In All of Infinity (18 page)

Isaac’s head fell forward too, but rose up
just as suddenly. “I know he’s here. I can feel him,” he said, pain
showing itself on his face. He opened his eyes and stared at
Anekaya, his eyes now black. “Why is he here?”

“Who am I speaking to? Nadia?”

Isaac smiled wickedly, and raised his hands,
which were electrified and ready to end her life. Suddenly, though
Reverie touched his arm and his head fell forward again. Anekaya
stared at the hold Reverie had on Isaac’s arm, sensing the horror
that was coming next. Reverie could die with her spirit battling
Nadia’s!

As the hold began lessening, Anekaya
prepared herself for the worst, hearing her husband’s sonorous
voice as he tried to keep Reverie from coming around. She did the
opposite to Isaac, telling him to wake up immediately. When he did
and saw the shock on her face, he stood up and Reverie fell
over.

“What happened?”

“Anekaya, don’t leave your circle!” Windrew
ordered.

Anekaya realized she was inches away from
exiting and stopped, not remembering when she stood. She stared
down at the stones, realizing what she had to do. She had to absorb
the darkness. Reverie would die if she didn’t. Although she knew it
would kill her, she realized that the cause was all about
sacrifices. She had a husband who loved her dearly and two precious
boys, all of them alive and healthy. It was her time to make a
sacrifice: herself.

As she looked from Reverie, who was shaking
uncontrollably, her spirit fighting Nadia’s, to Isaac, who was
holding her close to him, trying to keep her alive, she felt tears
streaming down her face. She didn’t want to die. If she didn’t,
though, the only other person who could absorb Nadia’s spirit was
Windrew, and she didn’t want him to die. Isaac couldn’t, she knew,
because he wasn’t of magic to begin with, and she didn’t wish it on
him. It was an awful death that she didn’t wish upon her worst
enemy, much less Reverie, her friend.

Before Anekaya could step outside her
circle, Emmanuel rushed into the gray stone circle and knelt beside
his daughter.

He looked from Anekaya to Windrew and
finally to Isaac. With a sob caught in his throat, he spoke:
“Promise me you’ll take care of her. Promise me you’ll find my
wife. Promise me.”

Isaac couldn’t find an answer in him, but
watched as Emmanuel touched his daughter’s arm and closed his eyes.
He didn’t care if she was his daughter by blood. He didn’t care. He
had raised her as his own, taught her all that she needed to know
to begin the journey of life. She would have to do the rest on her
own, without him. Before he could feel Nadia’s evil enter him, he
stood from his kneeling position and began staggering across the
beach.

“No!” Anekaya screamed. When he fell and
began shaking uncontrollably, she made an attempt to rush to him,
tears streaming down her face. She was meant to die for the cause,
not this foreign stranger! This wasn’t his fight! He was never
supposed to fall in love with the Second Summoner! The prophecy
never mentioned him.

He stared at her as she continued running
towards him, tears streaming down his face and intermingling with
the sand. She could tell when the battle within him was over, but
she couldn’t stop rushing towards him. At the back of her mind, she
sensed there was still a chance he could be saved. Hadn’t her life
been so filled with second chances? This wasn’t his fight!

“Darling,” Windrew said and caught her in
his arms. “It’s too late. His powers… they weren’t strong enough
for him to last long…”

She looked at him, then broke away and tried
to hide her tears. He took her hand and brought her back to him,
letting her cry on his shoulder. He didn’t mind if she cried; he
only wanted to hold her and know she was alive.

***

The burial for Emmanuel was handled quickly,
and everyone who attended knew he deserved a better one but they
were unable to give it. Although the custom across the Cathene
Continent was to send the dead across the water, Reverie insisted
that he receive what she deemed was the proper burial. He was
placed under the ground near the mansion, with a cross to signify
where he would lie for all eternity.

Afterwards, everyone went about their
business, getting ready for the next day when they would start on
their journey towards Auzeil. Even though the Black Moon wasn’t for
a few months, Reverie was still in great danger. She was assigned
six guards, all of which were loyal to the cause. Since she spent
most of her time walking barefoot on the beach or crying over her
father’s grave, they all claimed that she wasn’t hard to protect.
When she was looking at them, though, she was thinking of a way to
escape them. She would have to earn their trust before they reached
Auzeil, which wouldn’t be all that hard.

When the sun began setting, the rain began
pouring, which forced her to go into the mansion. The guards
followed close behind her, admiring her figure as she ran. She was
beautiful, sure enough, but they weren’t bound to violate Anekaya’s
trust and have their way with the young virgin. They more than
respected Anekaya; they feared her. Besides, they knew that Reverie
already had plans to devote herself to Isaac, who had been in the
worst battles and survived. He would surely have his say if they
tried anything. In knowing this, Anekaya turned away from the
rain-streaked window with a sigh.

“Well, at least we know now that she is
Esme’s daughter, ma’am,” Otis said.

He sat beside Mona with a sigh. They had
been absent most of the day, which caused Anekaya to be suspicious
of them. She wanted to dismiss them, but Brornar, who she had grown
to like, told them they were harmless. She could tell such was true
of Otis, since he was always calling her “ma’am” and genuinely
looked innocent. The only one she disliked in the new group was
Tanner, who was making himself busy with dinner. She wished that
Captain Mcquay was among them, since he was a man of action, but
knew he was battling in another region.

“When is supper?” one of Windrew’s men
asked. His stomach had been growling, and Anekaya could hear it
from her place in front of the window. She wondered where her
husband was, if he would join them for dinner. Her sons were, even
though they didn’t know most of the men present.

“Soon,” she answered. “Soon.”

Anekaya put her hands behind her back and
turned to see Isaac, who was standing at the window, staring
intently as if he could see the storms upon the sea. He remained
standing there when the maid announced supper, unmoving. She didn’t
want to disturb him, so instead left him alone to his thoughts.

When she entered the dining room by the door
at the far right, with floor-to-ceiling windows on the shorter
walls, she sat at the head of the dining room table that spanned
the length of the room. It was piled high with food, and there was
a roaring fire in the fireplace behind those who sat along her
right side. She didn’t care for the food.

She looked for her husband in all the faces,
but he wasn’t seated at the table. Where was he? Herauz and Kevnar
looked at their mother with different expressions: Herauz was one
of indifference; Kevnar was one of concern. She realized, in that
instant (as well as she had in several others), how different her
sons were. Herauz possessed Windrew’s dark features and was like
most teenage boys; while Kevnar had fair features and possessed an
old soul. Still, though, they were her angels. As she stared at
them, she realized that they were smiling at her. She felt hands on
her shoulders, and then looked into Windrew’s face as he smiled
down at her.

“I hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to sit
here with you tonight, instead of down there,” he said and sat to
her right, tossing his dark mane slightly to get it out of his
face. He always reminded her of a wild horse.

Anekaya looked at him, almost expecting him
to disappear. She placed her hand on her napkin, wanted to place it
on her lap, but couldn’t find it in her to move. After he placed
his napkin on his lap, he noticed her gaze and turned to her with
an even larger smile.

“You’re not angry with me?”

Windrew threw back his head and laughed
slightly, then looked at her lovingly. “I think a part of me always
knew you weren’t any normal mortal.” He placed his hand over hers.
“I could never be angry with you. I love you. I only wish you would
have told me sooner that you’re a seductress.”

“That was years ago,” she said and placed
her napkin on her lap. “I’m not much of one anymore.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” he said
assuredly. “After all of this is over, I’m not going to do anything
for the rest of my life except prove to you how much I love
you.”

“I know you do,” she said, smiling sweetly.
“After all, look at our boys. If they aren’t the result of love, I
don’t know of any child who is.”

“Let’s try for a girl this time, though,
alright? I don’t think I could handle teaching another boy how to
use a sword. I’m getting old.”

Anekaya remained smiling as she delved into
the small meal she placed before her. She usually wasn’t one to
care about how much she ate, unless Windrew was away. When he left
her side, she ate until she felt as if she would explode. Knowing
he wasn’t going anywhere, she enjoyed her light meal and thought
about her plans for the morrow. Before she could bite into her
food, Windrew caught hold of her wrist and stopped her.

“Poison,” he said and looked at those around
him. He watched as Brornar’s face fell into his food, barely
missing the knife on his plate. Turning quickly, he watched as his
sons faces fell into their plates.

“No,” Anekaya barely managed a whimper,
reaching towards Kevnar. She touched his hand, felt the warmth
begin escaping it, and wanted desperately for him to say something
instead of stare blankly at her.

“Put your head down,” Windrew whispered,
hearing movement in the hall. He rested his head on the back of his
chair, placed his hand on the tip of his sword’s handle, and
waited.

“A job well done, if I must say so myself,”
Thomas said as he entered the room at the far left. He looked at
the dead, smiling. “Well done, boy.”

Tanner rushed up to him and bowed low. “It
is why I am Luella’s favorite, after all. They could not detect me,
not even your brother.”

“I hope he suffered,” Thomas spat. He began
walking the length of the table and saw Anekaya seated at the
opposite end. Her boys were seated on one side of her while Windrew
sat on the other. “I hope they all suffered.”

Anekaya grabbed hold of her knife and lunged
out of her seat, slitting Thomas’s throat with a swift movement of
her wrist. He stumbled back, gasping for air. Windrew stood and
prepared himself to fight, but realized immediately there were too
many.

“Come on,” she said and grabbed his
wrist.

They ran from the dining room and down the
narrow hallways, followed closely by soldiers and Thomas’s rasping
voice saying they would never make it. They had to make it! The
most powerful force against Luella in all of Peniolea was waiting
for them outside, waiting for orders they thought would come at
daylight and not at dusk.

Isaac heard the commotion, met them in the
hallway, then started running too. He didn’t need much prodding,
since he was a seasoned combatant. He knew trouble when he saw it.
Since he’d roamed the mansion all day, he knew where they were
going, and began leading the way to the nearest exit. Although he
had many questions on his mind, he didn’t ask them. He knew there
was a time and place for them as well.

As they pressed on, they met up with Reverie
and her guards, who looked at them as if they’d lost their minds.
They continued on, hearing the chaos behind them. When they exited
the mansion, Reverie surged into another gear and charged towards
the camp of soldiers.

“Attack!” she exclaimed, pointing wildly
behind her. With the rain continued pouring, she turned around and
watched as the enemy broke through the doors after them. They
morphed into wolves and increased their speed and were suddenly
seconds away from her.

As the wind blew all around her, Reverie
felt as if she had been awakened from a dream. She spread her arms
wide, looked to the sky and continued feeling the rain, then turned
towards the invaders and clapped her hands together. A powerful
wind surged from behind her and blew towards them, sending them
over the edge and towards the rocks below, even though they tried
to dig into the earth and hold on. She wanted all of them to die,
just as her father had died, but felt someone’s hand on her
shoulder.

The wind died down, leaving one wolf soldier
alive. Reverie turned and looked into Isaac’s face, realizing not
all of Nadia’s powers had disappeared even though her evil spirit
and memories had.

***

The towers of Auzeil were placed throughout
the land, but none was more highly guarded than the one that held
Esme. When word reached her ears that Thomas had failed, Luella
floated into the tower upon the moonlight, draped in black. She saw
Esme lying on the bed and approached cautiously. The blanket had
been tossed back, no doubt by another nightmare. She laughed to
herself, seeing the sweat on her enemy’s face, which hadn’t aged
since she’d become a prisoner.