Night World : Soulmate Chapter 4

Thierry knelt by the window, careful not to base a noise or disturb the dry earth beneath him. It was askill so familiar to his physical structure that he might withstand been born with it. Darkness was his native environment hecould melt into a shadow at an instants notice or move more quietly than a stalking cat. plainly right now hewas looking into the coruscation.He could realise her. Just the disregard of her shoulder and the spill of her hair, tho he knew it was her.Beside him, Lupe was crouched, her thin body human nevertheless quivering with tool alertness and tension.She whispered, softer than a breath, All right?Thierry tore his gaze from that shoulder to look at her. Lupes guinea pig was bruised, one eye almost closed,lower lip torn. But she was smiling. Shed stuck around Medicine Rock until Thierry had arrived, dogthe girl c completelyed Hannah Snow, making sure no harm came to her.Thierry took Lupes hand and kissed it. Youre an angel, he told her, and made even little auditory sensation than shehad in speaking because he didnt use his vocal chords at completely. His voice was telepathic. And you deservea pertinacious vacation. My limos at the tourist resort in Clearwater take it to the airport at Billings.But-youre not preparedness to stay here alone, are you? You need spineup, sir. If she comes-I can take care of things. I brought whateverthing to cheer Hannah. Besides she wont do anything until shetalks to me.But-Lupe, go. His tone was gentle, but it was unmistakably not the urging of a ace anymore. It was theorder of her liege lord, Thierry of the night World, who was accustomed to being obeyed. Funny,Thierry mind, how you n ever so realized how accustomed you were to being obeyed until soulfulnessdefied you. Now, he bringed away from Lupe and looked through with(predicate) the cracks in the boarded-up windowagain.And promptly forgot that Lupe existed. The girl on the range had turned. He could collect her face.Shoc k coursed through him.He had kn avouch it was her-but he hadnt cutn that it would look so much desire her. Like the way she hadlooked the first measure, the first time she had been born, the first time he had proven her. This was what hethought of as her true face, and though hed seen various approximations of it through the years, hednever seen it again. Until now.This was the exact material body of the girl hed f exclusivelyen in cope with.The same long, straight fair hair, same(p) silk in unlike shades of wheat color, spilling over her shoulders.The same wide gray eyes that seemed full(a) of light. The same stunner expression, the same tender m turn outh,upper lip indenting the lower to give her a look of t unintentional sensuality. The same fine bone structure,the high cheekbones and graceful line of jaw that made her a sculptors dream.The wholly thing that was different was the birthmark.The psychic brand.It was the color of watered wine held up to the light, of wat ermelon ice, of a wiretap tourmaline, the palest of gemstones. Blushing bloom. Like one large petal, slantwise beneath her cheekbone. As if shed laid arose against her cheek for a moment and it had left its imprint on her flesh.To Thierry, it was beautiful, because it was part of her. Shed worn it in either lifetime after the first. Butat the same time the actually sight of it made his pharynx clamp shut and his fists clench in helpless grief andfury-fury against himself. The mark was his shame, his punishment. And his penance was to watch her labour it in her innocence through the years.He would pour out his blood on the dry meitnerium dirt right now if it would take the mark away. Butnothing in either the Night World or the human world could do that-at least nothing hed found in numberless years of searching.Oh, Goddess, he loved her.He hadnt allowed himself to feel it for so long- because the feeling could drive him insane plot of ground he wasaway from her. But now it cam e over him in a flood that he couldnt excite resisted if hed tried. It made hisheart pound and his body tremble. The sight of her lying in that location, warm and alive, separated from him by scarce a few flimsy boards and an equally flimsy human maleHe call fored her. He inadequacyed to yank off the boards, step through the window, brush aside the red-hairedman, and take her in his arms. He wanted to carry her off into the night, holding her close to his heart, tosome secret place where nobody could ever find her to weakened her.He didnt. He knew from experience that it didnt work. Hed done it once or twice, and hedpaid for it. She had hated him before she died.He would never risk that again.And so now, on this spring night near the turn of the millennium in the state of Montana in the UnitedStates of America, all Thierry could do was kneel foreign a window and watch the newest incarnation ofhis only Jove.He didnt realize at first, though, what his only love was actually doi ng. Lupe had told him that HannahSnow was seeing a psychologist. But it was only now, listening to what was expiration on in the room thatThierry slowly realized exactly what Hannah and the psychologist were up to.They were trying to recover her memories. Using hypnosis. Breaking into her subconscious as if it weresome bank vault.It was dangerous.Not just because the guy performing the hypnosis didnt seem to know what he was doing. But becauseHannahs memory was a time-bomb, full of trauma for her and deadly knowledge for any human.They shouldnt be doing this.e real muscle in Thierrys body was tense. But there was no way he could stop it. He could onlylisten-and clutch.Paul repeated with slow resignation, Hes not human. No. Hes a Lord of the Night World. Hes omnipotent and evil, Hannah whispered. Hes lived forthousands of years. She added, almost absently, Im the one whos been reincarnated.Oh, terrific. Well, thats a twist.You dont believe me?Paul seemed to suddenly remember that h e was talking with a patient-and a hypnotized patient at that.No, I-I mean, I dont know what to believe. If its a fantasy, theres got to be something underneath it,some psychological reason for you to make it all up. And thats what were looking for. What all thismeans to you. He hesitated, then tell with new determination, Lets take you rearward to the first time youmet this guy. Okay, I want you to relax in the light youre feeling very good. And now I want you to goback through time, just like turning back the pages of a book. In your mind, go back. Hannahs ordinary mind was intruding, argus-eyed up, overriding the dreamy part of her that had beenanswering Pauls questions. Wait, I-I dont know if thats a good idea.We cant figure this out until we find out what it all symbolizes what it means to you.Hannah mute didnt feel convinced, but she had the feeling she wasnt vatic to argue under hypnosis.Maybe it doesnt matter, though, she thought. Im waking up now I probably wont be abl e to go back.I want you to see yourself as fifteen years old, see yourself as fifteen. Go back to the time when youwere fifteen. And now I want you to see yourself at twelve years old go in your mind to the time whenyou are twelve. Now go farther back, see yourself at nine years old, at sextette years old, at terzetto years old.Now go back and see yourself as a baby, as an infant. Feel very comfortable and see yourself as a tinybaby.Hannah couldnt help but listen. She did feel comfortable, and her mind did show her understands as theyears seemed to turn back. It was like watching a take on of her life running backward, herself getting smallerand smaller, and in the end tiny and bald.And now, the soothing, irresistible voice express, I want you to go farther back. Back to the time beforeyou were born. The time before you were born as Hannah Snow. You are floating in the red light, youfeel very relaxed, and you are going back, back to the time when you first met this man you vie w ofas Thierry. Whatever that time might be, go back. Go back to the first time.Hannah was being drawn down a tunnel.She had no control and she was scared. It wasnt like the rumored near-death tunnel. It was red, withtranslucent, shining, pulsing walls-something like a womb. And she was being pulled or sucked through itat ever-increasing speed.No, she thought. But she couldnt say anything. It was all happening too fast and she couldnt make asound.Back to the first time, Paul intoned, and his words set up a sort of echo in Hannahs head, a whisperingof many voices. As if a hundred Hannahs hadall gotten together and murmured sibilantly, The First Time. The First Time. Go back and you will begin to see pictures. You will see yourself, maybe in a strange place. Goback and see this. The First TimeNo, Hannah thought again. And something very deep inside her whimpered, I dont want to see it. Butshe was still being pulled through the soft red tunnel, faster and faster. She had a feeling of u nimaginabledistance being crossed. And then she had a feeling of some threshold being reached. The First Time.She exploded into darkness, squirted out of the tunnel like a watermelon seed between wet ringers.Silence. Dark. And then-a picture. It opened like a tiny leaf florescence out of a seed, got bigger until itsurrounded her. It was like a scene from a movie, except that it was all around her, she seemed to befloating in the middle of it.What do you see? came Pauls voice softly from very far away.I see me, Hannah said. Its me-it looks just like me. Except that I dont have a birthmark. Shewas full of wonder.Where are you? What do you see yourself doing?I dont know where I am. Hannah was too amazed to be terrified now. It was so strange . .. shecould see this better than any memory of her real life. The scene was incredibly detailed. At the sametime, it was completely unfamiliar to her. What Im doing Im holding something. A rock. AndIm doing something with it to a little tiny s omething. She sighed, defeated, then added, Im eroding tool skins Its a sort of shirt and pants all made of skins. Its unbelievably primitive. Paul, theres a cave behind me.Sounds like youre really far back. Pauls voice sounded in stark contrast to Hannahs wonder andexcitement. He was clearly bored. Amused, resigned, but bored.And-theres a girl beside me and she looks like Chess. Like my best friend, Chess. Shes got the sameface, the same eyes. Shes wearying skins, too some kind of skin dress.Yeah, and it has about the detail of most of the past-life regressions in this book, Paul said wryly.Hannah could tell he was flipping pages. Youre doing something to something with a rock. Yourewearing some kind of skins. The books full of descriptions like that. People who want to imaginethemselves in the olden days, but who dont know the first thing about them, he muttered to himself.Hannah didnt wait for him to remember that he was talking to a hypnotized patient. But you didnt tellme to be the person back then. You just told me to see it.Huh? Oh. Okay, then, be that person. He said it so casually.Panic spurted through Hannah. Wait-IBut it was happening. She was falling, dissolving, unify into the scene around her. She was becomingthe girl in front of the cave.The First TimeDistantly, she heard her own voice whispering, Im holding a flint burin, a tool for drilling. Im boringholes in the tooth of an arctic fox. Be that person, Paul was repeating mechanically, still in the bored voice. then he said, What?M other(a)s going to be furious-Im supposed to be sorting fruit we stored last winter for the Spring,Gathering. Theres not much left and its mostly rotten. But Ran killed a fox and gave the skull to Ket, andweve spent all morning knocking the teething out and making them into a necklace for Ket. Ket just has tohave something new to wear every festival. She heard Paul say softly, Oh, my God Then heswallowed and said, Wait-you want to be a paleontologist, right? You know about old things I wantto be a what? Im going to be a shaman, like Old Mother. I should get married, but theres nobody Iwant. Ket keeps telling me Ill meet psyche at a gathering, but I dont think so. She shivered.Weird-Ive got chills all of a sudden. Old Mother says she cant see my destiny. She pretends thatsnothing to worry about, but I know shes worried. Thats why she wants me to be a shaman, so I canfight back if the spirits have something rotten in mind for me.Paul said, Hannah-uh, lets just make sure we can get you out of this, all right? You know, in case thatshould become necessary. Now, when I clap my hands youre going to rout out completely refreshed.Okay? Okay?My names Hana. It was pronounced slightly differently Hah-na. And Im already awake. Ket islaughing at me. Shes threading the teeth on a sinew string. She says Im daydreaming. Shes right Iwrecked the hole for this tooth.When I clap my hands, youre going to wake up. When I clap my hands, youre going to wake up. Youwill be Hannah Snow in Montana. A clap. Hannah, how do you feel? Another clap. Hannah?Hannah?Its Hana. Hana of the River People. And I dont know what youre talking about I cant be somebodyelse. She stiffened. Wait-somethings happening. Theres some kind of commotion from the river.Somethings going on.The voice was desperate. When I clap my hands-Shh. Be quiet. Something was happening and she had to see it, she had to know. She had to stand up.Hana of the Three Rivers stood up.Everybodys all excited by the river she told Ket.Maybe Ran fell in, Ket said. No, thats too much to look forward to for. Hana, what am I going to do? He wantsto mate me, but I just cant picture it. I want somebody interesting, somebody different. . . , She held upthe half-finished necklace. So what do you think?Hana barely glanced at her. Ket looked wonderful, with her short dark hair, her glowing slanted greeneyes, and her mysterious smile. The necklace was attractive red beads alternated with polishedmil ky-white teeth. Fine, beautiful. Youll break every heart at the gathering. Im going down to the river.Ket put down the necklace. Well, if you insist- wait for me.The river was handsome and fast-flowing, covered with little white-capped waves because it had just been joined by two tributaries. Hanas people had rived inthe limestone caves by the three rivers for longer than anyone could remember.Ket was behind her as Hana made her way through new green cattails to the bend in the river. And then, she saw what the fuss was about.There was a stranger crouching in the reeds. That was exciting enough-strangers didnt come very often.But this stranger was like no man Hana had ever seen.Its a demon, Ket whispered, awed.It was a young man-a male child a few years older than Hana herself. He might have been handsome in othercircumstances. His hair was very light blond, lighter than the dry grass of the steppes. His face waswell-made his tall body was lithe. Hana could see almost all of that body because he was only wearing abrief trounce loincloth. That didnt bother her everybody went naked in the summer when it was hotenough. But this wasnt summer it was spring and the days could still be chilly. No sane person would gotraveling without clothes.But that wasnt what shocked Hana, what held her standing there rigid with her heart pounding so hardshe couldnt breathe. It was the rest of the boys appearance. Ket was right-he was clearly a demon.His eyes were wrong. more(prenominal) like the eyes of a lynx or a wolverine than the eyes of a person. Theyseemed to overleap the pale sunlight back at you when you looked into them. But the eyes were nothingcompared to the teeth. His canine teeth were long and delicately curved. They came to a sharp and verynon-human point.Almost involuntarily, Hana looked down at the fox tooth she still held in her palm. Yes, they were likethat, only bigger.The boy was filthy, caked with mud from the river, his blond hair ruffled crazily, his e yes staring wildlyfrom side to side. There was blood on his mouth and chin.Hes a demon, all right, one of the men said. tailfin men were standing around the crouching boy, severalof them with spears, others with hastily grabbed rocks. What else could have a human body with animaleyes and teeth?A spirit? Hana said. She didnt realize that she was going to say it until the words were out. But then,with everybody looking at her, she drew herself up tall. Whether hes a demon or a spirit, youd betternot hurt him. Its Old Mother who should decide what to do with him. This is a matter for shamans.Youre not a shaman yet, another(prenominal) of the men said. It was Arno, a very broad-shouldered man whowas the leader of the hunters. Hana didnt like him.And she wasnt sure why she had talk up in favor of the stranger. There was something in his eyes,the look of a suffering animal. He seemed so alone, and so frightened-and so much in pain, even thoughthere were no visible wounds on his body.Shes right, wed better take him to Old Mother, one of the hunters said. Should we hit him on thehead and tie him up, or do you think we can just herd him?But at that moment, a high thin sound came to Hana over the rushing of the river. It was a womanscreaming.Help me Somebody come help me Ryls been attacked