Her cup rattled in its saucer. She placed it on the table and rubbed her palms over her knees. “Surely she has suffered enough.” She looked to Zelda and Gregori for his reassurance. “We all feel the same.”
Zelda nodded, a suspicion of moisture filming her eyes.
“Except Beth,” Gregori stated without emotion. “Hopefully, with time she will learn to forgive Alanna.” He downed a second shot of whiskey. “One of Alanna’s greatest fears was that this knowledge would break up her family. With her parents gone, her sisters were all she had left. She was so traumatized by the incident she’s been punishing herself for years.”
“Which makes sense,” Eleisha agreed. “She has internalized all that guilt. What a terrible secret to keep. My heart goes out to her.”
“You’re too soft, my beloved,” Anton’s voice was gruff. He rose from his chair and began to pace the centuries old floorboards. “She deserves to be punished.” He paused. Spun on the spot and Mistletoe whisked over to circle him before alighting on his shoulder.
“I hunt her,” Mistletoe sparked, and the smell of burned hair filled the room.
Anton patted himself down to ensure what remained of his hair was still there. “No.”
“What then would you do?” Zelda posed the question and she too stood, genuine fear dulling her eyes.
“I need to think on it.”
“Don’t think too long,” Gregori was growing increasingly impatient. “Alanna and I plan to bind our magic in Cabasson in a few hours time. We hoped you would hold the official ceremony.”
Delight sprang into Eleisha’s eyes. “Really. Oh that’s wonderful.”
“We’ll stay there for a few weeks. That should give Beth time to mull things over and, hopefully, she will find forgiveness in her heart by the time we return.”
Anton held up a hand. “Hold on. I haven’t agreed to anything yet.”
“But my darling,” Eleisha rose and brushed a hand down Anton’s weathered cheek. “You will agree.”
Anton shot her an aggrieved look, but said nothing to disagree with his wife.
“There’s something else,” Zelda spoke loudly, garnering all their attention.
“What now?” Anton’s brow creased.
Zelda coughed, looked to Rosa and then squared her shoulders. “It would be best if you also Called Alanna to Marylebone.”
“What?” Anton bellowed and Mistletoe let out a long line of flame. Anton’s new robe caught fire again. Only a swift spell from Eleisha prevented not only his cloak but Anton lighting the room like a fiery beacon.
Gregori’s mouth dropped. Zelda placed a finger under his jaw and closed it for him. She smiled smugly. “Surprised you all with that one, didn’t we.”
Rosa twisted her hands together. “You’re immortal, Gregori. You know what happened to Aden.” She pleaded to Anton. “Please don’t let that happen to my sister.”
“I can’t just give someone immortality because it’s what you want.” Anton was evidently perplexed by their request. “The Fates will have something to say about it if I do.”
Gregori huffed. “You’re not afraid of them, are you?”
Anton glared back at him. “I’m not afraid of anyone.”
The Grand Dragon was full of hot air. “Of course you are. They’re definitely creepy. But you’re head of Marylebone.”
Anton wasn’t convinced. “Her magic isn’t strong enough yet.”
“The magical potential swirling inside her is comparable to mine,” Gregori revealed. “It’s all inside her. She had secreted most of it away behind walls created in her mind. I think she’s frightened of her own power. And wouldn’t you be if you were instrumental in the death of your own parents? I think you’ll find that, given time over the next few weeks, with nothing left to hide, you will begin to see just how much she will blossom.”
“Perhaps we could unbind her magic then and wait and see what transpires.”
“I think she should be Called,” Rosa insisted. “She needs watching over. She needs guidance and if her potential is as great as Gregori says it is, then it should fall to Marylebone to watch out for her.”
“We can do that without Calling her. There’s you and Zelda. And perhaps Beth?”
“No,” Zelda responded with a shake of her head. “I’m often away on Council business. Rosa’s seat of power may reside in Raven’s Creek but she works for Marylebone also. A lot of her time is now spent here. Beth isn’t a suitable solution given the current hostility between them. It would be best if Alanna was here, in Marylebone, where everyone can watch over her.”
“I want her with me in Cabasson,” Gregori protested. “I intend to formerly retire my position here at Marylebone. I can teach and guide her.”
“She needs a women’s guidance also,” Eleisha interjected. “I can give her that in Zelda’s absence.” Eleisha reached out for her husband’s hand and gripped it, pulling him towards her until her fist was pressed against his chest. “I stand for her. She will be my protégé. She is a talented sculptor. She can teach the little ones who show a similar talent and perhaps she could also counsel those with problems. She, of all witches, surely, will understand the difficulties of having so much potential and so little control at such a young age. We can keep her so busy she won’t have time to consider breaking any rules.”
“Not so busy we don’t have time together,” Gregori objected.
“Let me understand,” Anton bellowed as everyone began to speak at once. “You want Alanna’s magic unbound and for her to be Called to Marylebone. She will become an immortal, a neophyte in training.” He paused and waited for everyone’s assent.
“Warlocks’ Wonder. This is an unusual case. I think perhaps a decision such as this needs to be endorsed by the Supreme Council.”
Zelda knocked her knuckles against Anton’s brow. “I am the head of that Council, you knucklehead.”
“Well then, the three Fates should be consulted.”
“Right,” Gregori laughed. “I volunteer you go ask them. Last time I saw them they were in Ephesus.”
Zelda blanched. “You’ve talked to them?”
“I have.”
“And you’re still alive to tell the tale,” Anton grinned. “Why did you search them out?”
“I asked for clues in how to approach Alanna. How to break down her barriers.”
“And they told you?”
“Not exactly. They spoke in riddles. They alluded to my chipping away at stone.”
“And that is exactly what you’ve done. You’ve released her heart from imprisonment, just as you found a way out of your own.”
Gregori blinked. Then he laughed heartily, lifted up his sister and twirled her in a circle. “Of course. How could I be so blind when it is so glaringly obvious?”
Eleisha laughed along with him. “That’s because I’m much smarter than you are. Always have been. Always will be.”
Anton beamed. “That’s why I love you, my beloved. Smart as a tack and achingly beautiful as well.”
Zelda tsked. “Witches and warlocks are so emotional.”
“My dear Zelda,” Rosa hugged her. “As are you and don’t you dare deny it.”
Zelda changed the subject instead. “So is it decided? Will you Call Alanna to Marylebone?”
Anton looked to Eleisha. Indecision warred with reason. “I trust your judgment. I don’t trust Alanna’s.”
“Bring her here,” Eleisha insisted. “We will place conditions which she must accept before our decision becomes final.”
“And what conditions,” Gregori asked, his voice filled with caution, “would they be?”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Gregori found Alanna on the footpath, standing outside Lavender Cottage. “There you are.”
She
stood, forlorn as she gazed at her home. “I had hoped to live here one day.” Her voice cracked as she spoke. “It was always my intention to live near my sisters, completing the circle of three.” The lane short, their cottages the only ones on it. They shared ownership of all the surrounding land. It ensured privacy and a seat for their magic.
“Goran won’t be here forever,” he spoke against her temple. “He will return to Marylebone once he’s free. Beth’s magic is unbound. Yours will be soon.”
“I think Goran will remain here. He cares deeply for Beth.”
Gregori’s lips twitched into that of a cynic. “He cares for all women. She will be no different.”
“I’ve told him if he hurts her, I’ll make his life unbearable.”
Gregori’s burst of laughter was genuine. “Now that I believe.”
Alanna twisted round in his arms to face him, and placed a swift kiss on his lips. Her hands cupped his jaw and she searched into his eyes, looking for something.
“What? What is it?” Gregori asked.
“I want to live here as well as Cabasson. You said once that we could.”
Gregori didn’t hesitate. “I will go wherever you want to live. My heart, my soul, my life is yours.”
Oh no. More tears. They brimmed in her eyes, but she was smiling and this time they were caused by a new sensation. It was a strange unfamiliar feeling, but the kernel was there. Happiness. “I love you so much.”
“My darling Alanna,” Gregori swept her up and twirled them round and round, a huge enormous grin on his lips. “I love you too. I’ve already loved you for an eternity.”
Then he grew serious and deposited her back on her feet. “There has been a development that could mean the unbinding of your magic before the official ceremony.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “What?” she screeched. “How?”
“Do you trust me?”
“Yes.”
“Then come with me. I’m taking you to Marylebone.”
Alanna grew tense and she pushed hands against his chest and stepped out his embrace. “No!”
“Zelda and Rosa are already there. There is more, but I can’t reveal it to you. There are conditions that you must agree with first.”
Marylebone. She would get to walk the halls of Marylebone. At least see the room they would take her to. It was far more than she had ever expected to see. Despite the anxiety pooling in her stomach, she gazed trustingly into Gregori’s eyes and inclined her head. “What about Beth? Will she be there too?”
“I’m sorry, my darling. Beth is not invited. She is filled with too much … ” his voice petered out.
“Hate,” Alanna finished for him.
“I hesitate to say the word, but yes. Until she learns all about forgiveness and reopens her heart, she will not be able to travel there.”
Alanna felt her eyes were as round as saucers. “Marylebone thinks I’m worthy enough that I can visit.”
Gregori cupped her face and pressed a swift heartfelt kiss to her lips. “You’ve always been worthy in my eyes.”
“You have the kindest heart of any man I’ve ever known,” she told him and threaded her arms around his waist and rested her head on his shoulder. She inhaled. He smelled of the Mediterranean and grapes. “So when do we go?”
“Now,” Gregori laughed. “They’re waiting for us.”
Alanna sprung from his arms. “Now?” She brushed her hands down over her crazy hair and then inspected her clothes. She was in tight, obscenely short pants and a skimpy top that revealed her lack of a bra underneath. “I can’t go like this?”
Gregori shot her an appreciative glance. “I love how you look, but if you like, I’ll take you home so you can change.”
Alanna looked about her. The lane was short. The only homes on it belonged to her and her sisters. She nodded. “Let’s do it,” and then she wrapped herself once again in Gregori’s arms and they dissolved into a million particles.
• • •
Ruth gasped, seeing Gregori and Alanna disappear, leaving only the trace of Alanna’s heady perfume. She sorely wanted to run home and screech what she’d just witnessed to Joseph. And perhaps she would tell her husband who knew everything else. Because of Gregori, the Greenwood sisters had entrusted her with their secret and as far as she could tell, had placed no spell over her to make her forget. Alanna had come to her only yesterday, and not once had she asked her to not speak of it. Instead she’d asked, if, when she returned to Raven’s Creek, would she still like to teach her French? Perhaps they could have coffee and get to know each other better.
Ruth’s heart ached for the guilt Alanna must have suffered all these years. She had been lonely on the inside. Whereas, she, Ruth, had been lonely on the outside. She’d tried to make friends but in her attempts to befriend others, she instead had found herself tainted as the town gossip.
Well, all that was over. She would never reveal what she’d learned. If they trusted her enough to not make her forget, then she would hold their secret safe. They could stick her with a thousand pins and needles and her lips would remain sealed. She made a zipping movement with her hand across her lips and then she giggled.
She had the beginnings of a real friendship. Someone to share her thoughts and emotions with. Her heart felt lighter than it had been in a very long time.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Gregori and Alanna arrived in a burst of blazing light in Gregori’s old office. Lyzander was waiting for them. He was old. He didn’t fly in crazy circles like the younger ones. He preferred to remain on a perch or a shoulder and watch them flit about. It amused him to see them waste all their energy.
“I am here,” Lyzander hopped onto Gregori’s shoulder.
“Lyzander. I would have you officially meet Alanna, my beloved, before we head to the Dragons’ Lair.”
Lyzander bowed his head. A small flame erupted from his snout. His head bounced up and it seemed as if he grinned. “My flame is back. Happy times. Pleased to meet the one who has captured my master’s heart.” He rose up and landed on Alanna’s shoulder.
“Dragonettes are being born as we speak.” Lyzander looked to his master. “We go first to the Belfry. Everyone is there. If we are lucky, we will impress a hatchling to add to our family.”
Alanna couldn’t believe it. Spilling out her heart had changed her life so completely. The acceptance of Gregori’s familiar warmed her heart and she lifted a hand and ran it gently over Lyzander’s leathery hide. “Thank you for accepting me as part of your family.”
Lyzander snuggled himself right up tight into the crook of her neck amongst her wild and tangled hair despite a strenuous brushing only minutes before. His color began to change until it matched her hair and he blended in so totally, he was practically invisible.
“We will be good friends,” he whispered. “Gregori will impress a hatchling. I will be yours.”
Damn it. She’d sworn never to cry again, but she couldn’t help it. A sob burst from her lips, her eyes filled with tears and she blinked rapidly as a swell of wonder rushed through her veins.
She looked to Gregori and the astonishment in his eyes told her he’d not seen this coming. When he spoke his voice was gruff. “Let us hope then that Alanna accepts Marylebone’s conditions.”
“Right now,” Alanna told him. “I’d say yes to anything.”
• • •
Marylebone Coven - The Belfry
Aden’s familiar, Albert, was a whirl of colors, changing from green to purple and red. He was that excited.
Clarissa stood to one side, leaning over the eggs and nudging them with her snout. She looked up as Gregori, Alanna and Lyzander arrived. “Clarissa wishes Goran was here too.”
Alanna was completely overwhelmed. Not only was she at Marylebone, but before her stood Anton,
Eleisha, Zelda, Aden and Rosa as well as numerous others she didn’t recognize.
Anton clapped his hands to quiet the chatter. “Goran will be with us shortly. That is, if Alanna agrees to our terms.”
“Yes,” said Alanna. “I agree.”
Rosa moved to stand next to Alanna. “You don’t know the conditions yet.”
“If it means Goran can return to be by Clarissa’s side when her eggs hatch, then I say yes.”
Rosa grasped Alanna’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “Good answer.”
“I mean it.”
“I can see that,” Eleisha observed. She stared at Lyzander on Alanna’s shoulder. “I also see you’ve made a friend in Lyzander.”
Rosa jumped as Lyzander’s face and big dark eyes peeked out from behind Alanna’s hair. “Crumbs! Where’d he come from?”
“It seems Lyzander has taken a liking to my beloved and he insists I’m to impress a new dragon,” Gregori informed them.
Anton blinked. “Is that right? Eleisha! What say you of that, my darling?”
“I say, get on with it. The eggs are cracking. Lay out the conditions so Alanna is completely aware of what she must do.”
Everyone turned to stare at Alanna. Clarissa’s eyes swirled an array of colors. “My Goran will be here soon.” She bounced up and down.
Albert twirled around the eggs and Clarissa, changing from one color to the next in a rainbow of joy. “Albert happy Clarissa is happy.”
“So what are these conditions then?” Alanna asked.
Anton raised a hand. “Silence, everyone.” The chatter stopped and the only sound to be heard came from inside the dragon eggs.
Assured he had everyone’s attention, he continued. “There is something no one knows that I feel I must tell you. Goran was being sent to Raven’s Creek at the time you accidentally Called him down. He was on his way, as we knew Gregori was about to break free and that you, Alanna, were old enough to bind your magic with his. This all would have been much easier if you had not Called him and we were not forced to bind your magic until the mayhem you created was untangled.” He coughed and colored slightly. “Your magic has been unbound. It is back already, if you were to test it. But … “ He held up a hand when she would have spoken. “You are not here to agree to terms on this subject. There is another request on the table with far greater implications. I have been informed of how your parents died. Such action requires punishment.”
The Jade Dragon Page 20
