A New Beginning

Chapter 35

Tessa's POV:

"Where did you hide my gem?" I asked Dirk.

"I didn't touch it."

The falsehood rang with an unpleasant tone across the mindlink. I wasn't sure why he even pretended to be innocent. It simply wasn't possible to lie across the mindlink. I pinned my ear tufts and growled at him. Restless from boredom, he half-raised his wings, more than ready for a wrestling match since the rain kept us inside.

Mom muttered, "Take your squabbling outside. I'm trying to nap. He hid it in the plant pot on the window sill."

"Thanks! At the rate everyone keeps hiding it, Taureen is going to have to put a tracking device in that thing."

I flew over to the front door where a plant pot held a sunburst vine. Peering through the sprawling vines and fat leaves, something glimmered through the greenery. I quickly reclaimed the shiny gem and gazed at the falling rain on the other side of the glass.

"Hey, Abby, are you enjoying the rain?"

"You should really join us one day to see what it's like in these tunnels when it rains. You wouldn't be so smug."

"I already know I wouldn't like it, but I would do it if you joined me here for a sleepover the next night."

"Uh huh. Dad may not mind the idea of me eventually joining the Kymari, but if I try anything before my first birthday, he will probably blow a gasket."

"What's a gasket?" Weird rings of flimsy material appeared in my mind, thoroughly confusing me.

"Some sort of seal on something that is under pressure, I think. Like one of those seed pods that pop open when you touch them."

"Those things always make me jump when they pop open. How's Glen doing?"

"Much better. The fever is almost gone, and he's just tired now. He will probably join the Morning Song tomorrow morning, although he will have to take it easy."

"That's a relief. What did you do today?"

"Sang. Went for a bath. Wrestled with a few of the others and napped a bit before the rain trapped me underground. What about you?"

"I got dragged through a haunted forest." I sent a few images of the creepy trees.

"What? Where was this?"

Sending her images, I went over the entire training session. She asked quite a few questions, which I answered. Eventually we ran out of things to say, and Abby decided to nap a bit more.

I let the mindlink fade as I returned to the living room with my gem and landed on a wall perch. Dirk rolled around on the sand beneath the heat lamp. When he bumped into Mom, she swatted him with her tail. The whip-like slap made him squawk and quickly give her some space. Dad didn't even raise his head, relaxing on the other side of Mom.

I remained on the wall perch since I wasn't cold at the moment. Even with the two heat lamps side by side, it got pretty crowded if all four of us tried to spread our wings to catch the warmth. This perch was big enough for me to lay down on it with room to spare.

The doorbell rang, and Taureen called out, "Come in."

My attention focused on the hallway, but when I saw Tkael's broad shoulders, I sighed in disappointment and turned my attention back to the gem in my hands. I hadn't seen Soranto for three days now. How long would it take him to think about things? At the very least, he could come and visit while thinking. It was strange how much I missed him.