Come Hell or High Water

by Michele Bardsley

  Her tone of finality was starting to freak me out. “Honey, what’s wrong?”

  “That’s just it. I’m never wrong,” she said. Her eyes met mine. “Connor stole the talisman fragment because I told him to. He followed my vision to it… and to you.”

  “Astria,” hissed Anise. “We must hurry.”

  We both ignored the annoyed werewolf.

  “Tell me what’s going on, Astria.”

  We stood alone at the jewelry display. Connor was closest to me, trying to give us privacy because he sensed Astria wanted it. The other three stood at the threshold of the room, waiting.

  Foreboding chilled me. Astria lifted her hand and a gold beam shot out. Connor was knocked backward, off his feet. I heard shouts and running, but I couldn’t take my gaze off this heart-broken little girl.

  Within moments, a golden bubble surrounded us. There was no sound or movement, but I knew the others were on the other side, trying to get through.

  She grinned. “They didn’t know I could do that.”

  “It’s impressive.”

  “The gods give us prophets a little gift,” said Astria. “We know when we’re going to die. I was afraid.” Tears spilled out of her luminous gaze and tracked down her alabaster cheeks. “I’m only seventeen.”

  “You mean you’ve already had a vision about your death?”

  She nodded. “It would be wrong to try to protect me, Phoebe. If I don’t die, then the world suffers. Something shifts or changes, and not for the better.”

  “The world would not be better without you in it,” I said.

  She sobbed openly now. “You must protect Ella. She’s… important.”

  “And the ring?”

  “It’s for you,” she said. “It’ll break your mating to Connor if you want.”

  “What?”

  “It has a wish in it. Just one.”

  I gathered Astria into my arms and stroked her hair. I didn’t think I’d ever met anyone so lonely. Prophet or not, she should have some kind of life. She could live openly in Broken Heart, among other children with their own gifts, who were used to the paranormal. She needed it; she deserved it.

  “Why did you tell the others the ring was for Ella? That we needed it last night?”

  “I wanted you and Connor to be alone. I wanted you to love each other. I would’ve slipped it to you later and told you its purpose.”

  “Doesn’t giving me an instant divorce go against your romantic scheme?”

  “You made me realize that no one should be without a choice, no matter how small. I’ve followed prophecies and visions my whole life without complaint.” She looked at me and frowned. “And sometimes, I really wanted to.”

  I laughed.

  “You and Connor really are supposed to be together. I’ve seen it. How happy you will be. But… you should want him for him. Not because some stupid vision told you to marry him.”

  “That’s why he married me.”

  “Maybe.” She sniffled. “But I think he really does love you.”

  “Oh, Astria.” Another thought occurred to me, one that made me go cold. “You knew we had to come here tonight, didn’t you?” I pulled away just a little. “Why?”

  “Because,” she said miserably, “this is where I’m supposed to die.”

  Chapter 21

  “Let’s get the ring, and get the hell out of here,” I said. I drew my Glock and shot the glass surrounding the jewelry display. You would’ve thought it was fancy bulletproof plastic or something, but no… not so much.

  “You can’t save me,” cried Astria.

  “Bullshit. You got a cell phone?”

  She nodded and pulled it out of her back jeans pocket. I slipped the ring onto my finger and told her the number to call. I kept my Glock out, ready for anything. I hoped it worked outside the bubble. The gun was for the last resort. Maybe I was freaking out just a little.

  I glanced at the four people standing outside the bubble. They had varying expressions of worry and disbelief. I hadn’t asked Astria to drop the shield yet, because I wanted to call in the troops and I didn’t want to freaking argue about it.

  Astria Vedere wasn’t gonna die tonight.

  The gods could kiss my ass.

  “It’s ringing,” she said.

  I gave her the Glock, showed her how to hold it, and said, “Shoot anything that tries to harm you. By the way, do you have any idea how you’re supposed to… you know?”

  “Demons,” she said.

  Terrific.

  Damian finally picked up. “Ja?”

  “It’s Phoebe. I’m at the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa. I need help. Lots of freaking help. Except from the hunters. I really don’t like those guys.”

  “You are not dead,” he said, and I heard relief in his voice. “Why did you wait so long to call us, Liebling?”

  “Long story,” I said. “Damian. Please.”

  “On it.” Then he hung up.

  “Drop the shield,” I said, stepping in front of Astria.

  She did, and four pissed-off people rushed toward us. I held out my hand when Anise tried to bypass me.

  “She is mine to guard!” she yelled. “You go too far.”

  “She’s supposed to die tonight,” I said. “Demons are coming.”

  It was as if my words called them.

  Five black clouds, a cloying stink of sulfur, and then we were facing some ugly, mean bastards. Ren and Larsa went full throttle, and so did Connor. Larsa easily fought two, while her male counterparts fought one each.

  The other one… Shit. Where’d it go?

  I heard Anise cry out. I whirled around and found her sailing across the room. She crashed against a case displaying a jug, and it crashed to the floor with her. She went limp and I knew she’d been knocked out.

  The Glock in Astria’s pale hands shook, but she fired at its massive chest. Good girl, Astria.

  It roared with pain as each bullet thunked into it. I whipped out one of my silver knives, jumped onto its back, and sank the dagger hilt-deep into its thick neck.

  He swiped out, angry, and his claws raked through Astria’s neck. Blurt spurted in a grotesque arc. She dropped the gun and fell, her eyes going wide.

  “No!” I leapt off the demon as it sank to its knees. I kicked its head and knocked it to the floor. I scrambled to Astria and scooped her up. “Oh, my God.”

  “Told. You.” She gasped. “Never. Wrong.”

  “Phoebe.” Damian was kneeling beside me. I looked at him, my throat knotted, my eyes aching to cry. “How did you…” I looked up as Patrick joined him, and I realized Damian had ‘ported here. No doubt he’d tracked the cell phone from which I’d called or maybe just hooked into my vampire mojo. Patrick was practically an Ancient, and half-sidhe. Like Connor.

  I could hear the buzz of battle, but I couldn’t look away from Astria. “Patrick, can you take her to Brigid? Please. She’s a Vedere. She’s the prophet.”

  “I will take her.” He placed a hand on her bleeding neck, scooped her up, and sparkled away.

  “You should go, too, Liebling,” said Damian.

  “Connor,” I whispered. And then, Connor.

  Damian’s gaze narrowed. “He abducted you?”

  “He married me.”

  Connor appeared, and without a word he picked me up. I was bloody and terrified for Astria. Brigid was a goddess; she could save her.

  “The demons are vanquished to the Pit.”

  “I want to go home,” I said. I looked at Damian. “You told Jackson I was dead.”

  “Because we believed it so.”

  “They’re not safe,” I said. “Nobody’s safe.”

  “We will see to their protection.”

  I pressed my face into Connor’s shoulder and closed my eyes. I already felt as though my world had shifted, so I didn’t even realize it when we ‘ported into my house in Broken Heart.

  I didn’t know how we made it past the Invisi-shield, either, but I didn’t car
e.

  I called Patrick. He said Astria was under the care of his mother, and Brigid was using all of her magic to heal the girl.

  Connor undressed me and put me in the shower. I washed off Astria’s blood, but not my sorrow. I had to believe she would be all right.

  I pulled on a pair of cutoffs and an old T-shirt, then went to the kitchen. Connor had made coffee, and I greedily drank mine. I felt guilty enjoying such a small treat when Astria fought for her life. I was so glad to be home.

  “Is everyone else okay?” I asked.

  “Aye. Damian promised to bring ‘em all here after seein’ to the cleanup of the museum. It was right of you to call your friends, Phoebe.” He was staring at my ring. “We’ll see that Ella gets that. It’s what Astria wants.”

  I nodded, too chicken to tell him it was our get-out-of-marriage card. My reluctance had a lot to do with the way I felt about Connor. He was man who had faith, who had honor, who had within him the capacity for love. I wasn’t sure I deserved him.

  I wasn’t sure about a lot of things.

  I missed Danny. And I’d failed Astria. Suddenly, I didn’t want to be at home anymore. I couldn’t sit here with my guilt and my worry.

  “Connor…”

  “You need time alone,” he said. “You want to drive Sally.”

  I nodded.

  “Go on, then, lass.” He pulled me from the seat I’d taken at the kitchen table and kissed me tenderly. “I’ll wait for you.”

  ———

  I drove around Broken Heart with the windows on my Mustang rolled down. It was hot, but I didn’t care. The summer air blowing inside smelled like honeysuckle and road dust. Like home.

  I wondered how come everyone thought I was dead, who had taken over the café, what had happened to everyone during the last two days. The thoughts were as meandering as my path, and I didn’t need the answers so much as something to think about. Anything to occupy my mind except Astria. And Danny.

  Jesus. Had Jackson told Danny I was dead?

  Until I got everything settled here, there was no point in clarifying the situation. He was gonna be pissed off, especially when he figured out how long I’d been undead and how many lies he’d been told. In the end, we’d have to do what was best for our son, and I hoped Jackson agreed that living in town with us would be the way to go.

  I wasn’t looking forward to that conversation, just like I wasn’t looking forward to my part in the prophecy and retrieving the talisman. Although I did relish the idea of putting Lilith in her place.

  For some reason, I ended up at the park. I pulled into a slot that faced the shiny plastic slides, bridge, tunnels, and sandbox. I missed taking Danny here, and hoped one day I would again.

  God. How did everything get so fucked-up?

  Jessica pulled up in her minivan. Jessica had been the first of us to get plowed down by the out-of-control beast that had killed all of us. The creature was a very sick Lorcan O’Halloran, who was now all cured. He was also the twin brother of Jess’s second husband, Patrick.

  Their children, Bryan, Jenny, and Rich Jr., piled out of the car. Rich was Danny’s age; Jenny was ten, and Bryan fifteen. Bryan looked less than thrilled to be part of the family outing. He had an iPod in one hand, and a graphic novel in the other. He went to a nearby picnic table and lay on it. I waited at the curb for the rest of the O’Hallorans to join me.

  “It’s like we asked him to pour acid in his eyes,” groused Jessica as she watched her son stake out his spot. She sighed. “I think he might prefer acid in his eyes to family time.”

  “He’s a teenager. It’s his nature to be difficult.”

  “And my parental prerogative is to beat him with my shoe.” She turned to me and flashed a smile. “Long time, no see. How ya doin’?”

  “Been better.”

  “I heard.” She hugged me, and it made me feel better. “Any word on the girl?”

  I shook my head.

  We walked toward the plastic contraptions. We reached the edge of the soft flooring that was supposed to protect the kids from owies. Rich Jr. toddled toward the three steps that led to the smallest slide. Jenny went with him, fussing.

  “She’s the boss of everything,” said Jessica, with a mixture of pride and frustration.

  Jessica and I sat on a bench that faced the play area.

  “Usually Patrick’s hovering over the children. Literally.” Jessica laughed.

  As part of the Family Ruadan, which was part sidhe, or fairy, he had the ability to fly.

  “He always says he’s doing a perimeter check,” Jess said drolly. “But really he’s just messing around.”

  “It must be nice to fly.”

  “You wanna go up? I can take you.” Jessica was also of the Family Ruadan. Their ability to fly probably had something to do with the fairy blood of the founder.

  “No, thanks,” I said hastily. “I’m not a big fan of heights.”

  “Oh.” She shrugged. “It’s a lot of fun.”

  “So’s staying on the ground.” I realized Astria would probably love to fly around with one of the sidhe, and I made a note to tell her. Because I fully expected to see her again, healing up nicely.

  Do you hear me, O gods who rule the universe? She’s gonna live.

  For a quiet moment, we watched the kids. Jenny helped her brother get situated on the slide, and in three seconds, they were down the chute. Then it was another jaunt up the steps, a lecture from Jenny on proper sliding techniques, and woo… off he went again.

  I looked at Jess and realized something was off. I studied her a moment, and then I figured out what it was. “Where are your swords?”

  No matter what Jessica wore, she always donned her special belt for her gold half swords. She was a killer with ‘em; in fact, she had helped me with some of my knife training.

  “I learned how to magic them. I can make them appear instantly now. Of course, I look badass with ‘em strapped to my thighs.” She grinned at me, then looked up at the night sky. You couldn’t see the Invisi-shield’s bubble unless you tried to get through it. Then it went blue and buzzy.

  “So, about your boyfriend…” She batted her lashes at me. “Why’d you take off with him?”

  I shrugged. Obviously Damian hadn’t let the good word spread about my mating to Connor. I didn’t much want to explain anything. Besides, ever since Jess found her true love, she’d been trying to do the rest of us a solid. Her first attempt, hooking up our former librarian, Eva, with my former boss, Ralph, did not work out. On the upside, Eva was now Jessica’s sis-in-law, because Eva ended up marrying Lorcan. And Ralph found his own true love, my friend Libby, in a cemetery.

  No one could ever call Broken Heart boring.

  “Why’d everyone think I was dead?”

  “Your house was a mess, your locket was on the bedroom floor, and everyone knows you wouldn’t go anywhere without it. Then the hunters told us… Well, they figured Connor had killed you.”

  Uneasiness crawled up my spine. “He didn’t hurt me. But those hunters…”

  “Annoy the hell out of Patsy,” said Jessica. “She’ll want to talk to you soon. Really soon.”

  “Uh-oh. Are we talking about a meeting?” I groaned.

  “That’s where Patrick is,” she said. “I hate meetings, too. I’m not gonna bug you about what happened, Phoebe. I’m sure you had your reasons. But you’ll have to come clean with Patsy.”

  I probably should’ve gone straight to Queen Patsy. Just unloaded everything from my mating to Connor to my role with the talisman, which I was still vague on. And the one person who knew what I was supposed to be doing was dying.

  No, she was healing.

  Brigid wouldn’t let me down.

  Still, I was throwing a hell of a pity party for myself, and my friends were letting me do it. Had Gabriel met his brother and sister yet? Had Larsa told Patsy she was the last of her line and necessary for renewing the talisman’s magic?

  Some part of me felt like I
should be there, and another part was grateful that I was not. I was caught between becoming something bigger, more important to the world around me, and staying where I had been, managing the café and vanquishing the occasional demon.

  “Jess, did you know there was an eighth vampire line?”

  She turned to me, her expression shocked. “Huh?”

  “Patrick never mentioned it?”

  Jessica shook her head. “What are you – “

  Bryan’s scream made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

  Both of us leapt up from the bench and whirled around.

  Bryan hovered over the picnic table, his arms and legs pulled straight by two demons. The graphic novel had fallen to the ground and the iPod swung off his side, the buds still stuck in his ears.

  His eyes were bulging, his skin gray. “Mooom!” Bryan screeched. “Help me!”

  Chapter 22

  “Oh, my God! Bryan!” Jessica jumped over the bench and raced to her son in the blink of an eye. She flew into the air and grabbed his arm. “Phoebe!”

  “Got ‘em!” I whirled around and headed for the slide.

  Jenny stood at the top, holding the hand of Rich Jr., her eyes wide and her face white with terror.

  “It’s okay,” I said gently, taking the boy from her. I picked him up. “C’mon, Jenny.”

  We hurried down the two steps. Jenny tugged on my sweater. I stopped and turned. Tears dripped down her cheeks. “They’re gonna tear apart Bryan!”

  “No,” I said firmly. “They’re not.”

  Bryan’s screams were choked, his limbs so straight they looked as if they might just pop out of their joints.

  Jessica yelled with frustration as she tried to free her son. But the demons just laughed and pushed her away. I think she was afraid to engage them directly. They were perfectly capable of ripping him in half.

  What was I supposed to do now?

  Use my connection to Connor. Get help.

  Connor?

  Lass?

  Demons at the park; please come.

  I hadn’t sensed demons or demon magic, and it killed me to know we’d been surrounded and attacked without any warning. So much for my evil wonder powers. Yeah, yeah, insert Super Friends joke here.