Looking back at Tallis, I rapidly concluded that it was all but impossible to convince him of my true identity. His anger was still too fresh, and too hot.
“Tallis, listen to me,” I said as I knelt down in front of him again. He pulled away from me as much as his chains would allow.
“Remember all the time we spent together?” I asked him. He still wouldn’t look at me. “Do you remember when we were in the Dark Wood and we stopped at that tavern where we all got really drunk? Saxon was there too. Do you remember that?”
“Aye.”
“And what about all the trips you and Bill and I made together to the Underground City? Remember how our first mission was with Kipur and Ragur, those awful clowns? And Sherita took our souls because you stole one of hers?” My voice sounded increasingly hopeful.
Tallis looked up at me and scoffed. “Means naethin’. Ah am fully aware that ye ‘ave access tae all o’ Lily’s memories.”
Hmm, that would definitely make the job of convincing him way more difficult. I racked my brain to think of what I could use instead of our shared memories. What did I know or have that Persephone couldn’t have possessed?
Then the perfect something popped into my head. “Tallis, do you remember the mud? Do you remember how you came to visit me while I was submerged beneath the ground?”
He flinched as if my words suddenly hit him like a physical blow. That was it! Proof straight from our dream worlds!
“Tallis, we lay together in the mud! You told me you loved me! And I told you I loved you! You promised me you would get rid of Persephone for me!” Tallis shook his head but his expression was filled with surprise and unmasked hope. “And you did get rid of her!” I continued, pointing my finger at him for emphasis. “We both did—together. Now she’s in a hole in the ground outside the castle, and covered in vines. We put her there. You called it the place between worlds.”
“Nae,” Tallis rumbled as he rocked back and forth.
“It’s the truth, Tallis,” I contended. “I’m telling you the truth! Remember the mud and Fergus Castle! We were there together. And now we’re both out here again… together. And I still love you now just like I did then.”
The look on Tallis’s face softened. Apparently, that was inside information Persephone would never have had a clue about. I was finally getting through to him. I just had to keep pressing. “Your blood was the element that strengthened me. I could finally see what Persephone was doing to me. You gave me the means to finally resist her and fight back.” I stepped towards him, close enough that I could reach out and touch him but I didn’t. “I called to you and you answered me, Tallis Black. That’s why I meant it when I told you I loved you.”
His eyes blackened into vast pools of despair. He knew he was defeated but he had every reason to believe that this was just a new torment. “Ah… Ah only love Lily.”
“I am Lily, dammit!” I all but yelled at him, balling my hands up in fists of frustration. “How could Persephone know about the mud? Or about Fergus Castle? Think about it, Tallis!”
My heart was beating in my ears. His defiance was unrelenting, frustrating and pointless. Just how much pride could one man own? I had to do something to make him see the truth, once and for all.
Think, Lily, think. What’s the one thing you have that Persephone didn’t?
A switch went on in my head. I could almost hear the ding! that accompanied the idea. I leaned forward, grasping Tallis by his dirty face. Then I kissed him like the world was ending because for all I knew, it was. I poured all my passion, love and affection for him in that one kiss.
If there were any connection left between us, from the place between worlds to the one here, then he had to feel it now. He had to.
He resisted at first, pursing his lips and trying to pull away from me. But I drove the kiss home until he relented. Our lips mashed together through the forest of his hair and beard. My tongue reached for his and my skin tingled in excitement when his tongue finally met mine. He was grungy, dirty, and smelly but I didn’t care. He was my Tallis, my Bladesmith, my protector and I loved him with my entire soul and being.
When I eventually pulled back, I found him studying me with a new sense of rekindled hope in his midnight blue eyes.
“Lily,” he said and a tentative smile appeared on his lips.
Chapter Ten
Lily
Tallis and I talked for as long as we could. Our hushed tones reverberated off the stone around us, making me concerned that someone would detect us. No one ever did but I kept glancing at the door just in case.
When I asked Tallis why his memory had more holes than a block of Swiss cheese, he blamed it on the demands of the ritual, combined with his weakened physical state and the fact that the whole event took place in Dreamland. I filled him in on what had happened since I regained control of my body: the dinner with Alaire, his vague comments about AE and Streethorn, and learning that a two-hundred-year-old woman was still trying to possess me, despite her premature burial.
“Aye, it was always ah risk that Persephone may yet still be stirrin’ in ye,” Tallis said, nodding without any surprise registering on his face. “Joost like meh own passenger…”
“Former passenger,” I corrected him.
When Tallis’s eyes dropped to the ground, I got angry at myself for my glaring lack of sensitivity. I’d given too little thought to Tallis’s loss of immortality since my return. It never even registered with me to come out and ask him exactly how he felt about becoming human again. A shameful feeling washed over me.
Tallis must have sensed it. “Dinnae worry aboot meh, mah besom.” He looked down to see my sad eyes. “Nae denyin’ ye have been through the worst o’ the worst.” Looking into his eyes, I felt my strength returning. Tallis had always been my rock, to be sure, but now it was long past time for me to return the favor. I had to be stronger for him, and for Bill, and for myself… Hell, I had to be strong for all of us.
“I have to admit I’m surprised,” I said as I looked at him with a smile. “I assumed if Donnchadh left you, you would immediately die and yet, here you are?”
Tallis nodded. “Aye, Ah’ve wondered the same thing, mahself,” he said while breathing in deeply. “Ah suppose it jist means that Ah’m now a mortal. An’ Ah can die mooch easier than ‘afore.”
“Don’t even think about that,” I said immediately, reaching over and silencing him by placing my fingers over his mouth. The thought of losing him so soon after coming back to myself was too painful to even contemplate.
He looked at me and chuckled, his eyes warming as he gently pried my fingers away. God, he was more handsome than I remembered.
“Lily, we will git through this. That, Ah promise ye.”
I forced a reassuring smile onto my lips but felt no emotion behind it. It just seemed like we were stuck in this horrible place, surrounded by nothing but equally horrible obstacles. That made it difficult for me to remain optimistic.
“Oh!” I exclaimed as I suddenly remembered another important reason for my visit. “I brought you something.”
I swiftly produced the small parcel that I’d tied up with a big bow of twine. “It’s extra food I managed to get out from the kitchen before the Watchers came in. Once I saw them, I had to pretend like I was looking for alcohol since Persephone doesn’t ever get the munchies.” I handed the parcel to Tallis who immediately grasped a handful of grapes and ate some crackers and cheese in two bites.
Then he licked his lips. He was probably still famished, despite previously consuming a relatively hefty amount of food which Persephone fed to him leading up to the ritual. Then again, maybe the ceremony itself used up all his energy, which wasn’t too surprising.
As he swallowed the last bite, I realized I failed to bring him any water. “Sorry, I forgot to bring you a drink,” I said with an embarrassed, little smile.
All at once, I felt like I was instantly transported out of my body and looking at this scene with detached
, foreign eyes. I took a deep breath and my heart began to pound as strange feelings washed over me. It was like when you continuously repeat a word until you don’t understand its meaning anymore.
Who am I? Who was I becoming? Those words began to haunt me.
I’m Lily Harper, I answered in reply.
Well, yes, that might have been technically true but it also wasn’t completely true. I mean, I had been Lily Harper until I wasn’t her and now? I’d changed so much in the brief lapse of a small amount of time. And not just my physical being—leaping from mousey, nerd girl to supermodel bombshell—but my interior changed as well.
Who was the old Lily anyway? I could barely remember that life anymore. It just seemed so insignificant now, not to mention, so far away. Now, in this new life (afterlife, if you insist on being technical), I’d observed real power and saw what it really had the power to do.
In that moment, I suddenly missed my mother more than I could remember. And it struck me as being rather odd because I hadn’t had much room in my brain lately to try to recall my mother, let alone think about her for any amount of time. There was so much to contend with—my missions, Bill, Tallis, Alaire, and Persephone…
I swallowed hard as those thoughts tortured my guilty mind.
I sincerely hoped Bill was telling the truth when he said my mother’s guardian angel was helping her endure the pain of losing me.
“Lily?” Tallis’s voice brought me back to the present.
“I’m here, Tallis,” I said, giving him a heartfelt smile. I took a deep breath and reminded myself that my survival depended on my remaining in the here and now. I couldn’t afford the luxury of reliving my memories and a life that no longer had any validation. “I just got lost in my thoughts.”
“’Tis okay, Besom,” Tallis assured me before pushing on in his typical fashion.
I put a hand on Tallis’s face. “I have a plan to get us out of here,” I started to explain. “It’s going to take me a little more time because I’ve got to work out a few kinks first. But I think it’s a good one.”
“Verra good, Besom.”
Of course, the first phase of my plan could become a little messy… I had to tell Bill I was back.
###
“Fuck you!!! FUCK YOU!!! FUUUUCKKKK YOU VERY, VERY, MUUUUUHHHUUUCH!” Bill sang loudly from his cell.
I tried to conceal my persistent smile but found it difficult when I heard my guardian angel . Only Bill could maintain his sense of humor even during the bleakest hours.
“I know you’re out there, Satan’s concubone! That’s why I decided to sing my favorite song about ya! Ya feelin’ honored!?”
Holding the key to his cell in my hands, I watched one of the Watchers walk away from me. I had to glare at him sternly until he got the hint. Once Alaire’s mobile surveillance unit was fully out of sight, I took a big breath, steeling myself for what I needed to do now: I had to convince Bill that I was back to myself. It wasn’t the easiest task with Tallis so I could only hope that it would be much simpler with Bill. Once I managed to persuade him of my identity, I had to precaution him and insist that he keep that information strictly to himself. Therein lay the rub.
I unlocked Bill’s cell and stepped inside. He stopped singing when I crossed the threshold and flipped on the light switch. In my absence, he had been strapped securely to a rack and left to dangle there. His bruised arms and legs were pulled out uncomfortably further than I ever imagined possible, especially for someone so short and stubby-limbed. Dressed in nothing but soiled boxers, all the scars and burn marks that covered his much-abused body were visible.
Bill’s expression remained defiant but I glimpsed the pain pulsing behind his eyes; it was palpable. As usual, he was putting up a tough front to hide his true feelings.
Good for you, Bill, stay strong.
We did nothing but look at each other for a while. I opened my mouth to speak several times but only shut it again when nothing came out. Then I finally just sighed and felt completely exhausted. Approaching the rack, I examined it forlornly. The straps binding Bill were extra tight, enough to cut off the circulation to his hands and feet. All four of his extremities were the same deep, painful shade of blueberry. My intention was to give Bill some much-needed slack, so I pushed against what looked like a wheel until Bill responded with a sudden grimace. I turned the wheel the other way until he sighed with genuine relief.
All I could do was stand there and look at him without knowing what to say or how to say it. Bill just stared back at me, studying me silently, his eyes narrowing and his expression becoming thoughtful.
“Lils?” Bill asked, his battered face growing softer. “Is it possible… that… that’s really you?”
Tears immediately filled my eyes, “Yes,” I managed to whisper as hot tears rolled down my cheeks.
“Ah, thank my sweet fuckin’ ass,” Bill breathed as he smiled at me more widely. “Wasn’t sure if the constapain was messin’ with my head.”
“How did you know it was me?” I asked while freeing him from his savage bonds.
“I’m your guardian angel, Nips,” Bill reminded me before rubbing his freed hands, and wincing as he lightly fingered the raw spots. He shook his fingers out, trying to get the blood flow back into them. Little by little, the purplish hue regained its healthy color of pale cream. “And it ain’t like that Persephabitch would ever come in here an’ loosen this fuckin’ thing! She’d only come in ta make it tighter!”
I smiled at him while fumbling with his right foot, trying to loosen the restraints. Then I remembered something. “Wait… I came in here earlier to check on you and you didn’t recognize me. And I was back to myself then.”
Bill looked away in embarrassment. “Uh, yeah, I, uh, kinda forgot I could see your aura.”
“My aura?” I scrunched my face in curiosity . Moments like this only reminded me how bad he was at his job. Bill held up his unbound hands.
“It’s not like it’s just there all the time, ya know! It’s not talking at me, sayin’, “Hey, look at me!” He cleared his throat. “If I concentrate real hard, I can see it and you shine like a lighthouse beam. Kinda like one of those gamer tags over your character in Call of Duty, ya know what I’m talkin’ about?”
Of course, I didn’t have a clue what he was saying but that couldn’t stop Bill.
“Anyway, I kinda saw it the first time you came in. And, yo, I’m real sorry I called you all those mean things I did, Lils. I was just thinking that bitch-devil was using some nu-magic to trickulate me.”
I could only stare at him as my guilt enveloped me. Bill’s horridly abject body condition was completely my fault. I was also responsible for him and Tallis being stuck inside this dungeon, rotting away. By letting Alaire trick me into fetching that crown for him, I’d doomed all three of us.
Bill lay his head on the rack with a world-weary sigh, more representative of Tallis. “Don’t give me that damn look, Nips! It ain’t your fault that you got trickulated too by that Persephabitch. We’ll just chalk it up to it being a long, couple o’… Wait, how the hell long have I been down here anyway, Pippi Long Legs?”
“I don’t really know, Bill,” I answered as I finally pulled the right leg restraint off him. “There, now you’re free.”
Bill’s leg snapped back into place. He massaged his visibly sore muscles before grinning up at me.
“Damn, Sugar-lips, it’s really good to have you back. And I’m not just sayin’ that because you cut me loose from the World’s Worst Shiatsu Massage.”
I smiled at him and tried to force the tears back. The urge to bawl my eyes out was strong but I knew it would do me no good. Not while there was so much left to do to make my plan work. “Bill, listen, we can’t get caught up in all of that sentimental stuff. Not yet, anyway. I have to keep pretending I’m Persephone for a little longer. But I swear to you, we’re almost out of here.” I took a deep breath. “Your only job right now is to convince everybody that I’m still Perseph
one. No one can find out I’m back, least of all, Alaire.” I exhaled audibly as I stared at him. “Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Bill nodded and raised an eyebrow. “I’ll keep my gob, as Conan calls it, shut but let me just say now that I am one happy, little chubber to see you’re back to yourself. Ain’t a minute too soon either,” he grumbled while shaking his head and rubbing his swollen ankles. “I don’t know how much you remem—”
“I remember all of it!” I interrupted solemnly. “Look, I just need you to play the part of tortured soul for a little longer, okay? And then I’ll get you out of here, I promise.”
Bill nodded with a dry chuckle. “No problem, Nerdlet! I’ll give you such a good performance, they’re gonna hafta toss the Academy Award for Best Actor to me!”
I wasn’t sure who “they” were but didn’t care to know.
Frankly, I was mostly just happy to see Bill smiling again. His big, goofy grin made my heart swell with emotion. Despite his obvious character flaws, he remained eternally hopeful and that made me more optimistic too. His presence alone lifted my spirits. He was a source of inspiration, motivation and yes, hope, all rolled into one.
His color was rapidly returning, his cheeks brightening up to a warm, cherry-red. Of course, he was still filthy, and the bruises and scratches had not yet healed, but he looked much better.
Wiping a tear, I breathed much deeper than I had in who knew how long? I remembered my promise: I had to get Bill out of the castle. I had to get all of us out of the castle.
“So, Bill, about my plan,” I said as I stood up and crossed my arms over my chest, “how do you feel about flying?”
Chapter Eleven
Lily
I stood on a windswept outcropping of porous rock that jutted out over a fierce and turbulent ocean, the waves crashing ruthlessly onto the jagged rocks below. But I couldn’t observe the sheer drop. No, the creature in front of me had captured my complete attention.
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