Forged by Greed (37 page)

“What’s going on?” Jasmira shrieked. “Another earthquake?”

“Yes, I think so. Quick, out of the pool.”

They tried to swim to the nearest ladder, but the water tossed them
fiercely around.

“Jasmira, swim under the surface.” Jousenne shouted.

Jasmira followed the advice. Her strong Shifter’s muscles worked
against the ferocity of the water. A chaise longue plunged into the water right
in front of her, missing her by a few inches. Another three chaises followed
not far from the first one. She caught a glimpse of Jousenne struggling toward
the closest ladder.

“Jasmira. Faster. We need to get out of the house.” She heard Jousenne’s
voice in her head.

Jasmira reached the ladder and climbed up. Jousenne crawled on her
hands and knees to the door that led into the backyard. The tiled floor was
covered with water. The loud noise of the earthquake was terrifying. All of the
objects that previously stood upright around the pool were either tossed in the
water or kept sliding uncontrollably back and forth on the floor.

A small table was tumbling toward Jasmira. She clutched the handrail
of the ladder, screeched, and moved to the side. She lost her balance and
plunged backwards into the pool. The table bounced off the railing and ricocheted
toward the wall.
 

Jousenne reached the double doors, stood up, and grasped the handle.
She looked back, frantically scanning the area. She called with her mind to
Jasmira. Jousenne slid and fell, a sharp pain thrusting through her hip. She
cried out, gritting her teeth.

Jasmira’s head popped out from the water. A wave hit her in the face.
She sputtered, dived in, and swam under the surface toward the pool exit. Jasmira
climbed up the ladder, pressing her body to the handrail for support. She
dragged herself away from the pool and in the direction of her grandmother. Jousenne
lay on the floor, her hair across her face. She panted, squeezing her eyes shut.

The water-slide in the corner of the pool snapped off and fell into
the water.

“Grannie. What happened?” Jasmira shouted. She crawled as fast as
she could.

“Open the door and drag me outside. There is something very wrong
with my hip.”

“Oh, Goddess, Grannie.” Jasmira got up and walked on wobbly legs to
the door. She unlocked it and pressed on the handle. The door opened only about
a foot. She pushed harder, leaning on it with her body. “Something is blocking
from the outside.” She grunted.

“Careful. We don’t know what fell down and what else can fall,” Jousenne
panted, her face twisted in pain.

Jasmira pressed on the door again. She managed to open it another
two feet. Two large urns fell on the paved patio and shattered into large
chunks, blocking the exit. Jasmira pushed the debris aside. She grasped
Jousenne around her armpits and over the chest and pulled her outside. Jousenne
squeezed her eyes shut in response to the sharp pain in her hip. She didn’t
make a sound.

They heard something falling and breaking. It was one of the two
granite statues by the stairs. The noise of the earth shifting underneath was
even louder outside.

“We are almost out. I’m sorry. I know you’re in pain, Grannie.”
Jasmira huffed with the effort.

She dragged Jousenne to the bottom of the stairs which led to the
backyard. She looked around. About twenty yards away were the double doors to
the kitchen. The patio was littered with shattered flower pots that had fallen
from the second floor balcony balustrade. Red geraniums were scattered between
clumps of dirt and brown pieces of
clay
.
Directly across the lawn, a
large tree at the far end of the yard lay uprooted. A few of its branches were
unnaturally bent, like the broken limbs of a collapsed man.

“I have to move you up these stairs, away from the house,” Jasmira
said, getting ready to pick up Jousenne. “I will try to do it gently. But your
hip will hurt.”

The earth under them swayed dizzily. Jasmira had a hard time keeping
her balance. She planted her feet firmly on the ground and slid her arms under Jousenne.
Carefully, with little effort, she lifted her up and carried her up the stairs.
She walked onto the pavers and in the direction of the empty outdoor pool. The
water had already been drained from it, in preparation for winter, and the
furniture stored away. Colorful leaves from the nearby trees littered the pool
cover in a mosaic of vibrant hues and shapes. Jasmira didn’t even notice the
beauty of it. She frantically scanned the area, turning her head from side to
side.

She put Jousenne down on the grass. They were away from the house
and the trees. She sat on her knees and kept looking around. “We should be safe
here,” Jasmira said in a
shaky voice.
She took her grandmother in her arms, as if protecting her from harm. “Are
earthquakes always this long?”

“No. This is a strange one.” Jousenne was breathing heavily.

“Oh, Goddess,” Jasmira squealed. “I’m so scared. When is this gonna
stop? I’m so cold.”

They both shivered, their clothes and hair soaked with the pool
water.

 
“Grannie, is the house gonna
break?”

“I hope not. It has withstood earthquakes in the past. But I don’t
ever remember one like this. Homes can handle the short quakes but not the long
ones. This is strange, we should have our Goddess’s protection.”

“Protection?”

“Both Goddess’s protect their own Shifters. And the Shifters’
territories. So nothing bad should happen to our home.” Jousenne squeezed her
eyes tight in pain.

Jasmira looked at the mansion. Long spidery lines ran up the white Ionic
columns that held up the second floor terrace over the outdoor barbecue area. One
of the large plush chairs was upturned, and three others were scattered to the
sides. A low heavy table and sofa stood unmoved. Two large green-glass flower containers
had fallen to the ground, where they shattered into jagged shapes.

Small chunks began to rain down from the columns. Spidery lines started
to spread upwards, reaching the bottom of the terrace, and then traveling up
several balusters. Jasmira gasped and pointed. Jousenne’s eyes followed her
hand. A few of the vase-shaped balusters buckled. Bits of stone dropped down onto
the patio. More of the posts crumbled, and large chunks of the top rail tumbled
below. They hit the pavers, smashing into smaller pieces.

Both Shifters screamed. One of the support columns broke lengthwise.
It split in half. Each part fell to the opposite site, dragging a large portion
of the terrace down to the ground. The terrace crashed onto the outdoor
furniture and the huge stainless-steel grill. The noise of the destruction boomed
over the grinding sounds of the earthquake. A cloud of white dust rose up like
a puff from a giant’s pipe, momentarily obstructing the view. The second column
toppled on top of the rubble, breaking into large segments. Two other support columns,
which backed into the wall, still held the remaining part of the terrace, twisted
rebars protruding from it like angry snakes.

“Grandma, you said we have the Goddess’s protection!” Jasmira was
crying. Tears ran down her cheeks, leaving streaks in the dirt and dust that
covered her dark skin.

Jousenne opened her mouth as if in a silent scream of horror.

“It stopped. The earthquake stopped.” Jasmira whispered in relief.
“Grannie, I have to go inside to get the Dasht-e Kavir.”

“No!”

“We can’t leave it. I must go get it. Don’t move. Just give me the
key.” Jasmira pulled the key from under Jousenne’s black top and over her head.
“That gate opens to my hand and eye scan, right?”

“Yes, but—” Jousenne tried to protest, but Jasmira wouldn’t let her
finish.

“Give me the combination to open the safe. Quick.”

She was gone fast, running with the Shifter’s speed. About nine
minutes later she returned, dripping wet even more than before. She collapsed
on the ground next to Jousenne, panting.

“Here. Take the key.” Jasmira pulled the chain with the key over her
head and handed it back. “I have Dasht-e Kavir.” She patted the front of her wet
shirt.

CHAPTER 42

Human World, November 18, early
afternoon.

The cool wind gusted, flattening Jatred’s t-shirt against his lean
chest and shoulders. He inserted a quick draw into the hex in a narrow crack of
the massive granite wall. In a swift motion he clipped his rope onto the quick
draw and looked down. Tyrrell was belaying him. He held the rope taut, standing
at the base of the rock.

“Doing okay?” Jatred heard Tyrrell’s voice in his mind.

“Yep,” he grunted. He looked back at the wall and heaved himself
higher.

Jatred extended his leg up and to the side, and placed his foot on a
small protrusion. He bent his knee and twisted it upwards. He used his leg as a
kickstand, pivoting his body to the side, and then pulled himself up toward a
small stone ledge.

 
Despite the cold air, Jatred felt
sweat trickling down his chest. Adrenaline rushed through him, and he experienced
the pure joy of being outdoors, rock-climbing.

He grasped the ledge with one hand and hooked the fingers of his
other hand over a tight crevice. Trying to find footing with the tip of his shoe,
he pressed with his body onto the cool rock. His shoe scraped the wall a few
times, but there was no traction.

Tyrrell watched Jatred, holding the rope in his hands
.
Taking care to keep the rope taut, he
took a cautious step to his left to get a better look. Jatred’s foot finally
found a small projection.

Now Jatred climbed faster, his arms and legs stretched to the sides,
constantly grasping onto the crevices and rock protrusions. He paused from time
to time, only to insert another piece of gear into the wall, and to quickly
hook his rope to the quick draw. Strong muscles in his arms and legs contracted
as he ascended.

“I can’t wait to try the Kalymnos next summer.” Jatred shouted with
his mind to Tyrrell.

“The limestone is a different experience than granite. It’s tricky.
But you know that from the Colorado Rifle.” Tyrrell laughed. “And the view is amazing.”

“Now I’m gonna obsess over this for months,” Jatred said with a
chuckle.

“You’re not the only one. I can’t wait either.”

“How come you’ve never climbed Kalymnos? You’ve climbed so many
other rocks, why not there?”

“Who said I’ve never been there?” Tyrrell grinned. “It was a long
ago. I was a teen when I climbed it for the first time.”

“For the
first
time? How
many times have you done it?” Jatred sounded incredulous. “And how come you
didn’t say so when we decided to plan this trip?”

“Oh, come on. I have my secrets too.” Tyrrell shrugged.

Jatred attached his rope into a quick draw, grasped a solid-looking bulge
in the rock with one hand, and twisted his head to look down at Tyrrell.

“Secrets, huh? Are you implying something?”

Tyrell shrugged. “Never mind. I’ll tell you later.”

“Geez, Uncle. It’s about a girl, I bet.”

“What makes you think that?” Tyrrell pretended to sound as if he’d
been taken-aback, but a small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

“For starters, you don’t date. I’ve never seen you with any woman…
well, except Katie. But she was a nut case. Now you finally say something about
this mysterious girl from your past?”

“I’m not saying anything.”

“It kinda slipped, huh? So who was she? Did she climb Kalymnos with
you?” Jatred wouldn’t give up. He was curious about Tyrrell’s past, never before
revealed to him. “Come on, don’t clam up now.”

He ascended a few feet higher and glanced down over his shoulder at
Tyrell, who was looking into the distance. Jatred held onto the wall with one
hand. He put the other arm down and shook it to release the tension in his
muscles.

“I’m waiting, Uncle. I bet she was Greek. A Greek hottie,” he taunted.
“That’s why you thought about her when I asked about Kalymnos.”

“In fact, she is.” Tyrrell sounded composed.

“
Is
?” Jatred’s voice
carried a note of amusement. “Okay now. I’m all ears. Give me some news.”

“It’s Kaliope Stephanopoulos.” Tyrell said matter-of-factly.

“What?!” Jatred yelled. His foot slipped off the small protrusion in
the rock, and he fell off the wall.

Tyrrell jerked his end of the rope, engaging the belay device, and
arresting Jatred’s fall.

Jatred dangled on the rope more than four stories above the ground, laughing,
his head thrown back.

“Get serious,” Tyrrell murmured with his mind.

“I had no idea you had a fling with Mrs. Stephanopoulos.” Jatred
hooted in delight.

“Jatred! Have some respect. It wasn’t like that. I said, I’ll tell
you later. I’m not talking about that now, when you’re climbing. Pay attention
to the ascent.”