Samael's Fire (18 page)

“
Shíb dài
!” A thunderous boom cracked overhead. Char’s horse was up on its hind legs before she knew it, and she fought to throw her body weight forward to keep from falling. A black fuel-based jet plane burst out of the eastern sky and over the bay. As Char and Jake calmed their horses, the jet circled the Hibernian airship then headed toward the citadel.

Garrick. Arrogant
shibdabs
.

Char hadn’t heard the roar of engines in years. The sheer power and speed of the thing made her pulse race. It was vulgar, an insult to her sensibilities. It was
blasphemous,
as much as she hated that word. No wonder Garrick wanted to get its hands on the orbit runner.

Jake had been right to take the horses today. Thank Asherah he’d had the foresight to hide the runner while the poobahs were in residence. Char and Jake watched the jet until it dipped down behind the citadel. She had no idea what he was thinking.

“I suppose we should go back,” she said.

“It would be the right thing to do.”

“You
are
the proper person to greet them.” Char’s heart rate slowed to match her sudden bad mood. She and Jake weren’t going to have any time together until this whole thing was over.

“I don’t know.” He had that mischievous glint in his eye. “Hamish is probably already organizing a tour of hydroponics.” Jake took off east toward the new forest, laughing. He called over his shoulder, “Catch me if you can, Meadowlark!”

Char urged her horse on after him into the trees. Young oaks, eucalyptus, and birch were dwarfed by pines that had grown tall abnormally quickly. Under the cover of the branches, Char felt her body relax. She had been subconsciously on the alert for raptors.

They took a turn into an area Char didn’t recognize and had to slow down to pick their way through untraveled undergrowth. The scent of pine was invigorating, and she heard the sound of a waterfall.

“Char, watch it!”

Jake reined in his horse on the verge of going over a cliff, a sheer drop to a canyon that ran northeast forever. A river flowed through the gorge below, fed by a waterfall on the canyon’s other side.

“It’s beautiful.” Char dismounted. On a clear night, this would be a fantastic place to watch meteor showers.

“Let’s eat.” Jake jumped down from his horse and spread a blanket on the ground.

Despite the shade, Char was warm from the ride. And besides, she had prepared for more than lunch. A little bare skin never hurt anything. She tossed her jacket and cap on the corner of the blanket and shook out her hair. She had hardly anything on underneath, a bra and a soft pink camisole. She had only worn the bra because they were riding horses today.

“A drink?” As Jake handed her a bota bag from his pack, his eyes widened with appreciation at her changed look. He took off his own jacket, disclosing broad shoulders and strong arms in a sleeveless forest green hemp shirt. Very nice combined with black leather pants and black boots.

“Lord Ardri.” Char had expected water, but the bag contained wine. “Are you trying to seduce me?” She slowly traced her lips with the tip of the bag, then slipped it into her mouth and drank.

“Milady, you’ve discovered my evil plan.” In two steps, Jake was at her side. He took the bota bag out of her hands and flung it away. “And now I’m going for your precious parts.” He lifted her off the ground. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his shoulders. Their mouths crashed into each other, as if they’d been waiting forever.

She felt him swell with desire, and she squeezed tighter against him. He groaned and pressed a hand to her breast, fingering the nipple. She was hot and wet, and she had to have him right now. She let go with her legs and slid to the ground, and Jake helped her unfasten his pants. He lifted her camisole over her head and she had her bra off in an instant. Then he was on his knees kissing her breasts.

She ran her fingers through his hair down his neck to his shoulders and moaned with pleasure, pulsing with heat and pressure. She slipped out of her pants and tossed them on the pile of her clothes, then pushed Jake down onto his back and straddled him.

“I’ve been thinking about doing this all morning.”

It took an hour to remember they were hungry for food. Char retrieved the wine and opened the lunch the kitchen had provided.
Thank Asherah, no raptor jerky
. She pulled out a red apple. “What a treat! How did this escape tomorrow’s dinner?”

“I have an in with the cook.” Jake put his arms behind his head and admired her still-naked body. “But she would only give me one. We’ll have to share.”

She took a bite and tossed the apple to him. Her pants easily slid up over her thighs and hips. With the rest of the world, Char had grown thinner. She was hardly ghostly; and unlike the cager women, she did still have breasts. But she was nothing like Faina.

One of the horses snorted, as if it had read her mind. They were grazing nearby in a small clearing. Jake hadn’t read her mind, but he had read her face. “What happened just now? You were happy, and then the light went out.”

“I was just thinking. This spot is so beautiful. The view and the waterfall and the trees. What if we were wildlings and lived here alone? No settlement, no Corcovado, no poobahs.”

“No Faina.” Jake knew her too well.

“No Faina.” She accepted the last of the apple and sat down. “Don’t get me wrong, Jake. You did the right thing.”

“Then why is Faina in our way?”

When Sanguibahd made the offer of kingship, it had taken some time to convince Jake to accept. He came up with all kinds of reasons why it wasn’t the right time, but none
made any sense. He had overseen the settlement’s design and build-out, and he had been truly happy in the work. He wasn’t afraid of the commitment. He relished it. He had often remarked on how it was the first time he had made the world a better place.

He finally told Char it was the children clause that bothered him. Two natural born children which a chalice would provide. It was sweet, really. Jake didn’t want to have children with someone else.

“I love you, Char.” Again, he had asked her to marry him. “I want a family with you, not some
breeder.”

“That’s a harsh word.” Char had taken Durga and Magda’s side. “The chalices serve humanity by Asherah’s command. We have no say in this. And you couldn’t even have baggers with me. The hospital that stored my eggs was destroyed in the fire. We can’t go against the gods’ laws.”

It had been so strange to hear those words coming out of her own mouth.
We can’t go against the gods’ laws.
Positively medieval.

Garrick, of all things, spurred Jake to action. The city offered to provide one of its scions to do the honors. Jake couldn’t stand the thought of Garrick enjoying and corrupting all he’d built. With that possibility looming and Char taking Sanguibahd’s part, he accepted.

But Char couldn’t marry him, not yet. Not until she was sure. If Jake did fall in love with his chalice, she wouldn’t be able to bear it.

“Faina isn’t in our way, Jake. I’m in our way.”

“You once asked me to ignore what happened with you and Mike.”

“That was just a kiss. And it was an accident!”

“As you said. Plus you shoved him out an airlock, so I’ve always been pretty much convinced you didn’t like him all that much.”

“I can’t believe you would bring up Mike.”

“I’m just giving an example of how a person might have an interaction with another person, but it doesn’t mean a person is in love with a person. It doesn’t mean I took any pleasure in it.”

“I can’t believe you would bring up Mike, is all.”

“I can’t very well throw Faina out an airlock.”

“And you’re telling me you had sex with someone as lovely and sweet as Faina and you took no pleasure in it?”

Jake’s face went all screwy. Ha! He couldn’t deny it.

“Bees. Boom.”

What the shib?
Both their heads jerked toward the clearing. The horses were undisturbed, still poking around looking for goodies in the undergrowth. Char and Jake remained still for minutes, but she didn’t see anything unusual.

It had definitely been a human voice…hadn’t it? She whispered, “Did you hear that?” Jake put a finger to his lips then pointed.

About thirty feet away behind a clump of birch trees, a ghost was staring at them.

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