Echoes in the Dark (48 page)

His
gaze burned with intensity and she knew that no man would ever love her the way
this man did, no man would ever love her more. She wouldn’t love that guy on
Earth as deeply as she could love Faucon.

If
they lived.

She’d
already suffered for Lladrana, for Amee, already paid for whatever they’d given
her with tears and blood and sweat and fear. The ship below her…she couldn’t
feel the ship, the lovely rocking on the Lladranan seas so different from
Earth. Glancing down, she saw the gleaming deck, but she wasn’t truly in
Lladrana anymore, she was hovering here until she chose.

She
could ask Faucon if he loved her. She opened her mouth. That wasn’t fair, to
make him prove his love and return.

Her
decision. The
man, this man who would not draw back from the last battle against the Dark. He
could die soon, so could she if she stayed. She
knew
that as well as she
knew she’d be the preeminent yacht designer on Earth if she left Lladrana.

What
was love in this moment worth?

She
hovered.
Heard
the strong Song of him, of her own, of the oceans of
Lladrana, of Amee.

More
than simply love, the richness of this life, the intensity of this life was
such that she didn’t want to forsake it. With focused vision, she now saw the
carving of herself set in the prow. No caricature at all, but a sculpture of
her, eyes distant but haunted, a model of the ship in her hands. Surely if she
returned to Earth, some small droplet of her blood would yearn for Lladrana the
rest of her life. Her long, lovely life.

She
returned her gaze to Faucon. His eyes were wet. Still he said nothing. Offered
nothing, but his Song was ragged with an agony that tore at her.

“I’m
staying!” she yelled, and her world went dark an instant, the vision of her
loving family disappeared, the familiar scent of home and ocean that she hadn’t
even known she was smelling, vanished. A last beat of charging rock and roll
she hadn’t known was running through her head stopped.

She
dropped and clunked on the deck.

Faucon’s
eyes went wide. He shuddered and gasped, then he grabbed her. Held her tight.
“I love you.”

“I
love you,” she said.

They
lowered to the deck under the throb of their emotions, her clothes stripped
away. His body was slick under her hands…sea spray and sweat. Then his mouth
covered hers and all his urgent movements swept her away, too. Her clothes
disappeared. She needed the scent of him, the feel of him on her, in her. Needed
his hard hands stroking her breasts and between her legs. Needed the throbbing
words of love, his breath in her mouth that they’d share.

Needed
life.

She
loved him, but was terrified of the future.

She
didn’t want to die.

Worse,
she didn’t want to see him die. She clutched him as their loving turned fierce.
“I love you.”

J
ikata found
rough, cold brick against her back and realized she’d retreated from the rail
of the balcony to the wall of the house. She breathed shallowly and wiped a
hand across her eyes.

So
that was the Snap. She had no doubt what she’d seen. Everyone had been
discussing Raine’s Snap out of the woman’s hearing, speculating whether she
would return home to Earth or stay here in Lladrana. Jikata hadn’t heard it
all, but something had gone wrong with Raine’s Summoning. The odds had been
seventy percent that she’d leave.

Alexa
and Bastien and Bri had all wagered she’d stay. They’d been right.

Jikata
shouldn’t
have been able to see it, not Raine on the Ship at this
distance. But she had. Closely, brightly, too, as if it had been day instead of
a moonlit night. Tendrils of damp iridescent mist, reflecting all colors, had
gathered around Raine. Different than the mist before Jikata’s eyes that
signaled a coming vision. But something that Jikata half recognized, something
that had her shivering in the summer night. Dimensional Corridor misty winds.

Jikata
had seen what Raine had—a family dinner, a successful business, a loving
husband and children, a long and fruitful life. Jikata still didn’t know why
Raine hadn’t returned. Because Raine, like Jikata, had seen the blank emptiness
ahead of her here on Lladrana. Hadn’t she?

Yet
she’d stayed anyway.

A
quiet almost-sound, a sigh, alerted Jikata to the presence of someone in the
darkened room behind her. She jolted, but stopped herself from whirling,
knowing it was Luthan.

And
how much had
he
seen?

With
a firm step she walked back into the room, saw his shadowy form silhouetted
black.

“Raine’s
Snap has come and she has stayed,” Luthan said.

“Yes,”
Jikata said, deliberately using English.

His
chest emptied of another sigh and he shook his head. “Amazing what people will
do with just a little hope…and love.”

The
air thickened around them and Jikata was aware of an ache she had to hold him,
be held by him.

“My
Snap won’t come until after the battle with the Dark,” she said
matter-of-factly, but the truth of it began to nibble at her self-control.
She’d have to fight and survive before she could leave.

“All
of the Exotiques fought and faced death before their Snaps came.” He answered
her thought, not her words, strode across the room and took her in his arms.

She
looked up at him. “Not Raine—”

“Not
recently, but she was abused, and the English word is ‘stalked’ before we found
her.”

“Found
her?”

“You’ll
hear the whole story sometime.” He bent and brushed her lips, she opened her
mouth for him.

He
tasted anxious, matching his Song. He hadn’t liked whatever he’d seen during
Raine’s Snap.

Then
came a shout, running footsteps, banging doors, a wordless yell.

The
moment broke and Jikata breathed easier, there was reality to deal with.

Luthan
snorted, his teeth showed white in a grin. “Alexa rarely bothers to be quiet
and discreet.” He gave her a last tight hug, then indicated the balcony and
they went out on it, holding hands. Just in time to see Alexa sprinting across
the sand, yelling. “The Snap, the Snap came for Raine!”

Bastien
sauntered behind her, bare-chested and with the drawstring of his casual pants
untied.

Alexa
dove into the water and thrashed to the Ship.

F
aucon withdrew
from Raine, rolled them over and cleaned them up with a quick songspell. He was
panting. Even after the explosive release of sex, his nerves seemed wire-tight.
His face was wet and though he’d like to think it was sweat and sea spray, he
knew there were tears, too.

His
woman had stayed.

Had
stayed
for him.

He
hadn’t pleaded with her as he had Elizabeth, hadn’t even believed in his heart
of hearts that she would ever stay after what she’d already experienced. Hadn’t
told her he loved her.

Yet
she’d stayed.

A
frisson of fear drained away the heat of loving. She’d stayed. That meant she
might Sing the terrible spell to destroy the Dark. How could he keep her safe?

He
hadn’t thought he’d keep himself safe. Hadn’t thought he’d have much to live
for except to destroy the Dark with his last breath.

Everything
had changed.

She
had changed their futures, and he didn’t know how much of a future they had.

Thumps
and curses came as Alexa climbed up the rope ladder. Her shouts had warned him
that there would be no resting and gazing at the stars with Raine, any tender
words after loving.

He
wasn’t overly modest, but wished for pants.

Alexa
plunged through the access hole and halfway across the width of the deck.

“Raine!”

Raine
sat up beside him. He put a hand on her thigh to keep contact, though the way
their Songs had fused together in incandescent heat, he didn’t think they’d be
totally separate ever again. More fear would come, more dread. He shut it away.

“Geez,
Alexa, why don’t you wake the entire country.” Raine sounded aggrieved, pushed
her fingers through her hair as if to straighten tangles. That didn’t work.

“Raine!”
A happy cry, now. “You
stayed.
”

“Yeah,
and I’m rethinking that decision right now. Umph!”

Alexa
knocked her over.

The
women flopped around together a little, hugging and separating, and Faucon was
glad that his spell had included a perfume that dispersed the scent of sex. Not
that he would have minded, but Raine would have.

“That’s
a nice sight,” Bastien said, coming so quietly onto the Ship that he startled
Faucon.

“Ayes,”
Faucon said.

The
women were upright and hugging and crying, talking in fractured English. Faucon
wiped his arm across his face.

Bastien
crouched down beside Faucon. “Might not want to do a bloodbond with her.”

“No!”
It was nearly too loud, and he hadn’t thought it completely through, but
Bastien was right. Such bloodbound couples would die together. Much as it would
have hurt for Raine to return to Earth, at least then she would have lived.

Bastien
said wistfully, “You want to keep her safe.”

“Ayes.
And you want to do the same with Alyeka.”

“No
way to do that.” A sad half smile. “Can’t keep her out of this fight. We’ll
survive or go down together taking the Dark with us, Song willing.”

“Maybe—”

But
Alexa had jumped to her feet and grabbed Bastien’s hands, pulling him to his
feet so she could throw herself into his arms. “Raine has stayed after the
Snap!” She tugged him to dance around with her. “You know how much zhiv we’ve
made?”

Raine
slanted Faucon a wary look that he read. He lifted his hands. “I didn’t bet.”

Then
Sinafinal and Tuckerinal and Enerin were there, three peacocks. Enerin was
obviously following her mother’s example of disregarding sex for beauty.
Sinafinal spread her fan, walked toward Raine, ducked her head and spoke.

35

T
hank you for
staying, Exotique Seamistress. The Ship needs such a fine Captain,
Sinafinal said.

Raine
appeared a little startled. “I’ve already had a good idea for the Captain—”

Jean
will step aside, as he should. You have increased our chances greatly against
the Dark.

“Thank
you,” Raine said.

She
loves us!
Enerin trilled.

Faucon
rose, stepped over to Raine and picked her up, then whistled for his volaran.
“We won’t talk of battles tonight.” Not anymore. “We have something wonderful
to celebrate, another Exotique has decided Lladrana is her home!”

Cheers
came from Bastien and Alexa, some volarans who’d landed near them, and shouts
from the shore and house.

Raine
smiled, and it seemed that some of the shadows that had dimmed the brightness
of her eyes had vanished. She put her arms around his neck and triumph surged
through him. Nothing he’d done in all of his life, no joy he’d felt before,
equaled what flowed through him now.

He
set her bareback on his volaran, and swung up behind her and they rose to more
cheers.

People
dotted the beach, and all the lights in the house were on.

The
flight was short, but reminded him all the same of the first night he’d met
her. A dazzling light burst in his head and heart as he finally allowed himself
to love her without believing she would leave him.

She
was supple and wonderful in his arms, and though danger and death loomed,
before they reached that last instant, he would cherish her in every moment.

T
hey stopped at
the stables where Faucon could snatch some old trousers for himself and a long
tunic for her. His volaran pranced out to discuss the events with the rest of
the herd. The status of his winged steed had just increased because Faucon was
the mate of a
permanent
Exotique. Blossom, Raine’s volaran, was also
trotting around, head high.

He
gathered Raine up, feeling more and more like she was a prize, and took her to
his bed. There he loved her again, gently, tenderly, and she fell asleep in his
arms.

His
selfish wish had come true and now he was torn, rejoicing and regretting. She
was here, she loved him enough to stay with him despite all that had happened
to her. That was the greatest gift he’d ever had in his life. She loved him
enough to Captain the Ship through the dangerous waters to the Dark’s Nest.

He
hoped she loved him enough to stay behind, safe on the Ship, when he went into
battle. But he thought she had a different definition of their love—love mixed
with responsibility and duty. Other, sisterly love—that would have her going to
battle with him. Going further to unite with the other Exotiques and Sing the
City Destroyer spell.