Goddess of the Sea (18 page)

CC felt suddenly very sad for Isabel. Had the old woman spent her entire life being deprived of beauty out of fear of damnation? CC was careful to keep her voice light and curious when she asked, “And from whom do we need absolution?”

“The good abbot, of course.” Isabel sounded surprised that she should have to ask.

“Isabel, what if the beauty around us is meant as a reminder of the many gifts we have been given, and our need to give thanks for them?” CC asked slowly, as if she had just considered the idea herself.

Isabel made a scoffing noise in her throat, but when CC turned and their eyes met, the old woman was studying her with an openly curious expression.

“It was just a thought,” CC said, smiling brightly at Isabel while she put on the jewelry that was a gift from a goddess. Isabel averted her eyes at the show of opulence. CC could only imagine what the old woman's reaction would be if she knew where the jewels really came from.

“Sir Andras is waiting in the dining hall. I can take you there in just a moment,” Isabel said as she started to make the bed.

“There's no need—I remember the way. You go ahead and do whatever you need to do, Isabel. I know you must be very busy. Thank you for your help with my dress.”

Ignoring Isabel's sullen expression, CC smiled cheerfully and walked quickly out of the room. Having Isabel around was like being shadowed by a brooding schoolmarm. The woman seemed to dislike her on sight. CC sighed. And no wonder. CC glanced down at her lush, richly clad body. Isabel had been raised to believe beauty and luxury were dangerous and sinful.

“To her I must be the embodiment of everything she's been taught is bad,” CC muttered.

She realized the old woman's dislike really bothered her. People usually liked CC—a lot. Maybe not with the passionate response that Undine's body evoked, but CC had never had any problem making friends. Well, she was still the same person; she was just shelled in a different body. CC made a mental note to make sure she got up early enough the next day to make her own bed. She would show Isabel that she wasn't a spoiled, pampered princess. Sexy, incredible body or not, Christine Canady would win the old woman's friendship.

The hallway abruptly emptied out into the courtyard. The sun beaming into the open space was such a contrast to the dim interior that CC had to hold a hand up to shade her eyes from the sudden brightness. Squinting, she stepped out into the well-manicured lawn, heading toward the arched doorway that led to the dining hall. A movement at the well caught her eye, and she felt a shudder of fear pass through her body. Hovering over the middle of the open well was a dark shape, easily noticed in the otherwise brightly lit courtyard. The form was in the shape of a man's torso, but it was insubstantial. CC could clearly see the far wall of the courtyard through it. Its back was to CC, and there was something horribly familiar in the massive breath of shoulder and in the thick length of ghostly hair that floated around the apparition as if it was underwater.

As she watched, it rotated slowly and shifted its glowing gaze until CC was staring into the spectral eyes of Sarpedon. The creature saw her, and his triumphant smile was terrible. She couldn't stop the scream that ripped from her throat.

Andras burst from the arched doorway and into the courtyard, followed closely by Abbot William. The moment the two men appeared, the image of Sarpedon wavered and dissipated back into the liquid depths of the well.

Andras rushed to her side. “Undine! What has happened? Are you ill?”

“I-I saw something.” She pointed. “There, over the well.”

Both men turned to look at the offending structure. Abbot William walked over to it. CC flinched as he bent over its open mouth and peered down.

“There is nothing here now,” he called over his shoulder.

“Come.” Andras put a strong arm around her waist. “Let me help you into the dining room and out of the sun.”

Abbot William gave the well one last look before following them.

“Bring the princess some wine!” Andras ordered one of the servants, helping CC onto a bench.

The servant reappeared almost immediately. CC's hands were shaking so badly that she spilled some of the wine. Drinking deeply, she tried to steady herself, while she wondered how much, if anything, she could dare tell the two men.

“What exactly did you see?” Abbot William asked. He was studying her with an expression that verged on gleeful.

CC felt a tremor of foreboding. It was like he reveled in her fear. “I'm not sure,” she said slowly. “I had just stepped into the courtyard, and I glanced at the well. There was something there, floating over the top of it. The figure was dark, like a shadow, but it seemed to be in the shape of a man.”

“Could it not have been the shadow of an oddly shaped cloud?” Andras said. “The day is bright and you had just entered the courtyard. Perhaps your eyes misjudged.”

CC summoned up a relieved laugh, glad the knight had given her an acceptable answer. “You're probably right, Andras. It just startled me. I think fear and my imagination must have temporarily caused me to see something.”

“Of course.” Andras patted her back awkwardly.

CC could still feel the priest's eyes on her, but he remained silent.

“I had planned a small surprise for you, Princess,” Andras said. “You so enjoyed the view last night that I had a few things packed into a basket for us. I thought we could break our fast outside, near the ocean you find so intriguing. But perhaps now would not be a good time for such exertion.”

“No!” she reassured him quickly. “I'm feeling much better. It was ridiculous of me to be so frightened of a little shadow. Fresh air and a view sound wonderful.” Just the thought of being near the water again made CC's heart race—and if Sarpedon was close by, surely she would be safest away from the monastery's enclosing walls and near the lush land that was the domain of the goddess.

“If you are sure.” Andras's face brightened at the prospect. “I will take care not to overtax your strength.”

He called for the servant to bring a basket that had already been prepared, but before they could leave the dining hall, Abbot William spoke with a sly sharpness.

“Princess Undine, before you go, I must ask you about the interesting design that decorates your gown. Do you know what those symbols represent?”

CC looked down at the fabulous dress. It was made up of several layers of material that felt like an intriguing mixture of silk and gauze. She smiled at the familiar coloring that so accurately represented her mermaid's tail. The topmost layer of material was covered with silver needlework. CC had noticed the intricate embroidery before. It was a repeating pattern of symbols interwoven with birds and flowers. Now that she studied it, she could see that amidst the land creatures and symbols Gaea had woven dolphins and starfish. She ran a finger reverently down one long, silver-threaded sleeve.

“No, I don't know what they represent. I just know that they are beautiful.”

“Let us not forget that beauty can hide many things,” the priest said cryptically.

CC beamed a smile at him. “Well, wouldn't you say this dress hides much less than your robes?” She laughed and pointed at his voluminous skirts. “I think you could probably hide a small person under there.”

“Undine!” Andras's voice had a hard edge to it CC had not heard before. “It is unseemly to say such a thing to Abbot William.”

CC didn't allow her smile to falter, but as she studied Andras's handsome face, she felt a twinge of unease. For a moment she had forgotten where she was, which was definitely not twenty-first century America. Women in medieval Europe didn't kid around with uptight abbots, or if they did they probably ended up flayed or boiled or . . . She bit her lip.

“Oh, Andras, you're right. I guess I'm still a little nervous about what I thought I saw in the courtyard.” She turned her set smile on the priest. “I do apologize, Abbot William; I certainly didn't mean to offend you.”

Abbot William waved his hands dismissively. “There is no need to apologize, Princess. I understand that young women sometimes say things that are fraught with several meanings, even if they are unaware of it.”

CC's eyes widened at the abbot's rudeness, but her smile didn't waver. “That is such an interesting observation, because I've noticed that men sometimes read double meanings into things that women say, even when none are intended. I think that could be why there seems to be such confusion between the sexes. I'll have to be more careful in the future so that there are no such misunderstandings between us.” She turned back to Andras and took his arm. “Are you ready? All this excitement has made me very hungry.”

Andras smiled and patted her hand. His façade of good-guy-boyfriend was securely back in place. “Of course, Undine.” He bowed his head reverently to Abbot William. “I look forward to our evening game of chess, Father.”

“I, too, my son,” the priest said. Then he added, as if it was an afterthought, “Princess Undine, about the symbols on your gown. They remind me of runes that I have seen on pagan shrines.” He made a dry sound in his throat that CC assumed was supposed to be a chuckle. “But, as you said, you would know nothing of that.”

“That's correct,” CC said truthfully. “I know nothing about runes or pagan shrines.”

“Then you would have no objection to joining us for vespers this evening?” His eyes were bright, and he watched her reaction closely.

“I'm sure the princess would be happy to attend evening mass,” Andras said quickly.

CC had to grit her teeth to keep from telling the knight that she preferred to speak for herself. Instead, she met the priest's probing gaze evenly. “That would be lovely; thank you for inviting me.”

“I shall look forward to seeing you there,” Abbot William said.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

ANDRAS didn't choose the path they had taken the evening before; instead he followed the road. It angled steeply down, then took a sharp, right-handed turn before it wound back toward the sea. All the while they walked he talked about the history of the island and how there had been a monastery on this site for more than four hundred years. CC struggled to listen to him. Most of her attention was focused on the nearness of the sea and the call it had on her body. She did try to look attentive when he explained that he was so well acquainted with the monastery and Abbot William because the land had belonged to his mother's family for centuries. When his mother married his father, the land had passed to the Lord of Caer Llion, and, naturally, the most senior priest from his father's barony had to take over the running of Caldei Monastery.

“Oh, that's why you and the Abbot know each other so well,” CC said, trying to appear interested.

“The Abbot taught me how to read and write. He is an exceptional teacher, unrelenting in his desire to instruct,” Andras said with a definite tone of hero worship.

CC thought about the way Abbot William looked at Andras, and she wondered cynically if he would have been such an exceptional teacher if Andras had been less rich and handsome.

“It's nice that you had such a dedicated teacher,” was all she said aloud.

Andras grinned at her. She couldn't help smiling back at him. He really was endearing in a chauvinistic, clichéd kind of a way.

Once they were at sea level, several small paths branched off from the main road. Andras turned onto one that led through a thick grove of tall, fragrant pine trees and spilled out onto the pristine sand of well-shaded beach.

The ocean was heartbreak blue that morning, and CC trembled at its beauty. She wanted to rip off her clothes and dive into the frothy waves.

“Do you like it?” Andras asked in a smug voice. “I chose this spot especially with you in mind.”

CC tore her eyes from the allure of the waves and gave him a compulsory smile as she tried to cover the rush of resentment she suddenly felt towards the knight. He knew nothing about the ocean or about her.

“I hope it pleases you.”

At her hesitation, Andras's voice had lost its smug edge, and he was once again only a man trying his best to impress a woman. CC sighed. It wasn't that he was doing anything wrong, she realized. It was just that he wasn't Dylan.

“It's perfect,” she said, warming her smile. “I love the ocean. I feel at home when I'm near it.”

He gave her an odd look and said, “I find that rather surprising, Undine. I would think that in light of your recent experience you would be frightened of it.”

“I'm not frightened of it—or at least I'm not anymore.” The water pulled her gaze, and her expression became dreamy. She wondered where Dylan was at that moment. He said he would stay there as long as she was there, too. Actually, she thought back, he had said he would wait for her for an eternity. But that didn't mean he was keeping a constant lookout for her; he wasn't expecting her to return to the ocean until the third night. Could he be out there, watching her now? She shivered at the thought of his possible closeness.

“Did I not tell you that you must be frightened?” Andras had unfolded a blanket that had been packed in the basket, and he paused to glance at her as he unloaded their brunch. “You are trembling.”

He was bent over the basket and his shapely rear end was all too easy to see. She had a sudden, mischievous urge to lift her leg and kick him squarely in that oh-so-perfect butt, watch him fall flat on his oh-so-perfect face and then tell him that where she was from women didn't need men to think for them.

“I just shivered because the ocean and my recent accident remind me of the frailty of the human body—that no matter how strong or how wise humans think they are, the might of the ocean is even greater.”