The Prophecy of Arnaka (The Arnaka Saga Book 1) Read online

  Elena had always liked the tall, dark, and handsome look, but she couldn’t deny the pull she felt toward Marco. She automatically tried to dismiss thoughts of attraction, as it was strange for her to think of a man in those terms after having been married so long. She would have to remember she wasn’t committed to a husband anymore. She could be charmed by someone if she wanted to be.

  Elena continued to study Marco. He had olive colored skin, slightly bronzed, which was uncommon in the Michigan winter. Elena realized she had no idea what Marco had been doing in Detroit.

  “Had you been staying in the Detroit area?” she asked.

  “Well, as luck would have it,” he said with a look that implied a shared private joke, “or destiny, my flight from Peru had a layover in Detroit. I had just arrived from an overnight flight from Lima.”

  That would explain his slightly disheveled appearance and day-old beard, though it all had the effect of making him look tousled and sexy. Overnight flights had an entirely different effect on her appearance, she was fairly certain.

  “Oh,” she said with a smile. “So you have been to my continent?”

  “Is it all yours?” he asked. “Are you a good sharer?”

  “The very best,” she said. She was flirting with him. She was surprised it was so natural to be coquettish with Marco.

  Marco’s eyes lit up as she played with him. That’s when Elena really noticed how amazing his eyes were. Not only were they the color of honey but they were almost the same color as hers. Elena couldn’t believe she hadn’t noticed before. She had never met anyone with an eye color so similar to hers.

  She allowed her gaze to travel over the rest of his features. He had a straight nose that suited his face, a wide mouth with an easy smile, and a firm jaw line showing through the gruff stubble. And she was staring, just as Marco had stared at her in the airport. Elena chuckled when she caught herself.

  “What is so funny?” he asked her.

  “Oh, nothing,” she said. “I’m just laughing at myself. It feels good to laugh after taking my life so seriously.”

  “I know exactly what you mean,” Marco said, making Elena realize that she still knew very little about him. She hadn’t learned much about his life or why he was traveling the world. She hoped she would have the opportunity to discover much more about him. There was no way she was going to sashay away from him this time.

  “Marco, why did you choose to come to Sedona of all places?”

  “I am starting to think I came here to find you,” he said.

  Marco pulled up in front of the inn’s main entrance, parked the car, and got out.

  6 Across the Threshold

  Marco and Elena got adjoining rooms at the Javelina Inn. The innkeeper explained to them that javelina looked like wild boars but were from the peccary family originally from South America. Apparently, they were curious little creatures that inhabited the area. The woman at the front desk told them they would likely be able to see javelina outside at night. She assured them that the javelina usually made themselves known; they weren’t the quietest of creatures.

  Elena wondered why an inn would brag about noisy, wild animals that roamed its property at night. That was her first hint that Sedona was a place like no other. The second hint came right on the tail of the first.

  “I have a book on animal messages behind the counter here if you need it,” she added.

  Elena didn’t know why she would need one or even what a book on animal messages was, but she figured it was good to have access to one if she found out what the heck it was for.

  Marco carried their bags to their rooms. They entered her room first and placed her bag on a table by the window.

  “Would you like to join me on a hike?” Marco asked. “After hearing that woman boast of their amazing trails, I can hardly wait to see for myself.”

  Although Elena was tired from the long flight and the drive from Phoenix, it sounded like a good idea. After the dreary Michigan winters, the Sedona sunshine and bright blue skies felt glorious. It was March and already relatively warm in Sedona. And thanks to the change in time zone, they had gained several hours. There were still a couple of hours of daylight left.

  “You know what,” Elena said, “that sounds lovely. Let me change into clothes and shoes I can hike in. I will only be a minute.”

  “When you are ready, come knock on my door,” he said and pulled the door shut behind him.

  Elena rummaged through her suitcase until she found sneakers, leggings, and a sweatshirt. They would work for a hike. She pulled them on and assessed herself in the mirror. She looked a little worse for the wear, but she was a beautiful woman and never should have believed otherwise.

  She had become weak and foolish while with Brandon. She had given her power to him but now she was reclaiming it. She was already beginning to feel better with the thousands of miles between her and the memories of her marriage. Right then she promised herself that she would make it easy for herself to move on. She had suffered enough. She owed herself a fresh start. Elena decided she was finished thinking and talking about Brandon. She had given enough of her energy to him.

  As Elena walked out the door to Marco’s room, she realized she was really starting to like him. She didn’t know if that was good or bad. After all, she barely knew the man. She had planned on spending several years healing and growing before even allowing herself to think of someone in that way.

  But there she was, a day after her divorce, intrigued by a mysterious man. Should she be careful, or was it time to throw caution to the wind? She had promised herself she would live her life to the fullest, and she had to keep that promise. She didn’t want to succumb to the trap of over thinking, but she also needed to be wise.

  Elena rapped lightly on the door to Marco’s room. When Elena saw Marco, she knew she had no choice but to let destiny sweep her away. She stepped across the threshold.

  * * *

  Ashta awoke to birds chirping outside her window as she did every morning. Still lying in bed, she stretched and groaned as she felt her sore muscles. The temple masters pushed her harder than they did any of the other pupils. She could not understand why. She always did what they asked of her, but it was never enough. Always, there was more that she needed to accomplish.

  It was often very hard for her. She was thirteen years old, and the temple masters demanded more of her than the pupils that were twenty-one and in their final year of training. Most of the time she shouldered this gracefully and with acceptance. Other times, like now, she wanted nothing more than to bury her head under the covers. Mornings like these, when her body ached, and she wanted her mother to take care of her, made her feel all alone. She missed her parents and siblings.

  On her seventh birthday, Ashta’s parents told her they were taking her somewhere special. Ashta thought they would maybe take her to one of her favorite places by the water’s edge; her parents knew how much she loved playing at the banks of their River Haakal.

  When they had left their home without Ashta’s five brothers and sisters, she had been excited. There was always so little time to devote to her alone. She had believed her parents were giving her special time for her birthday. What she did not expect was for them to take her to the Temple of Laresu’u Kal, that grand temple she had heard so much about, and leave her there.

  When her father told her that the temple would be her new home, she stared up at him in confusion. Then she looked at her mother, hoping to see something in her eyes that would help her understand. Ashta knew that her parents loved her deeply, and she could not comprehend what they were telling her. Why would they want to send her away from home? She was a good girl, always helping with her brothers and sisters. Why did they not want her?

  Ashta would not receive the answers she sought that day. It would take her many years to understand what happened next. Both her mother and father hugged her with a glimmer of tears in their eyes and then turned and walked away. She stood there alone in th
e world as she watched her parents fade into the distance. They did not turn even once to look back at their daughter.

  Once Ashta could no longer see her parents, she turned to look up at the great Temple of Laresu’u Kal. She had grown up hearing stories about the magic that was performed there, how the temple masters knew the future and the past. She had heard of men and women that could fight without ever picking up a weapon.

  There she stood, intimidated, scared, and alone. Tears welled in her eyes, and she fought to keep them in check. Still, one tear escaped to roll down her cheek, fall to the ground, and seep into the parched earth. She took a long, deep breath and steeled herself for what was to come. Then she took her first step toward embracing her destiny.

  7 A Dreamy Escape

  Elena woke from sleep disoriented in the unfamiliar bed at the Javelina Inn. She didn’t know where she was or why she had woken up. Her senses gradually grew alert, and she remembered it all, including her dream.

  It was the same dream of the little girl she’d had before. The girl looked much as Elena did when she was younger, and Elena wondered what it could mean if she was dreaming of herself as a child in a different world. Elena was certain there was some deep meaning there, some important symbolism that she was supposed to take away from the dream, but she didn’t know what it was. Her mind grew foggy again with sleep and she drifted.

  An hour later, Elena grimaced in frustration. Her bed was comfortable, and her body was tired from traveling and the long hike with Marco, but she found herself tossing and turning. The digital clock on the bedside table glared out 2:34 in mocking, red numbers. Elena closed her eyes again and was relieved when sleep finally claimed her, but the relief was illusory.

  Elena slipped into another dream, this one horrible, unlike any she had ever had before. In her dream, Elena was terrified and crying. Demons were chasing her. There was a principal demon followed by several other demons. The leader was enormous and grotesque, covered in bulging, unnatural muscles. It had human-like features with an overpowering stench of evil that caused Elena to whimper in fear.

  The demons were clothed like people, but lumbered forward like monsters, crushing everything in their path. The demon leader chased Elena unrelentingly, while the other demons hurt any innocent person they passed. Elena cried out as one snapped a boy in half. It was unbearable.

  Elena felt powerless and could do nothing but run. Always when she looked over her shoulder, the demons were almost upon her. Elena knew they would kill her if they caught her, and a part of her realized that if the demons killed her in the dream world, she would die in the physical world too. She ran for her life.

  Elena’s conscious self struggled to free her from the terror of the nightmare, but she was unable to escape the demons. Finally, a blaring sound shook Elena awake. Terrified and trembling, Elena didn’t know what was causing the obnoxious noise. She reached out a hand and fumbled with the alarm clock on the bedside table until she found a button that turned it off. It was 4:44 in the morning.

  It was an unusual time for an alarm to be set, but whatever happenstance had led to the alarm going off, Elena was grateful for it. She was tremendously relieved to have awakened from the nightmare, but she couldn’t shake the fear. The dream had seemed all too real, as if her life were truly in danger. She was horrified at the pain she witnessed and at the evil she felt emanating from the demons.

  Elena was scared and sobbing. She didn’t know what to do. She could call her family in Argentina, but how could anyone help her from there? Her family wouldn’t understand what was happening—not even Elena did. Besides, Elena felt more than anything like being held and reassured that everything was okay. She wanted to be told that such malice did not exist in the world, even though deep down she suspected it was real.

  She didn’t want to be alone, and there was only one person she could think of that could help her. She had only just met Marco, and she didn’t want to seem cowardly, afraid of a dream, but she was truly terrified. She was haunted by how real the dream felt.

  Still trembling, Elena got out of bed. She grabbed the key and left her room barefoot in the T-shirt she had been sleeping in. She didn’t care. With a deep breath, she knocked on the door to Marco’s room. She had to knock again before a bleary-eyed Marco opened the door in his boxer shorts.

  Half asleep, he didn’t ask questions. He saw the frightened and traumatized look on Elena’s face and stepped aside to let her in. He didn’t ask her what was wrong. He didn’t ask her what she needed. He pulled her into bed with him and held her, just as she had hoped he would.

  In just a few minutes, Marco fell back asleep. His breathing grew heavy and deep. The rise and fall of his chest against Elena’s back comforted her. Marco held her close; she laid curled into the open curve that his body created for her.

  Elena could not sleep. So that the nightmare would not take hold of her again, she focused on the rhythmic sound of Marco’s breathing and on the warmth of his body. She prayed silently to God to protect her and those innocent people she had seen the demons hurting. Sometime later, Elena finally fell asleep and didn’t wake until she felt Marco stir behind her.

  Marco squeezed his arms around Elena with a familiarity and an intimacy that belied that they had only known each other for a day. It was uncommon. How could she explain how close she felt to him after knowing him for so little time? She was used to a life that operated within the norms society had long imposed on her. There was something different going on with her now that she couldn't understand.

  Elena came to wakefulness slowly. She enjoyed the feel of Marco’s body nestled behind her. They fit together, his body perfectly complementing hers. In that moment between sleep and wakefulness, Elena knew Marco’s thoughts. She couldn’t understand how, but she was certain that she knew what he was thinking. He too was wondering at the connection between them and why he felt such closeness and trust with her already. How was it possible? Elena felt the question run through his mind.

  Then she felt him surrender to it. Marco accepted his desire to kiss her, deciding that he would not try to figure it out. Like her, he was still learning to surrender to the divine flow, no longer deciding things according to standards set by others.

  Marco’s lips made contact with the nook between her neck and shoulder, the space left open by her T-shirt’s gaping neckline. She felt the touch of his lips even before they touched her skin. Electricity preceded the kiss.

  When his lips made contact with her skin it was powerful in a way she had never experienced before. Inexplicably, there was a sense of complete intimacy and of surrendered love. She was amazed how something so gentle as the brushing of his lips upon her skin, just once, could have such a profound effect on her soul.

  Her mind tried to tell her she had other plans. According to a mathematical equation she took from a book, Elena had calculated she would need three and a half years to heal from her past relationship before she could be with a man again. But despite her mind’s nervousness, Elena knew it was happening.

  This man felt like he had been her lover for eons. Elena didn’t understand; she felt her heart ready to ignore rules and plans. There was no straining. On the contrary, straining would be to deny what, seemingly, already existed between them.

  Elena broke the physical connection between their bodies and instantly missed Marco’s warmth. She turned and looked into his eyes. He draped his arm across her waist as if he had been doing it every day of her life. She searched his eyes, looking for something. What she found there was a mirror to her own eyes, a mirror of her own emotions. Was it possible?

  “Marco,” she began, but then realized she didn’t know what to say. She stopped, at a loss for words to express what she didn’t yet understand.

  “It is okay, my darling. I feel the same way. And I do not understand how it can be possible either. Somehow, God has created this for us,” Marco said.

  Elena nodded, wordless. She was lost in Marco’s eyes. There, in
the rich amber, Elena saw so much love, understanding, and compassion that she knew it was right.

  “Elena,” Marco said in his lilting accent, “like you, I do not understand what is happening, but it is happening. Though I only met you yesterday, I feel my soul floating within you. And your eyes, it is as if they are mine. I may not understand it, but I feel great power here. Let us embrace it and life.”

  “Yes,” she said to him softly, intimately. “Let us embrace it.”

  Marco pulled Elena into him. He laid her head against his chest and held her for what felt like forever and a minute all at the same time. A new phase was beginning in Elena’s life. This time, she was ready for it.

  8 Time to Remember

  Eventually, Marco interrupted the moment.

  “So tell me, what good fortune brought you to me in this way?”

  Sleeping in Marco’s embrace, Elena had managed to forget, but now it all came rushing back to her.

  “Oh, Marco,” she said. “It was terrible. The worst dream I have ever had in my life. It was horrid. I was terrified.”

  She was speaking quickly, the panic beginning to return.

  “No, no, my darling, you are safe here with me,” Marco said and affirmed his statement by pulling her close to him again. “Tell me what happened.”

  Tears slipped down Elena’s face despite her efforts to contain them. Marco’s expression changed as she told him of her dream. Something wasn’t quite right, and they both knew it. It had been too real, too intense.

  “I was afraid that if the demon killed me in my dream, I would die in this body too.” She paused, hesitant to hear the answer to her next question. “Do you think I would have?”

  “I am no expert on these matters, but I know the dark forces are real and affect us in more ways than we realize.”

  “Oh,” she said because she didn’t know what else to say. She had hoped he would allay her fears.