The moment had finally arrived! We were sitting in line at the Ferry dock in Edmonds on our way to Kingston. We had arrived early since we had to pick up our turkey and ham that Arie had ordered from her favorite area meat shop, Bill the Butcher. They had, also, promised me that we would go extra early to walk around Edmonds before boarding the ferry. I was not disappointed. Edmonds was so cute. There were quaint little boutiques and antique shops with great cafes on every corner. I knew wholeheartedly that this would become a tradition before boarding the ferry to our home. I hadn’t told them that news yet. I was finally able to think those words, our home. I hadn’t been able to say the words aloud yet, but I could somewhat think them. The ferry worker began pointing at the lines of cars, directing us to inch forward to the loading dock. I hadn’t been on a ferry for so long that I looked forward to it. Athen said it was a short ferry ride, but I was excited regardless. It would be a delightful trip, even with the fog that hovered thickly in the air.
Athen was following the ferry worker’s direction as he pulled into the line on the second deck. He nudged as close to the car in front of us as possible so we didn’t get a scolding from the ferry workers. My fingers started tingling. I couldn’t wait to jump out of the car. I found my seat buckle and quickly unclipped it. I looked over at Cyril and Arie and noticed they weren’t unfastening their belts.
“Are you guys staying in the car?” I pestered the group.
“Yeah, we’ve been on this a million times. Besides, the ride is over before you know it.” Arie promised.
I wasn’t going to take her word for it and hopped out of the car, kind of stunned that they would take this trip for granted, no matter how quick. Athen opened the front driver’s door and climbed out. I was secretly relieved that it might be us two anyway. We snuck through the cars that were lined up in the tightly organized rows with only enough room to squeeze by. I followed Athen’s trail and saw him heading towards the tiny, little doorway that led to the staircase. I saw the red life rings placed on the metal walls as I headed toward the stair well. Athen got there first, grabbing my waist quickly as he brought me towards him. I noticed that most everyone seemed to be staying in their cars. It wasn’t only my carload of fuddy duds, at least. I reached for Athen’s hand and instantly began to melt. The slight sound of the ferry churned through me as it began its journey across the sparkling Sound. The breeze began to make its way through the metal tunnels sending a shiver through me. The closeness was overwhelming.
As I touched Athen’s hand, he whisked me into the base of the stairwell and fully wrapped his arms around me. I gazed up into Athen’s eyes as he was looking out over the sound. His lustrous, green eyes taking everything in that he scanned. I sensed a distraction. He always had such an intensity surrounding him. That was a given. But I couldn’t put my finger on what was causing it this time. I tried not to dwell on the feeling, and before I knew it, I could feel his breath on my neck as he grabbed my waist closer to his. Suddenly his lips were touching my skin, gliding over my lips, to my neck, and then collarbone. My heart began pounding as the electrical currents began chasing through my veins. All my worries from the moment before began to drift away. The excitement of the moment almost made it unbearable to stay standing, which I think he sensed as he lifted me up against the stair railing. The coldness of the metal walls shot through my clothing chilling me. I didn’t mind one bit. It reminded me that this moment was indeed real.
To be in this moment with Athen, feeling his grasp around me as our lips touched each others, made my new world feel as if it was one big fantasy. I did not want to do anything to wake up from it. I wasn’t sure what all we could pull off in a stairwell, but I was thrilled to find out. I wrapped my legs around him. Beginning to unfasten his buckle when his hand gently covered mine and held me back. The images of us together on the beach were flooding through me. I couldn’t handle not being with him.
“Now’s not the time, my love,” he whispered softly in my ear. “We are almost to the dock.”
“Please, tell me you are joking!” I glared at him but couldn’t for a minute be upset with him.
He was laughing pretty hard by this time. I rolled my eyes as he helped me off the railing. The door at the top of the stairs opened bringing down a gentleman with a newspaper, probably a nightly commuter, but then I saw his fingernails. They were long and dark like the ones from the other night. I could feel myself freeze in place. I knew I had to act my hardest to show nothing was wrong. I still had no idea whether or not demons could read my mind as much as my family could.
“Well, that could have been embarrassing,” I sighed to Athen.
“That’s an understatement,” Athen quickly shook his head, “I’ve got to watch myself with you.”
Even though I had missed most of the ferry ride and the scenery it had to offer, I wasn’t the least bit concerned because I knew in my heart that I would be traveling this route many times to come. Athen and I both situated ourselves back in the car, trying to act nonchalant as ever.
“The guy walking down the stairs on the ferry, where was he going? He didn’t seem interested in me. What’s up with him?” I asked.
“We took care of him before you got back to the car, Ana.” Cyril sounded very serious and a bit distant.
“Can you give me a little more than that?” I asked a bit baffled.
“There was an Escalade about four cars behind ours, and that is where he was headed,” Arie spoke up.
“Ok?” I asked, not letting up.
“Well, there was a man in the car, and his secretary was with him. They were on the way to his family home for Thanksgiving. Her family is on the east coast. Let’s just say he had thoughts that were not in his family’s best interest.” Cyril let out slowly.
“He was going to cheat with his secretary on the ferry before going to his house where his wife and children wait? That is cold,” I sighed.
“Yeah, it’s pretty pathetic but not uncommon,” Athen replied.
“Well, how did you guys stop it or dissolve the situation? Was that guy on the stairs involved?”
“Oh, most certainly, he was involved. He was the demon who had inserted the idea into the man’s head while he sat above his Escalade on the ferry deck. The demon literally implanted the idea. The guy was beginning to act on the idea that was planted. He began by merely touching his secretary’s leg. Then he abruptly stopped. The demon could sense interference so that is when he came down the stairs to see essentially what the problem was. It turned out that Arie was the problem.” Cyril announced proudly. “Arie had collected images of his wife on their honeymoon and of her comforting him when he lost his mother and implanted those images of love and purity in his head as she walked by the Escalade. Her hope was that the good in him would see what he would be jeopardizing back at home before the demon could get to him to seal the deal so to speak. It was about the only way Arie could handle it without causing a commotion with the demon. Thankfully, the victim was a nice human who had a momentary lapse of judgment and was easily swayed.”
“My word. That’s intense. I had no idea we could change people’s minds. I thought it was only us giving our opinions,” I said in awe.
“Actually, it’s not that we can change their minds. Humans are still independent beings, which is why sometimes the other side is the victor. It’s that we can tap into their soul, in a sense, and try to guide them before they make the wrong choice. It’s all about choices. They’re still free beings. They could always choose the other side if the demons are more persuasive. Sometimes, it’s as simple as the human making so many wrong choices that they feel that is the only option they have at that point. That is when the task gets far more difficult. We are always up for the challenge though,” Arie said, trying to sound as light as she usually does.
“Interesting, I certainly hope I can excel at that one day.” A sense of pride was swelling up in me r
ealizing that I may have a chance to help someone choose goodness over evil.
“Will we ever know what happened to the hikers and the snowboarder?” I couldn’t shake the thought of so many people all at once not only running into trouble but turning into something so evil. There had to be more to the story.
“Yeah, we’ll know soon enough. It always comes out.” Arie looked out the window as she spoke.
The rest of the ride home in the car took on a much more enchanting turn as we all tried to play catch up on memories I didn’t quite have yet. I learned about a trip to Alaska where I thoroughly enjoyed a place called the Red Dog Saloon, which with a name like that I wanted proof. They guaranteed some.
As we pulled up to their home, I could see why they loved living down here. The home was sprawling. We drove up to it, and I was able to see that the home was perched on the bluff overlooking the Sound. It was most likely one of the homes I spied as we were sitting on the ferry. The home and view were beyond breathtaking. The architecture was very Northwest. Exposed beams and stonework were surrounding the home. There was a porch wrapping around the entire front of the house. I wouldn’t be surprised if it wasn’t wrapping the back to take advantage of the gorgeous view of the sound. From where we were, it almost looked like there was beach access as well. What a wonderful place to spend the holidays, I thought to myself.
Before I knew it, we pulled into the garage; three beautiful cars were parked in the other stalls. Quite a collection, I thought to myself. Then I noticed an orange Lotus, my favorite, not quite a practical snow car though.
“Nice, Lotus.” I said, as we began piling out of the car.
“Thanks,” Athen said, “I bought that last year for you. We’ll be sure to hop in it before we leave.”
“I don’t think it holds much so don’t go any place where you plan on bringing back any bags,” Arie said. Her mind did seem to be on shopping quite a lot. I wonder if she ever got bored of it.
“No, she never gets bored of shopping.” Athen, of course, answered my question.
“Wow, still not used to you doing that.” I looked at him a little incredulous.
“You know, we can teach you how to avoid that, Ana. I’ll make sure to do that before the holidays are up so you don’t run away screaming from here,” Arie said laughing.
“Thanks, I’d appreciate that.”
The guys had finished grabbing our bags out of the back, and I tried to snag some of my shopping bags. I got the hint that presents were a pretty big part of the holidays, especially with Arie, so I did my best. I was hoping I’d gotten in the realm of her tastes. I peeked into the car, and Matilda was still sleeping. She didn’t look like she wanted to move, but I knew I had to wake her up. She needed to venture inside to her next nesting spot.
“Come on, Matilda. I got ya.” I gently picked her up, setting her on the garage floor, which was quite shiny, especially for a garage floor. She slowly began stretching, looking around before she began to move.
“What the heck is on the concrete that makes it shiny?” I asked.
“Oh, that was Athen and Cyril all the way. When we were having the house built, they demanded that we get the special coating so they could spray out the garage. Not that they have ever done that, of course.” Arie tried to express exasperation, but it backfired, only showing off how fond of Cyril she truly was.
Matilda slowly made her way to the open door, leading us all into the home. I was nervous and excited to see what this home looked like on the inside. The outside was impressive and gorgeous, and I imagined the inside to be as grand. I could easily get used to this, I thought to myself.
I walked up a couple of stairs as I made my way in. It looked like I had landed in the mudroom. There were racks from floor to ceiling with canned goods. On the other side of the room was a bench with shelves next to it with shoes and coats. There was also a pile of dog beds and towels. The room was very spacious for being a mudroom. I wondered how big the other rooms were.
“You guys have a dog too?” I asked.
“No, those were for Matilda. We were expecting her and, of course, you.”
“Ah, of course,” I replied, too familiar with mind reading incidents to be surprised. “I’m going to leave some bags right here because my hands are tired. I’ll come back and get them.”
“Sure. I think I will too,” Arie said, dumping her heaviest bags.
I continued walking through the mudroom, making my way into the kitchen, which was incredible. There were windows along one entire wall that overlooked the Sound from what I could tell, since it was evening, but I was able to see little lights off in the distance, along with what I think were ferry lights chugging away. The counters were all a dark granite with a beautiful, stone backsplash. There was a huge island that, alone, displayed more counter space than my entire kitchen up in Whistler. The refrigerator was enormous, but with Cyril and Athen around, I knew that was a must. The tones were all complimentary earth shades, but I could imagine how spectacular it was once it was daylight, and the green from everything outside would create a masterpiece in itself. Right past the breakfast bar, I saw the beginning to what I guessed was the family room. There was a huge, stone fireplace that went all the way up to the extraordinarily high ceiling, and on either side were more floor-to-ceiling windows. I couldn’t imagine what this place looked like in the daylight if it was this captivating in the evening.
“Wow! Guys, this is incredible!” I exclaimed. I couldn’t keep my awe inside anymore.
“I’m glad you like it. We got spoiled with the views, for sure. Hopefully, you’ll like the room we picked out for you. We have two. I think you might like one more than the other. Feel free to let us know,” she said with a smirk.
“Ok,” I said, tentatively knowing that even the couch would be fine. “I know I’ll love anything.”
Matilda walked around like she owned the place and immediately started eyeing the couch in the family room. Although, I even had to admit that it looked pretty comfortable, especially after all of the travel. The overstuffed, red pillows that were tossed on it looked right up Matilda’s alley. I kept following Arie as we made it through the family room and down a hallway, which led us to the stairs. I looked up and saw Athen coming down the stairs smiling. My God, he looked good. Great, and he probably heard that too. My cheeks did the scarlet turn, and he looked down at me and winked.
“I’m going to go grab your bags you left in the mud room. I’ll be right up.”
“Well, thanks. That’s sweet of you.”
“Of course,” he said and pecked me on the cheek. “No sweat at all.”
I heard Arie groan as Cyril appeared right behind us with her bags in hand. Arie seemed relieved that she wouldn’t have to haul all of her bags up the stairs.
“I got ‘em, honey. Once again, I beat the slacker Athen, but I’ll go put them in the closet.”
I walked up the stairs following Arie. Once we got to the top landing, more windows overlooked the Sound. In front of the windows a sleek, black velvet chaise was sitting. I’m sure that would become a favorite spot for Matilda. I wasn’t sure which direction to go because there was a hallway in both directions. They both looked pretty long. Arie grabbed my hand and pulled me in the right direction.
“Ok, so Athen’s wing is down this way along with one of the guest rooms. The other guest room is on our end, which is why I’m betting this one will be your favorite,” she said laughing.
As we ventured down the hallway, she pointed out the linen closet, laundry room, a game room – which looked huge, a media room that had the large recliners, and what looked like a drop-down screen, and then a jaw-dropping bathroom that was pale blue with white marble and a claw-foot tub. It looked pretty fitting for being next to the ocean.
“Is that the bathroom I’ll be using?”
“Well it can be, but you have one connected to your room. All th
e bedrooms here are like master suites, which is kind of nice. No sharing that way if we have guests.”
“Do you have guests often?” I asked, realizing how nosey and almost worried I must have sounded. I was thinking of Athen with a guest, which sent shudders down me, a streak of jealously entered next. Then the woman with the serpent eyes entered my thoughts. Nausea was next.
“No, not really, but we do get them from time to time,” she picked up on my worry and replied. “And not those kind of guests, Ana. He has only eyes for you. Has had forever. You will figure that out in time. I promise! We would usually get a family who was looking for a loved one themselves, just in transition from one place to the next really.”
I tried to diminish the foolishness that was welling up especially in light of everything I had been told and witnessed in this short time, but being that everything was so new, it was still hard to believe. Once I could wrap my head around everything, it certainly would make it easier. I was getting tired of continually pinching myself and doubting everything.
“So, here is your room.” She opened the door and flipped on the lights.
The large bedroom was a welcoming space. I couldn’t have picked it out better if I had decorated it. The bed was right in the center of the wall between two windows that each had a window seat with pillows thrown all over. The walls were a brilliant pearl white, the curtains were a warm sage color, with flecks of color woven throughout. The comforter was white, but it had a coverlet draped across in the same hues as the curtains. It reminded me of the boulders up in Whistler. The bedside tables had an assortment of books on them. There was a sitting area that had French doors which led outside – possibly another water view.
“Holy smokes! This is mind blowing.”
Athen walked in with my bags. “Wait until you see where those French doors lead.”
I looked at him a bit confused, but my interest became quite peaked.
“Alright, I’m out,” Arie hollered. “Time for me to freshen up after the drive.”
I walked over to the other set of closed doors. One was the walk-in closet, which was huge and definitely highlighted that I didn’t have nearly enough clothes to fill it. The second door led to the bathroom. Arie was right. It didn’t disappoint and would be perfect. It, too, had a claw foot tub, displaying a perfect place for me to relax, especially after the horror filled nights I sometimes encountered.
“Ok, enough ogling at the bathroom. I want you to check out the deck.”
Athen grabbed my arm, whisking me to the French doors. He flipped on the patio light and opened up the doors fully. I couldn’t fathom what was making him so excited about this deck until we stepped out. It was wonderful, no doubt about that. I guess it worked in the winter since it was all under cover, but it seemed kind of cold for this time of year. The furniture was very pretty. Again, I didn’t see any source of heat. I couldn’t see because of the darkness, but I was guessing Puget Sound was off in the distance. But then I saw another set of French doors leading to Athen’s bedroom. I realized that was what all the excitement was about. He pulled me to the other set of French doors, my stomach started to do flips. I felt a wave of excitement crashing into me. I had no idea why. It wasn’t like anything was going to happen tonight. It never did. For crying out loud, I have my own room! It seemed like anything that had to do with one more part of exploring his life made me want to explode from the inside out.
He opened the doors, showing off a beautiful setting that I longed to be in, make mine. The light glowed out from the room and begged for me to enter. He stepped over the door and pulled me in. The layout was similar to my room, but the sitting area was larger. There were many framed pictures placed on the different pieces of furniture. I took a deep breath, secretly hoping I could possibly become that much closer to Athen by inhaling his personal space. In doing so, a wonderful woodsy scent crept through me. I suddenly knew this smell had always been with me. Athen had always been with me.
I tried to skim over looking at the bed. It was calling out to me. The goose-down comforter happened to look a little fluffier than mine or that was what I told myself. I saw a large, flat screen over his dresser, and in the far corner, I saw a fireplace with the same stone that I saw surrounding the fireplace in the family room.
“So, what do you think?”
“About which part?” I asked.
“The patio,” Athen replied.
“Yeah, it’s a pretty great.... The proximity and all. Pretty good thing,” I said, shaking my head in approval.
“You are horrible at acting disinterested,” Athen chided. Before I knew what was happening, Athen had wrapped his arms around my waist and effortlessly wrestled me to the bed.
CHAPTER 20
The Watchers Trilogy: Awakening Page 31
