Discovered (The Shalean Moon) (13 page)

What the heck is going on anyway? Why aren’t I screaming at the top of my lungs? Maybe I should?

She opened her mouth and felt a hand. She tried to see who the hand belonged to, but she couldn’t see anything; it was as if someone had put a curtain around her. She tried to bite the hand and all she got was a mouthful of fur. So, was it a hand, or a paw?

Rach began to struggle. No way was this going to happen—nightmare or reality. She was not going anywhere with anything; but it seemed she didn’t have a choice. She felt herself lifted and then before she had time to blink, let alone shout, she was moving.

***

‘Brios?’

‘Brios?’

Something was wrong. Leira was calling him.

‘Leira? How did you reach me?’

‘Oh never mind that, where’s Rach?’

‘She’s in bed, why? I did my collapse thing, so we’ve all gone to bed. I’ll tell her everything tomorrow. Her dad agrees.’

‘It might be too late, check on her. Donny’s been sending weird messages to me. Please go and check on her.’

‘Okay, okay, keep your fur on.’

He sat up and swung his legs out of bed. He was still really shaky, but at least his brain wasn’t being bombarded anymore. These faints, for want of a better word, were both a nuisance and a protection. He just wished he’d got a bit more warning this time. Usually he knew how things were shaping up and could get to bed.

He wasn’t sure whether to wake Rach’s dad or not, but decided he didn’t want to risk him thinking he was sneaking in on his daughter. Luckily, his Shalean sense showed him which door to knock on.

“Hmmph?”

“Mr. Connor? It’s Brios, can you come with me to check on Rach please? We need to see if she’s all right, and I don’t want to go in without you.”

There was a mutter, a thump and the door opened.

“What do you mean?” Her dad was standing there with rumpled hair, yawning. He’d obviously woken him up.

“Look, you know about sensing right?” Brios asked urgently and watched her dad nod, “well Leira has just projected to me saying she thinks Rach may be in danger. She said we need to check on her.” No way was he going to say ‘I’ not ‘we’.

“Why?” Rach’s dad seemed confused, but he was moving as he spoke.

“I don’t know, she just thought she might be in danger. My friend Donny has been sending Leira weird messages.”

Rach’s dad opened her bedroom door. “She was right, where is she?” The room was empty.

Brios looked at the bed, its duvet was un-creased.

So she didn’t even get to bed.

He sniffed. At least one Shalean had been here, if not two; neither of them were Rach. It was nothing to do with his dad, or he would have known.

Rogue Shaleans!
He tried to detect Struan’s presence; but felt nothing.

“I don’t know, and Leira didn’t know. Will you accept that I need to project?”

He received a nod. “Just do it. I always knew something like this would happen. It wasn’t enough for them to take Dorias, they have to mess with Rach as well.” His voice was angry. “Why? What has she ever done to any of you?”

“She’s done nothing, apart from hitting one miserable specimen in the balls with her school bag; and that was needed. Look, I don’t really think it’s about you and her mum. It’s to do with me; I know she’s the one.” Mr. Connor looked startled.

“Ah, are you sure? She’s only fifteen.” His face showed that he knew Brios was serious. “Er, what’s the bag in the balls scenario?”

Brios nodded. “I’ll explain the bag bit later, but am I sure? Yes. One day, Rach permitting, it’ll happen. As for our ages —my mum and dad were the same as Rach and I when they knew; even though they did nothing formal until they’d both been to university. I’ll be the same, and as you know, in the end it will be up to Rach. Now I’m going to try and get answers.”

Her dad nodded. “I’ll go and get dressed.”

Brios waited until he was alone. He took a deep breath.

‘Leira? She’s gone. Is dad there?’

‘I’m here Bri. What’s wrong?’

‘Rach has gone.’

‘Gone where? What d’you mean?’

‘Hell, I don’t know. All we know is she’s not in the house. Leira projected to me something about weird messages from Donny.’ He ran his hand through his hair. ‘It’s Rogues, not Struan, any ideas?’

There was silence.

‘No not yet. Wait there and don’t do anything until I get back to you; and what’s this about Struan?’

‘Ask Leira.’

There was a growl. ‘Oh, I will. Our God’s and us.’

Brio knew his dad used the words to remind him of his role. He repeated the words, and turned as Rach’s dad came back into the room. He really must get used to thinking of him as Tony. To say Mr. Connor, or think of him as Rach’s dad was a mouthful.

“Find out anything?” It seemed as if Tony was accepting him and his Shalean heritage.

“Dad says wait until he contacts us. He’s got no idea what’s happening yet.”

“Rogues?”

So Tony knew about Rogues, those Shaleans who banded together to cause mayhem and grief; championing various grievances, whether real or imagined.

Brios nodded. “It seems so.”

“They killed Dorias you know, Rach’s mum. I told Rach it was in an accident, but, it wasn’t. They killed her—because she married me.”

“What?”

Tony nodded. “She was a future Matriarch, I was human. Not an acceptable mix.”

Brios could see that.

“Does Rach know about the Matriarch stuff? Or that it was anything but an accident?”

Tony shook his head.

Brios suddenly heard Rach in his head; her voice was angry. ‘You’re lying. I don’t believe you. My mum was killed in a car crash. My dad is so not like that. Go away, piss off, and leave me alone. Who the heck d’you think you are anyway? Dressing up, it’s not even Halloween. All this crap you’re talking; that’s all it is, a load of rubbish. Now take those stupid furry costumes off; own up to who you are, and why you’re being so stupid; and leave me alone. Go on; show me those silly grinning faces under those masks. Gah, and stop making me say stupid.’

Rach continued. ‘And if you really are leopards, well for goodness sake act like them! Don’t go around sneaking into bedrooms, or trying to scare me. Go back to where you belong, and leave me alone. Oh, just you wait ‘til my dad and Brios get here!’

“Um, I hate to say this, but I think she does now.”

C
HAPTER
T
WELVE

Welcome to la-la land; duh, what a load of twerps. All dressed up like leopards
.

They growled as they moved around her in the tiny overheated room. Curtains covered the windows, and there was no furniture except a spindly looking sofa against one wall. Rach thought it looked like it was being held up by the wall, and one puff—or growl—would make it collapse.

‘Rach, they aren’t dressed up. It’s real, your heritage, that’s my gift to you. Unfortunately, it’s coming here like this, now. Trust in yourself, trust Brios. Only you can overcome their evil.

Her mum’s voice again. If she was honest, strange though it seemed, she knew deep down there were no costumes; no scary—or silly—masks. This was real. She was somewhere surrounded by wild animals, and getting madder by the minute.

‘Mum? Mum, can you sense this? Shoot, mum, there’s so much I need to ask you. Please, please answer.’
She waited, but sensed nothing. Around her, pairs of eyes were watchful and waiting.

What right do they have to mess with me, whether this is my heritage or not? More than that, they hurt Leira and Brios; to say nothing of how dad must be worrying.

The room felt as stuffy as hell, and it was making her feel sick and headachy. She broke out in a cold sweat. Being shut up in these tiny confines did nothing to squash her claustrophobia; that was something she had suffered from ever since she accidentally shut herself in a cupboard when she was tiny.

The room seemed to close in on her; she was sure something rotten was in it. She hoped it was just mold and not a dead animal—or worse, a person. It burned her sinuses when she tried to take a deep calming breath.

Stupid, stupid Rach, it’s okay
, she tried to tell herself,
Brios will come—he has to. Think; don’t be stup ... Argh
!

Not only had they reduced her to a gibbering idiot, they had her saying the same word over and over again; she hated doing that
.
She and her dad often had contests to see who could introduce a new word into their conversation; know what it meant and use it in the proper context.
They
had her using stupid.

“Vacuous, imbecilic, half-witted, brain-dead morons,” she said impatiently, pleased she had remembered the words she had been going to dazzle her dad with. The prowling stopped. Eleven leopards turned and glared at her. Eleven pairs of amber eyes honed in and stalked.

Uh oh.

‘Stare them down. Show them you are not afraid. Kick-ass; pretend they’re Struan.’

Donny? What the f…?

‘Show them.’

He sounded fierce. One pair of eyes seemed more challenging than the rest. She stared and there was a split second wink; Donny was here. Where or what was
here
anyway?

‘Please Rach, just trust me. Please?’

“Look” She tried to sound reasonable, but wasn’t sure if she succeeded very well. She didn’t do reasonable. “You’re making me dizzy with all your circling. We all know that whether or not you’re dressed up in fancy fun-fur dress costumes, or you are real leopards, if you all gang up on me I’m a goner. Why you would want me to be a goner I have no idea. I’m a normal fifteen-year old who unfortunately seems to have eaten something that’s giving me weird dreams.”

So, butt out of my dreams you losers. I’ve had enough.

She hoped that would help; it didn’t, instead another voice chimed in.

‘Fun-fur? Fun-fur? Ha, half human, cheeky cur!’

Hold on. Who was that?
It wasn’t a voice she recognized either, not even Struan. Though she reckoned he wouldn’t even know how to rhyme anything. Who on earth was it? She didn’t get an answer.

‘Tell them. Tell them.’ It was a woman’s voice; soft and well spoken, with very little accent.

Oh, get lost!

There was a clearing of throats; a cough.

Now what?

A tall dark-haired man stood in front of her, next to him was a tall elegant blonde-haired woman, who smiled faintly before speaking.

‘Welcome Rachael.’ It was the voice of the woman who had projected to her.

“Do you know why you are here?” the man was asking in a tone Rach thought the man’s tone meant
he
knew.

He’s delusional; definitely not on the same wavelength. How many times do I need to tell him I don’t know?

‘C’mon Rach, tell him he’s wrong. Tell him that you have no idea why you’re here. You can do it, there’s no danger; I’m here for you and Brios.’

‘I’m definitely confused Donny, tell who? And how come you’re in with these weirdos?’

She could sense his laugh. ‘Tell Gregor, he’s the guy speaking to you. And I’m here to take care of you for Bri. The only way we could think of doing it, so show ‘em.’

‘Try and stop me; and thanks Donny.’

‘Go get ‘em. Make sure you put in a good word for me with Leira, she’s gonna have my pelt for this.’

“Because you’re all screwballs?”

There was a smothered laugh. She’d bet it came from Donny. The blond woman almost smiled.

The man she’d been told was called Gregor scowled at her.

“You’re here because we believe you’re in danger.”

“Well I am now; you’ve pulled me away from dad and Brios. They were making sure that screwball Struan Scott didn’t find me. I’m amazed he’s not here with you. So what’s this all about then?”

“Your father.”

“Dad, what about him? He’s the best dad there is.”

The speaker shook his head.

“He has kept you from us. You should be here in this Chapter of the Sept. I, as its elder, know this. Not only did he take Dorias from us, from me, he kept you from us; then he took you away with Brios Parde.”

“So? Look Mr. Who-ever-you-are, my dad is a good honorable man, and he’s given me a great life. There was only the two of us after my mum was killed in a car crash—what? Why are you shaking your head?”

“You have us; your family here. Your father chose not to allow us in.”

What? He really is away with the cuckoos
.
He isn’t my family, none of them are. Okay, I can hear mum I think, but she’s dead; so what’s he on about? Why should dad tell me about stuff from before I was born, that has nothing to do with me?