A Search for Paradise (On Hold)

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Austic and I arrived at the hut just as Seraphine was leaving. She didn’t question seeing him there, she just nodded approvingly to me. I invited Austic inside.

Austic stood uncomfortably in the corner, awaiting Mila’s presence. After a while of awkard silence, I decided to get her up.

“Mila,” I hissed, shaking her shoulders. She mumbled something incoherent. “Austic is here.” Mila’s eyes instantly flew open.

“What did you just say?” she snapped. I opened my mouth to answer but she held up her hand. “I know what you said! Why in the world is he here?”

I bit my lip. My brilliant plan didn’t seem so brilliant anymore. Mila didn’t seem very happy about it.

“I just thought it would be a nice surprise for you,” I said weakly, begging her to understand my motivation. “And don’t you think he has a right to know his daughter and have a relationship with her?”

“He has no right!” Mila shouted. I could just imagine how Austic would be cowering in the other room. “I did fine raising Mae! And he rejected me. I never wanted to see him again, Serenity, then you go meddling.” Mila’s eyes filled with angry tears. “Just get Mae out of here. I don’t want Austic to meet her.”

I nodded and grabbed the sleeping three year old, holding her close to me on my hip. I felt bad about inviting Austic here without Mila’s permission so I did as she told me.

I rushed out of the hut, leaving Austic an apologetic smile. I hoped Mila wouldn’t be too hard on him; he only did what he did for her safety.

Mae stirred and woke up.

“Sara,” she said in a high-pitched young voice. “Where we going?”

“We’re going to have some fun,” I lied. I was taking her to Forbidden Bay even though I knew if Mila ever found out, she would kill me. Tristan and Jayce would know how to get rid of my guilty feelings.

“Sara!” The boths exclaimed happily, running up to me. Jayce grabbed Mae off me, tickling her and Tristan spun me around. I laughed. They were like big children.

“You must be Mae,” Tristan smiled kindly at my little niece who smiled shyly. Tristan and Jayce had heard a lot about her from me since when she was born, she had been the first baby I remembered seeing.

“How’d Mila take the surprise?” Jayce asked. I sighed, unhappy with him for bringing it up.

“Terrible. She started accusing him of abandoning her and she refused to let him meet Mae. He only got a glimpse of her.” Both Tristan and Jayce looked sympathetic.

Jayce gently put Mae on the ground and she began running in the small waves and collecting a pile of pretty shells. I missed the joys of being young and naïve, not having to worry about anything.

I sat in sand, keeping a constant eye on Mae and listening to Tristan and Jayce mucking around with each other.

“Do you hear that?” Tristan suddenly stopped holding Jayce in a headlock and tilted his head to the sky.

It was the low rumbling noise the Elders had been so worried about, but it was louder than I had ever heard it before.

“There it is!” I cried, pointing up to the sky.

Right above us was... well I had no idea what it was, but the best thing I could think of to describe it was a shiny, massive bird. The front of it was titling forward and it was approaching the island quickly.

“It’s coming!” I shrieked, grabbing Mila and following Tristan and Jayce into some bushes. Tristan’s arms were around me, trying to still my shaking, while Jayce kept a lookout.

“There are people dropping from it!” he announced over the roar.

Sure enough, as I looked up to the sky, I saw people with rainbow material kites flying above them. Before long they land on the beach with a quiet thud.

Jayce, Tristan and I held our breaths, hoping the strange people wouldn’t notice us here, but Mae didn’t understand what was happening.

Mae wriggled and when I held her closer, she let out a shrill cry. The men paused in their tracks.

“Did you hear that?” one of the men inquired. He had a strange accent, much different to the ones on Anya. The other men nodded and began searching the bushes.

Tristan and Jayce pulled me back out of the bushes, but my grip on Mae slackened and she got free. She ran out onto the beach back to her pile of shells and continued her search.

“No!” I screamed, unable to hold it in. I ran up to Mae and picked her up, hiding my face in her blonde hair. Tristan and Jayce stood with me. They would always stick with me in the hard times; I knew I could count on them with that.

I slowly lifted my eyes from Mae and they met the mens’ curious ones.