Dream Magic

by Michelle Mankin

  “Where did that come from?” I asked shooing the animal out of the way, waving for Landon to follow. I had never seen a cat inside this section of the prison.

  “One of the guards tossed it in with me.” Landon jogged alongside me as I ran down one torch lit hall and ducked into another one. “He said it was driving him crazy with its constant meowing. It was good company. It seemed to like me. It had the strangest violet eyes.”

  “In here.” I lifted a stone from the floor at the end of a hall that was never used anymore. Well, it wasn’t used anymore except by us because of the secret tunnel that lay beneath it.

  Landon peered warily down the dark hole I had revealed. “I don’t know. It looks pretty small.”

  “It is small. But you’ll fit. Get down there. Fast,” I hissed. “We don’t have much time left.”

  He wiggled into the opening, and I followed close behind. On our hands and knees we crawled through the narrow space until we reached the first juncture where a side tunnel widened substantially. A young vamp with glowing red eyes waited there for us. “I’ll take him from here, Seer.”

  “Thanks, William. You’ll need to keep him hidden until Stone can fly him up to the exit. He has been delayed but he should meet you there shortly.”

  I didn’t linger to watch them go. I continued along the narrower main tunnel sliding on my rear for speed when the floor suddenly dropped off sharply. My momentum carried me into the iron grate at the bottom. I hit my shoulder hard enough to bruise it, but I didn’t stop to assess the damage. I popped open the grate and nearly jumped out of my skin when Stone immediately appeared out of the shadows.

  He swept me up into his arms, his grey eyes disapproving and his wings flapping furiously as he lifted us and turned back in the direction of the club.

  “How did you lose him?”

  “Do not ask. It was not a chivalrous thing Stone did. Morpheus will have a terrible headache when he awakens.”

  “I’m sorry, Stone.” I touched his arm in apology. I knew how important his honor was to him. After all it was at the crux of the magic that had turned him into a gargoyle.

  “Stone cannot stay angry with you.” I handed him the mask to secret away as he set me down at the backstage door a few moments later. As I entered I heard Catonia play the last note of the extended, extended version of the getaway song. I quickly exchanged places with Fiori using the spin move we had perfected and together we slipped out from behind the screen ready to finish the show. Unfortunately for me, I didn’t realize that I had a telling new rip in my skirt.

  I heard the clanging of an alarm bell and for a moment I thought it was something going on inside my head. I would never underestimate the gargoyle again. In a full dive I had come at his wing intending to force him to the ground without harming Cecilia, but he had tricked me. He didn’t have her. Instead, he had his rock hard fist hidden beneath his wing and had introduced my skull to it in a way that had sent me careening into an uncontrollable tail spin.

  I woke in a heap on the grassy side of the river with my head throbbing louder than Cecilia’s bass. When I finally stopped seeing double, I returned to the club in time to see her leave it and followed her from the air until she reentered the palace.

  We were going to have words.

  I landed on her balcony and slipped into her closet. Hearing footsteps and voices outside her room, I took a step backward into the shadows.

  “My liege.”

  “Yes, Giles. What is it?”

  “Landon is missing. We have sounded the alarm and are searching the city. I thought you would want to be informed.”

  “Thank you, Giles. You may be dismissed.”

  “My pet. You were wonderful tonight. And here I am at your door just as you requested. Aren’t you going to invite me in?”

  The door to Cecilia’s chamber creaked open and a slash of light from the outside hall spilled into the dark room. I shifted forward so I could see her better.

  “I have a headache,” she said. Not likely. Not as bad as mine for sure. “And don’t you think you should investigate the prison break before the trail gets cold?” What game was she playing? Did she think he wouldn’t find out that it had been the gargoyle and her? And how long did she imagine she would keep her head once he did?

  “No, Cecily. My guards can handle that.” He touched her face and I bit back a growl. “I have better things to do.”

  Was he blind? Could he not see the tension in her body? Or did he know and enjoy forcing her surrender?

  “Of course. Come in.” She stepped aside and he entered ahead of her. She left the outside door open and flipped on the light. He had his back to her but I could clearly see her face. He frightened her but she hid it and only wore a flirtatious smile by the time he turned around.

  “Cecily.” He yanked her into him, his red glowing palms sliding down her sides to shape her body before he cupped her rear end. “You were brilliant tonight.” Beads of perspiration dotted her forehead from his solar heat. “So very sexy behind that screen.” I wondered what he would think if he knew that there was really only one person dancing behind that screen most of the time and that he was actually lusting after his own daughter. “But you ripped your skirt.”

  “Oh, um, yes. I caught it on a nail behind the screen. I’m surprised you noticed.”

  “I notice everything when it comes to you.” His palms flared brighter and his fingers dug deeper into her ass. He rocked himself against her.

  She inhaled sharply and my talons extended to their full length. I was going to slice his head from his body and then kick it around some. Not just because he had touched her so crudely but because he had touched her at all.

  “Daddy!” Fiori skidded into the room looking panicked. “Come quick.” She flicked a quick glance at Cecilia. “Marcel found a feather, a black one with an iridescent sheen near the prison tower.”

  He raised a brow. “Is your feather in your possession, my pet?” His tone was soft but menacing despite its measured volume.

  She nodded looking a little pale beneath her golden skin as she withdrew it from the pocket of her skirt to prove it.

  “Very well, I guess I should investigate the matter for myself. Surely the Dream Falcon wouldn’t go rogue with Bacchus holding his tether so firmly and me so eager to remind him of his place after he had the cheek to touch you today. This is such unfortunate timing.” A cold thread of accusation hemmed his tone and I caught the calculating gleam in his eyes as his gaze slid over the two women.

  I wondered if they noticed.

  “Oh, Cici.” The two women reached for and clung to each other immediately after Phoebus left. “That was too close. He suspects something. If he ever finds out it was me and not you behind that screen…” She exhaled a shaky breath. “My heart can’t take much more of this.”

  “Neither can my head.” I stepped out of the closet.

  Fiori jumped a foot away from her friend.

  Cecilia was more composed. Her gaze narrowed as she faced me. “Then maybe you shouldn’t stick it where it’s not wanted, handsome.”

  “I wouldn’t have to if you hadn’t pulled such a foolhardy stunt this eve.” Her arms went stiff at her sides and her fingers curled into her palms as I stalked toward her. I got so close that she had to crane her neck back to maintain eye contract. “The princess is right. If I figured out your clever little switcheroo then it’s only a matter of time before Phoebus does, too.” I didn’t mention Shane’s involvement. He was keeping a low profile behind the scenes, and we definitely needed him in reserve now more than ever since the Sun King’s suspicions had fallen on me. I turned my attention toward Fiori who seemed like the more reasonable one. “Your father may be unhinged, princess but he’s far from a fool. Your shenanigans will likely end with both of your heads being lopped off. That is if the oracle doesn’t kill herself first.” I hit Cecilia with a look. My fear for her safety had made me careless tonight. “She nearly fell off of the tower when she j
umped from the gargoyle’s arms midflight.”

  “You did what?” Fiori exclaimed her expression disbelieving.

  “Oh, yes, she most certainly did.” The princess and I shared a commiserative look. “Our Cecilia seems to have a death wish.”

  “Cici, no.” Fiori closed the distance between them and grabbed her friend’s shoulders pulling the oracle’s vindictive glare away from me. “This whole thing tonight seals it for me. I won’t participate in this anymore unless you promise me right now to stop taking unnecessary risks with your life like that.”

  “Wise words, princess.”

  “Thank you, Morpheus.”

  “Don’t mention it,” I replied.

  “Fiori,” Cecilia said turning to her friend after scowling at me for my interference. “There were special circumstances tonight. I went a little off script but only because I had to. I love you and we’ll definitely talk about this some more later in private. But for now could you give me a moment so I can clarify things with the falcon.

  “Are you sure you’re ok to be alone with him?” The princess put her hands on her hips and cocked her head to the side as she studied me.

  “Oh yeah. I’m sure,” Cecilia replied.

  Fiori looked unconvinced.

  “I mean her no harm. In truth, I would die before I would see one hair on her head harmed.” For some reason I found myself wanting to reassure the diminutive princess.

  After an additional moment of reflection, Fiori nodded her head decisively. “I believe you.”

  After she left, Cecilia rounded on me with indignation blazing from her eyes.

  “Seer,” I raised my hands as if in surrender and grinned. I couldn’t help it. I loved her fire. It was her fear that I did not relish. “Just remember if you kill me now I cannot keep the vow I made to your friend.”

  “Let’s get one thing straight. I don’t your need protection.” I poked his solid chest to make my point, although as soon as my finger came into contact with him I had this irrational desire to touch him more, to place the palms of both hands on him, to spread my fingers out and to leisurely explore each and every chiseled contour of his body. “I can take care of myself.” The direction of my thoughts made my declaration breathy. “I know what I’m doing,” I insisted more for my own benefit than his. “But do you? Because the way I see it your interference is going to get you and the people I care about killed.”

  “So you are concerned for me.” He captured my hand before I could remove it and held it to his chest. I could feel the rapid beat of his heart beneath my palm. “The feeling is mutual, I assure you.” His gaze dipped to the pulse point of my neck, the irrefutable evidence that mine was beating just as fast as his.

  “What are you doing to me?” I snapped my mouth shut when I realized I had spoken the thought aloud. “I don’t understand what’s happening.” Now that I had let it out, I might as well go with it. His eyes dropped to my lips as I licked them. “You make me think irrational thoughts. Do stupid things.” I tugged my hand free and moved away from him regaining my equilibrium with each additional inch I gained, sacrificing at the same time that elusive feeling, the one I had whenever he held me. Warmth. Excitement. A sense of rightness. Without realizing it I slid my fingers inside my skirt pocket and stroked the feather.

  Morpheus noticed. Nothing escaped his notice. He erased the distance I had put between us. “I know what is in your pocket, Cecilia,” his voice rumbled deeply. I wanted to hear that voice speaking other things. Things I had already imagined: Yes, estrellita. Just like that. You feel so good.

  I shivered, shaking my head in useless denial.

  “Stop it.” I tapped my finger to my temple. “You must be using some kind of mind control on me.” A thought occurred. “Or some kind of magic.” The feather that had come to me all those years ago. “It must be that glittery dust. I had it all over my hands after the park. That’s why I can’t stop thinking about you.” Why I can’t resist you. Why you make me think about impossible things. I waved my hands through the air as if to ward him off, my feather still in my grip. “I’m fed up with guys playing tricks with my head.”

  “I am not attempting to bewitch you.” He frowned, but he didn’t release me from his intense gaze. “The dust you speak of is my dream musk. It coats my inner wings, a remnant of my journeys in the dream realm. Believe me, it does not affect you as it does others. You are able to resist my influence in the dreamscape as well. I suspect that it involves the feather you are holding, the one you possessed long before we met.”

  Santo cielo. Why had I removed it from my pocket?

  “Cecilia.” He took advantage of my distraction, his warm fingers gently curling into my upper arms. I hated that I never loved the sound of my name so much as when I heard it spoken from his lips. “We are Fated you and I, and I think you know it.”

  “No.” My dreamy thoughts, the ones I couldn’t allow myself to have with him, came to an abrupt stop. “You’re lying. You’re just trying to manipulate me. How can I trust anything you say when your Light Immortal liege is pulling your strings? I shouldn’t have agreed to help you.”

  “Because I am no puppet, Cecilia, Bacchus is not my master. He is an ally, and my brother’s closest friend.”

  “Your brother?”

  “I shouldn’t have said that. You must never mention it to anyone. Many lives would be forfeit if you shared that knowledge with the wrong person.” His gaze shuttered briefly before returning to the iridescent smolder that drew me in. “When I have you in my arms like this I forget myself. If you will not heed my words, then believe this.” He drew me closer, his hard body to my soft curves and slowly lowered his head, his eyes on me the whole time searching and seeking permission. Almost as much in response to his respectful consideration as to the connection I felt and could no longer deny, I lifted my own head and met him halfway.

  The instant our lips met I knew. Heart and mind, senses and spirit, everything within me acknowledged him. Morpheus. The Dream Falcon. There was no other for me. As with my parents, there would never be another. My hands came up and covered his to hold him to me. His lips moved firmly and persuasively across mine. I savored the incredible feel of their warm satiny texture. Then he coaxed my mouth to open and his wet tongue swept inside.

  “Morpheus,” I sighed when he ended the kiss, my feet flailing as the floor seemed to slide out from under them…because it actually had. His wings were unfurled and my toes weren’t touching the ground anymore.

  “I have you now, Cecilia.” He groaned clasping me tightly in his arms and crushing me to his hard chest. “I will always have you. I will never let you go.”

  Never had I held a woman in my arms who felt so right. Her lips were a fantasy and her body a more perfect dream than I ever could have conjured. Wings holding us aloft I slid my fingers along the silky softness of her arms and into her flowing hair to take another kiss, a deeper one. My senses roared at her soft moan. My cock swelled as if she had stroked it with her tongue. Animal instinct urged me to claim her now but my higher thoughts won out.

  I wanted her, more than my next breath. But I didn’t want our union to be only a stolen moment in time.

  “Cecilia,” I moved my mouth to her neck sipping from her deliciously fragrant skin.

  “Hmm.” Her lids fluttered halfway open as she peered dreamily through her lashes at me, as if I had given her the world with one kiss.

  “I want nothing more than to demonstrate my ardor.” I skimmed a thumb over her wet parted lips and suppressed a groan when she touched the tip of her tongue to my skin. “But you must realize by now that I would never do anything to endanger you. You are my life. Whatever happens to you happens to me. I must remove you from this place.”

  I started to gather her into my arms, with every intention of flying away with her, consequences be damned.

  “Stop.” She put her hand on my chest not in affection but to push me away. “Put me down.” She blinked her eyes rapidly as if
she were having difficulty focusing. “You can’t, Morpheus. We can’t.” She dipped her chin hiding her eyes from me. “I have obligations here. Besides, we would never make it past the guards. So, as tempting as your offer is…”

  “It is not an offer,” I clarified.

  “Yes, well, offer or order, it doesn’t matter.” She scowled at me, her eyes swirling with smoky fire. “I would have preferred the offer. I agree we are Fated, but I don’t have to accept you, and I know you won’t force me to. I know how these things work, Morpheus. My parents Raphael and Panacea were Fated, too.”

  My eyes widened at the revelation of her lineage. “The tale of their passing is fabled. Their devotion to the end is legendary.”

  “Yes, they were devoted. Always.” Her voice was thicker when she continued, her gaze firm. “I won’t deny our connection, Morpheus, but unless we consummate our relationship, though we are connected, you will not die just because I do. You need to walk…” Her lips framed a sad smile. “No, you need to fly away. Right now. Alone. And don’t look back. It won’t be the same but you’ll find another. Leave me Thyme’s token. I will find her. I promise. I will get the information to you as soon as I am able. But I can’t leave, Morpheus. I have other promises to keep, other people here that depend upon me.”

  “If you remain here, so do I,” I stated firmly. “I admire your resolve and your loyalty to your friends.” I flew us backward toward her bed. “I love everything about you, Cecilia.” I trailed my eyes down her form. “Every single sexy defiant curve. But you are wrong. There will be no other for me, only you. Your life is no longer just your own. Consummated or not, you are mine and our fates are intertwined. You will not risk that life in any more foolhardy gambits like that prison break tonight. Not unless we do so together.” When I could cover her back, her front, hell every side of her.

  I laid her down and lowered my wings giving her most of my weight as I pressed her into the mattress. “I will lock the door and give you what we both need right now so there will be no more talk of parting.” I touched my lips to hers. She froze for a moment then began to follow my lead, moaning when I traced the outline of her mouth with my tongue. I took immediate advantage slipping it between the parted seam of her lips. I felt the sweet ache rekindling between us, her body restlessly arching into mine, her welcoming heat igniting my shaft with hot fire.