Citrine by Jenny Molyneux Linda Kutt
***
“Eve?” She glanced to Kevan who stood in the doorway observing them. “How is she?”
“Fine,” Eve informed her, rubbing her face. “She’s okay physically, just unconscious.”
“Eve, this is dumb. I know you’re upset, and you have every right to be. But do you honestly think that they wanted to hurt her?” Kevan questioned. “After everything we’ve learned this past month, can you tell me that was what they set out to do?”
Eve’s shoulders sagged in defeat. “No, I know they weren’t trying to hurt Leila, but if they would have just listened to me ...” Eve grumbled.
“Oh honey, I totally agree with you, but you have to understand these are not the sit back and let the woman handle the problem kind of men. These are, I need to protect this woman, and she’s not listening to me, so I’m going to do this my way and deal with everything else later, warriors.”
“But?” Eve started to argue.
“Honey, there is no but with these guys. Hell, I fight with Caleb all the time about his protectiveness, I also try and understand where he’s coming from.” Kevan walked over to where Eve was sitting next to the bed, attending to Leila. “They’re good men, but let’s face it, they may be immortal, but they are still just men.” Eve smiled, as she watched the twinkle in Kevan’s eye. Their conversation stopped at the moan from the bed. Leila opened her eyes, and blinked at the strange ceiling, frowning. Turning her head, she saw Kevan and Eve watching her.
“You?” she spat at Eve, as she sat up suddenly. Her entire body swayed from the head rush, and Eve reached out to help, but Leila pulled away.
“Take it easy,” Eve cautioned. “I just want to tell you, that it wasn’t my idea. Please let us explain.” Leila pushed her herself off the bed, holding the post at the corner until she felt steadier on her feet.
“Get away from me!” she shouted. “I want to go home!” She looked around for a clock. “Oh gods, what time is it?”
“It’s almost seven o’clock. You’ve been here almost six hours,” Kevan chimed in, trying to help Eve get through to this woman.
“My meds, I need my meds!” she moaned more to herself than to them. Eve looked at Leila; she was at the end of her rope.
“Sit!” Eve ordered her. Kevan smiled as she watched Dr. Cameron step up. Leila looked to Eve, shocked because, until this moment, this woman had been very polite and helpful. “Sit down!” Eve ordered again.
“You are not my mother!” Leila shot back at Eve.
“You’re correct; I am not your mother. I never claimed that I was,” Eve informed her. “But I am someone who is trying to help you. I’m a doctor who is telling you, for the last time, you are not sick. And, once again, I’m telling you to sit down; by the way, that is not a request, it’s an order.”
“What gives you the right to order me around?” Leila demanded.
“I’m a doctor trying to help you, that’s what gives me the right. You’re not sick.”
“Like you would know? Have you done any tests, or talked to my doctor? No you haven’t,” Leila argued. “I met you what, eight hours ago? You have no idea about the things I’ve seen, the voices I hear in my head. Hell, I thought I imagined that he brought me here … I don’t know how he did it, it was like he ... transported me?”
“Shimmered,” Kevan piped up.
Leila turned and peered at her. “What?”
“They don’t call it transporting … well it is technically, but they call it shimmering. I know. I know it sounds goofy, but hey, I wasn’t the one that named it,” Kevan stated, with a shrug of her shoulders.
“Oh my god, you’re both crazier than I am!” Leila blurted out. Kevan snorted in amusement; she looked to Eve, who shook her head.
Eve made Leila sit back down on the bed. “Why are you fighting us? I would think that you would be excited about finding out that you’re not sick.”
“Then explain to me why I am hearing the voices in my head? Why do I see what I see? I don’t see a man; I see a vampire or a demon. If that’s not the definition of a mental disorder, then I don’t what is. Jesus, I’ve said all this to you already.”
“It’s not crazy when what you are seeing is real,” Eve tried to explain. Leila looked through the tears in her eyes.
“I don’t know what is crazier, seeing the things that I’m seeing, or wishing what you’re saying was real.” Leila’s voice cracked, by the unexpected emotions. “But they aren’t real. Demons, vampires and the other things that I see aren’t real, they don’t exist.”
“Oh my gods, I think she might be more stubborn than Brennan,” Kevan snorted, as she and Eve both laughed. That moment of distraction gave Leila the opening she had been wanting for. Leila sprang to her feet, pushed past them, and raced out the door and down the hall. Eve and Kevan, dashed after her in hot pursuit as they holler for her to stop. Leila hit the top of the stairs, gripped the banister, as she scrambled towards her goal, the front door.
Brody had barely gotten the front door closed when he heard the sounds of Eve and Kevan yelling. Reacting to the fear that he heard in their voices, he barely cleared the front entry when someone barreled into him, knocking him flat on his ass. He held on to the body that was on top of him, trying to prevent any more injuries to his still bruised and sore body, and preventing escape.
“Brody, don’t let her go!” Eve yelled as they saw Leila barrel into Brody.
“I’ve got her.” He grunted as she landed her knee somewhere very painful. “Hey, watch the family jewels!” he yelled at the woman struggling to get away.
“Let me go, you ass!” Leila shrieked.
“Ass, I’m an ass? You’re the one who ran into me!” Brody shouted, nearly losing the struggle to hold onto her.
“LET. ME. GO.” she screeched, trying to push out of his hold on her.
“Ain’t happening darling. Kevan, Eve, where are you?” Brody bellowed. Then he spotted them watching, smiles on their faces, getting entirely too much enjoyment out of his predicament.
“Thanks a lot!” he yelled at them. “A little help here or do you want me to let her go?”
“NO!” Eve and Kevan yelled together, as they stepped forward.
“YES!” Leila shouted at the same time as she pushed away from Brody, stumbling back into Kevan and Eve, who each grabbed an arm. “Let me go!” she shouted. “You’re all crazy.”
“No we aren’t, Leila. Really, we just need you to listen with an open mind,” Eve told her as she held on her.
“No! There are no such things as vampires, demons, or the flipping Easter Bunny.”
“Well I can’t vouch for the Easter Bunny, but vamps and demons most definitely exist,” Brody stated, as he scrambled to his feet. “Have we got ourselves an unbeliever?” Brody straightened his clothing, and then looked at Kevan, Eve, and the still struggling Leila.
“Brody McNarama, please meet Leila Lafayette,” Eve did the honours. “Any help you could give us would be greatly appreciated,” she told him.
Brody smiled as he looked to the woman, but then something tickled his senses. “I would be happy to help you guys, but where is everyone else?” he wanted to know; surprised that Caleb would have left the ladies alone with someone that they didn’t know. Eve and Kevan both stopped, realizing that Brody was right. The house was never this quiet; there was always someone wandering around.
Abruptly Kevan grabbed her stomach, a feeling of evil surged through the room, whirling around grabbing onto her. “Oh shit!” she gasped, and staggered away from Eve and Leila, in an attempt to protect them.
“Kevan?” Eve barked. “What’s wrong?” But Kevan didn’t hear Eve, her only thoughts on getting away from whatever was about to happen.
“Move!” she ground out, strangled by horrifying sensations pouring through her. Darkness crawled into her mind, replacing her memories with a need for more. It wanted
“No!” Kevan shrieked trying to force it away as she had once before, but this time she was losing the battle. It beckoned to her, sucking her closer to the distortion that used to be the door. Kevan, in that logical part of her brain, knew this was sickeningly wrong, but her mind and body were reacting separately, and helplessness made it stronger. She reluctantly moved towards the entity that seemed to be beckoning her closer.
“Kevan!” Eve called as she reached out to her, only to be stopped as a crippling pain flooded her; she collapsed to the floor, unable to do anything, watching as Kevan moved forward towards an unseen enemy.
Brody stood frozen. He tried with everything he had in him to get his body to respond, but it didn’t recognize the signal anymore. This couldn’t happen; Caleb would kill him if anything hurt Kevan.
Leila was shaking as she watched the events unfolding in front of her. Her logical mind kept saying that what was happening wasn’t possible, but she was awake and it wasn’t a dream or delusion. This was different, this wasn’t just affecting her, it was affecting all of them. Unless they were having a joint delusion, then what was happening was real. Things like this didn’t really happen, they didn’t exist.
Leila shook her head; the voices that were always there began roaring, shouting, telling her something. She was tired of it all, tired of fighting. She just wanted to give in to them, but she one fear of ending up in the psych ward, tied to a bed, fed mind numbing meds like her mother, grandfather and great-great-grandmother, until she died or killed herself, forced her to keep fighting. But what if what Eve and Kevan had told her was true. Could she just let go and accept that it was real. Then it happened; with a whisper of relief, the constant nagging drone that had been in her head her whole life stopped, with what she could only describe as a sigh and a cheer.
Kevan felt like she was drowning as she drew steadily closer and closer to whatever was manifesting itself by the front door. Nothing she did was making a difference; she could feel the tears streaming down her face as images of her family, friends and Caleb flashed through her head.
“I love you Caleb.” she shouted into the air, wishing that he were here. “Help me,” she silently begged, wanting nothing more than to see him burst through the front door and save her. Think, Kevan told herself. Don’t let this thing get the best of you. She struggled to stay alert against the crushing sensations that were threatening to drag her under. Then her entire body convulsed, as whatever was trying to steal her body had been hit with something. Then she heard it something building in the background, a chanting from far away. Her body continued to move against her will. So much for all this power she was supposed to have. It wasn’t helping her one little bit, she told herself, struggling against this mental rape. She could feel herself tiring against the power that was trying to steal her away, and she closed her eyes, ready to give in, until she thought about Caleb.
She watched the haze shift and it dissipated slightly, then swirl and reform. Then the chanting came through again, only louder. It didn’t like the chanting as it twisted and turned like it was being pelted with rocks, trying to get away from it. With each repeated phrase the entity would weakened, making the distortion shift and But it was what she beyond that gave her strength. Kevan could see Caleb beating on the front door, trying to get in. Her heart jumped with joy, and she knew that she couldn’t give up. She had too much to live for, and way too much to do.
The chanting grew louder, and though she did not understand the words, she could feel the power of the words as they formed around her, surrounding her in a protective sheet, and she felt control the thing had been exerting over her start to slip.
Her rapidly draining strength seemed to reverse, as the chanting became stronger and stronger, and then Kevan was in control of her entire soul again. She felt the threads of power, tapped in, and when her fingers tingled, she let her anger flow, surprised by how it pulsed in sequence with the chant.
A scream of fury ripped through the air, as Kevan threw out her hands, releasing a bolt of energy at the haze before them, and it vanished. The energy bolt slammed into the wall, causing the entire house to rock with the power that Kevan had thrown into it. Her anger kept swelling as she pulled more and more threads of power. She could actually see the faint traces of lines of power growing stronger, continuing to build within her, amplifying alongside the swelling sounds of the chanting. She could feel it within her like never before; the power was responding to the increasingly frantic words. Her body pulsed and throbbed, as she starting shaking with the power simmering within it, and if she didn’t release it, she felt it would implode within her. Extreme caffeine overdose jitters were mild compared to the buzz bouncing through her now.
Caleb burst through the door as he barreled towards the quivering Kevan. She could see Caleb moving towards her, and she screamed at him to stop, throwing up her hands. She was terrified she could hurt or possible kill him if he touched her.
“Stop Caleb,” Kevan sobbed. Marcus was right behind his brother, and grabbed him, preventing Caleb from touching Kevan. Her body pulsed as the chanting grew louder and louder, in a dead language that Marcus hadn’t heard in a long time.
Caleb looked beyond Kevan to where Eve was pinned against the wall, and Brody stood frozen. Leila stood in the centre of the hall, her legs braced, and her hands up in chant position by her side, head tilted back, and her eyes glazed over as if she wasn’t even in control of what she was doing. They heard the chanting growing more and more frantic.
“Brody, you have to stop her!” Marcus yelled, holding onto the struggling Caleb, who only wanted to get to Kevan.
Brody could see the terror in both warriors’ faces; they wanted him to stop her. But he had no idea how to do that, when he couldn’t move. But he had to try. He closed his eyes, and focused his energy on getting his entire body to respond. Brody could feel the sweat pouring down, as he fought the invisible chains that anchored him in place, and slowly but surely he began to win the battle, and inch his way towards Leila.
Caleb struggled to get away from Marcus, his focus on Kevan, but his eyes shifted back to monitor Brody’s movements. He could see Kevan’s eyes on Brody, and the fear that was residing within them. He wanted nothing more than to snatch her up into his arms, and hold her close, to protect her from the world.
“Move, Brody, move ...” he kept repeating quietly, as he watched Brody’s progress.
Kevan didn’t know which was worse, having an anguished Caleb there watching, or not having him there.
Brody slid his foot across the floor, agonizing inch after agonizing inch, making his way towards the out-of-control Leila. It seemed to take hours to plow through whatever Leila was doing to him and Eve; he felt like he was packing bricks. Using the last of his rapidly fading strength he forced his arms up. He was so near, a heartbeat away from reaching her, but he felt himself losing his balance, and crashed into Leila, sending her toppling to the floor. The chanting cut off when her head hit the tile.
Kevan’s entire body sagged as the last restraint on her will let go. Caleb broke away from Marcus’ hold, and raced forward, grabbing her just before she hit the floor. She felt the gathered power flow out of her body, back into the ether from whence it had come.
&
“I’m okay,” she reassured him. “Sore, but whole.”
“Let us be the judge of that,” he growled. “Eve?”
Kevan cupped his cheek. “Ssh, I’m okay.”
“That bitch almost killed you!” Caleb barked, looking over to where Brody held Leila, Eve checking her out. “Get her out of my house,” he ordered.
“No!” Kevan countermanded his order, struggling to sit up. “She saved my life.”
“Kevan, I saw what she was doing; she was chanting a spell that could have killed you. She blocked us from the house, and we couldn’t get in to help.”
“Caleb, listen to me.” However, his face told her that he wasn’t in a listening mood. Picking Kevan up in his arms, he headed towards the stairs. “Caleb, stop!” she ordered.
“Kevan,” he argued, not liking that he wasn’t in control, that someone had almost hurt her, and he hadn’t been there to stop it.
She looked him in the eyes. “You have two choices, listen to me or argue. I would choose the listening because if we argue it won’t matter, we’re still going to end up doing what I want anyway, so let’s cut out a step, please, because I’m really not up to arguing right at this moment.”
“I don’t like this,” he informed her. “You are the most stubborn creature I have ever met, except for Queen Elizabeth 1. Now that woman was a barracuda.”
“Quit bragging about the dead celebrities you knew. You’re going to make the right choice in the end, so suck it up.” She laughed at his face. “I’m okay for one reason only, Leila. I don’t know what she was chanting, but quite honestly, until she started, I was losing control to whatever the hell it was that invaded the house.”
“Kevan, I saw her stopping you from releasing your power. It could have killed you!” he argued.
“Yes, you did see that, but you didn’t see what was happening before you were able to get into the house. It was like the last time, when my parents were here, only this time it was stronger. I wasn’t able to break free of its hold, it was drawing me in, and I would have been lost to that nasty vortex. I was really scared, and so tired I almost gave up, but that was when I heard the chanting. Whatever that presence was didn’t like what she was chanting, and when I figured that out I focused on it. That was when things began to turn in my favour. So you see, she wasn’t trying to hurt me, she saved my life, all of our lives.” Kevan could see the disbelief in Caleb’s eyes. “Look, you can believe me or not, the choice is yours. But I am going to check on them, and make sure that they are okay.” Caleb reluctantly gave in, carrying her over to Eve, because he refused to let her walk.
“Eve?” Eve looked up at Kevan. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. What about you? Why is he carrying you?”
“I’m fine, he’s just being overprotective.” She wiggled around until Caleb put her onto her feet, but stood right behind her. “What about Leila and Brody?”
“Brody’s fine and Leila seems to be physically fine. Now emotionally, I’m not quite so sure about.” Eve looked down at the unconscious Leila. “What the hell just happened? Who the hell is Leila, and how the hell would she know to do what she did? If she has so much power, why does she believe that she is crazy?” Eve pondered.
Kevan began to speculate. “What happened just now? That one I have no idea, but what I think is that we’ve pissed someone off. As for Ms. Leila Lafayette, her family was referenced in Dexter Samhain’s research. So we did some of our own research, and were able to trace her family from where Samhain stopped, to her. But as to what is so important about her, that I’m not so sure about, but I would say it’s because she is so strong.”
“Actually I think I may have an answer for that question.” They all turned, looking to Niall who had just joined them. “Are you okay?” he wanted to know, concerned about his friends, seeing the scorched front door and surrounding walls.
“I’m fine, what did you find out? Did Joseph have any information as to why the Lafayette family seems to be so important to Leonard?”
“Nothing that jumps out at us, but we did find a reference in one of the history books referring to a human named Leonard Le Pierre, who took a demon oath around seven hundred years ago.”
“Why would a history book make reference to a human taking a demon oath?” Caleb questioned, “It happens, unfortunately more often than we care to admit, but never recorded in a human history.”
“Okay, I’m confused, a demon oath?” Kevan questioned. “What is that all about?”
They looked to the women who were watching them. I sometimes forget how much you don’t know,” Caleb stated, shaking his head. “A demon oath is exactly what it sounds like, a human that takes an oath to become a demon. When they do, they give up their soul for the powers of a demon, and all the so called perks that go with it.”
“So they become a demon?” Kevan questioned.
“Yes,” Niall confirmed.
“Okay, I understand that, but what I would like to know is why would someone make reference to it specifically with this one particular demon?” Kevan questioned.
“Niall, any ideas?” Caleb asked. Niall only shrugged.
“It could be that there was something about this oath that was different, and that is why they made note of it? I guess the question is what was different?” Eve queried. “And what does that have to do with Leila?”
They all looked up as Kaitlyn came running down the hall, waving something in her hand.
“What the hell happened? One minute I’m going through Samhain’s papers, and the next minute I’m pinned to the floor, unable to move. It was crazy, but you wouldn’t believe what I found out. Oh man, it’s so good.” She stopped, and gawked at her sisters. “Are you guys okay?”
“We’re fine, Kaitlyn, what did you find out?” Kevan asked her.
“Oh man, you aren’t going to believe this. Samhain, he may have been crazy, but he was a hell of a researcher.”
“Kaitlyn, focus please,” Kevan prodded her
“What?” she looked to them again. “Oh yeah, sorry, what was I saying?”
“You found something in Samhain’s notes?” Kevan reminded her, trying to keep her focused. Her twin was very smart, and a fantastic writer, but she had the attention span of a two year old when she was excited about something.
“Samhain’s notes?” she looked confused for a moment. “Oh yeah, sorry I got excited. It is amazing…”
“Kaitlyn,” Kevan snapped at her.
“Oh sorry, I was doing it again, wasn’t I?”
“How she’s capable of making a living is beyond my comprehension,” Marcus muttered to himself, but they all heard.
“Oh, can it, Mr. Personality,” she snipped at him. “I found it on one of the papers that I was lying on. It would seem that Leonard is or was, depending on how you look at it. Let me start again, do you think that they still have family ties after they take a demon oath?”
“I think that you need to focus and tell us what you found?” Marcus yelled at her. He was beyond frustrated with her, and hated how she jumped from one thing to the next, without finishing what she was telling in the first place.
“You know, there is no need to be rude?” she pouted.
“Oh my gods, Kaitlyn, would you please focus,” Kevan ground out, not really feeling up to this.
“Sorry Kevan … hey, are you sure you’re okay?”
“Kaitlyn, just tell us what you found, right now please,” Kevan ordered her.
“Oh, okay, Leonard was a relative.”
&n
“No, at least I don’t think so. No he was her relative.” Kaitlyn looked at Leila.
“Leonard was one of Leila’s relatives?” Kaitlyn nodded her excitement evident on her face.
“Yup, he is. I don’t remember how many generations back, it’s all in Samhain’s papers, but he had it traced back to Leonard from Leila’s great-great-great-grandfather, which is what we used to find her. So come on, ask me why? Why would he have been so excited about finding some relatives of Leila?” Her excitement bubbling over, “Oh, come on people, one guess, anything?”
“Kaitlyn, enough already, just tell us,” Kevan told her.
“You know, Kevan, you’re no fun.” She laughed, not letting Kevan’s grouchiness spoil her excitement. “Fine, since you’re all going to be party poopers, I will tell you. I started checking through the papers where you found the name Lafayette, and found the name Le Pierre Lafayette. Well then, I was reading a bunch of other boring stuff … you know, he has given me so much to work with, and I’m going to use some of it in my next novel. Hell, there is enough for an entire series.”
“Kaitlyn, I’m going to forget I took an oath to do no harm, and hit you if you don’t tell us what you found,” Eve snapped.
“Focus,” Kevan reminded her again. “What did you find out?”
“Huh?” Kaitlyn looked back to them, having lost herself yet again in the planning of her novel. “Oh sorry, I did it again, didn’t I?” They just stared at her.
“What did you find out?” Caleb prompted her.
“Find out?” Kevan closed her eyes, drawing a slow deep breath to fight the need to strangle her twin. Suddenly Kaitlyn clued in to what Kevan was referring. “Relax, I remember now.” She shook the papers that she held in her hand at them. “It would seem the Le Pierre – Lafayette families are very important, or at least at one point they were.”
“Explain?” Leila questioned. They all turned to see Leila push herself away from Brody. Eve helped her to her feet, which she accepted reluctantly. “You’re talking about my family, correct?” Kaitlyn nodded. “Then I want to know.”
“It’s her family,” Kevan shrugged her shoulders when Kaitlyn looked to her.
“Thank gods, because I don’t know if I could quit. What I found is so good, if I wasn’t living it, I’d say it was the plot of a book or a movie.”
“Kaitlyn, get on with it.”
“Okay, okay,” Kaitlyn bubbled. “Samhain was searching for the lost thingy right?”
“The what?” Leila questioned. “What is she talking about?” Kaitlyn looked to Caleb and Niall.
“The Lost Repository,” Marcus spoke up. “That is what it is called, the Repository of Wisdom. Not some lost thingy.” His face spoke volumes of his frustration. His revulsion towards the misuse of the spoken word had his ire up towards Kaitlyn again.
“Yeah, that’s it. Why the hell didn’t they just call it a library, because basically that is what it is, right?”
“Kaitlyn, continue,” Kevan pushed her again.
“Okay, okay, he was looking for the Lost Repository of Knowledge.” She looked to Leila, hoping that it would trigger something other than annoyance, but Leila just looked at her. “What do you know about your family history?”
“I don’t know as much as most people, I guess, why?”
“Tell us what you know about where you came from, stuff like that?” Kaitlyn pushed her. Leila gave her a look of disgust at the unwelcome intrusion into her life. “Please?”
“Whatever! There isn’t much to tell. I’m the last of the Lafayette’s. We haven’t used Le Pierre since the family came to Canada. We are originally from France; at some point someone went to England, and we stayed there until the family came to Canada in the 1800’s, I guess.”
“What about cousins, aunts, uncles?” Kaitlyn asked, walking tight circles.
“Not to my knowledge, I’m the last of the line. Look, what is this all about?”
“Yes, Kaitlyn, what is this all about?” Kevan questioned.
“It would seem that Samhain did a whole family tree of the Le Pierre – Lafayette family.”
“Who is this Samhain that you keep talking about?” Leila wanted to know.
“Dexter Samhain was an archaeologist of sorts, I would say.”
“And this has to do with my family, how?” Leila asked, her frustration starting to get to her.
“Sorry, everyone tells me I can get carried away,” Kaitlyn laughed.
“Like now,” Kevan reminded her. “But before you say any more, can we find somewhere more comfortable to sit?” Caleb scooped her up into his arms.
“Before you go bounding up the stairs, trying to take me to bed, my warrior man, just know I will just being walking right back down,” she told him. Caleb gave her a look, and Kevan smiled, leaning over to give him a quick kiss. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I will make it up to you.”
“In more ways than you know,” he told her with a fire burning in his eyes, sending shivers of anticipation through her tired body.
“I look forward to it,” she promised him.