Boxing, Martial Arts, Tai-Chi, Chi-Kong....and women, of course. Young Resnan had nothing on him at that age for sure.
Nothing relaxed him more or more rapidly than physical exertion however and, by God, he needed that today.
By the time he slowed down, spent, his muscles felt heavy but his mind was as clear as the moon now hanging over the horizon.
That is, of course, until he heard the water being displaced by a body wading in slowly from the shore. Looking up, he made out Serbell's slim figure making her way toward him, water up to her waist. And she definitely wasn't wearing that t-shirt anymore.
What the hell are you doing? Her panicked thoughts resembled rats in a maze, as the water crept up her legs. Well, she was past any turning point now, she told herself firmly.
With the mental image of her skulking through the village in her oversize wet t-shirt and equally soppy underwear she had been struck by the sudden realization that in her need for control she had actually lost any control over the situation she might ever have had. She would have laughed at herself if it hadn't been so pathetic.
So, instead of leaving, with or without a farewell, she sat down on the sand and did some soul-searching, Then, standing up she quickly rid herself of her clinging t-shirt and painstakingly tied sandals, and walked into the cool water hastily, not giving the clamouring voice in her head a chance to change her mind.
Instead she concentrated on the sight in front of her. The moonlight was strong enough for her to see his gleaming body as it sliced through the lake, just in case she had forgotten just how hot the man was. Suddenly the water didn't feel so cool to her skin any more, she shivered and the tight coil in her middle settled more firmly between her legs.
That this incredibly sexy man could want her....
She watched for a while, greedily taking in every detail, until he slowed down and stopped, finally looking up. The shadows cast by the moonlight on his features made her unsure of his expression. Was that a tentative smile, or a mocking smirk?
Her mouth suddenly ran dry. What if she had misread the whole situation, if he didn't want her and that was the reason he'd been avoiding her?
Surely....
Over the sudden rushing in his ears Benton was aware of her hesitation and understood that this was a huge leap of faith for this woman. If he didn't take immediate action she would turn tail and flee.
¨Serbell,¨ he called, his voice low and husky from pure need, ¨if we don't lose this space between us this instant....right now...I....¨
The rest of the sentence was lost as their wet bodies collided and their mouths were suddenly too busy for words.
And that quick, the walls were down, all hesitation gone. His strong hands caressed their way down her arms, down her back, and came to rest under the water on her hips, pressing her to him. She responded immediately, snaking her slim arms around his neck. The gentleness of the fingers caressing the back of his head was belied by the aggressive way her lips were trying to devour him.
Letting his hands slide lower he palmed her firm behind, feeling the spongy material of her underwear beneath his fingers. Boosted by the water he lifted her up with no effort and in a heartbeat her long toned legs were wrapped around his waist.
Coming up for air they stared into each other's eyes and Benton was floored by the look of naked lust he found in her gaze. He groaned as, laying her head on his shoulder she turned her face and gently nibbled his ear. Holding on to his self-control with some difficulty he disengaged himself firmly and gently eased her back down on her feet. They were both breathing quickly, and the laugh he forced out sounded as strained as he felt.
¨God, girl! You will be the death of me yet.¨ Dismay crept into her eyes until he added, ¨Let's get some clothes on and see where we can go.¨
¨There's no-one here, Benton.¨
Her voice, husky and deep, matched the slight puffiness of her lips and went straight to his groin, cool water or not. Pressing herself against him her lips sought his again.
If they didn't get out of here soon he was going to lose it.
Even if she was ready to go public on their relationship she still wouldn't enjoy people busting in on them now, and neither would he.
¨What happened to the woman who needed her privacy?¨ he whispered, breaking off the kiss, ¨Anyone could arrive any moment now, and see us. I really, really want no interruptions.¨
Giving him the cutest heated gaze she sighed and, lacing her fingers with his, turned and started making her way back toward the shore tugging at his arm impatiently. He couldn't help grinning at her eagerness; that is, till the water level descended, and he could see her in all her glory, wet underwear clinging to that perfect body.
He couldn't wait to rip that off her.
With his teeth, if possible.
It was a measure of his self-control that he was able to towel himself dry and help her to wrap a towel around herself too, without jumping her. Especially in the light of the saucy minx's smirk when he couldn't keep his hands to himself while doing it.
Even though he himself was uncharacteristically clumsy putting on his own clothes, distracted as he was by her taste still lingering maddeningly on his tongue, he had a strong suspicion she didn't really need to steady herself by holding on to him as much as she did while she got dressed. After all, she'd managed to snap her t-shirt on pretty quick when he first caught sight of her.
He just knew he was being goaded when she wiggled her butt into her jeans while shooting him a pointed look over her shoulder, but he still couldn't keep his eyes from widening. If he hadn't been so turned on he would have laughed. Who would have thought Serbell capable of this?
Sri chuckled to himself and hurried on his way, avoiding the path to the lake. This was the down-side of his talent, the unintentional prying that sometimes occurred. His intention had not been to eavesdrop on Benton and Serbell's thoughts, and as soon as he'd realised there was someone down at the lake at this late hour he had backtracked, but not fast enough to avoid overhearing them.
He was relieved those two seemed to have resolved their issues; he had to admit to himself that for a telepath like himself it had been pretty heavy going around them. More than once he had caught himself picking the opposite direction as soon as he detected their ever more heated and frustrated thoughts. Now, however, they seemed to be pretty committed to their course of action, even if their destination was still unsure. He would give them some privacy and steer clear of either house for the night, anyway. Hot as it was a dip in the lake's cool water would have been welcome, but he would make do with a quick wash at the pump today.
At least someone would be more relaxed tomorrow.
He sighed, reflecting that in the face of the present strange mood in the community those two love-birds were a breath of fresh air. He himself felt the need for some peace and quiet...he would really like to sit down and figure out how he could use the information Yeshra had garnered to help Michael, but the tension around him kept jostling him out of his introspection.
He wasn't exactly sure why, but there was a certain feeling of expectancy in the air, as if something were about to happen. Yeshra herself had confirmed it for him when asked; something was up, she could feel it.
On the one hand, there were the kids...
It was obvious that with the Healer's counselling and supervision they were making great progress controlling and exploring their talents, even reluctant, stubborn individuals like Lillith and Ren.
That was good, and helped his case when confronting reticent villagers like those who had sided with Quentin. As he had predicted, the man had slowly lost support and was growing so frustrated he might, with some luck, decide to leave the village once and for all. Sri wasn't pushing him, but he wouldn't stop him either. Truth to tell, he had always been a thorn in the community's flesh, with his rage, hatred and ridiculous, out-dated racism. Few, if any, would be sorry to see him go.
What was really exciting, from his point of
view, was the trend the young people's thoughts were taking. From his standpoint it was uplifting to see a future being mapped out in their minds.
He had witnessed the breakdown of all hope for the future after the Conflagration, and then the frantic and eventually numbing fight for mere survival the adults had experienced. Few among the older generation could do more than simply live day by day...they had been broken. Dreaming seemed to be beyond them, and dreams were needed to build something on the broken shards of the old civilisation.
But these kids, they had plans, and seemed to be ready to take on the responsibility of this new world.
And it would be a very different world. They would see to it.
Leiren, though, worried him. She seemed to have her own agenda and Sri wasn't sure it went along with that of this new generation. He sensed they were reaching some kind of turning point. Though he knew better than to violate her trust when it came to attempting to read her mind Leiren kept her thoughts tightly guarded, and yet he could almost feel a distinct hum when she was around, something akin to a swarming beehive behind a closed door.
She was powerful and not to be underestimated. As much as he admired her every instinct told him to be wary.
Some poisonous snakes were undoubtedly fascinating too, especially to their prey.
CHAPTER 12
CONFLICT
Yeshra was feeling antsy. That old saying, ¨as if someone were walking on one's grave¨, was apt enough.
She knew bad weather was on its way, a day away at the most, but it wasn't just the present muggy heat bothering her. There was another kind of storm brewing.
She could tell Lillith was restless too, pushing some scraps of food around on her plate, the last one to finish the midday meal, and who could blame her, poor child?
As for Resnan....Yeshra frowned, tucking a stray blond lock back in place behind her ear.
Everyone knew she didn't always see eye to eye with Leiren; she was a hard woman to cross..... but her methods were effective.
She herself would rather die than let the Healer know how much her own ability had increased from simply covertly watching her children at work and then practising on her own.
Because of those exercises carried out in secret she had been able to sense that poor crazed man within his out-of-control tornado of emotions, and was now able to feel how strong her son's life-force had become. It was strong enough to almost drown everyone else's entirely. And it made her nervous.
Dinain, she thought with a sense of gratefulness, was a different matter. She could sense him from across the table too, his slow steady pulse in the room grounding her in its reliability. Their relationship might have changed, but that did not make her blind to her husband's virtues.
¨All I'm saying, little sister, is that you should give it a try.¨
¨I'm not experimenting with this, Resnan.¨ Lillith sounded strained, her forehead glistening damply from the heat, and her mother wondered just how hard that woman was making her work.
¨You seem to be enjoying yourself thoroughly, but it's not a game!¨
There was a sharp edge of fear in her voice.
¨Lighten up, for goodness sake!¨ he was unrepentant, of course. She had yet to see her son admit to being wrong. ¨You're fast becoming as shrewish as that teacher of yours. If you don't learn to go with the flow and enjoy yourself a bit I doubt Ren will want to stick around for long.¨
The young brunette blushed scarlet and stiffened in embarrassment and indignation. As Yeshra watched helplessly, a hefty stick materialised behind the tall boy and smacked him, albeit gently, on the side of his head.
¨That's enough!¨
Dinain's gruff voice broke in on them as he rose from his place at the head of the table. The stick instantly disappeared and Lillith had the grace to look shame-faced. Her brother, however, was unperturbed, a small smile playing around his mouth.
¨Your control has increased vastly, Sis.¨ he cried grinning perversely. ¨You nearly brained Terrell the last time I saw you do that. I must say, though, you always play the same trick. Sooooo predictable.¨
They stared at him, nonplussed, and he flashed his teeth at them cheekily, stuffing a piece of bread in his mouth. In spite of his effort at growing a bushier beard Yeshra was forcibly reminded of how he had looked when he was caught up to no good as a kid.
Dinain was not amused. ¨I'm sure you have better things to do besides goading your sister, boy.¨ he said sitting back down with a menacing scowl, the tendons in his neck standing out tensely. ¨And if you don't, make sure you find them quick, before I do.¨
Slow to anger as he was, his first-born was exhausting his patience today. The kid was obviously up to something but he couldn't see why it had to involve torturing Lillith. What he did know was that if she lost it and that...power, or whatever it was, got out of control...well, facing Leiren's wrath might be the best part.
As for that comment about Benton's nephew, he didn't know how to take it. Maybe it was just Resnan teasing. He definitely hoped that was all it was. He wiped his damp brow. This damn heat was getting to him.
The plaintive note in his son's voice brought him back to the present.
¨Dad, all I'm trying to get her to see, to get all of them to see, is that there is so much more to be done here than just work at being miserable all day. If all of us lent a hand with our talents, imagine all we could do, how much fun we could have doing it.¨
¨Or the havoc we could wreak!¨ Lillith actually looked a bit sick at the thought.
Yeshra stepped in, ¨Resnan, there is a difference between attracting small animals or reading their minds, like Leni and that other little girl, what’s-her-name...and what your sister and Ren can do.¨
She was actually quite upset with her adored son. He seemed bent on ignoring the potential for destruction in the slim young girl in front of him. She knew first hand, after meeting Michael, that these Talents if not under control, were no joke.
¨Mother, that's what I'm talking about. We're concentrating on the bad part, instead of the good. Leiren herself looks at both of them, at all of us, really, as…weapons, I think. And I must admit that...bothers me.¨
Such an admission from her easy-going brother stunned Lillith. She could have sworn he didn't give a toss about her, but the mischievous look was gone, and his expression was really serious. Also, he had given voice to something that worried her, too. She could see both her parents were equally surprised, though her mother was the first to find her voice.
¨I must admit that's been bothering me too.¨ Her blue eyes were worried and searched for her husband's darker gaze. ¨I'm not saying Leiren's intentions aren't ultimately good, but...¨
¨Yes, that is the problem, I guess.¨ Lillith whispered hesitantly, playing with the bread-crumbs in front of her, before continuing in a rush, ¨We don't really know what she wants from us, and some of us are beginning to feel like we have less and less control over our futures, even as we gain control over our talents.¨
Once she had admitted this, she felt much better, as if a heavy load had been lifted off her slender shoulders. A load she hadn't even been aware of. It was just as hot, of course, but even though she could feel the sweat trickling down her back under the thin cotton shirt and the hair sticking to the nape of her neck, the heat didn't seem as oppressive, somehow.
She had tentatively brought the issue up with Ren on several occasions, and it always frustrated her that he seemed to be so sure the Healer could be trusted. She could remember a not so distant time when he didn't even like the woman. And yes, even though she was painfully aware of how dangerous their gifts could be she knew she wasn't the only one to feel uncomfortable with Leiren's complete control. She had heard rumblings of discontent among her fellow-students, too.
¨We're all behind you, Lillith.¨ Her brother's words caught her by surprise, though, as did the strong hug her mother gave her. ¨You should not have to do anything you are not comfortable with.¨
Looking up
she saw her father nodding his grey head thoughtfully. ¨I wonder,¨ the older man said slowly, ¨Resnan, how many of you kids do you reckon feel like this?¨
As she waited for Sri and Serbell at the village square Yeshra was doing her best to quiet her treacherous mind. She trusted the doctor, but as unsure as she was about the decisions the kids would make she didn't really want to alert him to the situation before time.
This could turn out to be messy. Her own allegiances were clear, she thought grimly, rubbing her pale hands nervously, but if, when, the proverbial shit hit the fan, she didn't know whose side Sri would be on, if any.
Seeking to distract herself she inspected the big squarish slab of grey rock she was standing next to. At one time it had probably been the base for some monument, or even a cross, but now it could have been just another piece of weathered and forlorn masonry littering the square. It was only saved from such anonymity by its placement in the middle of the clearing, probably an important landmark at some time. Another reminder of the destruction they had rained down on humanity.
This was the appointed meeting point for their daily ventures into the Land of Scary, as Serbell had christened their work after her first time over at Michael's.
Yeshra had decided pretty early on that she needed back-up – Sri's presence was simply not enough. Plus, even though he was evidently a gentle man, his energy was still too fiery, too masculine for her purposes. She now realised Leiren would probably have been, with her strong abrasive personality, the worse possible person to approach Michael and, though she tried not to feel too smug about this, she couldn't help a tentative smile from lifting the corners of her mouth. It wasn't like she was competing or anything, but it did feel good to best the wise-woman at something.
Aftermath Page 15
