Could he be telling the truth? Had it just been a half-conscious act of panic?
But then she recognized his pose from one of Cody’s scenes—and remembered how his costar had pushed back his hair before falling into a steamy kiss.
He’s an actor. She had to remember that.
…
Leah felt as if steam should be coming out of her ears.
It had taken her hours to pick her way across the lava flows and required every drop of hot blood in her veins. And when she’d finally made it back to the Mirrorhall, what did she find? Holly quarreling with Ryan.
Pushing him away.
It drove Leah wild that Holly had everything Leah wanted, and she was wasting it. Ryan loved her, and she was trampling on his heart.
Worse, after all Holly’s promises, her otherself was now lying on her bed sulking, not even trying to protect Gideon’s otherself.
Furious, Leah put her hand on the ice mirror. “You don’t deserve him.”
(what?)
“Get up right now. You have work to do.”
…
“Fine!” Holly bounced out of bed, so annoyed she spoke aloud. “You win! I’m going.” It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Leah not to take over again—it was just that she didn’t trust Leah.
Holly started toward the stairs, then turned the other way. With Qeturah in her office, Ryan didn’t need protecting, and Holly had a golden opportunity to search Qeturah’s bedroom.
She knocked softly at the room adjoining her dad’s, an excuse ready. No one answered, so she slipped inside only to freeze a moment later when she saw a trio of silver mirrors. The actual metal, not the color. Hadn’t Qeturah enchanted a silver mirror to record the duke’s hypocaust message to Leah?
If so, she’d already been caught.
Holly pushed back panic. So what if Qeturah saw her snooping? She just had to keep Qeturah from realizing Holly knew everything Leah did.
Let Qeturah think Holly was a spoiled brat instead. “All right, let’s see how much you’re taking my dad for,” she said aloud, then opened the white jewelry box sitting on the dresser.
Gold necklaces coiled in one compartment, and matching earrings lined up in another. The rings caught her eye because the bottom of the compartment was mirrored.
Holly stirred through them as if idly curious. The rings all had a similar look—large oval stones of tigereye, onyx, and turquoise—but some felt different to her fingers, faceted like gemstones instead of smooth. There must be an illusion on them, but Holly couldn’t guess why.
Resolving to ask Leah later, Holly pursed her lips as if disappointed and shut the box. She rifled through Nimue’s drawers but didn’t find anything other than tacky leopard-print underwear.
A noise from downstairs brought her head up. She whisked back to her own room, opening and closing the door as if she’d just exited, then pattered down the stairs.
“There you are!” her dad said from the den. Qeturah perched on the arm of the leather couch beside him. “Let’s have that game of water polo. I’ll be goalie, and we’ll see if you two hotshots can score against an old man.”
Holly glanced over to where Ryan stood against the wall, his expression closed.
“I think Holly would rather you had some father-daughter time,” Ryan said.
Her dad looked back and forth between Holly and Ryan, then sighed.
Qeturah trilled a laugh. “I think the children may have had another spat.”
Holly bristled. “None of your business!”
Her dad pinched the bridge of his nose. “Fine, we won’t ask. But Ryan, you and your mother are my guests. I want you to feel welcome to swim in the pool or make yourself a sandwich, et cetera, whenever you want, just as if this were your home. Holly, I expect you to be polite.”
Holly nodded.
“So.” He rubbed his hands together. “Who wants to go for a swim?”
Holly no longer did, but refusing would earn her a lecture on being rude. “I’ll go get changed.”
Upstairs, she discovered Leah had failed to pack her swimsuit, forcing her to squirm into a faded purple one from two years ago. Cassie Burns wouldn’t have been caught dead in it.
Outside, her dad and Ryan batted a ball back and forth in the kidney-shaped pool while Qeturah lounged on the deck in sunglasses and a white bikini. Holly quickly slid into the five-foot-deep water, wanting cover. The sparkling water felt refreshingly cool in the brutal California heat.
Holly surprised herself by having fun. She and her dad teamed up against Ryan, making the game a close one.
After half an hour, her dad called for a rest break and dropped into a recliner beside Qeturah. Holly sidestroked up and down the pool. As she passed Ryan, she noticed that his face looked strained. She paused and grudgingly asked, “Do you need me to cover for you?”
“What?”
She gritted her teeth, wishing she hadn’t offered. “You look like you’re having trouble not sprouting a tail. If you need me to, I can distract my dad.” She owed him that much for saving her from drowning.
“Oh. No, it’s only seawater that tests my control.” He paused. “Maybe I should just tell him, since he’s going to marry Nimue.”
Over my dead body will he marry her. But her dad could probably be trusted with the secret—except they’d have to talk him out of making a merman movie…
Ryan backstroked alongside her, grimacing.
Holly sighed. “So if that isn’t it, what is bothering you?”
“The chlorine irritates my skin.”
Holly had a sudden horrible vision of Qeturah using some obscure toxin to poison him. “Then get out of the pool,” she urged him.
“Yeah, I should.” Ryan’s expression was wry. “It’s just…I miss swimming, you know.”
He was a merman. Some of the wonder of that discovery touched Holly again. Of course he missed the ocean. “Have you made it down to the beach much?” The question slipped out.
“I went regularly in the winter and spring, but now that it’s summer, the nearby beaches are too crowded. I don’t want to risk someone seeing me change form.”
“You should get a house with a private beach.” And move out of her dad’s house.
“Yeah, well, I’m doing good for money, but I’m not pulling down millions a picture yet. Don’t worry. I’ll make do.” The muscles in his back flexed as he hoisted himself out of the pool.
She swam for ten minutes longer then went through the glass doors into the kitchen. Qeturah was sitting on her dad’s lap, kissing him.
Holly pretended blindness, but before she could exit, her dad spotted her. “We should all go out for dinner. How does Italian strike you?”
“It sounds wonderful,” Qeturah purred. “But Ryan can’t go. Remember?” She lifted her voice, and Holly saw Ryan playing a handheld computer game in the den. “You have a party tonight.”
Ryan tensed. “I told you, I don’t feel like going.”
Qeturah laughed. “I’m afraid you have to go, dear. With the movie premiering next week, you need to raise your profile, and Cassie Burns’s parties are often mentioned in celebrity gossip.”
“Publicity is good,” her dad said. “Go and enjoy yourself.”
Ryan put down his game. “I’d rather not. Unless—Holly, would you like to come with me?”
She’d rather plunge a knife into her stomach. “No, thank you.”
Ryan looked stoic, as if he’d expected her refusal. He let his mother badger him into attending, even changing into the clothes she’d bought for him: a white tee and baggy jeans that showed his hipbones. All he needed to play Cody was a panther tattoo.
The Italian restaurant was one of Holly’s favorites, but she had no appetite that night. When the conversation turned, yet again, to showbiz, Holly asked to see Qeturah’s engagement ring.
Her dad liked to buy his fiancées big sparklers, but Qeturah’s ring fell in a different weight class—a large marquise-cut blue stone. “Is it
a sapphire?”
“No, a blue diamond.”
Remembering her brat persona, Holly asked, “How much did it cost?”
“Holly,” her dad warned.
“Let’s just say less than your dad’s sports car.” Qeturah’s eyes glinted. “I have a weakness for jewelry. If you’d ever like to borrow some, just ask.”
She knows I looked in her jewelry box. Even though Holly had suspected the silver mirrors might act as security cams, a shiver crawled up her spine at the realization that Qeturah’s magic worked on this world. Holly lifted her chin, refusing to show her fear. “Thanks, maybe I will.”
When they arrived back home, Qeturah suggested they watch one of the movies her dad had directed. Her dad acquiesced like an eager boy. Ugh. Couldn’t he see how calculating Qeturah was? She laughed smokily whenever he paused the DVD to tell an anecdote.
Her dad could be pretty amusing, but Holly had seen the movie five times before and heard all the stories. Eyes glazing, she went up to her bedroom.
On impulse, she Called Leah from the bathroom and told her about the rings. Unfortunately, Leah was also baffled.
(keep searching)
“I’ll try her office once everyone’s asleep,” Holly promised. She lay down fully clothed and tried to nap.
At eleven thirty, her cell phone trilled “Under the Sea.”
Holly started to ignore it, then remembered how insistent Qeturah had been that Ryan go to the party. What if she’d arranged for some accident to befall him? Leah would never let her hear the end of it if Ryan were hurt.
Holly would never forgive herself if he died.
She thumbed on her Blackberry. “Hello?”
“Holly? This is Cassie Burns.”
Holly pressed the phone tighter to her ear, her stomach knotting. “What do you want?”
“Your boyfriend has had too much to drink.” Annoyance sharpened Cassie’s voice. “I need you to collect him.”
Holly tamped down on a surge of worry. “He’s not my boyfriend. Why should I care?”
A heavy sigh. “He’s sitting out at the end of my diving board, threatening to moon us. If you don’t want videos of him skinny-dipping on YouTube, I suggest you get your butt down here and—” Cassie paused. “He says to tell you I have a saltwater pool.”
Cassie sounded mystified, but Holly’s stomach lurched. Not even Ryan’s siren voice could stuff the genie back in the bottle if a video of him turning into a merman hit the net. “I’ll be right there. Don’t let him jump in.” The alcohol in his bloodstream wouldn’t help his control, either. She raced down the stairs as Cassie rattled off the address.
She called a cab, then told her dad she’d changed her mind about attending the party.
Her dad raised his eyebrows but only said, “Have a good time. Call if you’re going to be later than two a.m.”
Twenty long minutes later, the taxi received permission to drive into Cassie’s gated neighborhood. Holly tossed some bills at the cabbie and hurried up the walk. Rock music blasted out from behind the cedar fence enclosing the property.
Cassie Burns answered the doorbell. She’d slicked back her trademark blond curls, and she was wearing a skimpy black camisole with skinny jeans, high heels, and a ton of eyeliner. They gave her an older look than her usual screen roles. “Holly, I assume?”
Holly nodded.
Cassie looked her up and down. “I was planning to say something snide, but based on how you’re dressed, maybe you do care about him.”
Suddenly aware of the stupid pink plastic sandals she’d shoved on her feet, Holly’s face flamed.
“Come on. The pool’s this way.”
Holly followed Cassie down a hall crowded with Emos having intense conversations.
Out on the pool deck, the party became rowdier, featuring shrill, bikini-clad women, a few minor celebs, and a fully stocked bar. Holly’s gaze cut straight to the diving board, where Ryan sat, fully clothed, dangling his legs and holding a beer bottle by the neck.
“Holly!” He beamed at her as if she were his favorite person in the world. He stood up, then threw out his arms for balance. “Whoa.”
Three girls screamed with laughter.
“Get him off there.” Cassie gave Holly a little push. Her un-lover-like behavior gave Holly heart.
“Is it time to go home?” Ryan called eagerly.
“Yes.” Holly stood at the fixed end of the diving board.
With his arms still spread wide, Ryan took a shaky step toward her then abruptly sat down. “Maybe you better come get me. I don’t feel so good.”
Their audience whooped.
Holly shucked her sandals before stepping onto the diving board, excruciatingly aware of the camera phones people held up, ready to capture her humiliation if she fell.
She took three steps out over the water. “Take my hand,” she coaxed.
He squinted at her. “You’re too far away.”
Holly gritted her teeth and slid one step closer.
This time when she stuck out her hand, Ryan grasped it—and yanked. Holly yelped, but his arms wrapped around her, keeping her safe. She ended up sitting in front of him on the vibrating board with only one foot in the water.
“Now I’ve got you!” he said triumphantly.
The partygoers cheered.
Holly gritted her teeth. “Let me go, you idiot. We’re both going to end up getting dunked.”
His arms stayed tight around her. “I’m not letting you go until you listen.” He sounded completely sober.
Holly stiffened. “You’re not drunk.”
“Not even a little,” Ryan confessed.
She’d made a fool of herself and rushed out here for nothing? “Is this some kind of joke?”
His eyes darkened like stormy seas. “Not to me. Since you obviously don’t believe me, I wanted you to hear the truth from someone else.” He raised his voice. “Cassie?”
Cassie must have been waiting for her cue, because she immediately sauntered over. “Yes? Did you want something?” Her heavily outlined eyes widened with fake innocence.
“Tell her.” Ryan didn’t use his siren talent, but a deep note in his voice ruffled the hairs on Holly’s nape.
Cassie’s eyes narrowed. “Okay, Holly, here’s the truth: Ryan never kissed me except when we were both acting. But hey, feel free not to believe me. Ryan’s a nice guy, and if you dump him, someone a lot less stupid may pick him up on the rebound.”
Cassie’s scorn made her angry. Cassie was an actress; why should Holly believe her? Plus, Ryan could have used his siren voice to make Cassie lie so he could—
But there it broke down. So he could what? Get back together with Holly? But why would he want to do that when he could date the likes of Cassie Burns?
Holly’s dad obviously wasn’t holding a grudge against Ryan—Qeturah had taken care of that angle. Cassie Burns could boost his career higher than Joseph Beecher’s daughter.
Logically, that meant Ryan wanted her more than he did Cassie Burns. But how could that be? Cassie Burns was blonde and beautiful and talented. Holly was…average. Not dumb, not ugly, just passable.
“I told you Miss Insecure wouldn’t believe me,” Cassie said.
“Well?” Ryan asked roughly.
Holly looked at him and really saw him for what seemed like the first time since arriving in L.A. Here Ryan was sitting out at the end of a diving board at a glamorous party, risking his secret and his reputation for her. She started to cry.
“Holly?” Bewilderment chased across Ryan’s face. “What’s wrong?” His thumb brushed away a tear.
Her vocal cords locked up. In answer, she pulled his head down and kissed him. Right there, out at the end of the diving board, over the deep end, in front of everyone.
…
Leah lifted her hand from the mirror, unable to bear watching anymore. As pleased as she was that Holly had accepted Ryan back into her heart, the way she sat pressed up to Gideon’s otherself made Leah’s
teeth ache.
Not that she was jealous. Ryan was Holly’s soul mate, not hers. But watching them kiss made her long for Gideon.
Leah fought off the grief threatening to crush her. She could wail and moan after Gideon’s otherselves were safe, not before.
In the meantime, she desperately needed something to do. She’d eaten only an hour before, and it was still daytime here.
The Aerie called her, but if she climbed those steps, she’d end up weeping on Gideon’s bed. Besides, she couldn’t risk being trapped there like Holly had been.
The fact that Qeturah had locked Holly there to keep Leah out of her rooms suggested that Qeturah had some secret to protect. Leah felt a lick of excitement. She started toward Qeturah’s rooms, only to stop, stymied by the thought of the copper mirrors lining the hall. She would have to wait until nightfall, when it was too dark for her image to be captured.
Moments later, Leah caught herself pacing again. Ashes. She halted in front of a silver mirror. The Four Worlds mirror formed the heart of Qeturah’s magic, so why collect all the rest? Perhaps there were secrets here, too. With a new rush of energy, Leah began searching the Mirrorhall.
By the window, she found something new: three obsidian mirrors reflected the red sunlight into a bowl of water, giving it a bloody glow. Leah studied the arrangement but could make no sense of it. Obsidian represented Fire, and water Water, of course, but why channel sunlight from one into another?
Still, it troubled her. She almost moved one of the mirrors but changed her mind. If she disturbed them, Qeturah would know Leah had escaped from the Aerie. And Leah wasn’t prepared to face Qeturah and her magic yet. It was becoming more and more apparent that Qeturah had omitted a lot in her teaching.
Leah needed answers, but she made herself wait until darkness fell before searching Qeturah’s room. When Leah had reviewed her memories of the time Holly had spent in her body, she’d been fascinated by Qeturah’s claim that merely walking by the copper mirrors somehow triggered an alarm that alerted Qeturah to an intruder. Working by feel, Leah covered all the copper mirrors and as well as the obsidian one containing the illusion of Qeturah. Then she lit a candle and went inside.
An hour of methodical searching turned up a book tucked away at the bottom of a trunk. She knew instantly that the green-and-gold volume hadn’t been bound in Fire World—the pages were cut too evenly, and the front illustration was colored. The words inside were in a cursive alphabet and oddly spelled. From the True World, perhaps?
Through Fire & Sea Page 27