Beyond the Night
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About this ebook
Carrick McCormick knows there is a special woman waiting for him. He can sense her but has yet to locate her. Moving to Lime Kiln Mountain is a calculated risk. She’s near and now he has a better chance to find her. That’s the first step. Explaining his nature, what he is and how he needs to live won’t be as easy.
Rachel Rossington has one thing in common with every woman in small, rural Lime Kiln Mountain. She’s curious about the town’s newest resident, the reclusive Carrick McCormick. An early morning chance encounter puts her in his path - literally. She hits a dog and he almost hits her car.
Rachel harbors no schoolgirl illusions. She’s a nurse in a small town. Her life is mundane, serene. Men like Carrick McCormick don’t give women like her a second glance. Carrick’s world is one of wealth and luxury, foreign to everything Rachel knows.
She doesn’t know just how foreign. But she will.
* * * * * *
"Mr. McCormick,” she responded, matching his tone perfectly. He had some nerve following her here.
“May I buy you a drink?”
Rachel pushed her glass toward the bartender. Carrick paid and shook his head when asked what he wanted.
“Is this your first time in here?” She knew it was. If he’d been in here before the town would have buzzed with it.
“Yes, it is. I felt like getting out of the house.” His silvery eyes glittered with reflections of the dance floor’s light display.
“So you just happened to end up here?”
“So it seems.” He perched a barstool. “I took your advice on the dog. He’s much cleaner now.”
“You followed me here to tell me that?”
“No. I didn’t expect to find you here.”
“I see. I’m not sure I believe you, Mr. McCormick. It’s too coincidental for my liking.”
Rachel downed the rest of her cola and snatched her purse off the arm of the barstool. She sensed Carrick following her and hoped her busybody pals were making their way to the door as well.
Carrick called out to her, asking her to wait. She ignored him and didn’t stop until she’d reached her car. She turned intending to tell him to leave her alone and the floodlights that illuminated the parking lot blinked off leaving her standing in shadows with him.
“What do you want?” she demanded with more bravado than she felt.
“To apologize, yet again.” He held out his hand to her, palm up. “I didn’t mean to frighten you. Please, let us begin anew.”
“Oh, I don’t think so,” Rachel said, looking up at him. The man was trouble with a capital T. He was way out of her league and she knew it.
“I’ve got to go. I have to work tomorrow.” She turned to unlock her car door.
“Of course. And it’s very late, I understand.” He closed the distance between them, coming so close Rachel could feel the heat radiating off him.
“You have nothing to fear from me, Rachel.” He tipped her chin up and lowered his lips to hers. Surprise jolted through her. Her eyes closed of their own volition.
His lips were soft, with both question and promise, moving slowly on hers and sending a shrieking awareness of his closeness through her. She took a step toward him.
Just as quickly as it began the kiss ended. She was standing in the parking lot alone, wondering how she’d gotten there, and why the hell she’d imagined Carrick McCormick had been there and kissed her.
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Beyond the Night - Rayne Forrest
Beyond the Night
by
Rayne Forrest
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, media, brands, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to anyone, living or dead, and actual events and locales is coincidental.
––––––––
Copyright © 2017, Rayne Forrest
Cover art © 2017 KC Kendricks
All Rights Reserved
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Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, regardless of whether any type of currency is exchanged or not, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the author of the book. Law strictly prohibits reproduction of this digital e-book for file sharing or selling, other than what the author grants in writing. Piracy is a crime.
About Beyond the Night
Carrick McCormick knows there is a special woman waiting for him. He can sense her but has yet to locate her. Moving to Lime Kiln Mountain is a calculated risk. She’s near and now he has a better chance to find her. That’s the first step. Explaining his nature, what he is and how he needs to live won’t be as easy.
Rachel Rossington has one thing in common with every woman in small, rural Lime Kiln Mountain. She’s curious about the town’s newest resident, the reclusive Carrick McCormick. An early morning chance encounter puts her in his path - literally. She hits a dog and he almost hits her car.
Rachel harbors no schoolgirl illusions. She’s a nurse in a small town. Her life is mundane, serene. Men like Carrick McCormick don’t give women like her a second glance. Carrick’s world is one of wealth and luxury, foreign to everything Rachel knows.
She doesn’t know just how foreign. But she will.
Beyond the Night - an excerpt
He was all sophisticated charm and Rachel wanted to kick his shin to see if she could snap him out of it.
Mr. McCormick,
she responded, matching his tone perfectly. He had some nerve following her here.
May I buy you a drink?
Rachel pushed her glass toward the bartender, who filled it with straight cola. Carrick paid and shook his head when asked what he wanted to drink.
Is this your first time in here?
She knew it was. If he’d been in here before the town would have buzzed with it. Now it would buzz that he’d come in here to speak with her. Wonderful, just wonderful.
Yes, it is. I felt like getting out of the house.
His silvery eyes glittered with reflections of the dance floor’s light display.
So you just happened to end up here?
So it seems.
He perched on the barstool her now ex-girlfriend Amy had vacated when she’d abandoned her. I took your advice on the dog. He’s much cleaner now.
You followed me here to tell me that?
"No. I didn’t expect to find you here."
I see. I’m not sure I believe you, Mr. McCormick. It’s too coincidental for my liking.
Rachel downed the rest of her cola and snatched her purse off the arm of the barstool. She didn’t need to tell Amy and Carla she was leaving. There was no point in making the effort. She knew they’d been taking turns watching her and Carrick, just soaking it all up like two nosey sponges.
She sensed Carrick following her and unease shivered up her spine. She hoped her busybody pals were making their way to the door as well.
Carrick called out to her, asking her to wait. She ignored him and didn’t stop until she’d crossed the parking lot and reached her car. She turned intending to tell him to leave her alone and the floodlights that illuminated the parking lot blinked off leaving her standing in shadows with him.
What do you want?
she demanded with more bravado than she felt.
To apologize, yet again.
He held out his hand to her, palm up. I didn’t mean to frighten you. Please, let us begin anew.
Oh, I don’t think so,
Rachel said, looking up at him. The man was trouble with a capital T. He was way out of her league and she knew it.
I’ve got to go. I have to work tomorrow.
She turned to unlock her car door.
Of course. And it’s very late, I understand.
He closed the distance between them, coming so close Rachel could feel the heat radiating off him.
You have nothing to fear from me, Rachel.
He tipped her chin up and lowered his lips to hers. Surprise jolted through her. Her eyes closed of their own volition.
His lips were soft, with both question and promise, moving slowly on hers and sending a shrieking awareness of his closeness through her. She took a step toward him.
Just as quickly as it began the kiss ended. She was standing in the parking lot alone, wondering how she’d gotten there, and why the hell she’d imagined Carrick McCormick had been there and kissed her.
Prelude
Hethera
1300 years ago
––––––––
We must leave, and soon. The scientists say the sun’s core has fractured. The internal temperature is increasing faster than predicted.
The commander had already received the latest update. He gazed out across the dying lake. The shores were bare and dry where once they had been lush and green. So very green.
Pass the word. A world has been found that is suitable. The indigenous population should not pose any threat to us. The Hethrin are more advanced.
We should not deal with those peoples in arrogance. It is their world after all.
I know it is their world. We will tread gently upon it.
The pilot stood silently for a moment, her gaze on the dry, parched earth outside. The Hethrin will eventually cease to exist as we are today. We will lose who we are on this new world,
she said sadly.
The commander nodded. Yes. Some of our heritage will be lost.
He took a deep breath, closing his eyes against the vista before him. He knew the argument the pilot was about to present.
The famére will be bred out of us. Should we embrace losing that which sets us apart?
Embrace it? No. Accept it? We must. In time the ability will be lost and it will become myth, or legend. Those who never experienced it will not mourn it.
I have experienced it and I will mourn for them, husband. The H’eth plans to build our city on the new world, just as it stands here.
I know. It will be quite an undertaking.
He turned to her, gathering her in his arms. Your mother will not survive the journey, my love.
But our children will live.
Table of Contents
About Beyond the Night
Beyond the Night - an excerpt
Prelude
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
A Bonus Read from... Across Time
About the Author
Books by Rayne Forrest
Dear Readers,
Chapter One
Earth
June 2010
Carrick McCormick stepped onto his deck and into a world silvered by the full moon that floated above the ridge behind him. She was out there, nearby, softly calling to him. He expanded his senses, covertly seeking her, remaining cautious when he wished to throw hard-learned disciplines to the wind and find her, go to her. This he could not do, not yet, and frustration rode him, dulling his usual enjoyment of nighttime at his mountain retreat.
He had only tonight to reach for the sense of her, to find her essence and be reassured his long wait was almost over. Tomorrow evening, at dusk, he needed to return to his office in the city. The impending arrival of a young houseguest from Australia would not aid his search or ease his sense of urgency to find her. He’d have two short nights to accomplish as much as possible before dumping the work on his assistant. Once Dorian arrived, he’d need to spend their time together getting to know the boy and to counsel him on the dangers of being on American soil.
He listened to the steadily blowing breeze swaying the tops of the taller trees. The rustling leaves played a steady symphony in which no single note stood out above the others. It should have soothed him, but it did not. Instead, it drew his thoughts back to long ago, to memories that he’d rather forget. Annoyed with himself, he pushed them away.
Despite his restlessness, he settled on a lounge chair and stretched out his long legs. His desire warred with his experience, welling up inside him, whispering insidiously to the lonely corners of his soul to do that which he knew to be reckless beyond redemption should he make one careless misstep. A thousand years he had waited for her. Surely he could survive a few more days until Dorian had moved on. Surely.
Carrick leaned back and opened his Hethrin senses further, letting his awareness drift outward. She was so close, and soon she’d be closer. He’d make sure of it, and haste would not benefit his cause.
A movement drew his attention to the edge of his woods and he watched as a shadow stepped from the safety of the trees. It was a doe, quiet and shy in the manner of her kind. She paused, her tail flicking nervously as she looked cautiously about. From under the brush stepped two tiny ghostly fawns. The fawns were albinos, a genetic rarity in wild animals.
Startled at the sight, Carrick made just enough of a movement for the doe to become aware of him. Her head snapped up and her sensitive ears pinpointed his location. He willed himself to perfect stillness and watched as the doe, satisfied there was no threat to her young, moved on long, graceful legs across the clearing. Her fawns followed her, shimmering white in the moonlight, to disappear back into the dark woods.
He closed his eyes and willed his muscles to relax as he once again sought the woman, but found something else. He sprang to his feet, suddenly alert to the night around him. Someone was out there, several unfamiliar Hethrin someones, in fact, a few of which held the taint of wrongness. He’d sensed them for some weeks now, but couldn’t bring them into focus. Now they were closer, watching, and that posed a definite threat to him, and therefore to the unknown woman. It was another sobering reminder of why he needed to be patient.
He needed to know who had come so close, and why, before he dared approach her and alert them to her presence. She couldn’t be put at risk, not when he’d waited so long for her. He made himself comfortable again and waited, searching beyond the night for answers. What he found was his earliest memory of a time so very long ago, on the ship that had brought the Hethrin to this world.
C’arek, we will be in a lot of trouble if they find us.
Be quiet, Chanti. They will not even know we are here unless you keep whispering!
He slid back the cloth that covered the table so they could see the screen the commander used for his presentation.
There it is. Our new home. We’ll arrive there tomorrow.
The commander of the ship pointed to a white dot on a black background as C’arek and Chanti peeked from under the table. They weren’t supposed to be where they were, true, but word they finally approached their new home world had swept like fire through the ship. They were curious and had left their studies, which often got them in trouble.
Is it widely inhabited?
a man asked the commander.
Yes. But there is an area on a continent in the southern hemisphere, high in the mountains, where there is no one. We will go there and build the city. By the time we and other peoples multiply and expand our ranges, we will be as native as they are.
The commander suddenly looked under the table, directly at C’arek. He tried to look stern but C’arek knew he wasn’t angry. He and Chanti were only eight years old. No one was ever really angry with them.
If you two have heard enough, I think you should return to your classes.
C’arek grabbed her hand and bolted for the door. It was true! They were going to see a real sky!
Carrick suddenly knew, sensed it in the air between him and whoever was out there watching him. They had known Chanti, too, and they knew what she meant to him.
*****
Two nights later, Carrick made the drive to Dulles International to retrieve his guest. Ellen, his assistant, had expressed her willingness to meet Dorian’s flight, but he felt rather fatherly towards Ellen. Young men would behave like young men and Dorian had expressed his anticipation of meeting American women. The last thing Carrick wanted was his eager young guest making a nuisance of himself by proposing a plethora of pleasurable activities and placing her in an untenable position.
He arrived at the airport and settled in one of the lounges to wait for the flight to arrive. He found it interesting how many of the women, and even a few men, watched him. A pretty young woman with blond hair and a big smile kept looking his way. A bit over six feet tall, with dark hair and gray eyes, Carrick was used to getting smiles from women. He wasn’t immune to it, though.
Another time he may have engaged her in casual conversation. He wasn’t in the mood for it tonight, and the arrival of her male companion ended any and all speculation. He didn’t mind. She was not the one he sensed, the one he needed.
Searching outward, he got only an echo of her essence. She was a hundred miles away in the small community Lime Kiln Mountain. His heartbeat quickened with the knowledge he’d be there in a few hours, and close to her again.
Dorian’s flight finally arrived and they chatted amicably as they stowed his luggage in the pickup. They quickly joined the flow of northbound traffic on I95, riding in silence until they were out of the city and its heavy traffic. The air cooled and they opened the windows to enjoy the night. Carrick had an old friend in Australia he hoped Dorian had news of.
Tell me the news from Down Under. I’ve not spoken to Albert in many years.
Nor have I,
Dorian replied. He avoids us since he took another wife.
Carrick understood all too well. He, too, had taken wives over the years. The years spent with them were fleeting, every moment precious. Albert would spend fifty or sixty years in a self-imposed exile with a human wife, then return to be nurtured by his own kind and find healing in his memories.
Does it bother you to be alone here?
Dorian asked.
I am not alone. There are others near here.
Near here? I have never heard of them!
You would not. Not everyone wishes to be known. There is another in the city. I know him. He is meticulous in his cautions, and dangerous in his need for privacy. We give each other a wide berth. You will do so, as well. That is not a request.
Are there others here that I may meet?
None so close as he. I have let it be known you have come wanting to travel and to meet others of Hethrin descent. Those who wish to meet you have responded. They, and they alone, should you seek.
Dorian’s impatience with his edict was palpable and Carrick knew he couldn’t prevent Dorian from looking for those he should not, nor could he prevent the youth’s death if one of those others felt overly threatened. Fear of discovery was a powerful catalyst and there were those who were often quick to kill interlopers in their home territory. The boy would listen, and heed his warnings, or suffer the consequences.
Can you tell me how many will allow me to visit them?
Dorian asked.
Twenty-one have answered.
That many!
Carrick wondered if he could drive home his point. He’d try, anyway. He changed lanes, preparing to exit the deserted interstate.
So you see, you have no need to go anywhere uninvited. I expect a few more may respond before you leave my home.
"They say you do not follow the ways of the Hethrin any longer, Carrick. That you do not seek the famére, and that you embrace the ways of the masses."
Carrick clamped down on his temper. The famére was too personal a subject, not one to be discussed with a virtual stranger. But Dorian did not have the benefit, or knowledge, the years imparted. And, technically, he was only half Hethrin and recently born. He’d not seen their great city built and then abandoned.
That is not precisely true. I am far older than you. My needs are different. And to embrace the ways of the masses is to fade into anonymity.
That was as honest an answer as Carrick cared to give anyone. He was sure that Dorian would not let it rest and he found himself correct.
"So you do still seek the famére? I have been told that age takes that away from us."
Us? He had wondered if Dorian’s Hethrin half would allow him to enjoy the gift. Did the boy control it, or did it control him? Hethrin custom was such that it wasn’t something he should delve into with a virtual stranger.
Age brings wisdom and possibilities. We learn and adapt or we die.
Dorian did not respond, for which Carrick was glad. Let the boy chew on that for a while. It did raise the concern of Dorian seeking a partner while in Lime Kiln Mountain. Carrick could not refuse to allow it, only urge Dorian to caution.
It was almost four a.m. when he parked the pickup outside his cabin. He showed Dorian the guest room and gave him the combination to the private storeroom. Dorian thanked him politely and disappeared into his room. Carrick could sense the younger man’s restlessness and he wondered at the other’s tolerance for the dawn.
He could manage until the first bit of sun showed above the mountain behind the cabin before the lethargy drove him to sleep. It was almost nine a.m. when that happened at the cabin, and it was one of the reasons he preferred it here.
Dorian had only a few decades among the Hethrin. He would need to sleep when the sky turned pink. He knocked on Dorian’s door and went in.
Dorian had shed the tailored shirt and slacks he’d arrived in and changed into jeans and a tee shirt. Carrick bit back all comments.
Likely Dorian would find his opportunities limited in this small mountain community.
Dawn is only about two hours off. Be quick.
He grasped the young man’s arm. And be very careful.
Dorian nodded and vanished.
*****
The men settled into a pleasant routine and the nights of Dorian’s visit passed quickly. Carrick was relieved that whoever had been watching him was gone, at least for now. He tried to convince himself that it had been someone passing through, but couldn’t. He knew with certainty, with the experience of his long life that they would surely return when Dorian was gone. Until then, she was safe, and he needed to simply continue his watchful patience.
Carrick was also relieved that Dorian had gone searching for intimate companionship only once, but did not comment on it. Their last evening together found them sitting on the deck, sipping wine.
I will miss you, Dorian. I’d forgotten what it is like to be able to sit and talk with another and not need to hide my nature.
I have enjoyed it here. I understand why you like this place. At first, I thought it too far from the world.
Far from the world can bring peace.
The younger man took a deep breath. "Perhaps. But I find peace only with the famére."
Carrick recognized the candor in Dorian’s admission, but could not bring himself to voice his agreement. The intimacy of sharing the famére did bring the ultimate peace. A wave of longing swelled up in Carrick.
He closed his eyes and held his breath for an instant in an attempt to deny his need of it. His senses expanded, touching that glimmer he knew to