Firebrand (8 page)

He shook his head sadly. “A doctor can’t help you, Amber. No one can.”

Her eyes widened and a tremor came into her voice as she spoke. “Then I am dying.”

“No, honey. You’re simply being reborn.”

* * * * *

Eric stared out of the window of his office at the setting sun. The all-too-familiar tingle crept up his spine like a viper. He clenched then unclenched his fists as he slowly raised his hand to close the thin slat blinds. He looked at his watch. He had another few minutes before
The Taking
, time enough to enjoy a bit of the thousand-year-old brandy he kept under his mirrored bar.

He stood in front of the reflecting glass and poured the amber liquid into the thin crystal snifter, watching as it hugged the sides of the glass before filling the bottom. When it was a quarter full, he stopped and raised the glass. Closing his eyes, he let the aroma of the ancient liquor fill his senses. With a jerky motion, he snapped his eyes open toasted his reflection before swallowing the entire contents of the glass.

He loved his human form and the pleasures it brought him. But it came with a steep price. Each evening at the darkest hour of the night until the first ray of sun broke the horizon, his body betrayed him and returned to his troll form.

He cursed his fate. As one of the last pureblooded descendants of the Serpent of the Tree, the one who caused the Garden to fall, his providence was the ultimate temptation. He could assume the form of the creatures he deceived and enjoy all the pleasures the human body offered but not without a price. That price, The Taking, the time when he was returned to the misshapen form of his race for his ancestor’s part in the destruction of Eden. He could not stop it, he could not control it. It simply happened no matter where he was.

He’d tried many times to find an antidote to the curse. Potions made by captured fairy healers, brews handed down from the time of the First One and teas made from the lemons grown at the convergence of the three worlds did nothing to affect his transformation.

Nothing until he turned to sacrificing some of the blended ones for experimentation. It had taken years to perfect but he found that the blood of Orcs mixed with that of Sprites produced an elixir that delayed the metamorphous from human to troll. But his euphoria soon turned to raw disappointment when he discovered that if the blood was not of fresh kills, it broke quickly, decomposing and rendering it useless in a matter of minutes unless ingested immediately.

An Orc and a Sprite had to be sacrificed each night just before midnight for him to remain human for a longer time. That had proved not to be practical. The blending of human and troll to produce an Orc and human and fairy to produce a Sprite, did not occur often enough to ensure him a ready supply. He already had used more of these aberrant creatures than he should, leaving very few captured half-breeds left in his cave prisons. He was forced to use the cure sparingly.

But now there was hope. The blood of all three worlds mixed naturally inside Amber Drake and with it perhaps a permanent cure. It was a theory he vowed that he would test soon enough. But not tonight.

As the night moved into its darkest hours, an eerie green light swirled around him. He scowled as he caught sight of his real likeness in the gray-toned glass before smashing the bottle on the countertop and blurring the image.

* * * * *

Serina pressed herself back against the front passenger seat of David’s car. “Damn! Fairy Kryptonite.”

David blinked hard and waited for the world to stop spinning. Whenever Serina blended his mind with hers, he felt as though he’d been on a two-day bender “What? You have a weakness? Like Superman?” he baited.

Serina shrugged. “Never came up in a conversation.”

“Shouldn’t I know about something like this if I’m supposed to be helping you?”

“It’s nothing,” she reassured. “Just a little interference with the fairy radar, like the cable going out for a few minutes.”

“When does it happen?”

“Not often.”

“But it did today.”

She nodded, clearly concerned. “When our minds blended, I saw that there were lemons in the fruit bowl that had been behind the bar. Certain types of hybrid lemons interfere with the ability of fairies to use their powers to ‘see’.”

“You don’t get some kind of warning about this? Even Superman knows when some Kryptonite is in the room.”

“Yeah,” Serina scoffed. “He falls on the floor and gyrates. Normally a good position for men, in my opinion, but a bit dramatic. Besides, I got distracted when you began acting like Og from the Bog and muscled Sinclair all over the room.”

“He had it coming,” David defended.

“Maybe but then I didn’t have much time to notice anything else. This interference with my perception can be very subtle, sometimes not even noticeable if I’m not extrasensory at contact.”

“You must get really distracted in a grocery store.”

Serina shook her head. “It isn’t all lemons. It’s just some lemons, the ones that have been grown in the hybrid soil where the three words meet in a gateway and ripened under the full moon. Besides, when did you ever see me with a shopping cart attached to my hands?”

David put up her hands in a defensive posture. “Okay. But I wish I knew about it this chink in your armor sooner. Amber and I may have been able to finally…”

Serina flicked a forefinger onto his nose. It made his eyes water.

“Ouch! That stung.”

“Be glad I didn’t turn you into a slug or something equally repulsive.”

“Like the troll thing I saw in my head in Sinclair’s office?”

Serina’s mouth fell open. She took an angry, deep breath and smacked her hand on the dashboard. “A troll! Of course. I should have known.” She tapped her temples with her forefingers. “Apparently the effects of the lemons haven’t cleared.” She pressed her lips together, angry for allowing herself to appear so weak. “Clever of him.”

“You think Sinclair’s a troll?”

“He has to be. And the most dangerous kind, a pureblood. They can assume human shape for a time.” She tapped her forefinger on her chin. “And if a pureblood is here, he’s hunting and if he’s hunting he must be…’ Her eyes widened. “Gorash.” Anger danced in her eyes and across her face. “I can’t believe I let my guard down like that.”

“How could you not have known?”

“As the Triad grows near, the worlds are in flux and the normal conditions are blurring.” She bit down on her lip. “If he has some of the lemons, he’s found the sacred ground. And that could mean the watchers are dying.”

“Then it’s all the more important that we find Amber.” David closed his eyes and forced calm to replace the concern building inside him. Not succeeding, he snapped his eyes open. “At least try to use your sight.”

Serina shook her head. “It’s not that simple. I can’t. None of us ever could. She’s an anomaly, something that should not be. We don’t know to what extend she has inherited the powers of each line that runs in her blood. That’s why she needs one of us with her at all times. For her protection.” She paused. “And ours.”

“Surely you don’t think Amber would turn on us?”

“We simply do not know. She is the only one of her kind. Others have been conceived but they died almost immediately. Amber was strong since birth. The Enclave of Elders knew she was different, special, they knew she was the one. And now the trolls know. We have to find her.”

“It’s okay,” David reassured. “I think Amber and I have developed a connection of our own.”

Serina’s gaze leveled. “You’ve been intimate with her?”

“Not totally but I think we have a connection that will never be broken no matter how far she must be taken from me.”

“If your auras touched and mingled, you may be right.” She placed her hands on David’s temples. “Think about Amber. Search the cosmos for a hint of her essence and listen to what is being told to you.”

David took a deep breath and squinted.

“No, not like you’re having a stomach cramp. Just relax your mind. Let her heart guide you.”

The lines of his brow straightened then disappeared, his chest rose and fell evenly. The fluttering behind his eyes searched through a thousand visions all bombarding him at once as he tried to find and hone in to Amber’s spirit. Suddenly there it was, a drifting wave of something familiar, circling its way into his mind and heart. A smile curled his lips and his eyes opened slowly.

“Well?” Serina said impatiently.

David looked at her, his eyes were clearer than she’d ever seen them. “She did go home. To the only person she thinks she can still trust.” He turned and looked off into the distance through the windshield, lifted his hand and pointed to the setting sun. “She’s that way.”

Chapter Six

Amber’s homecoming was not at all what she had expected. She’d come looking for answers but the ones she had gotten simply led to more questions. As she walked to the old oak tree with her father, she did not know if she had the strength to ask them.

“Honey, tell me what you’re thinking,” Marcus asked gently.

“I love this place, Dad,” Amber replied walking ahead of him. The wind came up and as she approached, the tree appeared to straighten as though welcoming her back. “I always felt so safe here.” She touched the bark and branches swirled around her, leaves lightly brushing her face and her arms.

“You were.”

She met his eyes and saw both the tension and the love in them. “Dad, I… There’s so much I don’t understand.”

“I know. I’m not trying to complicate things but…” He sighed heavily and started over. “You’ve been a gift to me.” He lifted his eyes to the heavens. “And to your adoptive mother. If she were alive today, Erin would know the right thing to say to help you do what you must do.” He leveled her a sad smile. “But I don’t.”

Her stomach tightened. “Just tell me, Dad. Please. What is this
thing
I have to do?” She felt the sparkle of tears begin.

“The Triad,” he said, his voice low and heavy with sadness.

“It’s awful, isn’t it?”

“I think it could be.” Marcus lowered his head, breaking eye contact. He looked back at her and touched her cheek. “I have some things in the house given to me by your grandfather to help me explain it to you. Bear with me for a little while longer.”

She nodded. “I will.”

“I should have planned better,” Marcus said, his voice breaking. He took a quick look around as if inspecting the spot. “I could have had some sort of ceremony or coronation or something.”

A nervous laugh escaped her throat. “What, there’ll be no crown?”

He saw the teasing smile she had on her face and returned it. “You always did find a way to make the best of things.” His smile saddened. “So much like Erin that way.” He inhaled sharply at the mention of his wife, the sound one of pain. He reached out as if he wanted to take her hand but he stopped himself.

Amber responded by sliding her hand into his. When he closed his fingers around hers, she felt warmth spread through her. After a long moment, he gently pulled free. “I’ll only be a second,” he said.

She smiled and watched him walk toward the house. When he was halfway there, a shiver went up her spine. Like a sudden rush of fear, a foreboding, almost a warning, it drove the warmth from her and made her gasp. She started to run to him but the tree again stirred, lowering its branches and blocking her way in a protective embrace.

As she struggled against its hold, the wind came up tangling her hair in the small branches near her head. The clouds darkened and rain hung heavy in the air.

In the distance lightning like none she had ever seen struck the ground sending bursts of static electricity into the air. Her skin felt as if a thousand spiders were scurrying across it each time a blue bolt of light rose from the ground.

As another spear of light rose, two figures appeared. Cloaks rippling around their bodies as the wind rose, they began to walk slowly toward her. Then suddenly, one pointed back to the house and they took off running toward it.

Apprehension filled Amber. They were after her father.

With renewed strength she fought against the tree’s embrace. “Let me go,” she said from behind clenched teeth. “I have to get to my father.” A sound much like that of a wail mixed with the wind blowing the storm closer as she ripped leaves from the branches she could reach.

A crack of thunder followed another white bolt of light and as the sky finally let loose the rain, Amber’s resolve became stronger. She grabbed a small limb near her waist and bent it. As it snapped, the tree seemed to pitch backward and let her go.

She ran to the house, ignoring the fingers of rain caressing her skin and the breath of wind that tangled her hair. She grabbed the doorknob and ripped the door from the hinges before tossing it aside like a dried autumn leaf just as another bolt of lightning split the night.

“Dad! She called out running from room to room. He didn’t answer but what frightened her more was the sense that there was no essence of him anywhere she searched.

As she approached the rear room a figure with its back to her slowly rose in silhouette outlined from light coming from a lamp on a floor full of overturned furniture. As if by instinct, her hand shot out just as the figure attained its full height. Without knowing how or why, Amber felt a power within her propel the figure across the room where it smashed against the wall. As though pinned there, it fought to free itself against the unseen force holding it fast.

“Who are you? Where is my father?” Amber shouted. The intruder struggled, its face obscured by the maw of the hood it wore. “Where is he?” she repeated, shouting above the clap of thunder. She pushed her hand forward curling her fingers into a claw as she did and she heard the intruder gasp. As she closed her fingers completely, the distinctive sounds of choking filled the room. “Tell me what you’ve done with him,” she shouted clenching her hand tighter, a rush of satisfaction flooding her when she saw the person she’d pinned to the wall jerk once and then go limp.

From behind her, a hand clamped onto her wrist. Solid downward pressure forced her to lower her hand. When she did, the intruder she had been holding against the wall slipped to the floor.

With a shriek intended to gather new strength, Amber wrenched free from the new attacker and turned, assuming a defensive posture. She could feel adrenaline pumping through her body, searing her like a river of flames as it passed through her heart. She raised her hand, an eddy of light appeared between her and the figure. “Stay away from me,” she warned from between clenched teeth, as the light formed a barrier around her. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw the first intruder struggle to standing and reached toward him again. His body jerked violently with a strangled intake of breath. His hands flew to his throat, trying to remove whatever it was cutting off his air.

The second hooded figure reached toward her. When its hand touched the light shield in front of Amber, the buffer vanished in a spray of shimmering dust. “Amber stop!” a voice commanded, grabbing her wrist with both hands. “You’re killing him.”

Amber’s brows creased in sudden recognition. “Serina?” She threw down the coarse brown hood with her free hand. Turning quickly around, she looked at the crumpled form lying still and silent on the floor. “My God! David?” She hurried to him and fell to her knees.

He lay on his side, his arm covering his face. Carefully she moved one arm away and saw a red streak stretching from his hairline to his cheek. Searching, she found a small gash near his temple and blood on the table near him.

“David,” she whispered. “What have I done?” She ran her hands over his face, wiping the blood from his skin with her fingertips. “David, talk to me.” As she moved her hands over him, she became part of his force. She could feel the blood in his veins, the breath whispering in and out of his lungs. When she was satisfied he would live she pressed her lips to his temple and he moaned. She sat back and rocked him in her arms but held Serina’s gaze.

“Give him a minute. He’ll be fine,” Serina said gently, kneeling next to them. “You didn’t use your full power,” Serina assured. She cupped Amber’s cheek but Amber shook free.

“What kind of freak am I?” Amber asked in anger. She held David tighter as though he was her only connection to the life she knew.

Serina rose. “He’ll be more comfortable on the sofa.”

“Maybe but I don’t think I can lift him.”

Serina stepped back. “I can.” She held out her hands, palms up. “Let him go, Amber,” she said softly. “He’s going to be okay. I promise.”

Reluctantly, Amber complied. As she unwound her arms from around David’s shoulders, she felt him stir. She watched in fascination as his body moved in response to the urging of Serina’s hands. Her eyes widened when she saw Serina upright the sofa with one hand and settle David onto it with the other.

“How did you do that?”

“Our kind can do many things.”

“Our kind?”

David stirred and they both looked toward the sofa. “Go to him Amber,” Serina urged.

Her gaze still fixed on Serina, Amber walked to the sofa and knelt beside him. His eyes fluttered open, then closed again. She leaned closer to him. “David, open your eyes. Please.”

He reacted to the sound of her voice and complied. Reaching out, he touched her face. “You’re so beautiful,” he said, his eyes closing again.

“I’m right here, darling,” Amber whispered. His lids fluttered open, his eyes becoming hooded. “Try to keep your eyes open,” she urged him.

He touched his forehead. “What happened? The last thing I remember was running to the house.” He saw Serina over Amber’s shoulder and looked around the room, taking note of the chaos. He bolted to sitting, his eyes widening. “A troll was here.”

“More than one,” Serina replied.

He shifted and ran his hands over Amber’s arms. “Are you all right?”

“Yes but I can’t find my father.” Amber’s inner radar switched to high and she became suddenly alarmed by the emptiness she felt. She pulled away from David. “Dad! Dad!” she cried out, standing.

David rose. Standing on shaky legs, he took Amber in his arms and held her close. “We have to get Amber away from here, Serina. Now!” The angry tone of his voice left no doubt to his resolve.

“I’m not going anywhere without my father,” Amber insisted, pulling away from David. “And certainly not before I know what’s going on.”

Serina joined them by the sofa. “We’ll all go after Marcus. But you’re right, Amber. You need to understand first.”

“No!” David asked, a sadness enveloping his voice.

Serina nodded. “It’s time.”

Amber blinked, looking from one to the other. “David, what does she mean?”

He stared at her. Feeling something tugging at him, pulling him, he knew his mind was connecting with Amber’s. He used no words to answer her.

You’re special Amber. One of a kind. And you hold the hope of many in your hands.

Deeper now, Amber’s mind probe continued until he felt everything inside him empty into hers. He saw her eyes widen as she read his thoughts. She shuddered with the shock of what she now knew and released his mind. As his acuity slowly returned, it was like a heaviness that spread directly to his heart.

She placed her fingertips on her temples. “My God, what on earth is this?” Grief welled inside her but she held it back. There was no sense in crying. She could cry enough tears to fill the Atlantic Ocean and it would not change anything. She looked up. “But I’m not from this Earth. Or any other for that matter.” She pressed her hands to her stomach. “It feels like my insides are sizzling.” Her face twisted in discomfort. “I feel sick.”

David reached out to her but she turned away. “You may feel like that from time to time. You’re evolving, Amber,” he said, dropping his hands to his side. “You’re growing to assume the role for which you were created.”

“My God,” she said, “this is insane and I don’t want any of this.” She turned back to David, eyes full of pain. “I want it to be the way it was.”

David shook his head sadly. “It’s your destiny. The past is the past and this is the present. Nothing can change it or make what is going to happen go away. All you can do is move forward with the great gifts you are receiving as part of your hybrid heritage.”

She strode angrily away from him. “No! I have had enough. This is all too bizarre. I’ve had my house broken into by some…some creature attacking me, I see horrible images in my dreams, my father has disappeared.” Her frustration mirrored the angry breath she released. “And the people I trust most are hiding things from me.”

“Despite what you think, everything we’ve done has been carefully planned to protect you,” Serina said softly.

Amber caught David’s gaze and her heart turned a somersault. Looking in his eyes felt like an electrocution.

“And when you told me that you loved me, was that also part of the plan.”

He shook his head sadly. “No, that is very real.”

She took in a sharp breath and felt her heart break. Somehow she knew from this moment on, her life was not her own any longer. “Why?” she asked, the word leaving her lips in a long rush of air. “I have to know.”

“It will take everything you have inside you to understand,” Serina cautioned.

Amber nodded.

“Clear your mind then. It must be open, ready to receive what you need to know. You must be willing. Eager. Like a virgin receiving a first lover.”

Amber took a deep breath. “I’m ready.”

Serina stood up, her long blue dress swirled about her ankles like an eddying river. “The charm around your neck, what do you know about it?”

Amber fingered the golden chain. “I know that I’ve always had it.”

“Take it off.”

Amber took the chain between her fingers. “I’ve already tried. I can’t.”

“Your grandfather put that necklace on you the day you were born. It has no beginning and no end. Over the course of your life, it grew as you grew, adding links to keep the pendant near your heart.”

Amber reached down and held the amulet in her hand. It was both warm and cold at the same time and it seemed to be vibrating like a steady stream of low voltage electricity was flowing through it. “What is it?”

“The Amulet of the Triad and you are its keeper. No one can remove it until it is time.”

Amber rubbed her aching head. “I’m not human, I have some sort of weird power flowing in me and now I have a magic necklace.” She groused. “Maybe I don’t want to know.”

David got up slowly and walked to her. “I know this is a lot but listen to her, Amber.”

A nervous laugh escaped her lips. “It’s like I’m a shadow. The world is going on around me and I can only watch.”

“You have a calling, Amber. A very dangerous calling you never knew existed but one that will change everything forever.” He took her shoulders and shook them lightly. “Look at me.” Her chin lifted. “You don’t have to do anything. Walk away. Now. With me. We can go someplace where they will never find us.”