60. Liv From Palmyra

Sita

The holding cell I was stuck in couldn’t really be called a prison. It was so luxurious that it was nicer than some of the places I had stayed in over the last few months. Our old house that Chris and I bought sold quickly. It didn’t leave me with much money. I couldn’t really afford to live like I would wanted to.

Marcus had me tied to a chair for two weeks. I’ve been stuck in there for another two. How did I end up there?

It was all because a few months ago. I had to sleep in my car. I wasn’t afraid, but I wouldn’t have been able to take on armed men or a group if they found me. So, I sat up the whole night. Checking if sending my CV out to schools had yielded any fruits. I was getting desperate. At around two, a white figure landed outside my window. Well, a guy with all-white clothes on. I had heard about them. My logic told me that he would be friendly. I opened the door. He introduced himself rather nicely, keeping his distance.

“Hi. My name is Brendon. I’ve been your Watcher since you were born. I’d like to offer you a place to stay for the foreseeable future… They got me in a hotel room where I can monitor you… and there is a room vacant next door.”

He got in my car and I got a decent place to stay. After a month of just seeing each other every day, he showed me a plan he had been working on. Brendon could see that I wasn’t getting back on my feet. Not as easy in the big city as I thought. The regret of losing my life in that small town fueled me. Juliet being the reason made me say yes immediately.

I felt terrible thinking about Brendon. His head had that massive hole right through it. The blood behind him on the wall. Too emotionally involved. It was written all over his face that night outside my car.

Even I was surprised by Chris’s acting skills. So I couldn’t really blame Brendon. I was compensated handsomely to “get the job done.” That stupid idiot would have caved eventually when Chris pretended for the second time. Or if I was tied to that chair for only five minutes.

But regardless, Brendon’s plan had worked. I was noticed by the powers to be. If all worked out, I would be able to get off the planet… where I meant nothing... was nothing. Going to a place that valued women more than men. Even just the idea made me want to do anything I could to go.

What we didn’t plan on was Marcus. I knew he was behind everything and Chris doing that to me made me livid. Them working together treating me like that…

Unfortunately for them, they didn’t kill me. So, for a month. I’ve had nothing but time. Planning and ready to launch another attack on destroying their little world. Brendon had given me so much information that I felt powerful.

All he had to say and show me was how happy they were living in France in a massive mansion and… Yes, jealousy overwhelmed me.

***

The cell was made of glass all around. I had no privacy. The bathroom had that Korean thing where the glass changed when you pressed a button. Monitored by young vampire boys rotating shifts of three.

A knock behind me on the glass made me sit up. Was it food time already?

I stared for the longest time at the tiny woman standing behind the glass. She took off a pinned striped, white jacket with beige stripes and asked for a chair. The boy jumped up and brought her one. “Glass of Champaign, please.” He nodded.

“Wait!” She looked at me. “Do you want one?” I nodded. She shoed him away.

We looked almost exactly alike. Her hair was just dreaded into thick long flawless dreads hanging down her back. Pinned up beautifully on top of her head. Jewels hanging strategically placed fastened around some of the edges of the twisted strands. She had green tattoos on her left upper arm, running from shoulder to elbow. Tribal almost.

Her clothes were so beautiful that I had never seen anyone look so good. Stylish yet unique in their own way. The triangle of cloth that was her shirt was the only way I could describe it. Tied around her neck and one thin strip around her back. Cream colored with laced patterns and hand embroidery. A long handkerchief skirt with high-heeled lace-ups.

“Sorry for the way I look. I have to be able to blend in here in some capacity. This is almost the lowest level I can accept.” She said, sitting down, one leg crossed over the other.

“Si…ta… You’ve been a bad girl… Colluding with a watcher… Your watcher. Going into business with the enemy for… financial gain. And let’s not forget that you sold yourself for it… Now the vampires won’t have a problem with what happened. They will probably applaud Marcus for putting you down like a dog. But no Woman on Palmyra would ever have stooped so low than what you have done… You are a disgrace to the very name werewolf. Or that’s what we are called here. I don’t even like the name… Anyway. They are waiting for me. I want to know what you have to say for yourself?”

“I want to crush that little vamp. I don’t care if I get put down in the process.”

“Humph! Fine, I’ll give you six months, then you have to go back.”

“What is the penalty of killing our own kind?”

“Here on earth?” She laughed sardonically. “Nothing. No one cares about any of you lot here. Just! Don’t kill a vampire! Unless it’s in self-defense. Or you can make it look like that.”

“Okay… So, why do I get to go back?”

Because your watcher understood the werewolves well. The only way you climb the ladder is by getting noticed. And… You are now in the diplomatic limelight. And we always give a girl with… excuse my wording, “balls” a second chance. You just might be a warrior in the making.” She got up, putting back on her jacket, taking the last sip of champagne. “Use these months to start training combat. You don’t want to get to Palmyra and be absolutely useless.”

“Like in boxing?”

She laughed lightly, putting her hand elegantly in front of her mouth. “No, not like boxing. With gloves.” She tried to think of how to explain it. “With a gun, a bat, a knife, a sword, a spear. And of course, the most dangerous of all.” She lifted up her soft, manicured hands. And tapped at her head.

“So that is what our world is like. Fighting for survival… How many women get raped when you end up in these fights.

Liv chuckled. “No honey… We don’t fight… our men fight for us. We send them out to conquer plunder and take over. We are one of the richest planets in the galaxy. The only time we ever have to fight is if the men are off-planet and we are left to guard the queen and children… Then we fight. But that hasn’t happened in… a very long time.”

“Then why now?”

“Juliet fights… She’s strong. And she is only getting stronger. Up your game, if you’re going to go up against them. Be smarter… You were afraid of living in a car. Afraid of humans… That is just an insult.” Liv took a deep breath. “And… she has Marcus. Your enemy is not that girl. It’s the wall around her.”

***

Chris

“Samuel, you are allowed to present the evidence to Sylvanus.” Asher started the negotiations.

Samuel goes into a lengthy speech of what happened and how it came about. What the threats were and what happened. The door to our side bursts open.

“Oh, for heaven's sake!” Marcus fisted the table. “Are we ever going to get out of here?”

Asher jumped up and bowed to Marcus. “Don’t worry, Marcus. This is the werewolf ambassador.”

The look Marcus gave Asher put him down. “Really? You think.”

The woman that came in shuffling her feet stopped at the table, regarding us in turn. She had a stack of papers with her. She plopped it down on the table.

“No! Not again!” Marcus bellowed.

She held out her hand. “Liv Soria.”

We all greeted her.

“This is not for you… I’m sorry, Marcus. I had to speak to Sita.”

She sat down next to me. Choosing that seat out of ten others.

“Seeing that we are not going to fall for the vampire stalling tactics, let’s get to the root of the problem,” Liv said sarcastically.

Asher’s gaze was directed at her, but he was manifested. I hated the disrespect of it. No one could discern the emotion registered on his features. His eyes pitch black.

“Samuel?” Liv kept her top lip between her teeth. She felt the same way.

“Asher,” Samuel warned. He immediately returned his features to his human face. Little Liv knew what she was doing.

Liv “Qadir used one of our complaints on earth to do some dirty work. That in itself is a breach of the agreements.”

Asher “She approached him with the information and plan. You can hardly credit this little ploy to him.”

Liv “Not only that. But one of the Watchers made advances on a compliant and gave her the information. That leads me to believe that the watcher system isn’t at all monitored diplomatically but manipulated by Qadir and whoever he has in his pockets.”

Asher “Really! Like we are supposed to be able to monitor every Watcher for the thousands of children here on earth.”

Liv “That is not my problem. It’s yours. You promised us a service, and don’t you think it’s time you took some of those vampire kids back to En-gannim... Or is Qadir still not allowed back yet?”

Asher jumped up onto the table. Manifested pounced and slid over the table towards her. He was nothing like the way he acted. Fast. Nimble and aggressive.

Sitting next to Liv, seeing this guy sliding towards a woman ready to attack her. Kinda made me feel iffy. Thinking… that if it was Juliet with her smart mouth, he would have wanted to kill her.

I manifested, put my paw out, and grabbed his face as he slid right into it. Closing my grip and extending my claws out till it edges around his skull. I started squeezing.

***

Charlene

It wasn’t a good day for me. I had to take Miné the whole night every night. It was damn tiring. With Juliet gone, I didn’t have that much help with her. On my own, I felt the vacuum she left in my life. I missed her. Without her there, I was a little lost. With no one to talk to but Carl, the estate had become dull and lonely. And it had only been two months.

Miné was sick. The cold was setting in around the mountains. Going anywhere wasn’t really an option anymore. My parents wanted to come. But it was such a difficult time for everybody that I didn’t dare ask for more than I should.

“I feel out of place, Carl. Can’t you understand that? Don’t you feel like this isn’t really your home?”

He took Miné from me. “It’s just because Juliet isn’t here.”

There was a knock at the door. I walked through the fantastic house Louis had finished in the last month. I felt even more guilty. Brining absolutely nothing to the table.

“Hi,” Louis said as I opened the door for him.

“Come in. It’s freezing outside.”

“Thank You.”

“You heard anything from Michael?” I asked.

“Yeah, that’s why I’m here.”

“You sure I can’t go join her there? It’s not like I will disturb her peace or make her angry.”

“I know you want to go, but she needs to rest… The more she can, the better for her and the baby… Sorry, Charlene. I know you miss her.”

I nod. “I’m just tired… What did Michael say?”

“He says she is doing really well. She had an episode.” Carl and I looked at him.

“You seem fine?”

“Yeah, didn’t feel a thing. So there is that.”

“I’m really relieved for you guys. One of the major things that freaked her out was hurting you.” He scratched the back of his head, not saying anything. I go on… “There is something else I would like to say, Louis… I don’t really know how to thank you for this.” I gestured to the house. “You, Carl, and Liam had finished everything by yourselves… How am I supposed to make up for this?”

“You don’t. You’re family Charlene. With or without Juliet here… I don’t think it matters where we are in the galaxy. We will always have a connection.”

Louis gazed at Carl for a second. “I’m sorry I haven’t been helping with Miné. I really feel bad. Michael sent me a message via Juliet to get me off my ass. I forget how many nights she slept with us. Either between Julie and me. Or between her and Chris… So, I’ve come to take her off your hands for a few nights.”

“I’ll help him, Charlene. You need the rest.” Carl came over, giving me a hand hug. I nodded. They didn’t even need to pack a bag. There was so much stuff of hers still up at the main house. So they just left.

I closed the door behind them, resting back against it. I didn’t want more space... I did need help. But not space. The emptiness of the house washed over me. Was this what I wanted for my life? I wished I was still up there, living in my room. I wished Juliet was there.

The vibrations of loud knocking jarred me out of my reverie. I pulled open the door again, thinking it was Louis. “Is she okay?”

Ben was standing on the porch. I smiled, looking up the road. Louis and Carl waved at me.

Ben waved at them and pushed me inside. He kissed me. Putting his hands on my waist. “I’m done studying.”

“You are?”

“Yesterday was my last day.”

“I’m so happy you came. I was freaking out a bit. ”

“I’m sorry it took so long.” He seemed different. It was like he was there all of a sudden. Absent and now present.

“What’s going on?” He kept kissing me… In my neck and my ear and then my mouth.

“I want to move in,” Ben whispered.

It was like someone had pulled up the needle from a record player and stopped my brain mid-track. I pushed away from him.

“Don’t say no right now. Let me stay for a month. I’ll show you that we belong together.”

“Ben. We haven’t spent any time together for nearly six months. We had a baby. You were here every other weekend. And those weekends, you helped the guys with the house. Even before that, all we had was a few dates.” He looked around the house.

“It really did come out so beautiful. It screams Charlene.”

“How do you even know what that entails?” I retorted.

“You love neutral colors. Green being the only exception.” He points to a wall that brings the room together. “Everything is homey and comfortable.” He looked me up and down and smirked. I kinda playfully rolled my eyes.

“You are a neat freak and clean. Organized and so clever. You’re a fantastic mother at your age. It means you will only become more serious and family-orientated when you’re older.”

“Okay! I get it. You pay attention.”

“You’ve never seemed the sidekick to Juliet’s story. You were always going to be her sister. Blood bonded and close… But.”

“But?” I asked intrigued.

“But you guys aren’t always going to be together.”

Wow! Get right to the point, why don’t you. I was just thinking about my life… The house was probably temporary. Our lives there together were from a day-to-day basis. He came closer to me and took my hands in his. Swinging them softly by our sides.

“Charlene, we have a baby together. We have a chance that very few people get. Our story also matters. Can we not at least see if it works…?”

I stepped away from him into the kitchen. I took a bottle from a cupboard and put it on the counter. Ben walked over and held up the little glass after I poured us a shot.

“Cheers.”

“To what,” Ben asked.

“New beginnings.” He smiled and took his shot. He came around lifted me up on the counter.

“I thought we’ll get drunk like we did last time?”

“That doesn’t mean I can’t kiss you in between shots.” My head rested on his shoulder. I felt a little better.

***

Carl

Miné was with me on the couch, drinking her a bottle. We were watching some comedy I wasn’t really following. Louis sat down next to me when he returned from getting dressed more comfortably.

He got up a second later and went out on the porch. He lit a cigarette and stood out in the cold for a long time. Louis was always an entertaining guy and laughed and made jokes. Seeing him like that… Forlorn made me nervous.

He was always busy with something, avoiding everyone and secluding himself in weird, subtle ways. Miné finished. I put her on my leg, holding her head up. I gently rub her back to get her to burp.

Louis came in and sat down again. I kinda felt that I shouldn’t ask. It was his house. He was a guy. Who was I to make him talk? We were good before the branding and then after that… I don’t know… He changed. When they entered the house. It was all three of them there together with her.

“Any news from your Father?” He asked.

“Yeah, actually.”

“He calls every day.” His eyebrows raised.

“To ask you how you are?” I laugh lightly. Kissing Miné on her head. She was sleeping between my thumb and index finger, mouth hanging open.

“No. To convince me to start training. To find out if everything is still fine. To report to him what you Marcus and Chris are up to. Everything… He is keeping Charlene’s parents happy, so there is that. Them knowing he’s involved in our stay here. Means a lot.”

Louis stared into the fire.

“You do know… Everything you do for Charlene and me. We appreciate it. And if there was something we could do for you, we would… I know we’re only here because of Juliet.”

Louis got up and stoked the wood. He put on more logs.

I couldn’t take it anymore. “You’ve been like this since that night.” The poker stopped moving in between the logs.

Louis peeked back at me. “I thought you weren’t going to pry?” I smiled. So he was still reading me. He had just become really good at hiding it. I had asked my father to disconnect the tech. We needed to be able to communicate when necessary.

I sat back, letting Miné rest on my chest. She was so tiny and cute when she changed. Fluffy and hairy and then just normal when she’s back to human.

“She is adorable. Isn’t she.”

I nodded, kissing her some more. “When will you tell Charlene?” Louis asked out of the blue.

“I thought we talked about this… Never.”

“Are you going to tell me what’s going on?” He got up, putting the poker in the stand next to the mantle. Closing the fire grid.

He sat down next to me. “I… I’m scared.”

Okay, that wasn’t what I was expecting.

“I know everything going on in everyone. That means I know every aspect and how every detail comes together. I have to focus and plan and put it all together. I have to keep everyone happy. I have to dissolve everyone’s cares. I have to….”

“Support everyone?”

Louis shook his head. “If I tell you that is the last thing bothering me, would you believe me…” He turned to me, putting his arm on the back of the couch.

“Carl, the first time I saw Juliet was a month before we met. You and Charlene were with her. I sat across from three kids laughing, drinking milkshakes. Making jokes and sharing secrets. I read you guys for an hour… Not once was there one bad thought about the other. Charlene didn’t know she was pregnant yet you were all… so happy…. There is a glue between the three of you that I don’t understand… If I could bottle it… I’d throw it out on all of us.”

“Okay…?”

“I wanted so desperately to be a part of the three of you. Can you believe at my age that I had fewer connections than Juliet had with two humans… I promise you that all of you here in my space is the last thing I’m even thinking about. It might seem that I’m distant and avoiding everyone… And you might be here only because of Juliet, but you are a part of her. You were there before me. That means we are family even… if something does happen to her. I will have your back. Me. Marcus and Chris.”

“You don’t know how much that means… You saying that. I wish you would tell me what’s wrong. So I can at least care about you.”

He rubbed his forehead with his fingers. Too nervous to tell me. “You will find out eventually.”