MAE DAY 2 - GUARDIANS (ON HOLD TILL FURTHER NOTICE)

Chapter 23

Lee and the others arrived back, battle weary and ravenous. I could see them through the gap in the door as I showed Sebastian what I had envisaged to get Lilly Mae out of the ball. It was like a mixture of a film where Robin Williams made goo and the slim in Ghostbusters.

"Ahhh ectoplasm," he said thoughtfully. "We would need a ghost for that." He walked off scratching his horns and swishing his tail in frustration. .

"And DNA. Uncle is exhausted will he be able to get it or shall we ask someone else?"

"He's done it already. We are just duplicating it to make is stronger and synthetic."

"Like a magnetic pull towards the goo and not the child?"

"Yes, you are getting good at this," he said impressed.

"My sister is a ghost and so is Glen. Can we ask them for some ectoplasm?"

"It doesn't work like that."

I sigh, falling back onto a chair, hanging my head back to try and think of another way. I had considered getting Samuel to scream at it and break it the way he had the shower curtain but if his grandmothers scream hadn't shattered it, he stood no chance.

Walking back into the room with the sphere I saw Lee with his parents. All wrapped up in an embrace. Seeing his little sister, for the first time, and the grief of his parents as she weakened was devastating.

I backed out of the room again. There was too much emotion. I needed to focus. I jumping out of my skin as I bumped into Conrad.

"Jeeze, you scared the life out of me."

He reached out to touch me. We transported to another room.

"Is it true that you can talk to your sister?" he whispered.

I nodded, "Only if I am on the brink of death or dead, I think."

"Have you ever tried without being dead?"

"The first time I entered the Graysons she led me to her grave but that was it."

"Good. Then there is a way to do it without my having to kill you."

A quick scan of his emotions proved he wasn't kidding. He had no qualms about killing me for the benefit of the child... and bizarrely neither did I.

"Sorry to interrupt, Mae you are needed," Andre, Lee's cousin entered the room. I hadn't seen him in so long, handsome devil. Those Grayson eye and megawatt smile...

"Oiii, don't perv over him. You are married to my best mate. I'll eat you again," Conrad threatened.

"Leave her alone, Conrad," Andre warned.

"Don't even think of seducing her, Andre."

"I'll seduce whoever I want. Perhaps your wife if you ever get around to finding her."

I felt the tension in the air change to Dangerous then everything went crazy. Conrad and Andre both transformed, Demon and Lion, both out for blood as a fight broke out. I tried to run but ended up crouching instead as they went wild. I was terrified, screaming as I was knocked all over the placed resulting in getting caught by a tail slash here and claw there.

The room shock with a huge roar, way above theirs.

"There is a child dying next door and you are in here fighting," Lee roared in lion form. The words vibrating my head so badly I nearly passed out. I staggered towards the door as he leapt in the middle of the room to stop them fighting again. Conrads tail struck at me like a scorpion sting, I staggered out of the room holding my stomach. Blood seeping out made me realise it might be a way to see my sister. Had Conrad stabbed me with his tail on purpose?

"Mae, can you hear me?" Glen called.

"Did Conrad just kill me?" I wondered to myself.

"Mae, pay attention!"

"Glen? Is that you?" I was delusional. I was trying for a baby, had children to save I couldn't die... I had plans. Sexy Lee plans... Lee? Where was he? Help... Lee... Help!

"Mae Grayson, don't you dare die!" Lee yelled into my mind. "Someone kill Conrad for me, right now!"

"I am not dying for some human! Especially one as vile as her. She may have you all swept up in her bullshit but I can't stand her. Mother... calm down... Mother, no...."

"Mae, listen to me," Glen called his voice fading.

"Glen?" I started to realise I was missing an opportunity, trying to focus when dying is hard.

"The sphere will only open with the blood of a human sacrifice. Suri and the baby are with Nula and the other children. April found them but they are trapped and if she breaks her link with Nula to come speak with you we may lose them. Use your link with April to find them."

"Who is doing all this?"

I couldn't hear anything... "Glen?" I tried to focus extra hard.

A huge lion appeared in front of my minds eye, I didn't know who is was but it was the scariest and angriest lion I had ever seen as it snarled at me. Pure contempt rolled off its emotional radar. The old Mae Day inside me wanted to scream and run, hide in my mind and never come out again but something else inside me clicked. I felt myself snarl back, my scowl fix ready for a stare down. I was not backing off. This was my mind, my death and my chance to speak to Glen so we could find the children. This lion could back the fuck up. There was no doubt in my mind that I would be the winner. I would hunt it down and make it pay for that look. I felt myself snarl back, locking eyes, ready to pounce and rip it's throat out. I could almost taste the blood, feel my teeth sinking into flesh before tearing it from the bone like a knife through warm butter.

I became aware of others behind me, all in my mind, ready to fight. I was all powerful. It was my duty to fight to the death and it was a privilege. I was proud of my Pride and I would defend my wife... shit I was Lee!

"Glen?" I thought.

"Well you took your time brother," Glen moaned.

"What do you know?" I replied but I wasn't in control.

"I know you suck as a husband. Get it together."

"Time is ticking, Glen."

Images flashed in my mind so fast I couldn't focus. Face, places, planets, worm holes, portals, doorways, sand, sun, sea, Sebastian.... "Mae!" Sebastian yelled. "Look at me." I did.

"Whoa, easy... easy," he said holding me in his huge arms like a baby. I felt my arms and legs trying to get up but couldn't control them. I was going to kill Conrad... kill him. He killed me... tit for tat. "Oh no you don't he is already dead. You are quite the regular 'death diver' these days. He gives you one none lethal jab and you jump at the chance to see your sister."

'Death Diver'... what the hell?

"Oh well your sacrifice was a great help," he moved my head to show Lee's and Conrad's mothers smearing blood on the sphere. My blood no doubt. Why was Lee's father in lion form, stalking pose, wiggling ready to pounce and kill? "We are not sure how much time we get before the sphere disappears. It could take her with it or explode. Nothing is certain."

I watched as the sphere wobbled, shimmered and quicker than a blink of an eye his lion head snapped in and dragged out the child. Everyone ran and took cover. Sebastian's Wing blocked the rest as we shook a little with an explosion... and I thought of how I still wanted to kill Conrad.