Water Goddess

by Crystal Inman

  “Be grateful that I don’t have you on all fours barking like a dog.” Erin kicked him squarely in the ass. “Remember my warning, mortal.” She strode off toward the basement.

  Chapter 11

  It was dark. Erin closed her eyes and let the emotions of her loved ones guide her. Daniel and Kendra were both hurt. And Max. Erin pressed her hand to her breast. He was unconscious. Beaten to a pulp when he tried to stop them. The scenes flashed behind her eyes, and she growled. She walked unerringly in the dark to the closet where they shoved his body.

  Erin opened the door and bent down. She pulled him out and laid him gently on the ground. She brushed her hand across his feverish brow. “Rest now, Max,” she whispered. “And know that no other could have a truer friend. We are lucky to have you in our lives.” Erin bent and placed a kiss gently on his cheek. His breathing evened out instantly.

  As she stood she reached out into the night. She easily found the one who needed her most. Erin glided downstairs and found the room that was meant for her.

  Kendra was tied to a chair tightly with rope that cut into her wrists and across her waist. The white blouse she wore was stained with blood and tears. Her navy slacks were sullied with the dirt of the room. Her blond hair hung limply by her face that had several bruises on it. Kendra had a black eye and a cut lip. Two men stood off to the side and discussed what they would do when Hector gave her to them.

  Kendra slowly raised her head and saw her. There was weariness in her eyes and a deep relief that touched Erin to her soul.

  I will save you, sister. She passed her hand toward Kendra, and Kendra slumped into painless unconsciousness.

  Erin moved into the room and cleared her throat.

  The men’s heads popped up, and they scowled.

  “Hey! Hector didn’t say there were twins.” Suddenly, he smiled. “You can have one, and so can I.” The big man strode forward. He had a dark complexion with a scar that ran from his right ear to his cheekbone. Raw-boned and massive, his short hair was greasy and slicked to his head. His clothes bore the marks of Kendra’s blood.

  Erin’s stomach turned.

  “You will have no one, mortal.”

  The man snorted. “I believe I’ll have everything I want, bitch. You, your sister, the money Hector owes us.” He grinned and wiped his hands across his thin lips. “I’ll get paid for this.” His dark eyes roamed over her. “In more ways than one.”

  Erin held her hand up, and both men stopped in their tracks. The thin one in the shadows struggled against invisible bonds. She strode up to the bigger one and studied him.

  “You’ve killed before. Men, women, and children. It doesn’t make a difference to you, does it?” Erin’s blue eyes snapped fire as she gazed into his dark, panicked eyes. “But you’ve never come across anything like me, have you?” She probed deeper, and she felt the man wince.

  Nausea swelled inside her. He had done unspeakable things. Tortured animals. Abused his girlfriends. Raped women. Killed men.

  Erin shook with rage. “I will give you something, mortal. Something that you’ve earned these many years. I give you a tenth of the pain you’ve caused.” She leaned forward and touched his feverish cheek with her cool hand. “Feel it. Feel the pain as if you suffered yourself.”

  Then the man’s mouth opened in a silent scream. His eyes darkened until they were but pinpricks in his face. His big body shook in shared pain.

  Erin moved to the smaller man. Tears leaked from his dark eyes. She blinked slowly and let him speak.

  “Please,” he whispered. His eyes shot to the spot where his comrade had fallen and spasmed like a trout out of water. As he met her eyes, he begged, “Please.”

  “Is that what your victims say? Please?” Erin tilted her head to the side. She looked into the man’s mind as easily as if he were an open book. “You’ve not killed anyone, have you? But you cause others pain as if it were your right.” She clucked her tongue. “It would be different if you had remorse, but you don’t, do you? Only now when your life may be forfeit do you plead.” She dug deeper. “I give you your first victim’s pain.” Erin shook her head slowly. “He was but a boy. A boy that you used and discarded.” She brought her hand up, and the man moaned. “Feel his pain, mortal. Feel everything he felt. Now.”

  She touched his cheek and watched the memories flood through him. Erin turned and untied Kendra with a thought. Carefully she picked Kendra up and carried her battered body back upstairs. “You will hurt no more, sister. I thank you for the pain you shouldered for me. The blows meant for me. And know that you will never hurt again.” She placed Kendra gently on a bed of water and cocooned her from further pain.

  Erin glided back downstairs and found the room where Hector paced like a tiger in front of Daniel. Daniel wasn’t as badly hurt as Kendra. His hands were scraped where he had fought his attackers. And there were bruises on his face. Those hazel eyes glared at the man in front of him.

  “You have no use for her. She cannot help you. Release her.”

  Hector looked like Daniel. One could tell that they came from the same parents. Dark hair. Hazel eyes. Almost the same build. But Hector had cruel lines around his mouth and eyes. His knuckles were bloody, also. He wore a light blue shirt and blue jeans. His long hair was pulled back in a ponytail. He clenched and unclenched his fists.

  “Give me the money, Daniel. Now. And I won’t kill her. What my men do to her is none of your business. You should have kept her out of it.”

  Daniel erupted in a howl that brought goose bumps to Erin’s flesh. “You will not harm that woman. You will not harm anyone anymore. How can you stomach what you’ve become? You’ve hurt Mama. Brought shame and dishonor to our family. Over what?” Daniel’s eyes blazed. “Drugs and money. A world that would as soon slit your throat as look at you.”

  Hector stepped forward and slapped Daniel hard across the face. As Daniel’s head snapped back, Hector leaned in close. “Do not speak to me of family, Daniel. Do you not think I know who called la policia on me? One of my own blood. My own family turned me in,” he growled. “You will tell me where the money is. Where the drugs are. Or I will cut your beloved into tiny pieces and feed her to my dog.”

  Erin stepped into the room. “You will harm no other, Hector.”

  Hector’s head swiveled around, and his jaw tightened. “I see you’ve loosened your bonds. No worries, though. I really did want Daniel to see your death. He needs to know I’m serious.” He pulled a gun out of his waistband and pointed it at her.

  “No!” Daniel shouted, struggled against his ropes and moved the chair as if he could stop the inevitable.

  Erin held her hand up. “I’m not the one you bound. Though you thought I was. You have harmed a Goddess. A woman who could crush you with a thought. A mere blink of the eye. And she took my pain upon herself. Sacrificed for me. And you think that I would let you do more harm? That I would let her sacrifice be in vain?” Erin’s blue eyes blazed. “I think not.”

  Hector pulled the trigger, and Erin stopped the bullet with a thought. It spun in the air a foot from her face. She waved her hand, and it dropped, harmless, to the ground. Daniel made a strangled sound in his throat. Erin kept Hector’s gaze.

  “You have killed for these drugs. You’ve harmed your family for money. Out of respect for your mother and love for your brother, I will not kill you. And only for this.” Erin moved closer to him. “I have seen your sins. I have seen what you’ve done to your own daughter.” She spat in his face. “Your soul is black, Hector. Harmed by deeds that you have chosen.”

  “You bitch!” Hector raised his hand to strike her, and Erin enveloped his hand in hers. She held it tightly as he struggled.

  “Do you even now think you have the upper hand? Is your conceit so great you think you are still in control of this situation?” Erin’s lip curled. “You are nothing here.” She pulled him closer so their faces almost touched. “I will not kill you,” she bit out. “But I will give you pain. The pain t
hat you’ve dealt this night. For if I were to give you the lifetime of pain you have meted out, you would go insane.” Erin reached up with her other hand and softly stroked his cheek. “Feel one night of what others feel when you enter their lives. And remember it.”

  A light arced from her finger to Hector, and he crumpled, moaning, onto the floor. He flinched from invisible blows and bucked against the invisible onslaught.

  “Erin?”

  She glanced up from the writhing mass on the floor. “Daniel.” Her soft words moved over him and cushioned him from the pain that moved through his body. It was all gone in an instant.

  “I don’t understand,” he mumbled. “How did you stop him? How did you stop the bullet?” His hazel eyes questioned her. “Where is Kendra? Is she all right?” Guilt swamped his eyes.

  Erin shook her head. “It’s a long tale, Daniel. And one I don’t have time to tell this evening.” She untied him quickly and looked around. “The police will be here soon. And I don’t have a lot of time. Kendra is upstairs. She is mortally wounded. An internal bleeding I’ve stopped for now. But I don’t have much time to repair it. Max is also upstairs. He’s hurt, but he’ll live. I’ve summoned the authorities. You must tell them that you’ve managed to escape. And that you did all this.” Erin reached out and stroked his cheek. “You were so brave. Honorable,” she murmured.

  “What are you?” he whispered as he touched her cool cheek.

  “I am the Water Goddess.” Erin stood and threw her arms wide. “I command every drop of water in this world. It was my gift from Kendra.” She folded her arms around herself again. “I will see you again, Daniel. Soon, if destiny allows. But right now I must take Kendra to her sisters. Her family.” She bent and kissed him. Blue light enveloped the pair. Peace. Rightness. Erin sighed and broke apart from him.

  “Wait for me.”

  Before he could utter another word, she turned and disappeared.

  * * * *

  Erin cradled Kendra softly in her arms. She knew what she needed to do. Only her powerful sisters could undo the damage the mortals had done. She closed her eyes and wished herself to them.

  Seconds later, she appeared before the three.

  Kendra’s memory did not do them justice. They were vibrant beings that exuded power with every breath. Wilda’s red hair flew about her face as she twisted her hands. Tempest growled low and sent mini-tornadoes into the vortex in the sky. Eden cried silent tears that landed on the white floor and sprouted blood-red roses.

  “Sisters.”

  The one word cut through their grief and had them scrambling toward her with a single-minded purpose.

  “Give her to us,” Wilda demanded. She held out her arms.

  “No.” Erin smiled sadly. “We are connected. I can’t let go of her. Whatever you need from me, take it. But I will not let her go.” She brushed back the stained blonde hair and looked up at the trio pleadingly. “Heal her.”

  Tempest blinked back tears that collected on her ebony lashes. “Kendra made us promise not to interfere. She knew this would happen.” Tempest covered her face with her hands and shook with the force of her sobs.

  Eden moved forward. “Hold her, Erin. Hold her tight.” Her mouth pinched tightly. “Because I’m going to attempt something that I never have. And I will need all of you to assist.”

  “Can you help her?” Erin stroked her pale cheek. “Take my life.” She looked up at the three. “Put it back into her. I don’t care. Just fix it.” Her tears splashed onto Kendra’s face and ran down her neck.

  “You would give your life for her?” Wilda studied the mortal with the powers of a Goddess. Her eyes shone bright green in her pale face.

  “Gladly.”

  “I don’t know how this is going to work.” Eden sighed and sank to her knees. “No other has ever given her powers like this. I don’t know if I can make it as it was before.” She rubbed her hands wearily across her face. “Damn it, Kendra. You’ll be the death of me yet,” she mumbled.

  Tempest let out a watery laugh. “Remember the time she let Pegasus out? And you had to chase and catch him before Mama and Papa found out?” She snickered. “I didn’t think you could move that fast, Eden.”

  “I damn near didn’t.” Eden smiled. She stroked Kendra’s hair lightly. “You’re safe, sister. Your daughter is here.” She glanced up at Erin. “She would give her life for yours, sister. The least you can do is live it.” Eden motioned to her sisters. “Come here. Lay your hands on Kendra.”

  Wilda and Tempest hurried over and sank to their knees beside their sister. Wilda stroked Erin’s hair while Tempest touched Kendra’s shoulder.

  Eden glanced up at Erin. “I don’t know how this will turn out. But I do know that your life will never be the same. Can you accept that? Will you accept it?”

  “I will.” Erin smiled gratefully at the trio. “I can never repay what you’ve given me. What Kendra has given me. But I will gladly give the last breath in my body for her. For any of you.”

  “I will never doubt Kendra’s judgment again,” Tempest vowed. She kissed Erin’s cheek. “You honor us.”

  Wilda kissed the other cheek. “You honor us.”

  Eden smiled and leaned in to kiss her forehead. “You honor us.”

  The four women bowed their heads and laid their hands gently on Kendra’s broken body. Erin concentrated like she never had before. She could feel the love and strength of her sisters flood her body. The scorching power of Wilda. The cool breeze of Tempest rifled through her. And the elemental earth from which they all came pulsed from Eden.

  Her hair lifted on her head and danced about with the power flowing through her. Erin closed her eyes and pushed it all toward Kendra without a second thought. If she lost her life, so be it. Every pulse of energy moved out of her and into the inert body in her lap.

  “Live,” she commanded. “Live, damn it.”

  Their combined energies settled on Kendra’s skin and into her cells with a small sigh. The tissue repaired itself slowly. No mortal had ever harmed a Goddess before. And the small cuts seemed resistant to the magic the sisters carried. The bruises and larger cuts took an eternity to heal and close.

  Erin never broke her concentration as Kendra’s body repaired itself. She trembled with the force of the energy she expended. With soothing words and a calm hand Eden steadied her.

  The sisters worked hours on Kendra. Time ceased to have meaning as they held the circle that cushioned their sister. And when the last cut sealed, Eden sat back bathed in sweat. Her lustrous brown hair dulled from her exertions.

  “Rest, sister.” Tempest helped Eden to her feet. “You have done everything possible. Now we must wait.” She glanced back at Kendra. “She knows we wait for her. It’s enough.”

  Wilda conjured a large oak bed with crimson covers. She lifted both Erin and Kendra with a thought and settled them comfortably atop the large mattress. “We let them rest now. And pray that what we’ve done is enough.”

  Erin was so tired she couldn’t even open her eyes as she listened to the sisters talk. Was she ever this tired? Surely not. She closed her eyes and dreamed.

  * * * *

  Erin.

  Erin stirred slowly and opened her eyes. Kendra! She looked down at the Goddess at the foot of the bed. Are we awake?

  No. Kendra smiled and stretched. You are in my mind as I am in yours.

  Erin reached over and touched Kendra’s unmarred face. Will you be okay? What can I do for you?

  You have already done all for me that you could. Kendra grimaced. I didn’t realize being a mortal could be so painful. She chanced a glance at Erin. Are my sisters mad?

  Mad? Erin snorted. Just a bit. She smiled. But they’ll be glad you’re back. Her brow furrowed. You are back, right?

  I will be. Worry not, daughter of my destiny. I will be right as rain. Her lips twitched. Are you ready to give up the powers I gave you?

  I have a man waiting for me. Erin smiled a secret smile. A good, ho
norable man. She glanced at Kendra. And I have you to thank for that. I will gladly give you back what is rightfully yours.

  You may not be able to give it all back. Kendra smiled. But I knew the risks when I made the exchange. Will you accept that you will be a part of me for eternity? That your children will live in me as I will exist in them?

  Erin reached over and took Kendra’s hand. I would have it no other way.

  * * * *

  Erin woke with her hand in Kendra’s.

  The Goddess woke with a start and peered blearily about. “Where are the banes of my existence?”

  Wilda, Tempest, and Eden hurried over and hugged Kendra tightly.

  “You worried us, little one!” Wilda scolded Kendra over her tears. Tempest couldn’t keep her hands from shaking as she softly stroked Kendra’s hair.

  And Eden simply smiled down at her youngest sibling. “I have you to thank for the century I aged while waiting. Paybacks are hell, sister.”

  Kendra stuck out her tongue. “I have succeeded, have I not?”

  “I swear to God that if you ever pull a stunt like that again, I will truss you up in the highest tower.” Tempest’s tears splashed down on her.

  “I am the Water Goddess, sister.” Kendra kissed Tempest’s hand and smiled. “You need not leak on me.”

  “You are not the Water Goddess yet,” Eden reminded her with a nod toward Erin.

  Kendra looked back and smiled at Erin. “You three know that I will not be the same, don’t you? That we two will always be a part of each other. And in that, you three will also share.” She looked back at her sisters. “Is that acceptable?”

  “Yes.” All three spoke in unison.

  Kendra stood up slowly and pulled Erin to her feet. “I dare not come back to my body when it was damaged and assume to be the Water Goddess for you would surely have died. So I stayed in the damaged body for as long as I could. But now the exchange will cause you no pain.”

  Wilda gasped. “You did that on purpose!”