Zora's Dawn (Defender Book 1) (22 page)

Axel
stopped his pacing and levelled his stare at Jake. “Could there be? Is that
possible? We the fairies monitor all of the supernatural races, but we do not
interfere and we do not keep any more than a rough count of numbers.”

Jake
frowned and thought for a long pause before replying. “In theory it could be
true, but I think in practice it would not work so well. Made wolves have many
difficulties assimilating the change, they need help and support. Without it
they may die, or lose their minds forever in the wolf. I know we have discussed
this a little before, and there have been groups of wolves that wished to stay
wolf, but they were older and stronger than the ones we currently have in
custody. And besides, these seem genuinely to have no idea about any others,
they are pretty lost really.”

“What
about the lawyer? The one with the fairy watch in place? How does he fit into
all of this? We didn’t even know he was a supe, it was like he had a cloaking
spell.” Shax was looking more serious than Zora had ever seen her, and even
Frenchie was staring at Jake as though waiting for an answer.

Jake
sighed and shook his head. “I don’t know, there has never been a case like his.
I really don’t think he is in any way connected to the newbies in custody.
Maybe he is some sort of aberration. We will wait and see what we learn from
the fairies about him.”

Zora sank
lower into her chair. She hadn’t really expected any revelations from the
rogues in custody but had hoped for some clarity. She wondered if she had
overpowered the three because they were new and didn’t really know what they
were doing. Although their auras were very similar she remembered.

“Axel?”
Looking over to her Axel smiled gently. “Yes little Zora, you have thought of
something?”

She
shrugged diffidently. “I don’t know if it’s of any use, but the auras of all
the rogue werewolves were very similar – dark muddy shades of green and red.
The man I saw in the street had black in his as well.”

Jake
started a little in surprise and Zora repressed a small arrow of satisfaction,
keeping her gaze on Axel’s face. His expression gave nothing away, but he took
his time to answer her.

“It is a
valid point little Zora, however I believe you will find that all rogue weres
have these colourations in their auras.” She deflated a little, but kept her
attention focused on him as he continued. “However it is useful information
that even the rogue that we almost did not detect has the same aura. It means
that those of us who can see auras will be able to spot a rogue even if there
are more of them which can hide their other side.”

Moving to
the window Axel stood silently for a couple of minutes, before turning back to
face the room. “We will leave it here for now, as we have guests coming for
dinner and we all need to refresh before then. Everyone, please go and relax,
dinner will be at seven. Little Zora, can you remain? I wish to talk to you
some more.” Zora pushed down the anxiety that rose up at the thought of Axel
wanting to talk to her and nodded obediently. The rest of their group filed out
of the room, Powers hesitating at the door but leaving wordlessly at a look
from Axel. Once they were alone Axel seated himself on the lounge and patted
the seat beside him in invitation. Zora moved to comply and waited for him to
speak.

“Little
Zora, may I ask what you felt when you were fighting? I mean what compelled you
to fight? Shax said that you pushed her aside to meet the attack of the first
rogue.”

Zora
thought back to that moment. “My pendant flared with heat, and somehow I just
knew what he was going to do. Believe me, I was as surprised as anyone when I
found myself in the middle of a fight.”

Nodding
without surprise Axel asked, “What about when you were knifed? What were you
thinking then?” Zora looked at him in surprise, but Axel just waited for her
reply, his expression unreadable. She squirmed in her seat, the remembered
emotions making her feel extremely uncomfortable.

“It was
the strangest feeling, I have never felt anything like it, yet at the same time
it was so familiar. I was angry, so angry that he had cut me. And I felt like
he was the focus for that anger, that I wanted to -” She paused, searching for
words to describe how she had felt, “I don’t really know, I felt like I wanted
to release something onto him.” Staring up at Axel’s face she asked, “What was
it that I wanted to release Axel? It was as though my pendant was urging me to
do something and I was going to do it, but you arrived at that very instant and
it all stopped.”

Axel gazed
at her fondly. “You are exceptional little Zora, never ever forget it. Do not
let Jake fill you with doubts about your destiny or your ability.” Zora frowned
at him; it was hard to take his words to heart since what Jake had said was
what she herself felt. Seeing the frown Axel smiled a little before continuing.
“Remember little Zora, we the fairies are of Gaia and we act on behalf of her.
When I unblocked your abilities I also enhanced them, at the behest of Gaia.
She knew you would need them. Little Zora, we the fairies do not see the
future, but sometimes Gaia allows us a little knowledge. Believe me, you have
all the abilities you need to carry out our quest. You underestimate your physical
strength but more than that you underestimate your mental strength. Try not to
do that in future.”

Zora
stared at him, scrambling to take in what he had just said – and not said.
“Axel, what about just before you arrived, what was my pendant urging me to do,
and why did it feel so familiar to me?”

Axel
shrugged, an everyday gesture he imbued with otherworldly grace. “I do not know
little Zora, your pendant should be active like that only at dawn. Perhaps
there is more to it than even I know. As to why it was familiar, you may have
had a similar feeling prior to the time my sister blocked your abilities, but I
really don’t know.” He smiled cheerfully. “But I am sure your pendant will
reveal its mysteries to you if the need arises. Now, tonight when we have our
guests, I must ask of you that you do not tell them I gave you extra abilities.
Probably it will also be best if you keep to yourself what happened just before
we arrived in the alley. Jake will also ask you about this, as the young man
you were advancing upon saw something in you that almost frightened the wolf
out of him. Please do not tell Jake or even Powers what you have just told me,
your extra abilities must remain unknown to all but me, and I must try to find
out why that young man reacted as he did with you. Do you trust me in this
little Zora?”

Did she?
Zora studied her nails, noticing for the first time that they were all broken
from the fight. She didn’t know why Axel wanted her to keep silent on this,
especially to Powers who could read her mind anyway. So did she trust Axel
enough to do as he wished even though she didn’t understand why? She thought
back to the connection to Gaia she had felt at dawn the last few days, the
peace and serenity and that sense of being in the presence of something far too
big for her to ever comprehend it. She realised that she trusted Gaia to
protect her, and so by extension she must trust Axel too. She looked back to
his face and nodded before saying, “Ok Axel, I don’t understand your reasons
but I will trust you. But don’t be surprised if Powers reads what I am thinking
and finds out anyway.”

Axel
laughed suddenly, a belly laugh that startled Zora badly – how could he switch
from deadly serious to laughter so fast? “What? What did I say?”

Still
smiling broadly Axel responded, “Powers is being very male little Zora and very
possessive. He did not tell you that you can control the bond.”

Zora
stared at Axel, her eyes growing wider and her face flushing as her temper
began to rise. “Really,” she said flatly. “Then please Axel, show me how I may
do this. And also please let this be our secret.” She smiled sweetly at Axel
who grinned in delight, only too happy to add some spice to the situation.

“It is
easy to do little Zora, but remember this.” All the humour left his face which
turned very serious. “The bond is there to protect you. When you are away from
Powers it is imperative that he can read where you are and what is happening,
so that today’s events are not replicated. Use this knowledge wisely - keep
your secret thoughts secret, but remember to keep the bond open and never close
it, not ever. I have insisted on Powers being with you at all times for a
reason. He is your protector and you are more powerful together than alone.
Today I erred - he should have been with you. But if he had you would not have
discovered some of your power so in the end the decision was correct.”

Turning
cheerful again he continued, “So, I will show you how to control the bond.
Perhaps Powers simply was not aware of this; it is possible as both of you
missed years of compatibility training.”

Zora
shrugged, maybe Powers didn’t know, but whether he did or he didn’t it felt
good to be able to have control over the bond. She listened very carefully as
Axel explained it to her, and then he sent her back to her room to rest.

Powers was
not in the room when she got there, so taking advantage of his absence Zora
quickly changed for dinner, and then sat in one of the chairs near the window
staring out at the garden while she tried to push down apprehension about the
coming evening. She was going to meet two defenders and their guardians, and
she was even more nervous about it than she was about meeting werewolves.

Thinking
about the werewolves reminded her of Jake which caused a deep frown- he was
another source of anxiety. Even though Axel had reassured her of her abilities
and strength Zora still felt that Jake was right and she was not going to be
good enough for the task. How could she convince Jake that she was when she
didn’t really believe it herself? And how could she convince two defenders who
had grown up with the knowledge of who they were that she had even the vaguest
idea of what she was doing? She hadn’t even known she could control the bond
for heaven’s sake, what else didn’t she know?

Powers did
not return until much later, and gave no explanation as to where he had been.
Zora considered asking but decided that would give a sense of intimacy to their
relationship and she was feeling conflicted enough about it already. He
disappeared into the bathroom and emerged dressed for dinner looking as good as
he always did and smelling even better. He sat in the other chair and studied
his phone, an act that reminded Zora that she had not even looked at hers for
days. She hadn’t given a thought to it, or to her job and what Malcolm knew
about their mission.

“Powers,”
she began.

“Hmmmm,”
he murmured without taking his eyes off his phone.

“What does
Malcolm know about our mission? Does he know anything at all? Because how did
you explain to him the absence of three of his staff?”

Powers
tapped on his phone for a bit and then set it down on the coffee table. “That
was him just now in fact. He knows we are on the trail of the murderer. He
doesn’t know any details, but he’s pretty keen to get the scoop on this story.
He used to be a war reporter you know, before his nerves got too shot and he
had to give it up. So he loves the idea that we might solve this case before
the police do.”

Zora
blinked a couple of times – she had never known that about Malcolm and was hard
pressed to imagine the quiet man she knew reporting from a war zone. She sighed
internally, really Axel must surely have the wrong impression of her, her
instincts were completely off.

Looking at
her watch she realised it was time to go for dinner. Powers stood with her and
took her arm. “Don’t worry, the defenders are not going to test you on your
knowledge, they are here to help. They won’t say anything like Jake did.” His
eyes darkened as he mentioned Jake, which Zora thought was not a good thing.

“Powers,
Jake was being perfectly reasonable. I don’t know what I’m doing and he has
every right to question my abilities. Frankly I question them myself so I don’t
blame him at all!”

Powers sighed.
“Zora you have to believe in yourself. Everyone who has seen you believes in
you. Jake will too the first time he sees what you can do. Stop feeling these
doubts about yourself.”

“Ok, I’ll
try. But you have to lighten up about Jake. He’s part of our team as Axel said.
We can’t have infighting.”

He growled
slightly. “I’ll lighten up on him when he lightens up on you. But don’t worry
Zora, I know he’s on our team.”

Figuring
that was the best she was going to get Zora allowed herself to be led out of the
room. She spent the short walk to the dining room giving herself a pep talk –
act
confident Zora and they will see you as confident. Act confident, act
confident. You can do this
. She plastered a smile onto her face that felt
like it would crack at any minute and entered the dining room. A quick glance
was all she needed to see that everyone was there, the two defenders and their
guardians included. Axel came forward and ushered her to where they stood to
perform the introductions. Zora was so anxious that she didn’t fully catch
their names and then worried about that so much that she failed to hear any of
the conversation that ensued.

It was
only when she realised that their small group was staring at her enquiringly
that she understood she had missed a question and felt a blush of mortification
start at her toes. The silence was becoming too long, and Zora had no idea what
to say.

The one
on the left is called Sara, she asked you if your pendant is your stone of
power. The one on the right is called Jane. Every sentinel has a different
stone of power. Sara’s is the turquoise ring on her right hand and Jane’s is
the amythest in the silver bracelet she is wearing.

Thankful
that due to Shax she knew about the mind speak thing and didn’t shriek, run or
otherwise make a fool of herself Zora sent a mental
thank you
to Axel
and only slightly jumped when his voice murmured
you’re welcome
inside
her mind.

Smiling at
Sara she touched her pendant as she said, “Yes, this is my stone of power. My
mother gave it to me just before she died. Is yours that lovely ring you’re
wearing?” She was kicking herself that she had never thought that different defenders
would have different stones of power, and that she hadn’t even known the
correct term of reference. Sara held her hand out so that Zora could examine
her ring, and Jane showed her the intricate bracelet with the amethyst set in
the middle, and the awkward moment was past. Zora hoped that the two other
women had not noticed her confusion earlier and resolved to pay full attention
to the conversation from then on.

Jane was
the oldest of the three of them, a strikingly beautiful woman with shining
black ringlets and eyes the colour of the amethyst in her bracelet. She leaned
closer to Zora and said gently, “We heard about your circumstances. It must be
very difficult learning all about this life so quickly, and losing your mother
so young is tragic no matter who you are. I think you are coping wonderfully.”

Sara
agreed, her green eyes sparkling through her long strawberry blonde fringe.
“I’m sure I would not be coping so well. And Axel tells us that you are so
strong. You have the senses of hearing, smell and taste with the visions. That
must be so difficult. You know Jane and I have never even had a vision. There
have been two generations of peace so you have already experienced far more
than we have. And you have fought rogue werewolves. Truly you are just what we
need.”

“If you
need anything, any help and support we are here for you.” Jane looked
completely sincere as she said it.

Zora
stared at them in amazement. “You know, I was worried to meet you both. You
have always known who you are and I have only known for a few days.”

Both women
laughed. “Oh my dear, for sure we have done the lessons and the exercises, but
we never thought we would actually need to use any of it.” Sara shrugged
self-deprecatingly. “It was like learning a foreign language that we never
thought we would have to use. We are both decidedly rusty.”

Zora
stared at them both. “You are both so different to what I expected. Thank you!”

Jane
smiled at her. “We’re pretty relaxed here, mind you the European defenders take
themselves much more seriously. Sara and I will teach you all we can while we
are here, in case you have to meet any of them.”

Remembering
their other guests Zora looked around and saw them chatting easily to Powers, all
three men looking very relaxed. She saw Sunny with Marcus and some of the fairy
guard, Sabrina perched on her shoulder. Jake and Shax were having what looked
to be a heated conversation in a corner of the room. Zora was contemplating
drifting in their direction to eavesdrop when Axel clapped his hands sharply to
indicate it was time for dinner.

Everyone
obediently moved towards the large and beautifully set dinner table and took
their places. Zora was placed with Sara and Jane on either side of her. The
guardians were across the table, each opposite their charge. Shax and Sunny
were together with Marcus on the other side of Sunny, and the fairy guard were
spread out among them all. Jake was seated next to Joe, the guardian of Sara,
which put him at the other end of the table from Shax, a fact that Zora noticed
and wondered if it was deliberate on the part of Axel. He would surely be aware
of the somewhat awkward relationship they had. Axel of course was at the head
of the table and seemed to be enjoying himself greatly. It made Zora wonder
about fairy court life, if it was as social as Axel appeared to be.

Sara and
Jane peppered her with questions about the visions and the fight, both of them
clearly worried about was going on. Zora couldn’t help but hope that Jake was
listening and reconsidering his opinion of her. She had by now fully relaxed
and was enjoying herself, even though she felt that perhaps it was a bit
frivolous of her in light of the current situation.

“Is this
your first trip to Melbourne Zora?” Jane leaned towards her as she waited for
an answer.

“Yes it
is, and from what I’ve seen I’d love to come back some day,” Zora answered both
diplomatically and honestly.

“You must
come and visit me when this is over, and Sara will come from Sydney too so we
can have a girls time. Sara and I can take you to see the sights, and we can go
to some shows. There are many shows here all year round. Just last night Sara
and I went to see that violinist, Daciana.”

Zora must
have looked blank since Sara added quickly, “Well she doesn’t play the violin
any more, she just sings – she used to do both but she had to give up the
violin. She has an electric stage presence and a phenomenal voice. We should
have taken you along with us last night! She was in Sydney too but it was a
while ago and I missed that performance.”

“That
would have been great, I haven’t seen a live show in ages. I’ll definitely have
to come down to visit one day.”

Conversation
continued along similar lines throughout dinner, everyone relaxed and enjoying
the delicious meal. Once dessert had been finished and coffees delivered Axel
requested that they all adjourn to the library where they could discuss the
recent events.

Once
everyone was seated he began. “Thank you Sara, Joe, Jane and Sam for coming
tonight. I am sure you have been brought up to date on everything that has
happened regarding this situation. Jane and Sam, as locals to this area is
there anything you can add to what we already know?”

Sam, the
guardian of Jane, was the first to reply. “There really hasn’t been any
indication of any rogue activity here until the past few days. We have had
reports of humans sighting unusually large dogs in the area where you had the
fight today, but other than that the city has been quiet.” Noticing Zora’s
puzzled look he elaborated, “Humans tend to see what their minds think it is
reasonable to see. A werewolf spotted in the distance will look to them like a
large and aggressive dog, not as it really is. However the weather phenomenon
you asked about Axel – the hot dry winds - has been noticed also in the last
few days. And that lawyer rogue, we knew nothing about him at all. I’m
chagrined that we cannot be of more help.”

Axel
stared at him thoughtfully for a few seconds before replying, “Do not worry
yourself Sam, most likely there has been nothing to notice. It is encouraging
in a way, as it probably means that even if the rogues have planned something
they have not yet had time to put it into effect.”

He tapped
his fingers on the armrest of his chair for a few seconds, and then continued.
“The lawyer so far has done nothing unusual. He has gone to his home from work
and has not left again. Nobody has come to visit and he has made no phone calls
or done anything except drink some beers and watch television.” His tone wry,
Axel added, “Maybe he had a bad day today.”

His
comment evoked a smile from them all, while Clare added that the fairy watch
would remain in place for as long as required. “They will report everything he
does so if he is connected to all of this we will know.”

Axel
smiled his thanks to her. “Please stress to the fairies that we need to know
absolutely everything about him because even if he is not connected to the
current issue, there is still the question of why he was almost invisible. He
would have passed by un-noticed if Zora’s pendant had not become warm.”