The Nymph's Curse: The Collection (96 page)

Epione waved for the other women to step nearer. “Lay your hands on Jasper’s body. We need your power.” She gestured to Starling. “You need to put your hand over his heart.”

Starling put her hands on Jasper’s chest. “I can’t do this … I don’t have enough power.”

“You must trust in your gift, Starling. Your ability is strong. You just have to believe.” Asclepius flipped the book open and pointed down at the page. “Read the words.”

Starling turned to the page and ran her finger over the black-inked words. Even though she didn’t know their meaning, they looked beautiful in the way they scrolled across the page.
Spiritus, convenientibus terra viventium. Restitue animam et corpus. Benedictus in sæcula. Gratia. Misericordia. Amor …
.

“In order for it to work, you must believe. You must have full intention.” Asclepius kneeled beside her and placed his hands next to hers on Jasper’s chest. The woman all followed his lead until each were touching Jasper.

Could she do what the ghost wanted of her? Three months ago, sitting in her family’s apartment in Vegas, she would have never believed she had the power to control anything—not spirits, not spells, and barely even her own emotions. Yet, this morning, with her fingers touching the still chest of the man she loved, she knew she had found power in her moments of weakness. She had overthrown her enemies, she had found justice when there seemed there would be none. She had changed.

She closed her eyes and concentrated on her words. “Spiritus, convenientibus terra viventium. Restitue animam et corpus. Benedictus in sæcula. Gratia. Misericordia. Amor.”

Power ran through her hands and she repeated the words again. The power amplified, drawing from her heart and draining through her fingers. There was a collective gasp from the other women as they, too, must have felt the power flow.

Jasper inhaled deeply. A pink hue returned to his cheeks and his eyes fluttered open. “Starling?” he whispered. “Starling, are you okay?”

The others sat back, taking their hands from Jasper. Asclepius moved beside Epione and laid his wraithlike hand upon hers.

A tear of relief slipped down her cheek. “Jasper … You’re back. You’re … you’re alive,” she stammered. She lowered her forehead, touching it against his steadily warming cheek. “I love you.” She kissed his cheek. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Jasper reached up and wrapped his arms around her.

“I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry I let this happen to you.”

“Don’t be sorry. I sacrificed myself to protect you. I kept you safe. I would give my life again.” He drew in a long breath, filling his lungs. “Though, next time, I’ll get in the damn elevator.”

“Next time, I’ll keep Jamie’s stone,” she said, looking toward the psychic.

Jamie nodded, smiling. “A new one is on the house.”

“As luck would have it,” Epione said, drawing Starling’s attention, “you’ll never have to worry about giving up your life again. Thanks to Starling, you have joined the ranks of the near immortal. Because she cast the spell, you will have her same weakness—if someone pulls your hair, you will die, but if you protect your weakness, you will be able to live forever … forever at Starling’s side.”

“But what about the curse of our kind?” Ariadne asked.

“This can’t happen again. Zeus can’t do this to another of our kind. He has to be stopped,” Starling said.

Epione gave them a knowing look. “That is a war we will need to fight. All of us. Together. First, we need to gain strength. We need to unify. Do you think you can do that, Ariadne?”

“Yes. I can’t think of many who would object to the fight.”

“In the meantime, Starling, I must ask a favor of you.”

“Anything for my goddess,” Starling said, her tears of relief and joy steadily slipping down her cheeks as she stared at Jasper’s full lips.

“Would you please help me?” Asclepius asked. “I wish to join my wife, and should you and your kind choose, your fight as well.”

Starling nodded. “Ladies, let’s hold hands. We need to repeat the spell for Asclepius. He wishes to no longer be merely a ghost.” She gave Jasper a soft kiss to the cheek and stood up. “Stand in the middle of the circle, Asclepius.”

The ghost drifted to the center of the women as they all joined hands.

“Spiritus convenientibus terra viventium. Restitue animam et corpus. Benedictus in sæcula. Gratia. Misericordia. Amor,” the women said in unison.

The wind around them sped up and twisted. In the center of the circle, Asclepius’s body started to form from his ghostly features. His gray-speckled beard filled out and his face took on the hue of sun-warmed honey. Gone was the mistiness of his wraith form.

Asclepius ran to Epione and took her in his arms. “My love,” he whispered, pressing his lips to hers. He looked over to the women. “I knew you were the one, Starling.”

“The one?” Starling let go of Jamie’s hand and returned to Jasper’s side.

“Yes,” Asclepius replied, drawing Epione deeper into his arms. “You are the one who is going to save us all.”

She didn’t know if she believed him, but it didn’t matter. She had tapped into her powers. She had the man she loved—a man who was now nearly immortal.

“One more thing,” Epione said, stepping out of Asclepius’s arms with a quick kiss. “You have proven yourself a woman of great strength, courage, and character. As such, I’m honored to give you the gift of the mark.”

“The mark?” Jasper asked.

“Every nymph has a tattoo of their totem animal,” Starling explained. “For me, it’s the swan.”

“Are you ready?” Epione asked.

Starling lowered the edge of her dress, exposing the back of her neck. Epione touched the spot gently. There was a flash of warmth as the ink moved through her skin, forming her black swan.

“Be proud. You are Nymph. You are a demigod. You are my sister,” Epione said with a slight bow.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. You deserve the world for returning my love to me.” Epione tipped her head in acknowledgment and returned to Asclepius.

Jasper wrapped his arms around Starling from behind and kissed the edges of her ears. “I don’t know that I’m the world, but I will give you everything I can.”

“I don’t want everything,” Starling said, turning around in his arms to face him. “I only want you, my shadow.”

Danica Winters is a bestselling author of more than ten books. She has won multiple awards and is known for writing books that grip readers with their ability to drive emotion through suspense and occasionally a touch of magic. Most recently, Danica was the winner of the 2013 Paranormal Romance Guild’s Book of the Year Award and is currently a finalist in the Chanticleer Book Reviews Paranormal Awards of 2013 for her paranormal romantic suspense novel,
Montana Mustangs
.

When she’s not working, she can be found in the wilds of Montana testing her patience while she tries to understand the allure of various crafts (quilting, pottery, and painting are not her thing). She always believes the cup is neither half full nor half empty, but it better be filled with wine.

Asia Blue sat across from her date, Gavin Strong, watching his lips and trying to understand what he was saying. She slanted her head, centering her focus.

“How are your scallops? My steak is great. I didn’t know about this restaurant.” He twisted his head to take in the dining room. “The atmosphere is very artsy.” He flashed her a beautiful smile. The kind a male model would produce.

Struggling to make sense of the words in her brain, she smiled back. “The scallops are delicious.” Inside she frowned. The sentence she gave him sounded more like something a young teen would say. What she wanted to say was, “Did you know the owners are artists? Much of the décor is their artwork. They have a patent on the beer tower, which they constructed from recycled materials.”

But she couldn’t concentrate. So many other words and phrases and thoughts, ones that were not her own, were piling up in her mind, confusing her.

This steak is not done.

With all this traffic, I’m going to be late for the meeting.

The waiter is cute.

On top of the thoughts coming from the room and out on the street, every thought in Gavin’s brain was spilling out for her to pick up. As a were-lynx, Asia had heightened senses of smell, sight, and hearing. She was very strong and fast. She’d also been able to read animal minds since she turned eighteen, which was the age her were-lynx genes expressed. At first she’d noticed impressions popping into her mind from animals. She’d quickly learned to shut down the link and only got impressions when she’d opened to a connection and asked for it. While open, animals could receive emotions from her, too, she’d learned by observation. Their thoughts carried feelings and were given to her in images, not words. Telepathy came easy to her and she enjoyed having access to the minds of animals. But she’d never tried to make a connection with her fellow colony cats. She didn’t want them to feel invaded, so had promised years ago never to attempt to read their thoughts. Her skill had proved helpful a number of times and it made her feel good.

Up until two days ago. Then suddenly she could read human minds. And not with much elegance. Fortunately, the problem, her expanded telepathy, had only involved humans.

Look at those stellar boobs,
Gavin thought.
Too bad the neckline on her dress isn’t lower.

Asia shook her head to clear the competing thoughts and focused on shutting down the inflow of thoughts, just as she had been trying to do for two days. It wasn’t working. Human brains were so full of chatter, unlike animals, and so complex. It was challenging to listen to his verbal conversation about the weather and his day at work when she knew he was thinking
that.

A chuckle escaped her lips, startling him into a big-eyed stare. She didn’t like the scrutiny, but at least his eyes were beautiful.

“Something funny?” he asked. “Do I have food in my teeth?”

“No. No food in your teeth. Sorry. There’s nothing funny. I think the wine is getting to me, that’s all.” Really, how could she be honest? She liked him—his thoughts were crude, yes, but, after all, he was a man. In a weird way his thoughts were also flattering. But there was little doubt that if she told him she could read his mind, he would be out of her life so fast he’d create a wake.

Gavin leaned back in his chair, relaxing, and wiped at the corners of his mouth with his white linen napkin. “Well that’s a relief.” He reached across the table and laid his hand on hers. “I’m having a really nice time, Asia.”

“I know. I mean, I am, too.” This wasn’t going very well. Men in general did not make her nervous. But with the recent changes in her telepathy skills, Asia hadn’t realized how out of control she would feel with Gavin. They’d been dating for a couple of weeks. She’d thought the worst situation to deal with would be their identities—his human and hers were-lynx.

Gavin wasn’t the first human she’d dated. Typically, though, the dating process hadn’t achieved what she’d hoped for: a normal life with a normal man. She’d never had normal, and it was something she really longed for.

Maybe her lack of success was simply her lack of skills in forming any kind of relationship at all.
Thanks for that, Mom. At least you gave me something, though it barely counts.

The daughter of an alcoholic and drug abuser, Asia had always been the caretaker. That life was anything but normal. And as a member of a colony of were-cats who had become crime fighters, any chance at normal seemed out of reach.

Asia shook her head again. Gavin was still talking. Between her thoughts, his thoughts, his spoken words, and a swarming buzz of thoughts from other people filling the room, the conditions in her mind were making her dizzy.

“Asia, did you hear me?” Gavin slanted his head when she didn’t respond. She was trying. She reached inside to find his last sentence, but nothing jumped out of the minefield that was her brain. “I asked you if you’d like to order dessert.” He dropped his gaze to the menu in his hands. “This flourless chocolate cake sounds interesting.”

He was not only beautiful, he was a chocolate lover. How could she be blowing this? “Umm … ” The words, “No thank you, I’m full” sat on the tip of her tongue, when she heard his thoughts.

I hope she will come to my apartment tonight. It’s been two weeks.

Spontaneous apprehension paused her breathing. Would it be fair to use his thoughts to her advantage? She could simply suggest they spend the night together. It’s what she wanted, right? The idea froze her breath in her chest.
So many things to consider with this evolving telepathy
. Different answers to the simple dessert question flitted around like moths in her brain.

The waiter walked up to their table. “Are you ordering dessert? Would you like coffee?”
Please order more. I need a good tip tonight.

The waiter’s words in her head were the last straw. Ordering dessert would only prolong this fiasco.

Finally, she gave up and just settled for the easiest exit. “No, I’m not feeling well, in fact.”

“Okay, honey.” The waiter quickly headed away.

“Gavin, I would appreciate it if you could take me home.”

“Oh, of course.” He shot her a sympathetic expression, then asked for the bill.

Minutes later, out on the street, Gavin grabbed her hand as they walked to the car. His skin was warm and inviting. Wistful thoughts of spending the evening with him over after-dinner coffee in her apartment darted in her mind. “I’m sorry to have to end the evening so early.” Her gaze dropped to the sidewalk, noting each strike of her heels against the pavement, focusing on closing her mind to Gavin’s thoughts.

“It’s okay, Asia. I understand. We’ll try again another night when you’re feeling better.”
Two weeks and yet another opportunity lost to get to know her better.

Her gut clenched at his thoughts. He wasn’t okay. “Yes, I would like that.”

He opened the car door and she slipped into the front seat and let her head drop back against the headrest as he shut the door. He walked around to the driver’s side and slid in behind the wheel. Acutely aware of his eyes on her, Asia kept her eyes closed, not to concentrate but to avoid conversation.