Oberon Boxed Set (Books 1-3) Welcome to Oberon

by P. G. Forte

  “It’s over, Glenn.”

  “No,” he pleaded “No, it can’t be. Not like this.”

  “Yes. It is. Listen to me. You think I don’t know what it’s been like for you? For twenty years... like being caught in a bear trap, with no way out. No way to stop the pain. The stench of death was always there, wasn’t it? Always with you? And cold. Jesus. So cold. Colder even than it must have been for Lisa, don’t you think? Down there under all that water. So dark. So murky. Down at the bottom of the pond. Lost in all that darkness. The soft, sucking mud grabbing at her flesh. And the weeds. And the fish. What’s that like, do you think? Fish nibbling away at you until there’s nothing left.”

  Lucy shivered as the images formed in her head. She tried to push the thoughts away as they arose, but Scout’s voice went on and on, forcing her to think about it. Forcing her to see what she wanted her to see, and to feel –

  “I bet it’s gonna be like that in prison, too, Glory. Cold and dark and endless.”

  “No!” Glenn protested again, but his voice sounded hollow and uncertain. “No. Stop it. Stop!”

  “Or maybe they’ll kill you. Attach electrodes to your skin and make you fry.”

  “No. Stop it,” Glenn protested. “I didn’t mean to hurt her. It was an accident. I—”

  “I know,” Scout continued softly. “You want to believe that, don’t you? You want to forget how it really was? But do you really think that’s going to matter? Do you really think that’s going to change anything? Listen, now... do you hear that sound? You do, don’t you? You know what it means? It’s over, Glenn. You know it’s true. Even if you kill me, it’s not gonna matter. It won’t be enough to save you. Nothing can save you anymore. Nothing.”

  Scout, or whoever it was that inhabited Scout’s body, kept talking. Her voice grew stronger, deeper. It echoed in the heavy air. Lucy could see the anguish on Glenn’s face. She could almost feel the tightness in his chest as he struggled for breath. Her own breathing had become more labored as well. The air around her was thick and dark, almost syrupy.

  Then the light began to die, as though she were on the verge of losing consciousness.

  “It’s over, Glenn. It’s all over now. You’ve lost everything. Everything. It’s gone, now. All of it gone.”

  “No. Please,” he begged, his eyes locked with Scout’s.

  The screaming pressure in Lucy’s head grew louder and more insistent. But was it just inside her head? Or did it fill the air around her? It was the sound of lost souls, she thought. The hounds of hell, thirsting for blood. It was the sound of death itself.

  Lucy made one final effort to move, but then Scout spoke for the very last time. Her voice crackling with power, relentless as stone, swept through the air on an invisible current of energy. It robbed Lucy of breath even as it seemed to smash through Glenn’s defenses. Like a sonic boom striking a wall of glass, it hit them with a shattering, stunning force.

  “It’s over.”

  “No!” Glenn’s arm swung up in a sudden movement, bringing the gun to his temple even as he squeezed the trigger.

  At the last moment, Lucy turned her head away, closing her eyes against the destruction. Her hands rose instinctively, palms outward in a warding gesture of shielding and rejection. But she could tell that Scout, rigid beside her, had not so much as blinked. She stood firm, even against the backwash of energy as it crashed over them. She held Glenn’s eyes, and his attention, until the very end.

  The echoes of the report had not even begun to die away before the screaming in the air resolved itself into the familiar sound of sirens. In a blur of speed and motion, a car exploded around the turn in the road, shrieking to a stop just a few feet from Glenn’s body.

  Scout still hadn’t moved. She seemed barely even to be breathing, while Lucy’s lungs heaved, taking in great, gulping breaths.

  Lucy watched as the car door opened and Nick got out, slow and shaky, like everything around her seemed to be – as if time itself was winding down.

  The three of them stood there, staring at each other. Caught in a frozen tableau that seemed to last forever, or take no time at all.

  There was no sense of relief, or even repugnance. No room anywhere for joy or anger or guilt, or even grief. There was only a vast consciousness of emptiness. And of loss. And an invisible, inaudible roiling in the atmosphere as the cloud of energy that had surrounded them with power dissipated away into nothingness.

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  * * * *

  Chapter Thirty Four

  * * * *

  It’s over. Lucy sat in the car, her keys in her hand, her eyes on the house she and Marsha had only just left. She could still hear that single sentence, spoken with such deadly intent, repeating itself endlessly in her mind. She wondered at the many levels of meaning that could be encompassed in two short words.

  It’s over. The horrible sense of finality that Scout had invested in those words, the vision of desolation she’d used them to evoke –

  Lucy shuddered. How had she known to say those things? What had she seen while entranced to give her such awful power over him?

  What had they done? The three of them had summoned up enormous, primal energies, tapped ancient forces that were both great and terrible. And Scout had used them ruthlessly. Channeling them in some manner Lucy did not understand. She’d flung them at Glenn and, by doing so, had probably saved both their lives.

  But at what cost? Lucy shoved the thought aside. There had been no other choice, had there? Still, she couldn't help but wonder at the price they’d have to pay for their actions. Or when the bill would come due.

  It’s over. Jesus, she needed to get a grip on herself. It was over, damn it! There was nothing to worry about any longer. Everything should be fine now, right? But she knew it wouldn’t be.

  It had been such a relief to get back to the house and know for certain that Marsha was okay. Even though both Scout and Nick had assured her she was, Lucy needed to see for herself. The reaction was really hitting her then; she was barely conscious of the ebb and flow of people around her. It was so damn cold, too. She hadn’t thought it possible it could be that cold. But until she’d drunk at least three cups of that vile tea Marsha kept urging on her, she hadn’t even been able to think.

  Heather and Ginny had left by then, as had the paramedics. The police were the last to go. Except for Nick, of course; he was still there, even now. His eyes, when he’d looked at her, and even moreso when they fell on Scout, were as dead as anything Lucy had ever seen. She couldn’t shake off the weariness just looking at him caused. But she knew she had to try. She needed to pull herself together, figure out what to do next.

  What should she use to clear the energies in the house this time? Which incense could she burn to lift the despair that seemed to radiate from every surface?

  Lucy knew the problem lay not in the house itself, but in its occupants. And she wasn’t sure she could do anything at all about them.

  She’d agreed to spend the night with Marsha, as much because of the possibility of concussion as for her own emotional turmoil. And the need – which was building, but had not yet reached viability – to talk about what had happened. To talk it all out with someone who wouldn’t think her crazy.

  She wanted, desperately, to be away from here. And yet –

  “You’ll see that she eats something?” she’d heard Marsha say to Nick just before they left. Heard his terse assent – in a tone of voice she knew well and dreaded hearing again. It was as if that single sentence, still reverberating in her mind, was emanating from within some shredded chamber of his broken heart.

  It’s over.

  “Listen. I can’t stand this,” she said, turning to Marsha. “We have to do something. They’re so miserable it’s breaking my heart. And she says she’s leaving town, you know.”

  “I know.” Marsha frowned, her own gaze returning to the house as well. “I’ll try to talk to her again tomorrow, see if I can’t change her mi
nd. But I don’t know how much good it will do.”

  “Well, she can’t leave, that’s all! We can’t let her. And Nick is... shit, I don’t know what’s wrong with him. Why’s he acting like this? We should do a... I don’t know, a love spell, or something. Or maybe a common sense spell. Is there any such thing?”

  “Lucy, please. My head hurts enough without thinking about anything like that. I just want to go to bed. Maybe with a nice cup of tea. Besides, we can’t. All right? We just... can’t... do that.”

  “Sure we can. Are you kidding? After what we did today? Shit, woman, we can do anything! How hard could it be? A couple of candles. A couple of prayers. A few of the right herbs. Just, you know, a little nudge in the right direction. It would be so easy.”

  Marsha sighed. “It would be manipulative. I think maybe I’ve finally learned that particular lesson. They haven’t asked us for any help with this. We have to let them handle it on their own.”

  “Asked for help? Well, of course they haven’t asked for help. But what does that matter? You know it’s what they want. What they need. They love each other!”

  “Well, yes, I can see that.”

  “And they’re perfect for each other. Much as I hate to admit it.”

  “I know.”

  “Okay, so look, if you don’t want to do a spell, then fine. How about I just go back in there and talk some sense into them?”

  “Lucy. I think you’re getting a little hyper here. Probably still too much adrenaline in your system. You really should have had more tea. Don’t you think you’ve done enough already? You left enough rose and jasmine incense burning to asphyxiate them both. Leave them alone!”

  “Why’s that, Marsha? So they can both be miserable for the next twenty years, too? Do you have any idea how annoying that’s gonna be? For us, I mean? No, you don’t know. But I do. I’ve been through this once already with Nick. And I cannot go through that shit again. I mean it, Marsh. I really can’t. Especially not now. Because now ... ah, shit, now I’m gonna be worried about both of them. You know?”

  “I know. But if things are going to work out, they should be able to do it on their own.”

  Lucy glared. “Oh, that is just such a cop-out. Besides, what if they don’t?”

  “Well, then, when they’re crying on our shoulders, we can tell them they’re idiots. They probably still won’t believe us.”

  She shook her head. “I don’t know. Do you think I should have used the honeysuckle and sunflower incense instead? You know, to give their brain cells a little boost? Or maybe the lilac?”

  “Okay, look.” Marsha frowned thoughtfully. “Maybe ... it’s just barely possible, I suppose... that they’re under some kind of hex, which would already be manipulative. And not our fault. So, if we maybe just concentrate on removing something that shouldn’t have been there in the first place? That wouldn’t count as interference. Would it?”

  Lucy shook her head emphatically. “No way. Are you kidding? Absolutely not.”

  “Well, why don’t you focus on that, then? You can make some of your rosemary focaccia for each of them. Maybe slip in a little rue, while you’re at it. And I can fix them up with a little clover tea to, you know, go with it. But tomorrow, okay? After my head stops throbbing? Please?”

  “Okay,” Lucy sighed. “I guess I can live with that. As long as I can feel like I’m doing something, I won’t feel so frustrated. But... do you think it will be enough? You’re sure we can’t just do something a little more, you know, pro-active?” she asked, as she started the car.

  Marsha rolled her eyes. “Yes. I’m sure.”

  “I don’t know. It doesn’t feel like enough. I don’t like it.”

  “Lucy,” Marsha smiled fondly, “you never do. Now, let’s go home.”

  * * *

  They were alone, finally. But they couldn’t even look at each other, and the silence between them had grown so oppressive that neither knew how to break through it.

  Nick was the first to try. “I thought I told you to stay away from here today?” he asked, and he thought his voice sounded almost normal.

  “You said I shouldn’t be here alone,” Scout answered, a fragile smile almost forming, and almost as instantly dissolving from her lips. “And I wasn’t.”

  She huddled in an old leather armchair next to the fireplace. From the cold, pinched look on her face, he didn’t think the flame’s warmth was doing her a bit of good. “Yeah, well. A fat lot of good it did you to have those two as company.” He leaned his head against the back of the couch. “I swear, if I had any idea you would try some crazy scheme like this, I would have taken you down to the station with me this morning and locked you up.”

  “You could have tried. But you know, Lucy would probably have found a way to spring me, all the same.” She was pleased when that surprised a weak laugh from him. It made her bold enough to risk taking a peek at him. His eyes were closed and he was sprawled on the couch looking every bit as tired as she felt.

  It had been a long day. A dreadful day. She supposed she should send him home, so he could get some sleep. But God help her, she just couldn’t do it. She was going to have to leave him soon enough. She didn’t know when – or even if – she’d ever see him again. How could she send him away?

  “You were nearly killed.” Nick’s voice was barely a whisper. “The whole way out there, I knew I would be too late to save you. I still don’t understand what happened. How did you—”

  “Shhh. Don’t. I can’t talk about that now.” Scout closed her own eyes then, but that didn’t shut anything out. She knew exactly what had happened out there in the canyon. She didn’t think she’d ever forget any of it. But she didn’t know if she’d ever be able to talk about it, either.

  “I’m supposed to make sure you eat something,” he said, rousing himself a little. “I suppose it’s too much to hope that you actually have any food here?”

  “Oh, sure I do,” she answered, glad for the change of subject. “There’s soup. And, I don’t know, there’s all sort of stuff in the cupboards.”

  “Yeah, I’ve seen what’s in your cupboards. That’s not food. We could always go back to my apartment and—”

  Scout felt her heart lurch. She shook her head. “No.” No. I couldn’t bear it. I’d never want to leave.

  “No,” he agreed, sighing heavily, “of course not.”

  But why? He watched as her face turned hard and cold. “You know, I never realized it was that bad of a place.”

  “It’s not!” She looked startled. “It’s not that. I just...”

  “It’s not because you don’t like my cooking, is it?”

  She smiled, her cheeks coloring as she dropped her gaze. “Of course not. You... you can cook for me anytime, Nick.”

  “I just might have to take you up on that,” he warned.

  She didn’t answer, but the smile drifted away from her lips. His eyes roamed greedily over her face, taking in every detail. The old bruises fading along one side of it, the new ones – and they were going to be beauties, he could tell – swelling and distorting the other. Even now, banged up as she was, she was the most beautiful, desirable creature he’d ever known.

  “I guess, now that this is all over, you’ll be leaving Oberon?” he couldn’t help asking.

  Scout shrugged. “I guess so.”

  “I uh, don’t suppose you’re planning on coming back any time soon?”

  “No.”

  “Right.”

  It’s over. Nick closed his eyes again wearily. So. This was it. She was everything he’d ever wanted, and now she was just going to walk out of his life again. For years, he’d survived on dreams and memories. On the strength of all the lies he’d let himself believe about her. Now, and for the rest of his life, all he’d have was the truth.

  And right now, the truth was more than he could handle.

  When he spoke again, his voice was hardly more than a whisper, “Come here.”

  She knew he’d only
break her heart again, but Scout could no more refuse the appeal in his voice than she could refuse to breathe. She went. She melted into his arms when every instinct for survival she possessed was telling her to flee.

  He began to kiss her. Soft, tender kisses that only made her want more. Just one more. Just one. More.

  “Do something for me,” Nick said, breaking off their kiss to whisper urgently against her ear. “Please.”

  She was conscious of the passion and need radiating from him, felt it flowing into her as well. “Anything.”

  “Just for tonight.” His voice was low, shaking. “Lie to me. Just one more time. Tell me you care. Say you’ll stay. I need you so much. I just – Oh, God, Jen, I need to hear you say it, even if it isn’t true. I swear it doesn’t matter that you don’t mean it. I’ve always been willing to believe whatever lies you tell me.”

  “What?” Startled, Scout pulled away so she could see his face. He looked more dangerous than ever. His eyes glittered madly and his face was taut with exhaustion and strain. With her senses still heightened from this afternoon’s experience, she could feel such dark waves of pain and anguish welling up inside him, it made her weep.

  “What do you want me to say?” she asked, the tears in her eyes almost blinding her.

  “Say you love me. Say you’ll stay.”

  “But I do,” she murmured between kisses, “I will. Always. Always!”

  Why he should think she was lying she didn’t understand, but there was no time for questions or explanations. The heat and the need and the darkness were too demanding. She went into it with him willingly. Not caring if it was for a minute, or forever. Giving herself up entirely to his need of her, and her own need for him. To have him one more time. Just once. Again. Just one more time. No matter what the consequence. No matter what the cost.

  This time, Nick had no thought of stopping. He had no thoughts at all. There was just hunger and the need to have it filled. Just desire and a need to quench the pain. Somewhere, far away in the back of his mind, he knew it was partly the reaction from the day’s events – from lack of sleep, from years of longing – but he didn’t care. He was conscious of her voice, and couldn’t tell what she was saying, didn’t care that she was lying, only prayed she wouldn’t stop.