I snorted. “Trust you? Really. I seem to recall being booted off your fancy island like I was a filthy commoner who wasn’t fit to be in your presence.”
“That wasn’t—”
Anger built in me. “Oh, but I was good enough to be in your bed, right? Maybe that’s your thing. Lure in a group of people with the promise of a bunch of money and dazzle them with your whole King of the Paldimori thing. I bet the women fall at your feet.”
“There have been women, but—”
Bastard! Bennett flinched as if he had heard that.
“Then there’s the bond thing” Hurt mixed with the anger, and I lashed out. “Do you have any idea what it was like to wake up alone with a big-ass tattoo on your back that wasn’t there before? I didn’t even get roses or chocolate. Not even a fucking note! Molly was the one who had to explain the Paldimori version of the birds and bees to me.”
“Lia, please—” He stepped forward to try to grab my hands.
The air around us simmered with building heat as I held my palms out to stop him. He halted, a look of frustration crossing his face. “I poured my heart out to you that night. You were the first I ever told about my parents. I shared not just my body with you but who I am. You held me and cherished me like I was precious.” My voice broke on those words and I swallowed thickly. “The next morning you belittled me and had your brother escort me off the island. Why would I trust you?”
A single tear trickled down my cheek and my heart cracked in two. A fiery blast shot out from me in all directions and everything went dark.
31
A week had passed without incident. I opened the gallery again. The occasional tourist stopped in, but mostly I was left to tend an empty store. A few good things had happened though. The first was that I spent an entire evening with Dia and told her everything. Well, almost everything. I’d made a promise to tell her about that year on the streets and I would. In time. We had laughed and cried over pints of our favorite ice cream. A little more of the guilt and darkness was chipped away.
The second thing was the phone call I received from Brice. He sounded uncharacteristically nervous as he apologized for the way he had treated me over the years. Apparently, his bank had been purchased by a large corporation that had paid off several loans as part of a publicity stunt. My loan had been one of the ones selected. I had sat there in stunned silence as he vented about the changes that the new company was making. Then he offered to open the line of credit that I had tried to get months before. I had laughed hysterically, both in relief and at his predicament. Then told him to go fuck himself and hung up.
Ms. Myrtle and Mr. Lawson had stopped in to check on me as well. They were dating. Mr. Lawson had told me his children now lived in fear that he would marry and leave their inheritance to Ms. Myrtle. From the gleam in his eye, I had no doubt he was considering it.
My life was almost back to normal. If you ignored the fact that I now had a permanent shadow in the form of Captain Jack. That I had burned two alarm clocks with no more than my fingers. Had a town full of people who still hated me. Oh, and a powerful Paldimori invading my dreams at night. Maybe it wasn’t exactly normal, but at least no one was trying to kill me.
Bennett and I had come to an agreement—about training at least. When I blew him up in my dream, I hadn’t expected to ever see him again, but the next night there we were, right back in the desert again. He hadn’t taken any chances that I would blast him again. The rotten man had trussed me up like a turkey.
“Hello, Lia,” he greeted me as I glared up at him unable to speak or move. “I would prefer to speak to you without the bindings, but you left me no choice. Do not try to escape. Those bindings are made specifically for our people. You will not be able to access your powers while you wear them.
“That was an impressive display of your fire gift last night. Although I would rather it not have been directed at me.” He crouched down beside me and pushed my hair back from my face. I attempted to kick out at him, but the ropes tightened around me. “I understand why. I have mistreated you. For that and more, I am sorry.
“You were right in all that you said last night. I had my reasons, but there is no excuse I can offer to change what was done. I will only say that you took me by surprise from the moment I first saw you and continued to surprise me at every turn. I never expected to find my bond-mate.” He reached for me but curled his hand back before making contact. “When I first felt our connection form, I was shocked. Then I saw your symbol, and I knew what it meant. I was angry and in denial. I convinced myself that everything was a lie, even the bond.” He paused as he looked down at me with a vulnerability I had never seen before in his eyes. “When you . . . died I felt it through the bond. It was a pain I do not ever wish to feel again, Lia. Please let me train you in your powers so you can keep yourself safe.”
My resentment faded a bit at his confession. A flash of pain and images filtered through our bond as he relived the moment I died. Feeling what he had felt in that moment, I couldn’t hold onto my anger. I nodded, and my bindings disappeared. He helped me to my feet, and my clothes changed to my workout gear.
“Fine. I promise to meet you here to practice my wizarding skills. Now I want a promise from you.” My voice was filled with the pain I had been trying to deny. “Promise me that you won’t come to my bed or try to seduce me again.”
A look of regret filled his dark eyes as he searched my face. “I promise I will do nothing unless you want it. I know that I have hurt you, Lia. I will offer you another promise. I promise I will make this right between us. For now, know that I need you to be safe. Come. Our time is short, and there is much to learn.”
He held his hand out to me, and I cautiously took it. He pulled me closer and placed my hand over his heart. My fingers tingled as what felt like a current of electricity seeped into me.
“There is energy all around and within. Feel the energy that flows between us. A bonded pair are like a closed circuit.” He said gently as if afraid I would flee at any moment. “We can share not only energy but our powers as well. My line is descended directly from the God of Chaos, and I am very powerful. We do not yet know all of your inherited powers, but you manifested several before our bond. Now that you can also tap into my powers it makes you formidable, but it is also very dangerous for you and those around you should you lose control.”
The training was hard work as I learned to tap into my power and control it. Bennett was gifted with all the powers of a Paldimori, but fire was one of the easiest for him. It also seemed to be the easiest for me to call. I was a pro at making things explode. It was not making them explode that was the problem. The training was slow going, and I had lots of time on my hands. Which is how I found myself making a decision that I hadn’t expected to be facing quite so soon.
I contacted my dad’s lawyer friend who had handled the estate after my parents’ deaths. We had talked a couple of times and completed all of the necessary paperwork. I was now the owner of a nearly eight-thousand-square-foot home on the coast of Mercer Island.
Tomorrow I would be setting foot in my childhood home for the first time in over four years. My feelings about that were a jumbled mess. Dia wanted to come with me, but I’d asked for time to face everything I had walked away from. She had agreed to meet me there in a couple of days.
I needed the time to myself to not only face the past but the future. The life I had come back to after Sotirìa no longer felt right. I had changed and couldn’t fit myself back into the mold I had created in Port Lawson. But what did I want from my life now that I had started living it?
32
The late-morning sun reflected brightly off the water lapping at the dock. The trip to Mercer Island had been a quiet one. I had stared out the window the majority of the time, lost in thought. Nightmares about the boating accident jolted me awake the few times I had nodded off. I had ignored the captain’s concerned glances.
James, the young man who was part of the staff that routine
ly maintained the house, greeted us in the drive. He was overjoyed that someone would be living there again, even if it was only for a few weeks. “Ms. Davies, welcome. Here, let me take your bags.”
“Thanks, James. Is anyone else around?”
“No. Don’t tell Mr. Renner, but sometimes I come out here by myself.” He gave me a pleading look hoping I wouldn’t tell my lawyer. “My dad has been sick, and my little brothers are a handful. I come here to lie on the dock and listen to the water. I promise I never go into the house.”
Poor kid, he couldn’t have been older than seventeen. “Your secret is safe with me. And you can come hang out on the dock anytime you want.” He had beamed at me and insisted on taking my bags inside. Since I wasn’t quite ready to go in, I let him.
I wandered the grounds and eventually ended up on the dock myself, staring down the coastline. The area where our boat had gone down wasn’t visible from that spot, but the place where I had washed up on shore was. That small section of beach was where I had woken terrified and disoriented. Weak and trembling, I’d stumbled to one of the houses for help, only to knock and knock until my knuckles bled. Using a flower pot, I had broken the window beside the door and let myself in to call the cops.
A chill chased down my spine, and I shook the memories away.
Captain Jack joined me; his sympathetic gaze was too much to handle, and I looked away. “Do you want me to come in with you?”
I glanced over my shoulder at the house looming in the distance. “No, I need to do this alone.”
“Strength isn’t about how many times you can stand up again after getting knocked down, you know,” he put his hand on my shoulder. “It’s also about letting someone help you get back up. If you asked, there would be plenty of people who would not only help you to your feet but would weather the blows with you.” He squeezed my shoulder, then turned back toward the house.
Logically, I knew he was right. That didn’t mean it was any easier to ask for help. My first step in the right direction would be to call Dia. She would be worried about me and wasn’t the type to stand being on radio silence for too much longer. I loved Dia, and I knew she’d be by my side in a heartbeat. But when the captain spoke of someone to weather the blows with me, I hadn’t thought of her. No, the shoulder I saw myself leaning on was much too muscular to belong to my best friend.
Heat pulsed along my back as I imagined him reaching for me. The tension eased from my shoulders as I was wrapped in his strong embrace. For a moment, I sank into the comfort. Then I stiffened my spine and cut our connection. I had learned that I could control how far I opened the door to let Bennett in. The heat abandoned me abruptly to be replaced by a cold hollowness that seemed to eat away at my last reserves of energy. Between his nightly visits and the nightmares, I was exhausted.
I glanced across the manicured lawns at the house nestled amongst the tall green trees. There was more to do before I could rest. Then I focused on putting one foot in front of the other. It was only a house. All the memories it contained were already imprinted on my mind. I had already faced the hardest ones that night in Bennett’s arms. My life had gotten stuck on the deck of that boat where the storm raged, and the water threatened to swallow me down as it had my parents. It was time to remember the love and laughter we had shared here. It was time to let light cast away the dark.
Gripping the handle of the double doors at the rear of the house, I felt something ripple across my skin. What was that? When nothing else happened, I cautiously stepped inside. It felt as if I was stepping through a layer of Jell-O. Could there be some kind of shield on the house? I turned and extended my arm back through the doorway. Again, it felt like pushing through a thick substance, but I couldn’t see anything.
“Why do I get the feeling that there’s a lot that my parents didn’t tell me?” I asked the empty room.
I passed through the lower level and took the stairs up to the main floor. The slate tile of the central foyer radiated warmth from the bright sunlight filtering through the wall of windows overlooking the lake. I barely noticed the spectacular view as I made my way to my destination.
My dad’s office was just as I remembered it. A tall sculpture of the anchor from his first ship took up a prominent place near the door. Miniature models of the ships his company had built over the years lined one wall. A large walnut desk sat in an alcove of windows that I had called his fishbowl.
Easing into his leather chair, I pushed myself up to the desk, the rollers squeaking. A smile tugged at my lips. A ray of sunshine broke through the darkness. How many times had Dad grumbled about that squeaking? The chair had been passed down to him from his grandfather. Had he never had it fixed because it reminded him of the life he left behind? Did any of his family—my family—still live in Sicily?
I settled my head back onto the chair, breathing in the faint scents of ocean and cedar. Those scents used to be stronger and my chest ached at the thought of that part of him fading away.
A flicker of yellow light amidst the ship models caught my attention. That was strange. None of the models had working lights. Then another flicker of yellow appeared in a different spot. A few moments later there was another one and then another. I walked over to the shelves to investigate. The lights seemed to be flickering in a pattern starting from the left and circling around. I counted as the pattern repeated: seven lights in all. My fingers trailed along the shelf until I came to a schooner that was approximately where I had seen the first light. I examined it from top to bottom, but didn’t find anything. The pattern started again. Patiently I waited, peering closely at the ship. There! The light wasn’t coming from the ship but from the wall behind it.
I quickly moved the ship to the side. A golden, wavy triangle shape tipped on its side protruded from the wall. It was a solid gold piece about the length of my thumb. I rubbed the smooth metal, the surface glowing brighter as it warmed beneath my finger. Dragging one of the visitor chairs away from the desk, I took a closer look and found other pieces. They were all the same size and shape but positioned at different points on the wall.
What were they for? Stepping back to scan the whole wall, I could see that they were arranged in a circle with their longer sides turned to the inside of the circle, suggesting they were spreading out from some kind of center. I drew a line in the air from each point. If I was correct, they all converged at one center point. At one ship.
The design of the ship was much older than any my dad had built. The body of the ship was long and narrow with the bow resembling some type of serpent. It had one large square sail and dozens of oars on each side. I reached for it, intending to look behind it. As soon as my hand touched it, the ship turned to solid gold.
Holy crap!
I tried to yank my hand away, but it was stuck. More by accident than design the ship was pushed toward the wall, but instead of smashing into the wall, the stern started to sink into it. The oars lifted, and the sails fluttered as the ship rowed itself into the wall. I was freaking out as I yanked frantically at my hand. The sound of crashing waves filled the room, and suddenly the seven gold pieces were growing. They stretched and rippled across the wall, glowing brighter as they converged upon the ship. Like liquid, they poured into the wall where half of the ship had disappeared. A brilliant light lit up the room.
I shielded my face with my free hand, expecting at any moment to feel the blast of a bomb. It wouldn’t surprise me if I exploded something else. All of a sudden, my hand came free, and I stumbled backward. My hand was unusually hot to the touch when I cupped it to my chest. I was relieved to see there wasn’t any damage.
A giant golden sun was now displayed on the wall. Then everything the sun touched started to dissolve from the center outward. A blinding golden light beamed from the hole that was swallowing up the entire wall of the office. The light wrapped around me, cradling me like a warm cocoon. It felt safe, comforting.
Finally, the light dimmed. Even after everything I had seen and learn
ed since I went to the island, I stared in awe at the sight before me. Walking forward, I dropped to my knees at the edge of the opening and cautiously inched my fingers across the threshold. When nothing happened, I extended my hand even further and skimmed my fingers through the thick grass. A ripple spread out from where the green blades tickled the palm of my hand. I watched, slack-jawed, as the ripple traveled across a field of hyacinths to a tall golden tower that sat near the edge of a cliff. When the ripple reached the top of the tower, a ball of orange-yellow light grew until it filled the circumference of the top of the tower and began to rotate. The light of the tower barely reached the deep valley below where more land stretched out toward the backdrop of the starry expanse of outer space.
“You are full of surprises aren’t you,” said a sarcastic female voice from behind me. “Congrats, I guess you really are one of us. Not that it matters.”
The cocking of a gun froze me to the spot. Slowly, I turned on my knees. “You! How did you get in here?”
“You mean how did I get through the barrier placed on the house?” Natalie grinned menacingly. “Oh, you could say I hitched a ride. Your friend needed a little persuasion to let us in. Unfortunately, my associate’s methods are not quite as enjoyable as mine. No real harm done, yet. See for yourself.” She gestured toward the desk.
So there really had been a barrier on the house. Dread filled me. If the barrier had repelled her, there was likely an excellent reason. I climbed to my feet. No! James was tied and gagged in my dad’s chair. His left eye was swollen nearly shut, the other wide with fear. Blood trickled from a cut on his cheek.
“You must be Paldimori too. I never would have guessed. Of course, I had no idea what that meant until a couple of weeks ago,” I said, my thoughts racing. Had Captain Jack let Jaxon know I was here? Was the captain waiting for an opening to jump her?
A hazy figure clad all in black stood behind the chair. The frame suggested a man, but I couldn’t make out any other details due to the white glow that surrounded him. His hands were splayed in front of James’s face as a sizzling rope of white light arched threateningly between his palms. Another figure sprawled face down on the floor in front of the desk. Damn, it was Captain Jack.
Paldimori Gods Rising Box Set Page 26