Chapter 681 Chapter 681
Deva sat there listening to the women. Calla, Amari, and Journee were filling them in on what had happened in the world since they’d been taken. She still couldn’t wrap her brain around some of it. Calum’s mother had been missing for twenty-three years. Deva wasn’t much older than that. Among the other two women from the island, Alandra and Jorja, it was Alandra that had been gone the longest. For a quarter of a century, she had been a captive of lunatics.
Both had children in that time because they were taken before their change and impregnated when their body was still acting like that of a one-form. Deva’s heart felt heavy with the knowledge that they’d been forced to have children, and then the children were taken from them. Even though they had named their children, there was no telling if they still used those names. Jorja’s son would be thirteen, she thought, but with no calendars, she couldn’t be sure of the age. Alandra’s daughter was around twenty-one, and if Deva knew anything about the sick s.o.bs that ran this operation, she likely had a child of her own by now. Calla had written down the names, ages, and other details.
“So, where are you from originally?” Calla looked at Jorja. “You have a slight accent, but I can’t place it.”
Jorja looked at her hands clasped in her lap. “Italy.” She said it with a sad expression. “I was nine. My sister and I were both taken.” She inhaled slowly through her nose. “I don’t even remember much of the language now.”
Calla glanced at Deva; her expression was bleeding with compassion. “Okay.” She looked back at Jorja. “We’ll get more of those details when we get to where we’re going.”
“Do you think you can find my sister or my son?”
Deva looked over the rail at the water. She couldn’t handle seeing the hopeful look on the other woman’s face.
“We’ll know more when we have all the information.” Calla’s tone was soft and understanding.
Deva could barely form words right now.
“What clan are you from?” Amari’s tone wasn’t tinged with sympathy at all.
“Brown bear. I think my grandfather used to call it Marsican bear.” Jorja looked at Tesha, her eyes wide. “We will be allowed to shift.” The last part was a whisper.
“Of course, you will.” Amari grinned. “When we’re not on a boat.” She glanced behind her and looked up to where Tripp was watching around them. “None of us are allowed to shift on the yacht unless you have feathers.”
“Right.” Jorja smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes.
“Alandra.” Tesha set her empty cup on the table. “Do you want to share any details?”
The woman had long black hair that once may have been radiant. Now it was thin, with grey throughout, and it had no luster at all. Her blue eyes held so much pain that Deva couldn’t breathe when she looked at her.
“I was taken when I was fifteen.” She nodded slowly. “We were gathering for a celebration with a nearby clan.” She looked out over the water. “I don’t remember what it was for.” She sucked in a deep breath and then looked back at Tesha. “I had my daughter when I was nineteen, and she was taken when she was six.” She closed her eyes and continued to talk. “I am from the island wolf clan. Archipelago wolf from the island near Alaska.” She opened her eyes. “Each child that was brought all these years, I hoped to recognize a part of them. I thought maybe my daughter may have had a child.” She looked back over the water. “I taught her to chant I am from the island wolf clan—I hope she remembered.”
“I’m sure she did.” Calla looked down and wrote something down.
“You never forget your mother’s words,” Journee said quietly. “I can’t see my mother’s face, but I still know things she said.”
No one spoke. Journee and the three women exchanged looks, and Deva knew it was something that she and her teammates couldn’t relate to.
“I still can’t believe all that has happened since I was taken.” Tesha said softly. “Phones smaller than hands, computers you can carry in one hand—” She smiled. “I can’t wait to see what else happens.”
“I am thrilled to see the number of women that are fighters, right alongside the men.” Alandra nodded. “Some things changed that were long overdue.”
Deva and Calla exchanged a look. They both knew it wasn’t as good as it seemed at first, but compared to when these women were taken and considering what they had gone through, it was better to just leave what they thought alone.
Calum came out onto the deck. “Konner and Terah should be here in a while.” He looked up at Tripp. “They’re bringing one from the sea clan with them for phones and supplies.”
Deva looked at the water. “Konner was so shocked that they lived in the salt water.”
“Even when I still knew what was happening, that clan was all but gone.”
“Konner, with the help of Taggart and his men, have found a few.” Calla glanced over at Calum. “I don’t know the numbers.”
Calum went to the back and looked out at the water. “I believe it’s twenty-two now.”
Deva got up and went and stood beside him. “How many from this sea clan?”
“I don’t know. I’m sure Konner will fill me in when he gets back.”
Deva looked again. As far as she could see, all there was to see was water. “If they were at that little island, how are they going to get back to us so fast?”
Calum chuckled. “We’ve been following the coastline,” he pointed, “they can go straight across.”
Deva shook her head. “I can barely navigate with my GPS most days, and they can manage underwater.”
“We won’t be hard to find. It’s almost dark, so that makes it even easier.”
“I’m staying up here until they get here,” Tripp called down from his perch on the roof. “Make sure no one is following.”
Calum glanced at him and nodded. He pushed away and went toward his mother. “There are beds below if you ladies are tired.”
His mom smiled at him. “I just want to sit here and enjoy that I can relax. I don’t think I’ve relaxed in all these years.”
“Yes. Eyes open all the time.” Jorja nodded.
Alandra leaned back and looked at the sky. “Even if you did sleep, it was very lightly—always listening, just in case.”
Deva glanced at Calla. Her expression went from sad to angry, and she didn’t blame her for that. What these women had endured, someone needed to pay for. She stood up. “I’m going to get a drink. I’ll be right back.”
She wasn’t all that thirsty. She just needed a few minutes to feel pissed off and preferred to do it alone.