Midnight Starling: An Urban Fantasy Romance Series

by Rhiannon Lee

  "He's probably dead," Thain grumbled.

  Victor looked in Thain's direction with wide eyes. "Boss, I think you're exhausted."

  Thain could have been right. Franklin had taken two shots to the chest. His prognosis wasn't great for surviving that kind of bodily damage. But we weren't dealing with regular everyday humans. Everyone was surprised when he limped away on the arm of one of his goons, but not surprised enough to assume he was dead somewhere. Besides, there were already rumors about him circulating among the Ouphes who, unsurprisingly, wanted him out of their territory, stat. The biggest issue was that they were too terrified to give us the information we needed to find him. I'd only known about the Ouphes for a very short while, but from what I'd learned about them, and how Franklin and his men had treated them, I couldn't say I blamed them for being afraid he'd show up again and cause more harm.

  Thain's expression pulled tight, and it looked like he was going to throttle Victor for his comment, but at the last moment his features softened. "I am tired," he admitted.

  "Sonia is still on the loose, too," I added.

  Victor glared at me. "We'll handle her too as soon as we get the flow of magic corrected," he said, sounding clipped.

  I turned away, focusing on the well. Mesmerized by the reflection of light bouncing off the top, I stepped up to the roughly crafted thing. My hand lifted and touched the rough stone rim as I stared at the colors within. I traced my fingers along it, feeling the energy vibrating through the rock. Its hum resonated through my hand and up my arm, making each hair stand up. It kept climbing into my shoulder until I could feel it working its way through the rest of my body as well. The previous time I touched the top, it hadn't done this, and instead, merely stopped at my fingertips. My vision wavered as the tickle reached my throat. Almost as if another dimension opened up in the air, a semi-transparent aura appeared from the magic. It fanned up like the tips of a flame, dying out about two feet in any direction.

  This was new.

  The sensation in my throat seemed to settle against my vocal cords, and my mouth fell open. Before I could think, I sang. It was a simple Irish melody about mending a broken heart that Poppy used to lull me to sleep with as a child. It rose from me like a serenade—a tribute to every living creature that roamed the earth that came pouring out of my vocal box like I'd been singing on stage my entire life.

  The words seemed inconsequential compared to the remarkable feeling that accompanied the melody, as if they were just a catalyst for the energy flowing out of me. In that moment, the two parts of me became one. I felt my inner starling perk up and come to the forefront of my mind. I had never been so aware of her while I was in my human body before. It was as if we were completely aware of every aspect of the other and in total harmony.

  And as miraculously as it was while it lasted, the song's final word fell from my lips as my hand fell from the stone. I felt something warm and wet on my cheeks, so I lifted my hand to see what it was. I was crying. I wiped them away with the back of my sleeve.

  "Bea," Victor whispered.

  There was an emptiness in my chest where the magic had been, and I sighed as I turned in his direction.

  "I think–" he started but was interrupted by a loud bang coming from the well.

  All the men shifted into action, racing toward it. I spun back around just in time to see the black box fall away into the pit of darkness. The swirls of color and light were gone too.

  "You did it," Thain said, a bit out of breath.

  I touched the stone again. This time it was lifeless. A sense of longing that I didn't fully understand threatened to overwhelm me, and my body swayed under the absence of the warmth that had just been within reach.

  "Bea," Victor said again, this time from beside me. "You're a singer."

  I felt my face scrunch at his words. "I'm not a singer, don't be ridiculous," I replied. He was out of his mind. "My vocal abilities are mediocre," I countered.

  "No, not a singer like that. A singer. That's your gift," he clarified.

  "I don't know about that," I replied as I headed for the stairs, leaving Thain and Victor staring at each other in confusion.

  As I cleared the stairs Thain yelled, "For pity's sakes!"

  I rolled my eyes and kept moving.

  Victor caught up to me when I was halfway across the lawn in front of the beaten-up house. The poor thing was riddled with bullet holes after the gun fight. My eyes slid across the damaged siding that was half falling off before giving him my full attention.

  "It was a fluke, okay? It was just the magic in the well channeling through me or some something," I said before he could speak.

  He stood there with his mouth hanging open for a good ten seconds. "Whatever it was, you did it. Thank you."

  It was not what I expected him to say. "Oh, well. You're welcome," I said, moving toward my car again.

  He let me go this time. I was glad because my self-doubt was trying to suffocate me and I needed Poppy. Not that I thought myself unworthy of magic exactly, I just wasn't extraordinary enough for something that beautiful.

  When I got to my driver's side door, I pulled it open and plopped down into the familiar seat. I was out of the driveway before I could even process my actions. The entire way home I was on autopilot. One moment I was at the house, and then the next I was pulling my keys from the ignition and floating toward to the one person I knew could make sense of all of this.

  Isaac was on the couch when I walked through the door. He stood up in a rush and held his index finger to his mouth.

  "She's sleeping," he said as he stepped into my path.

  "But I need her," I pleaded.

  "Oh, Bea. What's the matter?" he asked, grabbing my hands.

  "I need to talk to Poppy," I repeated.

  "She's asleep, hun. Why don't you tell me what's bothering you? Maybe I can help?" he suggested.

  I pulled my hands from his grasp and his face fell.

  "I know I'm not Poppy, but I love you, kid. Tell me what's wrong," he said.

  I looked toward Poppy's room once more then back to Isaac. He had a point. It would make me feel awful to wake her when she was still trying to heal.

  "You're right, I'm sorry. My head it just so clouded right now," I said.

  I took a seat on the couch, and he found a spot beside me. I turned so I could face him and pulled my legs up under me.

  "Isaac, is it possible that I'm…"

  "That you're what?" he asked.

  My voice felt as shaky as my body. "That I really do have magic?"

  He wrapped an arm around my shoulder, pulling me close. "What's happened? I don't think I've ever seen you so upset, not even when you brought Poppy home like that," he said with a jerk of his thumb toward her door.

  "I sang," I said, blowing out a breath.

  His forehead scrunched. "What do you mean, you sang? You sing all the time."

  "I don't mean I sang like I do in the shower or in my room, I mean I sang."

  He still looked confused. "I think I'm missing something. I don't understand what you're getting at."

  "I opened my mouth and that old timey lullaby that Poppy used to sing me came out, but it wasn't just words. And then I could feel my starling in my head, and then the black box broke, and the well stopped sucking up all the magic," I explained.

  His forehead shifted upward and his mouth formed an O. "Oh. You sang sang!"

  I waved a hand in dismissal. "I think it might have just been the magic from the well, but I'm not sure. Is there a way to tell?"

  He smiled and placed a hand on my arm. "Magic can only flow out of a person in certain ways. And those ways are hard wired into a person from before they are born. If you sang magic, that means you are a singer. There is nothing else to it, Bea."

  "So, it couldn't have been a fluke because of all the power floating around in the room?"

  "No, that's simply not possible," he answered.

  "Are you sure?" I asked.

&n
bsp; "Yes. I'm one-hundred percent sure."

  "It was strange," I said, breaking the silence that had settled over us for a moment.

  His smile grew. "Your gift is very special, and rare."

  I knew he was trying to help, but his comment made me self-conscious again.

  "But why me?"

  "What do you mean, why you?"

  "I'm not special, I'm just a regular person who has done exactly nothing extraordinary with her life. Shouldn't a gift like this go to someone who deserves it?"

  "I disagree, and so would Poppy. You spend all your time helping other people. If that isn't extraordinary, I don't know what is. I couldn't have chosen a better gift if I had to," he said comforting certainty.

  We sat in silence again, smooshed up against each other for a while. His warmth bled into me, giving me a sense of calmness while I considered his words.

  I rarely looked to Isaac as the fathering type, but I guess that's what he had been to me all these years. A fun, if not a sometimes-morose parent, but a loving caretaker, nonetheless.

  "It makes sense with you being a bird half the time," he piped up.

  I frowned. "Starlings are not songbirds; they just sit around and squawk. Have you ever heard one?"

  "Yes, I have. And they may not trill songs that are stereotypically beautiful to the ear, but they are songs. Especially to people who know how to listen properly."

  "It still doesn't feel real. It was as if I left my body, and someone else was singing."

  "I knew your gift would be amazing, just like you are," he said.

  I let out a long exhale and fought off the tears threatening to break free. "Have you ever known any other singing Godkin?" I asked.

  "I've never met one in person, no. It's rare. There hasn't been a singer in over two centuries that I know of."

  I sat up and pulled away from him so I could see his face. "Really?"

  He tucked his feet under his thighs. "Yes, really. I also know that it's a powerful gift, more so than any other. Singers in the past were both worshipped and feared."

  "Great," I muttered.

  "What's wrong now?" he asked.

  "Not only do I have an unusual gift, but people are going to be afraid of me. Just what I needed," I said flatly.

  He grinned. "But you also have the other possibility. They might just worship you."

  I pushed him playfully on the shoulder. "That would be worse."

  "I don't know. I could use a few followers around here to help do laundry," he joked.

  "Isaac, this is serious. Oh my god, what am I going to do? Everyone heard me today, including Thain."

  "I don't think Thain will mention it to anyone," he said confidently.

  "How do you know that?"

  He pointed toward Poppy's room. "Because the fool is still madly in love with Poppy, and she would kill him."

  I nodded. "Good point. Still, he wasn't the only one there. Victor heard it too."

  He raised his eyebrow at me. "And that boy is madly in love with you. His lips are sealed as well," he said.

  "Don't be stupid, Victor doesn't feel that way about me. The only time he comes around is because Thain orders him to," I said, even though I didn't completely believe it. I wasn't sure how Victor felt, if I was being honest with myself.

  "Sure, whatever you say."

  I squinted at him and he smiled again.

  "I know that outside of what happened today, we should probably be careful about who we tell until we figure out what your gift means and what all it entails. There isn't much information left in the history books about singers. Poppy might know more than I do, though. We'll fill her in and ask her when she's awake."

  I agreed that this wasn't something I wanted to dump on her in her current state. And I was glad that he had stopped me before I could. I wasn't even sure if I should try to sing again until Poppy was well enough to help me. I sighed and fell back against the couch cushion. My mind kept roaming back to Victor and what Isaac had said. Did he really have feelings for me? Did everyone see it but me? I didn't even know how I felt about him, really. I mean I liked him, but… Crap, my life so was getting so darn complicated.

  Chapter 21

  Poppy

  A delicate melody pulled me from my slumber. Someone was singing. I hesitated to open my eyes in case it stopped because it was beautiful, and I could have laid and listened to the song forever.

  "Don't worry, I practiced on myself first," Bea said once the song faded away.

  I slowly opened my eyes. She was sitting at the side of my bed, worry pulling at her features.

  "Was that…?" I began. My throat was so dry I couldn't get the whole question out.

  "Yes, it was me. Don't look too shocked," she joked as she dipped her head toward the floor.

  "You found your gift," I whispered.

  It wasn't like Bea to be embarrassed, but the rosy blush to her cheeks told me she was.

  She shuffled closer to hand me the glass of water sitting on my nightstand. I took a small sip and closed my eyes as the cool liquid touched my throat. It felt like heaven. I took a larger draw from the glass and opened my eyes back up.

  Her gaze was intensely trained on my face. "How do you feel?" Bea asked.

  "Not bad, considering. How long have I been out?"

  "A few days. Not bad. Considering," she copied with a raised eyebrow and a sly grin.

  I tried to smile back but the memories of what happened came crashing in. I struggled to push myself up into a sitting position when her arms came around me to help.

  "Does Thain know about Franklin?"

  Bea placed a hand on my shoulder. "Yes, we know about everything. Franklin and the well and his attempt at sucking magic from the entire city. Everything is fine, you need to rest."

  "So, you caught him?" I asked with a relieved sigh.

  Bea's forehead creased, making me tense.

  She hesitated. "Not exactly, but he's wounded badly. It won't be long before we find him," she finally replied.

  She kept saying the word we, which seemed odd since she didn't like Thain, but she was making it sound like they were working together. Wondering about Thain caused Franklin's face to enter my mind and sent my heart racing.

  "He's still out there?" All I could think of was Franklin's fists cracking down against my face.

  "Shh, it's okay. He can't hurt you anymore," she said, trying to sooth me.

  The ache in my cheek flared to life, reminding me of the pain and how helpless I felt under his control. I tried to throw the blanket off my legs. I needed out of bed.

  Bea placed her hands over mine, stilling me. "Poppy, please calm down. It's going to be okay."

  "You don't know that," I snapped. I had meant to say I was fine.

  "I do know that. We have guards posted outside and his attack on you wasn't a premeditated one. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I will kill him before I let him touch you again."

  "No, he knows who I am. He was mad that I had interfered with his plan. He's not going to just give up."

  "If he comes near you again, I will kill him. I promise you are safe," she said.

  How could she protect me when I couldn't even protect myself? Bea didn't even have full control of her magic yet. The thought of him hurting her as badly or worse than he hurt me made my stomach turn.

  "No."

  "What do you mean, no?" she asked.

  "I don't want you out there looking for him. And I especially don't want you confronting him if he shows up here. I don't want you anywhere near him."

  "You have been through a lot, I know, but I'm not afraid of him. You don't need to worry so much."

  "You're not listening. I said no," I repeated with more force. Why wasn't she listening to me?

  "Poppy, you're still healing. You're not in your rational mind," she said.

  The helplessness in my gut forced tears from my eyes, and I lifted my hands to cover my face.

  Her hand braced my shoul
der. "Poppy, you're the strongest person I know. You're going to get through this."

  Her words made me feel even smaller. I shouldn't be breaking down right now, I should be fighting mad and ready to help find him so he couldn't hurt anyone else. What was wrong with me?

  It took me several tries to reign in my tears. I needed to pull myself together, so I pushed at her gently until she moved back with a question on her face.

  "I need to get out of this bed before I go crazy."

  She didn't move.

  "I'm serious, Bea. I need to get up."

  Bea finally nodded and stood up, allowing me room to swing my feet off the side of the mattress. Pain shot through my ribs as I heaved myself upward, and she grabbed me around the waist to help. It made the ache worse, but I didn't want to tell her to stop, so I clamped down on my lip with my teeth to keep from wincing.

  I limped as gracefully as I could toward my dresser and pulled out a set of clothes. Getting dressed seemed to take forever because I had to pause and catch my breath between each item of clothing. All the while, Bea stood ready, poised to catch me if I fell. I cursed at myself for not doing a better job at hiding my pain.

  "Poppy–"

  I cut her off with a hand motion. "Please let me help," I said.

  She nodded but grabbed the clothing from my hands. "I'll let you help on one condition. You let me help you."

  She still didn't look convinced that I was okay, but I would take it. I sat down on the edge of the bed and let her roll the leggings onto my ankles. I was thankful for her help as she pulled my nightgown up over my head, then replaced it with a shirt to cover my naked upper body. Everything hurt, including my spirit.

  More flashes of that day riddled my mind. They seemed to come in waves as each sore spot across my body was affected by my movement.

  "Oh no," I said breathlessly, remembering the man who had been trapped with me in that basement.

  "What's wrong?" Bea asked, her arm wrapping around me as if I were about to fall.