Gods and Monsters (5 page)

She grabbed Gypsy’s arm and yanked her backward to the floor. Ethan tried to grab her, but he didn’t understand Cori’s purpose and only succeeded in keeping Gypsy from defending herself by grabbing her free arm. Cori pressed her foot into Gypsy’s shoulder and twisted her shoulder the wrong way in the socket.

Gypsy screamed in agony. Ethan reached to dislodge Cori but she braced herself and gave him a curt disruptive noise that announced her intention to cause Gypsy more pain if he did. That particular threat brought a look of pure hatred to his eyes. She wondered if he felt something for this woman. She didn’t want to think about that.

Ethan held up a hand to Danato before he could barrel him over to get to the fight. Cori saw Belus at the door. His expression had changed from anger to curiosity. His gun was slowly lowering. He must have recognized his signature move. “Belus,” she said softly, “I think today’s a whiskey day don’t you.”

His head tipped a little more, and the gun lowered completely. “Who are you?” He said it so softly she wondered if she would have heard it if Danato and Ethan hadn’t been keeping perfectly still.

Cori released Gypsy’s arm slowly. Gypsy looked pissed, but she understood that the time to fight back was over. “I’m Corinthia Ellen Reiger. I was formerly the runner up to succeed Danato, but I rubbed a damn lamp.”

9

Had Cori known anything about Gypsy, her temper, or her ego she never would have let her go. But since she didn’t, she did, and Gypsy’s belated defensive response was a kick to the head that sent her into the wall. As soon as she regained a margin of balance Ethan slammed her against the wall with such force that she saw stars in her vision.

“You don’t touch her again. You understand?” He ground out spitting through his teeth.

Cori couldn’t even respond to that. Too many questions arose from his act of chivalry for his partner. Instead, she just stared at the man she thought could never be violent toward her.

“Ethan.” Danato didn’t offer any further demand, but he let go and Cori tried her best not to let her sadness show. Ethan turned away and made a concerted effort to calm down before facing her again.

No one helped Gypsy up, but Danato did mouth, “You okay?” to her when she was back on her feet. Gypsy gave him a nod before offering Cori a look that told her this fight wasn’t over. Cori mentally chastised herself for creating an enemy so early in her plan. Or perhaps it was enem
ies
since her husband didn’t seem to like her very much either. 

Belus and Danato exchanged looks. Neither of them could deny the possibility, even if it was an impossible possibility in their minds. Still, they needed to be convinced. She stepped away from Gypsy enough to offer her surrender and waited for the interrogation to begin.

Gypsy had already taken position on the edge of the desk. Despite her scowl that promised vengeance, she seemed to be the only one at ease enough to get comfortable. Ethan stayed within reach of her with his jaw set and arms tensed. He was prepared to tackle her if she posed any further threat. Belus had given up his fire arm to enter the office and couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her. He was for once completely awestruck by the situation at hand. Danato was still standing. His face was a mash of converging emotions: not quite angry, not quite shocked. If she had to guess, she would have thought he looked crestfallen.

“What lamp?” Danato asked breaking the silence and engaging the interrogation sans two way mirror and stale coffee.

“I don’t know which one exactly. It’s the one in the prop room with the tattooed Mr. Clean guy living in it. He won’t answer me when I call to him. I’ve tried to wish away my wish, but nothing has changed.”

“That’s not really how it works,” Belus pointed out. “What
did
you wish for?”

“I wished for things to go back to normal,” she admitted.

“And did they?” Danato asked.

Cori smiled even though her eyes were watering again. “I went back to my old home with my mom and some guy who I’m apparently dating.”

“That’s normal for you?” Danato asked.

“No.” She shrugged, losing her humorous facade. “I guess so, maybe once upon a time.” She laughed a little and briskly wiped her eyes. “I guess one should be careful what they wish for.” Cori looked to Ethan, but he didn’t have any sympathy for her pain. She looked to the floor, but it wasn’t offering any more counsel than the people in the room.

She could hear the clock tick over the silence. She remembered how much the clock had annoyed her before, but now it almost seemed reassuring. It felt like a heartbeat. She looked back at Danato who had since exchanged another look with Belus. “I’m sorry for screwing things up again.” Her tears were beyond control. She hated that Gypsy was right about her, but she didn’t understand the stress she was under.

“I’m sorry I forgot about the lamp, but I just want to come home. I don’t know how to do that without your help.” Cori looked between Danato and Belus. She wasn’t sure who she needed right now. Belus was the level headed one, but Danato had no emotional investment in her at the moment, so he might be the deciding factor in her fate. “I’ll answer any questions you have. I’ll take any test you want. Just don’t turn me away.”

“Corinthia you have to understand,” Belus interjected. “We have no idea who you are.”

“Just Cori, I know, but if you give me a chance, I can prove it.”

“How?”

“I can tell you Danato’s favorite food. I can tell you Ethan’s life story before he was brought here. I can tell you who you’re dating in the cafeteria…and the infirmary.” Cori raised her brow at Belus, but the response she got was a cold glare. She wilted and turned back to the floor. It still wasn’t making her feel better. She decided that coyness was not going to make any leeway with these men, so she pulled her chin up. “I can tell you the three vulnerable spots on Penelope.”

“Who’s Penelope?” Ethan asked.

“The dragon you have stored in the gym.”

“Is that what this is about? Are you here for the dragon’s blood?” Danato seemed to rise an inch or two higher with this potential threat.

Cori cringed in disgust. “No, Danato I’m…” She sighed and cussed under her breath. “Take me to Cleos.”

“How do you know Cleos?” Danato asked.

“What part of this don’t you guys get? Danato purchased me two years ago with Ethan; you’ve been like a father to us. Ethan you…I already explained this to you. Belus, I am your successor. I also happen to be a pain in your ass, but you can’t help but like me.” Cori raised her hands waiting for enlightenment to strike them like lightening.

“What about me?” Gypsy asked humbly from the corner of the room. Cori looked at her. “What are we to each other?” There wasn’t any sarcasm or suspicion in her voice, she was just curious.

Cori shook her head. “Nothing, in my version you aren’t here.” Gypsy was offered several looks that might have been concern, but everyone hid it well. Ethan gave her a longer look, before turning a glare back at her. Apparently, everyone was disappointed to hear that Gypsy was not always a part of their lives.

“Danato,” Cori whispered. “Just take me to Cleos to prove my story, and then let’s find the lamp and find out how to use my next two wishes to undo this.” There was another fleeting set of looks to Gypsy before Danato agreed to take her downstairs. Belus offered to join, but Danato asked him not to. As Cori left the office, she could see Ethan was happy to stay behind to speak with Gypsy.

It’s called heartache for a reason.

10

Cori could feel the tension in the elevator as she and Danato rode it down to the basement. It reminded her of the time he took her to see Vince. She glanced up at him, but he kept his head straight forward grimly watching the semi-circle dial above the door slowly descending to the left. Considering it was only one floor, it took forever.

“Is there something you want to say?” Cori asked noticing that his lips were parting in preparation for speech.

He slammed his thumb into the stop button—as if the ride wasn’t long enough. “I need to apologize for how I behaved earlier.”

“You mean kissing me?”

Danato clasped his hands in front of him. “Yes, I was confused.”

“You thought I was your—“

“Very confused,” Danato interjected.

“Why exactly would you think that?” she asked daring to tread into his privacy.

“I was confused,” he ground out.

Cori nodded. He had already made it clear to her that he would never discuss his wife with her. This Danato was not any different. “Good to know things haven’t changed that much. You be sure and let me know if you change your mind about sharing your life with me.” Cori yanked out the stop button. “Lord knows
I’ve
only
sacrificed my freedom and future to serve you.” He must have registered the irritation, but since he wasn’t the one who had been sequestering his life from her, he didn’t have any response or rationalization to offer more to her. Not that her Danato would have either, but at least he would have had the common decency to be hurt by her words.

She crossed her arms and spent the remainder of the ride pouting about something she didn’t even know she was that bothered by. At least she could depend on Cleos to be her ally in this mess.

11

“What do you mean?” Cori gripped Cleos’s hand through his barred cage. Without her to plead for his soundproof cell, he was still behind bars, literally.

“I can’t read you,” Cleos grumbled. His hair usually looked well kempt aside from begging to be placed in a petite pony at the base of his neck. He wasn’t a vampire but all of his features: hallowed cheeks, lanky body, and sun deprived skin, screamed stake me through the heart.

Cleos detested the vampiric photophobes he neighbored, and found offense to any reference to similarities between them. He was an intellectual at heart though he didn’t have a specific subject of interest. His favorite thing had always been catching up on her latest gossip by reading her mind. Cori had agreed to the reads until she realized that he was eating her memories.

The last time they had encountered each other, she accidently took enough of his power, via her enchanted rings, to enter
his
mind, instead of the other way around. His subconscious tried to stop her, but she got through to see his deepest darkest secrets. There is really no way to apologize for breaking into someone’s mind.

Cleos was angry about the violation, but he was even angrier that she forgave him for his crimes after seeing what had prompted him to commit them. Cori also wasn’t sure how one was supposed to apologize for offering clemency, but she hoped that Cleos would just get over it.

“No, that’s just the rings,” Cori explained. “Try to…” She gripped his hand tighter and he examined the contact as if he wasn’t used to someone being this close or comfortable with him, which in this version of things was probably true. “Cleos you have to read me. You’ve never, not read me.” The tingling sensation that precluded her absorption of his power was gone as well. She couldn’t read him either. “This isn’t right,” she said mostly to herself.

“Do you know this woman?” Danato asked Cleos.

Cleos looked to him like he was stupid for asking. “Am I familiar with the woman you just brought down to see me? No.”

Cori banged Cleos’s bars, and he drew back like she was the one behind the bars. “This isn’t right. Why can’t you read me?” Cleos had always been Cori’s go to back up. When things got too far out of hand, it was usually his help that brought things into perspective. He even helped save her marriage, which was rather ironic since he was the reason it nearly broke up. He was always there when she needed him and he had no idea who she was, and worse yet, he couldn’t read her to find out.

“I generally have a few people I can’t read,” Cleos said. “Some are naturally immune. Others are blocked by overriding magic.”

Cori looked to Danato. The explanation donned on several levels. “The genie, he must be overriding Cleos, and my rings.”

“What do your rings have to do with anything?”

“They’re enchanted, but never mind that.” She waved her hand. “We need to get to that lamp. I have to see the genie.”

Danato grimaced. She knew that look. It meant that he really wanted to be obliging, but the rules said otherwise. She couldn’t imagine there was a protocol for “woman shows up claiming to be the victim of a genie displacement,” but she was pretty sure if there was it would advise in bold print to “be as suspicious as hell.”

“What?” She drawled.

“I can’t take you to the lamp. The power they possess is magnificent. In the wrong hands, it could—“

“Could cause me to be displaced from my home, my friends, and my family? Yeah, got that memo a little late,” she said. Danato didn’t express any humor at her sarcasm, nor did he seem to have any interest in bending the rules for her. “Okay, obviously, you don’t know me, so bending the rules is not an option.” Cori patted her hands together. “What do we need to do?”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m sure protocol dictates that you lock me up until my true purpose is revealed, but I’m begging you not to do that. There must be a way to find out about me. A test, a lie detector, or maybe we can just go see…” Cori nearly gagged trying to say Mezula’s name. She didn’t want to have anything to do with her. Even if that meant taking a longer road to getting proof of who she was. “Anything.”