9 - Picnic by the Sea
The constant glares from the girl of my dreams might have put off a lesser man but I was not going to be deterred by her angry stares. She did not know me well enough to be truly upset with me, so something else must have brought about that truly dark look. The scarcity of job prospects? Leah had spent the past two days searching for a job and the nights patrolling the area - the latter was a thankless task. She sacrificed a great deal to keep them safe, and what did she get for it? A brush-off and mockery from the people she risked her life to protect. Needless to say an average person would have been bothered by the ordeal of the constant refusals, but someone with as fragile self-esteem as Leah was probably crushed.
I needed to do something about that, and while all of my instincts were telling me to throw the girl over my shoulder, growl at the mother, and take Leah away from here two thousand years of experience had taught me that the grab and growl method would cause more harm than good. Leah needed to be the one to fix her own problems and while I might be able to leave some crumbs for her to follow it would be Leah who would have to walk the path. Determining it was time to place a crumb in front of Leah I asked her to join me for dinner whilst ignoring the dark looks she kept throwing at me.
The invitation took her by surprise and for a moment something other than desolation flashed on her face. It would have been crass to try to get into her mind so I had to settle for trying to interpret her expression - was that speculation? A spark of hope appeared in her yes, and the it was gone to be replaced by the usual hopeless look. Though upon closer inspection I realized that something of that earlier flash of emotion remained. What was my little Princess planning?
Her pretty pink limps curved up to form a naughty smile caught me by surprise, but my body had no trouble reacting to it. My temperature rose, my heart rate, and my nostrils flared with each deep breath - all signs that my flight or flight instinct had grabbed a hold of my body. I was unable to determine if that smile promised a battle of wills or sex but my body did not care as it had the same reaction to either a fight or sex. Unfortunately like all moments of happiness for her this feeling too was fleeting and the smile was gone to be replaced by her usual sulky pout.
Again the need to protect her nearly overwhelmed me. I wanted to kiss that frown off her tired looking face, gather her up in my arms, and take her home to the island - maybe even to my cabin where no one could bother us. It took most of my will to remind myself that it was not possible, so perhaps I would do the next best thing and take her away from here. Away from the clear reminders of her father in this room, but more importantly away from the mother whose thoughts were becoming suspicious again now that she saw that her daughter was not growling at me like she did at everyone else.
She half glanced down at her shoes. "Uhhh, I don't think I am really dressed well," she sounded unsure. Her behavior could have been interpreted as a girl trying to get out of a date but that not the cause of her unwillingness. Sadly I was able to see in real time her self-esteem drop to the floor when she looked down at her clothing.
"You will be fine," the words came out far too gently for 'Phil the tourist' but I could not help myself. She just looked so crushed. I was not allowed to tell her the truth, that it did not matter to me what she was wearing so long as she would agree to come with me. I cared very little about clothes or fashion in general but I knew from experience that clothes helped sell a role. A pair of dark grey wool pants coupled with a well tailored button up shirt turned me into the boss as opposed to just some guy off the street. Without even saying a word, my clothes, and the way I carried myself would to some degree earn respect and obedience from those around me.
While clearly she had been careful when she picked out her outfit this morning it did not take more than a cursory glance to notice that she was not wearing her own clothes. The once white button up shirt was yellow with age and there was a small tear on the right side that had been neatly fixed. This would have been almost acceptable if it was not for the fact that it was one of the most ill-fitting articles of clothing I had ever seen. The shirt was far too wide for her slim frame, hiding what little curves she possessed, and made it look like she was wearing a large tent. To make matters worse the sleeves were too short and reached about two or three inches above the wrist. She had attempted to disguise this fact by unbuttoning the wrist and folding it up in a more casual manner but it would not fool anyone. The skirt was far too wide for her slender waist and was gathered up and rucked around her hips in thick folds that did little to compliment her figure. Her shoes appeared to actually fit right but they were so cracked and worn that they did not look at all professional. Someone had attempted to clean them thoroughly but it was hard to hide the worn off bits and the holes. The new shoe laces threaded through the half broken footwear were such a bright white that practically screamed 'look at me, I am the only think that is not borrowed or really old in this ensemble'. I could not help but smile a little at the shoe laces that had been tied in a neat bow and double knotted just like a child would do it.
Leah did not share my amusement and she threw me another glare before following her mother to the back room. It amused me to think that the mother though I could not hear the conversation if she stepped into the other room. But all humor left me when Sue Clearwater started trying to convince her daughter not to come with me.
"This man is a perfect stranger. If you feel unsure about him I can be the strict mother that will not let her daughter go out." Sue Clearwater spoke softly to her daughter. My hands of their own volition tightened into fists - did that woman have a death wish? Is that what she was trying to do? Visions flashed through my mind, a number of suggestions from Aodh on the easiest way to kill the mother. We could make it look like an accident since the back supply room was messy enough that no one would think twice when they found Sue Clearwater dead on the floor with a pile of heavy boxes on top of her. I started calculating the weight requirement to crush a human body. She was older and probably had osteoporosis which would reduce the density of her bones. The death would have to be instantaneous because I would not want a customer finding her and coming to the rescue.
It was the sound of Leah's worried 'mom' that brought me back from the brink. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. In and out, in and out, in and out. I pushed all thoughts away from my mind and concentrated on breathing. I was a leader among my father's people and was expected to always keep a relatively cool head but now with this binding thing my emotions were flying between joy in the presence of my mate and outright rage whenever someone tried to hurt her or keep me from her. I had not felt this out of control since the full power of Aodh's influence had hit me at the age of 30. It was reckless to allow myself these mood swings even with the excuse of having just met my mate. While this was a typical reaction to binding it was also critical that I remain vigilant and regain control as soon as possible. These moods swings were dangerous for all those around me as they gave Aodh far too many opportunities to slip past my guards and take over my powers. I knew Aodh saw Leah's mother as an enemy and would quickly seize any opportunity to take her out. Personally I did not care if Sue Clearwater lived or died, but Leah cared about her so I would have to make sure that Sue survived my courtship of her daughter. So I pushed thoughts of death aside and continued to breathe in and out slowly. I could have gone on for several hours in this fashion had I not been interrupted by the sound of Leah's quick strides across the floor.
"Are you coming?" I asked casually, not at all like the man who had just been contemplating murdering her mother simply for the fact that she wanted to keep Leah away from me.
"Yeah, sure I have nothing better to do." She told me in an offhand way. Her casual tone was a little too practiced making me think that she was interested in coming with me. Good.
A heat suffused my body as well as a sense of accomplishment. She had agreed to come with me, but I quickly shut down such emotions. Now was the time to focus on Leah and my attempts to keep her with me. I ignored the mother's thoughts as much as possible - that was for the best.
As I followed Leah out the door I noticed she was not wearing a jacket. She really needed to take better care of herself. Internally I rolled my eyes and made an inquiry about her jacket.
I watched as that simple question caused her to frown and sigh. "I can't go with you, I am wearing a skirt."
I wanted to see that little spark in her eyes again, hopefully she would not get angry at the humor. "I had noticed that. I don't normally hang out with girls who wear skirts. Well, unless they are really, really short... the skirt, not the girl."
For a moment she gave me a little smile as well as a tiny laugh. It was nothing like I had seen in my visions but it would have to do for now.
"I can't ride a bike with a skirt on." The frown came back and gave further evidence of the fact that she was not completely indifferent to my dinner offer.
Obviously Leah did not know who she was dealing with but hopefully she would learn that all of my moves were carefully planned out in advance. "It would be fun to see you try, fortunately for you I did not bring the bike. Mothers tend to object when I try to make off with their daughters on a bike."
I placed my hand on her back in order to encourage her to move closer to the truck. This action helped me accomplish two goals, one was to get her in the truck before came up with any more excuses to say no to dinner, and the second reason was to touch her - something that I had been craving to do ever since she had first come through that storeroom door. The small touch made her stumble and I cursed under my breath as I moved to catch her. "Sorry Princess, let's just get you off your feet." My heartfelt apology was infused with too much emotion for a stranger but fortunately for me she was too tired to notice. I contemplated picking her up and carrying her the last few steps but the mother was watching.
Once again I reeled in my instinct and slowly led her to the passenger door of my truck. "Who are you and what did you do with the Phil I knew?" The slight smile on her face felt like a major accomplishment.
"Your mother is watching, so try to behave." My careful handling of Leah had met with the mother's approval.
"I take it you have done this before?" She finally got settled into the truck.
"Not really, I usually don't hang around schoolgirls. But I figured if I was a parent and some guy came to take my precious little daughter there would be certain standards that would have to be met." I made sure that all her body parts were tucked safely inside before gently closing the door. As I walked around the truck I pulled a sweatshirt out of the back toolbox and contemplated the women that had come before Leah. My memory was excellent and I could remember most of their names but honestly they had been nothing. Something to fuck, warm my bed, and look pretty on my arm when it was necessary to attend some function. There had been ones who at the time I thought were special but now that I had met Leah I came to realize they were nothing. There was no woman in my life before Leah - she was the only one that existed as far as I was concerned. It was going to be an interesting day when Leah actually figured out how many women I had dated before her, but hopefully by then she will have bounced back from her own failed relationship with Sam.
Settling into the truck I made a mental note to make sure to carry extra clothes with me just in case. "That is one of my favorites so I want it back." I told her as put on my seatbelt. Honestly it could be hers if she wanted but this was the perfect excuse to see her again - just in case she refused my offer.
"What?" she asked in a confused voice. My poor little girl was so tired.
Guilt flooded my system as I realized I had taken advantage of her fatigue in order to get her to come with me. Her other choice was to sit at home and think about the past. I would keep her mind occupied for a little while so that it could not go back to those dark places. I had chosen the beach as a good place to go with her as she seemed to find comfort with the water. The other perk would be that with this dreary weather there would be little risk of others coming along and disturbing her peace. She was quick to go along with the idea. I guess as a wolf she did not have too many worries about going off alone with a strange guy.
"Your mother thinks we are going to get rained out but I don't think those clouds will lead to much." I told her while driving slowly to our destination. Aodh was fairly good at predicting the weather and if things got really bad I could alter it slightly to prevent Leah being rained on.
She blinked once, twice, and nearly fell asleep. My chest ached for the poor lost little girl and my hands clenched for a moment. The tendrils of fate has securely tied me to the fragile flower that was nearly dozing next to me - and she was delicate no matter how tough she might think herself to be. Should I take her home and try another day? But I had been away from her far too long and at this point it would be impossible for me to leave her alone. I would be tempted to stay to make sure she was all right since no one else bothered to look after her. No I could not take her home to an empty house. The mother had to watch the store for a few more hours and the brother was staying late at school to finish up some homework. Leaving her alone with such dark cloud circling her young head would be beyond cruel. Instead I would take her to this beach do my utmost to distract my princess from her dreary thoughts.
"Well Fall has finally come around these parts," the leaves were starting to change their colors and if past experience was anything to go by pretty soon the sunshine would be gone. Talking about the weather was lame but any other subject seemed too risky with Leah.
A grunt was her only reply and I tried my best to suppress my smile at the sound. It was impossible for a girl her size to properly produce that rude noise.
As we left civilization behind she became more alert to the point of actually trying to add to the conversation. "Nice truck," her tone was tinged with skepticism.
"Oh it is not mine," she had not asked a question but I chose to answer.
"Stolen?" her tone was more curious than worried about my criminal activities. Leah's assumption that the truck could be potentially be obtained illegally was a good thing for me right now as it meant she had no idea that I was currently playing Phil the plastic surgeon. I was not going to expend any effort trying to change her view right now as she did not need the responsible Phil right now. She did not need someone who was a stickler for the rules, and Phil the surgeon was just that, but she did need a guy that was wiling to bend the rules a little. She needed space and time to spread her wings without the stifling expectations of society. If we had to do a few illegal or dangerous things for her to regain her confidence then I was willing to stick around and make sure she would remain safe and out of police custody.
"Would you believe borrowed?" Technically I was not certain whose truck this was. I had found the keys in the kitchen and the truck parked in front of the cabin so I assumed either Sassy or Kendrick had purchased the vehicle. The size was about appropriate for carting around plants and other gardening materials so it probably belonged to Sassy. She was an avid gardener and it bothered her to no end that the grounds around her ancestral home were maintained by others. Kendrick used to tease her about giving up her crown in order to play in the castle gardens.
"Tell that to the police," Leah told me after a long pause. She did not seem overly concerned about the possibility of being in a stolen vehicle. Her attention left me again as she turned to look outside. I could see a part of her face reflected in the side mirror and I watched as she focused on something outside. Ah she was finally looking around her.
I gave a small laugh over her lack of concern. Was she that tired or did she really not care? "I would not worry too much about it. The truck belongs to the house I am currently staying in. A friend of mine needed a house sitter and I needed a place to stay for a few months. So a great plan was born." What Sassy had needed was a sitter for her baby boy Seth, but I might have scared Leah away if I revealed that fact. Sassy also needed a groundkeeper for the landscaping she had installed around the cabin and had gone so far as to leave me explicit instructions regarding the upkeep of the formal gardens. I don't know why she bothered as she should have known damn well I would not listen to such orders. In general us guardians did not do well when it came to orders since we tended to be leaders rather than followers. Bee, my grandmother, was one of the few exceptions to this rule because if you crossed her there would be major consequences - broken bones and such.
"That is nice," the apathy in her voice was clear making me suspect that Leah was very, very tired.
"Yup I am staying there until late January, and then back to the grind for me." She did not ask me any questions regarding my occupation and regrettably the road became far too curvy and steep to risk my mate. I had to give the road my full attention so as not to drive us off the narrow path. A few short minutes later the road got more bumpy and I could see the hints of the ocean through the wall of trees.
It was with a great deal of pleasure that I helped Leah step out of the truck. A light sea breeze came at us from the water and tugged at the short strands of her hair. As she moved to face the wind I could see the tension leave her shoulders almost as if that small movement of air was pushing off some of that heavy weight that she normally carried on her delicate shoulders.
What was it about this place that made her feel better? More importantly could I reproduce it? Most humans liked the sound and look of water, and studies have shown that the mere sound of trickling water would cause measurable physiological changes in the body: lowered blood pressure and heart rate. Was it as simple as that or did it have to do with the isolation of this place? The main road was far enough away that even my keen hearing could not pick up the sounds of cars passing by. Other than the sounds of a few sea gulls and the roar of the ocean there were no other sounds around us. So perhaps she preferred to be alone and I should take her to places where there was no chance of running into people who would trigger unpleasant memories.
Honestly it was somewhat disconcerting how well she was able to ignore my presence. Generally speaking I did not care if a human ignored me and often I would go to great lengths to make sure that my movements would go unnoticed. That was my guardian training and it had been beaten into me since birth. Unfortunately Leah was my mate and I wanted my attention, so suddenly I was a teenage boy again prepared to do any foolish thing that came to mind if only the girl would look at me. In the past I had watched in a detached sort of way how foolishly men would act when trying to gain the attention of a woman - now I finally understood how they felt. A strong part of me wanted to show off my skills, go hunt down that Sam, break him into pieces, and then lay his broken body down at Leah's feet. Fortunately for Sam I had been given orders not to reveal myself to Leah until after the Volturi visited, but that did not mean that he would be completely safe from me. It would just take a little more patience and skill to exact revenge on Leah's behalf and she would probably forgive me if I did not kill the boy. This plan would require a great deal of finesse and I would have to think on it further when I was alone again. Now it was time to make Leah pay attention to me. Doing flips across the stone beach would have probably worked but there was a more subtle way to make her come back to me. Calling her Princess and mentioning food.
Her eyes narrowed slightly when I called her Princess but she seemed to have given into the inevitable and moved on from that argument. "How did you con my mother?"
Suppressing a smile I considered lying but odds were high that I would be caught in a lie. I chose to speak a half-truth instead. "Oh that was easy, I offered to give her my social so she could do a full background check on me." She did not react much to my words but perhaps she had been expecting something more elaborate.
I went back to fixing the blanket and instead of helping me she chose to perch on a fallen log and observed me with drooping eyes. She was like a queen sitting on her throne watching her servant prepare a feast. I turned back to my work and smiled once again. It was obvious that Leah was not a queen, but instead a poor, bedraggled princess. However, despite appearances the potential for greatness was there if you knew what to look for. Underneath the poorly fitting clothes beat the heart of a fierce warrior, and while armor might be dented and in need of repairs she was still willing to fight for what she thought was right.
"No seriously, what did you do?" Her question sounded like an accusation.
The blanket in front of me suddenly became very important to me as I pushed down another laugh. Just being near her made my body buzz with joy, and I needed to control it before I gave myself away. I concentrated on the blanket in front of me and pushed all my will into making it perfect for my mate. The uneven ground was frustrating me far more than it should have. Stupid binding emotions. Stupid rocks. I took another deep breath and stood back.
Not quite satisfied, but conceding defeat, I reached for the thicker quilt to lay on top of the first. "Yeah seriously," I finally answered her question. "Don't you think I would be doing a background check on the guy that took my daughter out? I told you, I thought like a parent." Not that I would have any daughter to worry about - if Aodh was correct, and he was never wrong about such things, Leah would give me two sons - Wolf and Hawk.
"Here let me help you," she told me jumping up from her temporary throne.
I had to push down my growl when she reached for the quilt. This was Leah and if things worked out the way I wanted to she would be helping me with a lot more than just laying down a quilt.
"OCD much?" she asked with a small smile.
"Not at all. There you go," I offered up two of the corners so she could lay them out on her side. Compromise was a vital part of a relationship and if we were going to have a chance at this I would have to learn to let Leah help even if she was going to just fuck things up. I used two thousand years of practice and kept my face cleared of all emotions. There was no need for her to see my frustration, but what the heck was she thinking? Not only did she not place her side of the quilt properly on the blanket but then she just threw herself down on the blanked before I could even have a chance to fix it.
"You promised food, so feed me, now would be nice." She made her demands before she had even settled properly onto the quilt.
"Of course, my Princess." My formal bow was precise and did not show any of my aggravation at the mess she had made of the blankets. Instead I reached for the food I had prepared for her.
She was very curious about everything, "what is this?" was her favorite phrase for a while. I presented dishes from various places around the world hoping to find something that she would like and wanting to test her willingness to go outside of her comfort zone.
"Cucumber and mint yogurt soup," I told her while presenting the small bowl.
"That sounds weird," she curled her nose up but still took the dish from me.
"It is Turkish or Greek depending on who you ask. These dates and goat cheese are also from that region. Try some of them." I pushed a small plate towards her.
Her warm fingers brushed up against mine as she passed back the empty bowl of the cold yogurt soup. I guess that could be added to her like list. The dates and goat cheese were a no. Regardless of my many attempts she would not even take one bite. She insisted that it smelled funny. Her lack of knowledge regarding any of the dishes I was presenting her with made me conclude that her diet consisted of the good old American diet of meat and potatoes. Though around here it might be supplemented with some fish. I spent a few moments fantasizing about her reaction to the foods I wanted to cook for her.
"Oh wow I could not eat another bite," she rubbed her full stomach after polishing off some apple filled pastries. Her sluggish movements indicated that her lack of sleep had finally caught up with her. Fearing that she would insist on going home to sleep I packed away the food in order to give her more room on the blanket so that she could stretch out.
"Oh I almost forgot, I got you a present." I told her pulling out my poorly wrapped gift.
The look on her face was priceless, she was far more excited than should have been elicited by a something in a brown paper bag.
"Sorry I did not wrap it." I could have but that might have taken away from the image I wanted her to have from me. The Phil she knew would not have been aware that presentation was half the present and gift wrap was a must.
She was clearly disappointed and for a minute I kicked myself for not getting her the jewels I had wanted. I thought back to my shelves filled with gifts for her and thought of jumping home to retrieve something from there.
"Um... thanks," she told me with hesitation before reaching for the safety ring.
I quickly covered her delicate fingers with mine before she could hurt herself. "It is mace, not the grocery store brand either. This stuff will melt the face off of anyone you spray it on." It was actually a combination of several very caustic acids. Technically it would melt away parts of a vampire if you sprayed it on them. Hopefully she would never need it, but just in case it would be good.
"Wow how nice," she was expecting something different.
"I figured if you are just going to jump on a bike with a stranger you needed some protection. Not all guys are as nice as I am. Just be careful not to use in on a police officer as they tend to get really pissed off if you do that." Or anyone really, there was this one time at a biker bar where Phila pissed off some guy. That had not ended well.
A seagull screamed above us and took her attention away from me. She threw herself across back down across the quilt and got more comfortable. She was fighting a futile battle against sleep.
"For your information that was my first time?" Her words were slightly slurred.
"First time for what? Jumping on a stranger's bike?" I asked my voice thick with innuendo.
She looked at me startled before she looked away from me with a blush. I gave her some time to compose herself before I continued on with our conversation.
"By the way, do you always do stuff just because someone dares you to?" I kept my voice calm and tried not to think of the trouble she could get into with her impulsive behavior. It is not that I did not want her doing such things I just wanted her to do them with me. So that I could mitigate some of the consequences.
"When you are surrounded by boys that expect you to be a sissy girl you kind of have to prove yourself every day." A touch of pride could be heard in her tone.
"Why are you so determined to prove yourself to them? Is their approval that important?" The young and sometimes even the older mortals would constantly seek the approval of strangers. I never saw any point in it, but maybe it was different when you did not have to constantly hide your true self.
"I don't know, pride I guess." At least she was willing to acknowledge the reason.
"You remind me of one of my cousins, she says she can do anything a man can. Except she can do it in two inch heels." Alexis was a very interesting woman, because of her father's genetics she had ended up very short and this have given her somewhat of a Napoleon complex. Mentioning her height was a dangerous thing.
"Wow, I would want to meet her, she sounds kind of cool."
"Not really, she is a total bloodsucker," I used the word deliberately to see her reaction to vampires. How did she feel about her neighbors? I looked away and pretended to be uninterested in her reaction.
Out of the corner of her eye I saw her twitch. I was not trying to hear her thoughts but they were so loud the came through to me without me even trying. She hated vampires, blamed them for her problems, and she wanted me to be normal. To my regret normal was not something I could ever give her. Maybe I could teach her that abnormal could be good.
I needed to distract her from her morbid thoughts so I kicked her foot slightly. Sand fell away from her tennis shoes. "What is wrong?"
"Uhhh she is a what?" she still sounded worried and strained. Maybe I should not have brought up bloodsuckers so soon.
"A bloodsucker, you know a politician? Are you okay?" technically she was an emperor who ruled her side of the planet with an iron fist. Alexis really was not one to be messed with. My brother Myles and his partner Stefi sometimes worked for her on the planet. Stefi was technically Alexis' cousin, Stefi's mother and Alexis' father were brother and sister who had somehow both managed to marry a member of my family. Myles used to joke that between me and Alexis he spent all his life running errands for royalty.
"Yes, I am fine." she told me quietly before giving out a fake laugh.
Idiot, I thought angrily. Now I had riled her up and she was far too stressed right now to sleep. I stood up and started throwing rocks, not letting any of my frustration show at my foolish mistakes. It was so hard not to tease her, but I had to remember to handle her carefully. She followed my movement with far more interest than necessary.
"Can't you sit still?" She laughed at me again, this time more genuinely.
I could sit still for hours and sometimes days as I stalked my prey, but this was a tidbit that I was not going to share with her. When I was around humans fidgeting was almost second nature to me.
"All right I will be still," I sat down next to her and forced my body to calm. Honestly I needed a few hours of meditation to clear my mind of this jumbling mess of emotions. I half closed my eyes and looked out towards the ocean, focusing on something far away. I forced my muscles to relax, and deliberately slowed the my heartbeats. Some of my calm leached into Leah and her breaths soon started to slow down as she lay down more comfortably on the quilt. It took twenty three of my slow breaths for her to fall asleep. Remaining in the pose for a few more minutes I could not quite find it in myself to stand up and walk away; this was one of the few instances where I stand next to her without suppressing all of my emotions.
In sleep she looked like an innocent child, and I wanted nothing more than to lie down next to her and watch her breathe for the next century and watch my sleeping beauty. She stirred a little bit, disturbed by my movements but soon settled more comfortably on the quilt. She had flung out one of her hands in my direction and only a few centimeters separated her hand from my thigh. Maybe in her sleep her instincts were allowed to take over and she knew she wanted to be closer to me. Or maybe it was more comfortable that way and I needed to get over myself.
Resisting temptation I stood up slowly and backed away from my girl. Looking out over the churning ocean I pointedly ignored my princess while examining the dark wall of clouds that was moving towards the shore. Maybe Sue Clearwater was right in that soon there would be rain. I closed my eyes and tried to consult Aodh and after a few deeps breaths I had my answer. Leah's mother was wrong. There would be a heavy downpour later tonight but not until well past midnight.
It was just a few minutes later that I felt my hip vibrate indicating an incoming message. For a moment I considered not looking at my phone but I quickly decided against that. Phila was still angry at me for ignoring her and at this point she might be tempted to crash my picnic with Leah.
Your brother is coming for dinner tomorrow, it would be nice for you to come as well.
The message was not from Phila, it was from my mother, which made it far worse. I needed to find a diplomatic way out of this dinner and I needed it fast.
Myles is already on the Island, I am in the middle of babysitting Sassy's baby boy along with watching over my mate. I would not feel comfortable leaving now. My reply sounded good enough, hopefully.
Are you stalking the poor girl? You know there is a fine line between protection and possession. Make sure you don't cross it. Her reply came quickly, and it filled me with relief. It seemed my excuse was good enough for now, but soon I would be expected to show up for dinner.
Don't worry mother, I will not impede her free will. But I cannot guarantee her ex-boyfriend will survival if he keeps on pushing her around. Sam would pay soon, or as soon as I figured out an appropriate punishment.
I would like to remind you that mother wants our presence kept a secret for now. You have been looking for your mate for far too long to fuck it up now for some twisted revenge on someone that means nothing. My mother just pointed out the major hurdle in my plans.
I know grandmother's edict since I am the one who spoke to her about that. As for this Sam creature he will be dealt with soon. I have seen him try to physically detain her when she did not follow his order. This was something even grandmother could not ignore. Technically as a guardian I was obligated to track down and warn those who used their alien given gifts to push around others. There were two main reasons I had not do so. One, technically some leeway might be given with the orders considering he had to keep the entire pack in check, and two, I was supposed to keep my identity secret so it would be much harder to threaten Sam into behaving.
Wait? He tried taking away her free will? Well that is a different story, rip off his balls. You boys seem to be very fond of those things. Mother was always very good at finding the simplest of solutions.
Your plan has some merit but I think he would notice if I ripped his balls off. I have to go, goodbye mother. I did not really need to go since Leah would probably sleep for a few more hours but talking about ripping Sam's balls off made me want to go do just that.
Don't think this makes me forget about dinner. You can tell us about how you gelded that little boy. You are smart, you can do it without getting caught. Only in my family would a story about ripping someone's balls off be considered appropriate dinner conversation.
With a heavy sigh I put away my phone. Rubbing my hands across my face I contemplated how I was going to protect Leah from further damage. That Sam had taken on the mantle of leader and seemed to think that the proper way to get people to do things was via bludgeoning.
The wind picked up and I worried a little about Leah getting cold. I should have brought an extra blanket with which to cover her up. A couple of feather were picked up by the wind and carried a few meters. I suddenly had an idea.
I had been taught a great many things in my youth, and while my family tended to be what some called mind mages, ones who only required to think of something for it to happen, I had been taught other methods. There was one that required materials as well as chants. Leah was not going to be waking up for a few hours yet but she was a light sleeper so it would be best to make sure she would not wake up in the middle of my work. All it took was a few words infused with a slight push of my will and it was guaranteed that despite my movements she would remain asleep.
A definite plan began to form in my head and I moved around the beach picking up all the necessary materials. Feathers and seashells were set neatly in two piles. The feathers would of represent air, and the seashells could be filled to with water to represent that element. Earth and fire were a lot harder to find, and I had to reach back to my old geology days to find the appropriate rocks. The sedimentary rocks would be perfect for earth, but I needed to find volcanic rocks to represent the fire.
I started to lay out my materials around Leah. Air, water, earth, and fire in that order were places around her. I kept up the pattern until her body was completely surrounded. Each time I placed one of the elements around my mate I spoke a few ancient words that were specific for each element. I had forgotten how much work these ancient spells required, and I was reminded why I had stopped doing them. The language I spoke was long forgotten along with the people who had once spoke it - both were lost in the uncaring waves of time.
Some might have done a petty love spell or something equally ridiculous but I was not that young. There was something else that I could give her, something more nebulous, something that people underestimated but was extremely important.
As I spoke the final words the rocks representing fire gave a small flash before becoming ordinary looking again. Either my spell had worked or it had not - it have been over a millennium since I had learned these spells.
My next hour or so was spent prowling around the small beach trying to get a feel for it and trying to determine what it was about the place Leah liked. More importantly what it was about this place that made Leah feel better? and how to go about reproducing it? Unfortunately all I could conclude was that I did not have enough information in order to help her get over her heartbreak. The layer upon layer of depression had pushed her far down into that dark hole. In order for her to leave that place she would have to work through each one of her problems and I was beginning to suspect that a different solution would be necessary for each problem.
I finally remembered to call the Clearwater household in order to explain why Leah was not coming home soon. Luckily it was the little brother who answered the phone since I did not think I had the patience to deal with anymore of Sue Clearwater's suspicions.
"Hello?" He asked said in a friendly tone. The one characteristic of Seth that had been immediately obvious was the fact that he was unable to feel ill-will towards others.
"Hello, may I speak to Sue Clearwater please?" It was always good to be polite.
"She is not home right now but I can take a message if you want." His reply was equally polite but there was an undercurrent of curiosity.
"Could you please tell her that Leah might be a little late because she fell asleep." I deliberately kept things vague just to push his buttons.
"Who is this and what do you mean my sister is asleep?" He sounded suspicious and I tried my best not to laugh of how easily he had been disturbed.
"My name is Phil. She fell asleep after eating but I am fairly sure she will wake up soon since the air is getting a little more chilly." Again I did not give too many details.
"Phil who? Oh you are her tourist?" He sounded pleased at the prospect. It seems that Leah was talking about me so it was a good thing I had not made up some preposterous story about how I had convinced Sue to let me take her daughter.
"Her tourist? I don't know anything about that. But you must be her brother Seth? Please tell your mother that Leah is asleep and I will drive her home as soon as she wakes up. If she has any questions she can reach me at this number. Do you have a pen?" As soon as he told me yes I rattled off my cell phone number. Nothing pleased parents more than the knowledge that their child was just a phone call away. I hung up soon after that and went back to prowling the beach and avoided looking at the sleeping girl as much as possible.
I was in the middle of making a long circuit around the place when Aodh sent me a vision. Very soon I would be visited by two wolves. I had seen them before but I could not tell who they were just by sight. Probably if I spent enough time here I would learn to recognize them by their fur color. It was most certainly not Seth nor was it Jacob the leader of the smaller of the two packs.
I rolled my eyes at their complete lack of tracking skills as soon as I realized they were coming in from the southeast. Even the most novice member of my family knew that when you were sneaking up on a person you stayed downwind from your prey. I firmly believed that had it not been the vampire strategist Jasper telling them exactly what to do during the newborn vampire attack the wolves would have been massacred. It was only blunt force rather than cunning that had brought about that victory. Well blunt force and the fact that they were very good little soldiers that followed orders. My thoughts were brought back to the present as they crashed through the underbrush making enough noise that even a regular human would probably be able to hear them.
My body was turned towards the ocean, but my mind was reaching out behind me as I searched for the intruders. Sam was being a bad boy and had sent his minions to search out Leah. Their thoughts came at me in stereo and caused a moment of confusion before I remembered this strange characteristic of wolves. They were searching for Leah, it seems that Sam had somehow found about my picnic with Leah and had sent an envoy to "make sure nothing happened". There was a great deal of speculation from one of the wolves regarding what he thought Sam had meant by that statement. This wolf, Paul was his name, then proceeded to think in detail all the things he thought Leah was doing with me. At one point he replaced me with his own image as the activities became more graphic. Was this what Leah had had to deal with all summer long? I cannot imagine what it was to be part of the group mind when you are the only female and the rest are immature teenage boys. On top of that was the added burden of having to share the thoughts of her former lover? She had been put in the unenviable position of being the woman tossed aside and then being forced to witness the growing love between her former lover and her former best friend.
What had they expected of her, to sit back and take the pain? Follow orders like a good little girl? In a similar situation I would have probably butchered every member of the pack. I could see why she would sever ties with Sam's pack and join up with Jacob.
The other wolf was slightly bothered by Paul's thoughts and the words orders, Leah, and Sam kept popping up in his thoughts but Quil did not seem surprised. It seems that this was not the first time Paul had pictured himself having sex with Leah.
Aodh was not being helpful right now in predicting Leah's reaction to this intrusion but I was going to guess it would be strong and negative. My resolve to neutralize Sam grew. Sam did not understand the rules of relationships: once you broke up with a girl you no longer were allowed to keep track of her like she was nothing more than a woman who could not possibly make her own decisions.
The wolves did not break through the edge of green that separated the forest from the beach but I could see the tilting of the ferns as they moved their two large bodies through the underbrush. I kept the look of disgust off of my face- amateurs. The large frond of ferns swayed as the moved closer to the beach. A twig snapped. Their over-confidence in their wolf abilities would get them killed one day.
Paul what the hell? You sound like a freaking rhino. Sounds like Paul was the one responsible for the sound.
Shut up Quil, no one asked you opinion. Came the angry reply.
I stood up, and squinted my eyes into the gloom. Dusk had long settled around the area and while the clouds had disappeared in some spots the stars did not offer enough light for a human to have been able to see clearly. I reached down and picked up a rock. As a guardian I would have left the beach, double backed, and struck at them with one of the knives that I always carried. They would have been dead before they knew I was behind them for disturbing my mate's peace. I was going to keep to my human disguise right now so the rock would have to suffice.
"Who is there?" I asked allowing some of my anger to leak into my voice. Further rustling of the leaves was the only answer to my question. How had they survived that newborn army? They sure as hell were not going to survive this next attack from the Volturi. I would have to find a way to intervene before it came down to a fight because these children knew nothing. If you are trying to hide and someone suspects you are there you do not keep moving. Most certainly you do not continue to make fucking noise.
Deciding these boys needed a lesson I threw the rock at the moving ferns. I could not use my full strength since that would have killed one of the young fools but I made sure it would hurt. There was a satisfying crack of bones and then a yelp. I leaned down and picked up another missile.
Leah jumped a little at the sound. Great now these punks had woken up my Princess before she got her rest. I looked down at her drowsy looking face. So this is what she would look like in the morning? Her lids drooping over those pretty eyes made me think she was still half asleep.
"Sorry did I wake you," I finally asked when I realized that she was far too sleepy to be cognizant of what was going on.
"What?!" Her voice was huskier than usual. With her flushed cheeks and messy hair she looked like a woman that was just getting out of bed after a night of serious fucking. To say I was starting to get aroused was an understatement.
"You are not very coherent when you first wake up." I faked a laugh. Humor was not what I was feeling right now.
"No, no I am awake." I somehow doubted that. She threw a confused look at the outline of seashells and rocks that surrounded her. Maybe I should have cleaned that up so as not to arouse any suspicions. Honestly though she would just think of it as some sort of prank or boredom.
"There was something moving around in the woods, it was getting a little too close for comfort so I threw a rock at the correct bush. I think i got it, though from the sound it made it might have been bigger than I thought." I rubbed the rock and considered hitting the other wolf as well. The knowledge that Paul was in pain gave me a great deal of satisfaction. He seemed to think that one of his ribs was broken. Quil had done nothing more than follow orders so I decided not to throw the second rock.
It might have appeared like I was staring at the bushes but most of my concentration was on the woman next to me. In an instant she went went from sleepy to alert. She glared at the offending bushes before she let out a little laugh.
"Did you have fun?" She asked in a very clear attempt to distract me. She was giving that small seashell far more attention than a mundane half broken bivalve deserved.
"It was boring watching you sleep, except for the snoring bit. That was kind of funny." She was not a snorer thank the gods, but I had already known that. I gave her a full smile to mitigate my insult. Hopefully this joke would not blow up in my face and cause her to take another hit to her self-esteem. I had to remind myself that she was very delicate right now.
She did not look all that delicate as she fisted her hand in preparation of a punch. Soon she abandoned such a plan and after one last glare she lay back down.
"Tell me again why I put up with you?" Her disgruntled tone only made my smile wider.
"Because the alternative is having to live without me, and what is the point of living then?" The words were pulled form me of their own accord. There really would be no point in living without her, not that I would have killed myself but it would have been hard to enjoy life this much without her.
She took my words as a joke and I found that it did not bother me much because I knew that soon she would find out the truth.
"Yeah, how could I go on?" She chortled with humor and I looked away happy that she not been insulted by my comment. "Lions, and tigers, and bears oh my."
"Hmm, I'm sorry, I was slightly distracted." I looked back down at her. The two wolves in the shrubs had finally figured out that silence would be a good idea. It amused me that they were more afraid of Leah's wrath than Sam.
"What time is it?" She asked suddenly worried.
"Getting late, don't worry I called your mother to tell her you fell asleep on me. Unfortunately I could only get a hold of your brother. Seth, is it? He said he would pass the message along to your mother." I wanted to ease her worries. I was not going to be the cause of extra tension between Leah and her mother.
"You called my mother how?" She was distracted from the conversation as she took a deep breath. Her nose twitched a little and recognition flared in her eyes before she scowled. It appeared that Leah had found out who was stalking her and she was not pleased.
"These new fangled things called cell phones." I showed her my phone and wondered how soon I could obtain one for her. It would be a good way to watch over her especially since Aurora the family AI, could monitor her as well. "Come on sleeping beauty it is time to get home."
A much as I wanted to stay with her forever it would not endear me to Sue Clearwater if I did not bring her daughter back the first time I took her out.
Leah sat up and stretched long limbs. Even the baggy clothes could not disguise the strength and grace that was present in the girl. She was again distracted by the elements I had place around her.
"All the elements right there," I told her. Most people would go along with it if you pretended it was nothing more than a joke.
"What?"
"All the elements are represented, well the old school ones at least. Earth, wind, and water. You just need fire and you should be set, I can begin the incantation." I gave her a look that hopefully pushed her towards the this is a joke attitude.
I helped her fold up the blankets and stowed them away in the truck. When I looked up she was staring out at the massive ocean, somewhat mesmerized by the constant roar of the waves.
She finally noticed me waiting for her and turned back to me. As she was walking towards the truck she stopped abruptly and bent down.
"What is wrong?" I asked not all that concerned.
"Hmmm? Nothing, just some sea glass. I have not found any in a while. This one seems especially pretty," she spent a moment admiring her find before following me to the truck.
"Must be your lucky day," I told her quietly.
"Trust me good luck has not been following me around these past few months." She sounded sad again.
"Well you never know, your luck might have just changed."
She just made a scoffing noise before getting into the truck. I turned away from her and smile. Looks like my spell was working.
A/N: Sorry this takes so long between updates. I am working on my own book and obviously I have to come up with all new characters, and plots and problems. It has been much more frustrating than I could have imagined. Needless to say it takes a great deal of time.
Thanks for all the encouragement for all of my stories. I am working of Seth but I spent a bit of time rewriting parts so that they could go with my new plan. Sorry Seth people that might take me a while longer. Plus I have this great idea of how Phil can take care of Sam so I sort of want to write that down.
Lots of love and happy new year,
LW.