Waiting for Magic

by Susan Squires

  Uh-oh. Her mother was getting all wise on her. Not a good sign. “Uh, yeah. I’ll remember that.”

  Her mother sighed and shook her head, a wry smile curving her lips. “I’m so comforted by that statement.” She stood briskly. “Okay, why don’t you go in and spend some quality time with your younger siblings?”

  Kee sighed. “Watching Treasure Hunter?”

  “Absolutely. And following that, if I remember my schedule, is Dancing With the Stars. Or is it Idol? No matter. You’ll have to play referee with the remote. And just keep an eye on Jesse until Maggie gets done.”

  “That ought to keep me occupied.”

  “That’s the plan,” her mother said blithely and went over to help Maggie and Tris.

  Kee sighed again.

  Uh-oh. Devin was on the move up the drive. She sucked in a breath. He must be leaving with Jane. Edwards and crew would stop him. He was family. Even though they didn’t know he had a power, they’d still stop him.

  Not if he was in the trunk of her car. Where he’d been waiting all through dinner. It all became so clear. Why he’d been out by the garages, why he hadn’t moved.

  He was unprotected. Anybody could snatch him, hurt him. Danger lurked outside the gates of the Breakers, as they all now knew.

  What the hell was he up to? Anger boiled up, taking her by surprise. Was he going to see S.G. for a little of what he really wanted after he’d taken pity on Kee last night?

  To hell with him.

  The bond between them stretched. She swallowed. Maybe he just wanted to spend the night at Jane’s house. Maybe he was afraid she’d jump him again tonight. She wanted to die. But at least no one knew he was out there. It was okay.

  Except for the feeling inside her that was starting to be positively painful.

  *****

  Kemble stood with Drew outside Kee’s studio up on the third-floor corner.

  “I don’t know if we should do this,” he said.

  “Of course we should do this,” Drew said briskly. “You should have seen her try to keep me from seeing even a sliver of what was in there. She’s been in there for four days.”

  Actually, not all the time. Kemble thought. She’d also been down with a bottle of tequila in her brother’s room having shrieking, thumping sex. “So?”

  “So, something is seriously wrong with our Keelan, big brother. And we have a duty to find out what it is.”

  He did not want Drew to know what it was. “And you think we have to invade her privacy like this?”

  “It’s a start,” Drew said, obviously exasperated. “How else can we help her?”

  Kemble felt all at sea here. Keelan did need help. She’d looked horrible at dinner, even before Senior had started in on the incest thing. What she’d done with Devin was obviously eating her up. But he was pretty sure she didn’t want help. God, what did he know? He ran his hand through his hair. His father would know what to do. The Parents held the family together through any crisis. Kemble had no clue. Except that he couldn’t tell his parents what had happened.

  But Drew thought she did know what to do. So he’d go with her intuition. She wouldn’t find anything except paintings in Keelan’s studio, anyway.

  “Okay. Let’s go in,” he said, grabbing the knob. “It’s locked.”

  “Of course it’s locked. We’ll have to break in.”

  “I’m not ruining a perfectly good door and a perfectly good shoulder just to invade Keelan’s privacy.”

  Drew pursed her lips and looked disgusted, then pulled a pin out of her upswept hair. She held it up triumphantly.

  “I don’t know how to pick a lock.” Their father would know how. In fact he was probably the best in the world at it.

  “You’re the best hacker around,” Drew said, surprised.

  Kemble closed his eyes. “You’re kidding, right? You do know the difference between cyber locks and physical locks.”

  Drew grinned. “Of course I do. Just pulling your chain. I’ll pick the lock.”

  She fished out another pin, which didn’t seem to put her upswept hair a strand out of place, and pulled them straight with hooks bent at one end. Then she stepped up, bent to the keyhole, and fiddled around with both of them in there. She stood, grinning, and turned the knob.

  Kemble sighed.

  “It’s an old lock,” Drew demurred when she saw his expression. “They’re easy.”

  Kemble felt just about useless. Drew pushed into the darkened room, felt for the light, flipped it on.

  They both just stood there, gaping.

  Pictures of Devin. Lots of them. And it would be instantly clear to Drew, as it was to Kemble, that Keelan didn’t think of him like a brother anymore. A woman had painted pictures of the man she lusted after.

  “No wonder she’s a little screwed up right now,” Drew breathed.

  They stood there, in silence. Drew finally looked back at Kemble, blinking. She was thinking about all the possibilities. “So, uh, what happened at the river?”

  It was no use to pretend. Drew was a bulldog when she wanted to know something. “Yeah. He didn’t want me to say. He held the water back for us to escape.”

  “And he got the power from whom, exactly?” Drew’s eyes were big.

  “He said on the way home it was that girl he’s giving surfing lessons. He, uh, says Keelan has a power, too. She could feel the Talisman at Pendragon’s. I haven’t seen any evidence of it.”

  “Devin asked Michael if someone who’d come into their power could feel the presence of a Talisman,” Drew murmured. She looked around at the paintings. “Well, we know how she got her power, whatever it is. She loves him.”

  “Or lusts after him.” That was hard to say.

  Drew stared at him. Then a pitying look came into her eyes. Did she pity him because he’d never felt what she had? She obviously thought Keelan had felt it.

  “And he loves another,” he pointed out. “Bad.”

  Drew had to nod. “I thought I had the corner on that particular hell.” Drew looked around again. “I guess not.” She shook her head. “To never be able to … act on it, when it’s so strong.… That’s the definition of hell. And then there’s the incest angle. Poor Kee.” Kemble could see her remembering the conversation at dinner. Had she seen Keelan’s look of devastation?

  Kemble took a breath. Should he? Would it help Keelan or hurt her? But Drew seemed to know what to do about their little sister and he didn’t. He was out of his league here. And Drew couldn’t help if she didn’t know all. “She did act on it. Last night.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Kind of hard to miss. She came to Devin’s room. There was, uh, lots of liquor involved.”

  “Oh, boy.” Now Drew looked worried. As well she might. “She seduced him?”

  “I think so.”

  “Very, very bad. She wouldn’t have needed to seduce him or get him drunk if he got his power from her. It’s definitely the other girl.”

  “Of course it is.” Kemble couldn’t even contemplate that his siblings were destined for each other. That was just sick.

  Keelan’s stupidity and Devin’s easy morals could destroy any future happiness for one or both of them. Hell, it could well tear the whole family apart when they found out.

  “What do we do?” Kemble asked. He wasn’t proud.

  “I don’t know,” she said, dashing his hopes. “But I need a drink.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Kee paced her room, lighted only by the open door to her bathroom where she’d just taken a shower. Devin was on the move. She felt him head north from Jane’s. Damn. Where was he going? Maybe Jane’s house wasn’t far enough away from Kee. Or maybe he was on his way to S.G.’s house. She had no idea where S.G. lived, of course.

  The pain of the stretching bond between them was physical. She fell to her knees on the thick carpet. She felt like she might lose the spaghetti. He was going faster now. Freeway? North. Must be he 110. It headed practically due north fro
m here, unlike the west-leaning diagonal of the 405 along the coast.

  That might mean he was heading to Pendragon’s estate. Why would he do that? She was panting, her mouth filled with saliva. She made a break for the bathroom. Oh, God.

  She raised her head from the toilet and reached a shaky hand for a towel to wipe her mouth and face. It didn’t matter why he was going to Pendragon’s. She had to stop him. She’d made jokes about Pendragon being a charlatan and a faker. But at the very least he was decadent and lecherous. She’d seen the way he looked at Devin. He talked crazy, too, about times past as though they were real to him. And there was also just something off about that whole place. She got to her feet, shaky. So maybe Pendragon was crazy.

  Devin might be in over his head.

  She rinsed her mouth with water from the tap. Or what if Morgan’s minions were waiting for a Tremaine to leave the Breakers unprotected? Devin saved her and Kemble from the river but they wouldn’t use water as a weapon again. His power over water would be useless.

  What was he doing going to Pendragon’s alone anyway? She couldn’t think. Her hand trembled as she set down the bathroom glass. She took a long, slow breath trying to clear her brain. What to do? She could tell her father where Devin was going. He’d gather the troops to storm Pendragon’s castle if need be. And he’d be pissed as hell at Devin. She’d get him in a world of trouble. He’d never forgive her. Of course, he was never going to forgive her for last night anyway.

  What if he was just going to S.G.’s house? But no. She just knew he was going to Pendragon’s creepy castle. There was only one reason to go back there. Devin must believe Pendragon had a Talisman after all. He wouldn’t tell Kemble. Kemble would feel obligated to go after it. Devin would want to spare him disobeying their father again. He wouldn’t tell Father either. He was the outsider, after all. Oh boy. He’d feel like he had to prove himself.

  So, Devin was going after it.

  Bad. Bad, bad, bad.

  Okay. So how to protect Devin from his rash act? Besides calling out the troops and getting him in a world of trouble. If she told Kemble or Tris or Drew or even Michael, it was just like telling her parents. She’d seen enough TV to know storming Pendragon’s castle might just put Devin in more danger if the old charlatan really was off his rocker. They always killed the hostage when the police arrived.

  No way. She had to do this herself. She could wrap Pendragon around her finger. Maybe. She could trade herself for Devin. But she didn’t want it to come to that. So she’d take a gun. She was a good shot. No one would expect a girl to be a threat. She’d get him out of the castle at gunpoint. But how would she get out of the Breakers? She wasn’t Kemble. And Jane had gone for the night, so no sneaking out with her. Edwards and crew would never let her out.

  Unless someone convinced them letting her out was nothing to get excited about.

  She sucked in a breath as the surprising answer hit her. She knew someone who could calm drunken Irishmen at a St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

  Maggie.

  *****

  “Hello?” Maggie’s voice came over the cell phone.

  “It’s me,” Kee said. “Don’t tell Tris. Meet me outside at the bottom of your stairs.”

  Kee heard Tris’s sleepy baritone in the background. “Who’s that?”

  “Please,” she said.

  There was a pause. “Just one of those people wanting to remodel the house again.”

  “At this hour? Damn nuisance.…”

  The phone went dead.

  Kee slipped out the side door and pulled her raincoat around her as the sheeting rain spattered the asphalt. She waited under the overhang of the stairs that ran up the side of the garages to the apartments there, one occupied by Mr. Nakamura, and one by Tris, Maggie, and Jesse. It was only a moment until she heard the door close softly and Maggie come quietly down the stairs.

  Maggie peered around until she saw Kee in the darkness. “What’s wrong?” she asked. “What’s happened?”

  Kee had been trying to figure out what the answer to that question should be ever since she’d realized Maggie was her only hope. She’d moved at lightning speed, getting dressed in something vaguely attractive: an electric blue short dress with long sleeves and heeled black ankle boots. She couldn’t go to Pendragon’s looking like a homeless person, and expect to execute her plan. But every moment wasted was another minute Devin was in danger.

  “It’s Devin,” she began. Then she took a deep breath. “He’s gone to Pendragon’s castle to get a Talisman for us.”

  “Alone?” Maggie frowned.

  “Yeah. That means he could be fair game for the Clan. Plus, there’s something wrong about Pendragon. I saw how he looked at Devin when we were there the other night. It’s not that he likes boys as well as girls. No harm in that. But I just have a … a bad feeling about him and that house. There’s something off up there.”

  Maggie’s eyes flashed with thoughts. “You think he’s a serial killer?”

  “God, I hope not.” Kee felt her eyes getting big. No. She wouldn’t think about that. “But maybe something kinky? Pendragon is surrounded by stories of satanic rites with naked people and two-headed goats.”

  Maggie’s eyes got big. “Let’s tell.…”

  “We can’t,” Kee interrupted. “If Father gets wind of it, he’ll recruit Tris and Kemble and Michael and the whole security team and just attack the place. Pendragon could decide to … to hurt Devin if he feels threatened.” If he hasn’t already. No. She couldn’t think that. “We can’t tell Kemble because he’d either tell Father just to prove he’s a responsible son, or he’d want to take care of it himself, and it isn’t fair to ask him to shoulder the blame again. And Tris would … well, he’d just be a bull in a china shop. You know he would. Michael is ex-Delta Force. Enough said. We need to exercise a little finesse.” She took a breath. “I’m not a threat. I’ll go in and talk to the old bastard. Maybe we can ease Devin out without making a big deal of it. He’ll think I’m just a girl. That’ll give me an edge.”

  “And what if he is crazy and talking doesn’t work?” Maggie asked pointedly. “You are just a girl, after all.”

  “I’ll be just a girl with a gun. One way or another I’m leaving with Devin.”

  Maggie looked unconvinced. “You’d kill this guy?”

  Didn’t she think Kee would do anything to save Devin? “I’ll wound him. First.” Their father had organized target practice for the girls ever since Tris and Maggie were attacked. She could do it. “I need the security guys calm enough to let me out and keep a secret.”

  “And that’s where I come in?” Maggie looked Kee straight in the eye.

  “Yeah.” It was a lot to ask.

  “You’re right about one thing,” Maggie muttered, obviously deep in thought. “Brian would bring an army, and the boys would want to be part of it.” Her gaze shifted to Kee. “Endangering the whole family is pointless when we need quick and quiet.”

  Kee sighed in relief. Maggie was in.

  “But I’m coming with you.” Maggie nodded her head, thinking. “I’ll get Edwards to let us out, of course. You take one of their weapons, since Brian keeps the family guns locked up. You’re right. Pendragon won’t feel threatened by two bitsy girls. I’ll go in with you and calm him. He’ll think letting Devin go feels just fine. The gun will just be for backup.”

  Better plan, Kee had to admit. Dangerous for Maggie, though. Kee hesitated. “You sure you want to do this? It … it’s not fair to ask you.”

  “Why not?” Maggie asked, lifting her chin. “I knew when I accepted Tris I wanted to be a full member of his family. It’s the only one I’ve ever had, really. So I understand why Devin would want to prove he could be of value. I’d like to be of value too.”

  Kee didn’t say that Devin had Merlin’s DNA, or that he had gotten a power because he loved a surfer girl who must have the gene too. That was Devin’s secret to reveal.

  “Let me go make sure Tris is
gonna sleep really sound tonight,” Maggie said, turning.

  “Better get a coat too,” Kee whispered at Maggie’s retreating back.

  *****

  Devin pulled Jane’s Civic into the long drive at the bottom of the elevator. With luck he’d have it back before she even missed it. He’d have to clean it up though. He’d lost his sandwich at the freeway entrance, and about had an accident when he had to pull over to barf on the 110. He knew why. He was leaving Kee. He’d heard the stories from the other couples about how painful that was. He felt physically better now that the bond with Kee had faded with a little distance. Mentally, not so much.

  He hunched his shoulders against the rain and slid in under the arch of the elevator tower. The wrought-iron gate opened to his touch. He was expected. He carefully located the stairs. He’d be in a hurry on the way out and Pendragon might lock the elevator down. Then he called the elevator car.

  At the top, the doors opened onto the small deck. Rain spattered the concrete bridge over the downslope between the tower and the Pendragon estate.

  If he was successful, he’d be gone from the Breakers tomorrow morning. In the hours he’d waited in Jane’s trunk he had made his plans to leave. That, of course, was when the nausea had first come on. He’d have to tell the family he was going, even if he didn’t tell them why, or they’d search for him. He’d have to go off the grid so they couldn’t change their minds. He had some money saved from his summers as a lifeguard. Part of it had bought a bike off Tris. Tris had found him a reliable classic Harley. The rest he’d been using for college before he got the grant. He’d insisted he contribute, though Brian always wanted to pay for everything. He had enough left that he could pay cash for a plane ticket. Hawaii? They always needed people to teach surfing. Maybe farther away: the Maldives or Fiji, maybe Jeffreys Bay in South Africa. Or maybe he’d best keep moving around. He’d go as far as he could now, work until he got enough money for his next ticket and shipping for the bike. The bike was a sentimental mistake, but it would remind him of the Tremaines’ generosity, the love and the refuge he’d found at the Breakers. He’d found a different kind of love as well, of course. The pain of missing Kee would probably never go away. But she needed to get on with her life with Museum Guy, and he needed the distance just to survive.