by S. K Munt
‘Mark Schorer’s office?’ A heavily accented American woman chirped. ‘How can I help you?’
‘This is Ivyanne Court, calling on behalf of LoveSun corporation. I urgently need to speak to Mr Schorer regarding a deal he had with my predecessor-Tristan Loveridge.’
‘I’m sorry, but Mark is in a meeting right now. Can I take your number and get him to call you back?’
‘Sure,’ Ivyanne said, hoping she could work her persuasive charms over the phone as easily as she could in person. It would be a coup for her, to land the account Tristan had wanted more than anything else.
When she’d pocketed the phone again, Ivyanne got to her feet and did a one eighty, looking for Lux, each heartbeat during which the other woman didn’t materialize pumping fresh dread into her bloodstream in increasing doses.
Where was she? How could someone leave a note like that and then not follow through?
When the sun had ascended high enough for the pink to fade to the palest yellow against the scattered, airy clouds, Ivyanne knew Lux was dead, and that Ardhi had killed her.
25.
When the temperature of the water began to climb considerably, Tristan felt a rush of excitement. He’d been swimming for almost two weeks-and now that he’d recovered from his injuries, he was feeling more powerful than he had in a long time. Powerful enough to take on anyone.
It was a bonus that Adele had been less of a pain in the ass than he’d anticipated. Sure, she’d forced him to go ashore so she could check them into a comfortable motel room every night, but she wasn’t a princess when it came to catching fish or encountering the various nasties that dwelled within the ocean.
‘Where are we?’ Tristan asked on Thursday evening, as he came out of the shower with a fluffy white robe tied snuggly around him. ‘This room is swank, but I must have spotted fifteen or so sharks in the last kilometer.’
‘Bull sharks,’ Adele nodded. ‘I heard you scream ’em off, but I didn’t feel better until we were on land, I’ll tell yah,’ she was reclined on a leather couch, wearing an identical robe to his. ‘We’re at Rainbow Beach-on the Fraser coast.’
‘Really?’ Tristan’s eyebrows lifted. ‘We bypassed Brisbane?’
‘Two hours ago-but we were fairly far out-I wasn’t sure if you’d noticed.’ She cocked her head. ‘Shouldn’t you know this stuff better than me? Being a veteran?’
Tristan rolled his eyes. ‘It’s not like I’ve circumnavigated the globe or anything. And I’ve actually never bothered with this area because I know how dangerous the waters are. There are fishing boats everywhere around here, aren’t they?’
Adele nodded. ‘Usually. But it’s like, twenty knots. Only the very keen will be fishing between now and lunch tomorrow.’
Tristan smiled at her. ‘You have a knack for this.’
‘I do, don’t I?’ Adele looked proud. ‘Well, I was bound to be good at something other than bar tending and terrorist attacks.’
‘You’re an English major, right?’
Adele nodded. ‘I wanted to be a professor. But I’ve changed my mind.’
‘Because of the mer thing?’
‘No, actually. I changed my mind last year.’ She towel dried her hair. ‘Because of you, believe it or not.’
Tristan smiled. ‘Me?’
She nodded. ‘You were so passionate about your job, and about doing what was right for the environment-and you were making a ton of cash to boot-seemed perfect. A nice mix of shallow and deep.’
‘Like the ocean,’ Tristan smirked. ‘So, you were going to go into solar panels?’
Adele shook her head. ‘Actually, I was thinking of switching to law-environmental law.’
‘Really?’ Tristan couldn’t hide his surprise. ‘You? A lawyer?’
Adele glowered at him. ‘I have an I.Q in the high one thirties, I’ll have you know.’
Tristan blinked. ‘I did not expect that.’
‘Most people don’t,’ Adele smiled. ‘I like it that way, too.’ She laid the towel over the arm of the chair. ‘So yeah, law. That way, I could do the right thing for the world, but still afford nice shoes.’
Tristan sniggered. ‘That was pretty much my motivation-believe it or not.’
‘I believe it.’
Tristan opened the bar fridge, which was actually a full-sized refrigerator in what appeared to be a large apartment. There was a bottle of white wine and a few glass bottles of orange juice, so he took one of the juices. ‘We’re very alike, you and I.’
‘Pretty? Blonde? Privileged? Good in bed?’
Tristan laughed. ‘I’m going to ignore that last one…..Do you know how much these drinks are? I have to make sure I leave the right amount.’
Adele laughed. ‘Just give your money to me-I’ll make sure daddy gets it.’
Tristan was shocked. ‘You own this place?’
‘My parents do. We rent it out when we don’t want it-I have a few things here, stashed in the cupboard in case of emergencies. In fact, I was just here two weeks ago-with Ardhi.’
That got him. ‘You brought him here?’
Adele nodded. ‘He was so paranoid that he almost didn’t come in, but I’d only been a mer for a day or two, and we spent the first night in a boat he stole-which we ditched up in the Percy Island group when the water got too rough. After swimming to here, I was exhausted. I put my foot down, and he caved. This was where we finally got to talking though, when he explained the basics-what he’d done to me, how he’d fooled you guys, who I was now, and what he intended to do to: “Make things right.” ’
‘So he had the plane crash idea from the beginning?’
‘Once he knew you were alive, yes.’ She pursed her lips.‘He knew the sky was the only place he could take you out and make it look like not only an accident, but fate.’
Tristan gave her a sidelong look. ‘Do I want to know what your part was to play?’
Adele stared down at her fingernails. ‘I was his communications gal. I booked the flights, and schooled him on how to do a few things like that online. Then, because you requested two seats-he sent me ahead to the airport while he swam off to Hawaii. I had to stick around and make sure you boarded the plane-without Ivyanne. If she was with you, he would have called the whole thing off.’
‘So that’s why you were in Sydney? Watching me?’
‘Yes but my flight was delayed-I was supposed to be there well before you. And after you left, I had a direct flight with a different airline-it got me there two hours before yours did because I had to get a boat close to Molokai.’ She glanced at him. ‘You keeping up?’
Tristan nodded and smiled. ‘My I.Q is one-forty seven.’
She stuck her tongue out at him. ‘See that smart mouth? That’s exactly why I agreed to drop you from the sky.’ She smiled angelically. ‘Anyway he was there from Thursday-he rented a house so he could stake out the area and be in contact with me. When I touched down, I booked a speedboat and met Ardhi out on a smaller island.’
‘Why a boat?’
Adele swallowed. ‘In case there was a body we had to dispose of.’
Tristan felt sick. ‘Diabolical.’ He frowned. ‘So how did you know that I wasn’t onto you?’
Adele smiled. ‘You boarded, didn’t you?’
Tristan felt tired. ‘It sure is complex.’
‘I assume murder plots usually are.’
‘So I’m learning,’ Tristan managed a smile. ‘Speaking of which-can you do me a favor?’
‘What’s that?’
‘Call your gossipy friend Ilsa and get an update? If Ardhi or Sherri have split them up, I need to know if we should be flying from here.’
Adele grinned. ‘Way ahead of yah-I called while you were in the shower and no, everything’s on track with the engagement party and Sherri’s being made to handle most of it.’ She smiled. ‘That must thrill her to no end!’
Tristan sagged in disappointment. He’d been kind of hoping that Sherri had been able to get between the coup
le just a little. Just enough to have Ivyanne sliding that damn ring off her hand. But clearly, the fate Lincoln had waxed lyrical about was actually on his side.
Like getting dropped from the sky didn’t scream that at yah? He asked himself angrily. Give it up! Go home, save the day and redeem yourself for being such a fool and then go back to your actual home-Los Angeles and forget that you ever loved anybody.
‘Are you going to be okay with this?’ He asked Adele, trying to distract himself from his pain, which was swelling up again now that he’d broken contact with the ocean.’
‘Showing up at my ex’s engagement party that should have been mine, to save him and the woman he dumped me for?’ Adele cringed. ‘Be prepared to see a little acting.’
Tristan nodded. ‘I can handle fake Adele.’
‘You did in bed.’ She said breezily. ‘In fact, you believed it.’
‘I’m calling bullshit!’ He declared. ‘Don’t even try and pretend that shagging me didn’t make you feel one hundred percent better about ending things with him last year, missy, and that when I showed up, you didn’t consider the possibility of a round two.’
Adele grinned, lighting up. ‘Actually, you’re right. And now I know what I’m going to write in his damn engagement card too!’
Tristan relaxed back into his seat and chuckled. ‘Diabolical,’ he repeated.
Adele blew him a kiss.
⁓
Ivyanne pulled up to one of the pool-side recliners on Thursday morning and kicked off her shoes before making herself comfortable. Getting engaged to a man you thought your ex best friend might be considering killing was proving to be an exhausting past time. She was at the Seaview constantly to mingle with the mer arrivals, trying to introduce her fiancé to people, while looking over her shoulder, either for Ardhi or Lux.
She’d asked Lincoln to stay at the resort at night on the off chance that Ardhi was lurking nearby-but hadn’t told Lincoln the true reason why. She’d given the excuse of propriety instead-it wouldn’t do for the mers to know just how much sex she was having out of wedlock. They knew about Tristan, of course, but only Ardhi and Lux knew for sure that she’d allowed Lincoln to even the score.
Ivyanne felt like she was living a double life as the expectant bride entertaining visitors, as well as a spy/bodyguard who was using the internet and her snazzy smart phone to gather all the information she needed for the variables in her life, while pretending that everything was hunky-dory to all.
She’d woken up at seven to have breakfast with her parents and the Cajun-bred Marked family from New Orleans, The Chalmette’s at the resort-Lincoln fussing over them the whole time. They were one of the younger Marked families-and more unusual because Anna had turned an existing husband and wife together in the eighties. The hadn’t had any children then but now they had a four year old son, Bradley, after thirty years of trying. Ivyanne couldn’t help but stare at him during the meal, realizing that the age difference between herself and Bradley was the same between herself and Tristan. Had he seen her at this age and pinched her cheeks? It was a humorous notion.
She spread her towel on the soft mat, placed her fruit plate on the tabletop beside it popped on her sunglasses. Once she was settled, Ivyanne lifted her phone, pressing dial on the number she had saved earlier. She wished Tristan could see her finally work the phone he’d forced on her-he would have been proud.
‘Hello? Lester Fire speaking.’
‘Hello Lester,’ Ivyanne said. ‘It’s Ivyanne Court. How are you?’
‘Ivyanne!’ Roan Fire’s aging father sounded delighted to hear from her. ‘How are you doing, my dear?’
‘I’m doing okay. I’m sure you’ve heard, about the recent unpleasantness though..?’
‘I have, I have.. but you’re holding up well? Finally getting married, I see?’
Ivyanne nodded, even though he couldn’t see it. ‘Getting there. How are you?’
There was a sigh. ‘Okay. Still getting around, although my back isn’t what it used to be.’
‘I’m sorry to hear that. Is the house still suitable? Would you like us to make some adjustments?’
‘I’ll think about that Ivyanne, thank you. The heated saltwater pool is helping though. So thank your father for arranging that for me.’
The Fire family had been a very important line since almost the beginning, as Hannah had been a Scottish countess, and the fourth Marked benefactress turned. She’d born two children, Eternity and Jeremiah, and had been able to turn two humans for them to continue their pure bloodline. Her daughter, Eternity, had married Lester, a forty year old knight, and they’d had Chantarelle and Roan. If Vana had given birth to a son, instead of Ivyanne, Chantarelle would have been first in line for his hand. But as it was, she was still single, and swiftly approaching one hundred and fifty years old, unlike Roan, who had been born well over a century later.
Hannah’s son, Jeremiah, had married a young peasant girl, Lesley, and they’d had one son-Joakim. Joakim Fire had been a very handsome man back in his day, but of course, he’d disgraced his mother by marrying another Marked daughter Eka, and producing Ardhi and his sisters two hundred years later.
It was amazing how one branch of the family were held with the highest regard, whereas the other had brought nothing but shame. To repay Lester, who had been a widower since shortly after Roan’s death, Vana had set him up with a beautiful property on Norfolk Island, and made sure that neither he, not Chantarelle, had to lift a finger to provide for themselves again.
Hanna had never spoken to Joakim again after he’d defiled the good family name, and had died shortly after Lumi Kayu-Api was born, never meeting her great-granddaughter on that side. The biggest shame of all, came from the fact that Joakim could have asked his grandmother to turn anyone for him, yet he’d chosen to tangle the branches of the tree instead. People like Remi, who would have loved nothing more than to have their human turned, resented Joakim heavily for that.
Still, Ivyanne couldn’t ignore the plight of Lester and his daughter-they’d done nothing but obey the rules, and had been repaid with heartache. There was definitely a flaw in the Marked system, one Ivyanne wanted to counteract when she was in charge. It had occurred to her for some time, that an age limit should apply. Once a Marked child hit fifty, they should have been released from their legacy. Sometimes, it went without saying, such in Chantarelle’s case-one hundred and fifty was much too old to be fixed up with an eighteen year old Court child. But it would have been better, if Chantarelle had been released from her obligation, one hundred years before, when Hannah had still been alive, and able to turn for her.
‘I will.’ Ivyanne cleared her throat-she was on a path and had decided to start with the most familiar landmarks. After all, new Zealand and Norfolk were close. If she could put Ardhi in either place, she’d have a case building. ‘I was calling to see if yourself or Chantarelle had noticed any unusual activity around our houses there recently?’
‘Unusual?’ Lester asked. He was the unofficial caretaker for the handful of properties some of the mers owned on Norfolk, but used infrequently. ‘Hmm. Well, you have permanent tenants in your home at the moment, and I had to call in a plumber for them last month- so no, it’s the same old same old, last time I checked.’
‘And the Kayu-Api house?’
Lester paused. ‘I believe they’ve had a few temporary guests throughout the summer. Eka and Joakim didn’t let us know about the last lot, but I saw one of the girls unlocking the front door with a key when I drove by, so I decided that she must have been a friend of theirs.’
Ivyanne raised an eyebrow- Eka and Joakim had told her point blank that there house had been empty all summer due to a few bouts of crummy weather.
‘Did you go and see them?’
‘I tried-but no one ever answered. One of the girls was there until...hmmm….last week, I think, or was it early this week? I left a note for them to call, but never heard from them.’ I’ve been meaning to ask Eka-’
/>
‘I’ll do it.’ Ivyanne said quickly, mind spinning. ‘How many girls were there?’
‘Two. Both blondes...but I didn’t see the little one much.’
‘Oh...well...I guess two blondes is an adequate description.’ Ivyanne cleared her throat. ‘Well, thanks for the update Lester. Any chance that we’ll see you at the wedding?’
‘Most definitely,’ Lester said quickly. ‘My son would have wanted me there-and as you know-our family is quite partial to marriages between pure bloods and turned humans, we’ve certainly been blessed with two delightful offspring, as a result.’
‘Thank you. It’s good to have your blessing.’
‘Of course,’ Lester said, his tone becoming more serious. ‘Despite some unpleasantness, we are proud to be Marked, as many of the families are. Besides, one thousand years is early days for any civilization. There are bound to be some hiccups along the way!’
‘Hopefully less, from now on,’ Ivyanne said, warmed by his generous words. It was good to know that the entire kingdom wasn’t turning against them. ‘I’ll see you in a few months then.’
‘See you then.’
Ivyanne ended the call, then got up, gathering her things, trying to sort the puzzle pieces into some kind of order in her head. When she had everything, Ivyanne hurried up the path, going around the restaurant past the wing of the complex which housed the function room, without saying good-bye to Lincoln. He was run off his feet anyway, and Ivyanne didn’t want to have to make small-talk with all of the guests. She had things to do.
Two blondes-could that have anything to do with Ardhi? The fact that a note had been left in lipstick on Lux’s mirror told her that it very well could. But who? Only one face came to mind and the very idea made her sick…. And how could she look into it further? And where was Lux? She’d started assuming the worst earlier that morning, but she needed more than a gut feeling-she needed a body. Her eyes welled up at the thought of it, but now was not the time to be squeamish. If, after the party, she didn’t know more-she’d find some way to get Ardhi out of the area-so she could search the Bracken part of Bracken.
