The Protectors: Book 1 in the Protectors Saga (11 page)

“Alright,” Jade said, still trying to suppress her
laughter, “I’m sorry. I’ll just ask Gumptin later.”

The mood had lightened, and Avery was thankful for
this. What she had to say to Jade next, she knew Jade wasn’t going
to like, but she wouldn’t be a true friend if she didn’t say it to
her.

“Listen,” she told Jade, “I know that Gumptin said we
had to return to Orcatia, but if you really don’t want to, if this
is just too much for you, I want you to know that you don’t have to
come with us. I’ll talk to Gumptin. I won’t be mad or upset if you
decide to stay.”

Jade leaned forward and smacked Avery hard on the
side of the head.

“Ow!” Avery shouted, rubbing her stinging head.

“Don’t be such an asswipe, Avery.” Jade said,
standing up. “Of course, I’m coming with you. I’m coming for the
same reason I came to this stupid park in the first place.”

Avery stood up, still across from Jade, “I’m just
saying that if you did decide to stay in Redemption I wouldn’t be
mad at you.”

A flicker of hurt crossed over Jade’s eyes, “Don’t
you want me to come?”

Avery had to back pedal, for as tough as Jade was,
when it came to certain things she was as soft as a cotton ball,
and one of those things was definitely Avery.

“Of course I want you to come with me! I can’t even
imagine us being apart.” Avery told Jade, placing her hand over her
heart, “I just don’t want you to do something you feel forced into
doing, and I definitely don’t want you to get hurt.”

The pain was gone from Jade’s eyes and a small smile
tugged at the side of her lips, “Avery, I live in a trailer park
with parents who I barely see. I spend more time at your house than
I do my own. I’m flunking out of school, and the whole town thinks
I’m either gonna die or kill someone by the time I’m eighteen…maybe
both. It’s not like I have a lot to stay for.”

Avery laughed, it was sad, but everything Jade had
said was unfortunately true.

Jade walked over to Avery and took her hand into her
own, squeezing it slightly, “You’re my family. You and me, that’s
what I’ve got in this whole world. If you’re going through that
gateway, then I’m going with you.”

Avery squeezed Jade’s hand back, a silent thank you
for confirming to her just why Jade was her best friend.

“Then, let’s get going before Gumptin throws us both
into the gateway with his bare hands.” Avery laughed, pulling Jade
by her hand towards Gumptin.

Jade groaned and allowed herself to be pulled, “Ugh,
for one beautiful moment I forgot about him.”

Avery smiled, wondering how any could possibly forget
about a supposedly non-existent magical being.

By the time they had finished talking and had made
their way back to Gumptin the gateway had once again closed. So,
Gumptin said the words once more and opened the watery gateway in
front of them.

“That is just trippy.” Jade said.

“Alright, in you girls go before I grow roots and end
up being trapped on this planet.” Gumptin told the girls as he
pushed them towards the gate.

“Wait a second,” Jade interrupted, slapping Gumptin’s
hand away from her, “you’re not going in first?”

Gumptin shook his head, “No, I am going to stay here
until I see you go through the Ora Gateway with my own two
eyes.”

Jade nodded, pursing her lips, “Just can’t get enough
of my ass, huh.”

For the first time since Avery had met Gumptin, he
looked genuinely shocked.

“Sorry, Gump,” Jade continued, “I know its awe
inspiring, but you’re far too old, too non-human, and definitely
too irritating for me.”

“Insufferable.” Gumptin mumbled and ushered them
forward, although this time he made sure not to put his hands on
Jade at all, especially anywhere near her backside.

Just before Avery was about to jump into the gateway
she turned around and faced Jade, standing just inches from
her.

“You know, you were wrong.” She told Jade.

Jade gave Avery a quizzical look.

“I’m not the only thing you have in Redemption.”
Avery said, “You’ve also got your bike.”

A huge smile formed on Jade’s face, “That’s true, I
do have my baby.”

Avery nodded in agreement, “Of course, it sucks,” she
said, “’cause you know you can’t bring her with you to
Orcatia.”

As Avery leapt into the gateway she heard Jade shout
from behind her, “Son of a bitch!”

Chapter
5

Avery landed hard on Orcatia once again. She
staggered forward and would have been able to remain on her feet if
it weren’t for a pesky tree root sticking up out of the earth. As
her foot hit the root she knew she was headed straight for the
ground. At least she had time to prepare her body this time,
placing her hands out in front of her.

Once she was on the ground, Avery rolled over and
sprang up quickly, making sure she was out of the way when Jade
came pummeling through.

Jade came flying out of the gateway even faster and
harder than Avery had. She landed face first on the ground without
even a chance to stumble around and try to get her footing.

“Son…of…a…bitch!” Jade shouted, lifting herself up on
her arms.

Avery thought it appropriate that Jade’s last words
on Earth would also be her first words on Orcatia, however
inappropriate those words might be.

Before Jade had the chance to fully lift herself up
onto her hands and knees, Gumptin came crashing out of the gateway,
landing directly on Jade.

“Get the hell off of me!” Jade yelled at Gumptin.

In an effort to prevent Jade from physically picking
Gumptin up and tossing him off of her, Avery ran over and helped
Gumptin roll off of Jade. Once Avery had managed to help Gumptin
stand up, Jade was on her feet in one cat-like move. For a moment,
Avery thought Jade may try and smack Gumptin, but instead she just
brushed the dirt off of her black tank and jeans, grumbling to
herself as she did so.

“Thank you, Jade,” Gumptin said as he took off down
the overgrown path which led to the main road, “that was a much
softer landing than I had been expecting. I suppose you are good
for something after all.”

This time Jade did make a leap for Gumptin, but Avery
grabbed on to Jade’s shoulder tightly, holding her back.

“Just let it go.” Avery told her, “You obviously made
it sixteen years on this planet without killing him, so just do me
a favor and try to get through today.”

Jade very reluctantly agreed, and they followed
Gumptin out on to the main road.

Once they reached the road, Avery noticed a dozen or
so fresh horse shoe impressions in the mud that hadn’t been there
before they had left.

“Hey, Gumptin, look.” Avery said, pointing out the
impressions in the road.

“Yes,” said Gumptin, barely taking any notice of it,
“by the types of shoe imprints and number of horses, those were
left by members of the King’s army, nothing to worry about.”

The fact that there was a King didn’t surprise Avery
in the slightest. From everything she had heard and seen of
Orcatia, it was exactly the type of place to have some sort of
royalty ruling.

Gumptin continued, “We tried to keep word of your
deaths a secret, but with the Emperor and his followers boasting
about the death of the Protectors all over Orcatia, whispers began
forming everywhere. When King Draven heard the news, he sent some
of his men to watch over the village in case the Emperor decided to
attack. After a few days the soldiers left, but they return once a
day to make sure everything is alright. Now that you are back,
there will be no need for the King’s men to check on the village
anymore.”

The name Draven sounded familiar to Avery, but just
like with everything else, she had no idea why.

“Wait a second,” Jade spoke up after listening to
everything Gumptin had to say, “we don’t follow this King do
we?”

Avery knew exactly why Jade had asked. Jade had never
been one for following orders, either from parents, teachers,
police, especially not from Gumptin, and Avery knew not from any
King either. Avery wondered how she had ever been able to get Jade
to do anything she had ordered her to do when she was leader, or
even how she’d get Jade to follow her this time around.

“Havyn technically falls into the Nightfell Kingdom,”
Gumptin explained, “which belongs to King Draven, but the
Protectors are a law unto themselves. Every King in every province
recognizes your authority.” He caught himself, then said,
“Although, not all of them agree with it. You will most likely have
issues with a few of them in the future…if you live long
enough.”

Avery giggled, “That’s not a problem for Jade. She’s
use to people in charge having issues with her.”

Jade reached over and smacked Avery across the arm
which only made Avery giggle harder.

“What’s King Draven like?” Avery asked through her
giggling.

“He is a good king.” Gumptin answered.

Avery waited for him to elaborate, but that was all
he offered her, “Well, have we ever met him?” Avery questioned, not
content to let the subject drop yet.

“No, you have never met.” Gumptin’s short answers
were beginning to get on Avery’s nerves. It was the first time
since she had met him that she actually wanted him to talk
more.

Avery persisted, “Don’t you think it’s weird that the
Protectors have never met the King of the kingdom that they live
in?”

“Yes.” Was all Gumptin said.

Avery grunted in frustration and looked over at Jade
who just shrugged her shoulders as if to say, “Don’t look at me to
try and deal with him.”

They were content to walk the rest of the way to the
village in silence. Avery let her mind wander, mainly to King
Draven and why Gumptin was being so tight-lipped about him. She
wanted to push Gumptin further on the issue, but knew if she did he
would only clam up again. Plus, she didn’t know enough about
Gumptin to know if he was even hiding anything important or just
being evasive for annoyance sake. Instead of dwelling on it any
further, Avery looked down at her muddied and scuffed burgundy Doc
Martens and wished she had chosen to wear her cheap no name
sneakers that morning instead.

The familiar sounds of the bustling village, distant
voices, the whinny of horses, a hammer banging against something
metal, took Avery’s mind off of her messed up shoes and on to the
fact that they had almost reached Havyn.

They passed the entrance sign that Avery had tripped
over her first time entering the village and walked out into the
main center of Havyn.

Just as before, the villagers came rushing up to them
in packs, stopping what they were in the middle of doing and
exiting out of their houses to come and see Gumptin and the next
Protector he had brought back to Orcatia.

As a large number of villagers began to approach
Avery glanced over at Jade. She wondered how Jade was going to
react to them, knowing full well Jade barely tolerated people,
especially not strangers, and definitely not strangers who were all
crowding around to see and talk to her.

“Well I’ll be damned,” a burly villager wearing a
dirt stained smock and carrying a rake, spoke to Jade, “if it isn’t
Jade Kai come back to haunt us.” He smiled broadly and clamped Jade
on the shoulder.

Jade grimaced, but made no move to shove the villager
away from her.

A pudgy older woman, with a thick mop of gray hair
piled atop her head, wearing a pink and white striped dress with a
red apron, and smelling sweetly of cinnamon and flour, pushed her
way to the front of the crowd and laid a giant bear hug on Jade.
Jade’s eyes got as wide as a startled horse’s.

“Oh, come here, you little rascal.” The woman said,
still holding on to Jade tightly. Avery recognized her as the woman
who had come running out of Bott’s Apothecary & Sweets.

Jade didn’t hug the woman back, but again she didn’t
make an attempt to get away from her either. Avery smiled to
herself as she realized Jade was trying to be polite. This was a
rarity for Jade, so it showed Avery just how much Jade was willing
to do to follow Avery with the whole Protector thing.

“Didn’t they feed you on Earth?” The woman said,
releasing Jade and running her hands over Jade’s shoulders and
arms, pinching at her flesh, “Why, you’re nothing more than a
splinter.”

That was it for Jade; the small amount of tolerance
she was attempting to display had begun to fade. She stepped away
from the woman and out of the reach of her flesh pinching
fingers.

“I eat just fine, thanks.” Jade told the woman,
smiling tightly and trying not to make her voice sound too
clipped.

Avery was perfectly happy standing back and watching
Jade’s uncomfortable interaction with the villagers when a familiar
face in the crowd caught her eye. It was the boy who had hugged her
when she had first came back. The very first person she had seen on
this planet. Avery motioned for him to make his way up to them. She
was grateful for the familiar face even if she didn’t know anything
about him. Something about his laid-back countenance and gentle
smile made Avery feel at ease around him.

The boy smiled and made his way up to stand off to
the side of Gumptin. Avery noticed it was the furthest spot he
could stand away from Jade without looking too obvious that he was
trying to avoid her.

“Jade,” Avery said, getting Jade’s attention away
from the other villagers, which Avery could tell by Jade’s look she
was grateful for, “I want you to meet…” Avery stopped as she
realized she had no idea what the boy’s name was.

“The name’s Pip.” The boy told Avery, seeing her
confusion, “I work over at the stables with Thomas, my boss. I’ve
been taking care of village’s, including the Protectors, horses for
over half my life.” He smiled brightly while speaking of the last
part and Avery could see the pride behind his eyes.