by Tara Brown
Two
We land in the yard of the castle. Stella comes running, “WHAT IS IT?”
Mona hands her the sleeve of ash. Stella sighs relief. She grabs Mona’s head, “You smart girl.” She looks at her, “Got anyone else you brought that you want back?”
I scowl.
Mona pulls open the top of her dress. It’s filled with daisies.
Stella laughs and looks at me, “I’m sorry, for before.”
I shake my head, “Don’t be. I deserve your hatred. All of you.” I walk past them to the house. The whole thing is beyond what I am capable of feeling. His name is still in my heart, I realize it when I get inside of my room and collapse onto the bed. The heaviness of my heart weighs more than if the moon landed on my chest.
The dead take me.
I am in a garden, not the magical one but an English garden.
There is a girl who looks like me. She has dark hair and grey eyes. They light up when she sees me. She looks more like our mother. “Liana.” she says.
I smile. Another girl comes walking up looking almost the same, almost identical. She nods, “Ezara.”
I sit under the tree I am next to. They come and sit with me, and then a thin girl, who doesn’t look anything like us, comes up. She smiles, “Maggie.”
Lastly, the one who I remember the clearest, Ellie. She looks similar to me and the other two. I narrow my gaze, “You are my true sister in some way.”
She grins like a Cheshire Cat, all the while curtseying like a lady. “Ellie.”
We five stare at each other.
Liana sighs, “What a way to finally meet. The time of the fae has ended. Father has killed them all off and now he will kill the horsemen and take the power.”
I am such a failure. I look at their faces, “I’m sorry.”
They all smile the same, except Maggie. Her smile is sweeter than ours. She shakes her head, reaching for my chin, “Why are you sorry? You think each of us hasn’t lived this fate? You think for a second we bested him, any better than you? He used the love in your heart against you.”
“How are we able to meet now?”
“It is getting closer to your birthday. Your time is almost up. We will all be free soon.”
I frown, “You have all been waiting for this to end, instead of going to heaven?”
They giggle. Ellie gives me a cocky look, “You don’t know, do you?”
“What?”
Liana nods, “We won’t ever make it to heaven. We may choose our form. I want to be a willow tree, near a river.”
Maggie laughs, “A willow tree?”
Liana sighs again, “The thing I miss the most is the wind.”
Ezara looks up, “I want to be a speck of dust, floating on the breeze always, exploring everywhere.”
Maggie shakes her head, “I want to be water. I want to be part of the rivers and oceans and see what the nixie see.”
Ellie gives me a hard look to take, “I want to be ash with my love.”
I look at my shoes, “I want to be alone, where no one can ever get hurt by me.”
Ellie takes my hand in hers. It sparkles like their voices on the wind. She squeezes, “That is one thing we will never be, sister. We will never be alone.”
I stare at my shoes and listen to them. They don’t plan or offer me advice. They expect I will not win this war. They don’t care either way, not any more. They have all suffered so long and hard. I love that they laugh and smile and poke fun at each other. We are the truest sisters ever. They know the pain in my heart and the toll it has had on my soul. They know. Where no one else does, they do.
Ellie gives me an odd look, “How is he alive?”
I scowl, “Who?” Dear God, don’t let it be someone bad. I’m so tired and so hungry, and not in the mood for another disappointment.
“Go back, see if it’s true.”
I look at the others to see if they know what she is talking about, “Go back where?”
She blows in my face. The others see her doing it and they join in. Suddenly, I am awake.
He is there. He is alive. He smiles at me, “Didn’t think you would be rid of me that easily, did you?”
I leap at him, “Constantine!” He hugs me. I pinch him.
“Ow. What was that for?”
I shake my head, “Just checking. I couldn’t be sure.”
He hugs me tightly, “I’m sorry I made you pull the dagger. I thought you would bring it with you, and we would be no different than we had been. I didn’t know you wouldn’t come back to the palace.”
I grip to him, relief isn’t a strong enough word. I look up at the ceiling, mouthing, “Thank you!”
“Don’t thank him, it was the magic of the curse upon my soul. There is only one way to kill a direct member of my family.” I look up at him, he laughs, “I’m not telling you.”
I nod, “That’s probably not a bad idea. I tend to betray everyone at some point.”
He kisses my hands, “I made you do it. I tricked you with the bargain. The fae don’t tolerate dishonesty. All bargains made in the garden are firm. I made you have my dagger. I couldn’t bear the thought of not being in your heart.”
I look at him, “The dagger!” I slump, “Shit, I think Wyatt might have left it in Willow’s picture.”
He sighs, “We will find another way.”
He pulls back, “At least your heart has my dagger in it.”
I shake my head, “But Wyatt’s is in there too and he’s a bastard. He betrayed us.”
Constantine laughs, “You don’t think that was Wyatt still, do you?”
“What?”
“Oh Rayne, it was Lucifer. That was your father. That wasn’t Wyatt. He has some witches on his side. They do magic for him.”
My mouth drops opens, “That’s how he knew I went through Michelle’s phone. He must have put the texts in there, with magic maybe. To make me doubt Wyatt or cause issues.” I have images of wrapping my legs around him and kissing his cheeks and neck. “No.” I almost gag.
Constantine laughs, “Did you kiss him?”
I make a face, “I don’t want to talk about it. That was Wyatt.”
He shakes his head, “My love, let me tell you. Van Helsings are strong and willing to do anything to win, but they will not kill a fae. They are pure people. That was the devil himself.”
I drop my head, “Oh shit. What do we do? How did he know so much?”
“He more than likely has young Wyatt prisoner. He used him to glean information.” He smiles, but I can still see the pain in his eyes, “This isn’t his first time at the rodeo, as you Americans say.”
“What can we do?”
He leans forward, kissing my cheek, “Get the dagger from the picture, trace Wyatt’s steps to where Lucifer has him, and kill Lucifer.”
“He contacted Michelle, he could be here to kill me any minute. I don’t even know why he didn’t kill me before we went to the garden.”
“He needed you to get him inside. He must have done a spell where you masked what he was. If he’s already been here once, he will likely come again. We can’t worry about him right now. We have other matters.” Constantine’s eyes glisten, “My humanity is slipping away. No love, no heart. That’s sort of how things are for my family members.”
“What if he never took it into the painting? I don’t recall it in there, only him talking about it.”
He looks around the room, “Where would he put it?”
I look around the room, getting up and spinning slowly. I smile and walk to the bed. I drop to my knees and fish it out.
“How did you know?”
I shrug, “I know him.” I don’t say that he would have been desperate to get to me. He would have carried it to my bedside and rushed to put the dagger somewhere.
It is still coated in Lillith’s blood and the nasty nixie slime. I hold a hand out, “Handkerchief.”
He fishes in his jacket and pulls one out, “How did you know I would have one?
” I look at him, “I know you too.”
I wipe the handkerchief and fold it carefully. When the blade is clean, I have the strangest instinct. I slice the blade along my arm, making Constantine hiss at me like a cat. I ignore him and rub my blood all over it. It sizzles, turns black, burns off, and then glimmers again.
He looks confused, “Was there poison on that?”
I shake my head, “I don’t know. I just had a feeling like I should do that.” I look at my arm and see a black line like a vein. Then there are a bunch of them. I nod, “Okay, it was probably poisoned.”
“Oh come on, what the hell was Van Helsing thinking?”
I grin, “That I might be able to put the blade back, and he wanted to make sure you suffered.”
He takes my arm and licks the wound, wincing when the blackened skin touches his tongue. I can see something behind his eyes, a thought process. He looks like he’s just realized who the murderer is in a thriller. He looks at me, “Lillith’s blood.”
“What?”
He nods, I can almost see the apple hitting him on the head. He has a major ’aha moment’, but keeps it to himself.
“What?”
He swallows hard, “Put it back.”
I look at the dagger, “Under the bed?”
He sighs, like I’m a child who is annoying him, “Don’t be obtuse. In my chest.”
I scowl, “Obtuse, like fat?”
“Yes—like fat in the head! Put the dagger in.”
My right eye twitches as I jab it into his chest, pressing hard. He laughs, “You were far more loving last time.”
I roll my eyes, “You were probably a charming gentleman last time.” We are chest to chest and alone in the room. He growls, lowering his face to mine, “Let’s seal it with a kiss.” His lips meet mine tenderly. Each feathery stroke against them is subtle and teasing.
I can feel his smile against my lips, “You still want me, Rayne.”
I nod. I don’t know if it’s me or Ellie, but we nod. I have a momentary lapse in judgment. It isn’t that I forget I am married, it is that I am not strong enough to fight him on this.
He pushes me back, “We have to go find lover boy.”
My lips are still moving, “No. Kiss me once more.”
He is against me in an instant, hands roaming my back, pressing me into him. His lips crash onto mine, his tongue invading my mouth. The kiss is sexual and tense. I moan into the kiss. His hands scoop me up while my hands roam his thick hair. Our desperate kiss is ruined by a voice I have never heard before. “Oh, I’m sorry.”
Constantine growls, “The room you are seeking is the next one over, young prince.”
I look past Constantine’s face, inhaling sharply. The beautiful man is there. He smiles at me, “Hi.”
I swallow, “Hi.”
“You’re the angel.”
I nod.
He smiles wider and I think I moan again. Constantine does his impatient sigh again, “You need to eat.”
I make a sound; it’s like a goat bleating or something insane anyway. I can’t tear my gaze from the beautiful man.
“I’m Prince Gillan, everyone calls me Gill.”
“Like a fish, like a beautiful fish.”
He blushes and looks down. I make the goat noise again, “What are you?”
He looks up through his lashes, “Husband to your friend, Mona.”
Lucky bitch. I almost can’t wait to see the look on Michelle’s face. I nod in the direction of the front room, “You meet Michelle yet?”
He shakes his head, “I had a shower. It was wonderful.”
I laugh. Constantine gives me a hateful look, “Really?”
I laugh again, it sounds like the goat bleat. I walk past Constantine and offer my hand to Gill, “Come with me.” His hand is warm and soft. He smells like musky vanilla, and I want to lick him and suck his soul dry. It’s a bad thought to have, but there is no stopping it when it hits. I want him, in the worst way possible.
Mona is the only thing that gets me through it. I know she will kill me if I eat him, and hate me forever. That’s a long time when you NEVER DIE!
We get to the front room and, instantly, Michelle turns her head from the massive book she’s reading, “Hey.” She sees Gill and looks back down at the book, “Who’s your friend?”
“Mona’s husband, Gill.”
Michelle looks up again, “What?”
“Yeah, she got married.”
“To a gay guy?”
I start to laugh, “What?”
Michelle cocks an eyebrow, “He’s gay.” She puts down the book and saunters over, “You like to have sex with dudes, right?”
Gill looks at me, “What is he talking about?”
I look at Michelle, “That’s a girl.”
He cocks an eyebrow, “That is a man, a boy actually.”
Michelle stops dead in her tracks, “I’m a girl.”
He looks confused. Constantine comes in behind us doing his know-it-all chuckle, “The glamour can’t hide you. The magic of Lucifer and his evil ways can’t hide what you truly are, what you were born as, from the fae. They can see past it.”
Gill slaps his hand on Constantine’s back, “Like my brother here, surely you see him as well.”
Constantine shakes his head, “I do not. I see a beautiful girl.”
I am lost. I give Michelle a look, “You don’t think Gill is sexy?”
She shakes her head, “He’s gay, gay guys don’t really do it for me.”
I look up at the ceiling for a second, “Since when?”
“Since I turned into a girl, regardless of what twinkle toes here says.”
Gill looks even more confused, “Am I twinkle toes?”
Michelle leans in, “You are very twinkle toes. My ‘gaydar’ never lies. I could smell a gay guy in a herd of lumberjacks from a mile, through a whore house and a strip club.”
We have lost Gill. He is stuck in all those fancy slang words he has never heard before. Mona comes up behind us, “He isn’t gay.”
Michelle points at him, “You married me, but with a dick still. He is just like me.”
Mona crosses her arms, “He isn’t gay.”
Michelle crosses her arms, “Did he screw you yet? ’Cause I’m pretty sure I can guess how it went.”
Mona leaps. Gill catches her, holding her back. I look at Michelle, “Mean and off side, hard core. Say sorry.”
She makes a stubborn face as Constantine drags her back. When his eyes meet Mona’s, they soften, “Sorry.”
Mona shakes her head, “Screw you, Michelle. I miss Michelle who had a soul, let me tell you. That girl was my friend. You are nothing to me.” She takes Gill’s hand and stalks back to her room.
Constantine gives me a look and then turns to Michelle, “You are going to finish your research for the Van Helsings, and then you are going to go to bed. No more talking for you today.”
Michelle smiles and walks back to the couch. I don’t love it when he does his mind juju thingy, but it works to stop the bullshit.
Just when I think things can’t get any worse, Sarah and Gretel enter from the other wing, “We found them. It’s without a shadow of a doubt. The fourth horseman is killing with the other three. The reports are of plagues, violence, starvation, and a general breakdown of all society.” She looks around, “Where is Wyatt?”
I swallow my fear, “Lucifer has him prisoner somewhere.”
Her look turns cold. She is instantly the Gretel I remember from before. “We have to get him back.”
It’s not the thing I expected her to say. She’s always so awful about that stuff. I put a hand up, “Why did he call you brother? Why is he here? How were you brought back? I need those answers first.”
He sighs, “Gretel, tell our fair Rayne what I am. What I truly am.”
Her eyes narrow, “His family were the first to betray the fae. The Dracula and Basarab family were kings among men. They wanted for nothing and took everything, inclu
ding fae women. They discovered the way to enslave the fae women. Back then, humans were permitted beyond the walls of the garden, infrequently of course, but it happened. His family made bargains with the most beautiful of the fae women, enslaving them and bringing them home to be their wives. They mated with them, forcing them to bear their children. Constantine’s mother was one of them. When each woman bore her husband a son, Lucifer made a deal with Vlad and his brothers, that he would make them immortal like their children, if he could have their babies. He took some of his blood and created the first vampire, Vlad Dracula. The immortal children made by the union were one thing, but the immortal children made after the men were turned to vampires, was another. Constantine and his siblings and cousins were not only abominations; they were impossible to kill. One thing killed them—fae blood on a sword injected into the heart. But the fae had locked themselves behind the garden gate, never opening it. And Lucifer lived off of the blood of the fae and mortal babies. I imagine he still keeps them around as never-ending blood bags. The blood makes him stronger than anything and feeds his magic.”
Constantine smiles, “What happens in the garden is not permanent. You may die there and live again out here. That is why I forced you to kill your mother outside of the gate. That is a sacred place, second only to heaven. Mona brought my ashes and Gill’s daisies. Any witch could bring us back from that.”
I cock my head, “Why is he here?”
“He and Mona fell in love the moment they met. That’s how fae do it. The love is instant, just a look is needed. They married instantly. You were gone, the ceremony was lovely. Until Wyatt showed up and murdered everyone.”
“How did he get the weapon beyond the gate?” Is it wrong I’m more upset my friend is married, and I never got to see the service?
Constantine shakes his head, “He pulled it from his chest. I don’t know anything else.”
I look at Gretel, “Okay, let’s do this.”
Three
Mona looks down, “I don’t know what happened. His eyes met mine and my heart felt like it exploded.” She smiles and twitches her head a bit. “It’s silly.” She looks up, “We haven’t even had sex yet.”
I scowl, “Why not?”
She swallows hard, “Wrong time of the month to get married. Came yesterday when we got here. Stella found me some old rags. I’m wearing them and basically blocking it out.”
