Emma (Dark Fire)

by Cooper, Jodie B.

  Walking across the courtyard, the paving stones began glowing shades of blue. The constantly changing colors picked up speed, quickly mimicking the burning flames of dark energy.

  Emma gasped with delight.

  “They’re called faerie stones,” he said, laughing as she released his hand and danced forward, each step lighting a series of stones in the intricate design. The design spread across the courtyard in the shape of a blazing fire, glowing and flickering with every shade of blue plus an occasional black and silver flame thrown into the mixture.

  “Wow, it looks like flames licking across the stones.”

  “It was created to mimic the dorcha flames on the lake.”

  Her eyes never wavered from the sparkling light show. “I know you said the flames are made by mixing dorcha energy and water, but is the lake on fire or not?”

  “The dorcha flames won’t burn if you touch them, but I’ve heard some faeries swim through the blue flames every night. They say touching the flames makes them stronger.” He shrugged. “It may be true, because the elders believe the eruptions of dorcha energy on the Gulf increases fertility.”

  She chuckled. “Really? What’s it called, the Baby Boom Gulf?” she asked, looking up at him, her eyes sparkled with laughter in the flickering lights.

  “Good guess. Most women who make the trip end up having twins. It’s actually the Gulf of Life because the gulf produces hundreds of dorcha vortex every year.”

  “And the exploding vortex create faerie dust,” she said, repeating his earlier words.

  “Yes, there are several bodies of water around the world that produce vortex, but the gulf is the largest and the nearest. It’s only a few days flight south of here.”

  “The Gulf of Life really sounds like it might be Earth’s Gulf of Mexico. I wonder if the vortex will appear now that Earth and Tuatha are one world.”

  “I hope so. Every life on Tuatha depends on the faerie dust spread during the spring storms.”

  ___________

  Walking down the cobblestone street, Emma enjoyed the soft music dancing on the breeze. Her head felt like a Ping-Pong ball, bouncing right then left as she gawked at the oddities lining the street. Pointing at one thing and then another, asking him a dozen questions. She’d be forever glad there was no one, except Tyler, to watch her antics.

  Her smile turned into a grin as she noticed laughter sparkling in his vivid blue eyes. She had to be nuts about him. He was laughing at her and she thought it was the greatest reaction in the world. His smile, as usual, did bad things to her stomach. The simple curve of his lips had her dancing on clouds, not that there was anything simple about him. His smile had a devastating effect on her mental state.

  Tentatively, she reached for his hand and grinned with delight as he snuggly entwined his fingers with hers. The moment his hand touched her warm palm, the mate bond kicked into gear.

  His pleasure expanded through her soul, causing her to shiver with pleasure. Another emotion overwhelmed the pleasure, an emotion so intense it took her breath away as it settled into the middle of her chest.

  “Enjoying yourself, Chélah?” he asked quietly, calling her the Tuathan equivalent of beloved.

  She tasted the depth of his feeling, shivering in hope and fear.

  It was hard to tell where his emotions stopped and hers started.

  Unsettled by the strength of his emotions, she pulled her gaze from his. “Yes, it’s all so strange. I mean, it’s a good strange, but so different.”

  He paused in the middle of the street, pulling her to a halt. His intense look made her think he was about to kiss her.

  “I understand you need more time to decide about accepting me as your mate, and I’m willing to wait as long as you need before you wear my sash, but you are my mate. That’s something I want the entire world to know.” His blue eyes gazed into hers. “On Tuatha, it is customary to move the two-way from the right to the left side when a dragon is ready to declare his non-dragon mate to the world.” Skimming his fingers down her cheek, he smiled.

  With a gentle tug and a softly spoken word, he moved the two-way from her left side to her right side. His warm breath caressed her as his lips moved closer to hers. He didn’t give her time to respond. His lips covered hers. At first, he tentatively stroked and teased her lips.

  Her lips tingled, catching fire with the first whisper of his touch. She leaned toward him, and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer, increasing his gentle pressure against her soft warmth.

  Her pleasure, and his pleasure, bloomed through her head, combining the two until she couldn’t think straight. She gasped as exploding sparks of desire shot through every point of her body.

  She snuggled closer, demanding his touch as he caressed her shoulders with gentle fingers.

  He promptly gave her what she needed. One hand cradled the back of her head, as the other dipped lower along her back, sliding around the curve of her firm butt. Gently squeezing, he pulled her closer.

  A shiver of delight rushed through her. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she stood on her tiptoes, molding her body perfectly against his.

  Down the street, a door slammed, making her jump.

  “I guess we need to go,” she said, not moving from his embrace.

  “Yeah,” he agreed. Tightening his arms around her, he gave her a sweet lingering kiss.

  She was breathing hard when he finally released her. To her delight, so was he.

  Hand-in-hand they walked the deserted streets as Tyler showed her more of the town.

  In Emma’s mind, walking through Scrimp Shaw was like getting dropped into a real life Disney set; it was completely unbelievable. Every ten or so feet, lights swung from poles, casting a bright glow across the stone street. The light bulbs (or whatever they were) looked like blown glass, and so delicate that they might break at the first touch. The lights came in every size and shape, from tiny clusters of grape-like fruit to long, curling spirals gently twisting in the breeze. They cast shadows and colorful patterns on the multiple buildings.

  Wind chimes decorated the air with music.

  He slowed to a stop. “Emma, if they’re home, there’s someone I want you to meet.”

  She studied his frowning face, knowing something was up. “And?”

  He shoved a rough hand through his hair. “Well, they’ve been at the faerie court so they might not even be there, but it’s only a few houses away and...”

  She laid her hand on his chest, stopping his rambling words. “Spit it out.” She had a feeling she wasn’t going to like the answer.

  He sighed, nodding his head. “Yeah, but the last time a healer was mentioned you reacted badly.”

  She snorted. “That’s because I don’t like doctors and don’t need one poking around on me.”

  “This healer won’t poke at you. He’s actually my family’s private healer in addition to sitting on the lower council as a representative of the Christian Church.”

  “The Alliance combines religion and politics?” she asked, shock flavoring her voice.

  “Of course, we do. God is in everything, why shouldn’t we seek guidance from one of His appointed servants? Anyway, Christianity isn’t the only religion represented. Each religious faith, those with the largest number of followers like Christians, Muslims, Tuatha Dé Naturalists and Buddhist, have a representative on the lower council.”

  “Now,” he took her hand back into his and glanced into her face, “about meeting Pastor Jonathan. Before you say no, hear me out. Because of the mating, your body is obviously changing. You’re not Tuathan, who knows what your body is going through. We need a professional opinion.”

  She hated him being right all the time, but he was. She sighed in defeat. “Oh, all right, already. Lead on. But, I’m warning you, if he starts poking at me, I’m going to make you pay for it.”

  At her look of distaste, he chuckled and readily nodded his agreement. “I don’t doubt it.”

  “If you can
heal rapidly, why do Tuathans need healers?” she asked curiously.

  “It’s true, we do heal fast, but not always fast enough especially young people, and something like broken bones always take longer to heal no matter a person’s age. A healer can kick-start the healing process.”

  They turned down a smaller street. Each building had an arched entryway opening into a covered courtyard. Most of the courtyards had benches and flowerpots with an occasional small fountain. Colored lights highlighted the enclosed areas.

  Nearing a large three-story home, they slowed. Inviting pink and white lights decorated the small, carved fountain. Next to the door, in flowing script, a sign etched in stone read: Pastor Jonathan and Elizabeth Hill.

  ___________

  Tyler watched Pastor Jonathan cup Emma’s face in his large hands, looking into her mind and body as only a true healer could manage.

  “Emma, there’s no need to be concerned,” Jonathan said, his deep voice a gentle murmur in the tranquil courtyard.

  “Um, don’t we need to go into an office or something?” she asked nervously.

  “It’s not necessary. It’ll only take a few minutes.” The man, who had fought as a warrior priest in the last conflict with the Southerners, patiently added, “You might feel a tingling sensation in your body and my hands will grow warm, but I want you to stand as still as possible while I track down what’s going on with your mating.”

  Her eyes nervously flickered to Tyler.

  He held her gaze, wishing he could give her the courage she needed. He adored her, but she had some of the most outlandish ideas. The thought that a healer would poke at her, maybe hurt her, was beyond weird.

  The healer frowned, tilting his head to the side. His eyes narrowed then closed as he mentally delved deeply into Emma’s body.

  Tyler fisted his hands, clenching them in his attempt to keep his mouth shut. Emma was worried about pain, but he was terrified that Jonathan might find something wrong.

  He knew Emma shouldn’t be progressing so fast. What if he’d done the wrong thing by giving her his blood to drink? He shuddered, barely able to withhold a moan of pain. If he inadvertently hurt her, he’d never forgive himself.

  Over the last couple of days, he’d come to terms with the horrible fact of her approaching death. The thought of losing her in sixty years nearly destroyed him, literally taking him to his knees when he thought too hard about it, because after a few short days of meeting Emma, she’d grown to be everything to him. Time no longer mattered. Even if he had the option of giving her up and taking a Tuathan as mate, he would never let her go, not ever.

  “Well,” Jonathan said in an odd tone of voice, “that is certainly interesting.”

  “What?” Tyler anxiously demanded. His eyes turned to Emma’s face, a crease of worry marred the smooth skin of her forehead.

  Jonathan released Emma’s face, stepping toward Tyler. “If you have no objections?” he asked, reaching toward Tyler’s strained face.

  “No, of course not,” Tyler readily agreed.

  He briefly cupped Tyler’s face. A few moments later, he grunted and stepped away.

  Tyler smothered a growl. He wanted to demand answers from the silent man, but knew better than to interrupt the healer’s fact-finding process.

  “When did you suspect she was your mate?” the healer asked, rubbing his chin.

  Emma appeared beside Tyler, wrapping a slender arm around his waist.

  He curled his arm around her, realizing she trembled. His entire attention focused on her. Each time she touched him, it felt like the first time. He wished she could feel his emotions at that very moment. If she did, she’d never doubt how much he adored her.

  “Tyler?”

  “Oh, sorry, Pastor,” Tyler said, pulling his attention back to the somber healer. “I touched her the first day, just minutes after meeting her. When my hand touched her skin, it was like a jolt. My fingers turned numb.”

  “Anything else, anything from either of you?” he questioned.

  At their look of discomfort, he explained, “What’s going on inside her is beyond abnormal. I know my questions are extremely personal and if you’d like to continue in my office, we can.”

  Emma shook her head. “I felt his emotions within an hour, maybe two of first meeting him.”

  He tightened his hold around her waist. “I thought I felt her fear the day after we first met. She was climbing on my back for the flight back to Fortress and she slipped, nearly falling. The flash of fear was so fleeting that I just wasn’t sure if it was hers or mine, and then afterward, I didn’t have that empty feeling in my chest.”

  “You felt that?” Emma asked, looking up at him with an odd expression on her face.

  “Yeah, I hated the fact you were frightened and I couldn’t help you.”

  “Oh.” She frowned, looking thoughtful.

  “And that’s all?” Pastor Jonathan questioned, his face drawn tight in apparent frustration. “Earlier, you said that she growled and her eyes turned white.”

  “And I healed really fast from cracking my head.”

  His eyes grew thoughtful. “Did you lick her wound?”

  “No, uh, not that time.”

  “There was another?”

  “Yeah, the day after we met, she cut her finger. I licked the blood off and healed the wound,” Tyler said, fearing where the conversation was going.

  “I was nearly positive we were mates, but I wanted to know for certain.” His feeling of dread increased. Giving her his blood had been the wrong thing to do. He struggled with his words, growling as his fear put a strangle hold on his voice. “I gave her my blood in return.”

  “What?” the healer shouted, making them both jump. “She’s mortal, why would you do that?”

  “Everyone knows blood sharing between mates hurries the process.” Tyler curled his other arm protectively around Emma. “Tell me I haven’t hurt her,” he demanded. The faerie lights distorted around him as tears glistened in his eyes.

  “No, no, thank God, it didn’t hurt her,” the healer said, waving his hand in a negative move, “but it should’ve killed her.”

  “Killed?” Tyler whispered, horrified.

  Emma whimpered, turning in his arms. “Stop that! I am fine.” She cupped her delicate fingers around his cheek, tugging his face down. “I’m not dead, so stop feeling like you killed me. Your pain hurts me worse than my fear of what could’ve happened.”

  He shuddered, leaning his cheek into her precious touch.

  “You two are definitely progressing at a rapid pace. Everything I know about mating is getting thrown out the window.”

  “Why?” Emma asked Jonathan, searching Tyler’s eyes before turning around in his arms, giving the healer her attention. “And why would his blood kill me? If it was supposed to kill me, why didn’t it? And what did it do to me?”

  The priest chuckled. “I know you two have a lot of questions. I do as well. The short of it is simple: I don’t have a clue, because Tuathan blood has always been poisonous to mortals. Before the gateways closed, a mating between a Tuathan and a mortal was rare. When it did happen, either the Tuathan remained on Earth and died when the mortal died or the mortal drank from a dark energy spring.”

  “That doesn’t sound like a very good idea,” Emma said, shuddering.

  “No, it wasn’t. If they drank from any of the lakes containing dark energy, nothing happened. The water weakened the properties of dark energy. If they drank from one of the land-locked natural springs, drinking pure undiluted dark energy, one of three things happened: They either died a very painful death, or they gained the ability to heal rapidly, staying eternally young, or they were Changed.”

  “Changed?” Tyler asked, spitting out a soft curse as he remembered the stories of the Changed mortals. “The story of how the first witches and wizards came into being is true?”

  Jonathan nodded his head once.

  “So, what happened with Emma? Will she be okay?”r />
  “She’ll be fine. I think her body’s transformation might have something to do with Earth and Tuatha combining. Dark energy has flooded onto Earth, but even that doesn’t explain how her body is processing your blood and showing dragon attributes. To my knowledge, that has never happened with a mortal.” He chuckled, nodding at Emma. “One thing is certain. The masters in the healer’s guild are going to want to know how it happened. You’ll be given every test we can think of.”

  Emma snorted, shaking her head. “No thanks.”

  Jonathan frowned, lifting a single eyebrow. “You’d condemn other Tuathan-Earthling mates to a short life and eventual death?”

  “No, of course not! I didn’t think about the testing helping other Earthborn,” she said. Her head snapped up and she exhaled a sharp squeal of excitement. “You mean I’m not going to grow old and die?”

  “No, your body is showing every sign of a young dragon, including healing damage your body receives on a daily basis.”

  “Yes!” Tyler shouted, whirling Emma in his arms. His heart, his head, everything in between, felt as if it was going to explode for the sheer joy he felt.

  They laughed and hugged, then laughed some more as they realized they’d have forever together.

  “I guess I didn’t make that exactly clear the first time. That’s why we’ll want to study your mate bond. That okay with the two of you?”

  Emma quickly nodded, answering a fraction of a second before Tyler agreed, “Yes, absolutely!”

  Chapter - Scrimp

  A thin, young man with an eager smile met them as they entered the Cantina’s outside courtyard. “Your party is waiting on the south River Patio.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he motioned upward.

  Emma glanced up. She had noticed the second floor, but hadn’t paid the area much attention. Faerie lights around the area appeared muted, nearly blurry. The closer she looked she realized the upper balconies looked like they sat amid a thin bank of fog.

  A few minutes later, Emma walked out of a set of swinging doors and onto the River Patio. The patio was a wide French-like terrace with a single table running down the middle of it. She looked over the railing to the lake beyond. The view of dancing fire was beautiful, an unearthly image she’d never forget.