He scowled into his juice glass. He’d been hoping that was not the case. Selfish of him, maybe.
“But I haven’t asked Aunt Lydia about that. So I need to ask her today.”
He met her gaze, forcing his frown away. “All right. Can we wait to go back until you get your answer?”
She hesitated, then nodded slowly. “I guess so.” She took a sip of her tea, not looking very happy about that development.
Kallan stifled a smile. “Where would you like to live?”
Her head came up, eyes wide. “What?”
“If we could live anywhere, where would you choose?”
She nibbled at her lower lip and set down her teacup. “I’ve never really thought about living anywhere else. I do like my mountain. I wouldn’t mind traveling, though.” She smiled a little.
He could live on her mountain with her. “So I should sell my house, huh?”
She swallowed hard. “Really?”
He nodded.
Her eyes went shiny, and she took an unsteady breath. “Wow.”
He caught her hand where it lay on the table. “We can live anywhere you like.” He’d go to the moon if she wanted.
A tear slipped down her cheek, and she swiped at it with her free hand, looking annoyed. “Damn tears. I swear I’ve never cried as much in my life as I have since you’ve been around.”
He laughed, feeling more relaxed than he had since yesterday morning. “I don’t mind, meli.”
“I do.” She smiled, though her eyes still shone with tears. “Let’s get out of here. I need to email Aunt Lydia.”
He put some money on the table and got to his feet, lacing his fingers with hers to lead the way back to the hotel. There, Andrea sent off an email to her aunt right away, plus answered one from her mother who wanted to be sure she was okay. Stavros hadn’t called back, but it was early there, so Kallan wasn’t surprised. Stavros wasn’t an early riser, and if he was still livid over missing Andrea, he’d be drinking at night while he was searching for clues. Drinking heavily.
It was the one thing Great-Uncle Ari despised, and the one thing that made Stavros unlikely to succeed at his task.
The trouble was, he didn’t drink enough to make him less dangerous when he was on the hunt.
Kallan pulled up the family site after Andrea was finished with her email. He wanted to check and see if anyone had posted anything about running into another Harvester in Scotland. Nothing. Good. That didn’t mean whichever cousin he’d sensed didn’t realize he was there—just that he hadn’t mentioned it publicly.
He started paging through the family archive and came across the photo of the urn. “Andrea.”
She crossed the room from where she’d been rinsing out underwear in the bathroom sink.
“You should see this.” He turned the laptop toward her.
Her lips curved as she knelt beside the bed. “She’s beautiful. I’ve never seen this before.”
“You wouldn’t have. It’s in the Tassos family’s private collection.” His mouth twisted slightly.
She tilted her head to one side to study the urn more closely. “She’s wearing the amulet.”
“What?” He turned the screen back toward himself.
“On her thigh.” She pointed.
His mouth dropped open. She was right. The Medusa had the gold goblet on the outside of her thigh, in plain sight. For centuries. He couldn’t remember how many times he’d looked at this picture, but he’d never noticed the amulet before. He traced it with his fingertip, thinking. Over the years, he’d heard a lot of talk about the amulet, but he already knew his family didn’t know it was embedded into the Medusa’s skin as a tattoo.
How could they not know when the amulet had been in front of them all this time?
He considered that. How many years had it been since a Harvester had actually come across the Medusa? He couldn’t remember anyone talking about it in his lifetime.
Andrea turned the laptop back in her direction so she could look at the photo again. “She really is beautiful,” she whispered.
“So are you, agaph.” He stroked his hand over her head. “I wanted you to see this before, but you were sleeping when I saw it last time.”
“Even with the Goddess’s full curse on her, she’s just incredible. Strong and feminine at the same time. In spite of the curse. No wonder Athena was angry.” A lopsided smile tugged at her lips. “I bet She was really pissed off when She found out about the amulet.”
Kallan pondered that while she paged through some of the other artifacts. Athena would have been furious to have Her will thwarted. Which explained why the curse still carried on, most likely.
But that still didn’t tell him for certain why the cup had changed colors, or if there was a chance it might transfer to someone else now that Andrea had fallen in love with him.
And it didn’t tell him how to keep her safe when they returned to the States in a few days.
Andi spent hours looking through the pictures of his family’s collection, most of which centered around their ancestors, Medusa and Perseus. Fragments of pottery, decorative jugs and urns, platters and bowls, tiles. Only the one urn showed the amulet on the Medusa’s leg, however, and she wondered why.
Maybe that was why the Harvesters had never realized the impossibility of their task. They assumed the cup was just a cup, not something the Medusa had adorned her body with while trying to protect her descendants.
She clicked onto another page, frowning at the tile with Perseus holding up the Medusa’s severed head. In this particular painting, the Medusa was portrayed as hideously ugly, her tongue lolling out of her mouth, snakes still spitting from her head. Or maybe that was what happened to her in death.
Andi swallowed and shifted to her email program, her stomach tight with dread at that thought. Aunt Lydia had emailed back already.
She clicked on the reply and bent nearer to read.
Dearest Andi,
I’m so glad you’re still well. It’s best if I don’t let my curiosity get the better of me and ask where you are. That way if anyone untoward should come calling, I can’t answer any questions.
At that, Andi snorted, covering her mouth with one hand, and heard Kallan’s footsteps approach.
Let’s just say I hope you’re having a little bit of fun wherever it is you are right now.
She should only know, Andi thought.
As to the amulet, well, you certainly have a lot of questions about that, don’t you, my dear? I wish I had more answers for you.
It’s been many years since a Medusa died from anything other than natural causes. Or accidental causes, in the case of poor Annis. I wish Celosia were less technologically challenged, as she would be the perfect person to answer this particular question, since she’s the oldest one around now.
I don’t remember hearing anything about a Medusa losing the curse after falling in love. But it’s rather difficult to find a man who can overlook a woman whose gaze can turn him to stone once a month and with a head full of venomous snakes, isn’t it?
In any case, I shall call Celosia and have a chat with her about this, then get back to you. I shall also refrain from asking if there is a man in the picture for you to be thinking of such a possibility. Safer all around, don’t you think?
Please take care of yourself, darling girl.
Much love,
Lydia
Andi smiled to herself as she sat back.
“Well, that’s a better response than ‘no’, isn’t it?”
She glanced up at Kallan, who’d read over her shoulder. “Yes, it is.”
“I’m looking forward to meeting your aunt.” He touched her shoulder. “Would your mother know?”
Her smile faded. “I doubt it.”
He studied her expression for a moment. “What happened?”
She swallowed. “Long, ugly, old story.” She glanced away.
“I have time.” He kicked off his sneakers and climbed onto the bed behind
her. He tugged her back so she rested on his chest. “What did she do, Andrea?” He slid his arms around her waist, securing her there.
She put her hands on his thighs, sliding her fingers down to his knees, then back. “You’d think a woman who was born into this family would be a little more sympathetic when her own child got the cosmic ‘tag, you’re it’, wouldn’t you?”
He exhaled sharply, then kissed the top of her head. “She wasn’t helpful?”
She laughed, but there wasn’t much humor in the sound. Her chest ached just remembering. “Not so much.” She realized her fingers were digging into his legs and forced herself to relax. “In her defense, I imagine she just never thought it would happen to her daughter. I don’t know why. It happened to her cousin when they were just girls, younger than I was.” She found a spot on one of his legs where the soft denim of his jeans was beginning to fray and picked at the threads for a moment. “When it was my turn, it was like she forgot. Maybe she had forgotten what it was like for Annis. We all grow up hearing the stories of the Harvesters, and the things that happen to the reigning Medusa. But when it actually happens to you, it’s different. It’s worse. And she never experienced it, so she didn’t know.” She realized she was making excuses for her mother and stopped. “She’s tried since then. I haven’t made up my mind to forgive her, though.”
Kallan rocked her gently for a few moments. “If she’s trying, maybe you should let her make it up to you.”
“I’m thinking about it.” She turned to rub her cheek on his shirt. “Thank you.”
His lips grazed her forehead. “No problem, meli.” He remained silent for a moment. “Are you hungry?”
“A little.” She inhaled his scent, feeling better. Now if only she knew she could safely go home and not have his cousin waiting to kill her…
“Let’s get some supper. Look at the castle with the lights on.” Still, he didn’t move.
“Okay.” Andi smiled, relaxing fully.
“Or we can stay in and order room service.” He inched one hand up from her waist to the underside of her breast.
So much for relaxed. All kinds of nerve endings came roaring to life.
She lifted her face to his, one eyebrow arched. “Really? You’re not tired of staying in?”
He cupped her breast against his palm and lifted his thumb to circle her nipple. “With you? Never.”
“Forget supper,” she said, twisting in his hold to wrap her arms around his neck and drawing his mouth down to hers.
While it was lovely to stay in bed with Andrea—he’d do it for days if he could—Kallan decided in the morning he could no longer delay their return.
He didn’t like it. Just thinking about it made his gut clench with fear and sweat pop out on his forehead.
But his Medusa was pretty well set on the idea. And she had a point: he didn’t have it in him to run for the rest of his life. Not even to keep her safe. At some point, he would have to face down his cousin. Or cousins.
He shut his eyes again and settled her nearer as she slept. He just hated going into a situation without proper planning. He didn’t know all the variables. Like how many of his cousins would be with Stavros? How long would it take Stavros to get back to Andrea’s? Had he actually ever left?
Goddess, he hated thinking about all the things that could go wrong. And he absolutely despised the thought that he might lose her.
She rubbed her cheek against his shoulder, making the blankets slide down a little. “You’re thinking way too loud for this early hour,” she said sleepily. She moved closer, so she lay halfway on top of him.
He smiled reluctantly. “Really?”
He felt her own smile against his skin. “Really. So tomorrow?”
His smile vanished. “I suppose so.”
“I wish Aunt Lydia had emailed me back. Even if Great-Aunt Celosia doesn’t know the answer, it would be good to know that too. Either we have the information and try to figure out how to use it, or we don’t and go in blind.”
“You’re amazingly lucid for someone who’s just woken up.” He kissed her head, breathing in the scent of her. Sweet and spicy.
“Dreams.” One of her shoulders lifted. “And I thought about it enough before we slept last night. We’ve run into at least one of your cousins here in Scotland, which I believe can’t be coincidental. Stavros hasn’t called you back either. I don’t like that.”
He didn’t either. It meant one of two things: Stavros was plotting and intended to keep his plans to himself, or he’d gone completely into the bottle and would be absolutely unpredictable and even more vicious. Neither was good.
“But we have to go. If we can run into them here, we’re going to run into them everywhere.” She turned to kiss his shoulder before she lifted her face. “Like it or not, Harvester. We have to go back.”
Kallan kissed her lightly. “I know.” He was already making tentative plans in his head. They’d need weapons, which meant they’d stop at his house, then make the drive to Maine from Baltimore.
“Stavros doesn’t have any other super-secret abilities, does he? Besides the spotting magic and undoing it thing?” Concern shadowed her blue eyes.
“Not that I’m aware of. He also doesn’t have the ability to sense another Harvester in the vicinity.” He frowned, thinking of the unknown Harvester he’d felt here in the city and wondering if it were the same person who’d been at Culloden. If it was, how had they found him?
“What about the cousin who was with him?”
“Vasily? Tracking is it for him. He’s very good at following ground trails, even over solid rock. But otherwise, he’s not much use in a hunt.” He considered that. Vasily surely couldn’t track once a person had left the ground, could he? It wasn’t something he’d ever asked before. Perhaps he should ask now.
“How many other talents are out there?”
He met her gaze, focusing. “More than I can count, probably.”
The shadows in her eyes deepened. “Could someone have tracked us here?”
He hesitated. “It’s possible, I suppose.” He didn’t want to lie to her. Not now. “We have people who are talented with computers who could, theoretically, dig into flight information. The false passports would slow them down a lot, but I can’t promise it would stop them dead.”
Andrea’s mouth tightened. “I guess it’s best to know.” Her gaze shifted to his shoulder, and she looked as if she were thinking. Then her eyes cleared. “It doesn’t matter. Aunt Lydia will find out about the curse, and we’ll deal with Stavros.”
He smiled at her certainty. “I love you, agaph.”
She smiled back. “Then you’d better feed me. I’m starving, and it’s all your fault.”
He laughed and rolled her off himself. “All right. Then we’ll make flight plans and a list of things we need to deal with once we’re back.”
She sat up slowly, still smiling as she pushed the blankets down. “I think we need a huge breakfast today.”
Kallan picked up his cargo pants from the suitcase and stepped into them. “Okay.” He booted up the laptop and took his old cell from his pocket. Still nothing from Stavros.
Andrea tapped the keys on the computer to bring up her email, and then her smile disappeared. “Nothing.” She sat back on her heels, looking as if someone had just snatched the last cookie from her.
“She’ll email you, meli.” He held out a lacy pair of panties. “I think these are yours.”
A sly smile curved her lips. “You should be sure they are. You bought them, after all.” She took them and rose from the bed.
“Turn around.”
She rolled her eyes, but she turned.
The cup was now colorless. Rather, the outline was still there, but only the outline on bare, creamy skin, still surrounded by the snake and bright flowers.
“Agaph.”
Her smile vanished. “What color is it now?” she asked, her voice a little unsteady.
“No color.”
&
nbsp; “What?” She hurried into the bathroom and turned so her back was toward the mirror, then craned her neck to look over her shoulder. “Oh my Gods.” Her face whitened, and she leaned against the sink, staring at her reflection.
Kallan stood beside her, sliding one hand to her nape. “Are you all right?”
She shook her head. “I need to know what it means.” She lifted her gaze to his face.
He pulled her close so she could put her face along his throat, and he felt her heart pounding at a crazy pace against his chest. “We’ll find out.” He intended to keep that promise, no matter what.
Andi didn’t like the set of his mouth when she looked at him over supper in their room that night. They’d spent the day making their travel arrangements and plans for after they got back to the States. Now he was brooding again.
She almost felt like brooding herself. She still hadn’t heard from Aunt Lydia, and had found herself checking the mirror every time she went into the bathroom to see what her tattoo looked like. It was ridiculous, she’d decided after the fifth time.
But the tension was growing already, and they hadn’t even set foot back in the States yet. By the time they did, she’d be ready to go out of her mind.
“Have you worked with a sword before?”
She met his gaze over the table. “Not in years.”
His mouth flattened.
“I’m good with my dagger.”
One corner of his mouth twisted. “Unless someone gets your dagger hand wrenched up behind you.”
She stuck her tongue out at him, gratified when his eyebrows shot up in surprise.
“We don’t have time to spend training.” He frowned into his plate.
Andi reached across the table and touched his forearm. “Stop.”
He raised his gaze to hers.
“We can’t plan for the unknown. There are going to be a lot of things we simply don’t know when we go in. We’ll have to improvise, even though I know that’s not your specialty.”
Hunting Medusa Page 21