Bound In Blue: Book One Of The Sword Of Elements (14 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

The world fell into a pattern: days at school and nights and weekends at the mansion. And while I sometimes felt a prickle up my back as if someone was watching me, there were no more howls, paw prints, or bathtubs full of seaweed.

October arrived rainy and cold. Leaves flared briefly to early, vivid life and then were struck down into the gutters. Binnorie’s prophesy wasn’t mentioned and neither was my parentage. I assumed everyone who’d missed the big news had been told that Cernunnos was my father, but no one mentioned it. Perhaps they were all being polite.

And maybe they’re just afraid the wrong word might set off the ticking time bomb.

Taliesin had assigned my training to Boudica and after a week, I wondered if it was to punish her or me. She wasn’t openly hostile, but I could feel her dislike. Boudica was of the wax on wax off school of training and I repeated seemingly insignificant tasks until I wanted to go
Karate Kid
all over her ass. I practiced holding still for as long as I could. Once I achieved thirty minutes of complete stillness, we began again with me balancing on one foot. I was still struggling to achieve even one minute in that position. She had me solve complicated puzzles and then break them up and do it again until I wanted to scream. Apparently no one trusted me to try to access even the orphaned colors that remained behind Viviane’s barrier until I demonstrated some discipline.

I just got better at faking it.

One of the best things about the mansion was the indoor pool and as the weather got worse, we all spent a lot of time there. The sight of Taliesin in Hawaiian print swim trunks was disconcerting.

Rowan in his Speedo made me want to gouge my eyes out.

Miko was afraid of the water and the closest she would go was to sit in her bikini on the edge of the shallow end, showing off her pierced navel in the center of her toned tummy. Peter did back flips and belly flops to impress her. Tynan swam solitary laps while Daley would practice a dive or two and then dry off and leave.

Tynan.

Things had gone awkward between us. Tynan was gorgeous and clearly into me, but he wasn’t Daley.

Isn’t the handsome guy with a secret past and hidden sadness practically the foundation of modern pop culture?

Because Daley was sad—I’d seen proof of it. I often stayed overnight in the room that was now unofficially mine. About a week after Binnorie’s prophesy, I was almost asleep when a flash of lightning jolted me awake. When no thunder followed, I knew it was him. I tried not to look, but I couldn’t help myself and I slipped out of bed and went to the window. Daley stood at the edge of the property staring up at the sky and I was shocked to see moonlight reflecting off tears on his face.  The tingle of his electricity on my arms was almost like touching him and for a moment he was outlined in color. Ashamed of myself for spying, I was about to turn away when I noticed an iridescent aqua webbing across him. It was the same color I encountered when I took his power, but it clashed with the others; it didn’t seem to belong.

I returned to my bed, but I couldn’t sleep. The strange color made me uneasy and restless.

I wasn’t the only one struggling to figure things out. According to Miko, Tynan’s abilities had become even more unpredictable and unstable. He had lost the ability to call a Cŵn Annwn from the Wall. We found that out when Taliesin tried to arrange another test of my abilities. After a week of moping around the mansion, he created fire from air when he snapped his fingers. Rowan clapped him on the shoulder and declared the mystery solved—Tynan was a pyromancer. The next day, he couldn’t make a spark no matter how hard he tried. Again, Rowan clapped him on the shoulder and promised they would figure it out eventually. And so it went—Tynan would exhibit a powerful ability that would just as quickly disappear and Rowan would try to make him feel better about it. Taliesin would remain noticeably silent.

The one constant was that Tynan could sense the Paths. He confided in me one night that back in Las Vegas he’d even travelled a couple of feet down one before losing his nerve. He made me promise not tell anyone and I agreed, but I resented being forced into what felt like a lie.

A couple of weeks before Halloween, Boudica and I were sitting by the pool in bathing suits and t-shirts while Peter, Tynan, and Daley horsed around in the shallow end. Their object was to keep a beach ball from hitting the water, but it was really an excuse to dunk one another and elbow each other in the face as they launched themselves after it. Peter had started the game and it was good to see the other guys laughing and having fun; my best friend’s sunny nature was infectious. Taliesin and Rowan cheered them on while Miko sat on the steps leading into the pool gripping the metal handrail as if her life depended on it.

Boudica pulled off her t-shirt and threw it on the small table between us. “For all his long years, Rowan is still like a child. He takes such pleasure in simple things.” The words might have been affectionate, but her tone was strangely neutral.

I decided to risk asking something I’d been wondering about. “I thought all the earth magicians were human. Why are Rowan and Taliesin still alive after all these years?”

Boudica shrugged, muscles rippling under pale skin scattered with freckles. “No one knows in Taliesin’s case, but Rowan has bound himself to the bard by oaths sworn on both magic and his faith. He will remain on this earth as long as Taliesin does.”

“So when Taliesin dies, Rowan dies too?”

She shrugged again. “Perhaps when the bard is gone, Rowan will begin to age again—though likely some battle or other will do them both in at the same time.”

I shivered despite the moist, warm air. There was something cold in the woman’s voice.

As if she doesn’t even care. Or worse.

We sat in silence for a minute, but eventually I couldn’t help myself. I had to ask, “And what about you?”

She lifted a pale eyebrow. “You mean, what is my status among the immortals?”

I squirmed under her frosty gaze. “I guess so, yeah.”

“No one has told you then?” I shook my head. “I was the queen of the Iceni,” Boudica declared proudly. Rowan glanced over in concern, but I smiled back and he relaxed.

She was waiting for me to respond, but I didn’t what to say. Scowling, she jabbed her finger at me. “Don’t they teach you children anything? The Iceni were of the Celtic bloodline. My kingdom was roughly where Norfolk is today. In
England
.” I could feel myself flush at her obvious contempt.

The woman sighed. “When my husband died, I was the rightful heir, but Rome had already placed its yoke around the neck of Britain and didn’t recognize the right of women to rule. Rome took my kingdom, flogged me, and raped my daughters. So I waged war upon Rome. In the end, I was defeated. I took poison with my daughters, but to my horror, I awoke and they were dead. I fled and didn’t know what I was until Rowan found me. I learned from Taliesin that my abilities in war and my immunity to the poison were my heritage as a descendent of the
sidhe
warriors who once served Cernunnos.

“
Sidhe
?” I repeated. It sounded like
shee
.

“I suppose, in your modern lexicon, you would call them elves, but they were nothing like the languid actors prancing around in your movies. The
sidhe
were warriors so beautiful and bright that it hurt to look at them directly. And so in love with battle that no full blooded members of that race remain—a little like your friend the redcap, though nowhere near as messy. The
sidhe
could sever the head of an enemy with one stroke and almost no blood, so clean and hot were their blades, so strong their arms.”

Her lips twisted. “I didn’t know which of my parents to thank for my unwanted life. They both died when I was young. I suspect it was my mother for my clearest memory is being taught by her how to lift a sword. Sadly for my poor daughters, their blood was too diluted by their father’s to survive the poison as I had. I’m not immortal, though I’ve aged very little since that time. A dose of poison strong enough to account for what I am would have killed me, and I would have adjusted my portion if I’d known. By the time Rowan brought me to the bard, I’d relearned the desire to live—for vengeance, if nothing else.” Boudica’s voice became low and almost sensual. “I enjoyed watching the great Roman empire fall at last.”

I felt sick. I wished I’d never asked.

Boudica smirked as if she understood how her story had affected me and it only increased her contempt. As she stood and walked to the deep end to execute a perfect dive into the pool, I could see the white of old scars criss-crossing the skin on her back.

Miko wandered over and plopped down into the chair Boudica had vacated. “Was she telling you her story? I caught the end of it.”

I nodded. “It’s sad.”

The fairy pulled her knees up to her chin. “I don’t know why she joined Taliesin. I don’t think she likes any of us, not even Rowan. It’s terrible what happened to her, but she’s wrong inside. Did she tell you what she did after she lost her kingdom?”

“She said she waged war on Rome.”

Boudica had joined the boys in their game and Daley was now sitting on the edge of the pool watching. His necklace shimmered aqua against his bare chest.

Miko dropped her voice so no one else could hear her. “When she conquered a Roman city, she destroyed it. She slaughtered almost eighty thousand people, even the women and children, and what she did to the bodies . . . well, it was awful. At least, that’s what the history books say. Of course, when she was defeated, the Roman legions were just as bad, but it’s not a Roman I have to sit across the table from every night.”

I shivered again; I’d seen some of the darkness running through Boudica. “I feel sorry for her.”

“Sure, feel sorry for her if you want, but don’t ever trust her. I doubt she’s even remotely sane. But then, who am I to talk about trust.” The fairy was staring at her phone with a strange expression on her face.

“Who’s that?”

A dusky blush spread across her cheeks. “No one important. Just an old friend who wants to hook up.” She slipped the phone back into her bikini top and I laughed.

“That’s an interesting place to keep it.”

“Might as well fill it with something.” She nodded her chin at Boudica. “We can’t all be as well endowed as some people.” The woman’s
attributes
were definitely impressive, but my gaze strayed back to Daley.

“Oh Rhi, don’t even think of Daley that way.”

I forced myself to look away. “What are you talking about?”

“You know what I mean. Daley will break your heart.”

“I’m just curious. Why does he always wear that necklace with the aquamarine stone?” From Taliesin’s book, I knew it once belonged to the girl named Melusine.

Miko frowned. “The stone is clear.”

I sat up straight as I realized that the color I saw the pendant as was the same as one of the colors I saw surrounding Daley. “Stay here for a minute.”

“What are you doing?” Miko hissed.

“Checking something out.”

I walked over to the shallow end. Rowan smiled and Taliesin nodded as they passed me on their way out. I almost lost my nerve at the shock that ran through me as Daley looked up. Electricity sparked across my skin. I’d asked Miko, but no one else was affected by Daley’s power the way I was. The charm bracelet was still in my purse, but the red scar on my wrist burned.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” he replied.

That was the extent of the conversation. I stood there awkwardly. The beach ball hitting me in the face came to my rescue.

“Sorry, Rhi!” Peter yelled.

“It’s OK.” But instead of throwing the ball back in, I offered it to Daley. Frowning, he reached for it and I made sure our fingers connected. Hoping it would be enough, I closed my eyes.

For a moment, there was nothing, but then the stone burned aqua and I saw tendrils escaping it, entwining with Daley’s lightning. They connected him to a beautiful girl with a river of dark hair.

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

“No. Friggin. Way.”

I’d dragged Miko away from the pool and we were sitting across from one another on her bed. She’d decorated her room with posters of Japanese rock bands and pink pillows. She was twisting one of them now in her small hands.

Tell me again what she looked like.”

We’d been through this twice already. “Pretty. Long, black hair.  White dress with swishy sleeves.”

Miko’s eyes were wide. “That’s what we buried her in.”

“What?”

“We buried her in a white dress with long sleeves.”

“Who?”

“Melusine. Daley’s girlfriend.”

I had to know. “How did she die?”

Miko grimaced. “When Melusine first joined us, everyone was so excited. She was an actual descendent of the first Melusine—an ancient water elemental who could turn into a kind of dragon. Our Melusine wasn’t a pureblood and hadn’t learned how to access her powers, but it would have been a real game changer for us if she could. Unfortunately, the original Melusine was also a man-eater—not just literally—and ours was the same. By the time she came to us, she’d left a pile of broken hearts behind. One of them eventually caught up with her.”

It took me a moment to understand what Miko was saying. “She was murdered?”

“Some kid walked up to her in the middle of the street and shot her. He put another bullet in his brain before Daley could even react.”

“That’s awful.”

“It gets worse. The kid left a suicide note in his pocket. Melusine had been texting him, promising they would get back together and getting him to send her money. When he ran out of cash, she told him she was done with him. Daley went out of his mind with grief. He took the necklace off her dead body and he’s worn it ever since. He’s forgotten what she was really like.”

“What was she like then?”

“Beautiful, vain, charming, manipulative—just like most sirens, loreleis, nixies, and mermaids.” Miko smiled her lopsided smile. “And fairies too. But Melusine was from that whole class of Greylander whose sole purpose seems to be to seduce and destroy men for the fun of it.”

I didn’t remind Miko that my closest magical counterpart might be a
leanan
sidhe
.  “She seemed sad.”

“She might have cared for Daley,” the fairy conceded, “but there’s no way of knowing if he truly loved her back. That’s the only part of her magic she was ever in control of, but Daley refuses to believe it. He refuses to remember how they fought all the time or how jealous and unhappy she made him.”

I went to the window. The picture of Daley’s face raised to the moon was an image my mind kept turning to no matter how hard I tried to banish it.

A pillow hit the glass and I turned and raised an eyebrow at Miko.

“Sorry. I wasn’t aiming for you. I’m furious I didn’t see Melusine’s spirit had attached itself to that stupid necklace. Seeing the truth is supposed to be my specialty!”

I sat back down on the bed and leaned against the headboard. “So what are we going to do about it?”

“Hauntings aren’t good. Ghosts forget the details of who they were in life but not the big emotions. Since that’s all they’ve got, those emotions just get bigger and bigger until they spill over into the mortal plane. Add magic into the mix and it could get ugly.”

“So if ghosts exist, I guess it’s proof there’s life after death. I suppose it’s our duty to help her move on to wherever it is she’s supposed to go.” I didn’t want to examine too closely why I wanted her gone so badly. “Do you think Daley can see her?”

“Nope,” Miko replied without hesitation.

“Why not?”

“If Daley could see Melusine, he’d be happy.”