The Paranormal Research and Rescue Institute Books 1-3: Books 1-3 in the Paranormal Research and Rescue Institute Series

by Lora Edwards

  Yours,

  Flynn (AKA the shifter acting as Blackbeard)

  Ovidia laughed out loud at the note. She was looking forward to getting to know Flynn well in the coming days.

  Stepping out of her room into the hallway, Ovidia ran into something warm and solid. She put her hand up to steady herself and found herself looking up into the cool blue of Erik’s eyes.

  She stared up at him as he stared back at her, his eyes warming as he looked down at her.

  They stayed that way for a long moment. He slowly lowered his gaze to her lips and moved forward to capture them with his own.

  “Ovidia, Erik!” Blackbeard popped out of the doorway to his cabin. “We are out to sea, time to set a course. Chef has the first course of dinner ready, so get in here,” Blackbeard bellowed in full character.

  Ovidia jumped back, a blush heating her face. She abruptly turned and walked toward the double doors leading into Blackbeard’s cabin.

  It was a pirate’s paradise. It looked like every pirate movie she had ever seen, which made her smile. There was a huge window overlooking the deck of the ship and the sea beyond. A long table had been placed below the window and was covered in maps and charts with a beautiful old compass lying open on top. Along one wall were chests with jewels and pearls spilling out, and the dull glint of gold coins could be seen inside them. A table set for three sat against another wall, and the smell coming from that direction was divine.

  Ovidia walked over to where Erik and Blackbeard studied the map of the Siren island that had been given to them by Armand. “From my calculations, it should be a three-day sail to get us to the island. When we get close, we will distribute the medallions to the men—we wouldn’t want one of them spilling the beans about that place. If we tell them it is protection against the Sirens, they will believe it, as they are a superstitious lot, they are.”

  “You have the headings figured out,” Ovidia asked, looking at the map and the compass he now held in his hand.

  “This may look like an old-fashioned compass, but it is not, my dear. It has been spelled specifically to find what I am needing to find, and it will lead us sure and true to island of the Sirens. I just hope these medallions you have brought will be as reliable. I imagine a death by Siren would be pleasurable, but I am not quite ready to meet my maker,” he said with a grin.

  “They are reliable—they were made by one of the most powerful witches I know, Seraphim Faelyn. She has made countless potions and remedies for me over the years, and I have never had a problem,” Ovidia said confidently.

  Blackbeard roared with laughter. “Aye, I believe you. She is in the one who helped me with the enchantments for the ship. If one of the crew were to stumble into our private quarters, they would see somewhat more plush but serviceable cabins that they would expect. I haven’t had a mutiny, so her charms must work well,” he said with another grin.

  “Yes, and I would imagine I would be in jail somewhere for witchcraft.” Ovidia laughed.

  “Let’s sit down and enjoy this wonderful meal that has been prepared for us by our cook. He is a former chef who wanted a bit more adventure in his life, and his food is fantastic,” Blackbeard said, gesturing to the table behind him.

  Ovidia sat and sampled the salad in front of her. Citrus flavors burst into her mouth, as well as the crispness of lettuce and the salty taste of almonds. The rest of the meal continued with a lovely salmon dish and a chocolate mousse dessert. At the end, the three sat back and sipped wine, talking of the adventures Flynn had experienced and a few of their own from their travels. Ovidia secretly enjoyed the tales Erik shared as it gave insight into his life during the time she’d thought he was in Thale.

  Chapter 11

  “We have sighted land, Captain,” came the call from the crow’s nest. Ovidia went to the bow of the ship to get her first glimpse of the isle of the Sirens. The past few days had been uneventful and Ovidia had enjoyed being able to decompress for a few days. She’d had dinners with Erik and Blackbeard, lounged in the tub, and had caught up on her sleep in the luxurious bed.

  She had needed to recharge, but now she was itching for adventure. Ovidia liked the downtime, but that was over and now it was time to get back to the adventure.

  The sailors had all been given the amulets, telling them it was protection from evil spirits that stalked the seas, and Blackbeard gave the order that they be worn. Each sailor had been given one, and the penalty for not complying was spending the rest of the journey in the brig, as well as Blackbeard spreading the word that they were not a reliable sailor, which would deliver a fatal blow to their career.

  Little did they know, if they took them off it would actually be a death sentence.

  A fog suddenly shrouded the boat and the wind died. They were caught in a fog so thick and muffling, it was like being wrapped in cotton. Goose bumps rose on Ovidia’s arm and she sensed that they were in danger. Armand had warned the Siren king that they were on this journey, and they should have had safe passage. They were there to help, after all.

  Ovidia rubbed her arms to relieve herself of the goose bumps, and then from somewhere in the mist, it started. It was hard to hear at first, just the first strains of a haunting melody. As the boat drifted farther into the fog, it became louder, until the ghostly tune could be heard plainly.

  They had reached the small bump of land that guarded the isle, and they were hearing the haunting song of the Sirens. Ovidia pulled her medallion out of her shirt and felt the heat from the simple wood, saw it glow slightly. The spell had been activated, and they were safe from the deadly song.

  One of the pirates was suddenly standing next to Ovidia. She had not heard his approach, and she automatically placed her hand on the hilt of her sword, causing it to come to life. Its glowing outline could be seen next to her.

  “Do you hear it,” the pirate asked her, his eyes glazed.

  “Yes, I do,” Ovidia said cautiously.

  “She is calling for me…I must join her. She needs my help. I am her one true love, and she is ever so lonely,” he said as he climbed up on the side of the ship, preparing to jump off into the ocean at the Siren’s call.

  “You took off your amulet, you fool,” Ovidia said, exasperated.

  “I don’t need that foolishness—never believed in all the curse and spirit nonsense. I threw it overboard. I don’t have time to talk about this. I need to go, she needs me,” he shouted in Ovidia’s face, spittle flying from his mouth.

  “Oh no you don’t,” she said, grabbing the man by the waist and pinning him to the deck as he howled to be released.

  “Erik, Blackbeard, someone please hurry,” Ovidia called out as she wrestled with the man underneath her. He was strong from working the ship, and it was all she could do to restrain him, to keep him from jumping to his death.

  “Dammit Joe, I should have known,” Blackbeard said, appearing out of the fog next to Ovidia. “He’s our resident doubting Thomas and doesn’t believe in anything he can’t see or hear.” Blackbeard bent down to help Ovidia keep them man restrained, as he was thrashing and screaming to be let up.

  “Do you think you can hold him,” Ovidia asked grimly.

  “Yes, for a few. What’s your plan,” Blackbeard asked.

  “He told me he threw he medallion in the sea but I have a few extras in my room, so I will go grab one,” Ovidia said as she raced off the deck and into her room, retrieving an extra amulet from where she had hidden them.

  Racing back, she saw the man was almost free, and Erik had joined Blackbeard in holding him down. The thrall lent the man extra strength as it called to him.

  Ovidia quickly placed the medallion around the man’s neck, hoping the spell would work.

  A great light spilled from the amulet, and the man’s eyes cleared as his struggling ceased.

  “What are you people doing? Get off of me,” Joe declared indignantly.

  “Joe, you must keep this medallion on. It is a matter of life and death. I don’t c
are if you believe me or not, but I won’t have your blood on my hands. If you attempt to remove it, you will be thrown in the brig for the rest of the journey. Do we have an understanding,” Blackbeard asked, his gaze boring into the other man’s.

  “Yes, Captain. I see now, the singing…it was calling me. She said she was my true love, that she was lonely and I needed to come to her. Now I hear the singing, but it doesn’t affect me so,” he said, looking scared and confused.

  They didn’t need him spooking the other members of the crew. A mutiny at that point would be disastrous and would only lead to the deaths of the sailors.

  “It is the song of the Sirens, Joe. Surely you have heard about it on your travels,” Ovidia said matter-of-factly.

  “Yes, but I didn’t believe it was real,” he said, his eyes wide.

  “It is, but you will be safe as long as you keep the amulet on,” Ovidia said firmly, waiting until the man nodded. She stood and watched as he stared out into the mist as if he could part it and see the faces of those who tortured him.

  “Captain, if it’s all right with you, I believe I will go below decks until we make landfall,” said the pirate.

  “See that you do, Joe,” Blackbeard said then followed the man with his gaze until he disappeared below decks.

  “Don’t worry, he won’t remember a thing. The spell is set to erase anything supernatural they see during this time period. He will go back to being skeptical Joe before you know it,” Ovidia said, hoping to ease the concern she saw in Blackbeard’s face.

  Blackbeard nodded and remained on deck, staring out into the impenetrable fog and hoping they made landfall safely.

  Soon the fog started to part, lifting as the ship slowly sailed close to the rock where the Sirens lay in wait, singing their songs and awaiting their victims.

  When they came into view, Ovidia gasped. The beauty and sadness of the ladies was heartbreaking. There were three. One had long silky black hair, skin as pure as cream, and dark eyes that wept huge tears. Her tail was onyx and sparkled in the dim light. Next, her sister looked almost Nordic with her long blonde hair in a plait down her back, seashells and sea glass interwoven into the strands. She had ice blue eyes and although they held sorrow, as she sang her song of death, they were of steel. Finally, the most ethereal one of them all. She had long hair the color of burnished copper and a peaches-and-cream complexion, and in her emerald green eyes, the tears shimmered but did not fall.

  Despite the abhorrence these women had for having to take the lives of innocents, they did what was necessary to protect their people, and it was something Ovidia admired.

  “Sirens of the rock, I am Ovidia of Kveland. We were sent for by King Merrik to help find your lost sister.” Ovidia’s voice echoed back at her through the thinning fog, and the Sirens stopped their singing.

  The copper-haired one with the shimmering green tail that matched her eyes spoke, her speaking voice as alluring and melodious as her singing voice, one made to capture and enslave.

  Ovidia wrapped her hand around her medallion, feeling the warm heat from the spell on her hand, reassuring her that although she was captivated by the beauty and voice of this creature, she would not be sacrificing her life to it.

  Ovidia saw the grief flash in the Siren’s eyes at Ovidia’s telling action.

  “We will not harm you. Do not be afraid. We mourn the loss of our sister and will welcome any help we can get to have her returned to us,” the lady said. Looking at her sisters and seeing their nods of agreement, she turned back to Ovidia. “I am Nerifa, and these are my sisters Hyrin and Calirea. We guard our homeland,” she said, as if trying to explain and seek forgiveness for their actions.

  There was no malice in these women, just a deep sense of despair at what was necessary to protect their home. If a human with a drop of siren blood got away and exposed the island, the Siren race would be enslaved, put into sideshows, and studied by science. It would cause a crack in the secrecy that protected all supernaturals, and so they set themselves this grim task to protect their kind along with all other mystical beings.

  Ovidia gave a deep bow to the three women. “Ladies, your sacrifice is respected and valued. All of the supernatural community is in your debt, as you not only keep your secret safe, but ours as well.”

  The three women perched on the rock gave a solemn nod back at Ovidia.

  “Continue on your current course and the island will materialize for you. We have sent word to our king that you have arrived.

  Ovidia nodded and the sails billowed as the wind returned, the ship jerking as it picked up speed. She turned and watched the rock and the Sirens until they were again enveloped by the fog and their haunting song began once more.

  Turning around, Ovidia saw a shimmer on the water. It grew brighter and brighter until she had to cover her eyes or be blinded. When the light dimmed and disappeared, she put down her arm, and where there had just been empty sea was a lush island.

  The crew got to work docking the boat, pulling down the sails, and getting everything ready for departure. Down on the dock, Ovidia could see a regal man standing, flanked by two other men—the king and his bodyguards, she assumed.

  She waited impatiently for the crew to lower the gangplank. It had been decided that the crew would stay aboard the ship while Blackbeard, Erik, and Ovidia went ashore to ascertain the information needed to help find the Siren.

  They would spend three days with the Sirens then sail out again, hopefully with some direction on where to find her. The crew would be allowed to explore the island at their leisure after the preliminaries were worked out with the king.

  Ovidia and Erik were well versed in royal visits, each being royalty themselves. They had been to royal visits in other parts of Nynorsk, as the Norse supernaturals had many different countries inside the region.

  Blackbeard let the two royals lead the way. Ovidia had changed her appearance from sassy pirate woman to a flowing dress and a very small tiara that marked her status as royalty. When she had gotten dressed, she had almost started weeping at the feeling of putting on a pair of Louboutin’s again. She felt calm and confident wearing her fashionista armor and a diplomatic smile on her face as she walked down the plank. She noticed that Erik had changed his attire as well and had added the signet ring he wore at formal occasions. Blackbeard still looked like a pirate.

  Ovidia and Erik stood together and gave a bow to the Siren king. Before they’d left, one of the things in the packet of research Teagan had given them was a list of Siren customs. They had learned that bowing was a sign of respect, and that was how the royalty was to be greeted.

  Ovidia stood and although she saw a king standing in front of her, it was obvious that he was also a grieving father. There were dark circles under his eyes, and a haunted look seemed permanently etched on his face. His eyes, the color of faded green sea glass, looked at her with desperation. This was a father who loved his daughter and was terribly afraid that he would never see her again, that she would be a slave to some man’s ambitions and either sold to the highest bidder or put on display.

  “Your majesty, it is a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for allowing us to visit your beautiful island,” Ovidia said, infusing her voice with kindness.

  “The pleasure is all mine, Miss Valkyrie, Mr. Rabec, and of course, thank you Mr. Blackbeard for bringing them here. I owe a great debt to you all,” he said.

  “You do not owe us anything quite yet. We will do everything in our power to bring your daughter home safely to you,” Ovidia said.

  The king’s faded green eyes filled with tears at the mention of his child. He didn’t let them fall; they just shimmered in his gaze, strengthening Ovidia’ s resolve to find the girl and bring her back to her home.

  “Come, we will get you settled and then I will show you Delphine’s rooms and where the event took place. I am still quite in shock that humans were able to get here, didn’t fall prey to the guard, and were able to get into the palace unseen. Mark m
y words, heads rolled at that. We have become lapse and smug thinking we are safe here. This act is punishment from Poseidon to remind us of our place,” the king said, leading them away from the dock and to a carriage that waited there.

  The horses stamped their feet and snorted as the strangers approached. Ovidia marveled at the beauty of them. Their colors shimmered and shifted in the light. She ached to reach out and touch them.

  The king chuckled. “You may touch them. As long as you have no desire to harm anyone here, they will not harm you. They are hippocampi and, like us, can change form to resemble their counterparts that walk on dry land.”

  Ovidia reached out to the closest creature, hoping it recognized her as friend and not foe. It turned and Ovidia stared into its intelligent, gentle eyes then completed the motion. The skin felt not unlike the pelt of a seal, and Ovidia stroked and crooned for a few moments before getting into the carriage with the rest of the group.

  King Merrik smiled at her. “Loki has taken a liking to you. He says you are a good and fierce warrior and will bring Delphine back home.”

  “He told you that,” Ovidia asked, eyeing the horse pulling their carriage.

  “Yes. Sirens communicate telepathically with all sea creatures. It is one of our gifts. Loki and his mate, Electra, chose to come to land and be of service to us. We are most grateful to them for their service,” the king explained.

  “Loki, huh, that is an interesting name for a water horse,” Erik said thoughtfully.

  “It was the name he chose when he came into our service. He has a fancy for Norse mythology and likes to listen to stories about the Vikings and the Norse gods. It may be why he has taken such a liking to you, Ovidia. He says he cannot believe he met a Valkyrie and would like to see your sword before you leave,” the king explained.