Protected by Stone (A Paranormal Romance Novel) (15 page)

Licking my lips, I hated how they tasted like salt. The sweat of my fear made me ashamed, but it paled next to the roiling foreboding in my belly.
How do I know it was after me?
I didn't want to think about it anymore.

In my memory, that nightmare I'd lived, I recalled the sounds the creature made. It hadn't been just noise. It had been a single word.

A word that rolled off my tongue like a curse.

“Tessa. It was saying Tessa.” Blinking, I stared at Grault with mounting fear. “It thought
I
was her.” I was going to be sick. “It wanted
me.
”

He pulled away, too fast for me to catch him.

“Don't leave,” I begged, not caring how pathetic I sounded.

“I'm only getting you a warm compress for that ankle,” he said softly. Turning in place, he reached for the stove.

I slumped back against the wall. “No good. That's why I went down by the lake in the first place.”

He shut the grated door hard enough that it made me twitch. “Of course. Let me just—I'll need to go back there and get some wood.”

“No!” I snapped, ignoring the pain so I could reach for him again. He had no coat to snag, so I went for his trouser pocket. “You can't, Grault! That thing out there is dangerous!”

“Shh,” he sighed, pulling my clawed fingers off of him. He was too strong, he didn't even have to work to remove me. “Miss Blooms, I'm trying to help.”

“You can help by staying here,” I pleaded. “Please, Grault, you don't get it! That monster, whatever it is, was so frightening. It was going to kill me, I just know it was, and if you go, I...”

Perhaps my words had gotten through to him. He knelt down, taking up my fingers. I noticed how small they looked, like tiny birds he'd captured in one swoop. “Fine. I won't go, but you still need medicine for this injury. There's some in the pantry, I'll get it for you. Okay?”

My nod was tiny. “Okay. I'll be okay.” Even so, my heart skipped when he vanished out of sight. It was good that he wasn't gone long, I didn't think I could handle it.

He took my glass, refilling it before offering me two tiny pills. “Take these, they might make you sleepy.”

Laughing cynically, I downed them in a single gulp. “I don't know if I'll ever sleep again.”

Grault sat beside me,  leaning on the wall. He blocked my vision of the window, making me wonder if it was on purpose. “That will help with the pain. Tomorrow, if it looks bad, we'll call on the doctor.”

“Dirk,” I said, looking down into my glass. “His name is Dirk. Two days on the job, and I already need a doctor.” I slid my eyes up towards my companion. “You should have warned me that this was a dangerous position.”

His frown made grooves beside his mouth. “It was never supposed to be dangerous. My job is to keep this place, you, safe from anything remotely harmful.”

“Ah,” I sighed, “so
that's
your actual job. I was wondering what you did here, seeing as apparently Tessa used to do
everything
on her own.” He looked away, thick neck muscles flexing. It reminded me that he was shirtless, my eyes running up and down. “Here's a question, why were you outside like... like that?”

When he moved to watch me, I was the one to turn away. “Forgive me, I'd go get my coat but you don't want me to leave.”

“Right,” I agreed, “I don't. But you can still tell me what you were doing.”

“Ironically,” he mumbled, sourness seeping in fast, “I was patrolling the grounds to check for any trouble.”

Patrolling with no shirt, hunting for danger. Truly the bravest life guard. There was even water involved!
My laugh was sharp as an iron nail. Grinning in disbelief, I twisted back to see his confusion. “Sorry, it's kind of funny.” I chose not to expand on my private imaginations.

Grault looked disgruntled, muting my amazement. Reaching out, I gave his smooth shoulder a light pat. “I wasn't trying to be mean. You did save me, you realize, right?” My smile didn't last, thinking about the lake was sobering. “It was coming for me, until you showed up. Then it just... ran back into the lake.”
All those legs.
The nape of my neck rippled. “Grault, do you know what it was? Did you know that it was even in there?”

The back of his head knocked on the wall, the tremor rolling through me. He'd closed his eyes, white lashes vanishing on his light skin. “I didn't. But...”

“But?”

Breathing through his nose, he cracked open one eye to watch me. “Tessa always seemed wary of the lake. She sent me to chop the wood, to carry it in. It was the only chore she ever asked of me.”

Despite the cryptic revelation, I muffled a yawn. “Sorry,” I said, blushing red hot. “I think the medicine is working. But, listen, if there was—is—something in that lake that wanted to harm Tessa, it makes sense she'd leave you to it. But why would she never
tell
you about it?”

He slumped his shoulders. “Miss Blooms, I don't have a guess. For now, I'll keep watch to make sure nothing will happen to you.”

“But what about
you?
” I asked, hearing a slur in my voice. My muscles were getting deliciously heavy, I was distantly aware of my legs going numb. “How will you protect yourself from that thing?”

It must have been the drugs, I thought he smiled at me. I wasn't used to him doing that, not with such affection. “Please believe me, Miss Blooms, I can take care of myself. I'm more than capable.”

“Mmhmm,” I mumbled, eyes drooping. My brain felt as if a wad of cotton had burrowed inside. “I just don't want you to get hurt, Grault.”

“I won't, Miss Blooms,” he whispered.

“Farra. It's Farra.” I covered my mouth, feeling the world shift sideways. “Please... don't let that thing hurt you.”

“Of course.”

“And not... not me, either. Don't leave me alone, please?” I didn't feel myself hit the floor, I didn't even feel Grault catch me. All I remembered as I slipped off into a medicine induced slumber, was his voice from far above.

“I will always protect you.”

––––––––

I
dreamed about the water again.

The green world stretched all around. Above, I thought I might see the sky, the sun. There was only darkness before me.

The distinct premonition that something swam below me blossomed. To look down was to doom myself.

So I swam. I swam as hard as I could, hoping I was going the right way. The bubbles disoriented me. Then, the familiar teeth came down on my arm.

Opening my eyes, my ears rang with the sound of nothing. I saw the blanket around me before I felt it. My body was sluggish, as if every limb had fallen asleep. My bedroom was a welcome sight.

Sunlight pushed against the thick emerald glass. It was losing the fight when compared to my lamp, the bulb white-hot from the solar panel power.
Wait, the lantern. Where is Tessa's...?

On the floor beside me, the orange glass glowed. It was reassuring, save for how it forced me to remember last night. I sat up like my blood had touched a live wire. The wood pile, the thing in the lake...

And how Grault had saved my life.

Throwing the covers aside, I tested my ankle carefully. Wiggling my toes, I noticed I had no shoes on. The idea that Grault had carried me up to bed, then stripped off any of my clothes (even something as innocent as sneakers) made my heart bounce.

Swinging my legs over, I toyed with applying pressure before finally standing up. The ankle was tender, but it didn't impede my walking.

Padding down stairs in my socks, my goal was the kitchen. There were too many thoughts in my head, growing the longer I was awake. The plan I had was basic.

I needed a bath.

Grault had told me before about how the furnace in the kitchen needed to be on. After what I'd gone through yesterday morning with the stove, I felt confident I could handle this.

The only problem will be that, without wood, I'll need to find something else to burn.
Rounding the corner, I came close to twisting my ankle all over again. Stacked along the back hallway, just beyond the dining room, was a pile of chopped logs as high as my chest.

In wonder, I walked along them slowly.
Did Grault do all of this?
Imagining the man going down to the lake, gathering up the wood after what I had seen down there, it made my belly flip. At the same time, he'd clearly done this so I wouldn't need to endure another trip to the shore.

My smile hurt my cheeks. Scooping up an armful of wood, I toted it into the kitchen.

I was right, the furnace worked just like the stove. Stuffing it with logs, I fanned the matches I lit, watching the cherry coals come to life. Closing the metal door, I grabbed my hips and stood back.
Good job, me. One hot bath coming up.

I had a hunch about how it worked. The fire warmed the tank of water, which the pipes would then carry to my bath upstairs once I turned it on.

There was still
some
pleasant surprise when, after I scurried back upstairs to check, the steaming water poured from my faucet. That was when I actually felt proud.

Alone in my room, I was aware the morning sun was rising higher.
Everyone will be waking up, wanting breakfast,
I thought to myself.
I can't take too long
.

Stripped of my filthy clothes, I placed the toiletries I'd bought near the big basin tub. Then, pulling the curtain around to add to the privacy, I dipped my fingers into the liquid. “Oh my gosh. That feels
amazing
.”

It was almost
too
hot, which was exactly what I needed. Gripping the edges of the tub, I sank down inch by inch with a number of little 'oohs' and 'aahs' along the way. Dipping my head under capped it all off as exquisite.

My muscles were more sore than I'd realized. The warmth seeped into the bone, easing my stiffness while reminding me of my tiny scrapes and bumps.

It was the first time I'd felt relaxed since I'd arrived at that house.

If I had my way, I'd have sat in the tub all day. It was with great reluctance that I pulled myself free, drying myself off with a sigh.

There was a mirror in the room. Tugging the curtain away, I caught a flash of myself in the surface. My pale skin was dotted with bruises from where I'd bumped into things, or worse, fallen on the ground. Frowning at the sight, I was happy to cover myself up in clean trousers and a rather bright yellow top.

Humming, I brushed my wet hair out, spinning it into a tight bun. Leaning close to the mirror, I gave my cheeks some gentle slaps. “Okay,” I said cheerfully, “here we go. I'm coming for you, brand new day. Watch out!”

It was incredible what a hot bath could do.

****

“C
alm down, calm down,” I demanded, placing another pot of marigold tea on the table. “There's enough for everyone!”

My guests were lively that morning, I had my suspicions as to why. They'd shown up minutes after my bath, content to complain to me about their lack of dinner. Luckily, they moved on to pouting about pancakes again soon after.

With some wariness, I decided not to tell them about the lake encounter. Not yet, I needed to know more before I risked scaring them.

I gave them everything the kitchen had, taking the time to count all of the revenants and start learning their names as I did.

The blue, humanoid thing was Yishi. She
hated
the pancakes, but changed her tune when I brought her the last of the scrambled eggs.

White, blobby-fly-monster (my own private nickname for him) was Xallen. He just wanted tea, really. Or that was all he would eat.
Maybe he's trying to be polite?

There was Coga and Koga, one purple and the other green. There was no difference in their names, I argued, until they demanded I look at the guest registry. I didn't, of course. I just took their word that their names were a mere letter off.

It wouldn't matter, I'd be calling them the same name whatever the results.

Junlit and Vibbs were the only ones keen to eat my pancakes. For that, I gave them the last serving.

There were other guests, but their names soon slipped away as the morning wore on. Juggling cooking, coffee, and fostering requests took too much of my memory power.

Desperate to feed them all, I actually scavenged the chicken and capon from the larder. They took longer to cook in the brick oven, and I was sure I'd overcooked and under-seasoned them.

I don't think the revenants minded.

They way they dug into that meal did two things for me. One, it unsettled my stomach. Two, it made it clear I should buy more meat.

There was one guest I noticed missing among the lot. I hadn't seen him since the first day I'd entered the house.
Where IS Qui'nxious?

I was too busy to pry. Long after the breakfast feast was over, I was still washing up dishes. The sound of the running faucet blocked out Grault's footsteps behind me. It was his reflection in the window that alerted me to him. “Morning,” I said, glancing over my shoulder.

His eyebrows traveled up, his hand joining them as he brushed his hair back. “Ah, morning Miss Blooms. How is your ankle today?”

“Perfectly fine.” It wasn't
entirely
untrue. My ankle did feel close to a hundred percent. To show him, I gave it a little wiggle.

A tiny quirk of a smile showed at the corner of his mouth. “That's wonderful. I see you took care of everything for the guests so far, too.”

“Sort of,” I laughed. Wiping my hands on a towel (I'd finally found them in the pantry) I spun to face him. It was odd, seeing him after last night was making my neck warm. “Um, so, I wanted to thank you again.”

“You don't need to thank me for doing my job. Accidental or otherwise.”

He's talking about how he saved me. Did it actually bother him that it was sort of a happy coincidence that he found me in time?
“No,” I said, shaking my head so hard my damp bangs bounced. “I meant, you carried all that wood in here! It let me finally wash all the gross stuff off of me.”