by J. P. Rice
I pointed my hands at Bruceras as the flames ran up my chest and into my throat, where it contacted some more of my blood. The bloody flames ran through my mouth and shot out in a steady stream. I followed it by blasting him with the fire coming from my hands.
The flames engulfed his entire body. Blood fire. Poetically, it resembled lava, and tore through his flesh and bones, searching for organs to destroy. Feral shrieks erupted from the wall of flames, and after a few seconds, the carnal sounds were gone. Only the sounds of rippling fire remained.
The intense fire ate away at his body, turning a once proud devil into a damp pile of ashes. Within the darkness, I could see little bits of silver. His cord. The wind picked up and I kicked his ashes into it, trying to sever his silver cord. I scattered the wet chunks of his remains around so that they couldn’t reassemble.
Drained of energy, I collapsed into the snow, blood leaking from my hand and gut. Bres and Ice Heart were finally dead, and the Harp was just outside my reach. I could barely move so I hadn’t a clue as to how I would escape these woods and make it to safety. All signs pointed to me dying out here.
Chapter 31
I tried to get to my feet and fell on my face. Fook it. I hooked the strap of the leather carryall around my arm and started to crawl toward the exit. Was I going the right direction? I couldn’t tell.
I felt old. Weary. Cranky. My bones were sore. It was as if Bres had teamed up with Father Time during our brawl. The aches and pains all over my body took a backseat to the knife wounds. Then the discomfort centered in my wrist and started to burn. The Raven’s Eye.
I stretched open my skin and a radiant eye stared at me. I tapped it to send a message to the Morrigan. My heart jumped as words came from the device. “Please record your message.”
After the beep, I said, “Mo. I’m stuck in the woods in St. Louis. I need help getting out of here. You can track me through the Raven’s Eye.”
A few seconds later, the Morrigan’s voice sounded from the eye, “Holy shit. Thought we lost you. One of my birds in the area saw Bres pick up the flute. I thought you were a goner. Stay put. Help is on the way.”
Ah, the perks of being friends with the Goddess of Death. Relief pumped through me. I wouldn’t die in the middle of nowhere. Another surge of pride rushed from head to toe, leaving a tingly feeling. I’d killed Ice Heart and Bres. I had the item I needed to stop the never-ending winter in Pittsburgh.
I’d done well. I’d saved the little Alexises of Pittsburgh. And their parents. Unfortunately, my happiness was marred because I still felt bad about what had happened to Mike Merlino. I’d caused plenty of mayhem in my day, but this situation wore on me more than all those other events combined.
The euphoria died and the agonizing pain in my stomach returned.
Ferocious flapping sounds captured my attention, and I lifted my head. An enormous raven circled above, descending into the clearing. The creature landed, and as it walked toward me, it morphed into the Morrigan.
Within three steps, the avian creature had disappeared. The Morrigan strode toward me with her voluminous cloak sweeping the ground. She grinned and leaned down. “Shit. You need some help, girl.”
“Yeah. I need to get to Goibniu’s to get some of his elixir,” I told her.
She pointed at my gut, “You might need a doctor first for those cuts.”
I checked out the blood still gushing from my palm. “I’ll be all right once I get some of that nectar.”
“You sure? We can stop at Clara Spiritus and see Dian Cécht first,” she said. It was probably the wisest move right now. “You can drop off that Harp to the Dagda too.”
I shook my head. “I can’t give the Harp to the Dagda yet.”
“Why not?” she asked, narrowing her eyes.
“Because I want to give it to Mike so he can return it to the Celtic Gods,” I informed her.
“Ohhh. That guy is pissed at you, by the way.” She paused for a moment as she inspected my wounds. “When I told him about the flute, he said you can shove it up your ass. He’s super pissed off.” She held out her hand.
“I know,” I said, grabbing her hand and pulling myself up. I stumbled, and the Morrigan hooked my arm and held me up. “That’s why I’m trying to make him look like the hero. Maybe he’ll forgive me. It really wasn’t my fault.”
I caught my balance, and she removed her hand from my arm.
“I know you’re tough but you need some work on those wounds. Goibniu’s medical staff can handle these little cuts,” said Mo.
The acute pain from the cuts intensified and a wash of numbness swept over my body. The kind where your heart stops momentarily, and you are unsure of whether it will start up again. Then fire. My body started to overheat. And my heart started back up, racing out of control.
Before shock took over and I passed out, I said, “I got him, Mo. I got him good.”
The Morrigan smirked. “You can tell me all about it in the air, champ.” She began to shift into a raven, and I clutched the bag with the Harp inside close to my chest.
Chapter 32
I heard a thud against my front door and my heart raced. Another double thud alerted me that Mike was here and he wasn’t happy. I hustled over and opened the door. My stitched belly was still tender and my nervousness caused some sudden discomfort.
He deadpanned me and clenched his fist. I thought he would hit me, but instead, he nodded sharply. “Make it fast. What do you want?”
“First, I want to apologize,” I said softly, and he walked past me into my house.
“Fuck you, how about that?”
I gritted my teeth. “I get it. I deserve that. I just want you to know it wasn’t my plan.”
“No one from the Red Cavern has come after me at my new house,” he said as he entered my kitchen. “You go there and within a few days, they unleash hell on my house and family. Just doesn’t add up.”
I opened the fridge and offered him a can of Coke. “Here, maybe this will make you feel better.”
He stared at me with wide, crazy eyes and swiped the can from me. He spun around and fired the can into the next room where it slammed into the wall and exploded. Next, he grabbed the edge of my table with two hands and overturned it. The fruit bowl tumbled to the ground and was smashed by the table.
He screamed, “How do you like having your house destroyed?” He opened my cabinet with all the glasses and reached inside. He made a swiping motion, and twenty or so glasses fell to the ground, shattering on impact. “How’s it fucking feel, bitch?”
Titania flew into the kitchen. “Hey. What’s going on here?”
Mike didn’t pay attention to her and grabbed a cast iron pan from the hanging rack. He started bashing my microwave and stove.
Titania cruised over, right in front of his face. “Listen, mister. You better settle your ass down...”
I cut her off, “Don’t, Titania. Not now.”
“I’m just trying to help you out,” she said, her head cocked to the side in confusion.
I said, “I know, but now is not the time. Please give us some privacy.”
Titania flew into the other room and I turned to Mike. He stood there with the cast iron pan and a flushed face. He was almost panting like a predator. “You wrecked my fucking life. You kicked my pregnant girlfriend in the stomach, you monster. We have no idea if the baby is all right.”
“I meant to hit her in the head,” I tried to explain. “She jumped. Is Dante going to be okay? What about your friend and Alayna?”
He stared at me, incredulous. “Reg and Alayna are going to be all right. Dante hasn’t spoken a word since the incident. He wakes up three or four times a night screaming in terror. All he does is stare out the window all day and night. So you tell me? Is he going to be okay?”
“Mike. I am so sorry.”
I’d barely finished the words, and he exploded, “Save your sorries, okay. You say that word one more time and I’m going to kill you. You’re not sorry
no matter how much of an act you put on. You’re a cold-hearted bitch, and everyone knows it.”
“Listen. I understand your anger.” I went into the living room and grabbed the Harp off the coffee table. As I entered the kitchen, I held it out with extended arms. “Here. Why don’t you play this and save Pittsburgh?”
He huffed out a little laugh. “I can’t. Only a God or a devil has the power to operate it.”
I didn’t even know that detail. “Then why don’t you give it back to the Dagda? I’ll tell him you rescued it.”
He pushed the Harp into my chest. “Everyone knows that you got the Harp. The Morrigan has been bragging about it. Besides, that’s your golden ticket. Your key to apotheosis.”
“What?” I asked as I’d forgotten about my deal with the Dagda.
“Yep. That’s right. You’re being inducted into the pantheon. Congratu-fucking-lations. Hope it didn’t cost you too much. It only cost me my house, my son and my unborn child. You burned down my house and wrecked my life. But why would you give a shit about that?”
He turned around and walked out the front door, leaving it wide open. I’d finally received what I had wanted for hundreds of years. They were accepting me as a Goddess. So why did I feel like such a shitbag? Until recently, I had been a cold-hearted she bitch.
The ice around my heart had melted when I’d faced all the individuals I’d taken magic from. Because I’d been through a lot with Darabond going missing, I discarded other people’s problems. I’d never realized these people were experiencing the same pain as I was. Somehow, I’d justified my actions thinking that I had it worse than everyone else did.
Seeing the pain firsthand with Alexis and Mike made me realize that I wasn’t the only one with problems.
Chapter 33
I took the long way to get to the Triskele Room because I wanted to savor the experience. I wandered around the valley between the two mountains in the home of the Celtic Gods. The Dagda’s Harp had returned home. All thanks to me.
I still felt rotten about Mike’s situation. Why couldn’t I shake the guilt? It had never clung to me for this long before. Maybe because I knew he would be here today and I was dreading seeing him. I’d lost an ally in Mike and one-half of my girlfriend count in the Sphinx.
The never-ending winter in Pittsburgh would soon come to a close. The Dagda’s Harp would shift the city into spring.
I decided that I could become a Goddess and raise my dragons. The Morrigan would have to cover for me, but I could bribe her somehow.
I should have felt good about killing Bres and returning the Harp, but the collateral damage still haunted me. Alexis lost her mother. Dweezil was almost a free man. Cheryl had disappeared, and I still wondered what happened to her. Then there was Mike.
The sound of someone clearing their throat startled me. I whirled around and stood face to face with my mother. We were finally alone.
“What do you want?” I asked.
She had a troubled look on her red face and avoided eye contact. “Hello to you too.”
This was highly suspicious. Even though her tone was a bit sour, she’d never been remotely cordial before. “Do I have to ask again?”
She took a deep breath and said, “I know we’ve had our differences, but I wanted to warn you before you marched to your death.”
Marched to my death? What the hell was she talking about? “We’ve had our differences because you condemned me right after my birth.”
“Yes.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “I wanted to talk about that since this will be the final time we see each other.”
What? Final time?
“The reason,” she went on, “I’ve been less than cordial with you is because of the prophecy. I’m sure your father told you about it.”
“Prophecy? What prophesy?” I asked, confused.
“You can’t be serious?” She stood with her mouth agape. “Who have you seen so far today?”
“I haven’t seen anyone yet. Just you. What’s this prophecy?” I wanted to know.
Her eyes lit up, prompting me to scan the area for her henchmen. I didn’t trust her one bit.
She said, “The day you were conceived, Nuada and I were sneaking back into Clara Spiritus when we bumped into Aaric the Oracle.”
Aaric had predicted many events in the past and was known as one of the most accurate oracles in history.
Frigid continued, “His eyes bulged and his finger pointed right at my belly. In a raspy voice, he said, ‘you are carrying the monster. You are carrying the one that will end the world.’ We didn’t know what he was talking about until I discovered I was pregnant.”
She peered around, then said quietly, “That’s when we realized Aaric was talking about you. With his track record, I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to be responsible for ending the world. Any world for that matter. So Nuada and I devised a plan.”
I stood there in shock, waiting for more of this story.
“When you were born, we stripped you of your innate magic through a blood ritual. Ironic, no?” she asked rhetorically and lifted her crimson eyebrows.
Okay. The fangs had come back out. She wasn’t playing nice momma anymore.
Her voice grew firmer, her words sharper, “Once your magic was gone, we sent you to Sleepy Willow. We agreed that he would keep an eye on you and if you exhibited anything extraordinary...well...”
She couldn’t finish the sentence. My death sentence.
My mother continued, “Your father told me about his visits to see you. I was happy that you settled down and found a husband. I hoped you would lead a long and boring life full of love, joy and happiness. I truly did. But all that changed when Darabond went missing.”
That event was the moment everything had changed in my life. When I’d realized he wasn’t coming home.
“I planned to come see you after that. No woman deserves to go through that.” She paused for a few moments, looking around the valley. “Right before I left to visit you in Sleepy Willow, I heard the rumors of your magic thievery. The words of Aaric started ringing in my ears again.”
“And then there was Machu Picchu,” she said, shaking her head with her eyes closed. “Your father was supposed to take you there and let you die heroically. But you just wouldn’t die. In fact, the Gods wanted to induct you into the pantheon after you defeated Balor. I realized then and there that you had the ability to destroy the world. I’m sorry, but I had to tell them about the prophecy.”
My hand lashed out on its own volition and bitch slapped Brighid flush on her left cheek. “You fooking bitch. So you told them I was your daughter?”
Why had we been doing this weird dance for all these years?
She raised her head and leveled her eyes with mine as the outline of a handprint formed on her cheek. She massaged her jaw and said, “I may have omitted that part.”
“Well, my day is finally here. Get out of my way,” I told her and shoved her aside.
“No,” she said and paused. “If you walk into the Triskele Room you will be arrested and turned over to the Supreme Council.”
“What? No. This is my ceremony. This is my big day. Even Mike Merlino said it.” Was she lying to me? Probably.
Frigid sighed. “He’s the one who suggested it in the first place. It pays to know one’s enemies. The induction ceremony was only a cloak to hide the true purpose of the event.”
“Why should I trust you?” It actually made sense that Mike would turn on me after I’d destroyed his life.
“You don’t have to. You can go in if you want.” She stepped aside. “As I said, I am trying to be nice. It’s just not in my nature. After all that we’ve been through, when it finally came down to it, I don’t want to see my daughter die.”
I was caught in a rough spot. My first instinct was to not trust my mother. But the Gods weren’t allowed to lie in Clara Spiritus. They could lie anywhere else, but not here. I’d long thought that my mother had found a way around it
, though.
She said, “In their eyes, you went and saved the Dagda’s Harp, but four devils lay in your wake. I think that convinced the Gods that the prophecy carried some truth.”
“The Gods are declaring war against me,” I said, thinking out loud.
“War? Ha,” she huffed in derision. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
And the bitch had returned. The look on her face was frozen in my mind. I’d been underestimated my entire life. I’d seen that mocking smirk a thousand times.
As much as I wanted to slap the look off her face, I said, “You just said the Gods are afraid I’m going to end the world. Obviously, I present a real threat.”
Her smirk melted into her natural frown. “Do what you will. I’ve warned you so my hands are clean of the matter.”
She turned to walk away, took three steps and stopped. She turned slightly, and I watched her profile as she spoke, “Your husband.” She paused. “Talk to a man named Gunther Reddingdale in Squirrel Hill. Ask him about the battle at Bone Island.”
And then I was looking at my mother’s back as she walked away. Was she lying? Why would she tell me something about my husband? With my head swimming, I came up with a test.
If she were lying in Clara Spiritus, her magic would cease to work for the next three days, including her defenses. I cast a hemlock death spell that looked like a dull green cloud, barely visible. As I heaved it at my unsuspecting mother, I envisioned two possible outcomes.
My mother would inhale the cloud and if her magic wasn’t working, it could kill her. Then I would step over her lying body and attend my ceremony.
Instead, I watched the green fog meet resistance in the form of Frigid’s fiery protection aura. She wasn’t lying. The bitch was actually telling the truth. I stared for a few seconds in astonishment as my dream dissolved in front of me. I turned around and headed straight for the exit portal. I didn’t wait to watch the clash of magic that was basically mocking me for thinking the Gods would accept me.