“When your grandmother told me about you and Nell . . . I’ll admit, I thought she was losing her mind. Of all the people in the world, I would never have chosen Nell Massler as a match for you, Rafe.”
He quirked an eyebrow at me, only half-teasingly. “You lost the right to make that call a long time ago, Tas.”
“I know.” I laid one hand on Michael’s chest. “Still, whether you realize it or not, I did care for you. I still do. I want you to be happy.”
“I am.” There was steel in his tone. “I thought at one time that you were meant for me, and that if I couldn’t have you, I’d never love anyone else. And then I met Joss, and that was a game changer. She was amazing. Well, you’ll get to meet her once we’re at the safe house, assuming Nell and Zoe’s spells worked.”
“That’ll be interesting, getting to know your dead ex.” I smirked.
Rafe went on as if I hadn’t spoken. “When Joss was killed, I wanted to die, too. I was pissed at Nell for saving me, when I knew the Hive had planned to kill me that day. I’d been in a hole in the ground for months, and even if they hadn’t actively ended my life, I was on my way out. But she did save me, and she fought me every inch of the way to drag me back to the land of the living. I wanted to hate her for that. But I couldn’t, because by then, I was already halfway in love with her.”
“She looks at you as though she can’t believe you’re quite real.” I watched Nell sleeping, wondering if her mind guards stayed up even in her dreams. Since Cathryn was strict about that, and I still blocked my own thoughts and dreams, I assumed Nell did, too. “She loves you, Rafe. I think eventually, she’ll trust that love. The Nell Massler I knew never backed down in the face of a challenge.”
“True.” He turned his head to squint out the levered window next to him. “Where do you think—”
The vehicle shuddered violently as an unearthly scream pierced the air. Rafe pulled Nell tighter against him, protecting her, and alongside me, Michael jolted awake.
“What’s going—” he began, and then the RV shook again. Something hit us, blowing a small hole in the side of the rig.
“We’re under attack!” Lucas yelled from the driver’s seat. “Everyone without an active power, get down on the floor. Nell? Can you do something? Protection, ward . . . something?”
Cathryn came from the back of the motorhome where she’d been sleeping with Seamus. Her always-perfect blonde hair was mussed, and her eyes were heavy as she braced herself against one side.
“You heard him. Get down! They’re throwing spells and bullets at us. And maybe something else.” She pointed to the hole. “I don’t know what does that kind of damage, but we need to outrun them or protect ourselves. Or both.” She grabbed my arm. “Tasmyn, join your power with Nell’s. The two of you should be able to form a ward together.”
I struggled to my feet, trying to get to Nell. Marly and Zoe were crouched on the floor, heads down, and Jackie was crawling back toward us from the front. Henry, hunched with his back resting against the sofa where he’d been sleeping, made a grab for Cathryn’s hand.
“You get down, too. Nothing you can do but keep safe.”
She acquiesced, but her eyes never left Nell and me. “Do something fast.”
Seamus stumbled down the narrow aisle and flanked Cathryn’s other side. I noticed that he sought out both brothers, too. Daeglan was holding Sionnach, who was still trying to wake up and figure out what was going on. Cillian’s eyes darted to the road ahead of us, and I wondered if he was considering recommending some sort of quick turn to lose our pursuers.
“Tas, now!” Nell grasped both my hands in hers.
Another spell—or whatever it was hitting us—shrieked into the unsteady RV. I fought to keep to my feet, even while yelling back to Nell.
“I don’t know what to do. I don’t know any warding spells off the top of my head. I don’t do this anymore, Nell!”
“You don’t have to know anything. Just open up and let the power flow. Join yours to mine. We have to fight them off.” Her eyes closed, and her lips began to move. I screwed my own eyes shut and tried to focus, tried to do as she’d said.
Let the energy flow. I could almost hear Marica’s voice coming to me across the years as she’d coached me in how to use my abilities. Picture it. See the power coming from you . . .
“Tasmyn, for God’s sake, let go!” Nell’s nails pierced into the back of my hands, as though she could somehow shock me into action. “You’re holding back. Now is not the time for—”
We were hit again, and this time, the motorhome tipped sideways onto two wheels, forcing all of us to one side and then rocking violently when the tires hit the road again. I banged my elbow into the Formica countertop, crying out, but Nell never loosened her grip on me.
She was chanting again, and I focused on calming my heart so that I could do something to help. The power she needed was within me, bottled up tight where I always kept it. I could almost feel it wriggling around inside me, desperate to break out. I’d worked so long and hard to keep it at bay over these years that now I was terrified to change that.
“Tasmyn!” Cathryn was screaming now, too. “Do it. Nell needs you.”
Anger spiked in me. Like I didn’t understand that. As if I were holding back on purpose. I opened my mouth to spew that at her when another explosion slammed into us.
Just at my side, still sitting where I’d left him, Michael cried out, the pain in his voice tearing into me like a knife. I dropped Nell’s hands and turned to him, terror flooding me when I saw the blood on his chest.
“No!” I screamed, falling to my knees. “Michael! NO!”
Cathryn pushed me out of the way, sliding her arms under his body. “Tas, go back to Nell. The only way to help Michael is for you to stop them. Protect us. Protect Michael. I’ll take care of him while you do it.”
I was stunned into immobility for the space of several heartbeats. Cathryn eased Michael’s limp form to the floor, and Marly crawled over, taking his head into her lap. Cillian was making his way toward him, and he paused by me, staring intently into my face.
“I can take care of him. You take care of us.”
He knelt next to my husband, his hands moving over the pale skin and the flowing blood. I saw the wound, and suddenly, rage filled me.
They had done this. They had attacked us, and they had wounded my husband, the only man I’d ever loved and the only man I’d ever want. The power that had been just out of reach moments before surged inside me, and I curled my hands around Nell’s wrists in a death grip as all the energy and anger flew out.
Now, in my mind’s eye, I could envision the car behind us, where two men and a woman were riding. The woman was doing this. She was trying to run us off the road so that we’d be killed. She wanted to stop us from reaching the safe house and standing against the Hive. I focused all my fury on her and let it go.
The man sitting in the seat behind her screamed as the power flowed past the woman and hit him. She must’ve had some sort of protection shield, I realized.
“Tasmyn, we’re not attacking.” Nell shook me. “We’re protecting. We need to use everything we have to keep all of us safe and lose the car coming after us.”
“I want her to pay!” I ground out the words. “I want to snap her neck. I want to see her bleed. I want to pry her eyes from her head—”
“Tasmyn.” Nell held my face between her hands. “Look at me. You’re letting the pain and the anger rule. Darkness lies down that path, and you know I speak from experience. Take that power and join with me. We’ll put up a wall that they can’t penetrate. But we’ve got to do it now.”
What she was saying somehow got through to me. I didn’t want to release the rage, but for now, I channeled it into the same flow Nell was using. I could feel the barrier rise around the motorhome, shielding us and protecting the vehicle as it moved. It was thick and impenetrable, and I felt it repelling their spells and shots. Everything bounced off our ward, an
d as the woman cast a particularly powerful spell, it hit our shield and rebounded against the car, sending the vehicle into a skid and spin. The front end slammed into the guard rail, and flames shot from the engine.
“You did it.” Nell let go of me and sagged against the back of the dining bench. Her face was white, and I realized her arms were trembling. She glanced at Cathryn. “They crashed. We’re safe for now, and that shielding ward should hold for a good long time.” She flickered her eyes toward me. “When Tasmyn brings her A game, finally, she doesn’t mess around.”
I fell to the floor again, trying to peer around Cillian and Marly, who were blocking my view of Michael. “Is he all right? Did you heal him?” I grabbed for Cillian’s hand where it rested on my husband’s leg.
The Irishman cast his troubled face toward me. “I did what I could. It’s a physical wound with mystical properties, and I . . . I couldn’t do everything I needed to.” He smiled a little, but I could tell it was forced. “For now, he’s stable. Once we get to wherever we’re going, we might need to find someone with more experience than I have. Maybe a vascular surgeon. I stopped the bleeding for now, but I’m not certain how long it will hold.”
I caught my breath, staring at Michael’s deathly pale face and closed eyes. “Why isn’t he awake? Shouldn’t he be able to talk to us?”
Cillian shook his head. “I did that. It’ll be easier for his body to heal if he’s not fighting the pain, and so I put him under for now. Let him rest. I’ll keep him sleeping until we’re in a non-moving environment.”
“Cill, can we move him?” Cathryn spoke up from where she was crouched next to Marly. “He’d be safer from jolts back on the bed, wouldn’t he?”
Cillian considered and then inclined his head. “That’s a good idea. Let me lift him, though. I can make sure nothing goes amiss while I carry him back. Just make sure everyone’s out of my way.”
I sat still as he gently lifted my husband’s lax body in two muscular arms and moved with care and dexterity to the rear of the motorhome, disappearing through the curtained doorway. Marly crawled over to me and touched my face.
“He’s going to be fine, sweetie. Don’t worry. I know my son, and he’s stubborn.” She stood up and pulled me to my feet. “Now why don’t you go back and sit with him? You’ll feel better if you can keep your eye on him, I know.”
I nodded and made my way to the bedroom. Cillian was bending over him, a frown on his face. The healer glanced up when I came in.
“His vitals are good. His breathing is even, and his heartbeat is strong. You can sit next to him, but be careful not to jar him. We don’t want the bleeding to start again.” He began to ease around the bed, hesitating by the doorway. “What you did out there was amazing. I felt the power from you, and it was . . . impressive.”
I perched gingerly on the edge of the mattress. “I took too long. I’m still afraid of it. If I’d acted sooner . . . Michael wouldn’t have been hurt. And once I did let go, I nearly killed the people chasing us. I was out of control.”
“They wanted to kill us,” Cillian pointed out. “They wouldn’t have stopped if it hadn’t been for you.”
“That might be true, but if I take a life, I become like them. I could never live with myself. It changes who you are and mutates the power in such a way that it’s always in question.” I lifted one shoulder. “Look at Nell. She didn’t kill anyone that I know of, but even her attempts to spill blood changed her.”
“But she owns her power.” Cill spoke with certainty. “She controls it. She might treat it with healthy respect, but she didn’t hesitate out there.”
“I did.” I rubbed my forehead, where a nasty headache was beginning to brew, whether from the expulsion of power or from the stress of the entire situation, I couldn’t tell. “I know that. Once upon a time I used my power in an off-handed way when I was mildly annoyed with a friend, and I nearly broke her back. I’m always terrified that if I let it go, I won’t ever return to being me.”
“Here.” Cillian stepped closer and laid one cool hand against my head, cupping the back of my neck with the other. “Let me help you there.”
Under his touch, the throbbing of the pain in my head eased. I relaxed, feeling all the tension drain from my body, and by the time Cill stepped back, I was at peace.
“That’s a wonderful gift you have.” I smiled at him. “You’re lucky. You have a talent that can save lives, not take them.”
“Like all of our abilities, it’s a double-edged sword.” He stared down at me. “I can save lives, but I have the power to take them, as well. I can mend arteries and veins with my mental power, but I can stop a heart with a glance, as well. I can cause an embolism that destroys a brain.” He shook his head. “No, it’s not as easy as you might think. Remember that. We all struggle. The light and the dark are always very close to us, and the choices are made on a minute-by-minute basis.”
He lifted the edge of the curtain that covered the window and leaned down to gaze out. “Speaking of light and dark, it seems the morning is upon us. And . . .” He stepped out of the way so that I could see, too. “I’m no expert, and I’m not even an American, but isn’t that some famous bridge?”
I peered out, taking in the hazy silhouette in the distance, and sighed. “I should’ve figured it out before now. That’s the Golden Gate Bridge.” I sat back down as it all began to make perfect sense. “We’re heading to San Francisco.”
Actually, we didn’t stop in San Francisco. The motorhome continued around the city until Veronica directed Sionnach, who was now behind the wheel, to take an exit that led us to a series of back roads. The fox was adept at moving this huge vehicle around the curves, and I got the feeling she was enjoying herself.
Marly was sitting next to Michael now, and I’d come up front to stretch my legs and my back. Nell was sleeping again, this time on the sofa with her head on Rafe’s lap. He glanced up at me as I sat down across from them.
“You okay?”
I shrugged. “I’m still a little numb. Cillian says that Michael’s all right for now, but we don’t know how long that’s going to last. And I just can’t stop thinking that if I’d acted faster, he wouldn’t be lying on the bed back there.”
“You can’t blame yourself, Tas. You haven’t used your power that way for a long time.”
“But that’s why I’m here.” I steepled my fingers and rested my forehead against them. “My value to this team lies in that power. If I can only access it when someone I love is hurt or dead, it seems to me I’m not going to be very effective.”
“You just need some practice.” He smiled at me, and I knew he was trying to be encouraging. “Once we get to the safe house, Nell will work with you, and Zoe will help, too. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”
“She’s not wrong.” Nell’s eyes slid open and met mine. “I know you mean well, Rafe, but Tasmyn has a point. If she can’t use her abilities to help us fight, why is she here?”
“Nell.” Rafe combed his fingers through her hair, but I heard the note of reproach in his voice. “Give her a break. You’ve been active all this time. She just needs a little time to ramp up.”
“You just ignore what you can do on a regular basis, don’t you?” Nell pushed against Rafe’s legs and sat up, her eyes glittering at me. “You pretend the power isn’t there. You like to think it’s gone. But it isn’t. It’s still part of you, and you’re a fool to think otherwise.”
I blinked. “I don’t have any reason to think about my abilities in my real life, let alone to use them. Why would I?”
“Because it’s fun.” She smiled, and it transformed her face. “We can do what other people can’t, Tasmyn. Even if you’re not using your gifts for a specific purpose, don’t you ever just want to play with them? I do it around our house all the time. I move objects with my mind, cast fires, play with water . . . it’s how I keep my hand in.” She glanced at Rafe. “And what I can do can enhance other areas of your life, as well.”
&
nbsp; My cheeks heated. The last thing I wanted to hear about was Nell’s sex life with my ex-boyfriend. The ick factor there was off the charts.
“Nell may have a point.” Rafe cocked his head. “You can’t be afraid of your power if you want it to be useful. And by ignoring your talents, you’re letting that fear take control.”
I exhaled long and glanced away from them. I knew they both wanted to help me, but I wasn’t sure I could do what they suggested. And then I thought about Michael, lying so still back there in the bed, and of Marly and all of the rest of our family and loved ones. If I didn’t use my power, I’d never be able to protect them. One thing I knew for certain was that I’d die to keep them all safe.
“Turn right.” Veronica’s crystal clear voice cut through the rumbling noise of the motorhome.
“I don’t think that’s even a road,” Sionnach objected, squinting through the windshield.
“It is. Trust me.” The vampire glanced back at Nell. “Once we’re through the brush, would you please repair it, so that no one can tell it’s been disturbed?”
“Sure.” Nell studied the trees and bushes as we slowed bumped through them. When we’d cleared them, she murmured a few words, which I assumed were an incantation to fix what we’d done.
The RV followed the narrow road around one more curve, and suddenly there was a large cabin in front of us. As we came to a gradual halt, the front door opened and a woman stepped out.
“Holy shit,” Rafe breathed.
Next to me, Nell reached blindly for my hand, and I felt an odd and familiar comfort in her touch. Lucas opened the motorhome’s main door, leading all of us out onto a small green lawn.
Marica Lacusta stood on the top step of the wide front porch, a wide smile wreathing her face.
“Welcome, my darlings!” Her gaze was fastened on Nell and me. “My girls, back together with me, just as it was always meant to be.” She glanced at the rest of our small band, and her grin broadened. “This feels right, doesn’t it? All of us joined together to fight against one common enemy, putting aside all of our past differences and little hurts to defeat the powers of darkness.”
Age of Aquarius Page 16
