Legend of the Forbidden (18 page)

Tyson nodded. Seemed like an easy enough thing for him to do, but he'd go one step further and bring Maya back with him.

 

 

Dani splashed Ethan with some water as he rowed a boat from the holy island's shore toward the neighboring land mass that was Little Oceina Island. It didn't sting. In fact, the feeling of the water on her skin refreshed her in a way she'd never experienced before. Like she was more alive, stronger.
So that's what happens when two dragons become one,
she marveled.

She glanced at him and saw him smirk. “What?”

“The way you think, it's kind of mind-blowing,” he said.

“You can hear what I think?”

“You sound surprised. Didn't you know that happens to dragons and their mates?” He raised an eyebrow.

Her cheeks felt awfully warm. “Yes, but I guess I thought maybe it'd be different for us, since we're both dragons. I always believed it was a humans-only thing.”

He laughed. “You were obviously mistaken. Frankly, I don't mind in the slightest, because I've wanted to know what you were thinking for a long time. Now I finally get to know.”

“And it goes both ways.” She winked.

“Notice how I don't think too often?” He winked back.

Dani couldn't help but laugh hard at that, almost to the point where she fell back off of her seat. “You said it, not me.”

He rolled his eyes and mumbled, “Not what I meant.”

“I know, I know, I won't tease you anymore,” she said, and leaned up to kiss his forehead. As they neared the new island, she couldn't help but smile.
Civilization.

There were people walking about the streets, cars, shops, other boats. The idea of a clean bathroom sounded wonderful to her as well. Because while the small house had indoor plumbing, the water in the shower was cold, the toilet ran after every use and clogged easily, and the whole room had been infested with what must have been an entire colony of spiders. Webs covered the ceiling, and while she hadn't seen any of the eight-legged monsters, she didn't have any problems with starting their webbing on fire.

It didn't take long for the room to be cleared of them, but the smoke had taken longer to get out of the bathroom than she had expected. Ethan hadn't been all too happy about it either. She couldn't help it. Spiders grossed her out, and so did the cabin. There had been a few romantic aspects to it when it was dark, but she didn't want to stay there much longer. In the daylight it was an eyesore and a little
too
rustic for her tastes, at least in its current condition.

Hopefully we can just stay here for a few nights instead. Assuming our funding hasn't been cut by Ethan's dad. I'm pretty sure mine would take the bill too if needed.

“I'd rather it not come to that,” Ethan said softly. “I'm sure my dad has calmed down by now. We can stay at a hotel now if you want. Check in, get some nice stuff, you know, make this more special.”

“It already is special. I didn't mean to make you think I was unhappy. We could update the house some. It might help?”
Oops.

“No, it's okay. Don't feel bad. The rest of this trip is going to be everything you ever wanted. I promise.” He smiled, but she could sense a disappointment in him as well. They docked the boat. He stood up so he could tie it into place and then offered her his hand. “Come on.”

She took it and carefully stood, getting out and doing her best to not stumble as she did so. Touching the water didn't scare her as much, but falling into the ocean still didn't sound appealing. After all, she was in a sundress, and it wouldn't be all too flattering on her sopping wet. Or maybe it'd be too much so. She glanced at Ethan, his mind was so quiet, and she couldn't help but wonder if he was thinking something and hiding it from her. But how would he know how to do it when he'd never had telepathy before either? Did he genuinely not think as much as she did? Was he bothered by her criticisms more than he let on?

“Do you over-analyze everything?” he asked her, laughing some more. “I said it was okay, Dani. Please relax. Come on, I know a good inn we can stay in. Not five stars or anything like when you come to the city, but it's still nice. Kind of like a bed and breakfast kind of thing.”

“I'll make it up to you,” she said.

“Make what up to me?” He faced her and gazed down into her eyes. “Not wanting to stay in an ancient house? I told you, it was convenient and safe. Unless you wanted someone barging in on us in the middle of the night? Given everything that happened, I certainly wouldn't have enjoyed it much. How many times were we intimate?”

Her cheeks grew hot again, and she managed to croak out, “A lot.”

He laughed at her again. What was so funny? “I don't understand why you're so embarrassed. Do you think I'm complaining?”

Dani quickly shook her head. “So this inn…”

“Ready for more? Again, not complaining, I'm just a little sore is all.”

“You are not helping! I just meant maybe it'd be nice to check in and make sure they have space for us first? Plus, I'm hungry, since there wasn't exactly anything I'd call edible at the house, and I'm tired, because I didn't sleep well either.”

Ethan reached up and stroked her hair. “I was teasing. I love you.”

“I—” she started, and then stopped when her purse started to vibrate a couple of times. “My phone. Probably Mom making sure we got here okay.”

“Do you want to call her back? I didn't think about the lack of reception out there. She's probably freaking out.”

“She'll be fine. I'll call her later tonight. Seriously, a nap sounds awesome right about now.”

He took her hand in his own and walked with her up the dock. “Then that will be the next thing on our agenda.”

Four hours later, she felt much more refreshed and ready to explore the island. Ethan had briefly left the room to get some food. By the time she woke up, he'd made them a nice snack to pull them through until dinnertime. Dani hadn't realized how exhausted she actually was until her body laid down on the bed. The mattress at the house had been old and not quite big enough to hold them both. The bed at the inn was large and far more comfortable than anything she'd ever slept on before. Sleep came easily, and it was exactly what she'd needed.

There were also some flowers in a vase waiting for her upon waking. Lilies to be exact, and she took a moment to admire them while she waited for Ethan to come out of the bathroom.

“You didn't have to get me these,” she said with a small smile, still taking in the scent of the flowers as he walked into the room.

“They're not all for you, but I saw them and I couldn't resist. I figure, flowers are part of the courting process in some cultures. Why not incorporate some of it into ours? A bit backwards, but the idea at least still stands.”

“It's sweet, though I am curious about what you mean… They're not all for me? Do you have a secret lover I don't know about?” she teased.

He shook his head, and picked a couple of flowers out of the vase. “No, but I should probably pay some respects. Last time I was here with Dad, he and I visited where my grandmother is buried. Something he said stuck with me, so I'd like to go back quick, and then we can get some souvenirs and what not. And talk about where you want to go next. I mean, to settle down and live.”

“I've already been thinking about it,” she said, and picked a couple more of the flowers from the vase. “But we can talk about it when we're done. I didn't realize you had a grandmother.”

“My mom had to come from somewhere,” he pointed out.

“Right, but you don't talk about your extended family much. Your uncles I hear about, your little brothers too. On occasion there's a story about your crazy great-grandfather Lucca from when he was alive, but nothing about your mom's side of the family or dad's parents,” Dani said as she grabbed a room key and her purse before putting on her sandals.

He shrugged, putting on his shoes as well while getting his wallet. “It's a taboo subject in my house, and between our families. I mean, you know what happened between our fathers. What yours did…”

“Right, how he… killed… your grandpa,” she whispered. Ethan nodded and put an arm around her waist.

“He didn't want me to be with you because of it. Despite how well our moms get along, and how well he gets along with your uncle and the rest of your family, it put you off-limits to me.” Ethan shook his head before continuing. “He doesn't see what his unwillingness to forgive does.”

“It's not exactly an easy thing to get over. I'd be heartbroken if anyone did something so horrible to my family.”
And I still can't believe my dad would do something so bad.

Ethan kissed her forehead. “No one is perfect. Things were so different back then. My point is that my father can't punish everyone. Sometimes I feel like he has a bias against the Inero. And part of me doesn't blame him, but how do you stop bridges from burning when you won't bother to put out the fire? Maybe I'm naïve.”

“You're brave,” she said. They walked out of their room door and through the halls of the inn. “Standing up for something you believe in is hard. It's our friendship, our mothers, who have made things easier on the relations between our two nations. Let's face it, men are stubborn. Even if my uncle and grandfather get along with your dad, they're still more closed-minded.”

“Maybe,” he said.

For a while the two walked in silence through the streets of the village. It reminded her of Shanrea, a lot, and that brought a smile to her face. Maybe she and Ethan could settle there, or would that be considered awkward and strange?
We'll talk about it.
He led her down a less populated road and they walked for another mile until the cemetery came into view. Dani was a lot more sore than she had realized, but the movement helped stretch out her muscles and relax her. So did all of the fresh air.

The cemetery itself wasn't large. A tall iron fence surrounded it, and the gate to the inside was left open. One large tree was planted in the middle and the headstones of the graves surrounded it. Most were plaques. Ethan took her toward the back of the tree to one of the few stone markers. Two graves rested side by side.

“Tai Marie Dawson, selflessly gave herself so that others may live,” Dani read quietly. “Isn't that your mom's name?”

“Yeah, if you look at the dates, you'll see they put it there for her.”

“But she's not dead?”

“They don't know that, remember?” He shrugged. “She doesn't know it's here. Pretty sure she hasn't been back since she left, even though it's probably okay now. Anyone who knew her is probably gone.”

“So then Vanessa Molly Dawson is your grandma?” she asked.

“Yeah. She lived for a long time, but I don't know why she never got married or had any more kids.” He knelt down and placed the flowers next to the headstone before touching the lettering with his fingers. It was at that moment when Dani's phone started to vibrate again. Ethan glanced up at her. “You didn't call your parents back yet, did you?”

Dani rolled her eyes and silenced her phone. Chatting in the middle of a cemetery didn't seem appropriate. Ethan was having a touching moment with his heritage, and she didn't want to spoil it further. It seemed as if he scolded her with his slightly downcast gaze, but she ignored it.

“As soon as we're done,” she told him. Worrying her parents wasn't something she wanted to do, but respect was just as important. She had a hard time understanding what he must have been feeling. While she'd never met her grandparents from her mother's side, she'd always been told they weren't anything to write home about. On her father's side, she still had uncles, aunts, and both of her grandparents. A lot of her extended family was around, whereas Ethan's was strained and fragile.

With a small nod, he stood. “It's okay, you don't need to feel guilty. I don't mind. It's common in our way of life. With that out of the way, now we can have a good day and end things on a positive note.”

“Are you sure? You don't have anything else you want to say?”

“What is there to say? Sorry we never met? You died when I was six years old?” He shook his head. “I wonder sometimes what she was like, but I'm too scared to ask my mom. Talking about home generally brings out bitterness toward Dad. I don't want to cause any problems for them. So I leave it up to my imagination.”

“I think you should ask sometime.” She shrugged and took his hand. They left the cemetery; only once did he glance back at the grave where his grandmother lay. More specifically, she could tell he was looking at where his mother was being honored.

So many questions.
His thought popped into her head. His thinking voice was just as gentle as the one he spoke with. It was soothing.

Ask them
, she urged, and let the subject drop from there. He did continue to think after that, but she did her best to ignore the thoughts. They seemed private and personal. She personally wouldn't like him invading on her precious, private thoughts, so she wasn't about to do the same to him. Instead, she focused on the scenery, taking in the palm trees and small houses. Most importantly, she enjoyed the peace while they still had it. When they left the island, there would be a lot to deal with.

They made their way back into town, and she started to silently browse the contents of all the stores by looking through the windows. Her gaze settled on some jewelry made of pink shells and pearls, and she couldn't help but admire it.