Morning

Joyceta turned from the roaring fire. Her eyes drifted up toward the ceiling. “She rests.”

“Good. The draught worked then.” Remedio nodded as he picked up his drink and took down the last drop of liquor.

“Did you really have to drug her?” Jardan grumbled from where he sat on the couch.

His mother gave him a reassuring look. “We really had no choice, dear. The…disturbance will only get worse. She’ll be terrified otherwise.”

As if in response to her statement, the windows shuddered again, and the loud sound of the rain was nearly deafening. The storm intensified.

Jardan shoved himself up, his fists clenched to his side. “Why can’t we just be honest with her? Tell her…”

“Silence!” Remedio slammed the glass back down. His wife jumped, and Jardan froze. “The decision has been made. We will honor it. Do you understand?”

Jardan lowered his head and nodded in reluctant agreement. “But what about…?” His voice trailed off.

His parents looked toward the curtained windows. Their faces were blank, but their eyes narrowed at the wind and rain that battered furiously against the house. Remedio poured his glass full of alcohol again. “He will have to wait as well.” Tossing his head back, he drained the glass.

*****

Callie woke up feeling extremely rested. She raised her arms above her head and stretched, feeling her muscles relax. With her eyes still closed, she let out a deep sigh. She froze as her fingers touched the headboard above her. She ran her fingers over the deeply etched wood. Opening first one eye and then the other, she looked around the unfamiliar room.

Her heart began to race as her eyes scanned the elaborate furnishings. Shadows played across it all as the only light in the room came from a small nightlight in the corner. The sound of heavy rain drew her eyes to the window. Callie sat up as memories of where she was settled in for the night. Relief flooded through her knowing she was safe and sound, though the sound outside her window seemed to tell her it was not for lack of effort on behalf of the storm.

A shiver passed through her as the windows shook behind the heavy curtains from the crash of the thunder. Normally one who loved storms, she couldn’t suppress the sense of fear that pulled at her. This storm was stronger than any others she had been in. That alone drew her to it as it also repelled her.

Pushing the covers back, Callie put her feet down on the thick carpet and walked slowly toward the darkened window. Her heart thundered along with the tempest just outside. Her hands closed on the thick curtain and pulled the cord she found under the hand.

The light from the lightning blinded her as the curtain pulled back. Callie raised her hands to shield her eyes from the intense flares. Peeking through her fingers she saw the flashes die down until she was able to lower her hands and look out.

The once-vibrant landscape was covered in dark shadows from the boiling clouds above. The beauty of the spring day was gone. Callie swore it was a scene from the end of days she had seen in a movie. As she watched, the thunder intensified and the lightning increased. Callie’s heart pounded as it grew closer to the house. She could have sworn it was aiming right at her.

The clouds grew closer as they pulled tight in their swirling mass. Lightning streaked across the sky and blinded her once again. It was then she felt the arms around her.

As the arms wrapped around her and pulled her from the window, the curtains were pulled closed by another set of hands. Callie gasped.

“Ssh,” Jardan whispered. “It’s okay. Just me.”

“What are you doing?” Callie pulled back though she had to admit she liked having his arms around her.

Jardan let her go as the light next to her bed came on to reveal the other person as his mother. She looked over Callie with concern.

“You should be in bed.”

“The storm was too loud. I just looked outside.”

Joyceta gave her a reassuring smile. “Let’s leave the curtains closed. It is safer that way with all the lightning tossed around out there.” She gave her son a nod as she left the room.

Callie ran her hands over her arms as she realized the state of undress she was in. Jardan kept his eyes politely averted, but it was getting more awkward by the second. Quickly she climbed back into bed and pulled the blankets up. As she did, another crash of thunder was volleyed against the house causing it to shake. A scream erupted from her before she could stop it.

Jardan rushed to her and climbed up on the bed to pull her into his arms. The thunder continued as though actual canons were being fired at them. Round after round crashed around them. Jardan wrapped his arms around Callie who gladly moved into them and tightly gripped his shirt.

The minutes ticked by as they sat still. Callie felt safe within his arms. Never would she have thought she’d be so close to him. He was just a nice kid at school. Granted, he was also the hottest one that went there, but that was beside the point.

He smelled of sandalwood. She loved that smell from the soaps her mom would make at home. It had a quality about it that made her think of centuries ago in the country. Breathing in deep, she wondered if she could stay that close to him.

She pulled back slightly. It was foolish of her to think like that. He was far out of her league, plus there were other girls at the school with their eyes on him.

Pleasantly surprised, he didn’t completely let her go. Instead, he kept his arm around her and pulled her down to the bed keeping the blanket between them as a barrier. Reaching out his arm, he turned off the light and pulled her close. Callie didn’t protest. The thunder was loud and really did scare her so having him there was very comforting. Letting reality slip away she enjoyed it and didn’t even realize how quickly sleep was to come.