by Montana Ash
Although the road was gravel, it was obvious it was well maintained and used frequently. It was lined with tall native trees and short local shrubs that also appeared to be well conserved and it had suddenly clicked that it wasn’t actually a road but a private driveway. The driveway continued straight for another couple of minutes before a gentle bend had revealed the most magnificent, the most beautiful stone and cedar barn she had ever seen. When they had said camp, Max had been expecting a couple of tents or maybe a shack with a fire pit or something. But this, Max thought, this by no means resembled any camp she had ever been to.
The barn stretched high into the sky for a full three stories with a curved roof arching gracefully against the horizon. She could make out the three distinct levels from the positioning of the domed windows that lined the east facing front of the home. It was clearly made from Australian red cedar given the rich reddish brown colour and the roughness of its texture. The logs had been kept in their natural state rather than polished and stained, displaying a genuine respect for the wood. From where she stood at the beginning of a forked stone path, she could make out the heavy brass knocker against the tall double doors. She allowed her eyes to follow the fork to the right and what do you know? Even the fricking shed was a thing of beauty. What she assumed was the garage, must have been two stories high itself and was fashioned from uneven stone and brick in various shades of grey. The sound of crashing waves in the distance was the perfect soundtrack to such architectural splendour. They must have been driving directly parallel to the coastline in order for them to be so close to the ocean, Max mused.
“Camp? Really?” She raised her eyebrows at the three men. She watched as Darius ran a critical eye over the building before turning back to her.
“Yeah. Camp. This is where we live. Come on, it’s time to meet the others and get this all sorted out.” He gestured for her to precede him down the path.
“Whoa, big fella. Others? What others?” Suddenly the impressive home no longer seemed quite so fairytale but more like a potential prison.
“Yes. We live here with a couple of other guys.” Darius said. “But you don’t need to worry. They’re like us. No harm will come to you.”
There he goes again with that baritone, no nonsense voice of his. She bet it usually worked wonders on the poor unsuspecting females of the world. Well, she wasn’t unsuspecting, so although she would love to hear him whispering naughty words into her ear, she wasn’t going to submit that easily. “Uh huh. Whatever you say … stranger.”
He released a huff of frustration and glanced toward his colleagues. Lark, the red head simply shook his head, while Axel appeared to be enjoying Darius’s discomfort immensely if the grin was any indication. “Look …” He turned to her and gripped his left forearm with his right hand, raising it over his heart, “I give you my solemn oath that you shall not be harmed in any way. You are an honoured guest at our camp.”
“Dude! Are you really still going to stand there and call this place a camp?” She threw the retort back because a) she truly couldn’t fathom anyone calling this place a camp, and b) she wanted to buy some more time. The weird gesture and the promise had tickled something inside her that she didn’t understand. Back in the car when they had told her she was safe, she had believed them. She felt that same belief and trust now, she just didn’t understand why.
They had said something about DNA and instincts. Max was all for instincts – they had saved her life more times than she could count. So should she trust them now? She could be wrong, stranger things had happened.
“Yes! It’s a camp. That’s what it is! But that is not the point. You –”
“Okay, okay. Chill. I kind of believe you.” Max cut in. She was afraid the poor hunk was going to blow a blood vessel.
“Um, are we all just going to pretend we didn’t hear her call Sir Darius here, ‘Dude’?” Axel of the surfer-boy looks asked with a raised hand.
“Axel …” Darius’s voice held a note of dangerous warning that Axel was clearly unconcerned with. Lark managed to smother what she was certain was a laugh behind his hand and a hasty cough. “Enough of this foolishness. Max, please …” He gestured once more.
Max finally nodded in agreement and switched Joy to her more dominant hand. She was yet to let go of her. She saw Darius eye the blade with caution and knew he was about to tell her she didn’t need it.
“You can –”
“Keep a tight grip on my only weapon as I venture into a secluded mansion with a bunch of males big enough to snuff me when they sneeze?” Max cut in, “Thanks! I’ll do that!”
Lark gave a low chuckle that had a pleasant tingle spreading through Max’s stomach. Oh boy. And apparently there was more inside.
****
Max’s reservations fled completely the moment she stepped inside. Those heavy double doors opened directly into a combined kitchen and dining room. Max stood frozen to the spot as she tried to take everything in. The northern wall was comprised entirely of stone from the hard wood floors to the two storey open ceilings. An arched recess was cut perfectly into the stone, housing a double burner gas stove top and oven that would have professional chefs drooling. A row of dark, glossy cabinets ran the length of the eastern wall below the row of windows looking out onto the backyard and the ocean in the distance. They were broken up only by the stainless steel dishwasher, toaster, kettle, and the deep double sinks positioned strategically for efficiency.
An island bench cleaved the room in two, resulting in a clear distinction between the kitchen and the dining area. The island was made up of the same rich gloss as the cabinets with the lower section showcasing the same uneven grey stones as the feature wall. Max looked up, up, up, marvelling at the high cathedral ceilings and moaning at the thick cedar beams that arched overhead, promising both strength and grace. She was officially in love for the first time in her life. This kitchen, this house, was everything she had ever dreamed a home would be. The contradictions of stone and wood combined with the arches and bold deep colours gave the room warmth as well as complexity and made it one big interesting mix. Max just knew this area was the epicentre of the house; it screamed ‘lived in’. There were a couple of mugs sitting on the sink, papers and magazines strewn on the counter, muddy boots by the door, and were those …? Yep, there was an assortment of guns and blades spotted across the massive dining table. Max found herself sighing lustily at the thick table top. It would easily seat sixteen people and looked like it had been pieced together lovingly from old recycled wood. She had to see more.
Turning to ask her saviours … hosts … captors or whatever they were, for a tour Max found herself under the same scrutiny she had likely been giving the room. Only now there were six pairs of eyes staring at her rather than the original three.
“Good God! They were right. There are more of them!” She exclaimed loudly in automatic reaction to the appearance of not one, but two more walking orgasms. A knowing feminine chuckle was the rejoinder from the only other human in the room that had a pair of breasts besides her. Max wondered if this was the woman’s harem or something. If so, she was officially Max’s new hero.
She was certainly beautiful enough to garner the loyalty of any man, Max thought, eyeing the woman critically as all females did – whether they admitted to it or not! She was absolutely stunning with long legs, a slender torso and high pert breasts. She had golden blonde hair that fell in a straight curtain past her shoulders to sit dutifully over those perky tits of hers. Max barely caught her bottom lip before it could lower in a pout. This chick was almost her polar opposite; she was tall and willowy where Max was short and curvy; she had straight light hair where Max had a frizzy mass of dark waves; and she had those perky apple tits! Max’s own breasts were an extremely healthy handful. She’d never had any complaints but how she would love to be able to roam braless and free!
“Is this your harem? And do you accept new members?” Max figured it couldn’t hurt to ask. The pale Amaz
on gave a throaty chuckle – almost as pleasant as the green-eyed cutie. Wow. She had never been so tempted to switch teams before, you only lived once after all and Max was all for living life to its fullest.
“No. This isn’t my harem.” She eye-balled the men thoughtfully, “But it’s an intriguing idea. I’m Cali.” She smiled warmly, her brown eyes twinkling.
Max smiled in return, recognising a kindred spirit immediately. “Max.”
The other new hottie in the room dipped his head in greeting, “I’m Beyden. Welcome.”
Max waited in anticipation for the remaining male to introduce himself as Darius spoke to him in hushed tones. He was the biggest male she had ever had the pleasure of ogling. Six foot four or five easy and packed with solid muscle, the guy must weigh a tonne! She couldn’t quite make out his face as he was angled away from her, but his messy black hair had her fingers twitching with the need to smooth it out.
“We met Max at Dave’s and ran into a bit of trouble so I thought it best to bring her here.” Darius informed the room at large. The mountain masquerading as a man didn’t seem inclined to share his name. Typical. Max thought, the yummy ones are always the jerks.
“Why don’t we sit down?” Darius suggested, playing the courteous host.
“Ah, sure. But why is the Warden carrying a sword?” Newbie Beyden asked curiously.
Max gazed down at Joy lovingly, “Duh. It’s my protection.”
Beyden’s expressive eyebrows rose disbelievingly. “Duh? Did you just say duh?” He turned to Darius, “Did she just say duh?”
Lark and Axel snickered as Darius gripped the bridge of his nose tiredly. She was beginning to understand these men a little, she realised. Lark seemed to be a genuinely nice and happy guy. Axel seemed nice enough too, but his sense of humour was clearly very wicked. Poor Darius seemed a little stuck up and a lot exasperated with the likes of her.
“Don’t ask.” Darius muttered, “She can keep the sword.”
Max batted her lashes, “Why, that is just so kind of you good sir.” Chuckles and shocked gasps met her sarcasm. She couldn’t really help herself. Sarcasm was kind of her thing. Half the room appeared to appreciate it anyhow so she wasn’t too concerned.
Darius. The name really suited him, she thought. He had an old world charm about him and his manner was almost courtly as he held her chair for her so she could take a seat at that magnificent dining table. Max finally allowed herself to give him a serious study as he lowered himself elegantly into the chair next to hers. Where most of the other prime specimens present all had a rough edginess to them, Darius seemed almost polished. Although he was dressed much like the others in dark cargo pants and a plain tee shirt he somehow made it look almost … sophisticated. He sat with his back ramrod straight, black hair perfectly styled despite his earlier jaunt with the phantoms. His hazel eyes were serious but kind as they looked at her.
“What do you think you are?” His softly spoken question completely disarmed her.
She really had no idea how to answer that. She had a couple of theories about what made her tick but had never really come to any solid conclusions and every time she had dipped her toes into the ‘trust pool’ she had them bitten off. These strange, beautiful people in this strange, beautiful house acted like they had answers, but Max’s faith in humanity was seriously thin. She had no intention of saying or doing anything else that may incriminate her in any way. It was all about the plausible deniability – Law and Order said so.
“I have no idea what you mean. I think the better question is what do you think I am?”
Max paid close attention to those now either hovering around the large table or seated at it, gauging reactions and judging intents. She prided herself on her judgement and so far she judged a third of them were confused, a third were intrigued, and the other third? Well, they were quite obviously suspicious; the woman and the one who looked like a serial killer. He stood still and silent, arms crossed tightly over a thick chest. His scowl was epic as he eyed her with complete disdain and Max was forced to suppress a shiver at the derision emanating her way. Lucky she didn’t have self-confidence issues or she would have found herself melted into a puddle of insecurities on the floor. As it was, she had a rather healthy dose of self-esteem so was by no means cowed by the frigid stare. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Darius raise his eyebrows; clearly a silent question. The almost imperceptible nod he received came from the scowling murderer across the room. Was he in charge or something? Maybe their boss or Commander if they were in fact a military team. She couldn’t help scrunching up her nose at the thought of him holding a position of power – Scary!
“I don’t need to think about it, Max. I know exactly what you are. You are by no means the first warden I have met. You are however, the first one I have met who seems to be completely ignorant of the fact.”
Max frowned, there was that word again; warden. In all her years of research she had never come across that word. If Darius was telling the truth, wouldn’t she have stumbled upon ‘wardens’ at some point? Google was pretty awesome after all. “What exactly is a ‘warden’? And why do you think I’m one of them?”
Darius leaned forward and steepled his long fingers. Even his fingers were elegant! “You have an affinity with nature, yes?”
“Affinity?” She made the one word a question. No confirmations, no denials. Just be cool!
“There’s no point playing dumb, sweetheart. We saw it at Dave’s, felt it at Dave’s. Besides …” Axel smirked, “… it doesn’t suit you.”
Surprisingly, Max wasn’t all that concerned about being caught out. She was more intrigued with the left handed compliment she had just received. He didn’t think dumb suited her – what a sweetie pie! Tall, built and ridiculously handsome he exuded strength in every line of his body. He must have been a whole foot taller than her at six foot three with broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist. His dirty blond hair was cut military short and combined with his blue eyes, he should have looked like the classic boy next door … but he didn’t. The heat in those baby blues elevated him from pretty to pretty hot! Add to that, he was likely a charmer with a silver tongue and Max was doomed. Womanisers didn’t appeal to her; she wasn’t interested in a guy who would stick his dick in anything! But she was a sucker for a charmer. Max decided to reward him with an honest answer;
“I think I know what you’re referring to but I don’t understand why. I’ve always had an attraction to nature and somehow, I think it has an attraction to me too.” She wasn’t really sure how to articulate herself, but a quick glance around the room revealed she didn’t need to. They knew what she meant. Somehow, these people really did understand. A tiny ray of hope began to pierce through her cynicism. “Is it the same for you? Can you talk to the elements too?”
Darius shook his head, “No. It doesn’t work that way for us. We’re not like you.”
“But I saw you! You fought the phantoms! You know what they are and apparently you know what I am! What do you mean you –” Max’s steadily rising voice was cut off by an incredulous holler.
“Phantoms?” The woman, Cali, turned to Darius, “What the hell is she talking about? What phantoms?”
Max noticed Darius, Axel and Lark were struggling to suppress smiles. Were they laughing at her?
“I think that’s what she calls the chades. I told you we got into a spot of bother that involved her.”
“You didn’t mention chades though!” Cali admonished.
Darius shrugged, “I mentioned it to Ry. Anyway, we’re getting off topic.” He focused on Max once again, “Yes, we can see those creatures. They are called chades by the way, not phantoms.” His lips twitched once again. He was laughing at her! Max’s jaw clenched tight. She hated being the butt of someone’s joke.
“He’s not making fun of you.” The deep voice belonged to the one introduced as Beyden. He was as tall and as built as the rest of the Testosterone Taskforce with light brown wavy hair escaping
from a loose tie and just touching his broad shoulders. He was seated directly across from her which afforded her the perfect position to peer dreamily into those magnificent eyes of his. She couldn’t recall seeing eyes quite that shade before – not on a person anyway. Possibly on a lion or a tiger maybe given the amber glow of his irises. Perhaps that’s why she felt almost immediately at ease with him – there was a kinship there. She couldn’t count the number of times people had commented on her own unique eye colour.
“No one here would make fun of you like that.” Beyden continued, “Darius just means that we are not wardens like you. We are paladins. We do each have empathy with one of the seven elements found in nature, but it is nothing like what yours must be.”
“Seven elements?” Max was no closer to getting answers than when she walked in the door! They just kept throwing more words at her with the expectation that she knew what the hell they were talking about.
“In nature there are seven domains, or elements if you will: Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Beast, Death and of course, Life. The domains must remain stable, just as balance between the domains must be maintained. This balance ensures each domain doesn’t become extinct, that each domain continues to survive and to thrive. Very simply put, the seven domains make the world go round.”
“Okay.” Max could kind of understand that. The fact that fire and water were elements wasn’t exactly news and most of her research suggested a link to Mother Nature and her elements. It was also big on balance.
“So you paladins keep this balance?” Max tried not to take offense at the multiple snorts of derision.
“No, definitely not. Keeping the balance is above our pay grade. We’re just here for the grunt work.” Axel’s low voice held no resentment even though the words held a hint and his teeth flashed white as he smiled her way. Even his teeth were sexy! Max thought.
