Legend of the Touched (14 page)

Alivia shrugged. Allegra didn't seem as easily
convinced but she didn't say anything. She glanced up and raised
both of her eyebrows. "Looks like a boy is crashing the girl party.
Hey Alex."

Tai jumped slightly in her seat when she heard Alex
and not Darien. Then behind her, his deep voice spoke.

"Hey sis. You got everything you need?" Alex glanced
down at the other two girls. "Hey ladies. Looks like a successful
trip."

"Oh yes," Alivia said with a smirk.

Alex sat down next to Tai, opened his mouth to say
something, but his eyes were staring at something far away. She
knew what it was. "Hey Darien."

Darien sat down across from her and grabbed her hand,
making brief eye contact with Alex. Alivia waved. Allegra scooted
away and leaned her head on a hand. It was hard to tell what Tai's
friends thought of Darien. For the most part, they seemed to get
along and like each other. They used to not give him the time of
day, but because of her they were forced to interact with him. He
was easy to like, so she wasn't too surprised when they came
around. All except for Allegra and Alex. Alex was obvious about why
it was hard for him to warm up to Darien. They got along and were
civil, but as long as Darien saw Alex as competition, they wouldn't
be close friends. Allegra on the other hand was a mystery. Sibling
loyalty maybe? Tai didn't know. She didn't have brothers or
sisters.

"I guess the party is over. But we have to do this
again sometime and soon," Alivia said. "And maybe we can have the
boys come along too. If they're good." She winked.

"That would be nice," Darien said. He took one of
Tai's cheese fries. "Are you all done? Did you get enough to
eat?"

"Yeah, we can go," Tai said.
I should be good
until dinnertime.
Which wasn't far from now, but the craving
had passed for the time being. They both stood from the table, Tai
collecting her purse.

Darien stared at her, frowning, and his head cocked
to the side slightly. "Didn't you get a dress? I mean, that's why
you went shopping right?" The confused frown on his face would
usually be considered adorable, but it only annoyed her then.

She rolled her eyes, and glared at him momentarily.
"Why would I get a dress? It's not like I need one."

"I...."

She put up her hand.
We can talk about this
later.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The Oceina

"Okay, I think I missed something here because you
seem mad at me and I don't know what I did," Darien said as he
paced around the bedroom. He scratched at his chin, trying to
figure this out. It wasn't her birthday, so he didn't miss that. He
was positive he'd told her he loved her because he made sure to do
that every morning. He already knew he wasn't spending enough time
with her. But this seemed a lot more specific.

Tai was sitting on the bed, curling her toes, staring
at them while she did so. "You didn't do anything."

"Talk to me and tell me what's going on here."

"I mean it. That's kind of the point."

"I know I've been kind of present in body but not in
mind lately. As soon as things are more settled, I
am
going
to make it up to you. I promise." He paused. "What were the dresses
for?" When she said she needed a dress he'd thought she wanted one
for every day wear, and the whole point was to get girlie and have
a good time. But she hadn't gotten a dress, and every time he asked
about why, she dodged the subject.

"The festival dance," she said in barely more than a
whisper. He could smell her tears starting to rise.

"Oh...." He'd never thought of that. He'd been so
absorbed in business, he completely missed it. Every other year in
the past, he didn't go so it wasn't something he even looked
forward to. "Wow I messed up." The movies always glorified the
school dance, and he didn't even bother to ask her? "We can go if
you want. I mean, I'd like to go. A lot and—."

"You don't need to ask just because you feel bad.
It's fine. Besides, none of the dresses fit me right, and the one
that did.... It was nice, but it wasn't me. I'm too fat." She
sniffled a little.

Darien sat on the bed and pulled her close to him.
"I'm not asking because I feel bad. We've never had a formal dance
as a couple, let alone even have a song. I would love to take you
out for a night on the town, get beautiful. I'll ask you five
hundred times if I have to if it'll get you to believe me."

She shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks.
"No, it's fine. I'm just overwhelmed and frustrated."

"Why?"

"Because I'm fat!"

"You are
not
fat you're—."

"Don't say pregnant." She glared at him and he
clamped his lips closed.

He took in a slow breath, trying to keep calm.
Sometimes when she had the rare mood swing, she got them hard. "I
was going to say beautiful, Tai. But you don't need to answer me
now with a yes or a no. I will ask you again, when you're not
expecting it, and you won't have a doubt in your mind about it
being what I want."

She stared at him, her face a mixture of uncertainty
and happiness. A confusing expression for him to try and decipher.
He had no idea what it meant or what he was supposed to do next. So
he sat, holding her, and for the first time in a while he felt a
lot more connected to her.

Chapter Thirty

The Inero

"Kat, wait up!" Ashley ran across the garden and
around the wives' pool. Kat slowed her pace so she could catch up,
though she wasn't sure if she wanted Ashley to or not. Kat would
try to be nice, no matter how hard it seemed. Being judgmental
wasn't a good way to be. They hadn't spoken for a few days, so she
was curious to see how well Ashley was fitting in.

"Hello, how are you today? Adjusting well?" Kat had a
lot of questions for Ashley. The temptation to ask Matt about her
was great, but she didn't want to bother him with petty woman's
gossip. Not when he had a lot of other things to do for his father.
She could find this all out on her own. Ashley seemed nice.
Something about her threw Kat off, though. If only she could put
her finger on it.

Ashley pulled her long blonde hair back into a
ponytail, all smiles. "I think I am. It's a lot different than
home, but that's kind of the point. The differences are nice."

"I know it's different in Oceina. I'll be honest and
say I don't know much about what it's like there. Outside of
nothing like here I mean," Kat said with a small laugh.

"Their world revolves more around the humans for one.
The dragons spend a lot of time accommodating their needs and
maintaining their divine power through honor and peace. Here it's
done through power. It seems a lot more effective of a method.
Don't get me wrong, I don't believe the humans should be treated
poorly simply because of how they were born. After all, I was once
human. But now that I'm not, I shouldn't have to live as one
either," Ashley explained and took Kat's arm to lead her towards a
grove of trees.

Her words surprised Kat. She hadn't expected such
bluntness, but Ashley's mentality was not a common one either. Then
again, most of the Inero women weren't well educated in the
dragons, divinity, or politics. Kat barely understood them herself,
and she wasn't sure if it was a topic she wanted to get involved
in. It didn't feel like her business.

"Interesting," Kat said, wanting to encourage her to
keep talking.

"The way they choose their mates is different as
well. It isn't something most look forward to. Unlike here. The
women are appreciated a lot more by the Inero, I've noticed. When
they are taken away to be Elite, they aren't lied to." Ashley
rubbed her arms.

"I had no idea," Kat whispered.

Ashley gave a small smile and a shrug. "They do only
love one woman their entire lives. My husband meant it when he said
it at least."

"But you were still unhappy?"

"Because I didn't love him. I was in love with
someone else from home. He's since died, so it doesn't matter
anymore even though I've now left that place. But I'm thankful for
meeting Josiah. He's been good to me, and shown me those things I'd
been missing. He reminds me a lot of my former love."

Kat listened to her story, fascinated and shocked.
Her mouth hung open slightly. "He let you go though, your husband I
mean. He loved you, but he let you leave?" In Inero, she didn't
think that would have been allowed. She knew of a good number of
wives who didn't love their husbands yet stayed in their
relationships because he claimed to love them. If they had wanted
to leave, she was pretty sure the husbands would retaliate badly.
The men were allowed to leave the women, but it didn't seem like
the women could leave the men.

Ashley nodded. "Yes."

"He must have really meant it then. It's too bad
things didn't work out, but I'm glad you're happier here. I wish
you well in your new relationship. Many years of happiness." That
seemed like the right thing to say.

Kat wasn't sure if she should feel bad for Ashley or
be more wary of her. Ashley's words sounded genuine in tone, but
something still felt wrong. Why did she smell like boiled cabbage?
What did that even mean? Maybe nothing. It could have only been
Kat's sense of smell going crazy because of her pregnancy hormones.
She was so close to being done. The egg would be considered full
term within the week. The closer she got to the date, the more she
hurt, felt bloated, ate like her stomach was a bottomless pit, and
picked up on the smallest of sensations. Light blinded her eyes
more easily, the tiniest of smells she noticed, and the lightest of
touches irritated her skin to the point where wearing clothes drove
her crazy. She couldn't wait for this to be over with so she could
be comfortable again.

With a small nod, Ashley took Kat's hands in her own,
causing her to look up into the woman's blue eyes.

"I'm glad you understand, but I knew you of all
people would."

At Ashley's touch, Kat's hands burned slightly,
similar to when she touched the water for too long. Although she
didn't know what kind of spell it was, she recognized Ashley's
attempt at water magic.

What little trust Kat had acquired for the woman was
gone.

Chapter Thirty-One

The Inero

For a long time, Jason sat engrossed in the Holy
Book. Gwen hated to interrupt him. The answers he was looking for
were important. What worried her was the way he had said that it
had the answer to his problem. She only knew about one problem, and
that was the voice he claimed was inside of him. The possession
theory was not one she wanted him to keep entertaining, yet he kept
going back to it. He knew something he wasn't telling her.

"Here," she said quietly and brought over the night's
dinner. Leftovers, but her motivation to cook wasn't strong.

He looked up at her from where he sat on the beach
with a big smile. "Thank you."

She sat next to him, pulling out her own book so they
could read together in the sand. If she was only needed to be there
in body for him, she would be. Forcing her attention onto him
wasn't going to help him relax, she knew that. The most she could
do was not let on how worried she actually was, and be supportive
of him.

"Weren't you reading another book earlier?" He jotted
down a note onto a post-it and stuck into the Holy Book. She didn't
dare try to read over his shoulder. He wouldn't like that. There
would be another time for her to find out what he was up to.

Gwen nodded as she took a bite, not looking at him.
"I finished the other one. Why do you think I got so many? I'm a
fast reader."

"I didn't think you were that fast."

"It depends on the book. The other one was a light,
fluffy sort of story filled with lots of happily ever after. This
one will probably take longer because it's dark and deep." She
stopped reading so she could watch him. It was more polite. He did
the same, shutting his book. "Finding anything interesting?"

"A lot of things, actually. I'd never paid much
attention to this prophecy stuff. But then again, I never
understood how this sort of thing worked. However, it is helping me
prepare for whatever it is my father is doing. I'm going to have to
meet up with Oceina Lord again," Jason said with a sigh.

"How?"

"I'm not sure. That's going to be harder to figure
out. Since the borders are closed, getting through won't be easy. I
guess I could leave him a message to come to the Council Island,
but then I have to find a way over there too without getting
caught. Taking a boat will get people asking questions, and I can't
fly."

She rubbed his arm gently. "There's time right?"

"Not much, but if I try at this faith thing, then
somehow a way will present itself right?" He gazed into her eyes
and she saw the fear he felt in his. His eyes were wide and
glittered under the sunlight. There was hope in them too though,
and that made her smile. She nodded. Slowly, he put his arm around
her, pulling her in closer to him. "Part of the only reason I'm
giving it a try is because of you."

"Giving what a try?"

"Faith. You've shown me it works, so I'm doing my
best to keep relying on it even if it's hard. I'm out of options,
you know?"

"I think you've always had it." She brushed his hair
around his face then kissed his lips.

"It's better because of you."

"I haven't done anything except encourage you to keep
with your better side."

He kissed her forehead, closing his eyes for a
moment. "Well, I'm grateful for it. And I love you. No matter what,
remember that."

"No matter what," she echoed, unsure of if she liked
that statement.

Chapter Thirty-Two

The Oceina