down next to him and started the story of the foundations of the current state of the Agency. It started with my recruitment of Lugh, the heir to Apollo’s inheritance who took the name Quinn Davenport becoming the Eastern Hemisphere Regent. However, he tricked Lincoln and I into participating in the Lughnasadh harvest games of the Underworld in 1918.
As I told the story, I skimmed over the intimate details of my relationship with Myrddin, the personification of magic. Tadeas knew me and could read my mind as I told the story. I worried for nothing because he remained his steady self. Titania took over the rule of Fae after the games and has been one of my greatest allies since that time. I practically handed her the throne on a platter, but she had graciously ruled. Our realm and the Fae realm were better for it.
“Is he still alive?” Tadeas asked.
“He is, but he wishes to move on from this world,” Titania said soberly.
“What?” I gasped.
“Aoibheann, it is why I am here. It is time for you to take your inheritance,” Titania said.
“No, the last time Lugh checked on him, he said Myr was better!” I exclaimed.
“He is at peace more than he ever has been. It’s his choice, Abby,” she coaxed me.
“I’m not ready,” I said, pulling away from Tadeas and pacing to the windows.
“And I was?” Tadeas said gently to make his point without it sounding accusatory.
I hung my head and remembered the cherished days I spent with Mryddin. I always thought he would be a part of this world.
Titania stood next to me and spoke, “Aoibheann, the radiant beauty, descendant of Helios, son of Hyperion, champion of the Agency, heir to the personification of magic, keeper of the Solaris stone, bearer of Vindicta, you could not be more ready. The completion of the inheritance will carry you through this fight with the growing evil in this world like Moloch,” she said softly.
“You forgot daughter of the Fae,” I replied with scorn.
“I know, because it is my greatest desire to change that title to daughter of Titania, Queen of the Fae. I am so proud of you, my child,” she said.
My knees buckled, sinking to the floor Tadeas caught me. I looked in her velvet green eyes seeing what I’d been so blind to all these years. Tadeas encouraged me to breathe as the world swirled around me. My vision blurred with tears and blood loss to my brain.
“Breathe, Abby!” Tadeas’ voice cried out echoing the call of my former partner, Lincoln, when he pulled me from the darkness after my death.
Kneeling before me, Titania’s cool hand touched my cheek, then I gasped for the air deprived from my lungs. “I beg you to forgive me,” she said, bowing her head to me.
“I don’t understand,” I choked. Part of me wanted to lash out for the years of anguish, but the other part of me wanted to hug my mother, a woman that I greatly admired and respected. My emotions ripped me in two different directions.
“You cannot change the past remember? We move forward together,” Tadeas’ wise voice echoed in my head.
Surging forward out of his arms, my mother embraced me stroking my hair. I cried in confusion and relief. We sat on the floor of the condo for what seemed like hours. The flood of questions in my mind dried up, and I simply rested in the arms of my mother.
The days grew long as I waited for the time that Abigail would return to the island with Tadeas. Washing dishes, I stared out the window at the vineyard thinking about when they were here just getting to know each other. I knew then that Abigail had found a true partner in more ways than what she intended. The harvest was upon us, and soon the island would grow quiet, since the workers would rarely return during the off-season. I missed both of them as if they were my own children.
A sudden clap of thunder and a flash of lightning startled me, and I turned to greet my brother. “Gabriel, how are they?” I asked.
“They are well, but you have no greeting for me? I am your brother! You should be happy to see me,” he teased. He must be in a very good mood to participate in such a frivolous discourse. Gabriel, if anything, was stuffy and humorless a large part of the time. He took after Michael in that way. His stoic features returned after the tease.
“It is good to see you, Brother. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” I asked him.
“Come. I want to show you something,” he said, and the smile returned. His demeanor puzzled me, but I followed him out of the kitchen to the great room where I started a fire after dinner. As the embers flamed, the room glowed with warmth.
“What is it?” I asked wondering, what in the world could have provoked this gaiety.
“Watch,” he said pointing to the courtyard.
I felt a cool breeze blow through the room, and two blurry figures appeared near the fountain. It was as if the ghosts of Tadeas and Abigail haunted the house. I could feel the warmth of her magic, and the coolness of his pull on the spirit world. They stood arm in arm facing each other with their eyes closed. As I moved to go to them, Gabriel grabbed my arm and held me back.
“No, they do not realize they are here. They must realize it on their own. We cannot interfere,” he said, but continued to smile.
In an instant with a rush of cold wind, they solidified into view and stood embracing. The love between them had grown, and the red and purple binding flashed brilliantly around their bodies. His hands around her waist rested comfortably as she leaned into him with trust.
“Their minds are joined,” I said.
“Yes, it’s a co-meditation, but he has yet to realize that he can travel here with her as Lincoln did,” he said.
“So, why are you so happy?”
“Because, she is in love again,” he said.
I laughed at him. “I thought fathers were supposed to despise the men who loved their daughters.”
“How can I when he is such a man?” he replied.
“I agree, but I never imagined you would think so,” I said.
“Why?” he asked. “I bound them, did I not?”
“Because over the years, there have been many men who loved her. Lincoln, Myrddin, and Lukas are only the ones that she returned affections, but there are more,” I replied. “Why is Tadeas special?”
“Do you not know his father? His bloodline?” he asked.
“No, I do not,” I said. “He is by far the best match for her, because of his abilities and demeanor. Who is his father?”
“I cannot say if you do not know,” he replied.
Tadeas’ arms tightened around her, and she smiled without opening her eyes. I longed for her to open them and see that she was here. She was not my child, but I still missed her as if she were. Their lips met, and Gabriel grunted.
“That’s more like it,” I said teasing him. His face sobered, but the light of happiness filled his eyes.
As their kiss lingered, the binding pulsed stronger.
“I see that their relationship has progressed quickly,” I said.
“It has, but it hasn’t been easy for the
m,” he replied.
“It never is, especially with her,” I said.
Abigail nodded to him, and their image blurred once more. My heart ached watching them fade out of sight and suddenly disappear.
“Soon, my Brother, they will come home,” Gabriel said to me.
“I greatly anticipate that day,” I replied. “I am happy for them both.”
“And that, Raguel, is why I smile,” he said.
Acknowledgments
From the first moment I laid eyes on you, Jeff, I knew you would be one of the most important people in my life. You and our daughter, Maleia, are everything to me.
Thanks to my personal canvas crew who continue to challenge me to create fun, vibrant and intriguing stories.
Thanks to the professional crew behind my books Hampton, Carol and Erica.
Thanks to my co-workers who have expressed so much support and interest in my books, and the encouragement to keep pressing forward to new horizons.
From the Author
Thank you so much for reading Intuition. Abigail and Tadeas’ story will continue in Reincarnation: Book 3 of the Path to Redemption Series.
Please consider visiting Amazon and Goodreads and leaving a review for my books. As a new author, I love the feedback I get from readers. Please feel free to contact me via Facebook or through my website.
About the Author
From early in life Kimbra Swain was indoctrinated in the ways of geekdom. Raised on Star Wars, Tolkien, Superheroes and Voltron, she found herself immersed in a world of imagination. She started writing in high school, and completed her English degree from the University of Alabama in 2003.
Her writing is influenced by a gamut of favorite authors including Jane Austen, J.R.R. Tolkien, L.M. Montgomery, Timothy Zahn, Kathy Reichs, Kevin Hearne and Jim Butcher.
Born and raised in Alabama, Kimbra still lives there with her husband and 5-year-old daughter. When she isn't reading or writing, she plays PC games, makes jewelry and builds cars.
Kimbra is currently writing Book 1 of a new series to start in December. Intuition, Book 2 of the Path to Redemption Series will be released in November.
Also by Kimbra Swain
Abomination: Book One can be purchased here.
Restoration: A Historical Novella can be purchased here.
Foundation: A Historical Novel can be downloaded for free at kimbraswain.com
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Coming in December
Bless Your Heart
Fairy Tales of a Trailer Park Queen
EXCERPT
Sitting under a beach umbrella tied to a wooden deck with zip ties, I fanned myself with a tabloid as I drank an orange soda. In Alabama, it wasn’t so much the heat as much as the stifling humidity. The air was thick and soupy.
“I'm burning slap up,” I said to Rufus, my wiener dog. He sat under my lawn chair chewing on a plastic pink flamingo. When I bought the lawn ornaments, I didn't intend for them to be chew toys, but I think they intimidated him.
Across the street, I watched Cletus and Tater, the trailer park idiots, trying to coax a raccoon out from under Bethany Jones’ trailer. I shook my head. One or both of them would end up with rabies shots before it was all over.
“Y’all better leave that coon alone, Cletus!” I yelled over to them. Cletus smiled as he waved to me. “Stupid idjits,” I muttered.
Hearing a car approach, I stood up, adjusting my bra straps. They poked out from under my tank top, with the heat and my sweat, they were slipping down off my shoulders.
It was too hot to wear anything respectable, so I wore cutoff jeans, tank top and flat tennis shoes with no socks. The black bra contrasted with the white tank top, but I didn’t expect to have any company besides the sheriff. At least, I wasn't barefoot and pregnant like the girl next door. I never saw her very much. Josie and her last boyfriend left her knocked up. The poor thing, her boyfriend hadn’t come back.
I held my hand up to my brow, blocking the sun, as an old black Buick Regal pulled into the gravel drive of my lot in Cahaba Acres Mobile Home Park. The driver of the vehicle got out, and his gray hair looked disheveled.
“Jeremiah, I don't know how you drive that land yacht with no air conditioner,” I called out to him.
“Ain't got time to get it fixed,” he called back.
“Come on in the house, my window unit is blowing snowballs,” I said when his passenger exited the car.
Jeremiah Freyman usually traveled alone. He was a member of the Sanhedrin like in the Bible, only he wasn’t Jewish and not really religious. For a man who looked to be in his mid-50s, he was physically fit, except for a small paunch just above his beltline.
The Sanhedrin liked to stick their nose in anyone’s supernatural business. That’s how I got to know Jeremiah. He stuck his nose in my business, but he was different that most of them. If he was here, then he had a problem and needed my help. I supposed his problem was the tall, dark and handsome that just stepped out of the Buick.
Aloof and mysterious, the Sanhedrin always seemed to be hiding something under their dark robes and hidden courtrooms. It made me shudder just to think about the last time I’d stepped inside one of them.
I pulled my plastic hot pink sunglasses down to get a good look at the boy. He couldn’t have been more than 25 years old. Just over six-foot-tall, chocolate hair and brooding blue eyes that told me he was trouble or in it. He had the lean muscular body of a baseball player like a shortstop, not a catcher.
“Grace, this is Levi Rearden. He’s my new apprentice,” Jeremiah said.
“Apprentice!” I exclaimed. “I’m sorry to be rude, Levi, but let me talk to this old coot. Then I’ll greet you properly.” Jeremiah in the forty years I’d known him had never had an apprentice. He would rant and rave about how young magical talents were slipping through the cracks, but never had he actually taken a student.
Jeremiah laughed at me explaining, “Yeah, I kinda got saddled with him.”
Levi kicked at a rock in the driveway and didn’t look at us. “Y’all come on in the house. It’s hotter than blue blazes out here,” I said waving them to the porch. About that time, Cletus started yelling up a storm. We all spun around to look, as Tater had the raccoon by the hind legs as it attacked Cletus’ face. Rufus barked wildly at the commotion. Jeremiah flicked his wrist toward the fools, and Tater let go of the poor animal. It ran off into the woods.
“Lord have mercy! You boys had that coming,” I yelled. “Tater, go call an ambulance.”
“No, no, no Miss Grace. I’m fine,” Cletus said with blood dripping down his cheek.
“Git in the car, Cletus. We’ll go down to the clinic,” Tater said, jumping into a 1987 Cutlass Supreme with a miss-matched hood held down by duct tape. The car tore off down the road out of the trailer park slinging gravel the whole way.
“Life is never dull here,” I said, and Jeremiah laughed. “Y’all come on in. I’ll get you something cold to drink.”
Rufus let out a little growl as Levi approached. He ran between my legs after his display of bravery. Rufus treated everyone like that despite he and I having lengthy conversations about his lack of southern hospitality.
“Never mind him. He’s only half as vicious as he looks,” I said opening the screen door to the trailer.
Jeremiah and Levi followed me into my double wide. I had four window air conditioner units in it, plus every ceiling fan in the house turned on full speed. It wasn’t by any means a freezer, but it was more comfortable that the outdoor heat.
I went to the fridge, pulling out a new can of
orange soda and two cans of coke. “Have a seat,” I said pointing at the couch I bought at a yard sale last week. The upholstery looked better than the old suede one I got last year at the thrift store. Cletus and Tater helped me move the old one to the curb, and in little less than an hour it was gone. That’s how we disposed of unwanted items. One man’s trash was another man’s treasure.
I handed them each a coke. Levi didn’t acknowledge me or make eye contact.
“Thank you, Grace,” Jeremiah said taking the coke. “Say thank you, boy.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” Levi said staring out the window.
“What you doing sitting outside in the heat?” Jeremiah said.
“Sheriff Riggs is on his way over to talk about those missing kids,” I said.
“Oh, yeah, we haven’t found much out about all of that on our end. Looks like just a regular kidnapping. He expects something squirrelly about it?” he asked. It was his way of asking if I knew something or someone supernatural was involved.
“He’s coming here isn’t he? Last time he was here, he blamed me for it,” I said. Actually, he came over to discuss more personal things and got mad at me. So, he proceeded to make it an official visit, questioning me about the children. He knew better, but I supposed I got under his skin enough that he tried to turn it around on me.
“What? I thought you two were seeing each other,” Jeremiah said.
“How the hell do you know about that?” I asked.
“You know it’s my job to keep tabs on the supernatural in my jurisdiction, and the local trailer park fairy queen is at the top of my list,” he said. I shot a look at Levi who didn’t flinch. I supposed Jeremiah decided to tell Levi my identity without my permission. I scowled at him.
