Celeste

by Dale Mayer

  Very interesting.

  Not wanting to break the silence, she floated until the pool lifted her up and deposited her, soaking wet, on the side of the pool. Except she wasn’t ready to leave yet. That was the thing about the healing pools—each was different and had their own foibles. With this one, if it felt you were hiding, it would dump you out. She should have made it to the next pool. That pool knew that hiding was often the only answer. She straightened and took two steps, wincing at the excess weight of her waterlogged clothing, and the sound of her feet squelching. Only time would dry her out. She was going to have a very uncomfortable trip home.

  She picked up her bag, then gave Matt a small smile. “As you can see, I’m okay. A little wet, but fine.”

  “No, you’re not,” he countered. “You’re weak and injured, and those men were not in the woods by accident.”

  “I know. They were hunting me. But as I’m safe here, and they are gone, maybe you should go back and take care of my sisters.” She turned and started up the long track to the surface. She watched the pools twinkle and glow as she passed each one. She actually wasn’t very far down the string of pools. Granny used to go way deeper. If she hadn’t been strong enough to get here she’d have missed out on the healing. She realized how many people likely needed access to the pools, and because of the physical difficulty in reaching them, lost out. So many people. For the first time ever, she understood why people wanted to commercialize the pools.

  She didn’t agree with charging an entrance fee, but could see that at least one pool needed better access.

  “Not happening.”

  Having been lost in her own thoughts, she didn’t understand what Matt was saying. “What’s not happening?”

  “I’m not leaving you. And your sisters are well protected.”

  She studied him from under her eyelashes. He looked serious. She’d placed herself in danger. And he wasn’t going got let her walk away again—not alone.

  She really should have stayed home today. “I’m going straight home. You know as well as I do, that cottage is safe. No one can get inside.”

  “Not true. We had a problem with it before.”

  She nodded. “That’s because it was open already. As soon as I get home I will lock up tight and make sure it’s invisible to everyone. I’ll be fine.” She hoped that would be true, but realized the odds of Matt accepting that were rather low. “Besides, you need to go back to the Center. Find out what happened to those men.”

  “They were scared to death one way or another. That’s the easy part. The hard part is figuring out why. And that’s where you come in. You were there.”

  “I didn’t see anything,” she cried. “I told you that.”

  “I know,” he said in a calm voice.

  Too calm. She wanted to hit him. “Then why are you here?”

  “Because whatever terrified them is still out there. It’s an unknown, and there’s too much shit going on for any uncertainties. I’m not going to leave you alone. Regardless of whether it’s what you want or not.”

  She glared at him. “I’m fine. I was fine without you for the last year and I’ll be fine without you for the next year.” And she flounced out of the cave into the daylight. Oh, dear God. Had she flounced? As in, really tossed her head with that nose-in-the-air motion. Oh, good grief. She’d hated girls who acted like that when she was growing up. And she’d just pulled the same stunt.

  She picked up the pace, and damn near ran back to the cottage—well, as quickly as she could, considering her gimpy leg and sodden clothing. When she arrived at the heavy wall of greenery blocking the cottage from view, she turned to find Matt standing right behind her. “I told you I don’t need you to look after me,” she snapped.

  “You told me a lot. And most of it was wrong.” He motioned to the barrier. “Open up.”

  “And if I don’t want to?” she retorted. “I don’t want you here.”

  “You’ve made that clear. I, however, know how your sisters would feel if anything happened to you. So don’t worry, I’m not doing this for your sake but for theirs.”

  They were both shouting at each other, nearly nose-to-nose, when suddenly, there was a weird popping sound.

  They both turned and bolted into the center of the big overgrown barrier.

  *

  Damn, she was stubborn. He kept his body between hers and whatever was out there. How had they found her? Had they tracked him? In a way, that was the most likely, but he didn’t know. She was so damn stubborn. They could have been safely home hours ago. But no, she’d worn herself out, and had to argue until she was too tired to walk.

  Outside the barrier, he watched as she unlocked the energy wall so they could get inside. The most important issue was making sure nothing else snuck in with them. Something large rustled the foliage to his left, but he couldn’t see anything. Only Darbo’s grip on his ear said something very dangerous was moving toward them at a fast clip.

  He pushed Celeste forward, and spun around to help close the opening. Together they sealed up the protective barrier and doubled the shield. Celeste raced to the front door and unlocked the cabin. “Hurry,” she cried. “Get in.”

  Matt ran in and watched as she set up the security system. He turned to see dozens of spirit animals inside already, but they were nervous; scared, even.

  And he realized something he’d never considered before. “How did the spirit animals get in here?”

  “They crossed the energy barrier, of course.” She shot him a questioning look. “Why?”

  “What if there is a spirit animal that is evil out there? Can it come in?”

  His words stopped her in her tracks. She swallowed hard, then walked back to study her locking mechanism. She quickly made a few adjustments, her fingers visibly trembling.

  “Not now,” she whispered.

  “I guess that answered that question.”

  She shook her head. “This forest has always been one of light. Of healing. The question never arose before because it wasn’t possible before. Now there appears to be a darker element going on. I don’t like it,” she said, her voice trembling. “What’s happening here?”

  “I think it’s all part of the same issue. The rocks in your leg were the same black rocks that Portman Junior created. He left a stockpile at Grandfather’s place, only they were stolen. We thought we had retrieved them all. Three men searched the estate today with spirit animals, looking for more, and it appears as if one had been crushed by something, and the small pieces were what was left to collect. However, as long as they are out there, causing problems, it creates an opening, attracting, if you will, other animals and people of the same negative mindset.”

  “Evil, you mean,” she said quietly. “That is something Granny always warned us about, but when she was guardian, there was nothing like that here. Now that’s she’s gone…”

  “That was likely the window that allowed this dark energy to gain a foothold. Negative energy exists within us all, but when you get someone like Portman Junior, then it’s a huge problem. With Granny around, he couldn’t affect the forest, as she was here protecting it, but with her death, he saw an opening and jumped at it.”

  “Apparently, we have a lot to learn as the new guardians of the forest,” she muttered. “We suck at it, so far.”

  “You are getting on-the-job training. A trial by fire.”

  “That wouldn’t be so bad, but there is no training. We’re reacting, wandering around in the dark together, with no idea what to do.”

  She looked down at herself. “I’m going to the pool. You can do what you wish. I gather you’ve been here a time or two lately, so make yourself at home.”

  And with that, she walked to the pool room, closing the door firmly in his face.

  He knew it was going to be hard, but this hard? Could she be more frustrating? She’d walked out on him. He hadn’t walked out on her. But he felt like she was blaming him, regardless. He glanced down at Darbo. Surely n
ot because of his spirit pet. He glanced around the room at the many other animals sprawled inside the cabin. Were they here because it was safe? Because if was home? Because she was here?

  He wanted to ask them, but felt like it was intruding. As if by telling him, they’d be put in a position that wasn’t fair. Yet how and in what way, he didn’t know.

  Darbo squeaked gently in his ear.

  Matt nodded. “Right. I know that they are here because it’s home. But why did connecting to you become the last straw? We had a bond. Sure it was a bond I really wanted, but she had many other animals. Why did you cause the breakup?”

  Darbo rubbed his cheek against Matt’s chin.

  “I love you too, buddy.” And he did. Always had. Granny had told him about Darbo a long time ago. But he hadn’t seen him until after he’d met Celeste. And then the attraction had been immediate, the bond quickly cementing after that. But he’d have not known anything, without Granny having said something to him first. He’d not been exposed to the world of spirit pets prior to, and even from, the first mention. It had taken months, if not years, before he’d seen Darbo for the first time. The kid in him had been delighted by the tiny sprite, and realizing that he could be with him all the time, the lonely kid inside had reveled.

  He still didn’t understand why she’d been so upset. There’d been so many animals in her life.

  But it had been bad.

  And was still bad if that closed door was any indication.

  He took a deep breath and admitted it to himself. He loved her. He wasn’t sure he ever really stopped. Yet there was no easy pathway forward. With a several-hour wait ahead, he turned his attention to the small cottage. He’d been here a couple of times before, but hadn’t had a chance to really look. The first time, things had been tense and he’d only barely gotten a chance to look at the kitchen. The pool room he’d seen this morning only, and it fascinated him. It had to be special, if it had been Granny’s personal pool. That woman had lived well past an ancient age.

  Given other circumstances, he could be in there with her. He frowned, realizing that for all the routineness of the day, he was actually feeling fine. His energy was holding strong. Was that from being close to Celeste? They were grounding rods for each other. Being in the special cottage with the natural healing energy that abounded here helped, too.

  A special sensation, almost a tingling deep inside, permeated his sense of well-being. In fact, he was delighted to be here. And even if there was a door between them, he was glad to be here with Celeste.

  He glanced out the window, seeing the wind pick up again. The weather should have been nice and sunny, not hot exactly, but warm. The storms had gotten much worse these last few months. This last year, in fact. Scientists had been working on the reasons behind the decline, but so far, no one had found a cause.

  Given the sisters’ influence on the weather, he’d had to wonder if they’d been responsible for that, as well. If so, they needed to get all three women on track as soon as possible. Agriculture was taking a hit, and regardless of everyone’s personal history, the world still needed to eat.

  He drifted around the room, taking a look at ancient pictures on the walls, paintings with Granny’s signature. Paintings of scenery that glowed with the promise of so much more. He had no idea Granny had done anything other than star charts. He looked above his head to where the thousands of other star charts were stored in the attic. He wanted them safe in the vault at the Center, but wasn’t sure it would happen. Something else the sisters were waiting on Celeste for. There were major decisions the three needed to come to a consensus on.

  He chafed with impatience. Time was marching forward; now if only Celeste would, too. He wanted to give her time, but there was so much that needed to be dealt with, that he couldn’t give her much.

  Finally, he slumped down on one of the large, overstuffed chairs, and leaned his head back. He’d not had a decent night’s sleep in over a year. And now that Celeste was home, rest was tantalizingly close. But with matters still so unsettled, he knew it wasn’t going to happen any time soon. He yawned and let his mind drift.

  “Sleep, Matt.”

  His eyes popped open. “Who said that?”

  No answer.

  Feeling like a fool, he studied each of the spirit animals, but none appeared to be able to talk to him. At least, not in that tone of voice like a person.

  But damn…

  He closed his eyes, feeling the pull of slumber taking him down, deeper and deeper. Until he let go and slept.

  Chapter 10

  Celeste knew the moment Matt fell asleep in the other room. The energy in the cabin calmed immediately. She’d seen how much older he’d looked today. The last year had taken a toll on him. And her. Apparently, on them all. Particularly on her forest. It bothered her to think that the way of life of her ancestors, her granny, was over. But allowing negative energy in was allowing exactly that to happen.

  Resolute, she tried to look at it logically. The rift had happened when Granny had disappeared. They hadn’t known how to handle her loss, their lives, or the forest, and hadn’t a clue of what was going on. But like everything in life, there were windows of opportunity, and in one the darkness had crept inside.

  But that didn’t mean it should stay inside.

  They had enough loving positive, healing energy between them to heal the forest, that meant they had enough positive energy to kick out that negative energy, too.

  That was the answer. That negative energy needed to be surrounded by love, by light. Healed in such a way that it was no longer negative. Instinctively, she knew that was the way that Granny would have dealt with this. In fact, it was likely she had, many times over.

  There’d been many times when Granny had told them she had to go to the pools to heal, yet she herself had appeared to be fine. They’d taken it for granted over time. But what if she’d gone to use the energy of the caves to help her to heal other things—other people, other animals. The world, even. Granny was nothing if not capable.

  There were other energy workers in other towns on Glory, and Celeste realized that they might have a similar system in place. Maybe not stargazers—but maybe there were some of those too. She only had her granny’s word that the girls were the last stargazers here, but maybe it was here that was the issue. What if there were other stargazers in other parts of the planet? Teachers holding sovereign reign over each one’s corner of the world.

  What if the whole planet was suffering as each generation came along, each new one less proficient in doing what the ancients had done? The population grew all the time as longevity increased. Fewer people were dying young, which was causing a shift in the demographics. There might be more young people, but they weren’t caring about the old ways. She and her sisters had been the butt of many jokes during school. And partly for that reason. They were old-fashioned. Didn’t have the latest and the best.

  As she and sisters had adored their granny, many of the other kids had told horrible tales of their parents and other relatives. As if respect was dwindling and love fading away.

  Such a problem was too big for just the three sisters, but not if they banded together with other healers. They could heal the planet.

  She slumped back into the water. Just listen to her. For a moment there, she almost sounded like her granny when they’d been younger. She’d been full of plans. Always about helping others. Helping animals, plants.

  And with her gone it was up to Celeste and the other two to pick up the reins and do their damnedest to step into Granny’s shoes.

  *

  He woke with a headache and a shock to his nervous system. A second storm—or maybe the same one—cracked overhead. Lightning flashed and lit the room. There were even more spirit animals in the cottage now, and he couldn’t avoid them if he tried. He was desperate for a cup of coffee, but knew the sisters lived on tea. He just figured the jolt of caffeine would have helped combat the jolt to his nerves. He normally lo
ved storms, but there was nothing normal about any of the ones happening lately. And that was just crazy. So much power surged outside. Why had they gotten so strong and weird? And the strangest thing was the colors. In his childhood, he remembered all storms being white, black and gray. Storm colors. Now there was an infused green light, and sometimes purple shades, as they flashed and danced in the wind. Everyone thought they were pretty, but he was afraid that they meant something ominous.

  He knew when Celeste woke in her bed. Heard her as she moved around the bedroom. Felt when she got up and opened her door. He stood and stretched. He’d been sleeping awkwardly in the living room chair. Everything hurt. It was silly, as there were other beds here. Connor and Devon had both spent nights here, and he was certain their nights had to have been better than his. He massaged the crick in his neck.

  “I didn’t want to wake you,” Celeste said when she walked out in her pajamas. The first he’d seen her wear. “You were sleeping heavy.”

  “That’s all right…” He narrowed his gaze and studied her face. “How do you feel?”

  And realized there was something different about her. But what? She looked calmer. More settled.

  “I’m actually going back into the pool,” she shrugged. “There’s a few things I need to work on.”

  He wanted to ask more, but didn’t feel like it would be welcome. “Can I get you anything?”

  She shook her head. “I’ll be fine,” she murmured. She took several steps in the direction of the pool room, when a particularly loud crack of thunder smashed overhead.

  She stopped and stared. “It’s really storming out there.”

  “I’ve never seen one like this.” He motioned outside. “Is the cottage still hidden with all that energy going on?”

  “Meaning?”

  “Will the electrical flow outside affect the energy of your shields.”