The Lost Elixir

Chapter Seven

Right after they both got off the phone, Rayne was quick to call her house phone, that picked up after a ring and a half. Her mother, much to her relief, was the one who answered the phone, and she swore she could have cried after hearing her soothing voice. Nevaeh's soft gasp of joy could have pushed tears into Rayne's own eyes if she wasn't so concentrated on the purple tinge to her finger now.

"Hey mom," Rayne whispered, trying to keep the hoarseness out of her voice.

"Baby, I've been so worried! Are you somewhere safe?" Nevaeh demanded. "Where are you calling from?"

"We're safe in a lodge somewhere along the trail."

"Oh, thank goodness," she breathed. "I miss you, honey. You're usually my little shadow."

Rayne's lips tilted at that, her chest still aching. "I miss you too, Mom."

Someone shuffled into the background, followed by a tired grunt and then a stifle of surprise.

"Is that Rayne?" a voice demanded, and her excitement leapt at the familiarity of her father.

Rayne could hear Nevaeh pass the phone over to Nashoba, and two seconds later, his anxious voice was flooding the phone.

"Chim achukma?" he demanded immediately.

She tried not to roll her eyes at his urgency. "Amachukma, Aki."

"You sure? You don't need me or Ezra to go out there?"

"No, I've got it," she reminded him gently. "You're going to worry yourself sick if you keep stressing about me, dad."

"Too late," he muttered. "My baby's in the middle of nowhere with some-"

Rayne was quick to interrupt him, unsure of how well the Fae could hear. But seeing as Jarrah's eyes darted to the phone, she knew he must have heard him. "Everything is fine. We're safe at a wolf lodge right now, and we'll be heading out in the morning. So you might not hear from me for a while again."

Nashoba made a sound of disapproval. "Okay, Rayne. Stay safe, a tek. I love you."

"Love you too dad, Give mom and Ezra my love," she sighed.

"I will, honey. Sleep well and far away from that fairy, will you? Give your dad just a little peace of mind, please."

Jarrah rolled his eyes, his jaw tightening. Well, that definitely answered her earlier thought.

"Of course," she said, staring up at the ceiling. "Night dad."

"Night, baby."

Rayne untwisted the cord from her finger and hung the phone back up on the base before he could say anything else. Stifling a small yawn, she stretched herself up out of her rolling chair and made her way over to the other side of the bed, trying her very best not to be awkward about their sleeping placement. Jarrah still faced the TV, but she saw the slight tension in his muscled shoulders as she laid out as far away as she could get away from him, a strange silence enveloping them both.

Finally, Jarrah settled on a showing of It's Always Sunny in Silver Peak. She stifled a giggle at the over-exaggeration of the Fae TV show and found her gaze stuck on Jarrah's faraway look. He didn't seem to focus on what the characters were saying, but rather the Fae themselves. Did he know them? Did they remind him of home?

Rayne had the powerful urge to reach out and pat his shoulder, but she didn't. She did, however, speak up to check on him.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, pushing away her pride.

Jarrah turned his head to look down at her, an emotionless expression on his face, though a swirl of curiosity touched his eyes. She clenched her fingers under her head and tried not to focus on the soft curve of his relaxed lips and sharp jaw. He was beautiful, even if she tried to deny it.

"For what?" Jarrah asked, his eyebrows furrowing.

"I feel like a broken record at this point. But for being forced to come along on this death mission," she whispered. "I realize how . . . fortunate I am getting to say goodbye to my family, my friends, and can even call them. And you yourself didn't get the chance to say goodbye to your people, nor do you get to call them. And for that I-I am sorry."

He stared at her for a moment, his gaze stuck on her as if searching for the right response. She sat silently with her tongue forced between her teeth. What did she expect him to say to that, though? That it was okay? It wasn't. That it wasn't her fault? It was her father, which made her indirectly responsible for his actions, too.

"You shouldn't worry about it," he murmured, his voice tight.

"I don't wish to," Rayne admitted. "But I do. When I look at you, all I can think about sometimes is how you could spend your last moments with your soon-to-be fiancé rather than with some girl who isn't even alpha yet. That you resent me for being the future ruler of a creature you despise. And I could live with that if it weren't because we have to work together to make it home alive. To both of our people."

"So, what? You want my forgiveness?" Jarrah asked incredulously, an eyebrow raised.

She hurriedly shook her head. "No, I could never ask for that. I just want you to know that I'm sorry it has to be you, and I want to try to . . . get along, I guess. Just until we get the elixir. After coming to this lodge full of starers, I realized it really is just us until we either get the elixir or die at Crimson Peak. Either way, we're stuck in this mess together and being at each other's throats is just going to make all of this harder than it needs to be."

Rayne really wasn't sure where her speech was coming from, but she knew the situation had to be talked about. They both would rather be elsewhere, or at the very least, stuck with people of their kind. But they weren't, and if they were going to run into vampires again, they were going to have to trust each other enough to have each other's backs. She wasn't so sure that the next time they came across a pair of patrolling vamps that there wouldn't be some amount of bloodshed. In fact, she was counting on it.

And she needed Jarrah to be on the same page. Their survival was essential to their families back home, and they couldn't very well accomplish anything at the rate they were going. Besides, it wouldn't be a bad idea to befriend someone just for their last days together. She never gave death much thought, but she supposed if it were to happen, she would want it to be beside a friend.

"Perhaps I have treated you a bit harshly," he finally admitted, pushing out a hard sigh. "It isn't you I blame. Even if your kind—"

He paused, then wrinkled his nose. That time, when he trailed his gaze up to her awaiting eyes, something in them softened just a little. His harshness rounded out into something much more friendly than she had ever seen on him, but still guarded enough that he wouldn't let her in. That didn't bother her so much. As long as he was willing to be civil, that was all she could ask for.

"Even if your kind is highly irritating," he finished. A small smile broke free across her lips. "Though I only rule over my kind, I'm still king and should act as such. No matter how infuriating you are."

"I so want to take my earlier sentiment back."

"Nope, you can't. The deal's already done," Jarrah chuckled, adjusting his body more comfortably against his pillows.

"Not yet. We can't have a deal unless we shake on it. No need for that mark on your body stuff, just a good old fashioned shake."

Jarrah rolled his eyes, but held out his hand for her to shake, humoring her. Rayne ignored the way her soul jumped at the feel of his warm hand in hers when she wrapped her fingers around his, and they both gave a firm shake, their eyes connecting. It was very brief, lasting no longer than ten seconds, but a tiny part of her knew that she could have stayed forever in those ten seconds.

The thought terrified her, so she was thankful that Jarrah was the first to break the little connection. She placed her hand back under her head, trying to ignore the rapid beating of her foolish heart as she closed her eyes.

The previous thought of something being wrong returned to her that night. And it took every ounce of focus to push those thoughts away and attempt to get some sleep.