Clue and the Sea Dragon (The Clue Taylor Series Book 2)

by Wendie Nordgren

  Soundlessly, he hopped down to the floor, picked me up, and placed me on Mr. Julian’s lap. With my touch, the alternate reality assaulted Mr. Julian with terrifying clarity as Yago slipped us from the spirit realm. However, Yago was quick and pressed a hand over Mr. Julian’s mouth. Mr. Julian nodded that he understood. When Yago freed Mr. Julian, he stood and held my limp form close. Yago began to spin a sticky substance from the back of his abdomen around us. I gagged.

  Once Yago had completed his task, he leapt up through the hole in the ceiling and swiftly drew the two of us up into the attic with him. Yago secured the piece of ceiling he had removed with more of his sticky butt residue. I was sure my facial expression served as the silent voice of my opinion at having been coated in spider rectal fluids. Yago just grinned at us. Then, he jumped through a hole in the roof and up into an overhanging tree pulling us along with him.

  I heard a furious roar and from our dangling view through the tree’s branches saw a wall of the house explode outward. A vicious swirl of yellow, black, and green fought with such force that the line from which we hung vibrated. A battle for dominance occurred beneath us as Mizuchi and Kiyohime slashed and bit. The snow around them was tossed up into the air like splashes from a puddle. Fierce howls filled the eerie night as blurs of brown, black, and grey tore across the snow.

  The brown wolf with glowing eyes of white flew through the air to latch onto the throat of the gangster who had abducted and abused me. A spray of hot blood erupted from the gangster’s neck and melted down into the snow where it fell. Then, the brown wolf seized the Yokai, as it attempted to escape its dying host, and ripped and gnashed it into non-existence.

  Yago moved quickly, and Mr. Julian and I saw no more of the battle. He lowered us to the side of the road, cut through our bindings with the claw on one of his legs, and shimmered into his human form. Winks ran to our small group, wrapped us all in a big hug, and slipped. When he released his hold on the spirit realm, the four of us were in the jewelry store.

  “Where’s your go bag?” Winks asked Mr. Julian as he tossed Yago a pair of pants.

  “Bottom drawer,” Eel said as he carried me out the back. Yago held open a transport door. Then, we were speeding along the coastal road to Scorpius. “So, what the hell just happened?”

  “Yeah, what just happened?” I seconded weakly.

  “Good thing you had your CGPS back on your wrist, baby girl. The captain found your helmet and board as he was leaving for his ship and took them to Tavora. Tavora told Mamoru. Tadashi honed in on your location immediately, but we needed to get here quickly. Using the CGPS coordinates, I slipped us into the woods and discovered Yago, who shared the gangsters’ numbers and positions. Mamoru warned that if I were to slip inside to get you, Mizuchi would sense me and attack. We feared you would be used as a hostage or injured in a fight. We didn’t know about Eel. Then, Kiyohime arrived, and we had to improvise. Therefore, it was Yago who saved you.”

  Yago blushed. “When I saw you enter the apartment building from my office window, I assumed you were there to break into someone’s apartment to snoop, so I followed you in the other realm to keep you out of trouble. I was too far away when that thug jumped you, but I followed.”

  Winks said, “By the time Tadashi, Mamoru, Dorian, and I arrived, Yago already had part of the roof removed.”

  Worried for Tadashi I managed to say, “We can’t just leave them. They’re outnumbered. Mizuchi, Kiyohime, Antero, and all of their servants….”

  “Are no match for the Okami,” Yago said.

  “He’s right, baby girl. Tadashi does not want you to see what they do to the evil and unjust. I don’t want you to see it either. Tadashi asked that I take you home and stay inside with Snappy until he’s sure it’s safe. Anyway, you don’t look so good.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  I woke up in the living room with Snappy curled around me on his bed. Winks sat nearby watching as Dr. Benjamin moved a medical instrument over Eel’s eye. Winks saw that I was awake and walked over to me. He squatted down beside us. My jewelry was softly glowing.

  “Snappy has been helping to replenish your depleted spirit energy. In your sleep, you began pulling energy from your talismans.”

  I checked my ankle. The pink stones shone brightly even from under the blanket. “How can we see them in this reality?”

  Winks shrugged, kissed my forehead, and went to the kitchen. I put my head back down on Snappy’s front leg while he sniffed at my hair.

  “Don’t let her fall asleep again. I’ll be back in a few hours to check on her,” Dr. Benjamin said as he ran a scanner over me.

  “Why can’t I go to sleep?” I whined. It was all I really wanted to do.

  “You have a mild concussion from a blow you received to the back of your head.” Turning to Yago, he asked, “With a metal rod of some sort, I believe you said?” Yago nodded. “Hold some ice to the back of her head for the swelling. If her condition has improved by the time I return, I won’t have to keep her overnight,” Dr. Benjamin said to Winks.

  “Thank you,” Mr. Julian said to Dr. Benjamin, who nodded, took his bag, and left.

  The house seemed quiet. “Where are Cosmo and Gregory?” I asked.

  Winks laughed. “They are off doing a job for me.”

  “Daddy,” I said with worry and disapproval. He tried to put ice on my head. I scowled at him and moved closer to Snappy.

  “It has to do with the picture you drew,” Winks whispered. “Now, can I put this on your head?”

  Cringing with the cold feeling of ice on the back of my neck, I remembered the pirate’s hideout. “Oh, Daddy.”

  He winked at me.

  The Okami pack watched. Of the evil and corrupt who had taken Clue, only Mizuchi and Antero remained. The Okami had feasted upon the wicked and banished the Yokai from each realm. In the spirit realm, the water dragon and Yokai who had tormented Kiyohime bled at her feet. Naked and splattered with their blood, Kiyohime stood over them having avenged herself. Her servants had fought loyally beside her.

  The wavering form of Mizuchi spoke. “You aren’t strong enough to retain your power. You’re nothing but an insipid little cunt. It took no effort to manipulate the pearl from you years ago, and you’re still the same desperate little orphan begging to be rescued. However, you have proven yourself more capable than this waste of human flesh next to me. With me guiding you, you will be feared, worshipped, and rich beyond your reckoning.”

  Kiyohime smiled and moved seductively nearer to Mizuchi. Then, in a blink she shimmered into her serpent demon form and buried her fangs deep into his chest. Mizuchi screamed and fought realizing she didn’t plan to leave the tiniest trace of him behind. Her strength grew as he vanished. Kiyohime returned to her human form.

  “It will be eons before Mizuchi again achieves awareness,” Kiyohime said with sweet satisfaction as she turned her attention to the lover who had scorned her.

  Antero swayed on his knees. Kiyohime had broken Mizuchi’s control over him. Antero realized then that his will had not been his own. Shame and humiliation were almost tangible around him. “I thought I was powerful. Everything I thought I knew was a lie. Has he controlled me since I was a boy? Mizuchi is the epitome of greed to steal my own free will and use me to grow strong enough to manifest. I am nothing and was nothing.” An agonizing shame consumed Antero as he remembered his treatment of the lonely young woman who had gazed upon him with eyes full of love and trust. With a broken voice, Antero said, “He had me destroy something far more valuable for that pearl. What might our lives had been like together without his depraved manipulations? Free my host and destroy my wretched spirit, but I beg humbly for your forgiveness.” Antero stared at the blood drenched snow. “My heart was weak with envy and greed. I destroyed myself and took the three of you with me,” he said as he looked into the eyes of Kiyohime, Liam, and Wade. His fishing buddies had met their untimely demises and become trapped in Kiyohime’s curse because of him. When Kiyohime s
quatted down in front of him, be bared his throat to her.

  “Perhaps we should call a truce,” she said.

  Antero’s eyes flashed to Kiyohime’s in shock.

  The Okami pack silently padded into the forest and then raced each other home to Scorpius. Penitence and forgiveness had saved Antero, Kiyohime, and her servants from destruction. For the time being, the Okami would allow their continued existence.

  Dressed solemnly, Tadashi found his young wife seated at a large new dining table concentrating on matching the painted images inside of shells, a wedding gift from his lord. She had seen him as he had taken the life of its host and destroyed the spirit of the Yokai who had dared to hurt her. Tadashi, over the long course of his existence, had forgotten fear. Loving Clue had reacquainted him with the emotion. Often, he feared for her. Now, he feared losing her. When she noticed him beside her and looked up into his eyes, his fear vanished.

  “There you are! I’m so glad you’re safe. I’ve been so worried about you. I wanted to stay and help you, but Daddy and Yago wouldn’t let me. Did Liam cause you any problems?”

  “No, everything is fine now,” Tadashi said. Snappy shifted into a more comfortable position under the table. Clue rested her bare feet on his stomach. “You are much recovered from when I last saw you,” he said as he examined Clue’s spirit energy.

  “Snappy has been helping me out. Haven’t you boy?” Snappy blinked up at me in response. I rubbed his tummy with my feet.

  Tadashi stared into Snappy’s eyes. Talvi had existed for time immemorial as well. Tadashi and his pack had spent many feral years in their forest before starting their lives anew. Talvi’s decision to live as his wife’s pet for a few years and start over made perfect sense to him.

  “Tadashi, this stubborn wife of yours refused to follow Dr. Benjamin’s orders because she was worried about you. She’s got a knot the size of an egg on the back of her head. He assures me that the blow to her head didn’t cause any permanent damage or knock any sense into her either. He gave her the all clear. However, she needs to take a bath and go to bed,” Winks complained in a completely frustrated tone.

  I watched as Tadashi carefully returned my shells to their box. Then, he looked at me with a sparkle of anticipation in his brown eyes. Tadashi moved his chair away from the table, bent, and scooped me up into his strong arms. Laughing, I said, “Goodnight, Daddy,” as Tadashi carried me off and up the stairs.

  Chapter Seventeen

  For the last couple of days, Winks and Tadashi had been involved in several clandestine conversations which abruptly ended the moment they sensed my presence. I couldn’t even slip to spy on them since Tadashi could clearly see each realm simultaneously. Otherwise, it had been boring and predictable with only one exception.

  Cora and Ivan had invited us to their small private wedding ceremony. It had been held on Mr. Tavora’s floating mansion which he simply called a yacht. Gregory had officiated, and from the ocean’s depths Palena and her Sirens had provided the music. After the ceremony, Mr. Tavora, in his sea dragon form, had discreetly slipped into the water to spend quality alone time with the mermaids. I could see the jealousy all over Gregory’s face.

  Gregory and Cosmo had cleaned out the pirate’s stash and covertly returned it all to Mr. Tavora. My boss had been pleased to have a sizeable amount of his salvaged cargo returned to him. He had rewarded Cosmo and Gregory with substantial credits. When Mr. Tavora had learned Gregory’s plan to use his credits to create a place of reflection for the Goddess of the Ocean Waves, Mr. Tavora had offered to fund the project. Yago had been hired for the job which would begin in the spring.

  Also, several stray cats were calling our vacant lot home. Apparently, sea dragon excrement was a serious mononoke repellent. The cats quickly learned they could escape their invisible tormentors in the sea dragon’s marked territory with his blessing. The cats had Winks’ and my sympathy. We had both been on the receiving end of the vicious spirit creatures’ antagonistic behaviors. Therefore, a few empty crates from Tavora Shipping now had small holes in their sides, blankets inside of them, and were stacked and secured together to form a miniature cat apartment complex at the back of the lot. Not wanting the reputation of slum lords amongst the feline population, Winks and I also refilled a large bowl with cat food on a daily basis. Our feral minions guarded us from creepy crawlies while Snappy did his business which was a nice benefit.

  Snappy and I were alone in the house. I had taken the opportunity to wrap all of my Coldest Day gifts. I had completed my task and gazed with satisfaction at the mound of neatly covered and labeled gifts. I sipped a hot cup of raspberry tea and nibbled one of the cookies Mrs. Stone had dropped off. Snappy had already eaten four of them. I turned my head when I heard the lift open in the storage room.

  “There she is. There’s nothing better than a hot girl on a cold day. How about letting me warm my hands by squeezing that cute little butt?” Cosmo said while blowing me a kiss.

  Tadashi was right behind him. “Shove your freezing hands down the front of your pants and squeeze yourself. It will have the benefits of cooling your libido toward my wife, warming your hands, and preventing you from losing those hands should you attempt squeezing any part of her.” Tadashi wrapped his arms around me and rested his chin on my shoulder.

  “Careful, Cosmo. Keep your hands to yourself. If he smells you on her, he might start marking his territory. Clue has been pissy enough lately,” Winks said.

  “I have not been pissy. I just want to know what you two are keeping a secret. Being excluded is annoying.”

  “I couldn’t agree more. There seems to be secret upon secret around here,” Gregory said sardonically.

  Winks, Cosmo, Tadashi, and I shrugged at him.

  “I’ll make you a deal, baby girl. Go put on one of the pretty new dresses in your closet, and I’ll come clean,” Winks offered.

  “I will help you,” Tadashi said. He laced our fingers together. In our bedroom, Tadashi hurried to get me out of my clothing but made no attempts at intimacy.

  “Okay, tell me what’s going on.”

  “Clue, please do not spoil the surprise with your curiosity. Think of your father.” Tadashi helped me into a blue and purple party dress.

  I brushed my hair and applied lipstick. Tadashi made a grab for me. “Oh, no. You had your chance a minute ago before I put on the dress.” Tadashi gave me a sad face and straightened his shirt and jacket. I brushed his hair. “There. Do we look nice enough for whatever secret the two of you have planned for my birthday?”

  Tadashi gave me a huge grin. “Colwyn has wanted to celebrate your birth for eighteen years.”

  When we got back downstairs, Winks, Cosmo, Gregory, and Snappy were dressed up and ready to go. The men wore suits. Snappy wore a big silver and white bow decorated with tiny bells around his neck. He made a chuffing noise at me. Then, he wagged his tail. Laughing at him, I took the arm Winks offered me and walked with him out to a long transport that had plenty of room for all of us. I was surprised when we drove past the Wisteria.

  “We aren’t going to the hotel?” I asked.

  “Nope,” Winks said with a pleased expression he shared with Tadashi.

  He drove us to Tavora Shipping and parked in a reserved spot that a man in uniform had held for us. Transports had lined the streets along the way. Winks came to my door. He held a long warm bright blue coat open for me and offered me his arm again. I took it eager to find out what they had done. Winks and the men had each put on heavy coats.

  “You didn’t wear coats so I would think we were going to the hotel.”

  I could hear laughter and music. However, the office buildings hid the source from view. We walked from the courtyard, and I drew in a surprised breath. Wharf Street and the docks had been transformed. White canopies lined the street. White lights blinked from within wreaths of green pine and white ribbons that trailed up the sides of every canopy pole. As we walked, I saw that the food venders were open but weren’
t charging their customers. More men and women in uniform walked around under each canopy taking and filling drink orders. There were even game sections were people competed for prizes. The local kids took turns throwing snowballs from a partitioned section of a dock into the mouth of a giant ice sculpture of a fish. We watched as a boy managed it and received a wrapped gift. The children cheered and continued their game.

  “Happy birthday, baby girl,” Winks said.

  “Yes, happy birthday, Clue,” Tadashi said.

  “This is amazing.” I looked around in wonder.

  “It just so happens that your birthday and Coldest Day are the same this year. I figured you’d have a lot more fun at a street party than in some fancy hotel. I thought it would be rude not to invite the entire town, even the pirates,” Winks said. “I did remind them to behave,” he said with eyes twinkling with mischief.

  “This is terrific!” I said.

  “After we exchange gifts with everyone, you are free to run around and enjoy it,” Winks said.

  He led us to a reserved tent filled with all of our closest friends and new family members. Cosmo presented Mrs. Stone with the picture frame he had carved for her from pieces of the cherry tree her husband had planted for her so many years ago. The gift deeply touched her and earned Cosmo a pair of pinched cheeks and a kiss on the forehead. Gregory, Tadashi, and Dorian laughed at the scene the two of them made. Mrs. Stone loved her snowflake pin, and I loved making her feel special. I realized that making me feel special gave Winks and Tadashi the same feeling. I gazed around at the faces of all of the people who I had grown to care for on Scorpius as they laughed and talked while sharing presents with one another. All of the gifts we exchanged with each other were wonderful, but for me the best gifts of all were Daddy and Tadashi.