“Serena, Layla, who is that?” I questioned.
“That was our backup plan. Jessica, meet Jonah Marquez, our older brother.”
“Jonah?” I whispered. “Oh, yeah, my dad mentioned him being here. Kezia was not pleased about you working with him”
“My mother?” Serena rounded on me then. “You spoke to her?”
“Yes, I did. She gave me a message to give to you, but privately.” Serena nodded her head, acknowledging that it was best to wait on that. “Is it safe? Can Jack stand down now?”
“Yes, I promise, Jonah will remain on his best behavior.”
“Jack, please, a little space?” It took a few minutes, but Jack reluctantly allowed a little more space between himself, Sierra, and I. He took up a position to my left again, and waited silently, as a sentry would. It was clear that everyone was shocked by his behavior, but then again, we hadn’t really understood what the whole guardian thing would entail, even when we agreed to it on the other side. Mikael was back to looking rather unpleasant again, only now it was directed at both Jack and I.
Jonah caught my attention before I could dwell on my personal issues with my mate though. “I am truly sorry that your father was lost before I could make it here, young wolf. I know you mean a great deal to my sister, and therefore you mean as much to me. Had I known Louis was here, and up to no good, I would have come sooner.”
“You’re like him though… how, err, why would you help?”
“I am only like him in the most base ways. I was born a ‘dark one’ as you call them. I like to think that maybe the modern term for a male witch, a warlock, would be more appropriate. Although, I suppose, the pop culture term-vampire-could work too if I were to be nit-picky. At any rate, I was born this. Louis was born human, and made into something resembling what I am. That makes him weaker. We both became Fiul Sange, and while that means he can walk in the light, as I can; he cannot access the magics of the witch he consumed. That is the difference between those who are made and those who are born.”
“I do not wish to be as Louis is, always ambitious and looking for more power. I am happy with what I am, and I live a life mostly of solitude. I must eat, but I do so without taking lives. Louis and his ilk are tainted versions of the originals that turned them. As to the why, I helped because my sister asked that I did so. While I may not have been aware of the secret that the white wolves were direct descendants of my sister, I know now, and as such you will always be offered my protection. We are family. My mother may not have understood family bonds in doing what she did, but my Aunt Bryn did, and she helped me to live. For her, I will always owe my allegiance to my blood-kin first.”
“You have my thanks.” I offered. He bowed his head and said no more. “What happened here?” I asked of anyone who bothered to answer.
“Louis came with his minions. He said that since you failed him, he was going to send each and every one of us to the other side to greet you.” It was Mikael who spoke up. “That was our first indication that you were dead. I had a hard time believing it, because I never felt it.” He was lost in thought for a minute. “You know, they all say that when you’re a mated pair, you feel the death of your mate like a piece of your own soul has been ripped from you, but I never felt anything.”
“I felt it when Jack was gone.” Sierra admitted shakily.
“As did I, when Jameson…” My mom’s voice trailed off, as she turned to stare out the window so we wouldn’t see her tears fall again.
“I never did,” Mikael reiterated. “I wondered if that meant you were still alive, but then days passed by and you didn’t come back home.” I explained how time worked differently in the other realm, and that I wanted to get back as soon as Kezia explained that it was possible. Mikael simply nodded his head, and continued to stare off into space.
Jack finally spoke again then. “It’s because Jessie wasn’t dead. She walked, alive, through the gateway.”
“That’s what troubles me. My mate walked willingly into the world beyond, knowing it would be her death, and she took the baby she was trying to save with her. I just don’t get that.”
I knew, in a way, that Mikael’s anger was justified, but I also felt I could be justified in hating the way he approached me, and what happened while I was gone. I didn’t get the chance to finish explaining anything, because Jack managed to grab a second wind and started preaching about what happened. “That very same thing is the reason they were able to send her back, because she was still of the living, and just trapped on the wrong side.” Jack informed everyone for me. “But that doesn’t explain exactly what went on here while Jess was on the other side.”
“We’ll get to what happened here in a minute, but first, I think I’m going to need for someone to explain to me what exactly it means to be a Wraith Guardian.” Mikael said as he eyed Jack suspiciously.
“Honestly, that’s something I would like to know myself.” Jack answered. “I know that I am bound to Jess and her line, and for now I am also bound to the baby she had with her on the other side. Beyond that, I’m not entirely sure what I am. I thought they were sending me back as a werewolf, just one that would live a lot longer. I don’t feel the same as I did when I was alive though, so I have no clue.”
“He is, as my brother suggested, a Guardian Wraith. It means that Jack isn’t alive in the same way that any of the rest of us are. He straddles the worlds of the living and the dead in ways that even I don’t fully understand yet.” Layla was eyeing Jack in a curious manner. “He has more power to protect than that of the simple wolf he once was, and he will always feel the call to be near the white wolf, not just to be near them, but to protect them at all costs.” Layla stepped forward and came within inches of Jack. She reached out her hand and pulled up just short of touching his face. “He appears to be alive in his human form. I think we will see that in his wolf form, he will take on a completely different look.”
“Um, yeah, that of a wolf.” Ashley chimed in. I could almost hear her internally screaming, ‘duh!’ at Layla.
Layla schooled her face quickly to hide the smirk that had started when Ashley spoke. “I meant that his wolf would not look the way anyone remembers. I’m giving this an educated guess, mind you. I think since he appears so normal now, that is where we will all be able to see his wraith traits in action.” Layla spoke one on one to Jack then, “we can test that out later, if you like?”
Jack nodded his head, but said no more. I think he was afraid to appear too curious about his newfound gifts. As he pondered that, I just stood there staring down at my baby girl. I thought of my dad, and how he would never get to see her growing up. He would never get to watch her run with the pack for the first time, the way he had always wanted me to run with everyone. He wouldn’t be there to see if I had any more children either. I don’t know when the tears started falling, but they did. After a few minutes a hand appeared in front of face, catching a tear that would have fallen directly on my daughter’s cheek. I looked up into the warm emerald pools of Mikael’s eyes, and I managed to get out, “I really need to know what happened to my dad. Please!”
“When Louis showed up, your dad was already fighting some stray dark ones. I don’t know,” Mikael started as he ran his fingers nervously through his hair. “I think they did it on purpose to make sure the bulk of our toughest fighters were already busy when Louis showed up. When he did, he saw me standing there, still holding Willow. I imagine he put two and two together, and realized that the baby you went to rescue at the portal wasn’t yours after all.” Mikael reached down and swiped his finger gently across Willow’s jawline then. “I turned to pass Willow to Eileen, so that she could get her somewhere safe, but just as she reached for the baby, I felt the crack in my leg. Your mom’s quick thinking saved Willow. She grabbed the baby, and called out to your dad all at once. I’m sure she gave him some boost to get their faster, or something. She had to, because he was nowhere near us when Louis got there.”
�
�Your dad threw himself between Louis and I. He jumped into his wolf form to attack, but before he could fully transform, Louis had his neck snapped. I heard it breaking just as surely as I heard my own leg snapping under the weight of his original attack. He was shouting that Jameson was just the beginning. He had plans to send the lot of us straight to hell to greet our famed white wolf ruler, who he’d already put there.”
“He didn’t put me there.” I whispered through my tears.
“We know that, now. Before Louis could come for me again, Jonah showed up, and called out to him.” Mikael looked over at Jonah then. “I’m not sure why, but Louis turned as if he had no choice, but to listen.”
“You are correct. He had no choice. I wasn’t aware it would be like that for another Fiul Sange, but it was worth a shot. I have a sort of control over the lesser beings like that are somewhat like myself. My Aunt Bryn, she was believed to be the Valkyrie Brynhildr, was adept with the death arts. She was much like my sister, Layla. I could not tell you if she were actually a Valkyrie, as she used to laugh at my inquiries as to how she chose which men to take to Valhalla”
Serena seemed to find that funny. “I bet she did laugh at that.”
“Yes, well, she used to say, ‘why would I chose the men, when the women are the real power?’” Jonah smiled at his own memory, but remembered his audience, and continued on. “As I was saying, I seem to have inherited her abilities to commune with the dead, or should I say, those who have been to the brink and back.”
“I have been to the brink and back, technically.” I spoke up nervously. “Can you control me?”
“Jessica, come to me,” Jonah called out with intent. I didn’t feel a damn bit different, and certainly had no sudden urge-or any at all-to go to Jonah. Mikael’s hand twitched forward, ready to snatch me back if I moved. This amused Jonah to no end. The side of his full mouth hitched up in a grin before he addressed me again. “It would appear not. Nor, as we have already seen, was I able to control your Guardian Wraith.”
“What about Louis? What exactly did you do to get rid of him and his minions?”
“Oh, I sent him home with his tail between his legs, and his minions - as you call them - have been dispatched into the great beyond.”
“What exactly does, ‘sent him home with his tail between his legs’ mean to you?”
“Exactly that. He has gone to the place he calls home, and he won’t be able to make another move until he builds another army, and is able to have my suggestion scrubbed from his subconscious. I’m sure that’s something that my sister, Vivianna will help him with after she feels he has been punished for his failures long enough.”
I turned to address Serena then. “Your family literally makes my head hurt with the weirdness that surrounds you all.”
“And you as well, my dear many-times-great granddaughter.” Jack and Asi both snickered at that, but checked themselves and stopped when I sent them both my best evil eye impression. “Jessica, I wish that I could have saved your father. He was a good man. He will be missed dearly.” Serena then approached my mother, “I am here to help in any way until you are able to heal and move forward.”
“Thank you,” my mother offered weakly. “Actually, right now, I think I just want to hug my daughter for a minute, and then head off to bed for a bit.”
“Understandable.” Serena moved away quickly so that I could get to my mom.
“Do we need to worry about Vivianna giving Louis a quick recharge?” I asked as I shifted Willow so I could hold her on my left side while I wrapped my right arm around my mother’s shoulders.
“No. I have already spoken to her. She understands that no more of this nonsense will be tolerated right now. Besides, even if she were going to ignore our warnings it takes a while to for the Fiul Sange to recharge their batteries after a creation. For every dark one he creates in the future, it will take a lot of effort and some magical aid for each one from my sister’s part in order to make it work. He doesn’t have the ability to create new dark ones without the aid of a witch. That is one thing we all do have in our favor. It’s a very draining process for all those concerned when you’re starting from scratch.”
“Okay, I understand now.” I looked at my mother then. “Can I get you anything?” I asked.
“No, I’ll be fine. I just really want to go curl up and sleep for a little while.” When I gave my mom a concerned look, she nearly smiled. “I’m not going to sleep permanently. I do want to watch Willow grow up. I just need some time to heal first.”
I didn’t bother with the public hug. Instead, I followed my mom into her bedroom after handing Willow to Mikael. It took me a moment to realize that Jack was following me as well. “What are you doing?”
He had the presence of mind to look a tiny bit startled by his own actions, and a little bit more embarrassed by them. “I don’t know. Honestly, Jessie, this is really weird for me. You move, I feel compelled to follow.”
“Well, go protect your other charges right now, and give me a few minutes alone with my mom, please.”
“I really don’t think…”
“Jack, we’re going to work this out, but right now, I need to grieve with my mom, and Willow and baby Jack are out there with a Fiul Sange, a couple witches, and a bunch of werewolves. I think maybe there’s more danger out there than there could possibly be for me, in here, with my mom.”
“I know. I know. Ugh.” He turned, and appeared to be almost pained as he walked back into the other room.
“That’s going to take some getting used to, I think.” My mom was watching as Jack shut the door behind him, but she didn’t turn to me immediately. Instead, she picked up one of my father’s shirts that were lying on top of the dresser. She put it to her face and inhaled deeply. “I can’t believe he’s gone.” With that one sentence, she crumpled into a heap on the bed with that shirt clutched to her chest, and she let loose with great big, racking sobs.
“Mom, I’m so sorry. If I had known…” I cut myself off, because even knowing that I might be putting my father’s life at risk, there was no way I could leave a helpless baby to die in his place.
My mom threw her warm hand around my own, and just held it there, in mid-air between us. “Don’t.” That was all she said. So, I climbed in the bed behind her, and spooned up to her backside. I wrapped my arms around her, and just held on while she sobbed for a while. I’m not even sure how long we stayed that way, but before long, my mom was asleep, and I remembered that there were more answers needed.
I dislodged myself from my mother as gently as I could, and tucked her plush blanket in around her, before I went back out into the living room. “Hey, we figured you would be in there with your mom a while. I was just about to send everyone home.” Mikael called softly when he saw me.
“It’s okay, please stay, just a little bit longer.” It was a directive to everyone still present. “With everything else that happened, I didn’t hear about why you and Asi were back here to begin with. I mean, the last time we spoke you were still tracking the prisoners down.”
Mikael took hold of my hand, and led me over to the couch so we could sit while we talked. “Actually, I was so angry when you hung up on me that I threw my phone…” I heard Asi chuckling from where he was seated in his chair, with Ashley asleep in his lap. Mikael ignored him, and continued. “Anyway, me getting frustrated turned out to be a good thing. Apparently, the stupid hunters have a cloaking ability we weren’t aware of before.” I saw Gabriel shift uneasily then. “He had himself and Clarissa cloaked somehow. We were almost on top of them and wouldn’t have known it if I hadn’t just chucked my cell phone at the guy’s head.”
“We would have thought it was odd that the damn phone bounced off of nothing and broke, but the hunter was so pissed about his head accidentally taking a beating that he lost his focus for a minute, and that’s all we needed.” Asriel finished for him.
“So, you guys found them by accident?” I looked back and forth between Asi
and Mikael. Asi offered up a funny little shoulder shrug and a sheepish grin. Mikael stayed stoic. “An accident that occurred because you lost your temper with me?”
“Yeah, that’s about the gist of it.”
“Huh,” I was lost in thought for a second before I was interrupted again.
“What’s ‘huh’ mean?” Mikael asked.
“Well, apparently, I’m so bad-ass I can solve crimes while solving crimes! I went off to get a baby back, and helped find your escaped prisoners while I was at it.” I was making fun of this situation, because if I didn’t laugh, I was going to start crying, and I honestly wasn’t sure if I would stop. I think everyone else was probably feeling a bit of that too, because Mikael didn’t even yell at me for inappropriate laughter this time. He just shook his head, and joined in.
After I got myself under control again I remembered an important piece to this puzzle. “Wait, where the hell are they now if you captured them?”
“We dropped them in the hole, under heavy guard, for now. Once we got close enough to the pack land, it was obvious that it would be difficult to continue on without either losing track of them or just having to kill them altogether. One of the pack who went with us on the hunt explained that you had a temporary holding facility just on the far border.”
“We hid them well, but it didn’t take long for the dark ones to find us.” Asi added.
“We had to fight a few stragglers before we got back to your parents’ house.” Mikael started again. “I’ll be honest, once we were here, I had a lot more on my mind than the those two down in that hole. We only got back here a few minutes before Louis did.”
“I have already called those who were left hidden and on guard. They are alive, well, and continue to do their jobs.” Asi explained to me.
“So, what are we going to do with them now. Obviously, the locks won’t hold them, and what we have them in now isn’t good for a long-term scenario. At least, not until we get it fixed up.”
The Ancients Series Page 80
