Cataclysm (20 page)

Drew was walking around the garden, watching as their canine friends chased each other around the yard when he caught a glimpse of Kerrigan in his peripheral vision. He turned his attention to her as she descended the stairs, her head held high and her shoulders pulled back—all the signs of a strong, determined person with their mind on the task at hand. He didn’t doubt the truth of that assessment, but the expression on her face—her eyes nearly pleading—gave away her desperation.

They would never get anywhere in her training unless he could somehow find a way to teach her to control her emotions.

Her skin glowed with her gift, but predictably, thick clouds rolled in. Not the sort that accompanied thunderstorms or even rain; these were clouds that eclipsed the sun, dimming its life-giving light. Coming to stand before him, Kerrigan crossed her arms over her chest. It was a classic telltale sign that she was guarding herself, keeping secrets.

“I’m ready.” She rested all of her weight on one leg while angling the other out to the side.

“No, you’re not.” He came over to her. “Why are you so upset, Miss Cruz?”

She looked away. “I’m not upset. What makes you think I’m upset?”

“For starters, you refuse to look at me, which means that what you’re saying isn’t the truth. It’s rare for a person to be able to look another in the eye when they’re lying.” He left out the little detail about the Ring of Truth warming against his skin.

He was sure she was about to launch a defense, but he didn’t give her the chance. “Secondly, you repeated the word
‘upset,’
which means you most definitely are upset.” She scowled and averted her eyes again.

“Look at me.” He stepped into her field of vision so she would have to. “Is my skin glowing?”

She shifted her weight to her other foot and rolled her eyes. “No, but what does that have to do with—?”

“It’s because you’ve blocked the sun.” He pointed toward the place in the sky where the sun was hidden by clouds.

She gave him a confused look. “What are you talking about? The clouds blocked the sun.”

“Lesson number one, Kerrigan: As a Guardian your emotions directly affect the atmosphere around you. Mother Nature plays a huge role in the weather but, generally speaking, if you’re happy, the sun shines. If you’re upset, it hides away. If you’re angry, you might want to be sure you’re carrying an umbrella. And depending upon just how angry you are, you might want to warn others around you to seek shelter.”

She looked up at the sky, the thick cloud that hovered there began to thin before it shifted and moved off to the side at a slow pace. “I did that?”

“There wasn’t a cloud in the sky before you came out here.”

She thought back to the night she had made it rain on Dominic after the bonfire. “Well, that’s...” She beamed. “That’s pretty cool.”

Drew smiled in turn, noting the movement of the shade that had been cast by the cloud over their surroundings. As the sun’s rays came in full force once again and washed over her skin, it lit up with tiny beads of light.

“You’re glowing again,” she said.

“So are you.” The back of his hand caressed her cheek in a manner that was more than just a friendly gesture. When she turned her head to look at it, he gave her an apologetic smile. Clearly he had overstepped his boundary. To keep himself from being tempted again, he stuck his hand in his pocket.

“Tell me what it is that you hope to gain out of your training,” he said, getting back down to business.

Just like that, the cloud cover was back again.

Drew looked up and then back down at Kerrigan, whose smile had disappeared. “Wow, that bad? Perhaps we should sit and get a little more comfortable so that you can tell me all about the problem. I’ve been told I’m an excellent listener.” He nodded toward a patch of grass nearby.

She followed him over to the old magnolia tree, sitting with him on the ground. “I need to be stronger.”

He held up his hands. “First things first, we need to get you out of that foul mood. I can’t help you unless you learn to control your emotions.” He turned to face her with his legs crossed and folded. “Sit like this, so that you’re facing me.” She sighed, but did as he said. “Right, now tell me. Why do you feel this urgent need to be stronger? Strength in your inner Light comes with time and experience as a Guardian.”

“Well, time is not a luxury I have right now.” She crossed her arms over her chest and tucked her chin in. Her eyes still had that desperate pleading look to them. “I can’t tell you the reason I need to be stronger, Drew. I just do. All I can say is that it’s a matter of life and death. Let’s just leave it at that. Please?”

He definitely had his work cut out for him. He took her arms, uncrossing them. She showed hesitance and resisted before finally giving in and letting him take control. “You have to trust me, Kerrigan, or this partnership is never going to work. I’m here to help you, but you have to let me.” He shook her arms out, trying to get her to loosen up. “I won’t pressure you to divulge information you’re not comfortable with sharing, but believe me when I say it would be a whole lot easier to help if I knew what the big secret is all about.”

“It’s not my secret to tell.”

He gave her a tight smile and nodded. “All right then. Fair enough. We’ll just focus on some general strength building and hope it’s enough for now. In time, perhaps you’ll feel you can trust me more, and we can tailor the training to a more specific purpose. Until then, I’m happy to help in any way I can.”

“Thank you for understanding, Drew.”

“Not at all. It’s what we Guardians do.” He gave her that dazzling smile that warmed her from the inside out. “Let’s get started. I want you to close your eyes and go to your sanctuary. You already know that you can draw strength from any form of natural light, but what you may not be aware of is that you can also draw it from other Guardians. The best place to be when trying to do that is in your sanctuary. I assume you’ve been there before, yes?”

She nodded.

“Good. Let’s go there now, shall we?”

Kerrigan inhaled deeply and closed her eyes before letting her breath out slowly. She knew what she needed. She needed to think about Dominic. Thoughts of him were what always helped her in the past. His deep, calming voice, the feel of his icy breath against her skin, the way he looked at her like she was the only person in the world.

But he wasn’t there, and all she could see behind her closed lids was the look of desperation on his face when he had woken to find himself in his ghostly form. As if channeling his fear, invisible walls shot up between her mind’s eye and her inner sanctuary. She pushed and shoved and tried to force her way through but to no avail.

Her shoulders slumped, and she shook her head. “I can’t do it.”

“Yes, you can.” Drew’s voice was quiet, reassuring, but it still wasn’t Dominic’s.

“Maybe this will help.” He inched forward until his bare knees touched hers, and then he placed her hands on his thighs, covering them with his own. “I want you to use my energy. It will solidify the connection.”

That feeling that passed between them when they touched became stronger, the vibration numbing her skin.

“There. Can you feel it?” His voice was closer than she expected, mere inches from her ear. “Feel me, Kerrigan. Draw your strength from me, from our connection.”

Strength. It was what she needed more than anything. For him. For Dominic. For their unborn child. She had to become stronger for their family, and if she had to draw that strength from Drew, she would.

She felt a breeze brush her cheek, stirring the thick tendrils of her ponytail down her back. She inhaled deeply, the scent of honeysuckle and orange blossoms filling her olfactory senses. And then suddenly, the walls in her mind fell, steel curtains dissipating into nothingness. She was in her sanctuary, surrounded by a garden in full bloom. The birds in the trees sang her a song of welcome, and she swayed along to their melody. The rays of the sun kissed her skin with their warmth. A light breeze stirred up a cornucopia of scents that swirled around her—fresh air, damp earth, and fragrant flowers.

But where was Dominic?

She furrowed her brows and tensed, an action Drew didn’t miss. She was having difficulty focusing. He lifted her hands until their palms were touching and laced his fingers through hers.

“Calm yourself. You’re there, aren’t you?”

Kerrigan nodded.

“Good. Now I want you to concentrate on the place where our hands are joined. Pull my energy into you.”

In her mind’s eye, she looked around her garden sanctuary, desperately seeking Dominic. He was nowhere to be found. “I can’t do it. He’s not here, and I can’t do it without him.”

“Who? Who are you looking for?”

“Dominic. He’s always there.”

“Use
me
, Kerrigan. You don’t have to have Dominic to pull my energy. Just concentrate on the hum of the energy. You feel it, don’t you? That pull?”

She did. It was like the sun was centered in her palm, and the moon in Drew’s. The push and pull of their combined energy was like two magnets rotating end to end. The moon was sacrificing itself and all of its mystical power to the sun.

Drew leaned in and pressed his forehead to hers. “Take it.”

A bolt of lightning shot through the point where their foreheads touched and raged through her as if it were using her veins to carry its energy. She tightened her fingers around his and held steadfast, letting the energy run its course. White, hot warmth enveloped her, a power so fierce it nearly took her breath away. It was exactly the same way she had felt that night at the graveyard, the night she thwarted Sinclair’s attempt to steal Dominic’s soul.

Meanwhile, back in the house, that old familiar tingling had encroached upon Dominic in the middle of his guitar solo. He dropped the instrument abruptly and excused himself to grab a beer. Leaving Gabe and Colton to fend for themselves for the duration of the song, he hid around the corner and waited for his curse to overtake him, rendering him invisible to the naked eye.

“Goddammit,” he cursed as the change took place.

Not knowing what else to do, he sought out the only person who could offer him even a fraction of comfort. Kerrigan.

Ghosting out onto the back porch, he stopped short. She and Drew were under the magnolia tree, the same tree she had mended with
him
there to coach her. It sure didn’t take long for her to find a replacement. They were so close to one another—knee to knee, hand to hand. It wasn’t exactly something he was comfortable seeing, but what really sent a spike through his heart was the intimacy he witnessed in their foreheads touching. It was something he and Kerrigan had done on multiple occasions, and always when they were particularly close.

White light illuminated the minuscule space between their foreheads and palms, and their fingers were interlaced. Kerrigan’s whole body strained, but the look on her face was of perfect contentment. Whatever they were doing, it was some heavy-duty shit, but he couldn’t stick around to watch it play out. It was just too much for him to bear witness to the special connection she shared with Drew—one that he could never give her. Closing his eyes to the scene, he willed himself to the solace of his room. Alone. He would always be alone.

Oblivious to Dominic’s presence, Kerrigan absorbed all that she could take of Drew’s energy. A grunt of effort pushed its way out of her chest with her determination to save the man she loved. Her existence depended on his.

“That’s enough, Kerrigan,” Drew whispered to her. “Too much at one time could be detrimental to your well-being.”

She ignored his warning and kept pulling the energy, determined to withstand the abundance of his offering.

“Stop...”

Her body was alive with the energy that zinged through her body, each pull boosting her reserves and making her feel high on life. She tightened her grip on Drew’s hand even as she felt him pulling away.

“Enough!”

Her eyes shot open. Drew yanked his head away and pulled his fingers from her grasp, breaking the connection. His breaths were labored, his once golden skin pale, but he finally met her stunned gaze.

“What happened?” she asked in a faint voice.

He forced a smile that looked to take too much effort, given his current condition. “I’ll be fine. Just feeling a little less like running a marathon at the moment.”

Realization dawned on her. He had agreed to share his energy with her to make her stronger, but by doing so, it weakened him.

“Oh, God. I did that to you, didn’t I?” She gently caressed his cheek, stroking the dark ring under his eye. The usual energy that passed between them was markedly fainter than it had been before.

He managed another weak smile. “Par for the course, I’m afraid.” He attempted to hold himself up to stand, but his arm folded, forcing him back into a sitting position.

“Drew! Oh, God... let me help you.” She leaned over to help him to his feet. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t know.”

“Of course you didn’t. Don’t be silly. A couple of hours in the sun, and I’ll be good as gold again. It really isn’t a very big deal. I’m a seasoned Guardian, which means that my Light source can also regenerate itself. Just give me a day or so to replenish, and we’ll be ready for another session.” He was on his feet again, but unsteady. He towered over Kerrigan in height, but she still managed to serve as sufficient support.