“Claire, can I speak with you outside?” Cal asked as he entered the kitchen later that night. Claire paused in the act of wiping Lilith’s runny nose with a cloth. She turned to Keith and he took the rag from her hand and continued the task without a word. She scooted off her chair and anxiously accepted Cal’s hand, allowing him to lead her out the front door. She had been pacing the cabin all day waiting for him to return with some sort of explanation. He wasted no time in offering it.
“Among the new recruits was a man named Trift. He’s a loyal servant in my father’s house. He came with a warning. Leishmann knows I have the kids and he suspects I‘ve joined you.” Claire didn’t see how that knowledge would cause Cal’s stress. She thought it was already known.
“He’s becoming exceedingly brash and he’s getting closer. In order for us to succeed we need to begin making bigger strikes against him, and it would help divert him away from the training camp. If there are strategic rumors that I’ve been spotted other places it might pull him away from this area. In order to do that...I have to leave.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “Claire, for us to succeed I have to penetrate Leishmann’s army. I have to return home.” Realization rained down on her.
“You’re going back to him?” The betrayal behind the accusation acted as physical blow and he flinched.
“Claire, it’s not like that.” He reached for her, but she smacked his hand away.
“Then what’s it like?”
“C, it’s all part of a plan to…”
“This is not part of any plan I know about!” A strange panic began to well within her. Her heart began to shatter at the thought of him leaving her and anger built inside her when she realized he had been purposely leaving her out of making plans.
“Look, C, we planned to talk to you about this in great detail, but with Trift’s appearance today, we have no choice but to hasten our departure.”
“We?” She demanded. An intense look of guilt washed away every other emotion on Cal’s face causing her chest to constrict.
“Mark, Keith, and I d-decided the best thing to do is hunt down T-teisha and trap Leishmann. It would be a good idea to have an inside man. Who b-better than his own son?” He stuttered. Cal had never stuttered in all the time she had known him.
“If he already suspects your betrayal there is no way he will welcome you back,” she said, not understanding how he couldn’t see something so obvious.
“He will if I have something of value to offer him that will eliminate his suspicions.”
“And what valuable thing is that?”
“Bear.” Claire turned to watch Mark step from the cabin. In that moment it dawned on her what the twins and Cal were about to do and there was absolutely no way she was going to allow it to happen.
“You cannot be serious.” She turned on Cal. The skies darkened to match her anger and the wind picked up swiftly to a howl like the storm brewing inside her. “If you think for a moment I am going to allow you to turn my brother over to that man...”
“Claire calm down. It’s not what you think!” Mark and Cal protested simultaneously.
“Claire!” Mark took hold of her arms and swung her around to face him. “He was against this plan. It was Keith and my idea. We both feel it would be better…”
“That’s not true,” Cal piped up. Claire’s eyes were still on her brother who shot Cal an exasperated look. Cal ignored it, taking a deep breath and continuing, “Mark and I discussed it the first day you and I walked to the camp together. It’s the only way we can find Teisha and destroy her.”
“It can’t be important enough to risk Mark’s life, or yours,” Claire said haughty.
“Claire, Teisha and Leishmann are formidable on their own, let alone together,” Mark interceded, sending Cal a warning look. Claire knew then that there was something more they were hiding. “This is the only way.”
“He’s feeding you to the wolves. He’s going to get you killed!” She glared at her brother and heard the sharp intake of breath from Cal.
“Claire, is that what you think of me?” The hurt in Cal’s voice was tangible and Claire flinched as it threatened to tug at her own heart. She had not meant to hurt him, but her fear for her brother kept her from taking back the words. Instead tears began to build.
“Claire-Bear, Sweetie, I know you are upset right now, but if you stop and think about everything you know and feel about Cal you’ll realize you are being unfair towards him. Will you give him a chance to explain?” Her body shook and tears streamed down her cheeks. She didn’t trust herself to speak and when Mark pulled her back to him she willingly buried her face in his shirt. He rubbed her back in comforting circles and a deafening silence followed while both men waited for her response.
“Claire, please,” Cal begged, his voice a half whisper. She took a deep breath to settle her nerves and turned to face him.
“There is nothing I want to hear you say. You two planned this; without even talking to me. We are supposed to be partners in all things. We could have figured something else out.” She watched the turmoil wash over his face. He reached for her, but paused then dropped his hand in defeat.
When she moved towards the house neither man tried to stop her. She walked into the cabin and went straight to her room, avoiding the curious glances everyone gave her. She did not need to see her Keith’s face to know it was laced with guilt.
Later she listened as Cal and her brothers explained to the children about the trip Mark and Cal needed to take. They explained they would be gone for a several months, but promised to bring back special prizes. Amongst the tears they reassured the girls that Claire would remain with them as well as Keith. Both Mark and Cal promised a million times they would both return before the children had time to notice they were gone. Claire cursed them for liars and cads. She missed them already and they hadn’t even left yet.
She helped Cal put the girls to bed with barely a word between them. When he stood to go into the other room she ignored his offered hand and chose instead to crawl to her own fur and curl into a ball. Cal watched her for several moments before he finally left her to join the other adults.
Soon, soft laughter filtered into her room and Claire felt a bitter loneliness creeping in. She wanted to get up and go share in the farewell, but she pulled a blanket over her shoulder and rolled onto her side instead and focused on the rain pelting the roof.
“Claire?” Mark called from the door. She didn’t want to respond at first, but she could sense his presence stubbornly waiting behind the door until she responded.
“Come in,” she said begrudgingly. She shifted on her furs, but did not rise, as he entered and sat beside her.
“I’m sorry we gave you a shock. We should have told you sooner about what we were planning. It’s my fault. I wanted to have everything perfectly planned so you would have nothing to worry about when we left. We had intended to leave in a couple weeks to give everyone time to get used to the idea.”
“I’d still worry.” He reached out and took his hand.
“I know.”
“Why are you doing this? We could find another way to fight him,” Claire hiccupped.
“We can’t find Teisha. For months she has been hiding. We can’t fight Leishmann and her together. We’ll lose. If Cal can get back into his father’s confidences we can learn where she is hiding. We can get rid of her and then take Leishmann on without fearing Teisha’s powers.”
“So let Cal go back alone! He doesn’t need to put your life on the line too.”
“Do you think Leishmann would let him back after taking the kids and disappearing for almost a year? You have to remember he left his father to find the kids soon after they returned to Danyon. It would be hard for anyone not to believe Cal had betrayed them after so long, let alone his father.” Tears fell from her eyes. No, Leishmann was not the type to let something like that go. If Cal did not return with something to show his loyalty, Leishmann would retaliate against his own son.
“Why can’t he take me? Leishmann wouldn’t kill me. He’ll kill you. I can go with Cal and you could remain safe. I’d do it. I’d be his captive again to save you.”
“Last time you were his prisoner he beat you to within an inch of your life and then threatened to marry you. Cal, Keith, and I could not stand the thought of either of those things happening to you again. You being his captive again is completely out of the question. Claire,” He wiped a stray tear from her cheek and softly pincher her chin.
“I’m not going to die. Cal has a plan to keep me alive and I trust him. You need to as well.” She buried her head in her feather pillow and sobbed for several minutes. Mark remained silent and rubbed her shoulder in a desperate attempt at comfort.
“Are you coming out?” he asked after she calmed, but she could only shake her head in answer.
“I can’t pretend that I’m not furious. I can’t pretend that I’m not going to worry every minute that you guys are gone. And I can’t pretend I’m okay with any of this.”
“And mostly you can’t pretend that you don’t love him?” Claire sat up with a jolt ready to deny the accusation, but she found that she could not. How had she allowed herself to fall utterly and hopelessly in love with the man who had the power to tear her entire world to shambles?
“I’m sorry,” she cried.
“Don’t be. If you had to fall in love with someone, at least it’s someone I can respect. Though I put on a big show about wanting to kill him, I couldn’t have picked a better man.” She smiled weakly.
“Mark?” She paused and took a calming breath. “I’ll miss you every day. Please be careful. We may trust Cal, but I do not trust Leishmann. Don’t let your guard down and please come home safe.” Mark kissed her forehead one last time.
“I promise, Bear. I’ll even look out for the dope.” She smiled at that and then gently said goodbye to her big brother.
Claire laid awake long after she said her farewell. She listened and waited for Cal to come, but he didn’t. When she finally drifted off to sleep it was restless and troubled.
She dreamed that Cal came to her in the night and kissed her gently. He promised he would protect her brother and that he would return to her. Then he said the words she had been dying to hear from his lips.
“I love you, Claire.” She felt the soft brush of his lips and then like a shadow in the night he was gone.
When she woke the next morning she learned that Mark and Cal had already left. Her heart sank as she realized it was too late to say good-bye to the man who held her heart and she feared she would never get the chance to tell him know where her love burned; for she feared she would never see Cal or her brother again.
Her heart went with them and she was filled with a melancholy so deep it threatened to drag her into the deepest despair. To distract herself from her agony she disappeared into forest where she practiced her sword stances for hours between random bouts of uncontrollable crying. She leaned against the hacked tree stump- she’d been wailing on- for a short rest when a wide, flat stone caught her eye. As she turned it in her hand a thought entered her mind and a smile spread as the thought became a plan.
The cabin they lived in barely contained its occupants. She decided that while Mark and Cal were gone she would collect one stone a day. When she collected enough she would have Keith and Jamerico help her start the foundation of a second cabin. She hoped that it would become a starting home for Cal, her, and the children.
It would give her hope for a peaceful and happy future and be her silent prayer for their safe return to finish building it..together! She lifted the rock and ran, drawn to the warm light from the windows.
Claire burst into the cabin, panting and went straight to Marcel. The old woman who had been rocking by the fire looked up in astonishment when the large stone was placed in her lap
“I want to build a cabin,” Claire explained, “For me and the Kids. If I start gathering rocks everyday could I build one on the hill?” She wanted to build it there, because that was the starting point for her relationship with Cal. It was where he had kissed her the first time and where he had given her the necklace she now nervously fingered. She wanted to start a life with him and hoped Marcel would allow her to start building that future.
“Are we to assume Cal would eventually join you there?” Keith’s question caused a deep fire to burn in her cheeks, but she chose not to answer and instead stubbornly held Marcel’s gaze. The old woman read in Claire’s eyes the truth of the matter and let out a happy sigh.
“My Child, you may have all the land you need. Build your cabin.” Claire happily kissed Marcel’s cheek and then took the rock and ran from the cabin. She did not stop until she was on the top of the hill. She looked around until she found the perfect spot. She smiled and gently placed the stone on the ground.
“Here,” she said. “This will be the beginning of all my tomorrows.” With that she returned to the cabin and started mapping out the layout of the home she wanted to build.
Aksara