Hyacinth, Scarlet - Fire of the Four Seasons (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour ManLove) (10 page)

Night engulfed them ful
ly
as they left the forest. They went so fast,
that
in no time, Alexei saw his parents’ house ahead. As they dismounted, Zimah said, “There’s something I haven’t mentioned, Alexei. Your mother knows about your and Eva’s origin,
ly
ubimiy moi
.”

And the surprises went on and on.

“She does?” Alexei asked.

Zimah nodded. “It came to her in a dream, and after seeing the particularities
that
differentiate you from other children, she grasped the reality. But she hasn’t told your father. We might have some difficulty in getting him to accept it.”

As if summoned by their conversation, Alexei’s father sudden
ly
appeared on the path, riding his horse. He
was
no longer at an age where he could brave such weather and dangers, but the concern must have prompted him to go anyway. Thankfully, they’d come here in time.

“We’ll fade from his sight until it’s the right time,” Zimah said. “Now go. Speak to him.”

Alexei obeyed and dismounted. He waved at Igor and called out. “Papa! Over here.”

Even from the distance, Alexei sensed his father’s shock. Igor pushed his horse to go faster and soon reached Alexei’s side.

Igor dismounted and practical
ly
pounced on Alexei, hugging him tight. “Oh, my boy, we were so worried when the horse came back without you. Are you all right?”

Alexei’s eyes filled with tears at the clear evidence of his father’s affection. He nodded and managed to muster an answer. “I’m fine.”

Igor broke their embrace. “Where’s your sister?” he asked, his eyes scanning the darkness in a desperate attempt to find Eva.

“Not here,” Alexei answered. He
did
n’t know how to say this, how to explain.

His father’s expression darkened. “What do you mean? Where
did
you leave her?”

“Papa… I assure you there is a good reason for this.” He paused and decided the best thing to do would be to take his parents to Eva. “We should go back to the house and get Mama. I have something to show you.”

“Alexei, this is no time for riddles. Tell me, where is your sister?”

Alexei
did
n’t look at his father when he replied. “I will take you to her. Please, just trust me.”

“All right, son,” Igor answered. He mounted the horse and gestured Alexei up. “Come, get on.”

Alexei joined his father in the saddle, and they rode back the way Igor
had
come. Behind them, Alexei sensed his lovers following, unseen by any human eye.

It seemed to take forever for them to reach the house, but at last, they entered the courtyard, dismounted and took the animal to the stable. The door to their home burst open, and Elga rushed out. She wore thick clothing, and Alexei guessed she must have been considering leaving after them as well.

At first, she
did
n’t spot Alexei, and she ran toward her husband. “Where are they? Where are the children?”

Alexei felt surprised she seemed concerned about him as well. “The heart of a mother is always true,” Visnah said. “Her worry for you shines through the ice it’s covered in now.”

Alexei remembered the times when Elga’s behavior would turn from cold to loving and back in mere instants. Now, he understood it. For whatever reason, the circumstances
had
made it so. In a sense, it brought relief to his heart, even if he’d
have
liked this realization to come in different circumstances.

“I’m here, Mama,” he said.

Elga turned toward him. Like Igor, she rushed to hug him, but then tensed and abandoned her hold on him. “Where is Eva?” she asked, her voice cold once more.

Alexei ignored her question. He gestured them inside the stable where the temperature remained more bearable. “I think you should tell Papa about how Eva and I came to be,” he final
ly
told his mother.

Elga’s eyes widened. “W–What? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Yes, you do,” Alexei insisted. “Please, Mama. There’s no sense in hiding it any longer.”

“Alexei, what is this?” Igor asked. “Why are you disrespecting your mother? And how does this have anything to do with your sister?”

Elga remained as silent as the grave, while Zimah began to speak. “We have no choice then,” he said. Together with the other three men, he emerged out of thin air. Igor jumped, turning to see who
had
spoken. He looked like he
was
going to faint, not
that
Alexei blamed him. “Who are you?” Igor asked them.

“We are friends,” Visnah answered, “and your son speaks the truth. Come, Elga, tell him. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

When faced with their appearance, Elga broke down. “It
was
on
ly
a dream,” she whispered, “a dream and nothing more. My children are just
that
, children.”

“Don’t lie to yourself. You
did
n’t keep Eva in a cool room for no reason,” Zimah shot back. “And you, Igor. Sure
ly
you saw and wondered. How can a young girl go out in the freezing cold with nothing but a cotton dress on? Or how could Alexei stay out in the sun all day without being bothered by it?”

Igor nodded wordless
ly
. “If Elga is not going to say it, we will,” Zimah continued. “Your children received life both from you and from two elements. You prayed for a fami
ly,
and we granted you this desire through the things you most loved, snow and fire. But now, as it happens, their destiny is at a turning point.”

“This is a dream,” Igor said. “You are all mad.”

Alexei shook his head. Taking a deep breath, he searched for the fire inside him. This time, he found it with ease. He experienced no difficulties in summoning a small blaze to his palm. It came up in the figure of Eva, a burning silhouette of her sleeping in her icy sanctuary. The reality behind the image
did
n’t come up clear, as flame could not picture ice, but his parents grasped the essence of it.

For a few moments, he thought his father would call him a demon or something equal
ly
as horrid. But Igor
did
no such thing. Instead, he asked, “How
did
this happen? When? You were not like this when you left this morning.”

“We were attacked by wolves in the forest,” Alexei answered. “It just burst out. I can’t explain it.”

“Either way,” Visnah said, “I believe you wanted to see your daughter. There are things
that
need to be arranged regarding her.”

Igor nodded. “We will go with you. I trust Alexei. Take us to Eva.”

Visnah and the others whistled once again, and the spirit horses appeared. Igor gaped and stared at the magnificent animals in dismay. “I don’t suppose I can take my own, right?”

“You could, Papa,” Alexei answered, “but it’s so much faster on theirs.” It was the understatement of the century.

Faced with this argument, Igor agreed to ride with Ohsyn. Alexei took position on
Ly
etah’s horse again, while Elga mounted Zimah’s stallion. In absolute silence, they took off toward the forest. The freezing wind intensified, but it no longer bothered Alexei so much. He
did
n’t like it, but neither
did
it hurt him.

His parents, however,
did
n’t have his luck. Even with the speed the horses ran, or perhaps because of it, the chill affected them. By the time their group reached the forest, they were visib
ly
trembling. When Alexei dismounted, he went to his mother. She’d ridden behind Zimah, her preference for ice showing in her fascination with Zimah’s white horse. Unfortunate
ly
, Zimah’s nature couldn’t provide any heat for her. Alexei took her hands and rubbed them between his own. As he blew into Elga’s palms, he felt heat travel between him and his mother and saw her regain a healthier color. “Better?”

Elga nodded and gave him a strange look. Before Alexei could ask her about it, Visnah said, “We should go. It’s best not to linger here excessive
ly
.”

They entered the forest and, led by Zimah’s footsteps, they headed toward the grove. Riding at full speed
wasn’t
as an option in the woods, and Alexei’s parents needed a bit of physical activity to warm them.

With a brisk and quick step, they soon reached their destination. Eva’s icy sanctuary sparkled in the moonlight, drawing all gazes. Elga gasped and ran toward it. She tried to reach between the frozen vegetation to touch the ice coffin, but she couldn’t.

“No one but her fated love can touch her now,” Zimah said at her cry of dismay.

“Her fated love?” Igor repeated. “And how is she supposed to find this person while she’s trapped and hidden here?”

“She may be trapped, but she won’t be hidden,” Ohsyn answered. “You will tell folk about her and ask them to come help. We will drop some words in the appropriate ears as well. It may not happen tomorrow, but her true love will come.”

“How can you be so sure?” Elga sobbed, falling to her knees next her daughter’s resting place. “Oh, my poor baby. How can you possib
ly
know she will be saved?”

“The Goddess sees what we do not,” Visnah answered.

Ly
etah helped Elga up. “Now come. It’s far too cold to stay here. She will be here tomorrow, and we will always be watching.”

“You can’t expect me to leave her here,” Elga shot back. “Frozen, alone, in the wilderness. No. I refuse.”

Her stubbornness
did
n’t surprise Alexei. It made sense
that
she would not want to leave Eva. Alexei’s own heart felt heavy when he acknowledged what needed to be done. But he
did
acknowledge it, and he realized their tears would not melt
that
prison of ice. They would find the person who could. “Mama, there is no other way. We must trust and hope all will be well.”

Elga turned toward him, her expression torn between disbelief, relief, and pain. “I don’t understand it. Why are you standing there, free of all constraint, just like before, while she is trapped beneath thick ice? I just… Oh, Alexei. I can’t believe you’re still alive.”

She shook her head fierce
ly
, tears streaming down her cheeks, and Alexei
did
n’t know how to tell her the truth. It seemed to him
that
she’d changed. He’d expected her to blame him for surviving when Eva
had
n’t. Instead, she seemed torn between doing so, and being thankful he’d lived. He decided to hide the glum details from her. “Mama, I’m not like before,” he whispered. “I can’t go back either.”

Elga froze. She obvious
ly
had
n’t expected
his words
. “W-What do you mean?”

Striking
ly
, Igor spoke next, revealing what Alexei wanted to hide. “You were trapped, too, but in fire.” Alexei’s father stared somewhere to their right, and when Alexei looked
that
way, he realized Igor spotted the remnants of the pyre.

“I don’t understand,” Elga said. She followed Igor’s gaze to the pyre. “This is some sort of weird nightmare.”

Alexei wanted to comfort them, to tell them the pyre
had
been there for ceremonial purposes alone. But the lie wouldn’t leave his lips. Thankful
ly
, Zimah intervened. “The important thing is
that
both Alexei and Eva are safe. Since he cannot live with you any longer, he will come with us.”

“Where?” Igor asked. “Where will you go?”

Alexei near
ly
broke down right then and there at the sorrow in his father’s voice. “Papa, I will always be with you. I promise. And I will be watching over Eva. You needn’t fear a thing.”

He
did
n’t know if they believed him or not, but after much insistence, his parents in the end agreed to return home. During the trip back home, everything still felt very surreal. After they said their good-byes, his shaken parents entered the house, leaving him standing outside with his men. For a few moments, the situation
did
n’t real
ly
compute. He’d no longer live here. He’d lost his life and his home.

It
was
a strange thing
that
he’d never panicked about this until now. But he’d been concerned about Eva, and now
that
he’d made certain she’d be safe, the rest struck him with full force. Visnah wrapped his arms around him and whispered, “It’s all right, Alexei. You’ll always have a home with us.”

He mounted with Alexei on his stallion and together, they once more headed the way they’d come. Alexei
did
n’t register much of the ride, and before he knew it, they’d reached his men’s house in the spirit world.

Visnah led him to a large room which held the huge bed. Alexei identified it as “the common room” mentioned before. “You can get some sleep here,” Visnah said as he placed Alexei down on the soft sheets.

Ohsyn smiled at him. “You definite
ly
need it. Don’t worry. We’ll watch over you.”