The Binding (17 page)

Mellis waves at the guard as he gets back into the car. As we drive on through , the guard watches us closely, nods and smiles. I watch him in the rear view mirror to see him do the same with Phoris, Tolan and Julia . As we pass through the gates, we drive into a world so separate from the city streets that it seems someone has plucked a piece of Hollywood and dropped it right in the middle of Las Vegas .

We continue to drive along the residential street and it’s like looking at the homes of movie stars. I remember when Marilyn took a trip to Vegas with some of her girlfriends . S
he spoke of looking at some gated communities, including one where Andre Agassi lived , and I lean forward trying to see beyond the private gates in hopes of spotting a tennis court .

Thinking about Harlu again I ask, “Why? Why does he look so much like me? Is he a relative, another brother?”

He pauses for a moment than answers, “No. He’s not your brother , he’s your cousin. People use d to mistake the two of you for twins.”

“I’ve never met him before in my life. How could we have been mistaken for twins?” I ask stun ned .

He glances at me again shaking his head as he says, “Lily, there’s so much for you to learn and I’m sorry that you have to do a crash course on what’s going on. I promise, when we’re alone and have time to talk, I’ll explain everything to you about your past. For now, I don’t plan on leaving you alone , but if something should happen, stay away from Harlu.”

“Because he’s trying to kill me, yea h, I get that, ” I respond, finally letting him drive. He promises to tell me everything, but do I really want to know?

After a moment of neither of us speaking, Tharin quietly promises , “
At t he first opportunity …
I’m going to kill him.”

*

Phoris locate d the oak when we left the motel and Alorn is now using the stream to guide us to it. He le a d s us to the Shenandoah Estates where the old Las Vegas elite or those who have money are lucky enough to live.

M
y thoughts keep going back to the motel and the news Konalt shared with us. His reasons for s haring I know were all for self—
preservation on his part, but it was still news that we needed to know. So, Falsad has called in not just the Ange , but every low life in the realm of Velesi. I grit my teeth . I’
m glad Lily’s attention is on her surroundings instead on me. The last thing I want her to worry about is her brother, who has been taken over by an insane psychopath name d Falsad. The thought of how far he will go to kill Lily drives me to thoughts of how to kill him myself when I get the chance .

The bounty on our heads will make it more difficult to get back home. Instead of three days, it will take longer because once we hit the borderlines of the Velesi , every bounty hunter within the realm will be after us .
There will also be those who were banished from the safety within the borders of the c lans . They will be looking to score the reward hoping to start new in the world of man, a world where money speaks louder than honor.

It’s
not yet 5:00
o’clock, which means we have another three hours before my meeting with Mareck. Phoris thinks the oak will be able to accommodate and shield us, giving us an opportunity to rest. Since we left Victorville , it’s been Tolan burdened with the task of shielding us . T
he amount of energy he used back in the desert with the Ange has taken its toll on him.
That’s why I insisted on Julia riding with us. It was to keep her from distracting him any more than she already has without even knowing it. I know Phoris has already found the oak .
I didn’t think the short ride here would matter if Julia now rides with Tolan.
Tolan wi ll continue to keep the shield up . He knows once we reach the tree he’ll be able to release his hold and let the oak take over.

We drive for another ten minutes .
Alorn is pinpointing the correct coordinates of the oak. Behind us Phoris, Tolan and Julia follow closely. We finally come to a dark lot with a foreclosure sign in front of a two story home. A sigh of relief escapes me when I see there are no sign s of life inside the house. The next house is situated about a block away to the right and an empty lot is on the opposite side. Mellis guides us through an open gate with a side driveway that leads to the back of the house. It looks like it was made for additional parking for an RV or a boat. The driveway ends in front of a large casita that sits as dark as the main hou se. I watch Phoris in the rear view mirror get out and clos e the metal gate, securing it in place.

After turning off the engine , we sit quietly for a moment watching Mellis and Alorn get out of thei r vehicle. Mellis heads toward the casita to check it out , and Alorn walks to the concrete wall that surrounds the property. It will be Alorn who will next generate the shield after we leave this place later tonight. He will trade off with Phoris or Mellis as they are not as strong as Tolan or me .

I look over at Lily and find her chewing on her bottom lip.
It’s not the first time I’ve seen her do that. Each time she chews on her lip it’s because she’s either unsure or worried about something. I notice d her doing that earlier when she watched after Julia. I reach for her hand and take it in my own, giving it a quick squeeze. I don’t know why it matters to me that she should not worr y , but it does.
It’s better that I resign myself to the fact that when it comes to Lily and my feelings about her, I’ll just have to accept why I feel the way I do or I’ll give myself a headache.

She jumps at my touch and I smile at her awkwardness.
She’s eighteen, but she acts as if she has never been in close proximity or even touch ed by the opposite sex. I find that impossible as I remember how the girls in this world were like from when Tolan and I were here last. They practically threw themselves at us, some younger even than Lily.
Either she’s an exception to the rule or she finds our kind repulsive. Then I think of her and Mellis earlier in an embrace. Maybe she just finds me repulsive, not that I’ve given her any reason to think otherwise.
I will have to change that.

I finally say, “Remember what I told you about the trees, Lily ?
”

Her eyes remain on our hands as she nods and answers, “Yeah. They’
re our protectors, our guide s , I remember.”

“Wha
t happens next is something you’
ll need to learn and become accustomed to, ” I explain quietly.

She
doesn’t respond, but then she looks at me and steals my breath away. I heard Tolan say it last night when he first saw Lily unconscious. He said she was beautifu l, and at this moment, looking at me with her large honey eyes, her dark hair loose from her ponytail, her pale skin , and her lips trembling a bit either from what I just told her or from some inner turmoil.
A ll I want to do is protect her , to be with her .

I let her hand go. Looking at her I decide she can’t be an innocent, not looking like this. In the end, it doesn’t matter, I will marry Lily and then…and then what? Kalis. I have to remember that I made an oath to my father, but I made another to Kalis, as well. Why am I finding it hard to picture her in my mind lately, and that’s when I do remember to think of her. I swear under my breath and angrily get out of the car. I have to distance myself from Lily.

I leave
her i n the car knowing for now she’s safe . I walk toward Mellis as he comes from the casita, at the same time I hear Lily’s door open. I ignore her and try to put her out of my mind.
Right, easier said than done , I tell myself. Even angrier with myself for not being able to control my thoughts or feelings for her , I approach Mellis ready to hit something or someone.

My cousin puts his hands up as if warding me off and s ays, “Hey, hey…we just got here.
I haven’t had time to piss you off yet.” He looks behind me and I know he’s looking at Lily, and then he smiles at me. He pats me on the shoulder and says, “No worries, c ousin. I know you’re not as good looking as me, but she’ll come around.”

I want to knock that stupid smile off his face, but after a moment he squeezes my shoulder looking at me with a steady stare and a cocky smile. I shake my head at him and sigh heavily .

I take a
deep breath , “Sorry. I haven’t had a chance to take Kalis’ message, there never seems to be time or a private moment.”

Mellis drops his hand and looks at me strangely.
I’m unable to read his expression when he says “You know, c ousin, you’re one of the bravest and most honorable Sidhe warriors I know. But you are twice as stupid when it comes to women .
”
With that he passes by me as I look after him with my mouth open.
That’s how Tolan finds me; with my jaw hanging open and a stun ned expression on my face.

Tolan approaches , “What’s wrong with you?”

Keeping my eyes on Mellis I respond, “I think our c ousin is in love with Lily.”
I know I just said the words, but it’s as if someone else said them. I turn to look at Tolan , not sure what to say next.

“I take it Kalis has sent you another message sphere?” he ask.

I nod, “I haven’t had a chance to call it up yet.”

“Why are you having a hard time calling it up?”

“I don’t
know . I just haven’t had a chance yet. I just want some privacy when I do, that’s all.”

He stands for a moment watching me until I finally look at him. “What?” I ask a little annoyed. Now what’s wrong with him? First Mellis, now Tolan?

He shrugs looking over at Lily then bac k at me saying, “Remember what f ather shared with us when we met Kalis?” I raise a brow at him shaking my head no.

“He said, ‘You can love as many women as you feel that you need to, but you’ll only have one heart .
’
He was talking to you, you know that, right?”

“He was talking to both o f us, but more to you than me, b rother. He knew t h en as I did that I was meant to be with Kalis. She's my one heart, Tolan.” He gives me a strange look and I find myself looking away. Even when I said it, it sounded as if I was trying to convince myself more than I was trying to convince him.

Alorn approaches saying, “Everything is clear. Phoris is already at the oak, we need to hurry. I feel the shield weakening.”

We both look at Tolan. He sighs and nods, “Yes, you’re right. The effort is starting to take its toll, Tharin. Let’s get this over with. You may have to take Alorn and Mellis with you tonight as I may drop as soon as the shield comes down.”

I nod at him as I understand clearly what he means. To use and manipulate energy takes a will. T
o use and manipulate energy for hours on end takes a strong will. However, the energy we call upon is endless, where as the will that uses it is not. Unlike the energy that we release into our coats as protection, the energy used to conjure up the shield is still connected to its user.
H
olding up the shield this entire time has also kept Tolan on his feet. To be determined enough to hold the shield , Tolan needs to be awake to make it happen , but most of all, the energy is self -
serving. As long as it’s being used, it will keep its conjurer awake until it’s released from their hold, or they collapse from exhaustion. I notice the dark circles under his eyes for the first time and know his emotional roller coaster with Julia has also contributed to his exhaustion.

I turn to find Lily, but Mellis has already led her to the tree where Phoris is quietly chanting , calling to the oak’s dryad. Julia waits for Tolan a few feet from us . As I watch her greet my brother with eyes full of warmth and tenderness, a strange feeling comes over me and I find myself confuse d by it.
It’s when Tolan reaches for her hand that I realize what I’m feeling for the first time is jealousy for my little brother.
It’s an irrational feeling , of course , because there is nothing to be jealous of. I have what he and Julia have, with Kalis.

I join the others standing as far away from Lily as possible. If we are unable to communicate with the oak, Tolan will have no choice but to drop the shield. He will immediately collapse into a deep sleep , which is expected of someone who has used his will for a long period of time. I glance over at Julia and realize Tolan has already prepared her for what will happen next. She holds on to his hand tightly, not taking her eyes off him.

I prepare myself for the worst. Should the dryad not appear, I will have to take over the shield until Phoris is finish ed with the summoning . To summon a dryad from its tree takes an experience d caller like Phoris.
He will need to concentrate to reach the dryad as it takes a special summoning to bring them forth within this realm. This means Phoris will be vulnerable to not just physical attacks, but mental ones, as well. I stand close to Tolan ready to catch my brother when he falls, with Julia on his other side.

It’s
not our custom to call on the dryad s in this world because it’s too painful for all of us to see how abused and mistreated they are here. Yet, we need shelter and rest, and with the bounty, we also need their protection. As Phoris begins his summoning I note that the oak is young, maybe just more than thirty years or so. I scan the tree’s leaves and a hollow ache resounds through me, as it does through the others. My eyes linger on the trunk and I see the bark old and dry, cracked with dry sap in between the hard shell. I hold back the anger I feel, but my rage is cut short when Lily drops to her knees, crying out in pain.
I’m instantly at her side and pull her to me.