Nick waited for Martin to leave before approaching Alison’s sleeping body.  He knew very well what Martin’s plans were and he had to stop it. Placing his lips close to her ear, he called her name several times, but she was too drunk to respond.  He willed himself upstairs to Wilma’s apartment and vigorously knocked on the door.  Although he’d put great effort into knocking, he was barely able to manage a few thumps. Fortunately, Wilma was still awake and heard it.  She opened the door and peered into the hallway.“I’m over here,” Nick whispered. “I didn’t want to just pop in there and frighten you.”“Why are you whispering?” Wilma whispered back.“I don’t want Martin to know I’m here,” he explained. “I thought you’d die if you stayed,” Wilma said worriedly.“I petitioned the king to let me come back. He h

Martin struggled to focus on his surroundings.  His head hurt from an enormous bump he’d received from an unknown source.  The last thing he remembered was letting Jasper out of the car at the house he’d indicated was his.It was dark and dank. From what he could tell, he was in a basement. His wrists and ankles were tied together. His back hurt and his bottom was moist from sitting on the damp earthen floor. His first inclination was to shadow walk out of his mundane body, but he was afraid to leave it in case he’d been captured by the local mundane group that sought to annihilate the shadow walkers off the face of the earth.   If he didn’t find out where he was and how to get free soon, he’d be in big trouble. In less than twenty-four hours he would have to retreat to the shadow world to rejuvenate.  Failure to do it would bind him to his mundane body and he would no longer be a shadow walker with an elongated life span

Alison cuddled with Nick on the settee in the parlor while she watched the clock with sadness.  She was amazed at how close they’d gotten in such a short period of time. It was as if they’d known each other all their lives instead of one week.  She would have thought it was the magic placed on them by the magicians in the shadow world, but Nick assured her that they’d removed it. He reiterated his belief that when soul mates met up with each other, they needed no time to recognize their love.  He had only five more minutes before he’d have to leave her for the shadow world. She knew he’d be returning in forty-eight hours, but it didn’t make parting any easier.After Dennis and his friends moved Nick’s body to safety, they spent a few hours sharing bits and pieces about the shadow world with her.  She found it fascinating. Frustration with her parent’s decision to keep her from it rose more than once before th

Vanessa eyed the old Cadillac that sat idly in the carriage house as Alison pulled her Mini Cooper in next to it.  She commented on what a shame it was to leave it there collecting dust and suggested that Alison have a mechanic look at it to see why it wouldn’t start.Their arms were laden with shopping bags as they struggled to pull the door to the carriage house closed.  Frustrated, Vanessa set her bags onto the hood of Wilma’s Volkswagen Beetle so that she could use all of her strength to maneuver the rusty pulleys.“It looks like Wilma beat us home,” Vanessa said as she collected her bags. “She’s probably fixed us something to eat.”“I could eat again,” Alison said.  “I’d rather do that than make her feel bad after rushing home to cook.  I need to get a better idea of the schedules around here. I think her day off should last through the night.  I wouldn’t like h

Upon the insistence of the police, Alison and Vanessa were taken to the hospital to stitch Alison’s thumb and to be checked out for broken bones or other serious injuries. Nick, Martin, and Dennis paced the waiting room until the girls were released to their care.Nick insisted on carrying Alison from the wheel chair that took her to the exit door of the hospital into the seat of his SUV.  Rather than argue, she snuggled close while apologizing for her appearance.“Vanessa and I spent hours getting our hair done, our brows waxed, and our nails done so we’d look good when you came back.  I even bought this dress,” she wept into his neck. “Now, look at me.”“I am,” Nick whispered huskily as he positioned her onto the front seat of his SUV and fastened the seat belt across her torso.  “What I see is the most beautiful and courageous woman in the world.  I’m proud to call you mine.&rdquo