Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
“No! I don’t want to be in a car! Please, let me out!”
Tighe was distraught when he regained consciousness and found himself strapped to the inside of a roaring metal beast. It was evening and they were flying over a highway with a flock of gleaming metal beasts and Tighe felt nauseous as warm, dry air and chemical fumes swirled around them.
“Please! I can’t be in this metal monster!” He reached for the door but Silas caught his wrist and wrapped around him.
“I’m so, so sorry!” he whispered into Tighe’s hair. “I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”
“Make them stop! I want out!” Tighe begged, holding onto Silas’s arms and closing his eyes.
“Come on! It’s not that bad,” Nox repeated. He kept saying that but Tighe didn’t agree.
“It’s worse than I ever imagined. I haven’t been in anything this dark and cramped since I left my mother’s womb.”
“I’m sorry,” Silas said as he rocked them.
That part was nice and Tighe would have been so happy if they weren’t in an automobile.
“We aren’t completely safe because there’s always a risk to traveling in a vehicle.
But Nelson is a good driver and it’s a damned good car.
There’s only a tiny chance we’ll be hurt or killed tonight.
As much as us getting struck by lightning, alright?
” Silas asked, his tone and presence calming Tighe.
“Thank you.” He took a deep breath and nodded. “I didn’t realize Georgetown was so far.”
“Just a few more hours.”
“Hours?” Tighe whimpered and pushed his face into Silas’s shoulder, trying to make it all go away. “Why couldn’t I have walked? I’m good at following a map.”
“That would have taken days and it wouldn’t have been safe for you,” Silas explained while scratching circles over Tighe’s back and kneading his thigh.
It was magickal, the way his touch soothed Tighe and eased his fears.
“A dangerous man is looking for you and you’re too vulnerable outside, especially in the woods. ”
“Please don’t leave me. I don’t know anything about Georgetown or anywhere else. All I know is the woods.”
“Hey!” Silas tipped Tighe’s face back and pinned him with a stern look.
“I’m sticking as close to you as I can and I won’t let anyone hurt you.
I’ve been worried sick and searching for a way to find you based on nothing but a vision of a skull in a stream.
I didn’t go through all of that just to let you slip through my hands again. Got it?”
Tighe nodded, a small smile tickling his lips despite his dread. “Got it. I am worried about why I was dead but my dreams were good. Very good,” he added and lifted his brows so Silas understood.
“Right…” Silas rubbed his lips together as he squinted. “I had some…good dreams too and I eventually remembered where that stream was. I just had no idea when your body had been left there or if you were still alive or even real,” he said, sounding apologetic but Tighe shrugged.
“I could hear your voice and you were calling to me, guiding me to the stream. You said we’d find our way together. Does that make sense?”
Silas nodded. “I couldn’t see your face and I didn’t know who you were but I had to find you.”
“And we had to go to Georgetown?” Tighe asked, casting an uncertain glance at Nox and Nelson. “I like them but can we trust them?”
There was a soft laugh from Silas as he smoothed the hair on the back of Tighe’s head, making him drowsy.
“We can trust them. Nelson’s a good man and a smart agent, whether the bureau appreciates him or not.
The professor is strange and I still don’t know what to make about the witch stuff and him being a god, but he’s brilliant and I believe him.
Now, his friend Merlin…” Silas’s cheeks puffed out and he gave Tighe a loaded look.
“I think he’s a real wizard and he’s brilliant too, but he’s a little bit of a pervert.
Nox and Nelson warned me to watch his hands and you might want to as well. ”
“A wizard and a pervert,” Tighe echoed, earning a humph from Nox as he turned in his seat.
“Shelby’s warned you about Merlin. That’s good. He can’t help himself but he’s harmless. I messaged him so he knows we’re on our way and that we’d found our lost Ossor.”
“I wasn’t lost,” Tighe said with another shake of his head. “Not until I woke up in this evil beast.”
“We’ll be there soon,” Silas said and went back to massaging away Tighe’s fears.
He focused on Silas and his kind, comforting hands, and hoped that they could be alone once they reached Georgetown.
Tighe had so many questions and he wanted them to be naked.
He wanted to touch and taste all the wonderful parts of Silas he’d explored in his dreams but couldn’t with Nox and Nelson so close by.
Eventually, the car slowed and after many turns, stopped.
When Tighe looked out the windows, he was alarmed by all the boxy stone buildings around them.
They reminded him of castles and sat in rows with neatly manicured patches of flat grass and ornamental flowerbeds.
Nearly everywhere he looked he saw pavement, stone, and brick but he couldn’t see a forest.
“Where are all the trees? And the real grass?” he asked Silas in a hushed whisper.
The car had parked alongside a tall stone wall and a large, ornate wrought iron gate.
Silas got out but it took a moment for Tighe to get up the nerve to follow.
Tighe didn’t sense any danger, but everything looked so wrong outside of the car.
The only thing he understood was Silas but he was so different from the wildly passionate man in Tighe’s dreams. Instead, Silas was patient and tenderly affectionate, yet reserved.
Leaving Tighe to wonder if Silas was waiting until they could be alone as well.
“Come on. We’ll be safer once we’re inside,” Silas said as he beckoned Tighe with an outstretched hand.
Tighe scooted closer to the door and accepted it. He sniffed at the air when he got out and edged closer to Silas. “What’s that smell? It’s strange,” he said and Nox pulled a deep breath through his nose.
“Smells like Kung Pao Chicken. It’s Merlin’s specialty. Let’s go!” He gestured at the house as Nelson opened the gate.
“What does that mean?” Tighe asked Silas, then stared up at Nox’s home in fresh wonder.
“Is this a castle? Is Nox a king?” The townhouse was made of the same gray fieldstones as the wall but all the windows glowed with light and he could see a sparkling chandelier and a large staircase through one of them.
Silas laughed again as he put an arm around Tighe and guided him through the gate. “Nope, just a well-to-do anthropology professor. Kung Pao Chicken is a Chinese dish and one of my favorites but I haven’t had it in ages. It’s a trek to the nearest Chinese restaurant when I’m home.”
“Chinese food?” Tighe parroted in wonder. “I’ve read about China and seen it on a map but I’ve never read anything about its food. Is it spicy?”
“Some of it but we’ll find out if Merlin put a lot of peppers in it,” Silas reassured him, just as the townhouse’s front door opened and a small bald man in a fancy purple suit waved at them.
“Welcome, welcome! I’m so glad to see that you’ve been found in one piece, Mr. Ossor,” he said as he grabbed Tighe’s hand and pumped it vigorously. “My name is Merlin Oglethorpe and you must let me know if there’s anything I can do for you!”
“Can you make them take me back?” Tighe asked, causing the little old man to chuckle and shake his head. He was nothing like King Arthur and Camelot’s Merlin, leaving Tighe somewhat disappointed. He had expected a man with a long beard and a pointy hat.
“I would not advise that but I’m sure we can make you more comfortable. I’ve just put on a pot for tea and dinner is almost ready.”
“You have tea?” Tighe asked, finally excited about something. “I love tea!”
“I did read that and we have more tea than you could possibly drink,” Merlin said as he led Tighe into another room. This one was filled with books. They lined the shelves on the walls and were stacked on most of the flat surfaces.
“Is this a library?”
“Goodness no, lad! This is Nox’s study.”
“I’ve never seen so many books.”
Merlin hummed and nodded. “Most of them are old and stuffy and many are in Old Irish and Latin but we do have literature and poetry. I’ll show you where we keep them later.”
“I’d like that!” Tighe also liked Merlin. Even if the older man kept stroking his chest and squeezing his pecs.
“My, aren’t you tall and marvelously fit!” he said, beaming up at Tighe.
“Knock it off, Merlin,” Nox said and gave his ear a flick. “I’m doing everything I can to manage Tighe’s anxiety and groping doesn’t help.”
Merlin gasped and swatted Nox away. “I wouldn’t dream of upsetting our guest. In fact, I’ve prepared a special dinner for Tighe: plain white rice and chicken—sans salt or seasonings, and a simple salad. I didn’t want to upset his stomach and make his first evening here uncomfortable.”
“Thank you,” Silas said as he shook Merlin’s hand and headed for a collection of glittering bottles on a gleaming wooden table.
Everything was so smooth or shiny or soft.
Aside from a few rocks and a chunk of sun-bleached driftwood on one of the bookshelves, nothing seemed to be in its natural state and there were so many strange odors that Tighe couldn’t identify.
The floors were made of wood beneath the thick, soft rugs, but all the knots and splinters had been polished away.
“Do you like whiskey?” Silas asked when he returned with a glass.
“Whiskey?” Tighe sniffed cautiously when Silas held it up to him. The fumes were strong and made Tighe’s nose burn. “No, thank you.”
“I didn’t think so,” Silas said as he took a sip, then looked at Nox. “Where is Tighe sleeping? I think he’ll feel better once he knows where everything is.”
“Good thinking!” Merlin clasped his hands together. “I prepared the room next to yours, Shelby. Why don’t you take him up and show him around. Dinner will be ready in about fifteen minutes.”
Silas took Tighe’s hand and gave it a squeeze.
“Perfect. Let’s go.” Tighe was happy to follow but had another moment of panic when he was taken upstairs and Silas opened one of many doors.
“This is your room. I’m right next door,” he said with a nod at the other door.
“Come on over if you need anything or have any questions.”
Any questions? Tighe still had so, so many, he didn’t know where to start when Silas entered the room and began flipping switches and pressing buttons. Tighe laughed at the bed and pointed, certain that Merlin had made a mistake.
“I can’t sleep in here!”
“Why not?” Silas frowned at the bed, then raised a brow at Tighe. “My room’s almost the same, you just have…more flowers,” he said as he gestured at the subtle pattern on the pale green walls. “I think they put you in here because it’s more…like a garden?” he attempted with a shrug.
“But the bed!” Tighe held onto Silas’s sleeve nervously. “Do they think that I’m a king?” he whispered as he looked toward the hall, making Silas burst into laughter.
“They’re just really nice, normal beds. You won’t get in trouble.”
“I’ve seen beds before,” Tighe stated, not wanting to sound like a langer. “I even tried sleeping in one in a cabin once!”
“Really?” Silas bit down on his lips and hummed, his eyes watering. “And how did that go?”
“Oh, it wasn’t for me!” Tighe shook his head.
“I woke up and didn’t know where I was. I’m so used to sleeping on the ground and feeling what kind of day I’m waking up to.
I can tell right away if it’s cold and damp or if it’ll be a warm day, if the ground is soft and earthy smelling when I open my eyes. ”
“Ah.” Silas nodded. “That’s not so weird but the temperature stays pretty consistent indoors. You don’t have to sleep on the bed but give it a shot, alright?” he asked, winking at Tighe as he took another sip from his glass.
“Alright. Aren’t we—?” Tighe started to ask if they would be sleeping together but finally registered that Silas had a bed in “his room.”
“Let me show you the bathroom. That’s going to blow your mind if you think the bed is extravagant,” Silas said and caught Tighe’s hand again. “Just remember that I’m right next door if you have any questions or need anything at all.”
“You’re right next door.” Tighe nodded along as Silas showed him the bathroom and how the various knobs and levers worked, despite his tremendous disappointment.
The bathroom was overwhelming with its bright white tile and sparkling fixtures but Tighe was too worried and confused by Silas’s behavior to pay attention.
Silas was being patient and supportive but his affection was that of a concerned friend, not the lover who had laid claim to Tighe’s body and soul in their dreams.
“There are more linens in the hallway. I’ll show you before we head down to dinner,” Silas continued but Tighe grabbed his hand.
“Thank you but would it be possible for us to…” Tighe didn’t know how to ask if they could be naked and close like they were when they met in his dreams. He didn’t want Silas to abandon him later. “Please. Can we—?” he jumped when a loud bong! echoed through the house and Silas chuckled.
“That’ll be dinner. Relax, we’ll eat and then you can have as much time to yourself as you need to settle in and get your mind around all of this.”
“Good,” Tighe said weakly.
That was exactly what he was afraid of and he was scared he’d made a terrible mistake, leaving the Trail and coming to Georgetown. He’d left to be with Silas because he thought it was their fate, but now it appeared that their dreams had not been the same.