Destiny Redeemed (2 page)
Authors: Gabrielle Bisset
Slowly
shaking his head, Amon’s gaze traveled to his right leg. Gethen reached out and
gently ran his palm over the pant leg, causing Amon to wince and softly cry out
in pain.
“Okay.
Just hold on to me and don’t let go.”
Amon
kept his hands around his servant’s waist and rested his head on his chest. He
felt Gethen’s hand lightly stroke the back of his head, and the rhythmic sound
of his heartbeat in his ear lulled him.
“Stay
with me, Amon. I’m going to get you out of here.”
His
eyes closed, he heard his servant whisper, “Please, let this work.”
The
sound of a guard’s footsteps coming down the hallway made Amon stiffen, and he
lifted his head off Gethen’s chest, knowing that if they caught his servant,
they’d kill him.
“Gethen,
go! I can’t let them find you here.”
He
began to release his hands from around his waist, but Gethen grabbed them and
held them fast to him. “Don’t let go! The only way I leave here is with you!”
Fully
conscious and working on adrenaline, Amon wrapped his arms tightly around
Gethen. If they killed him, he still had three more lifetimes he’d willingly
give up, but Gethen wasn’t Aeveren and his death would be final. He had to make
sure he escaped.
The
noise drew closer, and slowly Gethen began to change to mist as he reminded
Amon to hold on to him, no matter what. As they left Nil, Amon breathed a sigh
of relief and felt himself begin to slip away.
*
Moments
later, Gethen reappeared safely on the mountaintop, but he looked down in
horror at the body of the man in his arms. Amon, unconscious, slid out of his
grasp to the ground below him. Gethen fell to the ground next to him,
devastated what he’d feared had happened. Because he was Aeveren, the journey
between worlds had been too much for Amon.
“Markku!
Give me your coat!”
“What
happened?” he asked frantically. “I swear I did everything right, Gethen.”
Gethen
draped the coat over Amon’s shirtless body. “Coming from Nil to this world was
too much for him. We need to get him to the house. And when we get there, I
need you to do another spell to make sure no one can find him there.”
Markku
nodded and helped Gethen to his feet.
“Can
you carry him? I’m too weak,” Gethen said as he looked down sadly at Amon.
Bending
down, Markku lifted Amon and quickly began to make his way to the house. As he
walked, Amon opened his eyes and mumbled Gethen’s name before fading out again.
“Don’t
worry, big guy. The old man got back A-OK.”
As
Markku approached Amon’s house, Gethen stopped him and took his master’s body
into his arms. Turning to Markku, he nodded in the direction of the town.
“After you do whatever you need to do so he’ll be hid, I need you to find a
healer.”
“I
don’t know where any are, though.”
Gethen
glared over the still body in his arms, forcing Markku to step back.
“Okay.
I get it. Find one!”
Gethen
left Markku outside performing his spell and took Amon to his bedroom on the
second floor. Carefully, he removed Markku’s coat and laid Amon on the bed. He
remained unconscious, and in the light of the room, Gethen once again studied
the effects of Nil evident on his body. The former beauty of his master was
absent, replaced with muscle, scars, and fresh injuries.
Weakened
by the rescue himself and now nauseous from the evidence of the violence he saw
Amon had suffered, he stumbled back into a chair beside the bed and rested
comfortably for the first time in almost a year, hoping that his weakness was
merely overexertion and not something more.
Hours
later, he awoke to find Amon still unconscious and no sign of Markku. His
immediate reaction was to threaten the missing man, but Gethen stopped himself.
Markku had successfully protected Amon on the trip back from Nil; he wasn’t
still unconscious because of any failure of Markku’s. Gethen knew the journey from
one world to the other might hurt him, but there was no true safeguard against
that. Amon was Aeveren, unlike him, and they didn’t move between worlds easily.
Markku
would return with the healer soon. Literally, his future happiness depended on
it. Still exhausted, Gethen settled back into the chair and with heavy eyes watched
his master sleep. He’d done it. He’d saved Amon as he’d done for him so many
years ago.
But
would Amon ever be the same after what had happened to him in Nil?
Chapter Two
Thea
Forester sat on the edge of the bed glaring as her boyfriend of six months
ignored her in favor of the latest sport he’d decided was more interesting than
the beautiful woman next to him. Reclined against a stack of pillows pushed up
against the wooden headboard of her bed, he stared in rapt attention at the
football game on television.
It
hadn’t always been like this. When she’d begun dating Cole, it had been
exciting. Thea knew once again in another lifetime that she hadn’t been given a
destined one, but Cole swept her off her feet, enchanting her with his passion
and experiences, even though he’d only lived a mere two lifetimes. And although
their lovemaking had never gotten above the average level, Cole’s concern for
her happiness had impressed her.
Those
days were long gone now, and Thea wondered if this was all her forty-fifth
lifetime had to offer. Although she’d told herself she couldn’t stand one more
day of the relationship, she’d made a deal with herself to try one more time to
reawaken the romance that had existed between them just six months earlier.
As
Cole sat transfixed by the spectacle in front of him, Thea trailed kisses
across his stomach and down to the top of his pants. Hearing a sigh, she looked
up to see Cole smiling.
Good.
Progress.
She
undid his pants and unzipped them slowly to find him already hard.
Very
good.
Cole
liked to talk during sex, so she was pleased to hear him begin to speak as she
began to suck gently on him, even if she wasn’t pleased by what he said. It always
reminded her of how young an Aeveren he truly was, despite being three years
older than she in this lifetime.
“You
like my big cock in your mouth, baby? Yeah, suck harder.”
Don’t
listen, Thea. Nobody’s perfect. It’s just an idiosyncrasy. Nothing you can’t
deal with.
She
did as he ordered and felt his hand begin to push the back of her head.
Grasping the base of his cock, she continued to bob up and down on him.
Sure
he was close to coming, she glanced up at his face and suddenly stopped her
motion. Instead of watching her or having his head thrown back in ecstasy and his
eyes closed, he was watching the football game!
Furious, Thea sat up and faced him. No amount of
convincing herself could change the fact that whatever they’d had together obviously
wasn’t working anymore.
“Cole,
I think it’s time we talked.”
Grabbing
the remote, she clicked off the television and watched as a surprised look came
over his face.
“What
the ...? Now what’s wrong, baby? I loved what you were doing. Why’d you stop?”
“This
isn’t working. I’m sorry.”
Cole’s
expression changed to reflect the hurt and anger he felt. “So now you’re going
to break up with me because I wasn’t totally focused on you giving me a
blowjob?”
Disgusted,
she stood up off the bed and walked to the bedroom door.
“I’m sorry. I just want something different
than this.”
Cole
zipped up his pants and rolled off the bed to stand and face her. When he
spoke, Thea knew how much she’d hurt him.
“You
want something that doesn’t exist anymore, baby. That’s the problem with you
ancient Aeveren. You want something that hasn’t existed since the Middle Ages.
That chivalrous knight-in-shining-armor shit doesn’t happen anymore. And you’d
better get used to that since you’re not getting a destined one.”
“Get
out! Now!” she ordered as she ushered him toward the front door.
“Relax,
baby. I’m just saying what you know is the truth.”
As
Thea opened the door, Cole stopped in front of her, grinning. “I’ll wait for
you to call me this time. But don’t keep me waiting too long.”
“Goodbye,
Cole,” she said as she fought back the tears.
Alone,
Thea let herself have a good cry at the pain of what he’d said. Yes, she was old-fashioned,
but was that a bad thing? She was in her forty-fifth lifetime and had seen
hundreds of years—over a thousand, she thought with a sigh—of men who respected
and protected their females. For many of her lifetimes, she had that too. Was
it any surprise that this is what she was used to?
But it wasn’t
just that the men she seemed to meet now weren’t old fashioned like her. It was
what Cole had said about a destined one that really hurt.
And
you’d better get used to that since you’re not getting a destined one.
Thea
regretted ever telling him she was a healer. She usually didn’t tell men about
her gift because then they often found out that healers rarely were given
destined ones. It made her feel less special than other Aeveren females, even
though she knew that was foolishness. Her gift helped people.
That
was little comfort as she watched nearly everyone she knew in every lifetime
find true love with a destined one. She knew it may be a hopeless wish, but she
couldn’t help wishing once again on the star she spied out her window for a
destined one to love her and for her to love.
And
if it isn’t too much to ask, please can he be old-fashioned like me?
Thea
heard a knock at her door and sighed in disgust. Cole was nothing if not
predictable. After every fight they’d ever had, he’d returned to convince her
how much he loved her, and it seemed he was true to form this night too.
This
time was different, though. Thea knew she’d have to deal with him, but she
wouldn’t let him convince her to stay with him again.
I’d
rather be alone.
Feeling
empowered by her decision, she flung open the door to tell him exactly why she
didn’t want to be with him anymore, and God help him the first time he called
her baby. But instead of seeing Cole standing on her front porch, she looked
out to see a greasy man with no coat staring back at her.
“Althea
Forester?”
“Yes.
Who are you?”
“I
need you to come with me.”
Before
she could slam the door and call 911, he grabbed her and took her into the
house, holding her arms tightly. Seconds later, she’d been taken from her
home—kidnapped by a strange man.
*
“Are
you okay, my friend?” Amon hoarsely whispered to Gethen who sat watching him.
The
sound of his voice made the servant’s face light up. Leaning forward in his
chair, he smiled warmly.
“Yes,
I’m fine. I was never the concern. I can travel between worlds with ease,
remember?” Reaching out to touch Amon’s arm, Gethen continued. “How are you
feeling?”
Amon
considered the question and struggled to put how he felt into words. The
gratitude he felt toward the soul sitting next to him threatened to overwhelm
him. He knew Gethen spoke the truth about his ability to travel between worlds,
but the risk he’d taken in rescuing him from Nil was so profound that even as
he lay there he found it difficult to believe he’d risked so much for him.
Physically, his wounds made him ache all over, but emotionally, he felt so full
from the love his servant had shown him he struggled to keep his emotions in
check.
He
looked into the deep green eyes that watched him carefully. “We’re even,
Gethen. Your debt is paid to me. If anything, I owe you.”
Gethen
shook his head and closed his eyes as tears began to well up in them. “Nothing
I could ever do would be repayment enough for saving my life and giving me the
one I’ve had with you.”
Amon
shook his head and smiled.
“No,
master,” he said sadly. “For all you’ve done for me, I could do nothing less
than rescue you from that...” Gethen’s voice caught and he cleared his throat.
“I’m so sorry it took me so long,” he said quietly, looking down at his hands
resting on the bed.
“Don’t
do this to yourself, Gethen. You’ve given me the greatest gift of my
forty-seven lifetimes.”
Amon
closed his eyes and prepared to say what he knew he should’ve said lifetimes
ago. Opening his eyes, he met Gethen’s gaze and smiled. “I should’ve done this
so long ago, but I was selfish. You’re free, my friend.”
Amon
watched a look of sadness cross his friend’s face. Gethen had been away from
his people as his servant for so many years. Almost as if he read the
uncertainty in his mind, Amon smiled and said, “But I hope you’ll stay now as
my friend instead of my servant.”
When
he was rewarded with Gethen’s smile, he knew he’d understood his friend’s
concern and was pleased he’d allayed his fears. Hoping to change the
conversation to something far less maudlin, Amon asked, “Did I see Markku
earlier?”
“Yes.
He was necessary to cast a protection spell for your safety on the trip back,”
Gethen answered, his voice a mixture of appreciation and irritation. “I sent
him to find a healer.”
Amon
closed his eyes as the pain in his right leg came raging back. Grunting through
it, he said, “It’s the least he could do since he was one of the reasons I was
sent there.”
Gethen’s
look of confusion told Amon that Markku had been less than candid with him. As
the pain in his leg settled in to a dull ache, he continued, “You thought it
was just Varek? No, but I’m not done with him either.”
Callia
flashed through his mind and the realization that he was alone, except for
Gethen, bit at his heart. Loneliness seeped back into him, and he shut his eyes
in sadness.