The Light of Asteria (13 page)

As Rena talked about the color wheel, I
appreciated her patience. I asked endless questions, and her
concise answers led to more questions. Before I knew it, Gavin’s
emotions warmed my heart.

“Can I come back sometime and continue our
lesson?” I asked.

“I’ve a feeling you’re going to be here a
lot,” she said with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

I heard Gavin come down the stairs, and I
flew into his arms. He was safe; my heart filled with joy. Rena
zipped up the stairs and shut the door, trying to avoid the power
surge. His expression softened; his warm lips found mine.

“I’m so relieved you didn’t find anything,” I
said, happy to have him home. Instantly, his body tensed; my heart
lurched.

What did you find?

“Let’s go upstairs; we need to talk with the
others. We will figure this out, but I need you to stay calm and in
control. I made a promise to you I would keep nothing from you, but
I also need to know that information will not cause you pain.”

He didn’t exactly answer my question, but I
let it go and headed toward the stairs.

The concern shadowing the room was
disheartening. Rena struggled from the power surge, but she took a
deep breath and motioned for me to join her on the couch. I cleared
my mind, wondering if I could somehow morph the blue sky to filter
the energy. Until this moment, it was like a spigot either all the
way on or completely off. But what if I could gradually turn it on
and off? If I could figure that out, I knew it would be
tremendously helpful. Instinct encouraged that I was on the right
track. I pictured a blue fog, and would try and use it as a shield.
If it didn’t work, I would have to think and then shut down, over
and over again. The process would be long and tedious.

“Elias, what did you find?” I asked. He
turned from the window and studied my face, trying to anticipate my
reaction.

“We need for you to go back to the day you
saved Gavin.”

It seemed odd that the most direct beings I
had ever met were now being vague. Elias glanced at Gavin and
nodded.

“We’re missing something extremely
important.” Gavin picked up the conversation. “I need for you to
retrace your steps. I see your thoughts clearly, and everyone here
can read mine. I thought we could revisit it mentally, but it may
cause the others discomfort if you open your mind while we are all
connected. Try to see that morning through the eyes of a
scientist,” he suggested.

The understanding that the information needed
was so important that they were willing to be exposed directly to
my thoughts was significant. Gavin joined me on the couch, and I
tipped my head back, resting against his arm. A blue cloud
surrounded my consciousness. I would stay aware of all the emotions
in the room and the minute I felt distress from any of them, I
would shut down immediately. Taking a deep, cleansing breath, I
willed the memory to come to the front of my mind’s eyes.

I started the morning in Kate’s dorm.

Surprise flooded the open space. I searched
it immediately, and then remembered the others had never heard a
human before. It must be like eating food from a foreign
country.

“Very good, Nora,” Gavin whispered
encouragingly. “You are doing well, please continue.”

I walked out of the dorm towards the Jeep
…
the memory of the eerie empty campus flashed in my mind …
A sense of unease gripped my heart. The dark took on a new
dimension … it was menacing.
The elves emotions churned, but
they were not distressed. I continued on, trying to remember every
detail I could.
Mysterious shadows taunted me from the distance,
the hair on the back of my neck stood in defense. I peeked behind
me, fearing something unknown. I never really thought about how
creepy an empty campus could be, especially with the colors leeched
from the full moon’s light….
The mental picture was vivid, the
morning light ominous….
A feeling of anxiety seeped into my
veins, making my blood run cold. The feeling seemed to increase
with every step …

Immediately, the room exploded with emotions.
Gavin’s creature roared, and I was wrapped in protection so thick I
thought I would smother in it. My face squinted as I forced my eyes
to stay closed, concentrating with all my might on blue.

The silence squalled, and I focused on the
simple act of breathing. I had no idea how long we sat there, but
Gavin’s protection finally eased and was replaced with love. I
pulled the shield back, trying to make it opaque, and could sense
the family’s shock turn to resolve.

“Is it all right to come out now?” I asked. I
thought this silly statement may ease some of the tension, but
Gavin took my question seriously.

“I think so,” he said cryptically. His voice
was husky from the difficult mental conversation. Anguish twisted
through me. I hadn’t felt his despair since the morning of the
attack. He was trying to repress it, but wasn’t having much luck.
The blue mist billowed in my mind. I needed to keep it under
control. If they didn’t think I could handle it, they would keep
things from me, and that wasn’t a good idea. I was a survivor. I
was stronger than they gave me credit for. I needed to know. My
intent rang out to all of them, and everyone turned to Elias; his
emotions were grave.

“Nora, what you felt on campus that day was
the Dokkalfar that had attacked Gavin. They were in the trees, and
from your memory, it appeared there were twenty to thirty of them.
Normally, there are only three to five in a pack; they fight
amongst themselves like wolves.” He stopped and waited, his eyes
never leaving mine. “Their leader sensed something and followed
you. I need for you to continue your story. I would not ask this of
you if it weren’t extremely important.” His sapphire eyes held mine
for a moment, and then he glanced at Gavin.

I rested my head back against Gavin’s
shoulder. Inhaling deeply, I returned to the story at hand.

The despair was painfully overwhelming … I
realized it was not my own
… the room grew uncomfortable; I
skipped over the details of the emotional assault.

I noticed some frat boys
… they popped
in my head …
they were gathered around someone on the ground. I
felt anxious … he looked hurt
. Gavin’s creature growled as he
watched the pick up artist leer at me. The room palpably tensed as
the image of Gavin lying on the ground hit everyone.

I watched them scurry away like rats…
adrenaline rushed through my veins … I must have been more
frightened of the three drunks than I realized.

Again, shock bolted throughout the room and I
shut down, turning my mind blue. Gavin’s protection overpowered the
initial panic; I waited until his hand squeezed mine before I came
out of my shield.

What did you see?
Surely the drunks
weren’t any danger? But as I retraced the memory, I saw the
darkness darting through the trees.
Do I need to
continue?

“I don’t think that will be necessary,” Gavin
murmured. His eyes were drowning in misery, and the strength of his
emotions ached in my heart. I placed my hand on his chest and
willed him to hear the focused intensity of my words, trying at the
same time to keep the fog around them so the others would not feel
their blast.

“I love you more than anything on this
earth.” His heart jumped, and I realized it was the first time I
had actually said those words. “You must not despair. It does no
good to feel these negative emotions—it only makes you vulnerable.
You asked me for control, now I ask you for faith.”

The awe from the others was apparent, and I
blushed. I had never felt as close to any group of people as I did
Gavin’s family. Sharing memories with them was intensely personal,
and I now understood if they ever had to draw power from me, it
would be such an intimate experience that they would feel as if
they had betrayed Gavin … like adultery without the sin.

“Elias, what’s the significance of my
memory?” I refused to let Gavin move from my touch or my stare.

“Their leader followed you, and knows you are
now Gavin’s source. Moreover, I would venture he understands a
power has been unleashed from you that is equal to no other in our
chronicles.”

“What do you mean ‘unleashed’?” Gavin’s eyes
rounded, his breath froze. Elias hesitated; Elaine was the one to
answer.

“We have been searching; it is still unclear.
We believe the energy that was meant for our kind lay dormant in
you, until you met … my brother.” Gavin’s protection became
aggressive.

“And what does that mean?” The tension was so
thick you could cut it with a knife. Gavin’s emotions beseeched
them not to share what they knew. Elias finally spoke.

“The Dokkalfar will track you with a
vengeance. They will not rest until you have been destroyed.” His
words rang in the silence.

I placed my forehead on Gavin’s chest right
next to my hand. He gently rubbed up and down my back, tracing my
spine. The sorrow in the room was as if someone had died. I willed
my pulse to slow, thinking through the filter that was quickly
fading.

I wasn’t going to go down without a fight. I
just found Gavin, and I wasn’t going to give him up. I had survived
everything in my past, and if anyone thought I was going to wait
around to be chow for some evil elf, they had another thing coming.
Gavin’s family believed I was the most powerful source on the
planet, and if that were true, then I would feed all the elves
every day until their eyes glowed like the sun. Let them
come—together we would obliterate them. I would die trying to keep
what I had now.

The heat of my thoughts flamed my intent, and
I burned with the desire to fight and defend. My heart pounded at
the rage inside—I seethed with it. They would not hurt Gavin’s
family. I would make sure of that.

My last thought sent Gavin into an emotional
tornado. The room hummed with energy. I could feel the power. The
flame blazing through every cell reminded me of his first
touch.

All of my senses heightened, and I became
aware that the blue was completely gone. My breathing slowed, and
the adrenaline started to subside as I consciously drained my mind,
willing my muscles to relax. When I raised my forehead off of
Gavin’s chest, we were alone.

“They are outside; the power was too
great.”

I gasped.

His eyes were a green shining fire, as if an
emerald had been placed in front of an open furnace. His beautiful
face had become chiseled and his lips were in a thin, hard line.
The picture of the archangel Michael throwing Satan from heaven
came to mind. Gavin smiled at that thought.

“I feel as you do. Together, they cannot
defeat us.” The timbre of his voice was brassy and hard. “But I
must take care. I will not lose you. I’m concerned you do not fully
appreciate the evil that lives in the Dokkalfar. They are masters
of deception. We must make no mistakes.”

I could feel the power in him, and I
understood that his queen had known this side of him and trusted
his skills to get the job done. It seemed odd that my Gavin, the
gentle compassionate one I knew, could also be a fierce warrior.
The protection encasing me now was stronger than steel.

“What do we do?” I asked aggressively,
already in do-something mode.

“You must stay here,” Gavin said in a harsh
voice. I could feel him trying to ebb some of the excess energy. He
wasn’t having much luck.

“Impossible! What about Edna?”

“She can stay here as well,” he said,
unwilling to let the idea go.

“She would refuse. Gavin, are you saying we
should ask her at the age of seventy-eight to move off of her
mountain? That house has been in her family for generations.”

“There’s nothing more important than your
safety. The Dokkalfar cannot come out in the day, but the night is
their playground, and it will only be a matter of time before they
follow your scent back to your home.” My senses rocked.

“Edna!”

I sprinted toward the door. What if they were
there right now? What if they were torturing her for fun? Sadistic
images flashed before me, resurrecting the once crushed fear into
full force. Gavin’s arm snaked around my waist, holding me
back.

“We’ve already swept that far north; Edna’s
in no danger.” His voice aggressively growled in my ear. I started
to really struggle to get free. He didn’t understand. Edna was all
I had. She was the only one who believed in me. Familiar feelings
of despair ran through me, as Gavin finally thought I’d reached my
limit.

“Nora, please,” he whispered. I stopped
struggling and calmed my mind. Twisting around to face him, I
kissed his soft lips. Assurance ran through my thoughts. I loved
him more than air, and no one, including the Dokkalfar, would ever
change that. His relief coated my frazzled nerves.

The front door opened.

“Rena, is everyone all right? I didn’t
remember you leaving the room. I didn’t hurt anyone, did I?” I
didn’t even know if the question made sense.

“No one was harmed, but from the forest we
could see the webbing light the windows, and so we were relieved to
have distanced ourselves for the moment.”

“
Could
I hurt you?” I asked, panic
setting in.

“You may be too strong for the ones who are
not your mate. I do not know.” My stomach flipped.

“Gavin, I have to get home. Edna will be
getting up in a few hours, and if I’m not there she’ll be
concerned.”

“No,” he commanded; his panic was back, but
resolve remained strong.

“Would you rather I leave her alone and
undefended?”

The question rang in the room; the silence
stretched.

“She’s right,” Rena finally said. I was
grateful she voiced her opinion aloud so I could be a part of the
conversation.