Eternal Summer: Guardians of The Light, #3

By J.A. Armitage

Waking up from a coma caused by the evil Jago, Anais is determined to finally find a way to defeat him and with the love of her life beside her, they begin an amazing journey to find the last two ingredients for the elixir of life. What starts of as an idyllic journey soon turns into a nightmare as they realise Jago is only the beginning of their problems. On an adventure that takes them through the Mediterranean Sea and to the land of the Pharoes, they discover that evil can take more than just one form.
The third book in the Guardians of The Light series of novels, Eternal Summer increases the fear factor, taking the reader deeper into the underbelly of evil. In a story of continued love despite the odds, Anais is thrown into a betrayal from which the love of her life may never forgive her.

• Language: English
• Publisher: J.A.Armitage
• Release date: Oct 15, 2016
• ISBN: 9781536508512

Book preview

Prologue

When it happened, there was nothing, no light at the end of the tunnel, no out of body experience. There was no sound or colour. No dreams, nothing, just an endless blackness that stretched on in all directions. Time had no meaning and so when Anais finally felt something, she had no way of knowing how long she had been asleep. It was still dark, but now she felt a slight pressure in her hand, a tingle, a shiver of electricity. It was Aethelu. She couldn’t see her, but she instinctively knew she was there and had always been there. Aethelu was holding her hand. She opened her eyes slightly. Light flooded in and burnt them causing her to shut them again quickly. She felt something else now. Pain flooded through her body. It wasn’t agony, more a dull ache, but it filled her entire body weighing her down. She felt utterly exhausted even though she was just waking up. She opened her eyes again, a little slower this time. She blinked a few times and waited for her vision to clear. She found herself once again in the Manor’s surgery in the hospital bed. It wasn’t the first time she’d spent the night in the surgery, but it was the first time that she was here without knowing why. She tried to think back to the last thing she could remember, but her memories were jumbled and faded as if someone was playing a movie out of sequence. She felt dizzy, and the surgery swam around in her vision making her feel nauseous. She took a few deep breaths and closed her eyes again. Why was she here? What had happened to her now? The ache was still there, but as it was not localised to any one part of her body, she assumed she’d not been in any accident. She didn’t feel that she’d broken any bones. Finally, the nausea passed and she opened her eyes once again. She’d been right about Aethelu. Her beautiful girlfriend was dozing in the chair next to her, and Aethelu’s hand was still holding onto her own.

A noise made her look up and it was then that Anais noticed Aldrich and James going about their business at the other end of the surgery. Numerous empty jars stood messily around them as Aldrich poured some mysterious ingredient into a jar that was bubbling merrily over a Bunsen burner. She tried to say something to catch their attention, but her throat was so dry that only a croak came out. It was enough, however, as James looked around.

Anais! The surprise in his voice was evident, and the sound of it woke Aethelu. She jumped up immediately.

Aethelu launched herself onto Anais and enveloped her in a huge hug. It was a good few minutes before Anais was able to talk. There was only one thing she wanted to know.

What happened? Why am I here?

You were in a coma; Jago attacked you and injected you with the Jagovirus.

Chapter One

Anais took a few minutes to process the information. James handed her a cup of water, which she drank down greedily. The coolness of it soothed her throat. Aldrich took her blood pressure and temperature and after proclaiming her well, went to tell Aethelu’s mother, Winnie, the good news. James followed, purposely leaving Anais and Aethelu alone in the little surgery.

The surgery looked the same as it always had. Little bottles of strange ingredients filled the walls like an apothecary and the old-fashioned desk completed the timeworn look. Various experiments were set up at the far end. The one that had been bubbling earlier had now turned a luminescent purple colour and was emitting a strange smell, a bit like grapefruit and vinegar. The Bunsen burner had been turned off and so now it stood still with only an occasional bubble popping at its surface. Obviously, Aldrich and James were still working on the Elixir of Life or The Light as they called it. Most of the time, the surgery only held one bed, but occasionally, such as when both Anais and Aethelu had been attacked by Jago at the same time, there were two beds. At the moment, a second bed had been squashed into the tiny space. Anais knew it was for Aethelu, without even asking. She must have stayed with her whilst she was ill. She could just imagine the argument between Aethelu and her father, Aldrich. Aldrich would not have wanted an extra bed clogging up the little space, but it seemed that Aethelu had won.

How are you feeling? Can I get you anything? Oh, I’m so glad you are ok. I’ve been worried sick! Her relief that Anais had woken up was obvious on Aethelu’s face, and it caused Anais to smile.

I’m fine, I think. I ache all over, though. How long was I in a coma?

Three weeks.

Anais thought back over the last few months. Both Alex and Rafe, Aethelu’s older twin brothers and their friend Andrew had survived the Jago Virus. They’d all been injected with a non-contagious strain of it. Alex and Rafe had recovered quite quickly, but it had hit Andrew much worse, causing him to need a blood transfusion to survive. The reason any of them survived at all was the fact they and the rest of Aethelu’s family had taken an Elixir called The Light over six hundred years ago, which gave them amazing healing powers and stopped them from ageing. Anais, on the other hand, was half normal human, being born with half The Light blood inherited from her father. Jago had killed her parents and this was the second attempt on her life in the last six months. He wanted the Elixir for himself. Unfortunately, Aldrich and James, who had brewed the Elixir in the first place, had forgotten the exact ingredients; it being over six hundred years since it had last been brewed. Aldrich had, however, put a little of each ingredient into necklaces worn by each of The Guardians, as the drinkers of The Light had named themselves. They had found all but two of the necklaces. The remaining two had disappeared over a hundred years ago, along with their owners, Amber and Abel. Andrew had spent weeks trying to track them down, finally finding an address for them in Cairo. The last thing Anais remembered was reading the address from a post-it note. After that, everything was black. At the time, Andrew himself had been where she was now. That was over three weeks ago.

Three weeks! she said, with some shock in her voice.

Yeah, you seemed to get it much worse than the others, probably because you only have half The Light blood.

But Andrew nearly died!

He did nearly die. In that respect, he was much worse, however, once he’d had a blood transfusion, he recovered after a few days like Alex and Rafe.

How is he now?

He’s fine. Back to his old self. You probably don’t remember, but he woke up just a few hours before Jago attacked you. The poor thing had to be turned out of bed here to let you in. Mama hasn’t had a break from all the worry.

Oh, Winnie. She must have nearly had a heart attack. Is she ok?

She’s worried about you. We were all worried about you. I expect she’ll be through that door any second as soon as Daddy tells her that you are awake.

Anais tried to sit up. It hurt a little, but Aethelu brought her an extra pillow and propped her up on it.

I can’t believe I’ve been unconscious for three weeks. What have I missed?

Actually, very little. We’ve heard nothing from Jago since we found you.

Where did you find me?

You were at the bottom of the stairs in the kitchen. At first, I thought you’d fallen and banged your head, but when I saw the note written by Jago pinned to you, I knew you’d been attacked like the others. I don’t suppose you remember anything?

Nothing. I don’t even remember going into the kitchen. The last thing I remember is looking out of your bedroom window and thinking of going to Cairo to find Amber and Abel.

Yeah, it happened just after that. You went to the kitchen to get us both a drink and never came back. I went looking for you and found you unconscious.

Just then, as expected, Winnie, Aethelu’s mother burst through the door. She launched herself at Anais in much the same way that Aethelu had and enveloped her in a hug. Unlike Aethelu, who had managed to keep her composure, Winnie had tears streaming down her face.

I’m fine, Winnie, mumbled Anais, who was having trouble breathing from the huge hug. Winnie backed up, but the tears didn’t stop.

Oh, sweetheart, I’m so glad you are ok. I’ve barely slept a wink in months.

I’m fine, repeated Anais. I’m sorry to have worried you. You really should get some sleep.

Winnie did look a lot older than her normal self. The stress was apparent, and she probably wasn’t exaggerating about the lack of sleep. She looked exhausted.

I can’t sleep now. I have to make you something to eat. Is there anything you’d like? You are all skin and bones.

Anais looked down and realised that Winnie was right. She had lost weight—a lot of weight. She was hungry too. She didn’t want to confess to Winnie how hungry she really was because she knew Winnie would spend forever making her a full cooked breakfast and it was apparent to Anais that she needed sleep as much as she herself needed food. Knowing Winnie wouldn’t take no for an answer, though, she had to say something.

Can I have some orange juice, please, and some bagels? It was the least demanding thing she could think of.

Of course, I’ll go and squeeze some oranges, but bagels aren’t enough. You need fattening up. I’ll cook something special for you.

Anais was about to protest, but she knew Winnie well enough to know it was no use. Besides which, Winnie had already bustled out of the door, leaving her no time to speak.

She needs to sleep! Oh, poor Winnie. Can you go and stop her?

You know that once Mama has decided to cook for someone, her mind won’t be changed, grinned Aethelu. Besides, she won’t sleep knowing that you are hungry. The best you can do is let her make you breakfast and then go to bed knowing you are not starving to death in here.

I’m hardly starving to death. But with that, Anais' stomach growled, making Aethelu raise her eyebrows and grin once again.

So, did anyone go to Cairo? Anais asked, more to change the subject than anything else.

No, Alex is still in Florence with Sabine, Rafe has flown out to Kenya to be with Judith and Cadie has flown back to her home in France.

How is Andrew taking Rafe being with Judith? Judith had been Andrews’s girlfriend, but Rafe had fallen in love with the Kenyan beauty and with his effortless charm had stolen her away from him. Andrew had spent the best part of the last three months locked away in his room with depression.

He’s not really said anything about it. He’s been keeping himself busy with the security. As you know, all our security has been down this last month. Andrew has been working on it, but due to the extent of the damage, it’s taken this long to get everything fixed. Everything went back up last week. The security cameras are up and running and the electric fence is now working. I don’t think Andrew has really had any time to think about Rafe and Judith, him being so busy and all. I do know that he is desperate to get the last remaining necklaces and get the Elixir finished. He would have gone to Egypt himself if he wasn’t so scared of flying. He’ll be glad to know that you are awake.

So what do we do now?

The only thing we can do. Go with the original plan.

Go to Egypt to get the necklaces?

Yep, you and me. I told everyone else that we were going, not that there were any other volunteers, anyway. Now that you are awake, I’ll go and call Ava and Freddie.

Ava and Alfred? Why?

Because we are going by boat.

We are sailing to Egypt? Wouldn’t it be quicker to fly?

It would, but it wouldn’t be half as much fun.

Chapter Two

Two weeks later and Aldrich had only just given Anais permission to leave The Manor. She’d spent the last week and a half padding around the house under the watchful eye of Winnie, who followed her around demanding she eat or rest. She had managed to get down to the cellar to ask Andrew to book tickets to Tenerife, where Aethelu’s aunt and uncle lived and docked their luxury yacht. Arcadia, when she had been here, had transformed the cellar, much to the dismay of Andrew, who had liked it the way it was. Gone were the dirty old sofa and grey walls. Arcadia had replaced them with pale cream wallpaper and a beautiful sofa and what she called a cuddle chair which was, basically, just another small sofa for two. There was even a carpet on the floor, where previously there had been concrete flooring. The biggest change was the bank of screens that had filled the wall was now gone and had been replaced with just one giant screen. The smell of smoke still lingered slightly in the air from the fire that gutted the cellar, although Arcadia had tried to hide it with bowls of potpourri which were scattered around the room liberally. Andrews’s computer was the only original thing to have survived the devastation that Jago had wreaked on the room a few weeks previously. On closer inspection, though, Anais could see that it was a different computer. The lift down to the cellar had been fixed, too, and was now working as good as new.

Anais didn’t want to think about The Manor as she climbed aboard The Light Princess, as Ava and Alfred’s yacht was named. The Tenerife sun shone down, causing a pleasant heat, warming her face and arms. It felt good to be in the sun again. The weather had heated up considerably in the UK, but it still wasn’t hot enough for Anais’ liking. Ava and Alfred were already on board. Alfred was going through a few things with Aethelu who would be driving the thing (or being the Captain as she liked to put it) Anais (who would be the second mate) was left chatting with Ava, or rather, listening to Ava chat to herself, as she usually did.

Oh, you’ll have so much fun. I remember my first time on a yacht, sailing across the sea. So romantic! Have you ever been on a yacht before? Oh, silly me, of course, you have. I meant have you sailed on a yacht before? I trust our little Aethelu with my baby. She’s sailed her before, but it’s not easy, you know. She might need help if the weather turns bad. I’ve checked the forecast for you, and it looks great at the moment, so I don’t foresee any problems.

When Alfred finally came over and cut his wife off, Anais breathed a sigh of relief. She loved Ava but listening to her was exhausting.

They both gave her a hug before doing the same to Aethelu, who had also joined them and now held her hand. They waved goodbye as the pair scooted off, back to their villa on matching Vespas.

The plan was to spend the first night in dock, as it was getting late. Ava had stocked up the little galley kitchen for them, so both girls made a quick meal which they ate below deck. It had started to rain, uncharacteristically, which meant that they couldn’t eat on the deck as they had when they were last aboard. Anais hoped it would be better weather the next day as they planned to sail quite early. As it turned out, she got her wish and the next day was filled with glorious sunshine. Anais and Aethelu decided to have a quick breakfast at a local restaurant, as they didn’t want to be eating all the food on the boat. It was well stocked, but if there was a storm, they might have to be out on the sea longer than planned. They had a cooked breakfast which was nowhere near as good as Winnie’s, but filled them up, and then set off into the blue. Anais, having never sailed before, happily left Aethelu to manoeuvre the boat by herself. It was a task she was confident in, her sailing ability being top-notch. Anais, instead, ended up spending most of the first day sunbathing on the large deck area. She had brought a book with her and spent the first lazy day quite contently reading and soaking up the sun.

They were to sail along the coast of Africa to Egypt, stopping for a night in both Gibraltar and Tunis before getting to Alexandria, where they would leave the boat and travel to Cairo by land. If the weather held up, it should take approximately ten days travelling time. Andrew had been appalled to find out they were planning to sail, rather than fly, which would take four hours but Winnie had insisted that Anais needed recuperation time and Andrew had backed off. Anais mentally thanked Winnie because she was having a marvellous time. A few day’s relaxation was just what she needed after the stress of the last few months. A couple of hours later, the engines were shut off, and Aethelu joined her on deck to indulge in some sunbathing of her own. They had left Tenerife behind them hours ago and now it was nothing but blue in all directions as far as the eye could see. The sea was calm, with only a slight swell causing the boat to bob gently, and not a cloud was visible in the sky. It felt, to Anais, that they were truly the only two people on the planet.

Aethelu wore a short red summer dress which she quickly pulled over her head to reveal a red bikini. She sat down next to Anais and passed her a bottle of sun cream.

Put this on my back, will you? She turned and faced away from Anais and scooped up her silver white hair which had grown down to her shoulders since she’d had it cut short at Christmas.

Why do you need sun cream? Your skin won’t burn; it can heal itself in seconds.

I don’t. I’m just using it as an excuse for you to rub my back.

Anais held on to the sun cream and grinned. They had been dating for over six months, but due to circumstances and a request to move slowly on Aethelu’s part, they had never been truly intimate with each other. In fact, this was as naked as Anais had ever seen Aethelu. She dripped some of the sun cream into her hands and placed them on Aethelu, one on each shoulder. Her skin was warmer than usual due to the sun’s heat, but it still retained its marble-white colour. The Light that flowed through Aethelu’s veins made Anais' hands tingle slightly. It was a long way off from the lightning bolts she had experienced when they first met, but it was still there. She moved her hands down in a circular motion, making sure to cover Aethelu’s whole back. When her whole back gleamed in the sun and was slick with cream, Anais slowly moved one of her hands gently up Aethelu’s side causing her to squirm slightly. Her hand travelled upwards, trailing the side of her breast and then up to her neck where the bikini was knotted. As Aethelu hadn’t moved, she carried on until she got to the bow which she slowly undid. Bringing her mouth down, she lightly kissed Aethelu’s neck where the string of the bikini had left a slight red mark. She hesitated a second, wondering if Aethelu was going to stop her but was answered silently by the tell-tale sign of electricity coursing through her. The Light suddenly magnified in Aethelu’s body. Anais lowered her mouth again, trailing kisses around to the side of Aethelu’s neck. Aethelu could obviously stand the teasing no longer as she dropped her hair down and turned around, kissing Anais violently on the mouth. Aethelu’s body was lit up like a beacon, thanks to The Light, and even in the glare of the summer sun, Anais could still make out The Light radiating from her. Electricity coursed through Anais from Aethelu, but this time, for the first time, her own Light blood produced its own spark. It was a pain like no other, a pleasure that they could both hardly bear, a first for both of them.

Later on, over dinner, Anais was having a difficult time keeping the grin from her face. It was supposed to be her job to cook the food as Aethelu was doing all the sailing, but this first night, Aethelu had insisted on cooking. Thanks to the clement weather, they had set a table on the deck and Aethelu had produced a bottle of champagne from the yacht’s fridge. Anais had been told to sit at the table and wait, which she was now doing in anticipation of a lovely meal. The sun was beginning to set, causing the sun to give both the sky and the sea a pink glow. Anais vaguely considered opening the champagne and pouring herself a glass but decided to wait for Aethelu, who was still in the kitchen. Eventually, Aethelu appeared putting down a plate in front of her. She’d made a salmon dish that smelled heavenly. Anais popped the cork on the champagne and poured them a glass each.

To us! she held up her glass, grinning.

To us, echoed Aethelu and clinked her glass.

Anais picked up her fork and speared a piece of salmon. It was delicious, and Anais knew that it must have taken a lot of effort on Aethelu’s part, as usually she wasn’t the world’s best cook.

Mmm, she looked up at Aethelu and saw that she wasn’t eating. Is everything ok?

Aethelu looked up absentmindedly and then smiled. Yes, fine. Do you like it?

I love it.

Aethelu’s smile remained in place throughout dinner, but she was strangely quiet. Anais began to panic that she was having regrets about earlier but wasn’t sure whether to voice her fears. Instead, she carried on eating until her plate was wiped clean.

Shall I get dessert? Anais asked just for a reason to break the silence.

No! Aethelu shot up suddenly, which made Anais jump. Don’t worry, I’ll get it. She picked up both the plates and disappeared into the yacht.

Anais didn’t know what to make of her strange behaviour. It was so unlike Aethelu to be so quiet. The worry that she had pushed things too quickly with Aethelu intensified. Hadn’t she wanted it just as much as her, though? She’d not protested and certainly had looked like she was enjoying it. Still, something wasn’t quite right. Anais felt a little let down. She’d imagined her first time plenty, but she thought that afterwards would consist of wrapping each other in their arms and whispering words of love. Perhaps Aethelu was thinking the same and was disappointed that she’d not said ‘I love you.’ Well, that could be easily remedied.

Aethelu emerged from the Yacht with two chocolate puddings, putting one in front of Anais and the other at her own place setting.

This afternoon was just magical. It was beautiful. Thank you for making my first time so special. I love you. Anais held out her hand across the table. Instead of taking Anais’ hand, Aethelu grabbed her glass and downed the champagne in one gulp. Then, much to Anais’ shock, she fell to the floor. Anais’ heart went into overdrive and started to pound.

Aethelu?

But she wasn’t laid out. She was on one knee.

I had planned to do this even before this afternoon. I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but I know in my heart that I love you more than I ever thought possible. Anais Hockley, will you marry me?

Anais looked down and saw that Aethelu held a small box in her hand. She opened it to reveal the most beautiful ring. Its centrepiece was a small black pearl which matched her star necklace and which was surrounded by tiny diamonds. Aethelu took it out of its box and placed the ring on Anais’ finger. It fit perfectly.

Anais' heart had not had time to slow down and thumped in her chest but now out of excitement rather than fear.

Yes! Anais answered and started to cry tears of joy Yes! Aethelu jumped up and hugged her tightly.

I love you!

I love you, too.

Anais now realised that the reason that Aethelu had been so quiet through dinner was nerves and excitement. Anais felt quite shivery herself with the overwhelming feelings running through her. Suddenly she realised it was not just excitement that was making her shiver. She ran to the side of the boat and made it just in time before she threw up the salmon over the side.

Chapter Three

How are you feeling? Aethelu brought a cold, damp cloth to Anais' head as soon as she woke up the next morning.

I’m fine. I don’t know what happened. Oh god, I’m so sorry about last night.

Aethelu giggled. It wasn’t exactly how I planned my proposal to be answered, but at least you said ‘yes’ first.

I don’t know what came over me. I didn’t drink a lot, and the food was lovely.

Don’t worry, as long as you are fine now. Do you think you could eat some breakfast?

I feel totally normal. I’ll make the breakfast, and then we can be on our way.

Once the girls had eaten their bagels and drunk their orange juice, the anchor was hoisted and the Light Princess once again continued on its journey.

The weather was kind to them, and it was another beautiful day that saw them travel up the coast to Gibraltar. Anais made them a light lunch, but once again, after eating, she felt queasy and had to throw up over the side.

I don’t know what the matter is. I’m ok one minute and feeling ill the next, she explained as Aethelu came to her aid and held back her hair.

Have you ever sailed before?

No, the only times I’ve been on a boat have been when I was with you.

Seasickness? Aethelu gave a small grin.

"Oh! I never thought of that, sea sickness. Wow. Oh, dear. I hope I get used to it. I don’t want to be ill the whole