Darlings (32 page)

Andrew. Put it down. Please.
Breathing
hard, he ignored her. 

Andrew. Put. It. Down.
She
demanded. 

A small voice appeared from behind Gwen.
Tiger. “Uncle…Andrew?” 

With the sound of the girl’s voice, he
whipped around, still holding the hand in his bloody mouth. Tiger
was horrified and moved closer behind Gwen. He studied the girl and
the madness disappeared from his eyes as he dropped the extremity.
Suddenly, Koli and Tokala took off in the direction they came.

We have to go. Andrew’s voice finally
appeared in her head. 

Gwen touched the golden figure eight. What do
you mean we have to go? Go where? 

He was right you know. Andrew walked closer
to Gwen. Pete is like him. They all are. We’re all just players in
this sick game. We have to go… Come with me. 

Gwen knew he was right. She was a pawn. Pete
and Jamison, Jamison and Pete, it was all the same. They would do
whatever it took to be in power, no matter whom or what it cost
them. In the depths of her soul, Gwen knew he was right. She knew
what she had to do. Okay. 

Okay? he questioned. 

Gwen nodded. She looked at the small spitting
image of Lily. She wouldn’t let her become a piece of the game. A
tool. A target. I’ll go with you. 

Chapter 14

The private quarter in the passenger car of
the train was quiet. Not that the whole train wouldn’t be at that
hour of the night. Gwen looked at her watch. Quarter to midnight.
Another night of no sleep. Hopefully they’d be in London by
morning. What was there? She didn’t know. It’d been two weeks since
they’d left Everland; Andrew, Tiger and Gwen. Gwen replayed that
moment in the forest with Captain Hookner over and over in her
head. Did she do the right thing? Leaving with Pete’s daughter
without even a word goodbye? She’d never know. Would she see him
again? Of that, she wasn’t sure either. She knew they’d search for
her, both sides of the game. Pete’s beautiful glittery and shiny
side, and Jamison’s ugly tattered one. 

She adjusted herself in the red pleather
seats and Tiger wiggled her sleeping body beside her. The precious
girl had tasted chocolate for the first time that morning. Her big
green eyes sparkled as she devoured the candy bar. In the past few
weeks, she’d gained a little weight though was still pretty frail.
She reminded Gwen so much of Lily. Her black hair, tan skin,
pointed nose, and dark eyebrows. All her mother. Except the eyes.
Pete’s eyes. Gwen felt her heart ache from time to time looking
into those eyes, dreaming of what could have been. She truly felt
his love for her was real…shaking her head she pushed his memory
from her mind, only to be replaced by another. The collar. She
replayed the night before she left for middle earth. 

“It’s beautiful.” Gwen gasped. 

Andrew wasn’t surveying the glittering blue
lagoon below. He wasn’t admiring the rainbow colored sunset, he
wasn’t even adoring the glowing waterfall splashing playfully over
cliff upon golden cliff and finally into the glistening pool. 
He was staring at something far more beautiful to him. The way her
blue eyes reflected the turquoise of lush foreign plants made his
arms feel unattached to his rock hard body. 

“Yah it really is. I’ve thought so from the
first time I saw it.” She could sense his eyes on her.  Gwen
suddenly felt self-conscious. She became aware of her pale legs
against her denim too short, shorts. Her makeup-less face. She
tucked her auburn waves behind her ear as she often nervously did.
The temptation gnawed at her body. She wanted him. Wanted him to
take her in his strong arms and embrace her, hold her, keep her
safe from this world. Safe from her confusion. She wanted him to
keep her safe from…Pete. She turned away from the fairy tale laid
out before her, to face her forbidden fantasy. He towered over her.
His bare smooth chest looked as if it were wrapped in a layer of
caramel silk. She could feel his body heat against her bare midriff
and thighs. She wanted so badly to touch him. Their eyes met.

Her plump rose lips called to him like an
innate prohibited urge, something he felt he almost had no control
over.  Her hips demanded he hold them, her blue eyes summoning
him in.

The setting sun made his tan skin glimmer.
His black hair reflected blue. Lifting his hands even with her
perfect model like hips, he stopped just inches from them. His
hands turned to fists. Closing his eyes he softly whispered, “We
can’t.” 

“I want you to.” Gwen she whispered
back. 

“It’s not safe Gwen. Remember what happened
the last time I touched you; I won’t do that to you again. Besides,
this isn’t how it’s supposed to be. We can’t do this. As much as I
want to.” Andrew took a step back. 

“No that’s just it. We can now.” Gwen took a
step forward and pulled a lime green collar from her pocket. Andrew
could smell her sweet cotton candy perfume. His mouth salivated for
her lips. “I found it in the refugees and kept it…I thought it
might…be useful.” Embarrassed, Gwen looked away. It was just his
size. “Must have come from a mantican.” 

“There’s a reason it’s this painful to touch
you know. It’s to keep things like this from happening. We aren’t
supposed to be. I am meant to protect you; our species can’t
continue if our kinds end up together. It’s not natural
here.” 

“I don’t care if it’s natural. It feels right
to me somehow.” Gwen held up the collar. “Take it” she
demanded.  Andrew’s conscience was screaming no, but his heart
was whispering yes. He reached out and slowly lifted his large hand
up to hers, taking the collar. He put it on, not even wincing as he
pressed the needles into his thick neck. 

“Let’s test it,” Gwen said, bringing her hand
to her mark. “Did you hear that?” she asked. 

Andrew shook his head, “No,” he said
smiling. 

“You’re free Andrew. If we’re going to do
this and go back to middle earth, into hiding…I want to do it like
this. I want you to get to be….kind of normal,” she said
smiling. 

“Thanks, I think,” he laughed. Moving closer
to her, he took her smooth face in his hands. Sliding one hand down
to her chin, he tilted her head up and bent down to meet her lips.
He kissed her and their world stopped. Pulling away, he said,
“Really, Gwen, thank you.” 

Cheeks red, Gwen placed her hand around his
neck and kissed him again, hard. His lips were soft and wet. 
Pushing her back he placed her head onto his chest. 

“What are we going to do? Where are we going
to go?” Gwen asked looking back to make sure a sleeping Tiger was
still cuddled up in her blanket, dreaming away. Caressing her
smooth skin with his rough thumb his brows furrowed. “I don’t know
Gwen, but it’s time, we’ve got to go.” 

The train rumbled a bit and she was brought
back to reality. 

“Can’t sleep?” he said. Gwen turned to see
Andrew standing in the doorway. 

She shook her head. “Shhh. They’re out like
lights,” Gwen said pointing to her two sleeping brothers in the
seat across from her. They’d been so lucky Arthur saw things their
way and handed them over. He promised he wouldn’t tell and
congratulated Andrew on his freedom. Gwen would always remember the
words he spoke to his brother. 

“Live it for both of us.” 

He motioned for her to come with him. Sliding
carefully out from under Tiger, she followed him to the back of the
car and out the doors to the caboose. Her hair whipped in the wind
as he stood behind her. 

“I’m scared,” she whispered, looking up at
his green collar placed perfectly around his neck. Thankfully, it
was small enough he could cover it with a necklace and it looked
somewhat normal. 

“Me too,” he said as he caressed her
shoulders.

“Do you think we’ll find them there, in
London?” Gwen asked. 

“The Elite?”

Gwen nodded closing her eyes she felt as if
she were flying. Again she shook thoughts of Pete out of her
mind. 

Andrew shrugged. 

“What if we never find them,” Gwen asked
pulling his arms around her. 

“Then I guess we’ll have to move to our last
resort,” he said quietly. 

Gwen shook her head, quickly dismissing the
idea. “They’ll find us for sure if we do that. You know we can’t.”
Gwen felt sick. The last resort. She hated even thinking about
going back into the spirit world to find Rynnal and ask him where
to find the Elite. She knew it was inevitable one day she would go
back for her friend, but they’d have to be prepared for a fight.
The minute they walked back into that world, they’d feel her enter
for sure. Hollow was in this world now. They had enough to worry
about here. They’d start with the Elite. “For now we continue to
search.”

“Right. Search, hide, and be normal. Right,
Summer?” he laughed at the false name she had chosen for herself.
She elbowed him. 

“It’s no better than Andy,” she
joked. 

“Hey I can’t remember anything else okay?” he
teased squeezing her tighter. The stars glimmered crystal clear
that night. Andrew pointed. “See the north star up
there?” 

“Mmm hmmm,” Gwen answered. 

“Now see the second star to the right?” he
asked. 

She nodded. 

“That’s the only place in all of middle earth
that is a mirror image of a star in the sky of Everland,” he
explained.

Gwen saw the star bright and twinkling and
she instantly thought of Pete. 

“Cold? Want to go inside?” 

“Yah,” Gwen answered. “I do.” 

And the train drove straight on until
morning. 

*
**

I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for
reading book one in the Everland Eternal series, Darlings! I hope
you enjoyed discovering Everland as much as I loved writing it.
Stay tuned for the release of book two in the series, and keep an
eye on my facebook page for news on my upcoming website. Again,
deepest thanks! Facebook: http://facebook.com/AshleyMSwisher