Soul Kissed (20 page)

“Mama!” Raquel cried, bringing me back to the matter at hand.  Harmonia and Cadmus both turned their attention toward us.  Harmonia’s green eyes lit up as soon as she registered who I was.

“Empusa,” she breathed, leaping up from her chair and blurring into motion to reach me.  I had no sooner braced myself before she plowed into me, enclosing me in a grip that defied her slight stature. 

“Where have you been?” Harmonia exclaimed, stroking my hair in a motherly fashion.  “We’ve been looking all over for you!” 

I wiggled away just slightly, giving myself enough room to breathe. 

“I know and I’m really sorry,” I told her sincerely.  “I didn’t mean to cause anyone worry.  I was just afraid.“

“I know,” Harmonia interrupted kindly.  “I’m not blaming you.  We’ve just been so worried.  It is a true blessing to set eyes upon you.  That’s all.”

Her face was alight with relief and joy and it warmed my heart.  There truly were good people out there in the world, mixed in with those who were evil.  I had spent so long trying to elude my father that I sometimes lost sight of that.

“Thank you,” I told her quickly.  “For your kindness.”

“My kindness?” she asked me with a raised eyebrow.  “Empusa, you risked a great deal to keep my daughter safe.  I’ll never forget what you did and I’ll never be able to repay you.”

I grew uncomfortable with her glowing accolades.  “Harmonia, you’ve already repaid me ten-fold.  You stayed here so that I could leave.  That was an unbelievable sacrifice.  I’m the one who will never be able to repay
you.”

“Pssh,” she dismissed my words with a shake of her head.  “Let’s simply agree to disagree.  What brings you here to me today?  Have you spoken with your mother?”

As Harmonia spoke, she rubbed my arm with her slender hands and her eyes finally drifted away from me.  As her gaze passed over Hades, her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t say anything.  She was too intent with staring at Brennan.

“The son of Apollo,” she murmured, a look of intense curiosity on her exquisite face.  “Why have you brought the son of Apollo?”

Brennan looked at her with an expression of curiosity, humor and resignation.  It seemed he’d grown accustomed to being called the son of Apollo.   He stuck out his hand. 

“I’m Brennan,” he told her good-naturedly.  “Apparently, I’m the son of Apollo.”

Harmonia smiled and shook his hand, her Bloodstone pendant flashing crimson as it swung forward when she moved.   Without thinking, I reached out and touched it, the glistening blood-red color pulling me in. 

I immediately wished I hadn’t.  An intense bright light exploded behind my eyelids and brought me to my knees with its sheer force.  Shooting pain radiated from my temples and I clutched my head.   Images shot in and out of my mind in rapid succession, coming and going so quickly that I could barely register what they were before they were gone. 

It was the future. And it wasn’t pleasant.

Chapter Seventeen

“Empusa, I’m so sorry,” Harmonia apologized for the one-thousandth-time, as she sat next to me and brushed the hair away from my face.  “I shouldn’t have been so careless with my Bloodstone.  It is known to illicit strong visions and emotions to those who touch it.  I’m sorry that I didn’t shield you from that.”

Her perfect face was troubled and I hurried to reassure her, even though I still felt shaky and weak in the knees from what I had just seen.

“Harmonia, it wasn’t your fault. But tell me, what
was that?”

I grew increasingly cognizant enough to notice my surroundings and realized that Brennan sat to my side and that I was reclining on a plush lounge on the veranda. Harmonia, Hades, Raquel and Cadmus surrounded us and I took a deep, steadying breath.

I am strong.

I am strong.

I am strong.

I repeated the phrase to myself silently over and over, trying to remind myself.   I could withstand anything.  Nothing could faze me.  I was strong.

“That’s true,” Brennan agreed with my silent thoughts.  “You are very strong.  But something just happened. What was it, Em?”

“I don’t know,” I replied softly.  “I think I saw the future.”

“The future?” Cadmus interjected, his bronzed face thoughtful. “That would be new. Usually, the Bloodstone grants visions of the past.  What do you think, my love?” he asked Harmonia, stroking her shoulder lightly. 

I could see that he was trying to hide something.  Concern?  But just as quickly as the emotion crossed his face, he reigned it in and replaced it with a calm, impassive expression.

“What exactly did you see, Empusa?” Harmonia asked calmly.   Raquel sat at my feet and watched me worriedly. I tried to keep my expression calm and steady for her benefit, but it wasn’t easy. 

“Raquel,” I focused on the nervous little girl. “Could you possibly run and get me some nectar?  I’m dying for a drink.”

“Of course, Empusa.  I’ll be right back,” Raquel jumped from the lounge and took off for what I presumed was the kitchen.  As soon as she was out of earshot, I refocused on the adults surrounding me.

“I think I saw the end of the world,” I mumbled anxiously.  I couldn’t help it.  My unease bled into my voice. My heart was racing and I couldn’t calm down. The terrifying, scattered images had burned into my head and I couldn’t get them out.  Fire, floods, pain and tears.  So many images crowded into my head and I struggled to block them out.

Harmonia stared into my eyes as she read my mind and tried to see what I had already seen.  As she saw the images in my head, her vibrant green eyes widened then narrowed as she came to the same conclusion.

“It does seem like an apocalypse of some sort,” she concurred, her thin shoulders slumping slightly. Cadmus stepped protectively up behind her, as if to guard her from an unseen threat.  “But the question is… why?”

Brennan stared at me, troubled and pensive.  “Yes, Em.  Why?”

But I could see on his face that he already knew.  He had seen it in my thoughts.

“My mother was right,” I said simply, my breathing ragged in my throat, each breath more jagged than the last.  “Together, Brennan and I are dangerous.”

Brennan’s forehead wrinkled and he grasped my hand.  “Em, I don’t accept that.  We’ll figure it out.  It will be alright.”  But his voice was unsure, his gaze wavering.  Like me, he desperately wanted it to be alright.  But he had seen what I had.

“Brennan,” my voice cracked and Harmonia looked away discreetly as a single tear slid hotly down my cheek.  “There was so much blood.  Oceans of it.  People were screaming and crying…there was so much death and ugliness.  We can’t jeopardize the entire mortal world just because we want to be together.  That would be irresponsible and cold-hearted.  Neither of us is that.”

I beseeched him pleadingly, hoping that he could offer an alternative, anything that would allow us to stay together.  And I could see him thinking. I could hear his silent, desperate thoughts.  But none of us, not a one, could come up with a viable option.  I sighed as my heart constricted.  I didn’t want to live without Brennan.  Even now, it seemed as though he had always been with me.  He was a physical part of my soul.  The idea of never seeing his brilliant smile again made me cringe. 

He stroked my hand, his fingers strong.  “It’s not going to happen,” he assured me.  “We will be together.  I’ll think of something.”

“Your bond is very strong,” Harmonia nodded.  “I can feel it.  If you could think of some way to harness the positive energy of your bond instead of allowing your conflicting powers to explode around you, it could work, I think.”

“It’s a possibility,” Cadmus agreed, his glossy black hair glistening in the light as he nodded toward his wife.  “But it is something you will have to work at. It certainly won’t be an easy task.”

“We don’t need easy,” I stated tiredly.  “We just need possible.”

“Well, then, it sounds like we’re golden because it’s possible,” Brennan gently smiled at me.  “Emmie, I promise.  I’ll do whatever I have to do.  I’ll practice my abilities 24 hours a day.  I’ll stand on any roller coaster in the country for hours at a time.  I’ll do anything you tell me that we need to do.  Just say the word.”

“I don’t know what word to say,” I reminded him softly. “This is just a theory.  We might be able to harness our bond to overcome our negative combined energy.  Or we might not.  It’s just a theory.  We have no idea how to put it into practice.  That’s a problem.  Harmonia, do you have any ideas?”

“What about Hecate?” Raquel asked innocently, her eyes dewy and wide, standing on the edge of the room clutching a glass of nectar.  I hadn’t even heard her come back in.  “Hecate helped my mama.  Couldn’t she help you, Empusa?”

I shook my head slightly. “I’m afraid not, Raquel.  My mother is already trying to help.  She’s talking to Zeus on my behalf.  I’m going to have to work this out on my own.” I could hear the dejection in my own voice and that annoyed me.  I squared my shoulders. 

“Em,” Harmonia said uncertainly.  “What about your mother’s cronies, Circes and Medea?  Do you trust them to help?  They certainly have proven loyal to your mother over the years.”

I thought of the ancient hags, of their wrinkled wise faces, and I had to admit that it was a possibility.  They knew more about magic than anyone on the planet besides my mother.  And since my mother wasn’t available, it was worth a try.  If there was an answer to be found and if they were willing, they would be the ones to ask.

“That’s actually a good idea,” I told her with a smile.  “It could work. They might know something.”

“I’m not sure that you should attempt anything in the mortal world,” Cadmus interrupted wisely.  “You might want to contain your magic here in the Underworld.  It would provide a buffer to the mortals while you practice.” 

His eyes clouded over as he recalled my visions of destruction… of all that could possibly happen to the mortal world if Brennan and I failed.  Cadmus turned to me as he noticed that I was watching him worry.

“Do not fear,” he assured me. “You can do this.  There was a time when Harmonia turned the mortal world black with her sheer will. It was for a noble purpose and she prevailed.  I have no qualms that you can do the same, little one.  You can prevent harming the mortal world and still have personal happiness.  There is a strength in you that few others have.  I can see it.”

“My husband is right,” Harmonia agreed.  “You have a backbone of steel, Em.  I’ve never seen anything like it.  If anyone can do this, you can. But we need to figure out the logistics.  We have to protect the mortal world from your energy until you learn to control it.  But we still need to get you to Circes and Medea.”  Her brow furrowed as she sought a solution.

“There’s a secret portal,” Raquel suggested in her girlish, songlike voice.  We all turned to her in surprise. 

“What secret portal?” Harmonia asked her quickly.  “I don’t know what you speak of, sweetling.”

Raquel sighed patiently.  “I found it when I was waiting for you here.  There is a portal that the Fates created a long time ago.  I think I can remember how to get to it.  Anyone can enter from the mortal world but only the true of heart can use it to leave here.”  She turned to me.  “And that won’t be a problem for you, Em.  You have the truest of hearts.” 

She patted my hand with her smaller one, much like a mother patting a child.

“But I don’t want to leave here,” I reminded her gently.  “I want to get Circes and Medea in.  I don’t know if their hearts would be pure enough to leave.”  I sighed.  They were ancient and throughout the ages, they had done some truly atrocious things.

“I might be persuaded to allow them to leave,” Hades broke in, his voice as smooth as warm caramel.  “You’ve piqued my curiosity now with this talk of an apocalypse.  I can’t decide… would the end of the mortal world be good or bad for the Underworld?  I’m not certain.  An apocalypse might ensure that I receive all mortal souls—but it would be at once.  I might prefer to keep them straggling in over time as it currently stands.   Until I decide, you may proceed with your plan.  I will allow the hags to leave.”

I had actually forgotten that Hades was even here.  He had retreated to the outer edge of the room and had remained quiet as he observed us.   He watched me now with a dark, unreadable expression on his outrageously handsome face.  He was pensively reflective, a mood that disturbed me.  It meant that his thoughts were churning which was something that might not bode well for the rest of us.

“Why would you help us?” I asked him curiously, my words mirroring Brennan’s uncertain thoughts.  Brennan’s gaze met mine knowingly.  He thought the same as I did, that Hades had an underlying motive. 

“Yes, Hades,” Harmonia added sharply.  “What is in it for you? And do not tell me nothing.  I know you better than that.”

Hades’ dark gaze smoldered for a scant second across the room before he blurred into motion toward Harmonia.  He reached her before I even drew another breath, standing behind her with his mouth so close to her ear that he was almost touching her. 

“Sweet Harmonia,” he breathed quietly into her ear.  “You do know me…better than so many people.  Why must you always believe the worst of me?”

His teeth glinted white against his olive skin and I found myself leaning toward him unconsciously.  I caught myself and moved back, just as Cadmus lunged toward him.  In one deft move, Cadmus lifted the god of the Underworld and hurled him into the far wall.

There was a collective gasp as Hades smashed into the wall of priceless vases, sending shattered glass skittered across the gleaming floor.  He rolled to his feet and faced Cadmus in a defensive stance.

“Choose your actions carefully, soldier,” Hades instructed smoothly, seemingly unruffled.  His lip was bleeding though, tangible evidence that he had been injured.  Everything else about him seemed smooth and undisturbed.  “Watch yourself.”

“Keep your hands off of my wife,” Cadmus growled.  “You have no right to touch her.  Watch
yourself.
”