Three Tequilas (Althea Rose 3)

by Tricia O'Malley

  “I call upon earth, air, fire, and sea, let all maintain harmony, as I will so mote it be.”

  Now, let me tell you, it was damn hard to try to speak a spell into a regulator, while maintaining my safety stop and avoiding an attack by the godstone that had taken over Trace. But I remembered what Luna had instructed me about intent. So, pouring my everything into the words, I repeated them over and over as Trace came at me again.

  His hand closed around my regulator hose just as my spell seemed to work. There was brilliant flash of white light, then Trace was holding my shoulder, his eyes wide behind his mask as we floated in the water. Reaching out, I took the other handle of the crate and pointed toward the surface.

  With two kicks, Trace and I broke the surface, the crate between us.

  I spit my regulator out at the ladder.

  “Luna! Miss Elva! It’s in here. I barely put a spell on it!” The words rushed out as Luna was already pulling the crate to her. I stared at the brown streak the crate left across her white suit.

  So she could get dirty.

  “What happened there? It was like I blacked out or something,” Trace said. We were both still in the water, holding onto opposite sides of the ladder as the boat dipped gently in the waves.

  “The godstone took over. You came after me. I’m quite sure you were trying to drown me.”

  Trace’s mouth dropped open and he shoved the hair back from his face, his mask around his neck.

  “Althea… I would never, you must know that.”

  I reached out to touch his shoulder.

  “Hey, I know. It’s okay. Magick is a powerful thing. I’m just glad I managed the spell in time. Remind me not to try doing magick underwater again. It’s tough trying to talk into a regulator.”

  “I just… I…” Trace was visibly ruffled by the experience.

  “Let’s get out of the water and see what we found,” I said gently, climbing the ladder ahead of him and moving across the boat to sit on the bench and tuck my tank into a holder.

  Luna, Miss Elva, and Rafe all crouched around the crate. Miss Elva looked up at me.

  “Nice work on the spell.”

  “It took over Trace for a moment. Things got a little dicey. We’re good now.” I gave a shout as I was picked up suddenly. Trace whirled around with me in his arms before lowering his head to my forehead.

  “I’m sorry. It scares me to think what might have happened.”

  “Nothing happened,” I said, squirming in his arms. I wasn’t the lightest load to carry, and I wanted him to put me down.

  “Still,” Trace said.

  “Put me down. It’s fine. We’re fine.”

  Trace complied, but first he let me slide down his torso so all my bits touched his.

  I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it.

  I gave him a flirtatious look, then turned to the crate, knowing that my face was flushed.

  Rafe hovered over the crate, reaching out one hand to almost touch it but then pulling back.

  “I packed this crate. This very crate. See the stamp in the corner? That is my mark,” Rafe said, indicating a small stain on the wood that looked like a trident.

  “It’s a lovely mark, Rafe,” Luna said gently and Rafe nodded, not saying anything else.

  “Luna, we’ve got to do an extra level of protection here. I’m not feeling good about this,” Miss Elva said, and Luna nodded. Together they stood, holding hands over the crate. I appreciated that they hadn’t tried to pull me into the circle. It was one thing to teach me magick, but another thing entirely to throw me into advanced-level spells when we were dealing with a godstone.

  Stepping back, I leaned against Trace as we watched Luna and Miss Elva raise their arms to the sky, calling upon the goddesses for assistance in securing the contents of the crate. More flashes of light ensued and Rafe fluttered behind us, doing his best to stay out of the way of the magick. I didn’t blame him, either, as he’d been pulled through the veil on one prior such occasion. I didn’t think he wanted to go back. He was having too much fun here with Miss Elva.

  “We should be good,” Miss Elva said as they closed the circle and stepped back.

  “Screwdriver?” Trace asked, offering one to Luna. She grabbed it and knelt by the crate. I was still tripping out over the smear of silt across her pristine white suit, but decided to let it rest as she made quick work of the cover of the crate.

  We let out a collective breath as we peered inside.

  “The necklace!” Rafe said, ecstatic at the sight of the necklace lying on the top layer of the crate. It looked like it had once been wrapped in cloth that had deteriorated through the years. It was what I would call a statement necklace – huge chunks of emeralds set in gold cascaded down to a large emerald pendant.

  “Is this the godstone?” I asked, pointing at the pendant.

  “No. It was going to be a gift to my queen, but now I shall gift it to my new queen.” Rafe bowed and, momentarily forgetting that he was a ghost, bent to lift the necklace from the crate. I blinked back another wash of tears when he faltered, realizing he wouldn’t be able to pick it up, and put his hands behind his back.

  “Here, Rafe, I’ll get it for you.” I jumped in and picked up the stunning necklace; making a great show of it, I curtsied in front of Miss Elva. “A queenly gift for a queen.”

  “It’s positively stunning. Rafe, thank you,” Miss Elva said. She inclined her head – every inch the regal queen – as I slipped it around her neck and clasped it in the back. It made her crochet cover-up look like a million bucks – though I imagined the necklace was worth far more than that.

  “My lovemountain, it looks beautiful on you. A treasure for my treasure. Do you like it?” Rafe asked, wringing his hands as he fluttered around Miss Elva.

  “It’s the best gift anyone’s ever given me, Rafe. I’ll wear it proudly,” Miss Elva said, and Rafe crowed in his delight.

  “Uh, guys, I think we have a problem,” Luna said. She had removed the layer of wood the necklace had rested on, and I gasped at what was underneath.

  A singular emerald, as large as an ostrich egg, lay nestled in what appeared to be remnants of cloth and straw. I could make out something etched into its side, but had to bend closer to see what it was.

  “La Rosa,” Luna and I said together.

  The evil godstone. It was beautiful to the point of sheer decadence. It seemed to absorb even the light of the sun, making the stone almost appear to glow from within. A rose had been painstakingly etched in one side and I could see a shallow groove chiseled into another side.

  “Is the groove where it fits with El Serpiente?” I asked, pointing at the groove but not daring to touch the stone.

  “Yes, it fits there,” Rafe said, staring down at the stone. “I separated them for travel. Even I could sense their power when they were together. Now I wonder if separating them is what doomed me.”

  “Rafe, only half of your ship was down there. And no other crates. Do you think you can tell us where the other half of your ship lies?” I asked, watching as Luna covered the godstone with the wood again. I was glad she did – it was making me almost itchy to look at it. Even contained by a spell, the power the stone gave off was unmistakable.

  “I think we’d better get this stone in to Miss Elva’s house. I’m not liking the vibe it’s giving off. We need more power to hold it,” Luna said, casting a worried look at Miss Elva.

  “I agree. Rafe, tell them where you think the rest of the ship is. We need to get that other stone before anyone else does.”

  Rafe darted off the bow of the boat and began to zip at high speed over the water, scanning close to the surface, until he dove into the water. I gasped.

  “What happened?” Trace leaned in and asked me.

  “Rafe just dove under the water. I don’t know why, but I had just assumed ghosts couldn’t swim. Which makes absolutely no sense now that I say it out loud.”

  “Here,” Rafe called from about a footbal
l field’s length away.

  Trace pulled up the anchor as I started the engine. I piloted the boat to where Rafe hovered over the water and Trace dropped a marker buoy where Miss Elva indicated.

  “Mark the coordinates too, Althea,” Trace called back.

  “Already on it,” I said, saving the coordinates on the boat’s computer.

  “Ready to head back to shore, Rafe?” Miss Elva asked, standing at the bow of the boat and watching as Rafe looked sadly down into the water. The boat fell into silence as we gave Rafe a moment to collect himself. Trace shot me a questioning glance, but I just shook my head for him to be quiet.

  Finally Rafe looked up and moved to Miss Elva’s side.

  “I’ve said my goodbyes. I’m ready now.”

  I made a note to try and find something to bring back for Rafe – anything, just so he had something of his own to add to Miss Elva’s house.

  Though the necklace wasn’t a bad haul itself, I thought as the sun caught the stones wrapped around Miss Elva’s neck.

  Not bad at all.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  “You know, night dives haven’t exactly been favorable for us,” I pointed out to Trace as we headed out, yet again, to dive for the stones.

  It had been an intense afternoon. La Rosa was a feisty stone and it had taken many spells, some old, old, magick, and a call to one of Miss Elva’s Cuban colleagues before the stone stopped trying to take control of whomever was closest to it.

  I’m not even going to talk about the brief moment it had tried to possess Hank.

  I’m telling you – you think you know all the weird there is to know in this world, and something else pops up to surprise you.

  Though I probably had a slightly higher dose of weird in my life than most.

  “You bring along any magick bag of tricks in case we actually find this other godstone?” Trace asked from next to me. I leaned on the Captain’s chair with him, craving closeness after the week we’d been through. Aside from the occasional blare of a boat horn, the night was quiet. We cruised along at a relaxed speed, hoping not to encounter any other boats on our way.

  I wasn’t too worried about it – we were far from any of the coordinates that Nicola had given us. It was unlikely that we’d encounter any other boats out where Rafe had led us.

  “I left a message with Chief Thomas today. I asked him to keep an eye on Nicola. I don’t trust her. She claims she’s staying in town, but we’ll see.”

  “Why would she call off the diving right when we were close to discovering more?”

  I’d had some time to think about that and figured I had the answer.

  “I think she’s filing an admiralty claim.”

  “Shit, of course,” Trace breathed.

  An admiralty claim would legally allow Nicola to take anything from the wreck we’d discovered. It would also go a long way towards getting her investor to continue to funnel money into the dive. Recoveries of that level can prove to be long and costly. It would make perfect sense for her to get the legalities straightened out before proceeding.

  “You’d think – with the deep pockets they have – that they would’ve had an intern stationed outside the courthouse. Ready to race inside and file the claim,” I joked as we drew closer to the dive site.

  We were operating the same as last night – no running lights and moving quietly. The wind had kicked up a bit and the only other sound to reach us was the slapping of waves against the side of the boat.

  “Or paid off some judge to handle it,” Trace observed as he turned the engines off. “Drop anchor.”

  I’d already moved to the front of the boat. The splash of the anchor hitting the water sent shivers down my spine. I thought of what Miss Elva had slid to me before we’d left her house.

  “Put this in your BCD. Dive with it.”

  Her tone had brooked no disagreement. I’d done as she’d told me, and now I wondered what she’d seen that I hadn’t. Why was it that my psychic sight was strong for everyone but myself? You’d think I wouldn’t get myself into so damn many situations.

  It didn’t take long for us to get geared up. Trace and I moved silently next to each other by the light of nothing but the moon. As we stepped to the back of the boat, our tanks on, divelights in hand, I turned to look at Trace.

  “Am I crazy? Like certifiably undateably crazy?”

  “Oh, you for sure are,” Trace’s teeth flashed white in the darkness. “But you’re my kind of crazy.”

  He jumped in the water and I followed on instinct, smiling around my regulator. Damn him for making me feel all warm and tingly inside.

  The feeling didn’t linger long as we descended in darkness again, our arms hooked through each other’s, the only glow coming from the small screen of Trace’s dive computer. Instead, the razor edge of adrenalin sliced through me, putting me on high alert.

  Trace clicked on his flashlight, sending a blinding shock of white through the dark water. I fumbled for the switch of my own light, adding my beam to his as we hit the floor.

  We took a moment to orient ourselves, but it only took seconds for me to locate the battered remains of the bow of the ship. As my flashlight swept across the wreck, the beam of light landed on the figurehead – a proud eagle – sticking straight up from the bow of the boat. I tugged Trace’s arm and we swam over together. The figurehead wasn’t very large for a boat this size, and I wondered if I could get it off somehow to bring back to Rafe.

  Trace tugged my arm and I shook my head. You’d think I wouldn’t be getting so distracted by going shopping for Rafe right now. I rolled my eyes at myself. We had bigger things to focus on.

  I didn’t even need to swim over the ripped hole in the deck to feel the pulse of power emanating from inside the ship. I grabbed Trace’s arm and turned him to face me. Holding the flashlight under my face so he could see me, I indicated that I was going in first – and that I knew for sure the stone was inside.

  It was somewhat surreal, dipping into the dark hull with only the beam of my flashlight slicing through the water to light my way towards one of the most powerful items I’d ever heard of. Several crates lay in this hull, and more were broken and on their sides. Though I itched to explore them all, I knew which one the stone was in. It all but glowed in the water, and the power radiating from the box was almost palpable. I swam to it and instantly realized that we had a problem.

  This crate was long and much larger – the size of a trunk, really. And it was securely chained to the wall of the hull.

  Trace swam next to me, recognizing the problem as well. Pulling out his dive knife, he began to pry the lid off the crate. Reaching out, I put my hand on his arm and stopped him.

  We couldn’t be stupid about this – not after what the last stone had managed to do.

  I ran through the spell – with some enhancements suggested by Miss Elva – three times before I felt the pulse of power ease back. Even so, it felt different to me. I couldn’t quite explain it, but I felt safe to proceed. Nodding at Trace, I held the light on the chest as he pried it open.

  We had to wait a moment for the silt, dislodged when he had opened the crate, to settle, but I could already make out a world of treasures in the crate. Gold doubloons were piled on top of each other, mixed with rough-cut emeralds. An intricate gold cross, chock full of emeralds, lay on top of the loot. I snagged it and tucked it into my BCD. I wouldn’t be able to bring Rafe the figurehead, but this would at least be something for him.

  I gasped into my regulator at what had been revealed when I removed the cross. Beneath it lay the godstone. The symbolism of it resting beneath a cross wasn’t lost on me, and I reverently picked up the stone and held it in the beam of light from Trace’s flashlight.

  It was stunning – as La Rosa was – but in a different way. Similar in size and rough cut, it held the same ethereal glow. And the Aztec snake etched in the side was the same as the one I’d seen several times this week. I tilted the stone so Trace could see the
serpent etched into the side of this stone. It felt almost intoxicating to cradle such power in my hands. I could see where it could easily overpower those who held it. Without the stasis spell, I would have fallen under its spell as well.

  But El Serpiente, as Miss Elva had explained, wasn’t evil. It pulsed with love – pure unadulterated love and kindness. I just wanted to curl up with it and hold it. Tears of pure joy were beginning to leak from my eyes and I caught myself squealing into my regulator. It was, I imagined, like stepping into the presence of an angel.

  Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I tucked the stone into the side pouch of my BCD, opposite the bulge of the item Miss Elva had given me. Motioning to Trace, who had a similar giddy look around his eyes, we left the hull. Squeezing through the hole in the deck, we began our ascent, clicking our lights off and locking arms by habit.

  I found myself giggling as we kicked around at our three-minute safety stop, happiness coursing through me from the stone tucked at my waist. A part of me wondered why anyone would let this stone go.

  Or was that its draw? Pure happiness – would that eventually make you go mad? Is that why it had a sister stone – to temper the pure joy? Were they perfect as a whole and deadly, each in their own way, apart?

  My mind clouded by joy, I ripped my regulator out almost before we hit the surface of the water.

  “Trace!” I gasped, laughing as I flung my arms around his neck at the surface. “We did it!”

  “That’s good to hear, Hermosa. We’ve been waiting for you.”

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  I whipped my head around as lights flashed on us from all angles. We were surrounded by three boats, and there were several people on Trace’s boat as well. All with flashlights.

  And all with guns trained on us.

  “Trace, no,” I gasped, grabbing hold of the ladder. Trace wrapped an arm around me and squeezed the button on my BCD hose, inflating my vest.

  “Hermosa, you’ve been sneaky these last few nights. Good thing we’ve been able to track your boat. It’s so easy to plant a tracking device when there’s no security on the docks all night.”