Ali Vali

The sun fought its way through a veil of fog, painting the outside of Indigo’s window with pale hues of pink. Though her body would never become weary or feel fatigue, her mind felt tired from the onslaught of thoughts she’d grappled with all night. This truly was the calm before the storm that was becoming more and more inevitable.

In the hall she heard Lenore whisper something but she couldn’t make out the words. "Well?" she asked when the door opened and her old friend appeared.

"From the sound of it, it might be difficult to get them to concentrate on anything other than finding a warm place to lie down."

The comment made the blonde laugh, relaxing her just a little. "From the sound of it, they might not need any flat surfaces. Then again, heat or the creation of it in other people has never been Asra’s problem."

"What is?" A dark brow climbed just a tad on Lenore’s face as she tried to ignore the slight tint of jealousy in Indigo’s comment.

"Nothing, absolutely nothing," answered the woman who knew Asra so well. "Come on, Lenore, let’s leave them to the afterglow a while longer. We have a lot to talk about and we still have to recruit Charlie."

Memories of the house’s past inhabitants looked down on them as they made their way down the stairs. "That won’t be a problem will it? Unless there’s something you’re not telling me."

"It won’t be a problem, I’ve just learned politeness in my old age," teased Indigo. "One gets better results when you ask instead of demanding."

"And the rest? We need more than Charlie to turn the odds, or at least balance them, in our favor. History dictates that most follow the side that will keep things as they are. No one wants change, especially if it affects them in any way."

"I’ve gone to the ones I trust first." They had reached the top of the levee across from the house and Indigo stopped to stare at the muddy churning waters of the Mississippi." It’s not enough, but we can’t chance someone finding out too early. If we put our trust in someone who will act as a spy we might as well bury ourselves in that deep dark hole now."

"How many?" Lenore stared out at the water as well. She sent up a silent prayer that she would be free to return to the city she now called home when their job was done. In a country so new, New Orleans had an old feel about it that she loved and wanted to experience more of.

"Five, once we talk to Charlie."

"Is it enough?"

"I honestly don’t know, but once we add Asra to the mix, it might just be. If Bruik’s visions were correct, she would fight Satan himself to keep Piper safe. Especially if she’s on the verge of getting everything she ever wanted and never thought she’d have."

The librarian looked back to the house and in her mind’s eye could see Asra holding the woman she loved. "Promise me you’ll put as much effort into this as she will."

"I love her, Lenore, but I’m happy she has Piper. I promise I’ll be ready when the time comes. Let’s just hope she’s ready to leave soon, there’s a lot to be done before we return home to the Elders."

"It’s not exactly a trip I’m looking forward to. You’d think that living so long would have taught them something more than just repeating old mistakes." She let out a disgusted sounding breath as her head bowed almost in defeat.

"Like you said, they don’t like change, but I think it’s more than that. They’re afraid for what they did and what will come of it. In some cases they learned too late that immortality wasn’t just given to those who use the gift to improve mankind. It was also given to the nightwalkers and their like to corrupt and spread evil. Sometimes a force like that can be found in your own house." Gently she put two fingers under Lenore’s chin and lifted her head so she could see her eyes. "They should have listened to you then, and I’m hoping they learned that lesson well, and listen to you this time around."

"Hopes and prayers sometimes only bring grief as an answer."

"And sometimes they bring great big surprises like a brave young warrior named Asra. We were supposed to be her teachers, but you know something?"

Lenore took the hand Indigo was offering and they started back to the house. "What’s that?" The change in the conversation was improving Indigo’s mood and it showed in her step.

"I think she has taught us more in return than all the others combined. In my time with her I’ve come to places like this and wondered if all the days we gave her with the elixir had started to make her mad. I mean why waste all the years building something like this if there was no point to it? She couldn’t stay on for years and enjoy the fruits of her labor as it were."

With a slight squeeze of her hand, Lenore smiled before asking, "And what’s your opinion of that now."

"That she’s wiser than I gave her credit for." A finger came up and pointed to the expanse of land Kendal still owned. Careful planning and foresight had kept Oakgrove fairly intact over the years, the ownership passing from one carefully made up identity to the next. "She built it and I see now she is enjoying the fruits of those labors. All the houses give her a sense of herself and a safe haven to come back to when she needs that place of belongingness. It’s funny that this one in particular was the one I didn’t visit until it came to mean something more to her."

"That’s because it’s the one place that didn’t need the competition of too many memories of past loves."

The blonde scrunched her brows together in a look of confusion. "What about Angelina?"

"Because of what happened, Angelina will never be as an important a part of Asra’s life as you are. I’m not saying the young woman wasn’t important to her, but what the two of you shared goes deeper and much further back than what they would’ve had together." Lenore stopped them as they got to the road making Indigo look up at her. "You have to do your best to assure Piper your feelings are just that. Something that was, and now is, nothing more than one friend caring for another."

"Have you so little faith in me?"

"I’m not the one who said Asra’s problem is creating heat in others." Indigo opened her mouth to respond but Lenore went on. "Please don’t think I’m judging you or that I have no faith in you. I just want to give this a chance with the fewest number of obstacles in the way. I have every faith in you, Indigo, and I hope when all this is done you find the same things our pupil has found."

Indigo sighed, her shoulders slumping a little. "There is no peace for me, it’s something I’ve come to accept."

"I may be just a woman interested in books, warrior, but I know a little about life as well. Peace will find you when you stop looking for it and just start believing in it."

************************************************************************

Still wrapped in the blanket Kendal had draped over them, Piper was happy to just be held for the moment, but her lover could see she was lost in thought. "Is something wrong?" asked Kendal.

"Where is it exactly that we’re going to meet these people who want to see you?"

"The Elders’ compound is found in Egypt. There are older civilizations, but that one ranks up there and it is where they feel the most comfortable, but I think it might be prudent to stop in London first."

Piper moved so that she was lying completely on top of Kendal. She wanted to see her face and feel the comfortable heat beneath her. "Why?"

In a now familiar gesture between them, Kendal brushed back some of the blonde hair affectionately before answering. "The sword you saw in your vision last night has a story of its own and it might be important. After all I own more than four thousand of the suckers and you narrowed it down to one. Don’t you think that deserves some investigation on our part?"

"How long do you think this will take?"

"Honey, if you really don’t want to go, you can stay here. I’ll be back as soon as I can."

Quickly Piper put her hands on Kendal’s face wanting to center the taller woman’s attention. "I’m not asking because I want you gone from me, I’m asking because I have to come up with something to tell my grandparents. We just got back from Venice and now we have to leave again, but I want to go. I trust you but you have to admit you have a certain something other people have a hard time resisting. I’d feel better if I was within hitting distance should that happen again in the near future."

"You’re planning on hitting me every time a woman talks to me?"

Piper’s hands softly slapped Kendal’s cheeks before the blonde squeezed them together. "I’m thinking it would be better if I was there hitting anyone who’s hitting on you." The joking faded away then as if Piper thought of something else. "Do you think it’ll take us away from them for a long time?"

The logical part of her mind that had made Kendal such a good soldier told her to leave it alone. Mac and Molly Dupont had distraction and complications written all over them, but her heart looked into the pain filled eyes above her and she willingly complicated her life. "Go and tell them I have business in London then Egypt and if they want they can come along. If they like, they can stay at Farthington House while we continue on the next leg of the trip."

"Really?"

"Yes, but there’ll be some things that will be hard to explain. How open minded are they?"

"With long explanations they’re willing to accept everything about me." There was a slight smile playing on her lips as she said it so Kendal wouldn’t think she was just being difficult.

"Long explanations won’t always be possible, love. These past years have been a rarity for me in that I’ve continued the Mackey name for more than one generation and I’ve stayed in one country for the most part for more than fifty years. The houses around the world aren’t to show off my wealth, but to have some place to retreat to when the people in the area have forgotten about the last mistress or master of the property."

Piper kissed her one last time before moving to sit up. The blanket fell away bathing her body in the now gray light coming from the French doors all along the back of the room. Even as she talked to Kendal the memories of what her mind had shown her the night before became clearer and there was still a lot to discuss about that. Her grandparents, what they needed to know and worrying about it would have to wait.

"Will you show me the sword room?" asked Piper.

"I’ll show you whatever you want."

She looked at their current state of undress and smiled at the still prone woman looking up at her. "Think we can sneak upstairs before anyone sees us?"

With cat like grace Kendal was on her feet in a second and walked toward the door. "We could but unless my guess is way off we won’t have to." She opened the door a crack and looked out to make sure none of the household staff was milling about before waving Piper over. "The people who work for me, or I should say us, have an uncanny ability to meet needs without being asked." At their feet were two robes neatly folded and a tray with coffee and a basket of croissants. "Shall we? There were a couple of chairs in there last time I looked." Kendal helped Piper on with the robe and picked up the tray when she had donned her own. "Can I ask why the sudden interest in my long time interest?"

"It’s like you said last night, you own thousands of these things but I zeroed in on one. One I might add that I’ve never laid eyes on and it’s driving me a little crazy trying to figure out why that is." Piper snuck one of the pieces of bread off the tray and took a bite. "Maybe if I’m surrounded by sharp pointy things it might give me a clue."

The room was almost at the center of the first floor of the house and the door was the only one with a keypad to the right that required an access code to gain entrance. When the blonde looked closer it wasn’t numbers covering the pad but hieroglyphics. "We’ll start on your lessons soon I promise, but for now trust me the code is ‘May the power of Isis be with me and keep me from harm.’"

"You don’t trust the staff?" tweaked Piper.

"The staff I trust, but there are some who would like to see me defenseless. Nothing gives you the advantage in a fight better than an unarmed opponent."

When the lights came on it was like stepping into a museum and Piper walked to the middle before saying anything. There were, as Kendal had described, a couple of chairs with a small table between them towards the center, but aside from that there was also a fascinating collection of weapons adorning the room. They were well cared for but all of them held the nicks and scratches that came from obvious use and at once Piper’s thoughts turned to the woman who had wielded them. How many creatures like Henri and Ora had died at the end of Kendal’s blades?

"I know Lenore has done an admirable job of recording some of my adventures through the years, but to me - this is my history." She put the tray down and waved a hand around the room. "Each of them has a story to tell, a memory of how it came into my possession and what battles were fought with it." The wonderful aroma of coffee filled the room as Kendal poured two cups, causing Piper to come closer and take a seat. "It’s funny that in this day and age the battles I fight outside the board room are fought with what today’s military would consider rudimentary methods. Yet, vampires and the like do not react in the conventional ways to bullets and the modern tools of war."

"Tell me about the Sea Serpent Sword."

"How much world history are you familiar with?" Kendal was always so straightforward with her questions, Piper never felt she was questioning her intelligence.

"How much detail are we talking?"

"Blocks of specific time, which in turn affected other eras because of the actions of a few."

"Enlighten me, love."

"In the year 406 a great strategist and leader was born," started Kendal. She stretched her feet out in front of her and tore one of the croissants in half. "The world would never forget the greatest King of the Huns to ever live, and during his reign, Attila came this close to ruling the world," she held her fingers close together before taking a bite of bread.

"The vision you had last night took place on a specific afternoon during that time. The men mounted behind me were a group that had traveled with me for months. The world would eventually come to know them as the Vikings."

"No need, if the rules allow for interference, then so be it." Erik lowered the sword and smiled, further irritating the man before her.

The coffee in Piper’s cup was now cold from having been forgotten during Kendal’s story. "You met Attila the Hun?"

"Not really. I was more the thorn in his side that eventually led to his downfall." Kendal stood to accept the new tray of goodies from the man at the door. She bowed and thanked him in Japanese before turning her attention back to Piper. "I would’ve ridden on and left the battle to fate had Attila achieved all he did by his own merit, but in this case I had no choice."

"Not to change the subject, but will I ever read about you in any history book not written by Lenore?"

"I was made to fight things people don’t believe in except in ghost stories. My job ends there, sweetheart, so I’m sorry to disappoint you. There haven’t been many times I’ve had to get involved like I did in this case, so I left the glory to those who deserved it." She poured two fresh cups of the dark strong brew she preferred and retook her seat. "The thing most people don’t realize, but the world is learning again in our time, is that the fighting is easy. With enough of a force you can go in and crush a weaker opponent, but it’s the aftermath that’s the quagmire no one expects. History belongs to those willing to fix what is broken with whatever society they enter."

"But they aren’t always successful. Sometimes tyrants go in and crush the opposition and rule the defeated with a cruel hand."

"You’re right, things aren’t always fair and that’s the beauty, or perhaps the downfall of history. It is destined to repeat itself more than I care for, especially down the path that proves to be wrong. To win peace, you must be better than what they’ve known, and even then it’s no guarantee. But enough political talk, allow me to answer your question."

"I’m sure that’s going to be the case but it will be no different than any other battle they’ve ever fought. A day will come hopefully when mankind will lose the instinct to conqueror by force, but we both know that day will be long in coming." The witching hour was close and Asra needed to get back to her men. "Will you allow me to see you home?"

"The lesser evil?" asked Piper.

"The Huns were known for their savagery, but the Romans for all their civility had a taste for war and conquering all the same. It was the excesses of their leaders that led them to the fall of the Empire and the dark ages. That unforgettable time in history came just a generation after Attila and the Romans faced off."

"Did you really see that old woman, or did you slip off into la-la land there for a brief interlude?"

"What a funny girl you are," Kendal reached over and tweaked Piper’s nose. "I found my way to where Leif and the others had made camp and told them what I knew, or what they needed to know. We would watch, and if the battle started to turn in favor of the Huns, we would interfere on the Roman and Visigoths’ behalf."

"But what about the woman?" Piper asked almost in a whine.

"As you wish, sire."

"I need no name to give you that which you deserve."

Kendal looked up before Piper could interrupt again. "I would tell you the rest of that story but I’m sitting in a room full of swords and I just had the carpets cleaned," the joke gave the blonde a hint as to what had happened in that tent long ago.

"I’m glad to see you don’t kiss and tell," Piper teased back. "But you are going to have to tell me something."

"This woman came to me as if someone had paid her handsomely to pleasure me into exhaustion. My only guess as to why was that someone wanted me out of commission for battle the next day, not knowing it would never happen."

The woman chanted as her finger moved methodically over Asra’s skin in a language the immortal didn’t understand. It felt like heaven to the warrior, the soft touch combined with the musical voice, Asra never wanted it to end. Not feeling any sense of danger in the woman’s presence, she closed her eyes and lost herself in the feeling. Too soon the chanting stopped and the finger stopped its drawing. Gently the woman placed her hand over Kendal’s heart and spoke so the immortal would understand her.

"When I opened my eyes she was gone and for the second time in less than six hours I questioned my sanity, since I felt like I’d just awoken from a stupor. There was just one thing I wish I would’ve looked at sooner."

Piper stood up and moved closer to Kendal to offer support. "What’s that, my love?"

"I’ve never admitted this to anyone, because I really thought I had gone a little mad, but when I opened my eyes and tried to focus on my surroundings I could’ve sworn I saw…"

Not knowing why Kendal stopped talking Piper put her hands on the taller woman’s thighs and rubbed them gently. "I know you and no matter what happened it wasn’t because you were crazy. You said so yourself earlier, there are things in your world most people wouldn’t understand, so tell me what you saw. I promise I’ll believe you."

Kendal opened her robe and pointed to the spot where the woman had spent so much time running her finger along her skin. "There was a vivid tattoo of a dragon right here and it faded right before my eyes. All I could think of was that she was a witch from one of the nearby tribes sent to curse me somehow, but deep down it didn’t feel like that. When I sat up, there next to me was the Sea Serpent Sword. The dragon coiled on the end was an exact match of the tattoo that had faded from my hip."

"Did she ever come to you again?"

The dark head shook in the negative and Kendal pulled Piper up off the floor. "I never saw her again and I wore that sword in the battle the next day. With our help, the Huns weren’t exactly defeated but were turned back to fight what they thought would be a spring campaign. Attila died that winter and no one else in his ranks was strong enough to hold his empire together. It was the morning after my time with her that you saw in your vision last night."

"Lucky for you I only saw the morning after."

"Lucky how?" asked Kendal.

"It would’ve been hard to explain why Erik the Wolf was sporting a black eye this morning," joked Piper before pinching a conveniently placed nipple. "There’s only one thing to do now."

"Take a shower?"

"After that I meant."

"Find out how comfortable the sheets are upstairs?" The question earned Kendal another pinch to her nipple.

"What a one track mind you have." Piper stood and pulled her partner up from her chair. "Keep that thought for later, but for now we need to find a certain librarian and ask her about a story."

************************************************************************

The story telling was delayed when they found Piper’s grandparents in the sitting room having coffee when they came down. They were having a great time talking to Lenore and Indigo, sharing gossip from the night before. When they saw Piper and Kendal, Molly insisted on getting a tour, and by lunch their travel plans were set for the following day. What had been a quest for a story was soon forgotten in the packing and preparation for a flight to London.

It was like a dream to Piper when the car pulled off the main road late the next afternoon and drove almost ten miles before Farthington House came into view. The estate was breathtaking in its grandeur, enhanced by the formal gardens that surrounded it. There were four servants ready to welcome them and take their bags when the cars came to a stop, all of them bowing to Kendal when she stepped out first.

"Welcome back, sire, I hope your journey was a good one." The man wearing a thick black silk jacket bowed to Kendal again greeting her in his native language.

"Thank you, Ming, it’s good to be back despite the rain and the damp," answered Kendal as she returned the bow. "I hope you received my message and prepared for all our guests."

"We shall see to their every comfort, sire, clear your mind of any worry along those lines. Their opinion of you won’t change when they head home," he smiled up at her then looked to Piper.

"Piper, I’d like to introduce you to Ming Li the head of the household here at Farthington. Ming, this is Piper Dupont, the new lady of Farthington."

His English accent was impeccable when he took Piper’s hand and bowed deeply over it. "It’s my highest honor to meet you, Ms. Dupont. The staff and I look forward to serving you in any way we can."

"Thank you so much, but please, call me Piper."

The man straightened and looked at her to see if she was joking. The open smile gracing Piper’s face was a sign she was not. "Please, ma’am, that wouldn’t be proper." He turned to Kendal for help but the tall woman just raised her hands and shrugged. "Sire, you explain."

"You’re about to find out what it took me weeks to grasp, Ming. The lady has a mind of her own and if you’re not careful she’ll rip you to shreds with that sharp tongue of hers."

"I’ll make you a deal, Mr. Li," started Piper.

"Lady Dupont, please call me Ming," he interrupted her.

"As I was saying, Mr. Li," continued Piper as she took Kendal’s arm. "You call me Piper and I’ll call you Ming. If you insist on Lady Dupont, I’ll insist on Mr. Li."

"Very well, ma’am, I’ll keep that in mind." He bowed to her again before returning his attention back to Kendal. "Lord Wallace, will there be anything else you’ll be needing for this evening?" Ming waited for an answer as he kept an eye on the two other cars coming closer.

"I know you have everything under control so relax," she turned to face the cars as well and plastered a smile to her face. "Just one thing."

"Sire?"

"Once those doors open, it’s Kendal Mackey who’s here for a visit."

"Sorry, sire."

"Lord Wallace?" whispered Piper. "How do you keep all this stuff straight?"

"Years of practice, love."

They truly did look like the Lord and Lady of the manor when the others pulled up. After introductions were made to the rest of the staff, Kendal took the Duponts for a walk in the gardens before the cold night air set in. In a few months, the gardeners would start putting in the seasonal flowering plants to accent the thousands of bulbs that still lay dormant, and Kendal promised Molly another visit to see them in bloom. As they headed back to the house, Molly traded places with Piper and took Kendal’s arm for the return trip.

"This isn’t what I expected of Kendal," commented Mac. Ahead of them Kendal was pointing to something as she answered one of Molly’s questions. "I thought she was from humble beginnings?"

"Let’s just say she had something to prove, but just in case, there was a little bit of family money to fall back on if things didn’t work out."

The joke had its desired affect and Mac laughed. "Does she have a contingency plan for everything? In case all aspects of her life don’t work out I mean."

"Granddad, everyone including me plans for as much as we can, but we are all helpless when it comes to love. I know Kendal would tell you the same thing."

He stopped them, Molly and Kendal going on not noticing they were moving further away. "Are you sure about all this, Piper?"

"Hey, what brought this on? I though you liked Kendal."

"I did…I mean I do, but it’s like this isn’t the Kendal Mackey I thought I knew. The same woman I gave my blessings to, to make my little girl happy." He swung his arms out and turned in a complete circle. "If we didn’t know about this, what else don’t we know about her?"

"First off, I knew about this and the other properties she owns, Granddad. Kendal Mackey is exactly who you think she is. She’s highly successful, ambitious in an honorable way, she’s wealthy and she’s in love with me. Please believe that. She makes me happy and she loves my family as well as me, and that’s more important to me than what she owns."

"Is everything all right?" Kendal called back to them, but came no closer.

"I’m not against this, Piper, I just want you to be okay."

The blonde took his hands in hers and stood on her toes to kiss his cheek. "I will be, Pops. I have faith that Kendal will keep me safe and well loved." She looked over her grandfather’s shoulder at the woman she spoke of and winked.

"Then let’s get this great adventure started, darlin’."

Their walk ended at the side door to the house, which led into the library. Lenore was sitting by the fire engrossed in a book when the foursome entered and stared stripping off their coats. The immortal took the opportunity to study the new people in Asra’s life and how they compared to the kind of family she had imagined her student ending up with.

"Did you all enjoy the grounds?" she asked when Mac moved closer to warm his hands.

"We may need a crowbar to pry Molly out of here when it’s time to go home. My love of boats is only surpassed by my wife’s love of flowers." He looked at the writing on the cover of the book in her lap and couldn’t even make out what language it was supposed to be. "What is it that you do, Lenore?" The woman had been quiet for most of their flight over.

"I’m a librarian by trade, Mr. Dupont, but I also work for Kendal in a research capacity."

"And your friend Indigo, what is it she does?"

"I also work for Kendal, Mr. Dupont, only my field of expertise is security. You can say Lenore is the brainy one and I’m the muscle," teased Indigo as she took her seat next to Lenore by the fire.

"Interesting," he said slowly taking the other wingback chair close to the large fireplace. "Does Kendal have any men working for her?"

"Why not ask her?" Indigo cocked her head in the tall woman’s direction, watching as she helped both Molly and Piper off with their things. "I’ve never known Kendal to be anything but forthcoming."

Mac looked at the woman as well not being able to put his finger on exactly what was bothering him. He was genuinely happy for Piper’s new found love, something he had often prayed would happen, but the more he got to know Kendal the more he felt something was a little off. One of the things he had noticed was the unusual devotion her staff had to her, and the fact a lot of them were young beautiful women, Mac didn’t want any problems popping up for Piper later on if Kendal was the type to get easily distracted.

"Thank you for the advice, Indigo, I think I will."

"Sire, do you wish for us to bring the tea in here or would you like it in the sunroom?" asked Ming.

"In here is fine, and could you please have my briefcase brought into the office? I have some calls to make later but I want to settle Piper and her grandparents in before I do."

"As you wish."

They enjoyed a cup of tea as they watched the sunset over a line of trees not far from the house. In her own way, Kendal answered a lot of Mac’s questions in the normal flow of her conversation. She had heard most of his talk with first Piper then with Indigo when they had come in. The last thing she needed was another complication along with everything else they were facing.

After the light snack Kendal took them on a tour of the house and showed them to their rooms. Their bags had been brought up and unpacked to make them more comfortable and all the rooms had been filled with fresh flowers. All along their walk Mac would stop occasionally and study the paintings on the wall. It was an interesting mix of different nationalities that Farthington House had hanging on its walls, but as interesting as all that was it was the smallest painting near the end of the hall that tacked his feet to the floor.

"This could be your twin," said Mac as he got his glasses out of his jacket pocket.

The young man in the painting was standing next to a large white horse dressed rather causally for the era the painting was from. Unlike most of the other paintings, this man wore no powdered wig, and no elaborate coat or suit and his hair was pulled back in a neat ponytail.

"This is the first owner of the house, Lord Henry Wallace," supplied Kendal.

"The resemblance is uncanny."

"Good strong genes my father always used to say," Kendal pointed to the other end of the hall. "Would you like to rest a little while before dinner?"

"Do you have time to talk to me later? I wanted to discuss a few things with you about Dupont Shipping," said Mac as he followed behind her. And the other million questions running through my head.

"I have a few things to take care of tonight, but if you’d like, we could meet after breakfast tomorrow."

"It’s a date."

"Any dates you’re making, Mackey, had better be with me," joked Piper as she walked up. "Honey, could you come with me please." She pulled on Kendal’s arm and guided her to the stairs. "I’m sorry, were you finished, Pops?"

"She’s all yours, darlin’."

"And I have the papers to prove it," Piper teased again. When her grandfather disappeared behind his bedroom door, the blonde looked to her lover and gave her a weak smile. "Is he still giving you the third degree?"

"I can’t blame him, Piper, this has to be a bit of a shock to him but I hate staying in hotels for long periods of time and I really did think they would be more comfortable here. There is no set timeline on how long we’ll be gone."

They started down the stairs holding hands, stopping when they reached the first landing. "He’s just worried about me. Macarthur Dupont sees things in black and white, and I’m thinking he’s seeing people like Indigo and Lenore and what they are doing here in shades of gray. He just wants to understand."

"Just as long as you understand why people like Lenore and Indigo have to be here, that’s all that counts."

Piper backed her up against one of the wood paneled walls and pressed their bodies together. "I just don’t understand why they all have to be so good looking. What, you people didn’t make any unattractive immortals?" The question was said in jest but there was just a hint of jealousy in it.

"Looking at you, I would have to agree with that assessment. What you have to realize is, when I look at you, you are all I see and all I need." Kendal pressed her palm to Piper’s cheek and bent to kiss her. "You are my definition of timeless beauty."

"I love the way you love me, baby, and I love the way you express how you feel. You make me feel like the luckiest woman alive."

"Well, lucky lady, how would you like to take a look at my sword?"

Piper laughed and hugged Kendal one more time before they started down the last flight of steps. "Coming from anyone else that would just be a cheap pickup line."

From the door of the library Indigo looked out and whispered a warning to Lenore. "They’re heading to the sword room. Should I go out there and stop them?"

The dark head came out from behind the book she was reading and smiled. "The sword is fine for now so come and sit down."

"What to you mean fine for now?"

"I’m only half way through, but I’m thinking whatever secrets the Sea Serpent Sword holds, they’ll stay locked up a little while longer." She pointed to the chair to make Indigo move away from the door and take a seat.

"Only half way through?" She snorted looking at how thin the book was. "I’d have thought you would’ve read it about ten times by now and memorized every word."

"I’m paying attention to the details this time so I’m taking it slow. Besides it’s raining outside and I hate getting wet if I don’t have to."

Not being able to resist teasing the woman when she had the chance, Indigo almost skipped back to her chair. "That’s your problem, Lenore."

"What’s my problem?" She had to look up from the book again.

"You should learn to distinguish between getting wet because you have to, and get wet because you want to." Kendal and Piper heard the laugh as they walked by, but missed the blush that was now adorning Lenore’s face.

************************************************************************

"Has she returned?"

"She’s at Farthington House, master." The young man bowed his head trying not to make eye contact. There was always a splinter of fear that tingled his spine when he was in the company of the man who spoke with a low timber that made you lean forward to be able to hear him.

"Why is that, William?"

It was all in his mind but William could swear that the temperature in the room had dropped a few degrees with the second question. "I don’t know," he answered fighting the urge to cover his head with his hands.

"Julius, there is no possible way she could have figured out the riddle, and she is traveling with the family of her latest little pet. I’m sure the stop at Farthington had something to do with leaving them close while she tends to the Order’s business." The other man in the room sat with his back to the window looking toward the television in the corner. His attention seemed more on the current news cycle on CNN than it did on the conversation in the room.

"I don’t remember asking for your opinion, Travis." A cruel sneer formed on the thin lips and Julius reached up to run his fingers through his hair. It had been a habit of his for years, so much so he did it without realizing it. "I know the prophecy, and I don’t have access to the archives to the degree Lenore does, and we both know how she and that other ungodly bitch feel about Asra. If it’s within their power to make this come to pass, they will stop at nothing."

A scene from the Middle East flashed on the screen making Travis chuckle at the bomb’s aftermath. If there was one thing mankind had gotten good at, it was destruction. "You know the prophecy, or should I say, you deciphered the prophecy quite by accident. Don’t lose your head now, Julius," his joke at the other man’s expense made his smile wider. "After all you just got it back."

In a flash Julius whipped his head in the other man’s direction along with the sword he had been twirling as if limbering up for a match. "Careful yourself, Travis, or else you’ll find out from me what the Order’s punishment is like."

And so it had been for almost sixteen hundred years. His only salvation had come when a newly minted immortal had been curious about the man who had befallen such a cruel punishment and followed the clues that led him to Julius. Travis first found Julius’ head in the mountains of Tibet and his body in a crypt in Egypt, placed there to protect it from those inclined to steal from the dead. With his body whole again, Julius had needed the power of the sun and about a week to get back to the same state of health as the day Rolla had passed judgment.

"I want you both to keep an eye on her," he pointed to Travis then Bailey. "I have much I owe Asra and I want to repay her for all she heaped on me as soon as I can."

"You have slept for centuries and you can’t wait a few months?" asked Bailey.

"It wasn’t by choice," barked Julius. "That time was stolen from me and those who stole it will pay."

"Calm down and sit down," ordered Travis. "Bailey’s right, we have months before the prophecy will come to pass, if it comes to pass at all so show some restraint."

"Have you forgotten who is in charge here?" asked Julius.

The tall fighter looked at the old one as he stood. On his feet he topped Julius by four inches. "I’ll let that one slide this time, Julius, since maybe your brain hasn’t soaked up all the sun it needs yet. But don’t delude yourself into thinking I’m taking orders from you." He walked out without another word and slammed the door on the way out.

"What’s his problem?" Julius asked Bailey.

"He came to me and between us we were able to decipher the clues to where you were, but my guess is that he has his own agenda." From his seat Bailey studied the man who had been his best friend for years. The only time they had disagreed was when Julius had left on his quest to find the man who would fight to make his dreams come true. The immortal had found more than a willing participant in Attila. In all the years they had been apart, Bailey often wondered if Julius had become more than infatuated with the Hun. From all the accounts he had gotten from Attila’s men after their leader had died it was clear to Bailey it was a relationship the mortal had wanted just as much.

"When was he given the gift?"

"Travis is barely two hundred years old. It was Rolla himself who gave him the elixir."

Julius moved closer and sat on the arm of Bailey’s chair running his fingers through the other man’s hair when he was within reach. "Really," he stretched out the word as if he were thinking of something else.

"At first he displayed the same character as Asra and it caught the old man’s eye. Now with all that he’s done, I’m not sure what to think."

"Enough of that for now," he pulled a little on the brown hair in his fingers. "Come, Bailey, we have lots of time to make up for."

************************************************************************

Kendal keyed in the code to unlock the door and stood back to allow Piper in first when the solid steel door slid open. Though somewhat similar to the room in New Orleans, this display had a lot more in it and the pieces were arranged in some cases with the armor they were used with. The blonde looked around in awe at the history the place contained, made all that more amazing to her because it was history made by just one person.

"You used all these?"

"In some manner. My job has always been to fight those creatures that most people couldn’t begin to understand much less fathom that they exist. Their destruction comes only through the blade, so some of the newer ones have never seen combat like some of the older weapons." Kendal sounded almost like a docent as she walked along the large room sometimes stopping to place her hand on a piece in one of the display cases. "It seems strange to me sometimes when I sit and watch war on television and it isn’t some Hollywood production. You can’t imagine what it’s like to face your enemy with only this much distance between you." She pulled one of the swords off its pegs and held it straight in front of her.

Piper looked at her and shook her head. She slid her hand down Kendal’s arm until she reached the sword she held. "Put your toy away, lover, it isn’t what we came to see." There was something in this room that was making her come alive and Piper couldn’t wait to find it. She looked around at the hundreds of blades in the room but they melted away as her eyes focused on the back corner of the windowless room.

The mannequin was wearing a layer of chain mail over its chest, and when she looked closer she could see was woven so that its pattern formed a dragon. The tail was uncoiled and the mouth of the mythical creature was opened as if it were ready to devour its opponent in a wall of flame. The theme was carried out in the stamped metal of the gauntlets and the boot greaves, but as interesting as all that was, it didn’t compare to the sword in the faceless mannequin’s hands. The weapon it held was the one she’d seen in her waking dream. This was the Sea Serpent Sword.

"How did it get the name Sea Serpent when it’s a dragon on the end?"

"The woman who gifted it to me gave it its name. For whatever reason, and to respect her for the wonderful gift she gave, I never thought to call it anything else."

"It’s a sword, honey," said Piper as she ran her finger over the carved handle, "Not exactly the world’s sexiest gift."

"There are swords and then there is this sword." There was a small table near the display Piper was looking at and Kendal leaned against it enjoying the way the blonde looked bent over like that.

"Okay," Piper turned her head from the sword and looked at the relaxed but still imposing looking woman as she dragged out the word. "What exactly does that mean?"

Jumping to her feet, Kendal pulled one of the old practice weapons out of the bins they were kept in at the center of the room. As swords or antiquities went, their only value now was in their age and it was the only reason she still had them. Every so often when the museums in London asked, she would polish one up and make a donation. "Come see," she said to Piper when she had found one that would demonstrate what she wanted her partner to understand.

When the blonde was close enough Kendal turned her around and pressed their bodies together. She moved Piper’s hand until it rested with hers on the sword grip. "We’re going to do a basic warm up exercise then you’re going to do it by yourself." The movements started slowly and Piper lost herself in the serenity of the moment and in the feel of Kendal’s body, snapping out of it when Kendal moved away from her. "It doesn’t have to be perfect but just try and repeat what we just did."

Piper was surprisingly good and repeated each motion down to the end with the same fluid grace Kendal had come to expect from her. "How was that?"

"Beautiful as always, but I want you to do it again."

"I did it wrong?" Piper started to go through the routine again only to have Kendal walk up and take the sword away from her.

"You did it right, I just want you to do it again…with this one," she retrieved the Sea Serpent Sword and handed it over with a small bow.

This time the routine was much less tentative and Kendal could see the smile on Piper’s face. "Wow. I don’t think I could use it to slice and dice anyone but I see what you mean. It’s like this one is balanced or something."

"It is, perfectly. The only way for you to understand it is to actually use it." The weapon was readily handed back when Kendal held her hand out and it was Piper’s turn to sit back and watch in awe. Kendal was going through the same routine she had first seen the day she and her friend Hill had snuck onto the grounds of Oakgrove. The way the tall woman moved made it seem like the sword was a part of her and the blade almost disappeared due to the quickness of the revolutions.

"I never thought something so deadly could be so sexy," whispered Piper when Kendal finished and looked back at her.

Kendal was about to say something, but kept her mouth closed as Piper moved closer to her. When the blonde was close enough she put her hand over the one Kendal was using to hold the sword. Neither one of them could have predicted what happened next. It was like a charge went through them causing every part of them to tingle.

It was all Kendal could do to not ravish Piper on the spot. When the small hand covered hers it had been like her body had come alive with the kind of passion that bordered on lust. With a little restraint she lowered her head and pressed her lips to Piper’s hoping the blonde wouldn’t think she’d lost her mind.

"Honey, we need to go upstairs right now," ordered Piper when their mouths came apart. "On second thought I don’t think I can make it that far," she started pulling on Kendal’s belt trying to get it open.

The whole situation felt as if there was something wrong with it but Kendal didn’t want to stop and analyze what it could be. Her skin burned and the only thing that was going to put out the fire was pressing it to Piper’s. Without thought she dropped the sword to the floor and picked the blonde up at the waist. Immediately Piper’s legs wrapped around her waist and she pressed their lips back together. Kendal’s hands were under the skirt Piper had on by the time she made it back to the table she’d been sitting on earlier.

"Oh God, honey, I want to touch you but I need you now," panted Piper. She wanted to be embarrassed when they pulled apart a little and she saw the wet spot on the front of Kendal’s pants but the throbbing between her legs was becoming almost painful. With an impatient tug she pulled Kendal’s hand between her legs and let out a moan when the fingers slipped into the side of her underwear. Kendal displayed a bit of impatience of her own when with a quick pull the expensive undergarment ripped away from Piper’s body. It was like she had to possess this woman or die.

There was obviously no need for foreplay as she looked down at the blonde’s sex so Kendal gave her another bruising kiss, her tongue entering Piper’s mouth at the same time her fingers slid into the wet heat. When she hit the hard point of need with the pad of her thumb, Piper pulled her head back and let out another moan. To keep Kendal from moving too far away from her, the small woman anchored her feet behind Kendal’s legs helping her hips come up to meet every thrust of the long fingers.

"Oh fuck, don’t stop, baby," Piper’s voice sounded almost foreign to her own ears it was so low and full of want. The vulgarity of her command only sped up Kendal’s hand and before she really wanted, the orgasm washed through her like a storm. As good as it felt, it wasn’t enough and Piper waited only seconds after the spasms stopped to rip Kendal’s shirt open and take a dark nipple between her teeth. The action caused the standing woman to hiss in pleasure making Piper smile.

"I’m going to suck you until you come for me," she promised as she finished the job she’d started on the belt Kendal was wearing. Her feet were still behind Kendal’s legs so she slid them down as slowly and as erotically as she could before unzipping the pants and letting them pool at her lover’s feet.

Before she could move from her position on the table, Kendal raked the fingers of one hand through the blonde hair until she could get a good grip on the back. Firmly, but without a trace of pain, she pulled Piper’s head back and kissed her again. The act drove Piper to want to feel those fingers inside her again, but she had made a promise she intended on keeping.

Kendal had no choice but to hang on to the edge of the table as Piper dropped to her knees and buried her face between her legs. With her other hand she kept the same hold on the blonde hair that she’d had before, letting the blonde drive her mad with her talented mouth. The warrior would have been more than content to come this way but she looked down to see Piper put a hand between her own legs again as if trying to quench another fire that pleasuring Kendal had rekindled.

As strong as Piper had become from the elixir, she was no match for Kendal when the taller woman picked her up off the floor and bent her over the table behind her. She was about to complain that her lover hadn’t let her finish when Kendal pressed up behind her. In this position Piper could feel Kendal’s excitement pressed up against her butt, and as good as that felt it didn’t feel as good as the fingers now pressed against her nub. When Kendal started grinding against her, Piper reached back and dug her fingernails into the firm ass encouraging Kendal to ride her until they both reached the same peak.

For long minutes the room was filled with the sound of skin slapping against skin and the grunts of two people in the throes of passion. It was like nothing Piper had ever felt before and she tried to hold out as long as she could, wanting them to come together. The moment came when Kendal’s movements sped up and she whispered, "I love you," in her ear.

Yes she looked forward to forever, because Piper was convinced that would be how long it would take to extinguish all the passion she had for Kendal.

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