The Wicked and the Wondrous

by Christine Feehan

  MATT STARED OUT THE LARGE BAY WINDOW OF his kitchen at the pounding sea. He frowned at the foaming waves, peering toward the darkness far out in the distance, almost at the horizon where a mass seemed to be congealing. Dark clouds had spread across the entire sky by the time the three men had sifted through the mess in his photography lab. Matt had taken calls from his parents and his brothers making certain he was alive and well and the house was still standing. Kate had received calls from her sisters.

  Kate, fresh from her shower and wrapped in his robe, sat in the chair nearest him. “It’s out there, isn’t it?” she asked quietly. “I’m sorry about all your equipment.”

  He spun around to look at her. “Do you think I blame you for this?”

  She hesitated. “I don’t think he would have come here if I hadn’t been here. I don’t know why I draw him,” she said, shaking her head. “Maybe he got my scent in the old mill, or maybe he perceives me as a threat.”

  “So it’s definitely a he. I think it’s taking shape, gaining a form,” Matt said.

  “I need to go home and help find the appropriate entry in the diaries. There are quite a few written in the symbols, and my sisters will need help. I don’t think we have a lot of time to figure this out, Matthew. It’s only a few days until Christmas, and I think this thing means to stop the town from having a Christmas.” It sounded melodramatic even to her own ears. How could she expect to have any kind of a relationship with Matthew Granite and still be who and what she was?

  “Time enough, Kate. We’ll go right after we take care of things here. I promise.”

  She lifted an eyebrow. “What things? I thought you and Jonas and Jackson took care of everything.”

  Matt padded over to her on his bare feet and simply lifted her in his arms. “It takes some getting used to.”

  Kate clasped her fingers at the nape of his neck. “I’ll admit I’ve never faced anything like this before.” She wanted him. Suited or not, for just this space of time, Matthew belonged to her.

  “I wasn’t referring to our foggy fiend. I was referring to you. Having you in my house. Having you right here where I can look at you or touch you.” He set her on the tiled counter and slid his hand inside the warmth of the robe.

  He loved her instant response, the way she pushed into his hand. Welcoming him. “Remind me to thank your sister for the warning.” Matt leaned forward to take her offering into the warmth of his mouth.

  “I think you’re a breast man,” she teased.

  “Mmmm, maybe,” he agreed, his hands sliding down her waist and over her hips inside the robe. “But you also have a beautiful butt, Kate. I absolutely love the way you walk. I used to get behind you just to breathe a little life into my fantasies.”

  He was wedging himself between her legs, and Kate opened her thighs wider to accommodate him. “You’ve had fantasies about my rear end?”

  “More than you’ll ever know.” He leaned in to capture her mouth. To spread heat and fire. Her fingers tangled in his hair. His fingers tangled in hers. Their mouths welded together so that they breathed for one another. He pulled her bottom closer to the edge of the counter and yanked her robe all the way open. “I’ve had fantasies about every separate part of you.” Very gently he slid her legs apart.

  “Matthew.” There was a gasp in her voice. Kate stared at the long bank of windows, her hands still in his hair. “What are you doing?”

  “Having you for breakfast. I’ve always wanted you for breakfast.”

  If Kate had thought to protest, it was far too late. He was already devouring her, and she was too far gone to care where they were. It was a deliciously decadent moment, and she reveled in it as wave after wave of pleasure crashed over her and rushed through her. The room spun dizzily, and colors mixed together, while his tongue and his fingers worked magic on her body. Her hands grabbed the edge of the smooth-tiled counter to keep herself anchored when she was flying so high, but then he was lifting her and laying her on the table, his body buried deep inside of hers, and there was no room for thought. No room for anything but feeling. The sound of his body joining with hers, their pounding hearts and heavy breathing, was a kind of music accompanying the strong orgasms as they broke over her and through her. His heat was so deep inside of her, she felt as though she were melting from the inside out.

  She stared up into his face, the hard angles and planes, the rough shadow on his jaw. His eyes held secrets, things he had seen that should never have been witnessed. She realized how alone he seemed, even in the midst of his family. Like Jonas. Or Jackson. A man apart, not by choice, but by experiences. Kate framed his face with her palms, her thumb sliding in a caress over his faint whiskers. “You’re a very wonderful man, Matthew Granite. I hope you know how special you are.”

  He gathered her to him as if she were the most precious being on the face of the earth, carrying her tenderly to the bathroom so they could shower. He said little, but he watched her all the time, would reach out and touch her body, her face, his fingers lingering against her skin, almost as if he couldn’t believe she was real.

  “My clothes are dirty,” she said, pulling them on. At least she managed to tame her hair, braiding the long length and swirling the braid around the back of her head in an intricate knot.

  He smiled at her. “Your clothes are never dirty, you just think they are.” He dragged out a fresh pair of jeans from his drawer. “How can we find out what this thing is, Katie? I need to know what we’re facing.”

  “My sisters are poring over the diaries, and I think Damon is helping them. I can try as well, and Elle’s on her way home. We should be able to find some clue.”

  “What’s your gut telling you?”

  She pressed her lips together to keep from smiling. There was something raw about the way Matt talked, something that always intrigued her. “I think it has to do with the history of our town, possibly an event that happened around Christmas, maybe the pageant itself. I think whatever is in the fog is gaining strength and becoming more destructive, but I’m not entirely certain why. The tree beside the deck with the mistletoe in it is a fir tree, and you had lights strung in it. You didn’t have them on, but the dark stain, which seemed to be oil of some kind, was all around the bottom of the tree and going partially up the trunk.”

  “I noticed that,” he agreed. “But there was nothing to ignite it.”

  “If Elle hadn’t called and warned us, we never would have gone outside, Matthew. We would have been above the room when the fire took off, and it might have exploded. I think the fire would have raced to the tree, and he was hoping it would go up in flames as well.”

  “Strange way to kill us.”

  “Maybe not just us. Maybe it was the fir tree.” She sat on the edge of the bed to watch him dress. He moved with such power, so fluidly, with a masculine grace he didn’t seem aware of having. “Each symbol attacked so far has been attached to the Christian belief. There were ancient beliefs far before Christianity ever celebrated Christmas. It’s widely believed the birth of Christ was in April, not December.”

  He paused in the act of buttoning his shirt. “I didn’t know that.”

  She nodded. “I’m not Elle, or the others who sometimes are able to see things clearly, but I feel it’s connected in some way.”

  “I get feelings when there’s danger near.” He suddenly grinned, transforming his face from man to boy. “Unless I’m otherwise occupied.”

  Kate couldn’t help smiling back. In spite of everything, he looked more relaxed than she’d ever seen him. She always thought of him as a great tiger prowling through town. “We can forgive you that.” She stood up. “The fir tree’s needles rise toward the sky, and the fir tree stays green all year round.”

  “And that means something?”

  “Everlasting hope, and, of course, the raised needles are reputed to represent man’s thoughts turning toward heaven. If I were right, why would he want to destroy those symbols? He’s not attacking Santa Claus.
He isn’t someone thinking Christmas is too commercial, he’s actually destroying the symbols themselves.” She looked up at him, rubbed her temple, and smiled a bit tiredly. “Or not. I could be way off base.”

  “I doubt it, Katie. I think your guess is as close as we can get right now.” Matt looked across the room at her, still astonished that she was in his bedroom. “Let’s go shopping for groceries. We can take them to your house and spend the day going over those diaries until we find something.”

  “Sounds good. I want to get home and put some decent clothes on.”

  She wandered out of the room while he pulled on his socks and boots. The house was so open, it beckoned her to walk the length of it. Entering the kitchen, she found herself smiling. In her wildest dreams she had never considered making love on a tabletop. A character in one of her novels might do such a thing, but not Kate Drake, with her every hair in place and her need for order. She’d never be able to look at a kitchen counter or table in quite the same way again.

  Matt listened to Kate moving around his home. He liked the scent of her, the soft footfalls, the way her breath would catch when she looked at something she liked.

  “Matthew?” Kate called out to him. “You have a very interesting kitchen. I wanted to put the cups in the dishwasher, and it seems to be a bread bin.”

  There was a small silence. Matt cleared his throat. “I’ve never actually used the dishwasher, Kate. I just do dishes by hand.”

  “I see. I guess that makes sense. But why would you put all the fruit in the microwave?”

  He hurried into the kitchen. “It’s convenient. What are you looking for?”

  She grinned at him. “You don’t really cook much, do you?”

  He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I do a mean barbecue.”

  “I’ll just bet you do. Are you ready?”

  Matt took her hand and drew her close to him as they went out into the morning air. She fit with him, belonged with him. She didn’t believe it. He could see the reservations in her eyes, but he was determined to change her mind.

  All the regulars considered the grocery store the center of town. Inez Nelson had a way with people. She didn’t know the meaning of the word stranger and nearly everyone shopped at the local market, more to catch up on all the news and see Inez than for any other reason. She had known every one of the Drake sisters since their births and considered them akin to family.

  Matt parked his car in front of the town square just to the left of Inez’s store. “The Christmas pageant is growing, so many people want to participate that I think we’re going to have to get a larger town square. The actors can barely get through the crowd as they walk up the street to the manger.”

  “I love the fact that everyone participates. It’s so fun for the children afterward, when Santa shows up with his reindeer and gives out candy canes.” Kate took the hand Matt held out to her. They stood together looking at the nativity scene in the town square, astonished that the statues, minus the wise men, had already been cleaned and the scene put back together. It would be reenacted with humans Christmas Eve, but a local sculptor had created the beautiful statues and several artists had done woodwork for the manger and life-size stable, and others had painted the entire backdrop. This year, Inez had managed to find a powdery substance that looked exactly like snow and had sprinkled it on the roof of the stable and on the surrounding ground, to the townspeople’s delight and amusement. Snow was rarely seen in their coastal town.

  “How many kids do you think have snuck into the square for a snowball fight?” Matt lowered his voice and looked around, half-expecting Inez to hear him even though she was a safe distance away inside the store.

  Kate turned her laughing gaze on him. “You would have, wouldn’t you?”

  Fast-moving shadows slid across the ground, blocking out the sun’s rays. “Damn right. Jonas and I would have made a snow fort and pelted everyone within throwing distance.” His smile faded even as he finished his sentence. His hand gripped her arm to draw her attention. He nodded toward the sky. Seagulls filled the air overhead, winging their way fast inland. The birds were eerily silent, their great wings flapping as they hurried away from the ocean.

  Kate shook her head and looked out toward the sea. The gray fog was rolling in fast. It roiled and churned, a turbulent mass, displaying raw energy. Lightning arced, chains of red-orange flashing within the center of the gray mist.

  Matt swore and tugged her toward the store. “Let’s get inside.”

  “It’s growing stronger,” Kate said.

  Matt could feel her trembling against him. He pulled her closer to him. “We knew he would get stronger, Kate. You’d think the damned thing would take a vacation and give us a break. We’ll figure this out.”

  “I know.” She walked with him to the store. The entity was growing stronger and she felt stretched and tired and breakable. She couldn’t very well tell Matt. He was already worried about her. She could read it in his eyes. How had she never managed to see the stark loneliness in him before? The aching desire? It was deep and intense and swamped her sometimes when he looked at her. Yet still, as he walked beside her, a tall, formidable man with wide shoulders and a thick chest and eyes that were never still, she could barely take in that he loved her.

  Matt slid his arm around Kate’s shoulders as they entered the building. As always, the small store had more than its share of customers. Inez greeted them loudly, gazing at them speculatively with bright eyes and a cheerful smile. “Kate, how lovely to see you, dear. And with Matt. I swear you grow taller every day, Matt.”

  Her comments effectively turned him into a boy again. Only Inez could manage to do that. “I feel a little taller today, Inez.” He winked at Kate.

  “Are you two coming to the pageant practice?” Inez asked. “I organized another one after the big fiasco the other night. No one blames Abbey, Kate. It certainly wasn’t her fault that rat Bruce Harper is having an affair with little miss hot pants Sylvia Fredrickson.”

  “Abbey felt terrible, Inez,” Kate said. “I’m sure it must have caused problems.”

  “Well, Bruce’s wife left him. You know she’s due to give birth any day now. They all dropped out of the production, and I had to find replacements.” Inez glared at Matt. “Danny was in a fine snit saying he wasn’t certain he could work with amateur actors. I told him he was an amateur actor.”

  “Inez,” Kate protested. “You probably broke his heart.”

  For a moment Inez pursed her lips, looking repentant. “Well, he deserves it. I’ve got enough trouble without that boy complaining about his part. The three wise men are nervous, and I’m afraid they’re fixing to drop out. I don’t want to cancel the pageant. It’s been put on every year since this town was founded.”

  “Danny won’t drop out. He likes to herd those sheep around,” Matt said.

  Inez scowled. “He likes to chase them toward the kids and get a huge reaction.”

  “That is the truth.” Matt grinned at her, but his eyes were on the wisps of gray-white fog slipping into town. He moved away from the women toward the plate-glass window, where he studied the fog. The enemy. It was strange to think of the fog, a nearly everyday occurrence on the coast, as the enemy.

  The dark tendrils stretched toward houses, reached with long, spiny arms and bony fingers. The image was so strong Matt took a step closer to the window, narrowing his eyes to peer into the fog. “Katie, come here for a minute,” he said softly, and held out his hand without taking his eyes from the fog. Something was moving inside of it.

  Kate immediately put her hand into his and stepped up beside him. “What is it?”

  “Look into the fog and tell me what you see.”

  Kate studied the rapidly moving vapor. It was darkening and spinning, almost boiling with turbulence. She shivered as long streaks stretched across the highway and began to surround the residences. It made her think of a predator hunting something, sniffing for the right scent. She thought something
moved in the middle of the thick fogbank, something shaped vaguely like a tall man in a long, flowing coat and an old hat. She glimpsed a form, then it disappeared in the seething mass, only to reappear moments later, fading into the edges of the whirling mists. It was tall with bare white bones, pitiless eyes, and a wide, gaping mouth. She stepped back, gasping. The skeleton had more than taken shape. This time the entire chest was intact, and small pieces of flesh hung on the body, making it more grotesque than ever.

  Kate put a hand protectively to her throat to stifle the scream welling up as she backed completely away from the window. She realized the store was eerily silent. Inez and the patrons stared out the window fearfully.

  “It’s taking shape, isn’t it?” Matt asked.

  Jonas and Jackson stalked into the store, Jonas’s expression grim. “Kate, get out there and get rid of this before we start having fatalities,” Jonas snapped without preamble, ignoring everyone else. “No one can see to drive the highway. I issued a warning on the radio, but we’re going to have people not only driving over cliffs but also walking over them. Unfortunately, not everyone listens to the radio.”

  “Go to hell, Jonas.” Matt was furious. Furious. At the thing in the fog. At Jonas, and at his own inability to stop the entity. “You’re not sending Kate out there to battle that damned thing alone again. She’s scared and tired, and I’ll be damned if you bully her into thinking she’s responsible for taking this thing on by herself. You want someone to fight it, be my guest.”

  “Dammit, Matt, don’t start with me. You know I would if I had a chance in hell, but I don’t. This is the Drakes’ territory, not mine,” Jonas bristled.

  Kate put a restraining hand on both men’s arms. “The last thing we need is to fight among ourselves. Jonas, I can’t manage it alone. I really can’t. I need Hannah.” She leaned her head against Matt’s chest. “I don’t bring the wind, Hannah does. She’s exhausted with fighting this thing. My sisters have been working with me the entire time. Without Hannah, we can’t do anything.”

  Matt glanced down at her face, saw the lines of weariness there, the look of far too much energy expended, and for the first time, uncertainty. He wrapped his arms more tightly around her, and addressed Jonas. “How bad is it out there? Can they pass on this one and get some rest?”