“Sam,” Val whispered.
“Is this true?” the Warden looked at Zac with testing eyes.
“Yes, I was unwell, as you know, for several of their Earth hours and Val fought Excariot alone and was wounded. We need time to adjust to our position and she is working as hard as she can.”
“Collector.” The Warden’s voice was stern.
“Yes.” She stepped forward.
“This situation is not satisfactory. You will be responsible for the mistakes or misunderstandings of these two from this moment on. I will deal with the rogue Ranswar myself.”
She nodded in agreement.
“You,” he pointed at Val, “will continue to learn you job on Earth. You will do as your hunter says. Be sure that if you make any more mistakes I will extract you myself and put you into one of your human rodents to live out your days. Is this understood? Twenty–three thirteen, you are free to leave Alchany and return to your position on Earth. Do so quickly and without speaking. Zac, you will return with her and my warning goes to you to too: keep her out of trouble or you will be the flea on the back of Val’s rodent form. Do I make myself clear?”
They both nodded. Val was starting to believe that maybe she would survive this.
The Collector understood that they had saved Val by the skin of her teeth and now she needed to get her out of the way - fast. “Move!” she hissed into Val’s ear. Val jumped, still in shock, but didn’t move. Zac pivoted on the spot, grabbed Val and moved her out of the room as quickly as he could. They hurried down several corridors without exchanging a word. Then Val stopped dead, like a mule refusing to walk. “What just happened?”
“You survived. Now we must get you home.” Zac could tell she was in deep shock, but he couldn’t allow her to break just yet.
“Get her out before word gets round. Go.” The Collector patted Zac.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me. My life is on the line as well now and I will be watching every little thing you do.” The old Collector was back.
“We won’t let you down.” Zac assured her, propelling Val through the guards’ area, which was quite quiet for a change. From there they went into the Collectors sector, and then back through the portal to Earth.
“Val!” Sam jumped up from the bed as they arrived, and threw himself onto her as she stepped into the room.
She was beyond words and simply rested her head on Sam’s shoulder. Sensing her deep need for human contact and comfort, he pulled her as close as possible. Solid, earthman, that’s what she needed.
After a minute, he pushed her back a little, still holding her by the arms and asked, “What were you playing at, teleporting when you shouldn’t, you fool?”
“So much for pleased to see you,” Val huffed, in an attempt at her old humour.
“It wasn’t her fault, Sam. We were both intoxicated by a berry that only grows on the planet of the Ranswar’s. For this reason alone Val did and said the things you heard.”
Sam looked almost saddened by this news. “Well, I knew it was odd, I said that all along. Ah well, as long as we know that then...”
Val stepped closer to him and looked deep into his eyes. “Everything I said was the truth, Sam. The berries just made me a little more forward in my method of delivery.” She carefully kept any feeling out of her voice. She had just returned from potentially having her soul extracted. Now wasn’t the time to back track on her emotional issues.
“Oh, well, that’s good then.” Sam blushed and for a moment Val could see what he must have looked like at the age of ten.
“Should we call the others?”
“No, leave them; they have enough to worry about with Delta. Let tonight be between us. It’s finished. I have learnt my lesson. Sam, you need to go home and rest. Zac, you need to bring me up to date on what happened with Flo.”
“Val, just sleep for now. We can talk about Flo another time.” Sam lowered his hands from her arms and just kept hold of one hand. “Come on, see me out so you can lock up.”
“Yes, ok. Zac I’ll be back in a minute.”
“You know, Zac made a massive sacrifice for you tonight, Val. If I had any doubts about him they are well and truly gone.” Sam reached the door first and pulled it open, Val still attached to him.
“He’s really great. I know he thinks I’m a bit of a letdown at times, but we’re a good team, plus we’re connected.”
“What do you mean connected?”
“Do I hear a note of jealousy?” Val laughed as she pushed Sam into the shop. She hadn’t realised how much time had gone, but the sun was just about to consider waking and she would only have a few hours before the others came back again.
“No.” He slipped down a couple of stairs then pulled himself back up to Val. “I nearly lost you tonight, before I even had the chance to understand you as well as the old Sam did.”
Val’s heart was singing in her ears so loudly it was hard to define his words. “Perhaps we have been given a second chance. Maybe we need to take advantage and start again from the beginning.”
He nodded.
She needed to know him much better before she could have anything close to what she thought had existed between her and the old Sam.
She realised how very tired she was. “So much to think about.”
“And no rush,” he told her, kissing her cheek. “Things will work out the way they are supposed to, if we just let them”
He sounded so very wise. “Good night or good morning?” she asked. “I’m not sure any more.”
As Sam walked down the steps, their hands slowly parted. She stepped back inside the shop and pushed the door shut, watching as Sam walked backwards towards Sandy, smiling at her.
Val locked up and wandered back up the stairs. Wasn’t it odd how bad situations sometimes lead to good ones? Zac had proven that he was prepared to walk the mile to help her and she now knew the Collector had also been her father’s Collector. Best of all, Sam had feelings for her. However, she was more than aware that she was walking a fine line with the Warden. Any more mistakes and he would be coming down on her like a ton of bricks. The way things were going it was a price she would probably have to pay. “Here.” Zac offered her a mug as she flopped down on the bed.
“So what happened with Flo?” she asked.
Zac looked at his shoes. “I gave her my bracelet,” he admitted in an almost inaudible voice.
“What?”
“I gave her my guard’s bracelet. She tricked us.” He sat down next to her, his shoulders slumped with the enormity of his mistake.
“Oh Zac.” Val was horrified. “I’m so sorry you had to do that. Is this going to cause problems?”
“The lying, evil urchin said she would help us. Then, when I teleported, she wasn’t there. Did I say she tricked us?”
“Yes. So what’s the damage? If she gives the bracelet to Excariot what can he do with it?” Val sipped her drink appreciatively; coffee had never tasted quite as good as it did now.
“He could access the portal, although Wendy and her friends have put a protection spell around the shop so hopefully he can’t get in, which should win us a little time. But trust me, if he has the bracelet he will see it as a green
go
light,” he said.
“Excariot already has a bracelet. Why would he want another one?”
“Because bracelets are coded and made for each individual, so, like you, if he uses his to pass through a portal, everyone would know he was coming. Using someone else’s bracelet confuses everything.”
“Right…” she said doubtfully. “So why does Gabrielle’s work for me?”
“Because you come from the same DNA. Each code comes from a unique strand. If your DNA matches, then you can use the bracelet.”
“If Excariot can use your bracelet, does that mean he comes from the same DNA as your guard?”
“Yes.” Zac stared at his hands.
Val could tell this line of questioning was making Zac very uncomfortable. He looked more tired than usual.
“We will continue this conversation after we’ve had some sleep, ok?”
He nodded in agreement.
“One last thing, listen to me, you’re a mad man for giving the freaky little traitor your bracelet, but I love you for it. No one has ever done anything so amazing for me! Thank you.”
She placed her coffee on the floor and snuggled down on the bed. She would try to save the world again in the morning.
“What do you think the others are doing?” Zac asked.
“Sleeping!” she said. “Just like we should be doing.”
Her eyes closed as she drifted off. Zac sat on the end of the bed his eyes gradually closing. He too slept, but only lightly: enough to recover; not enough to be off duty.
After Wendy left the others, she went for a walk by the local stream. It always felt good to be in touch with the elements when she was confused. The memories of Delta had made her feel angry. She had been able to feel everything that Delta had felt about her and the woman made her stomach churn. Although she already knew that Val and Delta had never liked her, that was nothing compared to actually feeling a person’s negative emotions for you. Anger churned in her gut. How dare Delta think those things about her without even knowing her, and the things she had done to Val were unforgivable. Adding to her disquiet, she was also finding the situation with Daniel more than she could possibly understand.
Feeling a little better after her walk, Wendy allowed her car to drift to a halt outside her mother’s shop, hoping she wouldn’t detect her arrival. Carefully, she opened the door, praying the alarm was off. The aim was to get in and not be noticed by her mum as she was supposed to be sleeping at Val’s.
Even in darkness she knew every shelf and every stand. She took a few steps: nothing; she was almost home and dry. She had joked once that she could restock the shelves with her eyes shut and now, even in the dark, she moved around the aisles with confidence, as though she had an invisible map.
There was only supposed to be one thing in her life: Val, but tonight had been a dream. Daniel had taken her to the perfect restaurant; they had laughed about the same things and he was just perfect. Then she had come back to the madness of the bookshop and Fran going missing. How could she make this work?
Maybe she should tell her mum about him. She let out a laugh, and then stood still, listening to see if she had woken her up. There was no noise; she carried on towards the back door into the house. Something she did know for sure was that her magical abilities had grown and she felt more at one with everything. She wondered as she very carefully opened the door if it was anything to do with the dellatrax. Zac had said it was at one with nature so maybe it was helping her get more in touch with what she already understood of the universe working as one. So much to think about and so few brain cells left after too many hours working, fighting and reading, and she badly needed to sleep. She reached her room undetected by the parental radar. Taking off her dress she slipped into bed and fell into a deep sleep.
Fran lay awake looking at the clock. Jason had fallen straight to sleep: typical of him. She was sure he could sleep though a train going through the room. She had put on a brave face for everyone tonight, but now she was alone in the dark she wept. When she had been grabbed from the street, she had no chance to protect herself. Her abductors hadn’t hurt her, but just not knowing what was happening was enough to drive her crazy. She had just kept praying; praying that Jason wouldn’t give up on her; that she would make it through this horrific ordeal in one piece. When she was with Delta she hadn’t known who she was. She knew now, but she didn’t need those revived memories to tell her that Delta was evil. Never in her life had she felt more vulnerable; she had feared she would never see her parents or her sister again. Details of Delta’s past were not the only memories that had been restored. After all she had been through, nothing hurt Fran as much as knowing that Val had been so in love with Jason.
She held her mobile phone tight and sent another message on Facebook to her sister.
“So, what ya doin now? :P”
“RAMDOM STUFF SIS!”
“Missing you misses xxx”
“Want me to visit u?”
“No, no probs, luv U, kiss the oldies 4 me.”
“Adios crazy chic xxxx”
Fran closed her phone and held it close to her heart. She needed to step up her game, learn a little self-defence and maybe a trick or two from Sam.
Shane sat in his attic, looking directly into the eyes of his dead wife Elizabeth. “So, how’s it going,” he asked, smiling at her portrait and relishing the bittersweet feeling that her beauty always stirred in him. As always there was no response. “We had a very interesting day today. Fran was kidnapped and I got knocked out. You would have laughed at me. I think I’m getting a little long in the tooth Beth.” He started to place base colours on a canvas he had prepared. “Val’s a very brave girl for her age and you would have loved to have seen Jason. I know I shouldn’t gush about our son getting into a tight situation with aliens, but he was very impressive. He loves Fran so much; seems like they will be together forever, just like us.” He put colour on the board with fast, assured strokes.
“I worry…” He lifted a glass of water, swirling his brush into a whirlpool. “…about the side effects. I know I did the right thing and I know she will never know, but I still have Jason to think about. I need to put things in place for him. I know that when the time comes, Beth, he will understand.” His sweeps became more aggressive. “And that madam, Delta, how could we have forgotten her? She seems to have us all sussed out. She had Fran and was trying to cause a fight before we knew what was going on. Someone will have to deal with her and quickly. Anyway, my love, I’m off to bed for a few hours. Fully booked tomorrow at the parlour and London is demanding more paintings by the adorable Elizabeth Reed.” Shane raised his glass to the portrait. “So, see you soon.” He plopped his brush into water, placed his pallet on the table, switched out the lights and headed for bed.
The Collector looked at all the scurrying bodies, her family working hard as always, day in and day out. She had heard stories of how it had been before: their home, the place her kind had originally been taken from to become the Collectors. They were special. It seemed that they were among the few who could control the aggressive aliens and move successfully through the portal without assistance. It was an honourable job, but she had never known any other life, she wondered sometimes what it was like on her planet and if she would ever return. Being around Val created strange emotions in her. Val was not like her father; he would never have broken the rules. She gave a small laugh. Who was she trying to kid? Gabrielle and Excariot were always breaking the rules. They were just lucky not to get caught. Well, until Excariot fell for that woman. She was bad news from the day she arrived. Val not only acted like her father, she looked like him as well and because of Val, today she had acted against the system, and from what she could tell they had won.