DARKER ( Supernatural Beginnings) Book Two

The Cabin

Drake

This place looked familiar. Vincent’s seer ability powers had pulled Tonya and me in with him. Where we landed was a well-known place, but it looked a bit different and we had yet to find Vincent. I had a tight hold of Tonya’s hand in mine. I wouldn’t let her go in this place without a cause. We set off to search for him in our surroundings. Our worries about him mixed together, but we knew he would not intentionally put himself in harm's way.

Our steps lead us to find a narrow stone pathway to follow, overgrown with delicate ivy and adorned with vibrant wildflowers. It led us deeper into a garden, flushed with like now, but the one we just left was not.

Sunlight filtered through the dense canopy of trees above, casting a dappled glow of greenery full of a kaleidoscope of colors throughout. Why were we sent here? I wondered. Vincent had evolved, so his powers as a Seer and now a Light Key keeper worked differently than before. He did not necessarily need a door to enter other realms. This was a new space of study for me as a gateway keeper. Our fates kept changing the rules of the supernatural world.

The further we walked down the pathway, I couldn’t help feeling like I knew where this path would lead. Time seemed to slow down as we approached. Nestled among the towering trees, a quaint but cozy Cabin emerged.The same Cabin that stood as a safe base in the present. It was different here though. It has long since been renovated, in order to meet the team's many needs. Here the exterior looked weathered by years of natural caress as it did before the change.

There was no lock on the door but a sturdy metal handle on the heavy solid wood door. Ushering our way inside, the scent of timber and crackling firewood enveloped us. Sitting before us in wait in the living room area was Bane Nell. He was munching on the well-sized reddest apple I had ever seen. He paused in his eating to look at us with a smile. Confusing us both.

“Finally, you did it,” he said. Bane sat in an overstuffed brown leather armchair, draped with a knitted yellow throw. He looked more comfortable there than any normal person should. A soothing glow cast across the room. Creating an atmosphere of comfort and serenity. This only added to my many questions. What was he doing here?

“How are you even here, Bane? And if you are here, does that mean Harper is also with you? Tonya threw out the same questions into my mind quickly. Were they pulled in like we were? Or had something else happened to them to be here?

“You are correct Tonya,” Harper said from behind us. She had come in from outside. Her clothes were slightly covered in dirt. Her boots were caked with mud and she held a basket in her hand filled with what smelled like herbs and some were flowers. She walked over to the compact kitchen across from the living room area. At once, I heard my stomach growl. They seemed to know this place well, a thought came to mind, but I didn’t say it aloud.

The inviting aroma of freshly brewed coffee and homemade baked goods wafted through the air. Tonya slightly licked her lips and her eyes twitched at the sight along with something else below. I wondered where Harper had just come from, but Tonya's stomach growled too and that made me frown in concern.

Neither of us had a chance to eat at the camp before being pulled in by Vincent’s vision of this place. The light danced upon the butcher block countertop, where ingredients for a hearty meal were prepared.

Harper walked back out of the kitchen to head to a set of stairs, most likely to clean up the messy state she was in. Bane then goes up from the armchair to head to the kitchen. He threw the apple core in the trash, washed his hands, then took out two mugs and two small dishes. He motioned for us to have some coffee and pastries. We didn’t stand on ceremony and obliged ourselves.

Washing his hands one more time, then drying them on the dry towel. He approached the countertop to get started on dinner. It appeared that they really had been waiting for us this whole time. How did they know that we would arrive here? It was strange, but Bane and Harper weren't our enemies.

We took our small appetizer grub and sat at the table nearby. Having let go of Tonya’s hand, we were safe here and now handed two more people to help search for Vincent. Somehow, I felt that the vision he had this time would be different. The two of us had landed here, but I don’t think Vincent landed here with us. Though I felt his bond pulling around us, it was distant, pulling around us in the same place but at different times.

Harper returned a while later, all cleaned up and changed. She took a seat across from us, a smile on her now round rosy glowing face.

“ We can get to the questions after we eat,” she said, getting up again to grab plates and cutlery to set the table.

“There’s no need, Harper. I know where we are. This cabin is mine, isn’t it? Or shall I sit in the Cabin of Tonya in this life?” said Tonya. She finished polishing off her pastry and downed the rest of her coffee. She looked straight at Harper in the eyes, reading her expression. Harper still held the plates in her hand, standing near the table. She looked right back but was biting her bottom lip in nervousness.

If this was their world. Where did that leave Vincent? I could feel Tonya's anxiety over the same thing. My worries would not cease in the absence of one of my mates. We didn’t even get the chance to talk about what happened to him at Lilith's Black Moon door. Something else had been present right before the male door shut closed. Gateways and portals carried different auras. The one I felt was harboring a menacing nature. I wasn’t able to catch a clear read in the mere seconds that we had gotten. If I had, I would be able to grasp it and pull it through to destroy it.

The universe was revealing another secret and it was no coincidence that it was tied to this cab the four of us now resided in. As for Bane and Harper, what were they hiding from us? Or rather should it be what they were waiting for? I watched as Harper battled eternally with what she wanted to say. In the end, she was saved by Bane, who happily sauntered over with the first entree for dinner. My eyebrows arched in amusement at the kid. Clearly, he had been paying attention back at the mansion. The stir-fried vegetables were done to perfection, and the aroma wafting off them tantalized our senses, making us put the questions on hold. Hungry had one this time and Bane had steadily diverted it for his sister with just the first plate and it was vegetables.

Harper's cheeks now had a slight blush in them as she let out a soft breath. They were hiding something, but maybe they just couldn’t say for now. I thought strongly that this should be the case given they were from this timeline. Bane headed back to get more of the dishes he had prepared and I noticed that he was just as meticulous as his sister, albeit he was more outspoken. They weren’t at fault for following the rules. Tonya also didn’t dwell on the matter. I wondered how much she remembered since she had guessed the truth. Was there more to her past life than what she told me she knew?

No, it couldn’t be that since we had recently arrived here. Maybe it had something to do with the connection I felt that was pulling over us here. After dinner, we would rest there for the night and once everyone had their heads clear we would get to the matter at hand. Getting back to our world wasn’t a problem, we had to help them as they asked in return for them helping us. Their Tonya in this world had disappeared. How would this affect Tonya the longer we stayed here? This was the tricky part of this whole situation. Unless their Tonya and my Tonya were one and the same.

If that were the issue, then I could deal with that easy peasy. We had to stop the enemies here who were connected to Suxhen, that wily bastard. He just wouldn’t die the way we planned, though it did give us a way to efficiently do so. Now all we had to do was find the thread he had hidden there, but how long would all that take when there were no signs of Vincent?