Soul Mates Bewitched (7 page)

J
illian stared at me, a confused look on her face. “What are ye talking aboot? How would our families be connected?”

I’d known it, from the first moment in which we’d met, that we were connected in some way, and also that she had no idea what it was her family really did. “I’m not sure where to start. Your parents are very powerful, you know this?”

“Aye. They are the Guardians for all of Ireland. Me mum’s the Oracle. She sees things. They sent me away ta prep school fer years, but when I came home that last summer they trained me ta fight the demons. Then Mum got a vision and decided they were too busy ta train me and so they sent me to Nicu to finish me training. I’m sure they wanted me ta stay with Nicu, but I wanted me own place, ye know? I used me trust fund ta buy me this apartment building. I wanted a place ta practice me sorcery, and I pay Harry and David ta watch over things, an’ keep me safe. Not like I need their protection now, I ken take on a slew o’ Fae by me self.”

“But, they didn’t tell you who you are, what you are meant to do? What I am?”

Jillian shook her head. “What do ye mean? Like that I’m supposed to be a defender of the humans? Sure they told me that. Tis why they sent me to Nicu. Nicu assigned me half of Central Park ta protect, that’s my job. When ye got here, he asked me ta keep an eye on ye. Probably thought ye couldn’t hack it oot there with the rest o’ us Guardians.” Jillian grinned. “Is that what has ye worried? That Nicu isn’t gonna let ye join us?”

I smiled and took Jillian’s hand. I couldn’t tell her that the only reason her parents had her was to protect the world through me. I couldn’t tell her I was the Light Bearer. I wasn’t putting that responsibility on her. I meant it when I’d said I was meant to be her protector, not the other way round. “Yeah… I’m worried about not getting to join the Guardians,” I said softly. “But that isn’t all I’m worried about. Jilly, how did you learn to throw the fireballs?”

“Cool trick roi’t? Brice taught me. See, he’s not all bad.”

“Do you have another way to fight the Unseelie?” I asked.

“Sure, there are other spells. They aren’t as quick and effective, but I’ve also got potions.”

“You realize that every time you use the fireballs you lose energy…”

“They leave me knackered, if that’s what ye mean.”

“Not exactly, Jilly. Every time you throw your fireballs you are throwing your energy, your life-force. So far you have been able to replenish it, but the more often you use it, the more drained you will be.”

Jillian sat there, allowing me to hold her hand while she thought it through. “Feck. That bastard.”

“Brice?”

“Aye. He knew that would happen and didn’t bother ta tell me.” Jillian sighed. “Well, feck. Guess I won’t be wielding fireballs unless we’re in dire straits.”

I smiled. “Good.”

“So, ye said our families were connected…how?”

I’d been thinking about that, what to tell her, exactly… “We are. Your parents trained my dad to be a…Guardian. A special kind of Guardian; one that I am supposed to become. The Chalice of Light was part of that training. Did you ever see the Chalice while you were with your parents?”

Jillian frowned, thinking about it. “No, I don’t think so. I would have remembered seeing something like that,” Jillian said with a smile. “Tis kinda funny yer da bein’ trained by me parents and me bein’ trained by yer uncle.”

I grinned. “I think,” I began, pulling her closer to me, wanting to kiss her, “that we are meant to be together. That is why you were sent to Uncle Nicu’s.”

Jillian took a deep breath and held it as I moved in closer, pressing my lips to hers, caressing her sweet cherry lips, and then deepening the kiss as I pulled her into my lap. She let out a sigh of pleasure, expelling her pent up breath and giving into the sweetness of our kiss. I felt her melt against me, her fingers delving into my hair, pulling me closer still.

“Ah -hem… Miss Jillian?”

We broke apart, breathing heavily. “David, ye have the worst timin’,” Jillian commented with a sassy smile.

“Yes, Miss Jillian, but your parents are on the phone. They got worried when you didn’t answer.”

“The ringer is off. I didn’t hear it,” she said, climbing off my lap.

“You should go talk to them,” I said. “I really need to go talk to Uncle Nicu, anyway.”

Jillian sighed. “Yeah. David, like, tell them I’ll be roi’t there,” she said, holding the door open for him and quickly closing it behind him.

She turned and leaned against the door, a sassy smile on her lips before she stepped into me and ran her fingers up my chest and around my neck. She pulled my lips down to hers and kissed me again. I moved her back against the door, and pulled her up into my arms, stroking her cheek with one hand while I kissed her passionately.

I pulled away a few moments later with a sigh. “I’d better go. I really do need to talk to Nicu.”

“Tomorrow?” she whispered.

“Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow. Maybe we can do something normal, go to a show or something.”

Jillian smiled. “Ye know, I’ve never been ta a show…”

“You’ve lived in New York City for like a year now, how can you not have been to a Broadway show?” I asked incredulously.

“Always trainin’ or huntin’.”

I nodded. “We’ll see a show; I’ll get us some tickets.”

“I know tis sold out, but I’d love ta see
Wicked,
” she said with a smile.

‘I’ll see what I can do.” I gave her another quick kiss and opened the door. We walked down the stairs together, and I finally let her hand go as we parted at the bottom of the stairs.

As I walked out the door, I heard her say into the phone, “Hello, Mother,” she didn’t sound like her normal self, more stiff and stand-offish. I shook my head and grabbed a taxi instead of walking back to the bar.

I found Nicu back in his office doing paperwork, and I threw myself down on his sofa. I had questions I needed answered, and I wasn’t sure I was going to get a straight answer.

“Where have you been?” Nicu asked, looking up from his inventory sheet.

“Over at Jillian’s. Uncle Nicu, we need to talk.”

“What’s up?”

“Did you know I am the Light Bearer?”

Nicu looked up, startled. “Well, you don’t look like you’re shining with power; I suppose the Fae got you sealed, then?”

I frowned. “You knew. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“It’s a long story, Antony. Your father… Henri was the Light Bearer. I assume they told you that much?” Nicu asked, and seeing my nod, he continued. “He was an amazing man, your father. I could never live up to him. I didn’t know, not then, not until the night he died. He told me he’d made you Light Bearer, that the Chalice we’d used had been the real thing. I don’t know how he got his hands on it or what happened with it afterwards. I’ve always been able to see the Unseelie, and the Light Fae who reveal themselves, but not like your father, not like you. You are special. That night, the night I lost Henri, was the worst night of my life. His Fae protector had vanished, Auberon had closed the Faerie Mound and disappeared, the Unseelie were winning the war. Henri asked me to go out hunting with him, but I wasn’t ready. I didn’t know everything then that I should have.” Nicu ran his hand over his face, remembering that night.

“What happened?” I asked leaning forward, my hands clasped between my knees.

“Henri said he wanted to go into the park. He was hunting and looking for his Fae protector, Jace. I’d met him once, didn’t really like him. Now? Well, now I hate him and I’m glad I killed him. He’d turned traitor, disappeared, knowing Henri would go out on his own, he told the Unseelie Maiden how to defeat him. Henri had a weakness, he only fought with the Light, he never relied on anything else. It made him…cocky. Don’t get me wrong, your father was amazing, but he relied solely on the Light to protect him. Henri didn’t tell me to teach you to fight, Tony. I decided that night that I would not lose you the way I lost Henri. So I taught you everything I knew about swords and Karate. I encouraged your mother to take you somewhere safe and to keep you enrolled in Karate, and any other kind of combat class she could think of. Anyway, I had no way of knowing how to contact the Fae, to let them know that Henri had passed or that you had become the Light Bearer. It was only after I sent you away that the Guardians of Ireland started asking questions and then found me. We had no idea what happened to the Chalice, but you were safe. They knew you would be back. They planned for it.”

“Jillian.”

“Yes, she is a part of that plan. They sent her here to help you, to be your protector. We are no longer relying on the Fae for that, not after Henri.”

“Okay, so how did the Unseelie get to Dad?”

“They came out of nowhere, overwhelmed us and ripped him open with their talons, from behind, before he could see it happening. You see, your Father relied heavily on his second sight, he could see decisions before they were made. But this time, well, he couldn’t see it. It was as if they didn’t decide, it just happened,” Nicu said with tears in his eyes. “His last words were, ‘Save Antony’.”

I knew that it had been bad. I knew Nicu wasn’t telling me everything about that night, and that was all right. I knew now how my Father had died, and why. It helped. I also knew if I ever used the power of the Light inside me, that I had better be prepared to accept the consequences that went along with it. For now the Unseelie didn’t know who I was, they didn’t know that
I
was the Light Bearer, or that there even was a Light Bearer. I wanted to keep it that way as long as possible. So, I would continue to hunt and fight, but with my swords, and not with the added power.

“Go to bed, Antony. We’ll talk more in the morning.” Nicu stood up and walked to the door.

I nodded and headed up to my room. After a quick shower, I climbed into bed, completely exhausted. I was asleep for only a few minutes when the dream began.

I
stood in the middle of Central Park with Jillian, back to back. We were surrounded by the Unseelie, and Jillian was out of potions.

“Do I use the fireballs?” she asked.

“No, you need your energy, and Brice has planned for that,” I replied.

“How could he have known that I would be here?”

“Trust me Jillian, he knew… He has been involved from the beginning.”

The Unseelie swarmed around us, and I did the only thing I could think of… I used the power of the Light…

I woke up in a cold sweat, shaking from the power I felt shoot through me. It had been a dream, but not a dream. I struggled to remember the details, but they eluded me. I couldn’t tell if using the Light had been successful or not, but I did learn one thing… Brice was not to be trusted.

That wasn’t information I was gonna share with Jillian quite yet, though. I’d have to see what he knew first, and talk to Uncle Nicu again, before I did anything.

I wandered around the apartment waiting for Nicu to wake up, I hadn’t heard him come up last night, so I was betting he was trying to sleep in. I decided to look into getting those tickets to
Wicked
for Jillian and I. I found a pair for the two o’clock show at the Gershwin Theatre that afternoon and bought them, not caring about the cost. Glancing at the clock I hurried back to my room, and changed into a fresh pair of jeans and a black tee shirt, ran a brush through my hair, and left the apartment. I wanted to catch Jillian before she made plans for the day.

“Hi, Harry,” I said as I approached the doorman.

“Sir. May I help you?” he asked, not opening the door.

“Umm, I’m here to see Jillian,” I replied.

“I’ll see if she is available to visitors.” Harry flipped open a cell phone and called up to Jillian’s. “You have a caller. The one from last night. All right, I’ll send him up.”

I smiled because Harry didn’t look all that happy. “She’s available?”

“Go in,” he said, opening the door.

I climbed the stairs to Jillian’s place and knocked on the door. I didn’t have to wait long for her to open it. “Hi,” I said, and then looked at her tear stained face. “What’s wrong?”

Jillian wiped her cheeks, took a couple of gulping breaths, and then threw herself into my arms and sobbed. I couldn’t understand a word she was saying, so I picked her up in my arms, kicked the door closed behind us, and carried her to the den. I sat us down on the couch and rubbed her back until her sobs subsided.

“Jilly, sweetness, what is wrong?”

Jillian sighed, the sobbing finished for the moment. “Tis me birthday. They promised…”

“It’s your birthday? You didn’t say anything… I’m sorry, happy birthday…what did they promise and who are
they
?” I asked, slightly confused.

“Me parents,” Jillian replied, wiping her cheeks with the palm of her hand. “They promised they’d come see me fer me birthday, but they won’t now. They feckin’ said too bloody much is at stake, and they can’t risk feckin’ leavin’. Tis why they called last night, an’ sent the package. Ta pacify me. I don’t feckin’ know why I expected this year ta be any different, they always do this. Somethin’ is always more important than me.” Jillian sighed, and laid her head on my shoulder.

“You are more important than you know, Jillian,” I said brushing her hair away from her cheek. “I didn’t know it was your birthday, but I have a gift for you,” I said with a smile. “Come on, go wash your face and we’ll get out of here.”

Jillian nodded and left the room, returning a few minutes later with her hair brushed and a smile on her face. “Where are we goin’?” she asked.

I grinned. “It’s a surprise,” I replied, taking her hand and pulling her out of her apartment.

She shut and locked the door, and we were outside in front of her building hailing a taxi within seconds. I gave the driver the address to Victor’s Café 52, with a smile.

“What is this place we are going ta?”

“First, we are having lunch, at a nice place with Cuban food…” I said. “Do you like Cuban food?”

“I’ve never had it afore.”

I grinned. “Well, you are in for a treat. My parents used to bring me here when I was a kid. It’s one of my favorite places.”

We entered the café a short while later and I asked for a quiet table for two.

“Good afternoon. Welcome to Victor’s café 52,” our waitress said with a friendly smile. “May I get you some drinks?”

“Yes, please, we’d like a couple of Cokes, and do you still have the Sandwich Cubano con Mariquitas Surtidas?”

“Of course. Would you like those with everything?”

“Yes, please.”

“May I get you anything else?”

“No, thank you,” I replied as she went to turn in our order.

“What’s the Sandwich Cubano?” Jillian asked when we were alone.

“You will love it. It’s a pressed sandwich with roast pig and ham, melted Gruyere cheese, pickles and mustard. It’s so good, I promise.”

Jillian smiled. “Roast pig and ham?”

“I know,” I said with a laugh, “but you’ll see what I mean when they bring it. It’s amazing.”

“Savage. I’ve a mouth on me.”

I grinned, she surely did have a mouth on her and it was looking more and more delectable by the moment.

“Ye’ve got that look,” she said with a sassy grin.

“What look would that be?” I asked leaning in to her.

“That, ‘I’m gonna snog ye’ look,” she replied, her grin deepening as I leaned in closer.

“I think you’re right,” I whispered against her lips and then kissed her, caressing her cheek as I did.

“Mmm,” Jillian murmured.

I pulled away as our food arrived. As we ate every bite of the delicious meal, I watched Jillian’s face. I could tell she really enjoyed the food. “So, did you love it?” I asked when she’d finished.

“Aye, that was totally savage,” she said with a grin.

“Good,” I said, paying our bill and leaving a generous tip. “Now, onto the next stop.”

“Ye mean there’s more?”

I grinned. “Oh yeah, there’s more,” I said dragging her down the street and around the corner to the Gershwin Theatre.

“Ye got tickets?” Jillian asked, her eyes widening as we stepped inside.

“I did,” I replied with a grin. “Wait here.” I went to the desk and picked up our tickets, premium seating, front and center.

“I can’t feckin’ believe ye went and did this, Tony. Tis like, stellar,” Jillian said with a grin. “Yer, like, totally feckin’ brilliant.”

I took her hand and we found our seats just as the curtain was about to go up. I held her hand throughout the show and watched her more than I ever watched the people on stage. Though when they performed “
Defying Gravity”
I admit it was awesome, and I couldn’t take my eyes off the stage.

“Well, how was your first ever New York theatre experience?” I asked as we headed out of the theatre.

“That was, like, so savage! Brilliant, feckin’ brilliant!” Jillian exclaimed with exuberance. She threw her arms around me and kissed me. “Thanks fer a totally brilliant day.”

“You’re welcome,” I said putting my arm around her and hailing a taxi to take her home.

It was a short ride back to her apartment; at least it felt that way, since we kissed the entire ride home. I paid the taxi driver and we went inside. “Are you planning to go out hunting tonight?” I asked.

“Nicu’s havin’ a meetin’ at seven, fer all of the Guardians. Didn’t he tell ye?”

“No, he didn’t,” I replied with a frown.

“No worries, roi’t? Nicu will let ye come.”

I nodded and followed her into the den. “I don’t know if I want to be a Guardian anymore. I may be better off on my own.”

“Why do ye think that? ‘Cause of Brice? Ye don’t need ta be worrin’ aboot him ye know.”

I smiled and pulled her down on my lap. “I know, I’m not
worried
about him. It’s just … I had a vision.”

Jillian studied me, cocking her head to one side and frowning. “Ye mean with that Kohl stuff?”

“Not exactly, different kind of vision. But, let’s just say, while I appreciate what the Guardians do, I kinda need to remain on my own, for now, you know?”

“What aboot me? Ye wantin’ me ta bugger off, then?”

I laughed. “No. You I want to keep around.”

Jillian grinned. “Good, cause ye ain’t feckin’ gettin’ rid o’ me.”

I pulled her close and kissed her sweet, soft lips. Jillian wrapped her arms around my neck and sank into me. We broke apart a few minutes later, breathing hard. I smiled and stroked her cheek. “I should go.”

“Ye don’t have ta. Ye ken go ta the meetin’ with me.”

“I should talk to Uncle Nicu first. Did you have a good birthday?” I asked softly.

Jillian smiled. “It has been a totally savage day, I loved it. Thank ye.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll see you tonight,” I said, standing up and setting her on her feet. I kissed her again and headed for the door. She nodded and closed the door behind me with a smile.

I left Jillian’s place and started the several block walk to Nicu’s club. It wasn’t dark out yet, but it was starting to get that way. I wasn’t paying attention to much of anything and didn’t recognize Brice when I ran into him.

“Sorry, dude,” I said and started to push past him, but he grabbed my arm.

“Where the bloody hell do you think you’re going?”

I pulled my arm free and glared at him. “You got somethin’ to say to me?” I asked.

“You think you can just blow into town and steal my chick, and I’m not gonna have somethin’ to say about that?” Brice said with a shove.

“I didn’t steal ‘your chick’. Jillian is her own person and makes her own decisions, Dude. She just chose to hang out with a better class of guy. Sorry, you lose.”

I felt the spell before it left his hands, and I dodged out of the way, slamming myself into a parked car. This was one of those times I really wished I had some kind of supernatural speed, like Max. I didn’t have any way to fight Brice; eventually he’d kick my ass with his fireballs. Or, so I thought. Suddenly I felt stronger, more powerful, filled with something that I hadn’t a clue how to use. I turned on Brice and glared at him. I knew he could see the power rolling off of me…and that he didn’t know what it was, but suddenly, he didn’t look as confident as he had a moment before.

“Just stay outta my way,” he said with a growl and a not so ‘fake out’, before turning to head back in the direction he’d come from.

“Whatever, Dude,” I said, and watched to make sure he wasn’t headed to Jillian’s. Brice was the last thing she needed to deal with. I watched him for a few more minutes and saw him turn the corner a few blocks up, headed away from Jillian’s, so I walked on, back to Nicu’s place.

It didn’t take me long to get there, but I was glad it was still somewhat light out. I didn’t have my swords with me and I could feel things lurking in the shadows, just waiting to jump unsuspecting passersby. I needed a weapon that I could carry, one that wouldn’t be seen by other humans. And one that, preferably, wouldn’t get me locked up in jail for carrying. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I needed to contact Max.

I hurried up to my room and pulled out the scrying mirror, tapped it three times and called for Max. I waited impatiently for him to appear.

“Tony, what’s wrong?” Max asked. He was rocking Rose in his arms and trying to be very quiet.

“I need a weapon, something Fae that I can use, but that can also be hidden from the rest of the human population.”

“What happened?”

“Nothin’. Well,
somethin’
, but it was nothin’ I couldn’t handle at the time. Dude, I just need a weapon.”

“I’ll be right there.”

Max broke the connection and within seconds was standing in my bedroom looking very fatherly and concerned.

“You didn’t have to come; you could have sent Daire with something, instead.”

“No. Now what is going on, Tones?”