by Shelly Crane
Eli was in front of me then. I could hear them, but really, I didn't care. I was just tired. "Can you hear me, love?"
"I hear you. I'm just tired."
He cursed and looked over his shoulder. "Enoch!" he said his name like it was a curse itself.
"I'm trying to rest," Enoch muttered. "Pipe down."
"That's it," Eli said to me. "We'll ditch them in the morning. I can't kill him, but we can leave him."
"Whatever," I muttered. "Lay with me?"
He sighed and cracked his neck like he was exhausted. He scooted me over so he had room and climbed on the bench beside me. He was so warm against the cold wind that I groaned loudly making him chuckle. "Better?"
"Much better."
He pushed my hair back. "I'm sorry."
"It's all right. It's just payback," I muttered. "I'm ok. I needed to sleep anyway."
"Where's my snarky girl?" he said through a chuckle, but it was laced with strain.
"Bite me, Thames," I whispered, making him laugh again.
"Well, there's that." He pressed a sweet kiss to my forehead. "I'll be here all night. I won't leave you for a second."
"I'm not worried."
He scoffed. "Of course you're not. You're high," he added dryly.
"Not high, just tired." I let my fingers tangle in the hair at the nape of his neck. "I love you."
He sighed. "I love you, CB. Go to sleep, baby."
~ ~ ~
My head was splitting, and I was freezing. I shivered and felt hands rubbing my arms. "Sorry. It's really cold at night."
He said something over his shoulder to someone and I felt another blanket land roughly on top of us. Eli grumbled as he spread it out and pulled me closer.
"Where are we?" I murmured.
"Almost there." He kissed my forehead. "Go back to sleep."
"Will you take me somewhere in a reverie?"
"To sleep?" he asked surprised.
"I want you to take me somewhere warm."
I'd barely said the words before I felt the sun on my face. I peeked up to see him sprawled on his side against me on a large beach towel in the sand. The beach was empty of people. I could hear the birds and waves pounding behind us.
"Thank you."
"Anytime, love."
And I fell back to sleep thinking of doing this with Eli for real one day.
~ ~ ~
The rocking boat woke me. I felt nauseas all of a sudden. No, not nauseas. I was upchucking. I scrambled up, leaning over the rail in milliseconds of being too late. But nothing.
My body racked and heaved, but nothing came up. I felt Eli's hand on my back, but I hurt so bad that I couldn't even focus. The blue water beneath me moved and swirled, making my vision blur.
"Ah," I groaned. "I want to just throw up."
"You want to throw up?" Enoch mocked. "Stupid feelers and their strange rituals."
I heard a scuffle and then Eli yelled. "She wants to throw up so she'll feel better, because you drugged her you jackass!" I heard another scuffle, and then a thud before Eli was at my back again. "Love, you ok?"
"Just kill me," I groaned. "Just make it quick," I joked.
"No talk of that," Eli barked, not appreciating my joke. "Come on," he said softer, as he turned me. "You want to freshen up before we go?"
I looked up and saw we were docked. "Arequipa?" I asked.
"Soon. We need to go catch our ride."
"Ok," I said and swallowed to make sure I was going to keep the contents of my stomach for good.
He showed me where the bathroom was, and I brushed my teeth and changed my clothes to some jeans and a layered t-shirt. I let my hair out of its ponytail. It fell in waves. More waves that made me ache even more for my mom. I took a deep breath. Mrs. Ruth has waves, too…
I shook my head and opened the door. Eli was there and took my bag from me. He led me to the top and the Captain threw the plank down for us to walk and cross to the dock.
"All right," Eli said once we all got across. "See ya." He nodded his head to Enoch and Finn, taking my hand and pulling me along the sidewalk.
"Whoa, wait," Finn said frantically. "What are you doing?"
"Neither one of you has Clara's or my interest in mind. You're here for yourselves and we've got enough to deal with than having to worry about your next move on Clara." He pinned Finn with a glare. "You kissing her again," then his glower swung to Enoch, "or you drugging her."
"It told you it was a test-" Finn said while Enoch yelled, "I just wanted her to nap a bit!"
"Whatever! We're done. We're going this way," Eli pointed with my bag in his hand, "and you go that way. So help me…if you follow us…"
His guttural growl even had Enoch looking surprised. Eli pulled me along as he cut through a busy alley full of people. There were fishing boats lining the pier and tables of goods set up. People yelled out to us to come and taste their fish, the freshest in the market they said.
"I'm sorry," I said and gave him a sideline glance.
"Why are you sorry?" he asked. "You didn't tranquilize yourself."
"I'm sorry you had to choose. Them…or me."
"I'll always choose you," he said incredulously.
"And I'll always be sorry that you have to. The jerk is your brother, and the bigger jerk is your best friend."
His brow bunched and he seemed to wonder what to say to that. "Yes, and as such, they should respect my decision."
"Is that something Devourers do? Respect?"
He swallowed and looked uncomfortable. "No."
"Then how can you expect them to?" I said softly. "I'm not saying what they did was right, but they only know one way to live."
"But it doesn't make it ok for them to treat you that way. I can't do anything to stop them because they're immortal. Leaving is the only option."
"I know," I agreed. "I just wanted to make sure you understood all the variables. I don't want you to think one day that you wish you'd tried harder to make it ok with your brother."
"My brother is just another Devourer. We don't view family like that, I told you."
"Then why do you care so much?" I said quietly and touched his cheek. He seemed a little peeved at my ability to see the truth.
"I care, he doesn't. He can't. I just want you."
"But what if I'm not enough one day?"
"Enough for what?" he asked, but kept going as I opened my mouth to speak. "I don't know if you know this, Miss Hopkins, but you are an extreme handful."
I laughed and shook my head in mock anger. "I see."
"I love you. I love everything about you, every inch. I have no doubt that you can keep me occupied and…happy."
"Really? Even if we wind up back in Big Timber with four point five kids, a scraggily dog in the white fenced yard, and living off of a teacher's salary?"
"You want to be a teacher?" he asked distractedly.
"No!" I grimaced. "I meant you. What else are you gonna do other than teach? The high school art teacher can't live forever."
He chuckled reluctantly. And then said, "If that happens, I'll be happy if you are."
"Really?"
"Yes, really," he mocked and smiled as he bumped my shoulder with his. "Your lack of confidence in my ability to not only provide for you, but be entertaining enough to keep you happy is a little disconcerting."
I just smiled as I let him lead me and put my head on his shoulder.
The fish market was pretty smelly to say the least, but the bead merchant's tables were beautiful. I didn't know if Eli caught me eying them or just decided on his own, but he pulled me to one of the tables and started to pick through them.
He held up one that was green, grey and blue and slipped it around my wrist. He tilted his head to the side to get a good look and then asked her how much. The number was practically nothing. He forked over the money and tipped his head to her as we went. She was so grateful as she bowed and said her thanks in words I didn't understand. It hit me how some people were depe
ndent on so little and worked their whole lives just to make ends meet.
It put things into terrible perspective.
Eli hailed a cab - an old Range Rover that had seen better days - throwing our stuff in the back and setting the bird in the front seat. I found it odd that the driver didn't act as though this was uncommon; for animals to ride shotgun.
"Arequipa!" the bird screeched.
"Yes, Cavuto. Arequipa," Eli agreed.
Sixteen
"Are we close?" I whispered anxiously.
He squeezed my hand, his thumb rubbing over the wrist. "Kind of, sort of…not really."
I scowled causing him to laugh. "You want to explain?"
"Nah," he whispered through a chuckle, and then explained quietly in my ear. "The Wall moves. It not a place, it's a plane. I can find it, but that's why we needed the Witch's stone. You can't get in without it."
"So…how will you find it?"
"I just will," he said cryptically. He reached over and palmed my cheek gently. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm ok," I said, but the headache was back. I covered his hand with mine and closed my eyes. The cab suddenly stopped and he turned to us.
"This is the last town for a long time. If you need to use the lavatories, you'd better."
"Food," Eli said and pulled me from the side door.
~ ~ ~
After he purchased a couple of sandwiches, with meat that I was scared to ask the origin of, we made our way back to the cab. He bumped us down the rough, unkempt roads as we ate and Eli tried to calm me with stories of his travels. He'd been to almost every country there was, every continent, heard every tongue spoken. I was awed and enraptured as I chewed and listened.
He was saying something about how Canadians were the most docile people he'd ever encountered when the pain in my head exploded. The bright light was there again, blocking my vision and blinding me painfully. The sandwich fell from my fingers and I rubbed my face in an effort to help. It didn't.
I heard Eli's muffled, "Love?" but the ringing in my ears was too loud. I scratched at my arms as they pulsed painfully and felt as if they'd rip open. Then everything went black again.
~ ~ ~
I was being lifted. I could hear shouting. Enoch? Finn? Eli's warm arms were around me and then we were running. I heard Cavuto squawking angrily and assumed he was being jostled in his cage.
I hurt. I hurt all over, a stinging, burning kind of pain. My arms and head hurt the worst. I tried to peel my eyes open…Eli?
He was tortured. His face a mask of anger, self-hate and worry. I reached up to soothe him by touching his cheek, but before my arm got there I saw it. My veins…were blue and protruding.
I looked up at Eli in a silent question, but he stopped and jerked us into the woods. He said something to Enoch and Finn and waited, then pulled my shirt over my head. I was too shocked to do anything but let him. He rummaged through my bag until he found what he was looking for and pulled the red long sleeve sweater over my head, fixing it on my body.
He smoothed the sleeves down, his thumbs rubbing the veins delicately like they would burst at any moment. "Stay with me, Clara," he whispered and I heard him. "Please."
"I'm right here," I whispered back and he jolted.
He said something louder, my name I think, but it was muffled again. I winced. "Clara?" he whispered in anguish.
"That's it," I whispered. "Whisper. It's too loud and I can't understand you otherwise."
"Ok," he whispered back. "We're here. We're at The Wall."
I opened my eyes again, but the sun was so bright, I felt like it was burning them. I made a noise of protest. Eli yelled something behind him and then set a pair of sunglasses on my face gently. I peeked my eyes open again, and it was much better.
"Better?" he said softly. I nodded. He cocked his head to the side thinking and then grabbed the shirt I'd just taken off and ripped a piece of the sleeve off. My mouth opened in protest, but he just closed it with easy fingers.
He whispered, "I'm performing a little experiment, CB, and your shirt is a sacrifice for that."
"But it's my Spirit squad shirt," I complained.
He grinned then and ripped the small piece into two before pinching and balling them up, placing them in my ears.
"How's that?" he said normally and I couldn't help but sigh in relief.
Then Eli glared at Finn. "You stole my sunglasses?" Finn just shrugged and lifted a brow like why should Eli be surprised. Eli looked back at me. "Your senses are all screwy." He sighed and ran a trembling hand through his hair. "Do you think you can walk?"
"Honestly? I don’t want to," I answered.
"I'm sorry, love, but you have to. I can't carry you into The Wall. You have to go of your own free will."
"Are we here?" I said and looked around.
He nodded and looked at me in sympathy. "Baby steps. Can you stand?"
I could try. So I accepted his hand and let him lift me up. I was wobbly, but standing. I pushed up my sleeve and rubbed at the veins on my forearm. He pushed the sleeve down and mouthed, "Don't."
"It's getting worse," I stated the obvious.
"Yeah," he sighed. "Come on, love, I can't wait anymore to get you fixed."
He wrapped his arm around my waist and I let my arm drape around his shoulder. He went slowly out of the woods and towards a small pond. The barbed string hung around his chest down to his arm and I wondered what we were going to do about hiding it this time. So I asked him.
"Eli. The string."
"People at The Wall don't care as much. They mind their own business, but just keep your hand in mine and hopefully, we won't have to wonder if they care that much or not."
"Pretty flimsy risk taking," Enoch muttered.
"How are they here?" I whispered.
"They followed us," he grumbled and kissed my forehead and spoke against my skin in a soothing manner. "Don't worry. I've got my eyes on them."
He stopped at the bank of the lake. He reached into his pocket, while keeping his other arm around me, and pulled out the stone. His fingers turned it over and over for a few moments and then he chucked it into the water.
We waited.
"Did you stash our bags?" Eli said someone without looking back at them.
"Yeah," Finn answered.
I looked at Eli in question. "We can't take anything with us," he explained. "Enoch, will you let Cavuto out?"
"You're not leaving him here with your stuff?" he asked.
"No."
I heard the cage door rattling and then Cavuto flew and landed on Eli's shoulder. "Arequipa!"
"Yes, Cavuto," Eli murmured and then the water started to boil.
I watched as the water churned and bubbled, the sun glinting off the peaks making it seem every bit of ethereal and magical. Ke$ha's "Blow" was playing through my mind for some reason. It was scary how appropriate it fit, but I didn’t even like that song.
A stone pathway appeared from below the surface. "Finn, will you go first so Cavuto has someone to go to?" Eli asked.
Finn huffed in an exaggerated way and made his way from the bank to the stones. He crossed swiftly. He reached the last one and I held my breath as he jumped and…vanished into the water below.
There was no splash.
I gulped. Eli pulled my face to look at him. "It's all right. It's a plane, remember? You can't think with your eyes here. I promise you it'll be ok. Cavuto, go."
He did, stepping and hopping from one stone to the next and then jumping up just as Finn had and disappearing.
"Why does the bird have to go like that?" I asked in a whisper.
"He has to go of his own free will just like the rest of us."
Enoch followed Cavuto. I could hear him muttering something as it echoed against the water. "Third star to the right and straight on 'til morning." He jumped from the last stone, yelling "Olly, olly, oxen free!" and plunged soundlessly into the water.
Eli turned to me. "You're next, don't arg
ue. I threw the stone, I have to close it by going last." He kissed my lips, lingering, and then leaned his head against mine. "I wish I could carry you or help, but… It's daytime here, but it's always dark there so be careful when you step out. I'll be right behind you," he promised, his voice low and gravelly.
