Stretching was the first order of business the next morning. The muscles in my arms were a little sore. Nate wasn't kidding when he said me and my phoenix were one in the same. I'd have to remember to not fly four hours in a single day again until I was more used to it. An extra twenty minutes a day lifting weights should help build a little stamina.
"So, about this whole getting married thing, you know we really don't ever have to go through with it."
I rolled over and faced him, a little shocked at the words that had left his mouth. He'd asked who I was the day before when I'd brought up the wedding and I had the same question floating around in my head.
"Why not? I thought that's what you wanted."
"I guess it's more that I want what it represents. Amongst our kind, after one in a set of mates resurrects we do a ceremony to renew our bond," he explained.
"It sounds like a reasonable thing to do. So why are you trying to get out of our wedding?" I asked.
I'd finally decided to move forward and he was backpedaling. I'd never been good at reading mixed messages. I expected a good explanation from him, or I was going to talk to Vinnie about all the ways he thought of killing Rick.
"The phoenix ceremony doesn't have to be a wedding. Weddings are relatively new in the scheme of things. Technically, no one even has to attend the ceremony other than us. In the past we've gotten married in modern weddings, but those were mainly because they were necessary at the time. During some time periods, us living together and not saying vows would've been a big no-no," he replied.
I couldn't believe I ever cared about what society really thought of me. I was sure every community wasn't the same and we could've found one that didn't mind us living in sin, so to speak.
"Can whatever is said or done during the phoenix ceremony be said at a wedding, too?" I asked.
"Of course. It's mainly what is said. We each say a couple lines that resync our souls. It can be done anytime."
"Good, then we can do it at our wedding on March second," I replied. "I know I've said that I never really wanted a wedding, but looking through the wedding dresses with Anne and Ettie made me realize I was going to miss out on something most girls live for. Plus, I have the perfect dress already picked out. I just need the occasion to wear it," I said as I rolled out of bed and ran to use the bathroom.
When I came back, Nate was dressed and waiting for me. Neither of us had been big on taking showers with five or six other people living in this small house. The first thing I planned to do when I got home was going to be taking a nice long soak in a tub.
"I also want you to know, even with all this talk of a wedding and us taking our relationship to the next level, I'm not going to turn into a girlie girl. I'm not going to be throwing myself at you, or magically be okay with lots of gross PDA," I informed him.
"I don't know if you've noticed, but we sometimes have the weirdest conversations first thing in the morning."
"That we do, but more often than not, they're important. So, do you know when the tryouts for the games start, and what else they're planning other than a hockey game?" I asked. I loved watching hockey, so I was sure to be kept entertained by all that went into the game, but I knew a game didn't last all day.
"From what I understand, it's kind of like the Olympics. The hockey game is the main attraction, but there are also archery, snowboarding and speed skating events," he explained.
"So, it really is going to be a full day of stuff."
I wondered if anyone could enter the events. I wasn't really good at any of them, but the thought of accidently shooting an arrow in Rick's butt sounded like a fun way to waste a few minutes.
"Yup. Apparently it's a big party atmosphere and everyone really enjoys it," he replied. "I know you hate parties, but I think you'll enjoy this one."
"Should I be nice and make everyone pancakes this morning?" I asked.
"We'll need our energy to get our spot in the game, so that would be very kind of you," he said, leading me out the door. Food seemed to be a big motivator for all the men in my life.
Downstairs, we found Vinnie already fixing the pancakes, which wasn't surprising. "You know, Vinnie dear, you are lucky I like you. There are very few people I'm okay with cooking food for me. How have you been? I haven't seen you much the past couple of days."
"I've been well. Your fianc? has been keeping me busy, but I've been enjoying the work," he replied.
"You don't happen to want to tell me what you've been up to, do you?" I asked.
"I agree with Nate that's better you don't know just yet. I imagine by the end of the day everything will be revealed," he informed me.
"Just as long as we're in agreement that you two never side against me like this again."
"I don't think we're siding against you. We're both committed to protecting you and that's what we're doing," Nate said.
"Fine, whatever. You got any of those pancakes ready for me, Vinnie?" I asked, ready to refuel. Dinner had replenished some of the calories I'd lost from flying around, but I felt famished.
"Sure, here are four with your name on them," he said, passing me a plate. Nate grabbed his own plate and we sat down to spread butter over them before topping them with maple syrup.
As we were chowing down, Elizabeth entered the room and grabbed a plate for herself. Like me, she was still in her pajamas, which consisted of black silk pants and a matching top. I thought the fabric looked a little cold for an Alaskan night. I swore by my cotton clothes, though, so I was admittedly biased.
"Good morning, parental units," she said.
"Good morning," Nate and I said between bites.
"So, what are your guys' plans for the day?" she asked.
"Well, the tryout thingys are today, so I think most of the guys are going to be busy with that, while I watch from the sidelines," I replied.
"That's going to be boring. How about you ride up with me to Bethel, so I can get some supplies. When guys start playing together, there are always injuries and I want to make sure that I have plenty of bandages."
"That sounds like fun. Just let me know when you want to leave," I said, finishing off my pancakes. "I'm going to go put on some decent clothes for the ride, and then I'll be ready anytime."
I was hoping a little alone time would allow me to extract tidbits of my life Nate wasn't ready to talk about. I didn't truly expect to be successful. I wasn't sure exactly what he'd threatened everyone with, but the way people clammed up around me made me think his punishments weren't nice.
"I'll probably be ready in an hour, so take your time," she replied.
I got upstairs and changed into my jeans, boots and a top that said?National Sarcasm Society?with a nice little logo and then a line that said?Like we need your support. I ran a brush through my hair, which was getting increasingly greasy.
Not liking how it was sitting, I grabbed a ponytail holder and pulled it back. That was as good as I was going to get without a few hours in a bath, so I headed back downstairs.
Vinnie and Nate were deep in discussion, so I walked over to interrupt. As soon as they saw me, they stopped talking. If they didn't want to appear suspicious, they should've kept it up but changed the subject.
"What ya guys talking about?" I asked.
"Nothing important. You all ready to go into town?" Nate responded.
"As ready as I will ever be. Is anyone else going with us?"
"Nope. I think it will be good for you and Elizabeth to hang out together, but I want you to be extra cautious. You didn't choose today to forget to wear your knives, did you?" Nate asked.
"I'm packing my normal amount weaponry. Are you worried I'll run into a hungry polar bear?"
"You never know. I want you to be on alert and don't rely on a spell to save you. You're just learning how to use them and it takes time for you to get them out. If you find yourself in any kind of trouble that you have issues getting out of, turn in to a phoenix and fly back," he lectured.
"Yes, mother," I replied,
rolling my eyes.
"You don't know how hard it is for me to let you go out without any of your bodyguards. I'm trying really hard not to freak out."
I leaned over and kissed his cheek. "I know. This is the first time in months I'll be without you and it already feels strange. I won't be gone too long. I'm hoping we can make it back before lunchtime, because I really would like to watch some of the tryouts."
The front door opened and Elizabeth walked in. That was kind of odd; I thought she was in her room getting ready.
"You ready to head out?" she asked.
"Sure, let's go." I gave Nate a final kiss good-bye and followed her over to the snowmobile shed.
We jumped on, starting the trip through the snow. For wanting company on the trip, Elizabeth sure wasn't talking. After about ten miles, I noticed my snowmobile chugging a little oddly. Three minutes later it stopped altogether.
"What in the world?" I asked as I jumped off to take a look.
Elizabeth doubled back around and asked, "Is something wrong?"
"Yeah, it just died on me and I don't know why. We should've brought the sled thing with extra gas. I'm guessing it ran out," I said as I unscrewed the fuel lid to try to see inside. Without a flashlight I ruled that impossible.
Elizabeth got off her snowmobile and walked over to me. "That's too bad. What's the phoenix queen to do now?" she asked in a tone I didn't much care for. "Out alone without your guardians once again." She started laughing, a high cackle-like sound.
"Are you okay?" I asked, getting a little concerned for her mental health. I'd heard we didn't get sick often, but I wasn't sure if that covered mental illness.
"Why wouldn't I be? You killed my husband two days ago and acted like you did something special," she replied.
"Your husband? I killed a warlock two days ago. Last I checked phoenixes only married other phoenixes. How in the world was the warlock your husband?" I asked. The mental health issue was looking more promising.
"That would be true, you stuck-up pansies. No one is good enough for the phoenixes. You'll see what happens when Master gets a hold of you. You'll be begging for someone to help you, but no one will, because you're just too good for the rest of us," she said. The look of my death in her eyes was a little unnerving, but I'd seen the look before.
"You aren't my daughter."
"No, and I'm not as stupid as my husband to try to fight you with magic," she said as she pulled out a dagger.
She lunged at me and I tried to dive out of the way, but she delivered a slice into my side. Dang it. That fricken hurt. I grabbed the machete from my back sheath, not even bothering to go for a throwing knife. She wanted a knife fight; she was going to get one.
"Where is my daughter and what in the not nice word are you?" I asked as we started to dance.
"After I'm through with you, your daughter is going to be the least of your worries. This dagger I have can kill you," she taunted.
"Like hell it can," I responded. "There's only one knife out there that can and that little baby dagger is not it."
"How can you be so sure?" she asked as she took another dive at me.
"Because, you idiot, you've already cut me with it and I seem to be still standing. I'm pretty sure your 'master's' knife just needs to draw a little blood to do its job." Whether that was the case or not, I wasn't letting her sink the blade into me a second time.
"That doesn't mean I can't do a lot of damage before I take you to him to finish you off," she said, trying to figure out a way for her to get the advantage.
"Screw this," I said, tired of playing around with her. When it came to fights, I was always impatient. I threw the machete at her stomach. It was a big enough target that even though it wouldn't kill her, it would probably stop her for a second.
Seconds after I let the knife go, I heard Nate yell, "Avery, get down." I followed instructions and hit the dirt, or snow in that situation. Two guns firing in rapid succession echoed above my body.
When the firing stopped, I looked up to see Rick and Nate walking towards me. I glanced over to see a woman who no longer looked anything like my daughter. She had jet black hair and had aged ten or twenty years. I wasn't close enough to analyze all her features, but the blood pouring out of her and vacant eyes led me to believe she wasn't exactly amongst the living.
"Would someone like to explain what's going on?" I asked, dropping my hands to my hips.
CHAPTER 28
Tonight the wolf is silent and only the moon howls