“You can’t do it without me,” he said.
“Sure, I can.” She smiled, but there was irritation in it.
“Honey, you have no idea—”
“Don’t ‘honey’ me,” she snapped. There was the woman he had seen earlier. Not the serene one who’d been talking to the girls. “Ever since we met, you’ve been taking responsibility for me or apologizing for not doing it, as if I’m some fragile example of femininity. I’m not. I can take on anyone I please. These girls need help, and so do the Fates, and so, apparently, does the group of people my brother’s involved with. I know how to help everyone, with or without you.”
He gaped at her. He hadn’t expected this.
The girls had all leaned forward as if this conversation was a spectator sport. If they’d been actual teenagers, he would have disappeared them—even for just a moment.
But they weren’t. They were Interim Fates—possibly the real Fates—and he couldn’t have a bad relationship with yet another group of Fates. They might not be as hands-off as the others had proven to be over the centuries.
“You can leave if you want,” Megan said. “In fact, why don’t you? You can come back for me in, say, an hour.”
He wasn’t even breathing. He had to remember to breathe. He made himself inhale, and he got slightly dizzy.
What was she doing? Hadn’t she noticed how he’d helped her? He’d explained the magic to her. He’d helped her understand this new world she was in. He’d taken very good care of her in the short time he had known her.
He stood up, and almost magicked himself away, and then he heard Little John’s voice in his head. John would deride him for leaving her, for abandoning yet another chance.
And, honestly, he shouldn’t leave a woman to face the wrath of Zeus alone.
Rob retreated to the bookshelf. He resumed his laid-back posture, crossing his arms, and leaning his head against the wood.
“I’m staying,” he said.
She frowned at him. The girls all tilted their heads as if he were a new species.
“Continue your little discussion,” he said. “I won’t interrupt anymore.”
“Yeah, right,” Tiffany said.
“Like men can ever not interrupt,” Crystal added.
“They always butt in,” Brittany said.
Megan turned her back on him.
He felt her rejection like a personal loss.
Nineteen
Arrogant S.O.B. Who did he think he was, anyway, standing against that bookshelf like he didn’t have a care in the world?
Megan turned her back on him because she couldn’t stand to look at him. He was a mixture of kindness, arrogance, and old-fashioned medieval maleness, and she didn’t have the time at the moment to sort through any of this.
She had to remain calm to make her suggestion. She focused on the girls. They looked so young as they stared at her; their faces covered with piercings and makeup in an attempt to look older, only seemed even more vulnerable.
The bikinis, the lawn chairs, and the Astroturf in the middle of their hated library didn’t help. Obviously their controlling father had been trying to placate them.
It hadn’t worked.
“All right,” she said. “You need to listen to me for a moment, without interruption.”
She resisted the urge to turn and glare at Rob, just to make her point. She had to forget he was there.
As if that were possible.
“You girls don’t want to do this. You were tricked into the position.”
All three girls nodded.
“Your father really wants to control this himself, but the others in his group won’t let him, so he’s manipulating the situation, and using you to do it, am I right?”
Again, the girls nodded. Their eyes were big, and their expressions were identical. Megan didn’t think the three of them looked at all alike until this moment.
“You were tricked into taking this job. The other three women, who had been the Fates, were tricked into leaving it.”
The girls set their jaws in an identical movement. Megan noted it. They obviously had mixed feelings about the other Fates. She was glad she hadn’t called those three adult women “The Fates.” It might have lost her sympathy with these three.
“They would like the job back. You would like to leave it. They lost their magic, and they need help recovering it. Would you be willing to do the magic, under their guidance, needed to—”
“No!”
That was Rob. Megan whirled. His hands were fists.
“They will not do anything like that!” He looked angry.
“We can help,” Crystal said.
“We’d like to help,” Brittany said.
“We can do the magic,” Tiffany said. “With help, anyway.”
“They’ll be fine,” Megan said.
“NO!” Rob was waving those clenched fists. She wondered if he knew how ridiculous he looked.
Ridiculous and somehow gorgeous. Anger looked good on him. Was that why history remembered him as a lord who, out of anger, took on the entire establishment—and won (at least for a while)?
“They won’t be fine. You don’t know what you’re asking, Meg. The Fates need someone to go into Faerie. Sending these infants into Faerie would be like sending three mice into a pride of lions. You can’t do that. The Faeries would steal their magic within five minutes and maybe take their souls. And then what would their father do to you? You can’t. You just can’t.”
He was concerned for her. She could feel it. He would have spoken up if someone else had suggested the plan, but the emotion, the vehemence, was all because he worried about her.
She felt oddly flattered, and knew that she couldn’t let her own emotions rise too much to the surface. She would lose her ability to help the girls.
“I’m willing to go to this Faerie place,” Crystal said.
“Me, too,” Brittany said.
But Tiffany had grown pale. “The old Fates need something in Faerie? Why?”
Megan shrugged. “They say it’ll help them.”
“What’s wrong with Faerie?” Crystal asked Tiffany.
“I’ve heard it’s kinda wicked cool,” Brittany said.
“They’ve been at war with us for centuries,” Tiffany said. “Didn’t you guys pay attention in Mrs. Sawtooth’s History of the Magical Universe class?”
“Were we supposed to?” Crystal asked.
“Girls,” Megan said. She put just a little harshness into her voice. “We were talking about the plan.”
“Yeah, but Tiff’s worried about it.” Brittany spit out her gum and stuck it underneath her lawn chair.
The movement made Megan wince.
“The hottie’s right,” Tiffany said. “We’d go in there, and they’d win. The Faeries would take on Daddy and he’d have to come for us…”
Her voice trailed off. Megan read the expression almost as the thought crossed Tiffany’s mind. Their father might not come for them at all, and that would be even worse.
It would prove that he really didn’t care about them, that he had been using them all along.
Crystal and Brittany were staring at Tiffany, waiting for her to finish the thought.
Rob came up behind Megan and pulled her to her feet. “We’re going to leave now.”
“No,” she said. “I promised to help these girls.”
“We will.” His voice was tight and angry.
“We can’t go into Faerie,” Crystal said. “Not if Tiff’s afraid of it.”
“Tiff’s really our brains,” Brittany said. “We tease her because she, like, likes books even though she says she doesn’t but we need her because we’d be really dumb without her.”
Somehow, Megan managed not to wince at that.
“We’ll help you,” Rob said, and there was sincerity in his voice. His hand still clutched Megan’s arm, his fingers a bit too tight against her skin. “If we bring Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos back here, and they’ve
already regained their magic, will you three step down?”
“Daddy won’t like that.” Tiffany’s entire body radiated fear.
Megan wanted to shake off Rob’s hand, but she didn’t. She didn’t want to do anything that would alarm the girls. Instead, she willed herself calm, and said:
“See, this is where you have to decide if you want to live your life or the life your father chose for you.”
The girls looked at each other. Crystal and Brittany seemed hopeful, but it was clear they were waiting for Tiffany to make the decision.
Poor girl. She had been in charge from the moment their father dragged them here.
“What you have to make certain of,” Megan said, as gently and nonjudgmentally as she could, “is that what you want and what your father wants is in your own best interest.”
“I can’t stand talking in order like this,” Crystal said.
“And we never get to leave this library,” Brittany said. “It sucks. That’s why Daddy brought the pool.”
“He brought the pool to insult us,” Tiffany said through clenched teeth. “He promised us a beach on the Mediterranean if we did everything right. This is no beach.”
He was manipulating them, using them, and insulting them. Megan felt anger rise inside her. She tamped it down. She had to remain neutral.
But Rob’s eyes had narrowed. The anger fairly sparked off him.
“You girls have to make a decision,” he said. Megan wanted to elbow him, but it was too late. He’d already butted in. She couldn’t stop him from doing more. “The thing is, you have to make it fast, because we’re leaving.”
“We can’t, like, think about it and summon you back?” Crystal asked.
“No,” Rob said.
Megan was actually glad he’d answered that question because she still had no idea how most of the magic rules worked. Her sympathy rose for the girls. They had no idea how most of the magic rules worked, either, and yet they were ostensibly in charge of it all.
“We can get you back if we want to,” Brittany said defiantly. “Right, Tiff?”
Tiffany didn’t answer her. She was watching Rob.
“If you girls won’t agree,” he said, “we’ll come up with a new plan. And you will probably end up as the Fates, if that’s truly what your father wants for you.”
Rob wasn’t shabby at manipulation, either.
“What if we tell Daddy about you?” Tiffany said, clutching her knees to her chest. She wasn’t wearing bikini bottoms.
Megan wanted to chastise her for that, but didn’t. Perhaps the girl had never learned modesty.
Rob shrugged. Apparently he didn’t notice Tiffany’s lack of attire. “If you tell your father, I’m sure he’ll have something to say to us. We’ll deal with it. I’ve handled worse.”
That was bravado. Megan heard it in his voice. She wondered if the girls did, too.
“You know, that’s kinda mean, Tiff,” Crystal said.
“Yeah,” Brittany said. “They offered to help.”
“You think they’re doing it for us?” Tiffany turned her head so that her cheek rested on her knee. Megan could no longer see her face. “They’re doing it for those other Fates. They don’t care about us.”
“Those Fates helped kill the love of my life,” Rob said. “I have no desire to help them.”
“And I just met them,” Megan said.
“We only came here at the request of a friend, because she thought that things were out of control.” Rob let go of Megan’s elbow, and slipped his arm around her back, pulling her close. He was going to leave soon, whether those girls wanted it or not. She could just tell.
“Things are out of control,” Crystal mumbled.
“Daddy says they never were in control,” Brittany said.
“But those other women, they could stand up to Daddy.” Tiffany’s voice was muffled. She still wasn’t looking at anyone. “We sure can’t.”
“It takes practice,” Megan said.
Tiffany nodded but didn’t move.
“We’ll step down,” Crystal said. “I promise.”
Brittany looked at her, eyes wide. Tiffany raised her head.
“You didn’t ask Tiff,” Brittany said.
“Yeah, who put you in charge?” Tiffany sounded offended.
“You weren’t making any decisions,” Crystal said. “I know I can stand up to Daddy. Can you?”
Brittany’s eyes grew even wider. They looked like they were going to pop out of her head. Rob’s arm grew tight around Megan’s waist. She slipped her own arm around his.
The entire room was full of fear.
“I don’t know if I can,” Brittany whispered.
“None of us can.” Tiffany lowered her head.
“I can,” Crystal said, “and it takes three of us to be Fates, right, Mr. Hottie?”
“Right,” Rob said, and Megan suppressed a smile. She bet he’d never been called Mr. Hottie before in his life.
“So you’re quitting?” Brittany asked.
Crystal nodded.
“Until Daddy shows up,” Tiffany said.
“Even then.” Crystal squared her shoulders and looked directly at Megan. “Can you guys hurry up about this getting those other Fates their magic stuff back? Because I don’t know how long these two can keep a secret.”
This time, Megan did smile. The girls did work as a team. They just didn’t recognize it yet.
“I think they’ll surprise you,” Megan said.
“But yes, we’ll hurry up,” Rob said. Then he snapped his fingers, and the library disappeared.
Twenty
Rob’s Las Vegas office had never looked so welcome. He appeared on the two-toned rug, his arm around Megan’s back and her arm around him. The trip had been so quick that she hadn’t even had time to grab on tighter like she had before.
She blinked in surprise. Apparently, she hadn’t expected to come here.
But he wanted the magical trail to end here, particularly if Zeus were pursuing them. The entire interaction with the Interim Fates had terrified Rob—and he couldn’t remember ever being terrified before.
“Is Kyle still here?” Megan was getting used to interdimensional travel, but it still clearly unnerved her.
“I told John to take him back to wherever the dog was. I recall there was dog emergency.” That conversation seemed like a long, long time ago.
So much had happened since then. So many dangerous things.
Megan had had no idea what she was playing with, advising the Interim Fates to defy their father. This was nothing like advising some rich Hollywood brat to defy the head of a major studio.
Zeus had real power, life-destroying power, and no qualms about using it.
And, apparently, no Fates to get in his way.
“Then what are we doing here?” Megan slipped her arm from him, pushed her hair away from her face, and sighed. She looked drained. Being calm for those children had taken something out of her.
“Laying a false trail.” Rob went to his desk. Since he was here, he might as well get his car keys. No sense in using magic when he didn’t have to.
“A false trail. From those children?”
“From their father.”
“Zeus.” Megan shook her head. “He sounds like quite a piece of work.”
“He is that, all right.” Rob wasn’t going to try to explain Zeus to her, at least no more than he already had. If she didn’t have an inkling about Zeus from her mythology and cultural history classes, then trying to teach her in a few hours wouldn’t work.
Besides, she’d had enough shocks for one day.
Rob’s keys were beneath a stack of papers that a secretary must have put on his desk. He glanced at them. Three more CEOs had pledged money to a fund they thought would bring in more oil from the Middle East. Instead, the money went to a corporation named for a major oil baron, a corporation that helped children eat.
“Do you think John took my car?” Megan asked. “Because i
f he didn’t, I’d like to go back to the hotel.”
Rob looked up. She was studying his face as if she wasn’t sure of him any longer.
He wasn’t sure of himself, either. He always went to an intellectual position when faced with danger. He would separate from his emotions, move to a tactical place, and then live there until the danger passed.
Only there was no way to know when this danger would pass.
“Are you all right?” she asked gently.
“Fine,” he said, and the word sounded curter than he wanted. He wanted to speak to her tenderly, to ease that emotional roller coaster she’d been on. But he felt very far away from his own emotions at the moment. He had no idea how to reach hers.
“The car?” she prompted.
“I’m sure he didn’t take the car,” Rob said.
“Good.” She headed toward the door, then stopped when she put her hand on the knob. “It’s been…unusual.”
She was going to leave. As quickly as she had appeared, she was going to leave. As if there were nothing between them.
Had he imagined that? Or was it all on his side?
“I’m coming with you,” he said.
“No,” she said. “That’s fine.”
In the past, he would have let a woman get away with that sentence. But this wasn’t the past, and she wasn’t just any woman. He didn’t want her to leave.
Besides, they had unfinished business.
“I told Zoe we’d meet her at your hotel, remember?” Rob said.
He wanted to tell Megan that he wasn’t going to let her out of his sight, that she was probably in danger from Zeus, that she had probably offended all of the Powers That Be, but he couldn’t. He would sound alarmist and somewhat crazy and more than a little overprotective.
At this point, he had no idea what she thought of him, but he hoped it was none of those things.
“You can just snap yourself there, right?” Megan asked. “Because I have to drive. I can’t afford to stay in that parking garage overnight.”
Snap himself there. What a way to describe it.
“I’d prefer not to use any more magic than I have to,” he said.
She looked skeptical.
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