Goddess Legacy

by M.W. Muse

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Calli, what time is Zach picking you up?”

  “He’ll be here in about an hour. Then we’ll head to your house.”

  “Okay, bye.” Legacy hung up the phone and continued getting ready.

  Tonight was the double date that she and Calli had planned last week. Zach and Adin got along fine, so that was a bonus. They didn’t seem like the type of guys that would be friends on their own, but since she and Calli brought them together, they were more than cordial. She figured when Calli and Zach broke up that Adin would probably stay friends with Zach. She didn’t expect a breakup soon, but their relationship didn’t seem as serious as her relationship with Adin was.

  And their relationship was serious. They were now spending every free second together, and when they weren’t together, they were on the phone. They talked about everything. She told him about her dreams and her theories, and he was always attentive and insightful. She didn’t think he really believed she was going to be a goddess—other than his own personal goddess—but he was never negative about it. He knew that was what she thought, and he was there for her.

  River was his new distant self. He didn’t talk to her unless she spoke to him first, but he was always staring. Always longing from afar. If he was close to her, he used it as an opportunity to touch her, which she ignored, and he hated. A few times he’d overheard her talking to Yale about her dates with Adin, and that would either put him in a funkier mood or make him more presumptuous. She didn’t like him hurting, but she wasn’t going to entertain his behavior. She knew her indifference hurt him more than anything, though.

  The weather hadn’t changed. Since it hadn’t rained in weeks, there were still burn bans everywhere, and it was blistering hot. Too hot to do much of anything outside during the peak hours of the day. The spring flowers were dried up and dead, as was the grass and everything else that was supposed to be green or colorful. And the scorching weather outside made a movie night ideal, so that was what they were all going to do tonight. Since Zach had an SUV, they were riding with him. After Zach and Calli picked her up, they were going to get Adin.

  She had been too busy picking out a sexy outfit that she was running late when Calli and Zach arrived, so she threw her hair up and ran outside. When they reached Adin’s house, she got out and went to his door, but he came out before she got there.

  “You should have waited for me to come and get you,” she teased.

  Adin laughed and shook his head. “I didn’t want you out in this heat.” He grabbed her waist. “But you do look hot!”

  She shrugged her shoulders. “I know,” she said a little arrogantly while she twisted out of his embrace and grabbed his hand.

  They got in the car and headed to the movies. It was the first time she and Adin had been in a car together without him driving. It wasn’t dark yet, so she and Adin could stare at each other without any intrusions. Well, almost any intrusions.

  “What are you two doing back there?” Calli asked as she turned to look.

  “Nothing,” Legacy said sarcastically.

  “You’re being awfully quiet,” her BFF teased.

  “And you’re not,” she said, unable to suppress a laugh.

  Calli turned back around and messed with the radio. Legacy went back to staring at Adin, but he had a playful look in his eyes.

  She raised an eyebrow, wondering what he was thinking, but he just grinned bigger. Then he leaned over and kissed her. She realized he was doing this to irritate Calli, but Legacy had gotten so into it that she eventually forgot they weren’t alone. She held him tightly to her, drinking in his hot kisses, losing herself in his exploring mouth.

  Calli cleared her throat. “You two should get a room!” she chided jokingly.

  Adin pulled away laughing, but Legacy was too flustered to find her friend’s interruption funny.

  It didn’t matter because they were pulling into the parking lot at the movie theater. Adin got out of the car, and she slid out the same door. He put his arm around her and guided her into the theater while Calli and Zach went in hand-in-hand.

  When they got inside, Adin handed her some money. “Why don’t you and Calli get in line at the concession stand?” It was a good idea. That line was already long.

  The guys waited to buy their tickets while she and Calli stood in line to get some popcorn and drinks. While they were waiting, she heard a familiar voice coming in.

  And Legacy froze.

  The voice wasn’t as somber as it had been recently. There was laughing and joking coming from it. She didn’t even want to turn around and look. She knew it was River.

  She turned to Calli to see if she’d heard him, but she was trying to look around the people in front of them to see the candy selection.

  “Calli?” Legacy whispered.

  “Huh?” she asked, not looking at her.

  Legacy gently tugged her arm, and she turned to look at her. “River is here.”

  Calli’s eyes got really big, and she started to speak. Legacy shook her head quickly. She didn’t want her friend opening her mouth since she had no idea where he was.

  Calli glanced around causally, like she was bored with standing in line. When she finished, she leaned toward Legacy. “He saw me,” she murmured.

  Legacy growled under her breath. This could not be happening! She and Adin hadn’t talked about River since the night Adin had gotten back from his dad’s. From the sound of it that night, Adin wasn’t dropping the conversation, but there really wasn’t a point in bringing it back up. Until now.

  It was their turn at the counter, so they quickly got their popcorn and sodas and stepped to the side to wait for their dates.

  “Where are Adin and Zach?” she asked Calli when she realized neither of them was in line at the ticket counter.

  “Er, I don’t know. Maybe they went to the restroom.”

  Not thinking, Legacy scanned the crowd to try and find Adin. Mistake. River was staring right at her, waiting for her to look for him. Their eyes met for half a second, and he started to smile, but she kept scanning the room, looking for Adin. She couldn’t find him. And she sure as hell wasn’t going to entertain River undressing her with his eyes.

  “River just saw me,” she whispered to Calli. “I was looking for Adin, so River probably thinks you told me you saw him and that I tried to find him.”

  “Don’t be silly, Legacy.”

  “Calli, I told you about what happened. If Adin knows that River is here, he’s going to flip!”

  “Well, River does look hot. And that guy he’s with, talk about ridiculous! They must be related.”

  Leave it to Calli to focus on their looks. “He said something about family being in from out of town,” she mumbled, still looking for Adin.

  “Hi, Legacy,” she heard from behind, but that voice so did not belong to the man she was looking for.

  Calli jumped and spun around.

  Legacy slowly turned. “Hi, River.”

  “Wow. You look gorgeous,” River said, staring at her, the longing look front and center.

  “Thanks.”

  River shut his eyes and shook his head. “Ummm…” He opened his eyes again. “This is my cousin, Paul,” he introduced.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” she said as she went back to scanning the room.

  “What are you looking for?” River asked.

  “Hmm?” She was still scanning the room, not looking at River.

  “Hey,” she heard Adin say, coming from the side.

  She twirled around to face him. He had a half-smile on his face, and Zach was laughing.

  “He just beat me playing air hockey,” Zach said as they approached. “No one’s ever beaten me before.”

  “Really?” Legacy asked nervously. How could she get Adin away without seeing the guy beside her?

  Adin noticed the tone in her voice and furrowed his eyebrows. As he stepped up to her, he finally saw River and Paul standing behind Legacy
and Calli.

  “Looks like every time we leave you two alone, men hit on you,” Zach said as he put his arm around Calli.

  “Hi, I’m River Rysaor.” River introduced himself, sticking his hand out to Zach. “I live next door to Calli.”

  She was watching Adin’s face as she heard River’s voice. His expression turned to stone right in front of her. He clenched his teeth and narrowed his eyes. This was not going to be good.

  “Don’t,” she mouthed to Adin without speaking. “Please.”

  He walked up to her and put his hand on her side to move her around him so that now Adin was standing in front of River.

  “Oh, well, it’s nice to meet you then,” Zach responded.

  Adin stuck his hand out to River, and she watched from behind. “Adin Sheppard,” he said in a grave tone, and River’s eyes opened slightly wider, then narrowed.

  “River Rysaor.”

  The two of them glared at each other and shook hands purposefully. While they were sizing each other up, Zach and Paul watched in confusion.

  Adin stepped right up to River, and Legacy closed her eyes. This was not going to end well. River would be in the hospital, and they were all going to jail.

  “If you don’t start showing her some respect, I’m going to tear you apart,” Adin said as calmly as he could manage.

  “If you don’t back off, you’ll get your chance sooner rather than later.” River wasn’t calm.

  Adin laughed without any humor. “It’s not so much fun having someone in your face that you don’t want there, is it?” He paused. “This is your only warning,” he growled. He dropped River’s hand and turned to her. He put his arm around her waist and kissed her forehead. He started to lead her off when River spoke again.

  “It was a pleasure meeting you,” River said with heavy sarcasm.

  They kept walking, but Adin turned to look at him. “The pleasure’s going to be all mine.”

  Legacy was sure she wasn’t the only one who caught all the meanings in that phrase! The pleasure Adin would have when he killed him. The pleasure he would have by her being all his. But at least he didn’t beat him to a pulp.

  They got into the movie and took their seats.

  “Are you okay?” she asked Adin.

  “Me? Why?” He sounded puzzled.

  “Because you looked like you were about to kill River.”

  “I’m fine.” He shrugged. “Are you okay?”

  “I guess so.”

  “That’s all that matters to me. Besides, I’m not going to let him ruin our date.”

  She smiled at him, and he leaned down and kissed her.

  Once the movie started, it was very dark in the theater. She and Adin had their hands on each other’s legs, stroking them. She couldn’t say what the movie was about because she was enjoying watching his hand on her leg. By about halfway through the movie, their touches had become too much for either of them to bear. She leaned back in her seat and looked at Adin while she breathed heavily. He stared right back for a few seconds, but then he obviously couldn’t take it anymore. He moved his other hand to her face and kissed her.

  And they did just that throughout the rest of the movie.

  When it was finally over, they stood up to leave, and at the back of the room, River and Paul were sitting there. He couldn’t have had a clear view of Adin and her during the movie, but he would’ve had enough of a view to make out their actions. She glanced at Adin to see if he’d noticed. And because he had a smug look on his face, she knew he had. Surprisingly, River sitting back there didn’t bother her. He needed a reality check.

  She and Adin went to the car, but Calli stayed with Zach while he was getting a refill on his drink.

  Legacy leaned against the car, staring at Adin. He put both his hands against the car on either side of her face, pressing against her. He kissed her neck and made his way up to her ear.

  “I’ve had a wonderful time with you this evening,” he whispered.

  She put her hands on his waist and panted, “Me too.”

  Adin chuckled. He was enjoying her response more than his own actions. She couldn’t allow that.

  She turned her face so that it was right up against his, pretending she was going to kiss him. He leaned in, willing, but she leaned back. She turned her head to the other side and tilted it toward him like she was going to kiss him from a different angle. He leaned in more quickly, but she leaned back again. She grabbed his head and feigned another attempt. He tried more forcefully to follow through with it, but she grasped his head within an inch of her lips. He groaned.

  “I’m going to have to separate you two,” Calli said as she approached them.

  Adin sighed heavily and bowed his head in defeat. Legacy giggled.

  On the ride back, they all talked, though no one talked about the movie itself or the encounter with River. When they got to Adin’s house, she got out with him. He wanted to take her home, so they said their goodbyes to Calli and Zach and got in Adin’s car.

  “Do you want to go hiking tomorrow?” Adin asked once they were on the road.

  “Sure. What time?”

  “Early. I want to get back before it gets too hot. I’ll pick you up after breakfast.”

  “Okay.”

  Adin was quiet for several more minutes before he spoke again. “I have to go to orientation in a couple of weeks. I’ll probably be at school all that week.”

  “All week?”

  “Yeah, they have these seminars scheduled. They’ll show us around campus, meet with the parents, have a banquet for the entering freshmen…those kinds of things.”

  “Oh. Well, I guess that’s good then.”

  Adin glanced over at her. “I’m going to miss you. I don’t like the thought of being away from you for an entire week. I hated going on vacation earlier this summer.”

  “I know,” she whispered.

  They pulled into her driveway, but Adin didn’t get out of the car. He leaned over to her and put his hand on her face. His mouth twitched like he was fighting a smile.

  “If I lean in to kiss you, are you going to tease me again?”

  He was trying to distract her from him leaving. It was working. She smiled.

  “We both know you’re much better at teasing me than I am at teasing you. If Calli hadn’t walked up when she did…” He paused, shaking his head.

  “If Calli hadn’t walked up when she did, I would have kept on teasing you until you couldn’t stand it anymore.” She smirked.

  “I was already at that point when she walked up.”

  “I don’t know, I think you could have taken a little more.” She reached up and stroked his chest. “I think you like it when I tease you.”

  He didn’t say anything. He just leaned over and kissed her, and she giggled into his mouth.

  “I’m going to have to get better at this,” he said between kisses.

  “I love you just the way you are,” she whispered.

  Then he kissed her more sincerely.

  After Adin left, she went upstairs and got ready for bed. That night, all her dreams converged. The storm clouds were there, and the snakes were all around her. She stood in the middle of the three snake holes. Adin stood at one hole, River stood at another hole, and a faceless man stood at the other. The girl stood to the side screaming at her to run, but she wanted the tornado to come for her. As it formed and almost consumed her, she yelled, “No!” and it dissipated. After it cleared, the sky turned bright pink, and lightning bolts floated down from the sky, but disappeared before they reached her.

  Then a new dream started. She was in Florida at the beach, and the red warning flags were out while the storm brewed in the Gulf. Adin was with her, and he wanted them to evacuate before the hurricane hit. As they started to run, a woman appeared in front of them. She had wavy blonde hair, just like her mom, but she had a red-colored, strong-smelling kipper in her hand. She stared at them before speaking.

  “Everything isn’t alway
s as it seems.”

  Then her wavy hair turned into snakes, falling all around her. The snakes started to come for them just as the hurricane made landfall. As the hurricane hit, it turned into River. River threw himself in front of the snakes.

  “No!” he yelled, and the woman screamed so loudly that the ground trembled.

  River turned to Adin and yelled, “I will tear you apart!” Then River turned back into a hurricane and started charging for Adin.

  She woke up to the sound of the phone ringing. She was completely dazed by her dreams. All the old ones coming together in one, and the new dream she hadn’t had before.

  With her old dreams, she realized the three holes weren’t literally snake holes. They represented three men. Two of which she understood. The third one, she had no idea who he was, but she felt like this was a love triangle. And she was wrong about wanting the tornado to come. She still wasn’t scared of it, but it felt like she needed to stop it.

  The new dream was so vivid because Adin had been there during a tropical storm. The red warning flags were sending her a warning, but not just about the hurricane. They were warning her about the woman. The woman looked motherly, but then turned evil. And she couldn’t understand why she was holding a fish. A kipper. A herring. She gasped. A red herring. Something really wasn’t as it seemed. But what? And why was River a hurricane? At least he wanted to stop this woman from hurting her. She understood why he wanted to protect her, but then he turned on Adin. He wanted to kill him. If he killed Adin, then she and River couldn’t be together. Why would River attack Adin with deadly intentions when he believed so strongly about the prophecy?

  Legacy grabbed the phone as it rang again, irritated with the disruption while she was finally getting somewhere with her dreams. “Hello?”

  “Legacy, it’s River.”

  What? He’d better have a good reason for calling her this early. Then she got even more irritated that he’d been the one to wake her up from that new dream.

  “I need you to come in today. Yale had a family emergency and my mom’s out of town.”

  Ugh. She had plans with Adin. She didn’t want to cancel on him to help River. But this was her job, and she needed to keep it for a few more weeks.

  “Fine. I’ll be there.”

  “Thanks. I’m really sorry.”

  “It’s no problem.”

  She hung up the phone and called Adin. Luckily, he was already awake.

  “Hey, I can’t go today.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I have to work after all.”

  Adin was quiet for a moment. “Okay.” He sounded a little sad, but at least he understood.

  “I’ll call you when I get off. Maybe we can do something later.” She hoped that thought would cheer him up.

  “I can’t. I’m going out to dinner with my mom and grandma.”

  “Oh.” They wouldn’t get to see each other at all today.

  “Call me when you get off work anyway, okay?”

  “Sure.”

  She got off the phone and got ready for work. It was raining outside. The first time it had actually rained in weeks. That was good because they really needed it. But it felt prosaic, which was symbolic of her emotional state. She found out yesterday that Adin would be going away for a week, and now she wouldn’t get to see him today. At least they couldn’t have gone hiking in the rain anyway.

  When she got to work, River was storming around the store. It looked as if he was trying to take care of something, but he was clearly irritated.

  “What’s going on?” she asked after putting up her stuff.

  “The roof is leaking again,” he mumbled as he walked past her with a ladder.

  Thunder rolled outside.

  “I’ll go get a mop.”

  “No. I’ve already cleaned it up.”

  River walked up the ladder and took down the ceiling tiles. More water spilled out, and he uttered several curse words.

  She went to the supply closet, got the mop, and started cleaning up the water while River examined the roof. She was looking up at River, making sure he didn’t fall, and not paying attention to the mess she was cleaning. She was slinging the mop around quickly, but she was standing in the new puddle of water.

  River yelled another curse word. “The handyman didn’t do this right! I’m going to have to call a roofer.”

  The thunder got louder outside.

  He climbed down and made the call while she continued cleaning up the water, stopping every few minutes to wring out the mop.

  After he got off the phone, he started preparing the register for the store to open since she hadn’t done it—she was still busy with the mess.

  “Did you have fun last night?” he asked curtly.

  Thunder crashed.

  She didn’t want to talk to River about that. It was none of his business. “Yes.”

  “I was really happy to see you until I realized who you were with.”

  “You should have known,” she hissed.

  The rain was pounding on the roof and leaking through the ceiling back onto the floor. She continued to mop it up, but it was coming in faster than she could dry it. And River was trying to talk about Adin?

  “I didn’t like seeing you with him that way.”

  “Were you watching us?” she screeched, turning toward him.

  Lightning flashed through the windows.

  “It was hard not to when he was all over you like that!”

  “You could have left!”

  “I was entertaining family. You should have been more wary of your surroundings. And he thinks I need to treat you with more respect? What a joke!”

  “What the hell does that mean?” she demanded.

  “It means he should follow his own advice and not treat you like a conquest.”

  “Ugh!” she screamed.

  Thunder crashed and lightning glared violently outside.

  “You have no idea what my relationship with Adin is like! You’re just jealous.”

  She was slinging the mop, sloshing the water around.

  “Of course I am, but I’m not the one who’s afraid to admit how I feel. That’s you, baby!”

  “Oh! Don’t you baby me! I’m not your baby!”

  “I guess it’s a good thing I called you in today. You couldn’t have gone hiking in this weather.” He smirked.

  “What? How did you know about that?” She was too mad to be as shocked as she should have been.

  “I know everything,” he said, glaring at her.

  Oh no he didn’t. “Did you set this up so I’d have to cancel my date?” she screamed.

  She slung the mop into the base of some metal shelving right when lightning struck the building.

  She felt a jolt and slumped over.

  She could feel water all over her face as she sprawled unmoving on the floor.

  “Legacy?” she heard River ask frantically and felt him pulling on her. “Legacy, please answer me.”

  River kept tugging her on her arm until he managed to gently turn her over. She felt his hands on her face, opening her mouth.

  “Oh no…you’re not breathing. Legacy, baby, please, please.”

  She wasn’t breathing? Then how could she hear everything he was saying to her and how could she feel the cold, wet rainwater soaking her clothes?

  She felt River’s lips on hers, and he forced air into her lungs. It hurt going in. Then she felt his hands on her chest, compressing against her heart. He continued to go back and forth while she heard the beeping of his cell phone.

  “I need an ambulance.” His voice was breaking. He was crying? He rattled off the address to the store then heard his phone beep again.

  “Legacy, they’ll be here in a few minutes,” she heard him say as he was doing chest compressions. “Damn you, Mother!” he yelled, but Legacy didn’t feel the force of his words on her face, so he must be looking away from her. “I’ll kill you if she dies, Medusa! Do you fucking hear me, Mom?�
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  As he worked to keep Legacy alive, her mind was reeling. She knew 1887 was dangerous. Adin wanted her to be careful when he told her this number in her dream, which turned out to be the address of the store. But what she hadn’t thought to ask was about River’s mother. Nor had she researched her specifically, but the woman was part of the Greek myths. Medusa was a monster. She remembered seeing emblems with her image, but instead of hair, she had snakes around her.

  As she thought of the woman in her dream, another piece of the puzzle came together. The woman in her dream last night was Ms. Gorgos. River told her there were monsters in his lineage, and she knew River’s mom wanted to kill her. His words just identified that his mom was Medusa, which meant Medusa wanted to kill her.

  And it was apparent she’d just tried.