“You would have done the same for me.”
The old man’s lips thinned, and he looked away. There were tears in his eyes. “We had a good run, you and I.”
“Don’t talk like you’re going anywhere soon, old man. You were right just now. You do have more to do.” Demetrius found a spot to touch, Gus’s shoulder. “I’m keeping enough to live on for a while, but I’m signing the bulk of the stock and what’s left of the property over to you.”
Gus’s pale blue eyes widened, and he moved as if to sit up but only managed to raise his head from the pillows a couple of inches before it fell back down again.
“The house is a total loss. But the property is still a prime piece of real estate. Worth several million, given that location. And there’s the limo, the garage, all still intact. I’m taking the Jeep.”
“But—”
“It’s the least I can do. I’m the cause of this, Gus. I cost a young man his life and nearly got you killed.”
“No. No, listen, D-man, Lilia says Sid was ready to go or he wouldn’t have gone. And that I wasn’t, or I would have. She told me about that priest. It’s his fault, not yours.”
“Lilia is wise about many things, but not everything, Gus. I let that old priest in. I listened to his lies, agreed to keep his presence secret. I trusted him, a stranger, more than I trusted Lilia, or Sid, or you—you, Gus, my best friend. I betrayed you and almost got you killed.”
It hit him then that he’d done this before. Betrayed his best friend by his secret love for Lilia. That time his best friend had been a king, and the betrayal had led Demetrius to kill his friend with his own hands. For a moment he sat there awash in a sense of déjà vu that was almost dizzying. And then it passed, though he was left shaken in its wake.
Gus saw that he was upset and changed the subject. “Who was that old priest, anyway? Why would he want to do something like that to you? To us?”
Averting his eyes, Demetrius shrugged. “I think he was deluded, and for some reason he chose me to obsess over, and it got worse when Lilia appeared. It was just...random.”
“That little witch of yours,” Gus said, “She says nothing is random. She knows things, D-dog. You should listen to her.”
“I’ve figured that out already. That’s why I’m going home with her. Back East. She’s got family in New York state, near Ithaca. Once—”
“You’re leaving me?” Gus whispered. “But, D, we’ve been together for—”
“You didn’t let me finish. As soon as you’re well enough to travel, I’m bringing you out there, too. If you want to come.”
“Damn straight I do.”
Demetrius nodded. “I’d stay until then, but we need to find that priest, before he hurts someone else. And Lilia thinks her sisters can help us do that. You just get well, Gus. And let me know if you need anything.” Demetrius reached for the notepad near the phone on Gus’s nightstand, which, he thought, was rather ironic, since the man would have had to dial with his nose. After jotting a number, he set the pad down again. “That’s Lilia’s sister’s number. That’s where I’m heading. And I’ve still got my cell phone. You remember that number?”
Gus made a face. “My new cell’s in the drawer. Lilia bought it for me. Don’t know where she got the scratch, but—”
“One of her brothers-in-law is nearly as wealthy as Ned Nelson.”
“That must be it, then,” Gus said. “So, do you mind programming the numbers into that new phone for me?” He held up his hands and shrugged sheepishly. “Kinda hard with my fingers all wrapped up like boxing gloves.”
Demetrius found the phone and turned it on. “It takes vocal commands,” he said as he entered both numbers.
“That Lilia. She thought of everything.” Gus sighed. “I’ll be on my way to you two just as fast as I can, D-dog. You better believe it.”
Demetrius smiled. “I’ll hold you to that, Gus.”
* * *
After Demetrius left the room, Gus sat up in the bed and began unwrapping the gauze from his hands. He wasn’t healed yet. Not completely. But nearly. His friend had been right. He did have things to do. He’d only just come to realize—to remember—what things when he’d been overcome by the smoke. It was all coming back to him now, though.
* * *
It didn’t taken Sindar long to track down the witches. Like so many other things, such as the language and customs of this time and place, the location of Lilia’s sisters had been waiting for him in the memory of the old priest whose body he wore like a suit.
A cheap and ill-fitting suit, at first. But it was changing rapidly to reflect the soul it now held. For someone with his abilities, bodies were mutable, and he was enjoying the sensation of familiarity his newly changed body aroused.
Indira and her husband, the fallen priest Tomas, had been with Father Dom at the end, when he’d fallen to his death. Well, “fallen” wasn’t precisely the right word. He’d been pushed. Not by the witch or her consort, but by the demon Demetrius himself. He’d been using wildlife as his eyes and ears to keep tabs on the witch while he’d still been imprisoned in the Underworld. When a wolf had appeared, attacked Father Dom and sent him tumbling from the cliff in a beautifully ironic repetition of the way the witches had died so long ago, the old priest had never doubted that Demetrius had been behind it.
Demetrius probably didn’t even remember saving that witch’s life, but Sindar knew, because he still had access to Dom’s memories.
Not that it mattered. However, something about the poetry of Dom’s end appealed to Sindar, and he began to alter his plan to make room for something similarly fitting. Full circle. Yes, that was the way it had to be.
He was going to give Demetrius a reason to refuse to accept his humanity a little bit longer, then kill him. He intended to kill the witch first, though. She would die as Beltane, the deadline, began, just as the clock ticked the hour, so that she would not return. And if she died with the piece of Demetrius’s soul still inside her, he would be destroyed utterly. No afterlife, no heaven, no chance to live again. It had to be very precisely timed. And before he killed Lilia, he would take as much from her as he could. Like the skin of a snake or the feathers of certain birds, the blood of a witch had power. Power he could use.
But first he needed to bait the trap.
He’d stolen a car, then switched its license plates with a set taken from a broken-down relic at a junkyard. Driving had been exceedingly difficult at first, even with Father Dom’s muscle memory mostly intact. However, by the time he’d driven the thing all the way from Arizona to the Finger Lakes region he’d mastered it.
He had a cell phone he’d taken from Lilia’s room on his way out of the burning mansion. He had cash, picked from an old man’s pocket at a highway rest stop. And he had a detailed geological map of the entire area around Milbury, which had allowed him to choose the perfect spot to execute the rest of his plan. The army he intended to raise would wait a few more hours. In the meantime...
Ahh, there they were.
For the second day in a row he’d left the car parked out of sight, just around the bend from Havenwood’s long drive, where he could stand and watch through the trees to see if anyone was coming.
Now his patience had paid off. And none too soon, either. Lilia and her demon lover were on their way even now.
But his time was at hand. The man who was, as far as he could tell, the family guru was pushing a baby stroller along the driveway. He, too, wore robes, but not makeshift ones like Sindar’s own, pieced together from swatches of fabric, but real robes, white and red. Beneath them he was barefoot. He had dark skin, weathered but not lined, and hair the length of his torso, all twisted and matted in what the old priest’s brain told him were called dreadlocks. Dread was a good word for them. His beard was just as long and just as tangled. Dark brown, with white tufts here and there.
Sindar hoped the man wouldn’t turn the stroller around at the end of the drive and head back the way he had
come. Turn left at the end instead. Come toward me, just a little bit. Just until you’re out of sight of the house.
The guru stopped at the end of the drive, tipping his head as if he’d heard something. And then he turned in the direction of the man who’d just summoned him. He must be in tune with the more subtle forces, Sindar thought as he waved a hand in the air. The guru continued toward him, still pushing the stroller.
When they reached the car, Sindar smiled—beamed, really. “I’m sorry to disturb you on your stroll, friend, but I find I’m in need of assistance.”
“If the problem is a mechanical one, I’m afraid I’ll be of little help. But you’re not far from real aid. You can walk back with me if you like.”
“Oh, I think I can take the car that far. Can I give you two a lift?” He opened one of the rear doors as he spoke.
The guru frowned, glancing inside. “It’s not far,” he said. “I wouldn’t want to leave the stroller behind.”
“We can put it in the trunk. It folds up, doesn’t it?”
“You don’t have a car seat.”
Sindar could see the suspicion forming in the man’s eyes as he began to turn around.
“Wait!” Sindar smiled to ease the power of the command. “Wait. At least let me get a glimpse at the little angel, hmm?”
Sindar could see that the other man didn’t like it. He would have to be quick or risk losing them. As he leaned over, reaching as if to move the blanket aside, he grabbed the pink-clad infant. Startled, the baby began to wail, and the guru leapt to her defense.
“What do you think you’re—”
“Stay back.” Just that quickly, Sindar had a knife in his free hand, holding the screaming infant anchored to his chest with the other arm. “Stay back or she dies.”
The guru held up both hands, his dark brown eyes wide. “Don’t harm the child, I beg of you. Whatever you want, I’ll get for you. Anything, just don’t—”
“What I want is the witch’s child.” Still brandishing the knife, Sindar leaned toward the car and dropped the baby on the floor in the back, where she continued to bawl.
“No.” The guru’s eyes were on the infant. “No, please, not like that. It’s not safe.”
“I won’t harm her—providing she shuts up within a reasonable amount of time. She’s only the means to an end for me.” He slammed the door on the screaming baby and opened the driver’s door.
“Take me, as well, then!” the guru shouted. And he opened the rear door and dove into the car beside the child, quickly gathering her into his arms.
Miraculously, she quieted.
Sindar nodded as he slid behind the wheel. “All right, then. That seems like a very good idea, in fact.” He slammed his own door shut and started to drive.
* * *
Indy had just gotten off the phone with Lilia and had delivered the biggest part of her news to Lena, who was now staring at her as if she had lobsters crawling out of her ears.
“She’s bringing Demetrius here?” Magdalena stood in the middle of her living room, at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, May fourth, staring at Indy as if she’d lost her mind. “What the hell do you mean, she’s bringing him here?”
“Easy, Lena,” Indy said, trying too soothe her sister by clasping her shoulders, but Lena had fire in her eyes that matched her hair.
“I’m not going to take anything easy,” she said, shaking Indira’s hands away.
“Fine, be difficult then.” Indy flung out a hand, knocking her sister onto her ass in the nearest chair without even touching her. “But you are going to listen.”
Lena surged to her feet, but Indy shoved her right back again, still hands-free. “Sometimes I hate your guts,” Lena muttered.
“You’re supposed to. I’m your sister.” Indy turned. “I’ll make some of Mom’s tea. Chamomile, I think. Maybe with some valerian mixed in.” She glanced back at her furious sister. “And maybe a Xanax,” she added. “It’ll just have time to kick in before they get here from the airport.”
Her sister scowled at her. Indy scowled back. “Where’s Ellie?” she asked.
“Bahru took her for a walk,” Magdalena said. “It’s such a nice day. And since I’m sending her and my husband away first thing tomorrow morning, thanks to that pain-in-the-ass Demetrius and his stupid Beltane deadline, Bahru wanted one last walk.”
Indy’s gaze shifted toward the window, but Bahru and the baby were not in sight. Selma was on a cruise with her witchy friends Betty and Jean. And Lena had convinced Ryan to take Ellie away, too. She’d found a father-daughter retreat designed to encourage a more powerful bond and had nudged her husband to attend, using the old “Mommy needs a break” excuse, which he’d bought, hook, line and sinker. The truth, of course, was that they were trying to get their families out of harm’s way before Beltane, as Lilia had warned them to do. Beltane was near. It was already Friday afternoon. Beltane would arrive on Saturday morning at 9:05 a.m.
Tomas had seen through Indy’s attempts to send him out of town and was refusing to go anywhere. And frankly, Indy was glad.
She pulled out her cell phone and tapped “Home” in the directory. Tomas answered on the first ring, and as always her heart turned into a pathetic puddle of pudding at the sound of his sexy voice. “Where are you guys?” she asked.
“Doing what you asked us to, of course. Erecting a Maypole in the clearing near the lake for Beltane. Even though Ryan’s spending most of his time complaining that he won’t be here to dance around it with his wife.”
Indy smiled. “Tell him he can dance with Lena when he gets back. Beltane celebrations can last for days. Did you remember the ribbons?”
“Alternating red and white. Got it. What’s up, hon?”
“Bahru and the baby went for a walk. I need you to go get them and bring them back here, okay?”
His tone grew worried. “Something’s wrong.”
“Maybe. Do it quick, all right? I’ll fill you in when you get here.”
“On the way, babe.” He was hollering for Ryan before the connection was broken.
Indy looked up and her eyes were immediately held hostage by her sister’s, but she broke the gaze when the teapot started to whistle. “I’ll get that.”
“Hang on, sis. Tell me what’s going on. Tell me now,” Lena said. “We haven’t heard from Lilia for a couple of days, and now she not only called, she’s on her way here. Something happened, didn’t it?”
Indy nodded, cleared her throat. “Lilia and Demetrius found Father Dom. Apparently he tracked Demetrius down at his playboy pad in Sedona and convinced him to let him hide out in the attic. He’s been playing the priestly confessor and trying to undermine Lil’s mission this whole time.” She walked into the kitchen as she spoke, made their tea and added cream and sugar to her own cup.
“And Demetrius didn’t know who he was?”
Indy shook her head. “When Dom realized he was going to fail, he burned the place down with them in it—but they’re both fine.” She added that last bit fast, before Lena could panic.
“Why would he do that?” Lena asked. “Unless he doesn’t realize they’re immortal.”
“Temporarily immortal,” Indy said, carrying her teacup to the front door and opening it. “It’s a nice day. Let’s sit on the porch for a while.”
Lena followed her outside. “If Demetrius doesn’t accept the rest of his soul by Beltane, they both die,” she said, as if trying to work through the whole thing out loud. “So I guess Father Dom knows that somehow? And that’s why he wants to convince Demetrius not to take it back.” She held her cup in her hands, blowing on the surface to cool it off.
“It wasn’t Father Dom,” Indy said.
Lena frowned, lifting her gaze. “But you just said—”
“Lilia saw him running from the mansion after he’d torched it. Got a good look, she said. And she has no doubt. The person occupying Father Dom’s formerly comatose bod is Sindar.”
Lena dropped her teacup. It hit the floor
at her feet and shattered. She didn’t even jump when the hot liquid spattered her legs. “How?” she whispered.
It was at that moment that Ryan’s big black pickup truck skidded to a stop in the driveway, sending up a dust cloud. Lena noticed the baby’s stroller in the back as Tomas and Ryan dove out of the front. She shot to her feet, sensing disaster. Both sisters raced off the front porch, Lena going straight to Ryan, clasping the front of his shirt and searching his face.
“Where’s Ellie? Ryan, where’s the baby?”
His stricken expression said it all, but his words, hoarse and choked, confirmed it. “I don’t know, honey. We found the stroller on the side of the road. Bahru and Ellie were nowhere in sight.”
12
“Oh, no,” Lilia whispered as Demetrius pulled the rented Jeep Wrangler to a stop. The century-old farmhouse where Lena and Ryan lived had been freshly painted, and the vineyards around it were in the process of being newly planted. A state police car and a sheriff’s SUV sat in the driveway, lights flashing, doors standing open.
It was an hour before sunset, and the temperatures there were far different from an early May evening in Arizona. It was cool. Almost cold. The air was damp on her skin as she got out of the car, sensing all sorts of discord in the air and hurrying up the front steps, her heart in her throat.
She walked in without knocking, leaving the door wide open behind her, and was dumbstruck by the tableau before her. Her sister Magdalena was sobbing and barely able to stand upright as Ryan held her, his face pale, his eyes devastated. Indy was pacing like a caged tiger, while Tomas stood listening intently to one of the cops, a man far too young, Lilia thought, for the sheriff’s badge pinned to his shirt.
“What’s going on?”
Lena looked up at her, her eyes so puffy and red she seemed to have aged ten years overnight. “He took her. He took Ellie!”
The room seemed to waver in and out of focus. Lilia didn’t have to ask who. But it didn’t make sense. Little Ellie? “But...but...”
Demetrius laid a strong hand on her shoulder, but only for a moment, because Magdalena tore free of her husband’s gentle embrace and flew at him, hitting him like a battering ram, driving him right back out the door onto the front porch and shrieking like a banshee the entire time. “This is your fault, you bastard! I’ll kill you for this. I’ll kill you!”
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