Chapter 4
Jabari couldn’t remember a time when he had felt
so defeated. How could the fates be so cruel as to show him he had
a fated mate, only to show him that the man wouldn’t want him? What
had he done in his long life to be hated so much by so many? It
wasn’t his fault that he was the spawn of demons. Hell, what did it
matter that his parents were demons anyway? Andrea’s words came
back to him and damn it she was right. Jabari had never done
anything to harm anyone on Atlantis. If anything, it was Jabari who
swam the waters to keep them all safe from harm, just as his father
had taught him to do, and for what? No one appreciated what he was
doing for them, and just when he thought the fates at least were
going to reward him for all he has done in his life, he discovered
it was nothing more than a cruel joke.
“Jabari?”
Lowering his head at the soft pleading voice,
Jabari could do no more than listen to the voice, then replied,
“You should be in bed, Foster. You need to rest.”
“I couldn’t stay in bed when you’re hurting like
you are. Please let me explain why...”
“There’s no reason to explain anything. Like I
said, I get it. I’m a demon... a half breed... an abomination.
Charante feared by all because we have such power that can be
linked to the gods. If I chose to, I could attach to anyone here or
even on the surface, and kill the life force with just a thought.
As Adanc, I have the ability to use all marine life to fight by my
side, even if I didn’t need to. I mean, after all, Adanc are fierce
fighters of the waters, so much so that few can harm us with even a
scratch. No spear, dagger, or even the trident of Poseidon himself,
can penetrate my hide. Shit, if a god can’t stop me, how could
anyone... right? It doesn’t matter that I’ve never harmed another
soul before that didn’t mean my people harm. It doesn’t matter that
I have saved the lives of almost everyone on these lands and even
some not from Atlantis. I am meant to walk my days alone.” Jabari
rasped.
“Jabari...”
Shaking his head and just needing to be alone,
Jabari drew in a shaky breath and let it our slowly, “I dreamed of
the day I wouldn’t feel so lonely. I dreamed of the day I would
meet the man meant just for me. In my mind we would go for long
walks along the stone roads of Atlantis, sharing the sights, meals
and laughter our togetherness would bring. We would build memories
as we did those things and so much more. We would swim hand in hand
as I introduced him to the only friends I have ever known and
showed my mate some of the most beautiful things I have found deep
within the vast ocean surrounding us, and even take him to special
spots I know, and make love as the jellyfish provide a romantic
atmosphere for us to relish while we enjoy each other’s bodies. I
should have known better. I mean, who am I to even think that my
mate would want me when no one else seems to?” Shaking his head
once more, Jabari swiped at the tears he just realized were falling
from his eyes. “Go back to bed, Foster.”
“No, damn it!” Foster snapped.
Startled by the fierceness in Foster’s tone,
Jabari couldn’t help but turn and face the man. Foster’s fists were
clenching and unclenching as if he wanted to punch someone.
“I’m not saying no to our mating because of you
at all, Jabari. I don’t know what the fuck the Atlanteans’ problem
is, that’s just fucked up. I’m not disgusted by you being a demon.
I don’t care that you’re a demon. It wouldn’t matter if you were a
shifter, vampire, or human. Hell, I don’t think I would give a shit
if you were a ghoul or anything else in the world.” Foster hissed
out.
Confused, Jabari asked, “Then why...”
“Why won’t I bond with you?” Foster asked,
practically growling, “Because I’m dying!”
Jabari’s eyes widened in shock, but Foster just
snorted. “You heard me right. I’m dying. If anyone is being fucked
with it isn’t you, Jabari, it’s me.”
Jabari felt his breath stop right along with his
heart. His mate was dying? No, that couldn’t be right. “No, I don’t
believe that.”
Foster snorted, “Believe it or not, it’s the
truth. I could even fucking prove it if you had the internet down
here, but somehow I don’t think that’s possible.”
“And you’d be wrong.” Jabari stated placing the
large clamshell bowl in the sink.
Taking his mate’s hand, Jabari showed Foster to
his security setup. “This is my main security office. I use it to
monitor Atlantis’ perimeter. We are not as far off the grid as you
would think. It might take great power to allow us this privilege,
but Atlantis is power... it is magic... strong magic, and allows
for us to tap into the humans’ internet.”
“Holy shit, you have to be kidding me. I would
never have thought that Atlanteans would be watching YouTube or
playing games on Facebook.” Foster said with a laugh.
Jabari smiled, “Well, I don’t know about this
YouTube or Facebook, that might be for the others. I use the
internet to get news of the surface dwellers, and I watch the
marine biologists to see how close they are getting to us. We are
deeply hidden, but I don’t want to take any chances that humans
will find us and try to experiment or perform research on my
people.”
“You guard all of Atlantis?” Foster asked.
Shaking his head, Jabari replied, “Not alone,
no, but I have little contact with the other guards, even if I am
their leader. My father put me in place when he and my mother moved
to the surface. The people weren’t very happy, but they know better
than to piss my dad off. He told them it was either me as the
commander to the guard, or they could guard themselves. He doesn’t
have much patience when it comes to the Atlanteans’ bigotry. If not
for his promise to Poseidon, I doubt he would have requested I stay
behind.”
“If they’re all so mean to you, why do you
stay?” Foster asked.
“It’s my duty. I was raised with the
understanding that I would be the protector of Atlantis as my
father and mother before me. Even though the people of Atlantis
don’t accept me, this is my home. It’s all I’ve ever really known.
The people aren’t so bad, just misguided by fear a fear brought to
them for a reason.”
Foster walked to the desktop computer, asking,
“May I?”
Jabari nodded as he signed onto the system. “Go
ahead.”
Foster sat down and started tapping on the keys,
asking. “So what misguided reasons might those be?”
“I can only go by the stories my mother and
father told me as a young child.” Jabari stated, then explained. He
told of Poseidon and how Atlantis came to be, then asked, “Remember
when I told you how my parents met?”
Foster nodded, then turned to Jabari. “How could
I forget such a beautiful story.”
“Well, what I didn’t explain was the war between
the Charonte and Adanc to begin with. It seems that Atlantis landed
right in the middle of the battlefield. Some Atlanteans were killed
before my father and mother bonded and merged the two demon clans.”
Jabari explained.
“So, in other words, the Atlanteans, who were
once surface dwellers, found themselves deep on the bottom of the
ocean and in the middle of a demon war. Some of them were killed
and now they hate all demons? But how could they hate you guys when
it was, and still is, the demons that keep them safe?” Foster
asked.
Shrugging, Jabari replied, “Fear of the unknown?
I don’t know.”
Foster scoffed, “Bullshit. I haven’t met these
Atlanteans yet, but if what I learned in my mythology class is
anything to go by, they were a bunch of pompous idiots. It’s
reasonable that the people would be freaked out to find themselves
living under water...”
“And could breathe and some could shift into
marine life and other things.” Jabari filled in.
His mate’s eyes widened, then he said, “Okay,
they found themselves living and breathing under water, and some
even discovered they were shifters... that had to be one hell of a
shock then to see demons fighting... I take it you don’t look like
this when in your natural form?”
Shaking his head, Jabari replied, “No. On land I
look like I do now, except my eyes change to a deep pearl white,
but when in water, my face changes into what has been described to
me as the devil with horns and all. My skin is a black, hard,
leathery texture, I have wings and sharp claws.”
Foster shocked the hell out of Jabari when he
smiled, saying, “I so can’t wait to see that.” He then pushed his
seat back. “Okay, I said I could prove my words and here it
is.”
Jabari read the story of his mate and watched an
interview he gave to a news crew. With every word Jabari’s heart
broke and dread filled him. His mate truly was dying. Looking at
the date of this interview, his mate had less than four months
left. How could this be? How could the fates bring him a mate, only
to have him die within months of meeting him?
“So you see why I can’t bond with you, Jabari.
If we bond, that means when I die you will die as well... at least
that’s what the books I’ve read say.” Foster stated sadly.
Shaking his head, Jabari rasped, “No. I refuse
to believe that. I don’t know about these books you speak of, but
this is wrong. The fates... no matter what... can’t be so cruel.”
Looking at Foster, he said, “And I’m not just talking about cruel
to me. I’m talking about cruelness to my people. We have not had a
fated mate in over a millennia. Now they can have hope that not all
is lost to them and you think the fates would rip you away from me
like that.” Shaking his head sharply left to right, Jabari hissed,
“I refuse to believe that.”
Sighing, Foster said, “Well, in the paranormal
romance books I’ve read, sometimes, if a person bonds with the
paranormal person their illness goes away and they both live
happily ever.”
Jabari felt hope, until Foster said, “But then,
there are some books that the person’s illness isn’t something
their bonding can help and that person is on the road to death.