Yield (7 page)

Nightmares of Joshlin plagued me every time I closed my eyes.  I tried to numb him out.  I knew he wasn
’t much of a threat, but he bothered me nonetheless.  I knew him well enough now he’d make another reappearance at some point.  And probably not in a good way.

On my pillow when I woke was a huge box of coffee flavored chocolates.  Beside it was a note.

             
Happy Birthday.

              I can’t wait to see you in this. 

                            Ames

Maybe those words meant something really little and somewhat far from my expertise in what men wanted fashion wise, but I sure wasn’t expecting what I got.

Inside was a t-shirt, the girl kind, red and had a logo across the front.

             
I know a guy HOTTER than Earl Grey!

I busted up laughing so loud, I was surprised none of the guards came running in.

Ames walked me to the entrance of my realm where we entere
d yesterday.  He pointed out my new shirt.  He was quite proud of his creation made at the mall not far from my own high school.  It kind of thrilled me to know he was out shopping for me.

Caydon was waiting on us right where he
’d stood when I first met him.  I’d yet to see the main entrance where all else left and entered for I wanted to see my mother’s barren orchard again more than anything. 

Caydon and Ames didn
’t speak, only nodded in their manly way.  Not a nice way.

I watched Ames back away, but not leave.  Guessing he was waiting for me, I gave a little wave and turned inside.  At least I knew now he wasn
’t ignoring me or throwing me to the wolves, but rather respecting the wishes of another realm by staying behind.  Personally, I think they should be grateful to him for all he’s done in the way of tapering Joshlin and making me safe.  He shouldn’t be treated as an outsider.   

Caydon
’s shadow moved forcing me to say my last thoughts with my eyes to Ames.  I didn’t want to do this alone, but I understood. 

Led through the realm with hellos to some I
’ve already meet and others I haven’t, we made our way to some kind of eating area like a cafeteria almost.

“I thought we were going to read history stuff.”

“We will.  You’ve got to be hungry.  Let me feed you first.”

“Ames already did,” I said vacantly to make my point.

He smiled with one of his hundred watt-ers and said with a small laugh, “Humor me then.”

I didn
’t want to be rude even though I’d rather just get down to business.  Following the crowd into a line, Caydon shuffled me off to a table making his tallness factor show by aiming towards a larger chair for him and mama bear sized one for me. 

“You need not stand in a line. Food was prepared for you.”

“I like picking my own food, thank you.”  Maybe rude was the only way with him.

If his laugh was any indication that he was laughing at me, I
’d walk away now.  Except I wanted to know the truth behind his weird way of acting with me.

“Allow me to spoil you then.”

A polite smile spread across my face to appease him, but it wasn’t genuine.  I didn’t want his extra attention.  The man I wanted eyeing me this much was alone and not gallivanting in cafeteria lines without me. 

A guy in all white clothes and a towel tucked into his front belt started spreading out eggs, bread, butter, and cheese. 

No fruit.

“You see something missing?” he asked.

My tell all face told people way too much.  I didn’t want to seem ungrateful.  “No.  It looks good.”

His careful study of my face and the rest of my body didn
’t go unnoticed by me, but I didn’t acknowledge it. 

“You choose your own meals at Cahn
’s realm?”

Jerking my eyes up to him, I scowled.  “Maybe.”

“Jack, take it back.  Jem wishes to go through the line.”

I—

Jack took it all back.  Nervously.

I followed Caydon to the line where I could tell he was entering for the first time
ever
in his life. And the name is Emma.

“Change is good.  What would you like?”  He was still picking my food.  I glared up into his baby blues.  “Okay.  Okay.  No being a gentlemen.  You are the strangest girl.”

“And you’re an ass.” 

Several gasps were heard around me.  I was suddenly thinking this guy needed a good serving of humility.  He may be nicer than Joshlin, but he wasn
’t far from expectations of how he saw others to be his beck and call.

Instead of making him mad like I wanted it to, he just bowed and lifted his eyes to eye level with mine.  “
At your service.”

So much for flying under the radar.  I was getting the realm
’s full attention.  The same gaspers went all out again with a full on performance of lifted hands and murmured gossip. 

“I let that one slide, but a lady shouldn
’t use such language.”

“
I don’t usually.”

His brow furrowed. 

Caydon and I made our way through the line receiving many stares, greetings, and gasps at the oddity he was presenting them with.  I didn’t cause it, so I didn’t care.  He seemed to enjoy it more than me anyway.

At the table again, he tried to make small talk.  Mostly favorite colors and books and stuff.  I didn
’t mind, but it wouldn’t make me less leery of the guy.  He seemed much more at ease with me than I was with him.

At last, we were heading to my parent
’s room and the pertinent, if even possibly insignificant, information I sought.

Inside the four walls, Caydon closed me in with him.  I counted the steps he paced behind me on the way to the room just to see how far in he would invade my personal space in front of others, but here he held no holds barred.

“I can’t do this if you’re going to watch over my shoulder the entire time,” I tried to say politely.  I stood by the table he pointed to when entering the room.  He followed less than a footstep behind me.

“
I won’t crowd you.”

I lowered my eyes, “What do you call this?”  I waved my hands to show the little space between us.

“Friendly distance.”

“We
’re not friends.  I met you yesterday.”

“But I
’d like to be.”

“FYI
, Caydon.  You may have been trapped down in this rabbit hole of a home, but where I come from guys don’t move this fast on a girl.  I don’t know you and you’re making me uncomfortable. Besides, I already know why you’re being nice.”

He pouted.  A seriously hot guy a foot taller and built like a rock, pouted and ducked his head.  I felt like a heel.

“Um, I just want you to lay off on the overdone like beefsteak move making.  For now, let’s just meet and greet.  I’m not one of your closed in the pin kind of girls.”

He was weirded out by my words.  I might have even
overdone
it a bit to push him away, but it worked.

“Like the shirt,” He stared a little too long.  Considering where the words are written, it made me squirm.

“Thanks.  It was a birthday gift.”

With that, he frowned big-time, but I smiled.

“Can a new friend give you something as well?” he pushed the frown away, but not entirely.

“
I don’t need anything, Caydon.” Now I felt bad.

“Humor me.”

Without much movement, he held out a box.  A small box.  A
jewelry
box. 

“
I don’t want that.”

“Just look first.  Then decide.”

Ugh!  I opened it fast and slid out the prize.  It was a bracelet, but not new.               

“It was your mother
’s.”

Something better than excitement bubbled in my chest.  I jumped up and hugged Caydon around the middle.  “Oh, thank you.  I can
’t thank you enough for this.  Wow!  Thank you.”

I reached back and looked up at him.  He looked down at my eyes, but it was a look full of pride.  He was excited for me.

“I’m glad you like it.”

A thought surfaced. “Is there more?”

His eyes darted to a table and back to me.  “Yes, but I don’t advice you indulge until things pan out here at our realm.”

My hands dropped down and it was then I realized that my hug didn
’t create the same reaction as it does with Ames.  Caydon didn’t tense up and go stiff.  Nor did he lose the power of speech or try to back away from me. 

Caydon was warm and caring despite his outer rude guy appearance, but he didn
’t create the heat in me the way Ames did.  And from the hug, he didn’t feel that way about me either.

He lugged his huge self over to the plush antique chairs across the room from the bed.  I looked at the book lying on the table he
’d indicated for me to read.

Bound in burgundy velvet and tied across the front in gold ribbon, was a book labeled
A. Loggin
.  It was engraved in gold lettering and just beautiful.  Maybe it looked like the same kind of journal you’d buy in any bookstore today, but it held meaning that could outweigh any other.

“What is it?” I asked as I picked it up in both hands.  Heavy and scented like dust, it wasn
’t falling apart like I predicted.  My parents would be in their forties if they were alive, and therefore born in more recent times.  In my head I tried to image out memories that were set in the 1800’s but that was ridiculous.  Funny how the mind creates a whole person’s life when you have nothing to go on.  Before this year, my real parents were wizards who grew up in Hogwarts and died killing Voldemort to save me.  Mind matrixing your parents goes with the orphan territory.

“Your mother
’s journal.”

Wow wasn
’t enough.  Losing logical sense I asked, “Can I read it?”

Caydon chuckled from his seat, crossed his leg on the top of the other making his large boot jut out in my direction, and told me to go on.  I practically ran across the room and pulled my feet under me in the other chair. 

Staring at the book, I jumped when he spoke again.  He was standing above me.

“Go on.  I will bring you some tea.  Earl Grey. Two sugars, right?”

Not even acknowledging that he knew things about me, I untied the silky ribbon and lifted the cover.

I refused to leave the entrance.  If she left with that freckhead, I would know.  Trigger was at the hidden entrance we came in at and Wicker watched the guard’s station for any sign of activity.  I was near the side main entrance area waiting for her to come back down the hallway I knew she couldn’t leave any other direction from.  Several asked if I was hungry, but I said no regardless after she disappeared around the corner.  I wouldn’t be distracted.

Inside, Emma was about to find out what she was.  And why she couldn
’t be with me.  I paced the small foyer ignoring the two girls giggling at the courtyard arch nearby.  They were trying to get my attention, but it was currently hovering in a room I wasn’t allowed in to see.  Was she curled up and already reading or was she sitting on the bed with him beside her? Thinking things like this didn’t fare well for my low profile in the hallway of the realm that didn’t consider me welcome. 

And my next thoughts didn
’t help my cause either.

What I didn
’t know before, I’d learned as recent as meeting her.  I’d researched my realm and hers.  I’d asked her grandmother several things.  What I didn’t know is what I had in my mind as the one true factor missing that we needed and couldn’t seem to obtain. 

Her mother was a witch.  That is why she can transfer electricity. 
It is her gift.  When her father married her mother, the goblin world didn’t know he’d married a human witch.  But that’s what he first appealed to her with, or rather she lured him just like Emma unintentionally did the same to me.  She saw his true identity and he fell in love with the idea that someone could love him for what he was and want to know what makes him tick, not just the shell.  All about perspective.

Now, it
’s happening again with Emma.  Her abilities were inherited, but Emma doesn’t know how to control them yet.  Not everything is goblin spirited.

I once climbed a cliff with Wicker to see if I had what it takes to jump and prove to myself that I wasn
’t weak.  I jumped.  Reluctantly, Wicker followed.  I walked away from that sure of my decision to leave this world behind if it was so deemed.  This was a week before I met Emma. 

It
’s all about perspective.