The Soul Mate (19 page)

The sound of a gun’s slide being cocked
behind me cut off Gerik’s rant.

“You’ll have to kill me first,” Xan told him,
raising his semi-automatic at Gerik’s head.

“I should have killed you the first time you
looked at her like she was something other than mine!” The ground
beneath us shook harder and all three of us faltered. The nervous
clucking coming from the chicken coop grew louder.

“She’s a person frate,” Xan said, his voice
deceptively quiet. “Not a pair of shoes.”

Gerik let loose a roar filled with anger. “I
am not your brother!” With a wave of his hand a blast of wind
wrapped around Xan. His dreads flailed wildly as he fought for his
footing.

His gun hand, however, didn’t waver. “You
were once,” He told Gerik. “Remember?

And you were right,” He continued. “What you
said that night…” Xan looked at me and his dark gaze softened. “I
do love her.”

My heart stuttered. Reality had never felt
more right than it did right now. Despite what Nature did or
demanded, it was Xan who had my heart and soul. Or half of it
anyway.

Xan looked back at Gerik, his grip tightening
as he held the gun higher. “So you see, you will have to kill me
because the only way I’m letting her go is if my heart no longer
beats.”

Silence.

Then Gerik surprised me. He walked away. He
walked right through the wards and disappeared inside the shadows
of the forest, his storm following him.

Later, I found out that Xan had presented my
case in front of the “Kris-Romani”, which was essentially the
traditional court of the Romani people. Usually the court would be
made up of several Clan Baró’s. The Baró’s would appoint a neutral
member of one clan to preside over the court, who conclusively
would pass judgment on the person in question. In light of the
circumstances that wasn’t an option, so Jericho had appointed
Stefan, the most neutral man in camp. I had to agree, Stefan was
very kind.

It had been ultimately decided that Onyx
should be banished as was the typical punishment for attempted
murder on a clan member. However, true banishment would be a death
sentence in today’s world so she was ostracized instead. As far as
the clan was concerned, even through Onyx would continue to live in
camp, the clan would treat her as if she’d gone.

I had to admit, even as much as I hated her,
it seemed rather brutal. But something else was nagging at me. I
sat up in my bed and tugged on one of Xan’s dreads.

“Attempted murder on a clan member?” I asked,
confused.

I could honestly say I’d never seen Xan look
sheepish before. Shifting in bed, he began clearing his throat. I
raised my eyebrows.

“I…uh…well…”

“Xan! You what?”

“We’re married,” He said quickly.

I blinked. “No we’re not.”

“Trin.” Xan looked uncomfortable. He cleared
his throat again. “That night… when I found you in the woods and
then… Fată, you honored me when you gave yourself to me.”

Embarrassed, I threw a pillow at him.
“Careful Xan, someone might start to think you’re a nice guy.”

He shook his head. “No. That’s just it. I am
a bastard. Always have been. But I feel different with you, better.
And I meant what I said to Gerik. I love you. God, I love you.”
That intensity I’d glimpsed in his eyes earlier had returned.

“What you went through, all that crazy shit,
just to give yourself to me.” He shook his head again, his face
full of wonder. “It’s probably the most selfish thing I’ve ever
done but fuck if I was going to let you go after that.”

Oh Gods. I sucked in a breath. “Drina’s!” I
shouted, scooting away from him. “You wouldn’t let me leave! You
even tied me up!”

“That’s the thing Trin. I couldn’t let you
leave. Not without giving us a chance.” He scrubbed a hand over his
face. There was real pain in his eyes.

“Fată, I never wanted to trick you but
knowing that you might have walked out of my mamă’s after what
happened between us and still ended up with Gerik…” He cursed.

“I would have rather died before I watched
him take you from me. I needed something to make you mine that was
just as strong as the bond he has with you. Marriage is sacred in
the eyes of my people. It’s everything.”

I wanted to be mad, I really, really did.
After the lies and manipulations I’d been through with Gerik, what
Xan had done should have felt like a betrayal. I’d trusted him,
gave him all of me and he’d tricked me. Tricked me into
marriage!

And yet… it didn’t hurt. I knew how Xan felt
about me. I heard him tell Gerik he loved me despite the obvious
danger he’d been in. And I knew with a certainty I’d never felt
before that I shared his feelings. Without magic.

“Why would Jericho believe you?” I asked,
skeptical. “Who’s to say you weren’t lying about marrying me?”

Xan opened his mouth to speak.

“Drina!” I yelled before he could get a word
out. Why Drina had never returned to her trailer now made sense. I
kicked him playfully in the leg. “Your damn mamă’ was in on
it!”

He grinned. I shook my head. “I’m going to
kill you,” I told him, very seriously. .

Bracing myself on his knees, I lifted up his
shirt.

“This is really going to hurt,” I promised as
I kissed my way up his stomach, delighting in how his muscles
tightened as I went.

“That’s cool fată.” He said thickly. “It’ll
be a good way to go.”

CHAPTER
TWENTY-THREE

“Ack!” I nearly choked on a mouthful of stew
when Xan pulled me into his lap and buried his face in my neck,
quickly making his way toward my mouth.

“How am I supposed to eat with you all
over…mmph!”

“I can’t eat either; you’re both making me
physically ill,” Shandor complained.

“How the mighty have fallen.” Gunnar grinned
at Xan, who flipped both of them off around my shoulders.

I tried to eat another spoonful of stew and
ended up with a mouthful of Xan.

“Seriously Trinity, take your man and get a
room,” Becki said, laughing as she sat down next to me.

I tried to give her a hug but Xan was loath
to fully release me. I ended up having to half hold onto him and
give Becki a one armed hug.

Aside from wearing one of Hockey’s destroyed
Blackhawk jerseys, she looked good. Her skin had a healthy flush
and her eyes were sparkling. She was smiling too, something Becki
hadn’t done willingly in a long time. Was it too much to hope that
I had my friend back?

“Are you moving back home?” I asked.

Becki laughed and looked at Xan and then at
Hockey. “Forget something, hun?”

I bit my lip and tried hard not to laugh at
my scowling husband. Husband? So not used to that. The last thing I
thought I’d be at 22 was married. Graduating from college, yes. But
married, no.

“No,” She said, now laughing at the
expression on my face. “I’m moving in with Hockey and Stevo.”

She didn’t mention Gerik, their third
roommate. No one had seen him since he’d walked through the wards.
He’d never come back to camp and no one had seen him since he
left.

“It only seems right,” Hockey said, sitting
down next to her. “That we let Stevo stay since he played such a
critical part in our marriage.” Becki leaned into him as he planted
a big, wet kiss on her cheek.

“Besides,” Becki continued. “How can I
subject him to having to move back home?” She lowered her voice
significantly. “To Aishe…” She made a face and the entire table
laughed.

“He could move in with us,” Shandor said,
referring to Pitti and himself. “Xan has officially left the
building and joined the ranks of boring.”

“Nope!” Pesha slammed his fist down. “I went
through two hours of my mamă crying and hugging me just so I could
leave. I’m not giving that up!”

Pitti groaned. “I just barely got away from
you, now I have to live with you again?”

A piece of bread went flying over the table.
Bouts of cursing followed in several different languages.

I leaned back against Xan’s broad chest and
tugged his arms forward, wrapping them around me.

“Mmmm,” He said and squeezed.

Crisis’s aside, the camp once again fell into
a normal routine. Everything that had happened over the past few
months began to slowly fade with time. With Gerik gone and Onyx
refusing to leave her tent, it was easy to forget the turmoil I’d
gone through.

Living arrangements were settled peacefully
with only mild grumbling, mainly between Pitti and Pesha.

Becki and Jaelle began planning a formal
ceremony to celebrate her marriage to Hockey.

And I settled comfortably into my
relationship with Xan.

I delighted in the newness of having someone
to share everything with, in a way that surpassed the boundaries of
family and friendship. In a lot of ways I was experiencing so many
things for the very first time. I had never realized just how many
restraints the bond with Gerik had actually put on my life.

Things I had never taken any interest in
before had suddenly emerged and I felt myself changing, wanting to
become a part of everything and hating how much I had missed out
on. Boys and parties, shopping and dances, bonding over ridiculous
girly things, all missed. And for what?

Because Nature had strapped me with a magical
chastity belt that had left me unable to move forward until I met
my other half. No matter that my other half had been living out his
life just as any normal male would; he hadn’t been repressed in any
way. Or purposely conditioned to be a most dutiful and loyal mate.
And why would he? He was the one I had been made for. He was all
powerful and deserving. He was the one I had been made for.

I was more than ready to catch up.

Xan viewed my innocence as some sort of
blessing, some kind of redemption he wasn’t deserving of. I’d often
find him staring at me as if he couldn’t believe I was real. What I
never told him is that at night, after we’ve made love and he’s
fallen asleep, I do the very same thing.

Magic, for some people, is a state of
mind.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

When I went to Jaelle’s tent to dress for
Becki and Hockey’s ceremony, I was delighted to find the dark blue
dress that only days earlier, had long sleeves and a high neck and
been several sizes too large, now fit me like a glove.

Short, fluttering, off the shoulder sleeves
had replaced the long ones and where the high stiff neck had been
there was now a low scooped neckline with Jaelle’s signature floral
embroidery on the bodice. The waist pulled in tightly and then
flared out beautifully, stopping a few inches above my knee. It
wasn’t anything you would have been able to find in a modern store.
Custom made to fit every single one of my curves, it looked like a
piece of art and I felt like a Goddess inside of it.

After much fussing, Jaelle finally decided to
wrap my hair in an elaborate twist, pinning it together at the base
of my neck. She finished off the look with several strategically
placed buttercups that grew near the creek. Then I was shooed away
so Becki’s bridal transformation could begin.

I found Stevo, instead of Xan, waiting by my
trailer.

“Where is Xan?” I asked, confused.

“He said he’ll meet you there.”

The clan had gone all out for the wedding.
Elaborate beadwork decorated almost everyone’s home and colorful
strips of cloth had been tied to the branches of the trees in
camp.

The fires blazed high with rainbow colored
flames, Maisera’s handiwork, as she made her rounds sprinkling
crumpled herbs on each of them.

The excitement was palpable. The happiness
the clan had expressed the night Hockey had kidnapped Becki was
nothing compared to the genuine joy that shone on their faces
tonight. Tonight the Baró himself would bless their union before
Nature.

Stevo led me to where Jericho was waiting to
preside over the ceremony. Depositing me to the right of the Baró,
Stevo took his place next to Hockey on Jericho’s left. The rest of
clan waited around the bonfire.

When the violins began to play, Becki emerged
from the living lot on Stefan’s arm. Her dress was as simple as
mine, a deep pink that hit just below her knees and had been cut
specially with extra room for her growing mid section. A handmade
wreath of flowers sat atop her braided hair and in her hands she
held a beautiful collection of wildflowers. Becki was truly a bride
tonight.

Their vows were a quick, shortened version of
a catholic wedding ceremony mixed with the Romani beliefs. Hockey
pulled a heavily bejeweled ring out of his pocket, a gold band,
inlaid with rubies and placed it on Becki’s finger.

Their kiss was probably the most improper
wedding kiss I’d ever seen. It was decadent and sensual. It was
wonderful.

Wasn’t everyone supposed to cheer at the end
of a wedding? Instead the camp had grown eerily quiet and everyone
turned expectantly to me. Jericho, smiling down at me, surprised me
by reaching out and grasping my hands.

“Trinity Shannon Petros…” His deep voice
boomed. “Have you come here freely and without reservation to give
yourself in marriage?"

Oh Gods. An apple had nothing on how bright
frickin’ red I turned.

Becki and Hockey, hand in hand, wearing
matching wicked grins, moved out the way as Xan took their place in
front of me. Jericho placed my shaking hands in his. He held on
tight. A good thing too, I was ready to run.

“Trinity?” Jericho repeated.

“No,” I said through clenched teeth. Xan
deliberately cleared his throat.

“I’m sorry Trinity, I didn’t hear you. Could
you speak up please?” For an old man Jericho had excellent hearing.
I shot him a dirty look which he returned with an innocent
expression.

Refusing to look at the tricky jerk that had
already tied me to a bed and was now publically humiliating me, I
mumbled, “Yes.”