by Bonnie Lamer
If he wasn’t so damn gorgeous, I’d turn him into a sloth. The lack of physical exercise would drive him insane. “Then you must be ridiculous for loving me.”
Reaching out and pulling me to him, he murmurs against my lips. “I am lucky to be able to love you and have you love me in return.” The kiss he gives me erases any trace of irritation I may have had flowing through me. I find his ability to do this to be one of his most endearing qualities.
“Do you think Dagda would notice if we didn’t show up?” I ask between kisses.
“Yes, he would, but I would like a word first,” an extremely angry voice says from the landing above us. I turn to find Kai wide awake with murder in his eyes.
“Um, why aren’t you asleep?” I ask stupidly.
Kai cocks his head and from his expression, he clearly believes me to be as stupid as my question sounded. “I am not the one who owes an explanation,” he grinds out.
My mind begins replaying the spell. What went wrong? I am about to tell Kai I’ll try again when Kallen says, “There was nothing wrong with the spell. I believe it is your perception which is skewed.”
It’s a good thing my husband is strong both physically and magically because most guys would be terrified to have someone like Kai bearing down on them. Not Kallen. He stands firm and meets the Merman’s eyes as he moves closer. “My perception of what?’ he demands to know.
Calm as ever, Kallen replies, “Of your feelings for your wife.”
This stops Kai in his tracks. “Explain,” he says, suddenly interested in something besides connecting his fists to our faces.
“Xandra’s spell called out to those whose hearts are not true and those who have not been touched by love. It seems you do not fit either of those categories,”
“But…” Kai’s voice dwindles as he ponders Kallen’s words more thoroughly. After a moment, a grin begins to spread over his face. It manages to wipe some of the sociopath out of his eyes. Always a good thing. “Where is Arie?”
“We are headed her way right now,” I tell him, relieved no violence is going to take place.
“The sitting room we were in earlier,” Kallen adds. Kai doesn’t wait for us. He turns and takes the stairs two at a time.
Kallen and I walk at a slower pace. “How could he not know he still loves his wife?” I wonder aloud.
Kallen shrugs. “My guess is they got so mired down with the politics, he couldn’t see past them.”
“Do you think that will happen to us?”
“No,” he says with a shake of the head.
“How can you be so certain?” I push.
His smile is liquid gold to my heart. “Because with everything we have already been through, I have never once doubted our love. We’ve faced trials Kai and Arie haven’t even dreamed of facing and come out on the other side fully intact. Besides, I don’t see you getting mired down in politics. Your diplomacy, as you would say, sucks.”
I can’t help but laugh. My diplomacy does suck. “I appreciate you finding a positive side to that.”
We’ve reached the floor we need and we find Kai and Arie in an embrace in the hall. We duck past them. I don’t believe either of them even notice us, though, as they are so wrapped up in each other at the moment. In the family room, we find a vaguely confused Dagda. “Any idea what that’s all about?” he asks. Tana is as puzzled as her husband.
Kallen and I look at each other then back at him. “No,” we say in unison. Dagda doesn’t believe us but instead of pushing the subject, he pours himself a glass of scotch. We have a seat and wait for the Mercouple to finish making up. And making out. I’d get annoyed at the latter if Kallen and I weren’t often in their shoes. I’ve lost track of how many times we’ve kept people waiting because we can’t keep our hands off each other. A smile sets up residence on my face as I think about it.
“Later, you need to tell me what is making you smile like that,” Kallen whispers in my ear. The light touch of his breath sends a thrill from my ear to my toes.
“I will,” I assure him. I turn and give him a quick kiss.
Clearing his throat to get our attention, Kai says, “I apologize for the interruption. The Queen and I had…personal business to attend to.” Wow, Mermen can blush.
Dagda doesn’t press for details. Does the man have no curiosity? I’d want details if I didn’t already know what’s going on. That doesn’t mean I’d get them, but I’d still want them. “We need to discuss plans for tomorrow night if a way to stop the Sirens is not discovered,” Dagda says. He sits in the chair next to Tana’s and offers the Mercouple the other couch.
Kai nods but says, “Our time with two legs will be coming to an end soon. We will need to retire to our rooms shortly.”
I wondered if they would be joining the others in the river or not. Their guest room must have a bathing room similar to the one Kallen and I have at home. Ours could easily accommodate the couple and their tails with plenty of room left over. “How does the magic work?” I ask, my curiosity getting the better of me.
Arie touches her necklace. “We can use the magic during the day. When the moon is high in the sky, we must return to our natural state while the magic…” she pauses, searching for the right word. “Recharges, I guess you would say.”
“So, it’s tied to the moon somehow?”
She nods. “Yes.” Interesting.
“Since your time is limited, we should get to the point,” Dagda interrupts. “What plans have you made with your people regarding the growing intensity of the Sirens’ call?”
Arie’s mouth presses into a firm line for a moment. “As you no doubt know, it becomes more complicated now. How does one assess the depth of love he or she has for another? What scale can be used to determine if a male will hear the call tomorrow night or three nights hence?”
Kallen is the one to respond. “The impossibility of such a thing will force us to take necessary but potentially dangerous measures.” He glances at Dagda. “We are looking at the majority of the male population needing to be put to sleep at dusk tomorrow.”
“Leaving our lands vulnerable,” Dagda growls.
I frown at the two of them. “Um, aren’t you forgetting something?” When they both look at me like I’m stupid, I glare at them and continue. “Half the population will still be wide awake come dusk tomorrow. Why do you think it has to be the males who defend the lands? Can’t female Fairies do just as good of a job?”
Affronted by my question, Dagda practically growls, “I expect every Fairy to fight if ever it comes to war. Gender is not a consideration in that regard.” Good to know. “That does not change the fact that the number of people available to fight will have been cut in half.”
“Xandra is still relatively new to our culture,” Tana says, her condescending words like metal bristles across my eyeballs. “She is still learning the intricacies.”
I know where she can shove her intricacies. Before I can tell her where, Kallen says, “The Merpeople are well aware of Xandra’s history. Getting back to the topic at hand, what word did you leave with your people?” It’s Tana’s turn to bristle. Good.
Arie sighs. “That depends on whether or not the Siren call is heard in our realm this evening. If it is not, no action must be taken. If it is, then we must ask all of our males to submit themselves to the spell, as well.”
Sweat begins to accumulate on my brow. “The entire male population of your realm as well as all the Fairies from here? That’s a big spell.” I drew magic from Kallen and others when I put the Centaurs and Sasquatch to sleep. It seems too dangerous to do that now. It could weaken them to a point of vulnerability. It doesn’t matter, though. I think my head is going to explode from the pressure long before tomorrow night.
“I believe in you,” Kallen tells me, all seriousness in his expression and voice.
I half grimace, half smile. “I know you do.” It’s me I’m worried about.
Dagda stands up. “Did you hear that?”
All I heard was
the whining going on in my head. “No.”
Kallen is on instant alert. “What did you hear?”
Dagda strides to the window and throws it open. The Siren song floats into the room. But that’s not the only thing which comes in. A winged scroll follows the words of the song. When it is through the window, it falls at Dagda’s feet. He bends down to pick it up and then snatches his hand back. “Damn it,” he growls. He closes the window and then nudges the scroll with the toe of his shoe. “I assume this is from the Sirens. It is not addressed to me so I cannot touch it.”
Confused, I ask, “Why not?”
“The Sirens like to spell their messages so if anyone touches it other than the intended party, he or she will be burned,” Kallen explains.
“Then who is it for?” I ask, dreading the answer.
Turns out, I dreaded it for the wrong reason. Dagda glares at the offending scroll. From his expression, it’s pretty easy to determine what he wants to do with the nasty thing. “It is for Kallen.”
My heart is pounding against my ribs and I’m convinced I’m going to suffer internal bruising from it beating so hard. “Why would the Sirens send Kallen a message?”
“I had better find out.” Kallen crosses the room and picks up the scroll. He doesn’t flinch like Dagda did. He unrolls it and reads over it silently. He carefully rolls it back up and whips it across the room toward the fireplace with a fierce growl.
“Um, I don’t think so,” I exclaim. No way is the thing going to burn without me reading it first.
“Xandra, don’t,” Kallen warns. I can’t tell if he doesn’t want me to touch it for fear I’ll get burned or if he doesn’t want me to read it. I suspect it’s more the latter.
“You know me better than that,” I tell him. I carefully pick the scroll out of the fireplace. My fingertips get a little singed. I’m not sure if that’s due to the fire or the scroll, but a little burning flesh is not going to keep me from reading the stupid thing.
Kallen is by my side now and he stoops to pick up the scroll. “You will not like it,” he says quietly.
“Yeah, I gathered that when you threw it at the fire,” I snark. “What does it say, Kallen?”
“My love…” he begins.
I cut him off. “Tell me what it says.”
With the sigh of the century heaved from his chest, Kallen carries the scroll to a side table and unrolls it. My first surprise is the color of the writing. Do the Sirens make ink out of seaweed? It’s the right color green for it. I begin reading and am annoyed that like their song, it rhymes. Only poems and spells should rhyme. Death threats, kidnapping threats and declarations of war should not rhyme. There’s nothing worse than a cutesy declaration of war. It reads:
Tales of your beauty reach far and wide,
A glorious King you shall be by our side.
Endless nights of pleasure await,
Destiny has already sealed your fate.
Deny us not or pay the price,
You alone can be the Fairy sacrifice,
To satisfy the wrongs of the past.
Know this offer will be our last.
Two moons you may take to decide
No longer shall we abide.
Until you come, we shall sing,
Each night our voices will clearly ring,
Each Fairy death will rest upon your head,
Until the Queen has you in her bed.
Leave behind your life of old
With its wife to bear and King to scold.
Come to us freely is all we ask,
Then in endless summer you shall bask.
Live forever with the Queen on both land and sea,
Hear her beckon ‘Come to me, my Darling, come to me’.
Okay, I’ve been mad before. Really, really mad. But nothing compares to the raging going on inside my brain at the moment. “Wife to bear? The Queen’s bed? I’m going to kill them,” I inform everyone present. “I am going to track them down and I am going to wring each and every gilled neck I can find.”
“Why would they demand to have you?” Kai wants to know. There is a clear thread of something in his voice. Is he jealous? Does he think he should have been the one the Sirens demanded? I guess it would make more sense. At least he can breathe underwater without a spell.
“Because demanding Kallen is the sweetest revenge Irena could come up with,” Tana says quietly. We all turn to her and with eyes brimming with tears, she continues, “He has been like a son to Dagda and me. Tearing him from us would be as devastating as taking a child born to us. She wants Dagda to suffer for choosing me. Kallen is also the husband of the most powerful female alive. They seek to make Xandra suffer in hopes it will weaken her.”
Exactly what we figured at Isla’s this morning. The Sirens are here to hurt Dagda and me both. Yet another readymade enemy of mine. I sure wish people would work their way up to despising me instead of jumping in head first. “I hate to dwell on this, but seriously, will there ever be supernatural beings who just want to get to know me and be my friend?” Yes, I’m whining but who wouldn’t when it seems the entire universe wants me to be miserable.
“The Sirens are known for keeping their word,” Kai says. “This sacrifice could be the answer we seek.”
My mouth drops open. If I wasn’t completely slack jawed now, I would speak all the obscenities and threats going through my mind. But I can’t make my brain send my facial muscles and throat the cues to create speech. Good thing my father doesn’t have the same problem.
“You selfish, son of a bitch,” Dagda growls, closing in on Kai. Despite how large the Merman is, the King of the Fairies is able to put genuine fear in his eyes. “After your people let the Sirens escape, you want us to make a sacrifice of such great proportions? I do not see you volunteering to take Kallen’s place.”
I don’t believe Kai knew he was moving backward until his back hits the wall. “It is not me they desire,” he says lamely.
Dagda is right in his face. “That is because you are a waste of space, you…”
“Dagda!” Tana shouts over her husband, keeping him from saying something that may forever affect Fairy and Merpeople relations. He turns and glares at his wife but she continues anyway. “I believe the Queen’s consort was simply exploring all of our options. I do not believe he truly desires us to send Kallen as a sacrifice.”
“Who is she kidding? The fish was ready to pack his bag and hand deliver him,” Felix growls. He closes in on Kai with teeth bared.
“Wait until he gets his tail back if you’re planning an attack,” Taz suggests. “He’ll taste better.”
Good to know they have Kallen’s back. Well, Felix anyway. But, my mind is focused on what Tana said. There are three interesting things about her statement. One, she referred to Kai as the Queen’s consort properly putting him in his place. Consorts are simply spouses, not ruling monarchs. Two, as Felix pointed out, it is a bold faced lie. Kai was seriously suggesting we send Kallen to the Sirens. Three, Tana is truly concerned Dagda will cause physical harm to Kai. Actually, so am I. I’m just not certain I care. Nope. Don’t care.
“Sure sounded like it to me,” I mutter, earning me a true evil step-mother glare.
“Xandra, you are not helping,” Tana says between lips that I didn’t even see move in her attempt to only be heard by me. She’d make a great ventriloquist.
Arie steps closer to her husband. “The Queen is correct,” she says to Dagda. “Kai does not expect you to pay such a price simply to avoid war.”
Hmm. There are some interesting things about her statement, too. One, Kai is thrilled to have two different women speak for him and downplay his words. Two, Arie is subtly implying we are about to start a war because we won’t sacrifice the one person the Sirens want.
I glance at Kallen to see how he’s faring through this conversation. I’m kind of surprised he didn’t threaten Kai himself. I find him deep in thought, not paying attention at all to the scene playing out in front of hi
m. “Kallen,” I say slowly. “What are you thinking?”
Shaking himself out of his current state, he says, “I was trying to figure out a way we could use this to our advantage.”
My anger grows exponentially with every word he speaks. Is he serious? He can’t possibly think I would agree to any plan involving him leaving me. “There is no way in hell you are going to live with the Sirens.”
To my surprise, he smiles softly. “I would never be able to leave you.”
I’m hearing a ‘but’ in his voice. He only has one cute butt and that wasn’t it. Dagda must not have heard it because he says, “This conversation is over. Whatever plan we come up with, it will not involve giving the Sirens what they want. We will have war if that is the only solution, but we will not sacrifice Kallen or anyone else.”
“Kai and I need to retire to our suite for the evening,” Arie says neutrally. “The spell has run its course for the day.”
Dagda, who is still standing well within Kai’s personal space, nods and backs up. “Of course,” he says. “We shall reconvene in the morning.” The ‘unless I decide to kill you in your sleep for being such a jackass’ is implied. No need to say it out loud.
After the Mercouple leave, Dagda flops back down into his chair. Tana walks to the decanter of scotch. I thought she was going to bring a glass to Dagda. Instead, she pours a good amount in a glass and downs it herself. That had to burn her throat. Or not. She pours another glass and brings it to her chair. “That could have gone better,” she muses to no one in particular.
Frowning, I ask, “Where is Isla? She is usually more involved in our disasters.”
Dagda shakes his head. “This is not our disaster. It is mine alone.”
Kallen’s and my eyebrows rush to see who can hit their hairline first. “Excuse me?” I say.
“Uncle, I fail to see the logic in your statement,” Kallen says.
Dagda half chuckles, half snorts. “I see your point. It was not you who spurned the Siren Queen, yet you are asked to pay the price. Still, the blame lies on my shoulders.”
“Well, since it’s all your fault, Kallen and I will go to bed and you can figure it out on your own,” I snark.