Nightwalker

by Jacquelyn Frank

  She went into the kitchen and the first person she ran into was Paulette. To her surprise, Viève did not see Grey anywhere. Usually the two were inseparable. And with there being more Wraiths in the house, she would have thought she would feel all the more insecure. Conscious of this she apologized to Paulette and went to leave the room.

  “No. Please. Stay. I wish to speak with you.”

  Viève was surprised, but she came into the room fully and took a seat at the breakfast bar, a full countertop away from Paulette, who was standing in the heart of the kitchen with a coffee cup in her hands.

  “I’m sorry about last night. If the Wraith scared you,” Viève clarified.

  “Yes. He did. Does. But it made me realize how different you are from them. I heard some of the things he said to you. They were very cruel things. Do they do that to you often? Treat you with such little respect?”

  Viève could only nod.

  “It is very wrong of them. I find you to be quite unique. And uniqueness should be treasured, not shunned.”

  “Thank you for saying that, but that is not how my people feel.”

  “Your people have been wrong on many an occasion. They have done me wrong.”

  “You don’t know how sorry I am for that. It must be difficult to be in the same house with…with Wraiths like Felix.”

  “It is. I did not sleep here because of it. I had Grey take me back to his home for the daytime. But as you see, I have returned.”

  “I still don’t understand why the Wraiths find you so addicting. I mean, not that you’re not a fascinating woman…you are. But…” Viève floundered.

  “I know what you mean,” she said with a little laugh. “I wish I knew how it all worked. But theirs is a cold, colorless world, as you well know. We have color and life to us that the Wraiths cannot understand, but they covet it like nothing else. As he said, it is like a drug.”

  “I cannot see your aura. As Felix said, it is probably because I am a half-breed.”

  “Better to be half-bred than full in this case,” Paulette said bitterly.

  “I am beginning to see that for myself. Before I was ashamed of my human side. But since coming here, I am ashamed of my Wraith side.”

  “You should not feel shame for either side. You are not the sum of your heritage. Your life is what you make of it. You are what you make yourself to be. You can either choose to be like a Wraith or you can choose to be like a human. Or you may be as your heritage is…a little bit of each. Either way you must accept who you are and determine what you will allow others to see you as. No one can think badly of you as long as you do not think badly of yourself. If you think of yourself as less, then others will as well.”

  What the Mystical said made sense, but it was easier said than done. Still, Viève vowed to take the advice to heart. She would try to think better of herself and would not accept the criticisms of others. Not anymore. Not from Felix, not from any Wraith. She was special. She had done extraordinary things these past two days. If she could do so much in just two days, imagine what she could do here in the future.

  “Paulette, are you going to bring any other Mysticals here?”

  “I have already sent for some dragons. They are the most powerful and nothing beats their size in a battle. They should be here soon. Grey has cast magic on this house expanding the inside of it to twice the rooms as before, although it will look no different on the outside. It will allow us to house many more people. It will provide an extra kitchen and more bathrooms as well.”

  “I didn’t know he could do that!”

  “Djynn are used to making the most of cramped or confined spaces. It was an easy bit of magic for him. In fact, he should be here shortly. He does not leave me for long, but as Felix was outside on the grounds he felt it was all right to leave me for a brief moment to take care of a personal matter. He has asked more Djynn to come. I think he is looking for a response. SingSing has arrived as well and is residing in a canteen, I believe. It’s hanging on the door over there.”

  She pointed to a door which did indeed have a canteen hanging from the doorknob.

  “She’s inside?”

  “I told you: Djynn can make the most of cramped places. In fact, they prefer them. Lamps, bottles, canteens, and other such strong but hollowed-out containers. If she brought you inside the canteen, however, it would probably be like walking into a mansion, depending on the Djynn’s power. Weaker Djynn cannot cast and maintain such powerful magic. But for Djynn like Grey, there are almost no limits to what they can do.”

  The Mystical’s eyes were a little dreamy as she said this. It led Viève to wonder if there was more to Grey and Paulette’s relationship than she had thought. But she wasn’t about to ask. It was really none of her business. Still, it would be such a sweet story. Powerful Djynn rescues captive Mystical Empress from the clutches of a vile enemy and love blossoms between them as she recovers from her ordeal.

  Viève sighed. It sounded so lovely. She actually hoped it was true. Paulette deserved something nice after all she had been through. She certainly didn’t deserve to be pawed or leered at by a Wraith.

  Then Grey appeared in a blink of an eye. His appearance at Paulette’s back was so sudden that Viève gasped in surprise. Paulette chuckled.

  “You get used to it eventually. He is so quiet. Like a little church mouse.”

  “I have been known to be quite loud,” Grey said, his rich voice flowing smoothly into the room. There was no mistaking the suggestiveness of his statement and Paulette clicked her tongue at him and gave him an admonishing swat. Grey’s grin was unrepentant. “Are you okay?” he asked of Paulette. Her smile faltered.

  “Yes, but do not leave me unless you must. I fear there are more of them coming. I heard mention of Kamen going to retrieve two others.”

  Grey frowned. “I do not like the idea of you being here any longer. The others will act just as Felix did, gawking at you, trying to touch you.”

  “The dragons are coming. I have come to see that Mystical presence is sorely needed here. Once they are here I will leave. The dragons can take care of themselves against the Wraiths, unlike me. I will send others as well. Griffins, maybe. Or centaurs. More soldiers for our little army.”

  “This is all good,” Grey said. “But it can all take place without you.”

  “No. I will stay and make proper introductions for the dragons. We will lose much in this coming battle. Hopefully manners and politeness will not be the first to go.”

  Grey smiled at her and pressed a kiss to the hair at her temple. It was such an easy sign of affection. Kamen gave her such indications of affection in the privacy of their rooms. They were hers to hold on to, not to share with others, and she liked it that way.

  As if her thoughts had conjured him, Kamen entered the kitchen. When his gaze rested on her his lips tipped upward into a small smile, but the expression did not reach his eyes. She knew instantly something was wrong.

  Chapter 20

  “Viève, could you come with me please?”

  Viève nodded and hopped down off the barstool. She fell into step beside Kamen, and she felt his hand settle at the base of her spine. He led her out of the front door and into the cool, crisp night. There were people sitting on the porch and some gathered on the front lawn, but Kamen steered her away from them, taking her for a walk down the drive.

  “Felix has asked me to fetch two more of the Wraiths to come and stay here.”

  A cold sensation settled in the pit of her stomach, but she tried to smile her way through it. She had made a promise to herself that she would not let the Wraiths get to her and she was determined to follow through.

  “When will you go?”

  That gave him pause. “You do not mind them coming? They are bound to be as bad as Felix is toward you.”

  “I realize that. And I am used to it, actually. The difference is I no longer feel it is my due to be treated in such a way. Yesterday I was shocked into awareness again of how
the Wraiths treated me. I didn’t know what to say or do other than to just accept it. But now, after spending the day in your arms, learning what it means to have value in the eyes of another, it has changed me. All of this has changed me. I want to deserve to be here. That means making myself as strong as everyone else here.”

  This time, when he smiled, the light of it warmed his eyes. He pulled her to a stop and very publicly took her into his arms. He held her close, touched his forehead to hers in affection. Then he pulled back and looked into her eyes.

  “I am really quite proud of you,” he said fondly.

  She smiled back at him as a warm, bright sensation filled her chest. “Are you?” she breathed.

  “Very much so. I was worried. I was worried they would beat you down with their words until you felt like you deserved it.”

  “I don’t deserve it. I’ve done nothing wrong. All I did was be born. If they don’t like my being here…well they can leave!” She lifted her chin strongly and nodded her head. “So there you have it.”

  “Are you sure you can do this?” he asked a little skeptically.

  Viève’s expression became grim. “I’m not saying it won’t be hard. And maybe I might get a little beaten up in the process. But all I have to do is think of you or Marissa or Jackson and the way you treat me like I’m worth something and that will help me to pull through.”

  “Good,” he said, tipping her chin up and placing a warm kiss on her lips.

  “What do you think you’re doing!”

  The booming, acidic statement was followed up by an iron hand wrapping around her arm and jerking her away from Kamen. Startled, they both automatically tried to remain connected, their hands catching.

  Felix jerked harder, trying to pull her away from him completely.

  “Get away from him you, little mongrel!” he spat. “Bad enough your mother polluted this earth with you! I won’t have you compounding the mistake by allowing you to mate with this…this…human!”

  “He’s not human! He’s a Bodywalker!” she spluttered, the response the first thing she could think of as she tried to jerk free of him.

  “His soul is a Bodywalker, his body is human. I’ll not have you spawn any more diluted mongrels!”

  “Enough! Take your hands off her or so help me I will cast a rending spell that will sever your spine into two parts!” Kamen growled out.

  The threat didn’t seem to faze Felix in the least. He pulled harder.

  Unable to bear his blistering disapproval and rude behavior a second longer, she lifted up the arm he held captive until his hand was at her lips then she bit down on him as hard as she could.

  Felix yowled in pain, finally letting go of her, rearing back from her as if she’d suddenly turned into a venomous creature.

  “You bit me!”

  “You deserved it!” she shot back. “Never ever touch me again. If you do I’ll bite off more than just your finger.”

  Kamen drew her close, holding her protectively.

  “The Doyen will hear of this. He will command you to—”

  “The Doyen can’t command me to do anything!” she spat. “I am a free being, with the right to do anything I choose. And if I choose to mate with a Bodywalker, then that is what I am going to do. And anyway, you’re too late. I’ve been fucking him for two days now,” she said crudely.

  She heard a snort and realized Kamen had just kept himself from laughing. She looked up into his eyes and saw pride and delight dancing in them.

  “You mean you’re pregnant?” Felix said, horrified.

  “So what if I am?” she said, even though she knew she wasn’t. “There’s nothing you can do about it now. Wraiths can’t get abortions.”

  “That may be true, but don’t expect your child to ever be accepted by decent Wraiths.”

  “I wouldn’t want it to be accepted by Wraiths. And I have yet to meet a decent one!” she shot back.

  “You are an ungrateful female. Your mother gave you life. Your cell tolerated you. And this is what you give us in return? Do not ever think you can come back to your cell. We will see to it you are never allowed back.”

  Tears stung at Viève’s eyes as she thought of losing the only home she had ever known. But she realized she didn’t care. These were tears of liberation, of finally feeling of value. Kamen had given her that. He had shown up in her garden and changed her life.

  “I don’t want to go back. I’d rather live life as a human than ever go back.”

  “You’ll have no haven. No funds.” Felix was growing shrill as he realized she wasn’t at all fazed by his threats.

  “No derision. No scorn,” she retaliated.

  “It’s what you deserve.”

  “No one deserves that. Not me, not anyone,” she said. “Come on, Kamen. Let’s go back to the house and fuck like bunnies.”

  She tugged his hand and pulled him forward and this time Kamen didn’t hold back his laugh. It belted out into the air and made her smile. He fell into step beside her and dropped his arm around her shoulders. He hugged her so tight she couldn’t walk straight.

  “I’m so proud of you,” he whispered fiercely into her hair.

  She laughed shakily. “Yeah. Except now I have nowhere to go.”

  “You’ll stay here. With me. You’ll always have somewhere to go as long as I am alive on this earth.”

  The words pleased her so much she could hardly contain the feeling. “But you hardly know me. I wouldn’t want to saddle you with me the rest of your life.”

  “Saddle me? Viève, you breathe life into me!” He stopped and turned her toward him so she could look into his eyes. “Before all of this…before Apep…all I wanted to do was figure out a way to die. Not just die so I could come back again, but to end it all once and for all. I was trying to figure out how I could remove my soul from this endless cycle of life and death. I remember every life I’ve had, every death I’ve had. After all of this time it weighs on me like a thousand elephants on my chest. Or at least it did. I had purpose in trying to rectify the mistake I made with Apep, but when I met you…you gave me life. Joy. Pleasure I haven’t known for many lifetimes now. In two short days you’ve changed me in such a fundamental way. There’s nothing I can ever do to pay you back for that.”

  Tears threatened her eyes, but they were good tears. He made her sound so wonderful. Made all of this sound so wonderful. Of course, he wasn’t promising her his heart or anything like that, and she shouldn’t expect it after only two days, but perhaps one day…

  It gave her a hope she had never known before.

  Kamen had never been one to wax poetic, but he had been unable to help himself. It was important to him that she know what changes she had wrought in him. He didn’t know how—didn’t know why—he just knew it in the depths of his soul. He had found something special in her. He wasn’t going to let go of that feeling any time soon.

  “Come. Let’s go fuck like bunnies,” he said to her, amusement tickling every part of him. She laughed, a beautiful sound to his ears. She seemed so much lighter than she had when she had first come there. She was learning her true value in the world. Learning to measure herself by her own yardstick and not that of the Wraiths. He truly was proud of her.

  “Is there a problem?” Jackson asked as he hurried up to them, clearly having seen the altercation.

  “Not anymore,” Viève said as she hugged Kamen to her side.

  Jackson watched the easy affection between them with bemusement. Kamen had changed these past two days. Viève had brought something out in him that hadn’t been there before. Or maybe it was just that he seemed so much more human, more approachable because he was attached to her.

  “If he’s giving you trouble, Viève, we can petition the Doyen to send someone else.”

  “It would only be more of the same,” Viève said with a shrug. “I am simply less to them, and they can’t see past it.”

  “If they can’t see past it for one of their own, how will they be
able to see past it for the rest of us?”

  “That’s a very good question,” Kamen said. “One worth considering seriously.”

  “We’re going to need them. Our deathtouch is going to be crucial. It will even the odds considerably.”

  “If we didn’t need them I would have kicked them to the curb already,” Jackson said. “I don’t like to see anyone treated badly.”

  “We’re bound to have friction with this many people. They are so varied and their mind-sets so differing. I’m amazed it hasn’t happened before this,” Kamen said.

  “So far I’ve seen a lot of mind-sets turned to the same direction. To getting along and working as a cohesive unit.”

  “We’ve been lucky so far.”

  “Until now,” Viève said grimly as she cast a glance back at a fuming Felix. “What do we do when he reports back to the Doyen?”

  “As you said, the Doyen has no power over you.”

  “He may not see it that way,” Viève said anxiously. “What if I become a point of contention?”

  “You aren’t the first to ‘spawn’ with a human and you won’t be the last. They’ll realize there is nothing they can do to stop it,” Kamen said.

  “I hope you’re right.”

  “I’m right,” he assured her. “Anyway, we’ll find out soon enough,” Kamen said.

  “Do we really know for certain what side they are on?” Jackson asked.

  “We have to give them the benefit of the doubt until they give us cause to do otherwise,” Kamen said.

  “I only hope it doesn’t cost us in lives later on,” Jackson said uneasily.

  “All it takes is a touch,” Viève said softly.

  “Let’s just stay on our guard. Trust is earned and so far they haven’t been earning much in my opinion,” Kamen said.

  “They’re just being what they’ve always been. We have to give them a chance to prove they can be something different. Or rather, different enough to be of use to us,” Viève said.

  “Us. I like the sound of that,” Kamen said, giving her a smile. “Jackson, I told Viève that she would always have a home here with us. I hope I did not overstep myself, but I felt that you would agree.”