Soul Breather (21st Century Sirens Book 1)

by T Stedman

  Tia found herself having to look on in morbid curiosity. It looked like a mixture of boxing, martial arts and wrestling. It was quick and surprisingly very evenly matched. Every jab and kick was blocked; very little got through on either side.

  ***

  Jay felt fantastic. He felt in tune with every sinew and fibre in his body. He felt an instinct a millisecond before Sean decided where he was going to hit or kick next and he could pre-empt it correctly every time.

  “Let me have a go,” Cash shouted from the side lines. He was already unbuttoning his checked shirt revealing his huge bear-like chest. Jay was tall but very lean. Cash was a big cowboy who could wrestle steers to the ground.

  Tia put her hands over her face.

  “Have a bit of faith, Tia!” Jay shouted to her.

  Tia shook her head.

  Again Jay got low. He knew he’d have to use Cash’s weight against him, as he was probably twice his. Again he managed to dodge every lunge. His speed was amazing; everyone was noticing it. He even found he could use his peripheral vision and his ears, which made his intuition perfect.

  Jay was aware when the four guards, including Keenan, entered the barn. Keenan leant back and folded his arms and watched the show in front of him.

  Jay and Cash were sweating. Jay hadn’t enjoyed himself so much in ages. It felt as though his body was a machine that could do anything. Eventually he and Cash touched knuckles and called it a draw. Both were breathing heavily but wore huge beaming smiles.

  Jay turned around to Tia still smiling. “See, I’m okay.”

  Tia shook her head and put another record on.

  “Not bad for a Human,” Keenan said, from the edge of the barn. He was studying Jay’s array of Atlantean tattoos for the first time as he turned around to him.

  “You wanna have a go?” Jay said, with a straight face.

  “You have fought twice already, it wouldn’t be fair.” Keenan replied.

  “I don’t mind if you don’t.” Yes you fucker. Let’s have it. Jay paced round in a circle as Keenan pulled off his black t-shirt and removed his watch.

  Tia noticed the new challenger, switched off the decks and came over to them. Cash pulled her quickly to the side with him and Sean, out of harm’s way.

  Jay got low again. Keenan looked massive in comparison. His hairless chest and back rippled with knotted muscle and the Santalini warrior tattoos moved with him like a warning.

  “What say we make it interesting and use a weapon?” Keenan offered.

  “No!” Tia shouted, but quickly shut up when she heard Keenan say she had no faith in her man.

  Cash chucked over two broomsticks. “That’s as sharp as you’re getting.”

  They both caught them and got down in their stances.

  “This is cool.” Sean said, and took out his mobile phone to record it.

  From the first bash of sticks, it looked and sounded like lightening. They used them like quarterstaffs, blocking with the staffs held wide and striking like they were long swords. They turned, twisted and smashed above each other’s heads.

  Jay was in the zone. Fuck, he felt like he was Neo out of the Matrix, his reflexes were so fast. He knew Keenan was toying with him at first, but when he really started to see him as a worthy opponent, he turned it on and Jay was ready for him.

  Today he was putting his stake in the ground to show Keenan once and for all that he wasn’t to be messed with.

  Before long, Keenan managed to beat Jay back against the wall and pinned him with his stick across his neck. He grimaced as he spoke showing Jay his fangs. “What about something a bit more close quarters?”

  “Anytime,” Jay bit out.

  One of the other guards who were standing nearby took two daggers out of a holster under his jacket and quickly passed them to Keenan.

  Everyone went to step forward to shout their protests, but the three other guards barred their way. “Let them continue,” one said.

  When Keenan released Jay from his hold, Jay dropped his staff and took one of the daggers from Keenan whose grin was totally saying ‘you’re mine now’.

  “This is how we spar,” Keenan said, returning to the centre of the barn.

  Jay followed him – not intimidated in the slightest, but completely focused, – passing the dagger from hand to hand to feel its weight.

  Keenan lunged forward. Jay spun out of the way, kicked out a leg and tripped Keenan up so he went to the ground. Murmurs around them sounded as Jay leapt on him and they rolled over and over in the dirt. Keenan managed to throw him off and scramble back to his feet.

  Keenan lunged again. This time Jay went to the floor and used his foot and Keenan’s momentum to throw him over the top of him. But Keenan wasn’t easy to dupe for long and began to read his moves and became harder and harder to throw, until eventually he unbalanced Jay and used his weight to pin him with his dagger to his throat.

  They both stared into each other’s eyes, breathing heavily. Jay couldn’t move – not a millimetre. All the spectators dared not breathe.

  “I could have killed you in the hospital and I could kill you now,” Keenan said, in a gritted whisper that only Jay could hear.

  Tiny swirls of blood entered Keenan’s ice blue irises, turning his eyes red for a second. Then they dissolved, leaving his eyes clear again.

  Jay watched wide-eyed while his breath hacked in and out of his lungs, and his brain worked hard for an out.

  “You don’t give up do you, even when you’re pinned?” Keenan said, as if he’d read his mind.

  Jay remained silent.

  Keenan smiled, sat back onto his knees, and as he stood he offered a hand down to Jay to pull him to his feet. Jay used the hand offered but remained quiet and thoughtful as he walked back over to the group of Cash, Sean and Tia.

  Keenan walked back over to him as he pulled his shirt back over his head. “Have you sparred with daggers before?”

  Subdued, Jay shook his head. “Would you teach me?”

  Keenan nodded, turned and walked out of the barn with his Guard mates.

  Sean and Cash clapped Jay on the back.

  Chapter 28

  Later that day, a letter arrived by courier with the royal Dubonnetti seal on it, addressed to Keenan. Cash passed it to him as soon as he’d signed for it and closed the door.

  They were all sitting on the porch escaping the heat of the afternoon with a beer.

  “Do you think it’s from Dante?” Cash asked, as he handed it to him.

  “I doubt it … this should be interesting.” Keenan snapped the seal and read it quickly in his head and then closed it and put it in his back pocket.

  Everyone looked at him expectantly as he took a swig of his beer.

  “Well?” Jay asked.

  “Well what?’ Keenan replied.

  “You’re not going to tell us?”

  Keenan sighed as if he were calculating what he was going to say. “It’s from Marco Dubonnetti, ordering us to bring you two,” and he pointed to Jay and Tia, “back to them in Ireland, and bring my own woman while I’m at it.”

  A sad silence fell on everyone. They waited again uncomfortably. They all came to the conclusion that it meant Dante had been deposed as king. When they eventually realised that Keenan wasn’t going to be forthcoming with any more information, they slowly dispersed to do other things or to the privacy of their rooms.

  Cash called Tia to help him apply a poultice to a skittish colt, and left Jay and Keenan alone. As neither were big talkers, there was a gaping great silence between them. But Jay wasn’t going to be intimidated into talking crap any more than Keenan was, so the pair just carried on swigging their beers. Jay eventually broke the silence. “Do you want something stronger?”

  “Sure,” Keenan said, draining his bottle.

  Jay went into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of Jack Daniel’s and a couple of glasses and came back out on the porch. “You know I won’t let you take Tia to that prick!”

  K
eenan laughed. “You are always so confrontational. Do you know that?”

  “What can I say …you bring out the best in me.”

  Keenan tilted his glass as if to say cheers. “Look, I’ll tell you this much, the Guard is a royal family. We will not to be ordered about by some poncey boy you could knock over with a strong gust of wind. We have long traditions and honour.”

  “What are you gonna do?’

  “Speak to Alfonzo for a start. I’ve got a feeling it’s a bluff to get us all there.”

  “What, and you think Dante is still king?’

  “Exactly.”

  “Where do you think Dante is?”

  “Let’s find out.” Keenan took his mobile out of his pocket and hit Alfonzo’s number. “Alfonzo?” He explained what was in the letter he’d received, and that it had been sent with the king’s royal seal on it.

  Jay felt he was a good judge of character and although Keenan ruffled all his feathers most of the time, he was proving to be an okay guy. He’d come through a few times now.

  “Yes he’s with me now,” Keenan continued. “Okay, I’ll tell him.” And he ended the call.

  He looked at Jay. “Dante’s still king. He’s now living at Ballygowan Castle. This letter,” and he pointed to his back pocket, “is an act of treason.”

  “What are they gonna do about it?”

  “They’re planning some strategy to bring all the families together for some meeting. Because of the Sirens being Bonaci, and the Bonaci backing Dante, I think he’s safe … for the time being anyway.”

  “Good.” Jay said, relieved, and he poured them another drink.

  They were quiet for a while again.

  “You know I thought you were a traitor to your friend when I first met you?” Keenan said, sitting back in his chair more relaxed now.

  “I know,” Jay said.

  Keenan smiled. “So you’ve known Dante all your life?”

  “Pretty much.”

  “And you are fucking his wife?”

  Jay just looked at him in warning. “What is this …you trying to pick a fight now?”

  “There you go again … I’m just trying to understand. You seem close to Dante, even now. I’m supposed to be guarding the lot of you. I sort of think it’s important to understand the dynamics of this relationship triangle; whatever it is.”

  Jay sat back in his chair and downed his drink. “It’s a fucking mess.” He sighed. “It could have been less messy, if it wasn’t for Marco Dubonnetti.”

  “I don’t understand?’ Keenan said, confused.

  Jay went on to explain the short version of the story. How he and Tia had met long before he or she knew what she was, or even who Dante was in connection with her, and Marco’s part in fucking them all over.

  Keenan quietly listened. “So he is your closest friend. You both love the same woman, through no fault of either of you, and you are all tied together permanently.

  “That’s about the size of it.”

  Keenan digested the information for a second and shook his head in disbelief. “Lacy; that’s my Siren, was my best friend; the closest person to me. There were no family for us growing up- only each other.”

  “Was?” Jay asked, frowning.

  “She doesn’t know who I am … not a clue.”

  “Fuck!”

  “Yeah … exactly. So I’ve got to find a way to get her to remember me before some bastard takes her off me.”

  “Like Marco?”

  Keenan looked at Jay with pure hatred on his face. Jay saw the eerie red swirls enter his eyes again and disappear and guessed they were to do with anger or something.

  “I would gut him like a pig before I gave her to him.”

  Jay understood that sentiment and poured them another drink. “The thing I have learned, mate, is that it all happens under the water. And it don’t matter if they force them in there or not. When it comes down to it, it’s just the Siren and the bloke, and if she doesn’t accept him … it’s curtains.”

  Keenan nodded and clinked his glass with Jay. “You’re right.”

  It was a strange meeting of minds, but as the two of them drank their Jack Daniel’s, a new understanding and allegiance was formed.

  ***

  The next few days were busy on the ranch. Cash wanted to get his hay cut, baled, and in his barn before the weather hit. So as well as the extra hands he hired, everyone pitched in and helped do the heavy work.

  Tia enjoyed helping with Sarah to bring out cool drinks and food, especially as it gave her ample opportunity to perve on Jay’s stripped-to–the-waist body hefting the hay. All it needed was some Barry White in the background for the complete sensory package. Jay totally thrived on any sort of physical activity.

  The sun was going down as they put the last few bales in the barn. All felt the satisfaction of a job well done. Everyone’s face beamed as Mrs Ross, the housekeeper, rewarded them all with a huge spread to celebrate on the back porch.

  All the men swarmed over the food, piling their plates high. The mood was jovial. Beers sprouted from barrels filled with ice, and were grabbed by everyone as they passed by.

  Tia enjoyed watching Jay interact with everyone and thought how much he’d fitted in and relaxed since he’d been ill. She’d managed to avoid sexual contact with him since, but seeing him sunburnt and happy, her resolve was dissipating by the minute.

  She was vaguely aware of the phone ringing in the house while she was gazing at Jay. Then Mrs Ross came out and she dragged her eyes away to watch her go up to Keenan and whisper something discretely. He nodded, stood and went into the house, so Tia turned her attention back to Jay who was sitting next to her making short work of a plate of ribs; something she could never try.

  He sensed her watching him and looked sideways at her. “Am I making a pig of myself?” he said, with that adorable lack of confidence she’d grown to love about him.

  “Not at all,” she said, and leant into him to kiss him on the cheek. “I was thinking the outdoor life suits you.”

  He pushed his plate away, washed his hands in the finger bowl and sat back holding her hand. “Yeah, I’ve really enjoyed the last few days.”

  “Could you ever see yourself living this life?”

  He half-turned his body so he could look at her properly and smiled. “Why, are you propositioning me?”

  “Oh yeah,” she said, inching closer to him and wishing they were alone.

  As she was about to throw caution to the wind and out and out snog him anyway, Keenan came back out from the house, having changed his clothes, put his keys in his pocket from the table and announced to everyone he was going.

  The mood sobered instantly as everyone sensed there was something wrong. The three other guards were already on their feet.

  Jay quickly stood. “What’s up mate?”

  “Christian and Marco have turned up at our HQ in New York. That was my eldest brother Marius,” he said, nodding his head back towards the house. “They have been trying to win him and my uncle over to accepting Marco’s claim to the throne by throwing in with them.”

  “They won’t will they?” Jay asked.

  “I doubt it, but I’m sorry I have to go. Lacy is there. They’ll want her to pledge to Marco, and there’s no fucking way I’m having that.”

  Jay was already taking out his phone. Tia eavesdropped him making travel arrangements while Keenan apologised to everyone. They were just concerned for him and told him not to worry about anyone else.

  Jay ended his call. “My plane is at Billings, take it.”

  Keenan shook his hand. “Thank you man, I won’t forget it. I will take two of my men and leave one with you.”

  “That’s fine,” Jay said. “Me, Cash and Sean are capable of overseeing things here. Just go mate.”

  Keenan thanked everyone and took a hasty goodbye. Worry and anxiety were written all over his face. How he loved her sister. She really hoped they worked things out, and for the first time she real
ly longed for a sister; something she’d never had before.

  ***

  Tia was subdued for the rest of the evening. When at last she and Jay got into bed, he asked if she was okay.

  “Oh, I dunno,” she sighed. “I was thinking about Keenan that’s all, and how horrible everything is for him at the moment.”

  Jay nodded, while he lay on his back and looked at the ceiling with his hands behind his head.

  “I know it’s been hard for us,” Tia continued. “But I’m sort of glad that I’ve done my pledging already. It sort of takes me out of the game, doesn’t it?”

  Jay pulled her to him. “I still don’t trust what they’re up to, Tia … I think we need to be careful.”

  She turned onto her side to look at him. “How do you feel about the Dubonnetti’s, you were sort of part of the family weren’t you?”

  “Yeah, but it’s always been me and Dante really … His dad used to just bring me there, that’s all. I had no bond with him or anything. I used to feel angry at the way he treated Dante most of the time.”

  They lay quietly in each other’s arms for a while.

  “Can I ask you a question Tia?”

  “Of course.” There followed silence. She looked up at him when he didn’t speak.

  “Aagh,” he said, sitting up, pushing his hand through his hair in impatience with himself.

  “Come on, out with it,” she said, not letting him off the hook.

  He looked at her as if debating with himself. “Have you been avoiding me?” he said, his cheeks bursting red with embarrassment. He tried to pull away from her, grumbling, “I’m not used to talking this kind of shit.”

  Touched, she sat up and grabbed his face in her hands and looked deep into his eyes. “I’ve been letting you get better.”

  He looked at her a long while, with that calculating look she knew so well. “I’ve been sparring every day with Keenan, working with Cash, I’m as strong as an Ox, Tia.” He pulled out of her hands as if he’d convinced himself of something and sat on the edge of the bed.

  Tia could feel everything spiralling out of her control. She knew how hard it was for him to talk anything remotely resembling feelings. But deep down she was terrified about losing herself to her true nature and hurting him again, perhaps killing him this time.