The scene unfolded before us like we were in the middle of a movie set. Back home, I had managed to turn the club into a music video many times, and now, I had no problem fishing around in Meredith’s fucked-up mind.
A door to our right drew our attention as the shadow of two booted feet appeared, and Meredith screamed in unison with the child in the bed.
“This is where he comes into your room, isn’t it? Fucking monster,” I recoiled, wiping away the images and returning the room to its normal state. Meredith was ready to crumble, and Eric’s yellow, gash eyes were turned on me in hatred. “He did this to my mother, too, Meredith. For centuries, he killed my mother- and me- over and over again. Did you ever stop to think that maybe he’s just better off dead?”
She turned her cold face to mine, taking a step forward. Will held me tighter.
Finding her voice again, she turned to the seething man at her side. “Eric, come here,” she ordered.
Eric marched forward, incensed, and Meredith held her hand up to silence him. “Yes, my queen.”
“Eva, you see this man,” Meredith said to me, gesturing to Eric. “This man who murdered your sister. You want him dead, little girl, I see that much in your eyes. Do you desire his blood smeared across your hands? Do you wish to hear him scream?”
I jerked as Will was sent flying away from me, back to the chair. I could almost hear the invisible chains binding him to the throne.
Gathering as much confidence as I could, I cleared my throat. “Forgiveness is a virtue of the brave,” I quoted Gandhi, a quote that my father taught me but I never could understand.
She smiled, sinful, chilling, and my blood ran cold. “Perhaps you must experience what I have experienced… to fully understand my need. You are a selfish girl indeed.”
She turned to Eric, and Eric’s face went normal again, almost confused. I realized that they were communicating silently with some type of magic, and after a moment, he slowly turned in my direction.
The sinister roll of his neck as he cracked it while staring at me… freaked me the fuck out.
“Meredith!” Will roared, flailing now, yanking at his binds, and the disorder was too much for me to bear. “Eva, set me free!”
Confused, shuddering, I narrowed my eyes. “Will?”
My hands were wrenched behind my back, and Eric was behind me, his hot breath on my neck. Meredith turned and swept from the throne room, leaving the three of us in semi-darkness.
“Eric, don’t you dare hurt Perry, or Will… I’m going to bring them back, just let me-…,”
“My queen wishes for me to teach you of revenge.” His tongue lapped at my throat, and I winced, my pulse racing in fear. “A lesson I’ll not likely refuse.”
“Eric!” Will was crazy now, nearly knocking over the giant throne. “Do not do this! I will end you myself!”
Robbed of my magic, I fought with my hands, turning to jab Eric in the windpipe. He was too close, catching my wrist before I could attack. The euphoric feeling of his touch crept through my blood like the worst kind of drug, and my limbs became sluggish and non-responsive.
Resisting the spell of Eric’s hands with all of my strength, I ducked from his grasp and ran for the door. He caught me and slammed me against the wall, tearing at my clothes.
“Hold still, fire queen!” He was an animal now, snarling, pulling my hair, squeezing my breasts, biting at my neck. I screamed as he ripped at my jeans. “I’m going to fuck you so hard, you’ll dream of killing me for the rest of your life.”
I moved in and out of consciousness as Will shouted, growled, begged.
Furious, I managed to get my arm free, throwing all of my strength behind my magic and aiming at my husband.
Finally free, Will leapt forward and was on my attacker in seconds. I screamed again as he picked Eric up, lifted him completely off the ground, and smashed his entire body into the stone wall.
Eric’s head cracked against the stone, and his eyes went yellow-red. Growling, he lunged for Will.
I recovered, pulling myself together. After not doing magic for nine months, I was rusty, out of practice. What did Christopher say?
Power.
Let the magic learn me.
I was naked. Drawing a circle over my head, I concentrated on my clothing. When the guards swarmed the throne room, I was already fully dressed in jeans, a vintage The Kinks tee shirt, and my shit-kickers. I threw an electric wall between Eric and Will, and as soon as Eric met the shock, he was jolted and on the floor.
“How’s that for a taser, you fucking pig,” I kicked him in the face before the guards could move in. Meredith came running back, stunned. I glared at her, incensed. “What, you think I’d just take it?”
“Kill him!” Eric roared at the guards, pointing at Will, but Meredith moaned, meeting her brother’s eyes before ordering the guards to spare his life. Eric writhed on the floor, shouting obscenities at Will, and Meredith silenced him with a stern look.
I was screaming my words now; my temper could only take so much. “I’ll go get Troy, but if you harm my husband or my baby- or any of my family- I’ll kill Troy myself! In front of you! But only after I lock you and Daddy in a room together- leaving you helpless, and in another world. I’m more fucking powerful than you could ever imagine, bitch. And your stupid pet seal pissing his pants on the floor over there could have done whatever he wanted to me, and I’d still be coming after you!”
She listened, soundless.
“I’m walking out of here, and I’m going to the door. When I get back, with Troy and my parents and Logan, I’ll make sure my family is safe before you can touch him.”
Will stood, panting, smirking at me. I turned to him.
“Be safe, love. I shall see to our daughter’s care.”
I nodded bravely before my nerves could get the best of me. “I love you, Will.”
“I love you, my queen.”
Be brave, be brave… Will’s words were a mantra in my mind as I moved toward the door. Meredith made no attempt to stop me. I turned and ran for the bridge, and at the mountainside, the guards had obviously been instructed to allow me to pass.
My heart was racing as I crossed through the enchanted door, and as I appeared on the Johnstown Inclined Plane, I couldn’t believe I’d actually made it.
Sunshine radiated through the gorgeous day, and the smell of home, of Earth, warmed my senses. A mother was unloading her children from a minivan as I ran from the docking car. “Excuse me… what is today’s date?” I asked, as politely as I could.
Distracted by a flailing child, she sighed. “July twenty-sixth or twenty-seventh, I think.”
The year? I wanted to scream, but the little girl in the back seat chimed in.
“2034!”
“Thanks,” I called, trying to think fast. How much time do I have?
I need help.
I thought about Jason and Morgan, knowing there was no way I could ask them to risk their lives. Grandpa Cam? No… I needed Logan or my dad, someone who knew how to fight like I did, hand to hand combat, not…
I remembered him, his face flashing through my mind like a beacon.
Cole Mathison.
The man who’d kidnapped me and tried to kill Logan. He’d spent decades trying to save the world. I knew my father had kept in contact with him over the years, and that he lived somewhere in North Carolina.
“Can I use your phone?” I asked the woman, and she gave me an exasperated look, like, really?
“You can use mine!” The little girl in the back seat chimed, handing me her iPhone. I grinned, glancing at her mother.
“Thank you, sweetie,” I typed quickly, wagging my fingers absently at the minivan. A kitten crawled out from under the van, mewing, and the little girl squealed in excitement. “Mommy! A kitty! Can we keep it?”
“Cole Mathison,” I scrolled through Google’s white pages, finally finding a contact in North Carolina. I pressed the number for C. Mathison, waiting.
Connect. Connect.
“Hello,” his friendly, southern tone took me completely by surprise.
“Hi. Is this Cole Mathison?”
“Who’s calling?” He responded.
“I’m sure you remember me. I’m the little girl you kidnapped. You wanted a chance to save the world? Well, here’s your chance. Pick me up at the Johnstown Inclined plane. Pennsylvania. And fly, don’t drive, I’m not sitting around here all night.”
He was silent for a long moment.
Finally, his voice cut through the tense stillness. “Eva Perry?”
“Yes. Hurry, I don’t have much time. Okay? Are you going to help me?” I demanded, twirling my fingers as another kitten crawled from beneath the van.
“Yes. Yes, I’m coming. I’ll get a flight. Just wait for me.”
“Okay.”
I ended the call and handed the phone back to the little girl, grinning at her new pets. “Thanks! Cute kittens,” I added.
It was near midnight before Cole arrived. In the time he was gone, I’d slipped beneath the bridge into the shade, practicing my magic. Starving, I found the ability to conjure what I needed most only occurred subconsciously; I sat for an hour trying to produce money or cash, but when I finally decided to just go steal something to eat from the convenience store on the corner, a credit card in my name appeared in my hand.
I stared at the credit card, dumbfounded. The kittens; I made the kittens appear to the child as a second thought, a distraction to her mother. I have to trust myself.
I have to trust my magic.
Sometime around midnight, a white SUV pulled into the empty parking lot of the Johnstown Inclined Plane. I watched as the man inside exited the vehicle, noting that he carried at least two side arms.
“Cole?” I stepped out from behind the boxcar, and he reached for his weapon immediately. “I won’t hurt you. Thank you for coming.”
He regarded me warily, his eyes darting around the area. Cole Mathison was immortally twenty-seven years old, and I fought away the little pangs of fear as I remembered him stealing me away from Logan and Violet’s wedding reception. “Are you alone?”
“I’m alone. Thank you for coming,” I added, cautious.
He nodded politely, tucking his hands in his pockets. “I’d say I owe you, little lady. What’s going on?”
I held my hand in the air, closing my eyes and drawing a slow circle around us. The events of the years since I’d last seen him played out like a newscast, and I watched him take it all in with astonished eyes.
Finally, when it ended, I took a deep breath. “I’m sure you have questions. But I need you to know two things. One, you may not come back from this- you are not immortal there. And two, Logan will be there. If you have any unresolved issues with my brother-in-law, you’d better leave them here right now.”
“I’m ready,” he responded evenly. I nodded, gesturing to the mountain.
“Good. Can you climb?”
He raised his eyebrows, interested. “Yes?”
“Okay then. We’re not waiting until morning.”
Chapter Seventeen
Logan
“Troy doesn’t trust me. He never will again. I’m not even allowed in the same room with her. How is she?”
West stiffened, and I rolled my eyes, irritated as fuck. “She’s fine. He isn’t touching her, and I’m with her every night.”
“Hey,” I quickened my step on the battlegrounds, keeping up with his long stride as he tried to walk away from me. “I’m not the fucking enemy, West. I need to be kept in the loop here. My daughters are growing, time is passing, and if Violet is really gone, I need to be there for them.”
He stopped and turned to me, and the ground shook, just slightly. “I’m working on getting us out of here. I can move myself through time alone, but not myself and another person. I’ve tried-…,”
“What the hell,” I glared at him, pointing to the castle. “What, you’re lying around with Roam, trying to warp the two of you out of here? What about me?”
“Calm the fuck down. Roam won’t leave without you. We’ve already been through it a million times.”
“Oh, Roam won’t. That’s great. Good to know at least Roam is still on my side.” I drug my fingers through my hair, landing at my neck. “She’s, what, seven, eight months pregnant? What are you going to do when that baby is born, all blue eyed and blonde headed? Cause you just know that will fucking happen.”
His expression went cold. “I’m praying that happens. You and Roam were put to death when she was still pregnant, according to history. My goal is for the baby to be safely born, and to get us all out of here. I have no idea if she’d travel and keep the baby, and I’m not chancing that again.”
“What makes you think you can take that kid through worlds? Remember the fountain? Is she prepared for that, for the baby to just disappear again?”
He shook his head. “Will told Roam that the enchanted fountains sent Eva to Icepond. I’m not taking this child through an enchanted door. I’m moving through time with my magic. If I can move you and Roam through worlds, I can move my child, too.”
“But you suck at this. You brought down the east tower last week. It’s a pile of rubble.” I pointed at the castle, and he scoffed, impatient. “Not that it isn’t gratifying to see you finally fail at something, but now, of all times?”
He scowled. “Asher is helping me. He believes everything I’m telling him about the past. And since we are truly in the past, we cannot alter anything- or we may all cease to exist.”
“What, you mean like in Back to the Future? How if his parents don’t kiss and fall in love, the kids disappear?”
“Along the same lines.”
I stopped and lifted my face to the sky. The scent of leaves, of autumn, clawed at my heart. Fall would always remind me of Violet, of our first kiss, the first time I made love to her, and the newness of her. I hated that even this far into the past, in an entirely different world, there were still seasons, and memories of my wife.
He must have seen my expression; his tone changed, just slightly. “I have an idea. I don’t know if it’ll work, and I haven’t told you because I don’t know… if you’re ready.”
“Really?” I held my arms out, gesturing to my leather and iron plated armor. “Are you kidding me? A few months ago I was an immortal, major league baseball player. Now I’m a mythical prince. Just fucking lay it on me. God, between you and Roam and the drama, I just want to drink myself stupid every day here.”
He took a step forward. “I can move through time. Before, when we passed through the fountains, we moved through our past lives. We were ourselves, our own bodies, in other lifetimes. What if I take us back… to Violet?”
I stared, unblinking. “What?”
“What if I take us back to our own lives, when Vi was alive? Would you be willing to be patient with her, knowing she had absolutely no recognition of her future beyond that moment?”
“What about my kids?” I accused, glaring at him. “What about Wynn and Rose?”
He stared me down. “You’d have to start over, Logan.”
“What? Knowing my girls are in… some other parallel universe, or time, or… hell no! Violet would never want that. That would be selfish and… and cruel to them.”
“They’re with your parents. They’re safe. And you’d have them again… in time.”
“You can’t recreate a future when you already know the future. Look at us! We fully believe we’re walking out of here, but look what’s happened so far- everything we tried to prevent. Your ship sunk. Troy married your wife. I slept with Roam. Don’t you fucking hit me,” I snarled as his fist clenched at his side.
“Then don’t fucking talk about it!”
I rolled my eyes at him. “And I can’t be sure I’d father Wynn and Rose- my girls- again. Violet didn’t even know she was pregnant with Wynn- aw, fuck, my head is aching. I need to walk.”
“Logan-…,”
“Jus
t leave me alone.” I marched off into the woods like a hotheaded, teenaged brat. There was nothing that could stop me from thinking about what he’d said, and how much I’d be willing to give up to hold Violet in my arms again.
I dropped to my knees when I realized I’d sacrifice anything, even my daughters being only a memory, to be with my wife once more.
I knew she’d love me again. No matter what time West took us to, I knew that I could kiss her in just that way, and make love to her exactly how she wanted it, and she’d be mine. But would she believe? My skeptical, practical girl, always doubting, always questioning. I didn’t know if I could convince her to believe me… and I didn’t know if I could start over with her, not telling her about my memories of all of the years we’d spent together as husband and wife.
“Logan.”
The whisper came from my right, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I drew my sword, turning sharply.
I saw her hair first, the dark red ringlets drawn back into a messy ponytail. The man at her side stood partially blocking her, protecting her.
“Eva?”
She exhaled with a grateful whine, pushing Cole aside and trusting herself into my arms. I dropped to my knees again, gripping her to me, inhaling the fresh scent of her hair, reveling in the familiarity of her voice. “Logan.”
“What are you doing here?” I pushed her back, jutting my thumb in his direction. “What is he doing here?”
“I needed help,” she explained, shrugging at Cole.
The man I’d nearly beat to death and beheaded years ago, the man who’d kidnapped Eva when she was only a child, my son from another lifetime, stood at Eva’s side on full alert.
“It was the least I could do.” He crossed his arms over his chest. The least he could do? Like he’d brought a six-pack of beer to my barbeque?
I rolled my eyes, turning back to Eva, and she glared at me. “He was the only one I could think of… who would believe me, and help me. Eric is holding Will and Christopher in the dungeons, and Meredith has Wynn, and Rose, and Perry,” she said. She ground her fist into her eye to furiously combat emotional tears, something I’d seen her do since she was just a baby.
Reign (Roam Series, Book Six) Page 11