Centaur Legacy (20 page)

“I wish I could have done
more.”

His answer was genuine. It hit me that
if he chose, he could enact the third Centaur tenant. A pit began
to form in my stomach. I needed to get Lacey back on a plane to San
Diego. I didn’t want to let on that my worst nightmare could come
true. “Lacey tells me you pulled her out just before the
explosion.”

“I did. I heard the two warriors
galloping to the pasture immediately after. They didn’t
suffer.”

It struck me that he mourned their
loss, although he had never met Tom or Ted. Strange. Not at all the
response I would have expected. “Thank you, for that; and for
giving me Lacey back. She’s all I have left.” I quickly changed the
subject to try to shift the focus off of Lacey, “So, your father
tells me Camille is your sister?”

“Yes.” Beau’s gaze moved to the
distraught Drake, “Drake is her betrothed.”

Finally the pieces were fitting
together. I was sure when they were all assembled it would still
look like a Picasso, but at least I understood why Lacey felt the
need to help. She owed her life to Beau. He looked much older than
she, but if he were still within eligibility age, it would be
within his rights to claim her as his own.

Camille Strayer was, in fact, the last
Chiron Centauride and had been kidnapped. The fact that her father
had broken one of Zeus’s tenants to the Centaur was dangerous, and
I worried what it would mean if Beau claimed Lacey as his. A debt
would be paid for breaking the tenant, and the payment would not be
isolated to William. His whole line would pay the price when word
of his actions became known.

(Phineas – Leader of the
Lost Herd, at his home, FL)

“I said, give her another
shot!”

Sebastian cringed but held his ground,
“Phin, she doesn’t need it. She’s still out cold.”

Sebastian rarely disregarded an order,
and I couldn’t think of a time when he had stood up to me for
anything of consequence. He was my nephew, was fiercely loyal, and
could be trusted to do what he was told. I reminded him, “If she
gains consciousness, we’ll have a hundred Centaurs on us in a
matter of hours. Keep her out until we get things in
order.”

“If we keep sedating her, we’re going
to need to give her an IV or something. It’s been over twelve hours
since we got here.” Although loyal, he didn’t want his hands dirty,
or at least not dirtier than they already were. He had been an
active participant in the kidnapping, but he wasn’t happy about
it.

My frustration wasn’t with him. I
purposely calmed myself down and answered, “Then give her an IV,
but make sure she stays out.”

“We’re going to have to get a doctor
here.”

“Fine, get a doctor, get a nurse, for
all I care you can assign a candy-striper, but do not let her wake
up.”

Sebastian left the room, and I was
alone with my thoughts. Drake Nash was alive. I told them to check
before we left. Idiots. She’d already chosen him. As long as he
lives, he will have a hold on her. Unless she rejects Drake’s
betrothal pledge, she may not be able to unite with my
son.

Camille could bring legitimacy to the
Lost Herd. The Centaur Council wouldn’t be able to destroy a
precious Chiron. They would have to accept us back into the Centaur
Society. All the careful planning my father had done twenty-three
years ago could be lost because these idiots didn’t bother to check
for a pulse.

Zandra had the right idea. She could
step down as the Chairman of the Council and pass the torch to
Camille rather than to Angela’s brother, Angelo. The thought of
Angelo made my skin crawl. How he bore the Chiron name baffled us
all. I’d always heard when twins were involved that one was as evil
as the other was good. Angela had been known for her kindness, her
beauty, and her grace. Her twin, Angelo, was well known, but not in
a good way.

Most of his life Zandra had tucked
Angelo away in South America, in remote villages where his exploits
would not catch the attention of Centaurs or humans. No way would
she turn over the Centaur Council to him; I was convinced she had
long ago decided to outlive her son. Camille was the best choice to
replace Zandra as the Chairman. I wasn’t sure how Zandra would
explain Camille’s other bloodline if anyone were to become aware.
Camille was a Chiron and a Tak, but Zandra had always had a way of
spinning things in her favor. Now was the time for
action.

William Strayer was a Tak, and if
Camille were to rise as the Chairman of the Centaur Council, word
of her lineage would spread quickly. The Centaur Council would have
no choice but to accept her and, by extension, accept the Lost
Herd. For added measure, having Camille betrothed to my son would
solidify the safety of all remaining Tak Centaurs. My teeth grinded
as the thought of Drake Nash came to the surface. I needed to get
him out of the way. A second team had already been dispatched to
tie up that loose end.

Drake Nash would no longer be a
concern, and when Camille becomes betrothed to my son, LeRoy, I
will carry significant influence. The Lost Herd will no longer have
to hide in the shadows, denying our legacy.

Sebastian returned. When the door swung
open on me and my thoughts, I immediately crouched into a defensive
posture. “Easy, Uncle Phin. It’s just me.” A thin grin appeared on
his lips, and if it had been anyone but me, I’m sure he would have
poked fun at my response.

He already knew the severity of the
action we had taken. I thought it only fitting he understand why.
“Sebastian, do you know why we’re doing what we’re
doing?”

“It’s not for me to question your
methods, Uncle Phin. You can trust me.”

“Indeed I can.” I answered honestly.
Sebastian was, in fact, more trustworthy than my own sons. I hadn’t
included them on the mission as they were headstrong, willful, and
would not have followed my instructions. “Did your father ever tell
you why Zeus cast our family out from the other
Centaurs?”

Sebastian cocked his head to the side.
This subject was never spoken of. To our young Centaurs, it was
taboo. His eyes were curious, but he didn’t press for information;
his quiet respect told me he could be trusted with our secrets.
“Our family successfully deceived the gods. Doing so proved that
our family was a threat. The skill our bloodline has which the
other Centaur bloodlines do not possess is to plant memories in
others’ minds. It seemed a harmless skill, barely more than a
parlor trick, until the Centauride Phyllis used her skill against
the gods.”

I watched Sebastian’s reaction. His
expression remained unchanged. “What I am about to tell you is only
for the tight-lipped. You are not permitted to share this story
with anyone outside the Lost Herd, and only those in the Lost Herd
who you believe would sacrifice their lives before revealing it. Do
you understand?”

“I do, Uncle.” Sebastian made a fist
and crossed his right arm diagonally over his chest. It was a
symbol among our herd, a silent gesture that we could bestow on one
another. I’d seen it many times from strangers in strange cities.
The gesture meant many things: sometimes it was simply “hello,”
other times it meant “I have your back,” but this time it meant,
“your secret is safe with me.”

Centaurs of the Lost Herd were
different than other Centaurs. We could not only feel the presence
of another Centaur, but distinguish our own bloodline from the
others, too. It wouldn’t be safe to speak openly to a Centaur in
front of others, so this gesture was adopted as a way to
acknowledge our shared lineage with a stranger, without putting the
other at risk.

I doubled up my fist and stretched it
across my heart, as well. “Phyllis met Sisyphus, the King of
Ancient Corinth. King Sisyphus was a mortal who had been known for
his desire to cheat death. Phyllis thought it would be entertaining
to plant the idea in the mind of King Sisyphus that Charos, the
ferryman who carried souls across the River Styx, could be
captured.

She inserted the thought that if Charos
were chained to the gates on the underworld side of the river with
the three-headed dog Cerberus, the ferry would no longer traverse
the river and mortals would no longer die. King Sisyphus took this
vision and did exactly as his memory instructed him, chaining
Charos to the gates on the other side of the River Styx in Hades.
Phyllis had been right, and no more humans died – even the old and
feeble lived.”

Sebastian rarely asked questions, but I
was giving him information about our family that had been withheld
from him. He shook his head slightly, “But how could King Sisyphus
have traveled on the ferry if he were still alive and in his body?
Only souls are permitted on the ferry.”

“How he was able to accomplish it was
never part of the story that my father shared with me. I just know
that the actions of King Sisyphus’ were the result. Regardless of
her intentions, the memory was inserted in his mind by the
Centauride Phyllis.”

“I still don’t know how that was such a
horrible crime? As you said, it was akin to a parlor
trick.”

The gods were furious with King
Sisyphus. After investigating, they realized that it was a
Centauride from the Tak family that had planted the idea in his
head. As punishment, the Tak family was shunned by all other
Centaurs, forbidden ever to return to the pasture of Thessaly.
Phyllis’ actions condemned us to becoming the Lost
Herd.”

“So, for simply inserting a thought in
a human’s head, our whole bloodline was cut off from the other
Centaurs?”

“The gods believed that the humans
would begin to worship King Sisyphus, and in doing so, it would
reduce their power over the humans. The gods felt that we were a
risk that had to be isolated before word could spread of what
Phyllis had done.”

“So the gods kicked us out of Thessaly?
Why did the other bloodlines not come to our aid?”

“We were not gods, Sebastian. The Tak
family was Centaur, and playing a trick on the gods, regardless of
intentions, is never looked upon favorably. The other bloodlines
were not willing to anger the gods.”

“But our ancestors didn’t kidnap or
chain up Charos.”

“No.”

“Why did the Centaurs from the other
bloodlines hunt our ancestors? Are those stories true?”

“Yes, they’re true. Most believe our
family has long since died out; the overt hunting of our bloodline
stopped over a millennia ago. When Phyllis first played the trick
on King Sisyphus, the gods did not tell the other families what had
happened, only that Zeus himself cast us out from the pasture. Word
also spread that Zeus wanted vengeance on the Tak
family.

Any time Centaurs from the remaining
six bloodlines encountered a Centaur from our bloodline, they
attacked without mercy, even killing our wives and our children.
The remnants of the Tak family banded together and sought a pasture
where we could be protected from the gods and the other Centaurs,
to live out the rest of our existence in peace. We were protected
so well that centuries passed, and they believed we had
perished.”

“I don’t understand. Did we kidnap this
Centauride,” pointing to Camille’s unconscious body, “to seek
revenge on Zeus?”

“No, we kidnapped her to seek
legitimacy.”

Sebastian did not see the connection.
“My daughter, Violet, is one of the few Centaurides from the Lost
Herd. If we timed it perfectly, Violet would be able to plant the
memory in Camille’s head that she was already betrothed to my son,
LeRoy. Violet could make Camille believe that Drake had abandoned
her, better yet, Drake had handed her over to me for a price. She
would believe that I bought her.”

“How can tricking a single Centauride
gain our legitimacy?”

Execution would have to be precise. If
we woke her up and Violet couldn’t get the ideas planted quickly
enough, Camille might know we were manipulating her memories.
“Camille will be the next chairman of the Centaur Council. She is
the last Centauride heir of Chiron. If she openly accepted our
family, the remainder of the Council would follow suit. Zeus still
holds the Chiron family in high esteem, but to ensure they do not
become too powerful, he limited the number of direct
descendants.”

If we were successful, the Tak family
would no longer be the source of whispers tantamount to the Boogie
Man. My daughter, Violet, shared no other bloodline but the Tak and
was one of the few Centaurides still able to plant memories in the
minds of others. If she were unsuccessful, we would again be forced
into hiding. The rewards outweighed the risks.

Sebastian must have sensed that I was
lost in thought on how best to execute the plan. He interrupted my
thought with, “Uncle Phin, I found a doctor who can be here in an
hour. He’s willing to work for cash, and he isn’t interested in the
patient’s name.”

“Good work. How soon will he be
here?”

“He’ll be here any minute.”

I looked Sebastian in the eye to be
sure he understood my meaning. “When we’re done, you know the
doctor’s not going anywhere, right?”

Sebastian dropped his eyes to the
floor. “Yeah, I assumed that. No loose strings, right Uncle
Phin?”