Sail With Me (A Discovery Series Book) (19 page)

“I… uh… I should…” Daniel looked around the room.

“Stay with me for a little while,” I said. “Please.”

Smiling, he brushed aside some runaway curls and his touch, so soft, so
gentle, started a slow fire in my heart. I let the sheer fabric draped around
my shoulders drop to a nearby chair. Daniel stepped closer, his fingers
trailing along my bare shoulder. I closed my eyes and slipped my hands around
his waist, drawing him closer still. Resting my head on his shoulder, I pressed
my lips to the side of his neck.

“Charlotte?” he said, wrapping his arm around me.

“Mmm?”

“I love you.”

I raised my head and met his blue eyes that were darkened by the shadows
creeping into the room as the sun set outside. I rested my hands on Daniel’s
cheeks, brought my lips to his as his hand found its way into my hair. The kiss
sizzled, and when I finally pulled away, I felt molten inside.

“I love you too, Daniel.”  

In that moment, we were the only two people in the world. I was certain
the sun itself revolved around us alone. I pulled on the laces at the front of
Daniel’s tunic and slid my hand into the opening. His heart’s quick, steady
beat filled my palm.

“It’s you who makes it race so,” he said.

“Such power.” I circled my finger around his smooth, muscled chest and
pressed a kiss to his flesh.

He caught my hand in his and kissed each one of my fingers. “Are you
trying to make my heart explode?”

I focused on the feel of his soft, warm lips against my fingertips. My
own heart was on the edge of leaping out of my chest, and I happily drowned in
the sensation.

“Daniel,” a familiar voice called from the hallway.

A groan rumbled out of Daniel as he bent his head to mine. Forehead to
forehead, we stood for a moment, savoring the closeness.

“If we don’t make a sound,” Daniel whispered, “maybe my uncle won’t find
me.”

“He’ll find you.”

“I know.” Daniel let out a sigh. Coiling one of my curls around his
finger, he gave me a long look that said so many things without a single word.

“As soon as you wake up tomorrow,” I began, “come to me. I want to start
the day looking at your face.”

“You are the sun to me, Charlotte.” With another kiss, one that left my
legs a little shaky, Daniel slipped out of my room.

Now alone and all stirred up, I shed my dress and slipped into a simple
nightshirt one of Tizoc’s sisters left out for me. The fabric was smooth and
comfortable, not at all like my brother’s old rough tunic and sweater. It
didn’t smell like my brother’s clothes either. A fresh rose scent clung to the
garment instead. It mixed well with the lavender that had infused my skin
during my bath and the faint citrus smell of Daniel that still hung in the
room.

I sat on the stool in front of the obsidian looking-glass and studied
myself. If my father were to see me now, he would undoubtedly run away. I was
almost indistinguishable from my mother. I wanted Father to know me. To know
that I was my own person, different from my mother, and in need of his love, especially
in her absence.

Sighing, I turned from the looking-glass and got up from the stool.  

“Daniel loves you,” I reminded myself. Wrapping my arms around me, I
wished Daniel had been able to stay. I didn’t want to be alone tonight.

Kneeling on the bed covered with richly colored fabrics, I leaned against
the open window beside it. In the darkness night had brought, the ceremonial
fires on top of the central temple licked the black sky. A distant drumbeat
pounded on the air until it reached me. Captain Finley was back, so I assumed
the Sunal were about to start their planned sacrifice. I left the window,
wishing I could close off the sounds drifting in. I stretched out on the bed
and rolled myself in the light quilts, more for protection than to keep warm.

With the rhythmic beat of the drums filling my ears, I closed my eyes and
pictured Daniel’s face, his lips, his eyes. Despite my efforts, however, the
drumbeat reached a crescendo. I slung my arm over my head to block it out.
Finally, exhaustion overwhelmed me.

****

Screams echoed in the darkness as four Sunal warriors dragged the victim
up the steps of the temple pyramid. Writhing and pitching forward in their
grip, the victim tried in vain to break free. At the top of the pyramid, the
human offering was stretched across a cold, stone altar. His wrists and ankles
were bound with thick cording. One of the warriors came forth and painted the
naked body of the victim deep red.

Blood red.

Each moment ticked by with the thud of a solitary drum. A priest dressed
in black robes stained with animal blood approached the stone altar. Laying his
hands out over the body, he chanted the words of the ancient ones in a loud,
clear voice. Several other drums joined in, keeping time for the priest’s
recitation. With the pulse of the drums quickening, the priest produced a
sharpened, pointed stone from the folds of his robe. Holding it with both of
his hands, he plunged it into the chest of the victim, the sacrifice to the Sun
God.

The wounded howled in agony, his cries resonating off the temple walls
and throughout all of Ezenoch. Ripping into him from stomach to chest, the
priest cut out the victim’s heart, dripping warm blood along the pristine stone
of the temple altar. The drumbeat lessened its frenetic pace, thudding as a
heart would instead, while the priest held the organ up in his blood-soaked
palm.

As he held it to the statue of Adanitupachi that flanked the altar, the
priest resumed his chant, blending his voice with those of the assembled Sunal.
When he was finished, he flung the still beating heart into a sacred fire
blazing brightly in a copper brazier at the feet of the Sun God statue. With a
loud, collective shout from all the Sunal present at the sacrifice, the ritual
ended.

Golden tiger eyes regarded the still form of the sacrificed human. When
they blinked, a single tear rolled down a smooth brown cheek. 

****

Sweat covered my forehead, and the sick taste of bile coated my mouth. I
couldn’t catch my breath.

Where was I?

I shrieked hoarsely when the curtain at the doorway of the room was
thrown aside.

“Charlie? What’s wrong?”

“I… I…” Gasping for air. Couldn’t get the words out.

After two long strides, Daniel kneeled on the floor beside my bed and
stroked my hair, my face. “Charlie, look at me. You’re safe. You’re with me.”

Still searching the room for any signs of blood, I couldn’t focus on
Daniel. Couldn’t gain control of my disoriented senses. I had witnessed the
sacrifice.

Hadn’t I?

“Charlotte.” Daniel’s hand came to my chin, and he turned my head to look
at him. “You’re safe. There’s nothing to fear.”

“I… I…” A fog settled in my head and, despite Daniel’s words, I trembled.

“You screamed,” he said. “Only loud enough for me to hear you from my
room next door.” He took my hand and ran his thumb over my knuckles, trying to
rub away some of the jitters. “What happened?”

“I. Saw. It.” I pulled my hand out of Daniel’s grip.

“Saw what?”

“The… the sacrifice.” I buried my face in my hands and heaved in a deep
breath. The sob that erupted from me sounded as if it came from someone else,
but there was no doubt. It was me.

Daniel slid onto the bed and hugged me close to him. Burrowing my face
into the warm curve of his neck, I let the tears spill, none of them washing
away what I had seen.

Or thought I had seen.

“Charlotte,” he began in a soothing voice, “you couldn’t have seen the
sacrifice. You’ve been in here. I only left you about an hour’s time ago. You
haven’t left. You haven’t been to the temple.”

I pulled away from the safety of his hold and met his concerned eyes.
“But I… I saw it. They dragged a man up the steps. They… cut out his… heart.”

I wasn’t sure what was real anymore. The vision in my mind was so vivid,
the sounds so crisp. I couldn’t have imagined it all.

“A dream.” Daniel pulled me against him. “You had a dream. You’re all
right now. Everything’s all right.” He put his arm around my shoulders and gave
me a squeeze.

“You have to stay with me.” I clamped my hand onto his leg. “I don’t want
to dream that again. It was… horrible… what they did to that poor man.” I
struggled to swallow the sob working its way up my throat.

“Charlotte,” Daniel started, “I shouldn’t stay in here. It wouldn’t be
proper. My uncle forgave you for hiding your femininity from him. He would not
be as agreeable if he thought we were… ” He looked at me for a long, hard moment,
struggling with the right thing to do and what he wanted to do.

“You’re right,” I managed to say, though every piece of me wanted him to
stay. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you.” I slid away from him on the bed,
putting some space between us. After bringing my knees up to my chest, I hugged
my legs close and rested my chin atop them. Another full body shudder shook
through me.

With one swift tug, Daniel pulled me back to him. “I can’t say no to you.”
He pressed his lips against my cheek.

Finding his lips with my own, I poured my gratitude—and my love—into a sweltering
kiss. My body shuddered with a different emotion now. When our lips finally
parted, the connection did not end. It had only deepened to a burn that
consumed me, sending the horrors in my mind somewhere into the background.

I shifted to one end of the bed and stretched out along it. Daniel eased
down on the opposite side but closed the distance between us. He stayed above
the quilts while I scooted under them and rolled to my right side, my back to
him. Wrapping his left arm around my waist, he snuggled up behind me, his
secure hold soothing all the tensed muscles in my body. His lips grazed the
back of my neck.

“Thank you.” I nestled closer still to his warm, strong body pressed up
against my own.

He wove his fingers between mine at my stomach and in this position, we
drifted off to sleep. Though visions of the sacrifice threatened to invade my
slumbering mind, thoughts of Daniel now battled with them, slaying the terror I
had seen, even if only in my imagination.

Daniel was my shield, my safe harbor.              

When I opened my eyes, the confused darkness of night had been erased. In
its place, morning sun streamed into my room, spreading pink and golden stripes
of light across the walls. I yawned and something shifted behind me. Turning
onto my back, my eyes met Daniel’s sleeping profile. I propped myself on my
elbow, turning to see him better.   

Sunlight fell upon his light brown hair. His eyelashes looked feathery
soft, and his lips were parted. I watched the rise and fall of his chest. His
tunic had fallen open during the night, and my gaze roamed to his exposed
stomach, lean and tanned from his work on the
Rose
. With the shirt
askew, the scar on what remained of his right arm was visible.

I brushed my fingers along the scar. The skin was coarse and rigid, not
at all like the skin of Daniel’s face or chest. He mumbled something I couldn’t
understand as I rested my hand on the few inches of upper right arm he had
left. The muscles in his jaw tensed as he opened his eyes.

He turned his head to look at me with sleepy blue eyes.

“Good morning.” I shifted up a bit so I could bring my free hand to his
cheek.

He kissed my wrist as I brushed some of his hair aside. His expression
changed when his waking mind alerted him to the location of my other hand. A
frightened look washed across his face. Pulling at his tunic with his left
hand, he attempted to cover up what he hadn’t wished me to see too closely.

My hand stopped the shirt from falling back into place. “You don’t have
to—”

“It’s grotesque, Charlie.” He tugged on his shirt again.

“I’ve seen it before. On the beach when we worked on repairs. On the
Rose
when I slept near you each night. There isn’t one part of you that’s grotesque,
Daniel.” I held onto his shirt. “I love all of you. Every bit. You’re perfect.”

He narrowed his eyes at me. Something in my face, I suppose, convinced
him I spoke the truth, spoke from my heart. He let go of his shirt and instead
placed his hand on mine.

“I think I understand why I survived this.” He moved his right shoulder, still
under our joined hands. “It was so I could meet you and…” He pulled on my hand,
causing me to flop over onto my back with a soft squeal. He leaned over me,
smiling broadly. “So I could meet you and love you forever.”

I pulled on the sides of Daniel’s open shirt until his face was mere
inches from mine. I touched my nose to his. He pressed his lips to mine.
Wrapping my arms around his back, I enjoyed the taste of him. My heart drummed
a lively beat in my ears.

“Now I’m going to want to wake up this way every morning,” I said as
Daniel pulled away.

“I was thinking the same thing.” His charming half-smile threatened to
enchant me further, but he turned his gaze to the open window beside my bed.
“But for this morning, I’d better take my leave before someone finds me here.”
He combed his fingers through his hair and stretched. “You know, that was the
first night since I was a boy that I’ve slept for an entire night. I was so
comfortable beside you.”

I reluctantly released my hold on him, and he swung his legs over the
side of the bed. He rubbed his eyes as he got to his feet.

 “You smell that?” He sniffed the air.

“Yes.” I straightened my nightshirt and stood next to Daniel.

“Food,” we both said together.

He brushed a light kiss on my cheek. “See you in a few minutes?”

“A few seconds.”

Grinning, Daniel peeked his head out of the curtained doorway to look
into the hall beyond it. Deeming it clear, he shot me a quick wink over his
shoulder then disappeared.

A great longing for him unfolded the moment he left, so I poked my own
head out the doorway. Daniel had already ducked into his room next door,
however, and the hall stretching in that direction was empty and quiet.

I jumped when a voice behind me interrupted the silence.

“What are you looking for,
Cihuapilli
?”

I whirled around to meet Tizoc’s laughing face.

“It’s not polite to scare people first thing in the morning.” I rested my
hands on my hips while I scowled at him.

“It isn’t ‘first thing in the morning,’ you know.” Tizoc smiled enough to
show that dimple in his left cheek.

“What do you mean?” I looked down at my nightshirt and reached for the
curtain hanging over the doorway. I wrapped it partway around me, but this
action only made Tizoc laugh louder.

“I have four sisters. Do you think this is the first time I’ve seen a
girl in her nightclothes?”

His laughter grated on my nerves for some reason.

“What time is it?” I let go of the curtain and edged into my room. My
eyes widened when Tizoc followed me. He seemed as comfortable as could be
standing in my quarters with me in my nightshirt. He, on the other hand, was
dressed as he had been when I first met him. A simple swath of cloth around his
waist, sandals laced at his ankles, silver earrings and cuffs shining brightly
against his dark skin. I forced my eyes away and berated myself for lingering
on him.

“It’s late morning.” He inhaled deeply, closed his eyes, and grinned.

I searched the room for my brother’s clothes, but did not see them
anywhere. While Tizoc stood mere paces away from me, I found it hard to think
straight. I had to get dressed. Get out of this room.

“I didn’t mean to sleep that long.”

“It’s all right,” Tizoc replied. “My family figured you had some catching
up to do. You’ve been at sea for a long time, and the journey to Ezenoch was
strenuous as well. You’re allowed to be tired, Charlie.”

Cripes, where were my clothes?

Ducking behind the changing screen, I let out a sigh of relief when I
found a white sleeveless shirt with red beading along the neck and a long,
wraparound skirt swirled with red and white. I silently thanked whoever had
left the clothes.

“Stay right there,” I warned Tizoc, poking my head out from behind the
screen.

He held up his hands, palms facing out toward me. I narrowed my eyes at
him, which made his bright, white grin grow larger. I wished he would leave and
give me a few moments to myself. 

I closed my eyes and an image from my dream—or nightmare—came rushing
into my mind. The priest raised the stone dagger as the victim wriggled on the
altar. I swallowed bile rising in my throat.

With shaking hands, I tied a knot to fasten the skirt about my waist and
stepped into the room. Tizoc had made himself comfortable on the stool, his
back to the obsidian looking-glass. I didn’t want to look directly at him, but
he gave me no choice when he stood and blocked my path.

“What is wrong,
Cihuapilli
?” he asked softly. 

“I dreamed of the ceremony you attended last night.” The horror of it
came rushing back to me. Daniel had been able to push it all away, but now it
flooded over me, threatening to drown me. “What I saw…” I said, fingering the
edge of my skirt. “It’s what occurred, isn’t it?”

Tizoc nodded, sitting back down on the stool and rubbing both of his wide
hands over his face.

“How did I…”

“You and I.” Tizoc waved a hand between the two of us. “We’re linked.”

“Linked? Like I can see what you see?”

“Yes.”

I thought about Daniel sleeping in my room last night, and my throat got
tight.

“Does it go the other way too? Can you see what I see?” I held my breath
as his brows lowered.

His mouth twisted one way then the other. “I know you weren’t alone last
night, if that’s what you’re asking me.” 

My hand went to my mouth as I lowered myself to the bed. “Oh, goodness.”

“I will not say anything to anyone,” he promised. “It’s your business. I
almost came to you myself, but I wasn’t sure you had seen the sacrifice. The
moment I realized Daniel was with you, I focused elsewhere.”

“You mean you can shut it off?” That thought had not occurred to me last
night. Then again, I wasn’t conscious of what was going on. Just utterly
terrified.

“Yes. If I throw all my energy into thinking about something else, I can
leave the place my mind has taken me to.”

“Can I do that?”

“I’m sure you can, but it takes practice.” He cleared his throat and
closed his eyes. “I’m sorry you had to see the sacrifice. I did not want that
to touch you.” A thin line creased his forehead, and when his eyes opened they
were a deeper shade of gold.

“Are you linked with other people?”

“My sisters and parents. I’ve had this experience with every one of them.
The link with them opened when I was taken as a slave. I guess extreme
situations give birth to it.” He rested his chin in his hand then turned his
amber eyes toward me. “You are the first outsider I’ve been linked to.”

“Why me?”

“I don’t know.” He shrugged, but something in Tizoc’s voice suggested
otherwise. He drew in a deep breath. “I’ve always felt I could
see
with
my family because it might help me better protect them if I need to. Maybe I’m
supposed to protect you too.”

“Well,” I said, rising from the bed, “you’d better do a good job.”

The smile returned to Tizoc’s face. His eyes lightened, the honey sparkle
back in them. He stood and caught my chin with his index finger. “I would not
let anything happen to you,
Cihuapilli
.”

I believed him. Believed him without any whisper of a doubt.

“Come.” He pulled his hand away but not his gaze. “My mother has food
prepared, and my sisters are eager to take you around the city. There is much
to see.”

I followed him out of my room but stopped at the curtain. “I should…” I
glanced next door.

“Of course.” Tizoc walked down the hallway.

He was inside my head. I felt strange and comforted at the same time.
This would all take some sorting out, but right now I needed food. Food made
sense. Hunger was an expected and basic need. I knew when it was coming and how
to fulfill it. I would focus on that for now.

 A few moments later, Daniel and I spilled onto the patio. All four of
Tizoc’s sisters looked to my hand holding his. I had the sense earlier they all
knew of Tizoc’s feelings toward me, and their faces now confirmed that notion.
I did not let go of Daniel’s hand, however. I think it said more than I could
ever explain to Tizoc’s sisters in words. 

“Come, come, both of you,” Citlali said.

As I turned my attention to the food splayed out on the table—fruits and
doughcakes mostly—Tizoc strode onto the patio. He stopped to give his mother a
kiss on the cheek then took a seat beside Daniel.

“I trust you slept well,” Citlali said as Tizoc’s sisters passed food
around the table.

“Yes,” Daniel and I both said together.

“The accommodations were comfortable,” Daniel added.

“Thank you for the clothes,” I said.

“They look good on you,
Cihuapilli
,” Citlali said with a smile.

“Like she was meant to be one of us,” Eréndira said.

Tizoc glared at his sister. She smiled back at her brother and bit into a
cube of melon.

“Where’s my uncle?” Daniel asked.

“He ate before you came down and went with Zolin to meet the rest of your
crew which should be arriving shortly,” Tizoc answered.

“Oh.” Daniel’s brows lowered.

Tizoc put a hand on Daniel’s shoulder. “The captain did wrestle with
whether or not to wake you so you could accompany him.”

Daniel’s expression brightened as he munched on one of the doughcakes. I
breathed a sigh of relief that the captain
hadn’t
come looking for
Daniel this morning.

“We have arranged for a tour of the royal menagerie at Dimazuno’s
palace,” Teiuc said, her eyes bright.

“Then the marketplace,” Xochitl added.

“And the gardens,” Yaretzi said.

“That sounds lovely.” Glancing at Daniel, I could tell he was thinking it
sounded like a great deal for one day.

“Daniel,” Tizoc began before I had a chance, “you could come with me, if
you want. Leave the women to their fancies.” He ducked when Eréndira swatted at
him. “I’ll show you the armory and some of the schools. Take you to our warrior
training circles.”

Daniel looked at me as if to ask if he could accept Tizoc’s invitation. I
loved him for that. He considered me a partner, an equal.  

“Go,” I said. “Then we will have tales to share later.”

I emphasized the word
later
, causing Daniel to smirk. If I had my
way, he would stay the night with me again.

He thinks if he spends the day with me that will keep me away from
you.

My eyes shot to Tizoc’s as his voice permeated my thoughts. His lips had
not moved, and no one else seemed to hear his words. Alarmed, I placed my hand
on my chest to settle myself. Having someone poking around in the precious privacy
of my mind was terrifying.

Don’t be afraid, Charlie. This is part of the link. See what each
other sees. Hear what each other hears.

I took a long drink from the mug in front of me and shook my head, trying
to clear Tizoc’s voice from it.

You can talk to me too.

I don’t want to talk to you like this.
My eyes popped open wide,
and Tizoc snickered from across the table. I hadn’t meant to send my thoughts
to him.

Emotion is very much a part of this,
Tizoc thought.
Even if it
happens to be anger.

I sent a narrowed glare his way. He picked out a piece of fruit, popping
it into his mouth as if we weren’t having the strangest conversation in the
history of conversations.

I don’t like this,
I thought.

I just wanted you to know it was possible. It might be important
later.

I met Tizoc’s eyes again, and they were filled with apology, then the
link was broken. In the time Tizoc and I were communicating, Daniel had filled
himself on breakfast and was pushing away from the table. I felt off balance
with Tizoc in my mind and when I stood, I wavered a bit.