Winter's Fury - Volume Two of The Saga of the Twelves (60 page)

A Kiss in the
Dark

Day Four, Sunday, 7:42
pm…

Anthony stood ten feet
back from the three sets of double doors leading out to the upper
parking lot. He tried to peer through the blinding snow and
darkness, but could not. He gave up after a time. As Garfield had
mentioned earlier, he could not see further than seven feet beyond
the surface of the glass. He could only feel the icy chill trying
to push its’ way into the building. It was animal-like, hungered to
cool the warmth the store afforded them. Though he was a good
distance from the rattling, vibrating doors, the battery-operated
space heater he had brought with him was having difficulty keeping
it at bay.

He shuffled from one foot
to the next. His mind drifted from the blinding storm and its’
accompanying chill to something more immediate. It was an issue
more central to their plight. He was completely preoccupied with
it, though he was trying his best to hide it from the others.
Still, he found the task difficult.

He was anxious to leave
the store. He wanted nothing more than to get back to the cave and
begin the final push to Crystal Lake. It was time by far to seek
resolution to their quandary.

Ever since Andrew’s
outburst back at the cave, days ago, Anthony had convinced himself
he had to keep his real thoughts hidden. He had forced himself to
exude an even-keeled temperament for the sake of his companions.
Moreso now that things were beginning to change at an unbelievable
pace. The climate, the inhabitants of the land, even the plantlife
were altering fast, so rapid it was impossible to keep
up.

At the same time, he could
feel the weight of responsibility increasing evermore upon his
shoulders. This was in a tangible sense, something felt and not
just thought. He could even see the deference his companions were
giving him now. He could feel their reliance on his leadership,
their faith in his judgment. Some of the Twelve he hardly knew and
yet their acceptance of his role as the primary of their group
seemed natural to them. To him it was unnerving. He had never
sought to be the main figure in any group he had ever associated
himself with. This behavior, so fast and so absolute, scared
him.

Things were changing too
fast.

It made him feel
undeserving and a little fake. He was having an uneasy time
choosing to believe it with the whole of his heart. He was not sure
he wanted to step into the role completely. Yet, when he saw his
sisters, thrown into this diabolical world, so dangerous and
brutal, he could not help but step-up out of pure necessity. From
that perspective, he had no choice. One way or another, he would
have to embrace it. They needed him, maybe more now than they ever
had needed their parents in the past. He might be the only person
who could save them.

This, in its' simplest
terms, frightened the shit out of him.

It could have been a
by-product of his upbringing. Or, maybe it was something he had
been waiting for his entire life and had not known it. Maybe its’
revelation was the key that had opened this leadership trait. Maybe
it had come from within, like Joaquin’s crazy “as-you-need-to-know”
Gift. He did not know in truth. But what he did know for certain
was his sisters needed him. As he stood there looking out at sheet
upon sheet of wind-blown, blistering snow, he knew he could not
ignore that fact. The role of “leader” had fallen onto him, because
of their necessity. He could not shift their well-being onto the
mantle of someone else. They were his charges. They were his
family, his blood and he would never walk out on them. He would
never turn his back on the teachings of his parents. He would not
be able to look himself in the mirror if he did so.

That said, he needed to
move. He had to start taking those final steps and begin true
resistance against the Lord of the Storm. Time was getting short.
He could feel it. He knew it was real. This sense, this notion of
inactivity was bothering him more than anything else. If he was
going to be their leader, then he was going to have to do
something, fast. Or else, he could chance risking everyone’s
safety.

Joaquin had told him, told
them all, what needed doing. Now that they’d found Marianna, the
final member of the Twelve, it was time to act on that knowledge.
It was time to execute their final courses of action. They needed
to move on with the plan. It was time to get things done. It was
time to begin the fight.

Instead, the storm had
trapped - trapped them all. Still, they had been lucky. It was a
blessing this Target store had survived the Rending. That it had
managed to exist in the Melded World.

Still, he could not shake
the idea that Fenris was out there. He knew the half-wolf, half-man
was looking for them, while they waited, lounging in the warmth of
their sanctuary.

He was certain Inghëldir
and Jätung were out there too. They would all be searching,
questing for their lifeblood.

In fact, all the minions
of the Lord of the Storm were out there.

Yes, he trusted Garfield
and his rationale with every fiber of his being. But, he could feel
that things - even as this blizzard was walloping the landscape -
were still moving at a pace they could not hope to match. The enemy
was out-pacing them at every turn.

He needed to get moving.
He needed to do something other than stand in this damned store and
wait for the snow to stop falling and the wind to stop
blowing.

It was time for the
Kring-Hël to act!

He swallowed deep at the
thought as if he had to stomach something distasteful. There was
nothing nasty in his throat. It was in his head.

He pulled off the elastic
cord binding his long brown hair in a ponytail and let his hair
fall free about either side of his face. He shook his head back and
forth, pulling the individual locks of hair apart with fingers from
both hands. This relaxed the pressure on his head. His hair fell
into a more nature state. He took a deep breath and released it in
a long, forlorn sigh. He watched as the wind buffeted the glass
doors, making them vibrate within their metal casements.
Intense
, he
thought.

About him, the air chilled
for a few seconds as the cold outmatched the warmth of the space
heater at his feet. He placed the elastic hair twine in one of his
front pockets, bouncing on his toes a couple of times. Up and down
in quick succession, he welcomed the returning heat as the space
heater once again gained the upper hand.

It was time for the
Kring-Hël to act, god damn it!

They were wasting
time.

The enemy was out-pacing
them.

“
Why are you standing here
in the dark, you weirdo?” came a sweet and melodic
voice.

He thought, with a
shuddering breath, she could not have come at a better
time.

He closed his eyes and
breathed deep again, as he felt her hands and arms come about him,
surround him from behind. She pulled him backward and into her
embrace. It was unavoidable, from his perspective, not to lean back
into the curvature of her body. He let her vibrant, youthful frame
support him for a second or two. He let her hug him fierce for more
than a few heartbeats, enjoying supplicating to her will. He
wallowed in the touch of her strong body against his, before he
turned about in her grasp. He hugged her back just as
desperate.

“
Thank
you, babe. I
needed
that,” he said. His voice was a little huskier than usual.
Feeling the feminine aspects of Sophie’s body along his entire
length made it so.

“
Why are you way over here
standing alone?” she repeated herself.

Though it was somewhat
dark around them, Anthony could still see the flash of her eyes
through the murk. He considered her query for a moment still
holding onto her, liking the press of her against him. “I don’t
know. I guess I just needed to see the storm for myself. You know,
see exactly what the hell was keeping us trapped here for so long.”
He shrugged as an afterthought, staring into the dim reflection of
her orbs. He hoped to catch a hint of the crystalline blue of her
irises. He did not.

She peered back at him,
searching for something in his face or his eyes, despite the fact
she could only make out his most basic features.

They stood like that for a
second or two.

Then, Anthony felt her
hands move from about his waist upward to the middle of his
back.

She stood on her tiptoes
with the grace of a gazelle, bringing her face closer to his, her
eyes closing, her expression wanton. He could feel her take a deep
breath and hold it.

Still, her face came
closer.

Maybe his vision had
adjusted to the lack of light or maybe it was the proximity of her,
but in that moment, he could see her as clear as day.

Her right hand crept
beneath the long, looping curls of his hair almost to the nape of
his neck. Gently, she applied pressure.

He could do nothing but
lean forward into her embrace. There was only a second to think he
was a lucky guy, when her lips met his in a chaste kiss they both
savored. He slipped his hand to the small of her back, parting her
lips with his tongue and tasted her for the first time. There were
no thoughts in his brain. There were only sensations - sweetness
and warmth.

A sigh after, she too
tasted him with her tongue and their kiss become more intense,
insistent. They crushed their bodies together. Their hands roamed
up and down.

Suddenly, they were
lost.

A heat unlike anything he
had ever felt in the past seemed to radiate from his chest, past
his neck and face, and out of the crown of his head. It tantalized
his mind in an unfamiliar way. It was almost like being on fire
from the inside out.

He felt Sophie react to
him as well. She brought up one of her legs, wrapping her foot
around one of his calves, pulling herself closer. Their pelvises
mashed together. They moved their heads from side to side, a
continuous changing of the angle of their kiss.

Somehow, his hand squirmed
beneath her layers of clothing. The warmth between the palm of his
hand and her pliant flesh underneath her beltline surprised him. He
gasped.

Their lips parted. Their
breath was harsh, raspy with animalistic craving.

They stared back at one
another, chests heaving, hearts pounding and eyes as big as
saucers. They clutched one another so close, they could feel one of
them was male and the other was female. They were exquisitely
different, two pieces of a puzzle that would fit together as nature
intended. If they were wearing less clothing, it would not take
much to make those opposing pieces come together. She would have to
push upward onto the tip of her toe, just for a few moments and
then they would be…

Sophie did not look away.
Her eyes were even more curious than before, so innocent and
willing that Anthony almost felt guilty of his effect on her. True,
she was older than him. True, she had instigated their little tryst
in the dark. Yet, it baffled him, because he had never had such an
overwhelming physical effect on a member of the opposite sex
before. It was as befuddling as it was glorious.

She looked hungry,
unfulfilled.

From her look, he knew she
wanted more. “Sophie,” he managed, gulping for air, “that… that
was…”

“…
Good
,” she finished for him. Her
hunger made her eyes sparkle as if she had just eaten a confection
of extraordinary manufacture. She reached for him
again.

He did not hesitate. He
bent down to kiss her, feeling braver and less wary than before. He
let one of his hands drift down, passed her waist and onto the
firm, meaty flesh of her buttock, pulling her into him as he
squeezed.

Sophie gasped into his
mouth, quavering, breaking the touch of their lips. She gazed up at
the ceiling with burning desire, knowing if she looked at him, she
would lose control of herself.

Anthony peered through the
semi-darkness at her exposed neck and found he could not resist. He
stretched to kiss her along the long lines of it, over and over.
From her voice box to either side, he left a series of soft,
lingering caresses. First with his lips, then he began to use his
teeth, teasing her with urgent nibbles as he came closer to her ear
the second time around. It was a languorous progression.

“
Oh… oh my god, baby, that
feels so… wonderful,” she purred through her lips.

He felt her hand move
through the hair at the base of his neck and grab onto his scalp.
He felt himself shiver with delight. Anthony swung from one side of
her neck to the other, planting a series of tiny sucking bites as
he went until he bit the bottom of her earlobe. He held onto it,
using his tongue to flick at it.

The teenage girl in his
arms quaked with pleasure. She brought her hands to either side of
his head and made him look into her eyes. “What are you doing to
me?” she murmured through deep intakes of air, her bosom heaving
against him as he continued to hold her against him,
firm.