The Binding (12 page)

I turn to look at Julia who i s watching me closely.

“You heard his voice in your head , too ?”

“Yeah, I did.
Can you do that, Lil? Communicate that way?”

“Ha, yeah right!” I answer laughing. “Can you imagine us in class talking to each other in our heads ?”

She
grins at the thought , “Yeah, okay, why not? They all thought we were weird anyway. Can you imagine all the money we could ’
ve saved on our cell phone bills?”

I jump when Tolan taps on my window. I open the door and he stands back asking, “Would you like something to drink?”

He keeps his eyes on me. I glance back at Julia who is once again sitting quietly. She keeps her eyes down, but I know she heard him .

I turn back to him saying, “Yes, but I need to use the restroom first.”

I slip out of the car before Julia can sa y a word and start for the mini mart leaving her to fend for herself. I ’
m half way there when I hear Julia open her door. I figure those two already have enough tens ion between them that they don’t need me getting in the way. Before walking through the door, I glance back to see Tolan standing stiffly in front of Julia and she’s looking everywhere but at him. I smile to myself thinking they wi ll either fall deeply in love or end up killing each other. Either way, they need to do something about it and get it over with.

I spot the women’s restroom sign at the far corner of the mini mart. As I make my way ther e I notice Alorn, Mellis and Phoris at the drink cooler deciding what to purchase. Actually, they’re in a heated debate on what water brand tastes the closes t to Velesi water. I laugh to myself as I continue down the aisle , distracted by them until it’
s too late. I knock the poor woman down and she hits the floor hard. The small paper bag she was holding lands beside her with a soft thud.
I’m instantly at her side trying to help her up and at the same time stepping over my own words trying to apologize.

“I’m so sorry, are you okay? Oh my God, I didn’t see you. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

She laughs as I help her to her feet . She look s to be in her late sixties or early seventies, tall, slender with a pleasant and surprisingly youthful face. Her size and looks belie her strength, however, as she holds on to me, trying to get her feet back under her.
She has fair skin and her hair is a soft blonde with streaks of gray. She looks delicate, but her laughter is healthy and comes easily.

I bend down to pick up her paper bag off the floor and when I stand I jump slightly, my heart skipping a beat.
I’m startled by the large man who appears from out of no where and is now standing close behind her. Embarrassed, I laugh as I once again stumble through an other apology as he smiles pleasantly at me. Like the woman , he’s an older man, but he’s still broad and muscular for his age. They make a striking couple. They are both wearing black tops, except her shirt neckline has a flowery border, while his is a plain black shirt. The hem of her long green skirt ends just above her ankles. The color, matching her eyes, is faded and the skirt is a little worn, but clean. She has on spotless white tennis shoes with no socks.
Like her, the man’s blue jeans are worn but clean . His fisherman’s hat and black boots also seem to be well kept. I hand her the bag apologizing again, and when I try to get pas t her, she steps in front of me.

“Thank you,” she says with a kind smile. “I want to give you something for your kindness. Most people who knock me down usually keep moving without saying a word, least of all help me back up.”

I find it hard to believe that anyone would knock her down and not help her back up. She seems so nice and her eyes are kind, and somehow familiar. I notice she’s staring at the scratch under my eye. Even though she seems pleasant and sweet , there i s a kind of desperation in her eyes as if she wants me to accept her offer. I look at her companion , and although he still has a smile on his face, I can’t read his expression. He glances up for a moment, then bends down and whispers in the old woman’s ear.

“Ah, I’m sorry , Lily. It seems that I will have to reward you some other time. Until then, this is for you.” She offers me the paper bag and when I try to say no, she shoves it at me. Again her size and age contradicts her strength.

Not sure what to say I nod, “Okay, thank you , b ut it’s not necessary. It was totally my fault. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.”

She smiles at me kindly again, “You’re such a good girl. We will meet again, I promise.”

She then turns to the old man and they walk away holding hands . I watch after them and it’s not until they a re down the aisle and almost turning the corner that I realize she knew my name.
I’m startle d by the realization and am about to go after them when I feel him behind me.

*

I’m
not sure why Lily is having a hard time asking me what I want to hear, but it really irks me .
I can’t understand why she’s not interested in knowing anything about who we are and how things in our world work.
It’s as if she plans on n ot remaining in Velesi, or worse , not go ing through with the wedding.

I grit my teeth at the thought . I f she doesn’t go through with it , the delicate thread that now holds the Thirteen Clans together will unravel, causing civil war among the c lans. The Oak Clan is the strongest and oldest of all thirteen and has ruled over the realm of Velesi for millennia . We a re the original c lan of King Kalinest and his q ueen.
For centuries our rule has been fair and just , but within the last century there have been rumors of civil unrest in the East and to the Northeast. Even now , my father prepares for civil war among the lesser Regions to bring them back to the fold should the treaty between the Oak and the Willow Clan fall through . The Willow Clan is considered second only to the Oak Clan and if Lucas, or this Falsad Harlu mentioned, should succeed in killing Lily, it will come under his rule.
As long as Lily lives, the Willow throne will not accept anyone else, including Lucas.
With the strength of the Willow armies and allegiance from the Regions to the S
outh and N
orth, they would be a formidable enemy.
It’s also rum ored that there are one or two c l ans in talks with Lucas . I pr omised my father I would do what was necessary to prevent that from happening .
I intend to keep that promise.
The wedding will happen, and Lily will rule beside me .

I shake my head thinking, since when did I decide that Lily would remain in Velesi?
Just last night I was happy with the thought of marriage in name only, and to have her return to the realm of her father to pursue her own destiny , but as a marrie d woman. Today, today I can’t even think of having her far from my sight. What if Falsad decides that even after the wedding she should be dead? If that should happen within the first year of our marriage, the possibility of the treaty falling apart ―
causing the civil unrest talks to resume again . Those talks would eventually turn to war. Well then , it’s settled . I suppose I will have to keep Lily with me to protect her at least for the first year. After that, she can return to this realm and do whatever she wants, I could n’t care less.

As I pump the gas, I turn to watch Lily head into the mini mart next to the large casino . I notice her glance back at Julia and Tolan. They seem at a loss for words with each other, which is actually a good thing.
If they start screaming again I’ll have no other choice but to tie the both of them up, gag them and stick them in the back of SUV
for the rest of the trip. They a re going to kiss and make up and admit their feelings for each other , or I’ll strangle the both of them. Either way, they need to get on with it. I’m getting tired of seeing Lily worry about her friend, and to be honest, I feel sorry for my brother.
I’ve never seen him so miserable , lost and unsure. It w as funny at first, but now? Now it’s just pathetic.

I
look about and sniff the air. I’ve notice d the constant change in the weather this time of the year and u p in Utah it i s even stranger. In the m iddle of summer, there are rain storms and floods throughout the western part of the United States .
It’s worse toward the eastern coast.
I’m hoping to make it through Zion before it gets too late , but because of a necessary stop in Las Vegas , it’s most likely not going to happen . I have a message for an ogre. An ogre name d Mareck who just happens to be one of the biggest crime lords of today. If the F
.
B
.
I .
actually knew where Mareck’s fortune came from, they would pack up all their surveillance equipment and go home. As it stands, they have nothing to go on. It ha s been like that for the past several years. Yet, if everything goes right, we can make it to Ephraim before midnight.

As I replace the pump, I realize Lily hasn’t come back yet. I watch as Mellis and the others make their way back with cases of Aquafina bottled water. They open the back to the car and start loading the drinks into the coolers. I make my way over to Tolan and Julia who are now speaking softly to each other. I walk over to stand next to Tolan, who suddenly becomes stiff and awkward while I notice a s oft blush come over Julia. She i s extremely pretty and migh t even be beautiful if it weren’t for the botched hair cut and the bruises on her face.

“You know
, Julia,” I offer, “Tolan is a healer. You should let him heal your bruises.”

She lifts her hand to her face as if just remembering her wounds and her blush deepens. She gives Tolan a quick look and then glances at the mini m art, looking for Lily. She turns back to me, keeping her eyes averted from Tolan.

“It
’s okay.
I’ll be fine. They usually go away after a few days.” I feel Tolan tense beside me, the tension obvious in the way he looks off into the distance.
Julia gives me a small smile, glances quickly at Tolan be fore turning and walking toward the mini mart.

“Sorry,
b rother,” I apologize, “I thought since you were now speaking that it would be okay to make the offer.”

Tolan sighs heavily as he watches Julia walk away, “Yes, I know. I think it will take a little more time with my Julia, Tharin. I have to wait for her to come to me.”

I pick up on how he called her “my Julia”
. I slap him on the shoulder and walk past him making my way to the store .
T
he cool air inside feels good after coming in from the muggy heat. I scan the area from end to end for Lily , but I don’t see her. She’s probably still in the restroom. When I turn back to the area whe re the restrooms are, there i s Lil y standing next to an old woman, with an older man standing behind her. The old man catches my eye and a sense of familiarity comes over me. He looks like someone I should know, but we’ve never met. I watch as he bends to the old woman who turn s to Lily seconds later and gives her a small paper bag. I make my way over, but as I come up behind Lily, they a re already walking away leaving Lily standing alone with the bag in her hands.
I get the impression that she was about to go after them.

“Who are they?” I ask, still looking after the old couple.

“I don’t know,” she answers as she looks after them as well .

I look over her should er to see what i s in the bag at the same time she turns around, hitting me on the chin with her head.

“Oh sorry, Tharin , ” she apologize s distra ctedly, more interested in what i s in the bag than concern ed about my injured chin.

She reaches in and pulls out a statue of a warrior.
It’s old, and crusted over with green algae and rust. It looks as if it was found buried in some underwater cave. The body is that of a Sidhe warrior, but it has the head o f a fish. He’s belted with a Sidhe sword, on his back is a quiver marked with Sidhe symbols full of arrows and in his left hand , which hangs at his side, is a Sidhe bow. O
n top of the fish-man’s head is a wreathe d crown that looks like it’s made of leaves from an oak tree. The most intrica te part of the statue is what is in his right hand.
It’s extended and on his open palm is a rusted black box. Even through the rust and grime we can see there are intricate rune designs on it.

“It’s beautiful,” breathes Lily .
“What is it?”

“It’s a Manui warrior . There hasn’t been a Manui for centuries. That should n’t even exist, Lily .
” I reply. We both looked up and around ag ain for the old couple but they’re gone.

“I don’t understand, Tharin. Why did she give me this?”

“What did she say to you?”

“Nothing really, I bumped into her and knocked her dow n. I helped her up and the man suddenly appeared. Then she said she wanted to give me a gift, but they had to go , so she gave this to me instead. She said we’d me et again and then they left,” a fter a moment’s pause, “Tharin?”

“Yes, Lily?”

“Tharin, she knew my name.”

Again we look ed around.
Without knowing it, Lily moves closer to me taking my hand. I hold on to it, pulling her even closer and causing the small statue to poke me in the chest. I decide that I can bare it if it means having her near and somehow it just feels right.
It’s as if we ’
re standing in an empty space, just the two of us. The world that is the minimart disappears.