by LH Nicole
“What’s done is done,” the little Dragon said after Aliana had straightened. “Arguing will get us nowhere. We need to get out of these woods and to a safe place.”
The four men exchanged a look but nodded in agreement.
11
Hot damn! When Lance told me about the Destined One, I sure as hell never expected her to be like this! As cool as she is, I’m even more stoked to meet the king and Sir Galahad. They feel so familiar, like Lancelot did when I met him. But I’m nervous. How can I possibly be what they need me to be when I don’t remember anything? I’ll just have to prove to them that they can rely on me.
~Percy
“HOW DID YOU GET HERE this morning?” Lancelot asked Aliana.
“I drove. My car is parked near the south entrance.”
“The green Mini Cooper?” Lancelot asked.
Warily, Aliana nodded. “How did you know?”
“I’ve watched these forests for decades. I know when people come and go,” Lancelot answered, barely bothering to favor her with a glance.
“Yeah, that’s not a weird thing to say.” She stopped and looked at him. “What are you, like, double-oh creepy?”
Percy chuckled as Lancelot glared.
Clearing his throat, Arthur laid a hand on Aliana’s shoulder. “We need to keep going.”
“All righty then, this isn’t going to be awkward at all.” Aliana shook her head, leading the party to the real world. Even though she knew she risked having Galahad and the others gang up on her again, she asked the question that had been nagging at the back of her mind. “I thought Mordrid was still trapped in whatever prison Merlin sent him to. How was he able to summon those black knights and—” she shivered involuntarily “—talk to us through one of them?”
The knights exchanged looks, their brows creased with worry. Arthur turned his eyes to Dagg and asked, “Is it possible that Mordrid has escaped?”
Rubbing his chin with his claw, Dagg answered, “It is impossible to say for sure. Merlin cast the spell to trap him, so only he would know for certain if Mordrid has escaped, but…”
“But what?” Aliana asked when the Dragon hesitated.
“His black knights seemed very weak. I suspect they would’ve been much harder to kill if he was free. And he would have surely sent more than six.”
Everyone took in the Dragon’s words quietly, and a silence followed. Percy was the first to speak again. “Since we have no way of knowing for sure if he’s gotten free, all we can do is hope for the best and be ready for the worst. At least till we find Merlin and get the answers.”
Arthur nodded with a small, approving smile on his lips. Lancelot took over the conversation, giving Arthur and Galahad tips on how to assimilate to the modern world. Aliana took the opportunity to ask Percy, “How does the whole being reborn thing work?”
“Not really sure. The only explanation Lance and I’ve come up with is that Titania somehow knew when we would be needed, so her prophecy made sure we would be here when that happened.”
Aliana nodded, trying to piece together this new information with everything else she’d learned. Something about Lancelot didn’t feel quite right to her. There was too much about his story that was unknown. Her gut warned her to be careful how much trust she put in him until she knew more. She desperately wanted to ask Dagg what else he knew about the knight, but she couldn’t do it in front of the guys. Besides, the little Dragon had curled around her neck ten minutes earlier and was currently having a nap.
She almost sighed in relief when she spotted her green Mini. Smiling, she fished her keys from her bag. Looking up, she saw a large, black SUV parked a few yards from her small car.
“I’m guessing that’s yours,” she said over her shoulder to Lancelot.
“Yes. Sire, I have clothes for both you and Galahad to change into.” He stepped to his car and pulled the tailgate open.
“Clothes?” Arthur asked, his eyes roving over Lancelot and Percival’s outfits.
“Yes. I’m afraid what you’re wearing now would draw too much attention.”
“Right, well, while you guys do that, I need to call my cousin and let him know I’m alive.” Aliana turned from the guys as they all disappeared behind the SUV. Things are going to get very interesting, Aliana thought as she dialed Owen’s cell.
He answered after the first ring. “Where are you?” His voice was tight, his accent thicker than normal. “You all right? What the bloody hell took you so long to ring me?”
“I’m fine, Owen. I just got back to my car.” How the hell was she going to explain all of this to him?
“You said you were going to ring me this afternoon.”
“Sorry, I got a bit side-tracked.” She glanced at the SUV that hid her new friends and smirked at the understatement.
Owen let out a sigh. “I’m just relieved you’re okay. How soon until you’re back home?”
Aliana meant to answer, but her eyes drifted to Galahad as he stepped into view. The handsome knight wore nothing but a pair of faded jeans.
“Oh Mama,” she crooned, forgetting everything but the well-sculpted knight before her. His shoulders were wide and strong, his chest covered with a light dusting of dark hair that tapered off above a set of abs most men would kill for. She knew he was powerful, but seeing him like this, he just seemed like so much more.
“Aliana, can you hear me?”
She swallowed. “Um…” Was someone talking to her?
“Aliana!”
She snapped her eyes away from Galahad. “Sorry, what were you saying?” Her face warmed while butterflies tilted her stomach side to side.
“I asked how long until you will be back in London.” His worry seemed to be quickly turning to annoyance.
Closing her eyes, she shook her head, trying to clear away the vision of Galahad half naked—an impossible task. “I’m getting ready to leave now, so you can stop worrying. I’m afraid I’ll have to skip dinner tonight, but I’ll call you soon. Bye.” She hung up, not letting her cousin respond.
She knew she shouldn’t, but she stole another peak at Galahad. Her phone nearly fell from her hand. Arthur stepped beside him with his back to her, saying something that had Galahad cracking a slow smile as he pulled on a dark green T-shirt. Aliana’s eyes drifted to Arthur. The muscles and faint scars on his back and shoulders rippled as he pulled a crimson shirt over his head. It clung to him like a second skin, covering his golden body. Aliana’s eyes drifted lower. The dark jeans he wore shaped his backside as if they had been made just for him. She had seen plenty of hot guys before, but none of them held a candle to these warriors.
“Dear God above.” The phone slipped from her hand. Shocked back to reality, she fumbled, barely managing to grab the device before it hit the ground.
Galahad’s eyes found hers and he smiled like the Cheshire cat. Aliana spun around, trying to cool her suddenly burning cheeks. Damn my pale skin! I’m probably red as a tomato.
She sucked in a breath and turned, watching the guys approach. Lancelot was the shortest, just less than six feet, while Percy stood inches taller than even Galahad. Percy wasn’t what you’d call classically good looking, but there was a quirky kind of cuteness to his long face and large smile. In contrast, Lancelot’s olive skin and unusually pale eyes gave him an air of mystery. That mystery was what made her slightly worried.
Clearing her dry throat, Aliana said, “Well, you two seem more the part in those clothes.” She reached out, pulling away a loose string hanging from Galahad’s sleeve.
Before he could say anything, Lancelot spoke. “Aliana, you will join us in my car while Percy follows in yours.”
She shook her head. The cheek of this guy! “Sorry, cowboy, nobody but me drives my car.”
“We don’t have time for this,” he said. “There is still great danger for you.”
She rolled her eyes, hands on her hips. “Then why don’t one or two of you join me in my car?”
The four big guys lo
oked between her and the very tiny Mini like she had lost her mind. It wasn’t really that she had a problem with people driving her car. Her problem was the way these guys kept telling her what to do, treating her like she had no mind of her own and expecting her to jump at their decree.
“I do not know about these things,” Galahad said. “But I am not sure how you manage to get in that tiny box, much less any one of us.”
The others chuckled while Aliana bit back a frustrated growl, but this Southern girl wasn’t done yet. With a sweet-as-pie smile, she stepped closer to the guys, her hands hanging loosely at her side. Percy was the only one with the good sense to give any hint of being nervous.
“You know, I think you’re right.” She stared up into Galahad’s blue eyes and pointed her finger at each of the knights. “Not a single one of your tough-guy, know-it-all egos would even come close to fitting through the door.” With a huff, she tossed her keys to a stunned Percy, swinging her bag over her shoulder as she pushed past them and turned to lean against the black SUV. “Well, are you guys gonna get a move on or just stand there all day looking like the Lost Boys?”
Lancelot was the first to recover, ushering a confused Galahad and an unbelieving Arthur to the car. Aliana hid her smirk as they climbed in, and Dagg chuckled in her ear.
“And how long have you been awake?” she asked the Dragon.
“Longer then I’m sure you wish I was.”
Aliana slid into the back seat next to Galahad while Arthur frowned and climbed into the front. She gazed out the tinted window, giggling as she watched Percy fold himself into her car. It really was too small for him.
She looked up, meeting Arthur’s golden gaze in the side mirror. The king offered her a small smile before he turned confused eyes toward his seat belt. Aliana glanced at Galahad, who wasn’t doing any better.
“Here let me.” Taking the buckle from Galahad’s hand, she clicked him in. Lancelot started the engine, causing the other two ancient knights to jump. Aliana hid her snigger behind her hand while Dagg jumped onto the center of the dashboard.
“So, Lancelot, how are you still alive?” Aliana asked as they started the long drive back to the city. When he didn’t answer, she tried again. “You and Percy look younger than Arthur and Galahad. How is that?”
“I’ll be happy to explain once we reach my home, but first there is still much that King Arthur and Galahad need to know before we get to London.”
“Why don’t we go to my place first?” she suggested, not liking the idea of being in a stranger’s house.
“My home will be the safest place. It is well protected and hard to find, even with magic.”
“I’m not saying we all shack up at my place. I’m saying, at the very least, I need to get some of my things before I go to your house for a sleepover.” His arrogance pushed her buttons. “Besides, I need to talk to my cousin and my friend Wade; I have to tell them what’s going on. They may be able to help.”
“Absolutely not!” Lancelot shouted.
“I can’t keep this from them! They’ll never just let me disappear with strangers.”
Galahad frowned at Lancelot, and Arthur studied the raven-haired knight with questioning eyes.
“Why do you think your friend and cousin could help?” Galahad asked.
“I’m not really sure why,” she admitted. “I just do.”
Lancelot studied her in the rearview mirror, and then Arthur said, “I think we can take the time to give Aliana what she wants, Lancelot. She has done much for us already. We cannot deny her these comforts.”
Lancelot nodded at Arthur’s decree.
I guess it’s good to be the king, Aliana thought as Lancelot quickly changed the subject.
Two hours later, the group pulled up to the gate in front of Aliana’s flat. The building was old-world beautiful and situated on the bank of the Thames River in an exclusive neighborhood. An impressive address didn’t matter to her or her parents, but they all loved the home Aliana’s grandparents had bought after World War II. Aliana gave Lancelot the gate code, and Percy followed them in.
Aliana slid out of the car, grateful for the chance to stretch her tight muscles, while Lancelot went around back and pulled out the sword belts.
“Are those really necessary? I promise there aren’t any evil creatures waiting for us in my flat.”
“A warrior never goes anywhere without his weapon,” Arthur said.
Deciding to let that comment go, she watched Percy twist his large body out of her car, muttering curses as he finally got free. He tossed the keys to Aliana like they were evil and fixed a dark glare on Lancelot.
“Next time you get to drive the clown car across the country, and I’ll drive the grown-ups’ car.”
“Hey now.” Aliana tried to sound offended, but her giggles gave her away.
“I told you I’d get even, Percy,” Lancelot said, shrugging.
Still giggling, Aliana led them to the elevator, curious to see how Arthur and Galahad would handle their first elevator ride. The five of them piled into the tiny lift, taking up most of the space as Aliana turned her house key in the lock and hit the button for the top floor.
“Why the key, Aliana?” Arthur asked, fascinated by the machine pulling them smoothly up into the building.
“My mom’s parents bought the top floor of the building decades ago and converted the entire space into a four-bedroom apartment. No one can get up to the top level unless they have a key.”
“Then your parents were nobility?” Galahad questioned.
“Were?” Arthur asked before she could answer.
Aliana’s eyes dropped. “My parents died two years ago.” She refused to look up, not wanting to see the pity she was sure would be in their expressions, or worse, encourage any more questions. “To answer you, Galahad, no, my parents weren’t nobility. My mother’s family came from old money here in London. My father was one of the leading historians and archaeologists in the world, and my mom was a popular actress and dancer. She insisted we keep this place after my grandparents died, even though we lived mostly in Charleston.”
The elevator dinged, and the door slid open before anyone could ask more questions. She escaped the suddenly suffocating confines only to nearly run into a tall man with buzzed brown hair and tense green eyes. He stood with his hands tucked into his jean pockets.
“Owen!” Aliana’s heart leaped happily as her cousin pulled her into a rough hug. “What are you doing here?” For the first time since waking up from her dream that morning, she relaxed, sinking into his familiar and comforting embrace.
“I was going mental worrying about you.” His soft voice sounded almost hurt. “Who are they?” He scrutinized the four men filing out of the elevator, and his eyes hardened when he saw the swords in their hands. He stepped around Aliana. “Why do they have swords?”
She laid her hand on his shoulder, trying to figure out what to say.
“Owaine?” Arthur stepped forward, but Lancelot’s hand stopped the king.
Owen scowled. “Sorry, mate, you have the wrong guy.” He stopped Aliana as she tried to get around him.
“Perhaps we should all go inside and discuss this.” Lancelot stepped forward, but Owen met him half way.
“I don’t think so, mate.” Owen’s eyes landed on the silver Dragon perched on Lancelot’s shoulder. Startled, he grabbed Aliana’s arm, ordering her to get into the flat.
“Owen, it’s okay.” She took her cousin’s hand in hers. “Dagg isn’t going to hurt anyone, and I invited all of them here.” Aliana watched the way Galahad and Arthur looked Owen over, not with untrusting glares but with veiled curiosity. The two exchanged a quick glance.
Aliana looked at Owen again. Hadn’t Arthur said one of his knights was named Owaine? Aliana gripped her cousin’s hand tighter. “I’ll explain everything inside.” And she was going to make sure Arthur explained why he’d called Owen Owaine.
Eyes still fixed on Dagg, Owen nodded, circling an ar
m around his cousin’s shoulders. Once inside, Aliana disappeared into the kitchen while the guys took in her home. She hoped they would be too distracted to notice her disappearance because she was desperate to get some space and gather her thoughts. She’d hoped to have a day or two to get her story together before she brought her cousin into this. Oh no! What’s Wade going to do? There’s no way Owen won’t tell him! Suddenly, it all became too much. Panic had her heart racing. She was about to start hyperventilating.
“Aliana.” Dagg landed on the black marble counter. She peered into his glowing purple eyes, and a wave of warm energy flowed through her body, calming her.
“How did you do that?”
“I have many talents.” The little Dragon smirked. “The others are waiting on you. If we don’t get in there soon, I fear your cousin is going to do something drastic.”
“Owen is so protective.”
“He’s also considering throwing Lancelot out of the window.”
Aliana shored up her courage and walked back into her favorite room in the entire flat. The family room had overstuffed black chairs and couches, a killer entertainment center, and creamy white walls. She and her parents had made a tradition of curling up together on the couch and watching movies or TV each night. Off to one side was her father’s desk and bookshelf, still filled with his research books and prized artifacts. But what made this room so special to her were the dozen pictures decorating the walls. Her parents had insisted that all of the art be hers—pictures she had taken of her mother dancing, places she had traveled to with her father, and many others.
Owen stood facing her new friends, staring them all down, his arms crossed over his thick chest.
“I guess introductions are in order.” She stepped next to Owen, looping her arm through his. “Owen, this may seem hard to believe, but this guy—” Aliana pointed to Arthur “—is King Arthur. Next to him are Sir Galahad, Percy—who happens to be Sir Percival reincarnated—and, finally, Lancelot. Guys, this is my cousin, Owen Nyhart.”