Authors: Jennifer Loiske
Imminence (21 page)
Ciall threw me a covert glance and then looked at Clarissa. I had reminded her of such a humiliating memory that I knew she’d do her utmost to prevent Ciall from finding out about it. Ciall’s eyes were locked to hers and hers to his. A cold sweat broke out on Clarissa’s forehead and I saw how she struggled. Ciall seemed thoughtful and gave me a baffled look.
“Try harder,” I commanded.
“Sofia,” Ciall began.
“Do as I say! Try harder!”
Ciall continued his exploration of Clarissa’s mind until he was suddenly flung several meters from her and lying on the floor, flabbergasted.
“Brilliant!” I sang. “I was sure you could do it.”
Clarissa looked at me in confusion.
“What happened?”
“You protected your mind and did it much better than I’d have thought. You were incredible!” I exclaimed, thrilled.
“But I hurt Ciall!” Clarissa pursed her lips in dissatisfaction.
“Look at him. The only thing you hurt was his pride. This time he couldn’t find out your secret, but now he has learned something of you and knows to be wary.”
“What do you mean, next time? I can do this now. You yourself said I was brilliant!” Clarissa exclaimed impatiently.
“You are. But you still need to practice. I want you to be able to protect yourself perfectly even if you face a much stronger shape shifter than Ciall.”
I threw Ciall an apologetic look, but he only shrugged, acknowledging the fact.
“I want you to work on the shielding for at least two hours every day.”
“Two hours! Mom! I have other things in my life besides playing your games!”
“Clarissa, if you have time to play with Ciall, you also have time to focus on something much more important. In this you have no say.”
“But…”
“No buts! I’m not commanding you as your mother, but as the alpha female of the pack. This matter is not open to discussion,” I scoffed, rolling my shoulders, which seemed to be just as stubbornly stuck as my daughter was.
“I expect you to see to it that the daily practice will happen,” I told Ciall. He nodded.
“Good. Now you can take a break and then you’ll be doing a few more exercises. I’m going to find Gavin. You’ll also need physical exercise and you can start today.”
“Mother! What about school?” Clarissa asked with apprehension. Becoming a shape shifter evidently didn't seem as cool to her as it had seemed earlier.
“Dearest, when you became a shape shifter you were also gifted with immortality, so you’ll have plenty of time for schooling in the next few years. Besides, I already told your teacher you’re suffering from a bad case of influenza and won’t be going to school for at least a fort night.”
I grinned and left Clarissa staring after me open-mouthed. I felt deep satisfaction and pride at Clarissa’s accomplishment – she had proven herself exceptionally skilled at shielding. She herself didn’t know it yet, but Ciall certainly knew and neither of us wanted to tell her yet. I walked out to the crisp autumn air. The sun still gave some warmth and I snatched a woolen blanket off the railing of the terrace to take with me. I headed to the birches by the beach and crawled into the hammock between them. I tucked the blanket snugly around me and let the soothing sound of the water lull me to sleep.
I woke up to Tiamhaidh’s anxious call. Alarmed, I jumped up and ran to the house, to Marie’s room. Marie was sitting comfortably in her usual place, in Tiamhaidh’s lap, and Ciall and Mathanan were lounging on Marie’s soft carpet. Tiam gave me a questioning look. I let my suspicious gaze sweep over everyone in the room and probed their minds lightly. I encountered nothing out of the ordinary, though - only the shielding wall, but we had agreed to strive to shield our minds from each other from time to time for the sake of practice.
“You called for me,” I said with some hesitation.
“It was an accident,” Tiamhaidh said, abashed.
“An accident? How can you call for me by accident?” I asked my voice full of suspicion.
A profound silence fell in the room. I was totally convinced something was afoot, but I couldn’t quite fathom what it was before the thought slipped my mind.
“Mother, it’s a surprise,” Marie eventually said cheerfully.
“And it will change everything, will it?” I asked, even more suspicious.
“Yes. Of course. If we tell you it won’t be fun anymore.”
“And you’re absolutely certain I will find this surprise funny?” I asked, fixing Marie with a searching look.
“Yes, yes. Please don’t spoil it by asking questions,” Marie giggled.
“Very well. If you're absolutely certain this was a false alarm.”
Marie nodded. I still wasn’t quite convinced there was a surprise, or indeed that Tiamhaidh had called for me by accident, but in the absence of evidence I had to back off. I threw a last stern look at them all and left.
The second I left the room, a spirited whispering began.
“Marie, are you all right?”
“I am. Let me rest for a moment and then we’ll try again,” Marie whispered in a tired voice.
“Are you sure? That was really scary,” Ciall whispered.
“Really scary,” Mathanan added in a guttural voice.
“I’m sure we can find some other way,” Tiamhaidh whispered agitatedly. “What if you go into another seizure and I accidentally call Sofia again? She’ll never believe it was another accident. I never do anything by accident and Sofia knows it.”
“What, never?” Marie asked whimsically. Tiamhaidh was flustered.
“Well, sometimes I do, but never in these situations.”
“I’m game if you really are ready to try again,” Mathanan said.
“I’m ready,” Marie said steadily.
Mathanan sat down opposite Marie and Tiam. Marie closed her eyes and took Mathanan’s hands.
“You don’t have to hold his hands,” Tiam snapped.
“It makes it easier for me to focus, love,” Marie told him gently.
“Besides, he has such lovely warm hands,” she teased.
“That’s enough! Let go of my woman!”
“Take it easy, it was a joke. Can I carry on now?”
“Go ahead,” Tiam grunted.
Marie focused on breathing evenly and forming an image of Mathanan in her mind. Slowly she felt Mathanan’s mind open to her. She saw jumbled images and memories of Mathanan’s life and finally she could pinpoint the present in his mind. She saw herself through his eyes and blushed. She knew all his thoughts and listened to his mind. “Hi, little sister!” She concentrated on answering him when Tiam’s firm grasp interrupted her. Irritated, Marie opened her eyes and glared at Tiam.
“Now what? Was I holding his hand too tightly?” Marie asked irritably.
“Marie,” Tiam said, a hint of sorrow in his voice. “We have to stop these experiments. You can’t go on.”
“I’m certainly not going to stop now. I was so close to success. I know that if I go on I’ll be able to share the other shape shifters’ minds. I’m certain of it.”
“Marie,” Tiam pleaded gently.
“No! This is so important to me you can’t deny me. You can’t,” Marie begged.
“Marie, love. Look at your hands.”
Instinctively Marie’s eyes turned to her hands. Her arms were jerking spasmodically and now that she paid attention to the spasms she noticed the same happening to her right leg. Marie looked at Tiam, not believing her eyes. Then she turned her gaze back to her hands.
“Marie. This is too dangerous for you. We have to stop,” Tiamhaidh said anxiously.
“No! I won’t have it. I’ll increase the dose of my medication and the spasms will stop.” Marie looked at Tiam, her eyes begging for his acceptance, but Tiamhaidh refused to relent in this matter.
“Marie! You haven’t had an attack for two years and when you started expanding your mind they returned. You have to stop.”
“Tiam, please! Let me continue. Please!” Marie begged, tears in her eyes.
“I’m sorry but I can’t,” Tiam said in a loud voice and even though Marie saw how difficult it was for him to stay firm, he did not relent for even a moment.
“Tiam,” Marie whispered lightly.
Tiamhaidh looked into Marie’s teary eyes. He sighed. Did he truly have the right to deny Marie anything? If she continued her experiments, could he prevent damage to her? Tiam felt himself drowning in her green, pleading eyes. Tears ran down her face and she chewed nervously on her lower lip. Matt and Ciall, too, looked pleadingly at Tiam. He threw them an angry glare but they refused to avert their eyes.
“Very well. If you promise you won’t do anything without my supervision,” Tiamhaidh gave in.
“Yes! I promise! Thank you, love. Thank you!”
Marie flung herself at Tiam, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing his face and neck gratefully. Tiam found it very hard to extricate himself from the girl, but he had to make her understand her seizures weren’t a laughing matter.
“Remember, Marie, that I’ll know if you don’t keep your promise,” Tiamhaidh said and unwound Marie's hands from his neck.
“But of course I will, Tiamhaidh! How can you even say such a thing? Doubt me?” Marie's voice oozed exaggerated innocence and Tiam gave her a stern glance.
“Promise me that if I tell you to stop, you’ll do as I say.”
“Why do you get to decide that?” Marie grumbled.
“Will you promise or won’t you?” Tiamhaidh snapped in frustration.
“I promise, I promise,” Marie grumbled.
“And I promise I’ll march straight away to Sofia if you don’t keep your word.”
“You can’t do that!” Marie yelled with horror.
The look she gave Tiamhaidh revealed that she really hadn't intended to keep her promise.
“I certainly can, and I will. Marie, do try to understand it’s your health we’re talking about! If you can’t give me your word I won’t be able to trust you to be safe. I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you.”
Marie took Tiam’s face between her hands and looked deep into his eyes.
“I promise.”
“Good,” Tiam breathed, relieved. “Now you need to rest, though, because tomorrow is your day and I have something very special to give you.”
“What is it? Please tell me now!”
“Tomorrow, my love. Try to rest now.”
The arrangements for Marie’s party brought to our life some variation we had really longed for. The garden had been decorated with small lanterns and Clarissa and I had made big flower arrangements, enhanced with panic-led hydrangeas and twigs of rowan and blueberry. The large table at the center of the garden was laden with delicacies created by Mathanan. Had I been aware of his hidden culinary talents earlier, I’d have delegated kitchen duty entirely to him. Faint music filled the garden, accompanied by the chirping of grasshoppers, and those sounds and the deepening twilight made our garden appear as one straight out of an enchanted world. Marie had invited only her best friend Emma to celebrate with us, as she couldn’t stand the pretentious behavior of her hypocritical classmates for even a short while. Marie was lonely and ostracized at school, and her situation had certainly not improved after she’d found the dangerously handsome Tiamhaidh, who clearly worshiped her. Fortunately our small pack was enough for Marie and the company of the young males had clearly cheered her up.
The evening passed peaceably. Mathanan gave Marie a wrought-iron pendant in a leather thong. It was shaped like a coiled snake and it was very beautiful. Ciall gave Marie a thin scarf which glittered in shades of silver and looked like it was made of very fine spider web. I eagerly waited to see what Marie would get from Tiamhaidh and I noticed the others also looking at Tiam’s packet with curiosity. Tiam, however, couldn’t take his eyes off Marie and I hoped David wouldn’t recognize his feverish look and understand what it meant. From time to time Marie surreptitiously glanced at Tiam and reddened under the heat of his gaze. Fortunately Emma took the reins and handed Marie her own present. She had collected a scrapbook of her and Marie’s friendship, bound in handmade covers. Marie’s eyes filled with tears and she reached up to hug her friend tightly. I had wanted to save the present from our family - including my brothers - for the last, but when Tiam still made no move to give Marie his gift, I nodded to David and he rose with dignity. He handed Marie a small black velvet bag and looked at her with tenderness.
“We know you have been waiting for this moment, for we have also been waiting for it. We thought this would never be possible, but, well, look for yourself,” David said, a lump in his throat.
Marie gingerly took the bag and untied the ribbons that held it closed. She peered into the bag and jumped up, ecstatic.
“Father! This can’t be true!”
“It’s true all right, and it’ll be truer still if you look behind the boat shed.”
Marie ran to the boat shed and the rest of us obediently followed. Before we reached the shed we heard Marie’s cries of delight. Daniel and Gavin grinned at each other.