Meadow's Keep (The Gatekeepers Series) (10 page)

Dorian took the hand Morgan offered before he continued. “Eryk, this isn’t bullshit. It may sound like it, but trust me, what I’m telling you is as real as...,” he stopped, thought for a moment, and added, “your abilities.” When he knew he had Eryk’s attention, he continued. “Ian, a very bad man,” he started and changed his statement when he felt a squeeze from Morgan. “That’s not entirely accurate. We aren’t sure about that. Ian came from Scotland with the idea that he was a throwback to ‘visitors’ from the other plane. He married Kayla—but that’s another story,” Dorian amended, not ready to go into that yet.

“
He’s the only one we’ve ever seen like that…." Dorian stopped, something nagging at his mind, but when he couldn’t grasp it, he shook his head, and continued. “He believed that, if he didn’t get through the portal, he would die. He convinced Morgan and me that he would. Anyway, he’d hired Rob, a physicist, to help him figure out a way open the portal. But Rob’s mind was affected by the creatures and he thought Morgan…then Jasmine…,” his voice broke.

Jasmine looked up, her eyes now dry. “
I know it’s confusing. It’s also complicated. There are crystals and gems that help direct energy, or so we think. Rob was obsessed with those. That’s why he took me to the mine. I quickly realized he was crazy, and I didn’t want him going after Morgan, so I let him think that I could help him. When it didn’t work, he went over the edge, and raped and beat me.” She hesitated. “Repeatedly.”

“Son of a….”
Sparks flew from Eryk’s fingers.

Jasmine reached over and grabbed his hand, bleeding off some of his energy into herself. A small gasp escaped her lips. When he tried to pull away, she held tight. “Dory found me.
Jenn brought me to Safe Harbor to recover and I found a life there. The end.” She finished a bit too quickly and flashed a half-smile at him.

The end
.
His anger flared. “What happened to...?”

Morgan spoke. “Rob had a complete breakdown and, although better, is in a
special hospital. He has no memory of what happened."

“Or he’s not owning up to it,”
Dorian ground out through clinched teeth.

Morgan ignored him. “
Dorian and I helped Ian, the man who started the mess, get through the portal.”

“And the creatures?”

“There hasn’t been any activity since he went through. At least we haven’t seen any.”

Eryk
turned to Jasmine. “I am so sorry.”

Her smile was tremulous. “Me, too. But hey, I got this.” She lifted her hand and bands of energy leapt between her fingers.

He took her hand. At first, she felt the tingle, then the energy dissipated as he brought it to his mouth and kissed her fingers. “So you did.”

Dorian and Morgan
looked from the couple sitting across from them to one another, a wealth of meaning passing between them.

“That’s some story,” Eryk said and held onto Jasmine’s hand when she tried to pull away.
“I’ve no doubt about the attack—”

“Jasmine,
” Morgan interrupted and stood, using the table for leverage, “why don’t you show Eryk the cottage while Dorian and I clean up.” She watched Jasmine until she saw Jasmine’s understanding nod. “Then we can have pie and coffee.” Dorian was on his feet, steadying his wife.

The moment Jasmine opened the back door, Meesha dash
ed out, leaping from the stoop to the middle of the path. With a happy yap, she was off, racing around the garden beds and finally disappearing around the side of the building.

“If I eat another bite today….”
Eryk laughed.

“Just think of it as your good will effort,” Jasmine said. “Besides, you haven’t tasted Miss Grace’s pie yet.”

The moon hung heavy in the evening sky, casting streams of light across the garden and the cottage.

Eryk stopped and looked around him.
His eyes adjusted to the lower night light instantly. “It’s lovely.”

“
Ummm-hmm,” Jasmine hummed and stepped on the path that led from the shop to the cottage. The gazebo, which stood across from the cottage, glowed bright white in the moonlight. So many memories came rushing at her. She felt like she’d been gone forever.

They approached the cottage. Its diamond
-shaped panes on the window overlooking the garden gave it a quaint, European flavor. One almost expected a thatched roof. Late blooming vines encircled the windows, where beams of moonlight caught the facets of carefully placed stones. Bits of colored light sparkled from inside.

“It’s
almost magical.” Eryk followed her as she stepped inside.

“You have no idea,” Jasmine said
and closed the bottom of the Dutch door, letting moonlight shine through the upper half.

This is how she wanted Eryk to see the cottage—like some fae
rie-built dwelling set amidst the human world. She led him past the stone fireplace to a spot in front of the open French doors and stepped into a braided rug, stopping as he stepped on it as well. Facing him, she held out her hands.

A slight frown creased his brow, but
he took her hands in his and felt a slight tremble move through his body. He barely saw the room as he watched her, his eyes riveted on the lines of her slender neck. When Eryk looked up into her obsidian eyes, he thought he might drown.

“I’ve never done this before,” she said, her voice slightly deeper, a lover’s whisper.

Before he could comment or pull her to him, he felt the energy pulse from her to him. Instantly, he responded, sending back a matching pulse. The intake of her breath let him know his eyes had begun to glow. Like his eyes, the stones in the room sparked to life. The rug beneath their feet took on a glow, as well. He could hear a pulsing sound, then a hum. Between them, light shot up from the rug, spiking between them and through them, sending energy up his entire body.

Jasmine closed her eyes.
Eryk watched and, as it had begun, the hum, the glow, and the energy, began to dissipate until they were once again standing in an ordinary room on an ordinary rug. Except, his body still thrummed from the power coursing through him and he stepped into her. Her lips were parted, her eyes closed, and he watched the tip of her tongue moisten her bottom lip. That was his undoing. Even knowing what he’d just learned about her, he couldn’t seem to stop himself. Like a magnet, she drew him.

He brought his mouth down on hers. For an instant
, he felt her stiffen and he let his lips softly rest against hers, his breath mingling with hers. He felt the tension ease from her body and she leaned, ever so slightly, into him, letting his mouth take hers. In the next instant, she jerked back, as if shocked.

His voice
, when he spoke, was so husky, so deep, he almost didn’t recognize it. “I won’t hurt you. Ever. I won’t do anything you don’t want me to. I promise you.”

She nodded
. Before she could answer, a shrill whistle pierced the night and Meesha barked in response.

“Well,
” Jasmine said, trying to sound casual, “now you’ve seen the cottage.” Without looking back, she headed for the Dutch door.

“What’s in there?” Eryk nodded
back toward the French doors.

“The bedroom and bath.”

“Ahhh,” he looked back longingly but followed her, slightly chiding himself.

“
So, you want to tell me just what happened?”

“That was the portal. If there had been any Gulatega out and about, they would have gone back through. They are drawn to it,” she hesitated for adding, “just like they are drawn to those that can see them.”

“Now you tell me.” Eryk stepped outside and waited for her to reattach the door halves. He looked toward the shop and could see Dorian and Morgan moving around in the kitchen, Meesha at their feet. Dorian placed her food bowl on the floor and she gave a quick tail wag before concentrating on business. As Jasmine stepped past him onto the path, he took her hand, and they walked through the garden to the shop, their fingers entwined, a slight pulse moving between them. She released his hand as they stepped into the kitchen.

“Looks like you’ve got
your stand-ins,” Jasmine announced and took a seat at the kitchen table. “We can open the portal.”

Morgan placed warm apple pie in front of Jasmine and Eryk and straightened, her hand immediately going to the small of her back. “That’s not….” She let the words die off when Jasmine arched a single brow at her.
“Well, not entirely. Bask did mention….” Again, she let the words trail off.

Jasmine looked at Eryk.
“There are several of these spots around the world. Most of them are safeguarded by couples.” She felt her face redden as she said the words. “People that can control the portal,” she amended. “With Morgan pregnant, Bask—who I’m sure you will meet soon—wants to make sure this one is covered. When Melissa and Thom died—” She stopped suddenly, her eyes shifting to Dorian. “Oh, Dory—”

He waved a hand, taking a gulp of air. “My parents—sponsors—were killed suddenly last year. It left the portal un
guarded. That’s why Bask brought Morgan down. We matched.”

“Matched?”
Eryk looked from Dorian to Morgan, then to Jasmine.

It took a moment for Dorian to find the right words. “Two people
with matching traits, like Morgan and myself or you and Jasmine.” He studied his twin. “Hell, you seem to carry all the traits. You might match with Morgan—or me for that matter—we need to try that out. Hell, you might be able to do it by yourself.”

Eryk frowned. He
wasn’t thrilled with the idea of being “matched” with anyone but Jasmine. And he sure as hell didn’t want to do it by himself.

“It takes a matched pair
and—until you and Jasmine—it was always a woman with the green-eye trait and someone like me, with the power of the earth—to control the Gulatega and the portals.” Dorian grabbed a container of ice cream from the freezer as he spoke and brought it to the table, hefting the scoop into the air like a flag. “Anyone?” They all smiled and he dished heaping scoops of vanilla on top of the hot apple pie.

All eyes turned to Eryk as he took a bite.

“I’ve gone to heaven,” Eryk exclaimed.

“Miss Grace is
absolutely the best pie maker in the world,” Jasmine exclaimed.

“I think I’m in love,” he moa
ned. “Wonder if she’ll marry me?”

“Stand in line.” Dorian laughed.

The foursome sat with pie and coffee until they’d finished off both the pan and the pot. As tempting as it was, Morgan refrained from the caffeine, drinking milk instead. They talked about the need for a couple to be available near the portal, since that seemed to keep the creatures at bay. Those that were loose were drawn to the person who could see them. Then, they could be sent back.

It was
agreed that when Morgan went into labor, with Eryk’s and the Abbott House’s airplanes readily available, Jasmine and Eryk could be in Ruthorford and ready to take over within a few hours.

Eryk found himself agreeing to something he still wasn’t sure was real.

By the time Jasmine and Eryk walked through the lobby of the B & B, the lights had been turned down low with a sign on the desk read, “Ring Bell for Service.” They walked up the stairs to his room and he slipped in his key.

“This is the first time
I’ve
been walked to my door.” He smiled at her, his skin forming little crinkles next to his eyes. “Want to come in?”

Jasmine immediately took a step back. “No. I want to go visit my apartment. It’s been so long.”

He didn’t push, as much as his body ached for the closeness of her. “Then, I’ll see you tomorrow.” He stood there for a second. “Isn’t this where my date gives me a kiss?”

A laugh erupted from her and she stepped forward and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“Not what I had in mind, but I guess it will have to do.”

She turned and strolled down the corridor, waving her fingers over her shoulder.

****

Jasmine
jogged down the dim stairs as she’d done for years. Growing up in the Abbott Bed and Breakfast, she knew this building like she did her own face. Smiling, she let her fingers trail down the banister as it curved toward the lobby. She slowed as she reached the open lobby with its ornate furnishings, glancing back toward the dining room. There, silhouetted against the moonlit window sat a lone figure, hunched over, absently stirring what looked like a cup of tea.

“Want company?”

Teresa jumped, startled out of her reverie. She waved her over. “I heard you come in. I didn’t expect you to come down so soon.”

Not commenting,
Jasmine pulled out the chair across from her cousin and sat down, letting her gaze linger out the window over the backdrop of the grand weeping willow dipping its feathery limbs into the shimmering water. “I guess we take for granted just how beautiful it is here.”

“I know I do,” Teresa said. “Sometimes, all I can think of is how far it is down to the water…toting a tray.”

Jasmine heard the deep sigh. “You okay?” she asked, letting the love and concern tint her question.