Rock Me Gently_Havenwood Falls Novel
Page 16
He talked about how much he loved his visit to Havenwood Falls, about how his troubles back home had made this trip seem like a wonderful chance to start fresh, about how he’d been duped into signing a contract he didn’t remember signing, and how that had caused people to think he’d abandoned them. He talked about his mother’s passing and how hard that had been on him and how he’d started drinking to get over the pain.
“But since arriving here in Havenwood Falls, I haven’t had a drop of alcohol, and I don’t miss it. I owe it all to the teens who participated in the first Havenwood Falls Music Camp, and to Cece Amundson, owner of Havenwood Falls Music & More and organizer of this whole thing. Cece, will you come out here and take a bow?”
Cece, surprised and a bit embarrassed, wasn’t sure she should come out, but when Glenn and Meghan, sensing her reluctance, grabbed her by her arms and pulled her out, she smiled graciously and blew a kiss to the audience.
“Now, Cece, take a seat here.” Brett pulled one of the stools up next to her and then a second one, on which he sat. The teens stood around them with big smiles on their faces, and Cece wasn’t sure what to do, so she folded her hands in her lap and waited to see what was going to happen next.
Next involved flowers and a gift from the teens that turned out to be a small gold bracelet.
“I’d like to share with you my own song from the class. Kids, ready?”
They nodded, and Brett began to strum his guitar, his eyes locked onto hers as if he was only singing to her.
Rock me gently in your arms
Only your love can keep me from harm
I never knew peace until I found you
Without your love I don’t know what I’ll do
I need your touch like the sun needs the moon
like oceans need the shore, and a fork needs a spoon
like the stars need the night
like the dark needs the light
your heart beating next to mine is all I need
So rock me gently, let’s plant the seed
Be my darling forever
my angel of never
Overcome by emotion as she listened to him sing and pour his heart out to her, Cece nearly broke down. She didn’t know what to say. How could she promise him forever? Her kind couldn’t marry a human, couldn’t bear children, and he deserved so much more.
Without realizing what she was doing, Cece jumped off the stool and ran off the stage. Ignoring the gasps from the audience and running from the building, she raced toward the mountain, her only thought to get someplace where she could spread her wings and fly. Fly away from all the hurt she knew she was about to cause to someone she’d just wanted to help.
Reaching her launching point, she unzipped her dress and slipped out of it. In her slip and shoes, she twitched her shoulders and was about to jump off to take flight when she was jerked back into the hardness of a chest.
“It’s you. You’re the woman in my dreams. How is this possible? What are you? Who are you?”
Cece turned in Brett’s arms, an incredulous expression on his face. She could hear shouts down the trail, but ignored them as Brett’s mouth twitched and his body shivered in the chilly night air. Her wings were flapping with the need to fly, but she ignored them too.
Something was happening to Brett. Before her eyes, he was changing, morphing, a darkness spreading over his face. Smoke poured from his eyes, materializing to stand next to her as Brett collapsed at her feet.
“Hello, Gregoire,” Cece said in resignation.
“Hello, my darling Cecelia,” the demon said as he gave her the once-over. He was gray, and tall, and slender. His face shifted from demon gray to human pale as he reasserted his own form. His arms and legs were covered with a smoky haze that imitated clothing. He circled her as he studied her, his dark eyes trapping her as effectively as a vise.
Her wings continued to flutter, but she was unable to move her feet. The demon had cemented ice around her feet, and she was his prisoner. Taking a deep breath, she smiled even though she was breaking inside. “What do you want, Gregoire?”
“You know what I want, angel,” he hissed as he moved closer to her. “You know very well what you took from me.”
Cece paled, but covered her fear by laughing at him.
“Surely you know about the wards here at Havenwood Falls. How could I have traveled here with it?”
“The games end now,” Gregoire said as he pointed to Brett’s unconscious form. “Or do you really love your lover so little that you will sacrifice his life for your desire for a bauble that doesn’t belong to you?”
Brett twitched, his body reacting involuntarily to the pain of whatever torture Gregoire was perpetrating.
“Humans are so frail, aren’t they?” Gregoire sent another bolt of magic into Brett to make his point.
Cece cried out, a growl more than a sob, which made Gregoire laugh again as he poked at the body of the unconscious rock star with his magic.
In an effort to distract him, Cece said calmly, “I will get it for you, but first, you need to free me.”
“How stupid do you think I am, angel?” he hissed as he moved closer to her.
Cece’s wings fluttered faster the closer he came. Cece ignored them. She needed to focus on Gregoire. She needed to distract him. She’d seen Brett’s eyes flutter open, seen him assess the situation.
If she could get Gregoire to come close enough, she could fly away with him and save Brett.
But Gregoire was no fool, and he stopped just out of reach.
“I need that, Cecelia. If you don’t hand it over now, nothing will save you from the fate I have planned for you. And darling,” he purred, “you don’t want that to happen, now do you? You know what I’m capable of.”
Cece knew he was serious. Gregoire never lied, never bluffed. He didn’t need to. He had all the power of darkness behind him. But then, she had the power of light behind her. If she could only get him a little closer, she might have a chance to defeat him . . . again.
She could hear people on the trail below them. She had to keep talking and distract Gregoire so he wouldn’t notice them. At least if she died, Brett would live, and then her sacrifice would be worth it.
“Gregoire, I need to get my hands free. Release me.”
“Oh no, I don’t think so.”
“You have Brett. You can use him to keep me in line. I won’t try anything while he’s still here.”
Gregoire searched her eyes and seemed to believe her. She felt the spell holding her in place loosen enough.
Lunging forward, she grabbed for him, but he anticipated the move and slipped out of her grip. Her wings stilled as she realized he had turned with murderous intent in his eyes to Brett, who was just coming to full consciousness.
“Stop! Here, take it! Just leave him alone.” Cece began to remove the cross necklace from around her neck.
The demon had taken her true love the last time they fought over the pendant. She wouldn’t let that happen to Brett, too. She wasn’t sure Gregoire could even use the vessel—it was made to capture souls, but for the Divine, not for Hell—yet he coveted it nonetheless. It must have had some kind of value, for him to follow her here. Last time, she didn’t want to chance letting him have it—and she’d paid for that decision dearly. With her love’s life. With her own heart. She wouldn’t make that mistake again.
“Glad to see you’ve finally come to your senses,” Gregoire said with glee. He nearly danced over to her, reaching to pull the necklace from her as she fiddled with the clasp. Instead, she grabbed his hand at the same time Brett rushed them both and Elsmed Fairchild entered the clearing.
Speaking three words, “Eum ad infernum,” the fae pointed to Gregoire, who screamed once and turned into smoke before disappearing.
Elsmed looked at Cece with a sad expression, but at least it was an improvement over his usual one.
“You know we’ll have to discuss this” was all he said before leaving the clearing w
ith several other members of the Court of the Sun and the Moon, none of whom spoke to her.
Brett looked at her with eyes full of confusion. “Who are you? Where am I?” Gripping his head, he whispered, “What’s going on here? Why do I feel so . . . light? So free?”
“You’re welcome,” Elsmed said over his shoulder as he walked back down the mountain.
She understood. Not only did he take care of Gregoire, but he also took care of Brett—ensuring that the human out-of-towner would remember nothing about this. Nothing about her.
Swallowing down her sadness, Cece looked at Brett with a small smile and simply said, “Lovely night for a stroll in the moonlight, isn’t it?”
Hundreds of miles away, Amanda, trapped inside her mind as the pain escalated, prayed for release.
Perhaps it was the prayers, or perhaps it was the night crew, but somehow Amanda felt the compulsion lifting as Greg was distracted by the African American janitor, with the name Brad on his shirt, who insisted he had to clean the room. Whatever the cause, Greg was suddenly gone, and the janitor was handing them all clean, white towels. On the desk, the contracts Greg had been so gleefully exalting over disappeared, too.
Brad told the men they had not been here tonight and that they’d merely cut themselves shaving. To Amanda, he said she had accidentally burned herself while straightening her hair. They didn’t argue. They took their towels, rushed to the elevator, and somehow found themselves home.
The next day, Amanda came back to the office to find an email from Mr. Granite stating he’d retired and that there had been a fire in the file room and several contracts had been lost.
Amanda was happy to discover the ones for Brett Rhys-Falwyck and Pink Melon had been among those lost, and since Greg hadn’t bothered to file them in the computer electronically, they were gone forever.
Brett’s abrupt departure from Havenwood Falls didn’t go unnoticed, but Cece explained it away as his needing to return home for an emergency court date.
Back in the store a few days later, she was packing away the new shipment of CDs when Meghan and Glenn walked in hand in hand. Each carried a coffee. They couldn’t stop looking at each other. Behind them, Laine walked in, holding a coffee for her.
“Thank you, Laine.” She held out her hand to accept the coffee.
“Did you hear?” Glenn asked her when he saw the CDs.
“Hear what?” Cece asked without knowing what Glenn could possibly referring to.
“The band is hoping to get back together. Pink Melon.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, that’s what I saw on the internet. I think they have some legal stuff to work out, but they hope to start a new tour soon.”
“Really? That’s awesome,” Cece said, and she meant it. She could feel the weight lifting off Brett and felt glad she had helped some small measure in his new happiness. Her heart skipped a beat at the memory of him, and she turned to wipe away a tear. Accepting his departure had been the hardest part of this whole encounter, but she knew he would be so much happier with his new life.
And yet, that thought was small consolation.
“Goodbye, love. You are the true fly away angel. The angel of my heart.”
Epilogue
Amanda straightened her skirt and knocked on the door. Not sure what kind of reception she would get, she stepped back slightly. She touched the side of her neck, where the strange scars had all but disappeared. Her life had been spiraling out of control ever since she’d met this rocker, and she needed to set things right. Coming here was the first step to regaining control of her life.
Brett opened the door. He was wearing a pair of sweatpants and nothing else. Both his chest and feet were bare, and Amanda swallowed hard as she tried not to stare at his perfectly muscled abs.
But it was nearly impossible not to stare at his luscious lips.
“What do you want?” he asked wearily, as if talking were a great effort.
“I . . . I came to apologize,” Amanda said, swallowing hard. She wasn’t sure where to start. How could she explain all the craziness that had been her life in the last few months? And how could she apologize to this man when the words were stuck in her throat?
She saw his eyes travel to her throat and then look away. She saw a small flush creep across his cheeks as if he was embarrassed she caught him looking.
“I guess you can come in.” Brett said this as he walked away. He grabbed a bottle of water from the island in the kitchen and continued walking onto the back deck.
She followed, slipping her shoes off as she did so. If he was going to be barefoot, then so was she.
He gestured for her to take a chair nearby, and he sat so that he faced the ocean at the end of his private beach. She wondered, not for the first time, what it would be like to be this rich. Would she appreciate it?
“You have a beautiful view,” she said to him, trying to keep the envy out of her voice.
“Yeah,” he said, “thanks.” He took a swig of the water and then glanced at her.
Now it was her turn to blush, and she tried not to let him see it, lowering her head and hiding her face in her curtain of hair, suddenly self-conscious.
“Don’t do that,” Brett said gently, reaching out to brush her hair off her face and over her shoulder.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered to him, her eyes large and sincere.
“I know,” he said in a whisper. “Everyone’s sorry.”
She bit her lip, not sure how to answer that, and then remembered why she was there.
“I have a story to tell you,” she said quietly, touching him on the arm to get his attention.
When she finished, he stared at her without speaking.
“You believe me, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do, but you probably shouldn’t tell anyone else.” He leaned forward, his hands warm on her arms. “You were part of something you can never understand, and not something I can explain to you. Something that goes far beyond good, or evil, or rock stars.”
His lips twitched into a wry smile as he said this. Amanda opened her mouth to speak, but he put a finger over her lips, a finger that slowly traveled down her throat to touch her scars.
“These,” he whispered, “are nothing to be ashamed of. You survived a battle you didn’t even know you were part of. A battle that has been going on a long time. You are a survivor, and so am I. The world will rock on gently, with or without us, but it will never be the same world.”
“I think you have your own story to tell,” Amanda said, looking deeply into his eyes.
“And someday I will tell you about it,” he said softly. “But today is not made for sadness or stories about loss. It is a day for a walk on the beach, and burying our feet in the sand and surf.”
He stood up. Holding out his hand, he said to her, “Walk with me?”
“Forever,” she said, without understanding why those words were so perfect for this moment, but happy to know, when she saw his grin light up his eyes, that they were enough to bring him peace.
Fly Away Angel
(Brett Rhys-Falwyck solo album: Oceans)
Written and sung by Brett Rhys-Falwyck
I saw you fall from far away
I raced to help, but you left anyway
Bereft, I stand where you once stood
Your muse my purpose, I understood
Fly away angel
on winds of promise
Fly away angel
Nothing else can be, but this
I held the feathers of our lost dreams
floating like petals on an alabaster scene
Nothing but air to hold you aloft
Enough, enough, I say, wind-tossed
Fly away angel
on winds of promise
Fly away angel
Nothing else can be, but this
I spread my wings and fly
to join you in the skies
Our hopes, our dreams, our need to be
ove
rwhelming the senses that color me
Fly away angel
on winds of promise
Fly away angel
Nothing else can be, but this
No more ghosts to fear
Just you, held gently near
Never to fly, never to leave
My heart is full, and I believe
Fly away angel
You hold fast to me
Fly away angel
I will never leave
We hope you enjoyed this story in the Havenwood Falls series featuring a variety of supernatural creatures. The series is a collaborative effort by multiple authors.
Books in the main Havenwood Falls series:
Forget You Not by Kristie Cook
Old Wounds by Susan Burdorf
Fate, Love & Loyalty by E.J. Fechenda
Covetousness by Randi Cooley Wilson
The Winged & the Wicked by T.V. Hahn & Kristie Cook
Alpha’s Queen by Lila Felix
Ink & Fire by R.K. Ryals
Lose You Not by Kristie Cook
Tragic Ink by Heather Hildenbrand
Nowhere to Hide by Belinda Boring
Flames Among the Frost by Amy Hale
Rock Me Gently by Susan Burdorf
From the Embers by Amy Miles (June 2018)
Defying Gravity by Kallie Ross (July 2018)
More books releasing on a monthly basis
Also try the YA line, Havenwood Falls High, and the historical paranormal line, Legends of Havenwood Falls
Stay up to date at www.HavenwoodFalls.com
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