The two stood, eyes locked on each other in a silent tug-of-war of wills. Andee watched, awed, inspired, fearful, and then she saw the mother look toward the floor. Then, she heard the mother quietly, respectfully, say, “Yes, Unum.”
The image of Ferreira on his knees before Alwyn flashed through her mind. Who was he? What was he? She had been close to powerful men before. Congressmen, Senators, the leaders of companies, but none commanded as this man did now. She heard Miranda gasp, and as Andee looked at the redhead, the redhead looked from mother to son and back, and spoke in a hushed voice.
“That’s the first recognition of who you are,” she said to Lloyd. “Your mother has titled you.”
Miranda stepped around the mother, lowered her eyes to the floor and in a respectful tone repeated the words, “Yes, Unum.”
She raised her eyes to Lloyd. They glistened with tears of pride. A full smile sat on her lips, and she pumped a fist while, in a not-so-respectful tone, said, “Way to go, Uncle Alwyn.”
“Miranda,” the older Lloyd woman hissed.
Lloyd stepped to his mother. He encircled her with his arms and pulled her to him. The embrace was long and tender. The rumble from his throat was now more a hum than a growl, and the mother, arms at her sides, accepted the affection. He pulled back, eyes on the woman who raised him, and gave her a son-to-mother smile.
Then the smile dissolved, and silently, he raised his chin and exposed his throat. He volunteered his weak spot. He made vulnerable the area all wolves attack. He waited.
Andee watched. She didn’t know what she was watching, but an instinct in her whispered it was solemn and important. She didn’t know if she belonged, but she was glad she was there. She wanted to be there. This was family but also larger than family. Meeker had been family and Meeker was gone.
Gennadiya Lloyd lifted her face, her eyes focused on that vulnerable spot, exposed and defenseless, on her son’s neck. Emotions ripped through her, and tears blurred her vision and trickled down her cheeks. This man before her was her son, and he was awarding her the honor of being the first to recognize him for who he was and what he was about to become.
She looked at the strength of his jaw line. The set of his mouth. He was sure. He was confident and at that moment, after preparing him his entire life, she wished it on another. The path before him would be full of pain, loneliness, fear and of blood. Some of it his own. He was now the Unum, the one who set the example. The one others were to emulate.
Gennadiya Lloyd knew her son had strong feelings for Andee. Maybe he loved her. In moments, the woman would be lost to him forever. He stood before her, throat exposed, asking for her to recognize him for what she had wanted him to be since before his birth. He sacrificed himself to her dream for him. Doing so, he gave up his desire for the non-Pauci woman. She wished he didn’t have to.
She rose to her toes, and she kissed her son, the Unum, at the point of his jaw, that spot where under the skin, the carotid artery and the jugular vein run. That lethal place where, by instinct and training, every wolf attacks. The one place above all others that must be protected during combat. Gennadiya’s kiss was small in action, but it held a lifetime of significance. Andee didn’t recognize the gesture, but she saw the love expressed by their eyes, one for the other, and she desired that love in her life.
Alwyn dropped his arms to his sides and stepped back. As he released her, he lowered his face, and again, looked into his mother’s eyes. Their eyes held for a brief moment, and in that moment he silently acknowledged his mother. He was who she had wanted him to be. Now, he wanted her proud of him.
He lowered his gaze to the floor, and mimicked a helpless stance. He closed his eyes. The trust was total. His life was bound to the one who kissed him.
The room was silent, and Andee felt the sacredness well within her, even though she didn’t understand what she had just witnessed. She hungered to be a part of it. Hungered to be a member of an order so old and so rich in heritage.
She watched Miranda step forward and stand in front of her uncle.
The two looked into each other’s eyes for several seconds, then he embraced her. The ritual was repeated. As he held Miranda, he raised his face to the ceiling and again exposed his throat. The redhead studied the area, then, as the older woman who preceded her, rose to her toes and kissed the junction of jaw and throat. Again, Andee heard the rumble of a low growl. A growl of acceptance.
Her Unum released her, lowered his head, and closed his eyes, as he had done with his mother. Andee watched the young woman cry. She looked past Miranda to watch Gennadiya, who stood tall, the pride in her son radiating from her, and tears flowed down her face as well.
A thought took root in Andee’s mind. Before her stood three people of culture, education and wealth, people who were comfortable in the customs and trappings of civilization. Yet they were also something more. Inside each of them ran something wild and untamed, something that, by choice, they kept on a leash. Something they rarely loosed. She sensed that restraint was about to come off. She had to become a part.
Andee stepped in front of Alwyn with her arms at her sides. She raised her eyes to his.
With a respectful and quiet tone, he asked, “What are you doing?”
She stood with her shoulders back, her chin erect, and answered, “I wish to participate. I do not know exactly what has been promised, but I wish to promise it as well.”
“What you are asking to become a part of was old when Eric the Red landed in Greenland in 985 AD.”
“And I will respect and honor the tradition.”
“It was in practice when Rome invaded England in 54 BC.”
“I will carry it with the same pride as the legionnaires of then.”
He studied her. She stood before him, confident that she was making the right choice, despite not knowing what its consequences might be. He knew she was about to step into a dark and bottomless pit.
“There is no escape clause,” he warned her. “You take this oath understanding that to break it, to dishonor it, forfeits your life?”
He looked at her, and she held his gaze. Her expression didn’t waiver.
“I understand and accept.”
“Some of the first to seal this oath with their lives fought with the Spartan army at Thermopylae in 480 BC.”
“Then allow me to respond with an adapted quote from King Leonidas who, when ordered by Xerxes to lay down his weapons, replied, ‘Molon Labe.’ I say the same. I will not break the oath I ask to take. In the manner of King Leonidas, an enemy must take it from me.”
They stood, studied each other, one desired to be a part, the other undecided if he should share. They communicated through their eyes.
“Alwyn, my son, my Unum,” Lady Lloyd quietly said, “be careful what you burden this woman with. Remember, she has not been raised with our customs. She is unfamiliar with our traditions.”
His mother’s voice was respectful. She knew the decision was his and his alone. She knew she would accept the decision and honor it. He was her Unum.
Without shifting her gaze, Andee, also respectful, answered the mother, “I can learn the customs, if you’ll teach me. I will honor the traditions, if you’ll let me. I will be your daughter if you’ll accept me.”
Alwyn, his eyes steady on the woman, stepped forward and embraced her. He felt her quiver. Was it excitement? Was it fear?
“By enclosing you in my arms, I, as your Unum, swear to protect you against all danger for the rest of my life.” He lifted his chin and exposed his throat.
“My most vulnerable area I offer to you. Your kiss to this spot rewards me with your affection, your trust and your protection of me, in return.”
She stretched and kissed the point of his jaw. Her lips touched the pulse of his blood as it raced from his heart and carried the thrill of her touch to his brain. He hesitated before stepping back. To be unsteady, no matter the cause, would be to show weakness.
He stepped back and their
eyes locked.
“You have sworn to protect me with your life, if necessary. Do you understand?”
“I do, Alwyn.”
“I am now your Unum, Adeline Trakes.”
“I promise, my Unum.”
He nodded in return and lowered his face to the floor. He closed his eyes and whispered, “As a new born pup not yet able to see the world, I accept your oath and place my life in your hands.”
Chapter 11
“Special Agent Trakes, just where the hell are you?”
The sound of Hubbard’s voice was shrill in her ear, and she fought the urge to hang up on the man. She knew to do so, would end her career.
“I’m still at the college, sir. I have been gathering information that I believe will assist in solving Detective Meeker’s murder.”
She heard the man sigh.
“Agent Trakes, need I remind you that solving Detective Meeks’ murder is not the high mark on the agency’s priority list? As tragic as the event was, and I do recognize he was a friend of yours, it is not within the purview of the FBI to solve murders unless special circumstances are present, which in this case, they are not. I am sure the NYPD can and will run the cretin who did this to ground without our help.”
“I have no doubt what you say is true, sir, but I want to help them. I feel an obligation to the NYPD and to Jerry. He was family to me.”
“Agent Trakes, that may very well be what you feel, but your first obligation is to the agency and me.”
“But, sir…”
“No buts, Trakes. Señor Ferreira continues to hound this office. He is demanding information about the death of his son, and that is where our priorities must be focused. While we are a field office of the FBI, our particular mission is more in the nature of diplomacy instead of law enforcement. Do I make myself clear?”
“You do, sir, and I apologize if I have said or done anything that you would consider to be not supportive of our mission. I will be back as soon as I can get there.”
“Is there any chance the Lloyds would loan you their helicopter?”
“I don’t know, sir.”
“Well, all you can do is ask.”
“Yes, sir, I can ask.”
The connection was terminated.
Andee tossed the phone onto the bed and continued to stare out the window. The garden was calming, and it served as an oasis of peace prior to the chaos of the battle she knew was coming. She smiled as she fantasized about living in the garden forever. She would be a hummingbird. No, a butterfly. No more death, no more anger, no more worry, just the sweet taste of nectar and the happy intoxication the syrup brought. No more ugly or dirty work. Just the ability to ride on the currents of air.
She inhaled deeply, sighed and allowed her head to fall backward until it hung from her shoulders, no tension in her neck. She closed her eyes and imagined the magic of being a butterfly.
“Andee?”
Miranda’s voice interrupted her fantasy. She opened her eyes, lifted her head and turned to see the redhead smiling and standing just inside her doorway.
“Yes?”
Without another word, Miranda crossed the room, wrapped Andee in a bear hug and squeezed. Andee tried to catch her breath.
“I’m so happy for you. You realize we’re now closer than sisters.”
Andee smiled, and Miranda blushed, as she released the agent.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” the woman said. “I forget you still don’t really know what you signed up for. But, I could have just burst when you stepped up and wouldn’t let Alwyn talk you out of becoming a part of us. I was so proud of you. I know Alwyn was as well, but Auntie… she’s a bit more traditional. You might have to do something fantastic to win her over.”
The agent smiled. “Any suggestions on what I could do that? Win her over, I mean.”
“Well, top on the list would be, now and forever, dying in Alwyn’s defense. Auntie would really be impressed with that move.”
When Miranda smiled, Andee shook her head, “I hope you don’t think I’m just in this for the glory, but I’d like to pass on that one for a while.”
Miranda’s smile grew.
“Oh, I never thought you were in it for the glory. To get Alwyn in bed, well, that would be a reason I’d understand and, between us girls, I’d support. I don’t think Auntie would be impressed, though.”
“You guys are killing me,” Andee said as she moved to the closet and started to remove her few clothes.
Miranda crossed to the bed and sat down.
“What, us guys? Who are you talking about?”
“You and Meeker,” Andee said, turning to face Miranda. “The two of you have been trying to get Alwyn and I together since we first met. One of the last conversations I had with that big dumb jerk, he talked me into going to Alwyn’s room and asking him out on a date.”
Andee’s throat caught, and she turned away long enough to blink away tears. Miranda waited until the agent turned back again.
“And did you do it? Did you ask him out? What happened?”
Andee shrugged and sighed.
“Nothing happened. I went to his room, knocked, and he didn’t answer. Meeker and I had just left not even fifteen minutes earlier, and I got worried, so I called the front desk and had a manager come upstairs. I really shouldn’t have done it, but I badged the guy and told him I had to look inside the room for a welfare check. I was worried about Alwyn, since we’d just left.”
“What was he doing?” Miranda scowled.
“He wasn’t there. I have no idea where he went, but he was gone.”
“Well,” Miranda concluded, “I love him to death, but he can be frustrating. I’m glad he and I are related.”
“How so?”
The redhead grinned.
“So I don’t have to make a fool out of myself trying to get him to date me.”
Andee threw a balled pair of socks at the woman. Miranda flicked the missile away without difficulty, barely looking at it. Andee was impressed.
“Hey, you got some reflexes there, girl. You ever play tennis?”
Miranda giggled, “No, and I don’t intend to.”
Then she frowned and looked again at Andee packing her bag.
“Hey, what are you doing? You can’t be leaving.”
“Duty calls,” Andee shrugged. “I was on the phone to my boss, and he told me, in no uncertain terms, I am to return to New York and report to him. He even suggested I ask for the loan of your family’s helicopter.”
“Oh,” Miranda said, as she started to pace the room. “This is terrible. This isn’t right.”
“What are you talking about, girl? I had to go back some time. I just have to do it sooner than I wanted to. Besides, I’ll be back.”
“You don’t understand. You can’t leave. Not just yet.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Well, first off, Auntie Gennie took the helicopter. She had business in New York, and Alwyn sent me to get you. He wants to talk to you and explain what you got involved in earlier today. I’m supposed to bring you to him.”
“That’ll have to wait,” Andee said, shaking her head. “Please don’t think I didn’t take the oath serious, I did, but I’m also serious about my job. I really don’t want to lose it. You’ll just have to tell Alwyn we’ll get together later.”
Miranda felt trapped, and it showed in her face. She knew she was obligated to Alwyn, but she liked this woman and wanted to be sisters. Finally, she looked at Andee, and nodded.
The agent smiled, “Thank you.”
“Now,” the redhead said, “what do you want me to do?”
Forty minutes later, Miranda walked into Alwyn’s apartment. He looked up from a computer screen.
“You took your sweet time. Where’s Andee?”
“She didn’t come with me.”
“What?”
“Don’t bark at me. I went to get her, and she was just hanging up the phone. She said her boss ordered her back
to New York.”
“Didn’t you tell her she couldn’t go?”
“Yes, I did,” Miranda sighed. “All the way to the train station.”
“You took her to the station?”
“That’s where she wanted to go. She’d have gone whether I took her or not, so I thought it best to just take her myself.”
Alwyn glared hard at his niece.
“Don’t even think about going off on me,” Miranda said.
Alwyn shook his head.
“If I did, what good would it do? What train did she get on, local or express?”
“Local. I made sure of that.”
“You are devious,” Alwyn grinned.
“And don’t you forget it. It’ll take her a while to get to the city. We can beat her there if you let me drive and if you’re willing to pay any speeding tickets.”
“Done,” the man said. “Do you know if she’s headed to her office or her apartment first?”
“I think her office. I know her boss wanted her to beg for the use of our helicopter. They doubt there’s a landing pad on her block.”
“Come on, we gotta try to beat her there. And don’t worry about any speeding tickets.”
“What have you done to Kelsey?”
“What are you talking about?” Ramon whined, “I haven’t done anything to him.”
“Did he fall down the steps of the stoop?”
“Oh, good heavens, no. Why do you think such a thing? I take good care of him. I treat him better than if he was my own. I’d never hurt him.”
“Ramon, please, I know that, but he won’t walk down the steps anymore.”
Andee stood outside the door of Ramon’s apartment. She had been to the office, attending a boring meeting with Hubbard and some suit from the State Department. She, once again, had been reminded of her duties and her obligations to the office and how it was to take precedence over any other interest. The State Department suit instructed her, in no uncertain term, who her masters were. Then she was dismissed as a child might be from the dinner table so the adults could talk freely.
Shadow of the Moon: A Fantasy of Love, Murder and Werewolves Page 16
