"Take it." Cyrus pulled Apollo's mirror from Joey's camera bag. He tossed it over to her feet. "Release the girl, Thomason. She will be unable to help you now."
"No. I need that chant." Allison gestured for me to pick up the mirror. "Tell me what to say."
"We must be facing each other." I wrapped my hand around the carved gold. I had spent the past eight months avoiding the relic at all costs. Now, it gave me a renewed sense of purpose. Of strength. I whispered my thanks to Apollo as I stiffened beneath the knife. "You must have both hands free to hold onto the mirror with me."
Allison dropped Athena's blade into the snow, dismissing her own goddess in an instant at the promise of more power. She may have been considered an obsessive fanatic in life, but her dedication in the afterlife was pathetic.
"Poor little damsel in distress. I told you I was better in every way. Under the terms of your trial, you have lost." Allison sneered as we faced each other. "You must relinquish your title and your soul. Tell me the words I need to say to claim my victory."
I don't know what came over me, but as I looked down at the golden mirror in my hand, I realized how much being the Sibyl had become a part of me. Yeah, not being able to look into a mirror without the fear of seeing the dead was annoying. And not knowing which Greek monster would come after me next was nothing less than unsettling. But I was the Sibyl whether I liked it or not.
I planned on keeping it that way.
I swung the mirror upwards, slamming the glass against the side of Alison's face. She cried out as she dropped to her knees. The glass cracked, so I smacked it against the edge of a gravestone to ensure it was completely broken. One hit was all it took.
I threw the remains of the ancient mirror down amongst the weeds.
"I'm no damsel."
"You..." Alison pushed herself up as I circled around her. "You broke your oath. You broke the mirror! How will I become the Sibyl now?"
Her eyes shifted back to the strange red color of the Erinyes as she struck out. I barely managed to dodge her blow as Cyrus called out from beyond the invisible barrier keeping him on the sidelines.
"Damn it, Eva. Catch!"
I looked up to see his golden sword land in the grass by my feet. Alison took advantage of the distraction knock me off balance. She managed to hit me with another series of punches before I fell back into a large gravestone.
I grunted as stars danced in my vision. Alison was on top of me in seconds, clawing at my eyes in an attempt to blind me. I grappled in the grass until I found what I was looking for. My hand wrapped around the hilt of the sword as I shoved her off of me.
She screamed with her anger as she tried to stand, but I was quicker this time. I straddled her waist and thrust the blade into her chest. Her own damaged face shifted from one of fury to confusion as she began to fade into the shadows.
When my opponent was no more, I stood to confront the three girls and relished in the fire returning to my blood. I had won. My immortality restored. I was the Sibyl and Elliot would be freed.
Apollo be praised.
I pointed the sword at Megaera as I spoke.
"Release Elliot's soul. Now."
The three girls squealed in delight as if I were their favorite game to play with. Perhaps I was. Megaera giggled as she hopped down from her perch. She floated across the graves and came to a stop just before Cyrus' sword. With a wave of her hand, I felt the blade fall by my side.
"There is no need for threats, Sibyl. You were judged in the arena. You won your victory. It is only fair we keep our end of the bargain."
The girl with snowy white eyes began muttering to herself as a gilded box appeared in her hands. Soon, she joined her sister in front of me.
"Take this to the body. Do not open it before you reach it or else his soul will be lost in the world. Inside is the crystal which contains him."
"Alright." I took the box. "When I get back to Los Angeles, then what?"
"You will know what to do, Daughter of Apollo." Megaera nodded towards Cyrus who fell forward as the barrier was removed. "I am sure we will meet again as the centuries come to pass. But for now, this is farewell."
Cyrus jogged over to my side as Joey whistled from his spot across from the monument. The three girls each turned to his camera then faded into the stones.
"Come on." I turned on my heel to head back to the equipment vans. "We have to get back home."
"Eva, wait." Cyrus grabbed my shoulder and turned me towards him. "Are you alright?”
“I will be.” I hadn’t stopped to think about how bad I looked. Beaten, bloody. “Jonathan is going to have a fit when he sees how bad I messed up my hair.”
“You realize what you have done."
I nodded. "I broke the mirror on purpose, Cyrus. This cycle of shifting Sibyls had to stop. Besides, I've grown a bit partial to your company. I don't want to pass you on to someone else."
Cyrus wrapped his arms around me with the care reserved for something valuable. Fragile. He whispered into my ear how he was proud of me. He told me how well I had done. How he would go to Apollo himself to ensure the Erinyes and Allison were truly punished for their transgressions against me. It wasn't until Joey cleared his throat behind us that my keeper released me. He took my arm to lead me out of the cemetery as he resumed his normal tone.
"It's too bad, though. I was hoping the next Sibyl wouldn't be as hardheaded as you are."
"Yeah?" I smirked as we resumed walking. "Too bad. You're stuck with me for an eternity now."
"Not to interrupt this great Hallmark moment, but are either of you interested in the fantastic footage we got for the show?" Joey jogged over to us with his massive camera slung over his shoulder. "We're talking about season finale footage here."
"Let's get Elliot back first, Joey." I offered him a small smile. "Then we can talk shop to your heart's content. I know he'll want to see every second captured in your footage."
"Damn right." Joey threw his free arm around my shoulders. "Hurry up, McRayne. We got work to do."
Chapter Fourteen
We were back in Los Angeles the next morning before noon. Cyrus knew better than to suggest we return to the condo first. He drove straight to UCLA without saying a word. I was grateful for his silence as I sat next to him, clutching the wooden box in my lap as if it were a matter of life and death.
It was. Just not for me.
I made a quick call to Joseph at the office. When I told him Elliot would be waking up as soon as I could get to the hospital, he promised to meet me there. Elliot’s father may have been manipulative and distant, but no one could question the dedication he had to his son.
“Joseph is going to meet us there.” I told my companion. “He wants to see Elliot the moment he wakes up.”
Thirty minutes later, Cyrus pulled up to the entrance of the hospital. When I went to get out, he snagged my hand to keep me in my seat.
“Eva, promise me something.” My keeper looked pained. “Promise me you won’t do anything so foolish again. No matter whom you may lose.”
“You know I can’t make that promise.” I squeezed his hand. “I’m a hero, remember? I’d even try to save your mean self if you were ever in danger. Comes with the job description.”
I leaned over to press a kiss against his cheek before I continued. “I haven’t forgotten what has changed between us, Cyrus. I haven’t forgotten my promise to consider what you said back in Chicago. But right now? Right now we have to get Elliot’s soul back where it belongs.”
“Go.” Cyrus offered me a small smile. “Save your friend, Sibyl.”
I jumped out of the car then rushed inside. Elliot had been here for a week now, suspended between this world and the next. It was a week too long for my liking.
“She’s here.” Joseph Lancaster shut off his cell phone as he greeted me at the door. “I trust all went well in Chicago?”
“Yes.” I nodded. “I’ll tell you all about it later. I have to get this to Elliot.”
“A box?” Joseph opened the door and held it for me. “I don’t understand.”
“I don’t either. The Erinyes promised the gem inside would return him from the Underworld.” I ignored the disbelief on his face as I sat the box down on the table by Elliot’s bed. “We just have to believe this will work.”
I pulled down the bed sheet covering Elliot before reaching around him to untie the hospital gown from around his neck. With Joseph’s help, we lifted him up just enough so that I could remove just enough of the thin cloth to expose his chest. Then, I turned to the box I had almost died over. No, not the box. I had risked my own life for the soul it contained.
I pressed my thumbs against the bronze clasp to release the lid. A single crystal gleamed in the sunlight filtering through the window. I lifted it with the care one would reserve for a child before placing it over Elliot’s heart. I held my hands over the crystal as it began to vibrate.
Nothing else happened. There was no flash of light. No gasp of breath from the figure in the bed. I felt a familiar fear grip my heart. Perhaps the Erinyes had deceived me. Perhaps they had decided to keep Elliot has payment for their charge’s humiliation. Then, I remembered the one thing that had kept coming up over and over as we had sought the answers as to how I could rescue my beloved friend.
Belief is power.
“Joseph, I need your help.” I was murmuring, but he heard me. “Put your hands over top of mine. I want you to focus on your memories of Elliot.”
Elliot’s father stepped up to the bed and placed his hands over top of mine. I felt the strange vibration of the crystal grow stronger as I began to whisper.
“Great gods, return what has been stolen from us. Release Elliot Lancaster’s soul from its crystal prison so that it may return to the body where it belongs.”
I closed my eyes as a flood of memories rushed forward. I could see our entire past together flash against the back of my mind as I willed for Elliot to wake up. I embraced the love I had for him. How much I had missed him when we were separated. So I did the one thing I hadn’t done since my Sunday School days in Charleston.
I started to pray.
My fingertips began to tingle with an electric charge, but I didn’t dare open my eyes. I was afraid that if I did, I would lose the control I had over the magic taking place.
“Eva? Dad? What in the hell are you two doing?”
My eyes flew open at the sound of Elliot’s voice. He was looking at us as if we were crazy. Perhaps we were, but it worked. The Erinyes had kept their word after all.
I laughed out loud as I threw my arms around his neck. “Elliot! By all the gods, you came back.”
Elliot returned my embrace by wrapping a single arm around me. Joseph clasped his son’s hand before picking up the hospital phone to call the nurses to let them know their patient was awake.
“Um, Eva? It's great to see you, but why am I half naked in a hospital bed?” Elliot nudged me away from him as he picked up the crystal that had fallen from his chest. “What’s this?”
“It’s a very long story.”
I released him as two large nurses stormed into the room. They pushed me aside as they began to talk in the language of their profession. Cyrus appeared beside me, linking his arm with mine as he pulled me away from the bed.
“Come, Little One. Let them do their work.”
I let Cyrus lead me out into the hallway as relief flooded through me just as my memories had before. Allison Thomason no longer posed a threat to us. The Erinyes were appeased by their verdict. Elliot was awake. I leaned against my keeper as he placed his arm around my shoulder.
“It’s over, Cyrus. This hellish week is finally over.”
***
“You should have seen it, Elliot.” Joey bit into a roast beef sandwich dripping with a mixture of grease and orange sauce. “Your girl destroyed Allison. Stabbed her right in the heart. I can’t wait for you to see this.”
We were having a celebratory dinner in Elliot’s hospital room two days later. He was going to be released the next day, but Joey couldn’t wait to show off his footage. So he came straight to the hospital from the airport with his camera and bags of food in hand. As it were, Joey was trying to wait until we finished eating before he played the video he had set up.
“Are you sure we’re talking about the same Eva?” Elliot pushed his food wrappers aside as he shifted in the bed. “The girl I know wouldn’t kill a spider. She always had me do it."
“Can’t this wait until we go back to the office?” I pleaded with my friend from my spot by Elliot’s side. “I mean, it’s not like you two aren’t going to watch the film a billion times before you start cutting it up.”
“You’re afraid you’re going to get in trouble.” Joey hurried to attach the camera to the television hanging on the wall across from Elliot’s bed. “Just watch.”
I sat back as Joey grabbed the remote. Within seconds, the black television screen flickered to life and there I was. As the fight started, Elliot reached over to grab my hand. He didn’t have to speak for me to know what he was feeling. I was experiencing the same thing. It was one thing to be caught up in the moment, but it was quite another to watch the horrific scene as if unfolded.
When the video got to the part where I approached Cyrus for the mirror, I dropped my eyes. I couldn’t watch anymore.
I’d been having nightmares about could have happened if I’d lost since we'd returned from Chicago. I really wasn’t enjoying having to watch the whole scene being played out on screen. When it was over, Joey turned off the television with a grin of triumph.
“So? What do you think?” Joey dropped down in his chair. “I’m going to start writing my acceptance speeches. You know this is going to win Grave Messages a ton of awards next year.”
“I think I need to speak with Eva alone.” Elliot tightened his grip on my hand. “It’s great, Joey. You did amazing work in capturing everything. But can I have a minute?”
“Fine.” Joey let out an exaggerated sigh. “I’ll leave you two love birds alone. But the minute you come back to the office, we have to get this edited.”
“Yeah.” Elliot smiled. “You’re the best, man. Thanks.”
As Joey packed up his equipment, I glanced over at Cyrus. My keeper had been watching us from the shadows. When he met my gaze, he nodded before fading away. Ten minutes and three more promises to Joey that we both return to work on Monday, we were finally alone.
“Elliot…”
I started to explain what he had seen, but he interrupted me by pulling me into his embrace. Elliot buried his face into my hair. We stayed still for as long as I could stand his silence. It wasn’t long.
“Elliot, say something.” I pulled away. “I don’t like it when you’re so quiet.”
“How could you be so stupid?” Elliot laughed as he placed his hands on each side of my face. “How could you risk everything to save me?”
“How could I not?” I searched his eyes as I tried to come up with the words to explain myself. “I can’t imagine my life without you in it. I wasn’t going to let a set of spoiled brats steal you away from me.”
“Are you sure you still want to go slow, Eva?” Elliot leaned in until we were almost touching. “We can start over. Forget the past few months have never happened.”
I thought about how many times I had dreamed of this moment since we broke up. I thought about how much I had missed him and wanted him. I thought of the panic I’d felt when I heard he’d been hurt. Yet, just as I considered telling Elliot we should throw caution into the wind and go for it, I remembered my promise to Cyrus.
“Elliot, I can’t imagine my life without you, that’s true.” I took hold of his hands and pulled them away from my face. “And if you leave, it will kill me. But I can’t be in a relationship right now. I need to be alone for a while.”
“Is this about your keeper?” Elliot’s mouth formed a hard line as he spoke. “What did Cyrus say to you to make you change yo
ur mind?”
“My decision is my own.” I stood, but didn't leave his side. I picked at a sticker coming off of one of the buttons of his bed remote as I tried to explain myself. “Please understand, Elliot. I want us to remain friends. I want to continue our work on Grave Messages. We make a pretty damn good team.”
“We weren’t much of a team this time.” Elliot pushed the cotton cover aside. “You were on your own.”
“I was.” I agreed. “That alone has played more into my decision than anything that has occurred between me and you. Or me and Cyrus. I need to find out just how strong I am on my own before I can be strong with someone else.”
Elliot was quiet as I picked up my purse to leave. When I started towards the door, he got out of bed to extend his hand in my direction.
“Alright. We’ll just be friends. I have no choice but to respect your decision.”
I took his hand and he tugged me back into his embrace. Elliot whispered against my hair as he held me.
“But don’t think I won’t be trying to change your mind. I will win you over one way or another.”
I smirked as I disentangled myself from his arms. This time, as I walked away from Elliot, it wasn't in shock over what just happened. There were no harsh words to rehash or a broken heart to mend. I didn't stop until I reached the sidewalk to pull out the golden phone I had all but ignored since my latest drama had begun. I felt Cyrus as he appeared next to me, but I didn't acknowledge him as I typed in a single message to Apollo.
Thank you for showing me who I am. I'm the Sibyl. Now and forever.
*** END ***
Volume Three: The Seer
The Oracle Series: Book Three
The Seer
Cynthia D. Witherspoon
Story ©copyright Cynthia D. Witherspoon 2015
Cover art: Anthony by Gabi L.; edited for cover use by Cynthia D. Witherspoon. Creative Commons.
Smashwords Edition
The Oracle Series: Volumes 1-3 Page 25