“How strong was he? When you are wrestling with him? Is there anything that we should know?” Fata was very much at the forefront of my mind, but I couldn’t forget that there was an ancient vampire out there looking to end my life. And he almost had managed to do so.
Aegis rummaged through the refrigerator. “He’s exceptionally strong. If he had been at full strength, I wouldn’t have stood a chance of keeping him even partially under control. And whatever magic he has, it’s not typical vampire magic. I’ve never known a vampire who could use his force of will to throw somebody across the room. Pick them up and throw them across the room? Yes. I can do that. But mind power? I don’t know what he learned, or who he learned it from, but Dracula has some very powerful magic at hand. We’d better do some research on that before we meet him again.”
“So you think he’ll be back?” My gut told me he would, that we had just scraped the surface of our entanglements with him.
“Oh, I think he’ll be back. He has a personal grudge against us now. All of us. But I don’t think it will be for a while. You didn’t have the best vantage point when he turned into a bat, but I could see him plain and clear. The blood that you and Sandy poured on him burned him terribly, and it’s going to take him time to recuperate. He’ll need a lot of blood, and that means a lot of victims. In Bedlam, it would be too easy to track him because we’re such a small community. So I have the feeling he’s going to hide out in a bigger city. Bellingham, perhaps, or Seattle. But he’ll be back. One thing I can tell you about my kind, we hold grudges for a long, long time.”
“That gives us some time to prepare. I’ll talk to Delia about how we can keep closer tabs on the vampires that come into the city. Maybe Essie can help us.”
“Good idea. She was the one who told us where to find him, after all.” Aegis began whipping eggs for an omelet, and ten minutes later a plate of ham and eggs and toast sat in front of me. Aegis fixed himself the same, and after pouring us each a big glass of chocolate milk, sat down at the table with me.
“I need to strengthen the wards around the land. I need to make sure that we get some warning if any other vampires come out here.”
“Before you do anything, you need to eat and then get some sleep. The rest can be done tomorrow.” Aegis leaned back, shaking his head. “Bedlam is proving to be far more dangerous than I thought it would be when I first came here. But I’ll tell you one thing, Maddy. I’m glad I came.” He reached out for my hand and I entwined my fingers through his. “I wouldn’t have you in my life if I hadn’t chosen to stay here. And your love is a priceless treasure.”
After we ate, he carried me upstairs because I was so tired that I was getting dizzy again. He drew me a bubble bath, and by the time I was clean, I couldn’t even hold my eyes open. He tucked me into bed, sitting by my side and holding my hand. Bubba and Luna jumped up on the bed, curling up against my side. I closed my eyes, and the images of fire and water waging war filled my thoughts. Restlessly, I tried to shove them away. Tried to think of something calming.
“What’s wrong, love?”
I opened my eyes, so exhausted that I couldn’t sleep. “All I can see when I close my eyes are fire and water, battling. I feel charred and brittle.”
Aegis began to sing, old Celtic ballads, and I focused on his voice, following the thread that it wove. The deep rich baritone lulled me, rocking me gently with its notes, until the fire and the water receded, and I fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.
Chapter 18
WE STOOD ON the edge of the shore, Sandy, Fata Morgana, Auntie Tautau, and I. The waves were rolling in, but the afternoon sky was clear for once, and it felt like the storm that had been battering the islands for days had lifted. Fata was standing barefoot, staring out at the water.
Auntie Tautau looped her arms through mine and Sandy’s, and walked us a little ways up the beach. I had awoken to a message to meet her here at four p.m.
Max was standing a little ways up the shoreline, watching us. Jenna stood next to him. Sandy hadn’t wanted to leave them at home, and I had the feeling the fire had startled her into realizing how much she loved both of them. I could see it in her face, and her eyes. For so long she had kept her heart protected, not wanting to be hurt again. But the wall was breaking down now, and there wasn’t anything she could do to stop it.
When we were out of earshot of Fata, Auntie Tautau led us over to a driftwood log, where we settled down and stared at the waves crashing against the beach.
“She’ll be back, you know,” she said. “This isn’t an ending, but merely a beginning.”
“You know how long it will be this time? And will she be even more dangerous?”
“Fata Morgana is evolving. When you first met her she was the caterpillar. During her long sleep, she was in her chrysalis. And now, she’s breaking out of it and discovering her wings. But she doesn’t know how to use them yet, and that is her challenge.”
Auntie Tautau turned to me. “She’s never been like you and Cassandra. All three of you are exceptionally powerful witches, but Fata Morgana was born of two worlds. Yes, she is part witch. But she’s also part water elemental, and she has to learn how to balance the two of them if she is to remain sane. And trust me, my definition of sanity for her is not the usual definition. She can never be tamed. You could no more tame her than you could tame the Ocean Mother herself. There is a line she can walk, to where she can live in both worlds. But no one can teach her how to do that. We can only help her when she’s here, and pray for her when she’s not.”
“I was praying to Arianrhod when she came to save me last night. I wonder if my goddess sent her to me,” I said. At that moment, a flutter of wings startled me, and I looked up as Lanyear swooped down, landing on my shoulder. He looked deep within my eyes, and let out a soft hoot.
“I think you have your answer,” Sandy said.
The owl was Arianrhod’s totem. She was sending me a message. She was watching over me, and I had the feeling there was work to be done.
“I think you can safely say Arianrhod woke Fata up from the depths to bring her to shore. There are things for the three of you yet to do, but it will take some time to find the balance of power between you. For all her strength, Fata Morgana is the most fragile. Never assume that because of her strength, she’s invulnerable. Tell your friend Jordan to continue his quest, there may be ways to help her adjust when she’s on shore. She will never again be able to live completely on land, but yes, Fata will be back. Trust in that.”
And with that, Auntie Tautau stood and led us back to Fata’s side.
“I have to go now,” Fata said. Her tears had dried, and she looked excited. “I can hear her calling, but she’s promised I won’t have to sleep for long. She says I can return soon.” Fata clapped her hands and clasped them, reminding me of a child who had just found out she had been promised a treat.
I reached out and took her hand, uncurling her fingers to place her pentacle in it. “This is yours. I found it the night I almost drowned.”
“I haven’t seen that in so long.” She looked up, gazing into my eyes. “Will you fasten it for me?”
As I draped it around her neck, tears stung my eyes. “Can you ever forgive me for breaking your heart? I never meant to hurt you that way.”
Fata cocked her head to the side, then gave me a soft smile. “I’ll always love you, Maddy. I can’t help it. But I’m willing to let the past be in the past. I think I can see how. It will take me some time, but I’m learning.” She sounded almost perplexed, as though she were putting together a puzzle and hadn’t quite found the end piece.
I brought her hands to my lips and kissed them. “Then we’ll see you when you return. We’ll be here, waiting. We’ll see you…in time.”
As she slowly withdrew and turned to give Sandy a hug, I tried to hold back my tears. So much water under the bridge, so many years in our past still crowding toward the future. And yet, to have a future we ha
d to let the past go and build on what was now. But the dagger strapped to one of my thighs and the stake strapped to the other told me that wasn’t going to be as easy as it sounded.
We stood back, watching as Fata neared the water. As her feet touched the sea foam rolling up on the shore, a wave appeared, heading right toward her. And then in a blur, she was standing atop it, arms outstretched to the side, her head back as she laughed with abandon.
This time, she left in laughter rather than tears, and she left to a clear sky rather than a storm. She rode the waves like she might ride a surfboard, and they carried her out toward the open water. My breath caught in my throat as I watched, and Sandy reached for my hand and we stood there, holding each other, watching Fata leave our lives once again, knowing that, this time, she would return.
“We’re watching the birth of a goddess, you know,” I said.
“I know,” Sandy answered.
And in that instant, the wave vanished, crashing down to take Fata Morgana beneath the surface. I held myself in check, reminding myself that she couldn’t drown, that she was part of the water, part of the ocean that surrounded the world. She was no longer simply the witch I thought she had been, and she never had been.
I realized I was crying and every tear trickled down my cheek felt like it contained a small part of Fata’s spirit. She had been right when she told me she was in every drop of water, every lake, every ocean, every stream. She would always be with us, even when she wasn’t.
Without another word, Sandy and I turned, and with Auntie Tautau, we walked up the shore to meet Max and Jenna, and then, we headed back to our lives. On one hand, it was as if nothing had ever happened. And on the other hand, everything had changed.
TWO NIGHT LATER, we gathered at Sandy’s place. Aegis and Max insisted on making dinner together. Sandy and Jenna and I sat around the table, enjoying our drinks. Sandy and I were drinking tequila sunrises, while Jenna nursed an orange juice.
We had checked in on Ralph and his brother, to find George healing nicely. I warned Ralph to watch him for the next sixty days, and Ralph promised that he would hire a bodyguard to go everywhere with George. It wasn’t likely that George would be out of bed before then, he was so weak, but just in case.
“So how are Franny and Henry?” Sandy asked.
It felt so weird to be talking about normal things again. The past week had been a blur, water-soaked and tear-stained and terrifying.
“This all feels so surreal,” I said. I took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. “I confronted Franny, and yes, they are having a romance of sorts. I have no idea how—and I’m not going to ask—but she seems happy, and so does he. I figure it’s none of my business to pry unless they want to tell me, and the less I know, the better right now. As for Luna and Bubba’s romance, well—it’s flourishing quite nicely. They’re both so happy, although I caught Luna licking Bubba’s belly last night. I’m not sure what that was about, but it made me nervous.”
Sandy and Jenna laughed, and I joined them, realizing that even though what I said hadn’t exactly been the joke of the year, we needed laughter. We needed a break in the stress. Dracula was out there somewhere, and the waves were stirring again, although this time it was just a typical October windstorm.
I played with the key hanging on the chain around my neck, thinking about love, and how much it could hurt, and how much it could heal. And sometimes, it did both.
Max and Aegis brought dinner over to the table and spread it out. We were having steaks, and mashed potatoes and gravy and a green bean casserole, and there was apple pie for dessert. Hearty fare, and plenty of it.
“I forgot the rolls,” Max said. He jumped up and went back to the kitchen, returning with a basket of warm dinner rolls. He handed one to Sandy. “Here, I made this one specially for you.”
Sandy blinked. “Since when did you learn to bake?”
“I helped him. So hush up and eat the damned roll,” Aegis said with a laugh.
Sandy gave me a look that said Men, and shrugged. As she tore open the roll, there was a clink as something fell out of the center onto her plate. I glanced over to see what it was as she picked it up. She was holding a sparkling diamond ring. The gem had to be at least three carats.
Max had been standing next to her chair, and now he slid down onto one knee and took her hand.
“Is this…what I think it is?” Sandy asked.
Max cleared his throat. “I wanted Aegis and Maddy here, because they’re family. Cassandra, when Gracie died, I thought I’d be alone forever. I thought I could never love another woman the way I loved her. And then I met you and my world changed. My heart opened up again, and I realized that I never want to be apart from you. I want to marry you, and I want for us to adopt Jenna and to become a family. So, Cassandra Clauson, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
Jenna and I were holding our breaths. Jenna reached for my hand under the table and I clasped it tightly.
Sandy paused for just a moment, and then a smile as bright as the sun spread across her face. “Oh, Max, I thought you’d never ask. I didn’t even know I was waiting for a proposal, and now all I can think of is how I’ve wanted this since we first met. Yes, I will marry you.”
He pulled her into his arms, kissing her long and slow. Then, as Aegis, Jenna, and I cheered, Max turned. He reached in his pocket and pulled out a jewelry case. Inside was a simple gold bracelet, with Jenna’s name inscribed on it.
“Jenna, will you consent to become our daughter?”
A light flickered in Jenna’s eyes, one I hadn’t seen since Derry’s death. She sniffled, teary-eyed. “I… I…” Unable to stammer out a reply, she nodded, her face lighting up.
Sandy fastened the bracelet around Jenna’s wrist. “We can never replace your mother, but we’ll do our best to be good parents. Will you have us?”
And then everyone was crying, even Aegis, as Jenna threw herself into Sandy’s arms, weeping.
ON OUR WAY home, Aegis was quiet. I wondered if something was wrong.
“Are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” he said. “I’m just a little overwhelmed by everything that’s gone on lately.” He paused for a moment as we rounded the bend toward our driveway. As we parked, he added, “You do know how much I love you, don’t you?”
I knew right then what was wrong. He was afraid that I wanted a proposal, and he wasn’t ready to ask. But he didn’t want to lose me, either.
“I love you more than I’ve loved any man in my life. You’re the love of my life.” As I said it, it rang true in my heart.
“Even more than Tom?” A sliver of jealousy hung in his words.
And, I thought, a little insecurity.
“Aegis, I love you more than I loved Tom. And I loved Tom with a passion. Aegis, don’t worry, you don’t have to propose to me. When it’s right—if it’s right—then yes, I think I’d love a proposal. But it’s not time yet, and I’m okay with that. What we have is stronger than any piece of paper.” I paused. I still had the ring in my new purse that I had been going to give him at the surprise anniversary dinner. I fumbled for the case and held it out. “Here. I was going to give this to you next week, but I want to give it to you tonight.”
He stared at the jewelry box, then slowly opened it. “A claddagh ring.” He looked at me.
“You gave me the key to your heart. I give you my heart in your hands.” As I slipped it on his finger, I kissed him softly. “I told you, I love you. And I meant it.”
He let out a soft sound, but he was smiling. “Maddy, you’re the only woman for me. I still feel that we’ve been around before, together. I don’t know how far back, but I knew you the moment I met you.”
We talked for a while, then he said, “I meet with the band tomorrow night. We have to discuss what we’re going to do now that we’re leaving DreamGen. We’ll still want to do some touring, but I think we should make it fairly local. We can do live s
treaming—well, I guess we can’t. I won’t show up on camera. But we’ll manage, that much I know.”
“Sing to me, please. I want to hear you sing.”
We stayed in the car, listening to the rain pound on the roof, and Aegis began to sing. He sang “Mad Tom of Bedlam,” and then “Scarborough Fair,” and “The Long Black Veil,” and finally, a song that I had never heard before. It was a love song, and sounded both ancient and yet so present that it felt like it had been written for me.
As we finally got out of the car and headed toward the house, lightning split the sky, and thunder rattled behind it. I stopped, staring up as I watched the storm, and I thought I heard Fata Morgana laugh. She was out there, all right, riding the waves, stirring up storms and swimming with the whales and dolphins. I could feel her in every raindrop, I could smell her on the wind that gusted in off the ocean. But most of all, she was in my heart.
Fata had saved my life, and I would do everything I could to help her adapt to her new existence. The next time she returned, Fata and Sandy and I would run out to the shore, Witches Wild once more, and we would dance under the moonlight, and play chicken with the waves in the dark night, and perhaps we would go vampire hunting together when Dracula returned.
Yes, I thought, in some ways, we had to let go of the past. But the truth was, the past was what made us who we were in the present. So we could never truly leave it behind. Because without it, we wouldn’t be the people we were. And for all the flaws, all the faults, all the dangers and risks and pain of my life, I loved it. I loved Aegis and Bubba, Fata and Sandy, and I was grateful for everyone who played a hand in creating my world.
And really, how could I ask for more?
If you liked this book, check out all the fun adventures of the wild and magical residents of Bedlam. Fun-loving witch Maddy Gallowglass, her smoking-hot vampire lover, and their crazed cjinn Bubba (part djinn, all cat) are also causing havoc in BEWITCHING BEDLAM, MAUDLIN’S MAYHEM, and SIREN’S SONG. Also available are three novelettes: BLOOD MUSIC, BLOOD VENGEANCE, and TIGER TAILS. And more are on the way!