Siren's Song: The Gray Court, Book 5

by Dana Marie Bell

  Cassie never bowed, not to anyone. But to him, for him, she would.

  Whatever Shane had revealed had upset the High King greatly, enough so that his Seeming had dropped. “As you wish, my lord.”

  Oberon blinked, his shoulders relaxing, the gunmetal gray lightening once more to silver. “We need to speak once we’re alone.”

  His stance might have relaxed, but his voice was still strained. She shot Shane a quick glance to see if he could give her a clue as to why Oberon was so upset, but Shane merely shrugged. “Yes, sire.”

  A quick frown, barely there and gone again, crossed Oberon’s face. “Shane?”

  “Yes, sire?” Shane grabbed a mug and poured a cup of tea.

  “Where should we head next?”

  Shane spooned some honey into his mug. “Head toward water.”

  Cassie flinched.

  And Oberon, damn him, noticed. “Is there a problem with heading toward the water?”

  Cassie sighed. “The people hunting for me are more likely to be near the ocean.”

  “It’s a step that has to be taken before anything else can be truly resolved.” Shane sipped his tea, his gaze distant. “You’ll help Oberon on the way, but the ultimate goal will be found in or near an ocean.”

  Cassie sighed. This was going to get ugly. “Which one? Pacific or Atlantic?”

  “Head west.”

  Cassie nodded. “Pacific, then.” She smiled wearily at Oberon. “How do you feel about visiting Oregon?”

  “Any particular reason we’re going there instead of, say, California?”

  “I know the area a little bit better.” And the Pacifica court had holdings in Los Angeles and San Diego. No way did she want to get near either city.

  “Stay the night and head off in the morning.” Shane put his hand on Cassie’s shoulder. “You look exhausted, and I’m certain Oberon would like to rest as well.”

  “It…would be welcome.” Oberon’s expression was hard to read. He seemed both uncomfortable with and grateful to the Dunnes for their hospitality. “Thank you.”

  “You can borrow a pair of Leo’s jeans and a T-shirt tomorrow when you head out.” Ruby stood, her gaze going to her husband, who nodded. “We can run back to our house and pick something up.”

  Oberon grimaced. “I’d rather stay in my suit, but thank you.”

  “Are you sure? It’s filthy.”

  “I would feel uncomfortable in anything else.”

  Ruby shrugged. “Okay then. But if you’re going to be travelling you might want to stop off somewhere and pick up some clean clothes and a toothbrush.”

  “Sounds like a plan. We’ll take care of it first thing in the morning.” Cassie hugged Ruby. “Thanks.”

  Duncan pulled his wallet out and handed her some cash. “Here. And no arguments. You helped one of us, now it’s our turn to help you.”

  Jaden smiled. “Besides, you’re going to save our king. It’s the least we can do.”

  She wasn’t about to turn down the extra help. She had barely enough cash to fill the car with gas, since she hadn’t worked recently. “Thanks.” She gave each of them a hug, including Moira.

  “Get some rest, both of you.” Aileen began hustling everyone out of her kitchen. “I’ll show you to your rooms and call you when dinner is ready.”

  Cassie followed Aileen up the stairs, ignoring her desire to get back out on the road. She didn’t think anything bad would happen while they were there, but the last thing she wanted to do was bring trouble to the Dunnes.

  “Cassie?”

  She glanced back down at Shane, who’d followed them out of the kitchen. “Yeah?”

  Shane smiled. “It will be all right.”

  “Will it?” She still wasn’t sure about heading to the ocean, but Shane’s visions were rarely wrong.

  “It will. Just…” Shane looked past her to where Oberon had disappeared with Aileen. “Trust in your bond.”

  “I will. The question is, will he?” She followed Oberon up, well aware that everything she’d ever wanted rested on the High King’s broad shoulders.

  “This will be your room.” Aileen pointed toward a door opposite the one Oberon had gone into. “I hope you like it.”

  “Thanks, Mrs. Dunne.”

  “Aileen, please.”

  “All right. Aileen.” Cassie entered a comfortable looking bedroom with a double bed covered in an ivory and beige comforter and maple furniture.

  “Have a pleasant rest.” Aileen shut the door on her way out, leaving Cassie alone.

  Cassie used the rare privacy to pull out her compact. “Dayton Nerice.”

  Dayton’s image appeared. He was pale, frowning with worry. “Cassie. The High King is missing.”

  “I know.”

  “Robin Goodfellow has taken over the Gray Palace.” Dayton bit his lip, obviously terrified of the Hob’s sinister reputation.

  “Robin is Oberon’s heir.”

  He blinked. “He is?” He paled. “You call him Robin?”

  “Uh-huh. I stayed at his house for a couple of months, hiding from the family.”

  Dayton’s mind seemed blown. He gaped like a fish.

  Cassie chuckled. Her baby brother was adorable. “Close your mouth, a shrimp might swim in.”

  Dayton’s mouth snapped shut. “Have you met him?”

  “Robin?”

  “O-oberon.” Dayton’s awe was causing him to stutter.

  “Yup.” She glanced toward the door. “In fact, I can tell you he’s in good hands.”

  If his eyes got any bigger they’d roll out of his head. “Whoa.”

  “Yup. And I might also have a solution to my problem.”

  “What?” Dayton practically bounced in his seat.

  “I found my truebond.” Cassie couldn’t help but grin. “He’s…reluctant, though.”

  Dayton was immediately offended. His nostrils flared and his eyes narrowed. “Any idiot who can’t love you isn’t worth it.”

  She settled on the edge of the bed. “It’s not that. He’s been burned before in love, and I think that makes him wary.”

  “Oh?” Dayton’s eyes went big again. “Oh. Um. Congrats?”

  Cassie giggled. “Thanks?”

  They shared a quick, nervous laugh. “What will you do next?”

  “Help him get home again.”

  “Do you need me to come to you?” Dayton’s concern was touching, but he was barely out of what humans would consider his teenage years, which for a mer was about forty. “I can help protect you both.”

  Dayton was both shorter and more slender than she was, taking after their petite mother. “I’ve got it, Dayton. You keep being my spy. I can handle this problem, but I can’t handle that one. Not yet, anyway.”

  “Okay.” He grimaced. “When we heard Oberon was missing the parents pretended to be sad, but I think they were actually happy about it.”

  “Do you think they had anything to do with it?” Cassie bit her lip. Her parents were fiercely loyal to the White Court and Gloriana. She couldn’t picture them doing something like poisoning Oberon, but she had to follow every possibility.

  “No, I don’t. That doesn’t mean they wouldn’t take the opportunity to advance their own interests while he’s gone, though. And there are rumors of Black Court mer swimming in our seas, searching for something.” Dayton shivered. “The parents have sent out armed men to warn them off, but if the invaders turn out to be Pacifica they’ll probably be invited to tea and crumpets.”

  Now that sounded like her parents. “Anything else?”

  He frowned thoughtfully. “I think I heard something about the Black Queen making some kind of announcement, but so far nothing’s actually occurred.”

  Interesting. “All right. Keep me posted, and I’ll contact you again as soo
n as I can. I’m taking you-know-who to the sea to try and heal him.”

  “He’s hurt?” Dayton scowled, the protective, loving man he was becoming evident. “Are you sure you don’t need me?”

  “I’m sure.” Cassie smiled. Out of all her siblings, Dayton was the only one worth snail spit. “I love you, bro.”

  “Love you too, sis. Keep your fin out of trouble, okay?”

  “I will. Bye.” Cassie snapped the compact shut on the only piece of her old life she wanted to hold on to.

  Oberon stepped under the hot spray, the warmth seeping into bones that felt like they were made of ice. He shivered, soaking under the water, wondering if he’d ever feel warm again.

  You feel warm when Cassie touches you.

  He did his best to silence that voice, but it refused to remain quiet. Something about the siren called to him on a level he hadn’t felt since…

  Since hazel eyes stared at him, filled with joy, and love.

  He scrubbed his hair, eager to get all the dirt and snow out. He had more important things to worry about than why a pair of turquoise eyes had begun to haunt him. He didn’t need to dwell on whether or not her skin would be equally warm to the touch in human form as it was when she was in her merform, or whether her scales would be hard or supple if he caressed them. He tried not to think about how fluidly she would move through the water, how her natural grace would turn sensual should he take her in his arms.

  There were good reasons why he couldn’t even begin to think about how soft her hair would be if he ran his fingers through it, or the way her full lips might feel against his.

  No. He’d been burned before by this kind of feeling, allowed himself to trust a woman who’d ultimately turned on him. There was no use in dwelling on what it would be like to make love to Cassie, to watch her writhing under him as he took her. He didn’t want to imagine her above him, rising and falling, her astonishing eyes closed in ecstasy.

  He groaned as he began soaping his body, and tried desperately to remember why being attracted to Cassie was a bad idea.

  Unfortunately, his only real memories of his past bondmate were fond ones. He knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Titannia had betrayed him somehow, but the memory of it was still missing, along with everything else.

  The Black Queen. How had his loving mate gone from a laughing woman with flowers in her hair to the evil being feared by so many? What had caused the rift between them that drove her to accept a demon into her heart?

  Oberon froze as memories washed over him.

  Hazel eyes, but instead of joy and laughter, they were full of anger and hatred and jealousy. Those light brown curls were a tangled mess, the once rosy cheeks stained with tears of rage. Sharp white fangs filled her once sweet mouth as she spewed her loathing at him.

  He almost collapsed as the memory overwhelmed him. Had she ever loved him? Had she bonded to him only because of the truebond, or had the affection been real, only to be corrupted by forces outside her control?

  Oberon wasn’t sure. The memory was vague, barely there, yet undeniable. His bondmate had turned on him because of the power he wielded. Poison filled her ears, turning her against him.

  Or had that jealousy always been present? He wished he could remember more, but he feared what the return of his past would show him.

  Please, don’t let me have been the one who drove her to that.

  He scrubbed himself clean, rinsing off and turning off the water. He needed to get the rest of his memories back. If anything in them could harm Cassie, he needed to know. If the same demon went after her, whispered poisoned lies in her ear, would she be able to resist? Or would she fall to the same jealousies that had hounded Titannia, taking a sweet woman and turning her into a nightmare?

  Part of him believed Cassie would never turn. The gift she had would allow her to avoid the traps, see the disharmonies for what they were.

  Part of him still believed anyone could be turned under the right circumstances.

  He dried off, grimacing as he dressed once more in his dirty suit. Maybe he should have taken Ruby up on her offer of some clothing, but the thought of wearing anything other than gray or silver seemed oddly wrong. He shuddered at the idea of putting on blue jeans. It just wasn’t him.

  He untangled his hair using the comb that Aileen had lent him before heading into the bedroom he’d been assigned. He stared out the window, unable to rest.

  Everything hinged on getting his memories back. Saving Cassie, avoiding the fate Shane had shown him, getting his throne back…all of it. He was the only one who could keep it from happening. And he had to trust in Cassie in order to do it.

  He sighed, staring across the gravel and dirt drive to the building that housed Shane’s workshop and the sculptures. If he didn’t allow himself to trust her, if he gave in to the coldness the thought of Titannia invoked, then they would both be doomed.

  A knock on the door startled him. “Sire?”

  “Come.”

  He turned and faced the door, smiling slightly when Jaden walked through. “Dinner will be ready shortly.”

  “Excellent.” His stomach rumbled, and he wondered when his last meal had been.

  Probably the one that poisoned you and messed with your head. He grimaced, his appetite waning.

  “Can I speak freely?” Jaden settled uninvited on the end of Oberon’s bed.

  “Of course.” Oberon clasped his hands behind his back, ready to listen to what the vampire had to say. Something about Jaden was familiar. A gleam in his eye, the flash of green that broke up the dark brown, or perhaps the way he sat, Oberon wasn’t sure. But he found himself relaxing in the man’s presence in a way he hadn’t with any of the other members of this odd family.

  “I think I know why Shane doesn’t want you in Robin’s hands.” Jaden shivered. “I hate not telling him where you are, I really do. But…”

  “But?”

  Jaden looked toward the door. When he spoke, his voice was much quieter. “I think it has to do with your memory loss. If Robin knows where you are, he’ll be forced by the gods’ laws to put you back on the throne of the High King.”

  “Where I’ll be vulnerable to whoever poisoned me.”

  “Exactly. Right now, you know you can trust Robin and us, but who else had access to you? Who could have gotten close enough to do this to you? We might not figure it out until it’s too late if you’re back in the Gray Palace. But if you’re with Cassie, we’re free to investigate who the traitor might be, knowing you’re safe with her.” Jaden glanced toward the door once more. “What I can do, if you so order, is inform Robin and the rest of the Blades that you’ve been seen, but not where you are. I can make sure he’s aware that you’re in safe, trusted hands and that you’ll be returning as soon as possible.”

  “Do it.”

  “Yes, sire.” The relief on Jaden’s face was telling. The man really didn’t like hiding things from Robin Goodfellow. “I’ll send him the message as soon as you’re gone.”

  “Will it be secure? For all we know, it could have been a Blade who did this to me.”

  “The only person other than Robin who even stands a chance of seeing it is Big Red, and he’s completely loyal to Robin. Rumor has it Robin saved Red from some horrible fate when he was just a kid, and Red swore his allegiance to Robin as soon as he became an adult. He’s been working as the Blade’s tech man and hacker supreme ever since. If anyone can get into Robin’s email, it will be him.”

  “And the rest of the Blades? Can I trust them?”

  “I would have said yes a week ago. Now?” Jaden sighed. “Trust me. Trust Akane. Trust Robin and Red, hell, trust Raven. Anyone else claiming to be a Blade?” Jaden’s eyes flashed brilliant green. “Run.”

  Chapter Six

  “We need to pick you up some clothes and toiletries.” Cassie pulled into the shop
ping mall’s parking lot and began searching for a spot that wasn’t three stores down from the big-box store. God, this place was insane. It was like all the other drivers were playing bumper cars while all she wanted to do was park. “Maybe a piece of luggage to put it in. If we’re going to be travelling together longer than it takes to get where we’re going, you’ll need some things.” She managed to find a spot not too far away, but they would still be in the open longer than she was comfortable with.

  “How long do you think it will take to get my memories back?” They got out of the car, watching carefully for any signs that they’d been followed. Cassie was so used to checking for any of her parent’s soldiers that it had become second nature to her in the year since she ran away from home.

  “I’m not sure. I’m hoping no more than a week.” The spell hadn’t had time to take a true hold of him. The disharmonies hadn’t blended in with his song yet. If they acted quickly, the damage should be minimal. She entered the store and quickly grabbed a cart. “Let’s get this done so we can go.”

  “Agreed.” He was looking around the store, his expression puzzled. “Where do we start?”

  “You’ve never been in here before?” She’d become well acquainted with it recently. She did odd jobs for fae, healing here and there for money. She didn’t dare access her funds from her family lest they figure out where she was.

  “I don’t believe I have.” He seemed fascinated, touching the bags of Oreos on display and smiling at a young girl begging her mother for some candy.

  “Don’t do your own underwear shopping, huh?” She smiled at him as his brows rose.

  “Next you’ll be asking me about boxers or briefs.” He walked beside her, his hands clasped behind him, his stride loose. Women turned to stare at him as he went by, his long hair bound in a braid that hung nearly to his waist. His suit was wrinkled, his shoes scuffed, but both were still obviously top quality. Even with his human Seeming he held an otherworldly beauty that drew the eye.

  “I will, as soon as we hit that aisle.” The faint smile he gave her was worth the blush she felt creeping into her cheeks. She’d soon know very well what Oberon had on under his slacks, and that fact had her biting back a groan.