“Isn’t that illegal?”
“Yes and no. Aunt Minerva gave me the piece and she assured me the designer did not mind the copies. She even has a document giving me sole ownership of the design.”
A door opened in Nic’s mind. “There are four pieces that make up the key. The pieces are scattered. Each is imbued with a separate element and together, they open a door to unimaginable power.”
“What? Where did you hear that?” Cass’ face had gone pale, and she clutched the pendant until her knuckles turned white. “How do you know that? Who are you?”
Nic rubbed his hands through his hair. “I don’t know. Just as I don’t know how I know you, but I do. And your aunt. What the hell is going on here? I feel like I’m in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle or something.”
“I know. But I don’t know why. I need to talk to Aunt Minerva.”
The doorbell rang, startling them both.
“Are you expecting someone?” Nic asked.
“No.” Cass quickly tucked the necklace back under her shirt. Nic’s eyes followed where it went, focusing on where the amulet lay. He forced his attention back to her face. “Answer it.”
He led the way to the hall and stood behind the door. Cass peered through the peephole. “I don’t see anyone.”
“Cassandra?” They heard Minerva’s muffled voice through the door.
Cass opened the door. “Aunt Minerva? What are you doing here? I thought you had a séance tonight.”
Her aunt glided into the apartment, her long, brightly colored skirts flowing around her ankles, multiple necklaces and bracelets jangling. “I told the client the signs looked bad tonight and we’d try next week.”
Nic bit back a laugh. Except for her being barely five feet tall with a shock of white hair arranged in a soft bun, here in one package stood everyone’s stereotype of a gypsy fortune-teller. She even had a fringed shawl and dangling hoop earrings.
Minerva preceded Nic and Cass into the living room and perched on the rocking chair. The carved wooden back topped her head like a throne, and Nic wondered if she’d chosen the chair on purpose. He suspected she did. Plus her showing up right now seemed too much a coincidence.
“I suppose you and Nicodemus know about the key by now,” Minerva said. “At least in part.”
“What is this, Aunt Minerva?” Cass held out her necklace, the light glinting off the emerald center.
“Cassandra, have you eaten yet?”
“No, Aunt Minerva.” Cass shook her head and glanced at Nic. “Don’t bother to argue. We’ll get our answers when Minerva is ready and not before.”
Minerva smiled at them as she rocked. “Well, then get to it. I’m wasting away to nothing here.”
“Yes, ma’am. Nic, would you like dinner? I don’t have much, I didn’t get to the grocery store today, but I’m sure I can come up with something.”
Nic watched her face. Every emotion, from frustration to resignation with her aunt, then her narrow-eyed consideration of him, crossed her features. He wondered about her thoughts concerning him until Minerva spoke up.
“Don’t worry, Cassandra. He has no ties. You two go figure out what we’re having. I’ll set my things up in here.”
Shaking his head, Nic limped down the hall and into Cass’ kitchen.
Cass followed him into the royal blue, yellow, and white kitchen. Pale blue and white patterned no-wax flooring covered the floor, and blue and yellow café curtains hung across the single window. The old-fashioned white cabinets sported glass-fronted doors. It looked like she’d spent some money modernizing the appliances. The room reflected her—a mixture of modern and old-fashioned; comfortable. Nic opened cupboards, looking through her supplies.
“Not much here,” he said.
“I know. I got a little busy with other things. Besides, I didn’t mean for you to help,” she said. “Sit down and relax and I’ll see what I can throw together.”
He ignored her, opened the freezer and scrounged through the contents, then closed it. “Nonsense. Besides, I know my way around a kitchen.” He set supplies out on the table. “Your aunt’s a force of nature.”
As he’d hoped, she sat at the table, but he noted the look of consternation on her face.
“That’s an understatement,” Cass said. “Aunt Minerva could bring a raging bull to a stop with a look. A mere mortal has no chance against her.”
“Are you mortal, Cass?”
“That’s a strange question. Of course I am.”
“Maybe mortal,” he muttered, “but are you human?” He clattered the pots and pans louder than necessary. She didn’t answer. But was it because she didn’t hear his question? Or to keep him guessing?.
* * * *
He proved he did indeed know his way around a kitchen. In less than an hour, the three of them sat at the table eating pasta and sautéed zucchini with garlic and caramelized onions.
“I didn’t know I had this kind of stuff in my cabinets,” Cass said. “Where’d you learn to cook?”
“Let’s see, family number ten? No. Eleven. The Veros owned a little Italian diner and Mama V. made sure all her kids, even the wards, knew how to cook.”
“You were a foster kid?”
“Worse. A throwaway—abandoned as an infant. I got shuffled from family to family. Every time one tried to adopt me, something happened to screw it up.” Nic faltered. What had happened here? He never told anyone about his past. Never. He glared at Cass and Minerva. “What did you two do to me?”
“Nothing,” Minerva said. “You weren’t meant to settle. Not yet. But soon.” She turned to Cass. “The man who damaged the store is very dangerous. There are strong shades protecting him. I set extra wards around the store, but he won’t go back there.”
“I know,” Cass said.
“How do you know?” Nic asked. When had he become a one-person audience, watching a scene from a show? He felt like everyone knew everything except him. And that did not sit well with him.
“He did not find what he wanted,” Minerva said.
“The key.” Cass grasped the pendant through her shirt.
“Yes.”
“Aunt Minerva, why is this so important?”
“Nic has already remembered what it is, haven’t you?”
“In part. But how do I know? I’ve never seen anything like that before.”
“Oh, but you have, Nicodemus. You have. You just don’t remember. Not yet. Clear this away and join me.”
Nic helped Cass load the dishwasher and heated water for tea while she prepared a tray. When they entered the living room, Nic stopped in shock. Except for a small table and three chairs, the furniture had all been pushed back to the edges of the room. A circle of candles surrounded the empty table. How had this little wisp of a woman who appeared older than time moved all the heavy furniture, without noise, in less time than it took Cass and him to clean the kitchen, and still look like she’d just stepped from a spa? This whole mess was getting too weird for him. “Where’s the crystal ball?”
“Don’t be snide, Nicodemus.”
He glared at her. “How do you know my name?” She’d called him Nicodemus when they first met. Who the hell was she?
Minerva smiled and took her seat. “No. Sit. Cassandra, give me the amulet.”
Cass pulled the pendant out and unclasped the chain. “Will you tell us what this is?”
“It’s a necklace.” Minerva unstrung the pendant and placed it in the center of the table with three other pieces from Cass’ inventory, all of the same size and shape.
“They look like the one I picked up in the shop.” Nic said
“They’re similar,” Cass said. “But not exactly the same. I could never get the filigree right.”
Nic studied the real one and the copies. “I don’t see the difference. They look identical to me.”
“Nobody would see the difference, except Cassandra or me,” Minerva said. “She’s an expert.” Minerva fit the four pieces together at the
side edges forming a solid pyramid. “I am the creator of the original. This is what they would look like if you assembled all the pieces.”
“There are four of these?” Nic asked.
“Yes, but each is different. Each has a Keeper and a Protector. Cassandra is the Keeper of the green, with the power of the earth. That is why you have an affinity for all things made of the earth, including china, wood, and glass. The others encompass the other elements—wind, fire, and water. Separately, they are interesting, and are not without some power of their own.”
“But together?” Nic asked.
Minerva stared at him, but did not answer.
Cass stared at the pyramid. The look on her face told Nic some of this shocked her as much as it did him. “Why haven’t you told me this before?”
“Timing. And preparation. You needed to learn. To be trained. To everything, there is a time.”
“What makes now the right time?” Nic asked.
“You are here, as well as others. The powers are gathering and soon, all will come to be known.”
“Aunt Minerva? You’re being very strange, even for you. Tell me, does Dori hold one of the other keys?”
“Why do you think that?” Minerva asked.
“Because you gave her an amulet like mine.”
“And you make identical ones like these to sell to the public.”
“So hers is a copy?” Cass asked.
“I didn’t say that.” Minerva smiled at her.
“So they’re real?”
“I didn’t say that, either.”
“Aunt Minerva!” A cup and saucer on the tray shattered.
“Cassandra, you are in serious need of control today. The time is not yet for you to know all. Each key holds power, but needs a person of power to use it correctly. Three others each hold a key, but I do not know if they have powers of their own. Nor do I know if their partners are protectors. No matter what you think of me, I am not all-knowing.”
“You could have fooled me,” Cass muttered. “What about Greg? And who are the other two who hold keys? Do I know them?”
“I’ve never seen anything in Greg like I see in you and Nicodemus. The true power of the key needs all four keys together and all four Keepers together, but not all Keepers have had power at all times. That would be a rare happening.”
Nic leaned back in his chair, his lips pursed in thought. “Are you responsible for that little package I’ve been hauling around in the backseat of my truck for a year?”
Minerva smiled. “I wondered when you would ask about that. Yes, I sent it to you. You are the rightful owner.”
Cass glanced from one to the other and he bit back a grin. At least I’m not the only one feeling like an observer at a tennis game. “What are you two talking about?” she asked.
“About a year ago, when I reached a particularly low point, I received a rather unusual package. In it, I found a sword, as well as some other items.” Discovering Minerva had been the one to send the sword didn’t surprise him, but the feeling he’d been manipulated, not just now, but for his entire life, disturbed him. Though he had to admit, if the sword hadn’t arrived when it did, he might not be here.
“A sword?” Cass stared at him with a look best described as puzzled shock.
“Yes. An incredibly beautiful one with a huge emerald embedded in the hilt. What’s even stranger is, the moment I picked it up, I knew how to use it.”
“Of course you did,” Minerva said. “After all, it is yours. I hope the boots and all the rest fit.”
“You know they did. And I thank you. If you hadn’t sent it when you did…”
“The threads weave as they will.” Minerva once again picked up the amulet. “When the pieces are together along with the Keepers and they place the pyramid in the base, all will be revealed.”
“Base? Aunt Minerva, what are you talking about?”
Nic could see Cass struggling to control her temper. He figured after the stress of the day, her patience had reached its limit. When she jumped as the remaining cups on the tray burst into pieces, he confirmed his suspicions.
“Calm yourself, Cassandra.” Minerva’s voice emerged as a harsh command. “This is beneath a Keeper. Beneath you.”
“You did that?” Nic asked.
Cass bent her head, but he saw the blush creeping up her neck. “When I get upset or angry, actually, any strong emotion, things of the earth tend to, um…”
“Shatter? Is there anything else I should know about you?”
“I’m a witch.”
“So you’re into some kind of weird crap like casting spells and that stuff?” Her announcement didn’t surprise him, but he’d reached his limit of acceptance.
“Nothing weird.”
He noticed her eyes as she said “weird.” She didn’t look at him, so she was waffling. So maybe what he called weird, she didn’t? “Minerva said you have power. Do all witches have powers like you?”
“Nope. In fact, nobody I know does. But then, it’s not exactly something I talk about, or show.”
Minerva leaned forward, interrupting them. “Cassandra calls herself a witch because that is what this world demands. But she is a unique individual, as are you, Nicodemus. The blood of your ancestors flows heavily in your veins. Not in many years have two of such power been together.”
“Power? Me?” Nic shook his head. “Don’t you think I’d know if I had some kind of power?”
“A child doesn’t know what he doesn’t know until he is taught.”
“Excuse me?”
Minerva smiled at him, an enigmatic look that said she knew the answers to all his questions, but wouldn’t be forthcoming with them. At that moment, he figured it was a good thing he didn’t have any powers or something more than teacups would be shattering.
“Back to the key. When the keys are combined and inserted in the holding stone with the diamond in the base, a doorway will be opened. Beyond that door is the way to another place. You can think of it as a different plane of existence if you like, one that is offset from this one. It is a magical realm named Lemuria where people with abilities like Cassandra are the norm, not the exception. A place of beauty, peace, and endless possibilities. The guardians have held onto the keys for millennia and kept safe the secrets. There is more, but that is enough for now.”
Nic snorted. He’d overextended his limit of belief. “Sounds like you’re talking about Atlantis.”
“Atlantis is a different place, on a different plane.”
“Gee, the path to a magic realm? Extraordinary humans? That’s just great. Who wouldn’t want to get their hands on that?” Nic’s sarcasm met with a narrow-eyed frown from Minerva.
“Young man, your disrespect is not appreciated.”
“And I’ve had about enough of this hocus-pocus. I don’t know about this magic land of yours, but I do know about Atlantis. It’s a myth. Even if such a land existed at one time, it sank a long time ago. Look, I don’t care how you lure your customers. Desperate people will do dumb things. But I’m not desperate.”
Minerva glared at him. The light in the room dimmed down to focus on her face. He couldn’t move, couldn’t talk.
“Your arrogance is why you failed in the past. The last time, you nearly caused the loss of the key for all time. Know this, Nicodemus. You either accept what is, or you will fail—again—for the final time. Be the Protector I know you to be.” Minerva waved her hand in front of his face. “Sleep.”
* * * *
Cass didn’t know what had happened between Nic and her aunt, but she knew something had. She could tell from his glassy-eyed stare that Minerva had spelled Nic.
“Is he all right?”
“Yes, dear. I suggest you turn down the bed in your guest room. He’ll sleep the night through.”
“Are we safe here tonight?”
Minerva shrugged. “I cannot say. There are shades even I cannot penetrate. But you are in no more danger here than anywhere else. If the shadow
s want to find you this night, they will. We can do nothing to stop them. At least here, others will not be put in danger.”
“Why are they doing this, Aunt Minerva? Who is doing this?”
“I don’t know exactly who they are, just who they’ve been. I and others have tried to discover their source, but the shadows hide them well.”
“They’re after me and this key, aren’t they?”
“Yes. With the key, they have some power. With you, they have more, perhaps too much. For a long time, the balance has held between the realms.”
“What happens if this Brotherhood gains the doorway?”
“That, my dear, is something none of us wants to consider. Perhaps nothing. Perhaps the end of both worlds and more. There is no way of knowing. At one time, the doorway stayed open, allowing passage to and from both worlds, but there existed those who craved power too much and to protect both worlds, the rulers ordered the door closed.” She pointed to the spare bedroom. “Go. I will bring Nicodemus.”
Cass quickly pulled the quilts down on her guest bed as Minerva led a very quiet Nic into the room. His eyes remained open but didn’t move. Cass knew her aunt had powers far beyond anything she understood, but this obvious demonstration disturbed her. She understood now how Nic felt when he saw her demonstrating her own powers. Seeing what Minerva could do would eliminate any doubt, but would he accept the truth?
Nic stretched out on the bed. Minerva tugged off his shoes and socks, pausing when she saw the scars covering his left foot and ankle. “This body has seen much trouble.” She turned to Cass. “Give me the amulet.”
Cass handed the key to her aunt. “What are you going to do?”
“He cannot be an effective protector if he is in pain and cannot move well. We did not foresee this problem.” She shook her head and glanced at Cass. “I can heal new wounds or ills without help, but these are old and set. Watch and learn some of the power of the key.” She held the amulet against Nic’s leg. “I call upon the angel of healing. I ask for the strength of Raphael. I call upon the power of the key. Heal the Protector. Make him whole.” She moved the amulet over Nic’s leg and repeated the prayer three times.
Minerva handed the amulet back to Cass. “The healing will take some time, but he should improve.”
The Emerald Key Page 7
