Flushing as he discarded, Mathieu rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Well, I was wondering if maybe anyone wanted to go to the beach or something; I knew that we can’t be too far from the ocean...and I mean, I haven’t been at this whole ‘rebellion’ thing as long as everyone else, but I thought a little vacation would be kind of nice.”
“Don’t you really mean you think it would be nice for all of us to get away from Solomon’s mood swings?” Darcia said, picking up two cards and shifting them around.
Mina thumped her teacup down. “If you’re going on a trip, you can’t leave him out. If he decides not to go, that’s fine, but you can’t exclude him.” She tapped her cards on the table. “Why don’t you just apologize for whatever it is you did, Mathieu?”
“Because I didn’t do anything! One minute we’re fine, the next he won’t say two words to me. Although I prefer the silence to his thinly veiled contempt.”
Elise’s brow furrowed. “Yes, even Nathan is worried.”
“I heard about that.” Avanon said. “Supposedly, Solomon flipped out so badly that he broke a table at the head quarters. He was fine and talking with Alykih one minute, then snapping the poor furniture in half the next.”
The pink-haired woman nodded. “I heard the same thing.”
Mina frowned. “Okay, that’s a little extreme, even for him.” She admitted.
“Gin.” Mathieu said, setting down his hand. “Maybe it is me.” He frowned. “I mean, if he’s never been like this before…?”
Avanon cleared her throat. “Now that isn’t exactly true.” She said. “He’s been this way twice before that I can remember. The time that Mina was in a coma, and the time when Mathieu wasn’t coming out of his room after Avian passed. Both times he got randomly violent, and both times he was pretty stressed.”
Darcia considered. “Actually, you’re right, aren’t you? Mathieu, walk us through what happened right before he got mad.”
Mathieu sat there for a moment, thinking. Solomon had been being normal until Enak had taken an interest in him. And then he’d said…what was it…”Instinct.” He said out loud.
“What was that?” Mina asked.
“Right before he started to get all weird with me, we were in the Sky Pillar and Enak knew I was there, even though Solomon tried to hide me. He got all ubёr protective and then when I asked what it was about, he said ‘instinct’. Since then, he’s been acting all weird and violent…” Mathieu rubbed his brow.
“Enak is the kid with the god, right?” Avanon asked, clearly not completely in the loop. “Why were you hiding?”
“So you’re saying that after—“ Mina was cut short by Elise standing suddenly, eyes flicking around the room in a panicked fashion. “Elise? Elise what is it?”
Elise’s teal eyes were unfocused, and her breathing was uneven. No one moved, and when Darica made to stand, Mina’s hand caught his arm. She shook her head. Time seemed to stop until Elise collapsed back into her seat, eyes clearing. “It’s Nathan. Something’s wrong.” She grabbed Mina’s hand, looking into her eyes.
Mathieu called for Nikola with his mind, pulling her to him. She scampered in with a half eaten flower hanging out of her mouth. Whaat?
“Nikola, I need you to get us to Nathan. Now.” He looked down at the Shadowrider. She dropped the flower and skittered to him. A pool of darkness was already opening around them.
“And hurry.” Elise said, her voice high with worry.
Chapter
Fourteen
They arrived at the house a few minutes later. Elise took one look around the house, saw no Nathan, and started up the stairs on hurried feet. She practically busted through the door, only to find Solomon and Nathan playing a game of chess; they were sharing a bottle of brandy as they played. Swallowing hard, the others just behind her, Elise pulled up a chair beside the redhead and smiled at him in a way that hid the terror that had been on her face just moments before they’d entered the room.
“Who’s winning?” Elise said, laying her head on his shoulder in a sisterly way.
Unwilling to be around Solomon, Mathieu turned around and went past Avanon and Darcia, going downstairs. He looked around and spotted Adele in one of the sitting rooms, sans Josette, reading a book. Considering the rarity of her being alone, he wound through the house to where the blonde was curled up. If Elise had seemed something bad happening, he was sure it would happen; now, however, they were here just in case and there was just no use worrying about it until it happened. “Hey Adele, how are you?”
She looked up and smiled, gold hair shining. “Hey, Mathieu. I’m good, how are you?”
“Fine enough. Where is…uh, Josette?”
Adele laughed sweetly and swept her lightly curled hair over her shoulder. “She ran away with the gypsies. Kidding, of course. She went to go meditate; good thing, too, because she’s been all sorts of bitchy lately. Even to me!” As she spoke, she lifted a hand and waved over Mathieu’s shoulder at someone that he couldn’t see. “When did Elise get here? I didn’t see her come in earlier.”
“We came in together about five minutes ago. Good book, I’m assuming?” He asked, nodding to what she was doing. He really didn’t want to worry her with what Elise had said, so he attempted to find a different topic.
“It’s decent enough. You know, you and I have never really talked. It’s a shame.” She said, taking the cue to change topics. Her big blue eyes blinked at him.
Mathieu stretched out in a chair, sighing, “You always have that guard dog of yours with you. I’ve only heard her bark, and I’d rather not feel her bite.”
Adele straightened in her seat. “Josette can be a bit…overbearing. It’s all out of love, though. She’s like my sister.”
“So you’ve known each other a while?” He asked, head resting against the back of the chair.
“Oh yes. We originally were living with Zanika and Zerieve together. They’re rather fun.” Adele giggled, sounding something like a chirping bird.
“I want to meet them someday.”
“Oh, I’m sure you will. Zanika and Zerieve visit every couple months or so. Elise is back down again. That’s the third time. I wonder if everything is okay…” Adele bit her lip in a contemplative manner, looking passed Mathieu.
Mathieu turned to see Elise filling a glass of water. “Let’s go see. Come on.” He stood and headed for the kitchen, Adele in toe. It seemed that avoiding talking about Elise and what she had seem couldn’t be avoided for any longer. “Elise, what’s up?”
She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, “Nathan is just thirsty as a fish. He says it’s the brandy.” Her face belied her worried. “But he’s also got a headache and is a bit dizzy. Solomon suggested he lay on the couch until it passes.”
Adele leaned against the counter as she spoke, “Has he eaten lately? I get lightheaded when I don’t eat. That plus alcohol, you know…maybe you should put some food in him.”
“That’s a good idea. What’s in the fridge that we can take up?” Mathieu said, taking the cue. He pulled it open and rummaged around. “Let me see. Hm, there’s a bit of a chicken left in here, salad ingredients, and some eggs? I need to go to the market soon.” Groaning at the thought of shopping, he pulled out the chicken and started to tear the meat off the bone, putting it into a dish for Nathan.
Elise liberated the dish from him and took up the glass of water. “Thanks guys. You’re splendid.” Smiling, she left the kitchen and headed up the stairs.
The blonde frowned and watched her go. “Nathan was fine this morning; I saw him. I’m just going to go check that he’s okay.”
“Yeah…” Following her up, they went into the upstairs, crossing to where Nathan was laying on the couch, eating small morsels of meat. “Is that helping any?” Mathieu asked once they were close enough.
Nathan‘s face turned to him, eyes glazed over. “No. I think…I think I might…”
Solomon grabbed Nathan’s wrist and they were gone in a spot of darkne
ss only moments before they heard wrecking coming from below. The noise was followed by Solomon’s voice. “I could use some help down here. Please.”
Elise was the first down, although only just beating Darcia, and with Adele pulling up the rear. “Is he okay?” Adele asked from the back of the small group, trying to peek in.
“I’m fine.” Nathan coughed and sat back, wiping his mouth with his hand, then tried to stand. He didn’t get more than a few inches up, before collapsing back to the floor. “…Solomon…”
“Yeah.” Solomon picked up Nathan from where he was with Darcia’s help and carried him to his room across the house. “Can someone get him a bucket? He’s shaking and sweaty, I don’t want to teleport him again.”
“He looks kind of sallow, too…” Adele added in a lower voice before scampering off to find a bucket.
With Nathan lain out on the bed, everyone gathered around him to check how he was. “Nate? Baby?” Elise leaned over him, stroking his face. Her face contracted in a pained expression as a coughing fit overtook him. “Oh, Nathan, what can I do?”
“Bucket. Check.” Adele dropped it by the head on the bed, then moved to sit at the foot. “He’s not looking so good. Or is it just me?”
Solomon’s face was tight with stress, his jaw clenched. Holding Nathan’s wrist, he said, “His pulse is elevated. And he’s having trouble breathing. This isn’t natural. Can you heal it, Adele?” Avanon put a soothing hand on Solomon’s shoulder.
Adele’s brow furrowed. “Um, I can try, but Elric is much better than I am…” She looked away, hands clasped together so tightly that her knuckles were white.
“I don’t think we have time to wait for him to get back. Try.” Solomon’s gaze was hard.
Darcia patted Adele’s shoulder. “They’re right. He’s looking bad, so even if you can just heal him enough for him to hold on until Elric gets here, it would be a big help.” He said, trying to encourage her believe in her own skills.
“Jeez, okay. Just give me some room.” She shoved him off the bed and onto the floor. “Now. Let’s see here…” Frowning, she rolled up her sleeves and got onto her knees next to Nathan on the big bed. “Well, I think if I just...” Her hands hovered hesitantly over Nathan.
The redhead’s glazed eyes roamed around, seemingly lost. “Where…who…it hurts….”
The blonde healer looked worriedly at Solomon and shook her head. “I could end up making this a lot worse, Sol. Are you absolutely sure?”
“I trust you, Addie. Come on. Please.” Avanon was practically restraining Solomon from grabbing Adele and shaking her.
Adele took a shaky breath and rubbed her hands together, warming them. Gently, she laid one hand on his forehead, the other on his sternum. She had to wait for a coughing fit to pass, then she closed her eyes and a white light glowed around her hands. It was so bright that Mathieu to look away.
If he hadn’t been looking at the glass wall across the room, he wouldn’t have seen Adele go through it. She lay in a heap amongst the broken glass, dazed and bleeding. “What the—?” Mathieu ran to her and brushed the glass off her skin, helping her to sit up. “Adele, what happened?”
“Nathan!” Elise shrieked.
Adele’s eyes slid closed and he cast a worried look over his shoulder to see Solomon and Elise hovering over Nathan, who was convulsing and choking for air. Avanon stood back so she was out of the way, and Darcia came over to help Adele. Mathieu abandoned Adele on the floor and into Darcia’s care, seeing that she wasn’t hurt that bad, and rejoined the others.
“He’s burning up, help him!” Elise practically screamed at Solomon.
“What would you like me to do? Attempting to heal him didn’t work and I’m not exactly a traditional doctor.” His voice was a growl as he made to hold Nathan down.
“Don’t.” Said Mathieu, pulling Solomon’s hand back. “We don’t want to hurt him. Let the seizure pass.” It was the first time they had touched in days and a small look passed between them. It took a few minutes for the spasms to stop, but they eventually did, and Nathan relaxed onto the bed. “See? It’ll be okay, Solomon. Sit. Now.” Keeping a firm grip on the blond man, he directed him to a chair and forced him to sit. “Listen, I know you hate me now or whatever, but you can’t let this get to you. Nathan needs you to be strong for him now, so keep it together.” With that, he let him go and went to Adele. “Sweetie? Hey, can you hear me?”
“Shit, yeah. I feel like a carriage ran me over.” She was propped up against Darcia, blinking somewhat slower than normal.
Mathieu pulled a few shards of glass from her hair, “Be careful getting up. Don’t want any more cuts. Can you handle those yourself, or do I need to clean them out for you?” He nodded to the sword master, then tilted his head towards the bathroom, silently asking that he retrieve bandages.
Adele smiled at him and took the hand he offered, getting to her feet. “If you wanted to help me, I wouldn’t mind.” Then, her face fell, “I…I made it worse, didn’t I?”
“Don’t beat yourself up. You didn’t mean to. Besides, he looks like he’s doing better. Like they say, it has to get worse before it can get better.” Mathieu helped her to her own chair as Darcia brought out a first aid kit.
“Thanks, Mathieu…”
Smiling, he pat her head. “No worries.” He knelt down and began to clean up her cuts.
~*~
After five hours, it seemed apparent that Nathan wasn’t getting any better. In fact, Nathan was getting worse. His convulsions were getting closer together, he spent more time unconscious than not, and even then he was delirious or insanely thirty, and his fever had spiked again.
Solomon hadn’t moved since Mathieu had forced him to sit, Adele had left the house to find Josette, and Elise was pacing the length of the room; Avanon was searching for Elric in town, and Darcia was sitting next to Solomon, occasionally patting his back. It was clear to all of them that this was hardest on the General.
Mathieu excused himself and retreated to upstairs, crossing to the bookcase. Looking the shelving unit up and down, he rubbed his forehead in frustration. This is horrible… He just needed a second away from the group, a moment to think. Nathan was getting bad and he wanted to help, but there wasn’t anything he could do. If a healer hadn’t been able to help, he knew he’d be useless.
What’s wrong, Matt?
Yes, Mathieu, what’s the matter?
Mathieu closed his eyes, comforted by Tesla and Nikola. It’s Nathan. He’s very sick and I don’t know how to help him. I’m trying to keep everyone calm, but…
But you aren’t their leader. You’re a newcomer. Tesla finished.
Something like that.
Nikola purred into his mind. What’s making him sick?
No idea. He got worse after Adele tried to heal him.
Sighing, Mathieu flopped into a chair, draping an arm over his eyes. “What are we going to do if he really does die?” He asked himself out loud.
Nikola scampered up the stairs and across the room, hopping into his lap; she looked up at him with big eyes. Everything will be okay. If it comes down to it, I’ll take you away from here. Keep you safe.
I’ll come, too. Tesla came in about the size of a dog and curled up at his feet. Your sadness is filling the room, Mathieu. Try to cheer up.
“And how should I do that? If Nathan dies, all of this dies with him. He keeps the peace, provides a stable figure in everyone’s life. Should he die, there are too many dominate personalities here. Fighting will start and…and this family will fall apart.” Mathieu ran his nails down the back of the reddish Shadowrider. Nikola’s back arching into his hand. “You’re a good girl, but I don’t want to lose a second family…especially after Avian…”
Thank you, Mathieu.
You sure play favorites… Tesla grumbled.
“Oh, Tesla, don’t be sore. You never want to be pet and have me cuddle you, so don’t complain. Get up here and I’ll pet you, too. But really, you guys; we nee
d to think of a plan, just in case.” Mathieu smiled as Tesla hopped up in his lap too, in kitty form.
Nikola rolled onto her back and wiggled. I dunno….
Petting his companions, he gave them a thoughtful look. “How does one create a Shadowrider. You’re created, right?”
Of course we are. From the purest power of one’s soul. We are made of darkness because that is what fills Solomon. Why? Tesla licked his hand.
“I was…thinking of making one. Is that okay?”
That’d be splendid! Nikola jumped to her feet in excitement. We could have someone else to play with us!
Tesla gave him a quizzical look. One created from your heart would be interested.
Mathieu (White Flame Trilogy) Page 26
