by C. J. Parker
She held her breath and waited for the eruption she knew would come. She moved to the left to get a better look at the old woman and searched her face for any emotions that surfaced so she could better ready herself for the reaction.
“And the others in the clan?” Aetheria’s jaw clenched, the veins of her neck rose. “What have you done? Do they know about everyone? Have you come back to hide among us?”
Bobbie dug her fingernails into her palms, using the discomfort to fight her growing resentment of not being trusted. This was the one person Bobbie would have bet she could count on for understanding. Obviously, she was wrong. “Us? I’m not the one who stays in these mosquito-infested swamps, secreted away in this tree house. Who or what are you hiding from?”
“Insolence?” Aetheria’s back stiffened, her eyes narrowed and darkened to a rich purple. “Is this what the outside world has taught you?”
Bobbie sighed. “What do you want from me, Aetheria?”
Aetheria crossed her arms over her frail chest. “Why have you come back, Bobbie?”
Don’t offer any more information. Answer her questions. Period. “Because Kangee told me about the deaths.” And, I have to know if the Guardians already know about the village. Are they the ones killing my people? Or could it be Cuda doing it to stir up unrest?
“Since you’ve been gone, ten of our people have vanished or turned up dead. Some had been fed to the alligators before they had given up their spirits. All had been beaten, stabbed, and two were beheaded. Your friend Sally was among them, Bobbie. Do you not care enough to ask?”
“You’ve not really given me a lot of time to ask anything, Aetheria.”
Aetheria’s eyes darkened as she thrust her finger toward the doorway, sending a flash of eerie blue light in its wake. “Six families have gone in search of other clans to join. They’re afraid.”
Bobbie dug the heels of her hands into her eyes. “Then let us help—me, Tabatha and Rhonda.”
“What are your feelings for Kangee?”
The sudden change in topic threw Bobbie into a moment of confusion. What did she feel for him? Good question and why does she want to know. “He’s my friend. Or used to be. And, honestly, I think the deaths take precedence over that conversation.”
Bobbie learned as a child to watch out for color changes in the old woman’s eyes. The darker the hue, the more trouble the one being gazed upon found themselves in. They were now a dark velvety purple.
“He’s your lifemate! Do not toy with his feelings, Robertina.”
“He is my friend. How is that toying with him?” And how is this your concern?
“Why are you here?” The old woman spat the question. “What do you think you can do? Why do you think any of us should welcome you back as if nothing has happened? How do we know you will not run away again when things get hard?” Aetheria fired the questions at such bullet-speed there was no time to answer one before being hit with another
Bobbie rounded on her. “I didn’t run away, and I was of age and free to do as I chose. You chose to come live here a long time ago. I chose to leave and discover the Outsider’s world I’d been told about all my life. Want to know what I found? That the Outsiders aren’t monsters anymore than we are.” And some are more accepting of our differences.
Aetheria’s mouth puckered as if she’d bitten into a green persimmon. “Free?”
“You want to know why I left? Fine. I got tired of being everyone’s burden. After my father died, you held the clan together in trust, ruling until my brother grew of age.” She blinked back bitter resentment.
“But while my brother was allowed to stay with the Guignards and live as their son, I was shuffled from one family to the next, never feeling I belonged anywhere. I was only the daughter of the Moran lineage, yet never thought good enough to rule if something should happen to my brother.” She swallowed hard against a lump of anger and grief.
“As for me being a woman, the clan can get over it. I am no less Moran than my brother was. Everyone can welcome me or leave.”
“Well spoken, child.” Aetheria cupped Bobbie’s head in her warm hands. “Welcome home. I’ve missed you. Now, bring in your friends.”
Bobbie stepped onto the porch drawing in a lung full of humid hot air. She waved Tabatha and Rhonda to her. “You can come on in now. Aetheria and I are through.”
“What’s this all about, Bobbie? We could hear you arguing.” Tabatha looked her in the eyes. “You said as long as you were okay with us being here there would be no problem. But that old woman seems to have some hold on you. Is she going to be trouble?”
Bobbie nearly laughed as he led them inside. Aetheria could be trouble or a lifesaver.
Bobbie stood off to the side and waited as her disquiet grew and her stomach cramped with unease. She wouldn’t let Aetheria bully her friends, but, in the same line of thought, Bobbie knew Aetheria had to feel them out before giving her trust. Aetheria’s small frame paced before her friends like a queen preparing to address her court. She ran her fingertips over Rhonda’s cheek then Tabatha’s, as if to remember every plane and valley of their appearance.
Aetheria stared at Rhonda with a disconcerting glare, her demeanor not unlike that of a cop sizing up a suspect.
Rhonda never looked up and clutched her hands in tight fists.
“Miss Gray?” Aetheria never took her gaze off Rhonda.
Tabatha stepped forward, no outward emotion showing in her pose. “That would be me.”
“I knew your grandfather. He was a good man.”
Tabatha’s gaze hardened as she stared at the woman. “How did you know him? You were friends?”
The corners of Aetheria’s eyes crinkled from her slow smile. “Yes, I guess I could admit to being his friend. Not many could, you know. He was a hard man to impress and harder to know.”
She inhaled deeply. “And you. Miss Meads, isn’t it?”
Bobbie watched with a swell of pity for her friend. She prayed Rhonda would pass this trial of acceptance. Bobbie slipped in a little prayer to hold her own tongue and not try to answer the questions for her friends.
Rhonda swallowed hard. “Yes, ma’am.” She managed a quick glance at Aetheria before returning her attention to her worn tennis shoes.
“It’s rude to not face someone when spoken to, young woman.”
Rhonda’s head snapped up. “My apologies, ma’am.”
“Has your friend told you about me? Did she tell you I hear every beat of your heart, every move you make? I can sense the air change with your mood. Right now it is heavy with your fear, but there is also a sting of resentment.” The old woman’s head tilted to the side. “You only have to fear me if you hurt my people. They have not been discovered since Biblical times. Now, Queen Moran has decided to let Outsiders into our fold. Or worse, she may have been followed by killers, bringing them into the village. What have you done to deserve this trust?”
“She needs us.” A flash of fire heated Rhonda’s words.
“And that makes you worthy?” Aetheria raised her chin as if looking down her nose at Rhonda. If that was possible since Rhonda was a good four inches taller than her.
“Leave her alone.” The command brought Bobbie’s attention from Aetheria to Tabatha, ready to interfere if necessary.
“Tabatha!” Bobbie stepped closer to her friend.
Aetheria held up her hand. “Let her speak.”
“I’ve lived in the real world all my life, and no one knew about my abilities.” Tabatha’s eyes narrowed. “Rhonda is a firestarter, no one knew about that either. Why should Bobbie have to hide here in these swamps? Do you not trust your people to control themselves?”
“Ah, I see you’ve inherited your grandfather’s temper. That’s good. You’ll need all the strength you posses to stay here any length of time. This one…” She gestured with a wave of her hand toward Rhonda, “…cannot handle the perusal of an old woman.”
Tabatha crossed her arms. “Your perusal is me
ant to intimidate Rhonda. You mean her no physical harm. She knows, just as I do, that you only mean to protect your clan.”
Aetheria placed her hand on Tabatha’s cheek. “Yes, but a test of endurance is coming.” Aetheria sighed as her body crumpled into a heap at Tabatha’s feet.
Tabatha reached to help the old woman from the floor, but Bobbie grasped Tabatha by her upper arm and drew her away. “She’s not hurt. Aetheria is a clairvoyant among other things.” Near unbearable heat radiated around the old woman seconds before her body was engulfed by a flame-like brilliance nearly blinding Bobbie.
Bobbie turned away from the brightness. The heat and white light were gone as quickly as it had appeared. “Help me get her onto the bed, then we’ll leave her. I don’t want to know what she saw. People say they want to know the future, but they seldom expect the truth.” Bobbie had been stupid enough to ask what the old woman had seen last time she pulled this stunt. Bobbie had tried to change the outcome of Aetheria’s prediction and it had turned into a worse catastrophe. No, she didn’t want to know. She tucked the quilt around her beloved old friend and headed to the door. “She’ll be okay after a little rest. It’s best to just leave her alone.”
When Rhonda held back, Bobbie and Tabatha turned to see what kept her. There was a determined set to her jaw, but a single tear trailing down her cheek betrayed her feelings.
She bent over the old woman and spoke softly into her ear. “I know you hear me, so mark my words well. I failed your little test this time and failed my friends in turn. But make no mistake, Mistress Aetheria, this is the very last time I allow my fear to make me unworthy of their trust. I am stronger than you think. Taunt me all you will. I won’t break. Never again.”
Her voice held a hardness Bobbie had never heard before, like carefully banked anger.
Rhonda straightened, stared down at the prone figure a moment longer, tucked in the corner of the quilt, then walked past them and out the door without another word.
Bobbie met Tabatha’s surprised gaze and grinned. Well, I’ll be damned. Our little coward is growing a backbone.
Shrugging, Tabatha followed Rhonda out.
Bobbie pulled the door closed, but not before seeing a satisfied smile on Aetheria’s lips.
~~~
Kangee leaned against the rough bark façade of the council building, watching Bobbie and the Outsiders descend from Aetheria’s tree house. Bobbie’s hips swung seductively from side to side making the nerves in his fingers convulse with the desire to touch her. She skipped the last three rungs, jumped to the ground and waited for her friends, before they headed across the village common ground.
A slow smile formed at the memory of their childhood antics. One small step for man, one giant leap for Bobbie Luckman, she would shout before jumping into the air over the last three steps of any staircase, landing gracefully on her feet.
Come on, Captain Kangaroo, jump.
Kangee glanced at Omeda, as she approached him from the direction of the Gulf dressed in a barely-there two-piece red swimming suit. He wondered how she would take Bobbie’s return. From the moment she’d heard of Bobbie’s leaving, she’d decided to take her place as Kangee’s mate. Nothing he said or did would deter Omeda from believing that he would eventually forget Bobbie and love her instead. He’d spent the last years constantly peeling the woman off him.
She slipped under his arm, drew him close and nipped his shoulder playfully. She stood a full foot shorter than Kangee, with shoulder length ebony hair and golden eyes.
“Wanna go for a walk? I found this secluded spot on the water’s edge. We could…” She followed his gaze behind her to the common ground and pressed the corners of her lips downward into a hard frown. “When did she come crawling back?”
Taking his arm from around her shoulder, he edged away. “The queen never crawls. You may have been her friend, Omeda, but don’t show disrespect for her position now.”
“Why are you taking up for her?” She flung her sable hair over her shoulder. “She’s got no right expecting you to still be hers. I’ve laid my claim to you. If she loved you half as much as I do, she’d never have left.”
Kangee smiled and flicked her chin with his index finger. “Omeda, only Bobbie has claim to me, but one thing is sure, she never stopped loving me. Nor I her. If you were smart, you’d behave yourself and go say hello.”
Bobbie walked up the steps to what had been her brother’s home.
Kangee bared his teeth in a wide grin. “This should be good.”
“Yeah.” Omeda giggled. “Cuda and that girl will kick her butt right out of there. She can’t come waltzing in here and expect to take what she wants. Someone needs to send her packing.”
Bobbie strode up the stairway, opened the door and walked in while her friends remained on the landing. Kangee counted. “One, two, three…”
“Get the hell out of my house, you filthy coyote and take that woman with you.” Bobbie’s voice echoed across the village as she plowed back through the door, shoving Cuda and a gypsy girl roughly ahead of her.
Kangee cringed at the sight of the girl’s appearance in the strong light of day. He’d always thought she resembled the mother from The Munsters, with her gray-streaked, blue-black hair. Her overuse of mascara and eyeliner made her dark brown eyes contrast sharply against her pale skin.
“Who said you could move into my home?” Bobbie confronted Cuda, coming within inches of his body.
“We didn’t need permission. It was abandoned.” Cuda poked a finger at her nose. Bobbie snapped her teeth together missing his finger by a fraction of an inch. He took a step backward.
The girl huffed. “You’re the one who has no right to be here.”
Bobbie stood toe to toe with the girl. “Who are you?”
The gypsy’s gaze narrowed. “Jebez.”
Bobbie snorted. “Don’t think much of yourself, do you?”
Jebez huffed. “How dare you? You know nothing about me.”
“I know you’re not a shifter.” Bobbie flicked her hand toward Cuda. “And I know anyone worth a cent wouldn’t hook up with the likes of…this.”
When Cuda edged toward her, Kangee dashed across the village, making it to the foot of the stairs as Rhonda and Tabatha walked up the remaining few steps and arrived at Bobbie’s side.
“Go away, little man.” Bobbie turned with a snort and, entered the house again.
A shiver of fear traversed Kangee’s spine when Cuda turned to glance down at him standing at the bottom of the stares. A low rumble came from Cuda’s throat and escaped through lips pulled tight over sharp teeth. Cuda fisted his hands and tried to follow Bobbie inside.
Tabatha stepped in front of him, blocking his way through the door. “I’d rethink your plans if I were you. You don’t know who you’re dealing with.”
“Out of the way, girls.” Bobbie stopped to lock gazes with Kangee for a long moment before tossing an armload of clothing over the porch railing. “This is the Moran home, and, from what I’ve seen so far, they’ve tried their best to turn it into a toilet.”
“Hey, those are my clothes.” Jebez moved behind Cuda as if to shield herself from Bobbie’s wrath. “You can’t do that.”
“Watch me.” Two trips later Bobbie flung what appeared to be a set of sheets over the ledge.
“Stop her, Cuda. She can’t just toss people’s things on the ground like that.” Jebez pulled on Cuda’s arm, as if to draw him down the stairs.
Bobbie smiled and nodded toward the pile on the ground. “Do your thing, Rhonda.”
Kangee’s breath escaped in a rush when the pile burst into flames with a simple wave of Rhonda’s hand. He'd heard of Outsiders with such powers but thought it no more than mere lore. What kind of evil had Bobbie brought into the village?
Jebez cried out before rushing to salvage a skirt and blouse at the edge of the blaze.
The crowd that had gathered to watch gasped and backed away, their fearful gazes fixed on Rhonda.
He tilted his head to the side and smiled to hide his impatience. “Omeda, I don’t seem to remember ever beginning anything with you. I’ve never once lied to you. You knew she’d come back to me. We were each other’s first. First kiss, first…” He paused before going on. “Robertina was my first, she will be my last.” He stared up at Bobbie and waited for her reaction. Her throat convulsed before she returned her gaze to Omeda. He’d hoped to see acceptance.
“But I…we’re a couple.” Tears filled Omeda’s gold eyes. “Everyone knows we’re mated.”
He regretted that he’d hurt her, but he’d warned Omeda more than once. “Never. I’ve never led you to believe we were anything but friends. I told you more than once my mate is and always will be Robertina.”
Omeda released his arm and stepped away. “Then why did you let people think it was more?”
“I didn’t, you did. I felt sorry for you.” The hurt in Omeda’s eyes turned to anger, and Kangee knew he should have worded that differently. “Your best friend had left you behind. You had no real family. You were lonely.”
She stormed away. “I don’t need your pity. She’ll leave you again, and I won’t take you back.”
Kangee lifted his gaze to the top of the stairway and smiled at Bobbie, praying she wouldn’t turn her back on him. “Permission to enter?”
Bobbie released a puff of air through pouting lips. “What do you want, and since when do you ask permission to do anything, Captain Kangaroo?”
He’d not let her push him away again. The times of childish games were over. They weren’t teenagers anymore. She either accepted him as her mate or not. He needed, no, wanted his mate. He’d been patient. He’d let her leave, hoping she’d discover that the outside world was no place for her. But she didn’t return—at least not for him. He’d had to hunt her down to tell her of the happenings in the village before she would return. Was he wrong to give it one last try? Kangee ran up the stairs two at a time and took her hand in his, drawing her into the house.
