The Sibylline Oracle

by Colvin, Delia

  Ava’s eyes jumped. “Yeah?” she asked, angling for more details. She poured more wine into Valeria’s glass.

  “David decided we would take our relationship to the next stage—that’s what he called it. Oh, I guess that’s how he proposed! He said it was about time we took our relationship to the next stage.”

  Ava tilted Valeria’s glass. “Drink up, sister!” Valeria obliged.

  “So, where was I? Oh, yeah…so, after the fourth date…well, you know...” Valeria thought for a moment about what she really wanted to, or would, say. She never believed she would have this type of discussion with anyone, let alone her new best friends!

  “Okay, so what happened? Did he take you to a romantic B&B? How did he sweep you off your feet?” Ava demanded.

  Thinking about it for an instant, Valeria realized her glass was full again. But the wine was so good. “Well, no. David isn’t really a ‘sweep you off your feet’ kind of guy. It was all very…planned.”

  Ava winced. Valeria had to admit even Camille looked disappointed. Valeria gulped down the rest of the wine. “David just…well, you know…went in and undressed and then patted my side of the bed.”

  Ava’s jaw dropped. “This guy has all the romance of a cow!”

  Even Camille was aghast. “No!”

  Both Camille and Ava held their thumbs down while they booed.

  “Well, I’m certain I was no real prize for him, either. I mean, I had no idea what was supposed to happen,” Valeria admitted, feeling the need to defend David.

  Having clearly had too much wine, Camille finally burst out and said, “Val! What are you doing with this man?”

  Just then, there was a knock at the front door. Ava jumped up and headed to answer it. “Oh, no! You don’t get her back tonight!”

  Valeria brightened as she watched Alex step through the door. “Sorry, I wanted to get my shaving supplies and a change of clothes.”

  Alex’s eyes narrowed at Valeria. “Ava, you know Valeria isn’t much of a drinker. Don’t plow her with too much wine, alright?”

  Ava shrugged sarcastically, and then dismissed him with the wave of her hand. “She’s fine!”

  “I’m fine!” But Valeria realized that she had already had too much.

  From the bedroom, Alex signaled to her. Valeria rose and, realizing she was probably staggering just a bit, tried to straighten as she walked to where Alex stood. She noticed his eyes were lit with amusement, and something else equally as pleasant. “Are you alright with me leaving you alone with them tonight?”

  Valeria looked at Alex as she stood a bit too close, occasionally weaving even closer. She answered a little too flirtatiously. “I’m fine,” she slurred.

  “Yes you are,” he said with an amused glow in his eyes.

  “If you wanted to join us, I’m sure that would be okay…I mean, fine.” Suddenly, Valeria heard what she said and was horrified. Alex laughed his charming laugh as he looked into her eyes again.

  “We still have a lot of details that we must resolve.” Alex touched her nose as Valeria moved her face close enough to touch his. “Otherwise, I would probably have to run them both off and enjoy your company alone.” Valeria let out a drunken little laugh, which she realized made her sound like a lovesick schoolgirl. He chuckled again, but stepped away to grab a sports bag.

  After packing, he carried his bag to the living room. “Ava, leave us a few bottles of the good stuff, will you?” He smiled intently at Valeria. “I have plans of my own for them!”

  Valeria leaned against the arch to the bedroom, her face smiling drunkenly after Alex as he left. Ava exclaimed with great emphasis, “Now, that’s what I’m talking about!”

  With a sudden pout coming to her face, Valeria wandered back to sit on the floor again. “Yeah…too bad about that.”

  “What do you mean?” Camille asked.

  “He is so very…sexy and romantic, isn’t he?” Valeria rolled her eyes as she giggled drunkenly.

  Camille slurred knowingly, “You are totally into Alex, aren’t you!”

  “Well, of course she is! I mean look at her—she is practically swooning! Hell, she is swooning!” Ava added.

  The words stopped Valeria in her tracks and she took a deep, unsteady breathe. “I don’t want to think about that.”

  No, she really did not want to think about that. If she thought about Alex, she also had to think about the fact that he was taken. And she had spent a lifetime forcing herself to think about only those things that were possible. These thoughts about him completely overwhelmed her.

  It was then that Valeria realized that she most definitely had feelings for Alex. It was simply too late to roll all of her fantastic, frightening, glorious emotions back under the carpet.

  “Tell us!” Ava pressed.

  “It doesn’t matter,” Valeria said, sullenly.

  Leaning her arm on the coffee table, Ava stared at Valeria. “Why is that?”

  “I think that’s obvious!” Ava and Camille just stared at Valeria. “Daphne!” Valeria said, looking back down. “I don’t really blame her for being upset with me. I mean, he gave me their bed—”

  Camille pulled her legs up onto the couch, and interrupted Valeria. “What in the world are you talking about?” she asked, easily two octaves above her normal volume.

  “Alex and Daphne, of course.” Valeria stared into the fire, taking another sip of her wine. She would have loved it if Alex were sitting here with her. “But men like that belong with women like Daphne.” She furrowed her brows. “Well, not with her moodiness...or tenure...tenue...whatever that was. But, you know what I mean. Women who look like Daphne. Though, frankly, I would have expected Alex to be with someone more like…I mean, what’s wrong with him? Camille is far nicer than Daphne!”

  The popcorn that Ava tossed in the air missed her mouth as her head whipped around, and wine spewed from Camille’s mouth as they both burst into hysterical laughter.

  “What? Alex is like a brother to me!” Camille said, wiping the wine from her face and a tear from her eye, and then passing the towel onto Ava. Seeing that Valeria was serious, Camille continued more gently, “Val, even if I wasn’t in love with Jonah, Alex isn’t my type. And Daphne is definitely not Alex’s type!”

  “But I heard them talking my first night here. Daphne was upset because I was sleeping in their bed,” Valeria insisted.

  “Sweetheart, I think you misunderstood the conversation,” Ava said gently, barely avoiding a snicker.

  “But what about all the things Daphne has been saying…and what about Tavish?” Valeria protested.

  Camille leaned forward. “Val, Daphne thinks that Alex belongs to her because she found him years ago after Aegemon tossed him into the sea. She nursed him back to health and prevented his first brush with his Prima Mortis. She’s also helped him deal with a…a very difficult situation. But trust us! Alex has no interest in Daphne, other than an almost sisterly affection.”

  Valeria couldn’t wrap her thinking around it, and hoped her slowness was from all of the wine. She shouldn’t have allowed Ava to refill her glass so many times. But she felt nice and relaxed and was having such a good time with her new friends. She had friends! And Alex wasn’t with Daphne! Life was wonderful.

  “What were you asking about Tavish?” Ava pressed, taking another sip of her wine.

  “I thought…well, weren’t you all trying to set me up with Tavish?”

  This time Ava spewed her wine as she and Camille erupted into hysterics again. Camille grabbed the towel off the coffee table and tossed it back to Ava. “Tavish! Where on God’s earth did you get that idea?”

  Valeria thought for a moment and couldn’t really think of how she had made that conclusion. “Daphne and Alex aren’t…?” Had she really understood them correctly?

  “Oath time,” Ava said, chuckling. Camille placed her hand over her heart, while Ava held up three fingers in a Girl Scout pledge. “I do solemnly swear that Alex has no carnal knowledge of Da
phne—that I have been made aware of.” Both Camille and Ava finished in a heartfelt and drunken, “Amen!”

  “They aren’t together!” Camille added with a hiccup. She removed her hand from her heart to take another sip of wine. “And trust me! Although Tavish is a friend,” she snickered, “we most certainly wouldn’t ‘set you up’ with him!”

  Ava added between rolls of continuing laughter, “Besides, it looks to me like you’re taken!”

  Leaning against the couch, Valeria closed her eyes. Ava thought she was taken—by Alex Morgan! What a wonderful dream world that would be.

  ∞

  Valeria awoke with a kink in her neck. As she lifted her head to stretch, she felt fingers gently begin to massage the stiffness away. The touch was magical and she thought she was dreaming. She opened her eyes to see that she was on the floor. Camille had stretched out and was sleeping on the couch, and Ava was gone. Valeria’s mouth was parched and her body and head ached. She reached her hand back to her neck and felt a set of fingers as they interlocked with hers. It was the most delightful feeling, despite the headache. Valeria turned and was shocked to see that Alex was there, knelt down beside her. Her breath caught when she saw the gleam in his eyes.

  “Well, I can see that I can’t trust Ava to take good care of you!” he said in a whisper, shaking his head. “Letting you sleep on the floor!” Alex raised a brow critically. “And, it looks like a bit hung-over.”

  Valeria wondered if that’s what was causing the headache and dizziness. It was her first hangover. “I’m all right,” Valeria defended.

  “Yes, I know,” he snickered. “Let’s get you off the floor,” he whispered, amusement dancing in his eyes as he scooped her up. She was in his arms, and she definitely liked the feeling. She put her arm around his neck and snuggled against his chest. She knew she probably should’ve insisted that she could walk. When he set her down on the bed, she breathed in deeply taking in his intoxicating scent that was a cross between clean and the remnants of a mild aftershave.

  She wished she were more awake to appreciate the experience. Still, she did notice the sun was just starting to come up. Glancing at Alex as he pulled a blanket over her, Valeria saw that he hadn’t shaved or changed from the previous night. A few minutes later, he returned with a glass of water. He reached in the bedside table and grabbed a few aspirin. “Here, why don’t you take a couple of aspirin and you’ll feel better in a few hours.”

  “I’m fine,” Valeria said again, sleepily.

  Alex chuckled. “Yes, you are!” He ran his hand over her hair affectionately and then set the glass of water on the bedside table. “I’m going to try to catch an hour or so of sleep.” He placed the bottle of aspirin back in the drawer. “Help yourself if you need more.”

  Valeria drifted back off to sleep with the memory of her face against Alex’s chest and his wonderful scent engraved on her mind.

  CHAPTER 12

  Valeria woke from her dream with a smile. Her head still hurt but it felt good to mull over all of the revelations from the previous night. She climbed out of bed and realized that she had slept in the only other dress she had packed.

  Camille was in the kitchen looking like she needed some aspirin.

  “You look unusually chipper considering how much we drank last night! Ava is fired as the official wine pourer,” Camille pronounced.

  Valeria laughed, feeling entirely too much joy to allow a touch of a headache to ruin her mood. “Do you want an aspirin?”

  “Yes, please. And then I’m going to go shower.”

  “Camille, I woke up and Alex was here this morning. He didn’t look like he had slept at all. But I’m certain Ava had been gone for some time so Lars and Alex must have finished long before I saw him.”

  “Of course, he was. You don’t think Alex was going to leave you alone with only Ava and me?”

  Flushing, Valeria asked, “What’s that all about?”

  “Don’t worry about it. That’s just Alex! It’s almost noon so I’m going up to take a shower at the main house. I’ll meet you up there.” She started walking toward the door. “Ava and I will recover fairly rapidly. But I might recommend that you bring that bottle of aspirin with you—you will probably need it to get through the day.”

  Valeria showered and put on her jeans and black turtleneck with her silver necklace and earrings. She still hadn’t had any coffee. She was entirely too anxious to see Alex. As she started out the front door, she remembered the aspirin.

  Pulling open the bedside drawer, she pulled out the bottle of aspirin and saw Alex’s elegant script on a piece of pale-blue writing paper next to it. She marveled at the intricate lettering and then realized it was a love letter.

  My Beloved Cassandra,

  There is no true measure of time. For me, it is divided amongst those painful eternities when I await your presence and those rare and too, too brief respites when I am at last with you again and whole.

  Events may momentarily distract, but there is nothing and no one who can ever fill the hollowness in my heart—except for you.

  I sleep only to dream of you. And I awaken only to search for you; to see again your eyes, your smile, your soul.

  My heart belongs to you.

  Eternally,

  Alex

  Valeria’s heart fell. Alex was in love with someone else: Cassandra! Ava and Camille had been wrong—this was what the trip to Italy had been all about. Somehow, Alex thought Valeria could help him find her. And he would wait for his beloved Cassandra. Valeria closed the drawer.

  She headed up to the main house, feeling heart sick…again. Half way up the trail, Valeria saw Alex, who had showered, shaved, and changed.

  “You look stunning…especially considering!” The corners of his mouth twitched in mild amusement. “How are you feeling?”

  “I’m fine.” Valeria attempted a smile but the wound was too fresh.

  Alex grabbed her hand. “Well, I have just the thing that will put a smile back on your face!” She relished the feeling of his touch, while mourning it at the same time. She was quite aware of the electricity she felt…but he was just a friendly sort of guy, she decided. He led her to the dining room and poured her a cup of coffee blended perfectly with cream.

  “It’s wonderful. Thank you!”

  Alex’s eyes narrowed. “Are you alright?” he asked, assessing her mood.

  Valeria shrugged. “Just…tired, I guess.” She buried her pain behind the coffee cup. He was about to further the query when he was interrupted by the arrival of the rest of the family.

  Lars immediately took control. “Let’s talk again about Prima Mortis,” he said, not letting a moment lapse. He leaned forward. “Val, there are a confluence of events brewing which will culminate in an opportunity for us to remove the major threat to our existence—Aegemon.

  “There was some consideration about leaving you out of this discussion. But most of us here believe that it is only right to invite you to participate. You have become a part of our secret and, with that, a part of our family.”

  Hearing the words, Valeria was overwhelmed. She had never been a part of a family. And to be part of this family, this incredible group of people, nearly erased her lifetime of loneliness. She glanced to Ava and Camille, whose eyes twinkled. Then she turned to look at Alex.

  Instantly, she knew it was Alex who had not wanted her to be involved in this discussion. She also realized that he did care for her. But having seen the love letter, and knowing that only Cassandra could fill his heart, Valeria knew that she was the “momentary distraction” that Alex had written about in his declaration of love.

  Desperately needing to run and shed her tears alone, but knowing there was no way to do that without revealing her feelings to Alex, she again buried her face in her coffee cup. In that moment, Valeria decided that despite her feelings for Alex, she would not allow herself to be a second choice, just to be dumped when he reconnected with his true love. That would just be too painful. A
nd she would not let Alex know how she felt. She knew him well enough to know that he would want to soothe her, and it would be too easy for her to take refuge in his arms only to be rejected later.

  Somehow, she had sensed that all of this—Aegemon, the visions—had to do with Alex’s precious Cassandra. Perhaps helping him get her back was the gift that she could give to this extraordinary man.

  Lars continued, seeming unaware of Valeria’s turmoil. She forced herself to focus on his words. “We have been attempting to discover what Aegemon’s Prima Mortis was. We have tried drowning, burning, bleeding, and compression injuries. He has been dismembered many times in different ways and still he comes back.”

  Attempting to rid herself of her newfound depression, Valeria asked, “How does someone come back from dismemberment?”

  Lars clasped his hands, matter-of-factly. “We don’t know exactly, but within about twenty-four hours we are normal again. If it’s a minor injury, we can recover more quickly—like Alex’s broken ribs a few days ago.”

  Valeria interrupted, “You broke your ribs? I thought I'd heard bones breaking.”

  “No big deal,” Alex said, nonchalantly. “Good as new!” He noticed that she looked away a bit too quickly. Something was wrong. Alex glanced at Daphne, but she seemed well behaved. He wondered if it was simply the discussion that was causing the problem.

  Lars continued, “What we’ve found is that we remain injured for as long as the cause of the injury continues. So, for instance, if someone stabbed us through the heart, and our heart stopped working, it would stay that way until the knife or sword was removed. Then, in about twenty-four hours, we would somehow be healed. That is, unless the injury is from the exact same cause as our Prima Mortis. In which case, we would die.

  “Camille’s husband Jonah may be stuck at the bottom of the sea until we can find him. But if we do, he can still recover.”

  “I didn’t hear you mention disease,” Valeria offered.