The Covenant of Shadows Collection

by Kade Cook

  The trio’s glances dance around the room, bouncing off each other in a wild flurry as if the words were in a foreign language they cannot comprehend. Their faces remain calm but a silent exchange takes place between them that Rachael is not privy to.

  “What do you mean you do not know?” Ariah squeaks, her eyes wide and shifting as if embarrassed by the youngling’s abrupt answer. Her tone corrects as she continues her question. “Don’t you see her every day?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “And you are telling me that you do not know the condition of her well-being?”

  “Yes, I am,” Rachael answers, unbothered by her Elder’s expectant glare.

  “I am sorry but I do not understand how…”

  Rachael huffs and takes a quick drink. “To tell you the truth, I haven’t really spoken to her much since she survived the attack and we started work in Ethan’s office—nothing more than business talk, getting everything set up here and closing up in Manhattan. She has been stuck to Shane like glue which I understand, the whole ‘love thing’ and all,” she says, giving the air quote signs as she does. “I get that, but it’s almost like she is avoiding me. Her looks and actions remind me of when she…”

  Rachael’s mind screams out at her to shut up, reminding her of the scared and tortured look Gabrian wore upon her face when she realized what she had done to all those people in the park in Manhattan not so long ago—how she had stolen their life essences and nearly killed them in the process. Gabrian’s eyes seem to carry the same panicked look now as they did then.

  Rachael gasps in mid-sentence to her Elders, maybe having realized why Gabrian is not talking to her. She knows Rachael will make her tell her what is really going on with her.

  “When she what, dear?” Vaeda’s voice invades Rachael’s unshared epiphany as she tries to nudge Rachael on with her confession.

  Determining that she may have uncovered some real truth to Gabrian’s standoffish attitude lately, Rachael quickly gathers a different explanation.

  Not getting a response, Vaeda prods again, “You were saying she looks like, what?”

  “Um, she looks, stressed. She has had a lot served on her platter.” Rachael gives up eyeing them all. “I am just surprised that she is holding it together as well as she is.”

  That wasn’t a lie on her part. Rachael is in awe of her friend’s strength of character—she isn’t so sure under the same circumstances that she would be able to say the same thing. Her grace under fire is inspiring, but Rachael’s cheery attitude begins to deteriorate from their spying tactics now that the guilt for nearly ratting her friend out to the Elders is pressing hard on her conscience. But she did not fold—nearly, but not quite.

  Downing the rest of her beer, Rachael feels the buzzing effect the small amount of alcohol as her boldness grows.

  “And, if you really want answers” —her eyes shoot to confront Orroryn’s emerald gaze— “the one you should be talking to is none other than your adoptive, pig-headed son. He has become, in every sense of the word, her shadow. He has the answers. Not me.”

  Hearing the bitter tone in her words, the Elders realize they may have poked a tender spot in Rachael’s defences, and that she is right. This entanglement will have to be dealt with by Orroryn himself as Shane never really shared much love for authority figures, especially for those of the Covenant—something both he and Gabrian have in common.

  Orroryn lifts his bottle and swills down the remains of his drink before staring intently at his host. “You are probably right,” he admits, holding his soft but intense stare on Rachael. He blinks hard then switches his attention to his peers. “But I doubt I will have much luck with getting answers from him either. His oath to her runs deeper than I could have ever imagined and a breach of her trust, even innocently, would be an unforgiven act of treason in his eyes. But I will see what I can do.”

  Vaeda and Ariah both nod in comprehension, agreeing to let Orroryn deal with his son as he sees best.

  “Thank you, Rachael, for your patience.” Vaeda smiles warmly at her, understanding Rachael’s loss of friendship all too well.

  “You are welcome. Sorry I couldn’t be of more help to you.”

  “You did what you could.” She glides to stand in front of Rachael’s tiny form and places a hand on her shoulder. “I am sure things will turn around soon, for everyone.”

  Rachael nods in response to Vaeda’s kind words. Stepping away, Vaeda twists her delicate fingers counter clockwise and the air in front of her begins to move—swirling into a mirage of glowing particles which make Vaeda’s long hair dance with the current as it accelerates. Fractals of light collide into each other, illuminating the room with a warm glow in its wake. The diameter of the display spreads wide enough to envelope their forms, and with one last endearing smile, Ariah and Vaeda slip into the vortex of spinning light. It swallows them whole then collapses in on itself, taking with it any evidence of its existence.

  The air is still but the abundance of electricity within the room causes the hair on Rachael’s arms to lift. Her heart flutters, partly due to the high energy of Vaeda’s orb and partly due to the abrupt knowledge that she is now alone with Orroryn surrounded by the dimness of the night.

  Shyly, she lets her eyes go where they crave. The green sheen of his irises against his tanned skin makes her breath catch in her chest and her pulse races as he steps forward, eliminating all the distance between them. The scent of summer wafts through the empty room and her body warms to it in response. She takes in a breath and holds it as he nears but exhales hard as he extends his reach to hand her the empty bottle.

  “Thank you again for your hospitality as usual, Rachael,” he hums sweetly.

  She takes the bottle from him, this time careful not to make contact. She has had enough letdowns this evening than she cares to stand. “You are welcome. It was no trouble at all.” Rachael steps away, preparing to mope as she moves toward the kitchen, when she feels the warmth of his hand gently grasps her elbow, stopping her. The heat of the touch flares uncontrollably through her limbs, igniting the consumption of her desire within.

  “It is nice to see you adapting so well here.”

  She slowly twists to face him once more and looks up, drowning in her desire to be close to him, to embrace him. But she stands statuesque, stuck dreaming.

  “I have often thought about moving back, to be closer to Shane,” Orroryn admits, a hint of sadness in his tone, “but there are too many ghosts here for me. My meetings and infrequent visits are just enough to cure the craving inside and my longing to be here—and besides, the city keeps my mind busy.”

  “I know what you mean about the city keeping one busy.” Rachael sighs, reveling in the remembrance of Manhattan’s electric buzz. “It’s a struggle some days but for the most part, it seems to be growing on me.” A slight pull at the corners of her lips appears as she continues. “Who knows, maybe someday it will feel like home.”

  Orroryn’s eyes widen, his pupils dilating just for a second; her words play a familiar tune in his memory. His heart twists sharply in his chest as he tries to push it away, telling himself it is just ghosts in his head whispering nonsense again, a sign it is time for him to leave. Still looking down upon her tiny face framed in crimson curls, he gives her arm a slight squeeze before letting go.

  “Maybe it will, my dear,” he whispers. It is all he can muster in his duress. “Take care of yourself.” Stepping close to the edge of her bedroom door, he curls his fingers against the grain of the Veil. Tugging at it with familiarity, he wraps the web of shadows around his body, and disappears into the night.

  Her pulse recedes, its echo still pounding in her ears. Despite his absence, it continues to thrash wildly within her chest just the same.

  “Uh, what the hell is wrong with me?” she growls, scolding her emotions as she stomps back into the kitchen, back to the cold toast awaiting her, and away from the man that has turned her world upside down. She sets down the empt
y bottle beside the toast and clutches at the hollow ache residing just above her heart.

  “How dare you willingly betray me and fall for the only man on this planet who will never feel the same—who cannot feel the same even if he wanted to?”

  17

  BATMAN RETURNS

  After the messed-up day that she has just had, Gabrian sheds her clothes and throws herself into the shower, immersing her entire body under the hot steamy water spouting from her showerhead. Even though the magic is long gone, she can still feel the remnants of the binds wound tightly around her from being in the Covenant of Shadows. All she wants now is to rid any trace of their power over her and take away the empty feeling that seems to bore a hole through her from her painful visit to Thunderhole.

  She makes her way back down the hall, running her fingers along the cloth canvases to touch each of her mother’s paintings, feeling the cold drain of sadness eat at her insides. Though grateful for Shane’s constant presence, she still feels the aching void of Sarapheane’s unconditional love for her and Jarrison’s gentle embrace. Gabrian stares blindly through her watery eyes as she walks through tender moments of her youth.

  Sensing a shift in energy, Shane picks up on the solemn hum of sadness seeping its way down into the kitchen and edges toward the bottom of the staircase. He looks up at her standing so small against the largeness of the world with her arms crossed, determined to be stronger than all of this, and his chest aches, longing to comfort her.

  “You okay up there?” he whispers, keeping his distance.

  Gabrian lifts her arm and wipes away any trace of moisture blurring her vision and inhales deeply. “Yeah, I am fine,” she lies. “I’ll be down in a minute.” Then turns her attention to the paintings. “I miss you so much.” Lifting her fingers tenderly to her lips, she places the silent kiss upon the canvas and gathers herself together before slowly trudging her way down the wooden steps.

  A creak of the bottom stair under her weight causes Shane to look up from his newspaper and deliver her a devilish grin from the kitchen nook. Her face twists in surprise of his unexpected playfulness.

  “What are you grinning about?” She crosses the kitchen and pokes him in the shoulder on the way to the large two door refrigerator in search of anything that will help her in dulling the memories of the day. With a quick tug on the door handle, the fridge opens to reveal the location of just such an elixir. Beer—two of them.

  “Let’s go see a movie.”

  “What?”

  “You know, a movie, big screen, popcorn, snack…me, alone in the dark.”

  She grabs the beer and pulls herself back, out of the cold, and closes the door as she rolls her eyes at Shane. “I know what a movie is, silly.” She pulls the opener from the drawer beside the sink and opens the beer, handing one to her suitor.

  “The new Batman is playing in Ellsworth and I thought that maybe…”

  “You really want to go see a movie?” She scrunches her nose at the suggestion, lifting the already frosting beverage, and swallows down a long ice-cold mouthful of beer.

  “Yeah, why not? I thought it might be fun.”

  Her eyes meet his as he lifts his drink to rest against his bottom lip, letting the liquid flow freely into his mouth.

  “Fun, huh.” She looks away, staring out through her kitchen window, and takes another drink, watching the moon’s reflection dance on the surface of the lazy rises of the ocean.

  “And it’s a known fact that a little distraction every now and then is good for the soul,” he says, dimples dipping hard inward within his cheeks as his lips curl recklessly at the edge of the bottle as he waits for her response, hoping she will take the bait.

  Her eyes lower to inspect the label on her beer and she sighs. “I know,” she says. She appreciates what he is trying to do, and having something to distract her from everything would be great, but she isn’t convinced this is the right ‘distraction’—too much violence and death for her right now, a definite anxiety trigger. “Thank you, but I just don’t think I am up for a movie tonight.”

  Shane’s face drops its happy edges as he shrugs his large shoulders. “Okay,” he says, picking up his beer again. Taking a big gulp, he moves in toward her, towering over her, and places the bottle on the cupboard behind her. She can feel the heat from his body soaking into hers as he stares down at her wearing a Cheshire-cat grin. Lingering in the greenness of his eyes, her body starts to respond to his closeness, feeling her pulse quicken beneath her skin. He closes in and kisses Gabrian’s forehead then slips a continued row of kisses down the side of her hair, and she can feel his breath warm against her ear, her skin prickling with each breath.

  “Fine, no movie. I have a better idea anyways,” he whispers softly, setting her senses into overdrive.

  Just as Gabrian turns her mouth to meet his, he pulls away and jumps down into the living room to head toward the wall covered with books.

  Shaking her head to recover her senses and feeling the cool absence of his body, she stares in disbelief at him as he rummages through the multitude of books. His fingers rub lightly against their spines, sliding slowly from left to right in search for something. Stopping for a moment and tilting his head sideways to read the print, he grabs it quickly and turns to her with a victorious grin.

  “Found it,” he cheers, tucking it under his arm, and marches toward her like a madman on a mission.

  Confused by his odd actions but also intrigued by what has this fearless Shadow Walker grinning like the cat that just ate the canary, she has to ask, “Found what exactly?”

  He stops in front of her and picks up his bottle, draining what is left inside, then places it into the sink and turns to her, still smiling. He leans forward and lingers for a moment in his glory, then kisses her forehead once more.

  “Are you ready?”

  “Ready for…?”

  She barely has time to get the words out before Shane wraps his arms tightly around her, grabs her wrist, and pulls her into the Veil. Moments later, they stand under the stars on the top of a building. Gabrian studies the open space and recognizes the white little shed sitting by the side of the twisted gravel driveway, barely visible through the trees. Assured of her location, she turns to Shane. He marches over to a small wooden table in the corner of the terrace and sets the book down then slips a couple steps to the right to open a round hatched doorway.

  She laughs as Shane squeezes his large torso through the small door, disappearing within, and quickly re-appears with a large rolled up mat and a six pack of beer under his arms.

  “What are we doing here?” she asks him, not because she doesn’t love being at the cabin, but out of curiosity of his peculiar behavior.

  He grins at her but continues to work away at whatever he is planning.

  “Well, you said you weren’t up for a movie, and I know you rarely ever watch TV, so I went another direction.” He proudly points at the large book sitting on the table where he had laid it.

  “You plan on reading to me?” She scratches the side of her head then folds her arms in front of her from the chill of the damp night air.

  Shane’s lips curl impishly to one side as he lays down the mat on the space in front of him. His messy curls fall forward, partially hiding the emerald sparkle of his eyes illuminating in the dark dim light. He stops, straightens himself, and rubs his chin. “Well, sort of, yes.”

  Gabrian laughs out loud and scrunches her hair up at the sides, visualizing the comedic gesture of him doing so. “Well then I can’t wait. This is will be so much better than a movie, but you might want to hand me one of those beer just in case.”

  “Oh, thee of little faith,” he teases, handing her the entire six pack from the floor. Once the ends of the mat are centered, he takes the beer from Gabrian and sets them down beside the mat, grabbing a bottle by the neck and handing it to Gabrian, popping the top with the opener that emerges from his pocket. With his free hand, he cups her jaw gently within his fingers,
tracing the edge of her bottom lip with his thumb. He leans in, flesh meeting flesh, and rests his head upon hers once more—breathing her intoxicating cinnamon scent—getting lost for a moment in what she means to him.

  Gabrian feels herself unwind from his touch and with each exhale, lets go of pieces from the day’s stress.

  “Oh, the blanket,” he gasps, scaring her half to death. He jumps sideways and disappears through the hobbit hole again, this time returning with a fluffy plaid-patterned duvet in his clutches. Marching directly to the center of the floor, he spreads it out across the mat. Shane reaches down and grabs the top end of the blanket and folds it backwards to allow the opening below to show.

  “Just in case it gets too cool for you,” he says, staring up at her with a boyish grin, proud of his thoughtfulness. Without haste, he rushes back to retrieve the giant book on the table then sets himself within the rolled down lip of the duvet and slides his feet under the covers. He lifts his gaze to meet Gabrian’s, her mouth painfully pursed and wedged at the sides from trying to contain her amusement at his romantic attempts.

  Shane’s grin broadens across his mouth and he pulls back the duvet, opening up the spot on the mat beside him.

  “Come on now, don’t be shy. I won’t bite.”

  Gabrian lets out the laughter that she has stifled since he began the chivalrous scene and rolls her eyes at his coy seduction but drops down on her knees and slides herself in close to him, feeling the heat of his body vanquish the chill that lingered on her skin.

  Her face softens as his arms reach to embrace her, allowing her a moment of gratefulness that he is there and he is who he is. Being close to him always makes her soul seem to slow down—the touch of his skin on hers always tames the restlessness that whirls within, surrounding her with a quiet calmness that she has no words for.

  She tilts her head back and he opens his eyes to the blue-eyed muse staring at him from below.