Chapter 23 - Palau

Chevalier carried Emily into the white bedroom and laid her down on a soft bed surrounded by sheer white netting. He covered her up and checked her temperature before leaving her to sleep. Allen and Miri were helping Alexis and Dain get settled in the house, while the dogs played out on the sand, chasing the waves off of the white beach.

“This home is beautiful,” Miri said when she walked out and found herself alone with the Elder.

“It’s secluded, that’s what I wanted.”

Miri nodded and looked out the large picture window that overlooked the beach.

Allen finally came out, “They’re settled. Do you want me to head to the mainland and get some supplies?”

“Yes, you and Miri go,” Chevalier said, and turned toward the bedroom door when he heard Emily coughing.

“Island is secure,” Kralen said as he and Jaron walked in.

“This will be a boring mission. Find a bedroom and make yourself at home,” Chevalier told the guards.

“Yes, Elder,” Kralen said, and walked down the hallway with Jaron.

“Daddy?” Alexis whispered, and he turned toward her. “Am I in trouble for ashing the prison guards?”

Chevalier smiled, “No, you aren’t.”

They both turned when Dain ran out of his room, completely naked, and ran across the large living area and into the kitchen after the dogs.

Alexis giggled, “Mom said it’s better than his biting phase.”

Chevalier grinned, “I’ll agree with that… see if you can get him dressed though.”

She nodded and ran after her little brother.

***

 

“Check,” Chevalier said, moving a piece on the chessboard.

Kralen’s eyes narrowed as he studied the board.

Alexis turned a page in her book, and without even looking up, spoke, “He’s naked again.”

“Jaron will get him,” Kralen said, and moved his queen.

Miri came out of Emily’s room and shut the door softly, “Her fever’s gone, but she’s still sleeping.”

“Thank you, Miri,” Chevalier said, not looking up from the game.

She smiled, “Not quite fair is it? A Captain can’t win a game against an Elder.”

Chevalier chuckled, “Now you tell him. He’s won the last two.”

Allen came in from the back of the house and kissed Miri lightly.

“Gag,” Alexis said, still reading.

Allen grinned, “Get used to it, Shorty.”

“Dad!” Alexis yelled.

“Stop calling her short… Check mate,” Chevalier said, and grinned.

“Damnit,” Kralen growled, and then looked out the window as Jaron chased after naked Dain on the beach.

Chevalier turned suddenly when he heard his name called from the bedroom. He walked into the room, shutting the door behind him.

Emily looked over at him when he walked in and whispered, “Where are we?”

He sat down on the side of her bed and took her hand, “We’re in one of my homes.”

She nodded and tried to take a deep breath but started to cough.

“I brought you here to recover, away from Council City,” he explained.

When she could finally talk, she looked over at him, “Dustin?”

“I haven’t heard. They had to call the Council back first.”

“Don’t leave me with him again, please.”

“I won’t, I swear. I didn’t even know that the other Elders put Dustin in charge… enter,” he said, and turned to the door.

Miri came in with a glass of juice and a bowl of fresh fruit, “I thought you might be hungry.”

Emily nodded, “I am.”

Chevalier helped her sit up and she took the glass from Miri.

“Thank you,” she said, and watched the pretty heku.

Miri smiled, “If you need anything, just let me know.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. Emily hadn’t notice before, but Miri had beautiful brown eyes and possessed a natural grace and softness.

“It’s ok, I understand,” Miri said, and then left her room, shutting the door behind her.

“What will they do to Dustin?”

Chevalier handed her the bowl of fruit and then sat back, “I’m not sure exactly. Zohn and Quinn will try to find if he broke any laws, if he did, he’ll probably be banished.”

“If he didn’t?”

“Then I’m not sure… it’s not that easy to get rid of or punish a member of the Council.”

“So he’ll still be on the Council when we get back?”

Chevalier sighed, “Maybe.”

After another coughing fit, Emily put the empty bowl aside and laid down, “Who all is here?”

“The kids, Miri, Kralen and Jaron.”

“Where is here exactly?”

“We’re on an island outside of Palau.”

Emily smiled slightly, “You have another island?”

“Yes, no one knows where this one is… except Kyle, that is.”

Chevalier grabbed his phone out of his pocket when it rang and answered it, “Yes?”

“Quinn here, just have an update for you.”

“Go ahead.”

“We can’t find any rules broken. She directly disobeyed an order from the leader of the Council. Obviously, he went overboard and is aware that we’ll be watching him closely.”

Chevalier sighed, “I figured as much.”

“How is she?”

“Awake, the pneumonia’s slowly going away.”

“When will you be back?”

“I’m not sure. I’ll let you know as soon as I do.”

“We’re still looking for a way to relieve Dustin.”

Chevalier answered by shutting his phone.

“He’s still there, isn’t he?” Emily asked.

“Yes, they can’t find a way that he broke the rules,” he explained, obviously angry.

Emily took his hand and pressed it against her cheek, “You need to eat.”

“I can manage.”

“Go, all of you. I’m ok here.”

“I can’t leave you here alone. You’re still too weak.”

“I’m just going to take a nap. You’ll be back before I wake up.”

Chevalier sighed. He knew it was getting harder for all of them to resist her scent. In the three weeks they’d been on the island, no one had fed and most of them were going on almost a month.

“You won’t get out of bed?”

“I swear.”

“This island is secure, it has a quarantine warning.”

“Go,” she told him, and then rolled onto her side.

He kissed the top of her head lightly and went into the large living room.

“Anyone that’s not fed in 5 weeks needs to come with me,” he said, and looked over the heku.

Kralen sighed, “That’s all of us.”

“Go, I’ll stay here,” Miri said. “I fed the night before we were thrown into prison.”

“Mom likes to ash you,” Allen reminded her.

“I’ll stay out of her way unless there’s a problem,” Miri said, and smiled.

“Can I come?” Alexis asked.

“No, you can survive off of mortal food,” Chevalier told her.

Alexis wrinkled her nose, “I can… but it’s gross.”

“We’ll bring you and Dain back some.”

“Fine,” she said angrily, and went back to her book.

Chevalier grinned and followed the others out to the beach where his boat was waiting. Miri waved as they set off for the mainland and then returned to the house.

“Mom’s calling you,” Alexis told her.

Miri turned to the door and cringed slightly, “Ok.”

Alexis grinned and watched Miri nervously walk into her Mom’s room.

“You called for me?” Miri asked softly when she walked into Emily’s room. Emily’s breathing was not as raspy and her color was returning.

“Sit, please,” Emily said, and watched Miri pull a chair up by the bed.

“Can I get you anything?”

“No, just visit with me for a bit.”

“Ok, about what?”

“You… Chev said you were turned very young by the Encala?”

Miri shifted slightly, “Yes, I was only 18.”

“Why did you, then?”

“Well, my Mom and Dad died of scarlet fever,” Miri started. “I was engaged to a family friend, but he was sent to war and killed. When I first became familiar with the heku, I was instantly infatuated and just decided to join them.”

“Why did you leave the Encala for the Equites then?” Emily knew it was a rude question, but wanted to know everything about this heku.

Miri smiled and Emily found it hard not to notice how pretty she was, “I quickly found out that the Encala attacked others unprovoked, and that’s not the kind of life I wanted. I got to know someone from Council City and the Equites seemed like a perfect fit.”

“And Allen?”

“I love him, very much.”

“He’s only 16.”

“I know that he was born 16 years ago, but he’s more than that.”

Emily sat up slightly and slid another pillow behind her head, “Why would you try to rescue me after I turned you to ash?”

Miri smiled again, “I told Allen that we made a huge mistake in not telling you about our relationship, and then on the island… well… another mistake. I don’t blame you for what you did. It was our fault for keeping it a secret.”

“Why did you keep it a secret?”

“Allen was afraid about how you might react.”

Emily smiled slightly, “Do you realize how completely screwed up this family is?”

Miri laughed, “Let’s see… the Chief Enforcer marries not only a mortal but the last Winchester, and then becomes an Elder. They have a son that tries to eat his Mom, a daughter that can ash her brother, and another son who is full heku… yes, I see how that could be considered screwed up.”

 

***

 

“Are we taking bets on if Miri is ash or not?” Kralen chuckled as he steered the boat toward Chevalier’s island.

“Ugh, I just hope Mom stayed asleep,” Allen said, and looked out over the clear blue water.

Chevalier grinned and slapped him on the back, “If she is, it’d be your fault for bringing along your girlfriend.”

“Is it true that Em… ya know… caught you?” Kralen asked, grinning.

Allen nodded, “Sadly, yes.”

Jaron’s eyes grew wide, “Did she ash both of you?”

“Not that time, no, but she did drag me off to the middle of nowhere and made me do things like go to barn dances.”

“Keep it in your pants, Boy. It’ll make your life easier,” Kralen chuckled.

“You’re one to be talking. I’ve yet to see you merely feed,” Allen reminded him.

“What? I like to explore.”

Chevalier shook his head, “Your Mom would kill us if she knew we had to take you to a brothel to feed.”

Allen laughed, “Mom would? Miri would kill me first.”

“You have double the trouble coming,” Jaron said, and grinned.

“Well… didn’t see that coming,” Chevalier said as he looked out toward the island.

Allen joined him and gasped, “Wow.”

“What?” Jaron asked, and stood up to look. He quickly turned away when he saw Emily, Alexis, and Miri all lying out on lawn chairs in bikinis, while Dain ran across the beach naked. Miri had the addition of a sun hat and sunglasses, but they were all talking as they watched the boat come closer.

Chevalier looked surprised, “Maybe they made friends.”

“How the hell does she stand the sun?” Jaron asked.

Allen chuckled, “She said she refuses to hide from it, though I didn’t know she had a bikini… I kinda like it.”

“Of course you do,” Kralen said, and then grinned. He docked the boat off of the small pier and the heku walked toward the women.

“Feeling better?” Chevalier asked as he reached down to kiss Emily on the tip of her nose.

“Some, the sun helps,” she told him.

“I called the doctor first and asked,” Miri told him. “He agreed as long as she didn’t walk.”

“Never been carried by a woman in a bikini,” Emily said, and laughed. “So I opted to walk.”

“Hmm,” Kralen sighed, and then headed into the house when Chevalier looked over at him.

Allen bent down and took Miri’s face between his hands to kiss her.

“Ew,” Alexis groaned.

Chevalier sat down on the chaise beside Emily, “I take it things went well.”

“Yes,” Emily said, after a short bout of coughing. “I’ve gotten to know a lot about Miri. She’s just as screwed up as the rest of us.”

Miri started to laugh, “You swore you wouldn’t tell!”

“I won’t,” Emily promised her.

“Tell what?” Allen asked, and sat down beside Miri.

Alexis made fake gagging noises, “Those two didn’t shut up long enough to get any reading done.”

“Stop complaining, Alexis, your two hours is up. You can go inside,” Emily told her.

“Finally!” she yelled, and ran into the house after Jaron.

Chevalier watched Dain run past again without any clothing on as the dogs lopped after him.

“I am no longer dressing that boy. He won’t keep it on,” Miri said, and shook her head.

Emily grinned when her cell phone rang from inside the house.

“Want me to go get that?” Allen asked.

“Nope,” Emily told him, and glanced at Miri.

Miri smiled and leaned back in the chair.

“Em, caller I.D. says Valle Council,” Kralen called out.

“Oh, I know who’s calling,” she told him. “Just let it ring.”

Miri grinned, “Are you going to tell him or should I?”

Emily shrugged, “We could make him suffer a few more days.”

“Me or Dad?” Allen asked, frowning.

Miri leaned up and kissed him softly and then grinned, “You, I refuse to torment the Elder.”

“At least someone refuses to,” Chevalier said, and stood up. He reached down and picked Emily up, “You’re burning.”

“Tell me what, then?” Allen asked.

Chevalier turned when Miri grinned, “Your Mom said it’s ok… as long as the Elder agrees.”

“Wait… she did?” Allen gasped.

Miri nodded, “Yes, but the final say is the Elder’s.”

Allen grabbed Miri out of her chair and wrapped his arms around her, “She really said yes?”

“Yes, I did… now you just have to convince your Dad,” Emily told him as Chevalier carried her inside.

“What am I having to be convinced of?” he asked as he laid her down. He sat down on the side of the bed and waited for her to stop coughing.

“I’m ok if they want to get married.”

“You are?”

“Yes, I got to know Miri and she’s really sweet and cares a lot about Allen.”

“Still, he’s 16.”

“I guess we just hope that his judgment is better than mine was at 17,” Emily told him.

Chevalier nodded, “I’ll think about it, both of them are pretty young.”

“She’s 225, Chev.”

“That’s young,” he told her, and then smiled.

Emily’s eyes narrowed, “No, it’s not.”

“No clothes!” Dain screamed, and they heard him run across the living room followed by heavier footsteps.

“Let’s give them Dain as a wedding gift,” Chevalier said, and then grinned.

Emily leaned up and coughed before finally laying back down.

Chevalier got up and went through her bag. He tossed some clean clothes on the bed, “Get some rest, we’ll talk more later.”

She nodded and watched as he left.

“Elder?” Miri asked when he stepped out into the living room.

Chevalier turned to the young heku, “Yes?”

Miri sighed and took Allen’s hand, “I spoke to the Valle Council, without authorization.”

Kralen stopped as he walked toward the kitchen and turned. Speaking to an enemy without approval was grounds for being put on trial, and usually resulted in a long prison sentence.

Chevalier’s eyes narrowed, “Did you just answer Em’s phone?”

“At first, Sir, then she asked me to relay a message… I wasn’t sure what to do, so I did.”

“Go on.”

She glanced at Allen and then back to the Elder, “It was Valle Elder Sotomar. He asked me if I would ask Lady Emily why the Valle were turned to ash a couple of weeks ago.”

“Did she tell you?”

“No, Sir, her message was to tell him to…” Miri looked down at her hands, “To… suck it, Sir.”

Chevalier grinned slightly, “And did you relay that message?”

“Yes, Elder.”

“It’s ok, Miri. She’s a member of the Council and can give permission… though I wish her message had been different, you did nothing wrong.”

Miri breathed a sigh of relief, “Thank you, Sir.”

Allen grinned at Miri when Chevalier walked out of the room, “If we’re going to be bonded, you’re going to have to stop being afraid of my Dad.”

Her eyes grew wide, “He’s an Elder!”

“Keep thinking that,” Kralen said, and Allen turned to him and saw he was serious. “I wouldn’t let yourself get too comfortable with an Elder, even bonded to his son.”

Miri nodded, “I completely agree.”

Allen sighed and patted Miri on the leg, “I better go talk to Dad.”

“Good luck.”

“I’ll need it,” he told her, and then followed after Chevalier. He caught up with the Elder as he headed into the small office. “Dad?”

“Have a seat,” Chevalier said, and motioned into his office.

Allen sat down and looked around, “Do you have an office in every house?”

“Yes, I do.”

Chevalier sat down and then put his elbows on the desk, waiting for Allen to speak.

“So,” Allen said, and began to wring his hands.

“So… what?”

“About Miri.”

The Elder grinned and sat back, “I bet you thought the hard part would be telling your Mom.”

“I guess I didn’t realize I needed your permission also… so yes, I did.”

“Of course you need my permission. When were you thinking?”

“Soon… actually… She and I were talking last night about how perfect it would be here on the island.”

“That soon, eh? Does Em know that?”

“I’m not sure. I’m a little afraid to ask what all the two of them talked about.”

Chevalier grinned, “Be very afraid.”

“I’m almost 17.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“How long are we going to be here?”

“Until your Mom is well. Dustin’s still on the Council and she’s going to need her strength back to even be around him.”

“So it’ll be another couple of weeks. That’s plenty of time.”

“I’ll talk to Em about it,” Chevalier told him.

“I also want to address the Council when we get back.”

“Oh? About what?”

“About having the ability to come to Council City when I want.”

Chevalier nodded, “Seems fair, however, I’m worried about your temper around your Mom.”

Allen nodded, “I know I screwed up, but honestly, so have you.”

“That’s no excuse.”

“I realize that, but there are no more secrets. She knows about Miri.”

“Something else can always come up, you have to get some control because,” Chevalier leaned forward and lowered his voice. “You know she’ll push your buttons and can fly off the handle in the blink of an eye. The heku have to use control.”

Allen smiled slightly, “Some more so than others.”

 

***

 

Chevalier looked out over the stark white beach and then turned to Emily, “They’ll understand if you don’t want to be here.”

She was pacing nervously, “I have to be here, I’m his Mom.”

Kralen grinned and watched her pace.

“It’s not going to be in English,” Chevalier told her.

“I figured. Still have no idea what was said at ours.”

“Then there’s the exchange.”

She shivered, “Just… warn me to look away.”

Jaron frowned slightly, “It can’t be that bad, you did it.”

“I did not!” she said, shocked.

Chevalier chuckled, “I tricked her into that. She thought it was wine.”

Jaron gasped.

Emily turned and glared at Chevalier, “Still not funny.”

“Sorry,” he said, and fought to hide the grin.

“Renew your vows and try it again,” Kralen suggested.

“Ew, no!” Emily grimaced.

“It’s common to exchange blood every so often, it re-strengthens the bond.”

“Oh, I think he’s had plenty of mine.”

“You make it sound like I feed off of you regularly,” Chevalier said, and shook his head.

“Some like it… actually…” Jaron said, and then quieted down quickly when Emily looked at him.

“So I’ve been told.”

“Mom!” Alexis screamed from down the beach. Emily looked over and saw Dain running naked towards her. She gasped when his image blurred and he appeared in front of her with his hands up.

Emily quickly picked him up and turned to Chevalier with wide eyes, “He…”

“I saw,” Chevalier said, impressed.

“He can’t do that! How am I supposed to catch him?”

“I honestly have no idea.”

“This is my penis,” Dain said to Kralen, pointing down.

Kralen started to laugh, “Yes, it is.”

Emily sighed and took the clothes from Alexis. She finally managed to wrestle a t-shirt and shorts onto him, just before Allen and Miri came out. They were walking hand in hand across the beach as the sun set behind them.

Chevalier reached out and bound their wrists with a thin black ribbon and began to speak to them in Latin. Alexis, Kralen, and Jaron paid close attention, but Emily’s mind started to take in the beauty around them. The sunset over the ocean was a vibrant orange and the water turned a deep purple as night fell. Dain leaned his head against her shoulder and watched the others.

“Em?” Her name brought her out of the trance, and she looked over at Chevalier.

“Oh!” she said, understanding, and turned away from the others. She winced when she heard the soft hiss.

“No biting!” Dain yelled, and Emily hurried and turned him around. She turned around when Chevalier started to talk again and grinned slightly when Dain frowned at his older brother.

Emily felt tears welling up in her eyes when they exchanged rings. She marveled at the look on their faces as they looked into each other’s eyes, then wiped a stray tear that fell down her cheek. It was hard for her to imagine that her son was old enough to get married. A small part of her resented the wedding and how it seemed she was losing her son after 17 short years. She handed Dain over to Jaron, and took a tissue from Kralen when he offered it.

When the ceremony was over, Chevalier quickly moved to Emily and pulled her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her. She leaned against him and the tears began to flow. He grinned at the show of emotions, and held her tightly against him.

“Congrats, Boy!” Kralen said, and slapped Allen on the back.

Jaron smiled and shook his hand, “Congratulations.”

Allen smiled and took Miri’s hand, “Mom?”

Emily turned around and dabbed at her eyes with the tissue. She tried to speak, and when she couldn’t, she pulled Allen in to a tight hug.

She pulled up against Chevalier as the newlyweds walked down the beach and got into a boat. They both waved at those on the beach as Allen pulled the boat away from the island.

“I have a penis,” Dain said, breaking the silence.

Emily frowned and hit Chevalier on the chest, “What are you telling him?”

Jaron grinned and walked away, carrying Dain back to the house.

“I haven’t said anything about that,” Chevalier chuckled, and put his arm around her, leading her back to the house.

“Boy just knows what’s important,” Kralen said, laughing.

Alexis shook her head and walked around to the side door.

Emily sighed, “Kralen, did you give him an anatomy lesson?”

“Nope, I didn’t… though if I knew he’d keep bringing it up, I would have told him a long time ago.”

“Nice,” she mumbled, and walked into the house. She headed for the kitchen and started up the stove, then grabbed her phone when it rang and without looking, flipped it open and rested it against her shoulder. “Yeah?”

Chevalier and Kralen stopped when they realized they could hear the conversation.

“Emily, it’s Sotomar,” the voice said.

“Ok, what do you want?”

“The divorce was finalized.”

She smiled, “Good to know.”

“Because of his sudden departure, you took everything in the divorce,” Sotomar explained.

“What do you mean? We didn’t have anything.”

“Exavior did, and now it’s all yours.”

Emily sighed, “I don’t want anything of his.”

“Nonetheless, it’s yours… we’ll send the information to Council City.”

“What exactly is it?”

“15 houses, six cars, an island off of Australia, and then his fortune.”

“Sell it all and give the money to charity,” Emily told him, and stirred the stew she was making.

“It’s yours, do with it as you wish. As I stated, all is on its way to Council City.”

“Fine”

“Now that that is over, can you please tell me why you turned 2 Valle to ash, and what you were doing at a donor bar?”

“No, and I wasn’t at a donor bar, I was at a Chinese restaurant.”

“So you say, but we’ve revived our heku and they saw you come out of the bar.”

Kralen’s insides turned when he heard that.

“Then they’re delusional. Why would I go to a donor bar?”

“That’s what we want to know.”

“Fine, I go there sometimes to make extra cash, it beats hooking,” Emily said, and shut the phone.

Chevalier chuckled, “That should keep his mind busy for a few minutes.”

She turned and leaned back against the counter, “I don’t want all of Exavior’s crap.”

“I’ll help you take care of it,” he said. “As soon as we get back.”

“You could give a house or two to Allen and Miri,” Kralen said, and shrugged. “It’s always nice to have some privacy.”

“That’s true,” she said, and filled two bowls with stew. “Alexis!”

The 11-year-old came in and sighed, “Mom, seriously, I can’t eat that.”

“You can and you will,” Emily said, and sat down.

“Dad!”

“I’m sorry, Alex. You do have a mortal body that needs fed,” Chevalier told her, and headed out as he wrinkled his nose. Kralen covered his nose with his hand and followed the Elder out.